Murder

  Inside the city of Ji, on the training grounds, 15,000 cavalrymen gathered together, their swords and spears standing upright in the fading light of sunset, their flags fluttering in the wind. Every soldier had a burning desire in his heart, for this was not the first time they would be fighting against the Qiang barbarians. This sudden rebellion by the Qiang had enraged them all, and every single soldier within the city walls of Ji was from Liangzhou, some of whom had families that were currently suffering under the iron hooves of the Qiang horses. Upon hearing that they would be going to war with Governor Cishi, each and every one of them became spirited and energetic.

  Dian Jiangtai, the governor of Liangzhou, Left Chang Zheng stared at the majestic Han army in front of him. His heart grew more urgent, and his eyes blazed with anger towards Fu Shu, Ge Xun and others who had advised against sending troops. In his mind, he secretly thought: "After I rescue people from Yu Zhong, I'll slowly settle accounts with you!"

  "Boom! Boom! Boom!" Along with Zuochang's hand gesture, the war drums on the school field all sounded at once, emitting a thrilling sound.

  After a drumbeat, the campus fell silent for a moment, and then 15,000 cavalrymen shouted in unison, "Hansheng Weiwu!"

  Zuo Chang raised his arms, gently pressed down and took a step forward. Just as he was about to open his mouth, he saw a team of horses rushing towards him from outside the school field. The leader had a cold face, wore a steel helmet, and was wrapped in heavy armor. He rode a strong black horse with shiny fur, with a long sword hanging from his waist and a large red cloak flowing behind him, looking extremely majestic. The cloak fluttered in the wind, making him look even more powerful, it was none other than Gao Fei, the Marquis of Du Xiang.

  Behind him were twenty fully armed imperial guards, Zhao Yun, Li Wenhou, Bian Xi and others closely followed him. The rhythmic sound of the horses' hooves was like a drumbeat, sending out an equally stirring sound on this empty campus. Everyone shouted in unison: "The imperial edict has arrived! Left Chang, Governor of Liangzhou, receives the edict!"

  At the sound of this loud shout, all the soldiers on the campus knelt down at the same time, their uniform movements showing that they were well-trained elite soldiers. All the soldiers also shouted in unison, "Long live, long live, long, long live!"

  The sound was like thunder, and it rolled into the ears of Zuochang on the stage. He stared at his terrified eyes and saw that several generals behind him were kneeling on the ground without exception. He was skeptical and couldn't believe that Gaofei, who was still a bloody man just now, had suddenly transformed into a general holding a holy edict.

  Twenty-one swift horses galloped past the front of the army, their hooves almost stopping at the same time. The twenty-one warhorses also let out a long, excited whinny, as if to boost morale for Gao Fei and the others.

  Gao Fei jumped down from the horseback, reached behind his back and took out a yellow banner embroidered with golden dragon, walked straight to the commander's platform, Zhao Yun and Bian Xi followed closely behind, Li Wenhou led the rest of the people to stand neatly on the stairs of the commander's platform, pressing their hands on the swords at their waists, sharp eyes scanning the Han army generals kneeling on the ground in front.

  He stepped onto the platform, and Gao Feng saw Zuo Chang still standing there in a daze. He immediately rebuked him, saying: "How dare you, Zuo Chang! Seeing the imperial edict is like seeing His Majesty himself, yet you don't even kneel?"

  Zuo Chang saw Gao Fei's solemn expression and scanned the entire scene. Except for Gao Fei, who had brought people with him, only he remained standing. He couldn't bear the crime of disobeying the imperial edict, so he slowly knelt down, pretending to receive the edict. After shouting "Long live" a few times, before Gao Fei could announce the edict, he hastily interrupted: "A...all Marquis...where did you get this sacred edict?"

  Gao Fei did not answer, but quickly opened the imperial edict in his hand and read it aloud: "By the order of the Emperor, Left Chang, the governor of Liangzhou, has been found guilty of colluding with the Qiang barbarians to commit treason. His crime is unforgivable and he shall be executed immediately as a warning to others. The position of Governor of Liangzhou will be temporarily taken over by Gao Fei, Duke of Du Xiang. Let this be known!"

  As soon as the words fell, Zu Chang was suddenly shocked and lost his color. He abruptly raised his head, glaring at Gao Fei, shouting loudly: "This is impossible! I am innocent, how could I collude with the Qiang Hu rebels? Lord Hou, please investigate clearly..."

  "How dare you still try to quibble? I personally went to the Xiongnu region, met with Beigong Boyu and other Xianbei and Hu leaders, in order to gather evidence of your crimes. Now that the evidence is conclusive, I hastily sent someone to report to the Emperor, and the Emperor issued an imperial edict. You treacherous thief, what else do you have to say?" Gao Fei angrily shouted.

  His face turned earthy, this kind of thing he had never experienced before. Let alone rebellion, even if he wanted to think about it, he didn't dare. In his anxiety, he suddenly snatched the imperial edict from Gao Fei's hand, took a quick glance, and discovered the clue. He burst out laughing loudly and stood up from the ground, pointing at Gao Fei's nose and shouting to the crowd: "Everyone, don't listen to him! This imperial edict is..."

