Chapter 114

Chapter 114

Tong Sui had used up a hundred arrows by the time half an hour had passed in the city defense battle.

At this point, her arms were so sore that she could barely draw the bow anymore.

She was using the golden bow Xiao Zhen had given her, which required a strength of a hundred jin to fully draw.

When the enemy soldiers were close, Tong Sui could conserve some energy, but when they were far, she had to give it her all.

Although Tong Sui had practiced archery since childhood, she had never fired arrows so intensively before. Her endurance was entirely fueled by the life-and-death situation.

Not just her own life and death, but also those of the soldiers defending the city. Every additional arrow she fired could save several soldiers from danger.

Xiao Mu, busy commanding the city defenders, still kept an eye on his granddaughter-in-law. Seeing Tong Sui, covered in blood and leaning against the inner side of the city wall, gasping for breath, Xiao Mu grabbed his own bow and ordered a guard to pick up the empty quivers they had just collected from the city wall. He then quickly ran to the parapet, aiming at the enemy below while instructing, "Aman, leave this to Grandfather; you go command."

Tong Sui shook her arms and looked at the determined profile of the elderly man, marred with wrinkles, saying, "Alright, I'll switch with Grandfather after another half hour."

Xiao Mu's lips curved upward in response.

The soldiers on the city wall had already been replaced, so there was no need to worry about their stamina for now. Tong Sui quickly took command, directing the soldiers to throw stones and logs where needed, push down ladders, and help the wounded.

In between commands, Tong Sui also kept an eye on the elderly man.

Even before she married into the Xiao family, she had heard that he was a thousand-household commander. After marrying in, Tong Sui witnessed his vigor and saw him wielding a spear on the martial arts platform, but she had never seen him draw a bow and shoot arrows.

Now, observing him, she noticed that his bow was the same size as Xiao Zhen's golden bow, requiring a force of over two hundred jin to draw. With ease, he shot an arrow that brought down an enemy soldier on a ladder.

Tong Sui looked toward the enemy army.

The Xiao family members led by example on the battlefield, while Li Gang and Mr. Fan stayed far behind the main forces. If they dared to come within half a mile of the city wall, the elderly man could easily kill the rebel king with a single arrow.

Initially, Li Gang and Mr. Fan hadn't stayed too far away, but they were frightened by Tong Sui's exceptional archery skills. The effectiveness of both armies' archers relied on sheer numbers, but whenever the second lady of the Xiao family stood on the parapet, wherever she aimed, someone died. Li Gang had recruited fifty thousand troops across five counties but found no one who could match her skill.

This one woman alone slowed their attack on the city.

When the elderly man personally joined the fray, not only did he aim as accurately as Tong Sui, but he shot even farther. Li Gang retreated another hundred steps, frowning and ordering a nearby soldier, "Pass the order: the next wave of arrows should focus on the eastern parapet."

Mr. Fan moved his lips slightly.

Their supply of arrows was dwindling, and focusing on the parapet seemed wasteful, but if they could kill the elderly man, the city defenders might surrender immediately due to losing their leader. Thus, Mr. Fan tacitly approved of the prince's strategy.

From above, Tong Sui noticed the change in the enemy archers and shouted, "Shield soldiers to the eastern parapet! Arrow rain is coming!"

Several shield soldiers rushed to the parapet, raising their hard wooden shields just before the arrow rain arrived, protecting all the archers on the parapet. The soldiers on either side of the parapet also heard her clear voice and promptly pressed themselves against the inner side of the city wall, avoiding the arrow rain.

Tong Sui: "Don't move, another wave is coming!"

The enemy fired three waves of arrows before giving up due to the tight defenses on the city wall.

Xiao Mu laughed loudly, leading the soldiers in a chorus, "Thank you, Li Yaya, for the arrows!"

The former yaya, now rebel king Li Gang, pounded his saddle in anger, roaring at his subordinates, "Charge! Today, I will cut off the old bastard's head and drink wine with it!"

