Chapter 102: Tempered a Thousand Times
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Wang Pu, leading two thousand troops, maneuvered in and out twice amidst the Khorchin cavalry, successfully rescuing Zhang Heshang and Tang Sheng. After narrowly escaping the Khorchin riders’ pursuit and preparing to return to camp, sharp-eyed Lü Liu suddenly pointed southwest and shouted, “General, look! It seems our Ming troops are engaged in fierce combat with the Khorchin over there!”
“Is that so?”
Wang Pu, Scarface, Zhang Heshang, Tang Sheng, and others turned back, shading their eyes as they gazed southwest. Sure enough, they saw a cavalry unit weaving through Khorchin horsemen. The number of riders wasn’t large — at most a thousand — and they were now tangled in battle with the Khorchin.
“Are those really our Ming forces?”
“Strange. Apart from us, there are other Ming troops in Sanbula Chuan?”
Only Tang Sheng studied the scene intently before suddenly shouting, “General, it looks like Zhao Xin’s thousand-man unit!”
“Hmm? Zhao Xin?”
“Yes, it’s definitely Zhao Xin!” Tang Sheng exclaimed with certainty. “It’s him!”
Wang Pu’s heart skipped a beat as a figure of a man flashed before his eyes.
At first, when Wang Pu had tasked Tang Sheng to select two thousand veteran soldiers from nearly twenty thousand troops at Datong town, Zhao Xin had wished to join. But Wang Pu, considering Zhao Xin was already a thousand-man captain, had declined. Later, when Zhang Zi’an led the Datong troops to Ya’nuhai to support Wang Pu, over ten thousand soldiers were ambushed by three thousand Khorchin iron guards, shattering instantly. Only Zhao Xin’s two thousand held firm, steadfastly defending the Ming camp.
“Really strange,” Scarface muttered, scratching his head in confusion. “Isn’t Zhao Xin supposed to be under the command of the eunuch Zhang? Why would he bring his troops to Sanbula Chuan?”
“Good question!” Wang Pu took up the thread sharply, demanding his soldiers, “Brothers, why do you think Captain Zhao Xin brought his men here to Sanbula Chuan?”
“General, I know!” Tang Sheng blushed with excitement and loudly responded, “I’ve known Zhao Xin for years and understand his character. He must have brought his thousand-man unit to support us!”
“Well said!” Wang Pu roared. “Captain Zhao Xin refused to abandon us and return to Datong. Willing to risk the destruction of his entire unit, he led over a thousand brothers on a long march of hundreds of miles to come to our aid. He is our true comrade! Now our brothers are in trouble. Brothers, what should we do?”
Tang Sheng shouted, “Rescue them!”
“Yes, we must rescue them!” Scarface growled fiercely. “If necessary, we’ll charge through the Khorchin hordes again and again.”
“Our general would never abandon his soldiers, and we would never abandon our brothers!” A faint flush crossed Zhang Heshang’s face as he waved his arms and roared hoarsely, “General, give the order! Even if it means going to the gates of hell, we’ll follow you!”
“Yes, we all follow the general!”
“We swear to follow the general to the death!”
“Just say the word, general, and we’ll do anything!”
Zhang Heshang’s words stirred the spirits of over three hundred surviving bandit horsemen, who eagerly rolled up their sleeves, ready to fight the Khorchin to the death. They were men who had stared death in the face before, and now feared nothing.
“Good! As expected of my men! Real men all!” Wang Pu drew his sword with a clang and shouted fiercely, “Listen well! Follow me, your general… attack!”
“Attack!”
Lü Liu swung the battle flag forward with all his might, then yelled hoarsely, “Attack!”
“Attack!”
“Attack!”
“Attack!”
The nearly two thousand soldiers clustered around the banner echoed the cries, then surged forward once more, charging headlong into battle.
On a small hillock, Banqitu and Suo Gaer could hardly believe their eyes. Were they seeing things, or had the Ming cavalry gone mad? Even if it was Wang Pu’s forces, they couldn’t be so insolent, acting as if the Khorchin’s seven thousand horsemen were statues.
