Chapter 506
“Haha. What a joke!” Wang Kang sneered.
“Lord Wang Kang, please withdraw.” Wang Kang’s two bodyguard cautioned as they defended him from Pang Tong’s attacks.
“Pang Shiyuan, don’t waste your energy. These two are skilled warriors that have killed hundreds on an actual battlefield. How could a scholar like you compare? Just die obediently. We will make sure its painless.” Wang Kang wanted Pang Tong’s head to smoothen his relationship with the Kuai Family and to curry favor with Pang Shanmin.
Pang Tong narrowed his eyes. He could fight but he was definitely not as strong as the two warriors. A few of his subordinates have already been killed as well.
“Die!” The two warriors shouted after reaching Pang Tong.
“Do you think you can kill me so easily?” Pang Tong sneered.
“Are you still going to struggle fruitlessly?”
“It is not yet decided who will die here! I am just buying time!” Pang Tong said fiercely as he threw away his longsword.
“That’s just a bluff. Have you given up now?” Wang Kang asked in disdain.
Just as the two warriors were about to kill Pang Tong, they suddenly felt the atmosphere turn heavy.
“Not good! Withdraw!” One shouted to the other and they both quickly jumped back.
However, someone else was faster than them. Zhang Fei suddenly appeared, took the longsword thrown by Pang Tong and gave a horizontal slash.
The younger warrior blocked it with his sabre only for his sabre to shatter. He was cut into two just as his eyes widened in realization of what happened.
Pang Tong’s longsword was given to him by Liu Bei. Naturally, it was of higher quality.
“Xi Zi!” The older warrior called out to his friend. He and his friend had always been together. They had thought that being a noble’s bodyguard was a safe job. Yet, his friend had already been killed.
“Hmph! Longswords are for women!” Zhang Fei said. His smile made his scarred face look even more malevolent. His injury was not yet completely healed but it was good enough for him to move. At that point in time, the person he wanted to kill the most was Huang She. It was Huang She who made him suffer a cruel treatment.
“Third General. Kill that man and leave Wang Kang for me.” Pang Tong ordered.
“Understood, Military General.” Zhang Fei laughed. He was not used to the longsword but it should not pose much of a problem against that warrior.
“You killed Xi Zi!” The warrior glared at Zhang Fei
“So what?”
“You killed him so quickly!” Wang Kang shouted in fear. Even those he had seen killed merely had their throat’s cut. It was not like Zhang Fei’s victims who ended up in two pieces, spilling internal organs everywhere.
“You must die! For Xi Zi!” The warrior shouted.
“You will see him soon!” Zhang Fei replied.
The warrior tried to attack Zhang Fei but before his sabre could reach Zhang Fei’s heart, he had his throat sliced. The warrior died with regret.
“You are all that’s left.” Zhang Fei pointed the still bloody sword towards Wang Kang.
“Don’t come any closer!” Wang Kang staggered backwards. Zhang Fei was like a demon to him. He had only battled others with words while Zhang Fei was killed people so easily.
Hearing this, Zhang Fei approached even more, causing Wang Kang to wet himself. Zhang Fei immediately lose interest. He immediately threw Wang Kang towards Pang Tong and said, “He is yours!”
Pang Tong ignored the filth and squat down. “Lord Wang Kang.”
“Second Lord! Spare me! Just think I was a stupid dog that do not know how to appreciate kindness! I do not want to die!” Wang Kang begged with his face covered in tears.
“Spare you? That is possible!” Pang Tong replied.
“Ah! Second Lord is generous!”
“Tell me. Who divulged the secret that I killed Tang Yun?” Pang Tong believed his assassination of Tang Yun was flawless but someone else still found out about it.
“That is…” Wang Kang stuttered.
“Why? Is Lord Wang Kang ready to speak?” Pang Tong asked indifferently.
“It is the King of Shu and Lady Cai!” Wang Kang replied. Liu Mang found out about it and informed Lady Cai. Lady Cai then told Liu Biao.
“Liu Mang and that slut!” Pang Tong said hatefully.
