Chapter 330: On the Road

On the official road from Susong County Town to Erlang Town, the main force of the Marine Corps was advancing rapidly. The soldiers in the column wore several different types of armor. One kind hung half-slack at the waist, the chest and above still in uniform. As the soldiers marched, the upper half of the leather armor swayed ceaselessly at their waists.

"What a sin."

Tang Ershuan pressed down the rocking leather armor, took the coconut ladle from his belt, tilted his head back, and gulped down a mouthful of water. His parched throat instantly felt much better. The soldiers around him were also drinking. Some choked from time to time, coughing as they continued forward.

The column moved at a rapid march. Normally, they took a short rest for water every five li and a long rest with dry rations every ten li, but today there had been none. They had not even paused in Susong County Town. They had rested once at about fifteen li, and now, before the time for the second rest, everyone was terribly thirsty. Drinking was usually forbidden during a march, but the Banner Commander had just relayed orders allowing them to drink on the way, not counted as a breach of discipline.

After capturing and killing that Great Banner bearer last time, the blacksmith Company Commander had led the unit back to the lake, satisfied, just in time to catch the Garrison Commander's main army landing. Without time to rest and regroup, Tang Ershuan had returned to his unit to join the offensive. This time, heading to Erlang Town, it was no sneaking around.

He craned his neck for a look. Ahead, there was still no sign of Erlang Town. This official road they were on now was not the Pedestrian Road along the Erlang River, but passed east of the western mountain range of Susong. Although Tang Ershuan had scouted Erlang Town many times, he had never penetrated this deep into the area. His position was on the right side of the column, where the view was relatively open. They were about to pass an abandoned village. Most of the roofs had collapsed. Among the broken walls and ruins, some figures were moving about, many carrying things like wood and hay, while others were busy with something. Hearing the footsteps on the official road, they peered out from the village entrance.

Tang Ershuan had excellent eyesight. Most of those people were gaunt and in tatters. Based on Tang Ershuan's experience scouting nearby, these people moved in groups, unlike the common folk of Susong. They looked more like Roving Bandit servants out gathering firewood. Erlang Town had a huge number of bandits, and the nearby firewood had long been exhausted. Traveling dozens of li back and forth for firewood was normal. Facing the arriving Land Combat Division, these people clearly had not reacted, just watching blankly from the village edge.

The Scout Cavalry clearing the way ahead ignored these people. The main force soon approached the village. The Mobile Infantry Banner Team serving as the Vanguard detached a Squad, which charged toward the village entrance. Only then did those servants react. Amid a flurry of screams, they scattered and fled. The Squad conducted a brief search near the village entrance, confirmed there were no ambushers inside, and immediately regrouped and returned.

The column passed the village and continued forward. Tang Ershuan kept turning his head to look to the right. Many servants bolted from the village, fleeing into the fields. Among them were two riders in red, who must have been the leading officers, the ones the army commonly called Mounted Bandits. In their panic, they fled away from the official road. They certainly would not get back to Erlang Town before the Land Combat Division traveling on the road.

The Marine Corps soldiers hurried along. More and more Roving Bandits appeared by the roadside. Many of them had clearly received no warning and were still searching the fields for food. Most of their reactions upon seeing the Land Combat Division were stunned confusion, and only then did they break into a desperate run.

The government troops hurried along the road, while the Roving Bandits fled across the fields. No combat occurred between the two sides. Even the Flank Guard Cavalry screening the wings did not pursue the servants fleeing on foot. Tang Ershuan had seen with his own eyes the vast numbers of Roving Bandits at Erlang Town. He had been extremely cautious while scouting. Setting out from Chang'an Wharf, he had thought a bloody battle would erupt soon. He had never imagined the offensive would be such an absurd scene. He did not know what it would be like when they reached Erlang Town. He estimated they had already marched over twenty li, so they could not be far from Erlang Town now.

