weaving

Chapter 1508 The entire bandit stronghold was wiped out, not a single one was spared.

After leaving Tongguan, Yongning Earl Zhang Cheng and his entourage headed north through Fenglingguan towards Puzhou. Thereafter, under the protection and accompaniment of civil and military officials such as Lin Fangping and Xu Jinyong, they traveled north through Pingyang Prefecture, Fenzhou, Taiyuan Prefecture, and Datong Prefecture, finally returning to Xuanfu Town.

Although Zhang Cheng was already in the control area of ​​the Xuanda army, the calm in Xuanda was only on the surface. In reality, there were undercurrents. Many large merchants, local military leaders and powerful families who had suffered setbacks and persecution in the early stages hated Zhang Cheng to the bone and wished him dead.

The families of several large merchant houses in Shanxi, in particular, even considered eating his flesh raw to vent their hatred!
Since all sides are eager to make their moves, it is destined that the journey of the Earl of Yongning back to Xuanfu Town will not be too uneventful, and there will definitely be some waves.

Forty li southwest of Jiezhou City lies Wangguan Valley, a spur of the Zhongtiao Mountains. The valley is secluded and deep, with steep peaks, strange rocks, beautiful springs and streams, and breathtaking scenery. In later generations, it became a well-known natural scenic area. Within the valley are natural wonders and ancient architectural remains such as Tianzhu Peak, East and West Waterfalls, Yixi Clear Stream, Qifeng Zhulian, Mingjing Yingtian, Baierpan Mountain, Xiuxiu Pavilion, and Sanzhao Hall.

The official road passes through Wangguan Valley. For about three hundred paces, there is a section of road about ten paces to the east of the official road. There is a cliff more than ten feet high. Although there are no trees on it, it is overgrown with weeds and is very steep. People and horses cannot go up it, nor can they climb it.

To the west of this section of the official road is a long ditch about ten feet deep, filled with weeds taller than a person, almost covering the entire ditch.

Just as the Yongning Earl's central army was about to pass through this treacherous route, a whistle came from the eastern cliff, followed by nearly a hundred arrows flying towards them with a cold glint.

Fortunately, the brave and resolute soldiers protecting the Earl of Yongning were seasoned veterans and reacted quickly. They used shields and swords to parry while protecting the Earl of Yongning and his staff, including Hu Yiwen, with their own bodies.

Liu Chengzhu, Yuan Fucheng, and Qin Sheng even tumbled into the long ditch on the right. Qin Sheng broke his left leg, Yuan Fucheng broke his right arm, while Liu Chengzhu was more robust. Although his internal organs were churning when he fell into the ditch, his bones were not injured.

Zhu Zhicang stayed behind the Earl of Yongning. He rushed forward to shield the Earl from the arrows, taking two arrows himself but not retreating, which shows his loyalty.

As the Imperial Guardsmen erected their shields and raised their muskets to return fire at the cliff face, the arrows began to fall slightly. The central officer Zhang Mingyuan immediately organized his personal guards to raise their shields and cover the retreat of Yongning Earl Zhang Cheng to the blind spot of the arrows on the other side of the cliff.

Over here, Zhu Zhicang, disregarding the arrows stuck in his body, shouted loudly to organize the soldiers to climb up the cliff, but unfortunately the cliff was too steep and there was no place to hold on.

Fortunately, Xu Jinyong in the vanguard and Lin Fangping in the rearguard were not far apart. After learning that Yongningbo was not injured, they organized their soldiers to climb up from the front and rear to surround and annihilate the ambushing enemy.

At the same time, they also sent out 100 cavalrymen each to extend reconnaissance to both flanks and use the speed advantage of the cavalry to block the enemy's way down the mountain to prevent them from escaping.

Meanwhile, the enemies on the cliff saw that Yongningbo had taken refuge at the base of the cliff, and that their arrows could no longer harm him, so they immediately threw down more than a hundred bundles of dry thatch and branches.

