Chapter 83: Chapter 36 Heaven’s Sole Calculation (Part 4)

Li Rusong, on this sortie to chase down the enemy, led fewer than ten thousand men, and accounting for earlier losses, he now had just over seven thousand left, with chariots, firearms, and cannons all available.

As for reinforcements, the elite troops of nine regiments, including Tokugawa, Uesugi, Hidetada, Ukita, Mori, Liusheng, Tachibana, and Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s forces, numbering nearly twenty thousand, appeared at Pyongyang almost like gods and demons, which was almost beyond belief!

Li Rusong made a snap decision, taking advantage of the fact that the Japanese pirate reinforcements had not yet encircled him and the cover of the dark rainy night, he sent riders on fast horses to break through the encirclement and seek help from Pyongyang.

Li Rusong did not attempt to break through towards the Datong River, but instead chose to meet the enemy by retreating to the mountains, away from the plains. He positioned stakes and deer horns to trip up the hooves of horses and lined up a hundred or so sidecars in a circular formation. The wood-covered iron sheets with firing holes had musketeers lying in ambush behind, with several Franconian cannons loaded on top of the cars. With the heavy rain soaking everything, neither the firearms nor the cannons could be used, leaving only the tall shields, unsheathed swords, and drawn bows prepared and waiting.

The first to come into contact was the foot-soldier phalanx of the Ukita clan.

“Draw!”

Luo Shangzhi yelled at the top of his voice, and the Ming Army’s bowstrings were pulled taut, each horn bow looking like a water gate filled to the brim.

“Aim!”

The sound of sleeves and leather rubbing together was accompanied by the chilling gleam of the arrows.

“Fire!”

Like a flood bursting forth and birds returning to the forest en masse, countless Japanese fell into bloodied pools of water.

The Japanese pirates mostly used light bamboo bows, whereas the Ming Army was already equipped with iron-tire bows and boxwood bows that required iron thumb rings to assist in drawing them, with significantly higher ranges. This handed the Japanese a significant disadvantage right from the start.

The chariots with iron armor stood like high walls before the Japanese pirates, with protruding spears and arrows flying furiously consuming the lives of Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s soldiers,

The other ranks of Japanese rushed forward, striking fiercely at both flanks of the Ming Army, whether on foot or on horseback, rapidly filling the gaps left by fallen soldiers,

“Form up the chariots, mount up and follow me to charge!”

Luo Shangzhi roared, and the thousand or so cavalry emerged from the formation one after the other, charging at the thinned ranks of the Japanese with a disregard for their own lives…

The fierce battle continued until dawn when the torrential downpour had ceased, with mud and blood blurring the entire battlefield.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s main forces, commanded by Hidetada Masasuke and consisting of elites from five clans, finally arrived belatedly.

Ukita Hideie’s face darkened as he was about to condemn the allied forces for delaying and causing substantial losses of his men, only to find that everyone in the camp was draped in white robes. The atmosphere was oppressive.

Honda, who was famed for being unscathed in battle, was now bandaged around his chest, and Liusheng Chang’s right arm had been torn off.

Hidetada Masasuke was nowhere to be seen, and in his place sat Hidetada Masasuke’s younger brother, the monk Nen Enman, who was guarding Pyongyang with Konishi. Nen Enman’s originally handsome face now sported an ugly centipede-like scar, and his body was also heavily injured.

Ukita Hideie licked his lips:

“What… what happened?”

…

“Song Yingchang! I’m telling you! You are disregarding His Majesty!”

Yi Yu screamed his lungs out as two burly guards tugged at him. His Ten Absolute Banners were lost somewhere during the scuffle, and his crown and scarf fell to the ground in a struggle, leaving him looking panicked and furious.

Song Yingchang’s eyes narrowed as he said coldly, “Order it to be announced that the Military Supervisor, aware of the dire situation, wishes to personally join the battle in place of His Majesty on the front lines when the drums and bugles of the three armies sound. If the Governor is not rescued in a day, the Military Supervisor will not leave the front line for a day, and the same holds true for all the mages of the Heavenly Master Tao.”

“I was personally appointed by His Majesty to supervise the military. You don’t have the right to do this! This is personal vendetta! Abuse of power! I will strike the Jingyang Bell, beat the Dengwen Drum, I will tell His Majesty…”

Song Yingchang watched Yi Yu, then suddenly bowed deeply.

