Late Ming Dynasty: Starting with the overthrow of the county magistrate, a rebellion was launched to

Everyone's faces turned pale, and their hearts turned cold.

Their scout squad consisted of only ten men, and their mission was merely to scout ahead. They were not equipped with heavy armor, only short swords and bows and arrows. If they encountered enemy troops, they would have no chance of winning.

Judging from the number of footprints and hoofprints, the enemy force was no small number, at least several hundred riders, and certainly not a small group!

"Squad leader, the situation is bad. The enemy has passed through here and may not have gone far." Gou Sheng's voice trembled as he hurriedly suggested, "Anyway, it's already worth it tonight to get this much intelligence. Let's retreat and quickly go back to report to the lord. We can't go any further!"

The others echoed his sentiments, all showing fear and wanting nothing more than to leave the dangerous place immediately and send the message back to the main camp.

But Chen Sanzhu shook his head, his eyes resolute yet resigned.

"No!"

"Team leader!" everyone exclaimed in alarm.

"We only found footprints and hoofprints, which can only confirm that enemy troops have passed through, but we don't know how many of them there are, whether they have already left, or whether they are still lying in ambush in this fir grove, or where they are lying in ambush."

Chen Sanzhu's tone was grave. "If we only send this little bit of information back, our lord will still be unaware of the enemy's situation, and in the end, we'll still have to be sent back to scout ahead..."

Chen Sanzhu looked at everyone, his eyes sharp.

"That's the role of scouts. Unless we give our lord a definite answer, even if we die, he will send others to continue scouting."

Upon hearing this, everyone's faces turned even paler.

This reconnaissance mission was far too dangerous. Judging from the hoofprints, the enemy was all cavalry, with extremely high mobility. Once they were discovered, the ten of them would not even have a chance to escape and would surely die!

But Chen Sanzhu was the captain, and military orders were absolute. Moreover, what he said made perfect sense. Furthermore, as scouts, they were risking their lives to obtain intelligence. If they retreated now, how could they face their lord?

The crowd looked at each other, and although they were afraid, no one dared to object.

Seeing this, Chen Sanzhu nodded slightly and made a decisive decision: "Gousheng, you are the best horseman. Immediately ride back and report to the lord that enemy traces have been discovered at Shanmu'ao, suspected to be a cavalry ambush. I will lead the rest of the men to continue scouting ahead, and once we have ascertained the situation, we will retreat immediately!"

"Captain!" Gou Sheng's eyes reddened as he said urgently, "If anyone should stay, it should be me! You go back and report!"

"Enough talk! Military orders are absolute!" Chen Sanzhu shouted sternly. "Go quickly and deliver the message. Be careful on the road!"

Gou Sheng gritted his teeth. Having no other choice, he mounted his horse and lashed its rump with a whip. The warhorse galloped silently, turning back the way it had come.

After Gou Sheng's figure disappeared into the woods, Chen Sanzhu took a deep breath and led the remaining eight men further into the forest.

After about half an hour of riding, Chen Sanzhu noticed that the group, which had been chatting and laughing and even complaining earlier, was now silent.

Clearly, they felt threatened with death.

Seeing this, Chen Sanzhu could only soften his tone and gently comfort him.

"Brothers, don't be afraid. The enemy may not still be in the pass. Although this Firwood Pass is dangerous, it is just a woodcutter's path. Their cavalry probably just passed through and left long ago. We just need to scout ahead a bit to confirm that it is safe, and then we can retreat. We will be fine."

Hearing this, everyone felt a little relieved, and the tense atmosphere eased somewhat. Then, some people, forcing themselves to remain calm, began to chat and laugh in hushed tones.

"The squad leader is right. Once we've ascertained the enemy's situation, we'll definitely go back and have a bowl of hot wine, then embrace a beautiful bride to warm ourselves up."

"After this battle is over, I'm going home to hug my wife, and I'll never sneak into the woods at night again."

The faint laughter slightly dispelled the gloom and fear in the forest.

But just as everyone finished speaking, a very faint yet sharp sound of air being pierced suddenly came from the depths of the dark forest ahead!

Everyone heard it and knew what the sound was, but that was all. They didn't have time to react and let the sound get closer and closer... Then a shrill scream suddenly rang out!

At the very front of the column, a scout had a long arrow embedded in his chest! The arrowhead was sharp, piercing through his flesh and deeply embedded in his chest cavity.

Blood gushed out with the arrow, dripping down his abdomen and splattering onto the decaying leaves...