  With a flash of the knife, blood spurted out, and a human head fell to the ground. Only the headless body of Zuochang remained on the platform, lying in a pool of blood. The several officers behind him were splattered with blood all over their bodies, which made them even more fearful of Gao Fei. They knelt down one after another, saying: "Your Excellency, spare our lives! This matter was handled by Governor Stab alone, and has nothing to do with us. We are all equally unaware of it, please investigate clearly!"

  Gao Fei held the long sword with blood dripping from it, and saw that several generals had already believed him. He picked up the imperial edict stained with fresh blood from the ground, held it high in his hand, then wiped the blood off the sword on Zuo Chang's body and sheathed it.

  Turning around, Gao Yun faced the tens of thousands of soldiers on the school grounds, his face unchanged, and shouted loudly: "The governor has rebelled, the crime is only on one person, and it has nothing to do with others. I came from Xining all the way here, and the protector of Qiang's army had already been defeated, and Yuzhong was also occupied by the rebels at this time. Zuochang brought you to Yuzhong in a hurry, wanting to capture you all at once. You all get up, from now on, I temporarily take over as the governor of Liangzhou."

  Everyone shouted: "See the great man! The great man is mighty!"

  Gao Fei spoke loudly: "Now the rebel army of over 100,000 soldiers is heading towards Han Yang to kill. Although the city of Ji is large, there are no dangers to defend against. You must quickly pack your bags and in one hour, the army will begin to withdraw."

  As soon as they heard the word "withdrawal", some soldiers showed discontent on their faces and were dissatisfied with Gao Fei's order.

  Gao Fei looked out and said loudly: "I know your current mood, I am also a person from Liangzhou, my home is in Longxi, now it has been occupied by the rebels too. But due to the circumstances, we have no choice but to do so. The rebel army is strong and numerous, if we fight hard, we will only be defeated. For now, we can only temporarily retreat to Sanfu, hold on to Chen Cang pass, wait for the imperial reinforcements. Once the imperial reinforcements arrive, I will lead you to retake Liangzhou, recover our homeland! This is a military order, those who disobey will be killed without pardon!"

  "Yes!" All the soldiers replied in unison after hearing it.

  Gao Fei immediately disbanded the army and arranged for them to take away everything that could be taken from the city. According to his estimate, Beigong Boyu's troops should now be in Xiangwu. As night was approaching, he knew it wasn't the right time to withdraw, but in order to preserve his strength and avoid conflict with the rebel army, he decided to withdraw overnight anyway. On the side of the governor's mansion, Fu Xie and Ge Xun had already moved out of Ji City first, taking away grain, weapons, and money under the help of more than 700 cavalry led by Gao Fei earlier.

  The crowd dispersed, and Gao Fei looked up at the sun in the sky, which had already sunk into the clouds. It was about to get dark. He turned his head, took a look at Li Chang's corpse on the ground, and said slowly: "Killing one person saved 15,000 people, you can also be considered to have died with value."

  Zhaoyun accompanied Gao Fei and said, "Lord Hou, forging an imperial edict and killing an official of the imperial court are both capital offenses. Today, in front of so many people, it's hard to keep this matter a secret. I'm afraid that if word gets out later, the imperial court will investigate your crimes..."

  Gao Fei interrupted Zhao Yun's words and said slowly, "Are you willing to watch these 15,000 people go to their deaths in vain? Let's take it one step at a time. We've reached this critical juncture, and there's nothing more to say. I hope there are still people in the imperial court who understand reason... Zilong, if one day I'm no longer the Marquis but a fugitive wanted by the imperial court, will you still be willing to follow me?"

  Zhao Yun clasped his fists and said, "I understand the lord's intentions. The lord is doing this for the country and the people. Even if the lord becomes a wanted criminal of the imperial court, I, Zilong, am willing to swear to follow the lord to death and never betray him!"

  Gao Fei was deeply moved, and he hugged Zhao Yun tightly in his arms, patted him heavily on the back several times, and said softly: "Zilong did not disappoint me, from now on I will never disappoint Zilong!"

  Zhoa Yun is also a hot-blooded man, although he looks handsome, but it can't hide his masculine side at all. From Xiayang to Jicheng, he followed Gao Fei on the way, what he saw was a person who loved and cared for the people, and worked hard for the country's affairs. Although they only spent two short months together, Gao Fei always treated him like a brother. He was glad that he chose such a master, even if it meant going through trials by fire, he would be willing to take risks for Gao Fei.

  Gao Fei let go of Zhao Yun, and a hot tear flowed out from the corner of his eye. He gently wiped it away, his heart surging with passion. He had finally thoroughly conquered Zhao Yun's heart with his own actions. However, what Zhao Yun didn't know was that Gao Fei's purpose in doing so was also to gain some benefits for himself. Although it was a bit reckless, if he didn't take the risk, how would he be any different from those ordinary and mediocre commoners?

  "Life is originally a gamble, any decision will determine your future fate." Gao Fei thought to himself.

  Zuo Chang's alliance with the rebels and Gao Fei temporarily taking over as the governor of Liangzhou spread quickly throughout the city. The 20,000 Han soldiers all believed in this without a doubt, especially since Gao Fei was also from Liangzhou. They trusted that Gao Fei would not abandon his hometown and were convinced that he would lead them to retake the lost territory of Liangzhou.

  An hour later, night had already fallen, and the 20,000 Han soldiers had gathered everything. After a loud order from Gao, they began to withdraw overnight, heading towards Sanfu.