Chapter 707: Tearing the Curtain

Zhang Yong was stunned when he suddenly heard Liu Chengzong ask him a question, his mind going blank for a moment.

The reason he blanked out wasn't fear, but that he never imagined such a fierce general's task would fall on his shoulders.

Although he was recruited into the Yulin Camp because he was highly skilled in archery and horsemanship, this campaign was his first time on a battlefield.

And throughout the entire campaign, aside from marching, he'd been doing odd jobs for the Grand Marshal at the central command, like leading horses and holding stirrups — not only had he never been in a fight, even his first kill was strangling the assassin who tried to murder Liu Chengzong.

But in truth, whether that assassin named Deng De was actually strangled to death by him, Zhang Yong himself couldn't say for sure.

After all, the man was already as good as dead after Liu Chengzong rammed him like that; by the time Zhang Yong got the order to drag Deng De out and wrap a bowstring around his neck, he was probably already a corpse.

Zhang Yong didn't know either — he was in such a panic then that later he couldn't recall any details at all, only that the bones creaked under the string until Li Qiluan, a fellow Yulin Guard, stopped him and said the man was already dead, and if he kept strangling the head would come off, so don't make trouble for the Marshal.

As for whether the man actually died by his hand, Zhang Yong never asked, and Li Qiluan never said.

They both just treated it as though he had killed him.

Liu Chengzong saw Zhang Yong standing there dazed and couldn't help letting out a laugh, reassuring him, "It's fine, everyone's afraid their first time in battle. Go call Liu Tichun over."

He didn't necessarily need Zhang Yong to charge the enemy lines — it was just that seeing that command tent made his hands itch unbearably; he wanted to charge the lines himself.

It was only because charging personally was now impossible for him that he'd casually asked the question on a whim.

At that moment Zhang Yong finally snapped out of it; his moment's hesitation had cost him a long-sought golden opportunity. His face flushed red as he straightened up, chest out and head high, and declared, "Marshal, I dare!"

"Daring is good, but this matter can't be accomplished by courage alone. Go on."

Liu Chengzong nodded and still said, "Call Liu Tichun over, and bring along your close friends from the army too."

Zhang Yong's reaction made Liu the Lion realize that although his Yulin Guards were all men of extraordinary martial skill, many of them, like Zhang Yong, had trained bitterly for ten years without ever experiencing a real battle.

It was time to send them onto the battlefield to broaden their horizons.

Having missed his chance, Zhang Yong was filled with boundless regret, but since Liu Chengzong had already made his decision, he wouldn't change his mind, so Zhang Yong could only accept the order and go out to call for the others.

Not long after, Liu Tichun entered the inner courtyard of the embroidery building, raised his head, clasped his fists, and saluted: "Marshal, your subordinate has arrived."

Liu Chengzong beckoned him up onto the building, handed him the telescope, and pointed toward the distant encampment: "I hear they call you Flying Tiger in the army. Do you see that large general's command tent in the camp clearly?"

Liu Tichun had previously been a subordinate general under Zhang Xianzhong; although after surrendering he was given the rank of Assistant Regional Commander with the title of General of Manifest Valor, he hadn't been assigned any real duties.

In the process of the Marshal's headquarters absorbing the Western Camp, Liu Tichun had been made the scapegoat.

People knew that when the Grand Marshal conferred ranks on the Western Camp officers, he had no understanding of them — whoever got what rank depended entirely on Liu Tichun's introductions.

Those who received no rank naturally directed their blame and resentment at him.

The truth of the matter was, of course, not like that at all. He had absolutely no say in the Western Camp appointments; it was entirely Liu Chengzong going through the list of commanders, identifying them one by one, and deliberately skipping over the men Liu Tichun recommended.

For instance, Wang Ziqi, who used to be a pillar of Zhang Xianzhong's inner circle, was deliberately skipped over by Liu Chengzong.

Liu Tichun was also extremely loyal and honest, and never defended himself against others' misunderstandings, so his days had not been particularly smooth.

Now, hearing Liu Chengzong's words, Liu Tichun held the telescope and looked toward the enemy camp. He easily understood what Liu Chengzong had in mind, and with an especially cautious expression said, "Marshal, if you wish to raid the camp…"

He first studied the terrain around the camp, then raised his head to glance at the sky, before saying, "In half a shichen, when the sky is darkening but not yet fully dark, we can send three to five squads of cavalry along the Kushui River bank to approach within two or three li of the enemy camp. To guard against enemy cannon fire, your subordinate will also request five warhorses — no, three hundred. Three hundred will be enough to create chaos."