Thirty thousand enemy soldiers charged forward, wave after wave, dying and being replaced. The city defenders began organizing civilians to help defend the walls. While the soldiers continued to push back ladders and engage in combat, the civilians threw stones and logs, a task that required significant strength and quick rotation.

By the time Tong Sui had used up another hundred arrows, the sun had slowly moved to the middle of the sky.

The city defenders were exhausted, and the rebels were equally fatigued, with morale waning due to heavy casualties and the lack of progress.

Mr. Fan said to Li Gang, "Your Highness, the troops have been fighting for half a day and are hungry. Let's take a break and resume in the afternoon. The Xiao family is fighting a losing battle. Use this mealtime to boost morale, and we will surely break through the city this afternoon."

Li Gang frowned and said, "Fine, I'll listen to your advice."

Mr. Fan ordered the trumpets to sound.

The enemy soldiers gathered around the city wall finally retreated, leaving behind countless corpses and a bloodstained wall.

Tong Sui glanced downward once before turning away.

However, the gruesome sight on the city wall was even more unbearable.

Xiao Mu told her to rest on the second floor of the watchtower while he commanded the cleanup.

Tong Sui knew there would be another fierce battle in the afternoon and silently went upstairs.

The women in the city had prepared lunch and were bringing it in batches.

Zhou Qing climbed the stairs to the second floor, finding the door open and her daughter sitting alone in the northwest corner, covered in blood, eyes closed, either asleep or lost in thought.

Zhou Qing couldn't help but cry out.

Tong Sui opened her eyes, seeing her mother and was shocked, trying to stand up.

Zhou Qing quickly said, "Don't move, are you injured anywhere?"

She rushed to her daughter's side, setting down the tray and anxiously checking her for wounds.

Tong Sui smiled, "I'm fine, it's all... Mother, why are you here?"

Zhou Qing continued touching her daughter's armor and pants, ensuring there were no injuries, then wiped her eyes, "Why can't I help cook for you? Eat quickly; this is the porridge and egg soup I made. It's not hot anymore, just right."

Tong Sui reached for it, but Zhou Qing, noticing her bloody hands, stopped her, "Mother will feed you; just open your mouth."

With these words, Tong Sui burst into tears.

Her hands and body were covered in the blood of the city defenders, her own people's blood.

At the enemy camp, the meal was not yet ready.

Li Gang sat in the main tent, listening to his subordinates report on the casualties and weapon losses from the morning battle.

The more he heard, the grimmer his expression became. Just then, a sudden sound of galloping hooves came from outside, accompanied by a voice shouting, "Your Highness, it's bad!"

Li Gang rushed out.

A scout rode up to the tent, falling off his horse due to the abrupt stop. He got up and knelt, saying, "Your Highness, it's bad! Xiao Zhen has mobilized his troops!"

It was something Li Gang had anticipated, but he was puzzled as to why Xiao Zhen had only just moved now: "Has he come this way?"

The scout replied, "No, he's gone to Ding County, Your Highness. I counted them—Xiao Zhen has about three thousand cavalry, not just one thousand!"

Li Gang was speechless.

Mr. Fan felt a chill run down his spine. "Where did he get three thousand? Are you sure you didn't miscount?"

The scout looked up, panicked and frightened. "I watched those horses rush out of their camp myself. Because the numbers seemed off, I counted them personally. There are roughly three thousand, no mistake!"

Mr. Fan slapped his hand and said to Li Gang, "Oh no, Xiao Zhen is trying to save Zhao by besieging Wei. Three thousand cavalry are equivalent to fifteen thousand regular infantry. Although Second Prince has twenty thousand troops, they are mostly untrained civilians. They can't handle Xiao Zhen's cavalry alone. If the eight thousand troops in Ding County break out and join forces with Xiao Zhen, Second Prince will be in grave danger!"

Second Prince Li Zhen is brave, but his two thousand troops are not united. If they surrender to Xiao Zhen's cavalry, he could lead them to kill Second Prince and then attack Wei County!

