The Child Emperor

Chapter 155: Saber and Shield

Wang Lingshang was a seasoned pugilist. He immediately sensed something was wrong, pushed away the corpse on him, and turned to slash, just in time to block the incoming short sword. A moment later, he would have been pierced through the heart.

“You’re not dead!” Wang Lingshang exclaimed in shock.

“I’m hard to kill,” Du Chuanyun replied, thrusting his sword twice.

The two fought by the edge of the rocks. Du Chuanyun, though he had a saber, used his more familiar short sword, relying on his footwork to circle and stab at his opponent continuously. Wang Lingshang’s swordsmanship was solid and defensive, protecting his vital points without a gap. Occasionally, he counterattacked, forcing Du Chuanyun to dodge rather than block.

After seven or eight moves, Du Chuanyun was pushed back again. Just as Wang Lingshang was about to press his advantage, he heard a sudden “Hey!” from behind, recognizing the voice as the Weary Marquis’s. He didn’t dare to be careless and glanced back, horrified by what he saw, nearly shouting out loud.

The lifeless body of his comrade, Gu Juren, with vacant eyes, lunged at him.

The moment of horror passed quickly, and Wang Lingshang realized that the Weary Marquis had pushed Gu Juren’s body toward him. Simultaneously, Du Chuanyun thrust his sword again. Wang Lingshang deflected it with his knife and struck at the corpse with his other hand.

The sword was blocked, and the corpse was hit, but Wang Lingshang felt a cold sensation in his abdomen. Looking down, he saw a blade already embedded in him. The blade followed behind the corpse and pierced through at the last moment, moving slowly but silently.

Wang Lingshang roared, raising his knife to slash at the Weary Marquis behind the corpse. Another cold sensation under his arm marked a fatal wound. He exhaled his last breath, his blade falling to the ground, and he collapsed.

Du Chuanyun withdrew his sword and moved to the Weary Marquis’s side. “Hey, it’s done. He’s dead.”

Han Ruzi slowly drew his knife and stepped back two paces. “Dead?”

“I killed him. Don’t be afraid.”

“I’m not afraid!” Han Ruzi replied with slight annoyance.

“Suit yourself. You’ve got quite the strength. If you’d trained with my grandfather for a year or two, you’d be even better.”

“Yes,” Han Ruzi forced a smile, knowing well where his strength came from.

A few soldiers ran up from halfway down the mountain, startled by the three bodies. “What happened? Are there Xiongnu?”

Han Ruzi shook his head, pointing at the corpses of Wang Lingshang and Gu Juren. “They were hidden assassins,” he said, pointing to the soldier’s body, “He died saving me.”

The arriving soldiers were both shocked and furious. They were fishermen from Guaizi Lake, and they hacked at the assassin’s bodies in anger before carrying their comrade’s body down. Han Ruzi and Du Chuanyun followed.

“What about the Xiongnu behind the mountain?” Han Ruzi asked.

“The cliff is hard to climb. Only two Xiongnu got up; I killed one, and the other fell. I nearly fell too. I climbed back up and heard them plotting to kill you. I’m sorry; I recommended them as your guards.”

“It’s not your fault. I put everyone in danger.”

“Why didn’t you call for help when I was fighting Wang Lingshang? You fought him yourself.”

Han Ruzi hesitated, unsure himself. At that moment, he had one thought: he had to find a way to kill Wang Lingshang, and he forgot to call for help. “I should have kept one alive to find out who hired them.”

“It’s too late now. You’ll have more experience next time. Let’s deal with the Xiongnu below first.”

The Xiongnu below had begun to move again, many riding back and forth, shouting as if preparing for a larger attack.

Han Ruzi looked into the distance. The night seemed endless, and they were trapped with no way out.

Fang Daye saw the bodies but didn’t care. He directly asked Du Chuanyun, “Is there a way through?”

“A cliff lies behind. Unless we’re monkeys, it’s a slim chance—no, more like a one-in-a-hundred chance.”

“Alright.” Fang Daye, never one to get excited, wasn’t discouraged now. “We’re low on arrows; save some for daylight. When the Xiongnu attack again, we’ll have to engage in melee. Put down the bows and pick up the sabers and shields.”

Everyone obeyed, setting aside bows. Some moved them higher up, while others formed a line halfway up. The Xiongnu had reached the foot of the mountain and were clearing the dead and injured, along with the scattered shields and weapons.

Han Ruzi and Du Chuanyun joined the line. Fang Daye walked over and said, “You two, get to the back.”

“No, I’ll fight with everyone,” Han Ruzi said firmly.

Fang Daye stared at him for a while, “You’re the Northern Protection General. Say something.”

Han Ruzi walked to the front of the line, glanced at the busy Xiongnu, then turned to face his Chu soldiers. He had many things to say, but it all seemed pointless. Apologize? That was meaningless. Promise rewards? Any promise was too far away. Threaten? Nothing seemed scarier than the Xiongnu. Loyalty to the Emperor and defending the country? The conscripted soldiers never wanted to fight the Xiongnu, and the pugilists only wanted to kill him. The real soldiers were likely just following orders.

Han Ruzi shouted, “We live and die together.”

Then he turned, gripping his knife with both hands, feeling ashamed for not saying something more inspiring.

