Since the Accounting: A Chronicle of the Roman Khanate

Chapter 813 An Ambush Filled with Chivalry
At the foot of the mountain, where the road bends, the army Sigismund sent out indeed encountered the Ming army.

In this area, the forests in the mountains were quite dense, but some flat areas between the hills had still been cleared. Sigismund and his men estimated that if there were any ambushes, they would likely prioritize these places where they couldn't be directly seen from the main road, but where it was easy to house a large force. Therefore, the vanguard of the Crusaders, driven by the nobles, began climbing the mountains after arriving here to see if these places were indeed hiding people.

As a result, they hadn't gone far when they heard a commotion and a woman's shouting coming from the woods.

The mercenaries were very surprised and rushed over, only to find a large group of people gathered in an open space, with many warhorses tied up nearby.

This flat area is quite large and appears to have been cultivated by locals. There are several wooden sheds along the edge of the woodland, surrounded by simple fences, presumably where the farmers who cultivated the land temporarily reside.

But now, the farmers were nowhere to be seen. Instead, these well-equipped people had taken over the flat area. They were chatting and laughing in a language that was hard to understand. In the middle of the crowd, several heavily made-up women, who were barely clothed, were shouting and joking around with the group, having a great time.

The two groups suddenly collided, both taking a great surprise. The mercenaries, somewhat prepared, reacted relatively quickly. The others, however, were startled to see the armed mercenaries and hastily fled to the other side of the woods. Several women, especially, turned pale with fright, screaming loudly at the sight of the mercenaries' gleaming blades.

However, they reacted quickly. Immediately, someone ran to the edge of the woods, pulled the flag from the fence, and waved it to signal everyone to assemble. At the edge of the woods, some people who hadn't participated in the "game" but were just chatting hurriedly drew their swords, stood up, and rushed forward, buying time for the others. The remaining people quickly straightened their disheveled clothes and armor, shouting as they gathered to fight back.

Although caught off guard, these people reacted quickly, immediately engaging the mercenaries in combat. Some sharp-eyed mercenaries noticed that many of the warhorses wore coats with heraldic emblems, and some more knowledgeable ones said that the group opposite them spoke French. Therefore, they guessed they had encountered French knights.

Just as they were figuring out what was going on, things started to get lively around them. Large groups of people also rushed out from other parts of the forest. They were carrying banners with the character "Ming" that the mercenaries had become familiar with, and they were wielding all sorts of weapons, such as pitchforks, rakes, and flails, as they surged toward them.

The mercenaries were caught off guard from the start and rushed into the battle. Although they had the initial advantage, they didn't gain any real advantage against this group. Now, seeing a large enemy force appear, they knew they were outmatched and immediately turned and fled.

Before long, the first group of deserters returned to their starting point and made contact with the main Crusader force. They immediately reported that there were indeed French soldiers lying in ambush in the forest. In addition, there were many others, presumably local farmers, also hiding in the forest. As soon as they approached, a conflict broke out with these people. Everyone fought bravely, but the enemy outnumbered them, so they had to retreat first, ensuring they brought back the message.

Sigismund and his men remained skeptical of these people's words, hesitant to believe them readily. After all, these cheap mercenaries, even if they had experienced several wars, could hardly be considered to possess any real military skill—what they learned in battle was likely not combat techniques, but rather how to be cunning and take advantage of chaos, which was how they managed to survive.

Therefore, their words cannot be entirely trusted. Even if they didn't intend to lie, their language skills and battlefield observation abilities might not be sufficient to clearly explain the actual situation.

Upon hearing their report, the Crusader commanders immediately began questioning them for details to determine its veracity. The mercenaries confirmed that they had not been mistaken this time. The enemy's flag was that of the French royal family; and they spoke French.

Sigismund's advisors then inquired about the specific patterns on the flags and horsecoats. While the mercenaries didn't understand the intricacies, they recognized some of the more distinctive symbols and colors.

