Chapter 134: The Dragon Descendants’ Predicament
After Wu Fei led the Yao Army to capture Huangyu City in ten days, he conveyed a powerful message to all directions: “Da Yao has returned like lightning.”
Emperor Shu, who was fiercely battling back and forth with the rebels on the west side, suddenly discovered on September 1st, upon opening the Map of Mountains and Rivers, that the corner of Bo Prefecture had been repainted.
Huangyu City is a transportation hub with developed water transport and convenient official roads, and it is also an important city for stockpiling grain in Bo Prefecture. At this time, the summer grain has already been harvested, and gathering food and grass centered on Huangyu City costs far less than other places. After all, choosing other cities means transporting food and grass to a place with second-rate transportation convenience, and the losses are not just a little bit.
Every prefecture is not established in vain; they are all the most suitable strongholds for governance. They are the areas with the lowest cost for gathering resources in the entire region.
The task of centralized grain collection is ready-made for Huangyu City, with ships on the rivers and horse carts on the official roads.
If “collection points” were set up elsewhere to gather resources, it would require massive manpower to supplement resources.
The functionality of a prefectural capital cannot be replaced by building a city dozens of miles away.
Historically, all the old routes of major rebellions took capturing large cities as the prerequisite for occupying a prefecture.
Using the simplest life analogy, if there’s a takeout shop right downstairs from your apartment building and a subway station as soon as you step out, life is very comfortable; but a quiet alley a kilometer away might be suitable for retirement living, but it’s definitely not just “a kilometer difference.” Social animals would have to spend an extra half hour walking home every day through these car-free alleys full of old folks to dodge; picking up a delivery takes twenty minutes round trip, and even eating a meal takes half an hour. Social animals’ already scarce after-work time can’t withstand such consumption.
So twenty-first century social animals must empathize: within a prefecture, bypassing the prefectural capital to collect resources at another location—how many times more would the time consumed, labor, feed for men and horses, and worry increase along the way?
Note: Unless there is administrative organizational capacity beyond the era, establishing separate collection points at multiple secondary transportation points (farmers surrounding the city), and each secondary stronghold still obeys command with undiminished cohesion.
Xuan Chong note: Talking about farmers surrounding the city now is nonsense. Delegating resource collection rights to various points equals delegating a series of personnel powers. After I gained total governor authority over resource gathering in the southern border, I even had some “thoughts of contending for geometry” toward Da Yao. In this era, once resources are dispersed, the system fundamentally cannot ensure centralization.
…Back to the current war situation…
Wu Fei’s choice to strongly attack Huangyu City was somewhat hasty to a certain extent. Intelligence from Wu Fei’s “internal espionage” indicated that signs of “Dragon Shadow” had appeared at Gu Shou Pass.
Although he didn’t know who “Dragon Shadow” was, Wu Fei inferred that Zhao Cheng could arrive at any time. After determining he couldn’t annihilate the living forces at Gu Shou Pass, he immediately took Bo Prefecture, preparing in advance to fight a protracted war with the Hao Army from the north!
Wu Fei was very wary of Zhao Cheng, like a student afraid of exams, but when the exam really comes, he still takes it very seriously.
After securing Huangyu City, Wu Fei immediately prepared defensive fortifications outside the city without any pause, expanding the defensive system of Hezhu Village to the north.
After multiple collective deliberations by the non-commissioned officers, Wu Fei set the strategic tone: With Huangyu City in hand, it means abundant gathered resources!
After recapturing Huangyu City, Wu Fei immediately established the “Transportation Bureau.” All post station persons in charge across the prefecture schedule horses and personnel according to the major “transportation tasks” issued weekly by the Transportation Bureau! Post stations do not have fixed personnel but are mobilized based on tasks. (Some roads with heavy tasks draw from less busy roads.)
Wu Fei’s judgment on the future situation: “The enemy general (Zhao Cheng) gathering troops means food and grass is a disadvantage for mobile operations.”
On this, Wu Xiao Que’s strategy for battle: “A competent enemy general will try every means to fill this disadvantage, and our pre-battle duty is to amplify the enemy’s disadvantage.”
Sure enough, the significance of Wu Fei strengthening the Hezhu Village defense line in Huangyu City lies here: if Zhao Cheng really attacks, gnawing at this fortress will cause heavy casualties and waste time—which is also wasting food and grass.
If the Hao Army bypasses Hezhu Village without attacking it and strikes Huangyu City, its logistics line will have to take a big detour, which is very advantageous for the Yao Army to execute the “cut off food and troops inch by inch” strategy.
