The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 57 A Waste of Life, A Waste of Water

The black-armored general also knew the importance of seizing the opportunity. When he learned that the man was still at the front of the battle, he immediately urged his men to attack according to the formation they had just arranged.

After everyone was in position, he gave his men a final instruction: "You all know our mission: to kill this damned Prince Su. We've been given a death order; if we fail, there's no going back. This attack is our last chance. Those on the flanks, draw away the enemy soldiers at all costs. Those of you in the middle, hide your bows and crossbows and don't rush to attack. Once you understand my orders, unleash your full power and send him to his grave."

Everyone watched the black-armored general speak, and no one responded, but their resolute gazes revealed their determination to die.

Seeing that everyone understood his meaning, the black-armored general waved his hand and launched an attack.

Upon receiving the order, the seven or eight diamond-shaped squads on both sides launched the first attack.

They were responsible for drawing the enemy away from the Black Armor General and his men in the middle, so they attacked fiercely from the very beginning, fighting recklessly and without regard for their own lives.

So they quickly broke through the bamboo poles and engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the soldiers defending the mountain.

After these people fought like madmen and suffered half their casualties, several of their squads rushed up the steep slope and broke into Tu Chengyu's position from both flanks.

As the enemy attacked, Tu Chengyu's side naturally could not stand idly by. Su Xuanbao immediately drew men from the central reserve to support the two flanks.

The black-armored general, hiding not far away, saw what was happening and knew his opportunity had come. Without hesitation, he immediately stood up and shouted:
"Follow me and charge forward."

The main enemy force led by the black-armored general was selected from the well-rested reserves, and each of them was much stronger than those on the flanks.

Therefore, their charge was much more powerful than that of the others, almost completely ignoring the existence of the long bamboo poles. In just a few breaths, they rushed from several meters away to the steep slope where the two sides were fighting.

Once they reached the steep slope, they encountered more attacks, but the enemy soldiers at the forefront didn't care about their own lives at all.

They held up their round shields, using their bodies to block the swords and spears of Tu Chengyu's soldiers, and charged forward with all their might.

Even with countless wounds inflicted on their bodies by swords and spears, they remained unmoved, forcing themselves to use their last bit of strength just to get closer to the steep slope.

As they stood at the bottom of the steep slope, even as they collapsed, they forced themselves to bend over and kneel, using their bodies to form steps so that those behind them could step on them to continue the fight.

There were more than just one or two such suicide squad members. The first wave fell, and the second wave immediately filled in, still fighting with the same reckless abandon.

With the enemy charging recklessly, even if Tu Chengyu's side had a favorable terrain, casualties among his soldiers were inevitable.

Furthermore, with some of the positions in the middle being redeployed to support the flanks, the defenses here were actually weakened by the impact, and the enemy had already attacked from the very center of the entire defensive position.

Seeing this, Su Xuanbao quickly deployed his last remaining reserve troops, which barely managed to hold them off.

However, how could the enemy let such an opportunity slip away? The enemy's black-armored general roared and led several burly soldiers, stepping over the corpses of his men, charging forward like wild boars amidst the arrows and spears.

These men were burly and skilled, and together with the other bandits who had already charged forward, they quickly forced the defending troops to retreat, clearing a large open space in the area.

This open space exposed Prince Su, who was watching the battle from a few feet behind, to the enemy's view.

The black-armored general, seeing the opportunity he had risked hundreds of lives for presented itself, immediately roared:
"Fire arrows!"

Down the steep slope, the enemy archers, who were already prepared, quickly took down their crossbows from their backs. Without even aiming, and without distinguishing friend from foe, they simply determined the general direction and swiftly pulled the triggers. In an instant, dozens of crossbow bolts flew towards the unprotected Prince Su.

The sound of crossbows piercing the air drew the attention of both sides.

Under the watchful eyes of both sides, Prince Su, standing at the rear, fell to the ground like a porcupine, riddled with crossbow bolts.

With his fall, an eerie calm descended upon the battlefield. Both sides ceased fighting, craning their necks to look at the fallen Prince Su, wondering if he was truly dead.

Su Xuanbao, who was closest to Prince Su, was the first to react. He ran to Prince Su's side in two steps, reached out to check his breath, then stood up, his face contorted, and roared in a shrill voice:

"Kill the traitors"

Hearing Su Xuanbao's mournful roar, the soldiers on Tu Chengyu's side turned red-eyed. They disregarded their own lives and charged at the enemy with their swords and spears.

Meanwhile, the enemy soldiers, upon hearing Su Xuanbao's roar, all broke into smiles.

Now that their mission is complete, the pressure they had been holding onto has been released, and they no longer have the drive to fight desperately.

The morale of both sides fluctuated, and the enemy was quickly driven down the steep slope.

This time, the soldiers on the mountain did not stay put, but followed closely behind, rushing down in a swarm to chase and fight the enemy.

The enemy general in black armor was no pushover. After the tide of battle turned, he was able to organize his men to defend against the attacks from this side in layers and retreat from the hillside forest in an orderly manner.

However, what he hadn't anticipated was that as they retreated from the hillside, they suddenly discovered a fully armed and ready-to-fight fresh force behind them.

As soon as they appeared, this fresh force charged forward in neat formation.

The black-armored general's joy vanished instantly. Although he immediately ordered his men to deal with the situation, he held no hope whatsoever.

After the intense struggle on the hillside, everyone was exhausted. With the mission accomplished, no one had the will to fight again.

If there were still any hope of escape, everyone might have persevered. But when this reinforcement, hidden behind them, appeared at the most crucial moment, they cut off their last escape route.
In this situation, few people would still have the determination to fight to the death.

As General Black Armor had predicted, once their fresh troops charged in, his once unstoppable men fell one after another like harvested wheat.

The black-armored general couldn't bear to see such a scene and couldn't help but close his eyes.

At this moment, he especially wanted to see the person commanding the battle on the other side, to see what kind of ruthless person he was, who could remain calm and suppress the ambush troops behind him even after the position was breached and a prince was shot dead, just waiting to give him a fatal blow at the critical moment.

As he pondered, the black-armored general sensed something was amiss. He seemed to suddenly realize something, abruptly opened his eyes, and looked up at the hillside.

Through countless tree trunks, he could vaguely see a boy standing on the hilltop, surrounded by a group of people, smiling at him.

(End of this chapter)