Chapter Sixteen: The Howling Wind (6)
The drums thundered, urging people forward; the horns sounded solemnly, inspiring loyalty to the country.
The soldiers of Tianwei marched step by step toward the towering city of Suiye, braving arrows like those of locusts. The dark city walls resembled the gaping maw of some ancient beast, ready to devour anything that approached.
Yet the soldiers of Tianwei feared neither life nor death. Within those dark, filthy walls covered in viscous fluids lived countless people with yellow skin and black hair, wearing Tang-style clothing and speaking the Tang language—fellow countrymen just like them. As long as Suiye remained outside the rule of the Tang Dynasty, they could not receive fair treatment or enjoy the dignity owed to its citizens.
What is the true meaning of a powerful empire? Isn’t it to protect its people and ensure they live in peace?
When bandits and thieves wreak havoc, the government must suppress them; when barbarians invade and raiders plunder, the army must fight back. Only such a nation deserves the people’s trust and sacrifice—only such a nation deserves to be defended with blood and life!
If a powerful empire cannot even protect the dignity of its own people, what meaning does its strength hold? It is nothing but a song for those in power!
If that’s the case, then the slogan “Those who defy the might of the Great Han shall be punished, no matter how far away they are” becomes nothing but a ridiculous lie. If that’s the case, why would anyone risk their lives for the sake of a family’s throne or a ruler’s vanity?
What is needed to defend dignity? It’s not the grand speeches of a wise emperor sitting in the Daming Palace, nor the lofty words of the court officials. What’s needed are real battles—fights where blood is shed and lives are lost!
We are not fighting alone! Around us are countless comrades; behind us are countless fellow countrymen waiting anxiously. In our hearts lies an unyielding resolve.
Defend dignity! Defend it for that unyielding resolve, for that eternal aspiration…
500 steps, 400 steps, 300 steps…
The first thousand-man unit served as the vanguard, tasked with providing cover. Therefore, they must not retreat an inch. They were a wall—a wall protecting their comrades. As long as the men stood, the wall stood; if the men fell, the wall could not fall!
Just like the resilient poplar trees in the deserts, enduring for three thousand years—never dying, never falling, never decaying!
Even if their bodies have died, they will not fall. They will use their corpses to shield their comrades from the flying arrows, buying them a chance to live. Even if their bodies lie fallen, they will not leave the battlefield. Their souls will silently watch over their comrades, watch as they capture Suiye City, and watch as the Tang Dynasty’s banners fly high above it.
On the battlefield, do not speak of fame and glory misleading you—when the battle axes are raised, all things are destroyed!
Hey, on the battlefield, do not speak of fame and glory misleading you—when the battle axes are raised, all things are destroyed! All things destroyed!
Since almost all the senior generals in Anxi region were called away by Gao Xianzhi to fight against the Arabs, there was a severe shortage of high-ranking officers in the Tianwei Army. The commander of the First Thousand Men Unit was a colonel named Zhou Fanghu, though those who knew him well preferred to call him Zhou Laohu or Brother Hu.
Zhou Fanghu had been promoted to colonel through his bravery in the bloody battles at Shibao City, having witnessed the brutality and mercilessness of war firsthand. Or rather, it was the dead comrades who paved the way for his promotion, their countless bones guiding him to the gates of Shibao City.
After experiencing the horrors of the netherworld, Zhou Fanghu became even more skilled and decisive, better at protecting himself.
No matter what ethnicity you are or for whom you fight, on the battlefield, you are equally vulnerable. A stray arrow can pierce your skull, a spear tip can rupture your internal organs, and a moment of hesitation can cost you your head to the enemy…
To survive, one must charge forward with a resolve to die, without a single moment of doubt. That’s right! To survive, one must embrace a willingness to die. Only those who see through life and death will not hesitate or slow down out of fear of death.
The more afraid one is of death, the easier it is to become a target, while those who disregard life and death often survive to the end!
Whether you find it ridiculous or not, this is the harsh reality.
“Brothers, don’t be afraid! Charge with me! If your head gets cut off, a big scar will form—and in twenty years, you’ll still be a hero. Suiye City isn’t that high to climb. Guys, push harder and get over there! Kill those Turkic bastards and take it back!”
Zhou Fanghu roared with all his might, like an enraged lion wounded in battle. At three hundred paces, they were within range of the crossbows. Although the Turkic people couldn’t build crossbow vehicles, it didn’t mean they couldn’t order the Han craftsmen in Suiye City to create them.