Now that Wu Fei has “mastered” large corps mobility, he naturally knows Zhao Cheng’s “high-level mastery of troop momentum piercing mountains and rivers,” so he restricts it right away.
After Wu Fei explained this strategic thinking to the non-commissioned officers, he made relevant strategic deployments for the Huangyu City defense line, delineating responsibilities in road patrol defenses and contingency plans for reporting enemy situations.
According to this extremely detailed deployment plan, the non-commissioned officers signed military orders.
As general’s orders were issued one by one and responsibilities for each sector were confirmed, in September, Wu Fei essentially put this area of Huangyu City under “automated management,” taking to the saddle once again.
Wu Xiao Que focused more energy on strategic offensives elsewhere, such as Hu City, but Hu City had also reached its limit.
After allocating beautiful maidservants and brocade robes in Huangyu City, Wu Fei, who hadn’t handled frontline matters, waited for his soldiers at the city gate. These non-commissioned officers also obediently came over after allocation, just like back in Yao Capital when they lined up and reported back to Wu Fei.
…Dragon Descendants in dire straits…
In September, at Hu City, Prefect He Yufei felt his scalp tingle upon confirming Wu Fei had taken Huangyu City and immediately led his large army to press over.
He Yufei had the maidservant beside him fill his cup with alcohol: The situation has collapsed like this, yet the Imperial Court is quibbling on irrelevant matters?
He was complaining at this time that Hao State had given the troops to Zhao Cheng for the western expedition, so now the Imperial Court had to support the food and grass for the western campaign and couldn’t fully commit to suppressing the rebellion in the south.
He Yufei did not reflect on why they failed to hold Bo Prefecture after Zhao Cheng captured it. After all, as a Dragon Descendant, he couldn’t admit fault. Of course, on the surface, he firmly refused to surrender.
Now, including Hu City, the Hao Army’s strongholds in the south have little food and grass left; the grain is all in Huangyu City.
He Yufei had previously sent Sun Yong; now after Huangyu City’s fall, the Hu City he garrisoned was already restless.
Because the Dragon Descendants in Bo Prefecture heard that Wu Fei’s several city assaults were all accomplished by tricking the city gates; thus, inside Hu City, there was increasing vigilance against the Yao noble families in the city. This vigilance further accelerated the unrest, and the “Dragon Slaying Decree” with no retreat now took effect—Hao State’s Dragon Descendants were already abnormally tense before even fighting.
The major households in the city were secretly conspiring with secret letters in ancestral tunnels for meetings.
After all, it was a small clan overpowering a great nation; when military strength was strong, they could suppress everything, but once warfare turned unfavorable, all contradictions would emerge.
Now, He Yufei clearly felt that the officials under his rule were starting to dawdle in their duties; these fence-sitters were watching the situation and could backstab at any moment.
In the city, He Yufei gathered his subordinates for discussion, first showing the order from Gu Shou Pass to hold the defense firmly, then looking at everyone’s expressions. Upon seeing their numb faces, he shouted: “We haven’t lost yet!”
Under He Yufei’s stern rebuke, everyone jolted as if acupointed, recovering from their chaotic mood.
Moments later, He Yufei dropped a bombshell: “I intend to sortie and decide the battle with the enemy.”
Everyone’s faces changed again, but before they could voice opinions, He Yufei drew his knife and chopped off a table corner. All subordinates looked at each other, then agreed to join.
…A sparrow outside the window was startled by a bug jumping…
Wu Fei, who was assembling and preparing for war, was stunned upon learning that Hu City had begun mustering troops and officers; his expression was like finding an extra piece of meat at the bottom of his rice bowl while eating.
His first reaction was that it was a trick; Hu City had been sending heads all the way before—where did this courage to decide battle with him come from now?
Wu Fei: “When Huangyu City was besieged, you didn’t come to battle. Now my troops and food are ample, and you don’t hold for reinforcements but run over to decide battle with me—did I activate a drop-intelligence aura?”
But half a day after internal espionage news arrived, Wu Fei encountered a dramatic scene.
At three in the afternoon, a representative from the southeast maintenance association urgently came to request an audience: The insider in Hu City was ready to revolt, awaiting only the general’s order.
At four in the afternoon, brothers from Hu City’s sand sea gang came to request an audience with the Yao Army general, presenting a Dragon Descendant’s handwritten order, indicating that upon the general’s command, they would open the east gate as ordered.
