Chapter 137: Slaying Eagles on the Cliffs (Part 1)

The assault on Stone Fortress City faced immense resistance. The original plan was to complete the task by noon, but by dusk, the Tang army still could not capture the city. Below the cliffs of Stone Fortress City, the bodies of Tang soldiers lay in heaps—over five thousand soldiers lost their lives in foreign lands.

The drums of attack rang out once again, and more than three thousand Tang soldiers charged at Stone Fortress City under loud cries. The icy path had been melted by the blood and flesh of the Tang soldiers, making the path relatively smoother. Yet the Tubo defenders fought even more fiercely. Without bows or trebuchets, they blocked the only path up the mountain with boulders and logs, causing groups of Tang soldiers to plummet down the cliffs amidst screams.

But even in despair, the Tang army found a glimmer of hope. This time, three hundred burly Tang soldiers led the charge. They created a hundred giant inclined umbrellas, supported by three-zhang-long wooden frames. Five layers of raw cowhide, coated with grease, formed the structure, giving it a triangular shape. Dozens of Tang soldiers hid under each umbrella. In this way, whether boulders or logs were thrown at them from the front or above, the inclined, smooth cowhide would absorb the impact, causing them to roll down the cliff.

This was a method devised by the Tang army after repeated heavy losses, significantly reducing casualties. They had already reached a mountain path 120 steps away from Stone Fortress City, within range of crossbows. The Tang army fired a thousand arrows at once. The dense barrage of arrows shot through the gaps in the umbrellas toward the city walls, finally causing casualties among the Tubo soldiers. Cries of pain began to echo from Stone Fortress City.

Yet the Tang army could not advance any further. The narrow path could not accommodate the falling rocks, which piled up inside. The Tubo soldiers continued to hurl boulders from the top of the mountain, crashing against the cowhide frames with loud thuds. The makeshift umbrellas could not withstand such force—over thirty frames were destroyed, leaving nearly a thousand Tang soldiers without protection. They were immediately crushed by falling rocks, resulting in gruesome deaths and endless screams. The Tang army suffered yet more heavy losses, and the giant umbrellas began to retreat slowly down the mountain.

In any case, the Tang army finally found a crude method to deal with the Tubo soldiers at Stone Fortress City. The only drawback was its slow progress—they had to attack repeatedly, using crossbows to gradually wear down the Tubo forces inside the city.

At such a time, it became crucial for Li Qing’an to lead his troops to intercept the Tubo reinforcements from the rear mountains to determine the outcome of the entire battle.

……

On the mountains behind Red Ridge, the Tubo army launched its third fierce attack. With the rescue beacon fires at Stone Fortress City blazing once more, Tubo King Chizudezan realized the severity of the situation. This time, he deployed 20,000 elite troops in an attempt to capture the Tang army’s second line of defense in one fell swoop.

The first line of defense had already been occupied by the Tibetan army, which used it as a base to attack the second line. The straight-line distance between the two lines was seven hundred steps, but the mountain cliffs were steep, and most of the rock faces were impossible to climb. There were only three gullies, each about ten zhang wide, spread across a three-li-long rocky surface. The difficult terrain caused the Tibetans’ second attack to fail as well. Now it was the third attack, and the one with the largest number of troops involved.

By now, the Tang army had lost over five hundred men. The remaining two thousand four hundred were divided into three groups, each holding a gully. Every Tang soldier knew that if the second line of defense fell, they would have no place to defend themselves at the third line, meaning total annihilation.

Defending the second line thus became a battle for survival.

The Tibetan troops everywhere launched frenzied attacks, with the thunderous sound of drums echoing incessantly. Five hundred Zanpu guards fought at the forefront, wielding swords and executing those who retreated. More than a hundred severed heads hung from a few bare trees, serving as a warning to all the Tibetan soldiers.

But the mountain paths were narrow. No matter how many troops the Tibetans sent, they could only attack in waves. In the three gullies filled with thorns and bushes, over four thousand Tibetan soldiers pushed forward slowly, carrying giant shields that were two zhang high and one zhang wide. These shields were arranged side by side to form a wall, while the soldiers behind held round shields to effectively block the Tang army’s arrow attacks.

There was no more fire oil left. The most potent weapon remaining was the gunpowder brought by the Tang army. Ten small trebuchets had been set up, allowing them to launch ten-jin gunpowder packets over four hundred steps away from a high vantage point.