After reviewing their testimonies, the heraldic scholar told Sigismund that their accounts were accurate and the other party was indeed French. The details of the encounter also seemed correct, although the fact that they were playing with prostitutes during the ambush was a bit odd, but it only further confirmed that the other party was a genuine Frenchman.

Once the situation was confirmed, the Crusaders immediately moved out and launched a counterattack in the direction from which the mercenaries had retreated. Sure enough, at the foot of the mountain, they encountered the French, who had just assembled, along with a large, chaotic group of armed peasants.

Upon seeing Sigismund's banner, the Frenchmen immediately became excited. They waved their respective family flags, and the leaders even had strange statues on their heads, suggesting they had come prepared and dressed up specially.

After shouting a few times, the group charged ahead of the other Ming soldiers without waiting for them to prepare, heading straight for Sigismund's location.

To quickly ascertain the situation, Sigismund and the Crusader command were positioned very far forward. The French charging in recklessly was quite frightening. Fortunately, they had some elite troops protecting them. Sigismund and several trusted knights of high-ranking nobles also went to meet them, engaging in fierce combat.

The French, though few in number, were highly motivated and, for a time, even overpowered the much larger Imperial knights, creating a gap in their formation. The battleground quickly shifted towards the commander's position. Sigismund hurriedly signaled to his men, urging those behind to come and support him. Fortunately, the road was frequently used by caravans and was relatively wide, so the rear guard should be able to reach them quickly.

Meanwhile, the surrounding peasants also began their attack. Their martial skills were poor; they simply swung their weapons haphazardly. The two sides fought chaotically, with no discernible formation. However, they were very familiar with the terrain, constantly appearing and disappearing through the woods, shooting arrows and even throwing stones at the Crusaders. They also had some large weapons prepared.

The rest of the troops were still on their way when they were bombarded from the hillside. It turned out the attackers had prepared in advance, choosing several suitable angles to set up catapults and ballistae, raining stones and even oil canisters down on the Crusaders' rear. Behind one steep slope, they even lifted the thatched cover to reveal two stone-throwing cannons, then raised the blacksmiths' guild's flag and began operating the cannons, firing at the Crusaders below. This sudden long-range fire made reinforcements from the rear even more difficult. Sigismund and his men could only retreat under the cover of their guards, urging their soldiers to quickly attack the hilltops on either side.

These were all siege weapons, difficult to move, indicating they had been lying in ambush and preparing for a long time. However, these weapons were also difficult to move easily, especially on a small hill. Moreover, their slow rate of fire became apparent after the first volley. The Crusaders in the rear gradually recovered and, in coordination with those in front, attacked the adjacent hill.

As more and more Crusaders joined the battle, the tide began to turn. After fighting for half an hour, the Crusaders, who had been on the defensive, finally drove away the enemies who were constantly hurling catapults at them from both sides of the road. As this firepower gradually fell silent, the pressure on the French at the front increased. Soon, under the command of several noblemen, they turned and rushed out of the crowd, covering each other as they retreated along the forest path.

The Crusaders attempted to pursue them, but numerous enemies shot arrows and hurled spears at them from the sparse woods on both sides of the road, hindering their advance and forcing them to let them go.

However, the battles in other locations had already been decided. As the knights withdrew from the battlefield, the peasants who were still fighting the Crusaders in the forest lost their will to fight and began to scatter and flee. They ran in groups of three or five in various directions, nimbly disappearing into the deeper forests and quickly vanishing from sight.

The battle ended quickly, and the Crusaders hurried to clean up the battlefield. Because the fighting was brief and thanks to timely warnings that prevented an ambush, the casualties were not significant.

As for the results of the battle, it's difficult to tally them in such a hasty manner. However, the soldiers found many abandoned flags and farm tools, indicating that the enemy had fled in great haste and suffered considerable losses. Therefore, each unit exaggerated the number of enemy soldiers killed before reporting to their superiors. Of course, the nobles knew the character of these men and didn't care much about these figures.

Of course, everyone was very happy that they had repelled the ambush.

