Chapter 160 Burning Hangu Pass

"Father-in-law, look at our grand army. After these days of forced marches, everyone is nearly exhausted, and morale is plummeting day by day. If we continue to march like this without a proper rest, I fear that even before the coalition forces can catch up to us, our own army will collapse from fatigue." Li Ru glanced back at the troops trailing behind him. Their faces were etched with profound exhaustion, and quite a few soldiers were actually dozing off while marching, which clearly showed the extent of their fatigue.

Dong Zhuo looked back over his shoulder and realized that the troops were indeed thoroughly worn out. "Very well," he said, "we shall rest here in Hangu Pass for the day and resume our journey tomorrow."

"You are wise, Father-in-law," Li Ru praised. Ever since Dong Zhuo had assumed the title of Chancellor, he had grown exceedingly fond of such flattery. Otherwise, given Li Meng's martial prowess and modest abilities, he could never have secured the post of garrison commander at Hangu Pass.

Sure enough, upon hearing Li Ru's flattery, Dong Zhuo beamed with delight, and even his previous fatigue seemed to dissipate significantly.

Inside Hangu Pass, Taishi Ci and Li Meng had already received word and immediately hurried up to the ramparts.

"Li Meng, you know what must be done next, do you not?" Taishi Ci asked with a stern expression.

"This subordinate understands," Li Meng replied, nodding. Seeing this, Taishi Ci nodded as well and continued onward to the city walls.

Upon the ramparts of Hangu Pass, Taishi Ci slowly took his station directly behind Li Meng, assuming the stance of a personal guard.

"Li Meng, why do you not quickly open the city gates and allow the Chancellor to enter? If you delay the Chancellor's schedule, can you bear the responsibility?" As soon as Li Je caught sight of Li Meng on the wall, he shouted arrogantly, putting on airs of supreme authority.

Hearing Li Je's words, a flash of annoyance stirred within Li Meng. He felt more convinced than ever that leaving Dong Zhuo's forces to join Youzhou was a remarkably wise decision. However, being a shrewd man, he quickly suppressed his irritation. Leaning forward to peer down, he spotted Dong Zhuo, Li Ru, and Li Je at the vanguard. Instantly, a look of profound joy overspread his face. "Please wait a moment, Chancellor! This humble one will open the gates right away!"

Before long, the heavy gates of Hangu Pass slowly creaked open. Li Meng and Taishi Ci hurriedly stepped forward to welcome Dong Zhuo.

"Li Meng pays respects to the Chancellor. May the Chancellor be blessed with boundless peace and longevity," Li Meng said, offering a deep bow accompanied by lavish flattery.

Hearing these obsequious words, Dong Zhuo nodded with satisfaction and smiled. "Li Meng, go quickly and make arrangements. This Chancellor intends to rest here in Hangu Pass for the night."

"Understood, this subordinate will make the arrangements immediately," Li Meng replied, turning as if to head straight into the fortress.

"Hold on a moment, General Li." At that instant, Li Ru suddenly called out. Having been stopped so abruptly, Li Meng, harboring a guilty conscience, broke out in a cold sweat. Seeing Li Meng's reaction, Taishi Ci cast a swift, fierce glare of warning from the side. Only then did Li Meng snap back to his senses and swiftly steady his demeanor. He turned back around and addressed Li Ru with a ingratiating smile, "Lord Li, is there some instruction you have for this humble one?"

"I wonder who this person is by General Li's side?" Li Ru asked. For some inexplicable reason, as Li Ru looked upon Taishi Ci, he felt this individual was far from ordinary—perhaps an intuition honed from his long years of service.

"Ah, you mean Liu Ci? He is a common soldier I recently discovered. Seeing that his martial skills are quite commendable, I promoted him to be my personal guard. Liu Ci, why don't you quickly pay your respects to the Chancellor and Lord Li?" Li Meng said solemnly, though this script had naturally been agreed upon beforehand.

"Liu Ci pays respects to the Chancellor and Lord Li," Taishi Ci said, feigning a dull and sluggish expression as he bowed.

Dong Zhuo did not even bother to glance at Taishi Ci. To Dong Zhuo, the personal guard of a subordinate general was far too insignificant to warrant his attention. Li Ru, however, merely nodded offhandedly in Taishi Ci's direction.

