Chapter 22: Three Feet of Green Edge Fighting for Fame (2)

  A sharp spear thrust out suddenly from the side, a fierce stab at the war horse's neck.

  Suddenly, the horse let out a long, mournful whinny, its front hooves flying up, and then with a splat it fell into the muddy ground, its four legs thrashing about ceaselessly.

  Cao Wushang's face was ferocious, he threw away the copper spear and drew out his iron sword. He chopped down the bandit leader who had been knocked dizzy and was crawling out of the mud. Liu Jian let out a breath, carrying the wounded soldier on his back, turned around and ran towards their own camp.

  One side ran while loudly shouting: "Cao Wushang, you must not fight a battle of attrition, retreat... retreat back to the central army!"

  At this time, dozens of people sneaked out from behind the grain cart, led by that Yōng Chǐ, waving long spears and killing towards the bandits. Zhao Tuo stood on a grain cart, gazing at the changes in the battlefield. Seeing the bandits charging again, trying to trap Liu Jian and others, his brow furrowed slightly.

  "Sixth Liu, disperse!"

  Liu Bang hastily responded with a loud voice and ordered the archers of the central army to shoot arrows into the sky.

  This scattered, without a certain goal, is similar to what later generations called firepower coverage. One hundred archers bent their bows and shot arrows, the sharp arrows whistling as they flew towards the distant battlefield. Liu Quan had returned to his own camp, letting Zhou Chang arrange people to take care of the wounded soldiers. He held a shield in one hand and swung a sword with the other, mixing with the rushing bandits again, fighting and retreating, moving closer to the central army.

  An arrow suddenly shot towards Liu Quan.

  Cao was uninjured, his eyes quick and his hands fast, he swung his sword and chopped the sharp arrow in two.

  Liu Jian also sensed it and couldn't help but turn his head to look in the direction of the central army, "Be careful, something doesn't feel right behind you!"

  An ordinary person might have considered this arrow a stray one; after all, on the battlefield, anything can happen.

  However, out of instinct, Liu Guang keenly sensed that this arrow shot at him was not a stray arrow, but a deliberate one.

  In the military formation, Liu Bang suddenly rushed over and kicked a man of about the same age as him to the ground.

  However, in the eyes of outsiders, this move seemed more like a shield to protect the man from being hurt by the flying arrows. Liu Bang squatted down and grabbed the man's arm, growling fiercely: "Huan, have you gone mad? Why did you shoot and kill that Liu Yan just now?"

  The man's name was Lu Wan, and he was born in the same year, month, and day as Liu Bang. Moreover, their two families were also acquainted for generations.

  Lu Zhi had been following Liu Bang since he was a child and could be called Liu Bang's shadow. He was kicked by Liu Bang, but Lu Zhi seemed to be unaffected.

  "With a fierce gaze, Liu Bang stared at the distant figure of Lü Kuang, 'Liu Bang, if it weren't for this guy last time, how could we have lost? And this bastard also killed Cao Ji, making Fei an orphan... Taking advantage of this opportunity, we can kill him and avenge Cao Ji's death.'"

  In Pei County, many people called Liu Ji as Liu Bang.

  However, the fact is that this Liu Bang was not actually named after Liu Ji. "Bang" is a dialect from the Shiyang County area, which in later generations means "older brother". In short, Liu Bang simply means "Liu Ge" or "Liu Dage", which can be considered a respectful title.

  Liu Bang gritted his teeth and said, "Bastard, Liu Kan may have killed Cao Ji, but it's not like he had a choice. In our line of work, either you kill or get killed. What's more, we're in this together now, how can personal vendettas be mentioned in the same breath as official business? You really are muddled."

  Moreover, those Qin people are clearly going to promote Liu Yan. If he dies, can you guarantee that the Qin people won't investigate? Dying in battle and being killed by a sneak attack can be distinguished just by looking at the wound. If the Qin people find out that Liu Yan was killed by a sneak attack, none of us will be able to escape responsibility.

  Besides, Tu Zi and Ren Ao have a good impression of him now.

  Can you guarantee that they won't become suspicious? As for the grudge between me and Liu Jian, don't interfere, I'll settle the score with him myself.

  Lu Wan listened to Liu Bang's words and punched the ground in frustration.

  "Forget about personal grudges for now, let's deal with Wang Ling and his men first. We'll settle the score later... That guy Wang Ling is ruthless, but he hasn't made a move yet, clearly he has other plans. Let's be careful, we don't want to lose our lives here."

  Lu Zhi nodded, "Liu Bang, don't worry, I understand!"

  The conversation between Liu Bang and Lu Wan did not attract anyone's attention, nor was it even noticed by Zhao Tuo, who was directing the battle.

  Liu Quan's men and Yong Chi converged, taking advantage of the momentum to drive back the bandits and return to the central army. After a fierce battle, 17 people under Liu Quan were injured, but not one person died, which can't be said to be a miracle. Liu Quan himself was also covered in blood from head to toe as he walked up to Zhao Tuo.

  Liu Qian stepped forward and saluted: "Reporting to General, the vanguard of 111 men launched a surprise attack, not a single casualty."

  Zhuo Tuo looked up and down at Liu Jian several times, suddenly bursting out laughing: "Indeed a good fellow, I didn't misjudge you! Liu Jian, I order you to continue leading your troops, guarding the left flank of the central army. Without my command, not a single bandit is allowed to pass through."

  "Hi!"

  Liu Jian stepped forward again to bid farewell and turned around to leave.

