Chapter 46

In the summer of June, although the sun had set, the sky was still bright, and the moon was already hanging in the sky. As the sun set, the heat dissipated, and a cool breeze blew, making it very refreshing.

Donggouzi rode on his horse, looking around at the advancing troops, his heart filled with an indescribable excitement. He was already twenty years old and had not yet married. His family, who were hunters and farmers in the mountains of Macheng, owned only two acres of thin land. They usually relied on hunting, cutting wood for charcoal, gathering herbs, and doing odd jobs to make a living.

Due to his family's poverty from a young age, he had some developmental issues and barely met the recruitment height requirement of five feet two inches. He was also very thin, weighing less than a hundred pounds, but his bones were quite large. He had grown up hunting and working, so he had a good deal of strength. During the recruitment, the nearly hundred-pound him managed to twirl a hundred-pound stone lock with ease.

After training with the cavalry for about a month, he did not get thinner; instead, he gained weight due to the good food in the camp. His originally bony body now had more muscle, and his skin became smoother. Wearing the blue military uniform issued by the cavalry, wearing a felt hat, and riding a tall horse, he felt a sense of incredible wonder.

He was about to go to war, but Donggouzi was not very afraid; he was more excited. He couldn't understand why he wasn't afraid. Touching the bird gun on his back, Donggouzi felt even more excited.

During the training period, he received several personal instructions from Commander Liu. Commander Liu was skilled with the bird gun and rarely missed within eighty steps. At first, Donggouzi was not used to this firearm, with its complicated loading process, taking a long time to fire a second shot, and it was difficult to hit the target.

However, following Commander Liu's guidance, he memorized the loading steps repeatedly and practiced over and over. He found that the bird gun was not much harder to use than a bow and arrow. At first, he could only hit one or two out of ten shots, then three or four, and finally, one day, he hit five out of ten shots, earning five silver coins as a reward. He was praised in front of the entire banner and asked to share his experience with the other gunners, which made him very excited.

The other gunners in the right banner all vied to learn from him, wanting the reward money, extra chicken legs, and eggs as bonuses, and no one wanted to clean the canteen or the toilets. From then on, Donggouzi felt that life was good. He no longer had to wash his own clothes; the other gunners who wanted to learn from him competed to help him. Even at mealtime, they would vie to give him a piece of meat. When he spoke, they all called him "Brother Dog."

Donggouzi enjoyed this feeling and taught the other gunners earnestly.

Everyone's bird gun skills improved, but Donggouzi himself was even more dedicated. From hitting five out of ten shots, he gradually improved to six, then seven. Now, he could consistently hit six out of ten shots, firmly holding the top spot in the cavalry's gunner shooting list.

However, Commander Liu said well, they were only shooting at stationary targets now, but on the battlefield, there would be no stationary targets. The enemy would move and counterattack. On the battlefield, things would change rapidly, with swords and arrows flying everywhere. Whether they could maintain their usual level would depend on their mental fortitude and, of course, luck.

Donggouzi prayed for good luck on the battlefield.

Although the enemy only numbered about fifty and were just bandits, they had twice as many men. Donggouzi hoped for good luck, not only to avoid any stray arrows but also to kill some of the bandits.

Killing one bandit earned twenty silver coins, killing a leader earned forty silver coins, and killing the bandit chief earned a hundred silver coins. He didn't think he could kill a leader or the chief, but he hoped to kill one or two bandits. Killing one would earn him twenty silver coins, and killing two would earn him forty silver coins. The last time he went home, he gave his family seven silver coins, and they used five silver coins to arrange a good marriage for his older brother.

He was also twenty years old now. If he could kill one or two bandits and earn several dozen silver coins, he could find a wife for himself, and even provide dowries and wedding gifts for his younger brother and sisters.

The horse under him walked steadily. After more than a month of training, compared to his excellent bird gun skills, his riding skills were quite poor. In fact, most of the team members' riding skills were average, just enough to ride and run.

However, it was good that they didn't need to gallop now, just a light trot. With the warhorses, they didn't have to carry their dozens of pounds of equipment, which saved them a lot of energy. If they had to carry forty or fifty pounds of equipment and walk thirty miles, they would be exhausted by the time they arrived. Now, riding thirty miles, they could still maintain their strength when they reached their destination.

The team advanced easily. Commander Liu had already sent scouts ahead to check the road, so they didn't have to worry about ambushes. Additionally, two of the commander's servants rode horses along the road, providing security.

On this journey, they didn't even wear armor. According to Commander Liu, they would put on their armor when they got closer to their destination to save energy.

