Entrepreneurship in the Late Tang Dynasty

Chapter 167 Fire Dragon
When his elder brother led the entire force out, Yang Yanbao, who remained at the pass, panicked and immediately summoned his servant, instructing him:

"Go to Xishan immediately and have them gather the sixty-four settlements. Order them to bring all able-bodied men down the mountain and into the pass. Tell them that our army has won a great victory over the government army, and now we invite them to come down the mountain to jointly attack the Guang Prefecture army."

This servant had served Yang Yanbao for many years and knew his master's true thoughts, so he sighed and led three strong men, carrying machetes, iron claws, and bamboo baskets, running towards the western mountains.

Watching his attendant's departing figure, Yang Yanbao struggled to calm his wildly beating heart, pursed his lips, and gave the order:

"Pass on my order: send everyone inside the pass to the pass, men with weapons, women and children with stones."

With each shout, the entire Yinshan Pass began to spin at a speed visible to the naked eye.

……

When Yang Yanqing led his mixed infantry and cavalry to catch up with the retreating Baoyi Army, he didn't even need flags or drums; he charged straight at them.

Yang Yanqing stood on his horse, holding his spear, and shouted loudly to the mountain stronghold behind him:
"Kill! Kill them all! Charge forward and show these outsiders what we're made of! Make them never dare to set foot in our mountains again for the next twenty years!"

The mountain huts were thrilled and roared with admiration for Yang Yanqing, a fierce warrior who had been invincible in the mountains since he was sixteen.

Hundreds of mountain pigs charged forward, only to be stunned by a hail of arrows.

Arrows came from two directions, and dozens of longbowmen emerged from the boats that had been placed on the water. The longbows in their hands were all captured by Zhao Huai'an from the Nanzhao army before the Battle of Hanyuan last year.

On that day, Bao Yidu attacked the mountain. The Nanzhao army's arrows shot far and fiercely, causing the Bao Yi army to suffer considerable losses. Later, after annihilating this Nanzhao army and absorbing their archers, Zhao Huai'an realized that it wasn't that the archers were so skilled, but that the longbows they carried were actually made of purple yam.

This type of wood is hard in the middle and soft at the edges, making it the best material for bows and arrows. Bows made from this wood have a longer range and are more powerful.

Therefore, after the Battle of Hanyuan, Zhao Huai'an intentionally collected a batch of such purple-robed longbows and brought them back to Guang Prefecture.

The elite archers in the army now use these purple longbows, along with armor-piercing spikes and crescent-shaped arrows. These arrows can pierce through even three layers of armor, let alone a person.

Now, with each batch of longbows used, the supply is dwindling. However, after Zhao Huai'an seized a large quantity of tea during the mountain search, he has already sent it outside the mountains to begin large-scale processing. Soon, the first batch of tea will be transported from Guangshan along the waterways to Sichuan, Nanzhao, and Tibet.

In addition to the horses that will be transported from Tibet, boatloads of purple robes will be transported back to Guangzhou from Nanzhao.

At this moment, using sharp long arrows like the Plum Needle Arrow, paired with the heavier Purple Robe Longbow, the still-rushing mountain huts suffered a devastating blow.

Yang Yanqing, who was still mobilizing and shouting from the rear, saw the mountain huts he had called up falling one after another into pools of blood, and he was stunned for a long time.

Meanwhile, those mountain garrisons ahead were still charging forward. Half of them had already died on the way, but they were still red-eyed and charged toward the Gwangju army on the shore.

Then these remaining huts, less than eighty paces from the Gwangju army, were once again covered in arrows.

Dozens of archers clad in chainmail, under the cover of infantrymen in front, unleashed a dense barrage of arrows from behind, covering a stretch of riverbank in front of the Baoyi Army.

As the Baoyi Army on the shore began to fight back, loud horns sounded from the ships.

Then, the still hesitant villagers saw a troop of enemy soldiers rush down from the western mountain ridge and flank them from behind.

At this point, even the simple-minded Yang Yanqing realized his predicament, so he disregarded the danger and began to shout:
"Withdraw, withdraw, all of you, withdraw back to the pass with me."

As he spoke, the man ordered everyone around him to shout at the top of their lungs. There were no gongs or drums to relay the message; they relied solely on their voices.

Those mountain huts that had been attacking from above suddenly realized what was happening and hurriedly turned around and retreated.

But by then, it was too late.

With another sharp whistle, a group of knights leaped up from behind the ranks, brandishing their lances, and pursued the fleeing soldiers of Shanpeng from the rear.

