Taiheiki

Chapter 267 Death
Unlike these fierce avengers, the patrolling mountain people adopted a different, more preferred method of combat—scattering in all directions. Their spears, each over four meters long, were skillfully used to leap, climb, or slide over boulders, ravines, and steep slopes that were difficult for ordinary people to traverse—these were ubiquitous in the mountains, making them seem like a herd of agile mountain goats. Once they had secured themselves, they untied their slings and began hurling stones at their unfamiliar enemies. This ingenious fighting method quickly proved effective.

"Ouch!"

"Damn it, I got hit!"

"These cowards, they don't dare to fight face to face, they hide and throw stones!"

"Quickly, raise your shields and move closer together!"

Zhang Chao's guests, almost all of whom had received military training at the manor, instinctively followed their training: clustering together, protecting each other with shields, and retaliating with crossbows. However, they forgot one crucial point: they were no longer on flat ground, but on a hillside. The denser their formation, the more enemy stones struck them, while the patrolling mountain people spread out, cunningly hiding behind the trees and rocks, and were almost unscathed. Most importantly, they wasted precious time for retreat; the valley camp had discovered the uninvited guests and dispatched reinforcements.

"There's an enemy ambush!" Yuan Tian stepped out of the tent and looked towards the hillside where the battle was raging. "Send two hundred infantry and cavalry to provide support! All troops on alert, beware of other enemies!"

"Here!"

With a rapid clatter of hooves, dozens of short, stocky Yunnan horsemen galloped up the hillside, followed closely by two ranks of infantry. The Wei army camp buzzed like a giant hornet's nest that had been disturbed.

"That idiot Meng Gao! Wasn't he told to wait until dark to make his move? How did the Wei traitors discover him first!" Yuan Shu cursed, stamping his foot. To avoid being discovered by the Wei army camped in the valley below, he had dispersed his retainers and guests, intending to act only after dark. However, he hadn't expected that some of his men would be discovered by Wei patrols at dusk. Now, should he rescue Zhang Chao first, or attack the enemy troops in the valley below?
Before Yuan Shu could make a decision, another chorus of battle cries rang out from the hillside hundreds of meters away—Zhang Miao, after discovering that his brother had been spotted by the Wei army, also blew his horn and rushed towards Zhang Chao's side.

"Damn it, damn it, damn it!" Yuan Shu was furious, but he knew there was no turning back. He had no choice but to grit his teeth and keep fighting. He shouted, "Sound the horn and attack! If we fail this time, we will be implicated by Meng Zhuo and Meng Gao!"

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The constant blasts of horns and the rising flames on the hillside startled Yuan Tian. He initially thought he had fallen into a pre-dug trap. He immediately ordered everyone to retreat behind the fortified camp, intending to use the trenches and palisades to defend against the siege. However, he soon discovered that while these uninvited guests had a superior position, fought fiercely, and were well-equipped, their organization was poor. It was as if there was no unified commander. While one group attacked fiercely, another stood aside; while one group attacked, yet another adjusted their formation. Sometimes, the attack routes of the two groups even intersected and clashed. Although he didn't know the reason for this, Yuan Tian immediately realized that this was a rare opportunity.

"Jebe!" Yuan Tian said to his deputy, "Take two war elephants and two hundred cavalry, charge out of the south gate, bypass the enemy's left flank, and drive them into the river!"

"Yes!" Jebe replied and strode outside.

Outside the south gate of the camp, the Zhang brothers were directing their retainers to shoot arrows and throw stones at the enemy on the earthen ramparts. While the defenders were pinned down and dared not raise their heads, the rest of the men laid hastily prepared planks and tree trunks across the trench, allowing those behind to cross it, climb the ramparts, and storm the camp. As more and more men crossed the trench and rushed to the base of the ramparts, Zhang Chao seemed to see victory beckoning him.

“Brother, Yuan Shao always says that Wei Cong’s soldiers are elite and rare in the world, but after seeing them today, they’re nothing special!” Zhang Chao laughed.

"Hmm! It must be because we caught them off guard!" Zhang Miao stroked his beard. "First, we'll break through their vanguard, then hold Luyang Pass firmly, and let the court see who they can rely on as a bulwark!"

