Chapter 41: The Military Advisor of the Defeated Family's Son
After crossing two hills, the Junzi army stopped to rest under Tao Ying's command, eating dry rations and feeding their warhorses while waiting. After more than half a time period had passed, the north indeed transmitted the sound of surging people. Tao Ying hastily climbed up high, raised his personally made crystal telescope to observe, and saw that the north indeed had four or five hundred Yuan Tu soldiers pursuing them, with both infantry and cavalry following the Junzi army's warhorses' dung all the way south, soon entering the open area where the previous fort was located.
As they entered the fertile farmland, the difference between Junzi's army and Yuan Shu's army was immediately apparent. The infantry trampled the newly planted rape fields without restraint, while the war horses trampled the fields even more brutally, and under the intentional indulgence of Yuan Shu's cavalry, they ate the vegetables in the fields. Faintly, one could still hear the chaotic cries. Seeing this scene, Tao Ying was overjoyed, thinking to himself: "Good, the pursuing army is indeed small, even if these bandits don't plunder the village, I can still use my troops boldly in this rare open area."
Just like the previous time with Junzi's army, upon discovering another wave of troops arriving, the fortress that had previously refused to provide assistance to Junzi's army immediately went into battle readiness. Over a hundred young and strong men hastily climbed up onto the arrow tower walls, holding weapons at the ready to defend the fortress. The scholarly-looking fortress master also once again ascended to the top of the fortress gate, preparing to negotiate with the incoming troops. However, upon seeing Yuan Shu's army recklessly trampling over the farmland and vegetable fields, the fortress master suddenly felt a sense of foreboding, thinking to himself: "This time, it's probably not going to be as easy as last time."
As expected, the leader of Yuan Shu's pursuing army rushed to the gate of the fort and immediately raised his whip, pointing at the gate and shouting loudly, "You scoundrels in the fort, come out with one who can breathe! Did more than 100 cavalrymen pass by here just now? Where did they go?"
"Over a hundred cavalry?" The lord of the manor was puzzled in his heart, thinking that General Zuo's team was really confused. Earlier, the Xu state cavalry had at least 700 or 800 people, how could they be judged as over a hundred? Could it be that they were not pursuing the Xu state cavalry from earlier?
"Is that deaf, you?" Seeing no one answered, the leading general of Yuan's army became somewhat impatient and pointed at the owner of the hut, shouting loudly: "It was you, you scholar in Confucian robe! General is asking you a question. Did a cavalry troop pass by here just now? If you don't answer, don't blame General for being rude to you."
"General, no." The main heart of the city wall had a temper and deliberately replied: "Report to the general, don't mention earlier, even in these few days, there hasn't been a cavalry unit with over 100 people passing by the Xiaokou gate."
"How dare you, a mere soldier, deceive me?!" General Yuan Shu's face turned red with rage. He pointed to the ground with his whip and shouted: "You said there were no cavalry passing by? Then where did these horse droppings come from?"
Upon seeing the starry horse dung on the ground, the lord suddenly realized that it was so, and thought to himself that no wonder the war horses of the cavalry team earlier had most of their buttocks wrapped in hemp cloth. It turned out that they intentionally left only a small amount of horse dung on the road to confuse the enemy, so this group of pursuers mistakenly believed that their troops were numerous and only sent 400-500 people to chase after them. In this way, even if they were caught up by the pursuers, they could turn the tables and gain the upper hand. That young master earlier was not only kind and gentle but also very cunning.
"What's that you say?!" The Wei general Yuan Shu bellowed again, "Speak quickly! Where is that cavalry unit?! Otherwise, this general will throw you into the Eastern City and charge you with treason!"
"General." The long-awaited event had finally occurred, a small school gathered at the ear of the city and whispered softly, also pointing to the high round grain warehouse in the fort with a horse whip. Seeing this scene, the master of the fort immediately understood that something was wrong, and hurriedly said loudly: "General, please don't misunderstand, most people in the small fort are citizens of Jiujiang, who have been under the kindness of General Zuo for a long time, how dare they betray General Zuo and do things to communicate with the enemy? Just now there was a cavalry team passing by here, although they were not over a hundred people as the general said, but they went in that direction."
