Chapter 70

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North of Hu Tou Pass, on a hill, Zhao Dagu leaned on his saber behind a rock, looking down at the bandits below. Under the scorching sun, hundreds of bandits had just finished a round of fierce attacks and were now resting in groups under the shade of trees.

Among these people, about a dozen were on horseback, equipped with relatively better gear, wearing chainmail and leather armor, wielding gleaming sabers, and carrying bows and arrows. However, the rest were a motley crew, with some young and strong men holding large knives and spears, some old men with bamboo spears and wooden shields, and a few teenagers carrying javelins, dressed in a variety of clothes, mostly just in simple cloth, with very few wearing armor.

Earlier, Zhao Dagu had discovered a few horsemen and, underestimating them, pursued them, only to fall into the bandits' ambush. Despite leading his archers in a desperate breakout, they were eventually surrounded on this hill.

With a fierce determination, they had repelled several attacks by the bandits. Although they had killed over a dozen bandits, five of his archers had died, and the rest were mostly injured. Even Zhao Dagu himself had been hit by an arrow in his leg, which had bloodied half of his clothes.

"Can Xiao Wu bring reinforcements?" the clerk Lin Yu asked Zhao Dagu.

"I hope so." Zhao Dagu didn't really expect any help. The county town was nearly a hundred miles away, and it would take more than a day for reinforcements to arrive. The bandits, though not attacking urgently, seemed to be waiting. The sun was scorching, and they were exposed on the hill, which would weaken them by the end of the day. Once it got dark, the bandits would attack under the cover of night, and they wouldn't be able to hold them off.

Before nightfall, the only possible reinforcements would be Captain Liu Jun of the Nine-Headed Bird team, who was currently in Taiping Township. Zhao Dagu had only recently heard about Liu Jun, who, with a newly formed and trained militia of just over a month, had repeatedly defeated the bandits, which was quite impressive. However, although Liu Jun was now in the nearby Zhang family's residence, he seemed to have only about ten soldiers with him. Even if Liu Jun were willing to come to their aid, his small force would be of little help.

Today, they might have to die here, Zhao Dagu sighed to himself.

Just then, the bandits began to emerge from the shade, the horsemen waving their sabers and urging the old and young bandits to attack the hill.

"Brothers, stay strong! Captain Liu Jun of the Nine-Headed Bird is leading reinforcements to save us. Just hold on a little longer, and Captain Liu will be here soon," Zhao Dagu shouted loudly, trying to boost morale.

The remaining dozen or so injured archers rallied and drew their bows.

Arrows were running low, and they might only be able to withstand one or two more attacks.

The bandits launched another attack, and Zhao Dagu, hiding behind a rock, shot an arrow that felled the bandit leading the charge. His archers also fired, and although they were just a group of low-ranking soldiers who earned only seven taels of silver a year and often didn't receive their full pay, the archers under Zhao Dagu's command were well-trained, and each had good archery skills.

From their vantage point, their arrows often hit the unarmored and weak bandits.

After about half an hour, the bandits had only climbed halfway up the hill but had already left several bodies behind. Despite the horsemen's urging, the bandits turned and fled back.

The horsemen had no choice but to call off the attack for now.

Zhao Dagu let out a long breath, having repelled another wave of attacks.

"How many arrows are left?"

"I have five."

"I have three."

"I only have one left."

The archers reported the number of arrows they had left. This small number could only support one more attack. Zhao Dagu looked up at the sky, the intense sunlight making it hard to keep his eyes open. It was still early in the day, and he wondered how they could hold on.

"Look!" Suddenly, one of the archers jumped up, pointing excitedly at the distance.

"That's a banner, it must be our reinforcements," another archer shouted.

Zhao Dagu struggled to his feet, shielding his eyes to look carefully. Indeed, a red banner was visible in the distance, and a group was approaching, numbering at least a hundred.

