Chapter 45: Canglang (IV)

The crowd was filled with fervor. With each swing of the over a hundred halberds, a hundred rebel soldiers were split in two. Blood sprayed everywhere, limbs flew apart, and heads rolled around along with spilled intestines and internal organs. The fearless rebel soldiers finally grew afraid. Ignoring their comrades behind them, they rushed toward the battlements. The newly arrived rebels, confused, were pushed off the city walls by their own men, emitting cries of pain.
“Advance!”
Nan Jiyun repeated this command simply and firmly. With every step forward by the Tang army, dozens of rebel soldiers died under the halberds. Blood stained the battlements and flowed down through the cracks.
“Can we say we have no clothes? I’ll share mine with you. The king has raised an army to sharpen our spears. We share the same hatred. Can we say we have no clothes…”
At some point, the Tang army’s battle song resounded over the walls of Suiyang. It was a solemn ceremony, a long-awaited revenge, a night of satisfying vengeance.
“Your Majesty, are you watching?”
Nan Jiyun sighed deeply, letting the rain wash away the blood from his cheeks.
Heads rolled, blood splattered, limbs lay scattered, and cries of agony filled the air. At this moment, the walls of Suiyang belonged to the Tang army, to the halberd troops, to Zhang’s army!…
The moon was dim, and the stars shone brightly.
After half a day of siege, Linghu Chao had already figured out the Tang army’s tactics.
Zhang Xun, Zhang Xun, that’s all you’ve got? Now, the “clumsy donkey” has shown all its skills. When the real “tiger” unleashes its power, let’s see how you’ll handle it!
A smile appeared on Linghu Chao’s lips. The Tang army was surely still basking in the joy of defeating their enemies, unaware that they were getting closer and closer to death. If they weren’t given a taste of victory, how would they believe it?
Hmph, how could the army of the Great Yan Empire be so weak? They were just waiting for an opportunity, an opportunity for the Tang army to become careless.
As for now, Linghu Chao stared at the Tang army’s flags on the walls of Suiyang and smiled coldly: Let’s see who’s stronger!
His trump card was, of course, the battering ram—but the one on the north wall was only to draw attention. The real one that would do the damage was the one on the south wall!
The attack at the city gates was relentless. The ten-zhang-long battering ram began to strike the gates.
“Boom!”
A dull roar echoed across the plain, like thunder in winter, utterly terrifying.
“Boom!”
The city gates shook violently, and a crack several feet long appeared beneath them.
“Boom!”
Another loud crash sent the entire city of Suiyang trembling.

He Gan Chengji was overjoyed and shouted loudly, “Kill them! Charge in and wipe out these two-legged sheep!”
“Boom!”
With a dull sound, the south gate of Suiyang City was forced open by the rebels, who rushed into the city shouting. ……
On a raised mound in Luolong Valley, nearly five thousand soldiers lay hidden in dense clusters.
The commander of this army was Zheng Shanglun.
Since being attacked by Dou Qing’s Jianghuai army the previous night, almost all of the thousands of soldiers under his command had been killed by the Tang forces. Although he had managed to seriously injure Dou Qing, a major general in the Tang army, this achievement paled in comparison to his own losses.
Back in his own army’s camp outside Qinglang Valley, he was severely scolded by General Ashina Baxie, who threatened to remove him from his position if he failed to stop Li Kuo’s Jianghuai army.
Hmph! Why should he remove me from my position? Just because of a momentary mistake?
He was waiting for an opportunity—a chance to take full revenge!
“Whoosh!” Suddenly, a bunch of torches lit up 500 steps away, followed by flames appearing 400 steps, 300 steps, and even 100 steps away. The golden flames merged into one line, resembling a fire dragon.
The opportunity had finally arrived!
Zheng Shanglun’s heart sank as he clenched his fists.
Whoosh! A blue command flag swept across the night sky. The rebel soldiers took out the flint from their belts and struck it, producing sparks.
“Sizzle!”
As soon as the flames touched the cloth wrapped around the arrows, they ignited fiercely, illuminating the soldiers’ faces. The cloth had already been soaked in tung oil, causing immediate bursts of flames.
“Whoosh! Whoosh!”
A black command flag was waved twice in the air. Zheng Shanglun immediately removed the wooden token from his mouth, stood up, and shouted, “Shoot!”
At his command, thousands of arrows were fired simultaneously.
The strong wind made the flags flutter, and nearly a thousand fire snakes, with their “fangs” extended, rushed toward their prey in the valley.
“Ah!”
“Ugh!”
Feathered arrows pierced the throats of the Jianghuai soldiers, penetrated their heads, and went through their vests…
Due to this sudden attack, the Tang soldiers at the front cried out in pain and fell to the ground one after another.
This wave of arrows caught the Jianghuai soldiers off guard, killing over 500 of them instantly. The remaining arrows hit the dry trees at the entrance of the valley, and with the intense fire, flames rose three feet high.
Arrows flew from the dense forest, forming a tight, intricate net that trapped the prey tightly inside.
“Ah!”