The Crusaders were not entirely unaware of the risks of this route. Many nobles had fought against the Purple Horde and Ming armies in various regions, and those who survived had accumulated considerable experience. Repeated lessons taught them the importance of scouting the route before marching, as ambushes were always possible. Thanks to this heightened vigilance, some nobles even managed to defeat the Purple Horde army. This demonstrates that European armies, through careful reflection and learning, could improve their tactics. Their past losses were not in vain; these experiences proved invaluable.

This road was the kind of terrain where an ambush was obviously likely. Of course, there's a significant difference between being able to ambush and successfully doing so. Sure enough, the Ming army was well-prepared, even deploying decoys. Fortunately, the reconnaissance was thorough this time, preventing a series of mishaps.

The nobles analyzed the reasons for this victory and concluded that King Wu's success and failure were both due to the French. His previous comeback victories had clearly relied on these foreign aids; however, while enjoying the advantages of the French knights, he had to accept their disadvantages.

If they had been more careful this time, even if they didn't manage to slip through, they could have significantly delayed their discovery, causing the Crusaders even greater trouble. The mercenaries sent to scout ahead were generally of low quality and likely to be timid and hesitant, barely venturing far themselves. Scouting relied heavily on being outmaneuvered. However, the French were far too arrogant and unrestrained, even holding a banquet during the ambush. Now, without even using Sigismund's more reliable cavalry, they had managed to find them out using only these cannon fodder mercenaries.

Another benefit of this battle was that the Crusaders finally dared to accelerate their march with peace of mind. Previously, they had been unable to catch up with the enemy, which had been very frustrating. But in this region, they genuinely dared not travel at full speed, because given the quality of the Crusader scouts, if they marched at full speed, they certainly wouldn't have enough time to spot and report.

Meanwhile, at least 20,000 troops are currently moving out from the Wu King's camp. Regardless of which of these men, or those who participated in the ambush, are the true main force, their sheer numbers alone are enough to show that their involvement in the battle will undoubtedly impact the balance of power. If the Crusaders cannot leave Osning South Mountain and deploy their forces before the Wu King's army reaches the valley and traps them inside, their advantage will be diminished.

Therefore, seeing the Ming army collapse and the last suspense finally disappear, Sigismund ordered all Crusader units to speed up their progress.

The enemy hadn't completely given up. The next day, remnants of the Ming army were still active along both sides of the road, doing their utmost to hinder them. The Crusader high command analyzed that, like the previous harassment at the mountain pass and the inexplicable poisoning in the city, this was no longer about killing, but about delaying as much as possible to prevent them from seizing a better position in the final battle.

As evening approached, something even more outrageous happened—a Frenchman claiming to be Sir La Hire approached the ranks, saying the previous day's fighting hadn't been fulfilling enough, and everyone's skills hadn't been fully displayed. He argued that if Sigismund still had any noble pride, he should come out and challenge him to a chivalrous duel. Since it was called a Crusade, everyone should settle things with pure individual strength, omitting any underhanded tactics, and letting God decide the outcome of this war, thus avoiding dragging more innocent believers into the mess.

The Crusaders all thought this man was insane. Furthermore, the Holy Roman Empire and France had slightly different views on knighthood. In France, knights belonged to the nobility, while in the Holy Roman Empire, they were lower in rank. The French were also influenced by popular culture and were quite fond of these concepts of "chivalry," but Sigismund and his followers clearly had no interest in them.

Of course, the French themselves probably held the same view of chivalry, though it's more often seen in literature. The nobleman in the vanguard immediately refuted him, saying that he had tried to ambush people with trickery the day before, even using catapults; did that count as personal force and conform to chivalry?
La Hire replied that he hadn't designed the ambush. As for the catapults, they were operated by farmers, so it didn't violate chivalry.

The Crusaders were speechless, remarking that this man's skin was so thick he could probably catch a stone. They certainly wouldn't fall for his trick and waste their time. So, they decisively refused his challenge and sent him away.

The entire army continued its advance as planned.

(End of this chapter)