Chapter 263: That Same Move Again

Kong Youde slumped to the ground in despair. It meant Chen Xin did not recognize Sun Yuanhua's amnesty offer and would still exterminate them as rebel soldiers. He muttered under his breath, no one knowing what he was saying.

Chen Guangfu and Wang Zideng bit their lips tightly and said nothing. Li Jiucheng swept his gaze over them and said, "Chen Xin wants to wipe us out completely, so we'll fight him to the death. I've killed countless men in my life; this life was already earned back long ago."

Geng Zhongming said in a low voice, "I've got nothing else to say, I'm still following Lord Li." He paused. "But if we can avoid dying, naturally it's better not to die. There's still one path right now. The west gate has no Wendeng Battalion; we can withdraw from the west gate."

Kong Youde raised his head. "And where do we go after leaving by the west gate? Won't we still die all the same?"

Geng Zhongming looked at the few of them and said, "What Chen Xin wants is Dengzhou, not really our lives. What good does it do him to fight us to the bitter end? We've looted a lot of stuff. Leave behind some of the cloth, silk, and silver that's too heavy to carry in various places. Leave some of those disorderly soldiers and rabble in the city. He, Chen Xin, wants the merit of recovering the territory; it'll take him a few days to clear out those rioters. We'll use that time to leave Dengzhou. They don't have many cavalry. I'll personally lead troops to cover the rear. There's still a detached camp at Mount Shimen that can block them for a while. From here to Huangxian it's all mountain terrain. I'll block them layer by layer. As long as you break through Huangxian up ahead, we can catch our breath, then head for Laizhou."

A glimmer of hope flashed in Chen Guangfu's eyes, and he quickly pressed, "And then?"

Geng Zhongming gave a sinister smile. "We hold off Chen Xin at Huangxian. The vanguard attacks Yexian, or attacks Pingduzhou. After that, we head west out of Deng-Lai jurisdiction. Lü Zhi has Chen Xin as his enforcer—he dares not offer us amnesty. But who does Yu Dacheng have as an enforcer? After we fight our way to Qingzhou Prefecture, if he doesn't offer us amnesty, we'll just attack a few more county seats. His official position will be unstable, so he'll have no choice but to take the amnesty route. We'll go to Shandong to be soldiers—still soldiers—and we can get far away from that Wendeng Battalion."

Wang Zideng clapped his hands with a smack and laughed heartily. "Everyone says you, Geng Zhongming, are cunning and sly. I never believed it. You've actually found a way out of certain death."

Li Jiucheng said nothing. He picked up his greatsword and walked out the door, tossing back one cold sentence: "First hold out through today, then talk about staying alive."...

The sound of slaughter shook the sky north of Dengzhou city. Wendeng Battalion first bombarded Cao Bridge and the east and west city walls with cannon fire. The rebel commanders had no choice but to send reinforcements to these two places. After a round of tactical deception, Wendeng Battalion began a fierce assault on the east city. Once the east city barbican was breached, Zhenhai Gate, Wolong Ridge, and Mishen Shan would be linked, and the troops outside the east gate could also be freed up.

The attack was led by the Second Company Headquarters, first beginning to clear out the northeast corner. They set out from north of Dengzhou Bridge, using a diversionary force to pin down the rebel soldiers at Dengzhou Bridge. The main force broke into small units, advancing in an interspersed attack using combat group mode with one assault team and one firearms team each. The flexible and adaptable advantages of the Mandarin Duck Formation were brought into play. Although those rebel soldiers fighting on their own were numerous, they collapsed at the first contact. The gunpowder magazine in the northeast corner quickly returned to Wendeng Battalion's control. Those rebels hadn't thought to blow it up either.

The rebel troops at the east gate originally belonged to Geng Zhongming, but had now been replaced by Li Yingyuan's unit. Most were old brothers from the Wuqiao mutiny. However, after a string of defeats inside the city, their morale was far lower than when they first entered the city. Now they fought more because they were unwilling to have their silver looted by others.

There were five Hongyi cannons on the city wall, two of which were bronze cannons. The gunners made gaps in the parapet and used the Hongyi cannons to continuously bombard the north wall. Two of them were constantly aimed at the bend in the city wall. There was no way to take cover on the narrow wall, which made both sides give up on breaking through via the wall.