The scout's eyes widened in disbelief. He made a hoarse sound in his throat, swayed, and fell straight to the ground. He convulsed a few times and then breathed his last.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye; no one even saw where the arrow came from!

"Not good!" Chen Sanzhu's expression changed drastically, his pupils contracted sharply, and he roared fiercely, "Enemy attack! Get down immediately!"

Before anyone could react, a dense volley of sharp arrows whistled through the air! Countless arrows shot out from the darkness of the dense forest on both sides, carrying a chilling killing intent, heading straight for the scout team!

"Take cover! Take cover now!" Chen Sanzhu roared weakly, desperately waving his short knife, trying to deflect the incoming arrows.

However, the clanging and tinkling sounds continued incessantly, and the arrows flew like locusts, dense and numerous, making them impossible to block or dodge!

"what!"

"Help me!"

Several screams rang out in succession, and three more scouts fell to the ground, wounded by arrows, their blood splattering everywhere.

Whether the arrow was exceptionally sharp or poisoned, the man struck by the arrow cried out a few times before ceasing his struggles and falling silent.

Chen Sanzhu was also in poor condition at this moment. He had been shot in the left arm with an arrow, and the pain was excruciating; he almost dropped his dagger. Having no other choice, he ignored his wound and roared...

"Retreat! Retreat now! Run back!"

Ignoring the arrows, the remaining four men desperately turned their horses around and galloped back the way they came.

However, in the darkness, the warhorse was frightened and ran wildly. In addition, the moss in the forest was slippery, and the horse's hooves slipped, causing the man and horse to fall over instantly!

The two scouts were thrown violently from their horses, their heads hitting the bluestone, their brains splattering out, and they died on the spot.

Chen Sanzhu was also thrown off his horse, his whole body aching, as if his bones were about to break.

Even so, he endured the pain and struggled to his feet, turning his head to look—he saw more than a dozen dark figures rushing out of the dense forest, clad in heavy armor, wielding long swords, dressed in Sichuan army uniforms, with fierce faces, charging towards them.

Damn it! There's no escaping now!

People become more composed when facing death, and Chen Sanzhu showed no sign of backing down at this moment.

He gritted his teeth, pulled the arrow from his left arm, ignoring the bleeding, gripped his short sword tightly, and roared fiercely.

"Brothers, kill!"

The remaining two scouts, their eyes bloodshot and filled with rage, drew their short swords and charged after Chen Sanzhu toward the enemy scouts.

The enemy scout, in the lead, sneered, brandished a long spear, and charged straight at Chen Sanzhu with the spear tip aimed directly at his heart!

Chen Sanzhu neither dodged nor evaded, but suddenly shifted his body to the side to avoid the spear tip. At the same time, he pushed off with his feet, leaped up, and slashed out with his short knife, striking the man's wrist holding the spear!

With a crisp crack, the wrist bone broke!

The man screamed in agony as the spear slipped from his hand.

Taking advantage of the momentum, Chen Sanzhu landed, turned around, and precisely stabbed his throat with his knife!

Blood gushed out, the man's body stiffened, he fell from the horse and died on the spot.

After killing the enemy with one move, Chen Sanzhu had just turned around when two enemy scouts attacked from both sides, their long swords slashing fiercely, aiming straight for his head and shoulders.

Chen Sanzhu ducked to dodge, the blade whistling past his head and severing several strands of hair. He swung his blade backhand, stabbing an enemy soldier in the abdomen, but another longsword came slashing down, striking him hard in the back!

A sharp pain shot through him; his clothes ripped, revealing a deep, bone-revealing wound that instantly soaked his back with blood. Chen Sanzhu groaned, staggered a few steps, but still gripped his dagger tightly, turning back to fight.

Just then, he caught sight of one of his brothers behind him being surrounded by three enemy soldiers, in grave danger, about to be struck by a long sword.

"Don't even think about it!" Chen Sanzhu roared, his eyes bloodshot. Ignoring the reopening of his back wound, he charged forward and thrust his short sword straight into the back of an enemy soldier.

Caught off guard, the enemy soldier was stabbed and fell to the ground. Chen Sanzhu seized the opportunity to pull the scout aside and shouted sharply, "Break through! Quickly!"

But the enemy forces were growing larger and larger, and a dozen or so riders surrounded them, showing no intention of letting them go. At this point, Chen Sanzhu had no way to escape!

The two sides clashed again, and after another incense stick's time, Chen Sanzhu's two remaining brothers also died in battle, falling into pools of blood, their eyes wide open in death...