Chapter 331: Inside Town

Inside and outside Erlang Town, shouts shook the heavens. Running figures were everywhere. Red-coated squad leaders were beating and cursing in every direction, trying to stop the panicked servants from scattering in chaos. The streets inside town were jammed solid with carts and carriages. All kinds of livestock, sensing the terror in the air around them, brayed ceaselessly in the middle of the road. In the camp ground south of town, several fires left untended had already ignited multiple blazes, their thick smoke visible far and near.

A cavalry squad came from the direction of Mountain Pass, forcing its way through the crowds on the road, struggling to advance toward the south side of town. Xiao Wazi gripped the reins nervously. The screaming, jostling throng around him spooked the horses badly, making them constantly wheel in different directions. Xiao Wazi had to give it his full concentration just to keep the right direction. The horse soldiers clearing the way ahead kept brandishing their weapons, driving off the servants who had lost their heads in panic, so that Liu Wenxiu could pass through the market town as quickly as possible.

Liu Wenxiu's banner was just a few steps ahead. Xiao Wazi had found this Long Family on the road from Mountain Pass to Chenhan Village and was the first to report the news of the government troops' landing, also warning that the troops might very well come to attack Erlang Town, and that the ones who had tried to seize the great banner were likely this force's Night-Not-Returning scouts.

Unlike those horse soldiers who understood little, Liu Wenxiu, upon receiving the news, became extremely tense. He had originally been at Mountain Pass to link up with Old Huihui Ma Shouying's camp head. After hearing Xiao Wazi out, he dared not delay a moment and immediately rushed toward Erlang Town at top speed, gathering some horse soldiers along the way, and had only now arrived outside Erlang Town. But transmitting the message had taken too much time. Since the Anqing Garrison Battalion had landed at Chang'an Port in the early morning, over three double-hours had passed. Just now, a Post Commander messenger had come racing up to report that the government troops were only seven li from Erlang Town.

"Send another man to report to Eight Master. Tell him he must send reinforcements at once — we need the old camp! If you meet Master Zhang on the road, ask him to turn his troops back and help."

Xiao Wazi reined in his horse at that moment and turned to look at the shouting Liu Wenxiu. This master was usually quite composed, but now he was clearly showing panic. It seemed he was even more worried about Erlang Town's safety than Xiao Wazi was. After dispatching the horse soldiers heading for Fengjiadu, he again sent riders to beg help from Old Huihui, who was about to reach Mountain Pass.

Liu Wenxiu kept sending out urgent calls for help. From Mountain Pass to this place, as the news grew more and more urgent, he had already dispatched six batches totaling ten horse soldiers. Three of those batches alone had gone to Fengjiadu. While gathering horse soldiers along the way, he kept sending them out again to organize the foot soldiers. The number of cavalry under his direct control had not increased by much. He had clearly lost his composure.

After finding Liu Wenxiu, Xiao Wazi had originally felt greatly reassured. This Long Family treated him with considerable favor; in a few more days he might even become a Post Commander. At first, his worry had been that his own sentry post would be encircled by government troops inside Erlang Town. Now, as long as Liu Wenxiu came back, if they couldn't win the fight, they would just run ahead to Eight Master's position. At worst, they'd lose the servants. As long as this Long Family was still around, Xiao Wazi was not worried about his future.

But now, seeing Liu Wenxiu's arrangements — asking Eight Master for reinforcements, asking Sweeping King, who had just passed through not long ago, to turn his troops back, and at the same time asking Ma Shouying to hurry over from Mountain Pass — it was clear he did not intend to get far away from the government troops quickly, but rather to defend Erlang Town to the death. It seemed this place was a fatal spot.

This was extremely rare in the past, because every family's camp heads relied mainly on mobility to stay alive. No place was indispensable; they had almost never fought a desperate battle with government troops over any strategic location. Xiao Wazi still could not understand the reason. Apart from this bridge, the surrounding terrain held nothing that alarmed him. Eastward along the courier station road, though not entirely flat and open, it was still quite broad. The government troops had come by boat and were mostly infantry. Even if they couldn't beat them, the troops could never catch up to him. He could see no reason to fight a hard battle with the government troops at Erlang Town.

Screams rang out ahead. The horse soldiers clearing the way swung their great blades and hacked down a few more people blocking the road, no longer caring whether they were servants or family dependents, sending those nearby shrieking and fleeing in terror. Even so, Liu Wenxiu kept urging them on, telling the horse soldiers to speed up clearing the path.

