Chapter 44 Killing Intent
Rong Si's camp outside the city was hit squarely!
The powerful firepower dispersed large swaths of smoke and dust, and the area outside the city walls was shrouded in smoke, while the bugle call for the attack sounded magnificent and resounding.
Commander Chai Feng received the news just then and rushed out of his tent in a panic, shouting, "Those bastards actually launched a sneak attack! They're sons of bitches!"
He blew his whistle to gather the troops, and a melodious bugle call followed closely in the camp.
The smoke of war spread along the city walls in all directions.
The sound of bugles echoed continuously over the vast city of Long'an.
The troops in the military camp immediately organized themselves and set out.
All around, there was a chorus of powerful clanging sounds of armor and weapons.
Rong Si emerged from the main camp, grabbed his long sword, blew his whistle to summon his mount, and immediately mounted it.
As Zong Cheng followed him out, he quickly explained the sudden situation: "They are indeed quite capable. They fooled us, launched a surprise attack, and used a modified slingshot. Their firepower is immense."
Rong Si said coldly, "We used clods of earth, not stones."
Compared to stones, clods of earth are less powerful but more deceptive.
The explosion creates smoke and dust everywhere, making it difficult to see the opponent.
Zong Cheng nodded, "Moreover, their strategy is to launch a surprise attack, and they have split into three routes, one on the east and one on the west, and one at our city gate."
"If the Queen's guess is correct, the attacking force should not be large. We have already prepared fire in both the east and west cities."
A sneak attack is about taking someone by surprise.
It is a method to minimize losses and quickly defeat the enemy.
Just as Zong Cheng finished speaking, a dark figure suddenly darted out from the dusty air and swung a long sword at them without saying a word!
The chilling aura of swords and blades exploded instantly.
With a clang, the weapons clashed, producing a loud metallic clang that assaulted everyone's eardrums.
Rong Si dodged the intruder's long sword, the blade spun, and sliced through the man's collar and neck!
He directly threw the person coming from the opposite direction off his horse!
Immediately afterward, a tremendous roar of attack erupted from behind the smoke and dust barrier.
Heading straight for the gates of Long'an!
Rong Si gave Zong Cheng a few simple instructions: "Don't panic, just attack, don't defend."
"clear."
After Rong Si finished speaking, he and Zong Cheng each headed towards the west and east sides of the city.
Commander Chai Feng watched as they all left.
But all around were still the majestic and resounding shouts of the enemy.
His adjutant couldn't help but ask, "Should we do as that bandit suggested and go to the east and west of the city to provide assistance?"
Chai Feng slashed at the waist of the oncoming enemy, "Didn't they say the main city gate wouldn't have much firepower? This is fucking not much firepower?"
"We really shouldn't have listened to those bandits..."
As he spoke, another sound of hacking and slashing filled his ears, and blood splattered all over his body.
With a stern face, Chai Feng withdrew from the midst of swords and spears. "Fine, leave me some troops. The rest of you go and provide support on both sides."
The lieutenant asked with some concern, "Are you sure you can handle it?"
"I have to do it, even if I can't! Go now!"
The lieutenant immediately withdrew.
Smoke and fire quickly filled the air amidst the sounds of battle.
Chai Feng charged into the enemy camp with his sword drawn, and a bloody storm swept through the area outside the city.
Wave after wave of attacks came one after another.
The drums at the city gate beat louder, sounding from afar like countless reinforcements rushing towards their camp.
Upon seeing this, the commander of the Daizhou troops immediately shouted, "Don't rush to attack, hold them off!"
Their goal was to tie down the large number of troops stationed at the gate of Long'an City.
This would allow troops launching surprise attacks from the east and west sides of the city to enter smoothly and launch a pincer attack from both inside and outside.
Chai Feng managed to stall them for an hour or so.
They attacked while retreating, hiding in the layers of barracks outside the city.
The Daizhou troops pressed their advantage and charged into the front ranks of the camp.
"Chase them! Suppress them!"
The soldiers of Daizhou were extremely excited. "We never thought these reinforcements could be that powerful. They started running into the enemy lines as the fighting went on."
The military camps they could see were filled with smoke and dust, and only the figures of the Long'an troops preparing to retreat back into the city remained.
"The general is right. There is indeed no need to send out a large number of troops. The number of us is enough."
They naturally caught up, and the leader of the troops excitedly opened one of the tents with his spear, only to find it completely empty!
The man's face stiffened, and when he turned around, he found that all the other soldiers' tents, which had been opened, were also empty!
