Jia Mountain, in an unnamed valley.
Listening to the sounds of battle echoing from all around, Zuo Liangyu felt a deep wave of despair.
He never imagined that someone like him, fierce and renowned, commanding elite troops and numerous capable generals, would actually be driven into such a miserable defeat by a mere rebel force.
What kind of rebels were these?
They understood strategy. Their tactics were ruthless and precise. Feigned retreats, luring the enemy deep, hidden ambushes, layered encirclement. Every step flowed smoothly into the next, as if rehearsed countless times.
Their use of Jia Mountain's terrain was flawless, straight out of a military manual.
How could these people be simple rebels?
They were more disciplined and organized than regular government troops.
From the moment Zuo Liangyu entered the mountains, his forces were relentlessly harassed and pinned down. After days of constant fighting and exhaustion, he still could not break free.
At every valley entrance and ravine mouth, his soldiers desperately searched for an escape route, only to find each one sealed shut. The rebels had laid ambushes along every possible path.
Each time Zuo Liangyu's men tried to force a breakthrough, they paid a heavy price in lives. Officers fell one after another, morale collapsed, and eventually the soldiers clustered together, no longer daring to charge again.
From all directions came deafening shouts. One voice in particular echoed repeatedly through the valley.
"Zuo Liangyu, come out and face your death."
"Zuo Liangyu, you slaughter innocents to claim merit, harm the common people, betray your comrades, hoard troops for your own power, and defy imperial orders. You are more like a bandit than we are. Why don't you just die already?"
"Zuo Liangyu, stop hiding. Come out and let your grandpa chop off your dog head."
Hearing these voices, Zuo Liangyu let out a long sigh.
"There is no way out," he murmured. "So be it. Today, this place will become my grave."
With a sharp motion, he drew the treasured sword from his waist and raised it to his throat.
Just as he was about to press down with force, the shouting outside suddenly stopped.
Zuo Liangyu was startled. His sword froze in midair, no longer pressing against his neck.
An eerie silence filled the valley.
After a long moment, voices suddenly boomed from the mountaintop, resounding in unison.
"Zuo Liangyu, where are you? Commander Zu Kuan has come to rescue you."
Zuo Liangyu was overjoyed. "Zu Kuan. It's Zu Kuan's voice."
His soldiers immediately shouted together, "General Zu, we are here."
Not long after, Zu Kuan's troops entered the valley.
Zuo Liangyu could hardly contain his excitement. "General Zu, how did you get in? Didn't the rebels stop you?"
Zu Kuan replied calmly, "As soon as I arrived, the rebels withdrew."
Zuo Liangyu was completely confused. "Why? They were so fierce when fighting me. But the moment you appeared, they retreated? They did not even fight you?"
Zu Kuan snorted. "Why are you asking me? Who am I supposed to ask? Never mind that. As long as you are alive, that is what matters. Let's move quickly. We must reinforce Luzhou."
Outside Luzhou City.
Luzhou was no ordinary city. It was a famed stronghold with a history spanning a thousand years.
Zhang Liao had once terrified enemies at Xiaoyao Ford here.
Yet now, Luzhou stood at the very center of the storm.
Seventy two rebel factions, numbering in the hundreds of thousands, surrounded the city. Their camps stretched for ten li in every direction, completely encircling Luzhou.
More than ten large cannons were deployed throughout the rebel camps, firing sporadically at the city walls.
Inside the city, both soldiers and civilians trembled as they clung desperately to their defenses, waiting for imperial reinforcements to arrive.
Chuang Wang Gao Yingxiang sat proudly within his main camp, watching as his artillerymen bombarded the city walls.
These artillerymen were not mere vagabonds. They were soldiers who had defected from various garrisons. Even so, their cannon skills were still crude, requiring long pauses between shots to reload.
Despite that, Gao Yingxiang felt deeply satisfied.
How weak the rebel forces had once been.
