Chapter 454: East Street

Agonized screams filled the courtyard, and flowing blood steamed with rising heat, mingling with the faint, acrid smoke of gunpowder.

An Anqing Iron Armor Soldier at the main gate swung his blade staff, desperately smashing at a Qing soldier writhing on the threshold; the Qing soldier was already motionless, and the other Anqing soldiers in the courtyard were also finishing off the wounded, but all their movements were sluggish.

Qin Jiuze held his bow and panted continuously, his eyes sweeping across the courtyard before he walked over to Yang Guangdi, glanced at the wound on his chest where the edge of the Tiger Tooth Blade had grazed him, tearing open the cotton armor but drawing little blood.

Yang Guangdi's lips were cracked and dry, yet despite the bitter winter cold, his forehead was drenched in sweat. Someone was pacing nearby, and Yang Guangdi turned his head to look, seeing Manda'er pinning a Qing soldier to the ground; the Qing soldier wore no armor, his chest's padded jacket torn to shreds by the Wolf Tooth Club, the blackened cotton soaked through with fresh blood, his eyes staring blankly ahead as blood occasionally bubbled from his mouth.

Manda'er, covered in blood and filth, ripped off the Qing soldier's helmet, revealing a scalp full of stubble; he pulled the ear taut with one hand and immediately began cutting with his knife, producing a wet, tearing sound. The Qing soldier twitched once, but his eyes remained unchanged, and he coughed up a mouthful of bloody froth.

"What's the point of cutting that thing off?" Qin Jiuze managed a few words before stopping to catch his breath.

Manda'er chuckled twice, stuffed the ear into his chest, and stood up to join several other Anqing soldiers as they went around checking with their weapons. The wounded Qing soldiers, seeing them approach, all wailed loudly and begged for mercy.

Qin Jiuze limped to the gate, picked up an arrow from the ground and nocked it on his bowstring, then hid behind the door leaf and tilted his head to observe the street.

Amid the thudding sounds of smashing and hacking in the courtyard, Yang Guangdi panted for a moment, then his eyes found Xu Squad Leader pinned beneath the White Armor Soldier; he had tried to twist free several times but could not get up. Yang Guangdi immediately shouted, and he and Manda'er ran over together, dragging the White Armor Soldier aside with combined effort. Xu Lengzi struggled to turn over, failed on the first try, rested a moment, then attempted a second time. Manda'er quickly crouched down and helped push with his knee, and Xu Lengzi finally rolled over, planting both hands on the ground to climb up.

Xu Squad Leader was drenched in blood from head to toe, impossible to tell if it was his or someone else's. Xu Lengzi still wore his Demon-Fighting Mask face armor; after standing, he looked around until he finally found his Wolf Tooth Club. He walked over to pick it up, but Yang Guangdi, seeing his unsteady steps, quickly retrieved it for him, and Xu Lengzi took it with an outstretched hand.

Yang Guangdi turned his head toward the inner courtyard gate. Old Yu the Second lay on the ground, his powerful crossbow discarded beside him, its stock broken in two while the energy-storing bamboo piece in the middle remained intact; the two severed bowstring ends drooped on the ground. A bloody gash marked his face, torn open by something unknown, and he reached for his foot but could not touch it. A Mounted Scout soldier was helping staunch his bleeding.

The Mounted Scout captain lay face-down in front of the inner courtyard gate, a Dark Armor Qing soldier collapsed on top of him. His helmet was nowhere to be seen, and a small pool of blood had formed beneath him. Yang Shisan lay beside him, the cotton armor on his shoulder torn but still able to move, trying to turn the captain over.

A volley of fire lance shots rang out from outside the courtyard, and someone was shouting battle cries. Then came another cannon blast, followed by shrill screams of men and horses from the streets. The riderless horses at the gate began leaping about madly, crashing into each other as they moved north.

Xu Squad Leader bent over to rest for a moment, then crouched down to grab a Crescent Axe. He failed to stand on the first try, so Yang Guangdi hurried over to lift his hand. Xu Squad Leader grabbed Yang Guangdi's shoulder and forced himself upright.

The Iron Armor Soldier captain had just climbed up from the ground, an arrow embedded in his body, with unknown other wounds. Hearing the commotion outside, he waved weakly at the group and said in a hoarse voice, "Leave two to save the wounded, the rest of you kill the Tartars."

The captain pointed toward the temple gate, tried to take a step, but immediately crouched down again, unable to rise any further.

With both captains out of action, Xu Squad Leader seemed to have no intention of listening to anyone else and headed straight for the courtyard gate.

Xu Lengzi walked at the very front, axe in hand, and Yang Guangdi hurried to follow. Manda'er had just stabbed a Qing soldier at the courtyard gate and, seeing this, also got up and followed behind.

Before they reached the gate, another wave of shouting erupted outside as seven or eight mounted figures rode past the gate in succession, heading south. Yang Guangdi knew that no Anqing soldiers inside the market town had horses, so these had to be Qing troops, among them two or three Bright Armor Tartars.