“Brother, these Southern Ming barbarians are way too arrogant!” Suo Gaer’s face turned green with rage. “I’ll take my own guards to intercept them!”
“Good!” Banqitu’s voice was grim. “It’s time these Southern Ming barbarians learn the power of the Khorchin. We can’t let them escape again this time!”
“Yes!”
Suo Gaer beckoned with his hand and led his five hundred iron guards in a whirlwind charge toward the hillock.
The suddenly appearing Ming cavalry were indeed Zhao Xin’s thousand-man unit!
On the day Wang Pu left, Zhang Zi’an gathered nearly all the routed troops and began herding the cattle and sheep abandoned by the Tumed. If all went well, in two days the Ming army would drive nearly a million head of livestock home. Yet Zhao Xin had no intention of returning to Datong so soon. He volunteered to go to Sanbula Chuan to assist Wang Pu.
Zhao Xin was a man of fierce spirit, a true soldier.
He knew Wang Pu didn’t have to attack Sanbula Chuan since he was no longer the general of Datong, yet Wang Pu still led over three thousand cavalry there. His purpose was to secure the cattle and sheep and ensure the troops at Datong received their pay.
As a soldier of Datong, Zhao Xin felt he could not simply return. His duty as a soldier and his conscience compelled him to go support Wang Pu.
Zhang Zi’an did not stop Zhao Xin; he tacitly agreed.
In truth, Wang Pu’s attack on Sanbula Chuan was meant to draw off the Khorchin’s main cavalry force, a mess born of Zhang Zi’an acting on his own by deploying troops early. Wang Pu could have ignored it, but he took charge and risked his life leading the campaign.
Because of this, Zhang Zi’an felt some guilt toward Wang Pu and allowed Zhao Xin’s request. Zhao Xin led a thousand cavalry, following the tracks left by Wang Pu’s troops, riding day and night, finally reaching the Sanbula Chuan Khan’s camp a day after Wang Pu.
When Zhao Xin arrived with his weary troops, Wang Pu’s forces were locked in fierce battle with the Khorchin. Without hesitation, Zhao Xin struck at the Khorchin’s flank.
Zhao Xin’s thousand cavalry were veterans, skilled in mounted archery, but after a grueling 300-400 li march, both men and horses were exhausted. Upon engagement, they quickly lost ground. The Khorchin cavalry, after initial confusion, regained composure and encircled Zhao Xin’s troops.
As more Khorchin horsemen gathered, Zhao Xin despaired of survival. Suddenly, from the northeast came deafening shouts, as if a great host was smashing through the Khorchin lines. Zhao Xin turned to see a battle flag fluttering fiercely in the wind — the unmistakable banner of Wang Pu!
Overjoyed, Zhao Xin drew his blade and shouted, “Brothers, we are saved! Ha ha ha…”
His laughter had barely died away when the Khorchin cavalry began to break and scatter. A fierce Ming cavalry charge swept forward under the banner, led by none other than Tang Sheng, well known to Zhao Xin and the Datong soldiers.
“Tang Sheng? Damn it, it’s you!?”
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“Captain Tang!?”
“Brothers, kill!”
Seeing Tang Sheng’s charge, Zhao Xin and his frontier soldiers’ morale soared. The two forces merged, and Zhao Xin saw Wang Pu in the midst of the army. From his horse, he cupped his fist in salute and said, “I pay respects, General!”
“Enough.” Wang Pu raised his hand solemnly. “This is no place for talk — first, we break out.”
“Yes!” Zhao Xin responded thunderously. “From now on, my men and I are under your command!”
“Good!” Wang Pu drew his sword and shouted, “All troops, hear this — advance toward the camp!”
Scarface and Zhang Heshang wheeled their horses, charging fiercely at the Khorchin cavalry blocking the way. Within a few rounds of fighting, dozens of unlucky Khorchin riders were unseated. These two fierce generals led their battalions like sharp arrows, piercing deep into the Khorchin ranks.
