Chapter 004: The First Murder

As dusk approached, Guo Fen stood beside him, his gaze unexpectedly becoming somewhat dazed.

Taking the knife, it felt somewhat heavy; this was certainly not a toy, but a broadsword that had once tasted blood from killing! Zhang Mai weighed it in his hand, thinking: "Am I really expected to use this knife to kill someone?" This is not a game; it is real murder. He did not believe he could do it.

A woman's scream suddenly echoed in his ears, while behind her, another woman was struck in the wrist by an arrow, crying out in agony. Yet, with her other hand, she still held up a soft shield. The smell of blood had already seized Zhang Mai's sense of smell, and it felt as if his mind was suddenly filled with blood!

Once again, there was a cry of despair, and yet another life was lost

There is no room for mercy, not even a moment for hesitation! If the enemy is not killed, one will perish oneself

Guo Fen lunged forward and tackled him, at the same time two arrows whizzed past—had it not been for Guo Fen's intervention, those two arrows would have claimed his life!

Keep going, and victory is certain, victory!

The new Suiye City, unlike the traditional square cities of the Central Plains, presents a hollow "十" shape, featuring a total of sixteen outer angles and twenty faces. This design sacrifices the usable area within the city but cleverly eliminates defensive blind spots. From the perspectives of the east, west, south, and north, each side of the city appears "convex," with a protruding platform built at each outer angle. When the Huigu cavalry charge to the base of the city wall, they are within the range of the bows and crossbows of the soldiers stationed on the platforms, regardless of the direction from which they approach. This type of city is unique to the western region.

The descendants of the Tang army are lacking in both manpower and resources. The walls of the newly constructed Suiye City are not very high, and in some places, they are not sufficiently smooth. In a corner of the city where no one is guarding, a Huige soldier has actually climbed to the edge of the wall. Beneath him are four or five others—once the first person climbs up and secures a position, the others will inevitably follow! If a breach is opened in the city, this defensive battle will become perilous! Beneath him are four or five others—once the first person climbs up and secures a position, the others will inevitably follow! If a breach is opened in the city, this defensive battle will become perilous!

Zhang Mai suddenly remembered that the large vat was scalding hot. He pushed against it with both hands, thinking he could really enjoy some barbecue. Noticing a brick on the ground, he picked it up without a second thought and pushed against the vat through the brick. The entire vat tilted, causing several Hu people below to scream in panic—some were splashed with boiling water, and one had been doused on the head and was scalded to death.

Ah! The envoy has arrived! Guo Fen exclaimed: The envoy has arrived!

On this afternoon, squeezed by the war with not a moment to spare, there was no time for Guo Shidao and the others to explain what this era was about. Zhang Mai did not even have the leisure to ponder deeply, and under the threat of the Tuyuhun cavalry, he merged into this world.

Zhang Mai was pulled by Guo Fen and also shouted: "Everyone, let's go! Let's go!"

Staring at this horrifying scene, Zhang Mai was stunned—he had killed someone! He had killed someone! Just a moment ago, he was in a hurry to help and pushed the large vat, but he hadn't considered that this action could lead to someone's death.

Zhang Mai had never learned to wield a knife, let alone to kill. Yet at this moment, without a second thought, he raised the broadsword that Guo Bian had handed to him and struck down!

Hello, Uncle Envoy

Later, Guo Shidao wanted to call him back, but Zhang Mai had already run far away. The distance from the east city tower to the south right shoulder was not short. In preparation for the upcoming trip to the five Central Asian countries, Zhang Mai had anticipated the need to climb mountains and enter deserts, and perhaps some areas would also pose altitude sickness. Therefore, he dedicated six months to daily running and training. His colleagues praised his excellent physical condition, and he himself felt that he was enjoying his meals during this period. However, once he truly engaged in the battle, he realized that his stamina was likely at the bottom among all the men in the city. Just running to the south right shoulder made his breathing start to become labored.

The Huighur man cried out loudly in despair; he was not dead, but his grip loosened, and he fell down, writhing on the ground

At this moment, the Huigu people sent a cavalry unit to attack the eastern right shoulder of the city wall. Guo Shidao intended to mobilize the reserve troops, but Guo Fen shouted, "Father, this group is both small and mixed; they are likely just a feint. We should go and deal with them!" He then led a group of women to charge at the eastern right shoulder and the eastern right neck. The city wall was already prepared with various projectiles, boiling water, lime, and crossbow bolts. The stronger women drew bows and wielded spears, while the weaker ones helped by boiling water and passing ropes.

At this moment, the Khitan cavalry was charging towards the eastern left shoulder of the city. Guo Luo and Yang Yi called out to each other, each leading thirty archers—one running to the eastern left shoulder wall and the other to the eastern left neck wall. If the enemy approached the eastern left shoulder wall, they would find themselves caught between the shoulder and neck, facing a simultaneous attack from sixty archers. The Tang army waited patiently, ready to shoot as soon as the enemy entered range. The Khitan cavalry, known for their combat skills, sensed the unfavorable situation and did not dare to approach the base of the city wall. They raised their shields and began to maneuver towards the northern city wall. At the same time, another group of cavalry charged towards the due east.

Ah—someone is climbing up!

