Novels online

Chapter 648: A National Grudge to Settle

Tian Shenglan and the Mongols converged.

The two parties, surprisingly, exchanged traditional steppe greetings, raising their hands in a "hooh-uh" salute and embracing, appearing extraordinarily cordial. Tian Shenglan's side then presented one hundred stone of grain, while the Mongols produced a large handful of bloodstained gold and silver jewelry.

Both sides were reveling in their transaction...

Suddenly, a thunderous rumble of hooves erupted.

Brigade General Hu Dawei of Shanxi, leading a contingent of cavalry, charged in from the east.

Brigade General Li Bei, leading a contingent of cavalry, charged in from the west.

Zuo Liangyu, Commander of the Right Flank Camp, leading a contingent of cavalry, charged in from the south.

The three cavalry forces, upon their emergence, commanded instant attention.

These were no ordinary cavalrymen; they were all elite frontier cavalry, capable of startling even the most hardened Mongol riders.

Tian Shenglan was greatly alarmed. "No, I didn't arrange this," he stammered, "our private dealings must have been exposed. We must combine our strength and fight our way out."

The Mongols unanimously vaulted onto their horses.

Tian Shenglan also hastily led his subordinates to mount their warhorses.

With forces closing in from the east, west, and south, they could, of course, only flee north towards the steppes.

"North! Ride!"

The Mongols and Tian Shenglan fled north with their combined forces.

At this moment, from the northern tall grass, Bai Yuan and Tie Niaofei had been patiently awaiting them.

Bai Yuan burst out of the tall grass, roaring, "Fire!"

A multitude of heads quickly emerged from the grass, all belonging to elite frontier archers and crossbowmen. The moment they appeared, they immediately drew their bows and nocked arrows, unleashing a volley at the fastest-charging Mongol cavalry.

Screams and horse neighs rang out in continuous succession.

But the valiant Mongols continued to surge forward; they had no other choice but to advance, for if they didn't break through the northern line, they would never escape.

Just as they closed in, a large array of Three-Eyed Arquebuses unexpectedly appeared from the tall grass.

"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"

A volley of gunshots rang out, and the Mongol cavalry all perished right there; not a single horse managed to escape.

Tian Shenglan, having ridden slower than the Mongols, was therefore still alive.

But as he scanned his surroundings, with elite frontier cavalry charging from all directions, he knew he truly couldn't escape, even if he had wings.

Tian Shenglan simply abandoned all hope. Reining in his warhorse, he roared, "You can't kill me! If you kill me, who will supply you with goods? Small Jin merchants can't reach Datong; the bandits won't let them through. Only influential Jin merchants like me can make it here... You can't kill me, you can't kill me!"

He screamed hoarsely.

Just then, from the tall grass some distance ahead, a figure emerged. It was Tie Niaofei, who let out a hearty laugh. "Tian Shenglan, I just delivered fifty cartloads of grain to Datong Prefecture—fifty cartloads, mind you!"

At these words, Tian Shenglan instantly froze.

Tie Niaofei smirked, "Come now, repeat after me: can we or can't we kill you?"

Tian Shenglan snarled, "You motherf***er, Tie Niaofei! I'll drag you down with me even if I die!"

He spurred his horse and charged fiercely towards Tie Niaofei.

Tie Niaofei, however, didn't even bother to move. Nor did the soldiers loose any more arrows or fire their arquebuses; they merely watched Tian Shenglan with cold indifference.

He watched as Tian Shenglan, approaching from a distance, swiftly galloped to a spot not far from Tie Niaofei, then, with a quick flash, drew a curved saber, intending to get a little closer before swinging it down to strike...

However, when they were still five or six paces apart, Tie Niaofei suddenly produced a short pistol—one that was the length of a man's forearm, delicate and compact—and with a flick of his wrist, fired it. "Bang!"

Tian Shenglan toppled from his horse.

The warhorse, having lost its rider, veered sharply and galloped past Tie Niaofei...

Tie Niaofei blew away the wisp of white smoke rising from the pistol's muzzle and scoffed, "Times have changed!"

Having made his dramatic statement, he was about to turn away.

Suddenly, he saw Tian Shenglan writhing on the ground...

One shot hadn't been enough to kill the man.

"Oh? Not dead yet?"

Tie Niaofei slowly approached, to see Tian Shenglan clutching his abdomen, blood gushing like a spring between his fingers. It seemed the lead bullet had only struck his belly, so he wouldn't expire immediately.

Tie Niaofei found himself hesitating. This fellow wasn't dead yet? Should he finish him off with another strike, or just watch him slowly take his last breath?

The Heavenly Lord statue on his chest suddenly spoke: "All men must die, but some merely require a little assistance. Tie Niaofei, light a hand grenade and stuff it into his mouth..."

Tie Niaofei no longer hesitated. Under Tian Shenglan's terrified gaze, he slowly lit the fuse of the hand grenade, then shoved it into Tian Shenglan's mouth.

He clapped his hands together and turned to leave.

After walking a few meters away, he crouched down and covered his ears, just as a "boom" echoed from behind him. Only then did a peculiar smile spread across Tie Niaofei's face. "Brothers, half our revenge is settled. Kill Zhai Tang, and your blood feud will be fully avenged."

The Heavenly Lord spoke, "Private grudges are settled, but there's still a national grudge to settle. If we don't eradicate all the Jin merchants who collude with the enemy and betray the nation, this grudge will never be fully avenged."

Tie Niaofei affirmed, "Right! There's still a national grudge to settle!" —

In the fifth year of the Chongzhen era, in August, the bandits attacked Xizhou.

Gao Yi, Commander of Xizhou Garrison, opened the north gate and fled. Yang Wei, the Prefect of Xizhou, held out in defense, wounding many bandits, but was struck by a stray arrow and fell from the east wall. Xizhou city fell, and the bandits occupied it for three days.

Subsequently, the bandits successively captured Qingshui, Yangcheng County, Gaoping, Lingchuan, Lu'an, Changzi, and other areas, and the situation in Shanxi suddenly began to worsen once more.

"Report!"

A lone, swift rider galloped into Hedong City, straight to where Xing Honglang and Gao Chuwu stood. The breathless messenger, still gasping, urgently declared, "The bandits... the bandits have captured Shouyang, outside Taiyuan City! Shanxi Governor Xu Dingchen led his army to relieve it, but the scoundrels abandoned Shouyang, rapidly moved south, and breached Zezhou."

Hearing this battle report, Xing Honglang couldn't help but feel a tremor of alarm.

Shouyang was extremely close to Taiyuan!

Xu Dingchen was garrisoned in Taiyuan City itself, yet the bandits still managed to breach Shouyang, leaving no time for relief—a testament to the extreme speed of their siege tactics.

In the early years of Chongzhen, the bandits merely stirred up trouble in villages, attacked small towns, and raided minor counties; but now, they could swiftly breach satellite towns adjacent to Taiyuan City.

Moreover, they withdrew before government forces could arrive, moved rapidly south, and then breached Zezhou City. This truly showed they were no longer the simpletons they once were.

"Zezhou is only about two hundred li from Hedong City," Xing Honglang's brow furrowed. "At the bandits' current speed, two hundred li could be covered in just a few days, which means our location here has also become unsafe."

The messenger said, "Yes, indeed! The Governor will soon lead his army south to pursue and annihilate the bandits. Before that, the Governor commands you to hold Hedong City securely, to defend this vital salt-producing region, and under no circumstances to let it fall."