Before this, Pang Tong was simply enemies with Liu Mang out of obligations. Now he had a personal hatred for Liu Mang. He blamed Liu Mang for causing him for being disowned and blamed Lady Cai for breaking her promise, ignoring the fact that he caused this by killing Tang Yun.
“Who else besides you know that I am here?” Pang Tong asked again.
“Nobody else!” Wang Kang waved his hand as he replied.
“Really?”
“Really! Really!” Wang Kang nodded. He wanted to monopolize this contribution so he kept the location a secret.
“Good! Everyone, it is time to leave!” Pang Tong commanded his remaining subordinates to pack up and leave. He then handed Wang Kang back to Zhang Fei. “Third General. I will leave him to you.”
“I understand.” Zhang Fei, who had returned the longsword back to Pang Tong, picked up the sabre from the ground.
Wang Kang panicked. “Second Lord! Didn’t you say that you will not kill me?”
“That’s right. I won’t kill you but the Third General is not me!”
Knowing there was no escape, Wang Kang cursed hatefully till his last breath. Zhang Fei licked the blood off his face.
Pang Tong quickly got on a carriage while the others got on their horses.
“Military Advisor! Are we leaving now?” One of Pang Tong’s remaining subordinates asked.
“Yes! We cannot stay in Jingzhou any longer.” Pang Tong who was disowned lost his political immunity. Many others like Wang Kang would be out to kill him.
“What about the provisions at Fancheng?”
“Those provisions!” Pang Tong turned gloomy. He was more heartbroken about this compared to others. On top of that, he would not know how to face Liu Bei without it. The soldiers at Nanyang were waiting anxiously for it. Without these provisions, they might as well surrender since they can’t do anything on an empty stomach.
Pang Tong gritted his teeth. “Liu Jingsheng! Since you are not benevolent, do not blame me for this injustice! Men! One of you send a message to Wancheng! Tell the Lord to attack Fancheng and threaten Xiangyang!”
“Military Advisor! Attack Fancheng?” One of the subordinates was shocked. Were they going to declare war on Jingzhou?
“We are already at war!” Pang Tong sneered. He knew that both Jingzhou and Yangzhou might join forces from this but he had no choice as the two have already allied. Capturing Fancheng to take their provisions and threaten Xiangyang was the only way out.
The distance between Fancheng and Xiangyang was one day by land and half a day by river. It can be said that Fancheng was a shield for Xiangyang. If Fancheng falls, Xiangyang would be next. If they could capture Fancheng quickly, they could immediately attack Xiangyang as well. This can threaten Jingzhou and Fancheng could be used on the negotiation table. Liu Biao would have to obey if he does not want to move the capital.
The messenger and Pang Tong went their separate ways. With Wang Kang’s seal, Pang Tong was also able to avoid the spot checks. That being said, someone still noticed them.
“Did you see that?”
“Yes. They used Wang Kang’s seal to pass through unobstructed.”
“Are they leaving Xiangyang?”
“Yes.”
“Good. Inform the Lord. It is time to act.”
“Military Advisor. We have left Xiangyang and are heading to Shangyong now.” Pang Tong’s subordinate informed. Instead of heading towards the ferries, Pang Tong and the others headed towards the opposite direction. They also used a route that was difficult to pass through.
When Pang Tong asked about the expected time, he was told that there was still a day’s worth of journey. This caused him to frown as the road was bumpy. Pang Tong himself did not want to use this route but it was the safest route.
Even though they had already travelled for more than a day, Pang Tong was still uneasy. “Keep going even if we have already reached Shangyong.” Shangyong was part of Zhang Lu’s territory. Zhang Lu had a purely neutral relationship with Liu Bei. He was the best neighbor considering the fact that Cao Cao, Tao Qian, Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu and Gongsun Zan all had neighbors that want them dead.
The borders of Shangyong had no troops because Zhang Lu did not want to provoke Liu Biao. Zhang Lu’s territory was also rich in provisions like Jingzhou so they had no need to fight each other.