Guo Shidao angrily said, "Shut up!" At this point, he had calculated that the enemy forces numbered approximately 2,300 to 2,500 men. Meanwhile, four cavalry units had been dispatched to harass the east, south, and north, but nearly 1,000 remained arrayed beyond the range directly to the east.

Our "envoy" stood beside Guo Shidao, watching him wave the flag to command the battle, and observing Guo Lu and Yang Yi running out of breath, while even Guo Fen was shouting to confront the enemy from the right side, yet he himself was idly standing there, completely unaware of what to do.

Another murder has occurred

As the offensive and defensive battle commenced, the entire new city of Suoyey became a war machine in operation. Within the city, aside from the two hundred elite reserve troops on standby, everyone else was busy—oh, wait, there was one person who was idle, and that was Zhang Mai

However, the arrows did not fly back, and the Khitan people attacking the southern right shoulder began to retreat, for they discovered that although this side of the city wall was defended by a group of women, there was a man, a "fierce general," stationed there

Although Zhang Mai had never experienced the scenes of war, he could guess by observing the thousand-strong cavalry waiting leisurely that: "These Huigu people are waiting for us to exert our full combat strength; they are about to rush in, targeting our weak points. At that time, the Tang army will have no room to divide and maneuver."

The warning calls from the right shoulder continued to come in, and Zhang Mai shouted, "I will go help!"

Erecting the soft shield also requires skill. Zhang Mai had not practiced before and was momentarily at a loss. Moreover, there was no space for him to assist at that moment. Several elderly women were boiling water, and once it was done, they needed to push the hot water down. However, they were quite weak and found it very strenuous. Zhang Mai, clumsily attempting to help push the large vat, was fortunately noticed by Guo Fen, who quickly pulled him back amidst his busy schedule: "Are you crazy! You aren't even wearing protective gloves! Do you want to burn yourself?"

Zhang Mai stood up, brandishing his broadsword as he looked at the several Huigu people who had already crawled closer. In truth, he was not yet a qualified warrior, but standing at a height of 1.85 meters and having just killed two men, he held the bloodied broadsword and stood there from a high vantage point, scaring the Huigu people who were climbing the city wall into retreating hastily.

However, the women around did not even take a glance, let alone think more about it, and became busy again. During wartime, who has the time to think about this

A woman boiling water screamed as an arrow pierced her shoulder. However, no one had the time to help her, as over three hundred Huighur cavalrymen outside the city unleashed a volley of arrows, raining down upon them. Despite the upward angle of the attack, the force was still formidable. The women raised their soft shields, straining to defend themselves. At this moment, Guo Fen, who was directing operations in this area, kept encouraging them: "Everyone hold on, hold on! Reinforcements will arrive soon!"

This is war

The enemy is dead, yet I am still alive—this is victory

Zhang Mai came to his senses and saw a hand climbing up the city wall, the hand was within arm's reach. This time he did not hesitate and struck down with a knife, severing the hand cleanly.

Reinforcements arrived quickly—Zhang Mai

"Moreover, they are united against a common enemy; they do not need me at all."

Oh dear, how bitter it is, what shall we do about this

Right on target

His mind was still unclear, but his body had already acted. He charged forward, and one of the Huige people's hands had already climbed up the city wall. Upon seeing Zhang Mai, the other hand immediately thrust a knife towards him

Looking over, it was Guo Bian, the younger brother of Guo Fen. The little fellow was only fourteen years old and was also helping to hold a round shield to protect the commander, Guo Shidao. Catching a glimpse of Zhang Mai idly standing by at https://m.hetushu.com, he drew his own knife and threw it over, saying: "Here’s a knife for you"

A few coarse, robust women shouted without a second thought: "Go for it, it means... victory, victory! Go for it, it means... victory, victory!"

Moreover, this time it was killed directly with a knife

However, this is an unavoidable situation. The "hollow cross octagonal city" has extremely strong defenses, but there are few people inside Shattered Leaf City, making it impossible to defend all twenty sides simultaneously. They can only rely on their feet to move back and forth, constantly running along the city walls to fend off the enemy. Fortunately, the troops of the Khitan cannot simultaneously attack all twenty sides either. The Tang army is moving on the city walls, while the Khitan cavalry is circling outside. Their physical exertion is much greater than that of the Tang army. Although they have the support of horse power, they still cannot gain the upper hand. Moreover, running on the city walls shortens the distance significantly, allowing the Tang archers to often arrive first.

Amidst the flurry of arrows, the meaning of this phrase is unclear, yet we shall shout in unison!

Call

A warning call came from behind, and Guo Bian shouted, "Father, the enemy is approaching the southern right shoulder! We have fewer people on our side. Should we mobilize the reserve troops?"

He stood there majestically, with two women holding soft shields to protect him from arrow attacks

Guo Fen asked him: "What does it mean to cheer on?"

This is a life-and-death struggle! It is not only for the victory of our side, but also for the survival of "me"

Caution

Yang Dingguo hurriedly led his men to the battle, and Guo Shidao shouted: "The Hu invaders want to wear us down!"

Guo Shidao had not yet had the time to explain the origins of Zhang Mai to the Tang people in the city. The women, unaware of the meaning of "Special Envoy," felt a sense of reassurance upon seeing a man arrive, as there were no men on the city wall at that moment. In unison, they raised their voices in a high-pitched shout: "Hold the line! Hold the line!"