The trees on either side of the forest, which I noticed back in Erqi City, were needle-leaved trees like pines, covering an area of several hundred miles. They were extremely flammable, and we used these branches for cover when we charged into Erqi City with our artillery.
It seems the rebels haven't learned their lesson—oh, they couldn't have. The rebel forces that besieged Erqi City were completely annihilated.
I lit another cigarette and handed the lighter to Bao'er. "You take the left side."
"What for?" Zheng Bao'er asked.
"Burn them out. You go to that large rock," I pointed down the mountain, about four hundred meters from the rebel outpost. The rebels' guns couldn't reach that far, and they were unlikely to reveal themselves prematurely. "Just set the pine trees on fire."
"A fire in Hulu Valley? This plot is so familiar!" Zheng Bao'er laughed. It seemed this pirate queen wasn't completely illiterate; she at least knew of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
I then handed the lit cigarette to Xiao Nu. "You go to the right, same spot."
"Got it." They each took a torch and descended the mountain. They soon reached the large rocks and set fire to the trees on both sides before running back.
Just then, I felt the wind picking up. The warhorse beneath me was beginning to lose its footing, taking two involuntary steps forward.
By the time they ran back, the fires on both slopes had already taken hold, each forming a cloud of flames about ten square meters wide, slowly expanding.
I had the unfortunate privilege of witnessing a forest fire like this once when I was a child. It was terrifying. The fire didn't travel through the trees but rolled like a flowing cloud above the canopy, moving rapidly. Beneath this rolling cloud, within the forest itself, there was no fire. However, if one had a fire-resistant camera placed in the woods, it would have shown a hellish scene like the inside of a volcano, akin to a giant oven heated to hundreds or even thousands of degrees. I imagined that such a scene might be equivalent to the difficulty level of the eighteen layers of hell.
A minute later, fueled by the wind, the fire began to spread rapidly towards the rebels' concealed positions. Of course, the rebels weren't foolish enough to sacrifice their entire force to ambush three people. They began to emerge from the forest.
It was already impossible for them to attack us. Although the road at the bottom of the valley was clear of fire, it was engulfed in smoke from the raging infernos on both sides. They were wearing paper armor, common in the underworld, and dared not approach rashly. They could only retreat.
Five minutes later, the wind pouring into the valley mouth grew stronger, and the fire spread even faster. The rebels had all come out of the woods. Helpless, their leader ordered a retreat down the valley floor.
"Alas, if only there were an ambush party of our own on the other side," Zheng Bao'er said with a hint of regret.
The valley floor was too far to see with my spiritual sense. I didn't know if there were any imperial troops outside. If there were, they would likely be forces sent from Erliu City to meet us, and their numbers probably wouldn't be large. Facing two thousand elite rebel cavalry, the imperial troops would be the ones in trouble.
Fortunately, no such miracle occurred. The rebels safely exited the valley floor and disappeared.
However, I was certain they wouldn't go far. Xiao Nu mentioned that beyond the valley floor was another, flatter mountain valley. Two thousand rebel cavalry couldn't possibly defend the entire valley. We could bypass them, at most taking fifteen minutes.
The three of us on our three horses entered the valley floor, testing the temperature, and slowly moved forward. By the time we reached the bottom of the gourd-shaped valley, the fire had almost burned out. The mountain slopes on both sides were blackened. The bottom of the gourd, protected by a ridge, was spared from the fire, which was somewhat environmentally friendly.
Upon reaching the pass on this side, as Xiao Nu had said, the valley ahead was very large. There was a main road, likely frequently used by carts, and the trees had been cleared, revealing a wide, straight path. Rebel figures were visible on this straight road, seemingly not in ambush but openly waiting to intercept us.
Further ahead, I saw a small group of cavalry heading towards the rebels. Judging by their armor color, they were likely imperial troops. They had indeed sent someone to escort us, but their numbers were too few, and they were too far away to see clearly. However, they definitely wouldn't exceed two hundred men, which was like throwing eggs against a rock.