Chapter 257 (1/2)
Chapter 257
Translator: Nyoi-Bo StudioEditor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
”General, where are we headed to?”
Chu Qiao held the horse's reins back and turned around. ”To attack the northern gates, where Xiaoqi Camp is.”
He Xiao was stunned as he asked, ”Aren't we going to Rose Square to save Fourth Young Master?”
Chu Qiao smiled and declared confidently, ”Don't worry, he will meet us there.” Once she finished her words, she rode out of the building on her horse.
There were about 40,000 troops from Xiaoqi Camp in full body armor stationed at the northern gates. This army, previously led by Zhao Che, had become Zhao Yang's, after fighting many battles under his leadership. Their loyalty to him did not lose out to that of Chu Qiao's Xiuli army.
Presently, they looked on at the enemy forces of less than 1,000 people. The commander, He Qian, stood atop the city gates and laughed in disdain. ”Kill them all.”
The city gates were tall and thick, reinforced with many tools of defense. In order to attack gates of this type successfully, enemy forces had to outnumber the defense forces by three to five times. However, Chu Qiao had less than 1,000 people with her, yet she dared to pit herself against tens of thousands of people at the city gates. It was akin to a suicide mission.
The Xia army sent out someone with a loud voice, advising Chu Qiao to surrender. After a long while, seeing that she did not respond, the person started to insult Zhuge Yue, saying that he was a rebel who colluded with Zhao Che to murder the Xia Emperor. Now that he was surrounded, he would surely meet his doom.
Chu Qiao continued to listen on in silence. However, after a while, seeing that the soldier started to go overboard, she felt a surge of anger. She reached out her hand and said to He Xiao, ”Bow.”
He Xiao remained silent as he handed over a bow to Chu Qiao.
Chu Qiao loaded an arrow in the crossbow, releasing it with frightening speed. That soldier was alert as well due to his experience in carrying out tasks of a similar nature. He jumped off his horse as he saw Chu Qiao's arrow approaching, but before he landed on the ground, the arrow appeared out of the blue and pierced through his mouth, protruding out of the back of his head.
He Qian flew into a rage as he gave the orders to attack. In that instant, the sky was filled with a flurry of arrows as the Xia troops let out their warcry.
The Xiuli army was relatively quiet compared to the Xia army, as they did not stand in the firing range of the arrows. The only arrows that infiltrated their territory were fired by a few stronger soldiers from the other side, but they had slowed down to the point where the soldiers of the Xiuli army were able to deflect the arrows aside with ease.
He Qian's only task was to defend the city gates. However, Chu Qiao's forces only surrounded them as they did not strike out. With this, the battle entered a stalemate. Were his soldiers supposed to take the initiative to attack instead? He saw his other comrades fighting at the frontline, helping Zhao Yang to attain victory. His enemies had finally approached, but he could only stay at his position, unable to attack. He felt angered by this fact. At this instant, a soldier from the opposite side rushed forward, holding a shield in his hand, and shouted out something that he did not manage to catch.
He Qian was stunned as he ordered his army to quieten down. As he was advanced in years, his hearing had deteriorated. He asked his bodyguard beside him, ”What did that person say?”
The bodyguard answered him softly after a long while, with a troubled expression on his face. ”General, that person is asking you if you're willing to surrender. He says that if you continue to be stubborn, they will eliminate us.”
He Qian flew into a rage. Eliminate him? He had 40,000 soldiers, while the enemy had less than 1,000. Although he had heard of the Xiuli king's prowess in warfare, able to attain victory despite being outnumbered, she had only achieved what she had when she had appropriate measures to defend a city. Now that she was about to attack a gate with less than 1,000 people, he started to write off her chances.
As He Qian raged on, a bright yellow firework streaked across the sky, exploding with a boom, giving off a majestic sight. Chu Qiao looked up towards the east. After a long while, she said calmly, ”All right. Open the city gates.”
Pingan stood at the side, stunned. As he was about to speak, He Xiao asked, ”Are we going to kill them all?”
Chu Qiao frowned and replied, ”That depends on whether they dare to resist.”
Pingan was dumbfounded as he struggled to comprehend the madness of this plan. Suddenly, He Xiao let out a loud cry, as one group of 40 soldiers dressed in full body armor rode forward on their horses, forming two rows. Each soldier held a bow and arrows in their hands. The front row of soldiers had their arrows coated with oiled paper balls, while the back row of soldiers doused their arrows in fire.
”Target the northern gates. Team 1, fire at the upper left corner. Team 2, fire at the lower left corner. Team 3, fire at the upper right corner. Team 4, fire at the lower right corner. Team 5, fire at the center. Ready, one, two, fire!”
In that instant, the first wave of arrows flew towards the city gates, followed closely by the second wave of fire arrows. As the first wave of arrows landed on the city gates, each fire arrow landed on each ball of oiled paper. With the winds, the fire started to burn.
He Qian was initially stunned, but laughed in reply, ”Is the king of Xiuli trying to burn my gates? Haha, that's not enough!”