The large number of reinforcement tents at the city gate were almost all fake.
The troops are not here.
Where is it?!
The commander realized almost instantly, "Damn it, we've fallen into a trap."
Suddenly someone shouted, "This isn't empty!"
The soldiers went forward to investigate and found signs that someone had been active in the tent.
The soldiers lifted the bedding and saw a sack sparkling with fire!
The next instant, a deafening roar!
Chai Feng retreated to the city wall and directed firepower to attack the enemy's rear.
In an instant, a burst of flames shot into the sky!
An hour or so later, the city gate was shrouded in a deathly silence, the smoke and fire completely gone. Chai Feng gazed at the vanished flames of war before him.
Yet, a sense of unease lingered within me, like the calm before the storm.
At first, he was prepared to fight to the death, but he calmed down quite quickly.
The soldiers beside him went down to clear out the remaining enemy troops.
Chai Feng waited for him to come up, then asked anxiously, "How many people are there in total?"
"About a thousand soldiers?"
Chai Feng frowned, quite surprised. "Only a little over a thousand?"
At first glance, he thought it would cost around five thousand.
That means that the troops launching the sneak attack from the east and west sides each had at least five thousand troops!
This was almost exactly what the bandits had guessed.
Chai Feng immediately picked up his spear. "You guys stay here, the rest of you come with me to help!"
Meanwhile, a chaotic battle raged in the east and west of the city.
There were instances of Daizhou soldiers breaking through the city gates and storming into the city.
They immediately set their sights on the rows of houses and courtyards around them, and without saying a word, kicked open the doors and barged in.
The rough and uncouth soldiers caught sight of the stacks of grain and hay piled up at the entrance, and without saying a word, they plunged their long swords into them!
The sharp blade rapidly heated up by friction in the gunpowder mixed with white phosphorus.
The moment it was pulled out, it ignited the white phosphorus, which in turn set off the gunpowder buried in the haystack!
The entire courtyard was thrown into chaos in an instant!
Some soldiers managed to escape and ran out of the courtyard, only to find a dark hole in the city wall pointing in their direction.
A fireball instantly magnified in his pupils!
The firepower from the city walls indiscriminately attacked the enemies both inside and outside the city.
The soldiers from Daizhou were furious, "Damn it, no wonder they didn't stop us from entering the city, they were waiting here."
They couldn't even find a single civilian in the entire city to take hostage.
All the houses were empty.
The haystacks outside were stuffed with explosives. On the battlefield, gunpowder is never piled up like garbage at the entrance.
The Daizhou troops that invaded saw no enemy, but they also had no advantage whatsoever.
The troops and reserves outside the city, completely unaware of the danger, rushed in, only to be trapped like turtles in a jar.
The attacking troops noticed something amiss and halted their advance.
Herren, the leader, narrowed his eyes and spat out the straw he was biting. "They're trying to lure us into the city so they can switch from defense to offense. So we won't go into the city."
The soldiers nearby, hearing this, thought that Heron had given up the fight. "General..."
"Attack the city walls." Herren stared at the swarming figures on the city walls. "They're using the city walls as their defensive stronghold, so let's break through their walls and attack their base."
"We beat them so badly they had no choice but to come down and fight us."
He also knew that the people of Long'an dared not fight face-to-face because they lacked the chance of winning a direct attack.
As soon as he finished speaking, the grappling hook behind Herren slowly rose, and the surrounding area echoed with the creaking sound of the ropes tightening.
They aimed directly at the firing positions on the city wall.
Herren narrowed his eyes and raised his hand.
The soldiers behind him tightened the ropes and then suddenly let go!
The gunpowder, encased in clods of earth, spun away!
It hit the city wall with pinpoint accuracy!
Some soldiers were blown away by the powerful firepower.
The offensive on the city wall weakened instantly.
Su Fang lowered his head and hid behind the battlements, but clods of earth still rained down on him.
Just as he was about to straighten up and continue his attack, he peeked out and saw a continuous stream of dark, earthen balls hurtling towards the city wall.
Immediately afterwards, a group of Daizhou soldiers carrying ladders swarmed up the outer perimeter of the city wall.
The flying stone rope aimed directly at him was stretched to its tautest point.
Aim at their location and prepare to strike.
However, in the next instant, an invisible blade shot out from his side!
The rope directly below the flying stone rope!
The sharp blade cut through the rope and plunged straight into the throat of the soldier behind it!
