Great Tang Idyll - Volume 4 Chapter 232

Guo Tu and the others heard Wang Juan’s words, and their hearts finally settled. 

With one sentence from Wang Juan, it was far more useful than someone else pleading for them. Even if someone in the court truly wanted to punish them, they would still give Wang Juan face.

Gao Lishi actually wanted to take Xiaobao as his adopted son—that was enormous prestige. With this, they no longer needed to worry about being punished when they returned. If they lost the generalship, then so be it. Even if they were given command now, they couldn’t command anyway. If people were really handed over for them to manage, they would definitely retreat.

But judging from the little girl’s appearance, she still had not played enough and was preparing to do something big. 

Had they known earlier, when passing through Yizhou, they should have simply handed the army over to her. By now, they might have even taken Jinchuancheng.

Zhang Xiaobao wrote a letter and also took out the proof item belonging to the thousand-man commander they had killed, tying both onto Shuiyun. An eagle was indeed easier to use than a pigeon—it had great strength. Unlike a pigeon, even if you wanted it to carry something, it had to be light enough for it to lift.

Shuiyun knowingly spread its wings and flew away. Wang Juan began new arrangements. With a powerful new assistance added, the plan could not proceed the same as before, and needed to be utilized.

Together with the civilians of the logistics transport and medical teams, there were a total of about four thousand people. They took the poor-quality horses and loaded the grain, heading east. When they reached the foot of the great snow mountain over there, they would turn south and return to Pengzhou.

Of the remaining ten thousand who were still able to fight, three thousand crossbowmen were selected, each with one horse, forming a light cavalry unit—three reinforced battalions. Aside from these three thousand men, another three thousand of the remaining seven thousand would stay in the village to continue civil engineering work, inheriting the fine traditions of the Liberation Army.

The remaining four thousand would go up the mountain. 

Wang Juan hardened her resolve. The troops had rested, they had received a large amount of supplies, and with the presence of a military satellite, plus the dogs’ sharp hearing and smell—if she did not stir up trouble and let the Tubo understand their power, she would write her surname backwards.

Hearing Wang Juan’s vow, Zhang Xiaobao could only say to her that it was fortunate she did not have the surname Tian, otherwise there would have been two additional ways to write it.

Wang Juan originally planned to make her move at night, but now issued the order for the troops to act immediately.

Guo Tu and the others, who should have returned, requested to stay. At the very least, they could help with some tasks suitable for captains, since they had learned many things.

After hearing Wang Juan’s order, Guo Tu humbly asked: “General Wang, may I ask why we are not acting at night? In daytime it is easy to be discovered by the enemy.”

“They already discovered us. Zhang Ying killed twenty of their riders thirty li away. How could they not be aware? Twenty riders are quite a number. They will definitely try to make contact at intervals. When they find them missing, they will certainly come here. At that time, they will search the village.” Wang Juan did not look down on Guo Tu at all. Since he asked, she explained.

“Oh~! That makes sense. Then how are we going to move?” Guo Tu was now very eager to learn, because he could never guess Wang Juan’s next move. This made him feel extremely uneasy. When a commander could not guess the opposing commander’s intentions in battle, how could he fight?

“Move? Leaving such a good place would be a pity. I must use it. At the very least, kill ten thousand Tubo before leaving. Go up the mountain.”

Wang Juan had no intention of running. With such good conditions, only a fool would not find a way to calculate the enemy.

As expected, two hours later, the Tubo discovered that two squads were missing. Becoming alert, they immediately sent people to search. 

The hundred-man squad that came encountered one battalion of light cavalry. In a leeward area they were knocked down by a volley of crossbow bolts, unable even to flee.

They were wearing armor, whereas the light cavalry had only single-layer clothing, not even leather armor. The food they carried was only enough for two days—all for the sake of speed.

The disappearance of a hundred-man squad forced the Tubo to send more men. This time two hundred-man squads came. Before they reached the place, they encountered the light cavalry battalion, and being upwind, many were shot down. This time they became smarter and scattered to escape.

But once they ran, they discovered that there were enemies in every direction. The two hundred-man squads again lost contact with the Tubo.

This time the Tubo did not send more hundred-man squads, but sent a thousand-man unit. Unfortunately, when the thousand-man unit charged over, the men were gone.

In the middle of the night, who would play with them? Not sleeping?

Even the thousand-man unit did not dare advance lightly. They slowly approached the village area and found that no one was left. Everything that could be taken had been taken by the civilians. Only now did they realize where the enemy had been hiding all this time—the enemy had been hiding in these villages. It appeared the local civilians had been bought off.