At half past five in the afternoon, a scholar disguised as a beggar broke into the city to request an audience, bringing the token of Hu City’s largest family: indicating a secret tunnel from the home leading outside Hu City, willing to offer it to the general.
At six in the afternoon, eight at night, … even at night, female heroes tried to break into to report intelligence.
Wu Fei roughly understood why He Yufei wanted to sortie for decisive battle: the city was full of traitors, all watching his building collapse and coming to pull bricks.
As a Dragon Descendant, He Yufei sensed his subordinates’ defeatism was extreme, fearing that one more day would mean no heads left, so rather than wait to die, better to go all out. Maybe “going all out” could win.
…Wu Fei grumbled: What if I flip the cart?…
On September 2nd, Wu Fei recalled Mu Xingyu to clarify the current situation in Hu City.
Wu Fei: Tell me, what elite troops have you scouted?
Mu Xingyu reported that there was still an aerial sky boat unit in Hu City, along with three hundred iron armored knights.
Wu Fei pondered and asked him: “If your combat power is seventy, what is the combat power of that team of Jade Brave cavalry?”
Mu Xingyu was stunned; he was quite concerned about Wu Fei rating his cavalry at only seventy points, thinking to himself: “I’m seventy, who is eighty?” (Wu Fei’s full score in mind is Wu Hengyu.)
Of course, Mu Xingyu honestly answered: “Hu City’s cavalry combat power should be around sixty.”
Wu Fei nodded: Hmm, that’s eighty. I’ll assign you more men. Then on the sand table, he allocated him a batch of ballista troops.
Mu Xingyu’s mouth twitched, but he stayed silent. Wu Fei assigned him the task: Keep eyes on them.
…Strategic large map perspective shifts to the western side of the mountains and rivers…
In Sha Prefecture, two streams of killing intent were crossing; the Shu troops were like a slow stone roller gradually crushing over, while the Hao Army in strict formation was like a slightly smaller fine steel wheel trying to find a road to circle around the stone roller.
Zhao Cheng in the northwest was watching Emperor Shu’s large army head south; his Hao Army was also cautiously shifting formations to return north.
Zhao Cheng’s southern and northern armies had drawn close, with elite cavalry between the allied forces reporting back and forth at least twice a day; inside the two armies’ military tents, maps were synchronized every six hours.
Without telegrams at this time, this was already the highest level of informationized operations achievable in this era relying solely on organizational capacity. This basic skill of “maneuvering tens of thousands over hundreds of miles” was currently unique under heaven to only two.
In ten consecutive days of combat in Sha Prefecture region, Da Yao elites rotated onto the field; after all, Zhao Cheng came from the south, strategically blocking the door.
If not for unrest in the rear, Zhao Cheng wouldn’t need to head north to block the door; he could just find an area in this river bend, build an earth city to garrison, and surely block Emperor Shu dead in the northwest. Zhao Cheng now wanted to timely lead his troops back and didn’t want to linger in battle.
The Yao Army side was very aggressive in late August, fighting to the death, especially under Emperor Shu’s personal expedition. Though the Yao Army units were cumbersome and massive, their combat will was high.
In the Hao Army military tent, Zhao Cheng rearranged all the troop flags, and after arranging, issued military orders one by one. It must be said that the inscriptions left on the jade tablets in Zhao Cheng’s military orders were far more elegant than Xuan Chong’s.
Several kilometers away, the Hao Army began to converge; in the night, streams of torchlight gathered like fireflies until dawn, and behind faint morning mist, a vast camp with surging heads and orderly movement suddenly appeared at the predetermined decisive battle site “Silu Plain.”
Fifty thousand Hao Army was like a large pond fed by countless streams; in the military columns responsible for gathering “food and grass” and “firewood” etc., only footsteps and hoofbeats could be heard amid the solemn silence. But in the main camp where the various “streams” converged, there were varied sounds. The camp near the riverbank on the east side had returned from logging and was using axes and wooden pegs to build barriers; several hundred meters away, another friendly camp was lighting fires and cooking.
In the standby area behind the main army where new troops joined, the Hao Army laborers who had just picked up sabers and spears less than two months ago sat on the ground, reciting the “eight dos and don’ts” jingle.
For example, jingle No. 1 emphasized mutual checks of worn armor, and during combat, constantly using the team’s “core” as the benchmark to maintain formation.