Li Yingyuan hadn't placed many troops in the northeast corner. Most there were disorganized rabble and rioters. They were quickly either surrendering or collapsing under Wendeng Battalion's assault. Wendeng Battalion did not seal off their retreat route. Pushing forward steadily, these rebel soldiers fled like a tidal wave toward the east gate.

Li Yingyuan set up multiple barriers north of the Examination Hall, and also established three street barricades at the front and back of the street east of the Examination Hall. Each barricade had one or two general cannons or Frankish breech-loaders. He had learned this from Wendeng Battalion too; during the fighting at Zhenhai Gate, Wendeng Battalion had used this method to delay for quite some time. But because he hadn't been on the defensive for long, he hadn't had time to pile up firewood everywhere like Wendeng Battalion did.

Wendeng Battalion's attack had been underway for half a shichen. Gunfire continued unabated north of the Examination Hall and was slowly pressing southward. Li Yingyuan felt his mouth parched and tongue dry, so he loosened his collar a bit.

After another half a quarter-hour, groups of routed soldiers fled from the north, shouting in panic as they ran. Li Yingyuan grabbed one and asked, "How far away is Wendeng Battalion?"

"D-don't know. They have cannons. One cannon shot killed so many people."

Li Yingyuan threw the man aside and ordered the gunners at the street barricade to prepare to fire. Some of these men were former gunners from the personal battalion, while others were rioters grabbed to fill the numbers. Because many gunners had also gone looting after the mutiny and couldn't return to their original units for a while, each cannon could only be assigned one veteran gunner. They only knew how to fire the cannons and were far less skilled than those Hongyi cannon gunners trained by the Frankish instructors.

Red figures soon appeared on the street ahead. The red of their uniforms was more vivid than that of ordinary Ming troops. Those few scattered soldiers spotted the street barricade on this side. They spread out and began firing their arquebuses this way with bangs.

Before Li Yingyuan could speak, the nearby grand general cannon roared with a boom. Li Yingyuan's ears rang from the shock. The other Frankish breech-loaders and bird guns also began firing in quick succession. A cloud of gunpowder smoke spread in front of the barricade.

"Load the powder, quickly, load!" Li Yingyuan urged. The group of makeshift gunners began loading in a flurry. The Wendeng Battalion soldiers across the way were still shooting. Through the smoke, red muzzle flashes could be seen. The few men operating the Frankish breech-loaders swapped in new pre-loaded chambers. As soon as they finished swapping, they hurriedly fired. Even the archers kept shooting wildly without pause.

By the time the grand general cannon was finally reloaded, the gunner hastily lit the priming charge. Another cloud of smoke billowed before the position. Now even the eight pre-loaded chambers of the Frankish breech-loaders were all spent. Everyone was busy reloading.

Li Yingyuan suddenly heard the dense sound of running footsteps from the opposite side. Sensing grave danger, he dodged and hid behind his retainers. Over ten short-handled axes and javelins whistled through the white smoke, cutting down several gunners. Immediately after, the heads of several long spears appeared above the barricade, stabbing and thrusting wildly at the gunners on this side. Red uniforms were faintly visible in the smoke.

The gunners, suffering heavy casualties, let out a cry and all fled to the rear. Li Yingyuan retreated more than ten paces with his retainers and loudly ordered the soldiers waiting behind to charge forward for hand-to-hand combat.

Over a hundred old brothers, led by the retainers, swarmed forward. A bloody battle began at the barricade. These rebel soldiers, all composed of veterans, had considerable fighting strength and were locked in a stalemate with Wendeng Battalion for a time. Li Yingyuan was just feeling relieved when gunfire suddenly erupted behind him. He turned his head in shock and saw a group of rebel soldiers fleeing from the Examination Hall, shouting, "Wendeng Battalion is here!"

Li Yingyuan led his retainers to the main gate and saw a group of Wendeng Battalion soldiers appear inside the Examination Hall. They scattered the rebel soldiers inside and were advancing southward through the examination rooms. The rebel soldiers fled in panic and disarray toward the east gate of the Examination Hall.

A retainer ran out of the Examination Hall and said to Li Yingyuan, "My lord, run quickly! They used cannons and battering rams to collapse a long stretch of the north wall. Many soldiers are charging over from there to cut off our retreat."

Li Yingyuan smacked his own head. He had only assigned men inside the Examination Hall to guard a few doorways, never expecting Wendeng Battalion to break directly through the wall. Now it had become a flanking maneuver.

