At noon, the Japanese pirates encircling the Zhejiang Army camp were just about to cook their meal. Today’s fare was much richer than usual.
During the day, the pirates had scoured the area, uncovering a good haul of valuables, livestock, and grain hidden by the locals.
In the bubbling cauldrons, chunks of pork, mutton, chicken, duck, and goose rolled about, sending oil splattering everywhere…
“Woo-hoo, yoshi yoshi, it smells so good! Finally, some meat again!”
“Can’t stand it, can’t stand it—I’m drooling already!”
“Pork and mutton simmering in the same pot—this flavor’s just divine. Just smelling it makes my tongue want to jump into my stomach!”
A crowd of pirates gathered around the pots, their mouths watering as they waited for the meat to cook, laughing and joking in high spirits.
“Yoshi, the meat’s ready—time to dig in!”
The pirate in charge of the ladle dipped it into the broth, inhaling the rich aroma with a smug grin.
“Meat’s ready! Hahaha, first come, first served…”
The pirates eagerly swarmed the pots.
Just then, a thunderous boom split the air. Before they could react, a stone cannonball plummeted from the sky, landing squarely in the pot with a resounding *bang!* The cauldron shattered into pieces, and scalding broth sprayed everywhere.
“Ahh!”
“Ahh!”
The pirates lunging for the food screamed as shrapnel from the cannonball, fragments of the iron pot, and boiling soup rained down on them. Those nearest the pot suffered horrific casualties.
That single cannon shot was like a key unlocking the gates of hell. In an instant, a dozen more *boom boom boom* blasts from tiger crouching cannons followed, their shells bursting into brilliant red flowers across the pirate camp. Explosions mingled with cries of agony in an unrelenting cacophony.
Then came a wave of battle cries as hundreds of Zhejiang soldiers charged out from the main gate, muskets blazing. The *bang bang bang* of gunfire erupted in a continuous barrage, mowing down the frontline pirates caught completely off guard.
“Enemy attack!”
“Enemy attack!”
“The Zhejiang Army’s rushing out from the main gate!”
The pirates shrieked in panic, their voices hoarse as the camp descended into chaos, like a pot boiling over.
“Damn it, no good—the Zhejiang Army’s breaking out!”
“Quick, quick, block them! If they escape and ruin the bosses’ plans, we’re done for!”
“Call for help—fire the signal arrows! Their firearms are too fierce, and they’ve got Portuguese cannons. We need backup!”
Under the frantic orders of their leaders, the pirates scrambled toward the main gate, desperate to stop the Zhejiang troops. But the relentless firepower cut them down in droves within moments.
Signal arrows whistled into the sky as reinforcements rushed in. The pirates swarmed like bees, converging to intercept the Zhejiang soldiers charging from the main gate. Arrows, arquebus shots—everything they had was thrown at the attackers. They even tossed makeshift barricades of deer antlers and logs in front of their lines to slow the advance.
After a fierce clash, the Zhejiang troops exhausted their two loaded muskets, then their spare barrels, and finally their tiger cannon rounds.
The pirates, having lost about a hundred men, stabilized their formation, firmly holding the Zhejiang soldiers at bay.
“Hahaha, the Zhejiang Army’s nothing special—just look, we’ve stopped them!”
“You bastards, out of tricks now, huh?”
“Come on, grandsons! Grandpa’s waiting right here for you to pay your respects—hahaha, come at me if you dare!”
The pirates, seeing the Zhejiang troops halted, grinned and jeered, reveling in their smug triumph.
The Zhejiang soldiers just smiled back at them.
“What the hell are you laughing at? We’ve blocked your breakout—shouldn’t you be crying? How do you still have the guts to smile?!”
“There’s something off about these Zhejiang idiots!”
“Hey, you dumbasses across the way, what’s so funny? Did the stress fry your brains or something?!”
The pirates, baffled by the Zhejiang troops’ laughter, mocked and cursed them in confusion.
The next second—
*Boom!* *Boom!* *Boom!*…
From the rear gate of the Zhejiang camp, a barrage of tiger cannon shots rang out, flashes of fire and clouds of smoke erupting as pirate screams pierced the air.
Then came the *bang!* *bang!* *bang!* of dense musket fire, even more intense.
In the blink of an eye, a gaping hole was torn through the pirate lines at the rear gate.
“Hyah! Hyah! Hyah!”
The sound of whips cracking and hooves thundering—*clip-clop, clip-clop*—echoed as four hundred cavalry burst from the camp, lashing their horses and charging through the breach, kicking up a trail of dust as they sped off.
“Damn it! We’ve been had! The Zhejiang Army’s too cunning—they weren’t breaking out from the main gate, but the rear!”
“It’s a feint—strike east, hit west!”
“No wonder they were grinning like fools—they were laughing at us for falling for it! They’re not the idiots—we are!”
Only then did the pirates realize they’d been duped. The Zhejiang Army’s real breakout was from the rear! They’d been tricked!
But it was too late. By the time they caught on, Liu Mu and Liu Dadao had already led their four hundred rangers through the encirclement, galloping off into the distance.
Two-legged pirates chasing four-legged horses was a fool’s errand, especially since Liu Mu and his men were long gone by the time the pirates reacted. All they could do was leap about in frustration, cursing the Zhejiang Army’s treachery.
Once Liu Mu and his rangers broke free, both the feinting troops at the main gate and the main force at the rear gate withdrew to the camp immediately. Their mission was complete—why linger?
The enraged pirates weren’t about to let the retreating Zhejiang soldiers off so easily. They couldn’t catch the cavalry, but they could chase these foot soldiers, right?!
Fuming, the pirates pursued the retreating troops, intent on venting their anger and giving them a brutal thrashing!
But the Zhejiang Army was ready. As the troops outside pulled back into the camp, those inside stood poised with muskets behind low walls, opening fire in welcome. A volley of *bang bang bang* rang out, catching the pursuing pirates off guard and dropping them in heaps.
“Damn it!”
“Fall back!”
“Those sneaky Zhejiang bastards—costing us more brothers!”
After the tight, disciplined musket fire cut down another swath of their ranks, the pirates’ memories of yesterday’s terror under Zhejiang firearms resurfaced. They scrambled back in a panic, fleeing without a backward glance, desperate to avoid repeating the previous day’s slaughter.
