Chapter 270: Reinforcements

He ordered Han Zhong to lead the Company Commander-level troops under his command to reinforce Yang Guozhu’s left wing, and ordered Li Miheng to register the roster! Six hundred combat auxiliaries, with Gao Xun commanding over three hundred men to support Hu Dawei’s right wing. Wen Fangliang’s Company Commander division and Zhong Diaoyang’s battalion heavy-weapons team guarded the front.

Beside Lu Xiangsheng, Wang Dou led his own guards, along with the battalion’s night scouts and the remnants of his Tianwei Army, standing together. Lu Xiangsheng was already making his final preparations; his personal retainer Chen An carefully fitted his armor over him, with the hemp mourning garments still worn on the outside. To guard against mishap, Lu Xiangsheng also tied his Viceroy’s great seal behind his elbow.

Wang Dou was also making his final preparations, donning his eight-panel iron-tipped helmet, his body encased in fine steel armor, both hands covered with iron gauntlets, his left hand also gripping a thick leather shield. His right hand held his fine iron long spear, and he tossed aside the cloak and great mantle that might hinder him in killing the enemy.

Since the seventh year of Chongzhen, he had not fought in formation for a long time. Wang Dou felt not the slightest fear; instead, he felt the blood boiling throughout his entire body.

Lu Xiangsheng held in his hand that fine iron great blade weighing several dozen jin. Hearing the shouts of battle closing in from three sides, he smiled faintly at Wang Dou and said, “Guoqin, today you and I fight shoulder to shoulder, together in battle.”

Wang Dou replied, “To slay the rebels together with the Viceroy is Wang Dou’s honor.”

Lu Xiangsheng laughed heartily, gazing intently at Wang Dou. “Guoqin, the most fortunate thing for Lu Mou was coming to know you in Xuanfu Garrison.”

Wang Dou likewise looked deeply at Lu Xiangsheng. “Wang Dou came to the Great Ming, and the most fortunate thing was likewise coming to know the Viceroy. Even if I die in battle today, I, Wang Dou, have no regrets.” The two men reached out their hands and clasped them together, both laughing heartily.

The crowd all around likewise laughed joyfully.

“Good brothers!”

They embraced one another — Chen An and Wen Daxing embraced, Xie Yike and Chen Heng embraced, Long Er and Yu Mao’er embraced. In this moment, they opened their hearts and no longer concealed their emotions. Their great laughter drowned out the shouts of battle all around.

A thunderous volley of muskets roared, and dozens of Bordered Blue Banner heavy-armored soldiers, clad in blue-trimmed red-bordered armor, tumbled to the ground. At the same moment, a wave of heavy arrows shot in from beyond the wall, and a group of Shunxiang Army musketeers fell back with muffled grunts.

On Yang Guozhu’s left-wing defense line, Jirgalang’s massed Bordered Blue Banner troops, along with several Eight Banner Mongol detachments following behind, had already surged in densely. Shield carts in tight, layered rows pushed in through every passage in the first earthen wall. Flanking each shield cart on both sides were large numbers of heavy-armored soldiers from each banner bearing heavy shields, and bowmen from each banner with arrows nocked.

Yang Guozhu’s Xuanfu Garrison main battalion had already withdrawn into the second earthen wall to hold it to the death, and a great wave of Qing arrows rained down upon them. The bird-musket men and three-eyed gun men in Yang Guozhu’s army suffered grievous casualties. The firearms men of the Viceroy’s personal battalion who had reinforced them the day before also kept falling. Most of the soldiers of the two battalions had iron face-masks. On their bodies they wore either iron armor, leather armor, or iron-studded cotton armor, but at such close range, none of it mattered.

Masses of Qing heavy-armored troops also launched fierce assaults through the four passages. Yang Guozhu and his central-army personal retainer Guo Yingxian led their household retainers in bloody combat with the enemy at the passages.

Every passage in the second earthen wall was packed with men, both friend and foe alike, and the cannons had long since lost their effect. All the assault squads of Yang Guozhu’s main battalion formed up rank after rank behind the passages, using their waist sabers, hook-sickle spears, staff-spears, and tangba forks to fight fiercely with the enemy.

By this point, the auxiliaries of the main battalion were also advancing in squads, brandishing their own weapons. Yang Guozhu personally led the few remaining household retainers to reinforce everywhere. What both sides were contesting was blood — to see who could endure and hold out longer.