Su Fang held his breath slightly and turned around to see Rong Si nocking his bow and drawing his arrow again, the tip of his sword burning with a fierce flame.
His eyes and brows were illuminated by the firelight as he stared intently at the enemy forces ahead.
Let go again!
The rocket feathers instantly pierced the spun earth ball in mid-air.
The earthen ball exploded before it even reached the city wall!
The scattered stray fire landed directly on the soldiers of Daizhou.
Upon seeing this, the people on the city wall immediately took out their fire arrows, drew their bows, and aimed at the unlaunched flying stone ropes.
Many gunpowder clods of earth crashed directly onto the soldiers of Daizhou before they could even breach the city walls.
Seeing this, Herren's face darkened and he said coldly, "You all continue. The rest of you, get to the city wall!"
The remaining troops were mobilized in full force, ready to launch a strong attack on the defended territory.
Rong Si put down his bow and arrows, turned around and went down the city wall. He mustered a group of soldiers and charged out of the city gate with great force!
Directly aimed at the approaching Daizhou troops!
The city of Long'an was engulfed in flames of war.
The only guard struggled to move the stone door of the underground palace, and it took him a long time to get it open.
Yu Wanyin joined in to help.
The stone gate was heavy, and the others inside the underground palace also stepped forward upon seeing it.
Rice cake gritted its teeth and kicked its hind legs, listening to the creaking sound of the stone gate moving on the ground.
Scattered pebbles fell from the stone gate.
There were plenty of pieces of wood and clods of earth thrown in from the bombing outside.
After exhausting all their efforts, everyone finally managed to close the stone door back into place.
Yu Wanyin took a long breath and turned to see the little girl standing awkwardly to the side, looking in the direction outside.
Violent tremors occasionally emanated from outside the stone gate.
Everyone's hearts trembled upon hearing this.
The guards stood on either side of the stone gate, listening vigilantly to any sounds coming from outside.
Yu Wanyin was remarkably calm compared to those around her.
After all, we've seen a lot of them lately.
She walked over and pulled the little girl to sit down beside her, then got up and went to the cellar in the underground palace to get food.
The people standing nearby watched her with tense expressions.
Yu Wanyin distributed the items to the people one by one, saying, "Don't be afraid, there are plenty of supplies here. We can hide for a few days without any problem."
Food and rations are allocated per person, and each person has a set amount to eat, drink, and consume each day.
This way, the order won't be disrupted by fighting over it.
However, since everyone is trapped here now, there's no point in fighting over it.
We'll live together, we'll die together.
Therefore, everyone looked at Yu Wanyin with fear and unease in their eyes.
Yu Wanyin was assigned to a woman. She noticed that Yu Wanyin seemed very familiar with the government's arrangements, and her appearance, demeanor, and even clothing did not resemble those of an ordinary woman. Finally, she couldn't help but ask, "Madam, do you know how many days we will be fighting?"
Yu Wanyin said frankly, "It shouldn't take too long."
She concealed the reason behind it.
On the bright side, if their strategy works, the key is to win quickly.
To put it bluntly, Long'an only had five thousand soldiers.
It can't be delayed for long at all.
Even if you lose, you'll lose very quickly.
But everyone breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing her explanation.
Someone whispered, "Is what she said believable?"
"Believe it or not." They secretly sized up Yu Wanyin for a moment. "Look at her, she's calm and collected; she must be confident of victory."
Yu Wanyin paused for a moment while drinking water.
She gently pursed her lips.
It's hard to say who has experienced the Jiangling Rebellion, the relocation of the capital to Shang'an, the attack by the Hu people, and the robbery by bandits one after another.
When faced with something like this, you can't panic or get flustered.
However, at this moment, Yu Wanyin preferred to let them think that victory was in their grasp.
At least it can put everyone at ease for a while.
The time spent in the underground palace will be easier.
Yu Wanyin sat calmly to the side, a stark contrast to the anxious and worried people around her.
She does possess a subtle sense of power.
Just by sitting there, within an hour or two, he gradually calmed everyone in the underground palace down.
Some people were initially so nervous that they felt nauseous, but now they have started to eat slowly to conserve their energy.
The guards on duty sat at the door.
This underground palace is less of an underground palace and more of a cellar that was recently dug out.
The space is much larger, but the items inside are still somewhat simple.
This is one of the ten safe havens currently located within Long'an County.
Because it is located in the northwest corner of Long'an City, it is somewhat remote and therefore sparsely populated.
There was only one garrison.