Liu Chengzong was greatly surprised to hear this: "You can get within three li?"

"Mm, just a few extra steps."

Liu Tichun responded, his eyes still fixed on the target area to the northeast, nodding repeatedly: "The riverbank is low-lying, and there's a solid earth-and-willow embankment. Each rider carries a sack of earth, walk slowly then charge fast — that can keep the government… heh, keep the government troops from hearing the hoofbeats."

Liu Chengzong's eyes were full of admiration.

Liu Tichun's entire camp-raiding plan was not built on the enemy being unable to detect them, but was planned precisely around the enemy detecting them — and even if they were detected, they couldn't be stopped.

Three hundred warhorses for a simple feint to the east while striking west, using hooves to create noise in other directions to trick the enemy general into shifting his cannons' aim or even position as much as possible; the earth sacks to fill the trenches and create a path — the odds of successfully breaching the enemy camp were very high.

Clearly, Liu Tichun had done camp-raiding work back in the Western Camp before; his experience was abundant.

"Since you can get within two or three li, that simplifies things."

Liu the Lion said, "I'll select three hundred shock troops and six hundred warhorses from the First Brigade, and have Ma Xiang's reconnaissance cavalry bring twelve rocket carts to provide support — screen the battlefield and disrupt the enemy. On top of that, bring a few dozen Yulin riders, let them see the world a bit."

Having said that, Liu the Lion looked at the sky and said, "You have one ke to prepare. How about it?"

Knowing he would receive support from shock troops, reconnaissance cavalry, warhorses, and rocket carts, Liu Tichun's confidence in the raid's success grew considerably.

Only when he heard he was to lead the superbly equipped and martially powerful Yulin riders into battle did a troubled look appear on Liu Tichun's face.

"Marshal, if Yulin riders are killed in a surprise assault, your subordinate fears the impact on army morale would be too severe."

But Liu Chengzong merely smiled slightly and nodded: "I have a sense of the measure. Go down and prepare."

He understood what Liu Tichun meant — this mainly referred to the composition of the Yulin Camp's personnel.

The Yulin Camp's primary source of soldiers was the Children's Camp; just as the camp's name suggested, Liu the Lion's original intent, modeled after the Han dynasty's Yulin Orphans, was to take in children orphaned by war.

Their basic education was completed in the Children's Camp; with relatively good literacy and martial skills, they entered the Yulin Camp to study the daily affairs of the Marshal's headquarters, and after a period of time entered the Huben Camp to study military affairs.

This was itself the wartime talent reserve and training system Liu Chengzong had established.

But during the establishment of the Marshal's headquarters, the Yulin Camp's replacement recruits gradually became disordered and grew polarized.

One portion remained war orphans; the other portion was supplemented by the sons of nobles from the Oirat, Monan, and southwestern tusi, as well as descendants of surrendered generals.

The sons of deputy brigade commanders from several brigades were all in the Yulin Camp.

The addition of these personnel changed the nature of the Yulin Camp, turning it into, to some degree, a corps of hostages, wielding extremely strong influence throughout the entire Marshal's army.

One could even say that the Yulin Camp and the Huben Camp were like Liu Chengzong's field court.

Under these circumstances, if someone came charging at Liu Chengzong's central command and a young man died protecting the Grand Marshal, the posthumous compensation would certainly satisfy his subordinates.

But sending them out to fight, especially on dangerous missions like charging enemy lines to kill generals, was extremely unwise.

For Liu Tichun personally, he was even less willing to accept it.

The old fathers of these Yulin Guards were either foreign vassal lords or powerful generals with their own field commands — if their sons died charging the lines under him, that kind of black mark would be terrifying enough to scare a man to death.

Liu Chengzong wouldn't make him bear it either.

That was why he had Zhang Yong go find his friends.

Zhang Yong hadn't been in the Yulin Camp long, and his friends in the camp were mostly sons of humble families.

These men weren't commoners' sons either — otherwise it would have been very hard for them to train to such proficiency in archery and horsemanship by eighteen or nineteen.

Some were similar to Liu Chengzong, coming from minor official or large landowning families; others, like the brothers Li Qifeng and Li Qiluan, had a father named Li Weixin, a Gansu man who had suppressed the She-An Rebellion and later served as regional commander in Sichuan and Guizhou.