The fort master, extremely unscrupulous and disloyal, pointed out the direction of Junzi's army. However, it was too late for the fort master to do so, as Da Dun had already discovered that the fort was very wealthy. Da Dun's eyes rolled a few times before he suddenly shouted loudly, "You dare to deceive me again! I can still trust you? Open the gate immediately, I want to search the fort and see if you are hiding enemy soldiers! Quick, open the door!"
Roaring, the Da Wei raised his whip and waved it, and the troops of Yuan Shu behind him immediately rushed up with a clear understanding, drawing their bows and aiming at the fort. The Da Wei shouted again: "Open the door! Open the door quickly! Otherwise, you are intentionally hiding thieves and bandits, and everyone will be arrested and punished by the government!"
"Trouble has come, as expected. They've set their sights on the wealth of our village." The village head felt a pang in his heart, knowing that these government soldiers were searching the village under false pretenses and were actually there to plunder. At the same time, the village head was seething with anger, for the troops from Xuzhou were known for their strict discipline and had not harmed any of the local civilians, whereas the local officials were acting like demons, trampling fields and plundering at will. It seemed that the laws and regulations under Yuan Shu's rule were even more lax than he had previously thought, and that Jianning Prefecture was truly unfortunate to be occupied by such people.
"Master, you can't open the door!" Several other guards also saw that Yuan Shu's military intentions were not good and advised Master: "Master, you absolutely cannot open the door. If you open it, our Lu family city will definitely be finished, and more than 300 people in the fort will also be finished."
"General Huang, what are you hesitating about with these traitors?" Several of Yuan Shu's officers shouted in unison, "Let the soldiers directly attack and we'll be your witnesses when we return. This stronghold is harboring enemies and bandits, General, you have no choice but to send troops to quell them."
"Do you still need to make a statement? General Huang, you are under the command of General Yuan, and you have eliminated a traitor's stronghold. Not to mention Huang Gai, even Sun Ce would not dare say anything!"
At the instigation of several subordinates, that Yuan Zu, the military commander, was even more moved. He thought to himself: "Not bad, I am a subordinate of General Xiao Yuan, and General Xiao Yuan is the younger brother of our lord. What's there to fear in eliminating a few villages that are collaborating with the enemy? Does Sun Ce's kid and Huang Gai's old man dare to fart? Thinking of this, the commander did not hesitate, immediately waved his hand and shouted: "Soldiers, this stronghold harbors enemies and hides enemies, their crimes cannot be forgiven! Attack, kill them all! Fire arrows!"
"Release the arrows! Release the arrows quickly!" Amidst the urgent and impatient shouts, Yuan Shu's soldiers fired their bows and crossbows in unison, shooting wildly at the stockade. Several of the stockade guards were caught off guard and were instantly hit by the arrows. The furious stockade owner, who was still thinking of ways to get rid of these wolves, hastily ordered his men to return fire with arrows. The intense battle cries soon echoed before the gate of this prosperous stockade.
It wasn't until the real fighting started that Huang Yi, a military officer of Yuan Shu's army, realized he had underestimated this small fort, especially its owner who wore a Confucian robe. The strong bow in his hand shot out an arrow that was both accurate and ruthless, killing three soldiers instantly. Another soldier holding a shield was even more unfortunate, as the arrow pierced through his shield and injured him, causing the nearby shield bearers to retreat in fear. Although the remaining fort defenders were not as brave as their owner, they had the geographical advantage of being higher up, shooting arrows and crossbow bolts wildly, making over ten soldiers of Yuan Shu's army cry out in pain as they fell into a pool of blood.
What made Huang Yi's anger even more intense was that behind him, twenty or so infantrymen were carrying a battering ram to attack the gate of the fort. Who would have thought that just as they reached the bridge in front of the gate, the seemingly sturdy wooden bridge suddenly collapsed on its own? Five or six infantrymen lost their balance and fell into the moat, instantly becoming human skewers pierced by the sharp stakes in the ditch, their anguished cries echoing through the mountains. For a moment, Yuan Shu's army, with its large numbers, was at a loss as to what to do about this small fort.
"Fall back, fall back!" Huang Yi, after all, was a regular army general with extremely rich battlefield experience. He quickly discovered the fatal weakness of this fort and ordered his troops to retreat before shouting out commands: "Prepare rockets and torches, switch to rocket fire! Light up all the torches, shield yourselves, advance and throw the torches!"
