Taiheiki

Chapter 46 Breaking the Fortress
It was pitch black tonight, with no moonlight, but the sky was unusually clear.

"Open the door!" Zhang Ping ordered in a low voice. His men stepped forward to lift the bolt and then pushed open the gate of Wu Castle. The pre-oiled door opened silently. Zhang Ping could see the clear night sky through the door.

So many stars! He counted them as he walked out of Wubao's gate, over the moat and the sheep-horse wall. As a child in Jiangling City, his teacher had taught him a little astrology: he knew the names of the twenty-eight constellations and the stars ruling each; he knew many stories about the stars. He had thought he had forgotten most of them, but now he realized he remembered every one of them. Perhaps it was because he was about to die?
A cold wind swept across the ground, sighing and tugging at the hems of Zhang Ping's clothes. The dark Wu Castle rose behind him, casting a shadow over him. He turned and looked. That was where he first learned to walk, first learned to shoot an arrow, and first kissed a girl. This should be the last time he would see this place. Maybe he should set it on fire and burn everything to avoid leaving it to the enemy! A thought flashed through his mind, and then he shook his head: This would be tantamount to notifying the enemy of a surprise attack, unless he left an order for the people in Wu Castle to burn it after he launched the surprise attack. The question was, who would carry out the orders of a dead man? Thinking of this, Zhang Ping's face showed a wry smile.

A bird chirped from the front, a signal from the front team that they had reached the trench. He breathed a sigh of relief; it was a good sign. The target of the night attack was the strange machine that threw stone bullets at Wubao. It was the most threatening target to Wubao. He had originally wanted to target Wei Cong's head, but his plan was rejected - no one knew where that guy lived at night.

There were small noises ahead; it was the thieves throwing bundles of firewood into the trench. There was no other way; the trench was even more dangerous at night, and he hadn't forgotten the lesson from the bamboo sticks. Zhang Ping prayed silently that the enemy's night watch wouldn't detect the noise. It seemed the gods had heard his prayers, for a few minutes later, three more night owl cries were heard ahead—a sign that the trench had been filled.

The thieves stepped on the bundles of firewood to cross the trench, and then they climbed over the wall with rope ladders and hooks. Zhang Ping could already see the strange machine, which was less than forty steps away from him. It stood there, lonely and cold, as if it had nothing to do with anything around it.

"Blow the horn! Charge forward! First, burn that thing that's on fire, then kill everyone you see!" Zhang Ping lowered his voice, but it was easy to hear the uncontrollable enthusiasm in his voice. As the horn blared through the night sky, the thieves shouted enthusiastically and rushed towards the catapult, but a chaotic scream interrupted their desperate madness.

"Damn, there are bamboo sticks on the ground!"

"Damn it, we've fallen into a trap!"

"My foot is pierced, help me!"

As screams echoed, people continued to fall to the ground, wailing loudly. The thieves who hadn't guessed the target hesitated and stopped. The darkness obscured their vision, and no one knew if there were any bamboo sticks behind them. (It was very likely that they were already standing in the bamboo stick array and just luckily missed the one in the front. However, if they retreated, the probability of stepping on the bamboo sticks was very high unless they stepped on the footprints in front of them every time.) Just as the thieves hesitated, more than a dozen balls of fire rose up and were thrown towards them, landing in the middle of the thieves. The flames rose up, illuminating the surrounding area.

"Damn it, there's firewood and oil on the ground!"

"They want to burn us to death, run away!"

"Yes, run away!"

Along with the flames came arrows. The archers hiding in the dark easily shot down the thieves illuminated by the fire one by one. Zhang Ping looked at everything in front of him in despair, as if it was a nightmare from which he could not wake up. Finally, he drew his knife and rushed towards the catapult, until he was pierced through the chest by a crossbow arrow and fell down.

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The sky was gloomy and cold, and the wind was biting. The dry grass on the ground was covered with a thin layer of frost, which made a crackling sound when stepped on.

"Sir, this is the head of the bandit leader Zhang Ping. He is the nephew of Zhang Bolu. After Zhang Bolu's death, he became the leader of the bandits!" Zhao Yannian said respectfully, pointing to one of the many grinning heads on the Hu bed.

"Hmm!" Wei Cong forced himself not to turn his head away immediately. Even a dead person's face wouldn't look good, let alone a group of thieves. This Zhao Yannian was good in every way except that he didn't know how to read people's faces. Didn't he see that he was about to vomit?