Jingle No. 2: Emphasized checking bowstrings before bow and crossbow shots, sighting on mountain sight for calibration, and only shooting on command.
Squad leaders recited a line, and the rank-and-file soldiers sitting in rows shouted it back in unison, then recited the whole thing together after. When everyone recited in unison, it was very smooth, even if some were just filling in blanks in parts. But the whole team’s collective memory was solid.
Clearly, these different jingles were preparations for different combat tasks below. Some camps were to withstand iron hoof impacts, while others prepared for auxiliary shooting.
Zhao Cheng’s orders were very complex; the “total command information volume” these recruited laborers could bear was limited, so he pre-“programmed” them into combat regulations via this process based on operational needs.
Zhao Cheng was enhancing the combat effectiveness of these “low-tier soldiers” he recruited in ways most people of this era couldn’t understand.
If ordinary generals led such a scale of laborer teams, they would collapse at the first touch against elite iron armor charges.
A specific case in history: Ge Rong’s two hundred thousand uprising army scattered over dozens of miles, facing Erzhu Rong’s seven thousand knights, collapsed under one iron cavalry charge, turning into chain rout.
Among the large army led by Zhao Cheng, a considerable portion were also farmer armies, but their combat power wasn’t scattered sand like Ge Rong’s; all Zhao Hao Army farmers had blood-courageous ones forming tight queues around themselves, able to quickly assemble under flags.
Finally on September 2nd, the clash began. When various Yao Army routes appeared on the horizon like a mountain flood, Zhao Cheng’s large army’s five thousand-man camp on the east side directly met Da Yao elites—this elite was pieced together from major generals under Emperor Shu’s various camps. These generals, upon hearing the Hao Army farmer soldiers were like mantises blocking a chariot, all demanded to sortie.
Thus in Emperor Shu’s camp, these three thousand elite cavalry raised dust with hooves, pouncing like hungry tigers, and after careful selection, chose to “bite” from the soft flank of the Hao Army side.
Zhao Cheng quickly arrived at the engaged camp, raising his commander’s flag to steady morale. Seeing the enemy elite cavalry charging ferociously, they divided into nine sub-arrays in “pin” formation stacked, three “pins” forming a large “pin.” Once a “mouth” (sub-array) faced strong troop charge, it immediately contracted inward into a hedgehog, then the whole shifted, other “mouths” closing up, the entire “pin” flipping upside down, changing from one “mouth” facing enemy to “two mouths,” holding the enemy charge and achieving troop superiority on the engagement front.
The above shows that Wu Fei and Zhao Cheng studied the same military treatises on this “basic formation deployment textbook.”
But Zhao Cheng had his own experienced operations for infantry resisting cavalry; he pre-deployed anchoring forces in each sub-array. Each sub-array mixed three groups of iron troops, twenty per group.
These iron troops wore heavy infantry-level armor, wielding horse-chopping sabers. When standing in the laborer arrays, as Yao Army knights charged like harvesters, these Hao Army iron troops were like rebar stuck in fields.
…Live combat verification dividing line…
On September 2nd, the Da Yao armored brave cavalry responsible for the charge didn’t detect these iron elite mixed in the Hao Army laborer queues, initially smashing a quarter of the formation; the Da Yao generals anchoring in the rear breathed a sigh of relief.
But in the Jade Brave sub-array area originally routed by iron cavalry, the false Hao miscellaneous soldiers in bamboo armor re-formed the sub-array using these iron armored men as benchmark; the Yao Army bigwig overseeing from sky beasts above was instantly dumbfounded.
Slow down the footage carefully to observe the charge details. Yao Army cavalry initially breached the sub-array like washing away a layer of sand, then exposing inner reefs—these reefs were heavy armored troops, densely stood and coordinating well; cavalry horses were chopped down by horse-chopping sabers. Then the farmer troops re-formed footing with the heavy armored troops as benchmark amid whistles.
In this proper field battle, both Yao Army and Hao Army had very close casualties, but Hao Army losses were mostly freshly recruited one-month miscellaneous soldiers, while Yao Army losses were elites.
Next, the Yao Army wouldn’t give up, deciding to strike other parts of Hao Army positions, but after three consecutive days of active offensives, with rounds of iron armor charges costing over three thousand casualties, the Yao Army generals felt great pain.
So after September 6th, the whole army tended to bypass this stubborn roadblock.
Thus in Sha Prefecture, after the two army corps clashed frontally, they began slow misalignment. This was a prolonged process; as they brushed past, when Zhao Cheng’s army formation stabilized, he would proactively send four to six thousand troops with artillery to press up.