The most advanced technique in the Tang Army was crossbow-making. The craftsmen who mastered this skill were usually kept under military control, and their knowledge was passed down from father to son. Outsiders rarely had a chance to understand its intricacies.
But during the reign of Emperor Gaozong, many craftsmen skilled in crossbow manufacturing were stationed with the army in the Suiye region. Later, as the Turkic tribes rose to power and seized Suiye Town, these craftsmen ended up in their lands. To survive, they naturally took on tasks assigned by the Turkic tribes to make bed crossbows. Perhaps after several generations, they had long forgotten their heritage as descendants of the Yan and Huang emperors. To them, the Tang Dynasty might have seemed like nothing more than a fancy, unfamiliar symbol. The range of large bed crossbows could reach 450 steps, while even smaller ones could reach 300 steps. The power of crossbow arrows was immense, often capable of piercing leather armor as thick as a finger or chainmail of average thickness. Among the armor styles used by the Tang army, only the Mingguang armor could withstand such attacks. Yet Mingguang armor was extremely expensive, available only to the Mo Dao army and the commander’s closest loyal troops—how could everyone have one? However, crossbow arrows had a fatal flaw: their trajectory was horizontal, so they couldn’t, like arrows from a bow, follow a high arc to bypass shields and effectively strike enemies behind cover. But now, the Turkic tribes had the advantage of terrain. Those damned bastards even placed huge stones the size of grinding mills under the crossbows, tilting them enough to allow them to effectively pierce shields and crash down from above! Many soldiers of the Tianwei Army were killed this way, their heads pierced by arrows without even a chance to cry out. Although they had sturdy square shields for protection, the steep angle of the bed crossbows meant that if they covered their faces, their chests and below would be exposed, which was equally dangerous. They were now in a dilemma! Gradually, some soldiers of the Tianwei Army, unable to bear the pressure, abandoned their armor and fled, scattering the second and third battalions following behind them. But their desire to survive clearly didn’t earn them any sympathy from their commander, Li Kuo. They had just crossed the first camp and reached their allies when they were immediately beheaded by the Copper Weapon Camp’s enforcement squad, whose heads were then displayed on bamboo poles as a warning! At this moment, Zhou Fanghu’s face had turned as red as pig liver. After enduring it for a long time, he finally roared, “Damn it! Those who have guts, come at me! Kill those Turkic bastards! Kill one, gain one; kill two, gain a pair. Death is inevitable for all of us—we’re all men, so stop being cowards!”
Dozens of Tianwei soldiers from the First Thousand Regiment had their heads cut off by the military court, which filled Zhou Fanghu with shame. He too was a veteran who had crawled out of the dead—how could he not understand the hardships of his soldiers? But now was not the time for sentimentality.
Thousands of comrades followed behind them. If the deserters and defeated soldiers scattered in the opposite direction, countless Tang soldiers would be trampled to death by their own people, even without the cavalry firing arrows at them!
“Charge forward! Work in groups of three, protect each other’s vital points—don’t overthink it! Just charge with me!”
Under the protection of his bodyguards, Zhou Fanghu struggled forward toward the dark city walls. Though one of his bodyguards fell with each step he took, he refused to stop.
The battlefield was already a meat grinder. If one was afraid of death, why would they join the army in search of survival? Those who survived were lucky; those who died did so by taking arrows and blocking blades for their comrades!
The Tianwei soldiers who were terrified and wanted to flee were stunned upon seeing their captain’s bravery. Glancing back at the bloody heads hanging on bamboo poles not far away, they finally gritted their teeth and stepped forward, protecting each other’s vital points.
Death was inevitable anyway. Rather than retreating and having their heads cut off as deserters, it was better to fight against those barbarian cavalry. If they won, they could secure wives and heirs and live in luxury; if they lost, so be it—after all, their captain was risking his life at the forefront.
Why were they so spineless, doing things that would make others pity them?
Sharpening knives whines like water; water stains the blades and hurts the hands.
The desire to ease pain only deepens the turmoil in the heart.
A husband vows loyalty to his country—what more reason for regret?
Seeking glory like a qilin, one’s bones should decay swiftly in battle.
To hell with it! Fight those barbarian cavalry! Kill one, gain one; kill two, gain a pair!
With the sound of drums and horns, arrows flying like springs, an unyielding wall made of flesh and blood slowly moved toward the dark city walls outside Shuiye City!