Awooo!
A cry Zhang Miao had never heard before swept across the valley, followed by an echo. He felt as if his internal organs and bones were vibrating, and for a moment he was stunned. When he came to his senses, he found that Zhang Chao was also in a daze, clearly his brother had just experienced the same thing.

"This, what is this?"

"I...I don't know either!" Zhang Chao replied blankly.

Soon, the Zhang brothers received their answer. Two enormous beasts charged out of the camp gate, crossed the trench, and their bronze armor plates reflected the firelight. Their pale tusks resembled spearheads, but most terrifying of all were their long noses—no one had ever seen a beast with such long noses. They were like long snakes, and wherever they pointed, nearby soldiers retreated in terror. Everyone retreated in fear; compared to these creatures, both warhorses and men were insignificant.

"Stop! Stop!" Zhang Chao roared angrily. "Don't back down! That's just a wild beast! Kill this beast and you'll be rewarded with a hundred bolts of silk!"

Zhang Chao's hefty reward emboldened several men. A burly warrior stepped forward, brandishing his halberd. But before he could attack, the elephant's rider tapped its ears twice with his short staff, then pointed it at the man. The giant beast, with astonishing speed and agility, swung its trunk, snatching the halberd from the warrior's hand with ease. It was as if an adult had snatched a lollipop from a toddler, then used its trunk to lift the warrior into the air before slamming him to the ground and stomping on him. Those nearby could even hear the cruel, muffled thud of bones being crushed.

Bang!

With a bang, one guest dropped his weapon and fled, followed by a second, then a third. In the darkness, few dared to fight these terrifying behemoths, twice their height, seven or eight times their weight, and encased in steel. As more Wei cavalry surged from behind these giants, the final straw broke the camel's back for the Zhang brothers' retainers. What followed was no longer a battle, but a one-sided pursuit and slaughter.

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"Young Master Highway, run! Otherwise it will be too late!" The messenger's voice was hoarse with panic, and his tattered sleeveless robe was stained with specks of blood.

"Escape? What happened?"

According to Yuan Shu's plan, he and the Zhang brothers would attack the Wei army's camp from two directions simultaneously. In other words, he and the Zhang brothers were on two separate battlefields. The Wei army's camp blocked his view, and he could not directly see the battle situation on the Zhang brothers' side.

"The Wei army has a colossal beast, as tall as two people and as heavy as ten horses, with a long nose, teeth over three feet long, and covered in steel armor, impervious to swords and spears! It can use its long nose to lift a living person from the ground, throw them into the air, slam them to the ground, and then stomp on them with its tree-like legs, turning them into mincemeat—"

Yuan Shu grabbed the messenger by the collar and pulled him close, making sure the man wasn't insane: "Where are Zhang Miao and Zhang Chao?"

"I don't know!" The messenger shook his head. "There was chaos at the time. They might have been killed, driven into the river to drown, or captured. Run for your lives! The Wei army will soon turn around and deal with you. No one can stand against that beast; it's terrifying!"

"A useless piece of trash who's good for nothing but causing trouble!" Yuan Shu shoved the messenger to the ground. "Ziyuan, what do you think we should do?"

"Whether this guy is telling the truth or not, one thing is certain: Brother Zhang Miao is finished. If we stay any longer, we're likely to meet with certain death. It's best to retreat!" Yuan Shu snorted coldly, "Ziyuan, you're a coward too. Fine, sound the horn, retreat!"

Nightfall saved Yuan Shu. In unfamiliar surroundings, Yuan Tian stopped his subordinates from pursuing the enemy, ordering them to hold the camp tightly, interrogate the prisoners, and find out who these strange fellows were.

"What? You're not soldiers of the imperial court, but retainers and guests of Yuan Shu, Zhang Miao, and others?" Yuan Tian asked in surprise.

“That’s right!” The prisoner kneeling below carefully observed Yuan Tian’s expression: “Young Master said that Wei Cong killed Young Master Yuan, who is a model of the people of the world, so he wants to raise an army to avenge Young Master Yuan!”

"Are you referring to Young Master Yuan, Yuan Shao?"

"Yes, yes, it's Yuan Shao, Yuan Benchu!"

