Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 616 Almost

Zheng Wenhuan was startled and hurriedly dodged to the side. The soldiers around him also panicked and scattered in all directions. In the chaos, he collided with a soldier, and a sharp pain immediately shot through his forehead, making him see stars.

The fireball landed not far from Zheng Wenhuan. Zheng Wenhuan caught the soldier he had knocked down, nimbly rolled over, and used the soldier as a human shield in front of him. The sparks that flew out immediately set the soldier's clothes on fire.

The soldier screamed and struggled to put out the fire, but Zheng Wenhuan raised his hand and struck the soldier on the neck first. The soldier immediately stopped struggling and fainted. He was so close to the soldier that if the soldier moved around randomly, it might endanger him.

After doing all this, Zheng Wenhuan hurriedly got up, stepped back a few paces, and then carefully examined the situation before him.

Several fireballs were thrown at once, and flames rose up at the mouth of the valley.

Xie Yuyan's men took advantage of the chaos to break free from the siege.

"Don't panic!" Zheng Wenhuan shouted.

Upon hearing this, the soldiers reluctantly picked up their weapons and resumed fighting, but they had to look up at the sky from time to time, fearing that disaster might fall from the sky again.

The fireball wasn't very powerful, but if it hit you squarely, even a god couldn't save you. Even if it sparked, it would take a long time to extinguish. The wind in the mountains was strong, which fueled the fire. Fortunately, it rained this morning, otherwise the whole mountain would have been set ablaze.

The smell of burning flesh filled the air, making one even more terrified.

The soldiers were defending half-heartedly, and soon problems arose. A gap was breached, and cavalry arrived at full speed, knocking several soldiers to the ground.

Zheng Wenhuan's eyes widened in surprise. He had thought those people were no match for them, but he hadn't expected them to rush over without stopping and throw out so many firearms all at once.

They defended cautiously, while the others seemed to attack recklessly, completely disregarding the consequences. Their minds were fundamentally different; the outcome of their clash was predictable.

Zheng Wenhuan had only one thought: he couldn't let them save people. If they were really rushed in, they would have no pieces left and would definitely be unable to escape.

Zheng Wenhuan shouted orders, but to no avail. Just then, he heard someone shout, "Shoot!"

A volley of arrows came hurtling towards him, and Zheng Wenhuan, who had just recovered his senses, immediately fell to the ground again.

Arrows flew overhead, heading straight for Xie Yuyan's men.

Zheng Wenhuan knew without a second thought that Xia Dalang had gathered his men and started firing arrows. He cursed Xia Dalang inwardly, thinking he was a scoundrel who knew they were still there but recklessly fired arrows... completely disregarding his life.

However, this volley of arrows did have an effect, managing to force those people back somewhat.

Zheng Wenhuan immediately shouted, "Quickly... charge up and completely crush them!"

He had barely finished speaking when another volley of arrows rained down, forcing Zheng Wenhuan to duck again. Clearly, he and Xia Dalang lacked coordination.

Having perhaps seen their weakness, Xie Yuyan's men launched a counterattack, and the opportunity brought by the arrows was thus wasted.

Zheng Wenhuan was furious, but he couldn't escape at this moment, so he had no choice but to steel himself and lead his men to meet them again.

This battle was exceptionally difficult. Xia Dalang, a bookish scholar who only knew how to talk about war on paper, was so stubborn and self-willed that he didn't even send anyone to inform Zheng Wenhuan.

The two were like two blind men, reaching out haphazardly in the dark, putting in a lot of effort but seeing little result. Despite having the numerical advantage, they were being driven back step by step.

……

Xie Yuyan watched the scene after the pottery jar was thrown out.

If she had more people, perhaps she could have broken through this time.

Now she can only hope for more time.

"Madam, there might be Kongming lanterns being launched over there."

Sang Mo reminded Xie Yuyan, who turned her head to look. In the darkness, a lantern slowly rose. It was a spy she had planted beforehand, who would release a Kongming lantern to warn of the approaching imperial troops.

“It’s too late,” Xie Yuyan took a deep breath and paused for a moment. “Go and fire the first signal arrow.” The signal arrow alerted Su Man and the Guo brothers that the government troops were already rushing over.

……

Upon hearing the whistle, Guo Xiong's expression immediately changed. Guo Chuan, who was beside him, asked, "Brother, what do we do now?"

Looking at the battle situation in front of the valley, Guo Xiong gritted his teeth: "Attack quickly. There's still time."

If he had another half hour, he would definitely have been able to take down all those useless people, but now he didn't have half an hour left, so he could only try a quick attack.

Seven or eight people followed Guo Xiong as he rode forward, even at the cost of distancing themselves from those behind him. He had almost put himself in danger by doing this before, and now he was doing it again, just to try to give Tang Xing and the others, who were trapped in the valley, a chance to survive.

Guo Xiong wanted to rescue Tang Xing and the others.

He had already learned of their news and arrived here, so close to them. He was unwilling to give up now.

When his brothers got into trouble, Tang Xing and others helped them a lot. As a way of repaying them, he had to risk his life to save them.

It's just one step away.

Guo Xiong roared and drove back several more people.

Another whistling arrow streaked across the sky.

Guo Chuan said, "This is the second arrow. The lady said that we must leave when we hear three whistling arrows."

Guo Xiong did not reply and persisted.

A sharp pain shot through his shoulder, where a cut had been made by a sharp weapon, but Guo Xiong paid no attention. Not far away, in the flickering firelight, it appeared that two people were tied to two pillars.

It was somewhat blurry in the darkness, but Guo Xiong stared at it for a while. He was certain that it was a person, and he knew that it was a member of a caravan.

Enraged, Guo Xiong's eyes instantly turned bloodshot; these people were using the lives of the caravan members to blackmail them.

"You son of a bitch... you beast..."

Guo Xiong shouted and tried to go forward, but this time he was stopped by a rider, Su Man.

Su Man said, "It's too late. The imperial troops are faster than we thought." It must be because of firearms, or they just happened to catch up with the Xiang Army's patrol.

They only had one chance to begin with, and now... they're just one step away.

After Su Man finished speaking, another signal arrow shot into the sky.

“Let’s go,” Su Man grabbed Guo Xiong’s arm. “Going in now would be suicide. If we leave for now, we’ll still have a chance to save people.”

Guo Xiong's face was covered in blood and sweat, and his expression looked somewhat ferocious. He just stared at Su Man.

Su Man said, "I believe in you, Madam. You have other ideas."

Guo Xiong had no choice but to turn his horse around and follow Su Man and his men to retreat.

Before leaving, Guo Xiong looked back at the two pillars one last time. He could almost see the disappointment on the faces of the people tied to the pillars.

Is that really it?

After Su Man and the Guo brothers led their men away, the sound of drums suddenly rang out in the darkness.

(End of this chapter)