Chapter 670

The scout sent out by Lü Ji returned.

The news brought back left Chen Wuji speechless for a while.

Indeed, what he worried about came to pass; his premonition proved true again.

The Qiang People were just scouting the road.

"The Qiang People chose the west first; that old wolf Langdu seems afraid of getting stuck in Nan Jun, leaving himself a retreat." The midday sun was glaring; Xu Zengyi half lay on the grass, squinting as he raw-chewed scallions, the smell from his mouth stinging the eyes.

Fortunately, Chen Wuji was eating the same way, so it didn't matter.

Pancakes with scallions, plus a pot of hot tea; although this way of eating is a bit strong, the flavor is quite good.

Because of the scallions, Chen Wuji ate several more pancakes, feeling he could skip lunch.

"The west borders Qiang Land; that bastard Langdu hits if he wants, runs if he doesn't." Chen Wuji snorted and said, "But attacking the west... our difficulty is greater, the trouble also greater."

The several provinces to the west have not yet been recovered.

"It's been some days since the lord's letter was sent; logically, there should be a result by now. If they are willing to surrender, that would no longer be trouble but rather assistance; with several provinces intercepting simultaneously, even if the Qiang People have the advantage of cavalry, Langdu will still suffer a while." Xu Zengyi said.

"I usually don't count unsettled matters; for now, treat the western several provinces as enemies!" Chen Wuji said, "That bastard Qian Fugui, I don't know how heavy that pen in his hand is; he always forgets to write the memorial, leaving us to guess many things."

"Sir, later write me a note to scold that bastard; don't spare the words, use whatever is harsh, whenever I think of it I get angry."

"Yes!" Xu Zengyi laughed and nodded.

…

Afternoon.

Chen Wuji's army gathered outside Wuyang City.

The engineering equipment had been hastily produced in a batch that morning, and it was barely sufficient for this small city of Wuyang.

The mighty army arrayed outside Wuyang City in neat little blocks, with artillery carts in front, then archers, and spearmen interspersed in the middle.

Chen Wuji stood under the Great Banner, issuing the order: "Use our last bit of Shocking Heaven Thunder to give the Qiang People a little taste, let them sample salty and bland."

"Yes!"

As the command flag waved, the war drums boomed, and huge stones bound with small iron lumps flew high, crashing heavily onto Wuyang City's walls.

Boom!

Boom boom boom!

Immediately followed by successive booming explosions.

"Although I've seen this scene many times, it's still pleasing to the eye!" Chen Wuji remarked.

This thing is still good—low consumption, big effect, able to somewhat alleviate his fear of insufficient firepower.

Too bad, that's all we have now.

Hezhou hasn't sent the new ones yet.

"The lord single-handedly changed future warfare; I've heard that across the Rivers and Lakes, rewards are now offered for clues about Shocking Heaven Thunder. This thing, vanished for years, has reappeared in people's sight, still as domineering as ever." Xu Zengyi said.

Chen Wuji smiled faintly and said, "I have it, others don't, so they naturally panic."

In this era, Shocking Heaven Thunder is no different from a later-era weapon of mass destruction capable of producing huge mushroom clouds.

Cavalry is undoubtedly the strongest of this era.

But before Shocking Heaven Thunder, all are equal, with little difference from infantry.

The rumbling sound continued.

Amidst this violent commotion, the top of Wuyang City's wall instantly became like an old woman's teeth—either a hole here or a row of large pits there, with piles of Qiang People corpses scattered around.

No living person could be seen on the wall at this moment.

Those who deserved to die were already dead; those who could still run had already fled.

"Pass the order: change stones, keep smashing! Conserve the Shocking Heaven Thunder, save it to block the city gate!" Chen Wuji commanded.

"Yes!"

Xu Zengyi stared at the wall for a moment and said, "If nothing unexpected happens, the Qiang People should come out of the city."

As his words fell, the gate of Wuyang City opened, and a mighty cavalry unit roared out from within, charging straight at Chen Wuji's central army.

"This wolf pup really listened to you, sir; just as you said, they've already come." Chen Wuji joked, "All troops, fire arrows!"

"Yes!"

The command flag swiftly waved.

The archers, who had long nocked their bowstrings and stood ready, quickly drew their bows to a full moon, releasing a volley of arrow rain.

Swish swish swish!

Sharp arrows tore through the sky and fell among the Qiang People.

One by one, the Qiang People were thrown from their horses, then died under the hooves of their own comrades.

Tens of thousands rushed forward at speed, no one able to avoid falling from their horses' robes and armor.

"Fire again!" Chen Li shouted in a deep voice.

As the command flag waved, another volley of arrow rain fell.

At the same time, the forces of Xie Fengxian and Tang Yu on the left and right of the formation rolled over like a pair of unfolding wings, enveloping the Qiang People's army.

"My lord, the numbers don't match; this Qiang People force is at most around twenty thousand!" Xu Zengyi suddenly said, "They've come out both ends."

"Someone, go scout!" Chen Wuji barked.

Although Wuyang City is a small town, even a sparrow has all five viscera, more complete than many big cities.

The wall had everything it should; Wuyang City possessed them all, and it also had north and south gates, a full six gates. Hezhou City is many times larger than Wuyang City, yet has only four gates.

The Qiang People's charge was swift; the central army had time to loose only two volleys of arrow rain, the deafening sound like a roaring river's hooves already upon them. Sword-and-shield soldiers quickly advanced, forming a defensive line; spearmen slipped their Long Spears through the shield gaps.

The archers withdrew, then drew their bows again and released another volley of arrow rain.

But just then, the rushing Qiang People made a smooth turn, actually about‑facing before the central army's formation and charging toward the left wing of Xie Fengxian.

"My lord, they have no will to fight; they intend to flee, and our guess is not wrong at all!" Xu Zengyi shouted, "Please, my lord, quickly give the order—have the central troops cover and charge forward!"

"Shi Yi Shu, give the order!" Chen Wuji barked in a low voice.

Xie Fengxian's left wing has the fewest troops; the Qiang People clearly intend to pick on an easy target and break out of the encirclement.

The command flag was swiftly waved, and the war drums changed their rhythm.

The central troops, which had been set up in a defensive formation, quickly changed formation into an arrowhead formation and surged forward.

Chen Wuji strode out from under the Great Banner, took the reins from Chen Wuyi's hand, swung onto his warhorse, and rode forward silently.

As he moved, the four thousand cavalry behind him instantly became a black torrent, closely following.

The Qiang People did not use the townsfolk as pawns, which let Chen Wuji secretly let out a big breath; his hand became decisive in an instant—these damned scoundrels must be left behind today!