“Live and die together!” echoed behind him.

Han Ruzi felt slightly relieved and even a bit moved. Some wanted to kill him, but others had saved him or followed him.

Fang Daye stepped forward, handing him a shield. Han Ruzi accepted it, nodding to the old general.

Fang Daye stepped back, holding a flag in one hand and a saber in the other.

The Xiongnu cleared the battlefield. One rider came to the foot of the mountain, shouting, “Last chance. Surrender and be spared.”

Han Ruzi wanted to remind everyone that the Xiongnu were lying. The first offer was that they “may” be spared; now they were told that they “would” be spared. There was no sincerity.

A curse came from behind, as Du Chuanyun responded to the Xiongnu’s offer.

The rider turned away, and a group of Xiongnu soldiers, equipped similarly to the Chu soldiers with shields and sabers, formed rows and began ascending the mountain.

The Chu army’s only advantage was the narrow slope, preventing the Xiongnu from surrounding them.

The Xiongnu advanced slowly, not out of fear but to keep formation. They were a well-trained army, very similar to the Chu soldiers but with heavier armor.

As they approached, their shield emblems glared menacingly in the moonlight.

Han Ruzi’s mouth was dry. He felt as if he were alone, facing countless enemies.

The Chu soldiers held their fire. The Xiongnu quickened their pace, lowering shields and raising their blades.

Unable to bear the silence before the battle, Han Ruzi suddenly roared, releasing his fear and tension.

His roar was still youthful, but he didn’t care. Almost involuntarily, he charged at the Xiongnu, terrified but compelled to fight. He used his fear of battle to suppress his fear of standing still and waiting.

Soon, the roars joined together, and the figures ran faster than the Northern Protection General. Du Chuanyun led, and Fang Daye’s large frame quickly overtook Han Ruzi, shielding him. More soldiers followed like arrows from a bow.

Han Ruzi no longer felt alone. Fear vanished. He had one thought: run faster and don’t fall behind.

But Fang Daye, like a rolling boulder, blocked his way, making it impossible to surpass him.

Soon, Fang Daye was no longer an issue. Both armies had chosen saber and shield tactics, skipping many intermediate steps for a fierce melee.

Han Ruzi found an opening, seeing only the opponent’s shield. He swung his knife hard, as the opponent did the same.

The knife struck the lacquered wooden shield with a dull thud. Han Ruzi’s left arm went numb, nearly falling. Someone pushed him forward. He pressed his shield out to prevent the opponent from pulling out his saber while he himself tried to pull his saber out of the opponent’s shield.

Who was he slashing? What part? It didn’t matter. He just needed to keep swinging.

The pressure on his shield vanished, and he continued forward, seemingly stepping on someone.

The fight lasted a while, then Fang Daye shouted, “Retreat! Retreat!”

Han Ruzi, in full battle mode, was exhilarated and almost couldn’t stop. But he could still tell friend from foe, and he recognized Fang Daye. He wanted to ask questions but was lifted and carried up the mountain.

Fang Daye held the battle standard in one hand and a saber in the other, carrying the general swiftly uphill.

Han Ruzi struggled briefly, realizing why they were retreating.

The Xiongnu were shooting arrows.

A Xiongnu cavalry unit followed the saber and shield soldiers, shooting indiscriminately from dozens of paces away.

Arrows rained down, felling many soldiers, writhing and moaning. Han Ruzi was unscathed, thanks to luck and Fang Daye’s quick response.

The Chu army retreated to higher ground, out of the Xiongnu’s range.

Fang Daye set Han Ruzi down, who saw only about thirty men left; most had fallen to the arrows.

The Xiongnu stopped shooting. Their saber and shield soldiers were also heavily wounded. The survivors tried to retreat but were forced back to battle. They had an absolute advantage and simply needed to press it.

“Go help them!” Han Ruzi shouted.

Fang Daye blocked him, shaking his head.

“I said ‘live and die together.’ Du Chuanyun is still down there…”

“It’s our turn to use arrows.”

“But…”

Fang Daye’s gaze turned stern, “You’re a general. Do what a general should do. Don’t disappoint us.”

Fang Daye planted the battle standard firmly and took a set of bow and arrows from a soldier, handing it to Han Ruzi.

Han Ruzi dropped his blade, took the bow and arrows but couldn’t string an arrow.

Fang Daye took another set, “Will you wait until the Xiongnu kill all the Chu soldiers?”

The Xiongnu saber and shield soldiers were back on the battlefield, searching for Chu soldiers to kill, clearing the way for another attack.

Han Ruzi quickly strung his bow, aimed at the Xiongnu below, then raised his arm slightly.

“It’s dawn,” Han Ruzi said in surprise. The night had been dark, now only a thin layer remained.

All the remaining Chu soldiers readied their arrows.

“Wait,” Han Ruzi lowered his bow. “Look!”

In the dawn light, the Xiongnu army was clearly visible, with another army rapidly approaching from their flank, kicking up dust.

“Impossible,” Fang Daye didn’t lower his bow, “They shouldn’t have reached Shattered Iron City yet.”

“Shattered Iron City is not the only place with Chu soldiers,” Han Ruzi couldn’t see clearly, but felt a small hope rising.

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