Chapter 112: Bu Zhan Ni Arrives
Before the sun had fully risen, as the sky was just bleeding shades of pale grey and pink, the watchman on Bai Family Fortress's corner tower struck the bamboo alarm. A hollow, resonant *thump-thump-thump* rippled across the entire fortress, shattering the morning quiet.
Bai Yuan and Cheng Xu, almost in perfect sync, sprang from their beds and sprinted towards the corner tower.
Scanning the northern face of Huanglong Mountain, they immediately spotted masses of bandits pouring down its slopes.
They weren't confined to a single trail but fanned out across multiple paths, like torrents of murky water gushing from a flooded peak, rushing down every ravine and gully.
“So many!” Bai Yuan exclaimed, a tremor of unease in his voice. “Are there thousands of them? I can’t even begin to count.”
“Fifteen hundred!” Cheng Xu, standing beside him, pinpointed the bandit count in a single glance. He scoffed, “Well, that’s certainly a sizable force.”
Bai Yuan pressed, “I heard there were five or six thousand bandits encamped in Huanglong Mountain. Why are only fifteen hundred descending now?”
Cheng Xu explained, “While the bandit host is immense, at least half of them are old folk, women, and children. Only about three thousand are fit for combat. And these three thousand are divided between Bu Zhan Ni from Luochuan County and Wang Zuogua from Yichuan County. It’s unlikely both factions would move at once, so what we see today is just one of them.”
Bai Yuan mused, *Imperial officials certainly have a wealth of intelligence. I hadn’t heard any of this, but Cheng Xu knows. He must have received urgent military dispatches from Luochuan County and Yichuan County well in advance.*
Beneath that bravado, however, flickered a hint of unease. As he scrutinized the descending bandits, he saw a figure in simple grey cloth glance up from the distant throng, their gaze seeming to lock with his. When the person tilted their head, Cheng Xu distinctly made out... his great-grandmother’s face! She even flashed him a wide, toothy grin. Her lips moved, and he could almost hear her words: “My dear great-grandson, come quickly and keep your great-grandmother company.”
Cheng Xu hastily shook his head twice, then focused his gaze intently. *Right,* he chastised himself. It was too far; he couldn't possibly discern anyone’s features. The vision had been nothing more than a trick of his own mind, a fleeting hallucination.
“Seeing my great-grandmother... this battle bodes ill.” Cheng Xu’s resolve had already crumbled. He turned to the sub-inspector, who had just scrambled onto the ramparts, and murmured, “Quietly inform everyone: the moment I give the order, open the south gate immediately and make for an escape. Understand?”
The sub-inspector nodded, his voice hushed. “Understood, sir.”
Bai Yuan shot a piercing glance at the two inspectors conspiratorially whispering, feigning indifference. He then turned to his trusted retainers, instructing, “The bandits are coming down the mountain. All the surrounding farmers will soon be pouring towards Bai Family Fortress. Open the gates, let in those we recognize, but not a single stranger.”
His prediction proved accurate. Soon, a flood of villagers appeared, helping the elderly, carrying infants, leading children by the hand, and laden with bundles containing their meager remaining possessions. They surged towards Bai Family Fortress.
The last time Bai Family Fortress was assaulted by the Supreme Bright King, both the Bai family and the surrounding populace had been woefully unprepared. They were caught entirely off guard, suffered grievous casualties, scattered in disarray, and even Bai Family Fortress itself was thoroughly plundered.
This time, however, was different.
Bai Yuan had taken precautions well in advance, and likewise, he had notified the surrounding villagers, instructing them to seek refuge in Bai Family Fortress at the first sign of trouble.
Consequently, the villagers had packed their valuables days ago. The moment they saw the bandit army streaming down the mountain, they immediately abandoned their homes and fled, converging on Bai Family Fortress.
These were all familiar faces, neighbors they knew intimately, making identification simple. There was no concern about spies infiltrating, and it wasn’t long before every villager had found shelter within the fortress walls.