Qin Jiuze stuck his head out to look left and right, then stepped out of the courtyard gate, shot an arrow at the passing Qing soldiers, and darted back inside the temple gate. Seeing Xu Lengzi pass by, he reached out a hand to stop him.

Xu Lengzi did not hesitate for a moment; as if he had not seen any Qing soldiers outside at all, he stepped directly over the threshold, and Yang Guangdi was the second to step out.

Many riderless horses stood outside the gate, and fierce battle cries rang out from both ends of the street. Xu Lengzi's blood-soaked back stopped in the middle of the street as he looked left and right; Yang Guangdi also looked around. The northern street was thick with figures, everywhere the silver forms of Iron Armor Soldiers, all manner of weapons swinging and smashing above their heads.

The southern street was shrouded in white smoke, the road surface almost entirely paved with corpses. A few horses with mangled limbs struggled in pools of blood, their legs twitching violently, the thick stench of blood saturating the air.

The Qing soldiers who had just passed were a dozen or so paces ahead; one had an arrow stuck in his back and was swaying, about to fall. The other Qing soldiers halted before the pile of corpses, and someone shouted as they drew their bows, aiming to shoot toward the Cross Street intersection.

The Qing soldiers blocked the view toward Cross Street, so Yang Guangdi could not see the situation there. Just as Xu Lengzi was about to step forward, a sudden thunderous roar erupted as a cloud of white smoke burst at the intersection.

The first few Qing soldiers at the front bore the brunt, their whole bodies shuddering as fragments burst from their helmets and armguards, sprays of blood mist erupting from their heads and backs. Chunks of flesh flew from the edges of the horses' bodies as blood gushed out; men and horses toppled together, collapsing among the body parts on the ground. The shot horses lay on their sides, thrashing violently, their hooves kicking and stamping madly, sending blood splattering everywhere. With each violent spasm, the blood spurting from the horses' bodies rose and fell.

Yang Guangdi heard a pattering sound against the wall of the Horse God Temple, like something flying past.

Screams of agony echoed through the street as several Iron Armor Soldiers charged out from the intersection ahead, hacking at the surviving Qing soldiers in the street.

The mount of one Qing soldier who had not been hit bucked wildly in terror, turning its head and galloping north. This Qing soldier, suddenly struck by cannon fire, was utterly terrified and focused only on controlling his mount, completely unaware that several more people had appeared on the road.

Manda'er yanked the head of a riderless horse at the gate to the left and stabbed its rump with his waist saber; the horse immediately bolted outward, landing right in the middle of the road. The Qing soldier's horse speed instantly dropped. The Qing soldier now saw the Bright Armor soldier in the middle of the road but did not notice the red cloth on his arm; he shouted something in this direction, apparently mistaking him for one of his own elite guard.

Xu Lengzi said nothing, walked around the riderless horse with large strides right up to the Qing soldier, and swung his two-handed Crescent Axe with ferocious force at the Qing soldier. The Qing soldier, completely unprepared and mounted, could not dodge at all. The Crescent Axe spun rapidly with Xu Lengzi as its center, the axe head howling through the air as it smashed violently into the Qing soldier's chest.

With a dull crack of breaking bone, the Qing soldier practically fell backward off the horse, his feet still caught in the stirrups. The startled horse let out a shrill neigh, its front hooves rearing high into the air.

Xu Lengzi waited for the hooves to land, then brought his axe down on the mount's head. With a sharp crack, the horse's head was violently forced downward, its front legs buckled, and it collapsed sideways to the ground, blood streaming from its mouth.

Yang Guangdi stared blankly, not understanding why Xu Squad Leader wanted to kill the horse. The training orders the Mounted Scout soldiers received stated that warhorses were money, something even money could not always buy, but he dared not stop this demon-god-like Xu Squad Leader.

Xu Squad Leader pulled his axe from the horse's head and strode southward. Yang Guangdi hurried to follow, glancing back to see Qin Jiuze and the others also following behind, Manda'er's face full of excitement.

Up ahead, several Anqing Iron Armor Soldiers had already finished hacking at the Qing soldiers on the ground and were preparing to withdraw to Cross Street. Through the gaps between them, Yang Guangdi saw a bronze cannon, several cannoneers gathered around it reloading, its muzzle still pointed in this direction.

"It's the Mounted Scout soldiers!"

Yang Guangdi recalled the things that had scraped past the wall earlier, apparently shot by the artillery, and quickly stuck his head out, shouting toward the intersection.

A reply came from that direction, and then Yang Guangdi saw the figure of the Banner Commander. They were all right at the intersection, separated by only a single temple wall, but Yang Guangdi felt as if they were cut off by countless rivers and mountains; seeing the Banner Commander now stirred a sudden surge of emotion in him.

Then the square-faced officer from the Personal Guard Division appeared and shouted in their direction. Xu Lengzi quickened his pace toward the intersection, his body swaying heavily from side to side, and to Yang Guangdi it felt as if the very earth was shaking.

Qin Jiuze and Manda'er also followed behind. This Xu Squad Leader had clearly become the backbone for everyone; though he issued no commands, all followed him of their own accord.