Seeing no enemies, the thousand men sent two hundred back to report while the remaining eight hundred stayed in the village—there was less wind there, not as cold.

When morning came, the eight hundred waited, but the reinforcements did not arrive. The two hundred who returned to report last night had also disappeared.

When the eight hundred dared not spread out and returned to camp, and reported what happened, all the Tubo commanders were stunned. How many Tang troops were there? How could they wipe out cavalry squads of two hundred and two hundred?

Could this be where the Tang main force was? Since the Tang troops in the village were gone, where did the Tang main force go?

Tata Neitu also received this news. His men were still in the mountains—thirteen thousand of them. It was not that he did not want to return, but that he did not dare. If he returned, he would lose his position. Having lost seven thousand men, did he still expect anything good? So he kept having people send supplies, always falsely reporting that they had found small Tang units and were chasing and eliminating them.

After hearing this news, Tata Neitu’s first reaction was that an opportunity had come. He sent messages to other divisions, saying that he knew where the Tang main force was—on the mountain—and asked them to reinforce him so he could lead men to fight a large battle.

The other divisions no longer trusted him. Last time they sent six thousand men, and they were completely wiped out. Send reinforcements again? For all they knew, the Tang main force might still be lingering around the place where they destroyed his four thousand men, waiting for an opportunity to ambush again.

Tata Neitu himself was also unsure. 

After some hesitation, he sent one thousand men to check from behind, and right after that thousand left, he immediately sent another three thousand men after them so that if they were ambushed, there would be support.

“Damn that farsight device. How can they see so far? Fighting like this is too passive. Those people who entered the Tang territory to gather intelligence and secretly win over officials—do they not know how to get a few farsight devices? Even finding one would be fine. Have craftsmen learn to make them.”

Thinking about how his side was always one step slower made Tata Neitu furious. He understood the use of farsight devices—discover the enemy early, prepare early, ambush or retreat early, making people unable to defend. If he had one himself, he would never lose.

Blaming the defeat on the farsight device made Tata Neitu feel much better. Now he waited only for news of spotting Tang troops. Thinking of how the Tang main force had once wiped out his four thousand men, he felt uneasy and sent another two thousand men after them.

By now two days had passed. All the Tubo were searching for the Tang main force, but none could find it.

An hour and a half later, Tata Neitu received news—a message that gave him an excuse. The two thousand he sent last were ambushed. More than a thousand were knocked down at once from behind by crossbows. The rest were stunned and could not return, only able to go find the three thousand ahead.

When the remnants found the returning three thousand, the place of the ambush was already empty. From the traces, the attackers should have gone down the mountain.

“As I said, the Tang main force is here. Look at the density of those arrows—at least three thousand men. Three thousand crossbowmen. Then how many spearmen and swordsmen would there be? If not the main force, then what?”

Those sent to communicate repeated Tata Neitu’s words exactly. Even if the other divisions did not want to believe it, they had to. Indeed, three thousand crossbowmen—based on ratios, this must be the Tang main force.

The main force should be lying in ambush between Tata Neitu’s route and the flat area at the foot of the mountain, so they must block from above and pursue from below. 

Each division immediately sent their troops, but this time not to reinforce Tata Neitu directly. They all wanted the credit themselves. Three divisions each sent six thousand men. This time they did not need to fear being ambushed and wiped out entirely.

When the three divisions reached the vicinity of the ambush site one after another, Tata Neitu received more news. The first thousand he had sent to search for the Tang main force had been ambushed; only about a hundred remnants fled back.

Seeing his numbers shrinking with each fight, Tata Neitu panicked. He had the three divisions follow behind to seize credit while he led his bit-more-than-ten-thousand men, spreading out in a horizontal line. No matter where the enemy was ambushed, from top to bottom, he would search bit by bit.

This time, even if they were defeated piece by piece, he accepted it—so long as the eighteen thousand men behind him could avenge him.

At this moment, Wang Juan was extremely relaxed. With an eagle, things were different. A glance at the sky, a sweep downward—everything within dozens of kilometers was covered. Fly a bit more, and even a hundred kilometers was clear at a glance.

Shuiyun had rendered great service, and every day someone cooked fresh game for it.

“I finally understand why it was so difficult fighting grassland tribes that had eagles. The only thing that could counter an eagle was another eagle. Unless more men were sent out, unless one ignored the enemy main force and directly attacked their civilians, with equal numbers of troops the outcome was basically set.”

Wang Juan adored Shuiyun. Circling throughout the enemy territory along the great river was simply too comfortable.

Zhang Xiaobao was also very happy. He planned to have Zhang Ying cultivate more such people and catch more eagles once they returned. Wasn’t it just money? Fine—give as much as needed.

