Tang Dynasty Swordsman

Page 56

Gao Sheng said with a bitter face, "I originally said that Shancheng is indefensible and should be abandoned in time. We should rely on the natural defenses of the Three Gorges and retreat to Shanzhou. But the commander... but Judge Yang is unwilling to give up the grain in Shancheng, and the barbarian bandits are coming very quickly. The only option now is to make a tough decision and abandon Shancheng... Although Shancheng has been lost, the overall situation can still be controlled. If Shanzhou falls to the bandits, it will be difficult to deal with! Commander, please think it over."

Li Tan said angrily, "How can I abandon thousands of soldiers and tens of thousands of troops in Shancheng to the barbarian bandits in an instant?!" He flicked his sleeves and retreated to the back of the hall.

In truth, Li Tan's heart was pounding with apprehension about Li Ji's plan. But the question was, if Gao Sheng and Li Ji were placed on opposite sides of the scale, who do you think Li Tan would lean towards? If it had been veteran generals like Guo Xin and Li Yuanzhong, rather than Gao Sheng or other unreliable staff members, who proposed abandoning the city, Li Tan might have listened to them to some extent. However, Gao Sheng was useless, and his staff were incompetent; he had long since given up any hope for their integrity or ability.

Even if "a fool may have a thousand ideas, but he may also have one good idea", would an ordinary person be willing to listen to a fool with a sliver of hope?

Li Tan had barely returned to the inner hall when Yang Yan followed him in, his face grim. Gao Sheng's words earlier clearly intended to shift the blame for the fall of Shancheng onto him. Therefore, Yang Yan, worried that Li Tan might hesitate, had come specifically to advise him—Li Ji's garrison west of the gorge might still offer a sliver of hope for supporting and rescuing Shancheng; if he were to retreat east of the gorge, all hope would be lost. If the court were to hold him accountable, even if Li Tan was willing to take responsibility, could Yang Gongnan (Li Tan's courtesy name) simply shrink back?

Unexpectedly, Li Tan interrupted him halfway through, asking in return, "Does Gongnan think that Li Ji's garrisoning of troops west of the gorge is intended to coerce me?"

Upon hearing this, Yang Yan was taken aback: "Why would Your Highness have such a thought?"

Li Tan stroked his beard, pondering as he replied, "It was Li Ji who strongly advocated against abandoning Shancheng lightly..." He continued, "You did mention it, but you were concerned about grain. After realizing that the grain from Shancheng was difficult to obtain, didn't you also back down? — "Guo Xin and Li Yuanzhong were also persuaded by Li Ji..."

At this point, he smiled faintly: "Li Changwei is indeed eloquent and quite persuasive. If he were to station his troops east of the gorge, it would be tantamount to abandoning Shancheng, which would be going back on his word; but if he were to station his troops west of the gorge, he could not only support Shancheng, but also conveniently ask me for reinforcements in case of emergency."

"If, as Gao Sheng says, it is a matter of 'cutting off one's own arm'—abandoning Guo Xin and several thousand others—then if even Li Ji and Li Yuanzhong's troops fall into the hands of the enemy, all our capable generals will be lost, our troops will be few, and morale will be shattered. I fear even Shanzhou will be indefensible. Therefore, we can only do as Li Ji wishes and gradually reinforce Xiaoxia to ensure its survival..."

Yang Yan clasped his hands and said, “Your Highness’s thoughts are very profound, and I admire them greatly. However, even if Li Ji is as wise as Your Highness says, he often acts rashly and relies on his courage. Moreover, he is highly regarded by Your Highness, so I doubt he would scheme against Your Highness in this way. Let’s see what General Li Yuanzhong plans to do after he returns. If General Li voluntarily retreats to the east of the gorge, then we will have no choice but to make a tough decision. If General Li stays in the west of the gorge as Li Ji has arranged, then it is normal military strategy, or perhaps rash and reckless, but certainly not intended as coercion.”

Li Tan nodded and asked, "If they request reinforcements, should we send more troops?"

Yang Yan replied, "Since the situation is like this, it is better to cut off one's head than to cut off one's arm! Cutting off one's arm will inevitably result in injury, but if one is prepared to cut off one's head, there may be hope of survival. There is no need to wait for them to ask for help. Your Highness should continue to recruit troops and send them to Xiaoxia in succession. First, station them in the east of the gorge to prevent the front line from collapsing. Depending on the situation, you may be able to send timely reinforcements to the west of the gorge and defeat the barbarian bandits. Who knows?"

