Everyone laughed. Meng Yuan said, "Mr. Guo is right. If we simply cut off the enemy's retreat, the enemy will fight to the death. However, I have not given up. We can change the plan of the cavalry to circle around the enemy's rear. We can cut off their retreat and their supply lines. No matter how desperate they fight, they will still be defeated if they run out of food."
"That won't work either. Our army has come from afar, with a large force, and supplies are even more difficult than those for the enemy at Wakou Pass. For our army, a quick battle is advantageous but a protracted one is not. Moreover, if our cavalry circles around to the enemy's rear, it would be fine if we could defeat the enemy in a short time, but if we drag it out, enemy reinforcements will arrive, and our cavalry behind the enemy lines will be surrounded." Fang Fengyi straightened his tall body and moved his horse slightly. After learning that Li Jun wanted to send troops, he volunteered and thus temporarily left his position as the lord of Huichang City.
“Exactly.” Wei Zhan nodded and said, “General Fang is absolutely right. Our army is better suited for a quick victory than for a protracted war. What is the commander’s opinion?”
“I agree with Brother Fang and Mr. Wei’s plan, but with a slight change.” Li Jun raised his eyebrows slightly, as if he had solved a small problem. He said, “Meng Yuan and Wu Bing, lead five thousand light cavalry to detour eastward to Wakou Pass. All you need to do is cut off the enemy’s supply lines. If enemy reinforcements arrive, retreat immediately. There’s no need to conceal your actions along the way. Let Dong Cheng judge our intentions himself. Lan Qiao and Fang Fengyi, each of you will lead a force to occupy the two mountain ridges on the left and right of Wakou Pass. The rest of the generals will stay with me and hold the main camp, waiting for Dong Cheng to come out to fight.”
"Dong Cheng will fight?" Meng Yuan asked in surprise.
"That depends on how capable Dong Cheng is as a general. If it were me, I would go into battle," Li Jun said with a raised eyebrow and a smile. "Because I have strategists and generals like you by my side. Even if the battle goes against me, you can turn the tide for me. As for Dong Cheng, does he have people like you under his command?"
All the civil and military officials were invigorated. Although Li Jun did not express his praise directly, he had already hinted to them by comparing the generals of both sides that the outcome of this battle had been decided, and the only question was how to obtain the fruits of victory.
Dong Cheng, leaning over the battlements and looking down, had a furrowed brow. He knew that showing a worried expression would be extremely detrimental to the morale of his troops, but seeing the imposing presence of the Peace Army, he knew that remaining expressionless would only make his soldiers more anxious.
“Ten times more than me…” He roughly estimated the number of the Peace Army. The garrison in Guanzhong numbered less than ten thousand. This was the maximum force he could muster after the main force was transferred to Mengze and Danyuan prefectures. The Su Kingdom had always practiced a policy of strengthening its internal forces while weakening its external ones. The central capital, Liuzhou, had hundreds of thousands of troops stationed near it, while the local forces were rather weak. Even at the height of Lu Xiang's power, his invincible army numbered only thirty to fifty thousand. The founding emperor had established this rule to prevent local military commanders from establishing their own independent regimes. However, as time went on, its weakness in dealing with emergencies was repeatedly exposed. But a group of veteran ministers in the Su Kingdom held the attitude that “the ancestral laws cannot be changed,” knowing it was wrong, they still insisted on continuing the mistake.
At this moment, Dong Cheng was considering how to break Li Jun's attack. As the art of war says, "If you surround the enemy ten times and attack them five times, they can be defeated." Now, the Heping Army outnumbered his own tenfold. If they followed orthodox tactics, they would surely surround him. Even if they only harassed him every day, it would be enough to exhaust and break the Guanzhong soldiers.