It was finally time to use gunpowder—a weapon Li Qing’an preferred not to employ unless absolutely necessary. With limited supplies, they had brought only three hundred gunpowder packets. Over one hundred and thirty had been used in the attack on Langya Jiao, and after accounting for those that were damaged or used for special purposes, only one hundred and fifty remained. Against thousands of Tibetan soldiers and the seemingly endless siege of the stone fortress, could these one hundred and fifty packets of gunpowder give them a chance of survival?

The Tibetan giants’ shields had rendered their bows and arrows useless. Li Qing’an looked up at the sky. It was still overcast, and dusk was approaching, but the clouds in the north had turned pitch black, signaling an impending blizzard.

Perhaps there would be a chance to catch our breath tonight!

“Prepare to launch gunpowder!” Li Qing’an finally gave the order.

The trebuchets creaked as they were drawn back. Soldiers placed ten-jin bombs in the pouches, and one soldier carefully untied the wrapped fuse, tearing off the outer waterproof cloth. With a hiss, a flint ignited the fuse, and black smoke rose. The soldier who lit it quickly stepped back. There were red markers on the fuse: 500 steps, 400 steps, 300 steps. By now, the dense Tibetan troops had reached just over 300 steps away. Behind their huge shields were more than 4,000 enemy soldiers, stretching for hundreds of steps. From afar, it resembled a black carpet spread across the cliff.

When the smoke from the fuse reached 400 steps, with a loud boom, ten trebuchets fired almost simultaneously. The bombs were thrown high into the air, tracing an elliptical arc as they descended upon the dense Tibetan army. All the Tang soldiers held their breath, anxiously watching the ten bombs emitting black smoke in the air. At the same time, the Tibetan troops also noticed something unusual. They looked up as the bombs rushed toward them and instinctively covered their heads, dodging to the sides. Only Lunzang was utterly terrified, screaming, “Lie down! Lie down!”

As soon as he finished speaking, the bombs exploded one after another among the Tibetan troops. Each massive shockwave lifted dozens of soldiers into the air, sending limbs flying. Poison-coated iron balls and shards scattered everywhere, creating a deadly radius of dozens of steps. Instantly, screams and cries of agony filled the mountains…

Wave after wave of bombs exploded, sending forth flames and black smoke. The Tibetan troops suffered heavy casualties. After six rounds of firing, the Tang soldiers stopped launching the bombs.

The black smoke gradually dissipated. The huge shields were gone, and the mountain path was in chaos, with blood everywhere and scattered human organs and twisted chainmail. Every dead Tibetan soldier’s eyes were filled with terror. Many others, hit by shrapnel, lay on the ground, groaning in extreme pain.

The thousands of Tibetan troops behind them seemed to wake up from a dream. In their extreme panic, they turned and fled desperately, shouting, “Thunder! Thunder has struck!”

The scene was chaotic, with Tibetan soldiers trampling on each other. Hundreds of Zanpu guards pushing forward tried desperately to control the situation, but the Tibetan troops had lost control, and killing them was no longer effective.

The violent explosions made Tibetan Zanpu Chizudezan stand up abruptly. He stared in disbelief at the flames rising from the mountain, a hint of fear flashing in his eyes. Was this the Tang army’s thunderbolt? Good heavens! What on earth was that? Fear began to take hold of Chizudezan’s heart.

