Chapter 118: Releasing the Prisoner

"General, although we discovered the flood early and avoided heavy casualties, a massive amount of accumulated snow has blocked the river channel, causing a deluge of water to pour into the city."

"Quickly, order the men to deploy the warships!"

"General, the flash flood is still raging. If we head out rashly, it will cost men their lives in less than half a quarter of an hour!"

"Boom!" A massive wall of ice and snow slammed into the city gates, emitting a deafening roar that made one's heart skip a beat, sounding like a clap of spring thunder exploding right in one's ear.

Beyond the ice and snow, the rising water acted like a beast quietly devouring everything in its path.

At the Jiang Wen military camp, Lu Meng sighed from the side: "It seems you truly belong in the military, rather than in a place of comfort enjoying the rest of your life. With such thunderous methods, Huang Zhong will likely not escape his fate this time."

Jiang Wen smiled slightly. "I have already said that old General Huang Zhong is no ordinary man. This time, we shall let him go."

"Let him go? Why? This old man nearly took my life! Ever since I was wounded by him, I have been obsessed with him day and night!" Lu Meng asked in disbelief.

"I don't expect you to be magnanimous, but if he surrenders later, his life and death will be in your hands," Jiang Wen replied.

The entire army gazed toward the city, waiting for the flood to subside before launching their assault.

"Help..."

The snow flood was like a mudslide, except it was composed of ice and snow; there was no doubt that anyone engulfed by it had almost no chance of survival.

Countless soldiers scrambled toward higher ground, while those who were too slow were swallowed by the torrent.

The water inside the city rose steadily, reaching the rooftops of the civilian houses.

"All troops, advance!"

"Kill!"

Wooden boats navigated the icy waters, sailing straight into Baling. The soldiers drew their bows and fired at any enemy troops they spotted, sending bodies plunging into the frigid water.

Several soldiers leaped from the boats, cleared the rooftops of enemy troops, and returned to their vessels.

"Whoosh!"

"General, watch out!"

Jiang Wen instinctively ducked, a few strands of hair falling as a graze was left on his right cheek, while the arrow plunged into the water.

He looked up at the city gate tower to see an aged general, clad in armor with eyes as sharp as an eagle's. The arrow had come from him.

"You old wretch! I've been thinking about this moment day and night, and now I finally see you. Dammit, I'm going to take your life!"

Jiang Wen held Lu Meng back, his face stinging with pain as blood trickled down his cheek. He shouted, "Is that old General Huang on the tower?"

"It is I, you little rat! Why do you call for me?"

"I admire your martial prowess, General. If you surrender, I guarantee not a single soldier will be harmed!" Jiang Wen wiped his face with his sleeve, gasping slightly. It was fortunate he was a bit far from Huang Zhong; any closer and that arrow would have struck his head.

"Why should I believe you?"

"The city is already flooded. You and your men have nowhere to run. If I were truly a cold-blooded, murderous person, I wouldn't be discussing this with you—I would have simply ordered my men to slaughter you all."

On the tower, besides Huang Zhong, there were several personal guards.

"General, we cannot retreat. Even if we tried to flee, we would never get out of Baling. If you don't surrender now and he orders an attack, all our soldiers will be wiped out!"

"Yes, General, please surrender! Give us a way to live!"

"Please, General, surrender!"

Huang Zhong looked out over the city. Everywhere was flooded, with wood debris floating in the water. Not far away, enemy troops were fighting with those on the rooftops, leaving behind a trail of corpses.

"I surrender!"

Jiang Wen nodded and said to Lu Meng, "Pass the order: command the army to cease fire."

Outside Baling, at Jiang Wen's camp, Huang Zhong was brought in, tightly bound. The generals gathered to look at the old warrior as Jiang Wen walked into the tent.

"Greetings, General!" Gan Ning and the others saluted. Jiang Wen took his place in the commander's seat and looked at the securely bound Huang Zhong. "Untie him."

"General, you cannot!" Zhou Tai said, bowing. "Although this old general is aged, he is robust and his strength is not inferior to that of an ordinary man. If he were to launch a surprise attack, we could not afford the risk!"

"Let it be as he says; keep me bound," Huang Zhong said, his expression calm and devoid of joy or anger. "I surrender, but I have conditions. First, release all my men; their wives and children are still in Changsha!"

"Second, leave me with a whole corpse."

"There are nearly twenty thousand captives, and you want us to release them all?" Lu Meng sneered. "Have you lost your mind from the heat these past few days? As for leaving you with a whole corpse, I feel like tearing you limb from limb right now!"

