Chapter 130: The Battle for the Hillside (Part VI)

"Clang, crack, boom!"

The rebel troops, charging diagonally from the side of the wagon wall, began their assault. Spears slammed into the carriages, and with the violent impact of men and horses, the first carriage was instantly overturned. A Zhang family guard, failing to dodge in time, was trapped beneath it. His lower body was crushed, leaving only his arms flailing outside as he let out a harrowing, shrill scream.

The cavalrymen who toppled the wagon did not seize the opportunity to leap into the gap. Instead, they veered their horses sharply away, leaving the intact sections of the wagon wall fully exposed to their comrades approaching from behind.

"Spears! Pikemen!" The sudden shift in the battle threw Li Shan into a panic. Watching the wagon overturn, he waved his arms frantically to clear the area while scanning the surroundings, shouting for the few pikemen in the caravan. "Pikemen! Hurry! Hold the line! You must hold! There, hold that spot!"

Relying on the reach of their eight-foot spears, three men rushed to the breach. Following Li Shan’s direction, they thrust their spears through the gaps in the wagon wall. Suddenly, the carriage before them was heaved upward by a massive force. The three men felt the light vanish as the wagon loomed over them, and they scrambled back in terror, narrowly escaping being crushed.

"Boom!"

Another wagon was overturned, leaving a gap four or five yards wide. Yet, the cavalry outside still showed no intention of charging in directly. The previous group circled back down the slope, while the following cavalry spurred their horses, thrusting their lances into the wheels and sideboards of the wagons, using the momentum to topple another vehicle.

"Twang!"

A clear, sharp sound snapped everyone back to reality. Ding Li was reloading his Qin crossbow. Outside the wall, a cavalryman had been struck in the heart by a bolt. With three wagons now overturned, the field of vision had widened, and they could clearly see the rebel soldier trampled into a pulp by the hooves of his companions' horses.

"What are you standing there for? Fire! Fire!" Ding Li roared while reloading. He had not expected Qin Mo’s cavalry to use a feint to lure them into a trap. However, what surprised Ding Li even more was that a small portion of the cavalry outside the wall had drawn their bows, targeting the people behind the wagons.

"Look out!" Because of his shouting and the large Qin crossbow in his hand—which was significantly more powerful than a standard short crossbow—Ding Li had become a prime target. He shouted a warning while abandoning his own shot, leaping to the side just as a flurry of arrows whistled through the air.

Taking cover behind a wagon, Ding Li looked back at his previous position. Several arrows were embedded deep in the ground, their feathered tails still vibrating, as if taunting him.

"Boom! Boom!"

Two more wagons were overturned. The rebels at the rear of the cavalry troop pushed them over before retreating. A total of seven wagons had been toppled, creating a gap large enough for a massive rebel charge. Qin Mo, leading the cavalry, did not disappoint; he fired an arrow into the wagon wall before turning his horse back down the slope, nimbly swapping his bow for a lance and reaching for the saber at his saddle, ready to draw it at a moment's notice.

Taking advantage of the rebels retreating down the slope, Ding Li and Li Shan gathered the survivors. Though the cavalry had withdrawn, the rival factions of Wang Qing and Zhang Wu remained. No sooner had Qin Mo’s men left than they launched a volley of arrows into the wagon wall, forcing Ding Li and his men to remain on high alert.

In just a short time, the wagon wall had been severely damaged, and the intermittent attacks had cost Ding Li twelve casualties, including one pikeman who had been shot.

"A-Li, what do we do now? Let’s charge out!" Li Shan, watching his men fall, shook his head in grief and pointed to his horse. "We have enough people. Let’s mount up and break out! A-Li, if we don't go now, it’ll be too late!"

At this point, Li Shan had abandoned any hope for the cargo. It was clear the shipment was lost. If they continued to defend, the entire caravan would be picked clean. A breakout was their only chance to save at least a few lives.

But breaking through the wall was easy; outside, there were a hundred of Wang Qing’s and Zhang Wu’s men waiting like tigers, and Qin Mo’s vigorous cavalry would not simply watch them escape. Behind them, Zhang Ba-La also had a hundred-man unit. It was as if they had accidentally stumbled into a three-layered defensive net.