The shouting inside the Examination Hall alarmed the veterans at the front. The panic of being attacked from the rear quickly shattered the veterans' morale. After a few men led the retreat, the soldiers scattered in a rout. The Wendeng Battalion on the front broke through the first street barricade and charged forward, relentlessly pursuing and biting at their heels.

With one misstep by Li Yingyuan, the defense line was already untenable. He absolutely did not think he could still commit troops to block the large flanking force from the Examination Hall. Without even bothering to mount a horse, he mingled with the chaotic troops and fled toward the second street barricade. The two barricades behind also fell into chaos due to the flank attack. Under the protection of over ten retainers, Li Yingyuan cut down those blocking the way, charged through the second barricade. There were even more routed soldiers ahead, clogging the street. Li Yingyuan was frantic. He planned to return to the barbican, where he could attack or defend, and would certainly be able to hold out for a while. After enduring through the day, he could think of other methods at night.

A group of men were fleeing wildly down the street when suddenly a loud crash came from the Examination Hall wall. The courtyard wall on the right burst apart in a rain of bricks. The bricks swept across, and a swath of routed soldiers in the street collapsed with a crash. Wails rose everywhere, and dust and smoke filled the street.

A large hole was blasted open in the Examination Hall wall. The wall above the hole also collapsed immediately after. Some red figures appeared at the breach and fired wildly into the street. Immediately after, figures jumped down into the street, aiming to cut off their retreat.

Li Yingyuan knew they must be carrying that kind of small cannon. If they were cut off, it was a dead end. With a great shout, he led his retainers and turned left into an alley. He personally used his waist saber to clear the way, cutting down a few slower routed soldiers ahead, and fled toward the east gate over their corpses.

The sound of gunfire continued unceasingly from the north. The defense line Li Yingyuan had constructed was broken through layer by layer. Wendeng Battalion's tactics were on point. The Mandarin Duck Formation had high tactical flexibility in narrow spaces. They continuously pressed forward from the main streets, then used small squads to intersperse and disrupt the rebel defense lines. Four-pounder cannons, pushed forward by gunners, advanced with the assault teams, forming tactical groupings centered on artillery on the larger streets. In the smaller streets and alleys, they relied mainly on assault team strikes, continuously interspersing behind the rebels, causing the rebel troops' morale to waver and collapse layer by layer. Under the combination of these two approaches, the rebels had no power to fight back. The defense line was shattered in less than a shichen.... The barbican at Shengmen. Fortunately, this place was still in rebel hands. There were also quite a few rebel soldiers who had retreated around the gate tower, scurrying about chaotically like headless flies.

The squad commander Li Yingyuan had left behind was gathering troops at the wall stairs. Seeing Li Yingyuan approach, he hurriedly said, "Lord Li, how did you lose so quickly?"

"You go try it." Li Yingyuan cursed irritably and said to the squad commander, "Wendeng Battalion will be here any moment. Quickly gather the routed troops. We'll defend the barbican."

After speaking, Li Yingyuan led his retainers up the wall stairs. Only when he reached the top of the wall did he feel at ease. The barbican was a self-contained system, accessible only by the two side walls and two wall stairs. The north side was guarded by Hongyi cannons. Wendeng Battalion wasn't made of steel and iron; they couldn't fight their way through. The south side was still in Kong Youde's hands. Li Yingyuan only needed to hold the wall stairs securely.... Shengmen Street. The once-bustling street was now desolate. The street was strewn with corpses. Many shops on both sides had been burned and collapsed, presenting a blackened Shengmen Street. There were still a few street barricades on the main street, but Li Yingyuan no longer had any hope for them. Once Shengmen Street was cut off, the east gate would only have the city wall heading south as a retreat route. But Li Yingyuan wasn't too worried, thinking that the city wall was very difficult to cut off.

After only a brief moment, white smoke from arquebus fire appeared at the Examination Hall intersection. Volleys of gunfire rang out repeatedly. The two street barricades were, unsurprisingly, abandoned without a single man remaining. The slightly more resolute rebels fired bird guns from alley entrances and shop fronts. The street was as lively as New Year's for a time.

