Water Margin: The Tale of Li Erlang of Guankou

Chapter 203 The Ironclad Chainmail is Invincible, the Hooked Scythes and Iron Nails Conceal Deadly I

The night was deep and dark, like a heavy curtain soaked in ink, pressing down on the sky above Yuncheng County.

Within the Liangshan camp, the usual clamor and heavy drinking were gone, replaced by a suffocating, solidified, deathly silence.

In the wounded soldiers' camp, the air was filled with a strange smell, a mixture of blood, herbs, and sweat that was so thick it was almost unbearable.

The "miracle doctor" An Daoquan and his dozens of half-baked apprentices were already extremely busy, their eyes bloodshot and faces exhausted.

There are too many wounded soldiers.

Those struck by the armored chain cavalry mostly suffered collapsed chests and abdomens, shattered bones, and ruptured internal organs, making them impossible to treat. We could only watch helplessly as they slowly lost their breath amidst painful groans.

Lin Chong lay on a simple camp bed, his face as pale as paper.

The wound on his left shoulder was so deep that the bone was visible. When the black horse fell, his left leg was also crushed by the heavy horse's body. It was now hastily fixed with a splint, and every slight breath would trigger a piercing pain.

But what is this physical pain compared to the humiliation and resentment in his heart?

Lin Chong, the instructor of 800,000 Imperial Guards, unparalleled in spear and staff fighting, had never suffered such a humiliating defeat! Never had he ever been defeated so disgracefully!

The tent flap was suddenly flung open, and a chilly night wind swept in, causing the dim oil lamp flame inside to flicker violently.

Madam Lin carried in a steaming bowl of herbal medicine and strode in.

When she saw her husband's pale face on the bed and the wound wrapped in thick bandages, her eyes instantly welled up with tears.

"Husband..."

Lin Chong forced a smile.

"I'm fine, it's just a superficial injury, I'll be fine in a few days."

Madam Lin put down the medicine bowl, but tears involuntarily rolled down her cheeks.

She said nothing, but silently sat down on the edge of the bed, picked up a clean cloth, and gently wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

Just then, the curtain was lifted again.

Li Hanxiao, dressed in black armor, slowly walked in.

He saw Lin Chong on the bed, then glanced at Lin Niangzi who was weeping beside him, and a trace of guilt flashed in his eyes, which always held a hint of mockery.

"Instructor Lin, it was my fault... my poor command caused you to suffer."

Lin Chong struggled to get up and bow.

"Chief, you flatter me! Victory and defeat are common occurrences in war. It is my lack of skill that is the problem, what does it have to do with you, Chief!"

Li Hanxiao quickly stepped forward and pinned him down.

"Lie still and don't move around."

As soon as he finished speaking, Madam Lin suddenly stood up. Her eyes, which were always gentle and tender, were now like two icy knives, staring intently at Li Hanxiao.

"Zhaizhu!"

Her voice wasn't loud, but it was chillingly cold.

“My husband, the instructor of 800,000 Imperial Guards, has never suffered such a severe injury! Chieftain, what promises did you make to us back then! You said Liangshan was our home, you said you would protect us!”

"But look at what's happened now! More than three hundred lives have been lost in that desolate wasteland without any explanation! My husband even nearly lost his life on the spot! Is this what you call thoroughness?!"

"Wife! Shut up! Don't be rude to the chieftain!" Lin Chong shouted urgently, struggling to sit up, but the movement aggravated his wounds, causing him to gasp in pain.

"Let her speak," Li Han smiled and waved his hand, indicating that Lin Chong need not be angry.

He looked at Madam Lin's pretty face, flushed red with anger, and sighed deeply.

He knew that what she was saying was the pain in everyone's heart.

“Sister-in-law is right. Today’s defeat is entirely my fault. I underestimated the enemy, I was reckless, and I caused the deaths of my brothers.”

Li Han smiled and bowed deeply to Lin Niangzi.

"I, Li Hanxiao, hereby swear that I will avenge this humiliation!"

"Husband..."

