Chapter 56 of 100

Chapter 56

14 min read3,407 words

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"Why have we stopped? At this moment, we should take advantage of the bandits' lack of vigilance and immediately attack the mountain, catching them off guard. Now our troops are just two li away from the bandits' mountain, and they could discover us at any time."

Liu Jun immediately shook his head and said to Li Chunjiang when he heard the order to rest on the spot.

"We should go and talk to Zhao Bingxian and suggest an immediate attack," Li Chunjiang said.

Liu Jun quickly held him back. There were so many officials and gentry in front, and many of them must have understood the situation, but no one had spoken up. What would it look like if they ran over to say something? Anyway, they were just here to make a show of support. Besides, with over a thousand people, even if the bandits discovered them, they wouldn't be able to resist, Liu Jun thought.

Liu Jun originally thought it was just a temporary rest to prepare for the attack. But after a while, Zhao Cheng's servants came again with orders, saying that the higher-ups had ordered each team to set up their stoves and cook, and then attack.

Liu Jun was astonished, even to the point of wanting to curse. Stopping at the foot of the bandits' lair for a pre-battle rest was one thing, but now they were actually setting up stoves to cook. Was this really hoping the bandits wouldn't notice them?

"Pass the order down, have each team put on their armor and prepare for battle," Liu Jun said, though he was angry, he couldn't control the people above. He could only make his own team prepare. When they set out, everyone had brought some steamed buns, and now they could eat them with water, without setting up stoves to cook. Liu Jun even had the team members start putting on their armor in advance, and the team leaders prepared the fire starters.

"Even if the bandits discover us, they won't dare to come down, right?" Li Chunjiang asked.

"Just in case. If everyone thinks like this, and the bandits suddenly charge down the mountain, we'll be in trouble," Liu Jun believed in being prepared for the worst.

Liu Jun observed the bandits' lair, which was built on the halfway point of the mountain, not in the valley. It was obvious that as long as the people in the stronghold weren't blind, they would certainly notice the unusual activity at the foot of the mountain. Liu Jun slapped his forehead; this battle was clearly poorly planned.

Since the bandits didn't know that the bandit leader Damazi and the others who had gone out had been killed, the government troops shouldn't have made such a big show with so many people.

On the contrary, just a few elite teams of two or three hundred people would have been enough. They could have quietly come, set up an ambush nearby, and then wait until nightfall to sneak to the foot of the mountain. Then, they could send some elite night raiders or servants to set fire to the mountain, causing chaos and making the bandits think a large government force had attacked. At that time, the bandits would naturally panic. If they went to put out the fire and didn't come down the mountain, they could take the opportunity to open the camp gates.

If the bandits panicked and came down the mountain, the teams waiting at the foot of the mountain could take the opportunity to attack.

But now, with over a thousand people marching in broad daylight to the foot of the mountain, not attacking immediately, and even setting up stoves to cook, it was like deliberately alerting the other side. If they forced an attack on the stronghold, and the bandits held their ground, even with a numerical advantage, there would certainly be many casualties.

Unlike Liu Jun, who had his subordinates eat dry rations and put on armor, the other teams in front had already dispersed in a chaotic manner. Some were watering the horses, some were fetching water, some were chopping wood, and some were starting fires.

A chaotic crowd, some sitting, some resting, in groups here and there, with no formation or order. Zhao Cheng and the other officials and gentry, along with their servants, had climbed a nearby hill to observe the situation in the bandits' stronghold with telescopes.

Suddenly, a flock of startled birds flew up from the mountain, and a group of people suddenly emerged from the bandits' stronghold.

"Charge, fight the government troops!"

Liu Jun heard the noise and quickly took out his telescope to look up the mountain. In the telescope, he saw a group of bandits actually charging down the mountain. There were about a hundred of them, armed with knives, spears, and bows, rushing down like a swarm.

Liu Jun and Li Chunjiang looked at each other in surprise. This was completely unexpected.

The government troops were chaotic, but the bandits were even more chaotic.

Clearly, they saw over a thousand government troops at the foot of the mountain, yet instead of strengthening their defenses in the stronghold, they directly charged down the mountain.

"Who gave them the courage? Who gave them the confidence?" Liu Jun asked, stunned.