Hearing Wang Juan’s words, he asked: “Does that mean that as long as you have this eagle, you have no opponent?”

“No. That depends on who is commanding. If it were my former instructor, with equal numbers, if I had an eagle and he did not, I would definitely win. But give him the current number of Tubo troops, and defeating me would be like playing. Eagles were not omnipotent. There was a tactic called feigned movement, and a method called camouflage. And marching did not necessarily happen in daytime. Not even him—those old generals of early Tang would also have ways to force me away. If I became greedy for battle, I would certainly lose. Of course, catching me would not be easy. At the most crucial moment we could escape ourselves, return to our dynasty, then urgently summon troops to fight. At that time, it would not be fifteen thousand. I would not foolishly go home in disgrace. As long as one lived, there was hope. Mm, the Tubo iron cavalry have set out. That’s about right. Time to wrap things up—give Little Li a gift.”

Wang Juan was not arrogant enough to consider herself invincible. She also did not belittle herself. Any useful tool would be used. Who cared whether the Tubo had telescopes, or had eagles? If they did not have atomic bombs, did that mean she could not throw atomic bombs at them?

The Tubo themselves felt that this battle was unbearably difficult, yet they could not avoid fighting. This was their own territory. If they did not drive the enemy out, how could they live in peace?

Tata Neitu’s men spread out in a horizontal line and searched forward. The eighteen thousand men behind followed closely, hoping to destroy the enemy main force in the vast Jinchuan.

By midnight, the Tubo lit torches everywhere, not planning to rest, continuing forward.

When they advanced for another hour, the three thousand light cavalry rushed over from the village area and launched a frenzied attack on the eighteen-thousand-man supply column. Fire arrows filled the sky, lighting up the dark night. The three thousand light cavalry did not linger—they burned the supplies, released the horses in the stables, and turned to flee.

The Tubo went crazy—especially the three divisions that had come as reinforcements. 

They questioned Tata Neitu: where was the Tang main force? Did he not say it was on the mountain?

Abandoning Tata Neitu, the three divisions descended together to reinforce the rear. Those horses—more than five thousand of them—what if they lost them all? The grain was burned as well.

Tata Neitu also saw the distant flames lighting up the sky, but could not understand at all. How did the Tang main force leave? So quickly? Unless it was cavalry. But he still believed the Tang main force was ahead. 

To prove he was right, he divided his troops into four thousand and six thousand. The six thousand continued forward, while he led four thousand back to chase after the three divisions, wanting to see whether the Tang main force was there.

An hour later, large clusters of dark clouds appeared in the sky. It seemed likely that rain would come before dawn.

Seeing the weather, Tata Neitu let out a sinister smile and muttered: “Let’s see how you escape this time—freeze to death.”

Perhaps to match his words, lightning flashed across the sky, striking a tree not far away with a crack. As Tata Neitu and the others were startled, the sky went black, and immediately afterward came the sounds of arrows breaking through the air.

Tata Neitu was still confused. How could thunder make such a noise? Before he figured it out, people in the ranks fell one after another, screams following in succession. 

Under the light of the torches, he paused for an instant, then shouted, “Ambush! Retreat!”

He very much wanted to show heroic spirit by not retreating and continuing to charge, but when he saw the spears that had pierced his men and the darkness from which they had been shot, he wisely chose to flee.

As he ran, Wang Juan and Zhang Xiaobao led people in pursuit. 

The four thousand who had stayed on the mountain for several days finally served their purpose. The spears made from chopped branches were extremely useful.

With the enemies’ torches lighting the area, they could tell where to throw.

Tata Neitu had not rested at all, having only thought about luring the Tang main force. Now that he finally had, he no longer had the strength to fight them. After running for a while, he suddenly realized something and shouted, “Throw the torches! Throw them, quickly!”

Once the torches were thrown, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan’s people immediately had difficulties aiming. They did not dare light torches either, since doing so would make them easy targets for cornered enemies to counterattack.

“Seedling Protection Team, go. Carry out the plan,” Wang Juan ordered. 

This was a good opportunity to deal with Tata Neitu. Seeing that darkness covered everything and only lightning gave a brief flash of light, she immediately sent the Seedling Protection Team.

The Seedling Protection Team rushed directly into the enemy’s ranks, running with them while shouting in learned Tubo language: “Not good! The enemy is coming! Run quickly!”

Those behind listened to the voices while throwing spears. They never threw toward the source of the voices, to avoid hurting their own.

After running for a while, Tata Neitu and his men could no longer run and gradually slowed.