"Fire?!" Seeing Yuan Shu's soldiers gathering firewood, the castle owner was shocked and knew that Yuan's army was about to launch a fire attack. He hastily shouted: "Quickly, prepare water buckets and water jars, and wet all the roofs of the houses in the fortress with water! The enemy is going to set the fortress on fire! Quickly, quickly, call the old, weak, women and children to come and help!"
Wu Ding agreed and hastily went down to organize people to prepare for the fire, but Wu Zhu was still extremely anxious, because Wu Zhu was very aware of the shortcomings of this fort - it was too small, and as long as the rockets and torches crossed the wall and fell into the densely packed houses inside the fort, they would immediately ignite a fire. As soon as a fierce fire broke out in the fort, no matter how strong the fort was, it could not be defended, and the residents inside the fort were doomed to suffer heavy casualties.
Yuan Shu's army had rockets and torches ready in no time, although they couldn't find enough oil-soaked cloth to wrap around the arrowheads. However, by simply wrapping the arrowheads with rags, setting them on fire, and shooting them out, they could still achieve the same incendiary effect. Then, with a single order from Huang Yi, a large number of Yuan Shu's archers and crossbowmen immediately rushed forward to launch rockets, while infantrymen carrying torches also moved forward under the cover of shield-bearers, throwing torches at the fortress walls. Although the defenders inside the fortress desperately shot arrows to stop them, Yuan Shu's soldiers were too numerous in comparison, and rockets and torches continued to be launched and thrown into the fortress, with thick black smoke soon rising from within. The untrained defenders began to panic.
"The Master said, 'Is it not a pleasure to learn and practice what you have learned? Is it not a joy to have friends come from afar? Is it not gentlemanly to be unperturbed even when others do not appreciate you?'"
Just as Yuan Shu's army was about to capture the Wudu fortress, a loud and clear recitation of the Analects suddenly came from the distant road. Huang Yi and the master of the fortress were shocked and looked around to find the source of the sound. They saw that on the southern road, a cavalry troop had appeared out of nowhere, with about 800 soldiers, divided into five horizontal rows, with white and black banners bearing the words "Ren, Yi, Li, Zhi, Xin" (Benevolence, Righteousness, Etiquette, Wisdom, Integrity) fluttering in the wind. On either side were vice-flags inscribed with five large characters: "Wen, Liang, Gong, Jian, Rang" (Warmth, Kindness, Respect, Frugality, Humility).
"The Master said: 'To govern with virtue is like the North Star, which remains stationary while all the other stars revolve around it.' The Master said: 'The three hundred poems of the Book of Poetry can be summed up in one phrase: "Think without evil"'"
The recitation voice suddenly changed, jumping from the first chapter of the Analects to the second chapter. Suddenly, the three cavalry squadrons behind him charged forward, galloping over the two front squadrons and rushing to the forefront. Without saying a word, they fired arrows in unison, with hundreds of arrowheads whizzing through the air. The soldiers of Yuan's army were caught off guard and immediately fell into chaos, crying out in agony as they tumbled to the ground. Then, the three cavalry squadrons suddenly turned around and circled back to the rear of Yuan's army, firing arrows while encircling them from behind with another wing. At the same time, the last two squadrons of heavily armed heavy cavalry also launched a charge, continuously firing arrows to cover Yuan's army.
"The enemy is attacking, quick, break through the way we came!" Huang Yi was a greedy and cruel person, but he had rich experience on the battlefield. He immediately discovered that something was wrong - especially when he found out that the number of Junzi army was far more than his own troops. He ordered his army to concentrate their forces and attack the Junzi army's light cavalry, which had circled around to their rear. However, like all the generals who had fought against the Junzi army, Huang Yi soon discovered that the lightly armored Junzi army did not intend to engage in close combat with him. As soon as his troops charged forward, the Junzi army's light cavalry turned around and ran away, constantly shooting arrows at the Yuan Tu soldiers while turning their heads back.
