Chapter 1168: It Was Actually Wang Er
The moment Chuǎng Wang laid eyes on Wang Er from Baishui, he couldn't believe his own sight.
The rebels had all believed Wang Er from Baishui to be long dead!
Ever since Wang Jiayin’s brother-in-law, Zhang Liwei, and his kinsman, Wang Guozhong, had tried to assassinate Wang Er, forcing him to flee the rebel army, he had vanished without a trace for many years.
He had been out of the world of rebels for a long time, yet his name still resonated within it.
Chuǎng Wang's voice trembled involuntarily. “Wang Er from Baishui, you... you’re actually still alive? No wonder, no wonder I sensed that these people guarding the mountaintop weren’t government soldiers. So they’re all your subordinates, Wang Er. You... you’re planning a bandit-on-bandit ambush? Back then, it was Brother Wang Jiayin who wanted you dead, not me. You don't need to create such a massive display just for revenge, do you?”
Wang Er shook his head at him. “Give up! Dashing General—oh, no, I should call you Chuǎng Wang now! Your methods are flawed. This realm should not be fought for in this way.”
Chuǎng Wang gritted his teeth. “Wang Er, since you still command so many subordinates—more troops than I possess—why have you been hiding in Shaanxi, silent for years? After Brother Wang Jiayin's death, if you had stepped forward and issued a rallying cry, heroes from across the land would have flocked to you. You wouldn't have needed to kill me to seize the position of the realm's foremost leader. Just say the word, and I'll hand over the title of Chuǎng Wang to you; I’ll simply return to being the Dashing General.”
Wang Er chuckled, a laugh tinged with profound loneliness. “I, Wang Er, am hardly a significant figure, not even a true hero. If I were to rally a crowd, and people like you followed me, what good would it do? It wouldn't save the common people of this land, it simply wouldn't. Instead, it would only lead to their families being shattered, their homes destroyed, and them left destitute.”
Chuǎng Wang remained speechless.
Chuǎng Wang drew his saber with a sharp clang. “Wang Er, while you are formidable, you may not be my match.”
Seeing him draw his saber, Wang Er knew Chuǎng Wang would not surrender. He couldn't help but let out a long sigh. “Can power truly blind a man? Once one occupies the position of Chuǎng Wang, they would rather die than surrender?”
Chuǎng Wang barked, “Enough talk! Come!”
With that, he turned and shouted to those behind him, “Old Eighth Squad, prepare to fight to the death!”
The Old Eighth Squad behind him, all fiercely loyal villagers from Mizhi County who had followed him, were also his most formidable fighters.
Now, they uniformly drew their sabers, took a step forward, and indeed presented a somewhat imposing presence.
Wang Er sighed deeply. “Wang’s Village Militia, prepare for battle.”
The people behind him, from Wang’s Village in Chengcheng County, were his most loyal subordinates. With a series of swift movements, each person drew out a bolt-action rifle.
Upon seeing the weapons arrayed against him, Chuǎng Wang’s face darkened.
Strange, advanced firearm troops!
This unit had first appeared in Shaanxi. Their operational range had then extended to Shanxi, Yunyang, Henan, and even into Sichuan. Chuǎng Wang had once drawn a circle to mark the operational scope of these firearm troops, and discovered that their center of activity was in Shaanxi.
And now, Chuǎng Wang finally understood: “Wang Er, so that strange firearm unit, it was you who created it!”
“Me?” Wang Er shook his head. “How could I possibly?”
Chuǎng Wang suddenly snapped his head around and roared, “Old Eighth Squad, run!”
He had just declared a decisive battle, with a furious demeanor, looking ready to charge. Yet, after exchanging a few words, he suddenly spun around and yelled for them to run—a move that was utterly unexpected.
The militiamen of Wang’s Village were stunned for at least two seconds, unable to react immediately.
But the Old Eighth Squad, having worked with Chuǎng Wang for years, reacted in an instant. They turned and fled, dashing sideways toward another valley to the east.
