Chapter 65: Triumph at Wuli Fortress

A cloud of dust rose in the distance as a troop of about three hundred Jie cavalry galloped toward the Li Family Village. The cavalry halted at the village entrance. A burly, armored chieftain with long hair rode to the front and surveyed the village. To his bewilderment, apart from the ceaseless barking of dogs and a few crows of roosters, the village seemed utterly deserted. This puzzled the chieftain greatly; during past raids, villages would invariably be thrown into absolute chaos with peasants fleeing in panic, yet now there was not a single soul to be seen.

The chieftain raised a hand to signal his men, and two long-haired Jie cavalrymen wearing small braids rode into the village, holding curved sabers and inspecting the area back and forth.

As the Jie cavalry outside the village waited for the scouting report, two shrill screams rang out from within, followed by complete silence. A short while later, two riderless horses strolled out of the village, their backs stained with blood.

"What? Damn it, charge in, men, and slaughter these two-legged sheep!" the Jie chieftain ordered the cavalry behind him.

Receiving the command, the Jie cavalry let out eerie hollowness and charged into the village, howling, "Roar! Roar! Roar!" However, once inside, all they found were two corpses lying on the ground, with no one else in sight.

"Search the place!" came another command. The Jie cavalry dismounted and rushed into the courtyards in groups of three to five. To their even greater surprise, every single peasant household possessed cattle, sheep, and horses—something that had never happened in previous years. Yet these Jie tribesmen showed no interest in livestock, as the grasslands were never short of beasts. What they wanted to plunder was grain, so they began rummaging through chests and cabinets for grain, cloth, and other valuables.

Yet after searching for a long time, not a single grain of rice was found. Just as everyone was wondering, two more screams rang out from somewhere unknown, and another two soldiers fell after being shot by arrows.

A soldier shouted, "Careful! They're in the tunnels!" Hearing this, the rest of the soldiers raised their bows and shot arrows toward the discovered tunnel openings. The better archers managed to shoot their arrows deep inside, but after going in just a short distance, the arrows were blocked by earth and stones.

Before they could react, screams echoed from other courtyards: "Ah! Ah!"

Soldiers fell to arrows one after another. These once rampant and overbearing Jie soldiers began to panic. The chieftain cursed angrily, "Damn it! Men, go down into the tunnels and drag these damned Han people out!"

Three soldiers, not daring to disobey the order, lit torches and cautiously crawled into the tunnel. Not long after descending, a scream pierced the air; the leading soldier was pierced through the chest by an arrow. The two remaining Jie soldiers did not dare to advance further and hurriedly retreated.

"Damn it! Are these Han people rats? Men, dig open this tunnel entrance!" the Jie chieftain roared.

Immediately, several soldiers began digging around the tunnel opening. However, after just a few strikes, an arrow flew out from the hole, piercing straight through the center of a soldier's brow. The remaining soldiers scrambled to dodge.

The Jie chieftain was so furious that his mustache bristled. Then, his eyes rolled as a thought struck him. "Seal the tunnel entrances tightly and suffocate them inside!"

Near the village entrance, many soldiers had dismounted and left their horses by the gate, guarded by a few men, while others sat in their saddles, holding long sabers and keeping a vigilant eye on the surroundings. Suddenly, a large rooster flew out from a haystack, flapping its wings and screaming as it charged into the horses. The horses instantly panicked and bolted in all directions. One soldier, standing right in the path of the herd, failed to dodge in time and was knocked to the ground and trampled to death. Some horses dashed out of the village into the distance, while others stampeded wildly along the pathways deeper into the village.

A muffled chuckle came from the haystack, and a child of about thirteen or fourteen slid down into a tunnel and vanished.

Upon receiving the report that the horses had been spooked and fled the village, the furious chieftain snatched a torch from a soldier's hand and hurled it onto a thatched roof. The straw on the roof instantly burst into roaring flames. "Burn this village to the ground for me!"

Since the peasants' houses were mostly made of adobe and thatch, a raging fire engulfed the village in moments. The horses had not run far before stopping and were quickly rounded up by the Jie soldiers. Tallying their numbers, the Jie troops realized they had failed to plunder a single grain of grain yet had lost over a dozen men.

Seeing the towering flames within the village, the Jie chieftain reluctantly led his troops away and advanced toward Wuli Fortress, not far to the south.

At Wuli Fortress, Wei Xiang had long since received intelligence about the Jie attack on Li Family Village. Spotting the Jie forces heading toward Wuli Fortress through his telescope, Wei Xiang ordered his bailiffs to strike the gong three times to notify everyone to prepare. Meanwhile, Wei Xiang and five bailiffs swaggered to the village entrance, waiting until the Jie troops drew close before feigning panic and fleeing into the village.

