Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

The sunlight slanted towards the west, and black smoke rolled into the sky.

The Qi army had just retreated from an attack. In the distance, the city with its gate tower smashed down looked somewhat desolate. Xi Sheng frowned, got off the chariot, and sighed, "It's really not easy to attack."

"We don't have to conquer today, and this is not our purpose." Wang Zheng rode on his warhorse, looked at the sky and tilted his head: "We can prepare to retreat. Now that no one has come to attack us, we should go to the main camp."

"I think so too. We can't let people say we don't know how to entertain guests." Xi Sheng nodded and turned to the messenger and said, "Send a message to Zeng Tu and Han Shizhong to take their cavalry to the camp immediately."

"Raise the golden drum flag! Order the Xianzhen Camp to move forward to cover the rear."

A triangular flag with a red border and a yellow background and the words "Golden Drum" written on it was raised high into the sky. Distinctive drum beats echoed in the army formation. The generals' flags began to move. A large flag embroidered with the words "Lin" and "Tang" marched toward the front, surrounded by blood-red flags. Xi Sheng mounted his horse and quietly watched the people retreating in front of him.

In sight, most of the soldiers coming down from the front line were carried to the rear for treatment. Xu Wen also came down from the front line. His armor was covered with scratches, and the sword in his hand had cut holes in it. There were dried blood on his face and armor. The figures around him were covering their comrades and retreating, but this guy handed the sword to his soldiers and then ran to the rear. Han Shizhong and his cavalry watched him coming and waved his hand to signal him to hurry up.

Xu Wen immediately accelerated and ran over, jumped on his horse, took the fifty-jin bent sword brought by the soldier next to him, whistled, and galloped away.

The crowd was moving around, some cavalrymen on fast horses galloped out, more soldiers turned around to look at the flag of the central army, and then quickly retreated following the flag of the general in front. Although some were puzzled as to why they didn't attack hard, no one questioned it, as it was not their turn to ask about these things.

"Return?!"

On the top of the city wall, Wanyan Alihe saw the Qi army retreating, so he walked to the parapet and looked out. Seeing the dark mass of soldiers retreating like a tide, he was somewhat puzzled: "Why are they retreating like this?"

In the back, Wanyan Chang received the message and climbed up the city wall. The Wanyan soldiers beside him saw him coming and quickly dispersed. Wanyan Alihemen heard the voice, turned his head to look at him, and then turned back: "The Qi army's movements are a bit strange."

"Or maybe they suffered a setback in the siege and gave up?" Wanyan Chang frowned as he watched the Xianzhen Camp approaching. These heavily armored soldiers, as the rearguard, were clearly telling him that they were prepared to retreat.

"Not like that." Wanyan Alihe stood up straight, and his abdomen where Xu Wen kicked him was a little painful. "The Qi army attacked the city fiercely just now, and suddenly left. It's a bit like being intimate with a beautiful woman in a brothel. That little girl suddenly changed her face and left. It was very unpleasant."

Wanyan Chang was stroking his medium-length beard when he heard the words. He stopped abruptly and glanced at the face of a middle-aged man who was a dozen years older than him. His eyes twitched: "...Why does fighting a war sound so expensive from your mouth?"

Wanyan Alihemen laughed loudly, "...boy, you are still young. You will understand when you go to the brothel with me a few more times in the future. This enemy is just like a woman. You need to use all your strength to defeat her."

Looking at Wanyan Chang's wrinkled face, he reached out and patted his shoulder: "You are just too serious. You don't understand the benefits of liberating your nature."

Wanyan Chang shook his head and said, "...No, I don't think that's the case."

Wanyan Alihe spread his hands and said, "Tell me what's the difference."

……

The shouts and cries of killing in the Qi army camp rose to the sky, and countless arrows swooped down from the sky like locusts... Arrows fell on people, shields, wooden fences, and war horses, and blood spread inside and outside the camp. A Qi army soldier holding a weapon stood up unsteadily, gritted his teeth and drew his sword to cut off the arrow piercing his shoulder. In his sight, a few feet in front of the wooden fence, another wave of Wanyan cavalry swept past like a torrent. This time he was not spared, and was pierced in the eye by the falling arrows. He wailed and fell to the ground. The crossbowmen who were still shooting took the opportunity to find an opportunity to shoot the crossbow arrows in their hands. The knights holding shields let out strange cries, and slammed the battering rams as thick as thighs against the camp gate. The two solid wooden doors shook a few times with creaking sounds. A Qi soldier smashed the mechanism of the bed crossbow. After a shriek, the sound of the warhorse falling down came into his ears.

Hundreds of people lay on the road of attack, blood flowing and gathering into pools of blood in the low-lying areas.

Wanyan Loushi rode on his warhorse, observed for a while, and suddenly pointed to the camp gate of the Qi army. Not long after, an order was issued to blow a desolate horn. A group of 1,500 Wanyan cavalrymen who had been on standby slowly exhaled the foul air from their mouths. Under the leadership of Mouke, they clamped their spears, raised their battering rams, and rushed out violently, launching another angry charge.

Inside the Qi army camp.

"Damn it, the Wanyan tribe is rushing to the camp gate again! Hold it!"

Ma Ling on the watchtower groaned a little, thinking to himself that these Jurchens were really not afraid of death. They had lost hundreds of people but refused to retreat. There was even a slight risk of suppressing their side to break through. It was really hard to imagine that this was the tribe that his master and his men had been plotting against for a year. If they had not been repelled by a night raid a year ago but had fought a head-on battle instead, it would be hard to tell who would have won.

"Raise the double rabbit flags! Call for help—"

A hoarse voice came out of Ma Ling's mouth, and then he picked up the Fang Tian Huaji and ran to the gate wearing a lion-head armor. Now he couldn't care about his own face, the most important thing was to defend the camp.

He looked in the direction of the rear camp and turned around: "Quickly string the crossbows, and the infantry will line up behind the chevaux de frise, and be ready for close combat!"

Some of the panicked soldiers calmed down, and the seventeen or eighteen hundred soldiers with varying degrees of injuries behind them responded loudly, and figures holding swords quickly filled the positions.

Ma Ling raised his Fang Tian Hua Ji and looked at the charging cavalry: "Archers, shoot--"

The blood is boiling.

……

In the northwest of Pennsylvania, there was a small boat drifting on the surface of the Hunhe River. Wanyan Xishi was lying on the boat with his arms and legs spread out, gasping for breath. After a while, he struggled to get up. He had already taken off his armor, and the battle robe he was wearing was a little dirty. He looked back at the north bank of the river, and he seemed to hear the faint sound of horse hooves in his ears.

From the time he was discovered by the Qi army in the village until he escaped with his companions, he tried his best to return to Pennsylvania as quickly as possible. However, he was chased all the way, and even the last two scouts died while protecting him. He finally managed to rob a boat and run to the river, and he was already exhausted.

"I can't rest..." Panting heavily, the young Jurchen general grabbed the oars and paddled vigorously, repeating through gritted teeth: "This is not the time to rest, move--"

"Ahhhh-"

The boat floats like a snail. (End of this chapter)