The crowd was growing larger on the other side of the passage, drawn by the commotion.
Yang Jiye surveyed his surroundings, his golden saber in hand. Apart from his veteran brothers-in-arms and a few of his sons by his side, everything else felt unfamiliar.
"Yang Jiye!"
Suddenly, he heard someone calling his name. Yang Jiye turned to see Zhe Yuqing of the Zhe family!
"Brother-in-law? What are you doing here?" Yang Jiye pushed through the crowd towards him, bewildered as to why the Zhe family army, stationed in the northwest, would be here.
Previously, Zhe Yuqing had only seen the Yang family banner and a figure he suspected was Yang Jiye, but he wasn't certain.
Now that it was confirmed, he looked at Yang Jiye with equal confusion. "It really is you? Weren't you in Yanzhou?"
Before the two could figure out what was happening, a fierce shout erupted from nearby.
"Zhe Yuqing, you walk the path to heaven but choose hell, coming here of your own accord!"
"Hahahaha, give me your lives!"
The two men immediately looked in that direction and saw a group of foreigners who had, somehow, appeared behind the Yang and Zhe armies!
One of them pointed his weapon at Zhe Yuqing, his killing intent almost tangible.
The soldiers behind him launched an attack on the Zhe family army.
The civilians mixed amongst them, witnessing this, immediately panicked. They had no time to ponder how this situation had arisen, each covering their vital points and pulling their wives and children towards less crowded areas.
"Madam, I see the master's banner, and the Zhe family's banner as well."
"But it seems someone is engaging them!"
On the periphery, within the Yang family army, Yang Paifeng jumped down from the wooden platform and reported to She Saihua.
She Saihua's spirit stirred upon hearing this, and she shot up from her seat.
"Daughters-in-law, follow your mother-in-law to aid your father-in-law!"
With that, she grabbed a long spear and charged towards the passage.
Hua Jieyu, Geng Jinhua, Dong Yue'e, Ma Saiying, and Chai Meimei, the five daughters-in-law, quickly led their retainers in following.
Gao Huaide, Cao Bin, and Shi Baoxing, seeing this, also dispatched their own skilled fighters to assist.
Near the passage, Zhe Yuqing's surprise turned to elation as he recognized the attacker's face.
"Li Jiqian! It's you, you scoundrel, give me your life!"
Saying this, he led the generals behind him to charge towards the enemy.
Yang Jiye was greatly surprised to hear this. Western Xia forces had inexplicably appeared nearby. What on earth was going on?
However, he knew this was not the time to investigate and immediately led his men forward.
Not long after the Zhe family army and the Western Xia army engaged, Yang Jiye arrived. His golden saber was strapped to his back, and he held an AK-47 to his chest, unleashing a barrage of fire at the Western Xia army.
The crisp sound of gunfire was exceptionally distinct amidst the chaotic crowd.
Zhe Yuqing glanced back and then let out a hearty laugh. "Hahahaha, men, retreat, make way for the Yang family!"
Yang Jiye's acquisition of a thousand Divine Spears had already spread throughout the Song dynasty's military families.
Now, seeing the Divine Spears in action, he wouldn't let his own men suffer unnecessary casualties. The Zhe family army, as ordered, retreated, clearing a space for the Yang family. Their formation spread out, and hundreds of AK-47s unleashed a furious assault on the Western Xia soldiers.
Li Jiqian was dumbfounded. He had only lost focus for a moment, then saw his old adversary Zhe Yuqing not far away, which prompted him to order an attack.
He had no idea that he had led his men into a world passage, nor had he seen the banner embroidered with the character 'Yang'.
Watching his men fall one after another before him, his mind was filled with question marks.
What was happening?
"Pfft~"
Before he could comprehend anything, he was hit in the forehead by a bullet. A hole the size of a bowl erupted from the back of his head, scattering white and red. His eyes glazed over as he fell.
*The Great Tang Yu Kingdom: Chronicle of This Sphere*: In the autumn of the fifth year of Zhenguan, the founding emperor of Western Xia, his achievements unfulfilled, died by stray gunfire in the Americas.
With Li Jiqian's death, this brief encounter, which had lasted less than five minutes, ended with the rout of the Western Xia army.
Countless civilians had gathered around the passage. These Western Xia soldiers couldn't even find a direction to flee and were subsequently captured by the arriving Yang, Shi, Gao, and Cao families.
Only a few quick-witted individuals managed to escape by shaving their heads, discarding their armor, and blending into the crowd amidst the chaos.
Li Xiaogong, who was arguing with Cheng Yaojin and the others, was stunned by the sudden burst of gunfire.
"There's a situation!"
He said, drawing the large black pistol from his waist and looking warily towards the passage.
The others reacted similarly. The nearby guards quickly used walkie-talkies to contact their companions closest to the passage.
"Your Highness, three armies emerged from the passage and began fighting for unknown reasons. One of the groups is using AK-47s!"
"The banners are Li, Yang, and Zhe. The ones firing are the group with the Yang banner!"
Upon hearing the latter half of the message, Li Xiaogong, whose heart had been in his throat, let out a sigh of relief and sat back down.
"Alright, if nothing unexpected happens, it's bound to be that kid Anzhi's doing again!"
Niu Jinda grumbled beside him, "Anzhi is too ungracious. He's equipped us brothers with only the Yun-2 style, yet he gives the AK-47 to outsiders!"
The Yun-1 style of the Nine Grand Commanderies had already been upgraded to Yun-2 style. The retired Yun-1 styles were being used by the various Grand Commanderies to form their second firearms army.
These men had been coveting the AK-47 for a long time, but Fang Er could only spare them ten or so to satisfy their craving. For large-scale deployment, they still had to get past the stingy old man.
No money was the most powerful excuse.
Chai Shao smiled slyly. Among the Nine Grand Commanderies, only his forces had a unit of five hundred men equipped with AK-47s. He had managed this through his daughter's persistent requests to Fang Er.
Zhang Gongjin's face immediately soured upon seeing his expression. He slapped the table, pointed at Chai Shao's nose, and cursed.
"What are you smiling about? Isn't it because you have a good daughter? Do you believe I'll marry Yuan Shuang to him too?"
"Heh heh~ Is that called marrying? It's only called bringing her in!" Chai Shao gave him a triumphant eye-roll.
His wife was Chai Yue, and their legitimate daughter was Changle. This was an unchangeable fact.
Anyone else wishing to enter the Fang family would only be a concubine, not a wife.
Marrying a wife required three matchmakers and six rites, a procession with eight sedan chairs through the main gate, and paying respects to heaven and earth, and to parents.
A concubine, however, could only be brought in through the back door and did not pay respects to parents.
It wasn't just the difference upon entering the household; in daily life, concubines had no property rights or parental rights.
Take Fang Xia for example; when he grew up, he would have to call Chai Yue "mother," while Xiao Qing would only hold the title of "Auntie."
Chai Shao arrogantly held up three fingers to them: "Let me tell you, there are only three things I've done most proudly in my life!"
"Rising up with the former emperor!"
"Marrying Xiuning!"
"Taking Anzhi as my son-in-law!"
"Hehehehe, you can all be jealous! You have no chance in this lifetime~~"