As Hao Army artillery bombarded the Yao Army, the Yao Army main array moving south couldn’t remain unmoved. If cannonballs were allowed to bombard unchecked, the vast majority laborers comprising the Yao Army’s main body would have continuously agitated morale; who knows, at night, with someone shouting, everyone collectively recalls the daytime tension of falling cannonballs, leading to camp panic. (Camp panic from a soldier’s view: Refer to the feeling after learning to drive, dreaming at night of the accelerator not obeying.)
Thus Yao Army generals took turns drawing lots to lead counterattacks. Waves of Yao Army armored soldiers braved massive cannon arrows, like waves crashing a big ship, forcing back the large army Zhao Cheng sent. In this process, hundreds were shot dead by arrows or killed by cannonballs, but Hao Army losses were only dozens—Zhao Cheng held the exchange advantage.
The two massive human flows of different flags performed crossing evasion in this “river bend terrain,” like two people brushing past leaning on a doorframe. There was friction but overall “peaceful.”
After September 16th, both sides’ strategic crossing shift finally completed, “peace” immediately ended, and the armies were fully hostile again.
At this point both armies had rear paths; Zhao Cheng occupied the northern trails, able to dispatch small light cavalry at any time to suppress changes in Sha Prefecture, while Emperor Shu’s side also sent envoys to previously “tightly shut” prefectural cities to demand food and grass.
At this time both sides feared showing any sign of retreat, lest the opponent cut their vitals.
After a day of toil, Zhao Cheng checked the Bo Prefecture situation again, pausing slightly upon seeing the news of “He Yufei actively sortieing from Hu City.”
For such a surprise, Zhao Cheng wasn’t angry, as he knew He Yufei’s level; losing composure and botching things at this time fit his caliber. It only showed that the one in Bo Prefecture (Wu Xiao Que) had extremely high military attack and civil intimidation level. He still needed to remain vigilant.
Zhao Cheng pondered, thought of something, and hurriedly wrote an urgent letter to Pu E.
The letter’s content was very simple: telling Pu E not to get involved there, of course he couldn’t write too much since Pu E was his superior.
Zhao Cheng couldn’t outright say “you going would be sending yourself to die.”
However, Zhao Cheng submitting this letter still showed “lack of emotional intelligence.”
…Human relations…
At Gu Shou Pass, autumn leaves drifted down from the mountain ridge with the wind, a few landing on the pass.
Pu E had donned armor, preparing to lead troops south for support; upon receiving the letter, she paused. Beside her, Gu Shou Pass’s new garrison general Dragon Descendant Zhao Qi watched Pu E. The original Yuwen Li had been sent further north to Yan Land.
After a long time, Pu E: “You all don’t go.”
This Zhao Qi immediately grew anxious: “Grand Tutor, if we don’t go, He Yufei is done for.”
Pu E: “If you go, do you have a sure victory?”
Zhao Qi: “But we can’t just watch him go to his death, right?” Then he glanced at the letter in Pu E’s hand. Knowing it was from Zhao Cheng, he quickly said: “My lord, you won’t?”
Pu E: “You guard inside the pass; I’ll make a trip there.”
Zhao Qi bitterly tried to dissuade, but Pu E didn’t allow it.
Zhao Qi returned to Gu Shou Pass, slamming a palm on the battlements in fury, leaving a handprint, and said to others: “This is that ruined household kicking when down!”
…Resentment dividing line…
In Hao State, most Dragon Descendants were unconvinced by Zhao Cheng; no matter how excellent his talents, they were unwilling to yield, after all, he was just a commoner who ate rats under city walls to survive.
Dragon Descendants in this regard were far inferior to the “merit dogs”; at least “merit dogs” were willing to acknowledge those who could lead them to victory.
Besides, Haotian Dragon Descendants were very clannish, as they all came from the great migration, considering themselves brothers and sisters, with internal closeness stronger than outsiders.
For Dragon Descendants, their current clannishness was precisely their greatest weakness. Or rather, if on a more savage planet, clannishness is an advantage. Without competitive forces intervening, the more clannish, the greater the advantage.
But now, Xi Ren Realm’s civilization development level was even higher than Haotian Realm; this clannishness only provoked native forces’ xenophobia.
Sure enough, with Wu Fei’s instigation, all Yao Person forces in Bo Prefecture now highly unified on “dragon slaying.”
