Chapter 850: Know Yourself, Not Your Enemy

"A fire lance only takes a few months to train. Archery requires some talent. My brothers and I have trained in martial arts since childhood — Ice Peak's divine archery goes without saying. The only other one with real accuracy is Ji Xiang. As for me, Chen Sheng, Shitou, and the rest, we can draw a bow and shoot in a general direction," Zhao Jin said with a laugh.

The terrified interpreter kept translating Zhao Jin's words to Louis without pause. The foreigner's face gradually showed a smile, and Meng Zhiqi also grew confident. Zhao Jin looked at Meng Zhiqi and asked, "What do you think of all this?"

Meng Zhiqi solemnly bowed with clasped hands and said gravely, "The training is still not enough, and the discipline is still not strict enough. I beg you, Master, to grant me the authority to execute men and inflict corporal punishment within the firearms company."

As he spoke, Meng Zhiqi's face was filled with a chilling killing intent. Zhao Jin nodded calmly and said, "Since you want it, then you shall have it. Judge the limits yourself. Killing alone won't cow people."

Meng Zhiqi solemnly acknowledged the order. In Zhao's Camp, company commanders and squad leaders all had the authority to enforce military law and execute men on the battlefield, but this authority had to be granted by Zhao Jin. The various company and squad leaders of the apprentice squads did not have this authority. Because the firearms company had many apprentices, Meng Zhiqi did not have it either.

"You will be going into battle again next. Make good use of the opportunity. First, lead your men to eat. Follow behind the main force. Once you've finished eating, hurry and catch up. You are to be in the vanguard," Zhao Jin said. Meng Zhiqi acknowledged loudly, then began mustering his unit. The foreigner Louis and his servant also went along. Before leaving, he even dragged the interpreter with him, urgently wanting to say something to Meng Zhiqi.

Bayin had been about to go organize his unit as well, but Zhao Jin called him back. While ordering the main force to begin advancing, Zhao Jin said to Bayin, "You've seen the power of the fire lance. Right now, it's not as good as your bows, but sooner or later it will be more useful than the bow. On the battlefield, watching the enemy charge at you, steadying your mind to draw and shoot — you archers are best suited to using fire lances. I won't force you to switch. The bow is still of great use to us now. But the general trend is here. Consider it carefully, especially those who came from the grasslands. You must speak to them more about this."

Zhao Jin's words could be described as earnest and heartfelt. If he had said this before, Bayin might not have been fully willing, but after witnessing the power of the fire lances, saying it now was very persuasive.

"Please rest assured, Master. Your subordinate will certainly think it over carefully and earnestly persuade them. This is the Master looking out for us," Bayin replied with equal sincerity.

The archers also went to the rear with the firearm retainers to eat and rest. Zhao Jin swung onto his horse and caught up with the main force. Chen Sheng, however, rode up from behind and asked, "Why not wait for Daxiang? Once he returns, we can set out again and also learn some concrete news."

"No need. Horses are fast, men are slow. We'll meet him halfway. If he succeeded, we must advance and fight. If he didn't succeed, we must advance all the more. In this battle, we advance with no retreat!" Zhao Jin said grimly.

Chen Sheng nodded, then said, "If Daxiang fails, then I'll lead the men forward. You just hold the rear line."

"Let's not talk about failure anymore. It's terribly unlucky. If Daxiang hears it, he'll think we look down on him." Zhao Jin did not take up that remark.

Chen Sheng did not press further, but asked from horseback, "With our marching speed and stamina, we could easily circle around, even split our forces, and strike them from multiple directions before they can respond, crashing in from several sides. Why fight so clumsily!"

"We must win openly and honorably, leaving them no excuses to find. Only then can we make people everywhere abandon any wishful thinking, only then can they know our strength. Only then can we rescue Uncle Wang." Zhao Jin answered in great detail.

Chen Sheng shook his head and smiled wryly. "Fighting this far, I've almost forgotten about the rescue. Zhao Jin, tell me, with the trouble we've stirred up and the intensity of this fighting, is there any way for those above and below to still gloss this over?"

Zhao Jin smiled and answered, "If the court and the local authorities are as I know them, then as long as we want to gloss it over, they will certainly gloss it over. Better one less matter than one more. Besides, this is something they can't resolve. The only thing they can do is pretend not to see it."

Ever since Mobile Corps Commander Wei Pingfang had taken the main cavalry force to launch a surprise raid on the Xuzhou bandits, Baoding Chief Military Commander Lu Qin's face had been dark with gloom. He issued strict orders urging every unit to set up their formations, and any slight slackness was dragged out for military punishment, making everyone silent as cicadas in winter, too afraid to make a sound.

"That wretched fool! If he hadn't taken the cavalry away, how could those bandit light cavalry be so rampant? And these bandits are muddled too. At a moment like this, what formations are they still snooping around for? They don't even know what's urgent and what can wait. Truly a disaster waiting to happen." From the high ground, Chief Military Commander Lu Qin muttered with great disdain.

The government army's main cavalry force sped straight toward the bandits' main body. Seeing them surge out fiercely, the bandit light cavalry naturally dared not block them and all scattered in flight.

By conventional thinking, these bandit light cavalry would surely race back to report. No one expected that once the main cavalry force was far away, quite a few bandit scouts would actually circle back. They must have taken a huge detour just now. Their brains must be broken — they can't even distinguish the important from the trivial. Once your main force is smashed by the government cavalry, what use is seeing more information?

