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Volume One is like a fierce tiger lying on a desolate hill.
96. Ambush! (4000+ words, seeking first subscription)
The night was as dark as ink, but the West River Wharf was brightly lit.
The grain transport fleet set sail two days ago, heading downstream towards Yi Province.
There were five cargo ships docked at the pier at this time, all loaded with goods belonging to the Flying Feather Gang.
The main business of the Flying Feather Gang was doing business with other places through the West River Wharf and this canal.
Although its scale and profits cannot compare with the Xie Clan Chamber of Commerce, the Flying Feather Gang has managed to acquire several cargo ships of its own over the years.
"Be gentle."
"Come on, lend a hand."
One by one, the workers carried the cargo containers onto the ship.
No one noticed that of the four people who boarded the boat, only two remained when they disembarked.
Four more people boarded the boat next...
At three-quarters past midnight, all the goods were loaded onto the ship.
The boatmen untied the mooring lines, used long poles to push off the dock, and the five cargo ships slowly sailed south along the canal, leaving five ripples in their wake.
After the ship had sailed some distance, Wu Shuangren stepped out of the cargo hold and stood at the bow.
The night wind rustled his clothes, reeds grew thickly on both banks of the canal, and the chirping of insects rose and fell in the darkness.
The first, second, and third militia battalions, totaling three hundred men, have quietly boarded these five cargo ships!
In addition, more than fifty of the most elite Flying Feather Gang, including the gang leader Luo Heng, also boarded the ship.
The reason for not bringing more people was twofold: firstly, the five cargo ships could only carry a maximum of so many people; and secondly, this was an ambush, not a defensive operation, so bringing too many new recruits would be pointless.
From Mist Hidden Mountain to West River Market, there is only one road if you take the official road.
If Mist Hidden Temple were to send a large force to attack West River Market, taking the official road would attract too much attention, and they would inevitably pass through Bo County, making it impossible to keep it a secret.
Therefore, the most likely route to Mist Hidden Temple is to start from Mist Hidden Mountain, first arrive at Yi Province Wharf, and then go upstream along the canal to reach West River Wharf.
Based on this assessment, Wu Shuangren decided to lead his men south on the Flying Feather Gang's cargo ship to launch an ambush!
Nineteen days after the Xie family was destroyed.
Under the cover of night.
The grain transport fleet stopped at a shallow shoal. A dozen or so official grain transport boats lined up in a row, and seven or eight bamboo rafts were launched to transport bags of grain to the mudflats.
On the hilly path not far away, torches snaked their way in like long serpents.
The first to appear were the cavalry, whose riders were all dressed in full leather armor and carried swords, spears, or bows and arrows, numbering about 180!
Following the cavalry were the infantry, a neat and solemn column of three hundred men. These men were all bald monks, wearing leather armor underneath a monk's robe, carrying staffs that reached their eyebrows, and wearing daggers at their waists. Many of them also carried round shields on their backs.
These are the people sent by Mist Hidden Temple!
In the center of the procession, a burly monk rode his horse.
This man was about forty years old, with a broad face and square mouth. His thick eyebrows slanted into his temples, and there was a scar about an inch long on his right cheek. He was wearing half-body iron armor, covered by a red monk's robe, and a crescent-shaped shovel hung beside his saddle—he was none other than Kong Zheng, the abbot of the Kongzheng Warrior Monk Hall.
The most renowned First Rate master in Mist Hidden Temple, and even in the entire Yi Province martial arts world!
"Stop and rest, send someone to fetch provisions."
After Kongzheng saw the grain piled up on the shallows, he gave the order.
The group stopped at the edge of the shallows. The cavalry dismounted and formed ranks, while the warrior monks split into three groups to guard the four directions. Their movements were very skillful, clearly indicating that they were well-trained.
Two middle-aged men, accompanied by guards, came forward to greet them. They were Zhou Fang, the escort officer for this shipment, Liu Yu, the lead officer.
Zhou Fang was dressed in a blue official robe, while Liu Yu wore leather armor and had a standard military saber hanging at his waist.
Kongzheng dismounted and led his men to greet him.
"Lord Zhou, Commandant Liu, thank you for your hard work."
Kongzheng performed a Buddhist ritual with one hand.
"Greetings, Master Kongzheng."
Both officials were very polite.
Kongzheng is not only a renowned First Rate master, but also the head of the Warrior Monk Hall, which commands thousands of martial monks.
To be honest, Liu Yu, as a captain, could only lead three hundred soldiers.
"I never expected Master Kongzheng to personally intervene this time. It seems that the brat surnamed Wu is doomed."
Liu Yu smiled.
Kongzheng, without a smile, asked, "When you two gentlemen passed by the West River Wharf, did you manage to gather any information?"
Zhou Fang said, "That Fist Academy has now replaced the West River Gang and has sent people to try and do business with us, but Commandant Liu and I ignored them. We don't need to do business with a dead man, hahaha—"
Kongzheng frowned slightly. "If that's the case, won't that guy surnamed Wu get suspicious?"
Zhou Fang's smile faded, and he said seriously, "Master, rest assured, at most the Fist Academy will think we're deliberately putting them on the defensive, waiting to raise the price. Besides, even if they do suspect us, so what? Once your people arrive, and you join forces with the Flying Feather Gang and the Zhang Clan family, what trouble can they possibly cause?"
Kongzheng nodded, said no more, and turned to give a wink to the two monks behind him.
Soon, two monks came over, each carrying a heavy wooden box.
Kongzheng pointed to the two wooden boxes. "These are what we promised you two gentlemen."