When passing the pile of corpses, Yang Guangdi saw the walls on both sides covered in bloodstains, the ground heaped with entrails and chunks of limbs and flesh, the spilled intestines still steaming with heat. Hardly a single corpse was intact.

Manda'er walked and stared blankly, while Qin Jiuze also looked full of doubt, as if neither had imagined any weapon could produce such an effect in so short a time.

The soles of their shoes were all soaked with blood as they tread across this stretch of road that resembled a hell of carnage, arriving before the stage a moment later.

The Small Square was strewn with the bodies of men and horses. One Team of Iron Armor Soldiers stood in formation, facing the street to the east, while another Team of Iron Armor Soldiers advanced toward the southern street, leaving a ground full of corpses in their wake. The nearby Mounted Scout soldiers were binding captives.

On the stage were over a dozen Firearms Soldiers, a few of them holding Lumi Guns just like Yang Guangdi's. Only now did Yang Guangdi remember his own Lumi Gun, though he had even forgotten where he had dropped it.

Four artillerymen stood around that small cannon, positioned below the stage. One cannoneer held something like a mop, which he shoved into the muzzle and dragged, producing a sizzling white vapor. He then pulled the mop out, rubbed it repeatedly against the remaining snow on the ground, and a moment later inserted it back into the muzzle.

In front of the cannon, a cannoneer wearing only a short jacket looked relaxed and said to them with a smile, "Good thing you shouted that warning, or we really would have fired on you."

Manda'er's eyes were fixed on the small cannon, studying it intently, occasionally looking up at the stage.

At that moment, the Banner Commander strode over, and Qin Jiuze and the others gathered around him. The Banner Commander first checked everyone's injuries, and Yang Guangdi told him about the situation in the temple. The Banner Commander nodded repeatedly, then said to the group, "More Tartars came than expected. We estimate about two hundred are surrounded inside the market town, with several hundred more outside. Just now, Battalion Commander Chen signaled that a group of Tartars is circling around from outside and might enter through this Cross Street."

He pointed to the street on the east side, which was not long, only about fifty paces. The fighting there was not intense, with one Team of Iron Armor Soldiers besieging a small number of Qing troops. The Anqing Army had deployed cannons at both ends, so for the Qing troops outside to reinforce those inside the town, this route indeed looked easier.

The Banner Commander instructed them, "You few, keep watch on the northern road. There might still be scattered Tartars coming from that direction; don't let them rush the intersection. If there are too many Tartars, call out."

The group nodded. The battle cries in this direction had already subsided; the Iron Armor Soldiers controlled the street, and at most only scattered Tartars would come through.

The short-jacketed artilleryman beside them chimed in, "You can tell me too. One cannon shot and there won't be many Tartars left."

The Banner Commander quickly said, "This is Zeng Baci of the Cavalry Artillery Division, a instructor from the Martial Academy."

The group sized up Zeng Baci, who looked no more than a Squad Leader. The Banner Commander then returned below the stage to coordinate the Mounted Scout soldiers' positions with the Banner Commander from the personal guard side.

The officer from the Personal Guard Division was barking orders; the Banner Team of Iron Armor Soldiers heading south turned around and returned, forming up in preparation on the southern edge of the Small Square. Now there were two Banner Teams of Iron Armor Soldiers near the stage, plus supporting artillery and Mounted Scout soldiers, making the area extremely crowded. Some Mounted Scout soldiers who could shoot arrows were sent up onto the stage to free up space in the Small Square.

Then another cannon was wheeled out from the southern street, four artillerymen pushing the gun carriage as they hurried toward the area below the stage.

The sound of hoofbeats rose from the east. The short-jacketed cannoneer waved his hand, his tone not the least bit tense: "Prepare solid shot."

One cannoneer immediately opened the wooden box behind him, took out a cotton bag and an iron shot. The iron shot was only slightly larger than a child's fist and looked not the least bit impressive. Then he took out another one.

That small team of Iron Armor Soldiers on the east side rapidly withdrew, and the arriving Bronze Cannon reached the Small Square, halting at a position ahead and to the side of the first cannon. The Firearms Soldiers on the Stage each checked the weapons in their hands, forming a two-row Array.

The short-jacketed Artillery soldier casually raised the Telescope in his hand. A body of cavalry appeared from the north at the East End street mouth — those at the very front were all Bright Armor Tartars, and one after another they dismounted at the intersection.

Yang Guangdi and a few others stood at the street mouth beside the Cannon. Man Da'er poked his head out from the wall to look east. The street mouth was thick with White Armor Tartars. Man Da'er kept swallowing nervously. Qin Jiuze repeatedly clenched and unclenched his grip on the bow and arrow, his right hand holding a picked-up Armor-Piercing Awl. Both men turned their heads at the same time to look at Xu Lengzi and the Iron Armor Soldiers, gauging whether they could hold off these Bright Armor Tartars.

The Artillery soldier with the swab gave the cannon bore a few more twists. The short-jacketed Artillery soldier waved a hand at him, and the swab soldier went to the side and switched to a long-shafted rammer, waiting beside the cannon body.

The short-jacketed Artillery soldier lowered the Telescope. "Begin loading. One solid shot. Prepare one solid shot, three rounds of Canister Shot."