The Child Emperor-Chapter 339: Absolutely No Retreat

Han Ruzi had no choice. The army that was loyal to him from the earliest time had already reached the city walls, coming specifically to rescue the Emperor. He could not stand by and watch them die, and moreover, the Xiongnu Right Wise King would find an excuse to attack the city regardless. It would be better for Jincheng City to welcome the relief forces and defend together.

If there was still a chance to defend.

Fan Zhuangshan joined with the relief forces, but they too fell into the Xiongnu encirclement.

To prevent the Chu army from fighting while retreating, the Xiongnu changed their usual mounted archery tactics. Relying on their numerical superiority, they charged into the Chu army ranks from all directions, engaging in chaotic melee combat. The Fuyu soldiers especially focused their attacks near the city gates, preferring death to retreat.

The Chu army could no longer close the city gates. Soldiers were everywhere, and when those in the rear retreated one step, those in front would retreat two steps. Any further retreat would lead the enemy inside.

At such a time, no amount of strategy was useful – they could only endure. To retreat, they first had to advance. Only when the Xiongnu offensive weakened slightly would the Chu army have a chance to withdraw into the city.

Han Ruzi personally beat the war drums atop the city walls to supervise the battle. All officers and soldiers, regardless of birth or status, formed ranks inside the city gates and continuously charged outward. Even the temporary soldiers who had originally only been responsible for moving earth and stones took up weapons. Whether they knew how to use them or not, whether they maintained formation or not, they all joined the fight.

Civil officials held banners atop the city walls, while ceremonial guard soldiers descended to await battle.

Even Prince Donghai and Cui Teng came to the streets, standing together with the ceremonial guard soldiers, holding long spears and slowly advancing with the formation, getting closer and closer to the city gates and the Xiongnu. The drumbeats from the city walls were deafening, the battle cries outside the city shook the heavens, and among the densely packed soldiers in the streets, almost no one spoke. Only the supervising officers kept shouting loudly.

“Move forward! Move forward! Once the city falls, everyone will be killed by the Xiongnu! Protect His Majesty! Protect Jincheng City! Protect yourselves!”

Prince Donghai had just barely escaped back from the Right Wise King and was terrified of the Xiongnu. He said quietly, “He makes it sound so easy…”

Cui Teng, however, was excited. He had volunteered for battle – after which Prince Donghai had no choice but to take a stance, and the Emperor immediately agreed. He was already impatient, wishing he could stride outside the city in one step. “Everyone must fight. When we go out, these generals will follow too.”

Prince Donghai made a strange sound of acknowledgment. He felt that someone of his status shouldn’t have to fight, but he couldn’t voice such thoughts, especially in front of Cui Teng. “The Cui clan only has you as their remaining son.”

“I’m not afraid. My elder brother has a son. I would die without regret.”

Prince Donghai looked at Cui Teng with utter amazement. He had originally thought Cui Teng volunteered only to curry favor with the Emperor, never expecting him to be serious. He was nothing like the spoiled young master he had known before.

“If you must die, don’t you want to die gloriously? Don’t you want to die for an Emperor worth following?” Cui Teng glanced toward the city walls. He couldn’t see the Emperor from here, but his gaze still revealed reverence. Suddenly he said to Prince Donghai, “Come forward with me.”

“What?” Prince Donghai wished he could nail himself to the ground and only moved forward half a step when pushed by those behind him.

Cui Teng leaned close to Prince Donghai’s ear and whispered, “The ceremonial guards are all for show – they look good but are useless. Rather than entering the battlefield with them, we should find soldiers who actually know how to fight.”

The ceremonial guard soldiers were all tall, but they were accustomed to holding fluttering banners and wooden spears and halberds. Suddenly switching to real heavy weapons, they were indeed somewhat unaccustomed.

Cui Teng squeezed forward. Prince Donghai looked left and right, not wanting to move, but felt that Cui Teng was right. Since they had to go to battle, standing with experienced veterans should be safer.

After much deliberation, hesitation, and self-encouragement, Cui Teng’s figure had already disappeared. Prince Donghai finally moved his feet and began squeezing forward.

At first it was difficult – not only did he have to push through a crowd of tall ceremonial guard soldiers, but he also had to be careful of the gleaming blades and spears. However, after a few steps, people began making way for him.

The ceremonial guards recognized Prince Donghai, knowing he was the Emperor’s only half-brother, and they admired the courage he was displaying.

Some nodded respectfully to Prince Donghai, who awkwardly forced a smile. At this point, he could no longer change his mind and could only continue forward.

Before long, the people ahead not only made way for him, but also reached out to pull and push him, wanting Prince Donghai to enter the battlefield as quickly as possible.

The soldiers made these gestures with reverent hearts, but Prince Donghai only wanted to curse, especially that bastard Cui Teng, who had squeezed off to who knows where and was probably still behind him.

“Well done!” someone praised.

“Why don’t you come forward with me?” Prince Donghai replied in his heart, though he still smiled on his face. He didn’t want to smile, but the expression had grown stiff and he couldn’t take it back.

“A good man should die fighting on the battlefield!” another person shouted.

“You go – I’d rather be a eunuch,” Prince Donghai silently answered, his legs already numb as they moved forward involuntarily.

“We swear to protect His Majesty to the death!”

“The Emperor should protect everyone,” Prince Donghai quietly retorted as he walked into the gate tunnel. His vision darkened momentarily, then quickly adjusted. Looking outward, he could already see the battlefield and warriors covered in blood…

He didn’t want to walk anymore, not even one more step.

The gate tunnel was packed with soldiers about to enter battle. Dozens of officers held long shields, applying pressure from both sides, giving them no choice but to move forward.