Zhou Fang and Liu Yu exchanged a glance, smiles appearing on their faces, their eyes filled with greed.
"Thank you, Master!"
The two then had their guards carry the boxes, turned around, walked towards the bamboo raft, and returned to the boat.
Kongzheng instructed the monks to light a fire and cook, using the grain that had been transported down from the canal boats.
More than 180 riders and 300 warrior monks, nearly half of whom were martial artists!
Along the way, the people and horses consumed a lot of food. However, in order to maintain their speed, the team traveled light and did not carry much food.
Moreover, this team did not take the official roads, making it difficult to obtain supplies.
Therefore, the grain delivered by the canal ships along the way was very important, as it allowed the Mist Hidden Temple team to arrive at West River Market in good condition.
Several cavalry squads acted as scouts, patrolling along the riverbank, while the warrior monks set up makeshift tents on the spot. Fires gradually ignited, and smoke rose into the night sky.
Under the cover of night, malice is brewing.
The next morning, Kongzheng led the people from Mist Hidden Temple to continue their journey.
About ten miles ahead, the canal makes a sharp turn here. The cliffs on both sides are towering, and the passable road is only about two zhang wide, squeezed between the cliffs and the river. The cliffs are covered with miscellaneous trees and jagged rocks.
Three cavalrymen from the Mist Hidden Temple, acting as scouts, led the way and arrived at the location first.
The lead cavalryman squinted at the cliffs on either side. "This damned place would be a good spot if someone were lying in ambush."
The young cavalryman on the left peeked out and asked, "Senior brother, should we go up and take a look?"
"What the hell are you looking at!"
The lead cavalryman spat and pointed to the cliff on the left, "If we really climb up there, it would take at least half an hour to get down. Why bother? Besides, what if there are people lying in ambush up there? If we climb up to check, wouldn't we just be throwing our lives away?"
The cavalryman on the right spoke up, "You really think someone would ambush us? Just a bunch of local militia?"
The young cavalryman on the left shrank back and remained silent.
There's movement on the river.
The lead cavalryman suddenly looked ahead.
The other two turned their heads at the same time and saw five cargo ships slowly approaching from upstream. On the triangular flags hanging at the bows of the ships, a white-feathered bird pattern was clearly visible.
"It's a ship from the Flying Feather Gang."
The lead cavalryman breathed a sigh of relief. "Alright, go back and report."
The three scouts turned their horses around and sped away along the route they had come from, and the speed of the five cargo ships also decreased imperceptibly.
"Reporting to the Dean, the pass ahead has been scouted and nothing unusual has been found. We have spotted five cargo ships from the Flying Feather Gang sailing downstream."
Kongzheng on his horse, listened to the scouts' report, nodded, and told the three scouts to go back and continue their investigation. He then led his team forward.
As the column approached the pass ahead, the road narrowed, necessitating a change in formation.
The cavalry were in the lead, three riders in a row.
Behind them were three hundred monks, five in a row.
The entire team marched into the pass in a grand procession.
The sounds of horses' hooves, clashing weapons, and footsteps mingled together, echoing through the narrow river channel.
The cavalry quickly passed through the pass and rounded the bend.
The front row of the warrior monks at the back hadn't even reached the bend yet.
At the same time, the Flying Feather Gang's five cargo ships entered the section of the river where the pass was located, and also completed the turn, keeping parallel to the group of martial monks on the riverbank.
On the deck of the cargo ship, almost all the boatmen were watching the procession on the riverbank.
Kongzheng frowned slightly. He knew that his team would definitely attract attention, but for some reason, he felt vaguely uncomfortable.
At that very moment, almost simultaneously all the 'shipmen' on the five cargo ships picked up their crossbows and longbows and began shooting arrows at the group of warrior monks on the shore!
"Enemy attack—"
The piercing scream was barely uttered before it was drowned out by the deafening roar of the ejecting mechanism!
The first wave of over a hundred crossbow bolts swarmed into the monks' ranks like a swarm of poisonous bees.
They're too close!
The cargo ship in the middle of the river was less than two zhang from the riverbank, and the width of this narrow section was also no more than two zhang.
All crossbow bolts are most lethal at this distance!
The sounds of flesh being torn apart, screams, and angry curses erupted.
Of the forty repeating crossbows Xie Jingshan used to ambush Wu Shuangren and his men, more than thirty ended up in Wu Shuangren's hands.
These repeating crossbows can fire three arrows at a time, and can fire three times in succession.
Now, Wu Shuangren has made the most of these thirty-odd repeating crossbows!
Five monks were shot in the face by crossbow bolts and fell backward; seven were shot in the body, but their leather armor saved their lives; and more than ten were shot in the arms and thighs, screaming in agony.
"Raise your shields! Raise your shields to the right!"
Kongzheng roared loudly.
The well-trained monks reacted quickly. The monks with shields swiftly turned to the right, raised their half-person-high wooden shields, and formed a wooden wall to block the arrows that followed.
During this process, more than thirty repeating crossbows, with their extremely fast rate of fire, inflicted more than a dozen casualties on the monks with a second volley of arrows!
In addition, there were seven archers from the Flying Feather Gang on board, who also shot and killed four of them with their arrows.
"Archers, prepare to counterattack!"
Kongzheng roared angrily.
There are also archers in the monks' ranks.
At such close range, although the rate of fire of a bow and arrow is not as fast as that of a repeating crossbow, its killing power is the strongest!
Just as the monks' shield formation took shape, blocking the third wave of arrows from the cargo ship on their right, and the archers in the ranks were about to launch a counterattack, a commotion came from the cliff above them—