Li Tan pondered for a moment, then slammed his hand on the table and said in a deep voice, "Enough, enough! Has anyone throughout history achieved great things without experiencing setbacks? You should do your best to raise military funds for me, and I will recruit more brave men and transfer troops from other prefectures. I will personally go to the east of the gorge, close to the front lines, to observe the enemy's strength. If there is an opportunity for victory, the entire army will charge out to repel the barbarian invaders—I will gamble everything I have for a chance to win. What is there to be afraid of?!"

Chapter Fifteen, Three Dukes of One Country

Li Ji is not a very patient person.

Although it's clear that conquering cities and seizing territory is not something that can be accomplished in a day—for example, Zhang Xun defended Suiyang for over a year—if Li Ji were in Zhang Xun's shoes, constantly on guard, always on alert, and enduring incredibly fierce and seemingly endless fighting, he probably wouldn't have survived a month, let alone a year. And if he were outside the city, like Yin Ziqi, after three days of relentless attack on Suiyang without success, he would probably be so frustrated that he couldn't sleep and would simply move his troops elsewhere.

Li Ji thought to himself, "It's a good thing I'm not the head coach. Maybe my personality and qualities just aren't suited to be one..."

Meanwhile, the Tibetan army approached the western entrance of the small gorge and launched a fierce attack for days. Li Yuanzhong held his ground firmly, and apart from abandoning a few camps on the south side on the second day, he did not retreat an inch. Almost every day, he could cut off dozens of Tibetan heads, and the actual number of casualties must have been much higher—some of the corpses were dragged back by the Tibetans, and there were many seriously wounded who would probably not survive for more than a few days—but the Tang army also suffered considerable losses.

On the Tibetan side, after three days of attack, Qilibuzang rested for three days before launching another fierce attack. Qilibuzang was also a valiant Tibetan general, skilled in siege warfare; otherwise, the losses would likely have been even greater. He could currently withstand these losses, and estimated that Tang army casualties would not be less than a quarter of his own.

Military strategy dictates, "If ten times their strength, surround them; if five times, attack them; if twice, divide them." This means that when facing a fortified position, assuming both sides have similar troop quality and command capabilities, a force five times the size of the enemy is necessary for a greater chance of victory. Based on his observations and assessments during several days of siege warfare, Qilibuzang estimated that the Tang army on the front line would not exceed four thousand, while his own army was three times their size.

If the Tang army had relied on a city wall instead of earthen ramparts, perhaps Qilibuzang would have long since given up on a direct confrontation. But even the sturdy earthen ramparts were only a little over four feet high, and it was clear that the Tang army also had many new recruits whose average skill level might not be higher than his own. Therefore, he still had a chance of victory. Even with four times the casualties, if the fighting continued like this, the enemy would certainly collapse sooner than his own. But—how long would that take?

Moreover, the Tibetan army was a mixed bag, and Qilibuzang was reluctant to commit all five thousand elite cavalry to the front lines, yet he also needed to reserve them for later. He hoped that the infantry, under the supervision of some of the cavalry, could create one or two gaps in the Tang fortifications, allowing him to unleash his elite cavalry and secure victory in one fell swoop. However, Li Yuanzhong's defenses were quite tight; any gaps in the fortifications were immediately repaired, giving the Tibetans no chance to expand their gains.

In particular, according to reconnaissance, the Tang camp still had three or four hundred elite cavalry, including a general who had once killed Qiangba Luobu with a single spear thrust… Most of these Tang cavalrymen wore red headscarves; they were seasoned Shence Army soldiers, and Qilibuzang could not underestimate their strength. He usually left a thousand cavalrymen to guard the main camp, and another thousand to patrol the vicinity, ready to deal with any Tang cavalry attacks. Unfortunately, apart from the night of the first battle when the Tang cavalry attempted a raid under cover of darkness, this cavalry force only came out twice, and upon seeing his own cavalry, they quickly retreated…

Qilibuzang understood that Li Yuanzhong had left these elite troops behind to launch a decisive attack if the situation improved or worsened, and he was unwilling to waste them lightly. However, the fact that the opponent was holding onto this trump card without playing it forced Qilibuzang to also refrain from launching a full-scale attack, resulting in several days of fruitless efforts.

During the few days of rest, he sent a fast horse to report the battle situation to Ma Chongying, hoping to get a few thousand more infantrymen, but Ma Chongying flatly refused. Under Shancheng, the siege equipment was basically completed, and the main force of the Tubo was preparing to launch a fierce attack on the city. At this critical juncture, not a single soldier could be sent to Xiaoxia.

Ma Chongying urged Qilibuzang to remain calm and fight for a few more days. If capturing Shancheng was within reach, he could free up some troops to reinforce him; if Shancheng proved too formidable to be captured quickly, he could try to persuade Shang Zanmo and others to shift their main attack focus to Xiaoxia.