After all, all troops must be concentrated to deal with the external enemy, and there are no extra troops available.
So all the guards could do was protect them, but they couldn't go and report how many people were hiding in the prefect's territory.
However, they felt that reporting such trivial matters was unimportant in the face of great calamity.
Yu Wanyin had little appetite. She straightened the little girl's clothes beside her and asked softly, "What's your name?"
"Harmony and goodwill."
Yu Wanyin noticed the small jade lock hanging on her wrist, which had a pattern of harmony and good fortune on it. "Is it the 'harmony' in 'harmony and good fortune'?"
He Yi nodded.
Yu Wanyin touched her jade lock. "A very good name."
"Harmony and happiness, joy in all four seasons."
No sooner had Yu Wanyin finished speaking than gunpowder seemed to have struck a house not far from them.
All around were chaotic sounds of collapses.
One heavy object after another crashed to the ground, shaking the entire underground palace as if it were about to collapse at any moment.
Scattered clods of earth fell down.
The guards stood up, and everyone in the underground palace gasped and shrank into a corner.
Yu Wanyin shielded He Yi's head and hid further inside.
The tremors lasted for a quarter of an hour.
Everyone was on edge.
They only relaxed a little when no more clods of earth fell.
The guards carefully examined the stone door to the underground palace. "There's nothing wrong, except the stone door is smashed shut, so it might be difficult for us to get out."
Who's thinking about going out right now?
Some people even thought it was good that it was smashed.
If they smash the enemy outside and try to break in, they won't be able to find them or get in.
He Yi knew there was a war going on outside. She looked up at the sky for a long time and whispered to Yu Wanyin, "Have they attacked us?"
Yu Wanyin gave a soft "hmm".
He Yi held Nian Gao's head in her arms. Not long ago in the countryside, she had held Nian Gao like this, and her parents had hidden him in the rice jar.
They survived one war after another.
Now the troops from Daizhou have invaded, but her parents are still in Taixi.
She still wants to go back.
After a long silence, He Yi spoke up, "Will Long'an win?"
The little girl's clear voice echoed in the underground palace, becoming exceptionally clear.
The people inside the underground palace, still shaken, all looked over.
Even the military guards looked over.
Waiting for Yu Wanyin's answer.
But in reality, Yu Wanyin knew that her opinion didn't count for anything.
She lowered her eyes and said in a very soft voice, "Yes."
Even if we can't win.
Everyone has done their best.
Long'an is now a place where the prefect, who has condescended to go up the mountain to invite the bandits, the city's remaining troops and civilians are deployed to defend it, and the soldiers are fighting a desperate battle.
If Long'an fails, Jiangling will be next, and the gates to the Central Plains will be opened very quickly.
"That's good." He Yi muttered, "My father and mother said that they would come to find me and Nian Gao and take us home after the war is over."
Yu Wanyin looked at He Yi.
She never really craved any particular outcome.
But suddenly I really want to win this time.
I hope Rong Si and his team can win.
There is no distinction between day and night in the underground palace.
The battle continued into the night.
The troops in Daizhou were wiped out.
Seeing that the remaining troops had suffered heavy losses, they immediately withdrew from Long'an.
The long sword in Rong Si's hand was dripping with blood, which fell into the soil on the ground.
With his horse's hooves trampling over layers of enemy corpses, he turned his head and saw Chai Feng struggling with the last enemy, plunging his broken longsword into the enemy's heart, kneeling on the ground for a long time, unable to recover.
Rong Si pulled his horse forward, walked up to Chai Feng, turned the hilt of his sword around, and handed it to him.
Chai Feng's vision was blurred by blood, but he saw the outstretched hilt of a knife and looked up to meet Rong Si's gaze.
He paused for a moment, then reached out and grasped the hilt of the knife Rong Si handed him as he stood up.
Rong Si reminded him, "You pack here, I'll go back first."
Chai Feng responded in a hoarse voice.
Rong Si returned to the city and patrolled the streets and alleys. He didn't see many remaining soldiers, but the houses in the streets and alleys had all been affected by the war.
As long as we can hold on, that's good.
Rong Si returned to the prefect's residence.
The prefect's residence was not spared either, and the prefect was urging the people in the nearby underground palace to come out.
Looking at the surrounding scene, the strategist couldn't help but sigh, "Fortunately, we've managed to disperse most of the people recently."
“Yes,” the prefect wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, “if the people are hiding in the city, we will definitely be constrained.”
He turned his head and saw Rong Si approaching. He immediately cupped his hands in greeting and said, "Master, thank you for your trouble..."
