Chapter 13: The Wolf Pack (Part 1)

  If Zhao Yan and others had charged out to kill, they might have killed Xiao Tienu as well, but they didn't do so. Yang Yingqi knew that they were moved by Xiao Tienu's heroic spirit after seeing him single-handedly guarding the rear, and they all felt a sense of admiration for each other. However, after this battle, Xiao Tienu would probably not dare to come again for a long time - nor would he have the power to do so.

  The battlefield has been cleaned up, and it's already nighttime. Zhe Yan said, "Let's take a rest, and we'll set out on the road again tomorrow." Among the remaining team leaders, two of them had been to Daxianbei Mountain before, so Di Yu wasn't worried about not having a guide even though he wasn't there.

  They fell asleep until midnight, when they were suddenly awakened by the howling of wolves. Cao Guangyin said, "Could it be that a pack of wolves has come to attack?" Several leaders hastily climbed up onto the earth wall and looked out, and couldn't help but be shocked: under the moonlight, indeed there was a tide of wolves surging forward ceaselessly.

  Yang Yingqi exclaimed: "Isn't it said in popular science books that wolf packs are usually around ten heads? This... this is simply hundreds of heads - no! Thousands of heads!"

  Yang Kaiyuan asked in surprise: "Science book? What kind of book is that? I've never heard of it?"

  "Cao Guangyi shouted: "This is not the time to talk about this! Hurry up and block the front and back city gates! Also, bring torches! Everyone take a torch, don't let them get close!"

  Fortunately, in the Taihang Mountains, a batch of torches were specially made for night travel. Basically, each of the 500 people had one or two torches. After more than 100 torches were lit around the city wall, the crowd felt much more at ease.

  "Hey! Look! There's someone in the wolf pack!"

  Everyone looked together, and indeed saw a pack of wolves surrounding twenty or so people who were constantly attacking. Those people leaned back to back in a group, slowly approaching the earthen city with firelight. As they got closer, Zhe Yan Chong shouted: "Xiao Tie Nu! It's him!"

  Xiao Tienu was already covered in blood all over his body, the arrow on his left shoulder had been pulled out and bandaged with a cloth strip. At this time, half of his body was dyed red, it was unknown whether it was his own blood, his companion's blood or the wolf pack's blood.

  Xiao Tienu and others have a feud with Zhe Yan Chong's gang, but at the moment of life and death, they naturally lean towards this side. Zhe Yan Chong looked for a while and said: "No! They can't hold on much longer, and won't be able to support themselves until here. I want to go out and save him, who will follow me?"

  Yang Yingqi said: "Wait! This person has fallen to this point now, and it has a lot to do with us. We can save him, but he must agree not to make things difficult for us in the future."

  Zhe Yan Chong said: "Facing a group of wild beasts, as humans we should naturally watch out for and help each other, what's the point of talking about conditions?"

  Yang Yingqi's face turned red, and Zhe Yancong had already rushed out. Cao Guangbi and Ouyang Shi each led a dozen or so people to follow left and right, rushing into the wolf pack, and escorting Xiao Tienu and his party into the city. As soon as they entered the city, Yang Kaiyuan immediately ordered people to close the gate, shoot arrows, and set some flammable things on fire and throw them down to repel the wolf pack.

  Ouyang Shi looked at Xiao Tienu and said: "Where are your horses?"

  Xiao Tienu hummed and didn't answer, suddenly asking: "Who shot me this afternoon?"

  "It's me!"

  Xiao Tienuo hummed and said: "Good arrow!" And then said: "Why did you save me?"

  Zhe Yan Chong said: "We are human, outside is wolf! You suffered from the wolf's harm, we naturally want to lend a hand to rescue, what can be said about this!"

  "Don't forget we're enemies!"

  "Enemies are also human!" Zhao Yan said: "Moreover, is there any eternal enemy in this world?"

  Xiao Tienu was lost in thought when Yang Yingqi suddenly shouted, "This is not good! The wolf pack is going to surround us! With our limited manpower, we may not be able to defend this city without a single leak! We need to think of a solution quickly!"

  Ouyang Shidao said: "I have a way to delay them for a while." He hastily drove out twenty or so horses, and immediately the sound of neighing horses came from outside the city.

  Xiao Tienu said discontentedly: "You're not a horse lover!"

  "Compared with horses, naturally, human lives are more important."

  Yang Yingqi said: "Take advantage of it now, hurry up and ride a horse to escape from the west gate! Don't wait here to be a fine meal for the wolves!"

  Zhe Yan Chong said, "This wolf pack is so large, it's not an ordinary matter. We must think of a way to destroy them. Otherwise, even if we escape, the nearby military and civilians will suffer greatly!"

  Yang Yingqi said: "The nearby military and civilians are either Khitan or Mongols, what does it have to do with us?"

  Zhe Yan Chong furrowed his brow and said: "We're all human! That's what it means!"

  Yang Yingqi said: "Even if that's the case, but we only have a hundred or so people, and it's really possible to kill all these wolves. I'm afraid we'll also be seriously injured. Unless..."

  "Unless what? Do you have another plan?"

  "Unless we use fire!"

  Yang Kai said: "Fire attack? Water and fire are useful tools, but these wolves are scattered outside the city. Even with fire arrows, it's hard to kill them all."

  Yang Yingqi said: "On that day, Zhou Yu burned the Red Cliffs. The first step was to link Cao Cao's warships together, so there was Pang Tong's linked ring plan..."

  "Yang Kaiyuan asked strangely: "Pang Tong's linked memory?"

  Yang Yi said: "It was Pang Tong who deceived Cao Cao into linking all the warships together."

  Yang Kai said: "Cao Cao linked up the warships, what does Guan Yu have to do with it?"

  Yang Yingqi was taken aback, and cold sweat dripped down his face as he silently exclaimed, "This is terrible! This linked strategy is probably fabricated from the novel 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms'!" He hastily said, "I must have remembered it wrong. In any case, if Cao Cao didn't link up the warships, then that one fire on Red Cliff wouldn't be enough to burn everything clean. So our first step is also to gather these wolves together. But how should we gather them?"

  Cao Guangyi hesitated and said: "Bait!"

  Yang Yingqi said: "That's right! Use Ouyang's method just now, use bait! Use the horse group as bait!"

  "Where's the fire?"

  Yang Yingqi said: "Do you still remember that Black Fire Water?"

  Upon hearing this, everyone exchanged a smile. Xiao Tienu had been watching coldly from the side, and now suddenly said: "I know why I lost to you all."

  "Zhe Yan Chong said: 'Why?'"

  Xiao Tienu said: "You have many people, I only have one, this is the reason!"

  Zhe Yan Chong and others all knew that he said many people, not in terms of the number of 500 troops and 100 thieves, but to say that there was no one with equivalent talent among the group of thieves who could really help him make decisions, and could only drag his hind legs.

  Zhe Yan rushed to say: "The wins and losses between us will be put aside for now, dealing with the wolf pack is urgent."

  At this time, the horses that Ouyang Shi had driven out had been eaten by the wolf pack until they were visible bones. Yang Yingqi hastened to arrange: Ouyang Shi would release more horses for the wolf pack to enjoy, slowing down their siege progress; Cao Guangbi led men to repel the wolves that rushed up one by one; Yang Kaiyuan led men to pour black fire water on the city walls and house beams; Yang Yingqi and Zhang Laoyu were busy making some coal ash infiltrated with black fire water as a fuse to lead to the earthen city gate in the east.