"They are just a bunch of bandits, most of whom were originally just displaced people. They rely on such reckless attacks, and they don't know any tactics or strategy," Li Chunjiang said with a sneer.

At that moment, Liu Jun couldn't help but wonder if he had misunderstood Zhao Cheng and the others. Perhaps they had already anticipated that the bandits would attack after discovering them, but this was too hard to believe. Maybe it was just a lucky guess.

On the hill, Zhao Cheng was also extremely shocked by the bandits' sudden charge. "A group of overconfident bandits, this is their own death wish. Fine, I'll grant it to them. Pass the order, form up and prepare for battle!"

Zhu Chong's guards were the vanguard. He hurried back to his team and ordered them to put on their armor and prepare for battle.

The guards were in a panic. His fifty servants put on their armor and picked up their bows and knives, while the other one hundred and fifty guards could only raise their bamboo spears and wooden shields, starting to form up.

The other teams of local militia, constables, and able-bodied civilians also began to form up and prepare.

The Nine-Headed Bird cavalry, responsible for the rear guard, had already put on their helmets and armor and were ready.

"Liu Donggou, set up the swivel guns. Today, we'll test the power of our new Nine-Headed Bird swivel guns on these bandits," Liu Jun shouted to Liu Donggou.

After the establishment of the artillery unit, Donggou was transferred to it. Because of his excellent bird gun skills, Liu Jun promoted him to the left squad leader of the swivel gun team, and his former superior Cai Yuan was promoted to the team leader of the swivel gun team.

The swivel gun team had twelve members, equipped with twelve Nine-Headed Bird swivel guns. Donggou, who had been a bird gunner, became a swivel gunner and a squad leader. Since yesterday, he had been studying the large bird gun, even conducting over a dozen live-fire drills with the other swivel gunners.

Although the Nine-Headed Bird was larger, it was still just a larger bird gun. After a dozen live-fire drills, he had grasped the differences between the bird gun and the swivel gun. Within a hundred paces, he could still maintain the same accuracy as a bird gun, and at two hundred paces, he had hit the target.

The tripod was set up, and the ten-foot-long swivel gun was mounted on a rotatable stand. Donggou began to load the gunpowder and lead balls. The lead balls used by the swivel gun were larger than those of a regular bird gun, weighing one and a half taels each. These lead balls could shoot farther and were more powerful, and anyone hit by them would surely not survive.

The six battle teams of the left and right flags formed a formation in front of the artillery unit, with the rocket team behind the swivel gun team, and the six tiger crouching cannons in front.

Liu Jun watched as his team quickly formed up, while the other teams in front were still in chaos, and couldn't help but smile.

"Fight to the death!"

"Charge!"

The group of bandits was still charging, holding knives and spears, looking fierce as they rushed down, getting closer and closer, completely unafraid of the government troops, who outnumbered them by more than ten to one.

The group of bandits rushing down numbered about a hundred, and the one leading the charge, shouting loudly, was holding a crescent moon guandao, tall and muscular. As he ran at the front, he shouted, "Brothers, kill those corrupt officials and soldiers, let them know our power!"

"A bunch of cowards, seeing that the leader isn't here, they think they can take advantage. This is their own death wish."

"Brothers, don't be afraid, these cowards will scatter at the first charge!"

This man was the second-in-command of the stronghold, originally a postman at a relay station. Later, he followed Damazi after being dismissed and joined Li Zicheng's army. After the army was scattered by the government troops, he returned with Damazi, raiding and gathering a group of displaced people, and established a stronghold here.

They had always been very cautious, leaving a team to guard the stronghold whenever a group went out to raid. They always raided along the Guanghuang Road, dozens of miles away, and never in the Qiting area, so no one knew that the bandits who roamed the Guanghuang Road were hiding here.

The sudden appearance of the government troops indeed frightened the people in the stronghold.

But this second-in-command had fought many battles against the government troops in Li Zicheng's army. Seeing the government troops appear in broad daylight, cooking at the foot of the mountain, and the chaotic state of the various teams, he immediately thought that these government troops were just a rabble, possibly led by officials, guards, and local militia and constables. Therefore, he decided to take advantage of their lack of vigilance and charge down the mountain to catch them off guard.

