Chapter 99 Hangu Pass Standoff (1/2)
Chapter 99 – Hangu Pass Standoff
May 17th, Hangu Gate.
The gigantic twenty-meter-tall stone wall stood firm, blocking any intruder from passing the valley from Xinan County to Luo Yang City. The wall extended from the northern Yellow River toward the south, crossing Qinglong Mountain into Fenghuang Mountain.
This gate was once used by the Qin army during the Qin Shi Huang's reign. He gathered his forces her to fend off the alliance of six states and ultimately repelled the invaders.
Now, it was used again by Zhu Jun, Huangfu Song, and He Jin forces. They had camped 150,000 elites on this wall.
Meanwhile, Dong Zhuo army of 250,000 men still stationed inside Xinan County with no sign of following the instruction of the imperial court, which He Jin had sent messengers to Dong Zhuo many times to have him retreat his troops, then he would be able to enter Luo Yang to pay respect to the deceased Emperor.
The tension between the borders grew tense as both sides could declare war on each other at any moment. Despite the fact that Dong Zhuo had taken major cities from the Imperial Court, He Jin still did not dare to declare war on Dong Zhuo as he had more troops than the Imperial Army.
Zhu Jun and Huangfu Song also tried many strategies to convince Dong Zhuo to stand down and avoid the conflict, but both of them failed.
Secondly, he had heard two pieces of concerning news. Hua Xiong, who was famous at the western front against the Qiang barbarian tribes, was here as well. Such elite general being here meant that Dong Zhuo was serious.
And the most terrible news, the third prince, who Empress He had swapped away with another child, was under the custody of Dong Zhuo.
The three Imperial generals already lost the hope for the reconciliation of Dong Zhuo. They could only prepare for war.
…
Inside He Jin's camp, there was a colorful tent at the center, next to He Jin's private tent. It was the tent of Empress He, who sought protection from her brother in order to avoid the assassins of Liu Ping.
Empress He, or He Xing, was still in her early 30s, and her appearance looked as if she was still in 20s. Because of the good hygiene, proper food, and good upbringing, she grew into a dignified beauty who was worthy to be called the Empress.
However, the news about her youngest son, who was under the protection of the rebel Dong Zhuo, worried her. She could not eat a meal after she had heard it.
But tonight, a black-clothed man sneaked into her tent and passed her a letter. It was a message from Dong Zhuo.
”I knew what kind of difficulty you had been through when you went against the first prince. I can help you with that! All you have to do is to convince He Jin and the others to open the gate and welcome me into Luo Yang City. Once I get inside, I promise you that I will get rid of Liu Ping and those pest eunuchs to make sure your son will be the next Emperor!”
He Xing's eyes brightened up. She immediately sent a reply letter and told Dong Zhuo that she was willing to follow his plans.
”Messenger, tell Lord Dong that I will help him. Please tell him that he has to protect my son and ensure that he will be the next Emperor!”
”As you command, my lady!”
The black-clothed messenger rushed out of the tent and disappeared into the darkness of the night.
He Xing looked at the letter in her hand in a daze. After a while, she carried the letter and visited her brother in his tent.
”Brother, I have something that you might be interested.”
The Empress passed the letter to He Jin. He took the letter and read it.
His face changed from the deep frown into a smiling face after he read the letter. He could finally see hope.
After the death of the second prince and the dummy third prince, he was in a tough spot. He could not find a way to break the encirclement from the eunuch faction and the first prince faction.
If he could get rid of the first prince, then the eunuch faction would be terminated easily as they no longer had any supporter. Furthermore, Yuan Shao and Cao Cao had been glaring at the eunuch faction for a while. He could use both of them to raid and kill the eunuchs, then reestablished his influence in the Imperial Court later.
”Well done, girl! I'll send another letter to Dong Zhuo so we can negotiate our terms!”
Seeing her happy brother, He Xing was elated. Both of them continued their discussion to prepare for the fight with Liu Ping in the future.
…
May 18th, Morning.
He Jin planned to send another messenger to negotiate the terms with Dong Zhuo today. However, he was interrupted by the sudden change of events.
Another army from the Imperial City of Luo Yang had arrived. It was a small 10,000 infantry troops. If it was just another army with any commander, He Jin would ignore it. But this army had a surprise for him.