Because he stood on the high wall, the self-proclaimed learned lord finally opened his eyes once. In the absolutely abnormal slogan, the five teams of Junzi army surrounded Yuan Shu's army and only shot arrows crazily, without close combat with Yuan Shu's army. Huang Yi commanded Yuan Shu's army to charge in that direction, and the Junzi army cavalry at that position would turn around and run away without saying a word, shooting arrows while running. The remaining Junzi army cavalry kept their distance from Yuan Shu's army, surrounding them and shooting arrows desperately. White feathered arrows drew streams of water in the sky, constantly flowing onto Yuan Shu's army, one after another, soldiers fell under the Junzi army's arrows, not even touching a single hair of the Junzi army before they died on the spot.
"Is there still an army in the world that fights like this?" The castle owner was thoroughly stunned, "How do they shoot arrows while on horseback? Running and shooting arrows with both hands at the same time, aren't they afraid of falling off their warhorses?"
"What kind of enemy have we encountered?" Even more astonishing was the main general of this Yuan Shu army, Huang Yi, who had followed Yuan Shu's younger brother Yuan Yin in battles for over a decade, participating in dozens of large and small wars including the Battle of Guandu, the Battle of Kuaiji, and the Battle of Shouchun. Huang Yi had never heard of or seen such strange cavalry tactics before, and he couldn't understand how these enemies were able to shoot arrows while retreating during a charge. The scenes unfolding before his eyes had already far exceeded Huang Yi's understanding.
The slogan of "Shi Yun" is still echoing on the battlefield, and the feathered arrows of the Junzi army are continuously covering the infantry and cavalry led by Huang Yi. They learned from the last battle with Jiao Feng, and this time the accuracy of the Junzi army's bows and arrows has improved significantly. Basically, five or six arrows can hit an enemy - of course, this is also at the cost of sacrificing the frequency of shooting arrows, but it is enough to make the Yuan Su army cry out in dismay. In a short moment, at least 200 Yuan Su soldiers fell under the Junzi army's arrows, and the remaining 300 or so were mostly injured. Huang Yi saw that the situation was not good, and he quickly concentrated the remaining 30 or so cavalry around him, letting these cavalrymen protect themselves and break through with all their might, abandoning the remaining infantry to be slaughtered by the Junzi army.
Huang Yue's abacus was a bit too beautiful, his more than 30 riders had strong mobility compared to infantry, but unfortunately, this mobility was absolutely not enough compared to the Junzi army. Moreover, Huang Yue chose to break through in the direction of Tao Ji's direct light cavalry, and Tao Ji, who was eager for merit, would not miss this opportunity. He commanded the light cavalry to deliberately give way to avoid close combat consumption, then quickly followed up with a swift counterattack, using their archery skills to shoot arrows at the enemy during the charge, resulting in Huang Yue being shot twice in the chaotic battle and dying on the spot. Only two of the Yuan Tu army's cavalrymen who protected his breakout escaped, while the rest were killed by the Junzi army's light cavalry arrows.
The main force of Huang Yi led the cavalry to escape, and the remaining infantry troops of Yuan Shu naturally fell into great chaos. Some people even actively threw down their weapons and surrendered. However, Tao Ying came this time to fight a guerrilla war, and taking the infantry prisoners would only drag them down. Tao Ying wisely gave up this opportunity to surrender. At the same time, Tao Ying did not order a charge, rushing into the already collapsed Yuan Shu infantry for close combat - the number of Junzi troops was too small, and even if one died, Tao Ying would regret it for a long time. Therefore, Tao Ying continuously issued orders, commanding the soldiers to continue surrounding the Yuan Shu infantry and shooting arrows, rather wasting bows and arrows than wasting troops.
At this time, the fort that had already extinguished the fire suddenly opened wide, and the fort owner, dressed in a Confucian robe, personally led more than 100 young men to kill out, marching towards the already chaotic Yuan Su's infantry, and engaging in a fierce battle with Yuan Su's infantry. Seeing this scene, Tao Ying hastily ordered the archers to stop covering, commanding the Junzi army to form a formation, and shooting arrows to kill Yuan Su's defeated soldiers one by one. At the same time, Tao Ying secretly wondered, this fort owner was still afraid of Yuan Su's revenge earlier, refusing to provide guides for himself, how could he now take the initiative to lead the fort soldiers to help him kill Yuan Su's soldiers? Even if it was to repay his debt of gratitude for the rescue, this change was too fast and too drastic.
