Chapter 72

A deafening cry of battle shook the entire city of Chang'an. Xue Wanche led two hundred elite knights selected from the six divisions of the Crown Prince, surrounding the Qin王府. Ten knights used large hammers to smash the main gate of the Qin王府 to pieces. Amid the flying splinters, the two hundred men charged in.

In the rear courtyard of the Qin王府, by a rockery, which was the highest point in the rear courtyard, surrounded by gentle slopes, the Qin王府's people gathered here, taking advantage of the high ground. Changsun was directing the Black Armor Guards and the able-bodied servants to organize the defense, but how could their frail bodies compare to the fully armed knights? Changsun was very anxious, hearing the approaching hoofbeats, a hint of despair flashed in his eyes.

Li Kuan squatted on the ground, fiddling with his slingshot frame, which was already taking shape. All he needed to do was to attach the specially tanned oxhide to complete it. Li Kuan had been preparing these things for a long time, but he didn't expect the Crown Prince to launch an attack on the Qin王府 so soon. He thought it would be on the day of the Xuanwu Gate Incident, which was still about ten days away. Therefore, his preparations were not fully ready. Fortunately, the bullets were prepared, and they would definitely give the invading cavalry a hard time.

He wrapped the slingshot frame with silk cloth and tied the oxhide, which was to prevent slipping. After attaching it, Li Kuan tried to pull it, and the force was considerable. With his current level of Ming Strength, he could exert about two to three hundred pounds of force with his arms, and pulling this slingshot required him to use eight-tenths of his strength, which was astonishing.

He picked up a small stone from the ground and tried to shoot it at a nearby small tree. With a whoosh, the stone whistled through the air and flew quickly towards the target.

"Thud." The stone hit the target, and Li Kuan nodded. He hadn't used this skill for years, but his craftsmanship was still precise. Now he just had to wait for the cavalry to come.

Xue Wanche led his men charging in and found no one around. "Search! They must be hiding or making a last stand somewhere. Find them for me!" Xue Wanche, with his beard and bulging eyes, waved his hand, and a group of knights galloped off in all directions.

"Report! All the people from the Qin王府 are in the rear courtyard!" A voice came from a searching knight who saw the people in the firelight.

"Charge! Take them all!" Xue Wanche spurred his horse forward, whipped it, and galloped towards the rear courtyard. The other cavalry followed their commander, their hooves making a uniform sound, like a mountain collapsing, a river breaking its banks, or a snow avalanche on a snowy mountain, rolling towards the rear courtyard.

Changsun's face was uncertain, seemingly hesitating. The surrounding servants began to tremble; they were just ordinary people and had never seen such a scene. But who cared about them now? The cavalry didn't care if they were ordinary people; their lances and sabers spoke for themselves.

The Black Armor Guards, clad in armor and holding sabers, stood coldly under the command of a man with a陌刀, gripping their weapons tightly, some even tying the weapons to their hands. Their eyes were filled with a murderous intent, ready to harvest lives.

As the cavalry approached, Li Kuan began to act. He pulled the slingshot to full tension, a small stone in the pouch. When he released his fingers, the stone shot out like an arrow towards a cavalryman.

"Smack!" The stone hit the cavalryman's arm. Due to the sharp sound, the cavalryman instinctively blocked it, resulting in the stone shattering and the armor on his arm deforming. Not only that, but his arm was even fractured, making it temporarily useless in battle. How could an arm that couldn't hold a weapon be used in battle?

"Be careful, there's a hidden weapon." The cavalryman shouted, warning his companions.

Hidden weapons were not uncommon in the Tang Dynasty. Many knights were skilled in using them, especially flying stones, which matched the previous attack. This led the cavalry to make a wrong assumption.

"Damn it, using such low tactics! I am Xue Wanche, who dares to challenge me?" Xue Wanche rode forward, shouting at the people of the Qin王府.

"Xue, you've sunk so low as to attack women and children. You're getting worse with age. Today, I, Duan Zhihuan, will end you!" The man leading the Black Armor Guards stepped forward, shouting back.

"Duan Zhihuan, what are you doing here? Aren't you in the Qin King's army?" Xue Wanche's face changed. This man was a formidable opponent, ranking among the top three in martial arts in the Heavenly Strategy Army, only conceding to Qin Qiong. He was on par with Yuchi Gong and Cheng Zhijie. It seemed today would be a tough fight. The Crown Prince had tried to recruit him, but these men were loyal to Li Shimin, not only refusing the Crown Prince's offer but also giving the gifts to Li Shimin for military expenses.