The hundreds of Tibetan generals surrounding him were equally stunned. After a long while, Dazhalugong sighed and stepped forward, saying, “Your Majesty, the soldiers are terrified. It would be better to pause the attack.”
Chizudezan nodded. “Very well! Sound the retreat bell.”
The sound of the retreat bells rang, and the Tibetan troops withdrew like a tide. Over a thousand soldiers remained at the first line of defense, while the rest retreated from the mountains. The battlefield fell dead silent in an instant. Hundreds of Tang soldiers, armed with sharp weapons, leaped down and mercilessly killed all the wounded Tibetan soldiers, collecting arrows in the process.
…
Inside the tent, Chizudezan paced back and forth with his hands behind his back, deeply troubled. He had witnessed the power of the Tang army’s thunder bombs firsthand and was filled with concern. This was just a small Tang force; if the larger army in Longyou used such weapons, wouldn’t they sweep through Tibet?
Suddenly, Chizudezan slammed his fist on the table. No! Under no circumstances could they afford to lose access to these thunder bombs.
Just then, Dazhalugong’s voice came from the door. “I must see the king immediately. I have important news.”
Dazhalugong’s urgent tone startled Chizudezan. What could have happened? He immediately ordered, “Let him in!”
Dazhalugong rushed in, carefully holding a large yellow paper package. Excitedly, he said, “Your Majesty, we’ve obtained the Tang army’s thunder bombs.”
Chizudezan was overjoyed. He took two steps forward, took the heavy package, and asked eagerly, “How did you get them?”
“One of the thunder bombs hadn’t exploded yet. A soldier found it in the chaos and brought it down the mountain.”
“Good! Order that this soldier be promoted to commander of a thousand men, rewarded with ten thousand sheep and three hundred slaves.”
Chizudezan was ecstatic. With just one thunder bomb, they could produce more, and then they wouldn’t fear the Tang army anymore.
He placed the package on the table and examined it closely. It was tied tightly with ropes, with parchment as the outer layer—something they also had in Tibet. There was a burned hole in the upper right corner of the package, from which some black powder spilled out.
Just as Dazhalugong was about to untie the ropes, Chizudezan stopped him, shaking his head. “Don’t untie it! Hand it over intact to the craftsmen.”
At that moment, more black powder flowed out of the hole in the powder packet. Chizudezan carefully scooped it into his palm, sniffed it, and smiled. “I can smell sulfur.”
“Your Majesty, sulfur is highly flammable.”
“Mm! Sulfur accelerates combustion. No wonder it’s so powerful.”

Chizudezan thought for a moment before saying, “I’ll take this powder back and have those Han craftsmen identify it. Whoever can create such Thunder Bombs for me will be a great hero of my Tubo.” His mood improved. He glanced at Dazhalugong, whose presentation of the Thunder Bombs had eased much of his dissatisfaction. Smiling, he asked, “General Dazhalugong, what do you think we should do next?”
Dazhalugong immediately bowed and said, “I believe the Tang army doesn’t have many Thunder Bombs; otherwise, they would have used them earlier. Since we must confront them, we shouldn’t fear death. We should leverage our numerical advantage, launch a massive attack, and destroy the Tang army in one fell swoop.”
“But we’ve already lost tens of thousands of men.”
“Your Majesty, how can there be no casualties in war? Even if half of us are lost, we must fight. We can’t give them a chance to recover. After all, they only have three thousand men—and now even less. We can’t let them set things up at ease.”
At that moment, distant explosions could be heard from the mountains. Dazhalugong said urgently, “Your Majesty, they must be using Thunder Bombs to blow up the mountains for stones. Order an attack! Night fighting favors us.”
This time, Chizudezan finally accepted Dazhalugong’s advice. Nodding, he said, “Good! Order the army to prepare for a night attack on Chiling.”
…
As Dazhalugong had guessed, the Tang army was indeed using gunpowder to blow up the mountains for stones. After a day of fierce fighting, they had few arrows left. To intercept the Tubo reinforcements, Geshu Han had given them three hundred thousand arrows. After a day of brutal combat, more than half of those arrows had been used. To conserve them as much as possible, in addition to sending people to retrieve some arrows from the slopes, Li Qing’an ordered the use of gunpowder to blow up the mountains for stones.
In the darkness of night, the Tang soldiers hurried to rest. They lay huddled together, exhausted, but the bitter cold made it difficult for many to sleep.
A dozen soldiers from Jiangdu Camp were wrapped in military blankets, chatting about their hometowns. Lin San, known for his bravery in battle, had been promoted to brigade commander. He took out his wine flask, took a few gulps of strong liquor, smacked his lips, and said with a smile, “In a couple of days, it will be New Year’s Eve. My wife must be killing chickens and curing fish at home. This year, our family will be well-off, and that brat of ours can have a good feast.”
He nudged his companion next to him and said with a laugh, “Sun Mazi, how do you people in Runzhou celebrate the New Year?”
“How else? Isn’t it the same for everyone? Making New Year cakes, curing meat, pasting talismans, having a big feast on New Year’s Eve, and worshipping ancestors on the first day of the new year. Ah! It’s a pity I can’t worship my ancestors this year.”