Yuan Shu's infantry, already wounded and demoralized by the arrows of the Junzi army, lost heart and fled in disarray. The Junzi cavalry assisted the Wu Ding on both flanks, using bows and arrows to pick off Yuan Shu's defeated soldiers, leaving all close combat opportunities to Wu Ding. Yuan Shu's defeated soldiers wailed and fled, only to be slaughtered by the Junzi army and Wu Ding, with corpses scattered everywhere and blood flowing like rivers. Seeing victory was assured, Wu Zhuo handed over command of Wu Ding to someone else and came alone to Tao Ying's side to thank him in person.
"Thank you, young master, for your great kindness in rescuing us." After bowing deeply to the ground, the sincere Lord Tao said: "If it weren't for your benevolence and rescue, forgetting past grievances, more than 320 people above and below the walls of Lu's city would have been unable to escape with their lives today. Your great kindness is something that even if I were to be torn apart limb from limb, I could hardly repay a fraction of it."
"The master of the fort need not be polite, seeing injustice on the road, drawing a knife to assist is a matter within one's duty." Tao Ying dismounted and returned the courtesy, saying sincerely: "It's rather the master of the fort who doesn't fear being implicated, lending a hand to help our army kill the enemy, I, Tao Ying, am truly grateful."
"You don't have to be polite, this is what I should do." The lord of the fortress said sincerely: "If you are not willing to engage in close combat and waste precious troops, I, who owe you a great debt of gratitude, will lead the young and strong men from the fortress to fight to the death and repay your kindness that saved my life."
"How did the sect leader know I didn't want to engage in close combat?" Tao Ying asked curiously.
"It's simple, your army is too precious." The commander replied: "I've already discovered that not only are the slogans of your army uniform and unified in action, but also nearly 800 people move as one body, without any disorder. Such a disciplined and well-coordinated elite force must have been honed with countless efforts from you. Each soldier is worth their weight in gold. How could you bear to sacrifice them in close combat with the enemy's infantry? I'm afraid that even if one person were to be sacrificed, you would regret it for half a day. So, I dare to lead the army into battle and help you share the pressure of close combat."
"Wow, the owner has a good eye!" Tao Ying was even more surprised and smiled: "To be honest, this is the first time I've seen someone like you who hasn't ridiculed or mocked me, but instead gave such a high evaluation."
"Others may mock the heroic army of gentlemen, but I think they are just bewildered by your slogan and that's why they laugh." Zheng replied solemnly: "But I dare not deceive you either. When I heard the slogan of the gentleman's army, my first reaction was shock and admiration, and then I admired your painstaking efforts even more."
"Oh, can the master enlighten me, why do you have this feeling?" Tao was even more interested in this master and couldn't help but ask again: "Master, when you heard my Junzi Army recite the Analects of Confucius on the battlefield, why did you feel shocked? What is the good intention behind letting the Junzi Army recite the Analects?"
"That's what I said, if there's anything wrong, please forgive me." Na Wei replied: "The Analects of Confucius have nothing to do with the battlefield, but you deliberately let the Junzi Army recite them in unison on the battlefield. There are three purposes for this. Firstly, it is to confuse the enemy and make them underestimate us. Any unfortunate person who encounters you on the battlefield will think that hearing the Analects being recited by the Junzi Army is laughable, and they will look down on the Junzi Army. When the enemy underestimates us, you naturally have an opportunity to take advantage of it."
"Secondly, the young master had the Junzi army recite the Analects of Confucius, which actually helped the soldiers of the Junzi army to overcome their psychological demons and calm their emotions. What the young master needed was an army that could be commanded at will, a wise and calm force that could treat going into battle as a normal routine, rather than a mob that only knew how to act on impulse and were blinded by bloodlust. The Analects are complex, and it's not easy for seven or eight hundred people to recite them in unison. But when these seven or eight hundred people recited the complex Analects together, the soldiers would forget their unnecessary emotions such as fear, excitement, tension, and anxiety during battle, and focus on collective action. When the young master gave orders, it was naturally like an extension of his arm, with the army moving in response to his commands."