Often, a single rider could catch up with more than ten people, and from then on, the mountain stronghold was completely routed.

Meanwhile, Yang Yanqing, who had been bringing up the rear, was both ashamed and angry. Ignoring the objections of his companions, he led the remaining dozen or so knights in the group to turn around and fight back, buying time for his comrades to retreat.

This time, Yang Yanqing was once again at the forefront, spear in hand, shouting:

"You all cheated, you deserve to die!"

As he spoke, he raised his spear to kill the enemy cavalryman opposite him.

Suddenly, a lasso was thrown from behind the knight, which was thrown directly onto Yang Yanqing's upper body. Before he could react, he was pulled off his warhorse and dragged all the way to the Baoyi Army's formation.

When the mountain knights saw their lord suddenly captured, they were completely disoriented and were immediately stabbed off their horses by the Bao Yidu knights. The remaining knights also jumped off their horses and knelt down to surrender.

……

At this moment, Yang Yanqing, who had been dragged into the formation, continued to curse and shout. After being stopped, he struggled and resisted, and was then bound hand and foot by two strongmen.

At this moment, as Yang Yanqing was pushed forward, he saw the enemy general sitting on the stool, smiling and looking at him. It was the same general he had knocked off his horse the day before. So he shouted:

"Very well, very well. It's a pity I couldn't kill you yesterday, and now I'm in your hands. Kill me or torture me, it's all up to you. If Grandpa even frowns, then he's your son."

Gao Renhou coughed and said with a smile:
"Haha, not bad, you're a tough guy. You spared my life yesterday, so I owe you one. Now that I've captured you, I won't kill you either. That's even."

But Yang Yanqing actually raised his head and shouted:

"It happened twice. I was about to turn around and shoot you dead, but if I hadn't saved my companion, you wouldn't be alive today."

Gao Renhou paused for a moment, shook his head, and said to Yang Yanqing:

"That's not good either. After all, we only have one life. If you spare us once or twice, we both have one life. If I don't kill you, then we're even."

Yang Yanqing shouted in a harsh voice:
"Shameful! How hateful! I, Yang Yanqing, a hero of my generation, have actually been defeated by you! Kill me quickly, or I will suffer this humiliation!"

But Gao Renhou would never kill him. He patted Yang Yanqing's face and laughed:
"I still need you to turn it on and off, how could I bear to kill you?"

With that, Gao Renhou loudly ordered those around him:
"All troops, attack! Target: Yinshan Pass! Your Excellency has been waiting anxiously for news of our victory!"

The officers and soldiers of the Zhubaoyi Army raised their spears and shouted in unison, as if the battle they had just fought was not worth mentioning at all, and that reporting the victory to the magistrate was more important.

So, she stayed behind with her husband and a group of people to clean up the battlefield by the river, while the rest of them, under Gao Renhou's command, headed towards Yinshan Pass.

……

Two quarters of an hour later, Gao Renhou stared at Yinshan Pass with a grim expression.

They had been calling for over a quarter of an hour, but the mountain hut opposite them did not respond at all. Looking at the heavily guarded gate with its well-equipped defenses, Gao Renhou had no intention of launching a full-scale attack.

Meanwhile, Yang Yanqing, who had been tied up the whole time, laughed heartily when he saw Gao Renhou's discomfiture, and even deliberately poked at his lung tube:
"Haha, that's my brother locked up there. You know the herb gatherer you caught yesterday? That's him. Now do you regret it? Release him, haha!"

Gao Renhou had actually considered that the herb gatherer was a close associate of the enemy, so he hadn't expected the man to do what he said yesterday.

In fact, his plan yesterday was to provoke the mountain strongholds inside the pass to take the initiative to attack, rather than to defend the pass to the death.

During the two months of logging, the Baoyi generals, including Gao Renhou, had already become familiar with the characteristics of these mountain shelters.

These men were indeed first-rate soldiers, fearless and strong, able to traverse mountains and rivers like tigers. However, they had one flaw: they did not raise flags or set up drums and gongs. In battle, it was often the leader who shouted and yelled.

Therefore, once the leader was shot dead by the army's sharpshooters, these mountain huts were leaderless and collapsed in an instant.

For the past two months, the Baoyi Army has been fighting in this way, destroying countless settlements and mountain strongholds.

Therefore, Gao Renhou's initial plan was to send these mountain strongholds out to attack, believing that victory would be assured once they broke through the pass.