The thirty-mile road was not far. With the warhorses, they had already passed the halfway station before dark.

"Stop the entire team, rest temporarily, eat dry rations, water the horses, then put on armor, check equipment, and enter combat readiness. Everyone, be on high alert from now on." The order came from Commander Liu, who sounded authoritative.

Donggouzi quickly dismounted.

The two banners took turns resting, one resting while the other provided security.

Donggouzi first took out a large cloth bag, filled it with some bran, added some black beans, and finally added two eggs. He then put the bag around the neck of his horse, Big Yellow, watching him happily eat the feed. After walking for several dozen miles, Big Yellow was only slightly sweaty, truly a good horse.

While petting his horse, he drank some water from a coconut shell, ate half a pancake, and went to the side of the road to relieve himself. After finishing, he felt much more relaxed.

He began to take out his cotton armor, bright helmet, net boots, and other equipment, putting them on one by one. Finally, he put on the face armor, throat armor, and arm guards, and rechecked his bird gun, gunpowder, lead balls, and other items.

Sergeant Cai came over to check again.

At this moment, another order came, instructing them to provide security for the left banner.

After a brief rest, the entire team set off again, and the atmosphere in the team became much more serious.

The sky was completely dark, with only a dim light remaining, and the frogs were croaking continuously. Donggouzi looked at the sky and said to his comrade, Dogsheng, "It's a good night, no rain, no wind, but there will be clouds."

Dogsheng, who was in the same squad as Donggouzi, was a good friend and also from the East Mountain. His bird gun skills were good, mostly taught by Donggouzi.

Dogsheng was not as calm as Donggouzi; he was very nervous but still managed to smile, "No wind, no rain, that's good. Otherwise, we would have come so far for nothing. I want to kill a few bandits and earn several dozen silver coins."

"Follow me, watch my actions, and try not to think too much about other things," Donggouzi comforted his brother.

After advancing a bit further, Donggouzi saw the scouts return and report to Captain Li and Commander Liu. Then, Commander Liu ordered the entire army to dismount, leaving a few veterinarians to watch the horses, and the rest to carry their equipment and start walking up the mountain. Everyone was ordered to remain silent.

Donggouzi checked his equipment again, leaving the tent and other equipment with the horses. He wore his armor, held his bird gun, and carried a long knife, short sword, gunpowder can, fuse, and lead ball bag. After checking everything carefully, he tightened his grip on the bird gun.

The team cautiously approached the dilapidated temple on the hillside. The night was dark and cloudy, and they did not light any fires, moving carefully and bending low, inching closer.

When they reached the temple, they could smell the scent of wine and meat in the night air. From a distance, they could see the firelight inside the temple, and the sound of drinking and shouting, mixed with the cries of women, could be heard.

"Gunners, prepare, light the fuses," Sergeant Cai whispered to the two gunners, Donggouzi and Dogsheng.

Donggouzi, following the order, quickly took the fuse from his wrist, lit it with a flint, and the gunners lighting their fuses indicated that the battle had begun.

Just as he lit the fuse, the scouts had already formed a human ladder to climb over the temple wall, and the tightly closed temple gate slowly opened. Donggouzi did not expect things to go so smoothly; they opened the temple gate so easily.

"Quick, quick, quick, enter the temple, form up and prepare," Captain Zhang whispered urgently, and Zhanggouzi followed Sergeant Cai into the temple.

"Who are you!" a loud voice shouted, and in response, an arrow was shot.

Donggouzi saw that it was Commander Liu who shot the arrow, hitting the bandit in the chest. The bandit fell, but before dying, he let out a scream, alerting the other bandits in the temple.

Amid the shouts, the bandits emerged from the main hall of the dilapidated temple. In the firelight, many of them were bare-chested, holding knives and spears, rushing out.

Suddenly, a trumpet sounded in the darkness.

Donggouzi almost instinctively knelt on one knee, opened the firing mechanism, and held the bird gun with both hands, one eye squinted, locking onto the target.

Since they had successfully breached the temple gate, Donggouzi was only about thirty steps away from the bandits who were rushing out, and the firelight behind them made their figures clearly visible.

In previous training, at thirty steps, he was almost always accurate.

Before the swan call from the trumpet ended, Donggouzi steadily pulled the trigger. The bare-chested bandit he had locked onto burst into a blood flower on his chest. In the dim firelight, he saw the bandit's face contort in pain, and then he fell backward, slowly collapsing.

I recommend the book "The Great Star of Prosperity," it's quite entertaining. Don't forget to give Muzi a recommendation vote!

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