Tao's eyes widened in surprise, sizing up the sect leader who was about his own age. He couldn't help but urge him on, saying: "Sect Leader, please continue speaking. I am all ears."
"The third purpose of letting Junzi Army recite the Analects is for the future, not now." Na Wei's master smiled and said: "Junzi Army is so powerful and famous all over the world, it's just a matter of time. And on the battlefield, reciting the Analects is unique to Junzi Army, no one else can do it. So in the future, when Junzi's name is known all over the world, if the enemy hears the sound of the Analects on the battlefield again, it will be like hearing a death curse, they will be intimidated before the battle and even collapse on their own."
Tao Ying fell silent, continuing to size up the master of the cave for a long time. Finally, Tao Ying smiled and said: "Master of the cave, you are truly my kindred spirit. Your insight is such that even if I had personally instructed my third brother, he would at most have only grasped one aspect of it. Yet, Master of the cave, upon seeing my Junzi Army for the first time, you were able to discern the three layers of meaning behind it. I am deeply impressed."
"You're overpraising me, I'm just lucky." The lord of the manor was humble and suddenly asked: "Young master, you claim to be named Tao Ying with the surname Tao, aren't you the second son of Tao Kuan, the governor of Xuzhou, who sacrificed himself by jumping into a pot of oil to save the people of Xuzhou?"
"I wouldn't dare, I'm just a humble person." Tao Ying said with a hint of pride in his heart and humility on his lips, "I didn't expect the master to have heard of my humble name, I'm truly honored."
"You're too modest, sir. Your noble deeds have been heard by me several months ago, and today I finally get to see you in person, which makes me believe that there are indeed such kind-hearted people in this world." The host of the pavilion gave Tao another compliment, then smiled and said: "Sir, aren't you looking for a guide who's familiar with the local roads and terrain? If you wouldn't mind, I'd like to volunteer myself as your guide. Would you accept me?"
"Master Wu, you're not joking, are you?" Tao Ying said with a bitter smile: "Your family property is so vast, and I'm afraid that if I become your guide, Yuan Shu will come after you for revenge? Besides, what about your family members?"
"My parents passed away when I was young, and I was raised by my grandmother. She has already passed away, so I have no attachments. As for the family property and ancestral business, don't laugh at me, but I'm infamous for being a prodigal son. I've squandered most of our wealth, leaving only this valley fortress and some land. If everything were to be lost, it would be even better, as I would have no attachments whatsoever."
He spoke loudly: "I've long heard that you, sir, have put up a notice in Xuzhou to recruit talented people, stating that anyone with a special skill will be employed without hesitation. I am not talented, but if you are willing to accept me, I will immediately distribute all the wealth and land in my village to my neighbors and follow you to achieve great things."
"Abandon the family business and follow me to achieve great things? When did I have such great charm?" Tao Ying was already very fond of the owner, but she was so surprised that she couldn't believe her ears, and blurted out: "Owner, you're not joking, are you?"
"The young master thinks that I am joking? A gentleman's word is worth a thousand pieces of gold. Although I am not a gentleman, I also want to follow the example of a gentleman." Na Wu's tone was somewhat displeased, saying: "Moreover, when I joined forces with you to kill the enemy, we killed soldiers under General Yuan Shu's command. Even if you are unwilling to accept me, I will have no place to stand in Jiujiang either."
"The master of the hut blamed him, saying that he had measured the gentleman's belly with a small man's heart." Tao Ying hurriedly apologized to the master of the hut and asked casually: "Master of the hut, I am really impolite, and it is now that I have not asked for the master's surname and name. May I ask what is your honorable surname and great name?"
"You don't have to be polite." The host replied calmly: "I dare not accept your noble surname and great name, I am a humble and lowly scholar, my surname is Lu, my name is Su, and my style is Zijin."
"Oh, it's actually Mr. Zijun, I've long admired your great name." Tao Ying smiled lightly, as if not excited at all, and then bowed to Lu Su with his fists clenched, saying even more sincerely: "Sir reports me as a national scholar, Tao Ying will certainly repay Sir as a national scholar. If Sir doesn't despise me, Tao Ying is willing to make Sir his military advisor, respectfully listen to Sir's wise teachings, and follow your words and plans, swearing not to betray you."