Seeing the peasants running in panic, the Jie assumed there was no trap this time and spurred their horses in fierce pursuit. They had barely entered the village when a volley of arrows was unleashed. Over twenty Jie men tumbled from their saddles amid cries. The Jie chieftain was utterly enraged, realizing he had fallen into a trap. Just as he was about to order his men to turn their horses around and retreat, Wei Xiang reappeared with a cheeky grin on the street ahead. Wei Xiang turned around, patted his backside toward the chieftain, and taunted, "Hahaha, little rabbits, come and get me!"

"Release arrows!" the chieftain roared.

Dozens of arrows sped toward Wei Xiang. He neither ducked nor dodged; the armor he wore was a gift from the Prince of Yan, belonging to the elite guards and far sturdier than standard armor, protecting his entire body. Dozens of arrows struck Wei Xiang with clanging sounds. He looked himself over, seeing deep dents gouged into many armor plates by the arrows, with a couple even embedded in the metal, but thankfully his flesh remained unharmed.

Wei Xiang hopped on one foot in a fit of rage and cursed foully, "Damn your mother, little rabbits! Do you have any idea how expensive this armor of mine is? You bastards—" As he spoke, Wei Xiang picked up a clod of dirt and hurled it hard at the Jie soldiers.

The Jie troops could not understand a word of what Wei Xiang was shouting. Yet, seeing him suffer dozens of arrow strikes without the slightest injury, they were astonished and simultaneously intrigued by his armor. Observing that Wei Xiang not only refused to run but was shouting insults at him—though he didn't understand the words, he knew they weren't pleasant—and, most infuriatingly, hurling dirt clods at him, the chieftain roared, "Kill him!" Several cavalrymen instantly charged at Wei Xiang. Just as they were about to reach him, the ground beneath their horses' hooves suddenly gave way, and the riders plunged forward. A camouflaged pitfall spanned the middle of the road, and men and horses fell in together. Sharp wooden stakes spiked the bottom of the pit, piercing through the chests of horses and soldiers alike. Two of them reacted quickly, avoiding the pit and tumbling onto the opposite side. One soldier performed a forward roll and, just as he tried to rise, felt a chilling wind rush over his head. Before he could figure out what was happening, his head rolled onto the ground, coming to a halt right in front of another soldier. In a mere flash, the saber Wei Xiang had swung downward slashed back upward, aiming straight for the remaining soldier's face. The soldier instinctively tried to dodge, but it was too late. The heavy blade slashed diagonally upward across his face, splitting it completely in half.

The Jie chieftain, burning with rage, spurred his mount straight at Wei Xiang, followed closely by his guards. Sensing danger, Wei Xiang swiftly slipped into a nearby courtyard. The chieftain leaped his horse across the pitfall and charged into the courtyard, only to find no trace of Wei Xiang.

"Search!" the chieftain roared.

The soldiers flooded into the house, searching frantically for a long time without finding a soul—only a dark, gaping tunnel entrance. At this sight, the Jie chieftain understood completely; just like the previous village, the peasants had all hidden underground. Unwilling to swallow such humiliation, he once again ordered his men to light torches and investigate the tunnel.

A few soldiers mustered their courage, lit torches, and crawled into the tunnel. This time, no screams were heard, but the men simply vanished without a trace, ignoring all shouts from the entrance with utter silence from within.

One soldier said to the chieftain, "Chieftain Sha, this is just like the last village we encountered. I think we should withdraw first."

"Chieftain, bad news! The village entrance is on fire!" a soldier reported in a panic.

The chieftain berated him, "What are you shouting about just because there's a fire?"

"No, Chieftain, we didn't set that fire!" the soldier cried.

"What is going on?"

"The haystacks at the village entrance were ignited, blocking our way out," the panicked soldier explained.

More furious than ever, the Jie chieftain cast one lingering, bitter look at the tunnel entrance and said helplessly, "Fall back."

Just as the chieftain stepped out of the house, a flurry of screams erupted outside: "Ah! Ah! Ah!"

"Ambush! Ambush! Protect the Grand Chieftain!" At the command, several soldiers clustered around the chieftain, shielding him toward the courtyard gate.

"Quick, retreat! Charge out through the other side of the village!" the chieftain yelled. Yet moments later, they discovered that the opposite exit was also blocked by blazing piles of fire. At the same time, arrows showered from various hidden corners, knocking several more Jie soldiers from their saddles.

"There are people over there! Shoot!"

"There are people that way too!"

"Fall back! Out through another exit!"

Yet when they reached yet another village exit, they found Wei Xiang standing there with a cheeky smile on his face. Knowing that anyone daring to stand alone must have tricks up his sleeve, the chieftain hesitated for a fraction of a second before shouting decisively, "Fall back!" Everyone whirled their horses around and galloped in another direction.

Left stranded in the wind, Wei Xiang yelled, "Hey, damn it, don't run!"

