Chapter 102: Bloody Battle

The warhorses, after all that back-and-forth charging, were already lathered in sweat. At the instant the two cavalry lines collided, you could almost see the sweat flying off the horses' bodies from the high-speed impact.

When cavalry charges head-on, what tactics can there really be? Whose horse is faster, whose saber swings quicker — that is the one sure way to survive a cavalry clash.

You don't need to be as fast as the lightning-and-sparks speed described in storybooks; you only need to be one split instant faster than your opponent, and you can send that opponent to his death.

Beyond that, you also need your own side to hold the advantage in numbers. As long as both sides are equal in fighting will and combat strength, in a head-on cavalry charge, the side with fewer men will always be the one that dies. All stratagems turn pale and powerless at that moment.

Most unfortunately, Oboi now found himself at a disadvantage — on the side with fewer men.

After the final charge, Oboi looked around him in all directions. He alone remained on his horse, completely uninjured.

The only two riders left behind him were already gravely wounded.

As for the rest of his cavalry, they had all died in the ferocious charges — some cut down by Ming and Xibe riders, others killed outright by the colossal impact force of horses slamming into each other at high speed.

With a bleak smile, Oboi reflected that the Han people had a saying that was true after all: fortune's wheel does turn. The year before, he had been right around here, hunting down and killing that Ming Embroidered Uniform Guard man.

A year later, it seemed it was now his turn to be hunted down and killed by the Ming Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Xiong Sen's body was stained with quite a lot of blood, though the gratifying thing was that none of that blood was his own.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard men chosen to escort Cui Chengxiu to Liaodong this time were all battle-hardened killers. Even facing the Jianzhou barbarians one on one, they would not be at a disadvantage.

Spitting again, Xiong Sen said with considerable relish, "You dog of a Jianzhou barbarian, today your grandpa is going to take your dog life and avenge Commander Wang!"

One of the Embroidered Uniform Guard riders beside him laughed and cursed, "The hell are you wasting words with a Jianzhou barbarian for? You forget the rule that loose lips sink ships?

This dog's life is mine!" With that, he spurred his horse and charged at Oboi, clearly intent on killing Oboi before Xiong Sen could.

Seeing this, Xiong Sen and the others behind him all cursed him for a dishonorable bastard and spurred their horses together, sweeping in for the kill.

Though young, Oboi was a killer through and through. Far from being afraid at this sight, he fiercely spurred his own horse and charged forward to meet them.

As the two horses crossed, Oboi forcefully executed an iron bridge on horseback — throwing his body sharply backward — and slashed his saber upward at an angle.

He not only evaded that lethal stroke, but also cut off the Embroidered Uniform Guard officer's right arm clean at the elbow, the arm still gripping the saber.

The two Jianzhou barbarian riders following behind Oboi, though gravely wounded, had still kept up with him. At the exact moment the two sides crossed, they both struck that Embroidered Uniform Guard officer together, and the man died on the spot.

Seeing this, Xiong Sen roared in fury, "Xiao Wuzi!" No longer caring whether he himself got hurt, he hacked his saber violently at Oboi.

Oboi parried the blow aside, focused solely on spurring his horse through the formation. As he passed, he swept his blade horizontally and wounded yet another Xibe rider who had pressed in close behind.

After the two sides had passed through each other's formations this time, Oboi was left with only himself. Even on the Embroidered Uniform Guard and Xibe cavalry side, only twelve or thirteen riders remained.

Yet Oboi was utterly fearless. He brandished the saber in his hand fiercely, pointing it from a distance at Xiong Sen, and roared, "Dog of a southerner, do you dare fight me one on one?!"

Xiong Sen laughed. "Come on, come on — whoever's afraid is the grandson! Fuck him, today I'm going to waste you for sure! Boys, watch today how your old master wastes this grandson!"

As the saying goes, the capital produces slick talkers, and Tianjin produces glib mouths. The people of the capital and Tianjin Garrison live close together, their accents are similar, and when it comes to the skill of the lip, each is sharper than the last.

Still, he was a man handpicked from the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and even at a moment like this, Xiong Sen did not forget to play dirty tricks behind his back. As he spurred his horse toward Oboi, he first made a hand signal behind him, and only then charged in with saber swinging.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard men behind him were all brothers who had eaten from the same pot — how could they not understand what Xiong Sen meant? At once they drew the spare hand-crossbows from beside their saddles and quietly took aim at Oboi.

Oboi was no easy mark either. Seeing the movements of these Embroidered Uniform Guard men, he knew at once that trouble was coming. But once a warhorse's speed has been built up, how can it be easily pulled back? He had no choice but to meet Xiong Sen while secretly staying on guard.

The two sides drew steadily closer. Xiong Sen raised the saber in his hand, making the preparatory motion of a downward chop. Just as Oboi was about to react, a flash of cold light passed before his eyes — those damned southerners had loosed their crossbow bolts.

Oboi roared a curse — "Despicable!" — and hurriedly ducked low, trying to evade the incoming bolts. Yet at that very moment, Xiong Sen, who had never known the meaning of shame, turned his Embroidered Spring Saber from a chop into a sweeping slash, cutting straight at Oboi.

Oboi was crouched low at that moment and could not dodge in time. His right arm was cut off clean at the elbow by Xiong Sen.

Xiong Sen was overjoyed and cursed, "Dog of a Jianzhou barbarian, your grandpa will send you on your way now!" He hastily tried to wheel his horse around to chase Oboi down and finish him.

Oboi was, after all, flesh and blood — he had not cultivated into some immortal or buddha. With his arm severed at the elbow, the pain was unbearable.

Using his still-intact left hand, he yanked the reins, wanting to circle past these shameless Ming southerners and find his own men so he could tend to his wound.

But just as Xiong Sen was gleefully giving chase, one of the Embroidered Uniform Guard riders came up and blocked him. Pointing toward their own formation, he shook his head, signaling Xiong Sen to abandon the pursuit.

Seeing this, Xiong Sen knew something was wrong. He noticed that one man from the Embroidered Uniform Guard and one Xibe fellow had both dismounted and pressed their ears to the ground.

Looking at the warhorses, they were all somewhat restless — their hooves pawing uneasily at the earth, their nostrils flaring repeatedly, on the verge of whinnying.

After the Embroidered Uniform Guard man and the Xibe fellow rose, they saw Xiong Sen looking their way. The Embroidered Uniform Guard man said, "We can't chase — a large body of cavalry is coming. We need to pull back now."

Much as Xiong Sen wanted to finish Oboi off then and there, he was no brainless brute. He spat viciously and stopped the Embroidered Uniform Guard and Xibe riders who were about to recover their comrades' bodies.

Bitterly, he said, "A man dead is no more than a handful of dirt. There's no time now — leave them.

Mark well which brothers they were, take any token that can prove who they are, and we leave at once." After that, he added with a string of curses, "That grandson got off cheap today!

Brothers, we're pulling out — let the Jianzhou barbarians eat the dust behind us!"

At these words, the group of Embroidered Uniform Guard men all burst into raucous laughter. The Xibe riders who could understand the Ming official tongue also grinned broadly at this.

Though they were not of the same people, after this bloody battle — and with the prospect that in the future they would all enter the capital's guard and protect the Son of Heaven — the bond between the two sides had drawn markedly closer.

(End of chapter)