He was puzzled. Where did this group come from? Could they be bandits? Reinforcements couldn't have arrived so quickly; the closest was Liu Jun of the Nine-Headed Bird, but he didn't have that many men.

The bandits below also noticed the unexpected arrival. The horsemen began shouting, and the old and young bandits started to form ranks.

The bandits seemed unprepared for an attack at this time and were clearly flustered. However, they didn't retreat but decided to engage. After all, although reinforcements had arrived, they numbered only a hundred, while the bandits had over three hundred, giving them a numerical advantage.

Liu Jun, leading his men, finally arrived at the hill where Zhao Dagu was surrounded. From a distance, he saw the bandits arrayed on the hill, waiting for them.

Liu Jun raised his telescope to observe the bandits. After a careful look, he saw that there were only a dozen horsemen, and the rest were old and weak, with very few wearing armor and a mix of weapons, clearly a disorganized group. He also didn't see any ambushes on the sides, which put him at ease.

Although the bandits numbered over three hundred, they were much weaker than he had expected. Despite having only fifteen men and a hundred and twenty civilians, he felt confident in engaging them.

"Sir, Inspector Zhao and his men are still alive," the guide shouted, pointing to the figures on the hill. Liu Jun raised his telescope and indeed saw some people on the hill, one of whom was wearing the official attire of the Ming Dynasty, confirming that they were his allies, and it must be Inspector Zhao.

"Form ranks!"

Liu Jun shouted, not rushing forward immediately. His men were all new recruits, and a headlong charge might not end well.

Since Inspector Zhao and his men were still alive, there was no need to rush. A steady and methodical approach was the best strategy. Liu Jun ordered Zhang Shan to divide the hundred and twenty new recruits into four square formations, each with thirty men, arranged in five rows of six.

Three formations were arranged in a triangular formation, with the fourth formation as a reserve at the back. Each formation was led by two experienced soldiers on horseback, while Liu Jun, with the remaining seven men, positioned himself in the center as a mobile force.

The formation moved forward slowly.

Although they were new recruits, they were obedient and quickly formed their ranks, advancing with their bamboo spears. Every ten steps, Zhang Shan and the others would order the men to stop and reorganize their ranks.

Liu Jun's plan was to maintain the formation and use the long bamboo spears to push forward, while his seven horsemen would deal with the enemy's cavalry. Although the tactic was simple, it was suitable for new recruits, as more complex tactics would be beyond their grasp.

Fortunately, they were facing a disorganized group of bandits.

"Capture or kill a bandit, and you will receive twenty taels of silver!" Before the battle, Liu Jun emphasized the generous reward. For new recruits, a substantial reward could boost their morale and adrenaline. In extraordinary times, extraordinary measures were necessary. A reward of twenty taels for each bandit killed was more generous than what even seasoned soldiers might receive.

Liu Jun was generous with the reward, as it was unusual to offer such a high reward for killing a bandit. However, with a group of civilians new to battle, a generous reward was the best incentive to boost their morale.

Liu Jun carried a musket on his shoulder and had two short firearms at his waist, but he held a bow in his hand, as he was an excellent archer and found the bow more efficient.

However, the six officers behind him, following Liu Jun's orders, held muskets, which were already loaded and ready to fire.

The bandits were also moving slowly towards them, with no particular formation. Hundreds of bandits formed a large group, with the front row holding shields, followed by spear-wielders, then archers, and the dozen horsemen on the sides.

The bandits slowly approached.

Liu Jun shouted, "Halt!"

The four formations of new recruits stopped on the orders of their leaders and stood in place.

Liu Jun tested the wind, then drew his bow and aimed at the red banner at the front of the bandit formation. The banner had no words or symbols, just a plain red flag.

He aimed and released the arrow.

The arrow hit the bandit's banner, breaking the flagpole and sending the flag flying away.

The bandits were in disarray, clearly unsettled by the loss of their banner, which was a bad omen. The horsemen shouted and cursed, but the bandits eventually stabilized.

