Sweep Yuan

Chapter 62: The brave one wins when we meet on a narrow road
Shao Zhao also agreed with his sixth brother's assessment of Fu Youde, but he was more concerned about when he could rush forward to support his fourth brother.

"Your fourth brother is almost at the city gates. Should we charge in now?"

Shao Rong looked at the city walls to the south and north for a while, then turned back to look at the stone mountain on the watchtower, turned around, and shook his head, saying:
"hold on."

In this battle, the tasks assigned to each unit by Ishiyama were:

Shao Rong's provisional battalion and Sun Xun's fourth infantry battalion launched the main attack on the western city wall, while Fu Youde led a temporary crossbow team to provide cover. Chang Tietou's second infantry battalion and Wu Liujin's sixth infantry battalion respectively launched feigned attacks on the northern and southern city walls.

Two squads of the First Battalion of the Shishan Headquarters set up an ambush outside the eastern suburbs of Hong County to intercept the fleeing enemy.

The 5th Infantry Battalion and the 1st Infantry Battalion (two teams short) on the 12th were reserved to reinforce various directions at any time.

Due to insufficient numbers and training, Shi Shan scattered his cavalry to patrol the key roads on the east, south, and north sides, not to conceal the battlefield, but to detect any possible government reinforcements as early as possible.

As a surrendered general, Shao Rong was eager to make a name for himself and took the initiative to undertake the relatively dangerous task of leading the attack.

But he was not content to be cannon fodder that wore down the defenders; he wanted to be the first to scale the walls and even break through the city in one fell swoop.

For this reason, he was even willing to put his own brothers in danger.

However, to be the first to scale the walls, bravery in battle alone is far from enough.

Having a teammate like Fu Youde to hold the line is essential, and you also need teammates who are willing to sacrifice themselves to fully utilize the feint attack and tie down a sufficient number of defending troops for you.

But the battle had been going on for more than a quarter of an hour. The sounds of fighting could be heard from Wu Liujin’s troops in the south, while the shouts of battle from Chang Tie’s head in the north were even louder. However, upon closer inspection, there was no sound of metal clashing, which was somewhat unusual.

Central Command Post.

From its elevated position, and being located further back on the battlefield, Shishan offered a general view of the entire battlefield.

The man held a tin megaphone and shouted downwards:

"Order Zeng Xing: Reinforce Wu Liujin. If Wu Liujin has not yet reached the city, coordinate with his troops; if he has already reached the city, guard against the enemy's counterattack."

"Send a message to Chang Tietou: The western and southern fronts are engaged in battle. Your unit may advance."

After watching the two messengers ride away, Shishan gave another order:
"Beat the drums, urge on the battle!"

Boom!dong dong!

As the battle drums sounded, Shao Rong thought to himself, "What a pity," but dared not disobey the order.

"set off!"

At the foot of the west city wall.

Six square tables were arranged in pairs to form three groups to enhance the protective surface. Underneath the tables, soldiers were quickly clearing small pits and obstacles to prepare for the subsequent troops to ascend the city walls.

Two pointed wooden donkey carts stopped at the pre-marked weak point in the city wall. Soldiers, sweating profusely, took turns swinging hoes and picks, trying to dig a gap.

"The hole isn't here. This wall is too solid. One pickaxe and you get a white dot. You can't dig it out, you simply can't."

His companion nudged Hu Cai, who was muttering under his breath, with his shoulder, and then stole a glance at Shao Si.

"You scoundrel, if you want to get whipped, don't get me in the mess!"

Shao Si's attention was no longer on the impenetrable city wall, but on the newly appeared cracks in the roof, silently calculating how many more blows it could take, puzzled as to why the defenders' attack intensity had suddenly decreased.

Behind them, soldiers from the provisional battalion worked together to lift six overturned boats.

Shao Rong quickly approached the city wall under the cover of the small boat. On the way, he saw the archers begin to show their power. They seemed to be organized into groups of several people and were taking turns firing arrows.

