Chapter 83: Zhuqi Mountain

On the second day they covered barely ten li. This group of ragged military households clutched a motley assortment of weapons and trudged through the early-spring cold. Just past the foot of Jinding Peak, two elderly military households froze to death, forcing another halt to make camp. Most of them had never undergone training — at most they had been sent to Jizhen or Liaozhen to repair those turtle-shell fortifications. The grain issued by the guard station was only enough for two or three days, so most had brought their own dry rations. To go out and risk their lives in the first month of the year and still have to bring their own provisions — no wonder their complaints were loud.

On the third day there was finally good news. The battalion commander of the Baishiya Defense Post arrived with over fifty men to join the main force. That afternoon, Vice Prefect Zhang of Chengshan Guard also arrived with a dozen or so retainers and two hundred military households. Only Jinghai Guard, the farthest away, had not yet come. Jinghai Guard did not take this route; only an Assistant Regional Commander who had been shipping goods to Weihai had been robbed by Tongtian Liang, so their lack of enthusiasm was understandable. The main force this time consisted of Weihai Guard and Chengshan Guard. If Tongtian Liang kept raiding them like this, the trade routes of both places would be cut off. The officials of the two guards, whether for public duty or private interest, had to fight this battle. That was also why Yang Yunnong insisted on marching out despite the bitter cold.

After the two forces joined up, they totaled over seven hundred men. Though they were only guard-battalion troops, they were still government soldiers, and every man at least had a weapon in hand. The various lords' retainers together numbered fifty or sixty. No one believed that Tongtian Liang could defeat government troops.

Yang Yunnong held the highest rank here. Early on the fourth day, with Zhuqi Mountain already not far off, he dispatched the battalion commander of Baishiya Post to lead his men ahead. At least he had finally remembered to send out a vanguard.

After the front slowly began to move, Chen Xin's unit still marched at the very rear. This stretch of road was the official highway to Wendeng County, and the road conditions were decent. The combat troops still advanced in a two-column formation: Dai Zhenggang's two killer squads at the front, Lu Chuanzong's two killer squads at the very rear, with the firearms squad and logistics marching in between.

Chen Xin himself, with his personal guards, also marched in the middle, following behind the firearms squad. Zhu Guobin happened to be beside Chen Xin. These past few days he had been tinkering with the three newly acquired bows. The bows originally used on the Fujian junks had too little power, which Zhu Guobin did not much like. The bows obtained from Left Battalion Commander were leftovers turned over to the Ministry of War, so their quality was slightly inferior, but they were still usable and had decent power. He picked out two of the better ones. In Chen Xin's unit, only he and Zhou Shifa could shoot arrows; both carried a bow case and a quiver, the quiver holding thirty heavy arrows. Nie Hong took the last bow. Although he was strong, he did not yet know how to use a bow, and these days he spent his free time practicing shooting at tree trunks — with very poor results.

Ahead of the column lay Zhuqi Mountain, its ridges stretching unbroken, with five major peaks in total. The average elevation was only a bit over two hundred meters. The highest peak, Yuhuang Peak, was Tongtian Liang's lair, roughly over four hundred meters high. In many places the slopes were steep. In winter the mountain trees were all bare, and the snow from a few days earlier had not yet melted, giving the mountain a mottled pattern of black and white.

In truth, Zhuqi Mountain was very close to Weihai Guard, roughly midway between Weihai and Wendeng — fifty li from Wendeng County and forty li from Weihai, with the mountain range stretching nearly twenty li across. If Tongtian Liang simply held fast and refused to come out, in this weather, if things dragged on a little, this beggar army might well disperse on its own.

They had marched barely half a shichen when the front halted again. Zhou Shifa ran all the way to the front to check and reported back that the wooden bridge over Wuzhe River had been dismantled, and the men from Baishiya were now building a new bridge.