However, by the time Gansu surrendered, Li Weixin had already died of illness, and of his eight sons, all except Li Qifeng were low-ranking officers.

Those of lower birth than them, commoner sons, were battlefield orphans raised on the Liu family's grain in the Children's Camp; after they emerged from the Tiger Guard Camp, their destination was to serve under the command of generals and marshals in various regions.

And those of higher birth than them, sons of aristocratic families like Chechen, son of the Dzungar Khong Tayiji, had their own noble titles to inherit in the future.

People like Zhang Yong were just right for going to war and seeing the world.

Soon, orders passed back and forth through the army, and Gao Yingdeng from the rear dispatched three hundred elite cavalry vanguards, six hundred warhorses, and twelve rocket carts.

Liu Tichun also summoned Zhang Yong, Zhao Deshou, Wang Youjin, Wang Shouzheng, Wang Shangli, Feng Chaoyu, Yang Shichang, Chen Guoren, Wen Rugui, Guo Jiawu, Peng Xinjian, Nan Yikui, Nan Yicai, Li Qifeng, Li Qihuang, Li Qiluan, and the other Feathered Forest Gentlemen.

Some of these men came from the Xi'an Prefecture recruitment examinations, some were warriors of the Western Camp, and others came from military families in Yan'an Prefecture and Gansu, forming a mounted company of over sixty riders.

It would be more accurate to say they were over sixty officers skilled at using martial force to break the enemy, rather than over sixty cavalrymen.

They readied their armor and weapons in the village, and after receiving replacement warhorses, scraped off sweat and saddled them, the entire process orderly and efficient, silent and grim.

Liu Chengzong, meanwhile, continued observing the battlefield situation before nightfall.

By this time, he had already guessed that Zhang Xianzhong was among the troops on the battlefield.

Because it was easy to guess: he had exchanged letters with Ren Quan'er earlier, and Ren Quan'er could not have traveled faster than him, while the other units were all on the flanks, so this had to be a detached force from the Second Brigade.

And a detached force most likely had Zhang Xianzhong in it; no one else would have such poor strategic awareness.

In Liu the Lion's view, this battalion's timing and positioning for engaging the Ming army was not particularly well chosen.

But it was not bad either.

In this northern campaign, the Marshal's army had swept all before it; the entire central garrison line on the western front had been breached, and wherever the Marshal's army went, the local garrison troops surrendered on the spot; on the eastern front, Ding Guodong had also blocked the enemy rearguard forces according to plan, superbly protecting the army's flank.

On the central front, Ren Quan'er's Second Brigade had successively shattered five battalions of enemy troops, so it was entirely normal for the officers to have some eagerness for quick victory.

Fortunately, their performance on the battlefield was still not bad.

The Ming cavalry and the Marshal's army cavalry probed each other on the battlefield, one side retreating as the other advanced, one side advancing as the other retreated, briefly clashing and then immediately withdrawing.

The Ming troops scattered on the periphery gradually encircled the position formed by those two battalions in the center, but the formation puzzled Liu Chengzong somewhat... the Ming troops around the battlefield had not formed up at all; they were all dispersed in small squads.

Belatedly, he realized the Ming troops were afraid of the rockets and had been forced to disperse their formation, which made him laugh out loud.

However, the situation did not give Liu Chengzong the chance to calmly watch from the sidelines.

Soon, just as Liu the Lion had dispatched Liu Tichun's unit, Ming cavalry squads scattered on the battlefield's periphery spotted him and began exchanging fire with his scout cavalry, even breaking through to the outskirts of the fort at one point.

This moment was actually quite dangerous, because the scout cavalry had all gone to coordinate with Liu Tichun, leaving Liu Chengzong with only a little over two hundred troops.

But Liu Chengzong did not leave; he merely climbed down from the rooftop.

Because he had long since seen the battlefield situation clearly: the Ming cavalry squads around him were all dispersed scouts, lacking the ability to rapidly mass large numbers of troops in this direction.

At this moment, the Ming army did not know he was here, and therefore had no reason to commit large numbers of troops; on the contrary, if he shifted toward Gao Yingdeng's First Brigade, it would arouse the suspicion of the enemy, who had not been paying much attention, and allow them to scout the direction from which the main army was attacking.

