Chapter 1281

Ma Zhongtian gazed at the scene before him; the defeat collapsed like a mountain. The elderly, weak, women and children placed at the front as cover had already been frightened by three heavy cannon shots, losing their initial fearless courage, each turning and fleeing backward, and the formations of the bandits hiding behind them also began to fall into chaos.

Ma Zhongtian silently groaned, "Heaven has doomed me!" The advantage they had painstakingly built up was reversed in an instant. He turned to Wang Boxi and said, "Military advisor, do you have any other plans?"

Wang Boxi shook his head, blankly staring at the melee ahead, his heart overwhelmed by great sorrow; he suddenly realized how insignificant wisdom seemed before absolute strength—his plan merely slowed the enemy's advance on Blackwater Stronghold, utterly unable to change the outcome, while Ma Xingkong's decision to share fate with Jade Heart Mountain actually amounted to throwing the stronghold's troops and families into fire and water, how irresponsible toward their lives!

At this moment, Hu Xiaotian's latest order had been passed down, and the officers and soldiers loudly shouted, "Surrender with hands raised, past offenses forgiven; stubborn resistance leads only to death!"

Ma Xingkong was hoisted high upon the mast, able to see the entire battlefield clearly, he shouted wildly, "Fight them to the death! Brothers, let us share fate with Jade Heart Mountain……"

A feathered arrow flew from the side, with a "whoosh!" it struck Ma Xingkong's right thigh; pain made him grunt, and looking in the direction of the shot, he saw the enemy's flagship already entering the waterway inside the stronghold—this arrow was indeed fired by Hu Xiaotian.

Although Hu Xiaotian's archery was not great, with such a large target he could not miss. At this moment, the Heaven-shaking Thunder Cannon had its ammunition reloaded again; this time it aimed at the iron gate sealing the inner harbor, with a "boom!" the shell struck the gate, blasting open the entrance to the inner harbor. The warships lined up in the waterway entered the inner harbor in single file; controlling the inner harbor meant controlling the heart of Blackwater Stronghold.

Hu Xiaotian proclaimed loudly, "Everyone listen: as long as you lay down your arms and surrender, today's events will be forgiven; I seek only Jade Heart Mountain, not to exterminate you. Ma Xingkong, for his own selfishness, sacrificed your parents and wives, leaving your families shattered and wives separated from children! Could you truly bear to send your own kin into an abyss of eternal doom? I, Hu Xiaotian, keep my word: if you surrender your weapons, I will never pursue any of your past deeds, and I will also provide you with dry rations and travel funds to settle you on your way."

His voice was full and resonant, carried far by the mountain wind; the clamor of battle on the field could not drown it out.

Upon hearing Hu Xiaotian's words, some among the bandits indeed threw down their weapons and raised both hands, indicating they no longer wished to fight. In fact, Ma Xingkong's decision to place the elderly, weak, women and children at the front as cover was unpopular; many of his subordinates resented it, yet because Ma Xingkong enjoyed immense prestige in Blackwater Stronghold, few dared question his decision. When the battle first erupted, the bandits' blood ran hot and they charged forward heedless of danger, but the sight of their kin's blood and death quickly made them realize the brutal reality.

The continuous barrage of the Heaven-shaking Thunder Cannon made their hot-blooded, excited minds gradually sober; survival forever holds greater allure than death.

Once the mental defense line began to crumble, it immediately turned into a rout; the water bandits on the battlefield knelt en masse, dropping their weapons and raising their hands in surrender.

Seeing the scene before him, Ma Xingkong's eyes nearly burst; he roared wildly, "Cowards? You are all cowards—whoever dares to retreat shall be slain without mercy……"

Another arrow—this one struck Ma Xingkong's throat; the arrowhead pierced his throat and pinned him to the mast, Ma Xingkong stared wide-eyed, already dead; Hu Xiaotian threw his bow and arrow to Gao Yuan, coldly saying, "Because of this scoundrel, how many innocent lives have been lost!"

The Yong River naval troops, seeing Hu Xiaotian decisively execute Ma Xingkong, erupted in thunderous cheers, shouting, "Ma Xingkong is dead! Ma Xingkong is dead!" Our side's morale soared like a rainbow; conversely, upon witnessing Ma Xingkong's death, the Blackwater Stronghold bandits fell into a state of leaderless chaos.

"Father!" Ma Zhongtian witnessed his father being shot dead, letting out a heart-wrenching wail; heedless of everything, he charged toward the river channel, Wang Boxi grabbed his arm, but he shook it off fiercely; two subordinates rushed from behind and tightly embraced Ma Zhongtian, Wang Boxi loudly shouted, "Young master, flee quickly! The situation is lost, we cannot hold out!" Ma Zhongtian's influence could not even be compared to Ma Xingkong's.

Ma Xingkong's death completely shattered the morale of the Blackwater Stronghold bandits; even those who had insisted on stubborn resistance lost their will to fight, throwing down their weapons and surrendering en masse. As the situation became clear, Yu Tianxing let out a deep sigh, looked upward, only to see Ma Xingkong's corpse still hanging from the mast, a gruesome sight that made him shudder; amidst his panic, he suddenly realized that during the sudden shift in battle he had lost his composure, becoming at a loss, while he himself, who ought to have borne command responsibility, had degenerated into a frightened onlooker.

