"Fang Fengyi." He thought for a moment. Now that the gates of Yunyang were open, Canghai County in the east would be the next target of attack. In the southwest, Danyuan and Mengze had a 100,000-strong army that the Su Kingdom had originally gathered to attack Liu Guang of the Chen Kingdom. These 100,000 troops were far superior to any enemy he had encountered before, both in number and quality. If he did not take precautions, he feared he would end up being attacked from both sides.
"Here," Fang Fengyi replied in a low but firm voice. Yesterday, he had contradicted Li Jun on the battlefield. If it had been any other commander, he would probably have been beheaded immediately, but Li Jun seemed oblivious.
"From Yunyang to Danyuan and Mengze, there is a dangerous pass. Look, it's here." Li Jun pointed to the map, indicating a place called Fenglin Ferry. "To the left are mountains stretching from the Qionglu Grassland, and to the right is the Fenglin River. It controls the throat between Yunyang and Danyuan and Mengze. I'm giving you 20,000 men. You must capture this place and defend it well. Do not be greedy for attack. If we lose Fenglin Ferry, our army will be attacked from both sides. Remember this well."
"Yes!" Fang Fengyi straightened his chest. Li Jun hadn't held a grudge against him; instead, he had made him the first person to lead independently in this campaign, which greatly boosted his spirits. After a moment, he whispered, "Yesterday I was greedy for credit and acted rashly. Doesn't the commander blame me?"
“If I were you, I would probably have been greedy for credit and acted rashly in that situation.” Li Jun smiled gently. “If you were me, I would also be able to stand on my own now. Fengyi, take care of yourself.”
After Fang Fengyi left, Li Jun officially entered Wakou Pass. At this time, the scouts who had entered earlier reported that the food supply in the pass was exhausted. Dong Cheng had destroyed all the food and equipment when he left, leaving the Heping Army with nothing but an empty fortress.
"I see. This Dong Cheng really knows how to cause us trouble. I already know where he's going," Li Jun laughed, seemingly unconcerned.
“I know where he went.” Wei Zhan put away his paper fan and pointed to the northeast. “He probably went to Canghai County before us. Although he is orthodox in his military tactics but a little rigid, his vision and judgment are quite good.”
Li Jun nodded and said, "That's right. The more powerful he is, the more trouble he will cause us. Sir, please write me a letter and ask Lu Yuan, who is currently in Liuzhou, to spare no expense in bribing that traitor and force Dong Cheng to lose his military power."
Although Li Jun did not mention the name of the "traitor," Wei Zhan understood that he was referring to Wu Shu, who had harmed Lu Xiang. That traitor was greedy and a master of political intrigue, deeply appreciated by the Prince of Su, holding a high position and enjoying a generous salary, yet he did not think of serving the country or advocating for the people. Although the Prince of Su's reliance on such a person was detrimental to the people, it was extremely beneficial to Li Jun's great cause.
"You want me to advance slowly?"
Upon hearing the messenger's message of Commander Li Jun's orders, Meng Yuan was momentarily stunned. The Su Kingdom had always maintained a strong interior and a weak exterior, with its capital, Liuzhou, protected by hundreds of thousands of troops. However, in remote prefectures and counties, the forces ranged from a few thousand to a few dozen. Now that they had broken through Wakou Pass, there were no more formidable passes to hinder the Peace Army's advance—the perfect place for his light cavalry to gallop freely. Why, then, was he being ordered to proceed slowly?
"Indeed, the commander has instructed the general to send out more scouts to gather information, paying particular attention to where Dong Cheng has gone. The commander estimates that he will ambush the general on his way to Canghai County, so please proceed with caution."
Meng Yuan laughed heartily upon hearing this: "Even if Dong Cheng has set an ambush, what can he do to me? Since the commander values Dong Cheng so much, I will capture him and bring him to the commander. Tell the commander that I will be careful and will not make any mistakes."
Seeing that he seemed intent on disobeying orders, the messenger became anxious and said, "General, please think it over carefully. Don't let momentary courage ruin important matters."