On the city wall, Gao Jingyi was just about to check where the enemy troops were when two arrows shot his rattan shield. He quickly pulled back, pressed his left ear against the wall, and tried his best to discern the movements below the city.

A short while later, Gao Jingyi pointed to the archers at the northernmost crenellations and shouted:

"There are no thieves over there. Just keep an eye on the wall and don't waste any more bricks!"

Gao Jingyi turned around and looked at Lei Bantou, Li Song, Song Sanyang and others who were hiding behind a pile of logs to avoid arrows.

"Lei, you command them to work in pairs, carrying the logs and smashing them down through this crenellation!"

Li Song inwardly groaned, but dared not question the county magistrate's order. He pulled Song Sanyang along, deliberately dawdling and falling behind. When lifting the log, he tried to hunch his neck and turn his body to minimize his exposed area.

Gao Jingyi had no time to ponder Li Song's ulterior motives. After giving the order, he immediately bent down, raised his shield, and searched for Deng Shunxing.

The thieves suddenly increased their ranged attacks, clearly preparing for the first wave of attacks.

The battle just now showed that the limited number of archers could not cope with more complex situations. In order to save their own lives, they had to put aside their pride and seek help from these street heroes.

Deng Shunxing was pretending to be busy while holding a few pieces of firewood, but his eyes were always focused on the changes in the battle.

Gao Jingyi stepped forward, snatched the firewood from Deng Shunxing's hands, threw it on the ground, grasped his hands, and said sincerely:
"Brother Deng, the bandits are about to breach the city walls. I am not strong enough to help them and I fear I will fail the lord's trust. I beg you, Brother Deng, to forgive my past neglect and lend a helping hand!"

"If Magistrate Gao gives any orders, I, Deng, would dare not disobey!"

Deng Shunxing's statement lacked sincerity, so Gao Jingyi quickly offered his own price.

"Once we defeat the bandits, I will do everything in my power to recommend you to take charge of the county's defenses."

It was the county magistrate's responsibility to oversee the defense of the county. Although Deng Shunxing was eager to take advantage of the turmoil to establish a foothold in this chaotic world, he dared not dream of such a grand scheme.

"The county magistrate flatters me. How could a commoner like me—"

"what--"

Two militiamen carrying logs had just approached the crenellation when the man in front of them was shot in the face and fell down screaming.

"Ouch--"

Li Song had already forgotten that he was starving. His legs gave way, and the log on his shoulder rolled a long way.

"My lord, look over there—"

Gao Jingyi turned his head and saw a demon bandit leap onto the south city wall, blocking and slashing left and right, displaying great bravery.

However, the thief was only one person, and in less than three breaths, he was stabbed down by the archers who swarmed him.

However, the weakness of the southern city wall's defenses was exposed, and troop deployment needed to be adjusted immediately.

"Chief Zhu, hurry up and find a good knife and shield for Brother Deng."

The south side is relatively safe for now, but the enemy's arrows are increasingly vicious on the west wall, and the defending troops are showing signs of collapse. After giving his orders, Gao Jingyi took a step back, solemnly saluted Deng Shunxing, and said:

"We entrust the South City Wall to Brother Deng. On behalf of all the people of the city, I thank Brother Deng for his righteous assistance!"

After speaking, Gao Jingyi quickly turned around and shouted to Lei Bantou, who was still driving the guards to carry the logs:

"Forget about the logs, get some hot oil!"

Hot oil is much lighter than logs, so some can be spilled without getting up. However, it is a liquid, and unfortunately, a northwest wind is blowing at this time. Although the wind is not strong, it is enough to blow some of the spilled oil droplets back.

"Ah—" The scalding hot oil splashed onto the nearby militiamen, causing another scream and panic.

However, this time Lei Bantou had learned his lesson. Before the county magistrate could shout again, he grabbed two laborers and pushed them forward.

"You guys go ahead and keep pouring oil!"