After receiving the letter, Qilibuzang asked a trusted confidant who had a rudimentary understanding of Tang language, "What is that old saying from the Tang Dynasty? 'A country with three princes, making a ruckus and arguing endlessly,' is that right?" The other person was dumbfounded and speechless—how could someone who only had a rudimentary understanding of Tang language possibly know ancient texts like "A country with three princes, to whom should I follow?"

Qilibuzang sighed, “Dalun and Dashang have different ideas, which has made us dizzy. There are two sheep on the mountain ridge. If we focus on catching one, we will surely catch it. But if we are distracted, we may not catch either of them.”

A trusted advisor advised, “Da Lun and Da Shang are afraid that if they only catch one sheep, the other will escape, and they will not be able to satisfy their hunger. However, in my humble opinion, the Tang army in this small gorge is indeed difficult to defeat. General, you do not need to exert all your strength to avoid heavy losses. As long as you keep a firm grip on this sheep and prevent it from escaping, Da Lun and Da Shang will always count it as a merit for you.”

Qilibuzang shook his head and said, "If we delay too long, the Tang people will probably reinforce Xiaoxia. Although I didn't transfer all of you to the front line to mingle with the infantry just in case, I still have to try my best to attack. If the Tang reinforcements arrive and launch a full-scale counterattack, I might be defeated first and will be severely punished..."

So he ordered that the attack on the fort be carried out tomorrow, and that another five hundred cavalrymen be sent up.

However, before the next day even arrived, the Tang cavalry attacked the camp again that very night. On the night of the initial battle, they had already harassed the camp once under cover of darkness. Therefore, the following night, Qilibuzang dispatched cavalry and infantry to ambush them along the route. However, for three days, the Tang cavalry did not return. Just as he relaxed his guard slightly, the Tang cavalry reappeared, launching fire arrows into the camp, causing the Tibetan army half a night of unnecessary chaos. Qilibuzang was forced to reorganize the camp, placing the cavalry in front and relegating the relatively less disciplined infantry to the rear.

Therefore, the original plan was to rest for only two days, but they were forced to wait another day before launching another attack. Qilibuzang dispatched more than a thousand cavalrymen to attack the fortifications, along with half of his infantry—more would be useless, as they could not spread out on the battlefield and would only become easy targets for the enemy—thus the pressure on the Tang army increased sharply.

After a day of fierce fighting, which continued into the night, Li Yuanzhong had deployed almost all of his reserves except for his cavalry, barely managing to hold off the Tibetan army's onslaught. Li Ji repeatedly sent messengers to request orders, saying, "The situation is urgent, please grant me command." Li Yuanzhong simply shook his head, saying, "I am still here, how can the situation be urgent? Tell Inspector Li to rest well; there will be a time when he can be of use."

Upon receiving the reply, Li Ji thought to himself, "Me, rest? I'm so bored I could die..." But he dared not disobey the order, so he ordered his soldiers to raise their voices and make a commotion to boost their morale and confuse the enemy.

That evening, Qilibuzang confidently told his subordinates, "The Tang army is almost exhausted, and we will most likely be able to break through their defenses tomorrow. However, their cavalry has not yet come out, so you must be careful and not let them take advantage of you." He then ordered that before the Tang army came to harass them that night, our army should go first—ordering a thousand cavalry to go forward and shoot arrows close to the Tang defenses to prevent the Tang soldiers from rearranging the deer antlers that had been knocked down during the day, or from digging up the trenches that had been filled in during the day.

Li Yuanzhong then ordered Li Ji to lead the cavalry into battle. Taking advantage of the darkness and the difficulty for both sides to determine the enemy's numbers, they fired arrows from a distance in an attempt to drive away the barbarian cavalry. However, the barbarian cavalry far outnumbered the Tang cavalry and were prepared, knowing that the Tang cavalry would not exceed five hundred. Therefore, they acted recklessly, drawing their bows and firing back.

Although arrows were nearly useless in the darkness, this prolonged stalemate meant the barbarian cavalry wouldn't retreat, offering no benefit to our forces in rebuilding our defenses. Li Ji, bored from observing the battle these past few days, finally found a few Tang soldiers who had a rudimentary grasp of the barbarian language. He immediately raised his voice and shouted out the few phrases he had just learned:

"I killed Qiangba Luobu. Is there anyone who dares to avenge him? Stop shooting and fight on horseback!"

Upon hearing this, most of the barbarian cavalrymen were tempted.

Because Ma Chongying had already declared: "Whoever can capture this thief will be promoted to general and rewarded with a thousand Tang slaves!" Hey, we haven't been able to find this kid these past few days, but he's finally shown up. If we can capture and kill him, we'll definitely get a big reward.

