Chapter 23: A Final Battle with Their Backs Against the Water

  This year, the rain in Qi Guo is abundant, and it will be drizzling every three to five days. The crops are growing well, and there's no need to irrigate them with hard work. As long as the summer harvest coincides with good weather, a bumper crop is guaranteed. An old farmer with a face full of wrinkles happily wears his raincoat and strolls through the fields, listening to the sound of raindrops hitting the wheat leaves, calculating in his mind that according to this year's harvest, after paying rent and taxes, he will still have a considerable surplus, which should be enough for his family to eat for a year. Thinking of this, the wrinkles on the old farmer's face seem to relax.

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  But not everyone likes this kind of rainy day.

  Qin Lei loudly complained to Shen Qing beside him, "Has the sky of Qi State been pierced? Look, my scabbard and saddle are all moldy. This damned weather is as annoying as Qi State!"

  Shen Qing smiled and looked at the palace, he knew this was a way for the palace to relieve stress, so he didn't speak up either, just quietly listening.

  Qin Lei saw Shen Qing's lukewarm attitude and got angry, saying: "At the beginning, I should have kept Hou Xin here, or even Xu Ge would do. I really don't know if I had a fever at that time or what? How could I have taken a liking to such an insipid guy like you?"

  Shen Qing smiled awkwardly, unsure of how to respond.

  Qin Lei saw that all sorts of teasing and coaxing couldn't get this little guy to utter a single word, and he felt disheartened, leaning on the horse's back, feeling the strong muscles of the fine horse. He looked back at the peasant army struggling to move forward in the muddy terrain. He let out a long sigh and said: "Alright, I admit it, I'm going crazy, we can't even cover forty miles in a day, plus the twenty miles we owed from yesterday, we'll have to walk for at least another day. In this one day, the Bai Sheng army might catch up with us, or they might never catch up, this feeling of putting ourselves on the gambling table is really...".

  "Ah!" Qin Lei suddenly sat up and shouted strangely. The ** horse was startled and let out a loud snort.

  It's been seven days since they parted ways. The journey has been smooth sailing, making Qin Lei secretly relieved and yet apprehensive at the same time. As they get closer to their destination, this unease grows thicker.

  Qin Lei touched the headless arrow in his backpack and sighed at his sixth sense. He was about to say to Shen Qing that if things went on like this, he would become a woman. A scout rushed from the front, stopped in front of Qin Lei, and forcibly stopped his momentum. Without time for courtesy, he said urgently: "Your Highness, the bridge ahead has collapsed."

  Qin Lei rolled his eyes and indeed, nothing good ever happens on a rainy day. He ordered the troops to continue advancing while he took a dozen cavalrymen to scout ahead.

  Looking at the several sections of rough hemp rope rolling up and down on the turbulent river, Qin Lei dismounted his horse and landed on the soft shore, splashing countless mud stars. Suddenly, he lightly exclaimed, walked to the wooden stake tied with hemp rope, bent down to take a closer look, there were some chaotic footprints on the ground, as well as hoof prints, the hoof prints winding up to the upstream of the river.

  Qin Lei grasped the wooden stake with one hand and pulled out a thick hemp rope from the water with the other, its severed end clean and smooth, clearly cut by a sharp blade. Qin Lei tossed aside the rope and told Shen Qing, "Quickly go find Shi Wei."

  Soon, Shi Wei rode his horse to the riverbank and found Qin Lei staring at the five-zhang-wide river, gesturing about something. The rumbling sound of the water did not affect Qin Lei's hearing, he turned around and said sternly to Shi Wei: "We've been discovered, the enemy will arrive soon from upstream." He pointed eastward without explaining his reasoning.

  Shi Wei jumped off his horse and saluted Qin Lei, asking: "Your Highness, what do you need me to do?"

  Qin Lei didn't beat around the bush and directly asked: "How long does it take to build a bridge?"

  After Shi Wei's greeting, a dark-skinned man came over, first letting him pay his respects to Qin Lei, then introducing: "Your Highness, Lu Kan is the craftsman officer of the Righteous Army, an expert in bridge-building and house-construction. Let him answer your questions."

  Qin Lei nodded kindly at this rustic-looking man and repeated his question.

  Lu Kan was a bit awkward, but he still spoke clearly: "To this official, the original rope of this bridge was only cut off. As long as it is reconnected and the wooden boards are put back on, it can be crossed. It won't take half an hour."

  "Is there a way for you to continue the rope, sir?"

  Lu Kan was startled by being addressed as 'Mr.' and hastily said: "I don't dare, I don't dare."

  Qin Lei looked at him with some helplessness, and he only then remembered Qin Lei's question, saying apologetically: "There is, as long as there is a string that can connect the two ends, I can connect it."

  Qin Lei was overjoyed and said, "If we escape danger today, I will definitely give you the first credit." He also ordered Shi Wei on the side, "Assign 500 men to follow Mr.'s command, those who disobey will be beheaded." Shi Wei acknowledged and accepted the order.

  Lu Kan cried out in a loud voice: "Everything else is easy to say, but how can we first connect the ropes?"

  Qin Lei smiled and said: "I'll take care of this."