"Scouts, quickly find out if Li Jun has divided his troops to bypass our army from behind." Thinking of this, Dong Cheng's heart sank. He had heard that the Peace Army and the Rong people had a close relationship and a treaty. If that was the case, then the Peace Army's cavalry would not have to worry about not having good horses. If Li Jun took advantage of the speed of his cavalry and bypassed his army from behind to launch an attack, how should he deal with it?
Just as they were pondering, the eastern gate of the Peace Army camp opened wide, and under the fluttering banners, a uniform cavalry unit raised a cloud of dust that blotted out the sky. The autumn wind swirled the dust and it continued to spread, turning the area in front of the two armies into a sea of yellow dust.
"Just as I expected!" Dong Cheng knew perfectly well that he knew the cavalry's whereabouts without needing scouts to report.
However, his limited troop strength left him with countless schemes but no way to implement them.
"General, why not launch a surprise attack outside the city while the enemy camp is in disarray?" The advisor's face was a little pale. Although it was a bold suggestion, there was no trace of courage in his face.
Dong Cheng tapped the battlements, keeping a thoughtful rhythm. He understood his advisors' meaning perfectly: their soldiers were already demoralized by the enemy's momentum, and if they couldn't launch a surprise attack while the enemy was still establishing a foothold to boost their morale, a stalemate would be disadvantageous for them.
But could a surprise attack achieve the desired results? Dong Cheng smiled bitterly, "I've thought about that too, but if we were to launch a surprise attack now, at least three things would be disadvantageous to us. First, the wind is blowing in our direction. With such a thick dust storm, our troops wouldn't even be able to open their eyes if they came out of the pass, let alone fight. The military strategy says, 'Do not fight against the wind,' which means exactly that. Second, look at the enemy camp. Although there is a lot of dust, the banners are not in disarray at all. This shows that the enemy general is very strict in disciplining his troops and must have taken precautions when mobilizing. A surprise attack would probably play right into the enemy general's hands. Third, the enemy troops who came out of the camp are light cavalry, which are flexible and mobile. If this light cavalry's departure from the camp is a feint, and they suddenly cut off our route back to the pass after our attack, it would be questionable whether the surprise attacking troops could even return alive, let alone achieve a great feat."
The biggest reason, which Dong Cheng didn't mention, was the absolute disadvantage in troop strength. Regardless of the difference in the generals and commanders between the two sides, the sheer numerical superiority of 70,000 to 10,000 was enough to make Dong Cheng hesitant to make any rash moves.
"General, look!" Just as he was pondering, the deputy general suddenly exclaimed, pointing to the Peace Army camp. The dust kicked up by the cavalry had gradually dissipated, and two Peace Army units appeared before Wakou Pass in a double dragon formation. Although the sound of hooves and neighing of horses when the cavalry marched was quite noisy, the fact that this force of about 20,000 men could march from the camp into formation without being noticed by the guards on the pass showed how well-trained they were.
The advisor who had suggested the surprise attack looked utterly dejected. If Dong Cheng followed his advice and opened the gates to attack, they would surely be surrounded by the two Peace Army forces and trapped in a vicious cycle of slaughter. Dong Cheng merely glanced at him; at this moment, he had neither the mind nor the time to instruct his advisor. He knew all too well the intentions of the two Peace Army forces.
"Raise the flags to signal our troops on the two mountains to be on guard. Pass down my orders to have the cavalry prepare to charge out of the pass!" Although he was nervous, he still delivered his orders clearly and logically, his voice as steady as a mountain, making the listeners feel reassured and not panic.
"Yes!" The messenger responded and left. Dong Cheng gripped the battlements tightly, leaning forward to look. Although the two Peace Army forces had moved swiftly and silently out of the camp, they were completely different once outside. Their shouts shook the earth, and their thunderous cries reverberated through the heavens. This sheer force was enough to make even the most timid soldiers abandon their armor and flee.
Dong Cheng withdrew his gaze and looked around. He saw that his deputy advisor was ashen-faced, and although the soldiers on the gate had not moved an inch, their demeanor clearly showed signs of exhaustion.