Finally, the sound of a gong rang out. The last rest before the attack had arrived. According to the briefing the Banner Commander had given on the boat, Susong to Erlang Town was about thirty li, and Chang'an Wharf to Susong was eight li, making thirty-eight li in total. He had warned they might encounter a large counterattack from the Roving Bandits along the way, because the bandits had mounted scouts everywhere. At the cavalry's fastest alert speed, if the bandits mustered men to intercept, the most likely engagement would be between ten and twenty li from Erlang Town. But now, after two rests, they had marched thirty li, only eight li from Erlang Town, yet had not encountered any large enemy force at all.

The main force halted on the road. Suonas sounded at the Company Commander's Recognition Banner. The Centurions of each Company hurried off for a meeting. The soldiers sat down and each pulled out dry rations, wolfing them down. The Banner Commander was shouting loudly, telling everyone to eat and drink their fill. From this point on, there would be no more rest. The Garrison Inspector soldiers patrolled back and forth. Discipline was not the focus now; the main thing was checking for any lost combat equipment, especially armor and primary weapons.

The rattan shield was on his back. Tang Ershuan lifted the drooping upper half of his leather armor, felt the waist saber hanging from his belt, then reached further back and touched a wooden handle. It was a throwing axe, only a foot long, usable both for ranged attack and as an auxiliary short weapon. His soldier tag also hung from the belt, but that was not important now. With a great battle imminent, weapons and gear were what mattered most.

All weapons were in place. Tang Ershuan felt much relieved. While wolfing down his dry rations, he peered outward. In the fields to the right of the official road were a few Flank Guard Cavalry. They were responsible for distant screening on the flank, but because their numbers were too few, they could only give early warning of large enemy forces. Now that the main force had halted, they stayed in place, letting their horses drink and eat beans. For the scattered servants in the fields, they had no energy to deal with them for the moment.

As they drew closer to Erlang Town, they encountered more and more Roving Bandits. Ahead to the right, a mounted bandit was fleeing. Near the official road, there were over a dozen servants. The two closest were only twenty paces from Tang Ershuan. They were catching fish in a fish pond. The one on the bank had fled on foot. The one down in the pond had just surfaced, half his body sprawled on the ridge, staring blankly at the Land Combat Division, seemingly terrified by the sight before him.

The Garrison Battalion's leather armor was all painted red, and the shields, modeled after the Northern Border Army, were painted with fierce beast designs. What Pang Yu had chosen for the Land Combat Division was a crocodile head with a wide-open mouth. Though neither the soldiers nor the Roving Bandits recognized it, the mouthful of sharp teeth made it clear this was no benevolent creature. On the official road now, a vast red backdrop was interspersed with blades and rows of fierce beasts, creating an intense visual impact.

It took that bandit a long while to climb up and stand on the ridge. He was covered head to toe in mud and water, the whites of his eyes starkly visible when he blinked. He neither ran nor surrendered, just trembled uncontrollably all over, the muddy water dripping off him with the shaking.

The Marine Corps soldiers eating and chewing loudly on the official road were also watching him. Everyone knew this was a Roving Bandit, but since there were no orders, no one went to kill him. The bandit was completely unarmed, posing no threat to the army. The officers probably did not want to waste arrows and the archers' strength. A paddy field lay between them, and even the skirmishers responsible for security did not go to kill him. The two sides just stared at each other in wordless silence, the atmosphere strange and slightly tense.

"What a sin." Before stuffing the last piece of white-flour steamed cake into his mouth, Tang Ershuan muttered, "Run for your life. Go on, go."

The bandit seemed to have heard. He finally took two trembling steps, then stopped again to look at the Marine Corps soldiers here. Seeing no movement, he took another two steps.

"Go on your way, glug..." Tang Ershuan tilted his head back to drink, his eyes still fixed on the bandit.