"Scared to wet your pants, old Duan? Don't worry, even if you want to go home for a drink and come back, I'll wait. You can pee with peace of mind!" Duan Zhihuan, though a warrior, was not rash. He was stalling for time because the Qin King, hearing the horns and battle cries, would surely guess something was amiss and lead the Black Armor Army to come to their aid. Just a little more time, and they would be saved.

"Haha... You've even learned to use tactics. I didn't expect that!" Xue Wanche, not a fool, guessed Duan Zhihuan's intentions and said no more. "Men, the opportunity to establish your merit is here. Charge! Capture the important figures of the Qin王府, and kill anyone who dares to obstruct us!" Xue Wanche waved his hand, and the knights began to charge. The gentle slope was no obstacle for these cavalry.

Seeing the stone fail, Li Kuan knew that using stones might not be effective. He decided to use the biological weapon he had prepared. He pulled over a burlap bag filled with the bullets he had prepared for a long time.

Opening the bag, small cloth packets, about the size of a finger joint, filled the small bag, and a pungent smell spread.

"Second Brother, what is this? It stinks!" Little Nianwei, a bit scared, held Li Lizhi's hand and asked.

"This is lime, a gift Second Brother prepared for those bad guys. They want to catch us to look at goldfish!" Li Kuan said with a smile, showing no signs of tension, and it was unclear what he was relying on.

"Lime?" Li Tai, the little fat boy, couldn't sleep. He never imagined such a thing would happen, but seeing the preparations Li Kuan had made, he realized his second brother had known this would happen. This made him admire his brother even more, and he resolved to lose weight so he could run if needed.

Li Chenggan looked at Li Kuan's preparations and felt uneasy. Why was this guy always so excellent? Why did he know the Crown Prince would attack the Qin王府 at this time? Why didn't he know these things? Why, why... Li Chenggan's mind was filled with these questions, and his eyes grew darker. He blamed this guy for making him seem incompetent and wished he wasn't there.

Li Ke and Li Lizhi remained silent, knowing this was a critical moment. Li Lizhi even quietly covered the little one's mouth to let Li Kuan focus on dealing with the cavalry.

These children, who understood the situation, knew how cruel the truth was and what would happen if they failed. So, despite their curiosity and questions, they remained silent.

Li Kuan took out a lime packet, placed it in the slingshot, and aimed at Xue Wanche, who was giving orders. This was a big target, and taking him down would greatly demoralize the enemy and eliminate a major threat, increasing their chances of victory.

After aiming, Li Kuan closed his eyes and fired the first lime packet. A white cloud of dust traced a clear path through the air towards Xue Wanche.

"What is this? Daring to show off in front of me! Watch my saber!" Xue Wanche raised his陌刀 and slashed at the flying object.

His martial arts were superb, and the lime packet was cut in half, the white powder scattering in the air, covering his face and head.

"This is lime! Damn it, all low tactics, you bastards!" Xue Wanche cursed but began to turn his horse, clearly affected. Duan Zhihuan saw his chance and shouted, "Xue's brat, thinking of going home for a drink? I won't allow it!" and charged towards the cavalry. Such a lone charge into a cavalry formation was rare, and only the bravest warriors dared to do it. If not skilled, the outcome would be being trampled to death.

Xue Wanche was indeed affected, his eyes stinging with tears, unable to rub them or wash them with water. Lime could only be washed with oil; water would burn his eyes.

Li Kuan knew the opportunity was now, and his hands moved like a wind, launching one lime packet after another. White trails traced through the air, and from his high position, he was like a machine gun bunker, firing bullets.

In a moment, a cloud of white dust enveloped the entire cavalry formation. The soldiers closed their eyes and tried to turn their horses to escape the area.

But they forgot that the lime affected the horses as well. The horses, unable to close their eyes, began to panic, bucking and galloping wildly, crashing into anything in their path. The cavalry formation fell into chaos, with many soldiers being thrown off their horses and trampled, and others crashing into walls, trees, or rockeries. The previously disciplined formation was now a mess.

Duan Zhihuan, still charging, was stunned: What's happening? Who did this? And lime can be used like this? This is a battle, not a street fight. How could a little lime cause such chaos!

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