Chapter 254: Hong Taiji Ravages the Capital Region, the Nan'ao Forces Bombard Wuzhou

After finishing his introduction of the benefits of conquering Guangxi, the Army Chief of Staff began to lay out the specific operational plan.

The Great Ming court was too feeble, with insufficient weapons and provisions, so much so that Zhu Xieyuan's pacification campaign crawled along, his forces stuck facing the She-An rebels on the Sichuan-Guizhou border with no strength whatsoever to spare for Guangxi.

Guangxi was currently held by under-strength guard station troops and disunited native chieftain soldiers, whose only reliance was Guangxi's stout city walls and rugged mountain roads.

And such geographic limitations were nothing in the eyes of the Nan'ao forces, for there was a perfect invasion route—the Xijiang waterway.

The Army Chief of Staff had someone turn to the next map, which was a chart of Guangxi's waterways.

The Xijiang waterway included the Guijiang, Hejiang, Qianjiang, and Liujiang rivers, fanning out across the whole of Guangxi, with every major city in the province sitting on a riverbank. He pointed his teaching rod at the map, where a great river was marked—that was the Xijiang—and at the point where the Xijiang crossed the provincial border stood a great city, Wuzhou.

"Wuzhou is Guangxi's eastern gateway. Take this city, and Guangxi's door stands wide open.

Counting guard troops and militia, this city's defenders number only five thousand, with fewer than twenty cannon.

With the Nan'ao forces' strength, advancing by both water and land, taking this city would take no effort at all."

The teaching rod slid westward across the map, tracing upstream along the waterway until it reached another great city—Xunzhou.

"This city is Guangxi's river transport hub, where the northern and southern water systems converge. Seize it, and Guangxi's cities can no longer support one another, allowing our forces to defeat them one by one." With that, he drew three attack routes on the map.

The northern route struck straight at Guilin along the Lijiang; the western route attacked Liuzhou and Qingyuan along the Liujiang and Qianjiang; the southern route attacked Nanning along the Yujiang.

The Army Chief of Staff added: "Guangxi has suffered years of severe drought, and the Prince of Jing has taken the opportunity to seize farmland, butcher lives wantonly, and monopolize the people's livelihoods—the common folk have long hated him to the bone.

Every official in the province, from the Governor on down, is rotten with corruption and dereliction of duty, even worse than in Guangdong, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang.

The Guangxi Regional Commander, under the pretext of suppressing the She-An rebellion, has been killing innocents to claim merit and looting Liuzhou, Qingyuan, and other places wholesale—the people say his atrocities far exceed those of She-An. Then there are the native chieftains warring among themselves. Just last year, in the twelfth month, the Huang clan chieftain of Siming Prefecture burned and plundered over twenty villages, displacing more than ten thousand people, and they even regularly raid Han civilians and sell them into slavery in Jiaozhi.

The feudal prince, corrupt officials, and native chieftain cancers, on top of years of drought, have long driven Guangxi's people to utter disgust with the Ming court.

The moment the Nan'ao forces arrive, the people everywhere are sure to rise up with whatever they have. Conquering Guangxi will be like reaching into one's own pocket."

The Army Chief of Staff rapped the map, and an orderly turned the page—the next one showed the troop and supply requirements for attacking Guangxi.

"According to our calculations, this campaign requires twenty thousand army troops, five thousand marines, and seventy thousand dan of military grain.

Twenty Fujian junks, forty Haicang ships, one hundred Cangshan ships, plus Eagle ships, Bird ships, and Sand ships for scouting and transport.

If all goes smoothly, the whole of Guangxi can be taken in three months, just in time to avoid the flood season."

Lin Qian gave no verdict, instead asking the Navy Chief of Staff: "Has the Xijiang waterway been surveyed?"

"Please look, Helmsman." The Navy Chief of Staff rose and gestured for the screen to be turned back a page, revealing the Guangxi waterway chart covered in dense small script, detailing the hydrological conditions of every single channel.

"Though our forces will be sailing against the current, in the dry season the flow is gentle, the water level stable, and the dangerous shoals exposed.

From Guangzhou to the Wuzhou and Xunzhou stretch, everything from three-masted Fujian junks on down can navigate around the clock; on the remaining stretches, Cangshan ships can also pass unimpeded. The shoals requiring towlines are also marked on the chart."

