Chapter Thirteen: The Blade Strikes Ma Lao the Cripple

"Fire! Shoot in the direction where the campfire was extinguished!"

Chen Xunping shouted while drawing another arrow, aiming it at the direction from which Ma Lao-que had approached.

*Whoosh, whoosh... whoosh!*

After a volley of arrows, cries of pain of varying intensity erupted from the darkness a few dozen paces beyond the carts.

A second volley followed immediately. This time, however, there were no more cries from that direction—only the dull thud of arrows burying themselves into the dirt.

Seeing that the figures in the darkness had retreated, Chen Xunping walked over to Ma Lao-que, kicked him hard, and cursed, "You son of a bitch, you actually dared to double-cross us!"

Ma Lao-que, knocked to the ground, stared blankly into the darkness beyond the carts, his expression filled with disbelief.

At that moment, the men who had come with Ma Lao-que drew weapons they had kept hidden and lunged at Liu Heng, Chen Xunping, and their lieutenants.

Before they could even close the distance, a series of wet thuds echoed as blades pierced flesh. Yang Yuan, who had been guarding against them all along, seized the moment they moved and had his men cut them down on the spot.

Ma Lao-que lay on his side, unable to stand, muttering to himself, "It shouldn't be like this... it shouldn't be... Zheng Daqiu, you bastard, you ruined me!"

Yang Yuan stepped forward and delivered two sharp slaps to Ma Lao-que’s face, drawing blood from the corners of his mouth.

The stinging slaps brought Ma Lao-que back to his senses. He scrambled to his knees and crawled toward Liu Heng, pleading desperately, "Boss Liu, I was wrong! I was wrong! This was all Zheng Daqiu's plan. I didn't know anything; he tricked me! Please, spare me!"

Two streams of tears mixed with mucus ran down his face.

Liu Heng recoiled in disgust and asked, "You say this was all orchestrated by Zheng Daqiu? How can I believe you?"

Ma Lao-que, no longer daring to harbor any resentment for what Liu Heng had done to him, was desperate to survive. He spilled everything, including how Shi Yunhu had killed Wu the Blind and his group to seize absolute control of the bandit camp.

Liu Heng stared at him. "So, Zheng Daqiu was sent by Shi Yunhu to kill me?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" Ma Lao-que nodded repeatedly. "Not only did Zheng Daqiu bring two hundred men, but Ma Yunjiu's cavalry troop came along as well."

Chen Xunping, standing to the side, looked at Liu Heng. "Damn it! Since Shi Yunhu wants us dead, let’s just turn against him! We have the men and the grain—there’s nowhere we can’t hold our ground."

Yang Yuan added, "Shi Yunhu was the first to act without honor. Let’s strike out on our own. I know of the Daliang Mountains to the west, inside the Datong border. We could take refuge there and declare ourselves kings. The forests are deep enough that even the imperial army couldn't root us out."

"I know the Daliang Mountains! If Boss Liu is willing, I’m willing to follow and lead the way!" Ma Lao-que hurriedly tried to prove his value.

Liu Heng smiled at him, his hand moved, and a flash of silver cut through the air.

Ma Lao-que’s heavy head rolled onto the ground. Until his final breath, he never understood why Liu Heng had killed him so suddenly.

"I can't keep a man like you around. There's no telling when you might poison my food." Liu Heng wiped the blood from his blade onto Ma Lao-que’s clothes and turned to Chen Xunping and the others. "What matters now is how to force back Zheng Daqiu and Ma Yunjiu. We can talk about everything else once we’ve cleared this hurdle."

Killing didn't make Liu Heng feel uneasy; the memories of his predecessor confirmed this wasn't his first time taking a life.

Chen Xunping and Yang Yuan were not surprised by the execution. The moment Ma Lao-que brought Zheng Daqiu and his men, his fate had been sealed.

"What do you suggest? We’ll follow your lead," Chen Xunping said. After the grain incident, he had complete faith in Liu Heng’s ability to resolve the crisis.

Yang Yuan, though silent, watched Liu Heng with the same expectant trust.

Liu Heng pondered for a moment. "We have the advantage in numbers, but they have the advantage in raw strength, especially with Ma Yunjiu’s cavalry. If we rush out to fight, we’ll be at a disadvantage. My new recruits might look like soldiers, but they lack real combat experience. They can defend behind the carts, but if they leave the formation, Ma Yunjiu’s cavalry will shatter them in one charge. We’d be left with nothing."

"So, you mean we should hold our ground behind these carts?" Chen Xunping asked.

"Yes, we wait for them to attack," Liu Heng nodded. "Since Shi Yunhu wants us dead, Zheng Daqiu won't dare to just sit back and watch us stay here. If he does, Shi Yunhu’s nature being what it is, he won't let him off lightly."

"What if Shi Yunhu comes to besiege us himself? He commands several camps now, five or six hundred men total," Yang Yuan said with concern.

Liu Heng laughed. "I suspect Shi Yunhu has his own hesitations and doesn't dare move against us too openly. If he did, it would have been easier to do it back at the camp. He likely swallowed up Wu the Blind and Zhou the Black-Faced's men but hasn't fully broken them in yet. Otherwise, he wouldn't have had to send Zheng Daqiu to ambush us in the middle of the night."

"You always have a plan. Hearing you say that, I feel much better," Chen Xunping said, his expression relaxing.

Liu Heng smiled. "Alright, pass the orders. Everyone stay vigilant. No one is to leave the perimeter of the grain carts."

"Understood. I’ll go notify the squad leaders of the new recruits," Yang Yuan said, turning to relay the orders.

***

Zheng Daqiu’s face was dark.

According to his plan, once Ma Lao-que’s group entered, they would strike from within, while his own men, following close behind, would surge forward to finish off Liu Heng and seize all the grain.

But there had been no movement from Ma Lao-que. Even his own men had been shot dead or wounded by archers the moment they neared the carts. If he hadn't ordered a retreat, the casualties would have been even higher.

"Leader Zheng, Boss Ma wants to see you," a bandit said, approaching him.

"Got it," Zheng Daqiu grunted, turning to walk toward Ma Yunjiu.

Ma Yunjiu sat on his horse, clad in iron helmet and cotton armor, a waist saber at his hip, a horse bow in reach, and a quiver on his back.

Looking down from his horse, Ma Yunjiu said, "Ma Lao-que has been gone for a long time with no results. It seems your plan is failing. What do you intend to do now?"

Zheng Daqiu pulled a bitter face. "I didn't expect them to be so cautious. My men were pushed back by arrows before they could even get close. We have to wait for word from Ma Lao-que. If his men can kill Liu Heng and the lieutenants of the archery camp, the rest of the rabble won't be a threat."

Ma Yunjiu thought for a moment. "I'll give you another half hour. If there's no word from Ma Lao-que by then, you know what to do. Boss Shi doesn't have much patience left."

"Understood, understood," Zheng Daqiu nodded frantically.

After so much time had passed, he didn't hold out much hope for Ma Lao-que, but he was out of options. He had to wait; a frontal assault was his last resort.