MLMD -Chapter 56 An Unexpected Battle

When the two Later Jin soldiers fell to the ground, blood gushing out and staining the earth red, the surrounding area fell into a deathly silence.

Ao Bai first showed an expression of disbelief on his face, and then it immediately twisted into a grimace. He simply could not believe that someone had just killed Later Jin warriors right in front of him. At first, it seemed impossible, and then a surge of hot blood rushed to his head. He howled loudly.

At this point, some might find it incredible, but historically, Ao Bai’s personality was exactly like this—once he got impulsive, nothing else mattered.

Seeing the two Later Jin cavalrymen riddled with crossbow bolts like porcupines, Ao Bai had long abandoned Daisan’s instructions. He grabbed the heavy tiger-head spear from his saddle and shouted loudly:

“Blow the horn! Assemble everyone! All of you, charge! Kill those lowly Ming dogs!”

With that, he spurred his horse forward toward Yue Yang and his group.

Meanwhile, Yue Yang, seeing the two fallen Later Jin cavalrymen, realized there was no chance of mercy. He immediately blew the sharp whistle hanging from his neck.

“Wuu wuu wuu… wuu wuu wuu…”

“Beep beep beep… beep beep beep…”

The horn and the whistle rang out across the grasslands, some clear and resonant, others sharp and piercing, stirring the entire camp into alert.

Seizing the moment, Yue Yang and Hu Laosan quickly fell back behind several dozen soldiers. Hu Laosan removed his mask and said to Yue Yang:

“Young master, it seems we won’t be able to negotiate with the Tatars today. When the fighting starts, you and Shunbao should escape first. I’ll lead the brothers to cover your retreat!”

“Escape?” Yue Yang shook his head with a bitter smile. “This whole area is Tatar and Mongol territory. Where could we possibly go? Rather than fleeing in disgrace, I’d rather die in battle here alongside my brothers.”

Though Yue Yang was a modern-day homebody, he carried a streak of tenacity in his bones. Seeing that there was no escape, he immediately steeled himself. He drew a Yanling Dao from his waist and shouted:

“Brothers! In today’s battle, I am invincible! We are all proud sons of the Ming! Even if we die, we must not tarnish the reputation of Ming men! Listen well! Spearmen, plant your spears; swords-and-shields, load your crossbows! Everyone, prepare for battle!”

The soldiers, who had been anxious at the sight of over a hundred Later Jin soldiers charging on horseback, gradually steadied themselves upon hearing Yue Yang’s words. Once a unit realizes that death is inevitable, it often sparks desperate courage. The spearmen angled their spears into the ground, tips pointed forward, while the swords-and-shields quickly reloaded their crossbows with fresh bolts, aiming at the oncoming cavalry.

Soon, the Later Jin cavalry had closed to about a hundred meters from Yue Yang’s small formation. Yue Yang shouted:

“Release the arrows!”

“Thud thud thud thud…”

A storm of arrows shot forward at the approaching cavalry.

“Shh shh shh shh… thud thud…”

The sound of arrows hitting armor and flesh mixed together. Under the dense barrage, the first dozen or so Later Jin cavalrymen were knocked from their horses, sending their last cries into the world.

Even Ao Bai, at the forefront, was not spared. Though he wore two layers of sturdy cotton armor, gaps remained. A precisely forged steel arrow with a triangular bleeding notch pierced his left arm. Pain shot through him, and the longbow he held fell to the ground.

Yet Ao Bai remained valiant. Despite the arrow in his arm, he shouted loudly:

“Brave warriors of the Later Jin, fire your arrows!”

The cavalrymen, already with bows drawn, released their strings.

“Shoo shoo shoo…”

The dull twang of bows rang out as nearly a hundred arrows arched toward Yue Yang and his men.

Seeing the rain of arrows, Hu Laosan, stationed at the rear, spotted it first. He didn’t have time to speak—he grabbed Yue Yang from his horse and threw himself over him. Yue Yang, bewildered, heard the clang of metal and occasional dull thuds as arrows struck.

Pulled from his horse, Yue Yang felt a sharp soreness, and after a while, Hu Laosan released him while shouting commands:

“Spearmen, hold the line! Swords-and-shields, move up and assist!”

Almost immediately, the clash of weapons and soldiers’ shouts filled the air.

Struggling to stand, Yue Yang saw the Later Jin cavalry in contact with the first dozen spearmen. Behind them, swords-and-shields charged to engage the following cavalry. Soldiers fell into pools of blood, but surprisingly, most of the casualties were from the Later Jin side.

“How can this be? How can this be?”

About four hundred meters away, Daisan, the instigator of the situation, watched in shock at the battle. His expression darkened—things had already exceeded his expectations.

The volley of arrows the Later Jin cavalry had fired earlier had caused almost no damage to the spearmen. The arrows, which should have brought death and fear, bounced off the spearmen’s armor. This defied all understanding for the cavalry, yet they collided with the well-prepared spearmen anyway.

To everyone’s astonishment, over ten cavalrymen were unhorsed by the spears and only fell after being struck by the following waves. They then engaged with the charging swords-and-shields.

What should have been an easy massacre was not going entirely as planned. Some spearmen, knocked down but not mortally wounded, even rose again to fight. This left Daisan completely flabbergasted.

In Daisan’s plan, Ao Bai was merely to provoke and test the combat ability of this Ming guard, as well as the protective strength of their armor. That was his intent.

Yet events quickly spiraled beyond his control. The attitude of that Ming merchant was like a stone in a latrine—stubborn and unyielding. Daisan had clearly overestimated Ao Bai’s capabilities. Ao Bai’s intellect was no higher than a pig’s; such an animal could charge, but plotting schemes was far beyond him.

What should have been a small-scale trial battle had escalated into a full-scale clash.

“This Ao Bai is useless—he can’t even handle this simple task!” Daisan’s face contorted like some primate known for climbing trees.

Now in a dilemma, Daisan realized things were spinning out of his control. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Zaisang silently arrive beside him. Not far off, the Mongols were quietly assembling.

“Daisan, shouldn’t you give me an explanation for this?” Zaisang asked sternly.

Though blunt like most Mongols, Zaisang had decades of leadership experience in the Khorchin tribe. He knew immediately that this mess was caused by Daisan. Attacking a merchant caravan coming to Mongolia could be seen as a minor misunderstanding—but it also risked the tribe’s reputation.

Reputation might seem trivial, but sometimes it’s deadly. If word spread that the Khorchin tribe incited attacks on merchants, their name would be ruined. Who would dare trade with a tribe that couldn’t even protect its own merchants?

Seeing Zaisang’s face twisted like someone repeatedly insulted, Daisan silently cursed Ao Bai’s entire female lineage dozens of times in his mind…