More than a dozen rockets, trailing plumes of flame, hurtled toward the three cargo ships!
Bai Jinhuan was prepared and had all the militiamen take up shields to block the arrows.
The rockets struck the shield with muffled thuds, sending sparks flying. Some rockets grazed the shield and embedded themselves in the ship's side, only to be extinguished with a bucket of river water by the militia who were already prepared.
After a volley of rockets, several small fires broke out on the three ships, but they were all extinguished in time, and no militiamen were injured.
Taking advantage of the situation, the bearded man continued shouting, "If you don't surrender now, things won't be so lenient anymore! Do you really want to be burned alive on the ship?!"
There was no reply from the ship; shields were raised one after another, showing no intention of surrendering.
He Xingzhou's face darkened; he hadn't expected these people to be so difficult to deal with.
Ordinary soldiers, frightened like that, would have panicked long ago.
But the people on the ship are different; they still look incredibly determined to fight!
'I heard that the people from Mist Hidden Temple suffered losses in West River Market; those people are indeed not simple.'
He Xingzhou thought to himself, and dared not be careless anymore.
"Sir, I'll take a squad of elite troops and give it a try. Let's see if we can storm the ship and seize it."
A servant with a sword stepped forward and volunteered.
He Xingzhou thought about it for a moment, but ultimately couldn't bear to part with the cargo on the ship. He nodded in agreement and gave the instructions:
"Concentrate your forces and focus on attacking one of their boats. They only have a few dozen people on each boat. Let the people on the river attack as well, to distract them!"
"Yes."
The servant obeyed and left.
A moment later, more than sixty elite servants of the He Family, all dressed in leather armor and carrying weapons, came to the front row.
The men in front, one holding a shield in one hand and carrying several bamboo ladders in the other, charged toward the cargo ship on the far left.
The small boats on the river also moved at the same time, and seven or eight boats surrounded them!
Bai Jinhuan was on the middle cargo ship. He leaped from the deck onto the left cargo ship and shouted:
"Hand over the ones on the river to the crossbowmen; wait until they get closer before engaging the ones on the bank!"
The three cargo ships were moored parallel to each other at the dock. Bai Jinhuan then had the middle cargo ship lay planks on the two side cargo ships to facilitate the movement of the militiamen.
This allows for more flexible use of the strength in one's hands.
At this moment, four bamboo ladders were already placed side by side on the gunwale. As soon as the ladders were secured, four men, each holding a shield in one hand and a knife in the other, rushed up to the top.
At the bow of the ship, several shields were positioned at the very front. As people approached, more than a dozen spears fiercely thrust out from behind the shields!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The spear struck the shield again and again, producing a dull thud.
The four men were all elite, trained in Internal Skill, and possessed strength far exceeding that of ordinary people. They forcibly endured the thrusts of the spears and moved forward!
As they closed the distance, the militiamen behind the shields coordinated their attacks, thrusting several spears at the shields and several spears at the exposed calves and feet of the four men.
With several screams, the four were hit and forcibly pushed down the bamboo ladder, falling into the water!
"Get out of the way—"
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Bai Jinhuan shouted loudly, ordering the militiamen in front to make way. He leaped onto the bow of the boat, wielding his Guan Dao (a type of halberd), and with a powerful slash, cut a bamboo ladder in half!
Several servants on the bamboo ladder fell into the water.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Bai Jinhuan cut down another bamboo ladder, then returned to the deck and ordered the militiamen to continue pushing forward with their shields.
On the other side of the deck, the sound of crossbows rang out again as the crossbowmen fired at the small boats on the river.
There were also people on the small boat with shields. The crossbow bolts didn't cause much damage, but they successfully suppressed the people, preventing the other side from throwing out iron hooks and climbing onto the boat.
"Throw!!"
On the shore, at a command, dozens of men simultaneously threw axes at the cargo ship!
Archers were also firing at the ship.
The sound of something cutting through the air rang out one after another, along with the sound of an axe hitting a shield, accompanied by muffled groans and screams.
Militiamen on board were hit by arrows or struck by axes!
However, the militia on the ship remained calm. Bai Jinhuan ordered the wounded soldiers to be sent into the cabin, and militia from the other two ships rushed over to provide support via planks.