"Li Song, Song Sanyang, grab a few lit pieces of firewood and throw them down!"

Deng Shunxing had already gathered about ten men and received their weapons. Before getting up, he chose a crenellation that was less "attacked" by the bandit archers, raised his shield, and risked glancing outside the city wall to determine which side of the wall was more dangerous.

Thick smoke rose from the base of the city wall, seemingly from firewood that had been thrown down and ignited the oil-soaked weapons of the rebel army.

Not far away, several groups of bandits were carrying overturned small boats in a charge. Behind the boats, a hundred or so bandits, some holding shields and others carrying ladders, were also rapidly approaching the city wall.

Further away, several bandit groups carrying siege equipment quickly filled the positions just vacated by the charging bandits, indicating that these people would soon take over the charge.

Are they launching a full-scale offensive so soon?

While Deng Shunxing was still in a daze, Meng Ping discovered a new situation.

"Brother! Look at the south city wall!"

"Hey——"

On the ladder, Wu Liujin shouted and swung his shield out with his left hand, hitting the enemy on the left in the face. He then grabbed the spear shaft that was thrusting towards him, pushed off with his feet, and used the momentum of the enemy pulling the spear to leap onto the city wall.

The seemingly certain victory of two against one instantly turned into a one-on-one situation. The defending gunman was terrified and subconsciously exerted force, trying to pull back his spear. Unexpectedly, the ruthless bandit immediately let go after landing, catching the gunman off guard and nearly causing him to fall.

Taking advantage of his unsteady center of gravity, Wu Liujin squatted down and rolled forward, using the momentum to swing his knife upwards.

The gunman had never seen such a ruthless thief. He quickly retreated, but lost his balance and fell to the ground, narrowly avoiding a fatal blow. He immediately abandoned his spear and turned to crawl away.

Wu Liujin missed his first strike, so he immediately threw his short knife with all his might, which struck the man in the waist and ribs. He then picked up his spear, crouched back, turned around and thrust, forcing back the enemy who was rushing from behind.

Turning around again, stepping forward, he accidentally turned the gun around and stabbed the enemy who had just gotten up after being knocked down by the shield.

He then slid forward, overturned the oil pot in front of him, and then stirred up the firewood in the stove. The hot oil met the intense fire and quickly ignited and spread.

Wu Liujin was a self-taught amateur who knew nothing about marksmanship. His smooth and fluid movements were due to his calm mind, quick reflexes, and fearless ruthlessness. More importantly, the defending troops were also a motley crew inexperienced in battle.

He was originally just a low-level member of the station, but he rose to power by massacring the station's management and was the first to stand up to support Shishan. He was more eager to prove his worth than Shao Rong, who had the help of his own brothers.

When the battle began, Wu Liujin discovered that the southern defenders were unprepared and confused. He decisively adjusted his tactics, using feints and harassment to repeatedly harass the enemy. When the enemy was exhausted, he personally led a fierce attack, stormed the city wall, observed the defenders' deployment, and then decisively withdrew.

Once their strength has recovered somewhat, they will move to another stacking section and continue.

This time, the preparations were much more thorough. The two wounded soldiers cleared a small space for maneuver before they were able to receive a fellow soldier who had come to the city.

"Hey, stay close to me, don't run around!"

……

Zhou Shier tilted his head back and shouted excitedly towards the observation deck:

"Commander, it's quite lively to the south. Let us, the men of the Fifth Battalion, see some blood!"

Zhou Shier was not clear about the specific situation, but based on the increasingly loud commotion from the south and the large amount of smoke and fire on the city wall, he knew that most of the Sixth Battalion had stormed the city wall. Since Wu Liujin had already made contributions, he couldn't help but be anxious.

"Zeng Xing is in the past, don't panic, he'll be useful someday!"

