Grass and mustard reign supreme

Chapter 70 He Arrived in a Huge Rush (Bonus Chapter)
As its name suggests, Canglang Gorge is characterized by its cliffs, which appear as if they were carved by an axe or knife.

It cleaved the yellow earth with a single axe stroke, carving a gash in the ridge of this green mountain.

The valley was long and deep, and the wind blowing through it was much fiercer than outside.

More than a hundred of the soldiers from Feng'an Village had already laid an ambush on both sides of the canyon.

During the off-season for farming, hunting is a common way for them to supplement their household income.

During this period, they not only honed their archery skills but also mastered many techniques such as concealing their movements and setting traps.

Now, all these methods for dealing with agile wild beasts are being used.

Zhao Laosan clung to a protruding section of the cliff like a gecko.

This place is dozens of feet above the ground, yet the width of the protrusion is just enough to fit a foot.

But he managed to firmly grip the crevice in the rock with his bare hands.

From this angle, he can see the movements outside the valley immediately.

He stood there, his eyes fixed on the canyon entrance like a hawk's.

More than a hundred soldiers were lying in ambush on the cliffs on both sides.

They carried hunting bows, machetes, lassos, and piles of mud-covered stones.

"coming!"

Suddenly, Zhao Laosan's eyes lit up. He tilted his head back, let out a sharp whistle, and quickly moved away.

At the valley entrance, more than twenty knights escorted eight large carts as they slowly entered.

After passing this mountain pass, we entered the territory of a Xianbei tribe.

Their hearts were finally at ease.

"Wait!" The lead knight suddenly reined in his horse, a vague sense of unease rising in his heart.

Those soldiers used local materials to design many traps and mechanisms to capture wild animals.

However, their methods were so clever that they could fool even wild beasts, so naturally they wouldn't leave any flaws.

However, the leader had a sense of unease, though he didn't know why.

"Boss, is something amiss?" a knight urged his horse closer and asked in a low voice.

The leader did not answer, but stared intently at a particularly narrow and shadowy section of the road ahead.

His right hand slowly began to grip the hilt of the knife under his ribs.

At the top of the cliff, Kang Zhengyang knew he didn't need to wait any longer.

"Do it!"

He shouted, and Kang Zhengyi, who was standing next to him, immediately pushed a huge rock down.

Kang Zhengyang also drew his hunting bow and aimed at the leader.

"Rumble..."

"Crackling..."

Large and small stones, mixed with mud and sand, crashed down from the mountain walls on both sides.

Ahead of the valley, several large trees with canopies like clouds slowly tilted down.

With a loud bang, the dense canopy of trees completely blocked the mountain path.

Some of the rocks piled up on the cliff were supported by wooden sticks.

With just a pry of the wooden stick with a pitchfork, a large pile of stones would fall like hail, making a sound like a landslide.

"There's an ambush! Spread out! Protect the goods!"

The knight leader shouted, and luckily he turned to the side and shouted, thus avoiding a fatal wound to the throat.

Kang Zhengyang's arrow only hit his shoulder.

The leader reacted quickly, rolling off his horse to avoid the second arrow that followed.

The canyon was too narrow, only wide enough for two carriages to pass side by side.

At such a narrow distance, they simply cannot spread out effectively.

But the stones and arrows on it can be poured out to their fullest extent.

These mountain goods transporters were far more skilled than the regular soldiers, but unfortunately, they had no opportunity to use their abilities.

No matter how fast they were, they couldn't outrun the roaring boulders, nor could they outrun the mechanical power of arrows.

A knight was struck by a boulder and immediately fell to the ground along with his horse.

A horse-drawn carriage was hit by a large rock, the carriage was smashed, and the farm goods on the carriage were scattered all over the ground.

Another large vehicle was hit by a rolling stone, breaking five spokes and getting stuck.

The horses pulling the cart were startled and neighed, trying to escape, but could only spin in circles.

The people transporting the mountain goods reacted quickly; the survivors swiftly moved close to the base of the mountain on both sides, hoping to avoid the rolling stones and arrows.

But those damned soldiers threw down one rattan pouch after another.

Those pouches bounced around like balls, smashing the honeycomb inside to pieces.

Those were the nests of wasps, bumblebees, and hornets that the soldiers found in the valley.

They carefully picked it, used the vines on the spot to make a bag, and put it inside.

Once this thing is thrown out, the beehive is damaged, and the enraged swarm of bees will sting anyone they see.

"Ah, ah~ ah~~"

They had already avoided the rolling stones and arrows by hiding under the cliff, but before they could even catch their breath, the swarm of bees arrived.

The person who was stung covered their face with their hands and screamed in pain.

They tried to escape, but stones and arrows kept falling from the sky.

Although the mountain walls on both sides are steep, there are gentle slopes to climb them.

Therefore, the survivors had no choice but to rush up from here.

However, on this short stretch of mountain road, lassos, pits, wooden arrows stretched from tree branches, and crude, thorny battering slabs began to come into play.

These mountain goods transporters were seasoned veterans, but this time they were truly caught off guard and suffered heavy losses. There were only about twenty of them, yet they were ambushed by a group of over a hundred people who had prepared in advance.

Once Kang Zhengyang had exhausted his ranged attack methods, only a handful of people remained who could still wield their swords and fight, and all of them were wounded.