Several barbarian cavalrymen immediately stopped shooting arrows and attempted to charge in the direction from which the shouts came. Li Ji hurriedly shouted, "Come one by one! Don't you have any shame?!" He strapped a small round shield to his left arm to block the arrows, held a spear in one hand, and spurred his horse to meet them.

A barbarian cavalryman thrust his spear forward, but Li Ji parried it with his left-hand shield. He then stabbed the cavalryman in the chest with his own spear, killing him instantly. Before the cavalryman could even pull his spear out, two more spears came thrusting from the left and right. Without a word, Li Ji turned his horse and rode away. He then drew his bow, nocked an arrow, and with a twist on the saddle, shot another barbarian cavalryman from his horse at a distance of no more than ten paces.

The barbarian cavalry gave chase, and Li Ji commanded his cavalry to flee to the side of the camp, finally exposing the front of the Tang fortress. However, the enemy was not foolish; they stopped after a short distance, ignoring Li Ji's shouts, and returned to the front of the fortress, firing arrows at the Tang soldiers who came out to dig trenches. The Tang soldiers also returned fire with their bows and arrows, and Li Ji turned back to fight as well.

The commotion raged for most of the night. Li Ji, relying on his fast horse and thick armor, repeatedly closed in, stabbing with spears, slashing with swords, and shooting arrows, killing no fewer than ten barbarian cavalrymen. He himself was also wounded by six or seven arrows, but apart from one arrow that pierced a seam in his armor and pierced a small hole in his left rib, he was basically unharmed. As dawn approached, both sides were exhausted, and the barbarian cavalry finally retreated, but the fortifications in front of the Tang fortress were not even half-repaired.

Therefore, the battle resumed at dawn. The Tibetan army launched a volley and quickly reached the front of the fortress. Wooden ladders and door panels were then erected on the earthen ramparts. The infantry surged forward, engaging in close combat. The Tang army fought desperately, and after two quarters of fierce fighting, the area in front of the fortress was almost piled high with the corpses of the Tibetans, yet they refused to retreat even a single step.

Upon seeing this from behind the lines, Qilibuzang immediately ordered, "Send cavalry up!"

Seeing that the infantry was only one breath away from breaking through the enemy lines, sending out the relatively well-equipped, highly skilled, and well-rested cavalry should be able to defeat the Tang army in one fell swoop.

However, the earthen ramparts built by the Tang people were quite high, and the wooden ladders were not suitable for horses to walk on, nor could the door panels withstand the hooves of horses. Therefore, after the barbarian cavalry braved the rain of arrows to approach the Tang ramparts, they could only dismount and climb on foot. Around noon, hundreds of barbarian cavalry finally surged onto the earthen ramparts. Under the barrage of spears and swords, the Tang soldiers, who were exhausted from the long battle, began to falter.

Seeing this, Li Yuanzhong personally led his guards to the front of the fortress, brandishing his sword and fighting fiercely with the barbarian cavalry who attempted to infiltrate the camp. This greatly boosted morale, and the Tang army fought bravely, finally stabilizing their lines. Half of the barbarian cavalry who had scaled the fortress were driven back, while the other half lay dead on the ramparts. But then even more barbarian cavalry charged in, and Li Yuanzhong personally killed more than ten enemies before finally losing his footing and being stabbed in the left arm by a spear.

He let out a shout and swung his sword down, cleaving the face of the barbarian wielding a spear. He then took a half-step back, swung his sword in the opposite direction, snapping the spear shaft in two, leaving only about half a foot embedded in his own arm. Several guards rushed to his aid, pleading with the general to retreat. Li Yuanzhong then shouted, "Quickly summon Li Ji and Yi Tiechui, and drive these bandits away!"

When the military order reached the north of the camp, Yi Tiechui, who had been bored out of his mind, was overjoyed. He immediately led two hundred cavalrymen, removed the deer antlers, and charged out. The plan was to charge several dozen paces away, then turn south, along the outer edge of the earthen ramparts and trenches, directly attacking the front of the battle line, driving away the Tibetan soldiers who were trying to scale the ramparts, and destroying the laid-out wooden ladders and door panels. As for the enemy who had already scaled the ramparts, they could either shoot them with arrows or hand them over to the infantry in the camp. Once they were without reinforcements, these guys would surely be doomed.

But to everyone's surprise, they hadn't gone far from the camp, and had just turned south, when a Tibetan cavalry force twice their size attacked, raining down arrows from a distance. Yi Tiechui initially didn't intend to engage them—if they were caught, outnumbered and outgunned, escape would be difficult, let alone rescuing the front lines. He shouted to his soldiers not to stop, but to charge into the enemy infantry in one go. Once they were mixed in with the enemy, the Tibetan cavalry would naturally dare not fire arrows anymore. Even if they charged in, they might be harassed by their own infantry, making them unable to move freely.

