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For the first time, Fei Qian felt the immense pressure of being a leader!
There was no option to save or reload!
No strategy guides or cheats to rely on!
A single thought could mean life or death!
If he hadn't stopped the post station's overseer from dumping the water from the vats earlier that night, even if Fei Qian and his men had managed to escape, they would have surely been severely burned while passing through the flames. It was crucial to remember—this was the Han Dynasty. There were no effective treatments for burns or scalds. Even a minor wound could become infected, fester, and ultimately threaten their lives.
If he hadn't impulsively ordered Huang Xu to take some men to guard the rear courtyard where the Cai family's collection of books was stored, they might have all been trapped inside the compound with no way out. Without Huang Xu using the heavy carts to ram through the courtyard wall, it would have been impossible to break through the brick-and-stone structure with just their swords and spears, let alone create a gap wide enough to escape.
Even though they weren't completely out of danger yet, just thinking about how close they had come to disaster sent chills down his spine…
Fei Qian rubbed his face vigorously with both hands. He desperately needed to calm his nerves and think clearly.
Now, he wasn't just responsible for his own life—he also had to bear the weight of the lives of Huang Cheng, Huang Xu, and all the others who followed him.
Taking a deep breath, Fei Qian carefully assessed their surroundings before pointing east. "This way!"
Without hesitation, Huang Cheng and the others immediately stood and moved to shield Fei Qian as they headed east. They didn't ask why they were going in that direction, nor did they question what they would do if they encountered soldiers coming from the eastern city wall.
They trusted Fei Qian. They believed he would find a way out of this desperate situation, just as he had in the courtyard surrounded by flames.
The eastern part of the city not only had soldiers—it also housed the inner fortress.
The northern side of Hangu Pass's inner fortress was built against a cliff, so no wall had been constructed there. The eastern side directly connected to the main eastern city wall, leaving only the western and southern sides with fortified walls. The southern inner wall was relatively long, while the western inner wall was much shorter…
Most importantly, the western inner wall also connected to the northern mountain, forming an irregular wall surface with a steep slope…
Now that he had calmed down, Fei Qian's analytical abilities kicked in—
If they were all expert climbers, the northern route would undoubtedly be the best. The southern route would be the easiest, but escaping from the enclosed valley would pose a major problem…
The western route was the most dangerous. Not only would they have to deal with the soldiers descending from the western wall, but even if they broke through, they might run straight into the so-called "Yellow Turban" forces outside the city!
At this point, Fei Qian was certain that these "Yellow Turbans" were most likely not the real deal.
If they were genuine Yellow Turban rebels, Zheng Jian would never have dared to openly attack him while the rebels were at the city gates! Even though his private troops were few in number, with most of the city's forces already led away by Guo Pu, defending against the Yellow Turbans would require every available soldier—even conscripting civilians to assist. Why would Zheng Jian waste resources targeting him when a major enemy was at their doorstep?
This could only mean one thing: these "Yellow Turbans" outside the city posed no real threat to Zheng Jian!
So, what kind of "Yellow Turbans" would make Zheng Jian feel completely at ease?
Hmph!
As the eastern search parties drew closer, Fei Qian couldn't help but feel grateful for night blindness…
Right now, despite Zheng Jian's numerical advantage, his soldiers could barely see anything without torchlight. This slowed their search efforts significantly. Otherwise, they would have already converged in the city center, leaving Fei Qian no chance to escape.
Zheng Jian's forces were already stretched thin, and after losing Commander Chen at the post station, he had no choice but to personally lead the remaining soldiers. Though the two flanks seemed imposing, coordination was undoubtedly sluggish—especially since the soldiers from the city walls had descended to search the streets, leaving the walls thinly guarded…
Fei Qian lightly patted Huang Cheng's shoulder and gestured. Silently, the group turned north, hugging the base of the inner fortress's western wall as they crouched and moved toward the cliff.
The inner fortress only had a few torches near the southern wall and its corners, with a handful of guards stationed there. However, the section near the cliff was completely unmanned…
Huang Cheng felt the cliff face and squinted upward in the dim light, frowning. "Young Master Fei, there's an overhanging rock blocking the way. I'm afraid we can't climb up!"
The few men who weren't affected by night blindness also looked up, equally troubled—
The slope at the base of the wall allowed them to press against the fortress wall and ascend gradually, but the massive protruding rock above them was like a lid, making it impossible to climb further.
Fei Qian pointed at the wall. "We're not climbing the mountain—we're climbing the wall."
Climb the wall? How?
Though the wall had a slight incline, it was still nearly vertical, with no handholds in midair. How could they possibly scale it?
Fei Qian grabbed a section of rope, then signaled for a soldier to hand over his spear. Tying the rope around the middle of the spear, he handed it to Huang Cheng. "Uncle Ye, can you throw this onto the parapet?"
Huang Cheng immediately understood Fei Qian's plan but hesitated. "Visibility is poor. If we need to thread it through an arrow slit, it might be…"
Fei Qian nearly laughed—Huang Cheng didn't need to aim for such a difficult target. He gestured and said, "Just lodge it between the battlements."
"That's no problem!" Huang Cheng took the spear, tested its weight, and prepared to throw…
"Wait!" Fei Qian stopped him again, then took off his outer robe and wrapped it around the spearhead.
Seeing this, Huang Xu also removed his outer garment and even had a few others do the same, layering several pieces of clothing over the entire spear to muffle any noise…
Once ready, Huang Cheng gripped the now-bulky spear, took aim, and hurled it upward!
The weighted spear's balance was off, so instead of flying straight between two battlements as intended, it struck the edge of one, ricocheted, and landed on the inner fortress wall with a soft thud…
Huang Cheng carefully tugged the rope, adjusting the spear's position until it lodged firmly between two battlements. After testing its stability, he was about to climb when a patrolling soldier holding a torch rounded the corner from the southern wall, leisurely approaching…