"In war, momentum is everything." He silently recited this ancient military maxim passed down for thousands of years. At this moment, Li Jun had successfully suppressed his side in terms of momentum. If they clashed now, a single blow would send the soldiers on the two hills scattering, trying to flee into Wakou Pass to avoid death. If that happened, his side would lose its high ground and stronghold outside the pass, losing its strategic advantage. Li Jun, on the other hand, could ignore the towering walls of the pass and observe his own strength from the hills. If that were the case, the initiative on the battlefield would be completely lost to the enemy.
"Boosting morale and letting the defenders on that hill know I'm with them is the only way to prevent them from collapsing at the first sign of trouble." In a flash, he suddenly removed his armor, took off his shirt, and, bare-chested, drew his sword.
The soldiers around him stared at him in surprise. Dong Cheng was always calm and dignified. Even in the hot summer, he had never exposed his chest and breasts in front of his soldiers like this. Now that the enemy was at hand, he was doing this. Could it be that he was frightened by the enemy's momentum?
Dong Cheng, however, paid no attention to the gazes around him. He stared intently at the Peace Army rapidly approaching the hillside. The moment the Peace Army began to charge up the slope and their strength began to wane, Dong Cheng suddenly shouted, "Beat the drums! Shout 'Kill!'"
The soldiers were initially taken aback, but quickly recovered. The booming war drums unleashed a deafening roar, and the battle cries from Wakou Pass momentarily overwhelmed the numerous Peace Army. Dong Cheng stood tall amidst the battlements, his sword touching the massive stones, his gaze sharp as lightning, yet his expression resolute. Amidst the shouts of his soldiers and the dust kicked up by the Peace Army, he stood atop the majestic pass, his heroic spirit soaring, like a god.
The defending troops on the hill outside the pass and the attacking Peace Army were all shaken by the sudden loud noise from Wakou Pass. Most of them instinctively turned their heads to look at the pass. In a cloud of pale yellow dust, they saw a tall and imposing general standing on the battlement, shirtless and leaning on his sword. His cold, electric eyes were chilling even from hundreds of paces away.
"A true hero!" Fang Fengyi had only glanced at Dong Cheng, but his imposing figure was already etched in his mind. Staring at such a figure for too long would make the soldiers feel like they were fighting against a god, inevitably demoralizing them. Therefore, he roared, "Soldiers, follow me!"
Under Dong Cheng's imposing presence, the initially hesitant Peace Army soldiers were greatly encouraged to see their commander leading the charge, braving arrows and stones. In battle, morale is paramount, and the morale of an army rests on its commander. Dong Cheng's extraordinary actions temporarily made his soldiers forget about life and death, while Fang Fengyi, unwilling to be outdone, bravely led the Peace Army to recover from the shock Dong Cheng had caused.
"A capable general!" Li Jun praised, stroking his short mustache as he rode atop Xiaoyue Feishuang.
"Is Fengyi a more capable general, or Dong Cheng?" Wei Zhan asked casually, waving his paper fan.
"What do you think, sir?" Li Jun did not answer, but asked with a smile. In front of the battlefield with tens of thousands of people, the two seemed as relaxed as if they were on a fishing boat in Kuanglan City.
Wei Zhan didn't answer. He and Li Jun exchanged a glance and then burst into laughter. When they turned back, blood was already flowing on the battlefield.
With Fang Fengyi leading the charge, the defenders on the western hill he was attacking lost their composure. A torrent of rocks and logs surged down the steep slope like a flash flood. Fang Fengyi, shielding himself with a shield in his left hand, dodged the deadly torrent using trees and rocks as cover, continuing his charge up the hill. Some of the Peace Army soldiers behind him, unable to dodge in time and struck, suffered shattered skulls and broken bones, but without his orders, they merely used the terrain for cover and did not retaliate.