"Lord Li, if there is nothing further, this subordinate will go ahead to make preparations," Li Meng said with a smile. Staying here a minute longer made his heart beat all the faster.

"Go on then," Dong Zhuo said impatiently.

"Understood," Li Meng replied, turning on his heel and walking into the interior of Hangu Pass, while Taishi Ci silently followed in his wake.

Watching Taishi Ci's departing figure, Li Ru still felt a lingering trace of doubt. He somehow sensed that this man was somewhat extraordinary, yet he could not pinpoint why. Ultimately, Li Ru shook his head helplessly, attributing his unease to sheer exhaustion from the past few days.

"Li Je, Guo Si, the two of you go and settle the army," Dong Zhuo commanded.

"We obey your orders, General," the two men replied in unison.

"Zhang Ji, take the twenty thousand men under your command and guard those several thousand large wagons well. If there is the slightest mishap, I certainly will not spare you!" Dong Zhuo threatened fiercely. Those thousands of carts laden with wealth were essentially his lifeblood; hence, he would tolerate no loss whatsoever.

"This subordinate obeys," Zhang Ji said, cupping his fists. He immediately led his men to transport all the wagons into Hangu Pass. Following closely behind Zhang Ji was a young warrior clad in dark brown armor, wielding a tiger-head golden spear. Though his features were distinct, his demeanor was the exact replica of Zhao Yun. Had Liu Yao been present, he would have instantly recognized him: Zhang Ji's nephew, the premier disciple of the Spear God Tong Yuan, Zhao Yun's senior martial brother, and the Northern Spear King, Zhang Xiu.

"The army enters the city!" With Dong Zhuo's thunderous command, the three-hundred-thousand-strong army marched in an endless, magnificent procession into Hangu Pass.

Dong Zhuo's arrival naturally called for a banquet filled with excessive eating and drinking. Throughout the entire evening, Li Meng played the sycophant, serving attentively by Dong Zhuo's side. Highly amused by the continuous flattery, Dong Zhuo partook far more of the wine than usual. Had Li Ru not repeatedly muttered cautions in his ear, Dong Zhuo likely would have drunk himself completely senseless much earlier.

After the banquet concluded, Dong Zhuo retired to his quarters to rest. Though he was a veteran of many battlefields whom such a march should not have phased, ever since he became Chancellor he had indulged day and night in wine and debauchery, long ago letting his martial skills atrophy.

It was now the third watch of the night. Dong Zhuo's three-hundred-thousand troops, exhausted by the forced marches and demoralized by a continuous string of defeats, had long since followed Dong Zhuo's example and fallen into a deep, heavy sleep. They remained utterly oblivious to everything happening around them.

As for security, they harbored not a single worry. Li Meng was one of Dong Zhuo's own men; with his garrison of twenty thousand troops stationed here, what was there to fear? All they needed to do now was rest well to prepare for the continuation of the march on the morrow.

Yet at that very moment, more than a dozen figures slipped out from each of the four corners of Hangu Pass. Dressed in the uniforms of Li Meng's army, they naturally aroused no suspicion. Each person carried several large earthenware jars as they crept furtively through the winding alleys of Hangu Pass. Along the way, they poured the liquid from their jars onto the ground, instantly releasing a pungent odor of lamp oil. The spots where they poured the oil were strewn with dry grass and other highly flammable materials.

After about the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, the various groups had covered nearly half of Hangu Pass. Except for the quarters of Dong Zhuo, his civil and military officials, and the location of the thousands of treasure wagons, every other corner had been soaked in lamp oil. The areas surrounding the encampments of Dong Zhuo's three hundred thousand troops, in particular, received the most thorough treatment.

Finally, the four groups converged at a central point. The four leaders each produced a flint from their robes. Without a moment's hesitation, they ignited the flints and hurled them onto the oil-soaked dry grass. Tiny flames flickered and slowly began to spread across the entire expanse of Hangu Pass.

These men were naturally members of Liu Yao's covert intelligence unit. Even before Dong Zhuo arrived at Hangu Pass, Liu Yao had arranged everything, planting flammable materials throughout the fortress specifically to treat Dong Zhuo to a grand barbecue feast. Dong Zhuo's army, exhausted as they were, certainly had no energy to conduct inspections. Moreover, since Hangu Pass was currently under Dong Zhuo's own control, his troops were even less inclined to be vigilant.