Liu Jun smiled, waiting for the enemy to come closer, then turned to Dong Gouzi and the others, "Fire!"

Dong Gouzi and the six officers raised their muskets. They had bows as well, but Liu Jun had them use muskets, not because of their greater power, but because of their greater psychological impact. Against a disorganized group of bandits, the sound of muskets was often more effective.

The bandits were now within sixty paces.

Some bandits in the back were already firing arrows, but their aim was poor, and the arrows fell short of the formation.

"Ready!" Liu Jun raised his hand.

The firing mechanisms were open, the fuses lit, and the musketeers aimed.

"Fire!" Liu Jun waved his hand and shouted.

To maintain accuracy, Liu Jun waited until the bandits were within sixty paces before ordering the shot, which was twenty paces closer than their usual training distance.

"Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!"

Six musket shots rang out, and the air was filled with acrid smoke.

The six muskets fired simultaneously, spewing smoke and lead balls.

In the musket fire, several bandits in the front row were hit and fell to the ground, screaming in pain. Even with their shields, they couldn't stop the lead balls.

With such a dense formation and such a close distance, the six shots hit their targets with perfect accuracy.

Liu Jun drew another arrow and shouted, "Fire!"

The eight officers leading the formations and the hunters in the ranks also raised their bows and fired.

Dozens of arrows rained down, and more bandits fell, screaming in pain.

After the third round of arrows from Liu Jun and his archers, Dong Gouzi and the others had reloaded their muskets and fired another volley, sending more bandits to the ground.

"Fire!"

"Fire!"

Arrows and muskets alternated, and bandits continued to fall. In a short time, dozens of bandits had been killed.

The horsemen, pulling on their frightened horses, whipped the panicked bandits, urging them to charge. However, the bandits, who were just cannon fodder, were terrified by the accurate musket and arrow fire. They shouted and screamed but made little progress, instead clustering together, making them even easier targets.

The battlefield was shrouded in smoke, and the bandits were in disarray.

One of the horsemen, seeing the situation, charged forward with a guandao, shouting.

The other horsemen followed, leading the rest of the bandits in a charge.

"Raise your spears!"

Zhang Shan shouted, putting away his bow and raising his flag spear. The small red flag on the spear was very noticeable. He shouted and raised his spear.

The men followed, raising their long bamboo spears, which were about eighteen feet long.

The bandit with the guandao was getting closer, and Zhang Shan watched him closely. When he was within range, Zhang Shan shouted, "Level your spears!"

The spears were leveled.

"Thrust!" Zhang Shan shouted again.

Thirty spears, including two flag spears, thrust forward simultaneously. The bandit with the guandao, who was about to strike, saw what looked like a thousand flowers blooming in front of him.

His guandao was still raised, but he never got the chance to strike.

The enemy was right in front of him, but he couldn't reach them.

Thirty long bamboo spears, plus two flag spears, thrust forward in unison, forming a wall of spears.

The bandit and his horse collided with the wall of spears, and the sharp points easily pierced both the bandit and his horse. The chainmail armor he wore offered no protection.

The sound of piercing flesh and bone filled the air, and the bandit felt his body like a leaking bag, losing strength and vision.

More bandits charged forward, but they met the same fate, impaled by the spears.

The clash of flesh and steel resulted in the bandits falling to the ground.

On the nearby hill, Zhao Dagu and his archers watched in amazement. Zhao Dagu murmured, "Is this Liu Jun, Liu Jiye, and his Nine-Headed Bird team?"

"Look at the banner, it says 'Nine-Headed Bird.' It's the Nine-Headed Bird team, led by Liu Jun, Liu Jiye," an archer shouted excitedly.

"They are truly remarkable. I heard about the Nine-Headed Bird team's success at the Zhong Yiguan post, but I thought it was exaggerated. I didn't believe a newly formed militia could be so effective. Now I believe it; they are indeed remarkable, incredibly so!"

"The Nine-Headed Bird is amazing!"

"Liu Jiye is even more amazing!"

...

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