Just when the atmosphere was at its most awkward, a clear and melodious voice, like a nightingale singing in a valley, came from outside the tent.

Li Shishi, dressed in an elegant dress and carrying a food box, gracefully entered the room, seemingly transforming the somber atmosphere into a spring breeze.

She smiled slightly at Madam Lin, a smile that seemed to have the magic to melt ice and snow.

"Sister, don't get angry. My husband... the chieftain is more heartbroken than anyone else. I've made some ginseng soup. Please persuade Instructor Lin to drink it while it's hot so he can recover soon."

As she spoke, she placed the food box on the table and subtly moved between Li Hanxiao and Lin Niangzi, separating the two.

“Sister, I know you feel sorry for Instructor Lin, but swords have no eyes, and life and death are determined by fate on the battlefield. As the leader of the three armies, the chieftain has the lives of tens of thousands of brothers on his shoulders. He didn’t want this either.”

Li Shishi held Lin Niangzi's hand and gently comforted her.

Looking at her, and then at her husband on the bed whose face was growing paler, Lin Niangzi's anger was gradually replaced by worry.

She sighed deeply, said nothing more, picked up the bowl of ginseng soup, and silently blew on it.

After learning about the battle situation, the wealthy families in Yuncheng County began to stir again.

Their hearts, which had been hanging in suspense, were put back at ease. Secretly, they began to plot and discuss how to deal with Liangshan even more ruthlessly, and how to take back the lost land and wealth with even greater force.

However, they all miscalculated one thing.

Li Hanxiao's patience was reserved for the common people, not for these bloodsucking parasites.

It's not that it is not reported, the time has not come.

The atmosphere inside the Hall of Gathering Righteousness remained oppressive.

Li Hanxiao sat on the tiger-skin command seat, looking at the pairs of eyes below him, some filled with grief and indignation, others with confusion. He knew in his heart that today's defeat would be a fatal blow to morale.

This was the first truly devastating defeat suffered by the Liangshan army since he joined the Liangshan bandits.

"Brothers, the responsibility for today's defeat lies entirely with me."

Li Hanxiao slowly stood up and bowed deeply to everyone.

"It was because I was unprepared when I was trying to find out the strength of the chained horses that more than three hundred brothers were killed on the battlefield."

Wen Huanzhang quickly got up and helped Li Hanxiao up.

"Chief, you mustn't say that! Warfare is based on deception. This feigned defeat to lure the enemy was a plan we devised long ago. Without today's defeat, how could we have made Huyan Zhuo underestimate us and advance recklessly? How could we have made him bet everything on that linked horse formation?"

“Exactly!” Guan Sheng stroked his magnificent beard, his phoenix eyes narrowing. “Today, when I fought Xuan Zan, he clearly recognized me. He only managed to hold his own for a dozen or so rounds before fleeing in panic. This shows that he is not truly hostile to Liangshan. This is also a prelude to Huyan Zhuo underestimating the fighting strength of Liangshan.”

Wen Huanzhang nodded and said, "General Guan is absolutely right. Both the victory and the defeat were within our calculations. The victory was to show Huyan Zhuo that Liangshan also has capable generals and warriors, so that he would not dare to act rashly; the defeat was to make him believe that we are ultimately a rabble and cannot be defeated. Only the linked horses are the magic weapon for victory."

"As for the brothers who have been lost," Wen Huanzhang sighed, "on the battlefield, swords have no eyes, and life and death are preordained. What we can do is to treat their families well, provide generous compensation, let them pass away in peace, and also ensure that our surviving brothers have no worries."

Li Hanxiao slowly sat down. He knew that Wen Huanzhang was right.

This was a necessary sacrifice.

But in his heart, it still felt like a huge rock was pressing down.

"General Guan, you just said that you and Xuan Zan are old acquaintances?"

“Exactly.” Guan Sheng nodded. “Several years ago, when I was still a patrol inspector in Pudong, I had a brief encounter with Xuan Zan, who was then a junior officer in the Imperial Guard, and we sparred. Although his martial arts skills were not top-notch, he was a fairly upright person, unlike those treacherous villains. When we met on the battlefield today, he looked quite troubled, which suggests that he was forced into this situation.”