By now, the Centurion had returned from the meeting. He strode along the column, not even glancing at that strange bandit, and said loudly to the Banner Commander, "Same as before. Our First Company will fight our way into the town along the official road. The Third Company is on the left, the Second Company on the right. The Company Commander changed only one thing: whether we encounter a large bandit force or not, we must wait for the artillery's cannon to sound, then watch for the flag signals."

The Banner Commander acknowledged loudly and quickly turned to brief the three Team Leaders. Tang Ershuan's Team Leader ran over swiftly. It was Lu Pioneer, who had been under him before. After Tang Ershuan was demoted, Lu Pioneer took over. This was the only such case in the entire battalion so far.

As a newly promoted Team Leader, Lu Pioneer had to show a difference. When distributing armor, he had displayed selflessness, giving all the leather armor to the soldiers and wearing cotton armor himself. This cotton armor was unwelcome by the Yangtze River in April — both stiflingly hot and hard to dry. Lu Pioneer had naturally suffered for it, drinking water the whole way. His coconut ladle was already empty, and now he was not allowed to leave the column to draw well water. Drinking from the fields was forbidden. Tang Ershuan was considering whether to share some of his, but he did not have much left himself.

Before he could decide, a signal cannon boomed ahead. The Company Commander's Recognition Banner began signaling. After each Company acknowledged, a conch horn sounded. The Banner Commander shouted loudly. Tang Ershuan stood up along with everyone else. The bandit on the ridge was startled and stopped again, not daring to move, watching the government troops in terror.

The column advanced in order, resuming the rapid march pace. When it was his Banner Team's turn, Tang Ershuan took one last look at that bandit. He was still on the ridge. Once the army left, he could probably keep his life.

Suddenly, with a muffled thwump, a light arrow flew from the rear unit. The sharp arrowhead easily sliced through the tattered coat on the bandit's chest, through the mud and muscle, sinking deep into his chest. The bandit's whole body stopped trembling. The whites of his eyes blinked twice, and he toppled backward into the fish pond, sending up a huge splash with a boom.

"What a sin." Tang Ershuan shook his head and walked on with the unit. He had fought in two major battles already. By the Pure Stream River, he had even smashed a mounted bandit's head open. He could not recall those scenes later, but now, the image of those blinking white eyes lingered in his mind.

Head down, he walked on for who knew how long. Not only did he forget to share water with Lu Pioneer, he even forgot the feeling of fatigue, until he heard the Banner Commander's voice: "Enemy contact! All troops, don armor!"

A jolt ran through Tang Ershuan's entire body, snapping him awake from the image of the white eyes. Without waiting for the Team Leader's urging, he hurriedly reached back for the hook. He stole a glance outside and saw a Flank Guard Cavalryman raising two small triangular flags, yellow and green, signaling the appearance of a small enemy force.

His hand found the hook. Tang Ershuan lifted the upper half of the leather armor, pressed it to his chest, and pulled the hook to the front. This type of leather armor was made by pounding iron filings into cowhide. The upper half was a single solid piece, the abdomen made of six or seven rows of small cowhide plates, and the shoulders were left open. During a march, the upper body could be left open to dissipate heat and prevent heatstroke, making it more suitable for the Jiangnan region. When encountering the enemy, hooks secured it at the shoulders, turning it into a complete, close-fitting suit of armor. (Note: As recorded about this leather armor: "With hooks to fasten it, it can be rolled or spread freely.")

The whole process was very simple, something he could do by himself. The unit did not even pause. Tang Ershuan finished donning his armor while on the move. With the leather armor secured, he slipped the rattan shield onto his left arm, entering a state ready for combat at any moment.

With all his gear in order, Tang Ershuan felt much calmer. He looked up now. In the surrounding fields, fleeing figures were everywhere. Beyond these figures, Mounted Bandits had appeared. They shouted strange, loud cries. There were quite a few of them, but they formed no battle array. Directly ahead of the unit, the outline of Erlang Town appeared on the distant horizon.