Meng Yuan stared at the messenger for a long time, then laughed again: "You rascal, just mind your own business of delivering messages. No need to say more. Report back to the commander, and the commander will naturally understand my intentions."
Seeing that he could not change Meng Yuan's mind, the messenger had no choice but to hurry back. Meng Yuan looked around at the generals in the tent. He was not tall, and most of the generals in the tent were taller than him, but none of them felt superior to him.
"The commander has ordered our army to proceed slowly, but now the enemy's gates are wide open. If our army does not seize the opportunity and advance victoriously, it will still be troublesome once the enemy has regrouped. Although there are no dangerous passes or cities along the way, it will still be troublesome. Therefore, I intend to disregard the commander's orders and advance at full speed. What do you all think?"
The generals exchanged bewildered glances. They all knew that Li Jun was a brilliant strategist, with nine out of ten plans succeeding. If they disobeyed Li Jun's orders, not to mention the military discipline that punishes disobedience, the mere possibility of defeat silenced them. Although Meng Yuan had an extraordinary relationship with Li Jun, he too found it difficult to bear this heavy responsibility.
"Of course, this matter could easily go wrong if not handled carefully. Rest assured, everyone, I will never jeopardize Commander Li's important mission and incur eternal infamy. Wubing, what do you think?"
He specifically asked about the young Lü Wubing. Like Li Jun, he seemed to see a few traces of his own past in this young Peace Army general. Back then, he and Li Jun had followed Lu Xiang in the same way, and Lu Xiang had also given them guidance in the same way.
"I...I don't know..." Lu Wubing didn't have the boldness of Meng Yuan and Li Jun, who were veterans back then. Born into a family of "armored slaves", he had been deeply marked by the distinction between superiors and inferiors since childhood. Although he had been exposed to this in the Peace Army for the past two years, he was always a little timid in this formal occasion.
"Speak up. I see you've been thinking, so you must have an idea. Why don't you say it?"
“I think… if Commander Li doesn’t want General Meng to advance, he could simply order the general to postpone the campaign. There’s no need to add the instruction to send more scouts to inquire about Dong Cheng’s whereabouts. Commander Li is quite wary of Dong Cheng, and naturally, he shouldn’t advance rashly before knowing his location. But what if he could find out Dong Cheng’s exact location?” At this point, Lü Wubing’s eyes flickered, and he finally looked directly at Meng Yuan. “Commander Li didn’t specify what to do after finding out Dong Cheng’s location, which means he allows General Meng to act expediently once he knows the enemy.”
“Exactly so.” Meng Yuan slammed his hand on the table in front of him and laughed heartily. “Commander Li and I have known each other for many years. He always demands flexibility in his military tactics. If we learn of Dong Cheng’s whereabouts but do not act accordingly, we will be blamed by him. Wubing, you will be in charge of finding out Dong Cheng’s whereabouts. The rest of you generals, let’s prepare our troops and horses and get ready to attack!”
Dong Cheng retreated from Wakou Pass with over six thousand troops. With such a force and such a hasty retreat, it was clearly impossible for him to remain undetected. Lü Wubing learned in just one day that he had retreated to Canghai County, indeed abandoning Yunyang to defend Canghai.
"He intends to occupy Xizhou to cut off our army's sea route for transporting supplies." Upon learning this, Meng Yuan made the same judgment as Li Jun. "Order the messenger to inform the commander immediately that our army is heading to Canghai at full speed. As for the rear, the commander can worry about that."
"quick!"
"Keep up!"
Dong Cheng reprimanded his lagging subordinates while his brow was furrowed. The wagons rumbled on, and although the soldiers, exhausted from a day's battle and a night's escape, were weary, he still had to drive them on their journey. Fortunately, he was usually kind and compassionate to his soldiers, so despite the hardship, they had no complaints.
The logistical difficulties Li Jun faces this time will likely be even greater than his previous campaign against the Chen Kingdom. Although the Rong people on the Qionglu Grassland are of the same ilk as him, the high-altitude terrain presents a formidable obstacle to large-scale resupply. His purpose this time is to launch a surprise attack, so the provisions and equipment he carries will certainly be limited. Given his intelligence, he will naturally seek ways to replenish these supplies. The best method would be to capture the excellent port of Xizhou and utilize the well-developed maritime trade routes of Yuzhou, using large ships for transport.