Wang Er was also momentarily stunned, but quickly ordered, “Fire!”
It was then that Wang’s Village Militia hastily raised their bolt-action rifles. Bang, bang, bang, bang! Bullets rained down upon Chuǎng Wang’s Old Eighth Squad.
“Ah!”
Someone shrieked, struck by a bullet.
But those beside him immediately hoisted him up and continued to run.
The Old Eighth Squad’s skill in evasion was undeniable. Having been in rebellion for seven years, fleeing north and south with Chuǎng Wang, constantly escaping pursuers, they had long since mastered the art of escape.
Once they started running, they were swift as startled rabbits, sprinting desperately along the scattered rocks and trees by the valley.
Wang’s Village Militia also fired frantically.
“Bang, bang, bang!”
Some died, others were gravely wounded and carried away by their comrades...
One man, wounded in the leg, could no longer run. He surprisingly chose to stop altogether, roaring loudly, “Brothers, run quickly! Avenge me in the future!”
With that, he positioned his saber horizontally behind his comrades, blocking several bullets for them, before finally collapsing with a thud.
After a series of tragic gunshots...
Chuǎng Wang, with more than half of the Old Eighth Squad, broke out of the valley and fled into the distance.
On the peaks flanking the valley, militiamen continued to hurl down rocks and rolling logs. Chuǎng Wang and the Old Eighth Squad endured the barrage of logs and stones, forcibly plunging into the eastern forest, disappearing without a trace.
“Damn it, he actually managed to escape that?”
Wang’s Village Militia were enraged, and many wanted to pursue.
However, they couldn't enter the valley. Their own militiamen were still hurling rocks at the Old Eighth Squad’s remaining rearguard troops in the valley; if they pursued now, they would only cause friendly fire casualties.
Wang Er had no choice but to stop and let out a long sigh. “Even after all that, we couldn’t keep him. Could it be that Heaven still believes he shouldn’t die?”
Hmm?
Something felt off. Wasn’t ‘Heaven’ the Heavenly Lord?
Oh, not necessarily. There might be other deities in Heaven. Perhaps Chuǎng Wang is protected by other, less benevolent deities. It’s highly probable it’s that gang of wicked deities from the Jie School. The Heavenly Lord would still have to wrangle with those bad deities in Heaven.
Wang Er had no choice but to wave his hand and order, “Pass the order to all outposts: closely monitor all roads leading into Shaanxi. Chuǎng Wang must not be allowed to re-enter Shaanxi. Although he has few men left, this fellow is formidable. As long as he lives, we can never truly rest easy.”
At this time, the fighting in the forest continued.
The rebels had been dispersed, scrambling wildly through the various valleys.
Not long after, Cheng Xu, leading Gao Family Village’s First Main Regiment, also arrived, followed by the appearance of pole-wielding soldiers of various colors.
The pole-wielding soldiers looked up ahead. The peaks before them were swarming with militiamen, frantically hurling rocks down at the rebels in the valley—a sight that made them inwardly gasp. “Just how many militia units has Shaanxi deployed for this battle?”
Qin Liangyu said, “We shouldn’t go over there; we’ll be hit by friendly fire. It’s enough for us to block the rebels’ escape routes here.”
The rebels caught in the midst, under the relentless pincer attack of rolling logs, hurled stones, old-style firearms, hand crossbows, bows and arrows, and catapults, finally could no longer withstand it. Large numbers of rebel troops laid down their weapons, knelt, and begged for mercy.
The militiamen on the peaks also ceased their actions...
In this engagement, Chuǎng Wang’s grand army was utterly shattered. Vast numbers of fierce bandits were killed, and Gao Family Village captured over seventy thousand labor reform prisoners. Many bandit chiefs were captured, while a few, with their trusted retainers, escaped through small paths and mountain ravines.
The vast rebel army that had wreaked havoc in Sichuan finally met its end here.
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