"Oh no, there's sulfur mixed in with the grass..." Zhu Zhicang roared, "Quick, protect the Earl of Yongning and rush over there!"

Fortunately, Zhu Zhicang had participated in two battles to defend Kaifeng and was very familiar with this tactic and the smell of sulfur. That's why he could smell the sulfur mixed in with the straw as soon as it hit the ground.

Just as Zhang Mingyuan and Zhu Zhicang were protecting the Earl of Yongning as they rushed out from under the cliff, several bundles of burning thatch and branches on the cliff face instantly ignited into flames, and a large amount of smoke spread out.

The cliff where the Earl of Yongning had just dodged the arrows was now engulfed in flames.

If they hadn't rushed out in time, even if they hadn't been burned to death by the raging fire, they would have been suffocated by the thick smoke.

Of course, there was no time to ponder these questions at that moment. Some followed Zhang Mingyuan and Zhu Zhicang, rushing forward to protect the Earl of Yongning; some held up their shields; and others rescued Liu Chengzhu and the others who had fallen into the long ditch. But no one bothered to extinguish the raging flames below the cliff…

…………

On the other side, Xu Jinyong did not encounter the bandits who ambushed Yongningbo. Instead, Lin Fangping captured four people alive and killed seventeen on the spot, but nearly a hundred people still escaped.

There's no mouth that the Imperial Guards can't pry open!
As a top-tier armed reconnaissance force on the battlefield, they are not only skilled at sentry duty, combat, and capturing prisoners, but also adept at extracting information from their captors.

The bandits who ambushed the Earl of Yongning were a group of mountain bandits from the Zhongtiao Mountains. In fact, they had been bribed by others and were taking risks for money.

As for who exactly bribed this band of mountain bandits, these few henchmen naturally had no idea of ​​the details, only that it was a big shot from Kaifeng.

"Commander, here are three hundred soldiers. Go and wipe out the bandits."

Looking at Xu Jinyong, who had volunteered for the mission, Zhang Cheng asked in a deep voice, "Three hundred men, is that enough?"

"A thousand bandits are nothing, even three hundred would be too many for me."

As Zhang Cheng turned his head, he saw the arrow stuck in Zhu Zhicang's body, and then he saw Yuan Fucheng and Qin Sheng being carried. His anger flared up instantly, and he growled in a hoarse voice, "Find out the mastermind behind this, sign and seal the agreement, and leave no one alive except the bandit leader and all the bandits in the village."

"Here!"

…………

As Xu Jinyong said, the thousand or so bandits and outlaws were indeed no match for the Imperial Guards.

However, since this band of bandits had the advantage of terrain, Xu Jinyong dared not launch a rash attack. He was afraid that the casualties among his soldiers would be too great, and he was also afraid that the bandits would escape if they discovered him, thus preventing the complete annihilation of the bandits.

Based on the information obtained from the prisoners, Xu Jinyong sent fifty men to block the exit at the back of the mountain to prevent the bandits from escaping, and also sent fifty soldiers to launch a feigned attack from the front of the mountain.

He personally led two hundred warriors, climbing up a cliff on the east side of the bandit camp and suddenly attacking. The bandit camp was thrown into chaos, and more than four hundred bandits were killed on the spot. After screening, more than four hundred old bandits and stubborn bandits were beheaded in public.

Only a little over a hundred people remained, who were local residents who had been kidnapped and forced to go up the mountain. These ordinary people were so frightened by the brutality of the government troops and the bloody scene that they were completely silent. Their bodies trembled like leaves, and they dared not make any further moves, as obedient as sheep.

After screening, it was determined that these more than one hundred people were coerced rather than thieves, and none of them had been involved in any bloodshed. Xu Jinyong then let them go, issuing a warning before releasing them on the spot.

Xu Jinyong packed up all the grain, gold, silver and valuables in the bandit stronghold, and together with the two bandit leaders, escorted them to catch up with the Earl of Yongning's entourage.