Yang Guozhu no longer knew how many casualties his army had suffered; perhaps the entire army had already lost over a thousand or several hundred men. The soldiers had already fought beyond their utmost and could hold out no longer; it was entirely by Yang Guozhu leading his household retainers in a desperate blocking fight that the defense line was on the verge of collapse.

Han Zhong led his troops and arrived just in time. The several hundred musketeers under his command advanced and fired a fierce volley; three ranks of musketry passed. Caught off guard, the densely packed Qing bowmen in front of the earthen wall suffered over two hundred casualties. They scrambled and fled back, and the ferocious assault was momentarily checked.

The long-spearmen and saber-and-shield men under Han Zhong’s command also swiftly took over the defense of every passage. His saber-and-shield men hurled a volley of javelins, pinning a batch of Qing shield-bearers and spearmen who had surged in dead to the ground. Several squads of long-spearmen leveled their spears and charged fiercely forward, immediately driving out the Qing heavy-armored troops who had already poured into each passage.

Yang Guozhu let out a great sigh of relief. Fortunately, Wang Dou had reinforced him; otherwise, his left wing would have collapsed.

At this moment, Jirgalang had already entered the earthen wall to personally take command. Under his shouted orders, the Qing troops quickly regained their composure and made slight adjustments. There were no trenches in front of the second earthen wall, so their shield carts pushed densely forward to within a dozen or twenty paces. Just as the musketeers of Yi’s division fired another volley, a dense rain of arrows came from the lightly-armored expert bowmen sheltering behind the shield carts.

The two sides exchanged fire. Although the Shunxiang Army’s muskets were powerful, in rate of fire they could not match the Qing army’s bows. At such close range, the Qing’s sharp arrows could pierce heavy armor; their arrows were both accurate and vicious, and Shunxiang Army musketeers were successively struck down as their fierce arrows broke through armor and toppled them to the ground.

Some Shunxiang Army musketeers had no face-masks, and were struck in the face by arrows. At such close range, even soldiers with iron face-masks found them useless for protection. Once their masks were shot open, it might even cause greater injury.

The Qingzi bows were ferocious. The main-battalion and Viceroy’s personal battalion firearms men, who had just breathed a sigh of relief, under Yang Guozhu’s shouted orders, summoned their remaining courage and surged forward one after another.

Both sides fought with reddened eyes. The left-wing defense line was completely shrouded in dense smoke and mist, the shouts of battle shaking the heavens. Amidst it all flew chaotic arrows, the enormous roar of Shunxiang Army muskets, the heaven-startling, earth-shaking reports of three-eyed guns, the sounds of Rumi muskets and self-igniting guns, and the whistling cries of rockets.

“Old Yang, it seems today we truly are going to die a hero’s death.”

Watching the soldiers in his division suffer continuous casualties, the medics already unable to keep up with the rescue, and the Qing assault at the passage spike-walls growing fiercer wave by wave — looking out from the earthen wall, outside was a dark, dense sea of men, the Qing troops seemingly boundless and endless.

Han Zhong’s facial muscles twitched a few times, and he sighed with emotion to Yang Tong beside him.

Han Zhong was ordinarily carefree and fearless, afraid of nothing in heaven or on earth, yet today he spoke such words, which showed how critical the situation was.

Yang Tong stood beside Han Zhong. After yesterday’s battle, the two squads of long-spearmen under his command were already crippled, and his musketeers had also suffered considerable losses. He was a Squad Commander with over three hundred men, but his troop strength was severely depleted, with nowhere to replenish it.

Hearing Han Zhong’s words, Yang Tong said lightly, “If we die, we die. I, Yang Tong, am ordinarily not much to look at, but to be able to die like a man at the right moment — that’s not a wasted journey through this world.”

As he spoke, his expression was very calm, and his tone was equally composed.

Hearing his words, Han Zhong looked at him with surprise. He realized that Yang Tong, who was always bowing and scraping before others, at this moment possessed an indescribable presence.

Han Zhong suddenly felt that he did not understand Yang Tong. Come to think of it, although they were both old-timers who had come from the same fire-beacon tower, Han Zhong ordinarily rather looked down on Yang Tong, and particularly liked to joke about the two front teeth Wang Dou had knocked out of him. Now Han Zhong realized that he had been wrong.

He clapped Yang Tong on the shoulder with emotion and said, “Brother, our lives are worthless. To have followed the General and made it to the modest status we have now — even if we die, it’s worth it.”

He turned his head and glanced toward Wang Dou’s central-army division, then grinned heroically, his mouth splitting wide. “As long as the General lives, our wives and little ones back in Baoanzhou will have someone to look after them. After we die, we can still enter the Shrine of the Honored and Loyal, with incense and offerings year after year. It’s worth it — worth it!”

