Chapter 284: Standoff
Pei Qinghe rarely showed her emotions so openly.
Captain Sun’s heart tightened, and he said awkwardly: “I was just talking nonsense, General. Please don’t take offense.”
Pei Qinghe exhaled a stifled breath and said flatly: “The Xiongnu starting internal strife is good for us. With so much cavalry gone, the Xiongnu’s strength has greatly diminished. Our chances of defending the city have increased.”
“Continue sending people to scout the enemy’s situation. Don’t miss a single move. If I’m not mistaken, the Xiongnu will soon attack the city again.”
Captain Sun was somewhat surprised: “With so much cavalry gone, Pu Nu should be regrouping and rallying morale. Why would they attack the city again?”
Pei Qinghe looked toward the direction of Changli City: “If I were Pu Nu, I would attack the city as soon as possible. Fight to sustain the fight, rally morale. Otherwise, more people would want to withdraw the troops and leave.”
By analogy, if Pu Nu didn’t even have this much foresight and capability, he wouldn’t be fit to be the commander!
As expected, two days later, the Xiongnu barbarians came to attack the city with overwhelming momentum!
Pei Qinghe wore soft armor and went up to the city gate.
Defending the city gate were Liaoxi soldiers, as well as Pei Family Army and Guangning Army soldiers. The uninjured soldiers from the Fanyang Army and Pingyang Army had all come too.
The wounded soldiers were all recovering in the military tents. All who could draw a knife and fight had been summoned to the city gate. There were about eight thousand in total. Two thousand went up to the city gate to defend, while the other six thousand soldiers waited below the city gate, ready to receive military orders to go up at any time.
Pei Yun, Pei Yan, and the other divine archers each pulled their bows and nocked arrows, quietly waiting.
Yang Hu, Yang Huai, Song Dalang, and Lu Feng each waited on the side for military orders.
Li Chi was the same.
The Xiongnu barbarians’ first wave of attack on the city began!
Pei Qinghe pulled her bow and shot an arrow. The divine archers followed suit one after another, first repelling the Xiongnu barbarians’ first wave of attack. After a while, the Xiongnu barbarians pushed siege towers and cloud ladders to attack the city again.
This was ultimately the Liaoxi Army’s main battlefield. Pei Qinghe looked at Li Chi: “General Li, have people push wood and pour hot water.”
Li Chi immediately accepted the order without hesitation and shouted loudly. Soon, massive logs fell heavily from the city gate, smashing the siege towers and cloud ladders to pieces and crushing quite a few Xiongnu barbarians in the process.
More and more logs fell, occupying the open space below the city. It became extremely difficult for the Xiongnu barbarians to approach the city gate again using siege towers and cloud ladders. It also greatly reduced the possibility of the barbarians climbing onto the city wall.
The Liaoxi soldiers, who had previously been beaten to the point of shattered morale and zero fighting spirit, were greatly encouraged and invigorated. They had truly been terrified by the Xiongnu barbarians. If the Xiongnu barbarians swarmed onto the city gate, they probably wouldn’t even have the courage to rush forward and fight to the death, and would flee in disorder instead.
Past noon, the Xiongnu barbarians withdrew their troops.
The soldiers cheered their hard-won victory.
Pei Qinghe also smiled, though her eyes held a hint of mockery and sarcasm.
Li Chi said in a low voice: “Pu Nu didn’t go all out in attacking the city. General, don’t underestimate Pu Nu.”
“He’s using us as a whetstone.” Pei Qinghe said flatly: “To keep the Xiongnu barbarians in the rhythm of attacking the city and rally morale.”
“Conveniently, I have the same plan.”
There were five armies with banners on the city gate. Different armies had different temperaments and different fighting styles. Kneading them together to maximize combat power was no easy task and greatly tested the commander’s capability in directing battles.
She needed to understand the strengths and weaknesses and combat power of each army, and arrange the most suitable tactics.
Li Chi understood and responded in a low voice: “Please give your instructions, General. Your subordinate will certainly obey.”
Pei Qinghe looked at Li Chi: “I like dealing with smart people, so I won’t waste words on those evasive pleasantries. Among the five armies, the Pei Family Army is the strongest, followed by the Guangning Army. The Pingyang Army has few men but is brave and valiant. Your Liaoxi Army is barely a bit stronger than the Fanyang Army. After more than a month of continuous fighting, you have long lost morale and the confidence and courage to win. You must rally morale in the shortest possible time.”
Li Chi didn’t feel humiliated, because what Pei Qinghe said was all fact, and she had even given them some face: “There were deserters every day before. It was only when General Pei arrived that the soldiers stopped fleeing. Otherwise, there probably wouldn’t be many left to defend the city now.”
“General, don’t mention banners anymore. The Liaoxi Army is gone. I am a foot soldier before the General, and so are they.”
The “they” Li Chi referred to were the Liaoxi Army soldiers. They all looked at Pei Qinghe with fervent and urgent gazes.
Pei Qinghe had entered Liaoxi City for just a few short days, yet she had brought earth-shaking changes to it.
The common people had received grain and were deeply grateful to Pei Qinghe. The Liaoxi soldiers had eaten their fill for several days in a row and received double military pay, so their morale soared. Not only were there no deserters, but they were vying to go up to the city gate to fight, eager to show their faces and earn military merit.
On the battlefield, morale was the most precious and hardest to obtain.
They couldn’t wait to discard the Liaoxi Army banners and fully join the Pei Family Army.
This time, Pei Qinghe didn’t coldly refuse. She smiled faintly and said: “After we win this battle and defend Liaoxi City, and the Xiongnu barbarians fully withdraw, I will raise a banner in Liaoxi City to recruit soldiers.”
The Liaoxi soldiers felt a huge weight lift off their shoulders, all beaming with joy.
The Guangning Army had banners but had always taken orders from Pei Qinghe, and the military regulations and management in their barracks were not much different from the Pei Family Army.
The Pingyang Army were guests from afar and would have to return after the battle, so they didn’t care.
The ones feeling sour were the Fanyang Army soldiers.
After coming down from the city gate and returning to the temporary military tents, these soldiers gathered together and muttered: “The Liaoxi Army has joined the Pei Family Army too. From now on, won’t Youzhou only have us Fanyang Army and the Pei Family Army left?”
“Actually, I want to join the Pei Family Army too!”
“The Pei Family Army’s military regulations are very strict. If we really join, we won’t have any easy days anymore.”
“If you want easy days, why be a soldier? Wouldn’t it be better to go back and farm?”
“Farming what good days? Bandits and refugees come to rob, and when big soldiers arrive, they’re like locusts. What good days do the common people have?”
“That was before. Now with General Pei, good days for Youzhou’s common people will come soon.”
At these words, the soldiers all fell silent.
After a moment, someone sighed lowly: “Once you’re in the barracks, you can’t think of leaving. Otherwise, you’d be a deserter. If deserters are caught, it’s death. Better to stay in the barracks and make do!”
“We only hope our General Lu figures it out soon and joins General Pei quickly. Then, when General Pei eats meat, we’ll have hot soup too.”
In Pei Qinghe’s military tent, Pei Yun was also whispering quietly: “This Li Chi is clever and sharp, ruthless in heart and hand, adept at reading the situation. He can even strike against his own uncle. After taking him in, we still need to guard against him turning on us at any moment and biting us.”
Pei Qinghe hummed in acknowledgment: “Don’t worry, I have it under control.”