Sure enough, the enemy only made a probing charge that was more alarm than danger; after two charges failed to break through the fort's outer perimeter, they withdrew beyond the stockade, leaving only a small group of cavalry watching from a distance. It seemed someone had gone back to the camp to report.

Only then did Liu Chengzong issue the order within the fort to prepare for retreat, and he also issued a mobilization order to the entire village's populace, intending to take them all with him.

After that, he waited a while longer. Estimating that the enemy rider sent to report had already reached the camp, he suddenly gave the order to move out. Over two hundred riders, along with several hundred villagers, retreated westward.

For a moment, the Ming scouts watching them from nearby were greatly astonished. Some hurriedly ran northeast, trying to report their movements to the camp again.

But by this time, it was already too late.

Darkness had fallen.

Under the protection of the scout cavalry, the twelve rocket carts moved to a position between the camps of Zuo Liangyu and Ouyang Gun, and at a suitable spot, aimed toward the northwest where Zuo Liangyu's camp lay, and ignited their rockets all at once.

Twelve rockets spewed fire and shuddered on their launch racks, emitting shrill whistles, until their thrust was enough to break free of the carts, and they soared into the sky with a whoosh-whoosh-whoosh.

The scout cavalry near the vehicles immediately reloaded the racks, and before the first volley of rockets had even hit the ground, the second volley was already soaring into the air.

Then, the rockets plummeted near Zuo Liangyu's camp, and explosions rang out one after another.

Zuo Liangyu shouted as he rushed out of his command tent. Looking up at the rockets streaking across the night sky one after another, he was so stunned that he froze. His household retainers, however, had long prepared for this.

Over ten flag officers with command flags on their backs picked up shields from outside the tent and formed a tight formation to protect Zuo Liangyu, doing their utmost to prevent him from being injured by shrapnel from the exploding rockets.

Unexpectedly, Zuo Liangyu, having come to his senses, shoved several of them aside and snatched a long shield, cursing: "The hell are you protecting me for? Give me the shield! Go pass the orders quickly, defend against enemy cavalry breaking the line!"

Just then, a rocket exploded a few dozen paces away, startling everyone.

Through the gunpowder smoke, a scout, struck by shrapnel in several places, stumbled out, staggered to his knees propping himself on his saber, and looked up, enduring tremendous pain, pointing north: "Commander, Commander, to the north, the sound of hoofbeats, dense."

Zuo Liangyu hastily pushed out a flag officer, ordering: "Go quickly to the north of the formation and pass the order, beware of enemy cavalry!"

"You, muster the cavalry and seize the enemy's rocket carts!"

The retainer who was called out could not help but lament: "The horses were all given to General Xu, Commander. Where is there any cavalry left?"

At that moment, Zuo Liangyu could not worry about much else. He cursed, and had no choice but to lead his retainers, holding shields, to reinforce the north.

The further he walked, the more afraid he became.

For a time, chaos reigned everywhere in the military camp. One wave of rockets had just exploded all around, and the next wave was already racing to fall inside and outside the camp, causing roaring and smoke everywhere.

Soldiers ran wildly in all directions to avoid the explosions, scrambling for shields. Banners, gongs, and drums — none of them worked anymore.

Suddenly, someone dashed past the tents, chasing after Zuo Liangyu, shouting as he ran: "Commander! Enemy cavalry have broken into the camp from the south!"

"South?"

Zuo Liangyu looked at the troops hurriedly forming up in the chaos to the north of the formation, and at the vast, mighty sound of hoofbeats from the north, then turned his head in confusion to look at the reporting soldier.

Just then, he heard the sounds of shouting and killing coming from the south, and the increasingly clear clatter of hooves.

Zuo Liangyu saw volleys of arrows raining down within the formation. A brazier was flipped into the air, and in the firelight, cavalrymen wearing bowl helmets and red armor, wielding goose-feather sabers and drawing strong bows, filed in one after another, charging left and thrusting right as if entering uninhabited land.

Riiip!

A blade pierced through a tent curtain, and then a massive horse's head burst through the torn fabric, bringing the entire curtain down.

Liu Tichun, holding a long saber, charged out of the empty central command tent, cut down two blocking soldiers, reined in his horse, held his blade horizontally, and looked around, his eyes meeting Zuo Liangyu's directly.

The moment Liu Tichun saw him, he was first puzzled, then burst out laughing. Pointing his blade straight at him, he shouted: "Hahaha! Zuo Liangyu is here!"