Chapter 968: It Wasn't Actually a Counterattack

A thousand schemes, ten thousand calculations, yet they never expected the other side would have no stratagem to counter with and would just come straight to the fight. Though there was no cunning plan, they simply overpowered skill with force, pressing down directly like this, and it happened to be utterly irresistible. They could only watch as their own great force was about to collapse, yet the main body of the Xuzhou troops still hadn't moved. What had shaken and shattered their own army was merely a few cannons.

This battle was already lost, but it was a loss that left people deeply unwilling to accept it, feeling the other side had seized an advantage through trickery, that the Xuzhou troops hadn't fought according to the rules. Yet on the battlefield, victory and defeat are the only results; nothing else counts.

"Charge one more time. As long as we can reach their front, there's still a chance." Xu Hongju said through gritted teeth from horseback.

Xia Zhongjin's face was ashen. He looked left and right, then lowered his voice and said, "Second Master, how do we charge? In this situation, who would still dare to advance?"

"Why can't we charge? How did we command troops back in the day? Just drive them forward layer by layer. Whoever refuses to go, cut off their head. Have we now learned some damn drilling and marching methods and can't fight like we used to? Press forward layer by layer—are human lives suddenly worth something now?" Xu Hongju said viciously.

Xia Zhongjin nodded sullenly, said nothing further, and simply turned to begin shouting orders and making arrangements, passing them down layer by layer. The tough, able-bodied men beside them all began to roar, splitting into squads and dispersing, starting to drive the troops forward. Anyone who hesitated even slightly was met with a blade at once.

"It's still our own old brothers who are reliable. How can those who fled to Xuzhou be relied upon? They come up with some damned drilling method and think they're invincible. Kill without restraint, show no mercy!" Xu Hongju's voice rose higher and higher, until he finally roared it out.

By the time the fourth cannon volley struck, the targeted direction had already completely collapsed. The entire refugee great formation had been thrown into chaos. Those in the middle wanted to flee outward, but the outer areas, with fewer casualties, couldn't clear enough paths, inevitably leading to shoving and jostling. With this layer upon layer of pressure, no formation could possibly be maintained.

"Adjust the cannon muzzles, each to one side. Elevate and fire at the most densely packed areas!" Meng Zhiqi gave the order.

Among the cannon retainers of the Zhao Battalion, there were also two captured government army artillerymen. They had survived the surprise attack to seize the cannons, cooperated loyally after surrendering, and once the Zhao Battalion brought their parents and families to Xuzhou, they served the Zhao Battalion with wholehearted devotion.

These two had originally thought that with their cannon skills, they could certainly win themselves wealth and status among these local rebels. They never expected it would be a completely different matter. Regarding firing in battle, they had their own insights.

"Back in the government army, cannons could only fire in one direction. If you wanted to turn them, it was unbelievably troublesome—you had to dig new pits, reposition the cannons. On the battlefield, who has time for that? But look at our battalion: if you want to move a cannon, you just push it, and it's just as stable."

"The key is the cannons are good. Look at these gun carriages and limbers, and the cannons themselves are cast so tightly and precisely. By the fourth shot, we even add extra powder. If it were those broken cannons we had back then, they'd probably have burst by now."

"These cannons hold up, and you can fire them with confidence. They've been tested through who knows how many shots. They say several of the master smiths who cast them were blown up and killed, so they've been very careful since. Not like the work in our old government army—who knows how many cuts were taken along the way. How could they produce anything good..."

The cannon retainers were all in a very relaxed state. Watching as, after several volleys, with thunder and lightning crashing down, the Incense Sect rebel army before them had already scattered into utter rout, this sense of achievement and the joy of imminent victory dispersed their earlier tension, and each of them became completely at ease.

But they had only been chatting for a few moments when they heard the shouting and clamor from the opposite side gradually growing louder. Lifting their eyes to look, the Incense Sect ranks that had just been low-spirited and collapsing had turned frenzied. A moment ago, everyone had been retreating, trying to scatter in all directions, but now, for some unknown reason, a change was coming from the rear forward.

The atmosphere inexplicably began to grow tense. Under the cannon bombardment, the Zhao Battalion, which had just relaxed a little, tightened up once more.

"Remove the wedges, wipe the barrels with wet cloths, keep loading powder and firing, don't stop!" Meng Zhiqi shouted until his voice grew hoarse. His ears were ringing, but the cannon retainers firing the guns, who remembered to cover their ears when the cannons went off, were in much better shape.

The refugee great formation was no longer retreating now. Instead, it began to surge forward slowly and unwillingly. Some wailed, some howled, and there were even small-scale clashes, but driven from front and rear, they still advanced slowly. The gap at the Divine Protector Army's position had already been filled by the chaotic, disorderly crowd.

In such circumstances, when the cannons fired, there was no need for elevation to increase range. Simply firing straight out caused casualties. Only, after the sixth volley, the cannon barrels were already somewhat hot and had to be wiped down with wet cloths. The water soaking the cloths was mixed with aged vinegar, which cooled them faster.