The Khorchin fought desperately to hold their ground. Suo Gaer led five hundred iron guards to reinforce, but still could not halt the ferocity of the Ming assault. Only months ago these Ming troops had seemed like lambs, but now they were fiercer than the wildest wolves of the steppe. Suo Gaer, proud of his strength, was pierced in the left shoulder by Scarface’s spear, narrowly escaping death.
After paying a heavy price, the two Ming cavalry units finally broke through the Khorchin encirclement and swept back like a storm to the camp.
Banqitu would not relent, sending three thousand horsemen in relentless pursuit, but they were met with devastating volleys from the Ming musket squads at the camp. Eight hundred flintlock muskets fired in rotation, supported by hundreds of dragon king cannons bombarding the attackers. The Khorchin suffered grievous casualties, leaving over five hundred bodies before the Ming camp.
The brutal battle finally ended.
From dawn, when Zhang Heshang led over seven hundred former bandits out of the camp to avenge Black Tiger, until past noon when Wang Pu and Zhao Xin reunited their forces at the camp, the Ming and Khorchin had fought for more than half a day. It was a vicious engagement neither side had anticipated, with heavy losses on both sides.
Zhang Heshang’s bandit unit lost nearly four hundred men; Tang Sheng’s thousand lost over five hundred; Scarface’s thousand suffered over three hundred casualties; Zhao Xin’s thousand suffered the worst, exhausted from the long march, with fewer than two hundred men breaking out alive.
In the end, only about seventeen hundred Ming soldiers returned alive to the camp.
Nearly two thousand were either killed or severely wounded—wounded soldiers were essentially as good as dead, as the battlefield was controlled by the Khorchin. Those injured had no chance of survival; even if the Khorchin did not kill them out of spite, they would freeze to death without aid.
Though the Khorchin held the battlefield advantage, their losses exceeded even the Ming’s.
Before the morning battle, the Khorchin had over seven thousand elite cavalry; by noon, fewer than four thousand remained capable of fighting. They lost over three thousand horsemen, with more than two thousand killed and over eight hundred severely wounded.
At the Ming camp, inside Wang Pu’s tent, Zhang Heshang knelt with his head lowered, sobbing like a child. His right leg was roughly bandaged but bleeding again, bright red seeping through the thick hemp cloth, staining it crimson.
“General, so many brothers died because of me. You should just cut me down, please!”
Wang Pu, with Lü Liu’s help, removed his armor and asked, “So you know you were wrong?”
Zhang Heshang tearfully nodded. “I know I was wrong.”
“Tell me,” Wang Pu sat on a wool blanket and asked, “Where did you go wrong?”
Zhang Heshang replied, “I shouldn’t have recklessly fought the Khorchin to avenge Black Tiger. If not for me, this morning’s terrible battle wouldn’t have happened, and so many brothers wouldn’t have died for nothing.”
“No,” Wang Pu shook his head. “It seems you don’t know where you went wrong at all.”
“Really?” Zhang Heshang was puzzled. “Didn’t I say it right?”
“Absolutely not!” Wang Pu spoke loudly. “A real man should avenge hatred and grievances—it’s only natural. Your good brother Black Tiger died; that grudge must be repaid. That’s not wrong.”
Zhang Heshang scratched his bald head and said, “Then I don’t understand.”
Wang Pu said, “You’re wrong because you treated Black Tiger as your personal brother only. You never remembered what I once told you: our army is a collective, and everyone in this army is a brother. So avenging Black Tiger isn’t just your job, nor just the task of your seven hundred men, but the responsibility of all of us. Do you understand?”
Zhang Heshang thought carefully, nodded, then shook his head again. He seemed to almost understand but his mind remained confused.
“Think it over well here,” Wang Pu said sternly. “If you don’t understand, you’re not allowed to leave this tent or eat.”
