Meng Zhe Zhu said with a serious expression, "We will send a group of people to White River Stronghold to help her. The main force can only go to Yao State. As long as we take Yao State, White River Stronghold will naturally be safe. If we delay any longer, our entire tribe … may fall into an even greater danger!"
Meng Zhe Zhu turned to Xun Qi and said sincerely, "I like Xun Er very much. For her, I can give up my life. But now is not the time to show off my bravery. I am the leader of the tribe, and I have to be responsible for the entire tribe! If anything happens to Xun Er … as her man, I will use Yun Hao and Wen Xuan's heads to pay for her life! "
Xun Qi laughed loudly and said, "Well said! This is how a competent chieftain should be! "
Xun Qi slowly stood up and sternly looked at the leaders. He said in a deep voice, "Wen Hao and Yun Xuan are after our territory and our people. That corrupt official Huang Jingrong is even greedier than a jackal. When he was in Yao State, he asked me for a life-sized golden buddha statue. What do you think we will get if we surrender now?
Do you think they will agree to negotiate with us if we do not satisfy their appetite? Forbearance will not bring us peace, and will only make it harder for their greed and ambition to be satisfied. You can't cut a fish's wool. We have nothing to talk about with corrupt officials like Huang Jingrong, and there is even less to talk about with arrogant people like Wen Hao and Yun Xuan!
I, Xun Qi, have to be responsible for the land my ancestors left behind and the people who raised me on this land! Xun Er is my most beloved daughter, and also Chieftain Zhe Zhu's wife. But for our territory and people, I can only disregard her safety. Chieftain Zhe Zhu is also willing to give up this opportunity!
Together with Chieftain Zhe Zhu, I will lead you back to Yao State City. We will beat them until they feel pain and fear, and they will no longer dare to see us as lambs that can be slaughtered at will! In this battle, we must be like time, advancing without retreating. How many people will cower in fear and negotiate peace?! "
Xun Qi pulled out the scabbard and slashed down with his blade. A corner of the wooden table in front of him was cut off.
Meng Zhe Zhu also stood up. His figure was tall and mighty, and when he stood up, his head almost touched the ceiling. Meng Zhe Zhu gripped the hilt of his saber and shouted in a deep voice, "Immediately cut down trees and make ladders, battering rams, and other siege weapons. Collect poisons, quench arrowheads, and carve bamboo arrows. In this battle, you can only win and not lose! "
The big-headed people in the tent all knelt down on one knee and placed their hands on their chests. They said in unison, "We will follow Chieftain's orders. We will advance and not retreat. We will win and not lose!"
The voice in the tent was magnificent. The patrolling soldiers in the distance seemed to have heard something and stopped to look at the tent. The horses tied outside the tent seemed to have sensed the solemn atmosphere in the voice of the chieftains and headmen. They all raised their heads and neighed.
The leaders came out of their tents one after another, rushing back to their own camps with their blood boiling, preparing to launch a surprise attack on Yao State City. There were only two people left in the tent, Fenqi and Meng Zhe Zhu.
Kaori's seething anger disappeared, and he became calm and steady. After a while, he said in a low voice, "If we lose this battle, we won't even have the capital to negotiate with the imperial court. We can gamble with our own lives, but we can't gamble with the survival of our entire clan! "
"I understand!"
Meng Zhe Zhu walked to his side and looked out, shoulder to shoulder. There was a calmness on his face that did not match his boorish appearance. "From the day we became leaders, we no longer lived only for ourselves and our families. If we lose this battle, we can only ask for help from Nanzhao and Tufan. "
Kaori frowned and said, "I also plan to do so. However, if we lose, we better ask for help from Nanzhao first. Nanzhao King will ask for money from us, but he won't covet our territory. But Tufan is different. Once they rely on Tufan, they will be even worse than the Tang dynasty! "
Meng Zhe Zhu nodded his head heavily, spat out a mouthful of turbid air, and said, "We'll see how it goes. Let's finish this battle first!"
… …
"Be careful!"
Yang Fan suddenly pounced forward and pressed Xun Er to the ground. A huge crossbow bolt that was like a spear whizzed past and brushed past Xun Er's body. The crossbow bolt that was as thick as a goose egg hit a wooden pillar, and the wooden pillar that was as thick as the rim of a bowl snapped in half. Wood splinters flew everywhere from the explosion.
A strong wind blew against Xun Er's face, causing her to feel pain. Thinking about how she would have been pierced by that crossbow bolt if she had been just a moment slower, Xun Er's small face paled in fear.
Huang Jingrong had personally rushed to He Bai Stockade. Not only had he come, but Wenhao and Yun Xuan had also come. They hadn't brought the reinforcements from the imperial court that had rushed over from Yao State and Rongzhou, but they had borrowed the bed crossbows from them. How could the weak defenses of He Bai Stockade withstand a single blow from these sharp weapons?
Fortunately, the armed forces of Yao State were actually the private armies of Wenhao and Yun Xuan, the two chieftains. The imperial court had given them the titles of military governor and provincial governor, which was equivalent to giving local autonomy in terms of military and politics. The imperial court was not responsible for their weapons and equipment, and the heavy weapons that the imperial court had brought with them were very limited. There were a total of twelve bed crossbows, but only three had been lent to them, and the number of crossbow bolts given to them was also limited. Otherwise, He Bai Stockade would have fallen a long time ago.
