Frontier Army Warrior

Chapter 1142 The Crown Prince's Expectations

Several battles had made him complacent. This time, after occupying Meijin County, he was ordered by his superiors to cooperate with the main force to prepare to capture Luocheng.

Mizukawa was very excited. Los Angeles was a very big and magnificent city, and the sight of its high walls filled him with excitement.

Imagine how much treasure is inside, along with countless beautiful women and slaves.

If he could be brought back to his homeland, his family would immediately rise to prominence and become a prominent clan in the region.

If he had only three thousand men and couldn't swallow such a large piece of meat as Luo City, he would have ordered an attack long ago.

That night, Mizukawa drank some of the stolen wine, but the alcohol was surprisingly strong, and he fell asleep in a daze.

Unexpectedly, at that very moment, a major incident occurred.

A soldier rushed in to report that the warships in the river had caught fire.

From the city wall, the soldiers could see the distant ships with their flames blazing.

Mizukawa was furious. How dare these scoundrels burn his warships? They must be tired of living. He would not be able to quell his anger until he had slaughtered all these swine.

Mizukawa immediately ordered the entire army to leave the city, with some responsible for fighting the fire and others for apprehending the arsonists.

Three thousand soldiers quickly gathered their weapons and equipment and rushed out of the city gate.

They were woken from their sleep, and in their dazed state, they picked up their weapons and followed the others out of the city.

Many people didn't know what was happening; they just instinctively followed along.

A crowd of several thousand people followed the person in front of them, running towards the river.

As I ran, I vaguely heard the thunderous roar of warhorses galloping, and the ground shook. This was a tremendous noise I had never experienced before.

After experiencing it several times, they believed that no one on this land could withstand the attack of the Dahe tribe's army.

They never imagined that an army would come to attack them.

The next moment, the still bewildered soldier was knocked away.

A pirate, sword in hand, watched helplessly as his companion, who had been running alongside him just moments before, suddenly vanished, and a warhorse, swift as the wind, swept past him.

Then, many people around me were taken away.

He was left standing there dumbfounded, looking around, the flames flickering on his face.

He looks exactly like Mizukawa.

However, as the leader, Mizukawa reacted much faster. Realizing that they had been ambushed, he immediately shouted for everyone to prepare to fight.

"Form up and meet the enemy!"

Mizukawa screamed, his voice hoarse and strained.

These soldiers, used to being lax, took a long time to come to their senses. They held their swords and looked around, waiting for the enemy to reappear.

Many of the pirate soldiers reacted quickly, knowing how to deal with the Taisho cavalry. They formed squads of thirty men, creating various formations, waiting for the enemy to arrive.

The fire on the dock grew fiercer the smaller it got, but the pirates couldn't afford to put it out, fearing another attack by enemy cavalry.

Mizukawa waited a moment, then decided that the warships couldn't be left unsaved; they were life-saving equipment.

He immediately called out several names and divided the three thousand men into two groups: one group rushed to the dock to put out the fire, while the other group remained in formation to await the enemy.

However, their delay meant the fire on the dock was beyond extinguishing, and even if it could be put out, most of the warships would be destroyed.

Mizukawa, who was on high alert, never received another attack from the enemy cavalry.

When he led his troops to the dock, he saw a stretch of charred warships, nearly a hundred in number, with most of them burned to ashes.

Mizukawa's vision went black, and he fell backward to the ground.

Meanwhile, Lin Feng had climbed up the riverbank and arrived at the assembly point, ordering the officers to count the number of people.

After waiting a while longer, the sound of horses' hooves could be heard in the distance.

It was the iron cavalry that had attacked the pirate reinforcements, rushing over.

Ye Liangcai took the lead and arrived at the gathering point. Upon seeing Lin Feng, he excitedly jumped off his warhorse.

"Boss, if we turn back and charge again, even more pirates will die."

"Don't be greedy for quick success or act rashly; proceed according to plan."

Lin Feng scolded.

"I know, boss."

Ye Liangcai made a face in the darkness and turned to call out to his soldiers.

After a quick count, it was found that twenty-four soldiers had not returned to their posts.

Lin Feng ordered everyone to mount their horses and head downstream along the riverbank.

There's no other way; training soldiers' combat and survival skills in actual combat is like sifting through sand, and some men will inevitably be lost.

This is inevitable.

Fifteen miles from the Meijin County wharf, there was a shallow beach, and Lin Feng planned to cross the Yongding River from there.

Both humans and horses can swim, and the current is not rapid in the shallows, so crossing the river should not be a problem.

As they marched on, the group turned to look at the raging fire behind them, which was already shooting into the sky. Even if the fire were extinguished, the damage to the warships would be incalculable.

The Zhenfeng Battalion members were delighted; the battle had been extremely exciting, and the casualties were negligible.

Since joining the Taisho Imperial Guard, where have I ever had such a brilliant and exhilarating battle?

They developed an even greater sense of admiration for their leader.

In times of war, following such a leader is a guarantee of life and can also lead to repeated military achievements.

It's about having a blast and then making tons of money.

Because after they crossed the river, Lin Feng had already ordered the start of tallying the battle achievements and recording everyone's merits, so that a battle report could be compiled and uploaded to the imperial court later.

In the darkness, the soldiers themselves did not know how many pirates they had slashed, stabbed, or run over; they could only estimate and report the numbers.

Of course, at this time, these soldiers were all quite honest, and no one made false reports or claimed any benefits.

Lin Feng wouldn't rely solely on their own accounts; these figures would be verified later by information coming from the pirates.

Only after verification from all aspects can it be put into practice.

After the statistics were compiled, the soldiers were allowed a short rest to check the wear and tear on their equipment and warhorses.

Before setting off, everyone brought supplies and medicine for their wounds.

Anyone with injuries, including minor wounds on their warhorse, should be treated and bandaged immediately.

The warhorses are cared for, cleaned, fed water, and given hay.

Half an hour later, all the soldiers mounted their horses and marched southwest overnight.

Inside Luoyang, Crown Prince Zhao Jian sat wearily in his study.

His 30,000 imperial guards suffered heavy casualties after several battles with the pirates.

There was no other way but to gather all the soldiers inside the city and defend against the pirates by relying on the high walls.

Unexpectedly, the city defense battle was also extremely difficult. The pirates were very fast at climbing the walls, like a group of monkeys jumping on the city walls. They were able to complete the climbing operation even without ladders.

Fortunately, the Taisho Imperial Guards were numerous and their defenses were tight, which barely managed to hold off the pirates' attack.

However, such a perilous defensive battle always made the soldiers' hearts pound with fear, because one day, a moment of carelessness might allow the pirates to climb into the city.

Urgent requests were sent to the Imperial City in Kyoto.

More than half a month has passed, and there has been no reply from the emperor. Luoyang seems to have become an isolated city, surrounded by pirates.

This morning, Zhao Jian received a battle report that three thousand pirates in Meijin County, southwest of Luocheng, had suddenly set out, crossed the Yongding River, and headed south.

The cause is under investigation.

It was as if a gap had suddenly been torn open in the encirclement of Luocheng, allowing Crown Prince Zhao Jian to see a glimmer of sky.