Lin Qian pondered a moment, then asked: "How stands the front line where Zhu Xieyuan faces the She-An army?"

The Military Intelligence Staff officer rose and answered: "Word from three days ago—the two sides are still deadlocked. Zhu Xieyuan is slowly besieging them with the tactic of 'attacking from all sides in succession, gradually cleansing the field.'"

The moment he finished, someone entered from outside and handed him a letter.

The Military Intelligence Staff officer opened it, his expression stiffening, then said: "Helmsman, latest news—the She-An rebels fell for Zhu Xieyuan's feigned retreat and were lured onto the Yongning plain.

Zhu Xieyuan sent his troops in five converging columns and routed the hundred-thousand-strong rebel army, and the rebel leaders She and An have vanished without a trace."

At these words, every staff officer in the meeting changed expression.

The plan to attack Guangxi was premised on Zhu Xieyuan being tied up fighting the rebels, with no time to extricate himself.

Once the rebellion was pacified and Zhu Xieyuan's forces turned back to reinforce, then forget taking Guangxi—even holding Guangdong would be extremely difficult.

After all, Zhu Xieyuan commanded the elite of five provinces, totaling a hundred and fifty thousand men.

That was a real hundred and fifty thousand, with no padded payrolls or false reports—all battle-hardened elites personally drilled by Zhu Xieyuan, especially adept at mountain warfare. Even with the Nan'ao forces' firepower superiority, they would hold no advantage on rugged terrain.

The Military Intelligence Chief of Staff repeatedly verified the truth of the news.

The Army Chief of Staff said apologetically: "Helmsman, please allow my department to refine the plan further."

The Navy Chief of Staff said: "The Xijiang's water is not deep enough for ocean-going vessels to enter. Relying on Fujian junks and Sea Wolf ships, we can hardly threaten the army, and instead risk having the river cut off and losing our line of retreat. Helmsman, this matter needs more deliberation. If we shifted to campaigning against Brunei instead, that might be the better choice." The staff officers all talked at once for a while, but Lin Qian never replied, a smile hanging at the corner of his mouth.

Once everyone had quieted down, Lin Qian asked: "Are the Emperor and the eunuch Wei in good health?"

The Military Intelligence Staff officer was taken aback, not understanding why the Helmsman asked this, and answered by reflex: "Latest news—that eunuch dog is in fine health. It's just that the dog Emperor shows himself less and less. Rumor has it he was frightened and damaged his vital essence, and is still recuperating."

"Over the coming months, keep close watch on the capital. Any news involving those two, report to me immediately."

After a moment of silence, Lin Qian said: "I approve the plan to attack Guangxi. Assemble troops and supplies as soon as possible."

"Helmsman..." The Army Chief of Staff tried to advise against it, but Lin Qian raised a hand to stop him.

Lin Qian smiled: "Zhu Xieyuan's troubles—someone else will solve them for us."

While Nan'ao celebrated the unveiling of the Complete Treatise on Agriculture and the flintlock musket.

The Ming sovereign and his ministers on the North China Plain also received a New Year's "gift"—Hong Taiji had breached the pass.

On the third day of the eleventh month of the eighth year of Tianqi, Hong Taiji led eighty thousand troops out of Shenyang, bypassed the Guan-Ning-Jin defense line, cut through Mongol territory, and advanced toward the Ji Garrison. Because the Korean court had been broken and the Dongjiang garrison's strength was greatly diminished—and being isolated overseas—the new Ji-Liao Supreme Commander Yan Mingtai had no ability whatsoever to control Mao Wenlong. As a result, the Dongjiang garrison's containment role was greatly reduced, and the Later Jin, with only a little over twenty thousand troops left under Nurhaci's personal command, held Shenyang.

Mao Wenlong made several attempts to go ashore and raid, but was badly beaten each time, and so lost all heart for harrying the Jianzhou barbarians.

Hong Taiji was thus able to advance with utter impunity.

On the twenty-seventh of the twelfth month, the Later Jin army attacked the Great Wall on three fronts. The defenders were completely unprepared, and the passes fell in a single day.

On the twenty-eighth of the twelfth month, the Later Jin army surrounded Zunhua.

On the third day of the first month of the ninth year of Tianqi, Zunhua fell, and the Ji Garrison's gateway stood wide open.

