Volume 1, Chapter 40: Caught in a Pincer, Spoils Secured

Cheng Huan, the former vice-administrator of Dongping, poked his head out of his carriage with a furrowed brow, looking in great displeasure at the people accompanying his carriage on the road ahead. He said to them, "I have long heard that within Xingyang Commandery, outlaws from places like Wagang roam at will, as if entering an untrodden land. Yet I never expected that in broad daylight, under the clear and bright sky, right on the grand thoroughfare of the imperial highway, bandits would actually be holding up travelers! Is there no longer any rule of law? Truly, I have no idea how Prince Jiong governs his territory!"

Among the men beside the carriage, one spoke in panic, "My Lord Cheng, look at the banner these outlaws are flying. It bears the mark of the Wagang bandits. The Wagang bandits are the most rampant in our humble commandery; even Lord Yang yields to them by three parts. Now that they are blocking the road ahead, what shall we do?"

Cheng Huan gave a cold snort, though he showed no panic. "No matter how renowned the reputation of the Wagang thieves may be, there are only a mere twenty or thirty bandits blocking the way at present. What is there to fear? Magistrate Hou, you need not be afraid, nor do I require the assistance of your county soldiers. Just stay by the carriage and watch my servants slaughter the bandits." He then shouted an order to another man, "Muyang, what are you waiting for? Lead the brave men forward and drive this pack of fierce thieves away."

The man addressed as "Muyang" was a man of about thirty, with a dignified appearance, standing over six feet tall and solidly built. He wore a yellow round-collared tunic with a leather belt around his waist and rode a yellow horse. He immediately acknowledged the order, scooped up the long spear resting by his saddle, tapped the cross-blade hanging from his leather belt, and urged his horse forward. He called out to seven or eight attendants carrying spears and sabers, and headed toward the group of bandits stationed a mile or two ahead.

When they reached a distance of a little over a mile, the man called "Muyang" reined in his mount and looked closely.

He saw that the opposite group of bandits, numbering around twenty or thirty, were arrayed in a single file across the official road, forming a rectangular formation.

A red banner fluttered in the middle of their ranks.

On the banner, two lines of characters were written vertically. The larger line on the left read: "Acting on behalf of Heaven"; the smaller line on the right read: "Li Erlang of the Wagang Phoenix Guard."

One man on horseback stood before the banner, while three or four stalwart men with sabers at their waists stood on foot beside the mounted man.

Having finished his inspection, the man called "Muyang" cleared his throat and said, "Good fellows on the other side, your humble servant greets you. My name is Gao Xi, a retainer of my master. You brave men may not yet know who my master is; my master is none..."

Among the few men standing by the banner on the opposite side, one interrupted him with a grin, showing his teeth. "You fellow, where did all this idle chatter come from? We know very well who your master is—isn't he the former vice-administrator of Dongping Commandery? We have been waiting here specifically for him for many days. We spent several days on tenterhooks, fearing that you might be intercepted along the way by other brave fellows and leave us waiting in vain. Sincerity moves the heavens, and heaven rewards the diligent—we have finally waited for your arrival. Do you see this large banner? We are the brave men of Wagang. There is no need for me to describe the might of Wagang; you must surely know it. If you know what's good for you, quickly surrender all the wealth and goods you are carrying in your carts, and we may spare your lives."

Gao Xi was a courteous man and wanted to say a few more words, hoping to resolve the issue without resorting to bloodshed if possible. However, from the carriage behind him came Cheng Huan's impatient voice: "Muyang, why are you still wasting words with these thieves? Kill them and scatter them quickly, so as not to delay today's journey."

As for the group of bandits blocking the way opposite, needless to say, they were none other than Li Shandao's gang.

The one who had just answered was Chen Jing'er.

Seeing Gao Xi charge forward alone with a single horse and spear to break their formation, Chen Jing'er clicked his tongue and remarked, "What a reckless brute! Coming to break our formation with just a single man and horse?"

Li Shandao was the one mounted on horseback, but he was not careless. "Since he dares to come single-handedly, he must have extraordinary skills," he ordered. "Brothers, fall back, let's slip away!" He turned his horse and retreated.

Gao Chounu, who was holding the banner, tucked it under his arm and followed him back.

Chen Jing'er and the rest of the twenty or so men in formation also retreated.

Gao Xi's horse was already running and could not be stopped immediately, so he brandished his spear and pursued them from behind.