Shi Shan had previously sent Zeng Xing to reinforce the city, anticipating that Wu Liujin would disregard casualties and rush to break through first. However, he was not optimistic that his troops could defeat the defenders and enter the city in one fell swoop, unless the battle on the west wall was intense and most of the defenders on the south wall were transferred away.

The situation is quite the opposite now. Without a numerical advantage, they can't hold out for long by relying solely on their courage and bravery.

Seeing that Zhou Shier was still unwilling to leave, Shishan said again:
"We're about to break through on the west side. You need to go back quickly and get the troops ready!"

"Yes!"

Following the line of sight from Shishan, the crossbowmen, under Fu Youde's command, had once again changed to groups taking turns firing at the five crenellations on the north side of the west city wall.

Outside one of the battlements, Shao Si, with a short knife in his mouth, a shield in his left hand, and his right hand, grabbed a soldier who was clinging to the ladder but dared not climb up, and quickly climbed towards the top of the ladder, which was on fire with hot oil.

On the ladders on both sides of Shao Si, Shao Zhao and others were also climbing with all their might.

On the south city wall, Meng Ping's hair was scorched yellow, his face was black, his clothes were torn in many places and covered in blood, his long sword was already dull, and his hand holding the sword was trembling uncontrollably due to exhaustion.

Deng Shunxing's face was also covered in black soot. He had replaced his sword and shield with a spear, and blood was still seeping from his right arm and left rib, clearly indicating that he had also been injured.

The direction his spear pointed to was where Wu Liujin's spear was now only half-broken. Of the comrades who had gathered around him after he climbed the city wall, only five remained, and all of them were wounded, their shields were broken, and their waist knives were dulled, clearly indicating that they had just experienced a series of fierce battles.

"Your retreat has been cut off. Do not struggle in vain. I, Deng, have the utmost respect for heroes. Why not lay down your weapons and surrender? I guarantee with my life that I will not harm any of you heroes!"

Wu Liujin's blood-stained face twitched twice. He glanced back at his remaining comrades, then at the surrounding guards, grinned, swallowed a drop of blood dripping from his nose, and laughed:

"Surrender? Ha! Has any of you ever swallowed the flesh and blood of your enemy?"

Deng Shunxing frowned, thinking it a pity, as Wu Liujin continued talking to himself.

"I've swallowed them, and so have all my brothers. They taste fishy and stinky at first, but when you chew them slowly, they taste a little sweet, hahaha!"

Infected by Wu Liujin, the remaining soldiers also grinned, revealing their bright white teeth, and laughed loudly.

"Hahaha--"

Evil ghost!

A pack of cannibalistic demons!

The surrounding defenders paused for a moment. Some glanced instinctively at the bloody remains and entrails at their feet and immediately vomited a foul-smelling substance. Others trembled at the tip of their guns and couldn't help but retreat, fearing that these evil spirits would turn on them and devour them before they died.

Deng Shunxing finally understood why these rebels, despite their slender builds and limited skills, were so ferocious, clearing a section of the city wall in just a dozen breaths.

After that, they defeated our reinforcements so badly.

Deng Shunxing knew that persuading him to surrender was futile. Killing this man would mean completely offending the Red Turban Army, and his plan to play both sides the previous night would fail. He closed his eyes in anguish, then quickly opened them again, shouting:
"Hmph! Since you've resisted to the bitter end, then I, Deng, have no choice but to send you on your way!"

"Give us a ride? You'd better look behind you, haha—hey! Get going!"

Taking advantage of Deng Shunxing, Meng Ping, and the others looking back in surprise, Wu Liujin turned around and retreated, suddenly throwing the barrel of his gun at a guard and seizing the spear from him.

Then, with the help of his comrades, they charged left and right, broke out of the encirclement, and headed straight for the edge of the city wall.

"Chase--"

Meng Ping was about to give chase again, but Deng Shunxing grabbed him. After watching Wu Liujin and the others climb the ladder, he glanced at the militia surging towards the city wall and said:

"The west is in danger! Let them handle the south."

(End of this chapter)