In the most difficult moment, it was Li Yongfu who stepped forward to assume command responsibility; Yu Tianxing secretly felt ashamed, the rain had stopped, Ma Xingkong's corpse cast a shadow on the ground that covered his face, and Yu Tianxing, somewhat apprehensive, stepped out from the corpse's shadow, beginning to consider Hu Xiaotian's act of shooting Ma Xingkong.

Hu Xiaotian had clearly given it deep thought—capture the bandits by first capturing their leader; Ma Xingkong was the spiritual pillar of the Blackwater Stronghold bandits, his very presence a boost to them. How had I not realized that if I had killed Ma Xingkong right away, perhaps I would not have suffered such heavy losses, causing so many casualties? In terms of grasping the overall situation, I fall far short of Hu Xiaotian.

Li Yongfu glanced at Yu Tianxing, said nothing; Yu Tianxing's earlier performance had already disappointed many.

As night fell, Hu Xiaotian's side finally gained full control of Blackwater Stronghold; Hu Xiaotian divided the prisoners into two groups, sending the elderly, weak, women and children separately to a place under guard, for today's events, the officers and soldiers dared not be careless.

Hu Xiaotian issued orders to soothe the prisoners' emotions as much as true to his word—today's events would be forgiven; starting tomorrow, he would gradually send these people out of Cloud Marsh, also providing them with travel funds so they could go their separate ways.

After counting, they had over five thousand casualties in today's melee, with two thousand three hundred seventy killed on the spot; since Hu Xiaotian took up residence in Dongliang Jun, they had never suffered such heavy losses. What further vexed Hu Xiaotian was that all this occurred despite their overwhelming advantage.

The Blackwater Stronghold battle completely cleared Hu Xiaotian's mind; he recalled a saying: even a tiny pebble can bruise your feet. Standing on a battlefield littered with corpses, gazing at the bodies strewn on the ground, he suddenly heard an infant's wail, followed the sound, and discovered a suckling baby beneath a woman's corpse; he lifted the infant, gazing at its tear-streaked little face, a pang of guilt rose in his heart—it was precisely the war he had started that had robbed him of his parents and kin.

Yet he had no choice; to establish a foothold in the Yong River basin, to seize Cloud Marsh and strengthen his own power, he had to take Jade Heart Mountain.

Xiong Tianba's deep voice sounded from behind him: "My lord! Over six thousand died on the Blackwater Stronghold side!"

Hu Xiaotian nodded, handing the infant to Xiong Tianba: "Go, find him a wet nurse!"

"What?" Xiong Tianba, holding the infant, appeared at a loss.

Hu Xiaotian glared at him fiercely; Xiong Tianba then resignedly said, "As you command!"

Li Yongfu, Gao Yuan, and Xia Zhangming came before Hu Xiaotian; Li Yongfu said, "My lord, the situation is now under control."

Hu Xiaotian said, "The casualties are horrendous!"

Gao Yuan said, "My lord, we have discovered a treasure cave in the rear mountains where all the gold and silver loot Ma Xingkong gained through years of burning, killing, and plundering is hidden, along with plenty of grain." This counts as good news.

Hu Xiaotian asked, "How many prisoners in total?"

Li Yongfu replied, "Including families, there are about twenty-three thousand people; how should we deal with them?" Following Li Yongfu's idea, it would be best to slaughter them all, after all they had caused so many casualties, and because the water bandits' stubborn resistance had cost him many comrades.

Hu Xiaotian remained silent, lifting his gaze to the sky where the setting sun bled like blood, inwardly musing, "Massacre would indeed be a swift, thorough way to eradicate the roots, but if news of a bloodbath at Blackwater Stronghold spread, would the world not see me as a butcher with hands stained in blood?"

Li Yongfu said, "If we release them, future troubles will surely be endless."

In the distance, two soldiers escorted a raggedly dressed scholar over; this person was none other than Blackwater Stronghold's military advisor Wang Boxi, who had originally been mixed among the prisoners but was now exposed after being reported.

Upon hearing of his identity, Hu Xiaotian had him brought before him.

Two soldiers barked at Wang Boxi to kneel, but he stood arrogantly, not only refusing to kneel but lifting his head high, coldly saying, "If you're going to kill me, just do it—why humiliate me?"

Hu Xiaotian said, "You are Wang Boxi, the one who devised plans for Ma Xingkong and deceived him into stubborn resistance, aren't you?"

Wang Boxi replied, "Winner takes all, loser loses—no need for nonsense; just kill me!"

Li Yongfu drew his sword with a "clang!" and shouted angrily, "You wretched thing, dare to show disrespect to my lord!"

Hu Xiaotian reached out to stop him, speaking softly, "I do not know what Master Wang feels upon seeing this horrific scene."

Wang Boxi bit his lip, his face showing guilt; seeing the horrific sight before him and the many dead and wounded on his side, his heart had already begun to regret—perhaps surrender could avoid such a heavy cost. He whispered, "They are all innocent commoners; if not driven to desperation by the court, who would choose to become bandits? Sir (official), if you must kill, kill me—I am the one who counseled the stronghold's lord, I am the one who brought about this situation, and I ought to bear responsibility."

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