Some stopped running entirely, turning to fight the Tang troops. Taking advantage of the darkness, they indeed managed to inflict some casualties.

“Not good! General Tata Neitu is dead! We are surrounded! Hurry and surrender! Not good! Tata Neitu is dead! Surrender!” The Seedling Protection Team could not find Tata Neitu’s position, so they continued shouting.

At once a small number of Tubo men indeed stopped fleeing and knelt on the ground to surrender. 

Even two men near Tata Neitu knelt, angering Tata Neitu so much that he killed them both with one slash each, shouting, “Who said I’m dead? I am still—”

Before he finished shouting, he covered his own mouth. He realized something was wrong. Wasn’t he giving the enemy his exact position?

Indeed, he was right. Just as he shouted that bit of speech, countless spears flew toward his position. Fortunately, he reacted fast and dove downhill a moment earlier. 

Screams erupted behind him.

Tata Neitu hid behind a tree, trembling. “Damn it, that was too vicious. A moment later and I’d be a hedgehog.”

He made no more sound. The Seedling Protection Team continued shouting that he was dead. Now he would not refute it no matter what—otherwise another wave of spears would come.

Blurred shapes were everywhere, and he could not tell who was his own men or the enemy. 

After thinking for a moment, Tata Neitu took off his own clothes, felt around a corpse beside him, changed into them, and crawled slowly in the darkness. Even so, a thrown spear still struck his calf, making him grimace in pain as he forced himself not to cry out.

As he crawled, he noticed more and more people, all seeming to run behind him. From the shouted calls, they were Tang troops.

He dared not move and lay pressed to the ground, waiting. As long as the Tang troops all rushed past, he might escape.

But his plan was ruined by a flash of lightning and a childish voice. 

When the lightning lit up the scene, a voice said, “Eh? This person took a spear to the calf—how did he die so easily? Let’s take a look.”

As soon as the voice fell, someone near the two children started moving toward him. 

Tata Neitu already knew who those two children were. The hidden agents from Pengzhou had delivered the news. The ones who truly defeated him were not famous generals, but two little children.

When he first heard the news, he had not believed it at all. Otherwise, what face would he have left to live? It had aggravated him terribly. Now, seeing two little children before him, he was shocked but also understood—so it really was two children commanding the troops.

Opportunity—opportunity was right before his eyes. Tata Neitu did not know where the strength came from, and ignoring the spear in his calf, he pushed off the ground and lunged toward the two children.

He understood that as long as he captured those two children, no one would dare attack him. If he brought the children back, it would be a great achievement.

The Seedling Protection Team had all been deployed, and in such darkness, the guards protecting Zhang Xiaobao and Juanjuan did not react in time. They only saw a blurred figure rushing straight toward the young master and young lady.

In the instant they panicked, they saw the pouncing figure flash again and be flung away.

“Damn, we are mounted generals,” Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan retracted their simultaneous spinning side kicks, cursed, and lowered the arm that had just fired a sleeve arrow. It had indeed been quite frightening just now.

“Young Master, Young Lady, are you all right?” the people nearby asked with concern. Someone had already pinned down the man who dared to ambush them. Anyone who dared strike at the young master and young lady could not be allowed an easy death.

“No problem. That fool—crippled from a spear wound—and he still dared fight me and Juanjuan. What, did he think he was some great hero? Thought he was me? I broke an arm and still dodged a search.” Zhang Xiaobao replied, his voice lowering at the end so only Wang Juan could hear.

Wang Juan snorted a laugh and said to those in front, “Bring him over. This general wants to see who is so clever, pretending to be dead.”

Tata Neitu himself did not know how he flew back. He only felt sharp pain in his chest, then pain in his thigh and arm, and he could not move.

Wang Juan no longer needed to command and could not command anyway. She had people light torches to inspect the man who had nearly succeeded in attacking them.

“I refuse to accept this. I am Tata Neitu. You cannot kill me. I want to fight your general again.” Tata Neitu no longer hid his identity. Hiding would only make him die faster. A soldier’s life was worthless; he still wanted to fight the two children.

Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were both stunned. They hadn’t expected to catch a big fish. After examining the man before them carefully, Zhang Xiaobao shook his head. “No wonder you keep losing. You can’t even disguise yourself properly. Look at your clothes—they’re too small. If you keep fighting, you won’t need them anymore. With how you look now, fight what? Today you’re lucky—the sleeve arrow didn’t have poison. If it had, you’d already be dead.” Wang Juan curled her lip. 

Someone this injured, exhausted from running, still wanted to fight her and Xiaobao? If they didn’t finish him off, he really thought children were easy to bully.