They finally reached the crossroads at the center of the market town. The courier road ahead came from the direction of Huangmei and cut straight across the whole of Erlang Town. It was the unavoidable route for every family's marching troops. Right now, the road was jammed with carts and carriages. One cart had tipped over, and several panicked mules were struggling desperately, their hind hooves kicking wildly in all directions. The grooms could not control them at all. The road was utter chaos. The horse soldiers had to dismount and prepare to kill the mules first; otherwise, there was no way through this crossroads.

Liu Wenxiu was burning with impatience. Ever since Xiao Wazi's first report, more horse soldiers had come in succession with urgent warnings. The government troops were indeed heading for Erlang Town. The latest report said they were only seven li away. Some time had passed since then; the government troops were now very close to Erlang Town.

Before this government force appeared, Erlang Town had indeed not been important. It was no different from any ordinary market town, and certainly not something Liu Wenxiu could not abandon. But the moment he received the news, Liu Wenxiu knew immediately that Erlang Town absolutely must not be lost. The most critical reason was this crossroads up ahead.

The roads from the Huangmei and Guangji directions converged here. The various families were in the middle of combining their camps, their formations stretching for dozens of li, with camp grounds from Fengjiadu all the way to Huangmei. The elite troops were besieging Fengjiadu, and the remaining elite units were scattered along these dozens of li. Though their total strength was enormous, none of it could be assembled in a short time. Erlang Town was both vital and extremely vulnerable.

Although the government troops ahead at Fengjiadu were the weaker Jiangnan Troops, they numbered in the thousands. Eight Master's plan had been to besiege them for four days, and today was only the first. It was highly unlikely they could break through Fengjiadu, which meant the road ahead was not open.

Liu Wenxiu had been to Susong once. He was not as familiar with this area as with Shanxi-Shaanxi or Henan, but he knew the terrain here was still vastly different from the north, with numerous rivers along the way. If this government force launched a surprise attack on Erlang Town, the greatest fear was that another government reinforcement force was coming from the Fengxiang Courier Station direction. If Erlang Town fell, the entire Western Camp would be trapped along these twenty or thirty li of official road. In the past, they could abandon the servants and flee for their lives, but once the government troops used the rivers to cut them off, not a single one would escape.

The sentry post he led was one of the old camps. Its horse soldiers were all veterans or bold new talents seasoned in many battles, but they numbered only a little over a hundred. Only because holding Erlang Town alone required frequent communication back and forth had Zhang Xianzhong left him an extra seventy horse soldiers, bringing the total to just over two hundred. Among the servants, the foot soldiers who could fight a little numbered about five or six hundred, stronger than an ordinary sentry post, and all were equipped with official-made weapons. But they could not withstand a hard battle. When it came to deciding the outcome, he still had to rely on those squad leaders.

For the Western Camp, which possessed a large number of cavalry, intercepting the enemy en route was where they could best exploit their advantage. Even if they could not wipe out those government troops, they could slow their march to a crawl. Once nightfall came, the government troops would lose their best opportunity to attack. At the very least, they could hold Erlang Town today. As soon as the elite troops ahead turned back to help, the initiative would return to the side of the Roving Bandits with their many cavalry.

But now, the Anqing Garrison Battalion, with its swift and decisive march, had compressed the cavalry's room to maneuver. The rivers, paddy fields, and fish ponds around Erlang Town imposed many restrictions on cavalry. More importantly, they had left him no time to assemble his men.

Liu Wenxiu was equally certain that the ones coming were the Anqing Garrison Battalion. This surprise attack was exactly the same as the one at Fierce Tiger Bridge in Puzikou. That Garrison Commander's appetite was never small, and every target he chose made Liu Wenxiu extremely uncomfortable.

Erlang Town absolutely could not be lost. No matter how unwilling Liu Wenxiu was, his opponent had forced him into the kind of town defense operation he was least skilled at, and without even a single city wall. All he could count on now was for the elite troops of the various families to turn back and help as quickly as possible.

All around was a cacophony of shouting men and neighing horses. The squad leaders clearing the way used their long spears to stab and kill the panicked mules. These tenacious beasts of burden let out agonized brays as they struggled, erupting with terrifying strength in their death throes, dragging the wrecked cart straight into the shop fronts beside the road.

After a bout of chaos, the road was finally cleared. Liu Wenxiu did not delay a single moment. He spurred his horse through the intersection. A few squad leaders had gone ahead on foot to clear the way earlier, so the road ahead was much smoother. Once they emerged from the market town, the view suddenly opened up considerably.

The wilderness south of Erlang Town was covered with camp grounds. Several columns of black smoke hung against the sky. Among the shacks, countless servants were running about wildly, shouting as they searched for their kin and friends. Some servants had already left the camp grounds, fleeing into town carrying large and small bundles of household belongings.