"A-Li, we’ll cover you. You and Brother Heizi, get out of here! This cargo has nothing to do with you two. Just remember this day and find a way to avenge us later!" Li Shan understood the dilemma; even he couldn't guarantee they could break through three layers of enemies. But with no other choice, he steeled himself, raised his long-handled broadsword, and prepared to charge. Suddenly, Heizi, on the other side of the wall, fired an arrow near Ding Li, startling both him and Li Shan.

Turning around, they saw Heizi had jumped off the wagon, mounted a horse without hesitation, and was gesturing wildly with his saber toward the outside.

"What is happening?" Li Shan and Ding Li were bewildered. But when they looked outside, the scene before them left them even more stunned.

The cavalry unit that had just returned down the slope to regroup for a final charge was now locked in battle with Zhang Ba-La’s men, who had been watching from below. The fighting was one-sided; the cavalry had lost more than half their numbers since leaving the wall, and Ding Li could clearly see riders falling from their saddles. Without the advantage of a charge, the cavalry had no defense against the prepared archers, especially since Zhang Ba-La’s men had stabbed them in the back.

"General Wang..."

A roar erupted amidst the whistling arrows, drawing everyone's attention. From the side, Wang Qing, who had been hiding behind his shield-bearers, had fallen to the ground with an arrow in his chest. Only experienced eyes like Ding Li and Li Shan could tell that he hadn't been killed by their side, but like Qin Mo’s cavalry, had been taken out by a cold arrow from his own ranks.

"Brothers, avenge General Wang!" Before anyone could react, Zhang Wu, who had successfully carried out the ambush, stood up from behind his shields, drew his bow, and fired toward the wagon wall. He successfully drew the attention of Wang Qing’s remaining men.

With few men left, Wang Qing’s subordinates, following Zhang Wu’s command, began to charge toward the gap in the wagon wall. Misunderstanding the situation, they blamed Wang Qing’s death on Ding Li’s group and charged toward the wall alongside Zhang Wu’s men.

"Brother Li, this is our chance!" Ding Li’s eyes lit up. He hadn't expected the rebels to descend into infighting. After a brief pause, he shouted, "The mounts! Release the horses! Let them charge out first! Quick, pull the wagons away, let the horses break out!"

Though confused, the men executed the order efficiently. The porters joined in, crouching low to drag the overturned wagons away, quickly clearing a path. Following Ding Li’s command, the horses were driven out from the protection of the wall. Under the cover of Ding Li and Heizi’s archers, the horses stampeded toward the advancing rebels.

Suddenly faced with the charging horses, many of Zhang Wu’s men instinctively aimed their bows at the animals. But as more horses flooded out, they couldn't kill them all. The injured horses went berserk, crashing into the rebel lines. While they didn't cause significant casualties, they threw the enemy into chaos.

"Spears! Thrust!" Seizing the moment, Ding Li stopped using his crossbow, leapt onto his horse, drew his Tang saber, and shouted to the dozen or so mounted bodyguards, "Charge! Break out!"

"A-Li, be careful!"

"Brother Li, watch out!"

Li Shan and Heizi shouted in concern, but the situation was too urgent for them to intervene. Li Shan began reorganizing the men behind the wall, while Heizi leaped onto a wagon, his short crossbow becoming a harbinger of death for the rebels.

"Don't shoot the horses, you idiots! Move! Don't shoot the horses!" Zhang Wu roared in fury as his ranks fell into disarray, urging his men forward while discarding his bow and drawing his saber.

Suddenly, Zhang Wu’s heart skipped a beat. He ducked back behind his shield-bearers just as a cold wind whistled past his head. The sharp sound made his heart leap into his throat.

"Damn it, how could I forget they have a master archer?" The sudden realization saved his life. As he cursed, he reached up to his head, his hand coming away covered in a sticky liquid.

Looking at his hand, Zhang Wu frowned. He felt a sharp pain on his scalp, but he felt more lucky than anything; that arrow could have killed him, yet it had only grazed his head.