Dark Sand: My Players Are All Actors
Chapter 125 - 120: Collapse Without a Fight?

Chapter 125: Chapter 120: Collapse Without a Fight?

Elegantly firing off a shot that dispatched the wandering warrior, Li Hongyun felt quite pleased with himself.

"What good is your exquisite swordsmanship in the face of a firearm? It’s all useless!"

Indeed, once the military funds were in place, the Sheng Army’s weapons and armor were comprehensively upgraded, and the previously formidable enemies all became a thing of the past.

There’s an adage that fits well: to do great things, you must achieve three things—first, have money; second, have money; third, it’s still about money!

The Sheng Army had evolved from initially having the combat power of mere weaklings to now being utterly unstoppable. General Deng’s reform of the military system and rigorous training certainly played a significant role, but the provision of ample funds was also a crucial factor.

Otherwise, without the abundance of Wolf Whisker spears and rattan shields, not to mention top-quality firearms, they would likely have had to pay a heavy price in a confrontation with these well-trained bandits.

Of course, the current firearms were not so frightening in power; a single shot was not enough to kill outright, and the accuracy would fail at a distance, but this shot was fired at close range, and with long spearmen on hand to deliver the coup de grâce, this battle-hardened bandit thus died in a most humiliating way.

Li Hongyun then casually blew the gunpowder smoke from the muzzle and handed it back to the nearby gunner, "Reload!"

It sure is great being the Deputy General!

The nearby gunner, though angry, didn’t dare to speak out and silently lowered his head to reload the gun.

The principle of the matchlock gun of this era, although not particularly complicated, still required skillful handling for the loading process, and not just anyone could do it.

During the later period of the Great Sheng Dynasty, firearms gradually came into prominence. The Eastern Barbarian People improved upon the Western Continent’s matchlock guns to produce the Eastern Barbarian Gun, and the Sheng Army, based on seized Western and Eastern Barbarian matchlock guns, further refined them into a new type of matchlock.

At this point, the gun had prefabricated charges, but the loading process was still far from convenient, so it could not serve as the primary weapon in battle.

For once gunners get in close quarters, they are almost guaranteed to be slaughtered.

General Deng had incorporated gunners into the formation, coordinated with rattan shield bearers, Wolf Whisker troops, and long spearmen, to maximize their effectiveness.

The subsequent battle could be aptly described as a rout.

The Sheng Army’s onslaught against these bandits was nothing short of a one-sided massacre!

The soldiers, each wielding different weapons, coordinated seamlessly. Wolf Whisker troops and rattan shield bearers engaged the enemy, allowing long spearmen and gunners to attack at opportune moments. The entire formation was practically like a moving fortress that struck wherever it went.

Whether the bandits attempted to break through the formation individually or in groups, they accomplished absolutely nothing!

The previously formidable Eastern Barbarian swords, when faced with weapons that completely countered them, not only failed to show their original effectiveness but even became a burden.

Moreover, when encountering narrow terrain, the soldiers could instantly change formation; they could deploy like arrowheads or form a circle, and when passing through narrow terrain, they could split into two formations, making them versatile on all terrains.

Some bandits tried to escape into narrow terrain for combat, only to find that no matter the terrain, they were simply outmatched!

Furthermore, the Sheng Army already vastly outnumbered the bandits, possessing an absolute advantage in numbers.

As a renowned commander, General Deng never preferred battles where he had to fight outnumbered.

Though fighting with fewer and winning may sound thrilling, it’s filled with too many uncertainties.

If one can fight with more against fewer, then why not do so?

General Deng always aimed for minimal casualties, focusing superior forces to encircle and eradicate the bandits—it’s all about stability!

Even Li Hongyun felt it was somewhat boring amid such events; the one-sided slaughter hardly raised anyone’s spirits.

There was a slight suspense during the siege, but once they entered Puning Port, the Sheng Army inflicted hundreds to thousands of casualties among the bandits while probably sustaining only single-digit losses themselves.

Even those wounded were caught off-guard by gun or arrow shots.

The Eastern Barbarian People’s once supremely confident swords were practically useless in the face of the Sheng Army!

Finally, after a fierce battle, these bandits no longer had the power to fight and were driven to the port. However, with limited ships available, they all scrambled and jostled in a mess.

But perhaps realizing they were at death’s door, these cornered bandits erupted with incredible fighting power that made them difficult to subdue for a time.

"Attack, let none escape!" General Deng commanded once more, launching the final assault!

However, just then, a messenger hurriedly reported, "Report! General Deng, Nanhe City... Nanhe City has fallen!

"The bandits are on their way here; we might be facing enemies from both front and rear!"

General Deng’s face turned pale, "What? Isn’t Supervisor Wang and General Liu in Nanhe City? How could it not hold even for one day!"

The messenger looked equally bewildered, "Your subordinate does not know, but we’ve heard... heard that Supervisor Wang and General Liu fled at the sight of the enemy, and the city’s garrison collapsed without a fight..."

