Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
Outside Puzhou City, Wang Guozhong stood with his hands clasped behind his back, gazing at the neat row of war machines arrayed before him. Fifteen shield carts stood side by side, their thick wooden panels freshly reinforced, wheels newly greased. Behind them sat four catapults, their frames solid and imposing, and four battering rams bound with iron hoops, their polished heads gleaming faintly in the daylight. The sight filled his chest with a swelling, almost intoxicating satisfaction.
"See this?" Wang Guozhong said loudly, sweeping an arm toward the siege engines as his lips curled into a smug grin. "This is the advantage of becoming an official army man. Back when I followed Wang Jiayin, we were always the ones being smashed by these damned things. Now that I've accepted pacification and joined the court, I can conscript civilians, build these great machines, and go smash someone else instead. Hah! It's truly exhilarating!"
A subordinate hurried forward, laughing along with him. "Following General Wang really brings honor to us all. With these siege engines, dealing with Xing Honglang, that petty salt smuggler, holed up in her little water stockade, will be no effort at all."
"Hahahaha!" Wang Guozhong slapped the man on the shoulder, delighted. "Well said. Give the order. The entire army moves out!"
The command rang out, and Wang Guozhong's forces began to advance. Three thousand fierce bandits, now wearing the skin of an official army, pushed and hauled their cumbersome siege engines forward, marching toward the Gudu Ferry water stockade in Yongji.
High atop the walls of Puzhou City, Prefect Qiu Qianfan watched the departing army with a deeply troubled expression. He could not help but let out a long sigh. There was no real need to provoke Xing Honglang. If she were truly angered, she might wipe out Wang Guozhong first and then turn around and strike Puzhou itself, leaving him to clean up the disaster. He pressed his lips together, uneasy, hoping silently that matters would not spiral out of control.
"They're coming! Wang Guozhong's army has set out!"
The scout's report flew back at full speed.
At once, the entire Gudu Ferry water stockade erupted into motion. Zao Ying personally led a large contingent of cavalry, charging out from the gates and fanning across the outer perimeter to hunt down Wang Guozhong's scouts.
The first clash of the campaign was a scout skirmish.
The scouts on both sides met briefly, exchanging volleys of crude insults, each loudly promising to desecrate the other's ancestors, before drawing bows and sabers and plunging into a desperate chase.
Wang Guozhong's scouts were no match at all for Zao Ying's full cavalry detachment. Three hundred riders swept through the outskirts like a storm, chasing and cutting them down, driving the survivors more than ten li away in short order.
With the surrounding area confirmed clear of enemy scouts, two hundred Chassepot riflemen and one hundred additional riflemen quietly exited the water stockade. Each man carried dry rations and a waterskin slung at his side. They split into small groups of five or six and moved swiftly toward the pre-dug pits lining both flanks of the battlefield.
Reaching their assigned locations, they carefully lifted the turf and wooden planks concealing the pits, dropped inside one by one, then meticulously replaced the planks and grass above them.
Five or six soldiers huddled together in each pit, weapons held close, breath slowed, waiting.
They waited like this until dusk.
By the time the sky darkened, Wang Guozhong's army had finally lumbered to within ten li of the water stockade. Burdened by their heavy siege engines, they had advanced no more than twenty li in an entire day.
Once night fell, assaulting the stockade was no longer feasible. Wang Guozhong had no choice but to set up camp where he stood. Having risen from the ranks of wandering bandits, he knew nothing of proper encampment. The camp he ordered thrown together was chaotic and loose, vulnerable in every direction. Had a night raid been launched, the casualties would have been severe.
Yet a night attack also risked allowing Wang Guozhong himself to slip away under cover of darkness. Gao Family Village had no intention of alerting the enemy prematurely, and so the opportunity was deliberately passed over.
This decision, however, made for a miserable night for the soldiers already concealed in the pits. They remained buried in the earth, tearing open dry rations with stiff fingers, taking small sips from their waterskins, and sleeping in snatches, leaning against the cold walls of the pits beneath the open sky.
Early the next morning, the mournful sound of bugles echoed across the plains.
Wang Guozhong's army was preparing to attack.
The same messenger once again ran to the gates of the water stockade, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Xing Honglang, this is your final chance to accept pacification!"
Xing Honglang let out a cold snort. "Go back and tell Wang Guozhong this. Who would ever trust a man who betrays his own leader? Surrender to him? Never."
At the same time, Yang He, Supreme Commander of the Three Border Regions, was rushing toward the Gudu Ferry to preside over what he intended to be a grand pacification feast. Halfway along the road, he was intercepted by a mounted messenger. The man burst into tears the moment he dismounted.
"Lord Yang! Lord Yang!" he cried. "I am one of Xing Honglang's subordinates from Yongji. We are being bullied!"
Yang He raised a hand, his expression grave. "Calm yourself. Tell me what has happened."
The messenger sobbed as he spoke. "We were stationed at the Gudu Ferry dock, awaiting Lord Yang's amnesty. But as soon as Wang Guozhong took office as Puzhou's deputy commander, he began persecuting us. We explained again and again that we were already preparing to surrender and accept pacification under you, but he refused to listen. He insists on attacking us!"
Yang He's face darkened with fury. "Why would he do this? If you were preparing to accept pacification, you would soon serve alongside him. What reason could he have to attack you?"
"I don't know," the messenger said shakily. "Perhaps… perhaps he still bears a grudge because we did not follow Wang Jiayin's orders back then."
Yang He frowned deeply. After a moment's thought, understanding dawned. These two bandit leaders must have had old grievances between them. Wang Guozhong, having secured an official position, was using the opportunity to eliminate a former rival while earning merit from the court. A neat solution, from his perspective.
Such things were far too common in officialdom.
"Quickly," Yang He ordered sharply, turning to his attendants. "Urge the carriages and horses forward. We must reach the Gudu Ferry at once."
Meanwhile, on the battlefield, Wang Guozhong raised his arm with dramatic flair. "Shield carts forward. Advance slowly."
For the first time in his life, he was commanding siege engines reserved for official armies, and the sense of power thrilled him to the core. With another wave of his hand, he added, "Catapults, follow!"
His soldiers, still lacking true discipline and steeped in bandit habits, immediately heaved the massive shield carts forward. Fifteen carts rolled side by side, their thick wooden faces forming a moving wall as they advanced toward the water stockade.
It was, without question, a proven tactic against firearm troops.
From east to west, across different lands and eras, humanity had independently devised such shield carts to counter gunfire. The similarity of solutions spoke volumes about the shared instincts of warfare.
Yet the firearm soldiers of Gao Family Village watched calmly from the stockade, not a hint of panic on their faces. Many even turned their heads toward the artillery teams hidden behind the walls.
The artillerymen grinned and waved back with easy confidence, signaling that everything was under control.
"Do not rush!" Lao Nanfeng shouted. "Artillery, restrain yourselves. Your range is too long. If you fire too early, the firearm soldiers won't be able to follow up. Wait for my signal. When the enemy enters their range, then you fire."
"Understood!" the artillerymen replied in unison.
They forced themselves to wait, hands itching, eyes fixed on the approaching shield carts.
From Wang Guozhong's perspective, however, the water stockade remained eerily quiet. No shots rang out. No movement broke the stillness. It seemed as though Xing Honglang's forces could only stare helplessly at his advancing wall of shields.
Wang Guozhong's spirits soared. He laughed loudly, utterly convinced of victory. "Hahahaha! Xing Honglang is stunned by my shield carts. She's completely at a loss. Right now, she must be desperately thinking about how to run for her life."