"Hahaha! How ridiculous!" Hu Cai tossed his head aside, brandishing his broadsword in front of Jin Kui, his expression ferocious. "I'll give you a quick and painless death, one you won't understand! Men, bring them up!"
Shortly, the bandits brought up more than ten people: Jin Kui's wife, concubines, sons and daughters, and even his infant grandson.
Hu Cai grinned maliciously and hacked the weeping concubine to death with a single blow. "You dare kill my brother? I'll kill your whole family! Jin Kui, you old dog, you asked for this! Now watch your family die before your eyes!"
"Master, save me! Ah!"
"Father, save me! Ah!"
More than thirty members of the Jin family were beheaded. Jin Kui's eyes widened in horror; he hadn't expected his opponent to be so ruthless and merciless. "I didn't kill your brother; it was the imperial army sent to suppress the bandits! The leader was called Lu Ming. The grievances have their source; you're looking for him!"
"Heh, I will find him, you old dog! But you won't live either!" Hu Cai, somewhat deranged, stabbed Jin Kui several times, then cut off his nose and ears—deliberately, to disgust him.
He also wanted to cut off all their heads, leaving them without a complete corpse!
On the other side, the Yang family wasn't as stubborn. They proactively made an agreement with Yang Feng, offering money and supplies in exchange for his mercy.
Otherwise, continuing the fight would only result in mutual destruction. While the fortified village would eventually fall, Yang Feng's forces would certainly suffer heavy losses as well.
Yang Feng considered the situation and decided against completely alienating the local powerful families.
He only sought wealth and a way out, not to cut off his own escape route!
Just as he was receiving the supplies from the Yang family, his men reported that Hu Cai had already breached the Jin family's fortress and was reveling inside.
Since both sides had a pre-arranged division of labor, Yang Feng, though envious, didn't go to claim a share.
He simply ordered his men to expedite the transport and get the supplies away.
Once they had the spoils, they could leave, then plunder the starving refugees to strengthen their ranks. They would find an opportunity to fight one more battle, ideally defeating the suppression army, thus securing a chance to be recruited into the government.
Outside the city, Lu Ming felt it was about time, so he waved his hand, "Attack!"
The archers, protected by swordsmen and shieldmen, aimed at the rebel defenders on the city walls, not using a barrage of swords for suppression, but rather point-to-point fire.
The siege towers erected at the rear were pushed up, the wooden beams crisscrossing, key joints bound with ropes.
Once they were close enough, the archers climbed the siege ladders.
This height was already higher than the city walls, and the railings were made of wooden planks and iron sheets, providing some protection against arrows.
Once atop the ladders, the archers could look down and suppress the rebels on the walls from above.
The infantry didn't rush to charge and erect ladders. Instead, they waited for the archers to pick off the weak points in the wall one by one before using the ladders to scale it.
Lu Ming fought this battle with great patience, staring at the battlefield map and watching the enemy soldiers constantly dying and being wounded on the walls.
Standing put up a charge was certainly feasible, but it would result in the loss of his precious manpower. His goal was to minimize losses.
Suddenly, Lu Ming discovered an opening at the junction of the eastern and western sides of the city. He decisively ordered, "Jiang Qin, charge up the rightmost section of the wall! There are no enemy soldiers defending there, quickly!"
"Yes, my lord." Jiang Qin had no objections. In his mind, his lord never made a mistake!
The suppression continued, with more and more enemy soldiers arriving. Among them were many unskilled soldiers, but wounded soldiers could be treated and replaced.
Unless the enemy soldiers were dead, seriously wounded enemy soldiers would be ignored.
Even after being carried off the city walls, they were simply left to die in the open.
No medical care, no medicine, no attention—only death to be awaited.
The archers, on the other hand, were having a blast shooting. The archers on the well ramparts were their personal guards, also promoted soldiers.
They gained experience through killing and combat, and leveling up granted attribute points—four points in Strength and one in Agility.
Maintaining just one point of Agility ensured the archers' movement speed, especially crucial in battle, preventing them from being instantly killed due to their weakness in melee combat.
The four points of Strength were also enough to give them sufficient attack power to penetrate iron armor.
Their inherent attack power, combined with superior bows, created effective killing power.
And now, facing these bandits, the archers' slaughtering advantage was on full display.
Basically, one draw of the bow was enough to take down an enemy.
Without armor or helmet, they were left with only their flimsy plain clothes for protection, practically naked!
Arrows easily pierced through their skin; a single hit meant certain death or serious injury, or at least permanent crippling!
After some time, shouts of battle suddenly erupted in the distance. Soldiers had appeared on the city walls sometime earlier.
Jiang Qin was leading the charge, wielding his broadsword and roaring as he swung it to deflect the incoming arrows.
"Don't run, you traitors! Take this!" Jiang Qin roared, running swiftly and cutting down any enemy soldiers who stood in his way.
Using the momentum of his block, he would forcefully push a soldier off the wall, sending him screaming as he plummeted seven meters from the top—a fatal fall!
With Jiang Qin leading the charge, his personal guards formed a formidable spearhead, tearing through the enemy ranks. The prisoners following behind, inspired by his charge, surged with immense courage and joined in the roaring advance.
As the drawbridge was lowered, Lu Ming waved his hand, and the remaining infantry charged forward, leaping across the bridge and rushing into the city.
They clashed fiercely with the rebel soldiers behind the city gates. Their high morale scattered the rebels, further restricting their movement.
The stalemate lasted less than half an hour before the rebels collapsed.
They either fled or surrendered, lacking the courage to continue, as if they had been terrified.
Faced with fierce government troops, the disorganized and uncoordinated rebels were no match.
Even though this was only a roughly equal force, with the upgraded soldiers as backup, they weren't so easily defeated.
Lu Ming didn't join the charge; instead, he rode behind them. This wasn't his first time attacking a city, but it was the first time he had used such a unique method, and the results were quite good.