He even thought that the government troops might scatter at the first charge.

Although his men were few, each one had come out of the dead, and each one had killed before. They were all displaced people with no homes or families, and their lives were worthless. If they really fought to the death, the government troops would definitely not be able to match them.

Zhu Chong, who was at the front, was a bit nervous. Although he was a thousand-household commander of the Huangzhou Guard, he had inherited this position from his ancestors. His thousand-household unit originally had over a thousand soldiers, but now he only had fifty servants who could barely pass as soldiers, and the other military households had either fled or were his tenant farmers, rarely trained.

This time, he had no choice but to come when ordered by the military commissioner, bringing fifty servants and a hundred and fifty able-bodied military households. But when the hundred bandits charged down, he was terrified.

The military households were even more panicked, seeing the bandits charging without fear, and they instinctively wanted to flee.

Zhu Chong knew that Zhao Cheng was watching him and that if he retreated, Zhao Cheng might cut him down with a sword, leaving him no place to appeal.

"Damn it, bring out my secret weapon," Zhu Chong felt that if this continued, his men might scatter when the bandits got close.

Several servants immediately brought out several large wooden boxes, each larger than a lute case, with dragon patterns carved on the outside.

Zhu Chong winced as the servants opened the lids of the boxes, revealing the densely packed arrowheads inside. He had spent a lot of money on these, specifically for this mission.

Each box contained thirty-two rockets, each with gunpowder, and the thirty-two rockets were connected by a fuse, called a "nest of bees." When used, it was aimed at the enemy, and the main fuse was lit, then the thirty-two rockets would be launched together, reaching a hundred paces. After firing, they would scatter like a swarm of bees, hence the name "nest of bees."

This time, Zhu Chong had specially bought twenty tubes from the guard commander, as a reserve, but he didn't expect to actually use them.

Seeing the bandits getting closer, the guards were already restless, and Zhu Chong quickly shouted, "Fire quickly!"

The servants lit the fuses, and several whistles sounded, followed by a cloud of smoke. Then, ten "nests of bees" were launched, sending three hundred and twenty rockets with smoke and fire toward the bandits.

The bandits, who were charging, were terrified by the whistling and the rising smoke. The second-in-command immediately recognized these as the "nest of bees" rockets often used by the government troops against the people.

He sighed, "Heaven has forsaken me."

He closed his eyes, but the whistling soon stopped, and the air was filled with the pungent smell of smoke. He found that he hadn't been hit. He looked around and saw that everyone was fine, and they were all looking at each other in confusion.

The second-in-command looked forward and saw that the hundreds of rockets had all landed about ten to twenty paces in front of them.

"Ha ha ha!" A sense of relief rose, and the second-in-command shouted excitedly, "The government troops' weapons are shoddy, damn, they scared me. Brothers, charge!"

The bandits, who had almost wet their pants, saw that the rockets had all landed in front of them, and they all laughed wildly. They had been terrified, but now they were contemptuous of the weapons and no longer afraid. They all shouted and charged again.

Zhu Chong watched the results in shock, with no casualties.

"Damn it, what's going on? Didn't I tell you to fire within a hundred paces?"

The head of the servant team replied, "Sir, we fired at ninety paces, it's definitely not wrong."

"Isn't the range of the 'nest of bees' a hundred paces? Why did it fall so far from the bandits?"

"Probably the gunpowder was shoddy, so the range is only seventy to eighty paces."

"Damn it!" Zhu Chong was furious when he heard that his expensive secret weapon was shoddy.

"Sir, the bandits are charging again."

Zhu Chong looked and saw that the bandits were indeed charging faster and closer.

"Fire again, this time at fifty paces!" Zhu Chong could only hope that the remaining ten tubes of "nests of bees" would work.

The servants brought the remaining ten tubes of "nests of bees," opened the lids, aimed, and lit the fuses.

The second-in-command saw the government troops aiming the "nests of bees" at them from a distance and his face changed. Damn, how do the government troops have so many "nests of bees"? But it was too late to retreat, so he shouted, "Charge, kill these dogs!"

"Fire!"

Zhu Chong shouted frantically, all his hopes on the remaining ten tubes of "nests of bees"!

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