Pang Tong’s prediction was correct. If he had gone to the harbor, he would have run into the Cai Family’s navy who were there waiting for him under the pretext that the area was not peaceful. Unfortunately, Liu Mang’s men, led by Guan Hai and Zhou Cang had been following Pang Tong
“Men! They are here! Time to move!” Guan Hai ordered the soldiers. These people were all harmed by Zhang Fei so they were happy to take the chance to have revenge on Pang Tong. Guan Hai was the first one to sign up for this mission. Initally, Liu Mang wanted Zang Ba to do this as Zang Ba was calmer and more skilled. However, since Guan Hai nominated himself, Liu Mang had no choice but to select him. After all, Liu Mang had trust in his subordinates and did not want to disappoint Guan Hai.
Chapter 507
“What’s going on?” Pang Tong’s bad premonition grew stronger the moment the carriage stopped.
Guan Hai and eleven others had ridden their horses to the front of the carriage. Although Guan Hai wasn’t particularly good at riding a horse, catching up to a carriage was not a problem. He then ordered his soldiers to attack without any lengthy introduction.
Pang Tong’s subordinates also noticed the assailants and took out their swords. While they outnumbered Guan Hai’s group, they had to leave a few men behind as Pang Tong’s last line of defense. As a result, the ones that went to intercept Guan Hai was outnumbered instead. They also did not have any valiant generals and were easily defeated.
“The King of Shu ordered me to kill the traitor Pang Tong! Come out and accept your death!” Guan Hai shouted as he pointed his sword at Pang Tong’s carriage.
“The King of Shu?” Pang Tong sighed. He knew the journey would not be safe which is why he decided to take a detour instead of going straight towards Yuzhou. Pang Tong thought to himself that once again, he had been outdone by Liu Mang. However, he overestimated Liu Mang again. Liu Mang had only dispatched Zang Ba to the escape route at the river. Zang Ba was now on the Cai Family’s ship. The one that thought of cutting off Pang Tong here was Jia Xu. Jia Xu had thought of this route the moment he accompanied Liu Mang to Jingzhou because he had been looking for a way to escape if negotiations turned sour.
“No matter! No one can stop me from returning to Yuzhou!” Pang Tong said malevolently. “Third General! I will leave this to you!” Pang Tong ordered for his men to leave a horse behind for Zhang Fei.
“Don’t worry, Military Advisor. I will make sure these people do not return!”
Guan Hai waited for Pang Tong’s reply1, when suddenly Zhang Fei rushed out on a horse. One of Guan Hai’s subordinates was immediately lift off his horse through his neck by Zhang Fei’s Serpent Spear.
“Xiao Si?” Zhang Fei was so fast that Guan Hai did not have the time to react. “Let go of him!” Guan Hai shouted.
“Haha. You want him? You can have him!” Zhang Fei gave a mad laugh and then tore apart the soldier. The soldier’s corpse fell to the ground in multiple pieces.
“You are courting death!” Guan Hai’s subordinates all became angry as well and charged at Zhang Fei but they were stopped by Guan Hai.
“General Guan?” The soldiers all looked at Guan Hai, feeling confused.
“You all are no match for him.” Zhou Cang explained instead. The soldiers all knew that while Zhou Cang was not the smartest person around, he was not a liar. If Zhou Cang said they cannot win, he would mean it.
“So you are still alive.” Guan Hai said to Zhang Fei. He had expected Zhang Fei to be killed by Huang She but evidently, this was not the case.
“Hmph. How could I die before you?” Zhang Fei responded with provocation.
“It doesn’t matter. Today you will die. Since the Heavens spat you out, I will personally send you down to Hell!” Guan Hai said as he took out his sword.
“Do you think you can? You are just someone selling your own head!”
“Hm?” Guan Hai was familiar with those words. There was one person that told him that in the past before making him lose everything.
“Zhang Fei! Die!” Guan Hai shouted as he charged at Zhang Fei.
“Come! Since Second Brother could not kill you, let this Zhang Fei finish the job!” Zhang Fei’s killing intent surged.
Guan Hai wanted to kill Zhang Fei for all of his dead subordinates while Zhang Fei wanted to kill Guan Hai because of Liu Mang. To him, Liu Mang, Guan Hai and Huang She were people that needed to die.
“Die!” The two surging killing intent scared all the horses but they managed to calm down after being pacified by the soldiers.