Chapter 110: Beneath the Walls of Shule (I)

"Woo-oo-oo!" The bleak horn call sounded from the walls of Shule. Ever since Pianzhou City had gone silent five days earlier, Itihad had sealed every gate completely.

But only the north gate was blocked with boulders. One could not defend a city by pure passivity — that atmosphere of isolation and helplessness would often shatter morale.

So in this era, the defending side frequently had to send troops out to fight in the shadow of the walls, or at the very least sally forth to raid and harass.

In the distance! Countless great banners seemed to appear from the edge of the sky, and in an instant a dense mass of men filled the sight of Shule's soldiers. Between those banners and the city, a group of thirty-odd cavalrymen were locked in a running fight.

To be precise, one side was fleeing and the other pursuing, but the pursuers were cautious, and the fleeing men also turned from time to time to loose an arrow.

A gray-green horse suddenly slowed, and the rider on its back seized the chance to draw his bow and take aim.

"Thwip!" The speeding arrow's fletching flicked like a nimble fish tail, driving the iron arrowhead toward its target!

'Clink!' A crisp sound rang out. The arrow caught on the target's armor and failed to pierce it, and with the jolting of the horse it soon fell to the ground.

The cavalryman who had shot the arrow could not help sighing. Horseback archery sounded like an ordinary term, but in practice it was a skill that demanded great ability and experience.

Even a veteran like this rider needed to slow at the right moment to aim, and even then his hit rate would not exceed three in ten.

Yet on such a fine opportunity, his arrow had struck the target — only to fail to pierce the armor.

"Damn it, he must be wearing a treasure armor. Once I kill you, it'll be mine!"

Of course it was a treasure armor. Bai Congxin smiled smugly. This was a lamellar coat with iron-ring inner lining, made under the personal guidance of young lord Zhang Erlang.

This armor gave up protection for the limbs and was made solely to guard the chest and vitals. It was bright robe over hidden armor — nothing showed on the surface, but the defense underneath was excellent.

Clop! Clop! The horse beneath him surged forward with all its strength. Borrowing the momentum, Bai Congxin swiftly drew an arrow from the side quiver — an armor-piercing arrow made specifically for breaking armor, longer and sharper than an ordinary bodkin-point arrow.

"Thwip! Thwip!" Bai Congxin loosed two arrows in quick succession. The first skimmed past the head of the distant Karakhanid cavalryman.

The rider who had just shot Bai Congxin, still shaken, gave a smug grin. Had that arrow been a fraction lower, the leather helmet on his head could not have stopped it.

But before the smile faded from his face, another whistling sound came, and then a chill struck his back — he was hit!

Still, it was fine. He too wore a lamellar coat on his upper body. The power of a horse bow could not possibly pierce... Pfft!

The Karakhanid rider was just about to say it could not pierce his armor either when a violent pain burst from his back and swiftly spread through his whole body. Amid the searing agony, a cold numbness crept into his limbs, and a spray of bloody froth gushed from his mouth.

What a sharp arrow!

What a powerful bow!

With those final thoughts of wonder, the rider toppled headfirst from his horse.

Just after Bai Congxin shot down the Karakhanid scout captain, the other light cavalry of the Youyi Army had also nearly all scored kills. Their horses were the finest, and their armor the most protective yet lightest.

These had been gathered by Zhang Zhao from Li Shengtian's stores, along with what they had made themselves with the Youyi Army at Yaotou Ridge these past days. Though his Youyi Army numbered only twenty-two riders, their equipment was absolutely the envy of everyone.

On the walls of Shule, a look of puzzlement flickered across Itihad's face.

He had just seen it: his own side's light cavalry was not incapable of beating the opposing light cavalry — it was simply that their bows, their armor, and their warhorses could not compare with the enemy's.

Those who could be equipped with the finest armor, weapons, and warhorses were surely the elite of the Khotan Golden Kingdom. Their cavalry was few to begin with, which made them all the more precious.

But... had that evil king of the infidels, Li Shengtian, gone mad? Instead of first reducing Eskisa Fortress, he had come straight to attack Shule?

This was not playing by the rules at all!

Itihad looked toward the northeast corner. He had sent out all fifteen hundred of his light and heavy cavalry. If Li Shengtian dared not attack Eskisa Fortress, then it was as if he had planted a nail right in his own heart!

In that case, those fifteen hundred cavalry might well achieve a startling effect.

"Heave-ho! Heave-ho!" Mighty work chants rang out. The vast army in the distance drew nearer and nearer, and Itihad could even make out the designs on their banners.

Unsurprisingly, most were swastika banners representing the Buddhists, along with red, white, black, and brown command flags for maneuvering the troops, and recognition banners bearing the surnames of the generals.

The Karakhanid light cavalry who had fled in panic to the foot of the walls now milled about in confusion, circling the wall. Because Itihad had sealed the north gate, and to the east lay a deep moat, these riders had no way to enter the city.

Itihad was just about to order a few small postern gates opened to bring them in when a sharp bronze whistle sounded. From the Khotan army, about twenty crossbowmen suddenly stepped forward, and in an instant a volley of bolts flew — the Karakhanid riders scrambling below the wall collapsed in a great swath.

Another bronze whistle, another shower of bolts. There was no need for a rescue. In the space of thirty or forty breaths, some seven or eight riders were all shot dead.

"What they hold are not bows. Those must be peach-blossom-stone crossbows. Otherwise, even the hardest long-eared bow could not kill at this range."

An officer shouted to Itihad. This was another trusted man Itihad had promoted after Hasan vanished without a trace, neither seen alive nor found dead.

"Adum, do you think General Hasan and those warriors who died outside Jiashi City were killed by this kind of crossbow bolt? Could it be that the Gaochang Uyghurs have already chosen to stand with the Khotanese?"

Itihad asked hesitantly. He increasingly felt there was something wrong with that so-called Gaochang royal clansman, Pugu Feng'en. But before Adum could answer, a commotion suddenly broke out not far away.

It turned out that directly opposite Itihad, countless men in thick clothing — peasants at a glance — had begun carrying earth from all directions, clearly preparing to fill in the moat.

Farther off, some were building walls, hauling timber, and constructing siege equipment, without the slightest sign of stopping.

And covering these peasants was only a single company of about seventy or eighty armored soldiers. They had set up seven or eight long shields, propped several long spears, and faintly, bows and crossbows could be seen among them.

"Emir! Let me lead a force out to attack! These Khotanese are far too arrogant — seventy or eighty men and they dare form ranks beneath the walls!"

Adum had come from the Persian Samanid dynasty, so following the custom of the Arabs, he addressed Itihad, who had Samanid blood, as Emir.

"A probe would be good. But do not let your temper run away with you. Our most important task is still to hold Shule and await the Great Khan's return."

Itihad said softly, watching the endless stream of men across from him. He too felt they should go out and test the enemy's strength.

Because although the Khotanese seemed to be arriving in an unbroken line, whether the main army had fully assembled still needed to be determined.

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