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As night fell, the world grew quiet.
Zheng Jian had spent the entire afternoon chopping wood and constructing siege engines, and by now, the preparations were nearly complete. However, since it was already dark, they had no choice but to wait until dawn to launch their assault on the city.
Between setting up camp, felling trees, and crafting siege equipment, even Zheng Jian's iron-willed soldiers were utterly exhausted. After their evening meal, those not assigned to guard duty crawled into their tents and immediately fell into a deep sleep.
The surroundings were silent, save for the chirping of insects in the grass by the mountainside.
A sentry standing atop the watchtower in the camp let out a huge yawn, his eyes watering slightly. He rubbed his face, forcing his eyelids to stay open, but before long, they drooped shut again.
There was no helping it—human physiology wasn't something one could control at will. He was simply too tired. They had expected to rest after entering the pass, but instead, they had to set up camp, chop wood, and forge weapons, laboring through the afternoon with backbreaking work…
Suddenly, the war drums atop Hangu Pass erupted like rolling thunder, echoing across the mountains and startling the sentry so badly he nearly toppled from his perch!
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!" the sentry shouted as he frantically struck the alarm gong.
Amid the thunderous drumbeats and the sentry's hoarse cries, soldiers rushed out of their tents in panic. Some had only managed to throw on their armor, others clutched their weapons, while a few held torches, their bleary eyes darting around in confusion.
Zheng Jian burst out of his tent, still in his day clothes, and saw the flickering torches atop Hangu Pass. The relentless drumming filled the air, and he immediately shouted, "Beware of the enemy attack!"
Unfortunately, his voice was too weak, drowned out by the drums. Zheng Jian then strained his throat, bellowing at the top of his lungs, "Beware of the ene—"
Just as he uttered the third word, the drums atop Hangu Pass abruptly ceased, and the torches were extinguished all at once, as if nothing had happened.
Zheng Jian reflexively finished his sentence: "—my… cough…" Only then did he realize that everyone around him had turned to stare. Despite his years of experience in officialdom, his face flushed red with embarrassment. Thankfully, the darkness concealed his reaction.
The soldiers waited in silence for a while longer, but the night remained still and dark. Realizing they had been tricked by the defenders of Hangu Pass, they cursed under their breaths and trudged back to their tents to resume sleeping.
Zheng Jian stood in place, tilting his head in thought. Something felt off, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. Frowning, he returned to his tent.
Less than half an hour later, the war drums atop Hangu Pass thundered once more, accompanied by wildly waving torches!
Chaos erupted again in Zheng Jian's camp. Soldiers cursed loudly as they grabbed their weapons and armor, rushing out of their tents…
But before long, the drums fell silent again.
Zheng Jian suddenly understood and snorted in disdain. "This is nothing but a fatigue tactic!" he declared loudly. "Pass my order—divide the troops into two shifts, taking turns to rest!"
Following his command, half the soldiers remained on guard while the other half gleefully returned to their tents, plugging their ears and burying themselves under blankets, hoping to get as much sleep as possible before their shift began…
The drums from Hangu Pass started up yet again. A group of soldiers leaned lazily against each other, using their spears as makeshift crutches, yawning listlessly to the rhythm of the drums.
"How many times is this now?"
"Damned if I know. I just wanna get some sleep before dawn…" one soldier muttered before letting out an enormous yawn, tears welling in his eyes.
His companions caught the contagious yawns. "Yeah, we've got to attack at dawn. How the hell are we supposed to fight without any rest?"
The soldiers grumbled carelessly, completely unaware that a unit of troops was quietly closing in on their camp.
Zhang Liao and Huang Cheng led the way, counting silently before simultaneously reining in their horses and pressing them to the ground. They covered their mounts' muzzles with one hand while soothing the animals with the other, signaling the soldiers behind them to do the same. Instantly, the entire group crouched low.
Though the horses were unaccustomed to stopping and lying down repeatedly, they sensed their riders' calm and only snorted in mild protest, their muzzles still muffled.
"General, is it about time?" Huang Cheng whispered to Zhang Liao.
Zhang Liao gauged the distance to the enemy camp and gave a quiet hum of affirmation. "This will be the last drumbeat…"
If not for Fei Qian's suggestion, Zhang Liao would never have realized how many of his soldiers suffered from night blindness. Out of two hundred Bingzhou cavalry, fewer than half could see clearly in the dark. Even with Huang Cheng and a few others, they barely scraped together a hundred men.
But this realization also gave Zhang Liao confidence—if his own troops had night blindness, surely Zheng Jian's camp wasn't filled with soldiers who could see perfectly at night?
Zhang Liao estimated the timing and dispatched a few soldiers to stealthily remove the wooden barricades (deer antlers) outside the enemy camp, clearing a path for the cavalry charge.
The scouts returned and reported in hushed tones that they had cleared most of the obstacles, except for a few near the campfires, which they dared not touch for fear of alerting the sentries.
Zhang Liao nodded, then glanced back at Hangu Pass. Seeing the torches flicker several times in succession, he issued a low command: "All troops, prepare!"
Huang Cheng and the rest quickly mounted their horses, weapons at the ready, waiting for the drums to sound.
As the war drums roared once more, Zhang Liao leveled his spear and spurred his horse forward with a sharp cry, leading the charge!
The thunderous drums masked the sound of hoofbeats. By the time Zhang Liao and his riders appeared within the torchlight of the camp, using their spears to sweep aside the remaining barricades, the sentries on the watchtower finally realized—this was a real attack!
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!" the sentry screamed, pounding the alarm gong furiously.
"We know, we know…" a soldier inside the camp grumbled, leaning lazily on his spear. "How many times is this now—" His words cut off as he suddenly felt an unusual tremor in the ground. After a stunned pause, it hit him—this was the real deal! Cavalry was upon them!
"This is it! They're really here this time!" Panic spread not only among the soldiers but also the low-ranking officers, who scrambled to organize a defense.
But it was already too late.
Huang Cheng picked off the sentries on the watchtower one by one, while Zhang Liao smashed through the camp gates with a mighty blow. The Bingzhou cavalry stormed in like wolves among sheep, cutting down everything in their path.