The first faint trace of dawn emerged in the sky, the darkness enveloping the world shifted from deep ink to a lighter shade.
“Kill!”
“Charge in! Death to all!”
Four thousand Japanese pirates brandished their blades, shouting as they stormed toward the Fengqiao encampment once more, their faces twisted with ferocity, radiating murderous intent.
The sound of four thousand Japanese pirates charging and yelling was no small matter, like a hurricane tearing through, their war cries shook the heavens and earth, resembling a tsunami, a landslide, the ground splitting open, like vengeful demons bursting from hell, roaring savagely toward the mortal realm, their voices piercing the clouds.
The stomping feet of four thousand charging Japanese pirates made the earth tremble, as if malevolent spirits were pounding the ground with colossal drumsticks.
And so, four thousand Japanese pirates, shouting and charging, surged toward the Fengqiao encampment like an unstoppable tidal wave, overwhelming all in their path.
From the distant walls of Suzhou city, Prefect Shang Weichi, alongside a host of officials and soldiers, watched the battlefield before the Fengqiao encampment with tense expressions, their hands sweating, hearts in their throats.
The Fengqiao encampment showed no blaze of light, only scattered flickers, but about two li (roughly a kilometre) ahead of it, where the Japanese pirate army was stationed, torches glittered like the stars in the sky, too numerous to count.
Judging solely by the number of torches, the Japanese pirates must have had at least thirty or forty thousand men.
When the first wave of Japanese pirates attacked the Fengqiao encampment earlier, their hearts had leapt to their throats, thankfully, the Zhejiang army held firm, repelling the assault without falling, giving them a brief moment to catch their breath.
But now, the Japanese pirates were attacking the Fengqiao encampment again.
From atop the city walls, they could hear the distant war cries of the charging Japanese pirates, even the walls beneath their feet seemed to tremble from the shouts and footsteps.
The sky was no longer pitch black, visibility had improved, from afar, they saw the charging Japanese pirates resembling a monstrous black python, hundreds of metres wide, lunging ferociously toward the Fengqiao encampment.
“Sir, the Japanese pirates have begun attacking the Fengqiao encampment again, the last wave was about a thousand strong, the Zhejiang army barely held them off, this time it looks grim, judging by their war cries and the vague silhouettes, this wave might be four or five thousand, more than double the Zhejiang army’s numbers, I fear they’re in grave danger…”
The Suzhou military affairs officer stood beside Prefect Shang Weichi, speaking gravely.
“No time to waste, order General Zhang to muster three thousand elite troops and rush out of the city to reinforce the Fengqiao encampment.”
Shang Weichi hesitated for a moment after hearing this, then issued the command.
“No, no, Your Excellency!”
“That mustn’t happen, Your Excellency! The Japanese pirates outside have thirty or forty thousand men, the Zhejiang army has only two thousand, even if we send three thousand troops, that’s just five thousand total, against the Japanese pirate horde, it’s a drop in the bucket.”
“Exactly, Lord Prefect, we mustn’t send reinforcements, the Japanese pirates are fierce and skilled in battle, our troops can’t match them in open combat, sending three thousand out of the city would just be handing them heads, it’s useless, our soldiers can only hold them off by relying on the tall city walls! Sending troops out plays to our weakness and their strength, please, Lord Prefect, consider the lives of the hundreds of thousands in the city!”
The officials, hearing Shang Weichi’s intent to send troops to aid the Zhejiang army, erupted in agitated protests.
“Well… Suzhou city and the Zhejiang army form a pincer strategy, we should support each other, or else if one falls, the other is doomed! If we don’t rescue the Zhejiang army and the Fengqiao encampment falls, the Japanese pirates’ next target will be us! Without the Zhejiang army holding them back outside, thirty or forty thousand Japanese pirates attacking Suzhou city would put us in peril.” Shang Weichi explained the principle of mutual reliance to the officials.
“Sir, the key is, three thousand troops aiding the Zhejiang army won’t make a difference, our army excels at defending walls, not fighting in the field, three thousand troops in open combat against the Japanese pirates would just be cannon fodder, they’re only useful atop the walls, our city’s forces are already stretched thin, if we lose these three thousand, Suzhou city is doomed!”
“Lord Prefect, Lord Zhu didn’t ask us to send reinforcements, Zhu and his men recently bought seven or eight hundred mules and horses, combined with what they already had, the Zhejiang army has over a thousand mules and horses, if they can’t beat the Japanese pirates, they can escape, the Japanese pirates came by boat, they have no horses, how can two-legged Japanese pirates outrun four-legged horses? If the Zhejiang army flees on horseback, the Japanese pirates can’t catch them.”
“Right, Lord Prefect, the Zhejiang army bought mules and horses in advance, clearly they planned for this, Zhu and his men can ride away, but our reinforcements would become the scapegoats, the Japanese pirates can’t catch the mounted Zhejiang army, but they could catch our reinforcements.”
“Please, Lord Prefect, prioritise the bigger picture, the lives of the city’s people, don’t make pointless sacrifices!”
The officials pleaded again, specifically highlighting the Zhejiang army’s thousand-plus mules and horses, noting they could escape if overwhelmed, to dissuade Shang Weichi from sending aid.
Shang Weichi listened to their pleas, especially the point about the Zhejiang army’s thousand-plus mules and horses.
He had to admit, this argument convinced him.
Yes, with over a thousand mules and horses, the Zhejiang army could escape if things went south, they wouldn’t be completely wiped out.
Even if they lost the Fengqiao encampment, without a stable base, as long as the Zhejiang army wasn’t annihilated, the Japanese pirates wouldn’t dare attack the city with full force, they’d have to leave some troops to guard against a counterattack.
And, as the officials said, Suzhou’s garrison hadn’t seen combat in ages, they truly weren’t a match for the Japanese pirates in open battle.
With this in mind, Shang Weichi let out a long sigh, waved his hand helplessly, and said, “The matter of reinforcements is postponed for now, we’ll plan for the long term.”
“Lord Prefect is wise!”
The officials on the wall, hearing Shang Weichi abandon the idea of sending reinforcements, rejoiced, praising his wisdom repeatedly.
Shang Weichi shook his head, gripping the wall’s bricks tightly, staring anxiously toward the Fengqiao encampment.
The Zhejiang army at Fengqiao had long been poised and ready, when Zhu Ping’an repelled the first wave of Japanese pirates and saw them selecting a second vanguard, he’d ordered the camp’s eight hundred reserves to prepare for immediate support.
This wave of Japanese pirate assault would undoubtedly be ferocious, after withstanding it, the Japanese pirates would surely send more reinforcements.
That would be the perfect moment to detonate the gunpowder jars.
Igniting the gunpowder jars would inflict massive casualties and shock the Japanese pirates, thwarting this wave of their attack, in turn, their morale would plummet, and they’d grow wary of the Zhejiang army and the Fengqiao encampment.
After that, it’d be hard for the Japanese pirates to muster such a fierce assault on the encampment again.