Wang Pu left after that, draping the tiger-skin cloak over his shoulders.
Though Zhang Heshang was a rough man, illiterate, Wang Pu knew he possessed two traits: ruthlessness and perseverance. As commander, there was no one who would not want such a subordinate. With such men, you could entrust the toughest battles and the darkest tasks without worry.
But Zhang Heshang’s flaw was his stubbornness.
Though he now served Wang Pu and appeared respectful and obedient, when it came to critical moments, he would act on his own impulse, which Wang Pu could not tolerate. Hence, he took this opportunity to hammer home the concept of “our army” into Zhang’s mind.
Once that idea took root, in any crisis, Zhang would think first of “us” rather than “me.” And “our army” was Wang Pu’s army. Implanting this meant Zhang’s complete loyalty to Wang Pu.
From then on, whatever Wang Pu commanded, Zhang would obey without hesitation—even to the point of executing the emperor himself if ordered.
Outside the tent, over seventeen hundred battle-worn soldiers sat around dozens of roaring campfires, tearing into mutton and laughing loudly. These were veterans, accustomed to the blood and gore of battle; life and death were as routine as eating and sleeping.
Though they mourned fallen brothers, they understood crying solved nothing. To avenge the dead, they must eat well, drink well, rest well, and when back on the battlefield, unleash all their hatred upon the enemy.
When Wang Pu appeared, flanked by Lü Liu and a dozen bodyguards, the troops rose to greet him with blazing eyes. Today’s brutal fight had transformed their view of Wang Pu completely. Despite being a noble relative of the emperor, he had repeatedly led them into the chaos of battle just to rescue trapped brothers.
Wang Pu had risked everything for them, and they knew it.
From somewhere in the crowd came the first cheer: “General!”
Then all the soldiers erupted in cheers.
“General!”
“General!”
“General!”
The chaotic shouts soon merged into a unified roar, rolling like thunder into the sky.
Meeting the fierce gaze of his men, Wang Pu felt deeply moved. The effort you give is the reward you receive. From the start, Wang Pu had truly regarded himself as one of them, a true brother to all soldiers. Today, his sacrifices had borne fruit.
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Discipline was firmly stamped; the iron will of the army was taking shape. But what pleased Wang Pu most was that his soldiers had come to see him as their true brother and sole commander.
Wang Pu suddenly raised his hand, and the thunderous cheers ceased instantly.
He licked his lips cracked by the north wind and shouted, “Brothers, I must tell you something. The Mongol cavalry is formidable—invincible centuries ago. They wiped out hundreds of kingdoms. But so what?”
“Today, right here, over ten thousand Mongol horsemen couldn’t stop our two thousand. We charged in and out three times, just like the legendary Zhao Yun of Changshan! Before us, no matter how mighty the Mongols are, they’re nothing but wind!”
“Ha ha ha…”
As Wang Pu’s words fell, the soldiers burst into laughter.
When the laughter died down, Wang Pu continued, “Brothers, we are the strongest army in the world. We are real men! Pure men!”
Hearing Wang Pu’s rousing speech, each soldier straightened his chest.
It was no boast: facing over ten thousand Mongol cavalry—not a herd of sheep—they had charged through three times, killing their way out alive.
After this battle, their confidence soared. To them, Mongol cavalry were nothing, just as Wang Pu said. From now on, their true enemy was only the Jianzhou Jurchens.
But these veterans believed that one day, the Jianzhou would also be crushed beneath their feet.
They say confidence is forged through countless trials; today’s battle was worth at least three hundred strikes, and Wang Pu’s words another hundred.
“Brothers,” Wang Pu concluded, “eat well, drink well, sleep well. Rest your spirits, for tomorrow we ride home!”
Originally, Wang Pu had planned to break out early this morning, but Zhang Heshang’s rash actions disrupted that plan. Now, after half a day of fighting, the men were exhausted and many wounded. They had no choice but to rest another night and attempt breakout tomorrow.
Still, Wang Pu did not regret the battle.