But he didn't expect that there was a fierce general in those mountain huts who could charge at his thirty cavalrymen all by himself, and he was almost killed by this man in battle, which caused him a great loss.

However, every mistake has its own merits. With Yang Yanqing's charge, Gao Renhou was able to feign death and withdraw his troops, deliberately mobilizing the mountain strongholds to leave the pass.

And the result is exactly as he expected. Yang Yanqing was indeed impulsive and actually led his men to chase after them.

So, although the process was a little complicated, the final result was the same.

But the prerequisite is that he can accept the Yinshan Pass in front of him.

If we don't get Yinshan Pass, this battle will have been fought in vain.

Seeing Yang Yanqing still smug and self-satisfied, Gao Renhou was furious and said, "To kill someone is to destroy their spirit!"

“Your younger brother is far superior to you. You are only capable of fighting a hundred men, while your younger brother is capable of fighting ten thousand men, a hundred times better than you.”

After saying this, Gao Renhou ignored the stunned Yang Yanqing, and escorted him back to camp.

He needed to think of other ways. If the mountain shelters in Guanshan were unyielding, he would have no choice but to launch a direct attack.

Yinshan Pass must be captured, no matter what.

When Ban Dang met with the leaders of the sixty-four settlements in Xishan on Yang Yanbao's orders, it wasn't long before the assembly drums, issued in the name of these small-scale leaders, resounded throughout the mountains and valleys.

That evening, the area inside and outside the main peak of Xishan was filled with people who had gathered there to build their own tents.

At this moment, bonfires lit up the valley, and people were whispering everywhere.

"Why did Commander Peng call us?"

"Did you agree to what they said about Shuzhou, and are you planning to go out of the mountains and rob someone?"

"I don't think so. You know we don't get along with Shuzhou. I think it's the Yang family who want to lead us to seize Huangzhou."

"Great! That damned Yang family finally agreed. These people are guarding the pass, and instead of robbing and looting, what's the point of having a mountain hut? Wouldn't it be better to just go down the mountain and farm?"

"If you ask me, the Yang family isn't even from our mountains, so why should they occupy Yinshan Pass? If they don't want to go, then leave the pass to us. They're just hogging the toilet without doing their business!"

Some people also spoke up for the Yang family:

"You can't say that. They've been living in the mountains for almost a century. Who can say they aren't mountain people?"

Unexpectedly, someone actually choked on it:

"Mountain people? A hundred years is nothing. Which of our families hasn't lived in the mountains since ancient times? Someone who's lived here for a hundred years can call themselves a mountain person in front of us?"

Then no one spoke.

Because on the mountain platform above, dozens of people dressed in leather armor and cloth robes had already appeared; they were the leaders of these mountain huts.

Although he was called the "Hall Commander," he was actually just leading a settlement of about a hundred people, far inferior to the Yang family. But once these people gathered together, even the Yang family had to treat them with caution.

So over the years, these leaders have intentionally gathered together in order to put pressure on the Yang family.

At that moment, an old man walked at the front, looking down at the valley full of huts and nodding silently.

Those who gather here upon hearing the drumbeats are mostly people who live and hunt in the nearby mountain huts. These people usually cultivate the land and hunt in the mountain valleys, but once they hear the sound of the bronze drums from the mountains, they will immediately gather here with their weapons.

They still have the blood of the Yiyang barbarians in their veins, and they haven't forgotten the martial prowess of their ancestors.

Looking down at the bandits below, dressed in various colored armors, all of which these people had found in the mountains, although the clothes were messy, their murderous aura was undeniable.

So the old man loudly relayed the news that Yang had been brought into the mountains to everyone. As he gestured, some loud-voiced villagers repeated the message, and soon everyone in the valley understood what was going to happen.

The mountain shed was now in an uproar; they could finally have a good scramble.

Unexpectedly, the Yang family was so powerful that they defeated the Guangzhou army that had entered the mountains. Now they are being called upon to pursue them together, and the spoils of war will naturally be theirs.

They had long heard that the Gwangju soldiers, all clad in armor, looked as if they had emerged from the light under the sun.

The mountain bandits, who were all accustomed to living on the edge and had a strong need for iron armor, immediately shouted "Kill! Kill! Kill!" and slaughtered the Guangzhou army, leaving not a single one alive.

Some of the more ambitious ones are already dreaming of leaving the mountains.

Now that the Guangzhou army has been defeated by the Yang family, how could they not take the opportunity to attack Guangzhou? At that time, they will rob money, grain, women, and everything in the city.