Hearing Zhou Shifa's report, Chen Xin frowned and said, "This bandit chief must have known we were coming long ago. I wonder where he's lying in wait. But he has at most a hundred or so men who can actually fight — would he really dare attack government troops?"

Zhou Shifa said, "Tongtian Liang once served as a combat soldier in Dengzhou, so I'm afraid he knows a thing or two."

Zhu Guobin also felt something was wrong and asked Zhou Shifa, "Did the vanguard send out scouts to cross the river and reconnoiter first?"

"It seems not. They're all building the bridge."

Zhu Guobin said angrily, "Marching slowly is one thing, but how can you not send out scouts on the march?"

Chen Xin said, "Those Baishiya men are all the scouts there are. Guobin, come with me to the riverbank to take a look."

The two men led their personal guards to the river. There was not much water in the river, and some floating ice still drifted on the surface, but it could not be forded. The wooden bridge that had stood on the official highway had been dismantled; its piles and planks lay toppled in the middle of the river. Several of the Baishiya battalion commander's retainers were pressing over thirty military households to build a new bridge. They were simply laying the bridge planks directly on the riverbed instead of raising them up as before.

Chen Xin gazed toward the opposite bank. The riverside was extremely flat, and the fields on both banks bore traces of cultivation. It seemed this area had still been quite peaceful last year. A little over a li from the riverbank rose several hillsides, their dense, bare tree branches — stripped of leaves — standing in utter silence.

Chen Xin said to Zhu Guobin, "It would be easy to hide several hundred men behind those hills. With a bit of camouflage, the woods could conceal quite a few as well. Could it be that Tongtian Liang really means to ambush the government troops here?"

"Very likely. He might well be planning to strike while we're mid-crossing. I'll have the firearms squad load their pieces at once."

Just then Battalion Commander Zeng also arrived. Chen Xin told him his concerns. Battalion Commander Zeng did not quite believe Tongtian Liang would dare come out, but he still went to inform Commander Yang and Assistant Regional Commander Jiang. Yang Yunnong was not worried at all; he dismissed the bandits with contempt and still did not send out scouts. He only thought the pace was too slow and told Battalion Commander Zeng to find another spot downstream to build a second bridge.

Chen Xin and the others had no choice but to follow Left Battalion Commander's hundred-odd men fifty paces downstream to another shallow spot. Here the water was only knee-deep, but wading in winter meant shoes and trousers would not dry easily. Battalion Commander Zeng sent his retainers to lead the military households in gathering timber to build a bridge.

Before Left Battalion Commander's bridge was finished, the main force's bridge was already complete. The fifty-odd men of Baishiya Battalion first crossed the river. After crossing, that battalion commander sent two mounted retainers toward the low hills to the south. Chen Xin breathed a sigh of relief at the sight, but when he turned to look back at the bridge, his heart hung in suspense again.

The Weihai Guard main force did not wait for those two retainers to return. They impatiently began crossing the river. By the time the retainers reached the foot of the hill, several dozen men had already crossed. One retainer dismounted and walked up the hill, his figure disappearing into the trees. After another moment, the entire hundred-plus men of the Forward Battalion had crossed. They formed up slightly on the bank and, together with the Baishiya men, advanced further. Yang Yunnong's directly commanded city-defense troops also began crossing the river. Chen Xin spotted Wang Yuanzheng with seven retainers following in the column.

Battalion Commander Zeng's pontoon bridge was only half built. He was already prepared to abandon it and cross directly via the main force's bridge. Suddenly, the retainer beside him pointed toward the opposite bank. Battalion Commander Zeng, Chen Xin, and the others looked up. The retainer at the foot of the hill was racing back toward them for his life. From the woods behind him, several dozen figures emerged. One of them mounted the remaining horse and gave chase right behind the fleeing retainer.