Liu Wenxiu had no time to bother with these servants right now. What gave him a little relief was seeing foot soldiers carrying weapons heading south. Some red-coated squad leaders were leading them, clearly on their way to meet the government troops. But the moment those squad leaders were the slightest bit negligent, some foot soldiers would throw down their weapons and run.

"Post Commander whose camp ground is here, go quickly and bring up the foot soldiers. This place must be held." Liu Wenxiu finished speaking, then shouted again, "All family Post Commander, follow me. Send men to bring up the foot soldiers."

Second Locust had originally been about to leave, but upon hearing the last words, he had no choice but to stop. He turned his head to glance at his own three squad leaders behind him, thought for a moment, and called Xiao Wazi over.

"You go bring up the foot soldiers." Second Locust leaned in close and said in a low voice, "I fear this is going to turn bad. Tell my steward to get the spare horses ready properly. Only take the valuable items and put them all on the horses. Bring that Zhang Poyi woman we captured in Huangmei. Leave the other women."

Xiao Wazi nodded. This was not the first time he had been attacked in his career as a Roving Bandit. In this kind of situation, the most important thing was the horses, then the wealth and women.

Having finished giving his orders, Liu Wenxiu spurred his horse forward again. Second Locust's camp ground was in the same direction. Xiao Wazi followed the main group for another stretch, racing along the official road for nearly two li. The various shacks gradually thinned out. Ahead, on the open field, horse soldiers were growing more numerous, along with foot soldiers who were assembling. Xiao Wazi made a rough estimate of about two hundred foot soldiers. Behind him came the sound of hoofbeats — several dozen more horse soldiers were coming from town. Most wore purple coats, clearly belonging to another camp head. They had probably just happened to be passing through and had come to help.

Then Xiao Wazi saw that government force. The main road to the south was a swath of red. Squads were splitting off from the government troops' column, leaving the main road and expanding their battle line eastward. What he could see so far was about a thousand men. As their battle line unfolded, the area of red grew larger and larger, and within it, the heads of many strange beasts were faintly visible.

Liu Wenxiu raised his great banner. The nearby horse soldiers let out a chorus of strange yells, and morale rose slightly. Ahead, horse soldiers were attacking with bows and arrows, trying to disrupt the government troops' maneuvers, but some government soldiers with bows were shooting back. The government troops' banners and horns called to each other as they continued their deployment.

The government troops' columns were silent and practiced. Xiao Wazi immediately felt the pressure, and the tension in his heart surged sharply. Second Locust's camp ground was nearby. Xiao Wazi was just about to leave the main group to bring up the foot soldiers when he suddenly spotted something else.

A small cannon appeared at the edge of the main road, and then a second one appeared after it.

"They really do have cannons!" Xiao Wazi turned his head to look at Second Locust.

"Go bring the men." Second Locust gritted his teeth. "Tell the steward — forget that Zhang Poyi woman."

Xiao Wazi said no more. He spurred his horse and raced back to the camp ground. Because it was so close to the government troops, the inside was already a complete mess. With the squad leaders all leaving camp to fight and the pressure from the government troops bearing down, order inside the camp was near total collapse. The servants were brawling with each other over plunder and valuables. Some servants had even mounted horses and were fleeing outward.

Xiao Wazi had no time to stop them. He went first to Second Locust's tent to look for his steward. The Roving Bandits all liked to style themselves as masters. The head man in charge of the servants below was called the steward, the highest-ranking among the servants, and usually had a weapon with which to fight.

But Second Locust's steward was nowhere to be found, let alone the horses. Originally, Second Locust had two horses and two mules. Now, apart from the one he himself was riding, all the others were gone. Some servants and women were brawling outside the tent, fighting over valuables they had discovered.

The report of a musket came from the south. Xiao Wazi knew government troops fairly well and recognized it as a signal cannon, usually fired when an order was being issued. He had no time to bother with these servants. He turned around and headed for his own tent. His own servants still numbered six or seven, but they were likewise on the ground fighting over the little remaining grain. Only that Wang Dashan was huddled beside the tent, hugging his woman and wailing loudly.

Xiao Wazi jumped off his horse and began kicking and beating the servants on the ground. Only after he had barely managed to cow them did he prepare to go into the tent to check on the valuables. Just as he reached the entrance, a man came out of the tent flap. Draped over his left shoulder was a cloud-shoulder cape decorated with auspicious cloud patterns and pearls.

"Master, I..." The servant stammered, unable to get the words out.

Xiao Wazi suddenly drew his blade, ready to hack this hateful servant dead with one stroke. At that very moment, a tremendous boom erupted. A thunderous roar shook the wilderness. Shrieks rose from every camp ground south of Erlang Town. The last shred of order among the servants vanished completely. No longer caring to fight over anything, they fled north like madmen, toppling everything in their path, whether shacks or people.