He laughed aloud and stretched out his hand to Yang Tong. “Good brother!”

“Good brother.”

Yang Tong’s hand likewise clasped his.

The two men looked at each other and laughed, their voices carrying far and wide.

Gao Xun drew his bow and nocked an arrow. With a hiss, a powerful arrow shot forth. Tan Bai, the Plain Red Banner Bayara Company Commander, clutched his throat in disbelief and slowly sank to his knees. He wore fine buffalo-hide armor, and there was also a protective guard on his neck, but none of it had blocked the sharp arrow shot from ahead.

Tan Bai slowly knelt. The future Minister of War and Minister of Personnel of the Qing state, who would repeatedly defeat the Ming armies of Zhao Youbiao, Fan Zhiwan, Wu Sangui, Bai Guangen, and others, and who would annihilate Zhang Xianzhong’s forces — Tan Bai — died silently just like that. As he neared death, he saw that incomparably handsome Ming officer ahead, ceaselessly loosing sharp arrows.

His archery was divinely superb; one after another, Bayara soldiers in the banner were shot to the ground by him. Beside him was another Ming officer of towering, powerful build, roaring like thunder, brandishing a great spear in his hands. One after another, soldiers of the banner were either skewered or swatted dead to the ground by him.

“To think I would die like this.”

That was Tan Bai’s final thought before death.

Gao Xun and Li Guang fought desperately. Gao Xun’s two squads of musketeers were coordinating the defense of Hu Dawei’s right-wing earthen wall. In addition, Li Guang’s cavalrymen had also split off half their number, bearing muskets and firing from the wall. The remaining cavalrymen, wielding long spears and waist sabers, fought the Qing troops in the various passages. Just like Yang Guozhu’s left wing, Hu Dawei had already fallen back to defend the second earthen wall; his army had likewise suffered grievous casualties and was too exhausted to fight on. It was only because of the fresh troops of Li Guang and Gao Xun joining in that the final moment of collapse was barely held off. But the Qing troops were too many; shielded by their shield carts, they launched fierce assaults wave after wave.

The reinforcing Shunxiang Army suffered tremendous casualties, especially Gao Xun. Most of the men under his command were new recruits. Although they had participated in the defense of the Julu camp these past days and the soldiers psychologically had little fear of the Qing troops, their combat skills were still somewhat lacking. After reinforcing, the two squads of long-spearmen and two squads of musketeers under Gao Xun’s command were quickly reduced by nearly half.

On the right-wing defense line, it was already the officers headed by Hu Dawei, Gao Xun, and Li Guang who were fighting bloody battles with the enemy in every passage. But the Qing soldiers were too many; one wave was beaten back, and another wave replaced it.

Hu Dawei was drenched in blood from head to toe. His central-army personal retainer, Hu Zichen, had already died in battle. Having just barely driven back the current wave of Plain Red Banner Bayara soldiers, he shouted to Li Guang, “Squad Commander Li, the slave rebels are overwhelming, our forces are outnumbered and cannot match the enemy. We must request reinforcements from the Viceroy again.”

Li Guang shook his head bitterly. “The Viceroy and the General’s side can no longer spare any reinforcements. Right now on the front defense line, there are fewer than two thousand men. This humble officer fears…”

Hu Dawei was stunned for a moment. The old general laughed a bleak, fierce laugh. “So be it. My Hu family has served the Great Ming loyally for generations. Today, we shall die in battle here.”

On Yang Guozhu’s left-wing defense line, Yang Tong and Han Zhong had died in battle. At the moment of death, their faces were full of relaxed expressions — especially Han Zhong, who still wore the look of his wide, gap-toothed laugh. Their bodies bore wound after wound, densely packed with arrows and javelins, or broken spear shafts, their clothing and armor soaked through with fresh blood.

Their expressions were very composed, very serene, without any hint of pain or sorrow. In a passage ahead of them, Shen Shiqi, who had automatically been promoted from Vice Squad Commander to Squad Commander, fought the enemy with the ferocity of a mad tiger. In another passage, Yang Guozhu and his central-army personal retainer Guo Yingxian were also fighting desperately.

Behind them, Zhong Xiancai, who had just automatically been promoted to Company Commander, held the bodies of the two men and was sobbing bitterly. Watching the sea of Qing troops still surging forward endlessly ahead, he murmured, “Are there truly no reinforcements left?”

