Chapter 12: Eagle and Hare (Part 2)
If Mu Rong had turned back at that moment, he would have found the situation to be greatly amiss: his troops were being chased by Xiao Tie Nu, while Xiao Tie Nu's troops were being slaughtered by Zhe Yan Chong!
They fled and chased for dozens of miles, when suddenly in front of them banners and flags fluttered. Mu Ri had a great joy, but Xiao Tie Nu and Zhe Yan Chong were shocked. Zhe Yan Chong's mind flashed with inspiration, and he shouted loudly in Khitan language: "Follow Xiao Lao Da, capture Xiao Ang alive!"
"A hundred men shouted in unison: 'Follow Xiao Lao Da, capture Xiao Ao alive!'"
Xiao Tienu heard the shouting voice behind him and knew what Zhao Yan was up to, but at this time he couldn't afford to choose, so he gritted his teeth and said: "Charge! Charge for me!"
Xiao Ang saw several hundred cavalrymen charging towards him, and also heard that Zhen Tian was shouting to "capture Xiao Ang alive". He was frightened in his heart and shouted: "Protect me! Protect me! Don't let them come over!"
Muriya was unable to steady the feet of his troops, and over a hundred of his men were forced to rush into their own ranks. These more than a thousand men were not as strong as Muriya's troops, and with a commander who was an ignorant young nobleman, the formation immediately fell into great disorder. Xiao Tienu's cavalry also pressed in from behind, adding to the chaos.
Cao Guangyu saw that under the banner with the character "Xiao" on it, there were many people gathered around. He led thirty cavalrymen to charge over and shot an arrow at the large banner, hitting the character "Xiao" right in the center!
Xiao Ang shouted: "Ah!" and turned his horse's head to run away. The commander fled, and the palace account army retreated like a tide. Muliya had already seen that the opponent's number was actually not many, and he was trying his best to gather his troops and reorganize his formation. But seeing this situation, he also knew it was hopeless, sighed, and turned his horse's head to escape.
Xiao Tienu led the crowd to leave in confusion, Zhe Yancong and Cao Guangbi, Alu Man pursued and defeated the Beidi army, chasing them to abandon their helmets and armor, capturing over a thousand horses and several hundred pieces of military equipment. Only then did they stop pursuing, leading the troops to reunite with Di Yu, and still stationed in Tucheng.
This was their first major victory after leaving the valley, and this battle boosted the morale of the 500 soldiers. Zhao Yancong led over a hundred men to fetch water from the northwest source and returned, and Xiao Tienuo did not dare to appear again.
Di Yu said, "This victory will not only make the Imperial Army lose heart, but also make Xiao Tienu reevaluate us! Tomorrow we'll gather our troops and head north, and he won't dare to act rashly again!"
"But I still want to catch him."
Ouyang Shidao said: "Catch? How to catch? This guy has taken advantage of us again this time, and it's estimated that we'll lose two or three dozen subordinates. I'm afraid he doesn't have the guts to show up now. If we go looking for him, this guy is slippery and hard to find - otherwise, he would have been caught by the Khitan government long ago."
Yang Yingqi said: "We can't find him, we can lure him out."
Ouyang Shu was silent for a moment. Yang Yingqi said, "This man is vengeful and has even killed his own father and brother, showing how strong his desire for revenge is. I think he won't let us off easily. He may still be lurking nearby, watching us. Moreover, bandits are greedy for wealth, this is an unchanging principle throughout the ages. Perhaps we can use these two points to lure him out."
"What's the trick?"
Yang Yingqi said, "This great victory is of extraordinary significance to us. From now on, our most elite dozens of people will have a psychological advantage over the remaining dozens of people under Xiao Tienu! Therefore, if we want to secretly calculate him, leaving one hundred people is enough."
Yang Kai said: "Leave one hundred people? What about the others?"
Yang Yingqi said, "Let the others leave. If everyone doesn't go, how can he come over? My idea is this: we select a hundred elite and let them lead the way to cross the desert to Wuguban, while pretending that we have all left. The things obtained from the palace account, as well as the horses not taken by Mr. Di, will be left here. I reckon Xiao Tienuo won't dare to attack our main force again! But if he is watching us from afar, he will definitely come to Tucheng to investigate after we leave. However, this person seems very suspicious and will not personally come at first, but will send one or two subordinates to probe. Do you remember the underground room in Tucheng? After Mr. Di leaves, our remaining people will hide inside. When Xiao Tienuo's men come for the first time, they won't look so carefully, so we have a great chance of deceiving them. Once he goes back to report, we'll immediately come out and ambush him."
Ouyang Shidao said: "What if the people who come to trample on us discover us?"
Yang Yingqi said: "If they came in a large group from the beginning, then we shouldn't have hidden in the basement. If only one or two of them come, we're not afraid of being discovered - at most, our plan will be ruined."
A few people discussed some details and decided that Di Yu and A Lu Man would lead 382 people to set out first, departing at dawn the next day. Wang Da Hui, Gu Da Sao and others stayed up all night to prepare some scarecrows, dressing them in clothes and placing them on horseback. When they left, they deliberately made the troops march in a somewhat scattered manner, making it impossible for people far away to see the exact number of people.
Zhe Yan Chong, Cao Guang Bi, Ouyang Shi and Yang Kai Yuan brothers all ambushed inside the earthen city, for two consecutive days there was no movement, Ouyang Shi became somewhat impatient, Zhe Yan Chong said: "Wait another day, if there is still no movement tomorrow then leave."
On the third day at dusk, a horseman suddenly came from the west. Everyone was overjoyed and hastily hid in the underground room. The man first circled around the city, seeing no unusual situation before entering the city. After entering the city, he didn't even dismount his horse, hastily circling once before hurrying back to report to Xiao Tienu: "Chief, they've all left, there's not a single person inside, but things are scattered everywhere and horses are running wildly all over."
Xiao Tienuo said: "They left and that's it, why leave things behind, is there a trick?"
One of the leaders shouted: "There's no one left, what else can we loot? Let's go in and take away all the goods and horses. This time out, dozens of brothers died, we can't return empty-handed."
Several other leaders also echoed in agreement. Xiao Tienu had no choice but to say, "Alright." More than 70 people marched towards the earthen city and arrived at its edge, but before entering the city, Xiao Tienu suddenly said, "It's better not to go in after all."
One of the leaders sneered, "Head! When did you become so timid? Are you afraid of those few Han people? Brothers, follow me in!" The leader took the lead. Dozens of people followed him and rushed in. Xiao Tienu's face sank, knowing that this failure had greatly damaged his prestige in the thieves' group, and his leadership position was being challenged like never before!
Suddenly, the city's miserable cries rose and fell, Xiao Tienu shouted: "Quickly retreat!" He himself drew out his treasured sword, sitting steadily on his horse without moving. From within the earthen walls, more than a dozen bandits with severe injuries escaped, dodging to one side, hiding behind Xiao Tienu's back.
"Retreat!" Xiao Tienu shouted, but he himself stayed behind, continuously deflecting the incoming arrows. Suddenly, his shoulder felt a sharp pain as an arrow broke through his knife net and pierced into his left shoulder. The force of this arrow was immense, almost knocking him off his horse. Xiao Tienu gritted his teeth, not making a sound, steadied himself, and retreated last.