The dozens of soldiers from the Jianghuai Army at the front were suddenly attacked by feathered arrows. Unable to dodge in time, they were hit and fell from their horses.
Zheng Shanglun nocked an arrow and narrowed his eyes, aiming at the general clad in a black cloak—surely the commander of this reinforcements force. To capture the enemy, one must first capture their leader! The bow was drawn like a full moon, the arrow like a shooting star. With a swift “whoosh,” the feathered arrow streaked through the air and shot toward Li Kuo.
“General, be careful!”
Seeing an arrow flying toward Li Kuo, one of his bodyguards leaped forward and pushed his commander to the ground.
“Bang!” “Bang!”
Li Kuo was pushed off his horse and tumbled several times before coming to a stop.
“It’s the rebels! There’s an ambush in the valley!”
Li Sheng shouted loudly, waving his command flag to urge his soldiers to gather around him. After breaking through several lines of defense set up by the rebels in Qinglang Valley, they rushed straight for Suiyang.
Perhaps out of excessive urgency or underestimating the rebels’ strength, they neglected their scouting duties, leading to this grave mistake.
“Get off your horses! All of you, get off!”
Seeing nearly a hundred of their own soldiers killed or wounded after a barrage of attacks from the rebels, Li Kuo’s eyes turned red as he roared loudly. “Hide behind your horses! Use them as cover!”
These were all soldiers from the Jianghuai Army, men he had personally trained. And now, because of his own impatience, they were suffering such disasters!
The soldiers, shocked by the sudden turn of events, were at a loss. Hearing Li Kuo’s orders, they found them sensible and quickly dismounted, hiding behind their horses. But the rebels did not change their tactics despite the Tang Army’s actions. Another wave of feathered arrows swept toward the Jianghuai Army.
This time, most of the arrows hit the horses. The dark, sharp arrows pierced the horses’ bodies, causing them to cry out in pain. Anxious and enraged, they stamped their feet, exhaling white vapor from their nostrils.
“Get your bows and arrows! Fire back!”
Li Kuo had recovered from his anger and shock and added, “I can’t just sit here and wait to die. If we don’t suppress the rebels’ firepower and let them keep shooting randomly, our army will soon be reduced to ashes!”
Now in a disadvantageous position, “Get your bows and arrows! Fire back! Shoot them all back!” Wang Xiaochun repeated the orders loudly. With their numerical advantage, as long as they could suppress the rebels’ firepower, they could turn the tide!
The soldiers of the Jianghuai Army were well-trained. After the initial panic, they calmed down, hid behind their horses, drew their bows to full tension, and fired back fiercely at the rebels on both sides of the valley entrance.
“Whoosh! Whoosh!”

Although the Tang forces were at a disadvantage by having to fire from above, they still had a clear advantage in terms of both the number and quality of their soldiers, and after a sustained barrage, they managed to suppress the rebels.