The pursuer was the better rider. After chasing for over a hundred paces, he closed in behind the retainer. With a great shout, the rider hurled a javelin that shot through the retainer, piercing him clean through. The retainer's mouth filled with blood. His hands clutched at the spearhead protruding from his chest several times, as if trying to pull it out. After running a few more steps, he finally went limp and tumbled from his horse. The bandit rider continued a short distance, then reined in the retainer's riderless horse and stood in place, sizing up the guard-battalion troops fifty or sixty paces across from him. A great mass of bandits still poured ceaselessly from the woods, gradually forming up behind him.

"Mother of… these are truly fierce bandits." Battalion Commander Zeng stared dumbfounded at those figures. It went without saying that the earlier retainer was also finished.

The Forward Battalion military households who had crossed the river fell into utter chaos. The two battalion commanders of the Forward Battalion and Baishiya, with a few retainers, shouted curses repeatedly, ordering them to form ranks. On this side of the river, Yang Yunnong also urged the city-defense troops to cross in a stream of commands. The military households who had not yet crossed panicked as well. The provost marshal, with two soldiers, drew their waist sabers to enforce order and prevent these men from fleeing.

Chen Xin said to Battalion Commander Zeng, "My lord Zeng, you should immediately order the troops to wade across the river."

Battalion Commander Zeng glanced at the riverbank still edged with floating ice and hesitated. "The water is so cold…"

Chen Xin did not wait for him. He turned and loudly ordered his combat squad to remove their shoes and roll up their trouser legs. Amid the squad leaders' commands, the combat troops rolled up their trousers and stepped into the bone-chilling river water, quickly reaching the southern bank. The four killer squads formed two lines, two squads each at the front and rear, with the firearms squad behind the killer squads.

At this, Battalion Commander Zeng also hurried his men across the river. Those military households dragged their feet, and only after a good while did thirty-odd men come across. Battalion Commander Zeng knew a little about leading troops. Not daring to delay too long, he first led those thirty-odd men to the left wing of the vanguard.

By the time they crossed, the bandits had all emerged opposite the guard-battalion troops, numbering four to five hundred. Although the guard-battalion troops had over seven hundred, nearly half had not yet crossed the river. Among those who had crossed, only three hundred had finished forming ranks. They were now in the position of fighting outnumbered.

The two sides were now only fifty paces apart. Both were equally gaunt and ragged. At the front of the bandit force, the fierce bandits all carried weapons. The men behind looked like pure peasants, wielding hoes and carrying poles; a few simply held large tree branches. The first dozen or so bandits to arrive spotted the retainer's corpse on the ground and swarmed over it. Some stripped his clothes, some took his shoes. In moments they had stripped the retainer bare; even a pair of socks was shared between two bandits.

Then the front rank of bandits parted, revealing a large black-and-red banner behind them, with the character "Liang" scrawled crookedly upon it. Beneath the banner was another mounted bandit chief, thick-set and burly. His features could not be made out clearly from this distance, but it must have been Tongtian Liang himself.

"My lord, where shall we form ranks?" Zhu Guobin saw that the two sides were about to start brawling, yet no order had come from Yang Yunnong's side, and he urgently asked Chen Xin.

"Move to the left wing. Strike from the left flank. Don't go behind the guard-battalion troops." Chen Xin had also received no clear order. Seeing that the guard-battalion vanguard had already bunched into a huddle and the city-defense troops behind were still forming ranks and had not been moved to the front line, he feared these people would only cause trouble, so he simply moved toward the left wing on his own.

The combat squad formed into a two-column Mandarin Duck formation and ran swiftly toward the left wing. The eleven soldiers of the logistics squad also set down their baggage and, each with a saber-staff in hand, followed behind.

They had just begun to move when fighting broke out in the center. Tongtian Liang roared at the bandits, "The government troops have come to seize our grain and fodder! If they succeed, we'll all starve to death! Anyone who retreats will be beheaded! Kill one government soldier and be rewarded one tael of silver — and you can sleep with a young lass tonight!" The bandits howled in response. These bandits all possessed a certain bloody courage. Most were peasants driven to desperation. Once pushed past the limits of their endurance, these most honest and dutiful farmers would turn into bloodthirsty madmen, taking frenzied revenge on society.

