Chapter 18: Beacon Fires (IV)

“One, two, throw!”
A few soldiers from the Zhuque Regiment of the Shence Army lifted a massive boulder weighing over a hundred pounds and threw it down from the battlements. The boulder struck a Tibetan soldier climbing the ladder with tremendous force, shattering his sternum through his chainmail. The soldier screamed in pain and tumbled backward off the ladder.
Zhongli excitedly punched Li Kuo and said cheerfully, “Brother Li, you’ve arrived just in time! We were about to run out of strength!”
Li Kuo smiled softly and replied, “How could I stand by and watch my brothers fight to the death without helping? When brothers work together, nothing is impossible. We’re comrades, brothers who’ve shared life and death!”
“Great! Let’s kill those bastards together! Kill one, gain one; kill two, gain a pair!”
Zhongli declared passionately.
“Kill those bastards! Kill them all!”
The soldiers responded by raising their swords.
A large number of Tibetan soldiers advanced steadily toward the fortress, protected by their large shields. Although arrows covered a wide area, they were ineffective against thick shields. If Li Kuo hadn’t rushed to reinforce them promptly, the Tibetans might have seized the city walls in no time.
But now everything was different! With 200 soldiers from Zhongli’s unit plus 300 from the Zhuque Regiment, the Tang forces at the battlements numbered over 500. Huge stones and logs were thrown down, piercing through the rhinoceros-horn shields the Tibetans relied on and crushing their shoulders and sternums. The Tibetan soldiers screamed in agony as they fell from the sky, dying instantly.
The hillside was littered with corpses, and blood flowed down the ladders, staining the eyes of every Tibetan soldier.
“Kill them! Kill all those Tang invaders!”
Ludeksi, the commander of a thousand men, was furious. His troops had already reached the foot of the fortress and were on the verge of scaling the walls when they were halted by a Tang officer who threw stones and logs at them. The soldiers climbing the ladders were helpless against these deadly weapons and were crushed to death by the falling stones and logs. Ludeksi snatched a horn from his guards and blew it loudly.
“Woo, woo-woo, woo-woo.”
The Tibetan horn emitted a mournful sound, signaling a command to advance without retreat.
The Tibetan soldiers, who had begun to retreat halfway up, gritted their teeth and continued climbing toward the walls. Behind them was a line of soldiers armed with large swords—anyone who retreated would be executed on the spot! There was only one chance left: either they died or the enemy did!
Driven by their commander’s fierce determination, the Tibetan soldiers’ fearless spirit was fully unleashed. They dodged the falling stones and logs while stubbornly climbing toward the fortress.

Pu Da Chui stared at the growing number of Tibetan soldiers ahead, his eyes red with fury. He said to Xian Yu Cheng, “This won’t work. The rolling logs are almost used up, but there’s still some stones left. Is the boiling water and tung oil ready?” (Note 1)
Xian Yu Cheng bowed and replied, “I and Brother Qian ordered our soldiers to heat ten large pots over high flames. The first pot is about to be ready!”
“Good!”
Pu Da Chui was overjoyed. He ordered, “Take the first batch of boiling water and hot oil to the top of the city wall. Pour it down from the battlements. I refuse to believe they can’t be burned to death!” “I’ll carry out the order!” Xian Yu Cheng clasped his fist, ready to pass on the command, but just as he turned, he heard Pu Da Chui say,
“Wait! Mobilize all those merchants too. Those who can collect stones, collect stones; those who can boil water, boil water. No one should be idle!”
“Understood!”
Xian Yu Cheng’s reply was firm and decisive. His experience fighting outside the border for over a month had made him gradually mature. After leaving behind the protection of his elders, facing the swords of the horse bandits head-on, he truly understood that as a man, one must learn to protect oneself and those he loves.
We are Tang people. Nothing can make us bow our noble heads. Neither the horse bandits nor the Tibetans!
Under Xian Yu Cheng’s command, the first batch of ten pots of boiling water and hot oil was quickly delivered to the battlements.
Zhong Li, the deputy in charge of guarding the city wall, quickly ordered his soldiers to take the large pots and pour the contents down from the battlements.
There were simply too many Tibetan soldiers. Even though the Tang army used numerous stones and rolling logs to resist them, nearly a hundred of them managed to climb over the wall using ladders and reach the base of the city wall.
They roared loudly, as if they would soon be able to reach the top of the wall and raise the Tibetan flag.
Led by a centurion, they set up simple wooden ladders and launched their final assault on the city. But after climbing just four or five steps, they found streams of bright yellow liquid pouring down from above.
When the liquid touched their skin, they realized it wasn’t fine wine or butter tea—it was boiling oil!
“Ah!”
As the boiling oil hit their skin, the Tibetan soldiers felt excruciating pain. Steam rose from their flesh, and the smell of burning flesh spread far and wide.
One Tibetan soldier, after climbing a few steps, felt a sharp pain on top of his head. He looked up to check but saw darkness before his eyes—his eyes were instantly blinded by the hot oil! The soldier cried out in agony and fell off the ladder.
“Great! Damn them!”