"kill!"

Kang Zhengyang raised his knife, and Kang Zhengyi, who was holding a steel fork, charged down first.

The followers of both mountains responded in unison and rushed out one after another.

The battle devolved into hand-to-hand combat, and the troop soldiers employed formation tactics.

They worked in groups of three or five, wielding long weapons, short weapons, ranged weapons, and even rattan shields, all with excellent teamwork.

Despite their individual martial arts skills being inferior to their opponents, they demonstrated strong combat power by utilizing their coordinated combat capabilities.

Bamboo spears thrust, machetes slash, ropes lasso, shields parry, arrows rain down...

There are only five or six surviving enemies. How can we fight this battle?
As they fell one after another, they managed to kill only one of the sergeants.

This was because the soldier stepped on a loose stone and fell down next to them.

"See if any are still breathing, kill them all!"

After a fierce battle, Kang Zhengyang, leaning on his sword, issued a stern order.

Without being ordered, the soldiers were already searching for survivors.

Those who were hit by rolling stones or arrows and were still barely alive were immediately attacked and stabbed as soon as they were spotted.

Li Quanxin walked breathlessly to a car covered with a tarpaulin. This was the car whose wheels had been smashed, spokes broken, and which was stuck in place.

He didn't cut the rope; the best stuff is a whole hemp rope, as thick as a finger.

Li Quanxin wiped the blood-stained hunting knife on the sole of his shoe, then tucked it into his waistband, untied the ropes with his bare hands, and excitedly lifted the tarpaulin...

What came into his view was neither fine silk nor gold and silver jewelry. What were these things?

Li Quanxin's eyes widened after just one glance.

As a hunter, he couldn't recognize anything being transported in the truck.

"Commander, Commander, come quick! Look what's on this cart!"

Kang Zhengyang was standing not far from him. Hearing the shout, he picked up his knife and walked over.

"Chief, look! What's on this cart?"

Kang Zhengyang walked to the front of the car and peered inside.

Kang Zhengyang was initially puzzled by the neatly stacked and bundled pieces.

Suddenly, he realized what was happening and his expression changed drastically.

"Commander, what is this...?"

Before Li Quanxin could finish speaking, Kang Zhengyang quickly covered the lacquer cloth again.

Several soldiers who had just checked the area and found no survivors were about to come over when they saw Kang Zhengyang's extremely grim face.

A chill ran from Kang Zhengyang's tailbone straight up to the top of his head.

Kang Zhengyang's hair stood on end.

He knew that this time he had probably provoked a terrifying person he absolutely could not afford to offend.

……

Kang Zhengyang was insightful.

He had a set of worn-out armor that the Yu family had given to his father, which he treasured.

He usually only takes it out to maintain it, and he is reluctant to wear it at all.

He now recognized that the vehicle was loaded with armor.

The hunter Li Quanxin didn't recognize them because the armor pieces were disassembled parts.

These large carts were mostly loaded with Liangdang armor, a type of armored cavalry gear.

In addition, there were several sets of even more ornate Mingguang armor worn by the generals.

Disassembling the armor into parts allows for more efficient use of the vehicle's cargo space.

Using his own suit of armor as a reference, Kang Zhengyang estimated that the four carts carried approximately one hundred suits of armor.

That's a hundred sets!
In this day and age, swords and spears are not forbidden, and even bows and arrows are not forbidden.

However, armor and crossbows were things that any ruler strictly prohibited the common people from possessing.

The reason is simply that armor and crossbows play such a significant role on the battlefield, and their effect on combat effectiveness is too obvious.

Although the eight clans of Longshang were independent and not a unified country, they shared a highly consistent attitude towards the control of armor and crossbows.

In their territory, anyone found to be possessing or selling armor or crossbows would be executed!
These people transporting mountain goods smuggled around a hundred sets of armor on this one occasion alone.

One hundred sets of armor are equivalent to at least five hundred plain-clad cavalrymen.

More importantly, armored cavalry charges can easily tear apart the formations of unarmored cavalry.

Therefore, its effect on a battle cannot be simply measured in terms of a ratio of one to several.

Having just two hundred elite armored cavalrymen is enough to influence the outcome of a medium-sized battle.

Any one of the eight powerful clans in Longshang would investigate thoroughly if they discovered such a large-scale armor transaction on their territory, treating it as a major threat.

Otherwise, even they would feel uneasy.

What Kang Zhengyang feared was: what kind of person could have the ability to conduct such a large-scale armor transaction?
How could a mere manor commander possibly contend with such strength?

Yes, he could report this to the clan leader, but while the clan leader would certainly value this matter, would the clan leader send someone to protect him indefinitely?
Someone who can offer a hundred sets of cavalry armor in a trade would be incredibly easy to kill without making a sound.

Such a powerful enemy, hiding in the shadows, he's doomed!
Kang Zhengyang stood blankly in front of the car, his mind in turmoil.

Just then, a rapid sound of horses' hooves suddenly came.

Kang Zhengyang couldn't help but shiver.

He suddenly looked up and saw Yang Can and Leopard Head, leading seven or eight guards, galloping into the valley at breakneck speed.

Kang Zhengyang looked at them like a lamb that had fallen into a pit, watching another lamb hopping and skipping towards the trap...

(End of this chapter)