However, after a few bugle calls from behind the Tibetan formation, the hundreds of infantrymen on the left flank immediately turned around, no longer attempting to scale the ramparts, but instead forming a battle line with their spears to block the Tang cavalry. Yi Tiechui was fearless and charged straight in, parrying enemy spears with his lance and stepping into the crowd. Then, with a series of thrusts, he killed three enemies in quick succession.

However, while he charged in first, most of the Tang cavalry he followed failed to keep up. Even when they managed to break into the infantry formation as smoothly as Yi Tiechui, their warhorses were forced to slow down. In close combat, they were unable to gain an overwhelming advantage – after all, the strength of their armor was limited. After the Kaiyuan and Tianbao eras, heavy cavalry had gradually faded from the historical stage.

Moreover, the barbarian cavalry immediately attacked from the flank, mingling with the infantry and engaging the Tang cavalry in battle.

Just as Qilibuzang had predicted, most of the cavalry under Yi Tiechui were from the Shence Army, which had been on the front lines of the Tang-Tibet war. They were all battle-hardened and skilled in archery and horsemanship. After the Shence Army marched east to defend the emperor, they were first selected to guard the imperial court with only the elite troops. After being stationed in Shanxian, with the support of Li Yu and under the coordination of Wei Boyu, the various units of the Western Army that had been scattered over the years were replenished with elite troops, so their combat effectiveness was not diminished at all.

Even so, with hundreds of barbarian soldiers and nearly a thousand barbarian cavalry, even if their coordination was not very good, they could still support each other. Yi Tiechui and his men were caught in a pincer attack and trapped in a tight encirclement. They were still a hundred paces away from the front line where they were in danger, but they could not break through no matter what. On the contrary, in the fierce battle, their comrades were frequently wounded and fell from their horses.

The Tang cavalry had no infantry support, while the Tibetans did, so falling from their horses was practically certain death... If it weren't for the dire situation at the front, Yi Tiechui would have already found an opportunity to retreat—this was a complete dead end. But if his army retreated, there would be no reinforcements in front of the fortress, and it might soon be breached by the Tibetan rebels... If the fortress fell, the Tang army would inevitably collapse due to the overwhelming disparity in numbers. At this critical juncture, who dared to talk about retreating?

At this moment, only death is possible!

Chapter Sixteen, Li Er Kills the Bandits

Li Yuanzhong's orders were simultaneously relayed to both flanks. Yi Tiechui on the north flank immediately leaped over the ramparts, while Li Ji on the south flank was also greatly encouraged—"I've been waiting for you to say that! It's finally my turn!"—and prepared to charge out of the ramparts. However, after glancing at the battle situation, a sudden thought struck him, and he said to his men, "If the enemy can scale the ramparts, why can't I?!"

In the past, to alleviate the pressure on the front lines, he and Yi Tiechui had led cavalry out twice, but they were quickly blocked and forced to retreat. This showed that the Tibetans had specifically reserved at least twice the number of Tang cavalry, who constantly patrolled the vicinity, ready to launch a surprise attack at any time. Li Ji thought to himself, if I were to charge out again as before, I wouldn't get very far before being blocked again. Could I so easily fight my way to the front along the outer edge of the earthen ramparts? I'm afraid that before I could even disperse the Tibetan infantry and those dismounted Tibetan cavalry, my side would suffer heavy losses.

Since that's the case, I won't ride my horse out of the base. I'll just dismount and walk over the base!

While cavalry's advantage lies in mobility, once dismounted, they are essentially no different from infantry—the Tibetans might have better equipment and weapons; and within the Tang army, cavalry armor might not be as thick as that of elite infantry. But the problem is, if I go out as cavalry, the enemy will certainly meet me with cavalry as well. The enemy cavalry outnumbers us by at least two to one, and even if we manage to defeat them, will they have the strength to reinforce those in perilous situations?

Why not abandon our strengths and focus on our weaknesses? We are currently the only fresh force in the camp, with boundless energy and, after a long period of inactivity, everyone is eager for battle and their morale is extremely high. Let's simply switch to infantry and go kill the enemy!

At Li Ji's command, he dismounted, spear in hand, and leaped onto the earthen rampart, charging forward with a roar. Although his rib wound had only recently been bandaged, it was merely a minor cut; the slight pain wouldn't hinder his movements. The Tibetan infantry and cavalry, having dismounted and scaled the ramparts, had been running and fighting for some time, their strength waning. How could they possibly withstand Li Ji, this tiger unleashed from its cage?