Gan Ning also gave a grim smile. "An enemy captive daring to negotiate with us? If you hadn't surrendered so quickly, I would have had my fill of killing!"

"I also believe the General should not listen to his nonsense. Now that Han Xuan has lost so many men, we can lead our army directly to take Changsha!"

"Indeed, with Han Xuan having lost so many troops, this is the perfect time to strike. They will certainly be unable to defend!"

Huang Zhong closed his eyes in resignation. Though he had surrendered, he did so only to find a way for his men to live.

He himself had no desire to submit, so he sought death as a release. After all, once dead, one knows nothing. His unreasonable demands were simply meant to provoke Jiang Wen.

"Releasing them all is absolutely impossible. I will only allow you to take five thousand men with you!" Jiang Wen said abruptly, making the cold air in the room drop even further.

The surrounding generals exchanged confused glances. Had they heard correctly? Did they mistake "kill" for "release"?

"Release General Huang along with them."

Hearing this, Huang Zhong jerked in surprise, but because he was bound so tightly, he soon knelt again.

For the first time, the calm expression on his face was replaced by shock. His eyes were filled with confusion—or rather, disbelief. He had only mentioned those terms to provoke Jiang Wen, never imagining that he would actually agree to release five thousand men.

"General, are you saying you will release me and five thousand captives?"

"Since I have given my word, I shall keep it. A gentleman's word is as good as a team of four horses. Zhou Tai, untie General Huang."

"General!"

"Untie him."

"I obey!"

Zhou Tai bowed to Jiang Wen and walked behind Huang Zhong, cutting the ropes with his blade.

Huang Zhong flexed his wrists. "Why? I have no recollection of ever knowing you, General. Yet, why would you spare my life and even release five thousand captives?!"

"My Prime Minister is young and ambitious, and he is in need of talented men from across the land. This is not only out of my respect for you, General, but also because I wish to preserve talent for the Prime Minister." Jiang Wen did not bother to hide his blatant recruitment.

Huang Zhong said solemnly: "General, I have served Han Xuan for many years. I will never defect to another. I thank you for your appreciation, but if you still wish to kill me now, I will not resist and will accept my fate!"

"But if you truly release me, should we meet on the battlefield again, I will not hold back because of today's grace!"

Lu Meng stepped out of the ranks, his expression urgent. "General, Han Xuan has lost twenty thousand troops. This is a golden opportunity to take him down. These are twenty thousand captives! Even if you only release five thousand, they are living, breathing men, not twenty thousand buns. You are being merciful to them, but they will not show such mercy to you or our soldiers on the battlefield!"

"We also ask the General to reconsider! We must not let the tiger return to the mountain!"

Jiang Wen descended from his seat and stood before Huang Zhong. Though the man was old, his skin was taut over lean, powerful muscles, and his palms were thick with calluses.

Jiang Wen said: "I wish to make a wager with you, General. Are you willing?"

"I am listening."

"I will let you go this time. The next time we meet—at the battle of Changsha—if you are defeated by me again, you will surrender to our Prime Minister. Do you dare?"

"Are you truly letting me go, and not joking?" Huang Zhong looked into Jiang Wen’s determined eyes and couldn't help but laugh loudly. "I have been in the military for decades, and this is the first time I have met such a general! Ha-ha! Very well, I agree! But know this: on the battlefield, we are enemies locked in a life-or-death struggle, and I will not show mercy because of today's favor!"

Jiang Wen watched as Huang Zhong led his men away. Before leaving, Huang Zhong bowed respectfully once more. However, Jiang Wen’s own generals remained suspicious and puzzled. Back in the tent, some wouldn't even look at Jiang Wen, and Lu Meng sat with his eyes closed, feigning sleep.

What Jiang Wen had done today was truly unacceptable to the officers; not only did it shake the morale of the troops—who had spent a month achieving this victory only to see it evaporate due to a single word from Jiang Wen—but it was also a gamble.

Jiang Wen sat in the commander's seat. "It seems you all hold deep grievances against me today."

The generals refused to answer. Jiang Wen nodded and asked, "Then, in your opinion, what kind of man is Han Xuan?"

"A mediocre fool, barely worth mentioning," Gan Ning mocked. "It’s just a pity that this fool now has five thousand more soldiers."

"If he has five thousand more soldiers, is he no longer a fool?" Jiang Wen asked. When the others remained silent, he continued, "As General Gan Ning said, Han Xuan is nothing, but Cao Cao and Lu Bu are figures of true significance. Cao Cao dominates the north and could attack Xinyan or Shouchun at any moment. And Lu Bu, that puppet king crowned by Yuan Shu, could lead his forces to attack Wancheng at any time."

