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The soldiers stranded outside the city gates, left leaderless after the deaths of both Zheng Jian and the Yang surnamed general, were at a complete loss. Just as they stood bewildered, Fei Qiang had Zheng Jian's corpse hung from the city wall. The sight struck the soldiers dumb. After standing frozen for a moment, someone—no one knew who—turned and fled. In an instant, the entire force broke apart and scattered, vanishing completely, leaving behind only a field of corpses and the wreckage of various siege implements.
With the outcome now decided, Fei Qian finally allowed his tightly-strung nerves to relax. Immediately, a wave of exhaustion washed over him; every muscle in his body seemed to ache. He could no longer support himself and slowly slid down to sit with his back against the parapet.
The sky had plunged into complete darkness by now. The only light came from the flames near the city gate. Towering infernos consumed everything combustible. The indescribable, acrid stench of charred human flesh and grain, mingling with the thick, metallic odor of blood saturating the city walls, created a nauseating miasma.
Yet, Fei Qian didn't feel the same intense revulsion towards the smell of blood as he had the first time. Compared to then, merely being alive felt like a blessing. No matter how foul the air was, it was infinitely better than the fate of those lying motionless on the ground.
He involuntarily turned his head. Though only the area near the gate was brightly lit, the rest shrouded in darkness, Fei Qian felt as if he could still see that pair of eyes, staring fixedly at him from the shadows...
In his previous life, the largest living creature Fei Qian had ever killed was a chicken. On that occasion, he hadn't held it firmly enough. As he tried to cut its throat, the chicken broke free. With its neck half-severed, it flapped and scrambled wildly on the ground, splattering chicken blood everywhere.
From that day on, Fei Qian never slaughtered another chicken or duck himself. He always had the market vendors do it before bringing them home, too afraid to personally take the life of a larger creature again.
But just moments ago, he had personally ended a human life...
Fei Qian stretched out his hands. In the flickering firelight, the dried blood caking them took on a sinister, dark brownish-black hue, like the color of dried lava.
Sometime later, without him noticing, Zhang Liao walked over and sat down beside him. Zhang Liao stretched his legs out straight, leaned back against the parapet, and let out a long, weary sigh.
"Listening to your personal guard, Ziyuan, he said you just killed a soldier?"
"Mn," Fei Qian grunted in affirmation.
After a moment of silence, Fei Qian asked, "Brother Wenyuan, do you remember the first time you killed someone?"
"Of course I remember. How could I forget?" Zhang Liao began. "My family was originally from Mayi in Yanmen. Later, because..." He paused here, then continued in a slightly lower voice, "...Ziyuan, have you heard of the 'Stratagem of Mayi'?"
"The Stratagem of Mayi?" Fei Qian mimicked Zhang Liao's posture, leaning his back against the parapet and stretching his legs out. He thought for a moment. "Is Wenyuan referring to the events from over three hundred years ago?"
Zhang Liao gave an affirmative hum. "...I am originally a descendant of the Nie clan..."
"The Nie clan?" Fei Qian raised an eyebrow, turning to look at Zhang Liao. "The Mayi Nie clan?"
"Yes, the Mayi Nie clan," Zhang Liao repeated. After another pause, he continued, "Back then, my ancestor, Nie Weng..."
As it turned out, Zhang Liao's original surname wasn't Zhang, but Nie. He was a descendant of Nie Yi, an immensely wealthy merchant from Mayi during Emperor Wu of Han's reign.
At that time, Junchen Chanyu of the Xiongnu demanded a heqin marriage alliance with Emperor Wu of Han. However, the court was split into two major factions: the moderates, who advocated for continuing the heqin policy, and the hardliners, who believed the Xiongnu needed to be taught a lesson.
Zhang Liao's ancestor, Nie Yi, supported taking action against the Xiongnu. Coincidentally, he was a guest at the home of the Grand Ambassador Wang Hui and offered him a strategy. He suggested luring Junchen Chanyu into the frontier passes at Mayi to plunder, then ambushing and wiping out the Xiongnu forces. Grand Ambassador Wang Hui thought it an excellent plan and proposed it to Emperor Wu. Emperor Wu ultimately approved the plan, dispatching five senior generals: Commandant Li Guang as General of the Swift Cavalry, Chamberlain for the Imperial Stud Gongsun He as General of the Light Chariots, Grand Ambassador Wang Hui as General Who Garrisons, Grand Master of Ceremonies Li Xi as General of the Infantry, and Imperial Censor Han Anguo as General Protector of the Army. They laid a massive ambush around Mayi, waiting for Junchen Chanyu to fall into the trap.