The shouts from these mountain huts reached the platform, and the hut leaders nodded in satisfaction.

In reality, they didn't have much control over these mountain huts. These people were all unruly and didn't have a clear sense of community. Some even had children in one place and wives in another. They weren't loyal to any particular settlement, but they were definitely loyal to money.

At this moment, the attendant also received a leather armor. After putting it on, he noticed the heat below and took the opportunity to say:

"Then why not set off now? That way we can reach Yinshan Pass tomorrow and deliver the final blow to the remaining Guangshan army. Wouldn't the merit of this battle be small then?"

The mountain bandits burst into laughter upon hearing this. They also deeply resented the Guangzhou army, because it was these people who had wiped out the river bandits outside the mountains.

In the past, they cooperated so well with the river bandits. They picked tea, and the river bandits would naturally send them fine clothes, delicacies, gold, silver and silk. What a good life they lived back then.

These village leaders only need to keep people picking tea in the mountains, and the money will flow into the village like water.

But now?

They heard a lot from the mountain huts that had fled from the north, and knew what the Gwangju army was doing.

These people not only want to monopolize the trade outside the mountains, but also want to take over all the tea gardens inside the mountains, which means that these tea plantation leaders won't be able to make a living at all.

What's the difference between this buying and selling of people and killing one's parents?
So, without a doubt, ever since the Guangzhou army wanted to occupy Chashan, they have been mortal enemies with these commanders.

And their greatest enemy is none other than the entire mountain stronghold; they are mortal enemies, or rather, they can find a way to become so.

At this moment, looking at the mountain huts that were already howling in excitement, these people secretly felt smug:
"As expected, these people still need to be poor. If they weren't poor, would they be so obedient?"

After that, these people took turns inciting others, and then, amidst shouts, thousands of people from the mountain strongholds, carrying torches, marched toward Yinshan Pass.

Along the way, more and more people from the mountain huts who had heard the news joined in, complaining about those who had arrived earlier.

Making money without sharing it with your brothers? Can we even be brothers anymore?

Then, during the latter's apology, everyone burst into laughter, their morale soaring.

Thus, the torches followed one after another along the mountain path, like fiery dragons, wandering through the night.

Fire dragons set the mountains ablaze, and war broke out.

……

That night, Gao Renhou, who had just fallen asleep, was woken up by Kang Yanjun, who was on night duty.

The latter stammered:
"Something big is about to happen."

Gao Renhou was startled and quickly put on a robe before rushing out of the tent. But he didn't have to go far before he saw the scene before him.

The stars and moon were nowhere to be seen, and in the darkness to the west, countless fire dragons appeared, just like the stars in the sky.

At this moment, people in the camp were constantly being woken up. Everyone looked blankly at the western mountain ridge and realized what was going on.

Gao Renhou was still watching when Kang Yanjun next to him tugged at his sleeve and whispered:

"If anyone below is in a bad mood, they should quickly say a few words."

Upon hearing this, Gao Renhou was startled. Sure enough, he noticed that many of the officials and soldiers were in a bad mood, and their whispers were getting louder and louder, almost to the point of shouting.

A whistle?

The moment this thought arose, Gao Renhou stepped forward and shouted to everyone:

Where will the other teams be?

Soon, all six team members stepped forward, and Gao Renhou gave them the following orders:
"Immediately light torches and order your servants to widen the trenches and build fortifications."

Moments later, a campfire was lit, illuminating the entire camp.

It was in the firelight that Gao Renhou summoned his personal guards, handed them his summoning talisman in front of everyone, and loudly commanded:
"You must immediately take a fast boat to the river bend camp and tell them that the bandits have poured out of the mountain and that the magistrate must come to their rescue immediately!"

The soldier acknowledged the talisman, took it, and led three other soldiers into the night. With the sound of rippling water, they rowed their small boat downstream.

At this moment, the officers and soldiers of the Righteous Army were greatly relieved.

In their minds, as long as the magistrate comes, the mountain hut is nothing to fear.

Then they heard Gao Renhou shout at them:
"The mountain stronghold has a large and powerful force. Our army must defend our camp. If we can hold out for three days, the magistrate will surely arrive with his main army. At that time, it will be time for our army to counterattack. Now, for the sake of the magistrate and for the sake of our righteous army, we must fight!"

The officers and soldiers raised their arms and shouted:

"Fight! For the sake of you, for the sake of my righteous army! Fight!"

The night was desolate, but morale soared. Countless shouts rang out, all for the sake of repaying the lord's kindness.

(End of this chapter)