Upon hearing this unexpected news, Yuan Tian was somewhat taken aback. Theoretically, his Chen State Yuan clan was the same clan as Yuan Shao's Runan Yuan clan, meaning they were practically related five hundred years ago. However, now that he was doing well under Wei Cong's patronage, he naturally wouldn't change his stance after the death of Yuan Shao, a distant relative.

However, somewhat unexpectedly, Yuan Shao's allies did not only erupt in words and politics, but also directly organized military forces to participate in the war, which greatly surprised Yuan Tian.

Who are the people who came this time?

"There are four main people: Yuan Shu (Yuan Gonglu), Zhang Miao (Zhang Mengzhuo), Zhang Chao (Zhang Menggao), and Xu You (Xu Ziyuan). The others did not come!"

"Oh? Why is that? I remember that Yuan Shao had more than just a few people running errands for him back then, didn't he?" Yuan Tian asked.

"I don't know about that!" the prisoner said with a wry smile. "But I heard that it's because the person in charge of this matter is Yuan Shu, who, although a cousin of Yuan Shao, has never gotten along with him. Even Yuan Shao's former friends don't have a good relationship with Yuan Shu. This time, Yuan Shu is recruiting people under the guise of avenging his brother, which has caused conflict with several of Yuan Shao's former friends, so many people didn't come!"

"These young masters from powerful families really have a lot of tricks up their sleeves!" Yuan Tian thought to himself. "So, your leaders are the Zhang brothers, Miao and Chao?"

"Indeed! These lowly men are all guests and retainers of their brothers!"

"Pass down the order: clean up the battlefield immediately after dawn, search for Zhang Miao and Zhang Chao, dead or alive!" Yuan Tian shouted.

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Kouzi River, the Wei army's main camp.

When Wei Cong dismounted, he felt sore all over after riding a horse all day. He couldn't help but make a silent resolution that even if it was just to show off, he would switch to riding an elephant from now on, at least his buttocks and inner thighs would be much more comfortable.

"General, dinner is ready!" Meng Gaogong said in a low voice, "Do you think we should have them serve the dishes?"

"No rush! Do you have any military intelligence from Yuan Tian?" Wei Cong handed the riding whip and reins to his guard. "Also, we're not traveling by boat now, so there's no need for such formalities. Today is the last time. Call all the officers from each battalion over, and we'll all eat together!"

"Here!"

Wei Cong took off his riding boots and sat down at the folding table. The cook laid out the main dishes for the evening—two fragrant roasted pheasants, a large bowl of fish soup, grilled fish, and vegetables mixed with coconut oil. Smelling the aroma, Wei Cong felt his stomach rumble and couldn't help but regret his earlier order to invite the officers from all the battalions to dine together.

"General, the vanguard has an urgent military situation!" Meng Gaogong whispered.

"Hmm!" Wei Cong forced his attention away from the roast chicken on the table. Besides the letter, the messenger had brought two wooden boxes. A sense of foreboding flashed through Wei Cong's mind. He opened the letter and began to read.

"Yuan Shu, Zhang Miao, Zhang Chao, and Xu You set up an ambush, but were repelled by our army. Zhang Miao and Zhang Chao died in the chaos, their heads presented at the foot of the steps!" Wei Cong pressed his right hand to his forehead, his temples throbbing violently. If he remembered correctly, these four were leaders of the Youth Party, possessing considerable influence. It seemed Yuan Shao's death was just the beginning, not the end. His path ahead would see even more bloodshed, a fate beyond his control.

"Are the Zhang brothers' heads in the wooden box?" Wei Cong asked.

"Indeed!" the messenger said. "Commander Yuan has instructed me to report that the bodies of the Zhang brothers have been collected and cleaned. Please advise on how to proceed, General!"

Wei Cong walked to the wooden boxes, opened one of them, and found that the deceased's skin had turned into the bluish-gray color that was characteristic of the dead, but the anger before death could still be seen; he then opened the other wooden box, and the head looked more like it was in a daze.

"Whose is this? How did they die?"

"It was Zhang Miao. He was pushed into the river by his subordinates and drowned!"

"Drowned?" Wei Cong felt a mix of amusement and exasperation. Why couldn't they stay in their own homes and write articles cursing him? That way they wouldn't have to die, and there would be less blood on his hands! He shook his head: "Prepare two good coffins and find a proper place to bury them!"

(End of this chapter)