However, as Junchen Chanyu advanced, he noticed livestock in the fields and villages, but not a single person. This aroused his suspicion. He sent troops to attack a frontier watchtower and captured a junior officer. Under torture, the officer broke and revealed the truth: over 300,000 Han troops were lying in ambush near Mayi. Realizing the deception, the shocked Chanyu immediately ordered a retreat. The "Stratagem of Mayi" thus ended in failure.
General Wang Hui, as the chief proponent of the plan who failed to engage the enemy, was imprisoned and executed, becoming the scapegoat. The other generals involved also gradually lost their military authority afterwards, replaced by a new generation of commanders more aligned with the Confucian scholars...
The Nie clan of Mayi did not escape disaster just because a scapegoat had been found. Having offended the Xiongnu Chanyu while contributing no merit to the Han dynasty, and with Junchen Chanyu launching multiple invasions in retaliation against Han, many people harbored hostility towards the Nie clan. Consequently, the Nies could no longer remain in Mayi. The entire family fled to avoid reprisals, moving to Jiuyuan and changing their surname from Nie to Zhang. The family's fortunes also declined because of this event...
Zhang Liao said, "...I was fourteen when the elders of my family took me beyond Yanmen. They caught a Hu man and made me kill him with my own hands... I still remember the warmth of his blood splashing on me when my blade cut him down... That was the first person I killed. After it was done, I cried uncontrollably, heh..." He let out a dry, humorless laugh. "...This has also been a tradition my family has insisted on for three hundred years. A rite of passage for every male upon turning fourteen, so that we never forget the family's..."
Zhang Liao didn't finish the sentence. His tone seemed flat, but Fei Qian could hear the profound sadness buried within it. For a moment, he was at a loss for words.
They could have steadily remained a powerful local clan. Of course, one couldn't rule out that Nie Yi had ambitions to advance further at the time. But his intentions were ultimately good. Moreover, in matters of war, no one could guarantee absolute success. Yet, after the stratagem failed, they not only had to bear the blame but were also despised by their fellow Han people...
Zhang Liao told Fei Qian this for two reasons. On one hand, he felt Fei Qian was a decent man; they had fought side-by-side, and he was responding to Huang Cheng's request to offer some guidance. On the other hand, Zheng Jian's dying words had also struck a nerve...
Because Zheng Jian believed he was right, so Zhang Liao was just supposed to stand there and let himself be killed?
If he resisted, he was aiding a tyrant and deserved a wretched death?
His ancestor, Nie Weng, had been caught in the strife between the old and new generations of military leaders. His family hid from the repercussions for over three hundred years. Never did he imagine that now, Zhang Liao himself would be entangled in the conflict between the lands east and west of the mountains (Shandong and Shanxi)...
Sigh!
Fei Qian could sense Zhang Liao's goodwill. Unless someone was inherently vicious, the first time killing another person at fourteen was certainly not a pleasant experience. That Zhang Liao was willing to share this, using it to comfort him...
"Wenyuan, I haven't yet thanked you for teaching me the spear technique. Thank you."
"No need for courtesy," Zhang Liao said, turning to look at Fei Qian. "Haha, it seems you've been consistently practicing the Zhongping Spear technique I taught you!"
This came as a pleasant surprise to Zhang Liao. After all, it was quite rare for a scholar with no prior martial arts background to persist in training. Furthermore, the simplest things were often the hardest to maintain—a truth Zhang Liao knew well from his own experience.
Zhang Liao said, "It's a pity my spear style isn't really suitable for you, Ziyuan. However, before I took up my post as an Official in Jiuyuan, I traveled extensively in the northern regions. I met someone in Zhending whose spear skill was truly exceptional. One could say he had perfected the flexible aspect of spearplay to its extreme. If you're interested, Ziyuan, you could seek this person out to learn that flexible spear style..."
Fei Qian silently committed this to memory. This chaotic era was about to begin. Every additional skill increased his chances of survival.
The long night of blood and fire finally passed. The massive logs of the battering rams beneath the west gate burned through the night, gradually dying out as dawn approached.
It was a new day. Only, one wondered what foul shadows might still linger beneath this new sun...
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AN: The time around the Stratagem of Mayi coincided with Emperor Wu of Han vigorously promoting Confucianism...
Many military commanders also exited the stage around that time, like Wang Hui, Han Anguo...
Han Anguo originally studied under the Legalist school of Han Feizi...
As for whether there were other factors involved... history books contain no record...