Seeing the great mass of Qing troops pouring in and Shen Shiqi and the others struggling to hold, Zhong Xiancai suddenly drew his blade and screamed with a heart-rending, lung-splitting cry, “Lads, kill the slaves!”

A great wave of Shunxiang Army soldiers followed behind him. They all shouted at the top of their lungs, their gazes resolute, without fear. Their mountain-toppling, sea-churning shouts rolled across the earth like spring thunder.

On the Shunxiang Army’s front defense line, large numbers of Plain White Banner and Bordered White Banner Qing troops also surged in. Using layer upon layer of shield carts as cover, after entering the passages of the first earthen wall, they arrayed five or six dense layers of shield carts in front to block cannon fire, then drove large numbers of laborers to clear away the earthbags inside the earthen wall. Ignoring their own grievous casualties, they provided an unobstructed path for the shield carts to advance.

The Shunxiang Army’s cannon volleys could not completely smash all these shield carts, and where there was no place to set up cannons, the shield carts still pushed forward relentlessly, rapidly closing in.

Just like on the two wing defense lines, once those shield carts pushed to within a dozen or so paces, they loosed their arrows in unison, inflicting severe casualties on the Shunxiang Army’s musketeers.

Their archers were numerous, and they also had shield-cart cover. The few hundred firearms remaining on the front line simply could not stop their advance. Large numbers of Qing shield soldiers surged toward every passageway. Wang Dou ordered Zhao Rongcheng to lead the battalion gunners to fall back and protect the precious artillery strength.

After that, both sides launched a series of hand-to-hand battles and contests for control in every passageway. Qing soldiers kept pouring in, then were driven out, then poured in again, and were driven out again.

Lu Xiangsheng was already fighting personally alongside Wang Dou. Lu Xiangsheng's great blade danced with fierce, whistling force — no one knew how many men he had hacked to death. Wang Dou held a spear in one hand and a shield in the other. With the shield on his left arm he blocked the long blades and heavy axes the Qing soldiers swung at him, and then with the long spear in his right hand he pierced through their bodies, or heavily—

"Exhilarating! Exhilarating!"

The corpses in the passageway before them were already piled layer upon dense layer. No one knew how many were Qing soldiers and how many were Ming soldiers. Everywhere, fresh blood flowed in streams.

Another wave of Qing soldiers was beaten back. Wang Dou and Lu Xiangsheng exchanged a smile. Wang Dou raised his thumb to Lu Xiangsheng, praising his prowess — a civil official leading troops, personally charging at the head of his men, and fighting so fiercely. Rare. An extraordinary man.

Lu Xiangsheng likewise gave a hearty laugh and raised his thumb to Wang Dou. His body was covered in blood. No one knew how much was his own and how much was the enemy's. He gripped his long blade, his martial bearing utterly commanding.

The Qing soldiers seemed to lose heart, hesitating and not daring to advance. And at that moment, Wang Dou also received a report from Zhong Xiancai: "Company Commander Han and Squad Commander Yang have fallen in battle."

Wang Dou's eyes reddened. He saw that outside the wall, a large force of Plain White Banner heavy armor, which had hesitated for a long while, was surging forward again. He let out a great roar and charged furiously toward them.

"Protect the General!"

Xie Yike and Wang Dou's guards threw themselves recklessly to shield his flanks. To the guards, they themselves could die, but the General could not die. If they died, their families would still be cared for by the General. But if the General died, then everything would be utterly finished.

Lu Xiangsheng likewise brandished his great blade and charged forward. Behind him, his personal general Chen An followed closely, along with Livestock Officer Yang Lukai, his retainer Chen Heng, and others. Their thinking was the same as Wang Dou's guards. They could die, but the Viceroy could not die.

"Kill!"

"Kill!"

"Kill!"

No one knew how long they had killed, or how many waves they had fought through. Wang Dou's guards fell one by one. Countless wounds appeared on Xie Yike's body. Zhong Diaoyang also fell, gravely wounded. Beside Lu Xiangsheng, Chen An died in battle. Yang Lukai died in battle. Chen Dian also died in battle.

He did not know how many men he had killed. In the end, his whole body was drained of strength, and several Qing long spears pierced into him. Chen Kan summoned his last strength and with the long horse-chopping blade in his hands, he cleaved a Bordered White Banner heavy-armored soldier before him in two. He laughed heartily: "I've more than broken even. I've killed a dozen of these barbarians. Father, Mother, Eldest Sister, Second Sister... Little Sister. Did you see? Gou'er has avenged you! Avenged you!"