With a flick of his spear, several barbarian bandits were swept off their ramparts. Li Ji then drew his sword from his waist, still wielding the spear in one hand and the sword in the other, thrusting and slashing at anyone he encountered, almost without a moment's rest. Two hundred cavalrymen followed behind, dismounting and scaling the ramparts to fight on foot, but mostly using arrows—because Li Ji was blocking the way in front. Although the ramparts were wide, once Li Ji swung his spear, he couldn't get past a second person—they shot down the barbarian bandits who approached the ramparts or were swept off by Li Ji one by one in front of the ramparts.

The main fortification in front of the Tang camp, running north-south and over a mile long, was charged from one end to the other in less than five minutes in later times. Few could match him. He even passed right in front of Li Yuanzhong, leaving Li Yuanzhong dumbfounded. Li Yuanzhong thought to himself that cavalry should primarily focus on mounted archery, but judging from this, Li Ji should have been an infantryman!

It was my mistake... He said he wanted to bring cavalry, how could I have agreed?

Li Ji was now covered in blood, mostly from the enemy. Although he had been hit by several arrows, his agile dodging had prevented them from striking any vital organs, and most of them hadn't even penetrated his armor. As for enemy spears and swords, Li Ji thought to himself, "If they can get within a foot of me, I'll respect them as heroes and spare their lives!"

But he never got the chance to feign magnanimity, so with his spear and sword at his side, he only had three paths: fall, be maimed, or die—whether he fell or was maimed, his comrades behind him would finish him off with arrows—and so he proudly charged past Li Yuanzhong, not even having time to say goodbye, before drifting away into the distance.

Until Li Ji spotted Yi Tiechui from afar.

Yi Tiechui and his cavalry fought a bloody battle, suffering heavy casualties and exhaustion—although the fighting hadn't lasted long, it had been incredibly dangerous and the mental pressure immense—if Li Ji had arrived even a moment later, the entire army might have been wiped out. Seeing this, Li Ji raised his lance, pointed it at a barbarian general fighting Yi Tiechui, and shouted, "Fire arrows!"

But then a shout came from behind: "Officer Li, we've run out of arrows!"

Normally, when cavalrymen went into battle, they carried only one Hulu (a type of armored vehicle) and thirty arrows, which might include whistling arrows with special functions. However, in just a few minutes, following Li Ji's rapid charge from the ramparts, they found themselves unable to penetrate with close-range weapons, and the sheer number of enemies below the ramparts was overwhelming. As a result, they fired rapidly, and most of their Hulu supplies were used up.

Because the target is very close, at most a dozen steps away, and densely packed, the bow does not need to be fully drawn, and the arrow does not need to be carefully aimed. As long as it is shot, there will always be some success. Some people even released whistling arrows. Even those conical arrows without a sharp point can take half a life if they hit a person's face at short distance.

Therefore, Li Ji ordered his men to fire arrows at the barbarian cavalry dozens of paces away. His men complained, "If only we had brought more Hu Lu with us!" Upon hearing this, Li Ji, without saying a word, twisted his waist and threw the spear in his hand straight out.

With a whoosh, at a distance of nearly forty paces, the spear struck the barbarian general squarely on the head, shattering the horse's face. The warhorse stumbled, throwing its master off the horse. Yi Tiechui seized the opportunity to deliver a follow-up spear thrust, killing the general.

He then had a chance to glance sideways and was taken aback – “I just heard a familiar shout and thought you, Li Ji, were leading your cavalry to charge at us. So you’ve switched to leading infantry?”

After Li Ji dropped his spear, he immediately ordered his men, "Draw your swords and follow me to kill the enemy!" With a leap, he jumped from the earthen rampart into the ranks of the Tibetan infantry, slashing down with his sword. Two Tibetan soldiers were struck by the tip of the blade first, and then by the blade itself, both falling to the ground with screams of agony.

Originally, they were clustered in front of the fortress, waiting for an opportunity to follow their comrades up the ramparts. They also had to be wary of arrows and spears from above, so the Tibetan formation was in disarray, with very little coordination between them. As a result, Li Ji broke through easily, killing several men in an instant and running more than ten steps away. However, the so-called "seeing in all directions and hearing in all directions" is ultimately just an exaggeration. In the chaos of battle, with enemies on all sides, who can care about so much? The Tibetan soldiers swarmed forward. Although they saw Li Ji's bravery and dared not approach, they all thrust their spears at him. Li Ji was caught off guard and was speared in the right shoulder. Fortunately, he turned to the side in time to deflect the force, thus avoiding serious injury.

However, he was only a fraction of a second too slow. His comrades behind him quickly abandoned their bows and arrows, drew their swords, and leaped down from the ramparts, attempting to close in on Li Ji. Li Ji's left flank was soon protected, allowing him to focus all his efforts on the enemies on his front and right. With his martial arts skills and agility, it would be extremely difficult for the Tibetan soldiers to take advantage of the chaos and strike him.