Rong Si dismounted and strode forward, saying, "I trouble the prefect to look after my wife."
"This matter has been resolved. I will take her back to the village."
The prefect was taken aback. "Isn't your wife with you, Master?"
The surroundings fell into a deathly silence.
A murderous aura instantly rose between Rong Si's brows. "What did you say?"
The prefect also sensed something was wrong. "She left early this morning and hasn't come back. She's not here now either."
Rong Si remembers it clearly now.
Yu Wanyin promised him this morning that she wouldn't go out.
But remembering that is useless; the key is where she is now.
The prefect hurriedly went to summon the guards, "Is there any news of the leader's wife today?"
The guard panicked upon hearing this, "The leader's wife went to the west of the city today, and before we could even notice, the people from Daizhou attacked."
West of the city.
He was in the west of the city today, but he didn't see her.
Rong Si immediately turned around, mounted his horse, and left the security post without saying a word.
The prefect hurriedly ordered, "What are you all standing there for? Go find them! Go find them now!"
Rong Si walked straight through the city's main street.
They headed west of the city.
The road was shrouded in smoke, and there wasn't a soul in sight.
The further west you go, the more corpses of soldiers from Daizhou you see on the ground.
It makes people uneasy.
The more they couldn't find it, the more suspicious Rong Si became.
When the group of soldiers from Daizhou stormed in, they kidnapped the people.
It's common knowledge that Daizhou is short of women.
He just happened to have another beautiful and intelligent wife who went missing.
Rong Si followed the trail to the outskirts of the city, where the remaining Daizhou soldiers were still stationed.
Upon seeing Rong Si, they were terrified, and hastily mounted their horses and fled back.
Upon learning of Yu Wanyin's disappearance, Zong Cheng rushed over in a panic, exclaiming, "My lord!"
Rong Si didn't answer, but narrowed his eyes as he stared at their retreating figures. "Chase them."
Zong Cheng realized what was happening and immediately lit a red cigarette.
Immediately afterward, the bandits in all directions around Long'an City received the signal and quickly took action within the city.
They didn't use up all their weapons, and they also seized a considerable amount of weapons from Daizhou.
The highly experienced bandits quickly organized the remaining resources and followed Rong Si to pursue the fleeing soldiers of Daizhou!
Chai Feng, who was cleaning up the mess at the city gate, was kicking an enemy's corpse to vent his anger when he suddenly heard the sound of horses' hooves behind him.
He turned his head and saw bandits carrying weapons rushing out without saying a word.
Chai Feng stopped one of them casually, "Where are you going?"
The bandit soldier spoke up, "Personal grudges are none of your concern, General."
After he finished speaking, he didn't linger and urged his horse to gallop away.
Before Chai Feng could even ask for details, he saw a dark mass of bandits pressing towards the remaining troops of Daizhou.
Upon seeing this, the fleeing soldiers scrambled back in panic.
How could the matter of fighting in Daizhou be a personal grudge?
Chai Feng didn't know what was going on, but now that he had the opportunity to press his advantage and kill the enemies who had almost destroyed his homeland, it was hard to just ignore them.
Chai Feng turned around, waved, and shouted, "Everyone, follow me!"
The smoke of war has not yet died down in Long'an.
The troops from Daizhou had just returned to their garrison camp, which was twenty miles away.
Herren downed a jug of strong liquor, calming the frustration of failing to capture Long'an.
He cursed under his breath, "Damn it."
I should have deployed all my troops.
If they hadn't fallen for Long'an's deception, they feared that mobilizing all their forces would have resulted in a one-way trip.
We shouldn't be in such a passive position.
He felt ashamed that he could be driven back by so many remnants of the army.
The attendant quickly said, "General, please calm down. We didn't know this time."
“But Long’an can fool us for a while, but not forever.”
"We've figured out their strength this time. After a while, once we've rested and regrouped, taking Long'an will be a piece of cake!"
Herren's face darkened, and before he could speak again...
A soldier tumbled and crawled in from outside the door, crying, "General, no, no, no, something terrible has happened!"
"The troops from Long'an are coming after us!"
Herren jumped up and rushed to the door to lift the tent flap.
In the pitch-black night, flames soared into the sky not far away.
The bandit king, leading the troops, had a dark and sinister look on his face, exuding murderous intent. He came forward menacingly, carrying a long sword!
Behind Rong Si, however, came relentless pursuit, with each victorious soldier proving to be more formidable than the last!
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