"The Prime Minister needs talent."

Gan Ning laughed with disdain. "General, you think too highly of the enemy. To me, he is just an old man; if we really fought, his old bones wouldn't last half a move!"

"General, we shall take our leave now. We need to restore the morale of our troops."

"We take our leave."

Lu Meng paced around the tent for a long time before sitting down. "What were you thinking? Looking for trouble where there is none? Do you realize that by releasing those five thousand men, you’ve just increased Han Xuan’s combat strength?!"

"In the past, King Wei of Qi compared treasures with the King of Wei. The King of Wei used a precious pearl to mock King Wei of Qi, but then King Wei of Qi presented four 'treasures' that shamed the King of Wei into leaving." Jiang Wen looked at Lu Meng calmly. "Those four treasures were not gems or jewels; they were men—unparalleled talents."

"Is the Prime Minister lacking talent? Besides, after we conquer Han Xuan, what methods couldn't we use?" Lu Meng countered. "Is one old man really worth it?"

"The world is full of talent, but no king has ever complained of having too much. A thousand soldiers are easy to find, but a single general is hard to come by!"

"Fine, fine, you are the commander, and you call the shots in this camp. I’m going to rest." Lu Meng bowed and left. "I truly don't understand your way of thinking!"

Jiang Wen sighed. Being misunderstood was unavoidable. His thoughts were not entirely on Huang Zhong, but more on the general behind him: Wei Yan.

That was a peak combatant of the late Three Kingdoms era. Wei Yan was a fierce general, capable of both attack and defense, and possessed brilliant strategic ideas—though the "Ziwu Valley" strategy was never implemented.

As for what would have happened if it had been, that was a matter for later generations to debate.

In Xiangyang, at the Prime Minister's residence, Wu Jing bowed and said: "Prime Minister, Jiang Wen has captured Baling, but without your permission, he released five thousand enemy troops, including their general. I believe Jiang Wen has developed a treacherous heart and is using this act to curry favor with Han Xuan!"

"General Wu is right. I also believe this to be true. Prime Minister, Jiang Wen’s motives are suspicious. He should be recalled to the capital immediately, stripped of his rank and assets, and exiled to a place of hard labor!"

Sun Ce remained silent, staring at the bamboo slips. He set them aside and picked up another scroll. "I have heard what you have all said. This is a letter I have written; I will send someone to deliver it to him shortly."

"Prime Minister, to be safe, should we send another general to accompany the messenger, to ensure Jiang Wen can be captured?"

"There is no need. I have already made my decision. Do not trouble yourselves further. You may all leave!"

"We obey."

"I never imagined the Censor-in-Chief would make such a mistake at a critical moment. I wonder what he was thinking. This time, we will surely be able to drive him out of the court."

"Aren't you curious about what is written in the Prime Minister's letter?"

"What else could it be? Naturally, it’s a summons for Jiang Wen to return to Xiangyang and a stripping of his military command."

"Shouldn't that be issued as an Imperial Edict?"

"Tsk, the Emperor is far away in Jianye, and the Imperial Seal was taken by him. How could he use an Imperial Edict? Use your head."

"True. Just thinking that the new policies won't be implemented makes me feel incredibly relieved, like a spring breeze in midsummer!"

"Agreed, agreed! Come, let’s go to my estate and have a drink!"

In the guest quarters of the Prime Minister's residence, Sun Ce held the bamboo slip and smiled bitterly. "Tell me, Changsu, what kind of trick is he playing this time?"

Zhou Yu sipped his tea and replied, "Does the Prime Minister need to be suspicious?"

"Do you think Changsu would fancy Han Xuan? A mere governor holding onto Changsha with no real ability? Even if Changsu were blind, he wouldn't collude with him," Sun Ce said lightly.

Zhou Yu smiled faintly. It seemed he didn't need to say anything for Changsu. "And what is in the bamboo slip you gave?"

"Just a word of consolation. Xuzhou was recently defeated, but the grain supplies were not looted. I want to know how much grain Changsu has left so I can prepare to send more to him," Sun Ce said. "Where has Han Dang arrived?"

"He has likely reached Lujiang by now. This is a letter written by Han Dang, in which he shifts all blame onto Advisor Kuai."

Sun Ce smiled with disdain. "He thinks he can shift the blame? Over thirty thousand men isn't something you can just wash your hands of. If he doesn't relinquish his military command, the penalty for violating his military oath alone will be enough to cost him his life."