Chapter 453
Ye Luji knew that he had underestimated the enemy. He shouted loudly, trying to calm the soldiers down. Now that Xie Xuanchen’s trick had been seen through, the next step was easy. Xie Xuanchen’s people would definitely leave traces when they cut the ice. At first, they missed the mark because they didn’t pay attention, but if they looked for it carefully, they weren’t going to fall for it again.
Ye Luji had great prestige in Beirong, and because he had a loud voice and spoke Khitan, he quickly gathered a group of people together. Seeing more and more people moving towards Ye Luji, Xie Xuanchen changed his gestures and the Deputy Commanders immediately changed their flags and waved them vigorously.
With the flag change in the chain of command, the soldiers in the phalanx changed to another type of arrow according to what they had trained a few days ago. Special paintballs were tied to these arrows, which were used for acrobatics in the capital. When an arrow flew out, it pulled out a long stream of colourful smoke behind it, which featured the colour red and green and was spectacular. Some arrows were even tied with firecrackers and water bombs. When the arrows were shot out, they immediately crackled and exploded into a pile on the ice, making it lively and burst into a stream of colour.
In the middle of Ye Luji’s frantic shouting, he was suddenly covered by various artillery shells. What’s particularly bothersome was the coloured smoke. Not only was it choking, it was also so thick that it’s almost impossible to see the road ahead.
Ye Luji was retreating under cover of his personal guards. He cursed angrily, “The Han people are treacherous! When did they develop such weapons? Last year, they even pretended to negotiate peace with our Beirong! How despicable and shameless!”
A few days ago, everyone in the royal court was angrily scolding the Beirong people for not keeping their promises and breaking contracts. If these adults were to hear Ye Luji’s words, who would know what they’d think?
Xie Xuanchen leisurely took a paintball and played with it in his hand. Then he said, “During the Dragon Boat Festival, the Emperor played with water in the Jinming Pond. At that time, I thought this kind of paintball was very useful. It emitted smoke quickly and it was big and unafraid of water. Hence, to keep it for the royal family for performances would be such a waste.”
Last year, during the Dragon Boat Festival, Ye Luyan came to the capital to negotiate peace. The Emperor held a grand banquet in the Jinming Pond and performed a grand water show. It was during the water show that Xie Xuanchen took a fancy to this kind of thing. He thought at that time that if it could be applied in actual military combat, the effect would be very good.
Some people could only see peace and prosperity while others saw unlimited opportunities.
After Xie Xuanchen finished speaking, he tied the paintball to the arrow and stringed the bow. The bowstring was almost stretched like a full moon.
He took aim and suddenly let go as the bow string vibrated with a sharp sound while it was breaking through the air. The arrow shot out, drawing an arc in the air and hitting Ye Luji’s back.
Ye Luji grunted and his guards hurriedly shouted, “King Dongdan!”
“Don’t make any noise!” Ye Luji shouted, then he endured the pain and broke the arrow shaft that stuck outside his body, saying, “They can’t last long with these tricks alone. Charge— charge to the river bank and we will win.”
“Yes.”