This brutal fight strengthened his faith in his troops—if they could break through thousands of Khorchin horsemen, he had every reason to believe tomorrow they could easily evade the Khorchin and return to Datong.
However, Wang Pu was overly optimistic. He had no idea a larger Khorchin cavalry force was rushing to Sanbula Chuan day and night. By dawn the next day, everything would change.
At dawn, Wang Pu was awakened by a sharp “crack.” Before he could rise, the tent curtain was flung open. Bright light stabbed into his eyes, forcing him to close them tightly. Frowning, he asked Lü Liu, who bent inside, “Six, why is it so bright outside?”
“General, it’s snowing!” Lü Liu exhaled, stamping his feet. “A heavy snow, knee-deep!”
“What? What did you say?”
Startled, Wang Pu sat up quickly.
“What’s wrong?” Lü Liu scratched his head, whispering, “I said, it’s snowing heavily outside.”
“Damn it! That cursed sky!”
Wang Pu cursed bitterly and hurriedly wrapped his tiger-skin cloak around himself, stepping out. After squinting to adjust, he opened his eyes wide. All he saw was a vast expanse of white. Except for the gray sky, the world was covered in snow—no other colors remained.
Lü Liu followed, whispering, “General, I wasn’t wrong, was I?”
Wang Pu sighed, “This is a big problem.”
Lü Liu asked quietly, “General, what’s wrong?”
Wang Pu smiled bitterly, “That damn sky really knows how to cause trouble. It could have snowed earlier or later, but no—right now, a heavy snow falls. This is really bad.”
Just as Wang Pu shook his head, Zhang Heshang burst out of the tent, hollering, “General, I’ve figured it out!”
“Zhang, what have you figured out?” Wang Pu snapped.
Zhang Heshang said, “I realize where I went wrong. I shouldn’t have taken just my old comrades to seek revenge. I should have reported to you first, and then you could lead all our brothers to avenge Black Tiger! General, that’s what you meant yesterday, right? Huh? What’s that sound?”
Suddenly, Zhang Heshang paused, listening intently.
Wang Pu frowned, “What sound?”
After a moment, Zhang Heshang shouted, “Cavalry—lots of cavalry!”
“Cavalry?” Wang Pu’s heart jolted. “Where?”
Zhang Heshang turned sharply, pointing northwest. “There!”
Wang Pu looked in that direction and was startled. In the uniform gray-white world, a faint black line appeared, writhing slowly. In moments, it thickened considerably.
There was no doubt—it was not a line but a massive cavalry force.
Unnoticed, Scarface, Big Beard, Tang Sheng, and Zhao Xin had gathered behind Wang Pu. Big Beard, a former steppe bandit familiar with the plains, said solemnly, “At least twenty thousand Mongol horsemen, thirty li away, marching straight toward us!”
Scarface, Tang Sheng, Zhao Xin, and others grew grave.
Twenty thousand Mongol cavalry was a different matter entirely from a few thousand Khorchin horsemen—not just a tenfold difference in numbers, but a massive psychological blow. On a real battlefield, the impact could be over twentyfold.
Worse, last night’s heavy snowfall would severely slow movement. In knee-deep snow, horses could barely gallop. If Wang Pu ordered a breakout now, not a single man would likely survive to Datong. They would be overtaken and picked off by the Mongols.
“Orders…” Wang Pu took a deep breath and commanded in a low voice, “All troops fall back to the mountains and set camp!”
“Yes!”
Scarface, Big Beard, Tang Sheng, Zhao Xin, and Zhang Heshang shouted their assent and rode off.
Before the large Mongol force arrived, Wang Pu led his troops uphill, ordering Big Beard to station two hundred musketeers at the southern mountain pass and brought out the two captured mortars from the Khorchin.
Since breakout was no longer feasible, retreating to the mountain to use favorable terrain for defense was the only option. With Big Beard’s thousand musketeers and the two mortars, the Mongols would be hard-pressed to even reach the mountain base.