Because Fang Fengyi was still outside the range where the defenders could inflict the most damage, she triggered the enemy's first attack. While the first attack was temporarily suspended and the second attack had not yet begun, Fang Fengyi led the Peace Army to within a hundred paces of the enemy's fortifications!
"Closer!" Fang Fengyi thought to herself, crouching down behind her shield and looking back. Her men were following closely. Although some had been wounded or even killed in the enemy's attack, their morale remained high, and there was no need to worry about their morale for the time being.
"General, shall we launch a counterattack?" the soldiers pleaded eagerly as he looked back.
"Follow me!" Fang Fengyi did not answer, but shouted "Follow me" a second time. If a general could do this, what did his soldiers have to fear? Therefore, the troops he led once again raised their voices.
Seeing the enemy almost upon them, and hearing such a loud shout, the defenders on the hilltop hastily unleashed a second volley of rolling logs, stones, and arrows before even aiming. The hilltop's steep and rugged terrain, with its complex design, was indeed unfavorable for the Peace Army's assault, but it also provided them with considerable cover. Therefore, this second wave of attack did not inflict significant damage on the Peace Army. If the terrain had been narrower, preventing Fang Fengyi's 10,000-strong force from deploying, the Peace Army's casualties would have been even lower.
However, human physical strength is ultimately limited. Climbing this hill in full armor at a constant sprint speed is obviously impossible. Although Fang Fengyi was already only fifty paces away from the enemy camp, he also felt a tightness in his chest and was having trouble breathing. Naturally, the soldiers were in even worse shape.
"Just a hair's breadth away!" Fang Fengyi's heart surged with emotion. Without Li Jun's request to be transferred, he had volunteered to fight in the Su Kingdom, partly to demonstrate his bravery and wisdom on the battlefield, and partly to avoid suspicion. During the previous campaign against the Chen Kingdom, most of the officers from Yu Prefecture, except for those from the cities of Yin Hu, Kuang Lan, and Lei Ming, had betrayed him. Therefore, although Li Jun hadn't said anything, soldiers like Fang Fengyi, who ultimately chose to remain loyal to Li Jun, felt a vague unease. This time, with Li Jun personally leading the campaign again, it was unacceptable for him to risk his life on the front lines while Fang Fengyi remained in Yu Prefecture, enjoying a life of leisure. Moreover, given the precedent of Peng Yuancheng's rebellion after remaining behind, Fang Fengyi had led his troops here. He suspected that Guo Yunfei's participation in this campaign was likely for similar reasons. Having come and been entrusted with such an important task by Li Jun, how could he return empty-handed and become a laughingstock?
"Follow me!" Fang Fengyi shouted these three words for the third time. His voice was hoarse by this time. These three shouts of "Follow me" earned him the nickname "Fang the Three Followers" or "General Three Followers" in the Peace Army.
"Kill—" He immediately gave the order to attack. The long-suppressed crossbow bolts of the Peace Army rained down like a storm. Within a distance of less than fifty paces, the crossbow bolts were extremely lethal. Although the Soviet army guarding the hill had the advantage of terrain, they were only a thousand strong. Under the pressure of these powerful arrows and crossbow bolts, they could only hide behind the ramparts and occasionally launch blind counterattacks.
Chapter Three: Wuwei
Section 01
"The Western Hills Crisis!"
The staff officer cried out, half in fear and half in shock. He was a seasoned veteran, not a novice on the battlefield, but in his long military career, he had never seen a force as brave and cunning as the Peace Army led by Fang Fengyi. The enemy's numerical advantage wasn't frightening; what was frightening was that they didn't rely on it for sheer numbers. What he had expected to take the Peace Army half a day to breach the first layer of defenses on the western hill was approached by the enemy in a single charge, and without suffering serious damage in the process.
Dong Cheng, who stood shirtless and leaning on his sword, snorted softly. Making a fuss at this time would only embolden the enemy and diminish one's own power!
"It's alright, flag bearer. Order the western hill to retreat to the second line of defense!"