  After finishing, he let Shen Qing go get his own package. After taking it out, he took out a crossbow from inside, unloaded the arrow, and there was an iron ring welded on the tail of the arrow. Qin Lei also took out a roll of fine rope, skillfully threaded through the iron ring and tied a knot. Then re-hang the crossbow, aiming at the opposite side of the river with concentration.

  Everyone around him held their breath, afraid of affecting his aim.

  Qin Lei's firm trigger release, the arrow carrying a thin rope, in the blink of an eye nailed to the front section of a floating rope on the water.

  Lukan took over the thin rope and with the help of several guards, pulled it over, then took out the tool from his waist and began to repair.

  Qin Lei took advantage of the interval to instruct Shen Qing and Shi Wei: "Get the troops in order. Form a rhombus-shaped array on the east bank of the river. Shen Qing, scatter all the small gadgets."

  After finishing speaking, he took over the guard's reloaded crossbow and aimed at the second rope.

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  Zhao Gang and Zhao Ben felt that their luck had not yet reached the worst point. When they intercepted a team, but did not find Qin Lei. Then the kind-hearted mysterious person sent them information again, confirming Qin Lei's whereabouts for them.

  The weather had little effect on the cavalry, and after two days and nights of galloping, the hundreds of mounted soldiers finally heard the rumbling sound of water. According to their guide, if they continued downstream for another five miles, they might be able to find their prey near a bridge.

  At this time, the three thousand cavalry borrowed from General Xue had long since fallen behind and lost contact.

  Zhao Kang and Zhao E ordered the troops to make some adjustments, then formed a charging formation and swept downstream.

  Trampling countless good fields, including that of the old farmer in a raincoat. He stared blankly at the cavalry rushing by, his eyes welling up with tears, until he was knocked to the ground and crushed into mud.

  No one cares about the life and death of an old farmer, Zhao Gang and Zhao Yan have already seen thousands of people lined up in formation downstream. After days of rushing around, they finally found the main force, and their fatigue and annoyance disappeared instantly. The hundred victorious cavalrymen, with red eyes, yelled and desperately whipped their war horses to rush forward, wanting to chop into minced meat the scoundrels who had led them by the nose for nearly a thousand miles.

  The shock of nearly two thousand cavalry charging was powerful, and in the midst of the surging river on one side, it swept forward. Enough to make ordinary people lose their souls, limp and fall to the ground.

  The Art of War says: Do not press a desperate enemy, and do not block a retreating army.

  On the outskirts of Zhuolu Yuan, a large group of desperate bandits and a small group of homesick troops were blocked at the riverbank.

  After crossing the river and walking eighty miles, we will arrive in the mountains. As His Highness said, once we enter the mountains, we won't have to worry about being besieged by the champion anymore. Who knows, maybe we can even become the king of the mountain.

  After crossing the river and walking sixty miles, it will be the place where the temple and Iron Eagle agreed. Once there, there is a chance of survival, and I can go home.

  All of this is based on crossing the river, and the premise of crossing the river is to repair that bridge.

  The desperate and exhausted soldiers, with eyes bloodshot, growled like beasts, gripping their weapons tightly, ready to tear apart any enemy who dared to block their way across the river.

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  In the blink of an eye, the Baishengqi army had charged to within two hundred steps of the enemy lines, and both sides could clearly see the ferocious expressions on each other's faces.

  A thousand horses gallop on the flat hillside

  Suddenly, the few fine horses at the front let out a mournful cry and flew low to the ground, then with extremely fast speed they bucked and kicked sideways, throwing off the riders who were caught off guard, slamming them into the ground in front of the formation, all of whom lost consciousness.

  In the thicket, several tripwires were firmly fixed by iron nails at both ends, still trembling non-stop.

  The knights behind were slightly surprised but not panicked, and they all grasped the horse's mane, and the war horses jumped over the obstacles on the ground in unison. This was just a small episode, and Zhao Gang and Zhao Kui, who were watching from behind the formation, comforted each other.

  Who would have thought that the war horse had just landed and its front hooves were empty, and it fell to the ground. The knight on the horse didn't have time to react and was pressed under the horse's body, looking like he wouldn't survive.

  Behind the tripwire was a pitfall, and Zhao Gang and Zhao Yan cursed their opponents viciously.

  Having lost a dozen or so riders, the Hundred Victories Army slowed down involuntarily, and its momentum weakened.

  A cheer burst out from the allied army's formation opposite them, and the oppressive feeling brought by the charge of a thousand cavalry was swept away.

  Zhao Gang saw that the team's momentum was blocked, and flames shot up to three feet. He took down the Pear Blossom Spear from his horseback and charged fiercely to the front of the formation, shouting loudly: "Victory after victory!"

  The soldiers conditioned reflexively shouted in unison: "Victory in every battle!!" Suddenly remembering their identities, they were ashamed to death, gritted their teeth, raised their weapons and followed the captain to charge.

  At this time, Qin Lei had just connected all the ropes with crossbow arrows and walked to his own formation with the crossbow. He saw a Qi army general holding a long spear leading his troops to charge fiercely in front of the formation, less than 100 steps away.

  He habitually raised his crossbow, tilted his head against the wooden support, and locked onto the charging general through the sight.

  "Ninety, eighty-five, eighty, seventy-five," Qin Lei counted silently, and when he reached seventy, he stabilized the trigger, and the specially made crossbow arrow shot out with a long tail, flying towards the silver gun leader at the front.