Chinese Generals Summoning System

Chapter 47: Escape to Yanwang Ridge

Fan Chong, the leader of Weihu Fortress, led the remaining few dozen bandits out through a secret passage in the mountains behind the fortress and immediately headed for Yanwang Ridge to the east of Weihu Fortress. Along the way, Fan Chong executed two henchmen who were trying to slip away,It must be noted that each member of Fan Chong’s group carried a considerable amount of gold and silver. The two henchmen he executed were attempting to flee with the treasure they carried. With such wealth, they could essentially live a life of ease—who would want to remain a lowly henchman whose head could be chopped off at any moment? Although Fan Chong and his men fled in great haste, they managed to take with them all the gold that Weihu Fort had accumulated over the years—a total of approximately 5,500 taels—as well as about 6,000 taels of silver. Under the watchful eyes of Fan Chong and several of his trusted lieutenants, the group finally reached the foot of Yanwang Ridge by noon the next day. “Chief, this is all we have left. Before we go up to Yanwang Ridge, shouldn’t we hide some of it? If the people at Yanwang Ridge get greedy when they see the money, our Weihu Fortress will be finished for good!” one of the Weihu Fortress leaders muttered quietly to Fan Chong. Fan Chong hesitated for a moment before saying, “We can always earn more money, but we cannot fail to avenge the destruction of our stronghold. Besides, even if Yanwang Ridge helps us retake Weihu Stronghold, our strength has been severely weakened. Aligning ourselves with Yanwang Ridge—that mighty power—will at least prevent us from being swallowed up by other mountain strongholds. As for whether Yanwang Ridge will be tempted by our wealth, we’ll just have to leave that to fate.” In the Hall of Brotherhood on the main peak of Yanwang Ridge, the ten chieftains of Yanwang Ridge had gathered to discuss sending troops to rescue Weihu Fort. Feng Kun, the leader of Yanwang Ridge—nicknamed “Qin Guang the King of Hell”—spoke in a solemn voice to the other nine chieftains: ““Brothers, as you’re all likely aware, Weihu Fort sent two commanders to our Yanwang Ridge, offering 40,000 taels of silver in exchange for our forces to come to their aid. Right now, a government army of over 200 men is attacking Weihu Fort. Brothers, what do you say—should we at Yanwang Ridge accept this deal or not?” Zhang Shili, the second-in-command of Yanwang Ridge—nicknamed the Yanwang of Chujiang—frowned and said, “Big Brother, you must realize that Weihu Fort isn’t exactly weak. It has at least a thousand men, all of them fierce warriors, plus a unit of over thirty heavily armored cavalry. Yet now, a government force of just over 200 men has forced them to seek our aid. which shows that this government force is undoubtedly the cream of the crop. If we at Yanwang Ridge take on this job, even if we completely annihilate that government force, we’ll still suffer significant losses. For just 40,000 taels of silver, it really isn’t worth it.” Qin Guang, the King of Hell, Feng Kun, nodded and said, “Big Brother, I share those concerns, which is why I haven’t made a decision yet. However, since Weihu Fort has come to us at Yanwang Ridge for help, wouldn’t it be unchivalrous for us to stand idly by?” At that moment, Hu Hai—the Third-in-Command of Yanwang Ridge, nicknamed the “Song Emperor Yanwang”—spoke up: “Eldest Brother, Weihu Fort hasn’t even sworn allegiance to Yanwang Ridge. Why should we risk our necks for their sake over a mere 40,000 taels of silver?” The remaining seven chieftains of Yanwang Ridge—the Fourth Chief, “Five-Featured Yanwang” Cui Song,the Fifth Leader, Duan Zhi, known as the “Reincarnation King of Hell”; the Sixth Leader, Sun Lei, known as the “Biancheng King of Hell”; the Seventh Leader, Cao Yong, known as the “Qinshan King of Hell”; the Eighth Leader, Mu Bin, known as the “Equality King of Hell”; the Ninth Leader, Zhang Shuo, known as the “Metropolis King of Hell”; and the Tenth Leader, Yang Hongtao, known as the “Five Paths King of Hell”—all agreed that provoking a