Such was the situation, but now the government army had hardly any mounted men, and the bandit light cavalry grew rampant, brazenly drawing close to observe. When this side grew furious enough to shoot arrows, they would retreat far away again, which was utterly infuriating.

Originally, Chief Military Commander Lu Qin had disdained such provocations, but seeing this scene again when his mood was already agitated, his anger could no longer be contained.

By his reckoning, barely an hour had passed when he saw dust rising in the south. From the scale of the dust and the speed of its approach, Chief Military Commander Lu Qin knew his own cavalry was returning. Otherwise, those bandit light cavalry below would not have scattered in a single rush.

But returning so quickly made the outcome of victory or defeat easy to imagine. This was simple to figure out. If it had been a great victory, they would be there pursuing the remnants and seizing spoils. Why would they return so early? They must have met with a setback.

Those Xuzhou bandits could actually withstand the charge of such a large cavalry force? It must be that Mobile Corps Commander Wei Pingfang underestimated the enemy and grew arrogant, turning a certain victory into a defeat. Baoding Chief Military Commander Lu Qin's thoughts raced, yet the corner of his mouth could not help but curl into a smile. He truly could not suppress his schadenfreude.

With such a commotion, the chief military commander's personal guards who had remained in camp dared not be negligent and hurriedly rode out to scout. Before long, they returned and reported, "It is Commander Wei's cavalry."

Chief Military Commander Lu Qin gave a cold laugh, his face dark as water. Once the initial schadenfreude passed, unease welled up in his heart. That sudden raid by Mobile Corps Commander Wei Pingfang just now — no matter how you calculated it, it should have been a certain victory. Even if they met a minor setback early on, the cavalry's mobility and shock power could have turned it around. Mobile Corps Commander Wei Pingfang, though eager for merit and rank, was still a veteran officer who had led troops for years. He would never return so easily. Could it be that the bandits...

"Pass the order to all units: maintain strict vigilance. The bandits are fierce and ruthless. There must be no moment of slackness. Any who disobey will be executed without mercy!" Chief Military Commander Lu Qin bellowed the command.

Even as the personal guards relayed the order, Chief Military Commander Lu Qin, mounted on the high ground, had already spotted the distant cavalry. Though too far to make out details, their dejected, crestfallen appearance was clear to see. It was indeed Wei Pingfang's troops and his own horse squadrons. Baoding Chief Military Commander Lu Qin cursed under his breath from horseback. A single cavalryman cost as much as twenty foot soldiers and took ages to train. Who knew how many had been lost this time.

Mobile Corps Commander Wei Pingfang and his troops all looked too ashamed to show their faces, even wanting to avoid meeting the commanding general, intending to return directly to their own unit. But Chief Military Commander Lu Qin had already noticed his own battalion standards at this moment — far fewer than when they had left. This made Chief Military Commander Lu Qin even more furious. He coldly issued the order: "Summon Wei Pingfang here. He led the troops out. Does he intend to return without giving this general an accounting?"

The personal guard gave a resounding acknowledgment and rode down to summon the man. Mobile Corps Commander Wei Pingfang, no matter how unwilling, could not gloss over it at this juncture. He could only ride over with a troubled expression. Unlike the previous times when he had reported from horseback, this time he dismounted at the earthen mound and clasped his hands in salute first, making a full show of deference.

"Wei..." Chief Military Commander Lu Qin drew out the tone, but after uttering just one syllable, his eyes suddenly widened. Pointing south, he said, "When you returned, was there any pursuing force?"

Commander Wei was somewhat bewildered by the question. Turning his head to look, his expression also changed drastically. He too saw the rising dust. This was not the dust from their own return that had yet to settle. Judging by the scale, it was clearly a mounted force of roughly the same size, and it was advancing rapidly at speed.

Mobile Corps Commander Wei Pingfang threw himself directly onto the ground, pressing his ear to the earth to listen. His expression changed even more dramatically. Rising hastily, he said, "Over a thousand cavalry, at the very least... at least that number..."

As he spoke these words, Commander Wei's voice actually carried a tremor — he was extremely panicked.

"Whose mounted force is this! The bandits actually have such a large cavalry force! Wei Pingfang, what are you standing there dumbly for?! Hurry and rally the cavalry! This general's own horse squadrons will also be placed under your command. Quickly assemble the men and prepare to meet the enemy! Pass the word, pass the word! All units maintain strict vigilance! Enemy attack! Enemy attack!" Baoding Chief Military Commander Lu Qin no longer cared about any famed general's bearing. He simply roared and shouted from horseback. This time, Mobile Corps Commander Wei Pingfang finally reacted, also mounting up in a panic, shouting and yelling to muster the troops.

But those government cavalrymen who had run back were, first of all, exhausted, and second, demoralized. After returning, they had thought of nothing but getting some proper rest. Who could have expected to be roused again so hastily, and told it was an enemy surprise attack? This only panicked them further, and assembling became even slower.

These bandits were simply outrageously audacious. The government army had sent a mounted force to raid them, and they had actually sent a mounted force to follow behind and launch a counter-raid. At this critical moment, if their own formations were thrown into chaos, the situation would truly be beyond salvaging. As Baoding Chief Military Commander Lu Qin bellowed orders to maneuver, he felt his hands and feet turn ice-cold. The palm gripping the reins was slick with cold sweat. How did the bandits have so many cavalry? Why had no one ever mentioned this? Weren't those righteous volunteers supposed to be very well-informed?

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