  First, he arranged for Shi Zuhe and Zhou Chang to take care of the wounded, and then led his men to replace the left wing troops guarded by Ren Gao, and replenished arrows. Liu Jian's return not only supplemented Zhao Tuo's manpower but also greatly boosted the morale of these soldiers.

  Zhaotuo immediately ordered Yong Chi to guard the right wing and set up a defensive formation.

  Five hundred men, with grain carts forming a barricade, formed a strong defensive line. Zhao Tuo continued to observe the bandits' actions, while the bandits, after a brief skirmish, lost more than 100 people and temporarily stopped their blind attack, observing the movement of the grain team.

  "Liu Ji, under the command of Fan Kuai, why haven't you arrived yet?"

  Zhao Tuo suddenly asked a question, which scared Liu Bang to the point of sweating profusely. Indeed, how come Fan Kuai's troops have not yet merged with the central army? Since the bandits launched their attack, the central and vanguard armies were the main targets. On the other hand, Fan Kuai, who was bringing up the rear, did not receive too much pressure. The bandits only sent out a small number of soldiers to cut off the connection between the rear and central armies.

  Now that the vanguard has assembled, why hasn't Fan Kuai appeared yet?

  Liu Bang hastily explained, "I think that Fan Kuai must have another plan. Although the bandits are attacking fiercely, it seems like they haven't used their full strength yet. Fan Kuai is usually reckless, but at critical moments, he's actually quite clever. If he appears at the most crucial moment, the impact on the bandits will be even heavier... General, I can guarantee that Fan Kuai will not retreat from the battlefield."

  Zhao Tuo's face was expressionless, and he just hummed in response, "I hope so."

  Liu Bang let out a sigh of relief: It's finally over! Although he didn't know why Fan Kuai hadn't shown up to rendezvous, he believed that Fan wouldn't desert at the last minute. So Liu Bang rallied his spirits and ordered his troops to get ready, as the bandits began their attack once more.

  In the dark of night, a swarm of bandits rushed forward, braving the drizzle, shouting as they charged towards the grain convoy.

  Although the number of people is not large, there are at least 700 or 800. Liu Kan changed into a copper spear weighing about 30 kilograms and tore open his collar, wrapping it around his hand. The copper spear stained with blood becomes slippery and difficult to grasp. With cloth strips wrapped around his hands, he can fight more conveniently.

  The rest of the people, one after another, tore the hemp into strips and wrapped them around their hands.

  As they watched the bandits getting closer and closer, Liu Gan raised his copper spear and shouted loudly: "Release the arrows!"

  Almost at the same time, Liu Bang and Yong Chi issued orders simultaneously. Hundreds of arrows rose into the sky, in the misty fine rain, like black flies, whizzing towards the bandits. Puff, puff, puff... The bandits who rushed to the front were shot into hedgehogs in an instant, falling in a pool of blood and mud.

  But the remaining bandits seemed to have become more ferocious, yelling loudly and continuing their charge.

  One hundred paces, fifty paces... Seeing that the distance from the cavalry was only twenty or thirty paces, Liu Quan held his halberd and rushed out from behind the carriage, charging forward to meet the bandits.

  "Kill!"

  With a loud shout, Liu Gan thrust forward with the standard piercing technique of later generations, one strike, as fast as lightning, pierced through the bandit's chest. As he withdrew his spear, it was pulled out from the corpse with an eerie sound, followed by another roar, a flash of cold light, and the spear thrust again.

  Cao Wushang followed closely behind Liu Quan, his only responsibility being to cover Liu's back and sides.

  Dozens of guards followed the two, like a string of sharp arrows. Liu Quan was the arrowhead, shooting out to see blood, like a lion pouncing on a rabbit.

  Although there were many bandits, the soldiers of the grain team had already developed a strong desire for battle.

  Liu Bang and Yong Chi led their troops to attack one after another. The two sides fought together, only to hear the dull sound of weapons cutting into flesh and blood, the continuous cries of sorrow, the splashing of fresh blood, mixed with severed limbs, flying everywhere. For a time, the great marsh of Zhao Yang turned into a bloody red color...

  Zhaoda stood upright in the central army, with a black dragon banner fluttering behind him.

  The great banner does not fall, the military heart is stable. As he watched the thieves gradually resist and disperse, Zhao Tuo's face did not show a hint of joy, but instead frowned tightly, with a flash of worry in his eyes. Until now, Wang Ling's troops have still not launched an attack!

  This time, luring the snake out of the cave is mainly to deal with Wang Ling.

  Before departure, Ren You considered all aspects and of course also took into account Wang Ling's cunningness, which might hide his strength and consume the intentions of other bandits. Wang Ling did not attack, and the Qin army did not move... This was Ren You's strategy. At the same time, in order to ensure that the plan could be implemented smoothly, Ren You ordered Zhao Tuo: As soon as Wang Ling attacks, after the signal is sent out, you must hold back Wang Ling's rear leg.

  Time... an hour!

  In this way, the pressure on the grain team will become very great.

  If things go wrong, these hundreds of people will be completely wiped out, including Zhao Tuo himself, and they will all lose their lives as a result.

  This is a gamble, and also a test. Zhao Tuo was not afraid of death, but he had to worry that if the grain team suffered heavy losses, these temporarily recruited soldiers would mutiny due to fear. If such a situation really occurred, the mission would also fail.

  If this fails, it won't be easy to lure out Wang Ling again!

  Zhao Tuo subconsciously gripped his treasured sword tightly, and his palms were already drenched with sweat... Wang Ling, how long do you want to endure?