"Sir, do you want to hang these heads on the trees to intimidate the remnants in Wu Fort?" Zhao Yannian asked.

"Forget it, let's dig a hole and bury it. The thieves in Wu Castle are not fools. They already know the result of last night's attack!" Wei Cong waved his hands. He had had enough. Killing thieves was one thing, and hanging a person's head on a tree for crows to gnaw on it was another. He didn't want to go out for a walk and see a skull smiling at him. He would have nightmares at night.

"Yes, yes!" Zhao Yannian responded, "But when you return to the city to report your achievements to the prefect, you'll need the head as evidence, right?"

"Then leave a few in the box!" Wei Cong had already turned around and casually waved his arm twice: "Clean up here, it's a mess!" With that, he turned and left.

"Yes, yes!" Zhao Yannian hurriedly saluted.

"Hehe!" Wang Shou, who was standing next to him, laughed dryly twice: "Yannian, didn't you notice that your husband was unhappy just now?"

"Yes, a little! Did I say something wrong?" Even someone as slow-witted as Zhao Yannian noticed that Wei Cong was a little unhappy.

"Ah!" Wang Shou looked disappointed. "Yannian, what can I say to you? Who would be happy to see dozens of grinning heads facing them so early in the morning? Do you think your husband is a rough guy like us? It's only because our husband is magnanimous that he just turned around and walked away. If it were someone else, I wouldn't be surprised if you got whipped a dozen times!"

"Oh, oh!" Zhao Yannian finally reacted and said with a wry smile: "I didn't expect that. I don't think my husband was so particular in the past, so -!"

"That was in the past!" Wang Shou said. "Everyone has had hard times. When Emperor Gaozu was being chased by Xiang Yu, he even pushed his own son and daughter under the carriage! Was that because he didn't love his children? You have to remember, my husband is different from the rest of us. He was born into a life of luxury. Everything he's doing now is something he's forced to do, so it's naturally not easy. If you really think he's willing to do this, just like the rest of us, then you're the one who's going to be in trouble!"

Zhao Yannian was already sweating profusely when he heard this. He bowed to Wang Shou and said, "Thank you very much, Brother Wang, for your advice. I will never forget this kindness!"

Wang Shou accepted Zhao Yannian's greeting before reaching out to help him up: "Old Zhao, I know you are capable, but there are many capable people in this world, but how many of them have met a noble master who is willing to use you and reward you according to your merits? We both came from poor backgrounds, and it was not until we were old that we finally met Lord Wei. It is because of his grace that we are in our current situation. We will never have such an opportunity again in our lifetime, so we must seize it and never let it go!" "Brother Wang, your advice is golden and wise, and I will remember it in my heart!" Zhao Yannian nodded vigorously, as if he wanted to engrave Wang Shou's words in his heart: "Then I will ask someone to clean up this place right away, but I originally planned to use these heads to intimidate Wu Bao, what should I do now?"

"My lord just told you to dig a hole and bury him, so just do as he says!" Wang Shou said, "As for Wu Fort, I think they're almost there now. The night attack failed, so many people died, and even the leader is gone. The people inside must be in a panic. Just send someone over to talk them down and offer some rewards, and we'll probably be able to take them down."

"From what my lord has said, the Zhang family should be eradicated to avoid endless trouble in the future!" Zhao Yannian whispered, "If that's the case, why would the city be opened?"

"Hey, I told you you're stubborn!" Wang Shou laughed. "There's not even a leader in Wubao, so there must be people who are afraid of death, right? Why don't you just tell a lie and trick the city into opening? As long as Wubao is taken, whether those people live or die will be decided by your words. Don't forget, the Zhang family's granary and the savings that Zhang Bolu has accumulated over the past twenty years of his rampage in Jiangbiao are all in there. There are so many eyes watching them! If someone tries to set it on fire and kills them, how will you explain it to my lord?"

"Brother Wang is right!" Zhao Yannian nodded. "I will immediately send people to the city to announce that as long as they open the gates and surrender, I will spare their lives!"

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Wang Shou's judgment was accurate. Before lunchtime, the gates of Wubao were opened. The men and women who remained inside knelt on the ground, all dressed in sackcloth, their faces filled with despair, as if they had already seen their own hopeless future.

