Yang Gong lifted the tea cup, took a sip of the scalding tea, and said slowly,
“If we wish to deal with the flying beast corps, it is not that difficult. Let Zhang Shen work together with the experts in the army and defeat them one by one.”
Ordinary soldiers and low-ranked martial artists could do nothing against the flying beast corps, but dealing with them would not be a problem for fourth-rank experts capable of riding the wind and flying.
Li Mubai turned his head to glance at his friend, and reminded him,
“There are also experts among the flying beast corps. Moreover, if we can think of such a simple strategy, would the rebels not anticipate it as well? It could well be another snare laid to lure us in.”
If the fourth-rank experts left the main camp and flew alone into battle, the risk would be too great, they might well never return.
“If only we had a flying beast corps.”
A staff officer sighed.
“Perhaps we could ask the Yao and barbarians for help, and request the winged spiders of the Jinmu tribe to come south and aid us.”
The one who spoke did so without much thought, but an officer to his left took it seriously. However, this idea was quickly dismissed:
“What difference is there between your suggestion and requesting the court to send for the scarlet-tailed flame eagles? Besides, the northern border is a hundred thousand li away from Qingzhou, how could they possibly arrive in time?”
“What about asking Sun Xuanji for help? He is a third-rank Arcanist. If he can take charge of ‘transportation’, perhaps it could work…”
“If Sun Xuanji goes, who would restrain that Ji Xuan? Sigh, who would have thought that among the rebel army in Yunzhou, there would be a young third-rank martial artist.”
“However, the plan of requesting help from the Yao and barbarians is indeed viable. But according to procedure, we would first need to submit a request to the imperial court, then have the court send envoys north. Even if the Yao and barbarians promptly agreed, the flying beast corps of the Jinmu tribe would not join the battle in the south until after spring.”
“Distant water cannot quench present thirst.”
“The lords were too short-sighted. In the past, the flying beast corps was dismissed because we lived in a peaceful era and they had no use. But after the battle of Mount Jing City, they should’ve become wary.”
“If Duke Wei were still here, he would certainly have started organising a new flying beast corps long ago.”
“If only we had a flying beast corps.”
Li Mubai knocked on the table, cutting off this seemingly hopeless discussion, and said in a low voice,
“Dongling has already fallen. With Sun Xuanji leading the defence, the garrison has engaged the rebels in open-field battles, the two sides are now facing off north and south. Wan is surrounded, the rebels plan to use the flying beast corps’s scouting ability to besiege and harass any rescue attempts. This will be a war of attrition, and nothing will change in the short term.
“But if this drags on for too long, Wan Commandery will sooner or later run out of food and supplies.”
He paused, looked around at the staff officers, all frowning, and said,
“If we cannot find a way to break Wan’s predicament, we must find a way to keep Songshan County safe.”
The staff beside him were taken aback at first, then caught on, turning to Yang Gong:
“Boss, if I am not mistaken, to this day Songshan County has neither reported any victories nor sent any request for reinforcements.”
Yang Gong nodded,
“Compared to Dongling and Wan, Songshan County is less important. The Yunzhou rebels will undoubtedly attack the first two first.”
Li Mubai grunted in acknowledgement:
“Songshan County occupies strategic terrain, has plenty of provisions, and both Zhu Jun and Erlang are stationed there. Presumably, they can hold out. However, judging by the current situation, Dongling has fallen and Wan Commandery is besieged.
“The next target for the rebels in Yunzhou will be Songshan County.”
As he finished speaking, a clerk hurried in, holding a secret letter, and called out,
“Sir Governor, urgent news has arrived from Songshan County.”
Yang Gong quickly said, “Bring it here.”
The clerk handed him the letter.
Yang Gong unfolded it and his face darkened at once.
Li Mubai and the others noticed this and their hearts skipped a beat. “What does it say?”
Yang Gong read out, word by word,
“The flying beast corps has launched a surprise attack on Songshan County. Erlang asks for reinforcements.”
He paused, his expression suddenly growing ugly,
“This letter is three days old.”
From Songshan County to Qingzhou City, even by fast courier, it would take three days.
…
Songshan County.
The sun was high in the sky, yet brought no warmth at all. Xu Erlang stood on the city wall, grabbing a handful of stones mixed with gunpowder and the blood of the garrison.
He showed no emotion as he looked around. The city walls were riddled with craters, battered and broken, there was not a single intact spot.
The soldiers, their wounds swaddled in hemp and cloth, were clustered in small groups, there was not one uninjured.
Those left on the wall were the least injured among the defenders of Songshan County.
Of the original two thousand defenders in Songshan County, only five hundred remained. The rest had died in the brutal fighting.
Three days had passed since the flying beast corps’s surprise attack.
Their mode of attack was simple, drop shells and jars of fire oil onto the city walls. However the defenders had handled siege attackers before, that was how the flying beast corps now dealt with them.
Simple, but deadly.
On the first day, the garrison had lost nearly a thousand men outright. The city wall was riddled with shell holes, and the bricks were scorched black.
By dusk, the enemy had retreated.
After such a day of despair, the garrison’s morale collapsed. They believed the city would surely fall the next day, and panic was spreading.
That night, Xu Erlang dispatched people to gather copper mirrors from every household, and summoned craftsmen to modify the ballistae on the walls into anti-air versions.