Deng Yuanjing erupted in anger, "Scoundrels!"

But no matter the anger, the situation had already become uncontrollable. The bandits at Puning Port were still stubbornly resisting, and with the loss of the rear, the Sheng Army was soon to face a pincer attack from the bandits.

Though the force of over ten thousand bandits might not seem significant in numbers, many of them were part of regular armies, with tremendous combat strength.

Although the Sheng Army attacking Puning Port had been victorious step by step, they inevitably began to show signs of fatigue after the prolonged battle.

Caught between attacks from both sides, the Sheng Army suffered heavy losses.

"Retreat!"

General Deng looked bitterly at the bandits that were about to be thoroughly eradicated and, with great reluctance, issued the order to retreat.

...

As the mist before his eyes dispersed, Li Hongyun found himself back at the original scene.

"Damn!"

He hadn’t expected to fail, just when victory seemed within grasp!

"It seems that Nanhe City is the key to this battle.

"If Nanhe City cannot be held, it will be the Sheng Army enclosed like dumplings, but if it is held, it will be the bandits who are trapped.

"This band of over ten thousand bandits is not to be underestimated, many of whom are professional soldiers with regular army backgrounds. If they are not completely annihilated, even if Puning Port is taken, the southeastern bandit plague will hardly be settled.

"Only by completely annihilating this elite force of bandits can we decide the fate of the battle and put an end to the southeastern bandit plague once and for all."

Li Hongyun understood that to clear the level, he must eliminate all the bandits in both Puning Port and Nanhe City, making them suffer heavy losses. Only then would there be enough deterrent to prevent the bandits from endlessly crossing the sea to harass.

"In that case, let’s try playing the role of Supervisor Wang."

Li Hongyun was completely unaware of the situation in Nanhe City at the moment, but one thing was certain, to hold Nanhe City, Supervisor Wang must be a very important figure.

Although, in Li Hongyun’s view, Supervisor Wang hadn’t played much of a role or shown much capability before, since General Deng had said "With Supervisor Wang there, Nanhe City should be in no harm," he clearly had great confidence in Supervisor Wang’s abilities.

The possibility that the defenders of Nanhe City had fled could be due to some accidents, or, the role of Supervisor Wang was altered.

With this thought, Li Hongyun no longer hesitated and chose to start playing the role of Wang Zongchang.

As for the talent skill, after some consideration, he ultimately chose "Morale-Boosting."

This was a Xin level white skill. Although Li Hongyun did not have the boost of righteous qi to interact with this skill, no matter what, the skill was still most suitable for the current situation.

...

The white mist gradually cleared, and when Li Hongyun came to his senses, he had arrived at a government office within the city.

He was dressed in official robes, clearly, he had entered the role of Wang Zongchang.

"Report! My lord, a group of bandits is heading towards Nanhe City, and they seem to number over ten thousand with excellent equipment!

"General Liu is discussing with the other generals, and it seems they want to retreat to Hezhou State..."

Li Hongyun’s face turned grave: "Take me there!"

It seemed that the trouble lay with this General Liu.

Wang Zongchang’s official position was not low; although he was a civilian official with the rank of a counselor, he also held the role of a military supervisor.

The so-called military supervisor actually meant to oversee military affairs. Although in principle they should not interfere with combat command, the supervisor had the right to inspect and could report military situations to the court at any time and impeach commanders; their words carried weight.

The Wang Zongchang role played by Li Hongyun hurried to the hall where they were discussing matters.

"The strength of the bandits is immense, not only numbering over ten thousand but all elite!

"Right now there are only less than three thousand soldiers in Nanhe City, the old, the weak, and the disabled, they have no power to resist!

"In my opinion, we should retreat to Hezhou State immediately, join forces with the Hezhou defensive army, and then come back to fight..."

The leading general, who must be General Liu, was looking at the map considering the retreat route.

Li Hongyun said severely, "Nonsense! To retreat in the face of the enemy, to surrender without fighting, where do you place the imperial command? What about the people in Nanhe City?"

General Liu’s expression was not surprised: "Mr. Wang, you do have the responsibility of lord governor, but the battlefield situation changes in an instant, and as a general, I must also adapt accordingly!

"The bandits are powerful; the troops we are now leading are not the well-trained veterans of General Deng, but a group of weak and defenseless soldiers. What should we use to withstand these bandits? Even if we all fought to the death, what would it matter? The outcome would be the same!

"Moreover, at this moment, many soldiers and civilians have already secretly fled the city; the city is in chaos, the military heart is shaken, and there is no strength for a battle!"

The other generals also nodded in agreement.

"Yes, Mr. Wang, it makes no difference whether we defend the city at this point; as long as the green mountains are there, we won’t worry about burning wood!"

"Mr. Wang, the bandits are just here to loot, and they will quickly retreat. Once we join forces with Hezhou, we can attack back and wipe out all these bandits in one fell swoop..."

Before Li Hongyun could speak, General Liu had already made the decision: "Convey my order, retreat to Hezhou!"