"Now that I've seen through your intentions, how can I let you succeed again?" Dong Cheng gritted his teeth, but when he thought of the two times he broke out in a cold sweat when he met Li Jun on the battlefield, he felt less confident.
Looking at his own soldiers, although they finally believed they hadn't surrendered after disengaging from the Peace Army, it was still questionable whether this shaken confidence could hold up in the next confrontation with the Peace Army. Moreover, according to military regulations, although he commanded the military and political affairs of Yunyang County, he had no authority over Canghai County. The Canghai County governor, Dai Xi, was known for his greed and avarice; whether he would be able to understand the bigger picture and temporarily entrust him with the troop deployment of Canghai County was an even more troublesome matter.
"Why haven't we seen Dai Xi's envoy yet?" Before setting off from Wakou Pass, Dong Cheng had already written a letter to Dai Xi, explaining the overall situation and appealing to his sense of righteousness. Judging by the time, Dai Xi should have already seen the letter. If he had made a decisive decision, the envoy should have returned by now.
"Reporting to my lord." The scout came galloping up, white foam streaming from the horse's mouth and nose, indicating that it had exerted all its strength while running.
"What is it?" Dong Cheng's heart skipped a beat. The news that came at this time was most likely not good. Although he had retreated from Wakou Pass at full speed, his scouts were out everywhere, closely monitoring the movements of the Peace Army.
"Reporting to you, sir!" The scout said in a panic, pointing southeast: "There are enemy cavalry active about 150 li from here."
"Bandit cavalry! I know, it must be the light cavalry that Li Junxian sent out. They arrived so quickly. Do you know where they're headed?"
"Judging from their destination, they are heading to Xizhou. Judging from their journey, they should arrive in two days." The scout looked worried. Although Dong Cheng didn't say it, he could tell that their destination was Xizhou.
“Let’s investigate further,” Dong Cheng said, but then added, “Wait a minute, change to another horse.”
After the scout left, Dong Cheng fell into deep thought. The enemy's light cavalry was advancing recklessly, which should have been a good opportunity to ambush them halfway. However, the enemy's speed was too great; judging by their journey, they would likely arrive at Xizhou at the same time as him. If that were the case, he wouldn't be able to stop them halfway. Had the Canghai Prefect, Dai Xi, also sent someone to scout out the enemy's movements? Sending a messenger now might be too late.
"The art of war says, 'He who seizes the initiative will prosper.'" Under no circumstances should one hand over the initiative to the enemy. One could say that one's defeat to Li Jun was due to a disadvantage in troop strength, but if one were to be defeated by Li Jun's generals this time, it would be unacceptable no matter what.
"Everyone, hurry up! We must reach Xizhou before the enemy army. Once we enter Xizhou, we can join forces with the Canghai garrison and cut off Li Jun's supply lines by sea. In this way, Li Jun's army cannot sustain the war and will surely be defeated without a fight!" he shouted. To inspire the soldiers, he had to give them hope for victory.
"Yes!" The soldiers, though exhausted, were invigorated by his words. Only Lady Sun, in a carriage, quietly lifted the curtain to shield her from the dust and glanced at her husband's back with a hint of worry.
"Reporting to the general, the messenger has returned!"
They traveled until dusk before setting up camp to rest. After a meager dinner, Dong Cheng finally received news that the messenger sent to Canghai County had returned.
"Well, how did Lord Daiki reply?" he asked the messenger eagerly.
“General… that Dai Xi is extremely rude. Upon seeing your letter, he immediately tore it to shreds, claiming that you have abandoned the prefecture and fled. He will petition the court to punish you.” The messenger said breathlessly, his face flushed red, indicating that he had suffered considerable humiliation at Dai Xi’s hands.
"At this critical juncture, how could Dai Xi be so utterly disregard the bigger picture?" Dong Cheng was extremely indignant and slammed his hand on the hilt of his sword.
"Dai happy has ordered all regions along the Canghai River to cease supplying our army with provisions. General, the great cause is lost."