A mile or two away, Cheng Huan stroked his beard and smiled as he spoke to "Magistrate Hou" beside the carriage: "What do you think, Magistrate Hou? You do not know the prowess of this retainer of mine. He was originally a garrison squad leader in our Dongping Commandery. Later, when he committed a crime, I admired his valor, showed mercy beyond the law, and saved him. In return, he willingly pledged his loyalty to repay my grace. Since we set out from Dongping ten days ago, I have encountered quite a few fierce thieves along the way, yet every single one of them was scattered by him. When we passed through the territory of Weicheng, it wasn't just a few dozen men holding up the road; over a hundred Wagang thieves from Weicheng tried to rob me, and they were no match for him either. Magistrate Hou, just wait for Muyang to capture a couple of the fleeing thieves and tie them up for you. You can take them back to the county to claim your merit, which will also serve as my thanks for your trouble in leading your county soldiers to escort me through the territory."

Magistrate Hou was both surprised and delighted. "Had I known your lordship had such a stalwart man under your command, why would I have worried just now?"

Cheng Huan ordered the remaining men outside the carriage, "Each of you take your servants and go quickly to assist Muyang. Be sure to capture a few more thieves and present them to Magistrate Hou."

The remaining few men outside the carriage, apart from two county soldier officers, all acknowledged the command. They each led their men away from the caravan and rushed up to assist Gao Xi.

Assuming the overall situation was settled, Cheng Huan tucked his head back into the carriage.

Yet not even a quarter of an hour later, he abruptly heard a chorus of loud shouts and cries coming from ahead outside the carriage.

At first, he thought it was the fleeing bandits being cornered by Gao Xi and the others with no way out, hence the screaming. But after hearing only a couple of sounds, he realized something was wrong; among those shouts were clearly voices he was familiar with—they were his own retainers!

Hurriedly poking his head out of the carriage once more, Cheng Huan looked up and his expression turned to one of utter terror.

Two or three miles away, dust was billowing, and on the ground, an unknown number of figures were rolling about, with even a yellow horse tumbling in the dirt. Looking closer, he saw that the rolling figures were all his own guards and retainers, and Gao Xi was among them.

Pointing, Cheng Huan stammered, "This, this... what is happening?"

Magistrate Hou had long since lost all color in his face, and stammered, "The stalwart man under your lordship's command was riding in pursuit of the thieves, but for some reason, his horse suddenly fell, and he was thrown to the ground as well. Following that, all your lordship's retainers behind him tumbled down one after another, rolling about like gourds on the ground."

Cheng Huan was struck dumb. Before he could figure out what on earth was going on, a deafening battle cry suddenly came from behind.

He hastily turned his head to look back and saw a band of fifty or sixty bandits emerge from nowhere, brandishing weapons and shouting as they charged.

By this time, there were basically no guards left beside his carriage, save for forty or fifty county soldiers.

Cheng Huan hurriedly shouted, "Magistrate Hou! Give the order to meet the enemy at once!" Not waiting for Magistrate Hou to give the command, he issued his own order to the two county soldier officers: "Quickly, quickly! Lead the troops to kill the thieves! For every thief killed, I will reward two thousand coins! No, three thousand! Drive the thieves away, and everyone shall be rewarded!"

The two officers shouted to their troops, turned to face the enemy, and prepared for battle.

As the dozens of charging bandits reached within an arrow's flight, just as the county soldiers were about to loose their arrows, volleys suddenly rained down from the trees on both sides of the road.

As it was April, the tree foliage was thick and lush. Furthermore, it was midday, the sun was blazing fiercely, and the road was a major highway—who would ever think to check if there were ambushes in the trees by the roadside?

The sudden, close-range arrows shot from the trees were remarkably accurate, and three or four county soldiers were struck down in succession.

The remaining county soldiers instantly fell into chaos. The fearsome reputation of Wagang Stronghold was well-established in Xingyang Commandery; had they been winning, these county soldiers might have dared to fight. But now that they were at a disadvantage, they completely disregarded the commands of the two officers, let out a cry, dropped their weapons, and scattered in all directions.

The dozens of fierce bandits charging from the rear, led by Wang Xuda, Qin Jingsi, and Luo Zhong, quickly reached the carriages.

Seeing that the situation was turning bad, the two county soldier officers also dropped their weapons, hurriedly squatted down with their heads in their hands, and cried out repeatedly, "We surrender! We surrender!"