He died laughing, a smile still on his face.

"Kill!"

Wang Dou swept his shield sideways, sending a Plain White Banner Squad Commander flying while vomiting blood. The iron spear in his hand smashed down heavily, pulverizing a Qing soldier before him into a pulp of flesh. His long spear then thrust out fiercely, skewering a Bordered White Banner company commander and the armored soldier behind him into a string of meat hanging from the spear shaft.

Not far from Wang Dou, Lu Xiangsheng's great blade swung wide and closed in sweeping arcs. One Qing soldier after another was cleaved in two by him, blood mist spraying into the air.

In the great Qing formation a li away, Duoduo's face was ashen as earth. He murmured: "The casualties are too great. The casualties among our brave warriors are too great... Must we... must we keep fighting?"

The various banner lords beside him were likewise drained of all color, especially the Mongol Eight Banner lords, whose eyes stared blankly ahead.

Dorgon's face was iron-blue. He ground his teeth and said: "Keep pressing the attack! Feed them in one company after another. It is now mid-shen hour. Before sunset, we must take the Xuan-Da camp!"

He grew somewhat frenzied: "Instruct every banner: send all the Bayara soldiers from the camp forward. Any who dare retreat — kill them all! Kill them all!"

Just at that moment, a sudden cheer erupted from the Ming army camp: "Long live!"

Then Dorgon heard countless Eight Banners soldiers cry out in alarm: "The Ming reinforcements have come!"

It seemed countless Qing soldiers were stirring in agitation: "The left-side camp! The left-side camp!"

Dorgon whipped his head around and was stunned. He saw that over in the Qing camp on that side, a sea of flame was erupting, thick smoke surging skyward. What shocked him even more was that from that direction, an unknown number of cavalry were charging forth like rolling thunder. They swept through with irresistible force, charging straight through the Qing formation on the left flank. They carried all before them; none could stop them.

Dorgon watched as the troops on his left wing collapsed and fled in rout. Under the strain of the intense assault, the Qing soldiers there had long since exhausted their strength. Now, seeing the Ming reinforcements arrive, their breath instantly broke. Everyone fled in terror for their lives. That wave of horsemen charged closer and closer, and it seemed one could make out that at the very front was a woman of heroic bearing, her fiery red cape billowing. She urged her horse forward, the long spear in her hand pointing straight ahead.

Behind her followed great, surging waves of roaring cavalry.

Dorgon murmured: "Impossible. How could they have reinforcements? The only Ming men who dare to fight are Lu Xiangsheng and Wang Dou."

Duoduo said anxiously: "Imperial Great General, the Ming reinforcements have come. We do not know how many troops they have brought. Withdraw to camp quickly and guard against any turn of events!"

Dorgon's expression shifted several times. Finally, he sighed: "Withdraw the troops!"

The Xuan-Da camp erupted in cheers. At this most desperate moment, the sudden arrival of reinforcements lifted every spirit. The Qing soldiers assaulting the camp were all stricken with fear, and when they heard the gongs sounding retreat, they immediately receded like the tide.

Wang Dou also shouted with joy: "Viceroy! Reinforcements have come! Reinforcements have come!"

He looked at Lu Xiangsheng and froze for a moment. Beside him, Lu Xiangsheng's face was deathly pale, and he seemed unable to stand steady. He said in a low voice: "Wang Dou, hold me up."

Wang Dou rushed forward a step and supported Lu Xiangsheng's body. Then an icy chill spread through Wang Dou's entire body. He saw with stark clarity that a long spear was embedded in Lu Xiangsheng's chest. Though the shaft had been broken off, the spearhead was already driven deep into his body.

For a moment, Wang Dou was at a complete loss, not knowing what to do. He wanted to pull out the spearhead, but dared not.

Lu Xiangsheng could hold on no longer. He sat down and said to Wang Dou with a forced smile: "To be wrapped in horsehide and die on the battlefield — this is exactly what I have longed for. Wang Dou, you must not grieve. The main force of the slave-bandits is still here. You must hold on."

Large beads of cold sweat appeared on his forehead, and his whole body began to convulse. He was clearly at the end of his strength.

Suddenly he seemed to remember something. He seized Wang Dou's hand and said urgently: "Guoqin, Guoqin, you must promise me, promise me..."

But when he reached this point, he could not continue. His breath had already ceased.

Wang Dou could hold back no longer. Hot tears welled from his eyes: "Viceroy..."

He bent over Lu Xiangsheng's corpse and broke down in uncontrollable weeping. (To be continued.)