powerful government army for just 40,000 taels of silver was simply not worth the risk. and if that force of over 200 government troops were backed by reinforcements, wouldn’t Yanwang Ridge be asking for trouble? Feng Kun, the leader of Yanwang Ridge, saw that the other nine chieftains of his stronghold all disagreed with sending troops to rescue Weihu Fortress, so he was about to call off the deal. But just then, a henchman reported that Fan Chong, the leader of Weihu Fortress known as “Descending Tiger,” had arrived at the foot of Yanwang Ridge and demanded to see all ten chieftains. “Isn’t Weihu Fort under attack by the imperial troops right now? How did Fan Chong end up here at Yanwang Ridge?” “Has Weihu Fort already fallen to the imperial troops?” “That can’t be! Weihu Fort is in such a strategic and rugged location—how could it possibly have fallen so quickly to more than 200 government troops!” Upon hearing that Fan Chong, the leader of Weihu Fort, had arrived at Yanwang Ridge, the several fort leaders immediately began discussing the matter in a flurry of voices. At that moment, Feng Kun, the leader of Yanwang Ridge, said to Cao Yong, the Seventh Leader: “Seventh Brother, go and welcome Fan Chong, the leader of Weihu Fort. We can’t let people say that we at Yanwang Ridge lack courtesy. With Fan Chong here, we’ll find out exactly what’s going on at Weihu Fort.” It took about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn before Cao Yong, the Seventh Chief of Yanwang Ridge, led Fan Chong to the Hall of Brotherhood on the main peak of Yanwang Ridge. “Chief Feng, it’s been many years. I, Fan Chong, have come to Yanwang Ridge today without prior notice, hoping that Yanwang Ridge will send troops to help me reclaim Weihu Fort, wipe out that government army, and avenge my brothers!” As soon as Fan Chong entered the Hall of Brotherhood, he clasped his fists toward Feng Kun and said in a solemn voice. Upon hearing Fan Chong’s words, Feng Kun and the other eight chieftains of Yanwang Ridge present all looked stunned. Among all the mountain strongholds in the mountainous region bordering Yongzhou and Qianzhou, Weihu Fortress was by no means weak—it could easily rank among the top ten. How could it have been overrun so quickly by a relatively small force of imperial troops? Only Cao Yong, the Seventh Chief who had gone to welcome Fan Chong into the Yanwangling stronghold, showed no sign of surprise; he had already learned the details of Weihu Fort’s capture by the imperial troops directly from Fan Chong. Feng Kun asked Fan Chong, “Leader Fan, your Weihu Fortress had over a thousand men. How could a government force capture it so quickly? That force had only about 200 men, didn’t it?” “Ah—don’t even mention it. We at Weihu Fort really ran into a tough opponent this time. Among that force of just over 200 government troops were several fierce generals. Of our thousand-strong force, only about 70 of us, led by me, managed to escape the fort. Our Second Leader was killed, our Fourth Leader was captured, and our Third Leader’s whereabouts are unknown.” Fan Chong then gave the chieftains gathered in the Hall of Brotherhood at Yanwang Ridge a detailed account of how Weihu Fort had fallen. Finally, he added, ““Although our escape was hasty, I have managed to bring out a considerable amount of gold and silver. If Yanwang Ridge can help me retake Weihu Fort, annihilate that government army, and avenge the murder of my brothers, I am willing to offer 5,000 taels of gold. Furthermore, from this day forward, Weihu Fort will unquestioningly follow Yanwang Ridge’s lead!” When Fan Chong offered 5,000 taels of gold, several chieftains of Yanwang Ridge immediately revealed looks of greed. At that moment, Feng Kun, the leader of Yanwang Ridge, smiled and said to Fan Chong, ““Chief Fan, regarding sending troops to help you retake Weihu Fort, we brothers at Yanwang Ridge need to discuss this among ourselves. Lunch has already been prepared for you, Chief Fan. As soon as we’ve reached a decision, we’ll notify you immediately. What do you think?” “Very well, then I, Fan, will await Leader Feng’s word!”