Bai Jinhuan summoned the captain of the large squad and said through gritted teeth, "Take a squad and get the infantry armor and put it on!"
At this point, he no longer cared about the potential problems.
It would be a joke to hoard good equipment and then get defeated, only to have all the equipment fall into the enemy's hands!
125 Invincible Ironclad! (Seeking monthly votes)
Yi Province Wharf.
The shouts of battle had been going on for a while; such a scene is actually quite rare.
As a canal port, order is of utmost importance. If something goes wrong with the canal transport, it could even reach the ears of the emperor and alarm the entire court!
However, ever since the Wu Dynasty allowed local militias to develop, the order at the Yi Province wharf, including other wharves along the entire canal, has no longer been controlled by the imperial court.
Local powerful families have taken over these areas!
To facilitate their embezzlement, officials in charge of the Grand Canal would actively cooperate with local powerful figures, further enhancing their 'legitimacy'.
In order to continue to reap benefits, local powerful families not only prevented problems with the canal transport, but also actively maintained order, because maintaining order meant protecting their own interests.
This pattern continued in this way, back and forth.
For the past seven or eight years, the He Family has been in control of the Yi Province Wharf.
Just like the West River Wharf today, it's almost entirely under Wu Shuangren's control. He can requisition boats whenever he wants, and no one dares to resist.
Now, He Xingzhou feels that his authority has been challenged!
A quarter of an hour passed, and the servants attacking the ships had lost twenty or thirty men, but the three cargo ships were like three iron hedgehogs, and they still couldn't break through them.
He Xingzhou could no longer tolerate it. Now it was no longer just about seizing the ship's valuables; it also concerned the prestige of the He Family!
If we can't take down these mere three ships in front of so many people today, how will the He Family manage the Yi Province Wharf in the future?
"Go and fetch boats! Send three boats to cross the river and get more men involved in the attack!"
He Xingzhou came down and said.
Once the order was given, the mooring lines of the three cargo ships anchored on the west side of the dock were quickly removed.
These cargo ships were all empty, and their height was about the same as Bai Jinhuan's and his men's ships, making them perfect for boarding!
Hundreds of the He Family servants boarded the ships with weapons, and dozens of boatmen also jumped aboard, grabbed long oars, and shouted commands, quickly getting the three cargo ships moving towards Bai Jinhuan!
The small boats surrounding the cargo ships quickly moved aside, making room for the three cargo ships.
Two ships, one on the left and one on the right, were parallel to the two cargo ships on the outer side, while a third ship sailed sideways, perpendicular to the stern of Bai Jinhuan and his group's ship.
The three ships, like an open pair of pincers, firmly clamped Bai Jinhuan's three cargo ships in the middle!
Several ships crashed together with a loud bang, sending wood chips flying everywhere.
The three cargo ships were shaken by the impact, and the militiamen on board staggered, some nearly falling, but were caught by their comrades.
More than a dozen grappling hooks were thrown out from the enemy ship, the iron hooks embedding themselves deeply into the hull of the cargo ship, firmly locking the several ships together.
Immediately afterwards, the He Family's servants, wielding knives and axes, charged in from three directions, using the sides of the boat as cover!
When Bai Jinhuan saw the three ships approaching, he had already guessed the enemy's intentions and made advance arrangements for his troops, placing the most militia on the two side ships and the fewest on the middle ship.
"Shields press down on the ship's hull, spears thrust outwards!"
He shouted loudly.
Fortunately, the cargo ship wasn't too big, and the area that needed to be defended was limited. The militia under his command were barely able to hold all the areas.
Shields jammed against the ship's hull, and dozens of spears thrust outwards simultaneously, their movements as synchronized as a single person!
Spears pierced the crowd; some were struck in the chest, blood gushing out as they fell backward into the river between the two boats; others were stabbed in the thigh, screaming as they collapsed to their knees on the side of the boat, only to be trampled over by their own men rushing up from behind...
The river was stained red with blood, like a dark red ribbon slowly spreading across the surface.
Not all of the He Family's servants carried shields. Some relied on their personal strength to cut the spears that were thrust at them with knives and axes, but they were quickly wounded by more spears and had to retreat.
The He Family servants behind them threw their short axes, attempting to injure people with flying axes, but the militiamen were in tight formation, with almost no gaps in their shield formation, blocking all the flying axes.
