Chapter 486: Luck Has Run Out

“Hey, did we hit them or not?”
“You ask me? Who else can I ask? I only see chaos over there!”
“Hey, those brave soldiers who went out to fight outside the city are truly remarkable. If not for them creating that opportunity, we might not have had a chance to fire all at once! They’re all brave men—wish they could return alive!”
“That’s almost certain death. How could they survive? But they’re indeed heroes!”
“Stop talking nonsense and get the gunpowder ready quickly!” Seeing two arquebusiers whispering, Zhou Bailing angrily slapped each of them on the back of the neck before shouting. Then he turned to Zhang Yue with a smile, “These newly made guns are effective, but their power is too great. I’ve been a veteran since the formation of the Divine Machine Camp, and several arrows must have missed! It’s good that they can shoot far, but it also demands high precision from the shooter!”
Zhang Yue looked into the distance and saw that the siege engine was in tatters. He felt great admiration for those cavalrymen who had risked their lives in the attack, and he breathed a sigh of relief. His clenched fists uncurled unconsciously. “If it weren’t for the elite troops from the Divine Machine Camp accompanying us this time, I doubt I could use these weapons even if I brought them. It’s our first time using them. Though I can’t see who was hit, if the arrowheads are indeed poisoned like you said, then those hit will surely die. At least we’ve achieved something…”
Before he could finish speaking, loud cheers suddenly came from the city walls. Zhang Yue quickly looked up and saw the dense ranks of attackers retreating like a tide. After a brief pause, he realized they must have knocked out some important enemy figure. He was overjoyed, but his lips twitched without him being able to smile.
The enemy was retreating! The attack that seemed ready to overwhelm Xinghe was over!
The sun after the snow was usually weak, but everyone under its light felt an unusually warm glow. The soldiers on the city walls dropped the shields they had held tightly, the arquebusiers replaced inside the fortress happily stroked their guns, and the archers sitting on the ground rubbed their sore arms… The only thing in common was the relief on everyone’s faces.

As he descended the stairs of the city wall, Zhang Yue still felt his legs as heavy as lead. Wang Huanshuo indeed kept his word—initially he sent Zhang Yue to the arrow tower without explanation, saying that civil officials didn’t need to fight on the battlefield like military officers. But as the situation worsened, the old military commander immediately pulled him out to take charge, rushing off to consult Zheng Pingyuan. Since Zhou Bailing was training those inexperienced musketeers below, Zhang Yue, who held the highest rank at the time, had no choice but to take responsibility. Not only did he have to face the onslaught of swords and arrows, but also the overwhelming pressure surrounding him.

Fortunately, he managed to hold on!

The earthen walls of Xinghe Fort were mostly only three zhang high. During the fiercest battles earlier, many Tartars had climbed onto the walls, and several sections of the wall parapets were almost filled with blood and flesh. The dense rain of arrows also caused significant casualties. As Zhang Yue walked through the fort, he saw several squad leaders counting the dead and wounded, surrounded by cold corpses. He didn’t know how many of them he had met and spoken to the day before, but passing by the vegetable field, he saw that middle-aged military household kneeling over a corpse, wailing bitterly. Eventually, he had to quicken his pace, his heart filled with sorrow.

“What is Captain Zheng doing?”

“Lord Zhang, do you know where Commander Wang has gone? I’ve searched everywhere but can’t find him!”

At the east gate, he happened to see Zheng Pingyuan losing his temper at a few military households. Curious, he asked, only to be met with a confusing question in return. Frowning, he said, “Didn’t Commander Wang go to see you to discuss defense strategies? I heard later that he was organizing elite troops below to destroy that siege engine. With everyone still inside Xinghe Fort, how is it impossible to find him?”

He had thought Zhang Yue might know something at least, but seeing the genuine confusion on his face, Zheng Pingyuan’s heart skipped a beat. The vague rumors he had heard suddenly surged uncontrollably in his mind. Suppressing his fear, he bowed to Zhang Yue and was about to search again when a soldier beside him suddenly spoke hesitantly.

“When the west gate was opened wide earlier, I seemed to see Commander Wang among those cavalry too, though he seemed to be dressed differently.”

Hearing these simple words, everyone around was shocked. Zhang Yue was completely unprepared for this; Zheng Pingyuan had expected it but couldn’t believe it, while the others were all equally astonished and confused. The first to recover was Zhang Yue, who stepped forward and asked a few detailed questions before confirming that the person in question had only seen them from a distance and not clearly. Yet even so, since Zheng Pingyuan had searched the entire Xinghe Fort without finding anyone, the chances of it being true were quite high.

Zheng Pingyuan’s mind was in complete chaos. Back in Xuanfu, he had been accustomed to those jealous and stubborn superiors. At first, he thought Wang Huan was being obstinate only because he wanted to achieve glory, but now he no longer held that view. The siege engines were destroyed, but if it really was Wang Huan leading the elite troops in an attack, the outcome would likely be disastrous. He heard that an archer had shot and killed an important Tatar figure on the west wall. If it was Wang Huan himself who destroyed the siege engines, then what on earth was this thousand-household commander doing?

“Why go to such lengths, Old Commander… It should have been me. How could he carry out such a dangerous mission without saying a word! Damn it, I deserve to die… I should have realized earlier—he’s different from those cowardly scoundrels. He wouldn’t just send others to die…”

Seeing Zheng Pingyuan muttering to himself in despair, Zhang Yue couldn’t hold back any longer. He stepped forward and said firmly, “This isn’t the time to worry about dying or not. Commander Zheng, don’t forget your duties! Since it’s Arutai’s army attacking now, there are only two possibilities. One is that the siege engines are destroyed, and the person shot by the archer is an important Tatar figure—once he dies, the army will naturally retreat. The other is that although this person is important, he isn’t the leader of the army, so the enemy still has reasons to capture Xinghe. They may retreat for now, but they’ll surely return soon. Although I hope it’s the first possibility, we must be prepared for the second! If it really was Commander Wang who led the troops in the attack, then he definitely wouldn’t want anything to go wrong with Xinghe!”

Suddenly snapping out of his daze, Zheng Pingyuan realized that things weren’t over yet. It was uncertain whether the Tatars would retreat. Gritting his teeth and putting Wang Huan’s fate aside for now, he said, “If that’s the case, I can only rely on Lord Zhang. We’ll divide the troops equally—half for me and half for you. Things have come this far; we must not let Xinghe fall, no matter what.”

In the evening, just as Xinghe Fort had cleaned up the aftermath and was reviving in the glow of the setting sun, a set of bell sounds, more urgent than any previous warnings, suddenly resounded throughout the fort. The moment he heard the bells, Zhang Yue couldn’t help but look up at the sky. He had been lucky enough to excel as a marksman among the chaotic troops, but it seemed his luck had run out!