“If the Japanese really possess sorcery, then having Master Gaogong at the front line for even a moment could save the lives of our soldiers, and for that, on behalf of the thirty thousand soldiers and officers in the city, I thank the Mage for his noble spirit.”

“You old thief! You old thief! I’ll never let this go,” Yi Yu shouted.

Song Yingchang looked downcast: “After this battle if we’re still alive, I’ll give my entire career and life to your Heavenly Master Tao, how about that?”

Not until Yi Yu was dragged away did Song Yingchang exhale a breath of turbid air and abruptly threw his teacup away, pointing at Yang Yuan’s nose and cursing, “There have always been rumors about your Li Zimao acting arrogantly and stubbornly! I originally thought those were just rumors! I didn’t expect! I didn’t expect!”

Yang Yuan remained silent with his head bowed.

Song Yingchang, shaking with rage and with no outlet for his anger, continued,

Wasn’t I aware of the suspicious nature of the Japanese pirates’ raid? But I sent word to you, advising you to think thrice! Think thrice! Did you, Li Rusong, pretend not to hear?

In truth, as the commander responsible for defending against the Japanese, I am the leading hand in the Ming Army’s entry into Joseon. If I had given a direct order to retreat, and you, Li Rusong, disobeyed, that would be insubordination!

I entrusted you with authority considering your specialization in the field, using a roundabout way of advising instead of ordering a retreat, but what was the result?

You’re telling me that along with the commander and a batch of generals, 8,000 people were surrounded by 20,000 Japanese pirates?

“Lord Minister, no matter what, we have to rescue Lord Governor first,”

Yang Yuan said, steeling himself as he bowed with his hands clasped.

“You arrange it.”

Song Yingchang, as irritated as he might be, wouldn’t overstep his role.

“You can decide the details of the battle; my men from Xuanfu won’t interfere.”

The nearly fifty-year-old Song Yingchang spoke slowly but resolutely, still with a fiery temper.

“In the midst of the great battle, I will go to the front lines with Yi Gaogong, to beat the drums for all of you.”

…

Sticky blood glued his clothes to his skin, and it felt like a hot coal was stuffed in his throat. The salty, fishy warmth filled his mouth and nose, and a mixture of gold and red stars danced chaotically before his eyes, while his head thundered. Screams and roars came at him, mixed with scorching hot blood sprayed in his face!

“Hiss~”

Li Yan shuddered abruptly in bed, his fingers gripping the sheet tightly.

After the thick, indissoluble blood, numerous scattered beams of light flickered chaotically, rushing in like a tide.

In the darkness, an overbearing force approached: the banners of the Japanese Army fluttered, the mountains of swords and seas of spears loomed, and the face of a Japanese general with red cheeks, wearing a deer antler helmet, was bearing down with a spear.

Niutou Chantan, riddled with holes and covered in cut marks; Nine-Winged Sudu with bloodied feathers and half a wing sliced off by Liusheng Chang; and many more faces dyed red with blood. Ming Army troops, successively pierced through the chest by long spears; Wang Liang’s over a thousand cavalrymen who cut their way through and used their flesh to block the joint forces of the five clans; Deng Tianxiong, who fell from his horse with severe injuries and was trampled under the iron hooves of the Japanese pirates…

“Rip~”

The bedsheet was torn open with a large gash, and cotton spilled out.

Li Yan’s eyes snapped open, his whites dense with red veins.

“I’ll slaughter all of you, I swear I’ll slaughter all of you.”

…

“Old Jin Yan, what do you mean by this?”

“My meaning is clear—if General Li is dead, we shouldn’t have been busy for nothing.”

“Say that again, I dare you.”

“You woman are biased, I won’t argue with you. What do you say, Chantan?”

“It’s too early to talk about this now.”

“So, Niutou, you mean to wait for Lord of the Banner to die then start your scheming?”

“Why do you bite at everyone you see, woman?”

“According to me…”

“About you…”

On the spacious campgrounds, the Wild Gods of Joseon, who usually fought on their own, were now a tumultuous crowd, mostly with pessimistic attitudes. Only Nine-Winged Sudu, with its jug-like mouth, engaged in loud disputes with the rest.

Yu Shu, with his hands behind his head, was lying down for a rest, truly annoyed by the noise.

“Shut up, all of you.”

Suddenly, there was silence. The Ming people didn’t have a keen sense for ghosts and deities, but these beings made their living from such things.

After a while, Jin Yanwa muttered,

“I’m just trying to think of a plan for everyone.”

“What plan?”

As the tent flap was lifted, Li Yan walked out, his expression grave.