“I am Prince Dong…” He had only shouted half a sentence when all the soldiers in the tunnel suddenly roared in unison, then surged out together. Prince Donghai had no choice at all – his status meant nothing at this moment, less useful than the spear in his hands.

A squad of Fuyu soldiers charged onto the bridge, wielding heavy axes and hammers, sweeping left and right in a frenzy, unstoppable in their advance.

Prince Donghai hadn’t seen them at first, but suddenly his vision brightened as the people blocking his view disappeared. He looked up and saw the fierce, demonic-looking enemies, freezing completely. Only one thought remained in his mind: That bastard Cui Teng lied! Who said it was safer among the veteran soldiers?

As a member of the imperial clan, Prince Donghai had also learned spear techniques, but none of it was useful now. He stared blankly as a large man charged toward him, neither dodging nor avoiding. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

A heavy hammer swept over, and a soldier beside him raised his shield to block it.

Prince Donghai knew nothing except for a ringing sound in his ears, then he was flying – truly flying, because he could see the sky without lifting his head. He spun quickly and saw the damaged bridge railing. He thought he would fall into the river and drown, but when he landed, something soft cushioned his fall. It turned out the riverbank was already piled high with corpses.

Just as Prince Donghai was about to call for help, another person fell down and struck him on the head. He lost consciousness.

On the walls of Jincheng City, there was a loud bang as the drumhead burst.

Han Ruzi stepped back two paces, breathing heavily, his arms aching and numb. But he didn’t want to stop, nor did he want anyone else to beat the drum. He had to let the soldiers fighting bloodily below know that the Emperor stood behind them, that he hadn’t hidden away in some deep mansion.

“Change the drum!”

There were spare drums in the gate tower. The guards immediately went to carry one over. The eunuchs had already moved the broken drum aside, and after the guards positioned the new drum, they all knelt down.

Han Ruzi nodded. He didn’t need close protection right now. He glanced specifically at Meng E, who said nothing and stood with the guards, her sword already drawn.

More than thirty guards went downstairs to prepare for battle. Han Ruzi turned to look – behind him remained only a few eunuchs and dozens of officials. These people’s fighting ability was too weak; sending them down would be useless, better to have them hold the flags here.

But after the guards left, many officials also knelt down. While Han Ruzi was still hesitating, one official said, “Your Majesty, the common people of the city are about to join the battle. We, as officials governing the people, should go before them.”

Han Ruzi nodded. “Take care. We will absolutely not leave the city.”

The eunuchs also requested to fight, but the officials wouldn’t allow it. “Someone must remain beside His Majesty to hold the flags.”

Boom, boom, boom…

Han Ruzi continued beating the drum. With few people left beside him, he didn’t watch the fighting on the bridge but kept his gaze fixed on the distance, observing the overall situation of the battlefield.

The situation was very dire. The Chu army hadn’t been routed, but the Xiongnu showed no signs of fatigue either. Wave after wave came endlessly, with even more troops waiting at the battlefield’s periphery, ready to join the fight at any moment.

The Right Wise King had finally obtained this opportunity and was determined to achieve victory.

Han Ruzi had only one thought: he absolutely could not retreat. Withdrawing at this moment would shatter the Chu army’s morale and would not shake off the enemy forces outside the city.

Time passed bit by bit, and the battle still showed no signs of ending. Two eunuchs found another drum from elsewhere as a backup, while everyone else, including Chief Overseer Liu Jie, all held flags and stood on either side of the Emperor, resolved to die if necessary.

This was a battle that required a miracle, but miracles only happened to those who persevered without giving up.

Zhang Youcai was the first to see the “miracle.” He pointed with his hand and screamed, “Look! That is… that is…”

It was a Chu army.

After Cai Xinghai and Chao Hua had departed with their troops, Feng Shili hesitated for a long time before finally deciding to lead his soldiers to follow behind them, to avoid being accused of refusing to rescue the emperor. However, he moved very slowly, sending many scouts ahead to explore the path. If they discovered any Xiongnu ambushes, he would immediately retreat.

Therefore, when this Chu army reached Jincheng City, the battle had already been going on for a very long time.

At first, Feng Shili still dared not join the battle. He felt that Jincheng City was about to fall, and it would be better for him to preserve some strength for Great Chu. But the battle remained deadlocked and showed no signs of ending. His subordinate generals took turns coming to request battle, and Feng Shili could no longer sit on the mountain watching tigers fight. He finally ordered an attack.

His command was very clear: not to join the battle, but to attack the Xiongnu on the periphery.

Having once been captured by the Xiongnu, Feng Shili knew well how terrifying the enemy was. With insufficient troops, he absolutely refused to fight them in the open terrain outside the city.

After long consideration, he felt he could only do one thing: attract the Xiongnu and give the Chu army a chance to retreat into the city for self-protection.

This decision of his saved everyone.

The Xiongnu were too eager to break through Jincheng City and had neglected their peripheral defenses. When they discovered that another Chu army had suddenly appeared, they were all greatly alarmed. The Right Wise King thought he had been counter-encircled and immediately ordered the entire army to turn toward the newly arrived Chu army.

The Xiongnu soldiers who were locked in combat quickly retreated, once they could no longer receive reinforcements. The Chu army finally got a chance to withdraw and defend.

Han Ruzi stopped beating the drum and observed for a moment. After confirming that the newly arrived Chu army was only luring the Xiongnu to withdraw and would not charge toward Jincheng City, he immediately sounded the gong to recall the troops.

He still did not know who the Chu army general was, but he was filled with gratitude toward this person.

The Chu army was retreating into the city, leaving countless corpses outside. Han Ruzi stood atop the city wall, feeling deeply exhausted and anxious. Unless the Right Wise King was eliminated, Jincheng City probably could not hold out much longer.

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