Seeing this, Yi Tiechui hurriedly commanded his cavalry to charge towards the direction from which Li Ji had come. In just over ten breaths, the two armies broke through the enemy lines and successfully joined forces. The only things they passed through were corpses and pools of blood almost reaching their heels.

Upon seeing Yi Tiechui, Li Ji revealed an almost maniacal smile and shouted, "How are you? Can you still fight?"

In truth, Yi Tiechui was already exhausted, his men and horses were worn out, and he had lost nearly half of his troops. He himself had been stabbed several times, and blood was still gushing from his wounds. But he was also a very brave man, and seeing Li Ji leap out of the ramparts and kill the barbarian bandits who were terrified and scattered, his blood boiled and he seemed to have gained ten times the energy and strength. He immediately laughed loudly and said, "You can fight, and so can I!"

Li Ji pointed his blood-stained longsword toward the barbarian camp—"In that case, let's charge in and take the barbarian general's head!"

Bold words are often unreliable, because although Li Ji had fought fiercely, his mind wasn't completely clouded—even if it were, Li Yuanzhong was still watching him from within the fortress. Li Ji dared to make such a boast because after such a fierce battle, the morale of the Tibetan army had collapsed, and they were all turning tail and fleeing—otherwise, he and Yi Tiechui wouldn't have been able to reunite so easily—chasing down the defeated enemy was much easier and more enjoyable than fighting head-on, so he still had the strength, how could he not take advantage of his remaining courage and continue his attack?

However, the Tibetan forces outnumbered the Tang army three to one, and they must have had fresh troops left behind. To think that they could press their advantage and storm the Tibetan camp in one fell swoop was nothing short of a pipe dream. Moreover, the Tibetan camp was a full two miles away from the Tang fortress. It would be fine if Yi Tiechui and his men were on horseback, but if Li Ji were to chase them for another two miles, even if he himself was full of energy, his men might not be able to keep up.

Therefore, after advancing only an arrow's length, Li Ji was about to stop when he heard the sound of gongs from within the camp. He couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, thinking to himself that Li Yuanzhong was quite methodical in his advances and retreats.

After returning to camp, the casualties were tallied. Yi Tiechui's two hundred cavalrymen had lost nearly 40%. If they hadn't been surrounded and determined to die, they probably would have collapsed long before Li Ji arrived. Li Ji's troops, on the other hand, suffered fewer than ten casualties.

On the Tibetan side, the infantry scattered first, causing the cavalry, both on horseback and on foot, to be unable to hold on and forced to flee in disarray, leaving behind dozens of warhorses which were then taken back to their camp by the Tang soldiers who were cleaning up the battlefield.

That's a story for later. As soon as Li Ji returned to camp, cheers erupted all around. Except for Li Yuanzhong, soldiers both on and below the cliff shouted Li Ji's name. It's no wonder they were so excited; the earthen ramparts had almost fallen. If the barbarian invaders had been allowed into the camp, with both sides having equal advantages in terrain, then only hand-to-hand combat and chaos would have remained. And with the barbarian army outnumbering the Tang army three to one, and with continuous reinforcements, the remaining five hundred men on the cliff would surely have been annihilated.

Because there was no way to retreat. There was only that narrow path. Even if Li Ji ordered nails to be driven into the cliff face and ropes to be tied, how many people could escape? As for launching the raft into the water... in the midst of a chaotic battle, who would give you time to inflate the raft?

As for the five hundred men on the cliff, if the main camp were to fall, descending via the rope ladder would be impossible; they would have no choice but to continue climbing. At a height of several tens of feet, how many could possibly climb to the top? And even if they did, the mountains were high and steep, with no roads. What were their chances of successfully escaping to the west of the gorge and then finding a way down?

Therefore, at that moment, many Tang soldiers, both on and below the cliff, were determined to die, especially the newly recruited soldiers, many of whom even considered surrendering—even if they became slaves to the barbarians, they could at least survive for a few more days. Thus, in a battle of attack and defense, under normal circumstances, if the defending side's fortifications are breached, they will usually collapse quickly, and the possibility of rebuilding morale and forcing the enemy back is extremely slim.

However, this crisis was averted by Li Ji, who dismounted and scaled the ramparts, engaging in a fierce battle. Not only that, but he also forced the barbarian rebels back, inflicting far more casualties than the Tang army. How could the Tang army not shout Li Ji's name in acclaim?

Inspector Li is so brave! With him here, and with General Li in command, we have nothing to worry about!