The elderly, the infirm, and the disabled retreated indoors, while the able-bodied young men, those fit for combat, seized the bamboo spears pre-stacked in the warehouse and took up their designated posts as Bai Yuan had instructed.
Even the sturdy women hurried to the piles of rolling logs and boulders, preparing for their part.
The small Bai Family Fortress, in an instant, bristled with tension.
Witnessing this, Cheng Xu let out a surprised “Hm,” turning to the sub-inspector. “This Bai Yuan fellow... he seems remarkably experienced in battle, doesn’t he?”
The sub-inspector murmured, “I hear he’s fought three battles recently. One he lost to the Supreme Bright King, one he won against the Supreme Bright King, and in another, he completely annihilated Zheng Yanfu and Zhong Guangdao... I suppose he’s become a seasoned militia instructor by now.”
Cheng Xu scoffed, “The last battle hardly counts. That was with the aid of Gao Family Village’s... *spirits*.”
The sub-inspector stammered, “Er... well...”
Bai Yuan took a quick headcount: twenty household guards, his undisputed trump card.
Seventy-seven Bai Family Fortress militia members, his primary force.
One hundred twenty miscellaneous able-bodied youths, essentially icing on the cake, an additional flourish.
And finally, eighty sturdy women.
Bai Yuan understood this battle would be a brutal one. With such a meager force, relying on their moderately sized fortress walls to repel three thousand bandits, the odds were overwhelmingly against them. The critical factor hinged entirely on Cheng Xu’s resolve. If Cheng Xu stayed and fought, they might stand a chance. But if he bolted, Bai Yuan knew he likely couldn’t hold out alone, and would ultimately be forced to abandon the fortress himself.
Hence, the crucial aspect of this engagement was to seize the initiative from the outset, to ensure Cheng Xu perceived no inkling of their potential defeat. The instant he detected even the slightest hint of losing, and fled with his imperial soldiers, then this battle would indeed be truly lost.
“The bandit army is arraying itself in the north!”
The sentinel cried out.
Bai Yuan and Cheng Xu simultaneously turned their gaze northward. Fifteen hundred bandit soldiers were arrayed in three distinct groups—no, that wasn't quite right. They were more like three haphazard mounds, their ranks so crooked and disorganized they could hardly be called formations, merely agglomerations.
The last, most hardened cluster of bandits brought up the rear, hoisting a tattered banner emblazoned with a single character: “Ni.”
Cheng Xu gestured toward the hardened bandits beneath the flag. “The one guarding the rear is Bu Zhan Ni from Luochuan County. That means the two groups at the forefront must be Bu Zhan Ni’s chief generals: Twin-Winged Tiger and Purple Gold Dragon.”
Bai Yuan let out a scoff, a flicker of panic in his heart. He snapped open his folding fan, revealing the bold characters “Gentleman” emblazoned across its surface, using it to subtly mask his visibly paling face. “Why do all these bandits take such dreadful names? Utterly barbaric, wouldn’t you say?”
Cheng Xu rolled his eyes. “Enough with the condescension,” he muttered. “They’re here.”
The words hung in the air, and the atmosphere instantly thickened with tension.
The first to strike was Twin-Winged Tiger. True to his moniker, he was a man of swift action. With a guttural roar, he eschewed any pretense of grandstanding, directly leading five hundred of his subordinates in a headlong charge toward Bai Family Fortress.
Cheng Xu’s posture subtly shifted, his body instinctively receding half a step, ready to bolt at a moment’s notice.
Bai Yuan, however, took a defiant step forward, his voice booming. “Catapults! Giant Crossbow Vehicles! Prepare to await my command!”
The Bai family retainers and militia members responded in unison, a resounding, “As you command!”
Cheng Xu darted a glance left, then right. *Damn it, their morale is even higher than my own men’s!*
Comments