The next day, the flying beast corps attacked again. The city walls were covered in copper mirrors, reflecting the sunlight and nearly blinding the cavalry and their flying mounts.
The defenders fired their ballistae, bringing down twelve flying beasts and forcing the flying beast corps to retreat, a rousing victory that greatly lifted the defenders’ morale.
But Xu Erlang knew this trick would only work once. After dusk, the copper mirrors would be useless.
So, after the enemy’s retreat, he ordered the defenders to shout insults at Zhuo Haoran from the city walls, focusing especially on the female members of his family, cursing for a full two hours, so as to enrage Zhuo Haoran and provoke another assault. The two sides fought each other to a standstill once more.
Zhuo Haoran was forced to withdraw in defeat. At dusk, as the enemy infantry had suffered heavy casualties, the flying beast corps only strafed the city with bombs before retreating.
That night, Xu Erlang drafted over a thousand townsfolk as militia, ordered Zhu Jun and Miao Youfang to lead an assault on the enemy camp, but only some three hundred returned alive.
By now, both sides’ elite troops had been nearly wiped out.
“I’ve already sent for reinforcements to Qingzhou City. From now on, we will see whose reinforcements arrive first.”
Xu Erlang said quietly.
Beside him, Miao Youfang had not smiled in three days. Carrying a bow on his back, he grunted in a low voice, then frowned and added:
“Zhuo Haoran’s army is almost wiped out, with only a few hundred men left. But the flying beast corps is still at full strength. If they attack every night, we’ll only keep taking blows. I fear we won’t last until our reinforcements arrive…”
He suddenly widened his eyes, as if he had seen something.
Xu Erlang smiled and said, “If our reinforcements reach here first, then even if Zhuo Haoran seizes Songshan County, he will be forced to withdraw for lack of manpower, and it will still be ours in the end.”
But the defenders here and the townsfolk inside the city would become pawns to be sacrificed… Miao Youfang’s lips quivered. “If it comes to that, I’ll take you and escape first.”
Xu Erlang said softly,
“That would be too shameful. My brother held out alone at Yuyang Pass, and I can only slink away?”
Miao Youfang frowned, thinking that it would not be up to Xu Erlang, if he refused to go, Miao Youfang would simply club him unconscious and carry him off.
Then he heard Xu Erlang chuckle wryly,
“I’m only lamenting, it won’t come to that. Victory or defeat is part and parcel of war. Even Emperor Gaozu suffered repeated defeats in his time.
“If he had been stubborn to the end, the Great Feng would never exist today. A real man knows when to yield and when to stand tall.
“But I can also understand those heroes chronicled in the history books, those who chose death over retreat. The men who fought at my side all fell here, how could I have the face to survive?”
As he spoke, a massive flock of birds appeared in the sky far away.
The flock sped towards them, accompanied by a deep, thunderous roar, loud and chaotic.
Miao Youfang and Xu Erlang’s faces changed dramatically, and the wounded and sick resting on the city wall also noticed the commotion and rose in terror.
They stared at the dark, seething mass of flying beasts, their faces despairing and deathly pale.
“They’re here again, they’re here again…”
“So many of them, how can we possibly hold out?”
Despair swept through the defenders.
“Sir Xu, another wave of flying beast corps is coming. We can’t hold Songshan County any longer, let’s retreat.”
A centurion rushed over in panic.
As he spoke, he kept his eyes fixed on Xu Erlang, his expression complex, part pleading, part despair, part desperate for survival.
Xu Erlang suddenly felt faint, a splitting headache overtaking him.
Indeed, when it came to reinforcements, what army could possibly match the flying beast corps for speed?
He had actually entertained the idea of racing the Yunzhou army, how could he have been so naive?
“Bang!”
Xu Erlang smashed his fist onto the wall and ground his teeth,
“If we don’t get rid of the flying beast corps, Qingzhou won’t be able to hold out.”
He realised that these lightning-fast Flying Beast troops were one of the key factors in the fate of the Qingzhou campaign.
Miao Youfang took the bow from his back, notched an arrow and drew it in one smooth motion, aiming at the flying beast corps, saying,
“Take Sir Xu away first, I want to shoot down a few of these beasts and at least settle the score with them!”
At this moment, the flying beast corps was already within his range.
Miao Youfang’s pupils contracted, his eyesight straining to its limit as he aimed for the leading flying beast.
But then he blinked, realising this flying beast corps was different from the one that attacked before.
The Yunzhou rebel’s flying beasts were red giant birds, their bodies covered in glamorous fiery feathers.
But this group of flying beast corps was mounted on monsters with black scales, long necks and slender bodies like lizards, and the wings they beat were membranous, not feathered.
Moreover, the riders were not armoured soldiers, but a group dressed in eccentric costumes, some even wearing animal hides.
Atop the leading beast sat a man wearing blue and green clothing, with dark skin and naturally curly hair, grinning as he waved his arms enthusiastically at the defenders, as if offering a friendly greeting.
“Huh?” said Miao Youfang, lowering his bowstring.
“What’s the matter?” asked Xu Erlang, whose eyesight was not equal to a martial artist’s, frowning at the reaction.
With a puzzled expression, Miao Youfang replied,
“These people look a bit odd.”
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