Even so, these three bed crossbows still posed a huge threat to He Bai Stockade, especially when Huang Jingrong had come with almost all of Wenhao and Yun Xuan's main forces. They had attacked the stockade day and night, and the defensive power of the stockade had grown weaker by the day just from the attrition of the soldiers.
A day ago, the Smoky Period chieftain had suddenly sent over a reinforcement army of about one thousand five hundred people. Logically speaking, this number of soldiers should have been enough to help them break through the encirclement of the mountain and increase the defensive power of the stockade. However, after Huang Jingrong's attack had been thwarted, he had personally rushed over with his troops, just in time to meet this reinforcement army. The reinforcements had suffered heavy losses and could not charge in.
Actually, it was also fortunate that they had not charged in. Otherwise, with so many soldiers trapped outside, if another thousand people charged in, the water supply on the mountain would immediately run out. In reality, there was already not enough water on the mountain, and the supply had already started to be limited.
Fortunately, Huang Jingrong, Yun Hao, and the others did not know about the water shortage on the stockade, or else they would not have attacked the mountain so fiercely without any regard for the sacrifices. If they had surrounded the mountain for another two days, the stockade would have collapsed without a fight.
The bed crossbows shot fiercely, suppressing the defenders on the stockade to the point where they could not even raise their heads. Then Wenhao and Yun Xuan's soldiers attacked up the mountain like a swarm of ants.
After the long-range shooting of arrows and stone bullets, it was time for the close combat. People continued to fall amidst the flashes of swords and blades. There were already many corpses lying on the half-collapsed walls of the stockade, and there was no time to clean them up. Some of the corpses had been left to dry for two or three days, and they gave off a nauseating stench from the scorching sun.
War was cruel, and up until now, everyone had become numb to it. There were people around them who had lost their lives, but the people around them were indifferent. An arrow suddenly flew past and pierced through a person's throat. Yang Fan did not even look at him, and only pushed the person who was still breathing away. He rushed forward with his spear and blocked the hole that the person had left behind.
The White River Stockade was about to fall!
… …
Gao Qingshan used his steel knife to smash the brains of a soldier who had rushed up the wall. He panted and said to Yang Fan, "The Chieftain must have met with some big trouble, or else he would have personally brought people to save us. Miss Xun Er is here, the Chieftain will not ignore this!"
Yang Fan swung his great spear and knocked two soldiers off the wall, then said in a deep voice: "We don't have time to care about these things. The enemy might be able to resist this wave, but when they send another wave, I'm afraid this line of defense won't be able to hold. The second pass has been reinforced. After this battle, we will take the initiative to retreat to the second line of defense and continue to defend!"
Gao Qingshan gritted his teeth and said, "The women and children have been reinforcing and building day and night at the back. There is no way they can come up with any new tricks. After defeating this wave of enemies, we will retreat!"
This fierce battle lasted for more than two hours. Yang Fan and the rest were gradually unable to hold on any longer. Suddenly, there was a 'dang dang dang' sound from the bottom of the mountain. Wen Hao had sounded the gongs to retreat.
The ear-piercing sound of the gongs was like the sound of nature to the ears of both sides. The soldiers retreated like the tide, and the people in the stockade immediately relaxed. After the tension had passed, they felt that the last bit of strength in their bodies had been sucked away.
Many people immediately collapsed to the ground. They did not care about the corpses of their companions and enemies under their bodies. They did not care about the bleeding wounds on their bodies. They did not want to do anything except lie down for a while longer. Women, old people, and children rushed to the top of the stockade wall. They fed them water and bandaged their wounds. Even children who were only a few years old could now skillfully bandage people's wounds.
Yang Fan's current image was not much better than the others. He looked like a dirty beggar with unkempt hair. Because of the lack of sleep, his eyes were bloodshot.
Miss Xun Er was no longer beautiful. Her beautiful crescent-moon-shaped headdress had long since disappeared. Her fluffy hair was like a chicken's nest, gray and dusty. Her originally white and delicate face had been blackened by the soot. Her clothes were so wrinkled that their original color could not be seen. There were also many black and red blood stains on them.
As soon as the soldiers who attacked the stockade retreated, she fell down like the men who were guarding the stockade wall. She lay on her back, not at all ladylike.
"Hey, your posture … doesn't look good. Close your legs!"
Yang Fan was tired and weak, but he still had the leisure to teach Xun Er how to be a ladylike woman. Other people probably did not care about Xun Er's current appearance, but Yang Fan, who came from a civilized world, could not accept it.
Xun Er rolled her eyes at him and said weakly, "You really have time to spare!"
Although she said this, she still obediently closed her legs. Her legs did not seem to belong to her anymore. When she closed them, her thighs and tendons ached. Xun Er's little face was as red as the kitchen god's. This was caused by the sudden change in the direction of the wind in the morning. As a result, her eyes were now as red as a little rabbit's.
Yang Fan was silent for a while and sighed, "Tell me, what will happen if I go down the mountain now? Will they let the people in the stockade go? "
Xun Er said lazily, "Alright, aren't you tired of trying? He has a guilty conscience. The one surnamed Huang will not let anyone in the stockade live to reveal that he killed the imperial envoy! Do you think I don't understand this? I won't stab you in the back. "
Yang Fan sighed again and said, "But I'm worried that Brother Qingshan won't think this way. Look at him whispering to those people. Does he have a plan?"
… …
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