Chapter 1330: In the End, Outnumbered

What kind of troops were these? When had the Ming Dynasty ever possessed such elite soldiers? Amidst the shock, the forward ranks of Jianzhou Jurchen soldiers noticed another pressing matter — the spears in their own hands were shorter than those of these death-defying foes before them. Though the difference was not great, only about two feet or so, it meant their own spears could not reach the enemy, while the enemy could stab them.

The forward ranks of the Jianzhou Jurchen troops began to stir uneasily. Company commanders everywhere bellowed angrily, some even striking their wavering subordinates with the flats of their blades. Yet they themselves were equally alarmed. Were these Ming local militia mad? They showed no fear whatsoever — did they not know when to stop?!

The distance shrank to a dozen paces, then to just a few. The Jianzhou Jurchen front ranks began to break. Some screamed in terror, others tried to turn and flee, but the officers showed no mercy, now using the sharp edges of their blades, forcing the formation to hold through execution. The Xuzhou soldiers' long spears and halberds remained steadily leveled, while the Jurchen spears quivered and wavered chaotically.

They collided. Just before impact, some of the Jianzhou Jurchen front-rank soldiers dodged desperately, while others sought mutual destruction, thrusting their spears forward with all their might. But in such frantic disarray, how could they strike true? Spear tips scraped across the breastplates of the Zhao Family Army soldiers, while the Zhao Family Army's long weapons pierced through the bodies of the enemies before them — thrust, withdraw, blood spraying, bodies collapsing forward and backward, and then the panic-stricken second row.

The two companies of the Zhao Family Army's infantry battalion drove into the Jianzhou Jurchen formation like two iron nails. But these were Jianzhou Jurchen troops — the fierce wildness bred by the White Mountains and Black Waters still remained. Some could not hold, yet others hurled themselves forward in desperation. Moreover, the Jianzhou Jurchen formation was wider than these Zhao Family Army companies. By the time they had charged to the third rank, their momentum had been checked. Though the main Jurchen formation had been dented inward, it had not collapsed. And Zhao Family Army soldiers kept falling — their armor, though sturdy, did not cover the entire body. At such close range, they could still be wounded or killed.

Jianzhou Jurchen soldiers brandished swords and blades as they lunged forward. Those in front were stabbed to death; those behind pushed up close, driving their blades through the gaps in the armor, only to be impaled by another long spear. The depth and coverage of the company square formations were simply too limited — their protection was not so comprehensive, especially without the covering fire of muskets. Had these been Ming regulars or roving bandits, they would have faced collapse at this moment. But when one Jianzhou Jurchen niru was shattered, other niru still charged forward, encircling them layer by layer.

Zhao Song's hands, gripping the long halberd, had grown slippery. Thrust, slash, hammer-blow — blood ran down the wooden shaft of the halberd. Before him now stood a Jurchen soldier of refined martial skill, trading thrusts and parries with a spear. But this man did not last long, soon stabbed by the spear of a soldier at Zhao Song's side. Yet that soldier beside Zhao Song was struck in the cheek by a feathered arrow and fell straight to the ground.

From the moment he had charged to the third rank, Zhao Song had not advanced a single step. He could only shift and dodge in place. Soldiers around him kept falling, with those behind constantly filling the gaps. The company following behind had also joined the battle. In such fierce combat, Zhao Song had no attention to spare, but he noticed the ebb and flow. If this continued, exchanges were already happening — if it went on, his few companies would be completely devoured by the numerically superior Jianzhou Jurchen forces. They should withdraw now, but there was simply no way to leave. He was already completely surrounded.

At that moment, a roar in the Jurchen tongue rang out beside Zhao Song's ear, but he could no longer spare any thought for such things. How to break out, how to lead his troops back to the fortress — that was what mattered most. He thrust his long halberd forward, but an enemy blocked it with a shield. Amid the chaos, some enemies even tried to hack the halberd in two.

The sound of musket fire rang out from the flank. This time it was not a volley, but fire in three rotating waves. The Jianzhou Jurchen soldiers had by now realized the deadliness of these muskets, but on this cramped and crowded battlefield, men stood too densely packed — dodging or escaping was difficult. This three-stage musket fire tore an opening in the flank by sheer force, and through that opening, a company of Zhao Family Army spearmen came charging down with battle cries.

"Battalion Commander, we're pulling back!" They had split into two groups to meet the enemy. Now the flank company and the musket soldiers had come to the rescue. No matter how unwilling he felt, Zhao Song knew this was the perfect moment to retreat — and an opportunity that would vanish in an instant.

"Withdraw! Back to the fortress! Back to the fortress!" Zhao Song roared. The soldiers around him all took up the shout. Seizing the gap torn open by the musket fire and the flank charge, Zhao Song led his men and ran for the rear.

The Jurchen troops who had with such difficulty encircled them were naturally unwilling to let go. Just as they began to close in, more musket fire rang out. Hearing that sound, the pursuers instinctively slowed their steps and ducked aside. These Xuzhou troops' firearms were simply too lethal — being hit was like having an iron chisel driven into the body. If it struck the torso, death was certain.

The Jianzhou Jurchen forces deployed on the flank were quite limited, but the Pi Island infantry battalion's flank response was by no means perfunctory. They were easily broken through, and then the rescuers came charging over.