Wang Xuda grabbed the reins of Magistrate Hou's mount to stop him from attempting to escape, yanked him down from the horse with a forceful pull, kicked him flat, and stepped on his head, roaring, "Stay still, don't move!" Pitifully, this Magistrate Hou had already been shaken dizzy and disoriented from the fall, so how could he dare not stay still? Indeed, he remained completely motionless, only repeatedly begging for mercy: "Spare my life, good hero! Spare my life, good hero!"

Qin Jingsi tore open the carriage door, and Jiao Yanlang and Zhang Fusheng leaped inside, shoving Cheng Huan and two women out of the carriage.

Cheng Huan and the two women tumbled to the ground, clutching their heads, not daring to get up, and all cried out: "Spare our lives, good heroes! Spare our lives, good heroes!"

"Are you the Vice-Administrator of Dongping Commandery?"

Without waiting for Qin Jingsi's instructions, Jiao Yanlang ran toward the battlefield two or three miles away along with Zhang Fusheng, Yao Agui, Wang Xuande, and others, shouting in unison: "The thieves' county soldiers have all fled, Cheng Huan has been captured! The thieves' county soldiers have all fled, Cheng Huan has been captured!"

Their joint shouts were quite loud, yet the majority of Li Shandao, Chen Jing'er, and the others on the battlefield did not hear them. What they heard amongst themselves were mostly the continuous cries of alarm and curses exchanged by the men.

Zheng Zhiguo's cursing was the loudest: "Son of a bitch! So fierce! Go screw your mother, are you hunting me down specifically?"

Chen Jing'er was also cursing: "Thieving brute! Fine saber skills."

Li Shandao shouted orders to Gao Chounu: "Chounu, why aren't you hurrying over to pin this scoundrel down!"

Seeing everyone shouting at the top of their lungs while Li Shandao and the others remained almost entirely unresponsive, Jiao Yanlang and the others found it strange. Running closer, they finally saw a large man covered in dust and grime, with blood oozing from his face and his yellow tunic stained beyond recognition. Brandishing a cross-blade with red-rimmed eyes, he was chasing Zheng Zhiguo, Chen Jing'er, and the others. Astonishingly, Zheng Zhiguo, Chen Jing'er, and three or four others were being chased everywhere in a panicked flight by this single man, creating a chaotic spectacle!

Gao Chounu had just knocked out one of Cheng Huan's retainers who was trying to crawl up from the ground with two punches. Complying with Li Shandao's order, he sprinted over from not far away.

The burly man brandishing the cross-blade to chase Zheng Zhiguo and Chen Jing'er was none other than Gao Xi.

The ordinarily courteous and well-mannered man had been subjected to a sneak attack and thrown into a dizzy blur; all his manners were cast aside. With red eyes, he focused entirely on chasing and hacking at people. He wielded a formidable cross-blade, and neither Zheng Zhiguo nor Chen Jing'er was a match for him.

As Gao Chounu ran close, taking advantage of Gao Xi's blinding rage as he pursued Zheng Zhiguo—the very man whose horse had been tripped—Gao Chounu lowered his head and charged forward. Running a few steps, he aimed straight at Gao Xi's waist and hurled himself at him. Gao Xi was caught off guard and was instantly knocked over.

Rolling onto the ground, Gao Xi gripped the hilt of his blade tightly, trying to smash it down onto Gao Chounu's head while cursing, "Dog thief! Let me go, and fight me properly!"

Zheng Zhiguo, Chen Jing'er, and the others rushed back to help Gao Chounu pin Gao Xi down securely. Several men swarmed around him, stripped him of his sword, and used ropes to bind his hands and feet. Gao Chounu and the others let go, stepped back a few paces to form a circle around him, and lowered their heads to look at him.

Li Shandao also walked over, pushed the men aside, glanced at Gao Xi several times, and said, "A fine warrior! Chounu, I see only you could match him." He suddenly laughed and cursed, "Damn it," then added, "Wielding a cross-blade with such mastery—how much more formidable would he be on horseback? It's a good thing I planned ahead before the battle and used the horse-tripping rope tactic, otherwise this fellow really wouldn't have been easy to handle."

Gao Xi spat in Li Shandao's direction, struggling with all his might, but how could he possibly break free? He glared furiously and snapped, "Using underhanded sneak attacks, you shameless little thieves!"

Li Shandao laughed heartily and instructed Gao Chounu, "Keep a close eye on him." Hearing Jiao Yanlang's report, he glanced toward Cheng Huan's carriage convoy and said to Chen Jing'er, "Wulang, let's go take a look at what we've managed to capture after going to all this trouble."