Chapter 19 Huo Dong

Huo Dong directed his soldiers and the guards of Wanke Mountain Manor to abandon the manor gate and defend the second gate of the manor halfway up the mountain. The manor gate was important, but it was not easy to defend, especially with a significant disadvantage in troop numbers. The manor gate was almost at the foot of the mountain, on relatively flat terrain, making it easy for the enemy to flank them. If the situation turned unfavorable, the wide square behind the gate, with its large and sparse functional buildings on the outer perimeter, would not be conducive to preserving troops for gradual defense.

The second gate, however, was designed to ensure the tranquility of the inner manor and was also shaped by the natural terrain of Mount Kuandai. Although not as tall and majestic as the main gate, its narrow terrain was easier to defend. The road width, allowing only one carriage to pass at a time, inspired more confidence than the main gate, which could accommodate three carriages side by side. Huo Dong had only two hundred men under his command. He assigned over a hundred to defend this second gate, leaving thirty as a reserve force in case of emergency. He also sent Zhao Yan with the remaining troops to block the back door of the manor. Besides the front and back doors, the other areas were entrusted to the guards who were familiar with the situation for segmented defense. Even if enemies managed to climb up those sections, their numbers would not be large. As long as someone raised the alarm in time, he did not anticipate any major problems. Given the shortage of troops, this was the best arrangement for the moment.

Ye Tao naturally reciprocated the "friendly army's" cooperation. On the one hand, joint operations would help him grasp the overall situation. On the other hand, the abilities of the people under Ye Tao might prove surprisingly effective.

Two light ballistae and a hundred small jars of fire oil were moved to the second gate, quickly set up, and aimed at the mountain path. The light ballistae were not heavy; two guards could carry one easily. Although these light ballistae could not switch targets as easily as the three-man gun crews, it only took two men to reposition the ballistae. The firepower and confidence that the two ballistae and the fire oil could bring to the Chunnan guards were immeasurable. Ten men were tasked with transporting the ballistae and fire oil, along with the sharpshooter Zheluo, constituting all the forces Ye Tao sent to the second gate.

However, the first to initiate hostilities were neither the people inside the manor nor the Jin Jie Gang members who had just discovered that the manor gate had been quietly evacuated without them noticing, nor even Fu Chong's troops, who were now determined to attack the mountain. Instead, it was an elite cavalry detachment of one hundred and twenty-nine men personally led by Xu Yao, the current deputy commander of the Jingyun Riders. Xu Yao worked for Tan Weiran, and his family also had some influence. Although no one in his family held a high official position in the court, the Xu family had existed in Dongping for even longer than Dongping itself. As long as they did not commit anything like treason, no one could do anything to Xu Yao. Once the order to attack reactively was issued, Xu Yao automatically assumed permission to take action. As for what constituted attacking reactively, since no one could come to deliver orders, Fu Chong's troops launching an attack could certainly be considered taking action first. The fact that Fu Chong's troops had sped up their advance towards Mount Kuandai, a clear indication of an offensive posture, could also be interpreted that way. Thus, Xu Yao unceremoniously launched the first attack.

What kind of combat power could one hundred and twenty-nine men unleash? Xu Yao had a good idea. Indeed, as Ye Tao had predicted, these elite cavalrymen actually had an advantage at night. They had better warhorses, more complete armor, sharper weapons, more accurate bows and crossbows, and even more stable arrows. Under the cover of the sound of Fu Chong's troops marching, they quietly entered the forest beside the road. After two rounds of arrows and one round of crossbow bolts, they launched an attack on Fu Chong's troops, numbering as many as two thousand...

What was it like for a unit consisting of the elite cavalry from the Tieyun Riders, Jingyun Riders, Blood Kirin Army, and the Imperial Guards to charge a local garrison force composed mainly of infantry, with only officers and personal guards qualified to ride horses? "爽快" (shuang kuai – exhilarating) was not enough to describe the feeling. In fact, after three rounds of shooting, there were very few officers and personal guards left on horseback. Xu Yao commanded this small cavalry unit like a knife cutting through cheese, effortlessly slicing into the center of Fu Chong's troops from the flank, stirring them up before riding away. In the first attack, only eleven soldiers were injured, and none were killed.

Faced with this elusive and powerful cavalry, Fu Chong was helpless. Unexpectedly, before Xu Yao's cavalry launched a second attack, he steeled himself and ordered a full-speed advance to the foot of Mount Kuandai to join up with the Jin Jie Gang. The incredibly dashing attack just now had chilled Fu Chong to the bone. He urgently wanted to gather more people to dispel the possibility of another cavalry attack with a greater advantage in troop numbers.