Wei Cong was riding on a temporarily found green-maned horse. This horse was actually a pack horse and was slow to respond to the knight's commands. Its only advantage was its good temper and it would not throw Wei Cong to the ground. He held his breath, tightened his abdomen, and puffed out his chest, trying his best to appear calm. He saw a woman holding a child kneeling in the dust in front of him. The child suddenly burst into tears, probably because the horse was approaching. The woman blocked the child's mouth with her chest in fear, kowtowed repeatedly, and shouted the death penalty. Two guards hurried forward, blocking the horses with their swords. The other soldiers also drew their bows and swords, and put them on the heads of the people kneeling on the ground, looking like they were on the verge of a fight.

"My dear, are you okay?" Zhao Yannian grabbed the horse's reins with one hand and asked Wei Cong.

"It's okay, the kid was frightened by the horse!" Wei Cong felt bad about the sudden change. He shook his head and jumped off his horse: "Forget it, take everyone out and send a few people to guard them. Search the city thoroughly and keep a close eye on the granaries and treasury!"

"As you command!" Zhao Yannian waved his hand, and a dozen soldiers stepped forward, driving out the people kneeling at the gates of Wu Fort. Wei Cong walked into Wu Fort with a bit of apathy. It was clear that Zhang Bolu had put a lot of thought into it. Blacksmith shops, carpentry shops, granaries, residential areas, and so on were all arranged in an orderly manner. Many buildings were covered with tiles, which was a considerable expense in the late Han Dynasty. However, many buildings were damaged, thanks to his trebuchet, and repairs would cost manpower and material resources.

"Wang Shou!" Wei Cong said.

"My subordinate is here!"

"Send a few people to check on the captives, pick out all the craftsmen and their families, and put them under separate custody!" Wei Cong said.

"Yes!" Wang Shou responded. This order was within his expectations. After all, Wei Cong had always valued craftsmen, and most craftsmen made a living by their skills. Their relationship with the Zhang family would not be that close, so there was no need to deal with them all together.

"Also, there must be books in the Zhang family's granary and treasury, right? Where are they?" Wei Cong asked.

"You, that's you, the one wearing the bamboo hat, come here!" Wang Shou pointed at a man kneeling at the door of a roadside tavern and shouted. The man hurriedly stood up, walked five or six steps in front of Wei Cong, and knelt down again: "I am Zhang Ren, the humble servant, and I pay my respects to you, my dear!"

"Are you guarding the warehouse for the Zhang family?" Wei Cong asked.

"It's me!" Zhang Ren pulled two books from his sleeve and presented them with both hands: "Sir, inside are the food and treasures from the Zhang family treasury!"

Wang Shou took the book and handed it to Wei Cong. Wei Cong flipped it open and took a look, his brow furrowed. The records inside were a mess, with all kinds of strange terms everywhere, and he had no idea what they meant.

"Let me ask you, how much grain and copper coins are there in the public treasury?" Wei Cong asked.

Zhang Ren kowtowed and said, "Before I answer your question, please spare my life!"

Wei Cong's brows furrowed immediately. "What do you mean? Didn't my people already say they would spare you as long as you open the city?"

"Reporting to you, sir!" Zhang Ren said, "I know the Zhang family is guilty of heinous crimes, but I am only a concubine's son, without a wife, children, or parents. I dare not challenge your majesty again. If I can save my life, I will immediately move far away and never set foot in Jingzhou again. Please spare my life!"

Wei Cong was stunned. He looked at the man kneeling on the ground again. He was in his early thirties, of medium build, dressed in a dark brown robe and a bamboo crown on his head. He was an ordinary man who would be hard to find in a crowd. "You don't believe the words of my men, but why do you ask me for help? If I break my promise and kill you, what can you do to me?"

Zhang Ren kowtowed and said, "I see that your men are all ruthless and vicious, ready to kill as many people as possible and to massacre the entire city. I really don't believe it. But you are an elder, so I believe it!"

Wei Cong looked at Diwudeng, Wensheng and others not far away, thinking that Zhang Ren's words about being an elder were probably just to curry favor, but it was not slander to say that Zhao Yannian, Diwudeng and other old men who had fought against the Qiang people for decades were fierce and ferocious. He acted as a hands-off boss in dealing with the affairs of Zhangjiawubao, largely because he did not want to dirty his hands and let Zhao Yannian and others do the dirty work.

(End of this chapter)