The chieftain cursed viciously—words that sounded much like calling someone an idiot—and galloped away.

"Who the hell are you calling an idiot?!" Wei Xiang pointed at the chieftain's retreating back, jumping up and down in anger.

Arrows continued to whistle from hidden angles from time to time, dropping soldiers from their mounts, but the chieftain paid no heed, fixating solely on finding a route out of the village. When he finally burst out of the village, he realized that more than half of his three hundred men were gone. Before he could recover his wits, however, a troop of armored cavalry came charging toward them.

The equipment of this cavalry unit was clearly far superior to his own remaining force. While his men wore leather armor, these troops wore full metal plate. Charging forward, the cavalrymen raised crossbows, and with a flurry of whirring sounds, over a hundred arrows flew toward them.

"Fall back!" the Jie chieftain roared, spurring his mount toward the flank. Yet their speed was far inferior to that of the arrows. Some soldiers were struck down the moment they tried to turn their mounts, shrinking their numbers by yet another half. The surviving Jie soldiers whipped their horses frantically while drawing the bows from their saddles to ready a counterattack.

Seeing the leader attempting to escape, Zhou Hu loosed a crossbow bolt straight at the chieftain's horse. The steed crashed to the ground, hurling the chieftain from the saddle. Seeing this, the remaining soldiers turned back to rescue him, engaging the elite guards in melee. Due to the disparity in numbers and the superior equipment of the guards—whose fine armor rendered the blades of the Jie completely harmless to their bodies—dozens of Jie soldiers were slaughtered in short order.

Zhou Hu led his men on horseback, encircling the remaining remnant force. Unwilling to yield, the Jie chieftain brandished his curved saber and charged at Zhou Hu, but a guard shot a crossbow bolt straight into his calf, dropping him to the ground.

Not far away, Old Wei, having witnessed the battle unfold, charged out of the village with a dozen bailiff brothers, but by the time they arrived, the fight was already over.

Wei Xiang strode forward with his blade drawn, intent on executing the Jie chieftain, only to be intercepted by Zhou Hu. "Commander Wei, hold your hand."

"No way, don't stop me, Brother Hu! The bastard called me an idiot, I have to butcher him!"

Zhou Hu wore a wry, helpless expression, thinking to himself that these Jie tribesmen actually knew how to speak Han Chinese.

"Enough, Commander Wei. The Prince ordered us to keep a live prisoner. This fellow is a chieftain and still has his uses," Zhou Hu said.

"Fine, I'll listen to the Prince then," Wei Xiang relented upon hearing the Prince of Yan's name, though he still vented his spleen by kicking the chieftain hard. "Bah, idiot."

The Jie chieftain attempted to struggle, but the elite guards pinned him firmly to the earth.

"Tie him up," Zhou Hu ordered, "and escort him back to Yan City."

Turning to Wei Xiang, Zhou Hu asked, "Commander Wei, what are the casualties among the villagers?"

"Hehe, not a single injury, not a single death! This hasn't happened in decades; the Prince's strategy is simply brilliant," Wei Xiang boasted proudly.

"Oh? And how many enemies were killed?"

"Haven't tallied them yet, but there must be around a hundred or so," Wei Xiang replied.

"Really?"

"Of course! If you don't believe me, go look for yourself," Wei Xiang said, gesturing toward the village.

"Hahaha, if that's true, Commander Wei has rendered the greatest service! When we return to the city, the brothers will surely petition for your reward," Zhou Hu laughed heartily. "By the way, are there any other survivors?"

Hearing this, Wei Xiang gave a slight start and hurried back toward the village. Puzzled, Zhou Hu followed him closely. Upon entering the village, they saw that the Jie soldiers who had been shot and wounded had already been thoroughly beaten to a pulp by the villagers—their own mothers would likely have been unable to recognize them.

The two men exchanged glances. This was the accumulated, suppressed hatred the peasants held against the Jie, finally finding an outlet today. Some villagers beat and cursed the bodies simultaneously, shouting out names and claiming they had finally avenged their loved ones.

Zhou Hu dispatched a few men to escort the Jie chieftain and two other surviving prisoners back to Yan City. Meanwhile, Wei Xiang instructed the remaining bailiffs to direct the villagers in cleaning up the enemy corpses and burying them in the wilderness. He then conferred with Zhou Hu on their next steps. This particular troop of Jie cavalry had been wiped out, but two other forces remained—one to the south, one to the north.

According to intelligence, the other enemy detachment had appeared ten miles to the southwest and could reach them within half an hour. The two men immediately decided to head straight in that direction.

The securely bound Jie chieftain was escorted back to Yanjing City. Scouts, having received the news earlier, had already galloped back to the city to report, shouting all the way along the streets: "Victory! Victory! Commander Wei and Commander Zhou have slain over three hundred enemies and captured their chieftain alive!"