He remembered his youth, when he followed his elder brother Wang Jiayin to attack Hequ County in Shanxi. Back then, the Shanxi regional commander needed only two cannons to scatter them completely.
Now everything was different.
He commanded more than ten large cannons. He even had his own artillery battalion.
Looking at his army of hundreds of thousands, equipped with arquebusiers, artillery units, and all manner of strange siege devices, Gao Yingxiang felt an overwhelming sense of pride, as though the world itself was already within his grasp.
"Report."
A messenger rushed in. "Cao Wenzhao's Guanning Iron Cavalry is approaching."
Gao Yingxiang frowned. He disliked hearing those two names.
Standing behind him, the Dashing General spoke up. "Which route are they taking?"
The messenger replied, "They are coming from the west and will soon reach Zhougong Mountain."
"Zhougong Mountain?" the Dashing General said thoughtfully. "I remember leaving two brothers there."
"Yes," the messenger confirmed. "You stationed Commanders Meng Hu and Du Hu to guard Zhougong Mountain."
The Dashing General smiled. "Then there is nothing to worry about. Meng Hu and Du Hu have two large cannons, and they occupy the high ground. Even the Guanning Iron Cavalry may not be able to break through Zhougong Mountain."
In the past, rebels would soil themselves at the mere mention of the Guanning Iron Cavalry.
Back when Wang Jiayin proclaimed himself king in Hequ County, it was Cao Wenzhao who led the Guanning Iron Cavalry to breach the city walls.
But times had changed.
Now, hearing that the Guanning Iron Cavalry was coming no longer inspired the same fear.
The Dashing General gave his order. "Increase the pressure on the siege. Meng Hu and Du Hu will hold Cao Wenzhao at Zhougong Mountain."
Zhougong Mountain.
Cao Wenzhao had departed ahead of Gao Jie and Bai Yuan and reached the outskirts of Luzhou earlier. However, the looming presence of Zhougong Mountain forced him to halt his advance.
The rebels on the mountain made no attempt to hide. They openly raised their banners on the mountaintop, displaying two large characters for "Tiger."
When Cao Wenzhao's army reached the western foothills, the rebels neither fled nor concealed themselves. Instead, they sent hundreds of men to the peak, who shouted insults down the slopes.
"Cao Wenzhao, how did you like being showered with arrows last time? You finally healed, and now you are back looking for death."
Cao Wenzhao said calmly, "Those arrows last time were clearly fired by the Dashing General's men, not by you."
His nephew Cao Bianjiao said, "Uncle, is that really the point? They are insulting you on purpose."
"Oh?" Cao Wenzhao replied, genuinely surprised. "Is that what they are trying to do? They cannot even tell who shot me, and they think that will anger someone?"
Cao Bianjiao was left speechless.
The rebels screamed themselves hoarse, but Cao Wenzhao remained unmoved. They had not expected him to miss the point entirely.
"We must reach Luzhou, so this mountain has to be taken," Cao Wenzhao said after studying the map. "If we bypass Zhougong Mountain and go straight to Luzhou, these rebels could strike us from behind while we engage the main rebel army."
Cao Bianjiao nodded. "Uncle, you stay here. I will lead the assault."
Cao Bianjiao was a fierce general in his own right. He gathered his troops and prepared to charge up the mountain.
At that moment, the rebels on the mountaintop burst into loud laughter.
They rolled out two large cannons.
Along the slopes, numerous arquebusiers appeared, wielding a chaotic mix of firearms such as bird guns and Three Eyed Arquebuses. At the same time, large groups of rebels set up repeating crossbows in ambush positions.
Cao Bianjiao froze in place.
"Come on, come and get us," the rebels jeered, laughing wildly. "Before, you were the ones blasting us with cannons. But now things are different. Go on, if you dare, come and take us."
Cao Wenzhao frowned deeply. "These rebels," he muttered, "are becoming harder and harder to deal with."