Li Yingyuan waved his hand. The bird gunners on the gate tower lit their fuses and aimed at the street below the tower. A group of routed soldiers surged out of an alley entrance forty paces away. They had lost all their armor and weapons and were dashing across the main street desperately, frantically searching for an escape route. One man at the front, who looked like a leader, found an alley entrance and shouted for the others to follow.

The group of routed soldiers all ran toward the alley entrance. From the street opening they had just fled, a group of soldiers in red uniforms charged out, firing guns and shooting arrows at the fleeing routed soldiers.

"Fire!" Li Yingyuan roared.

Dozens of bird guns on the parapet fired in unison. The retainers also shot a volley of arrows. A swath of the red-uniformed soldiers fell. After a moment of panic, they spotted the troops on the gate tower. An officer loudly gave orders. Taking advantage of the time the men on the tower needed to reload, they dragged the dead and wounded on the ground back.

Li Yingyuan finally vented some frustration. But he was helpless against places farther away. Bows and bird guns couldn't reach them. The grand general cannon had no accuracy. The Hongyi cannons were on Shengmen Street. The red figures on Shengmen Street grew more and more numerous. Two street barricades were occupied by them. They crossed the street and continued attacking southward. Routed soldiers on the street who couldn't escape knelt by the roadside, kowtowing and begging for mercy. Immediately after, some Wendeng Battalion soldiers tied them up and threw them on the ground.

Li Jiucheng had set up two street barricades at Mifen Bridge. There were several hundred veterans from the Wuqiao mutiny there, along with over ten cannons of various sizes. So Li Yingyuan wasn't too worried about Wendeng Battalion striking directly at the center from the east.

What he worried about most now was Wendeng Battalion launching a fierce assault on Cao Bridge. Once they occupied the area from Shu Bridge to the Bell Tower, all the rebel troops in the city would be split apart. Fortunately, there was no sound of gunfire there yet, probably because Wendeng Battalion lacked sufficient troops. This also made the east gate even more important. If the east gate was lost, the Wendeng troops deployed at Wolong Ridge could enter the city and join the attack. Then they would truly be dead for sure. Li Jiucheng had already sent word for him to preserve his retainers. If they decided to break out at night, they would still need these elite troops to accompany them. That is to say, they might become roving bandits again.

Just as he was lost in thought, a volley of gunfire rang out not far below the wall. Another group of over twenty routed soldiers came scrambling and crawling in flight onto the main street. Their clothes were tattered and stained with blood. Several among them had leg wounds and were being dragged along by others. The leader first prepared to head for the south-side street alley, but turned his head and saw there were still rebel troops on the gate tower. He shouted something to those behind. The group turned and headed up the wall stairs. A few Wendeng soldiers wielding arquebuses quickly chased out from behind. Li Yingyuan hurriedly ordered the bird gunners to fire. The Wendeng soldiers hastily stopped, found cover at a shop, and took turns popping out to shoot at the city wall.

The routed soldiers being pursued supported each other as they climbed the wall stairs to the top of the city wall. They hid on the side near the barbican and collapsed in a heap. Li Yingyuan called over a retainer and said, "Tell them to get up quickly and help throw bricks, stones, and battering logs."

A moment later, intense gunfire erupted below the wall. Groups of Wendeng soldiers appeared on the main street. There were also arquebusiers firing from the courtyards and small alleys near the city wall. Li Yingyuan estimated there were as many as five or six hundred men.

The rebel troops on the wall fired bows and bird guns in unison. The rabble soldiers had prepared stones, fire pots, and lime pots. Using the cover of the street buildings, the Wendeng soldiers pressed closer layer by layer. Their firearms had a high rate of fire and quickly suppressed the bird gunners on the wall.

Seeing them approach the wall stairs, Li Yingyuan shouted, "Prepare stones and battering logs! Smash these—"

Before he could finish, a sudden burst of fierce arquebus fire erupted from the position behind him. Screams of agony filled the wall top. Over ten bird gunners and retainers fell at once. Immediately, another volley followed. The defending soldiers were thrown into complete chaos amid the smoke.

Li Yingyuan was wounded in the leg. He slumped down against the parapet. Looking through the chaos, the twenty-some routed soldiers who had just come up the wall had shed their disheveled appearance. They were drawing their respective weapons and ferociously hacking at the defending rebel soldiers around them. The Wendeng soldiers below the wall also swarmed up the wall stairs. Li Yingyuan couldn't help but laugh bitterly. "That same move again."