“I’m the same; I can’t offer sacrifices to our ancestors. I wonder if they can forgive me for being such an unfilial descendant.”
“Hey! Hey! Don’t say that. No one here can offer sacrifices right now—there’s war! How could our ancestors blame us? All I think about now is my son and my wife.”
Thinking of his son, Lin San sighed and then smiled, saying, “My son is ten years old, but he’s thin and small. He’s always bullied by the other kids in the village. Once the war is over, I’ll write to him and tell him that his father has killed dozens of Tubo barbarians. Then he can stand tall. If anyone dares to bully him again, he can slap his chest and say, ‘My father killed twenty Tubo barbarians. How many did your father kill?’”
Lin San’s words made all the soldiers laugh. He waved his hand and said with a smile, “Once the war is over, I’ll bring my wife and son to Anxi. Then I’ll invite everyone to my house for a drink and let you taste my wife’s cooking.”
“That’s right! We didn’t get to enjoy the New Year’s feast, so we must make it up for it.”
The soldiers of Jiangdu Camp became excited, each talking about the special dishes from their hometowns.
Li Qing’an sat on a large rock, looking worried. Just now, Nan Jiyun reported to him that a total of sixty gunpowder bombs were fired, but only fifty-three exploded. Seven did not explode. After the soldiers searched around, they only found five unexploded bombs; two remained missing, likely taken away by the retreating Tubo army.
Li Qing’an was very reluctant to use gunpowder. Not only was the supply insufficient, but he also had another concern. The use of gunpowder in warfare only appeared at the end of the Tang Dynasty. Using it now, a hundred years earlier, would surely have a profound impact on historical development. Although he had no choice but to use it due to the circumstances, this concern lingered in his mind.
And now, the thing that worried him the most had happened—the Tubo people might already have obtained gunpowder bombs. If they also learned to use gunpowder, what disaster would that bring to the Tang Dynasty? Li Qing’an sighed secretly. More importantly, if their entire army was wiped out, who would tell the Tang court that they had used gunpowder? If the court didn’t know while the Tubo did, wouldn’t he, Li Qing’an, become the culprit of the Tang Dynasty?
Li Qing’an took out an oil-paper packet from his bosom. Inside were the formulas for two types of gunpowder—one for explosives and the other for fuses. After pondering for a moment, he said to Nan Jiyun beside him, “Nan Ba, I have an important task to assign to you.”
“General, please give your orders!”

Li Qing’an handed him the oil-paper packet and a jade plaque, saying, “This oil-paper packet contains the formula for gunpowder. Take another gunpowder packet with you and deliver it to Gao Lishi in the capital. Explain to him everything about the gunpowder. The jade plaque will prove that I sent you here.”
Nan Jiyun was about to speak when Li Qing’an waved his hand to stop him. “This is my order. This matter is of great importance. You must deliver it personally to Gao Lishi and tell him that the Tubo people are likely to learn how to use gunpowder soon as well.”
Nan Jiyun silently took the oil-paper packet and the jade plaque, storing them carefully. Then he asked, “Which direction should I break through?”
Li Qing’an thought for a moment before saying, “Take two highly skilled scouts with you. Find a way to cross Chilin.”
“I understand. I’ll be leaving right away.”
Nan Jiyun stood up and gave Li Qing’an a deep look. “General, I hope we can meet again in Chang’an!”
Li Qing’an smiled and patted his shoulder. “We definitely will. Go now!”
Nan Jiyun turned and rushed into the darkness. Moments later, he called for two scouts. The three of them took ropes and other tools and quickly left the camp, climbing up the mountain ridge toward the top of Chilin.
Li Qing’an watched his figure fade into the distance. Suddenly, drumbeats rang out at the foot of the mountain—the Tubo army had launched a night attack.
“Everyone, get up quickly! The Tubo people are here!”
Tang army officers woke their soldiers one by one. The Tang army’s camp became bustling as everyone rushed to their positions, checking their bows and arrows, and preparing stones and projectiles.
Li Qing’an counted the number of torches gathering at the foot of the mountain, calculating quickly in his mind. His heart tightened suddenly—this time, the Tubo army had deployed at least 40,000 soldiers. The Tubo people had finally realized their advantage.
Just then, Li Qing’an felt a chill in the air. He looked up and saw snowflakes the size of goose feathers drifting down from the sky. More and more snowflakes appeared, and the wind grew stronger, howling through the valley.
A blizzard was coming.