As a general leading troops, Fu Chong's panic gave Xu Yao an opportunity. Xu Yao was unwilling to charge into Fu Chong's ranks again, fearing that the enemy soldiers, already mentally prepared, would rather pay a considerable price to drag the cavalry down. The typical horse archer tactics were too familiar to this cavalry unit. Although Fu Chong also had a team of archers, they were targeted by Xu Yao after only one volley. After all, Fu Chong's archers were a local garrison force, using ordinary bows and the cheapest arrows. Compared to the black feather arrows Xu Yao and his men had obtained from the Blood Kirin Army camp, they were incomparable in terms of accuracy, stability, and lethality. Although one volley made the cavalry a little flustered, injuring a few soldiers and horses, Xu Yao also used this to determine the range of Fu Chong's archers. They stayed just outside the archers' range, launching volley after volley. Fu Chong watched helplessly as this cavalry, which seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, doggedly followed him, flaunting its power behind him, but he could do nothing. Fortunately, they were very, very close to Mount Kuandai. Fu Chong was not a complete idiot. He sent out a small cavalry squad to launch a counter-charge. Although it achieved almost no results, and could even be considered as delivering food to Xu Yao's cavalry, Fu Chong finally managed to join up with the Jin Jie Gang, thanks to that little bit of time.

The two sides converged, occupying the gate that had been evacuated by the guards and Huo Dong's troops, and immediately launched an attack on the second gate. The gang members scattered around also began to climb up the mountainside, climb over the outer wall, and entered the manor's territory. But everyone was told that the only target was the Fuxin Courtyard. Anyone who harmed irrelevant people would be severely punished. This extremely strange order was carried out by all the gang members. On the one hand, the Jin Jie Gang was originally an organization that used doctrine and mystery to restrain its members and attached great importance to the authority of its leaders. On the other hand, Liu Yong's threats were still echoing in everyone's ears. Who was Liu Yong? Others might not know, but these people were, after all, Jianghu (martial world) members. Even in the worst case scenario, a great expert like Liu Yong, the former chief guard of the Dongping royal palace, and one of the people always considered to be among the highest martial arts masters in the world, should be able to escape. And if someone with the power and ability of Liu Yong said he wanted to take revenge, then revenge would surely come. What's more, the person surrounded in the manor was Ye Tao, one of the most powerful and influential ministers in powerful Dongping. If they could really take down Fuxin Courtyard today, Dongping would definitely not fail to retaliate in the future. Therefore, whether to leave a way out for themselves or for other considerations, everyone tacitly agreed on one thing: only attack Fuxin Courtyard.

Fu Chong's troops had just experienced an extremely frustrating battle, and at this moment, they dispatched several hundred people to guard the manor gate, facing Xu Yao's cavalry, which was chasing behind them, from a distance. Before urging his subordinates to attack the mountain, Fu Chong first had to figure out how severe the losses had been. Fortunately, Gui Weilian, the leader of the Jin Jie Gang, did not urge Fu Chong to help. They could only launch an attack on that small area, and more people would not be of much use temporarily, as they would not be able to spread out.

However, not long after Gui Weilian had a hall master lead his brothers to attack, they saw two hundred or so people rushing to a place more than a hundred steps away from the second mountain gate with surging killing intent in a dense formation. With two loud bangs, two fire oil bombs landed in the crowd and exploded. Two large fires engulfed dozens of people, and the splashing, hot fragments instantly cleared the surrounding area.

Gui Weilian was just a gang leader who fought fiercely in the Jianghu, and at most, he did some liaison and reconnaissance work. He had never seen the great power of such heavy military equipment, and he was instantly stunned. Fu Chong also shuddered, thinking that he would have to pay a heavy price to take down Fuxin Courtyard today. Did Ye Tao, the number one craftsman in the world, have to bring ballistae and fire oil even when he came to Chunnan for an "inspection"?

"Envoy... this..." Gui Weilian looked helplessly at the mysterious man standing behind him. The mysterious man said in a low voice that only he could hear, "Once tonight's matter is over, you will return to Xiling with me. Does what happens here still matter?"

Gui Weilian steeled his heart and said, "Understood. Even if we sacrifice all our brothers, we will offer the people and things to the envoy."

"Gang Leader Gui," Fu Chong sighed, "I will have my soldiers go up with your men. My people are more familiar with the scene of military conflict."

Gui Weilian cupped his hands and said gratefully, "Then thank you very much."

The mysterious man who had been standing behind Gui Weilian raised his hand, and suddenly led a group of people who looked very capable towards the mountain.

"Envoy... Where are you going, Envoy?"

Gui Weilian's urgent question received no answer. Worried about the envoy's safety, Gui Weilian quickly assigned two more hall masters to attack with their subordinates. The so-called envoy and his men did not foolishly rush directly to the second gate, but used their agility to slip into the woods on both sides of the road, seemingly wanting to organize a surprise attack.