Tongtian Liang then waved his hand. A great mass of bandits, their eyes bloodshot, charged at the guard-battalion troops with excited shouts. The bandits had no formation to speak of: the fierce bandits in front, the coerced followers behind. The five or six bandits at the very front were the fiercest. Carrying foot bows, they ran forward a few steps, stopped to shoot an arrow, then repeated — all seemed trained. In moments, each had loosed three or four arrows.

The guard-battalion troops were packed together. Some in the front rank had shields, which was fortunate — they hurriedly raised them to block. Those without shields were immediately struck: seven or eight men hit, waves of miserable screams rising from them. The ranks fell into chaos. The Forward Battalion commander hastily ordered his retainers to return fire. Arrows flew back and forth between the two sides. Several bandits were also struck and fell, only to be instantly trampled by countless feet behind them.

"Present arms! Shields up, present arms!" The battalion commanders, vice battalion commanders, and company commanders among the guard-battalion troops all shouted at the top of their lungs. The military households hurriedly leveled their weapons toward the oncoming bandits. Guard-battalion troops were supposed to have saber-and-shield men in front and long spears in the rear, but their equipment was poor to begin with, and having been attacked and forced to hastily form ranks, their formation was a mess. In the front rank, those with spears were few and far between, utterly unable to deter the bandits.

The fifty-pace distance was covered in the blink of an eye. A surging tide of bandits bore down upon them head-on. Many guard-battalion military households shouted to bolster their own courage; others shrieked, unable to control their terror. The packed ranks of the guard-battalion troops were filled with hoarse, desperate cries.

With a crash, the bandits, charging at high speed with weapons braced, slammed violently into the front ranks of the guard-battalion troops. The battlefield was instantly a chaos of men and horses tumbling over each other, the clash of weapons and screams of agony mingling into one.

Chen Xin was leading his unit around the left wing. From his vantage point, all he could see was a wild flailing of weapons and arms, with bursts of bloody mist spraying ceaselessly from the crowd. The brutality and gore of close-quarters combat far exceeded the wars of later ages. The Weihai military households had scarcely even trained — how could they have witnessed such a scene? After casualties appeared, the front rank had already begun falling back step by step. Chen Xin turned to look for Yang Yunnong's command banner and saw Commander Yang shouting from horseback, directing the city-defense troops to push forward and hold the line.

In the chaotic fighting between the two sides, the bandits were in truth not much better off. They fought on sheer bloody courage alone. Now, having gained a slight upper hand, their momentum swelled further. The city-defense troops behind the guard-battalion troops filled in the gaps, barely steadying the line.

Suddenly, panicked cries erupted from the center of the front rank. Tongtian Liang's red banner had reached that spot. The bandit chief himself, leading a dozen or so fierce bandits, was assaulting the center of the front line. They all wielded heavy weapons — long spears, great blades, large axes. These men were the fiercest and bravest among the bandits. The guard-battalion military households before them were slain one after another, seven or eight killed in quick succession. The surrounding military households could not contain the terror in their hearts. Screaming and shouting, they fled desperately to either side, and Tongtian Liang tore open a breach.

The bandits poured through the breach, killing outward to both sides. Tongtian Liang, with over thirty fierce bandits, charged straight through the gap, heading directly for Yang Yunnong's command banner.

"Run for your lives!" The moment the first Weihai military household shouted those words, the chaos spread like wildfire. The front rank of the guard-battalion formation collapsed with a roar. All the military households screamed and fled for their lives, throwing down their weapons and racing madly toward the river. The provost marshal cut down several men with his waist saber, but it was useless. The military households of Left Battalion Commander's unit, who had just crossed the river and finished forming ranks, took one look and scrambled over each other to flee back to the opposite bank. At this moment, Chen Xin's men had just appeared thirty-odd paces beyond the bandits' right flank.