That momentary hesitation and fear to advance among the various niru banner troops allowed Zhao Song to break out with his men. The deputy colonels supervising the battle from the rear were all enraged. Order after order was sent forward — this Xuzhou force had to be annihilated; they absolutely could not be allowed to leave.

Through the spies and informants sent earlier, the Jianzhou Jurchen were well aware of every force on Pi Island. Though the several hundred men of the Xuzhou Trading Company struck them as odd, they had not taken them seriously. With the courage and iron blood of the Eight Banners' warriors, what were these few hundred Ming local militia? Even if they possessed the fierce bravery of the Ming imperial army's personal troops and household retainers, they were still only a few hundred. For the campaign against Pi Island, the Jianzhou Jurchen had committed several thousand.

Who could have imagined these few hundred men would leave the fortress to block them, fearless of death? Who could have imagined these few hundred men would dare charge the Jurchen battle formation? Who could have imagined they would fight to a standstill, even gaining a slight upper hand? No one could have imagined it.

Since the Jianzhou Jurchen had raised arms and invaded the Ming, aside from sieges, when had they ever encountered such a formidable foe? When had they ever suffered such grievous casualties? They had expended such great effort, deployed decoy troops, and landed the main army on Pi Island's eastern shore precisely to annihilate the Ming forces of Dongjiang Garrison completely. But now, every man could think of nothing else — they only wanted to exterminate this detestable Xuzhou force before their eyes.

Zhao Song and his men's withdrawal was not a headlong flight, exposing their defenseless backs to the enemy. The company that had charged down from the flank still maintained its formation. After retreating a dozen paces, they halted and formed a horizontal line twenty-five across and four deep, long spears pointing forward.

If they weren't running, then they could wait to be slaughtered. The Eight Banners soldiers, having regained their wits, came charging with furious roars. Some drew bows and loosed arrows, some used shields to knock aside the long spears, and more moved to envelop from the flanks. The Jianzhou Jurchen had already drawn lessons from the earlier fighting — the trickiest part of this strange Xuzhou formation was its front. But moving to the flanks offered opportunities. Once enveloped, they could be devoured.

Just as they reached the flank, before they could even launch an attack, the heart-stopping muskets rang out again. Within this hundred-man spear formation, over a hundred muskets fired.

By this point, there was no longer any thought of using the square formation for cover and support, rotating fire. The rear ranks simply crowded forward, and the flank ranks rushed directly to the sides.

Gunpowder ignited and fired. Sparks and powder residue sprayed onto the faces of the spearmen on both sides, scalding muscles into spasms — some blistered, some were scorched black outright. But no one could spare a thought for any of this; they only thrust their long spears forward with desperate effort.

There was another pause before the formation, another opening of space. Without a moment's hesitation, the Zhao Family Army soldiers turned and ran. Behind them, furious roars and wild shouts surged forward once more.

Zhao Song did not retreat recklessly, ignoring the blocking action of the company behind him. The forward unit held for a brief moment, then ran back. At a distance of several dozen paces, they formed the same horizontal line to face the enemy. The musket soldiers ran behind this formation and, without pausing, began loading ammunition, preparing to fire. Meanwhile, the company that had first engaged the enemy fled further to the rear, forming a horizontal line to meet the enemy at a distance of several dozen paces, seizing the moment to catch their breath and regroup.

Ever since the Zhao Family Army had been able to manufacture their own muskets, the primary killing output against the enemy had shifted from long spears to firearms. This doctrine had been taught and passed down from top to bottom. As long as the number of muskets able to fire was sufficient, the battle was fought with long spears providing cover and support for the muskets, ensuring the muskets could maintain continuous fire.

In such a battle, fighting outnumbered, only the muskets could pose a threat to the Jianzhou Jurchen. That made it all the more imperative to protect them. Retreat did not mean abandoning the fight and fleeing at full speed — that would still result in the enemy catching up, surrounding, and annihilating them. Only by continuously blocking, continuously inflicting casualties, could they withdraw in good order.

As expected, the first retreat had been a wild pursuit. But when they reached the horizontal formation where Zhao Song stood, the Jurchen soldiers hesitated. That stationary horizontal line with spears thrust forward was difficult to break through, and within a hundred paces, everything was covered by the killing power of the muskets. Fearless of death did not mean disregarding life and death entirely. If it was simply charging forward to die, no one would be willing.

But when the horizontal formation was set up for the third time, battle still erupted. This time, however, the Jianzhou Jurchen did not hurl themselves recklessly at the front, nor did they circle around to flank. Instead, they advanced slowly, stacking shields together. But shields could not stop musket balls. After leaving behind a dozen or more corpses, the Jianzhou Jurchen advanced no further. They slowly withdrew, and the two sides opened a distance of several hundred paces. Their true priority was still securing the landing of the main army. The Jianzhou Jurchen had realized one thing — this kind of fighting would delay their operations, causing bloodshed and casualties, but would have little impact on the overall situation.

Even so, the Jianzhou Jurchen maintained a force of about a thousand men watching this area closely, fearful that this strange unit might charge over again.

More and more Jianzhou Jurchen troops landed on Pi Island's eastern shore. Even the fierce battle here did not halt the continuous disembarkation. The various niru assembled into larger formations according to their affiliations and began advancing toward the northern shore. Though it was clearly their first time here, they moved as if they knew the way intimately. There were even figures dressed as Dongjiang Garrison soldiers and civilians appearing in the mountain forests, guiding the various Jianzhou Jurchen units toward the northern shore.

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