Zhang Yanji was overjoyed, shouting and jumping. In his view, the Tang army had taken control of the battlefield, and despite the Tibetans’ fierce attacks, they were all repelled by the Tang forces. Though the Tibetans came with great momentum, they advanced headlong without sufficient supplies. As long as his troops held out for a week, or even just three days, even if no reinforcements from nearby Tang fortresses arrived, the Tibetans, unable to sustain their attack due to lack of provisions, would withdraw on their own!

Li Kuo, however, remained frowning. Although his side held the initiative on the battlefield, he felt there was something wrong. Why hadn’t the Tibetans deployed all their forces to attack the city? The Tang army had ample supplies inside the fortress and could simply hold out waiting for reinforcements, while the Tibetans, forced to march quickly, wanted a swift victory. Both sides knew well that there was no need for probing attacks. With the number of Tibetans at their disposal, even if they used sheer numbers to overwhelm the fortress, they could fill it completely. So why would the Tibetan commander make such a huge mistake and give the Tang army an opportunity? They were being too idealistic—they were doing this to show off to the Tang army!

Tie Ren Xino Luo was an experienced veteran who would surely not commit such a grave military blunder as splitting his forces. A smile appeared on his lips. The Tangs were probably still basking in the joy of defeating their enemy, unaware that they were getting closer and closer to death. If he didn’t give them a taste of success, how would they believe it?

As for those two thousand troops severely damaged by the trebuchets, Tie Ren Xino Luo didn’t feel the slightest pity. These two thousand-man units were made up of mixed forces from the Qiang and Tuyuhun tribes, and their mission was already fulfilled by exhausting the Tang army’s defensive equipment. The lives of these people meant nothing compared to the noble Tibetan warriors.

And the commanders of the fifth and sixth thousand-man units—weren’t they secretly loyal to Prime Minister Nang Xie Dazan? Although they hid their loyalty well, what could escape his eyes, Tie Ren Xino Luo’s? It was a perfect opportunity to use the Tang army to eliminate two of Dazalu Gong’s spies—why not do both at once? (Note 2) Tie Ren Xino Luo suddenly opened his half-closed eyes and said to the captain of his personal guards, “Pass my order: have the soldiers load the sand and stones collected earlier into bags and throw them into the moat. Build floating bridges and prepare to cross the river by force to attack the city!”

“As you command!” the captain replied, bowing.

His core troops were his own direct subordinates; losing one meant losing another, and he wouldn’t deploy them unless absolutely necessary.

At this moment, Tie Ren Xino Luo stared at the Tang army’s flags atop the Great Wall Fortress and smiled coldly: Let’s see who’s better!……

Note 1: Tung oil: In ancient times, tung oil was used for all kinds of heating oils. It was an all-purpose substance; applied to weapons and arrows, it could also serve as a preservative. It’s amazing to think that ancient people were so wise, devising such effective preservation methods over a thousand years ago.
Note 2: Nangxieda Zan: He and Dazhalugong engaged in fierce power struggles in history for the position of prime minister. The infighting between political factions was extremely brutal, and it was quite common in ancient times to eliminate one’s political rivals by using enemy forces.