The problem was that they couldn't call Li Ji by his real name, so they all called him "Inspector Li." Li Ji felt a little annoyed by this. Firstly, "Inspector" wasn't a high-ranking official, and secondly... it didn't sound imposing enough. So what should his comrades call him? "County Magistrate Li" (his official position was County Magistrate of Shimen County, Lizhou)? That was even worse than "Inspector Li," and besides, a county magistrate was ultimately a civil official...

Otherwise, we could simply follow the Tang dynasty custom and use birth order. However, Li Ji's birth order within the Zhao County Li clan's Jingzhao branch was thirteenth, and "Li Thirteen" didn't necessarily sound very good—although the term "thirteen o'clock" didn't exist back then. Thinking about it further, if we count from our great-grandparents' generation, among his brothers, Li Bi was the eldest, and I followed closely behind…

Then he raised his arms and shouted, "Li Er of Jingzhao has returned after killing the traitors!" His voice was loud, and this roar almost drowned out the sound of the entire camp.

The soldiers understood and immediately changed their address: "Li Erlang, Li Erlang!"

The shouts grew louder and louder, eventually reaching the Tibetan camp after several twists and turns. Qilibuzang couldn't help but sigh, "So this man's name is Li Erlang. No wonder Qiangba Luobu was killed by him in one move!"

When Li Ji charged onto the ramparts, Qilibuzang sensed the danger. He had originally deployed fresh cavalry on both flanks of the battlefield to support the front lines in case of an emergency, ensuring a smooth frontal assault. However, Li Ji's actions were unexpected. He was not only incredibly brave but also commanded extremely high levels of energy, instantly driving back the Tibetan soldiers who had just reached the ramparts.

Qilibuzang hurriedly dispatched his elite cavalry to charge forward, attempting to maintain the battle line. However, even though he thought his reaction was quick enough, his actions swift enough, and his orders issued without delay, he was still a step too slow... The cavalry had barely assembled when the frontline troops were defeated.

Even if fresh troops were deployed at this point, they could at most force Li Ji and his men back into their fortified positions. To attempt to break through their defenses would be nothing short of a pipe dream. Qilibuzang could only instruct his subordinates: "Just take the head of the Tang traitor who killed Qiangba Luobu; there's no need to pursue him further."

However, the Tang bandit had only chased after them for an arrow's distance when the Tang camp sounded a gong, summoning him back—the fresh barbarian cavalry had not even been able to get close to them.

In this battle, the Tibetans suffered over seven hundred casualties, more than in the previous days combined. Moreover, not all the dead were infantrymen; thirty percent were cavalrymen. If these losses had allowed them to successfully break through the Tang fortifications, it wouldn't have been a losing proposition. The problem was that they were just one step away, and ultimately suffered a crushing defeat. Furthermore, after this battle, most of the infantrymen were terrified, and even many cavalrymen showed signs of panic, with morale plummeting to rock bottom.

Under these circumstances, let alone continuing the assault on the fortress, even if the Tang army took advantage of the situation and broke out of the fortress to directly attack the main camp, Qilibuzang had no confidence in repelling them... Fortunately, I still have more than a thousand elite cavalrymen by my side, so at least I can protect myself and escape safely. Even better, the Tang army must be exhausted after fighting for half a day and dare not really charge out.

After such a heavy setback, it's hard to say how long it will take to rebuild morale. As for attacking Tang forces again... don't even think about it for at least ten days! It would be good enough if they could hold their camp firmly and prevent the Tang people from reinforcing or supporting Shancheng.

Chapter Seventeen, Medals on My Body

Amidst the cheers and throngs of his soldiers, Li Ji came to report to Li Yuanzhong. He saw Li Yuanzhong sitting on a couch, having removed his armor and baring his left arm, which was being bandaged by a military doctor.

The spear pierced very deep, and even the army doctor was not sure whether it had damaged any tendons or veins. He could only use a knife to cut open the wound, pull out the spear tip, clean it, apply herbal medicine, and then wrap it with layers of white cloth.

Li Ji greeted him with a bow and said, "I am fortunate to have fulfilled my mission."

Li Yuanzhong raised his head, glanced at him, and nodded slightly: "Well done." Then, seeing that Li Ji also had about ten arrows stuck in his body, he instructed the army doctor: "Now that the medicine has been applied, my personal guards can take care of bandaging the wounds. You go and examine Inspector Li."

Most of the arrows failed to pierce his armor and penetrate his flesh; Li Ji only suffered about ten abrasions and lacerations. However, like Li Yuanzhong, he had been shot in the right shoulder, with blood flowing down to his elbow. He himself didn't think it was a big deal, but the army doctor said, "Although the arrows didn't penetrate deeply and didn't damage any bones, if it's not treated promptly, it could lead to ulceration or even a stroke, which would be troublesome..."