The sounds of battle cries shook the river, but the shield wall formed by the militia on the outer perimeter remained stubbornly in place and was not breached!
He Xingzhou's face was extremely grim; he was unwilling to admit that his men would find it difficult to take down the three ships in front of him in a short period of time.
"Battalion Commander, we've changed into our armor!"
The captain, dressed in full infantry armor, ran onto the deck and spoke to Bai Jinhuan.
Bai Jinhuan turned around and glanced at him, then immediately said, "Come with me!"
Then he took them to replace ten of the strongest militiamen, and instructed them to stay behind their shields and not expose their armor.
Bai Jinhuan then addressed the ten militiamen who had been relieved:
"You're all coming with me to the cabin to change your armor!"
Eleven people entered the cabin and took the armor out of the boxes. They silently helped each other put it on, layering breastplates, skirt armor, shoulder armor, arm guards, and helmets on their bodies.
Many people were wearing this kind of armor for the first time and were not very skilled at it.
Bai Jinhuan kept telling himself to stay calm and began to instruct everyone on how to dress.
The metal plates clashed, producing a low, subtle metallic sound that echoed in the cabin like an impending downpour.
After everyone had donned their armor, Bai Jinhuan, carrying a forty-eight-pound iron Guan Dao (a type of halberd), strode out of the cabin.
Listen carefully!
Bai Jinhuan lowered his voice and said to the ten heavily armored militiamen beside him, "I'll lead the charge, you guys follow me, don't scatter!"
Having said that, he strode to the bow of the boat and shouted, "Make way—"
The militiamen with shields and spears instinctively obeyed the order, making way to the left and right, Bai Jinhuan leaped onto the bow of the boat!
The morning light shone from behind him, casting him as a dark silhouette. The silhouette, holding a Guan Dao (a type of halberd), stood at the bow of the boat, like a water god rising from the riverbed.
We can't hold out by simply holding on; we might as well go all out!
Bai Jinhuan brandished his Guan Dao (a type of halberd), stepping onto the bamboo ladders set up by the enemy as he charged forward!
As the halberd swept out, the three servants standing on the ladder almost instinctively thrust out their spears.
Bai Jinhuan neither sheathed his sword nor defended. As the three spears struck the iron armor on his body, his guandao (a type of halberd) cut into the first man's shoulder, swept across the second man's chest and abdomen, and then smashed into the third man's waist!
Three screams rang out almost simultaneously, and three servants flew off the bamboo ladder like withered leaves scattered by the wind, falling into the water.
Immediately afterwards, two more militiamen in iron armor, carrying spears, jumped onto the bamboo ladder and followed Bai Jinhuan forward to fight!
The servants on the bamboo ladder were caught off guard and killed; they never expected the enemy would dare to launch a preemptive strike.
Some people pushed forward, some people retreated, shoving each other, and the sound of splashing into the water rose and fell. Bai Jinhuan rushed to the shore in a few steps!
"Kill--"
He raised his Guan Dao high and roared as he charged towards the hundreds of men in front of him!
Behind him, twenty heavily armored militiamen rushed off the ship one after another, their armor plates rattling as they crashed into the crowd like twenty moving iron towers!
Someone swung a knife at him, the blade striking the iron armor and only sending sparks flying. The militiaman retaliated with a spear, piercing the man through.
Similar things happened to almost every heavily armored militiaman. Dressed in full infantry armor, only their eyes were exposed, and they had no weaknesses. Their opponents, the He Family's servants, were not all wearing leather armor, and their laborers wore only coarse cloth clothes.
Armored soldiers attacking unarmored soldiers—the scene resembles a massacre!
The heavily armored militiamen who charged down with Bai Jinhuan were initially a little scared, given the vast difference in numbers. But after killing several people, they realized the enemy wasn't so scary and couldn't hurt them at all. So their courage gradually grew, and they completely gained momentum!
Chaos erupted instantly at the dock.
The He Family's servants had never seen anything like it; swords couldn't cut through them, arrows couldn't pierce them, and a group of iron men moved through their territory as if it were empty!
Some of the servants, relying on their martial arts skills, tried to kill people by force, but even if their weapons hit someone, they couldn't break through the armor and kill them. Instead, they were almost stabbed by the well-coordinated heavily armored militia.