After a moment's thought, Mr. Fan suggested, "Your Highness, send our two thousand cavalry ahead to support Second Prince. Our main force will follow closely. If we can crush Xiao Zhen's cavalry, it would be a great victory. Even if they escape upon hearing the news, at least we'll preserve our main force and plan new tactics."

Li Gang was even more worried about his brother and the two thousand troops. Without bothering to eat, he immediately ordered the troops to set out.

On the second floor of the city wall, after crying, Tong Sui let her mother feed her. She needed to eat well to continue fighting in the afternoon.

Suddenly, the guards below shouted excitedly, "Commander, Second Lady, the rebel king has left!"

Upon hearing this, Tong Sui jumped up, ran to the window, and saw that the rebel king's army had indeed withdrawn!

Was it because Xiao Zhen had taken action?

---

The rebel king's two thousand cavalry sped along the same route they had come. Li Gang and Mr. Fan led the infantry slowly, losing sight of the cavalry.

To conserve energy, Li Gang ordered the kitchen to distribute emergency rations—flatbreads. At this time of year, these dry flatbreads could last ten days without spoiling.

Soldiers walked while gnawing on the flatbreads, with no water, only waves of dust.

Li Gang urged them on, and the infantry marched relatively quickly. After an hour and a half, they reached the hilly area between Ding County and Wei County.

Once bitten, twice shy. Li Gang cautiously scanned the hills on both sides.

Seeing this, Mr. Fan smiled and said, "Your Highness, don't worry. We checked these hills yesterday, and since then, the troops in Ding and Wei Counties have been guarding their gates. Only Xiao Zhen's cavalry is stationed outside. There can't be any ambushes here."

Li Gang agreed, and since the two thousand cavalry had also scouted the area, he continued leading the troops at full speed.

As the less than three thousand infantry filled the mountain pass, a loud shout suddenly echoed from the hills: "Fire!"

Li Gang looked up sharply and saw a row of ghostly figures emerging, followed by a rain of arrows.

Reacting quickly, he leaped to the inside of his horse, but the horse, sensing danger, started running forward, regardless of whether it would kick the soldiers. As it ran, a blazing fire suddenly erupted ahead, causing the horses to circle and pace in panic.

The middle section of the enemy troops suffered terribly. The arrows rained down in three waves, and as soon as they stopped, logs rolled down the hills.

Furious, Li Gang yelled at Mr. Fan, "Didn't you say there were no ambushes? These are ghosts!"

Mr. Fan dodged among the soldiers, likely not hearing him.

When the logs finished rolling, Li Gang glanced at his still-numerous troops and drew his sword. "Brothers, charge with me! They only have a little over a thousand men. In broad daylight, they have nowhere to hide. They're no match for us!"

Just as he spoke, Xiao Yan, Xiao Ye, and Sun Dian appeared with their three thousand infantry behind Xiao Shouyi and Qiao Changshun's two thousand infantry.

Li Gang was stunned.

Xiao Yan shouted to the enemy troops below, "I've been lying on this cold hill waiting for you all night. Now it's time for some fun. Those who dare, come and fight me; those who are afraid, drop your weapons and kneel. The Xiao family doesn't kill those who surrender—it's our rule!"

Xiao Ye retorted, "Why remind them? How could they serve someone like Li Gang, who oppresses the people? I want to wipe them all out!"

Sun Dian added, "Enough talk, brothers, charge!"

Without waiting for the enemy to climb up, the five thousand infantry charged down the hill with swords and spears.

The rebel side had more men but far fewer proper weapons. The soldiers armed with farming tools were terrified when they saw the Wei County troops each carrying sharp long spears. Many immediately dropped to their knees.

Seeing the three robust men charging towards him, Li Gang's heart sank. He grabbed another horse and whipped it fiercely. "Run! Everyone, run! Run and live!"

If he ran fast enough, the three men wouldn't catch him!

Unfortunately, Xiao Yan and his companions could also seize horses.

Xiao Ye was the most cunning. He had already targeted a horse during the descent. Now, mounting it, he laughed and said to Xiao Yan and Sun Dian, "The rebel king is mine. You stay and hold the line!"