"If that's the case, we can send someone to secretly contact him and find out the strength of the government troops." Zhu Wu waved his feather fan, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.

"Absolutely not." Li Hanxiao flatly denied it. "There are too many variables in such a case of betrayal on the battlefield. How can we entrust the lives of tens of thousands of brothers to the wavering of an outsider? The way to victory ultimately depends on the swords and spears in our own hands!"

He stood up, walked to the huge geomantic map, and stared intently at the model of the linked horses, his gaze like two sharp knives.

"The strength of the chain-linked cavalry lies in their unstoppable group charge on the plains. Their armor is so strong that it is difficult for swords and spears to penetrate."

"However, its weaknesses are also obvious!"

Li Hanxiao's fingers tapped heavily on the rugged mountain model on the geomantic map.

"Firstly, it has poor mobility! The horses are chained together, so if one horse is startled, the whole team is restricted, making it difficult to maneuver and change formations flexibly!"

"Secondly, they are vulnerable to complex terrain! Such heavy armor, whether carried by a person or a horse, carries a load of over a hundred pounds. If they encounter mountains, hills, rivers, or swamps, their charging momentum will be greatly reduced, and they may even be unable to move an inch!"

"Thirdly, although its armor is strong, it is not invincible! The horse's legs! The joints of the horse's legs, in order to facilitate movement, must be the weakest points of its armor!"

Li Hanxiao's gaze swept across the entire room, his voice resolute.

"Now we no longer need to lure the enemy deep into our territory, so I have decided to adopt a 'space-for-time' strategy!"

"Abandon all plains outside Yuncheng! Move all people and supplies into Yuncheng County! Fortify the city walls and scorched earth, and defend this isolated city to the death!"

"We will choose this hilly and riverine area east of Yuncheng, directly connected to our Liangshan Marsh, as the site of the decisive battle!"

"I'm going to use this complicated terrain to cripple his prized chain of horses!"

Upon hearing this, all the generals were invigorated.

But Lu Zhishen scratched his bald head and asked in a muffled voice, "Brother, that's true. But even if we lead him to that wretched place, his iron shell is still hard to crack. My staff will only make a sound when I hit it."

"Yes, Chieftain, it's still difficult to break through their charge head-on," Lin Chong said, frowning.

Just when everyone was at a loss, a slightly hoarse but powerful voice rang out from the corner.

"Chief, perhaps I have a way to handle this matter!"

Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw Zhang Xiong, the "Purple-Faced General," with a face full of purple flesh and a body as burly as an iron tower, slowly stepping out.

“I come from a blacksmithing family. For three generations, my ancestors made a living by forging iron in Luzhou Prefecture, Hedong Road. My grandfather participated in the war against the Liao Kingdom and saw a weapon manual specifically designed to deal with the Khitan ‘Hooked Horses’.”

"That weapon is called the 'Hook-Sickle Spear'!"

The moment the words "hook and sickle spear" were uttered, the entire room fell silent.

Zhang Xiong took out a tattered cloth that was already yellowed from being soaked in sweat from his pocket and carefully unfolded it.

On the cloth, a strangely shaped weapon was drawn with the crudest charcoal pencil.

Below the spearhead, there was a crescent-shaped barb, incredibly sharp, exuding a chilling aura even on the drawing.

"This spear is not intended to pierce iron armor, but to hook the horse's leg! No matter how thick the iron armor is, the horse's leg is still made of flesh! As long as it is hooked and falls down, the chain of cavalry will break without a fight!"

Li Han smiled as he looked at the simple yet ingenious blueprint, his eyes gleaming brightly!

"Excellent! What a fine hook-and-sickle spear!"

Yet a sense of unease rose in his heart.

In the original novel, Xu Ning's hook-and-sickle spear technique was used to break the chain of horses.

Nowadays, we only have guns, but no laws. How much power can they possibly have?