The bandit army fanned out again and launched another reckless charge toward Bai Family Fort.
The stone throwers and giant crossbows opened fire at the same moment.
Boulders thudded down with heavy booms, but with the bandits now scattered, only the unluckiest fools were crushed outright.
The giant crossbows weren't doing much better; most bolts slid harmlessly through the gaps.
The dumb louts charging in the lead burst into laughter, morale suddenly sky-high.
"Brother No-Mud really is something! A tiny trick and the government dogs can't touch us!"
But they barely laughed for two seconds.
A full row of soldiers leaned over the fort wall, bows drawn, and unleashed a synchronized volley.
The soldiers' bows weren't the crude hunting bows the village militias used. These were Kaiyuan bows—government issue.
The top grade Kaiyuan pulled at a hundred and twenty jin; even the lowest grade pulled at sixty.
And the bowmen? A different league entirely. With a volley like this, half their arrows were guaranteed hits.
The bandits in the front froze, then felt a sudden stab of pain in their chests. Looking down, they saw arrows quivering from their rough hemp vests—fletching still trembling.
A sixty-jin bow didn't play games. It killed.
The dozen fastest runners collapsed instantly, rolling on the ground, grabbing at the shafts and howling.
"I'm hit! I'm hit—damn—this hurts—!"
Before they could finish screaming, the bowmen had already nocked again. Another volley rained down.
Now the disadvantage of being spread out finally showed. When the front row fell, those behind had to run extra steps to replace them—precious seconds that let the bowmen draw a third volley.
Another wave of bodies dropped.
The bandits who dodged the giant bolts couldn't dodge the bowmen. Before long, bodies carpeted the ground.
"Where are our bowmen!? Return fire!" roared Purple Gold Dragon.
Bandits drew their little hunting bows and sent arrows up—but the soldiers wore cloth armor with metal plates sewn inside. Rusty, yes, but still armor. The weak hunting bows couldn't pierce them; the arrows bounced off like toothpicks.
"Shields! Get your pot lids up!" Double-Winged Tiger bellowed.
Those lucky enough to have wooden pot lids raised them quickly.
To be fair, pot lids weren't bad at blocking arrows. With a dull thumping sound, they finally reached the wall.
Bai Family Fort's wall wasn't a real city wall—just a rural gentry courtyard, one zhang high. Two bandits could make a human ladder and climb it.
One bandit crouched down to act as a footstool, but before his partner could climb, a soldier popped over the parapet holding a big stone and smashed it down.
The pot lid didn't help. With a crack, both lid and bandit went tumbling off the wall. The soldier even gave a smug "heh" before ducking back down.
"Stone! Next!" the soldier shouted.
A sturdy village woman scurried forward, crouched low, and passed him another rock.
The soldier took it, popped out again, and smashed another bandit clean off the wall.
The bandits were thrown into chaos, but they were already beneath the wall. They couldn't retreat now, so they pushed on, desperate to climb.
Soon a human ladder formed. One fierce bandit swung his blade and scrambled onto the wall—
Only to be met by three soldiers and three iron-tipped spears.
Government-issue spears weren't bamboo sticks. They punched holes clean through. One thrust and the bandit was skewered and flung backwards.
Clashes erupted all along the wall.
Bandits kept climbing, but compared to real soldiers—armor, weapons, discipline—they were like children. The hundred elite soldiers stood firm at the front, their cloth armor shrugging off most attacks, while every counterstrike sent a bandit tumbling back down.
Behind them fought the Bai household guards and local militia, adding numbers and chaos. Bandits made it up the wall only to be thrown off immediately.
Cheng Xu stood behind, supervising, completely uninterested in getting hit himself. From time to time he shouted orders, sent a few reserve soldiers where needed, or yelled insults at the bandits just for fun.
Seeing someone finally taking command, Bai Yuan felt relieved. He extended a hand to his personal servant.
"Bow."
The servant wiped sweat. "Master is shooting again?"
Bai Yuan puffed up proudly. "These past days, this old master has practiced diligently. Among the Six Noble Arts, the Art of Archery has returned to me! Watch now—observe the elegance of a gentleman's shot!"
He drew the bow, aimed at a bandit who had just climbed onto the wall, and loosed.
What a shot—cutting wind, slicing air, soaring like a meteor—
Thunk!
Straight into the back armor plate of a government soldier.
Everyone: "…"
The soldier, protected by his rusted heart plate, was unhurt—but enraged. He spun around and roared, "Which bastard shot one of our own!?"
Then he saw Bai Yuan holding the bow.
He swallowed his anger whole and silently turned back to fight.
Bai Yuan's face burned red. "Erase the Art of Archery. Remove it. Gone."
He sighed and turned to the servant. "Mark that soldier's name. Send a heavy gift later—this old master greatly values the Art of Ritual."
Everyone: "…"
Cheng Xu said, "Stop fooling around. The bandits are retreating."
Sure enough, Bai Yuan looked and saw the bandits breaking. Their morale had collapsed.
No matter how Double-Winged Tiger and Purple Gold Dragon screamed, the bandits refused to charge again. They had no choice but to order retreat.
Like a tide rolling backward, they carried off wounded and corpses alike. They had arrived swaggering—but left in misery. In moments, Bai Family Fort was quiet again.
Far away, the "Mud" banner wavered twice before turning toward Yellow Dragon Mountain. Both bandit leaders followed it away.
The people inside Bai Family Fort blinked, then burst into cheers.
"We won! The fort held!"
"Bai Family Fort stands!"
The guards, militia, and villagers cheered together, their shouts echoing for miles.
Bai Yuan flicked open his folding fan, the words "Noble Gentleman" gleaming on it. Smug, he swept his gaze across the ten stone throwers and ten giant crossbows, then across the villagers who had fought tooth and nail.
He thought:
All thanks to Tianzun for granting me these divine tools, and the grain that kept these villagers fed. Of course they fought with all their strength. Truly, Dao Xuan Tianzun blesses us!
Footnotes
Kaiyuan Bow – A historically recognized Tang-era bow type known for strong draw weights. A 120-jin bow (roughly 132 pounds of draw force) required considerable strength and training.
Cloth Armor with Metal Plates – Common low-grade military armor in several dynastic periods. Layers of fabric with sewn-in metal scales could stop hunting arrows but not heavy war bows.
Human Ladder Assault – A real siege tactic. Poorly equipped forces often used bodies (sometimes literally) to scale walls lacking proper siege ladders.
Rusty Armor Plates – Even rusty lamellar or scale armor still functioned. Rust made it ugly, not useless.