With every shot, the surging momentum of the refugees would halt for a moment, yet they still advanced slowly and arduously. Zhao Jin stood on his horse's back to look, then came down and said, "The bandit rabble is forcing the main force forward again. Pass my order: prepare to engage. The cannons will fire four more volleys, then the cannon retainers will withdraw to the rear."

Riders carried Zhao Jin's orders out. Amid the sound of these commands, the cannons boomed once more. In the direction the cannons struck, there were casualties, and the Incense Sect rebel army could no longer hold. They scattered in all directions, but elsewhere they continued their slow advance.

The wet cloths wiped against the cannon barrels with a hissing sound, white steam rising. The barrels were already scalding hot. Meng Zhiqi was unwilling, but he could only slow the frequency of the cannon fire.

"I really don't know what the Master is worried about. What enemy is even left in front of the muzzles!" someone grumbled.

In the direction the eight cannons pointed, it was as if an invisible force field existed. For several hundred paces, there was not a single soul. The great formation of the Incense Sect rebel army had deliberately left this area clear; no one was willing to approach this killing ground. This meant that at the start of each volley, Meng Zhiqi had to arrange for retainers to adjust the cannon muzzles, and every movement of the muzzles sent a wave of panic through the distant refugee rebel army.

"Charge through! Get right up to them! Then they'll be helpless!"

"If you don't charge, you die. Charge, and there's a way to live!"

"Don't you want to enjoy yourselves inside Jining city? You want to go back to starving and suffering? Charge through and annihilate this Xuzhou force."

"Charge through, and silver and riches are yours to choose, whatever you want!"

Whether by threat or by enticement, the most direct method was the naked gleam of blades and spears. A habit had formed during the roving in Shandong: the rear ranks pressed the front ranks, and the front ranks pressed those even further ahead. After all, the casualties wouldn't be themselves; after all, driving those ahead forward could both shield themselves and find them a path to survival. Pressing and driving each other just like this, the great force began to move forward and draw near. Yet compared to the reckless desperation of the past, this time everyone was terrified. Though the muffled booms grew less and less frequent, each time one sounded, it struck terror into their hearts.

Pressed from behind, with murderous intent looming ahead, the closer one was to the front, the more tense and terrified they became. Hearing the screams, seeing those corpses and the blood and gore, the pressure mounted greater and greater, until they could bear it no longer.

No one knew who broke first. Someone began to scream as if mad, and scattered individuals started charging toward the Zhao Battalion's position. Then more and more people began to charge, until the entire great force seemed to collapse, surging madly toward the Zhao Battalion. Everyone ran wildly, shouting chaotically, as if insane.

But when these people began their frantic charge, the distance was still over two hundred paces, roughly half a li. When pushed to the absolute limit, people charge and run in despair, as if possessing inexhaustible strength. Once they started running, they dared not stop, terrified of blocking the path of the comrades behind them, afraid that slowing even slightly would mean being trampled to death.

Most of the people in the Incense Sect rebel army's great formation had experienced the mountains of corpses and seas of blood during roving sieges of cities. They more or less knew the lessons of such situations and all ran with desperate speed.

But a distance of over two hundred paces was too long. Already panicked and terrified, with little in their stomachs, and on top of that the earlier shock and fear, their physical strength was enormously drained. No matter how much they were driven by will, their bodies ultimately could not sustain them for long. They ran slower and slower, and some even dropped dead on the road as they ran.

Slower and slower, yet the distance between the two sides was still rapidly closing. The rebel refugees at the very front were not charging to kill the enemy, but because of the pressure, because they did not want to be killed by the comrades behind them. They likewise did not want to die here, but these things were not for them to decide.

The Incense Sect rebel soldiers at the very front could even see the impatient expressions on the faces of the Xuzhou troops opposite them. Could it be they think we're coming too slowly...

"Fire!" someone roared. Then, in the space between the two armies, nothing else could be heard. The crack of a single firelock was not loud, but the sound of nearly five hundred firelocks firing at once was far from quiet.

After the firelocks fired, many people fell to the ground. Some were fortunate enough not to be hit and continued charging forward through the screams, but their steps were already stumbling. Many could not keep their balance, and some would rather lie flat on the ground, even if trampled to death by those behind them, than face this gunsmoke and slaughter.

Having experienced real combat, the firelock retainers of the Zhao Battalion had matured. Watching the Incense Sect rebel soldiers charging forward howling, each looking ferocious and menacing, and with overwhelming momentum, they still remained utterly calm as they cleaned their barrels, loaded powder and shot, and then fired.

Matchlock smoothbore guns could not guarantee a very high density of fire, and the firelock retainers' formation was also loose. Although their fire inflicted casualties on the dense rebel army, still more people charged forward. The second volley of firelocks rang out, and again many fell to the ground, but the firelock fire could not stop the momentum of their charge. The fire density was limited, and the refugees were being shoved by the comrades behind them. In their minds now, they thought only of reaching the enemy's front. Reach the front, and they wouldn't have to fear this firelock fire anymore.

Thanks to old friends "User Cold Night, Wu Liulang, 123*, Zhongwang Tomcat, Suixin Ziwo 0" for their tips. Great Ming Wufu needs everyone's monthly tickets, subscriptions, and tips. Please give your support.