This time, Crown Prince Dan of Yan was even more severe in his dispatch of troops.
Although Lin Tian was nowhere to be found in Yanmen Commandery, he did not rush. Instead, he steadily marched his soldiers and supplies towards Yanmen Commandery.
Such actions naturally drew great attention from Yanmen Commandery.
In the past, the people of Yanmen Commandery would not have cared who occupied it.
After all, Zhao had already been annihilated, and it was the same no matter which state occupied it.
They also felt no sense of belonging to the previous Qin.
But now, things were different. Lin Tian's army had annihilated two hundred thousand Xiongnu troops, a feat that deeply won the hearts of the people of Yanmen Commandery.
Even the previous Zhao state had never achieved such a feat.
Not to mention that Lin Tian's army was not currently in Yanmen Commandery because they were attacking the Xiongnu.
Why would they attack the Xiongnu?
In the eyes of the people of Yanmen Commandery, it was for their safety and to avenge their long-standing grievances.
Therefore, they already felt a sense of belonging to Lin Tian's army.
At this time, the Yan army was about to attack, and they naturally did not agree.
"What should we do? The Yan army is coming, and Generals Lin Tian and Li Mu are not here. What should we do?"
"What should we do? Of course, we must defend our Yanmen Commandery! We cannot let Generals Lin Tian and his army return from their great victory only to find their homes inaccessible!"
"Yes, we should defend Yanmen Commandery, defend our homes. But how should we defend it?"
This question stumped many.
If they did not care about Lin Tian and the others, they would not need to concern themselves with this problem.
But they cared about Lin Tian and the others and wanted to defend Yanmen Commandery, which made the situation entirely different.
They now had to consider the safety of Yanmen Commandery.
"Damn Yan people, they are too hateful! This Yanmen Commandery clearly belongs to us Yanmen people, why do they repeatedly invade our Yanmen Commandery!"
"Moreover, they always take advantage of our weakness when our defenses are thin to attack Yanmen Commandery!"
"These people deserve to die!"
This time, the people of Yanmen Commandery cursed the Yan army.
They had grown accustomed to living under Lin Tian's governance, and with Lin Tian's army present, they felt a greater sense of security.
But now, the Yan army was taking away their sense of security while Lin Tian was away, something the people of Yanmen Commandery could not accept.
Cursing voices erupted one after another.
However, mere curses could not solve Yanmen's problems.
Therefore, the people of Yanmen Commandery quickly began to consider more practical solutions.
"There are still some defenders in Yanmen Commandery. We can ask them to distribute weapons to us, and then we can defend Yanmen Commandery together with the Yanmen defenders!"
"Yes, we can also ask for reinforcements from the garrisons of other cities in Qin. I believe that once they know the Yan people are attacking Yanmen, they will send troops to reinforce us!"
"I agree! Moreover, as long as we hold out long enough, General Lin Tian and General Li Mu will definitely return. By then, the Yan army will be like stray dogs with nowhere to escape!"
When these words were spoken, more people agreed.
They all looked forward to Lin Tian leading his army back victorious.
At that time, all obstacles would vanish.
Because of this thought, more people became resolute in their determination to defend Yanmen Commandery.
This led Crown Prince Dan, upon arriving at Yanmen with his army, to discover that there were still many soldiers defending the city.
This situation surprised Crown Prince Dan immensely.
"What is going on? Why are there so many defenders in Yanmen? Weren't all their defenders in Xiongnu territory? Could it be that Lin Tian's army has returned?"
Speaking of Lin Tian's army, Crown Prince Dan was terrified.
If Lin Tian's army had indeed returned, he should retreat thirty li at this very moment.
He feared he would die too quickly if he stayed too close.
Fortunately, his generals had also investigated the situation in Yanmen Commandery. Upon hearing his question, they immediately provided an answer.
"It is not that Lin Tian's army has returned, but that the people of Yanmen Commandery have donned armor and joined the ranks of defenders!"
"The people of Yanmen Commandery? Why are they defending the city? Even if we break into Yanmen, we will not harm their people!"
"Your Highness, these people are lowly individuals who have pledged allegiance to Qin in a short period. Therefore, they have donned armor to resist our army's attack!"
"So, they are defending the city voluntarily?"
Hearing this, Crown Prince Dan found it incredible.
Zhao had not been annihilated long ago, and countless Zhao people had died at Lin Tian's hands.
They could not understand why, under such circumstances, the people of Yanmen Commandery would voluntarily defend the city and support Lin Tian.
If he had so many loyal supporters, his position as Crown Prince would not be as precarious as it was now; it would be as stable as Mount Tai.
Thus, Crown Prince Dan felt both envy and jealousy.
And an intense hatred.
"Since they have all voluntarily gone to the city walls, do not blame us for slaughtering the populace!"
"The moment they picked up weapons and donned armor, they ceased to be civilians and became our enemies!"
"Give the order to attack!!"
Since Lin Tian was not present, Crown Prince Dan had no qualms and immediately ordered the attack.
He did not care whether the people on the city walls were from Yanmen Commandery or not; he simply ordered his soldiers to kill.
This time, he had a considerable number of soldiers, far exceeding the defenders of Yanmen.
Therefore, although they encountered some resistance when attacking Yanmen,
they soon broke through the city gate of Yanmen.
As soon as the city gate of Yanmen was breached, all the Yan soldiers rejoiced.
"Hahaha! The city gate of Yanmen Commandery is broken! We have captured Yanmen! Yanmen is ours!"
"I knew it! Lin Tian and his army have died in Xiongnu territory! Our Yan has no more opponents! Now it's time for our Yan to rise!"
"Soldiers, kill! We have broken through the city gate of Yanmen Commandery, and no one can stop us now. You may kill or spare as you please!"
Before Yanmen was breached, these Yan soldiers had restrained their desires.
Once Yanmen was breached, they immediately wanted to slaughter wantonly and commit atrocities.
This included killing civilians and seizing their wives and daughters.
...