The Guan-Ning army was at this time under Yan Mingtai, a member of the eunuch faction well versed in political wisdom. Upon learning the Later Jin had breached the pass, his first act was to muster his troops into Shanhai Pass, then he petitioned the throne on every matter, never acting on his own authority.

Only after Zunhua fell did he enter the pass; only after the Ji Garrison was broken did he besiege Zunhua.

By the time the Eight Banners' main force had the capital surrounded, Yan Mingtai's troops were still lingering beneath the walls of the Ji Garrison.

Wei Zhongxian, frantic as an ant on a hot pan, petitioned Tianqi and issued stern edict after stern edict demanding Yan Mingtai march to the emperor's rescue.

Yan Mingtai outwardly obeyed the edicts, but out of selfish concern for his own skin, he marched with extreme slowness.

Along the road from Zunhua to the Ji Garrison, Yan Mingtai meticulously cleared out every single fortress the Later Jin army had left behind, repaired city defenses, stockpiled grain and pay, and meanwhile submitted memorial after memorial detailing the merits of every battle.

One could say he marched three days and stopped five—seemingly advancing step by step, but in truth slow to the extreme.

Wei Zhongxian understood nothing of military affairs, and upon receiving the reports, could only fret helplessly.

Yuan Chonghuan, Man Gui, Zu Dashou and others were also in the army, extremely dissatisfied with Yan Mingtai's passive marching, and begged for battle all day long.

These men were all old subordinates left behind by Sun Chengzong, whom Yan Mingtai found difficult to control. Since he had to put on some show of rushing to reinforce anyway, he simply gave ten thousand men to the three of them and sent them off to march to their deaths.

After the three obtained command of troops, they marched through the night and finally reached the city walls before Hong Taiji could complete his encirclement of the capital.

On the fifteenth day of the first month, the Later Jin army attacked the city. The Guanning Army, the Xuan-Da Army, and the capital garrison forces fought to the death against the Later Jin troops.

For seven or eight days straight, the cries of battle at Desheng Gate, Guangqu Gate, Zuo'an Gate and elsewhere shook the heavens—even from within the imperial palace, they could be heard.

Every citizen of the capital felt their own life was in danger; the sound of weeping at night could be heard for miles around.

Even the palace maids and eunuchs in the imperial palace wore expressions of deep sorrow.

Late at night, outside the warm chamber of Qianqing Palace, the imperial physician packed up his medicine box, his face filled with worry, and walked out with his head lowered.

Wei Zhongxian stopped him, dragged him into a corner, and asked in a low voice: "How is His Majesty's dragon body?"

The Tianqi Emperor had previously fallen gravely ill over the Empress's miscarriage and had never recovered. Now, frightened by the Later Jin army's siege of the capital, his condition had worsened—recently he suffered continuous high fevers and nightmares, visibly weakening day by day.

The imperial physician sighed: "With this alarming upheaval at the capital, His Sacred Majesty's heart hangs in anxiety day and night. Your servant just took his pulse and found the six pulses floating, rapid, and hollow; the heart pulse scattered and unable to gather; the kidney pulse sunken, faint, and nearly extinguished. These are already perilous signs of external strength but internal depletion, a great loss of the vital root…"

Wei Zhongxian's eyes flew wide open, his expression horrified: "You you you… are you saying…"

The imperial physician grabbed him: "Let Nine Thousand Years not worry. His Majesty is still young. If external disturbances are cut off and he rests quietly, there is still room to turn things around."

Wei Zhongxian breathed a sigh of relief and took out a fine pearl from his sleeve as a reward.

The imperial physician gave his thanks and withdrew.

Wei Zhongxian went inside to attend to Tianqi, and only after he had fallen into a deep sleep did he withdraw, his eyes red-rimmed.

Outside the palace, his eunuch sons and grandsons had been waiting for some time. Seeing Wei Zhongxian emerge with red-rimmed eyes, they all stared at him, not daring to breathe.

Wang Tigan said in a trembling voice: "Nine Thousand Years, His Majesty…"

Wei Zhongxian let out a long breath and smiled: "His Majesty merely caught a slight chill. The dragon body is hale and healthy. After some days of quiet rest, he will be fine."

At these words, his sons and grandsons all breathed sighs of relief along with him.

After dismissing the eunuchs, Wei Zhongxian kept back his trusted confidants, told them the truth, and then asked: "How goes the fighting outside the city?"

Wang Tigan said: "This morning, there was a battle at Yongding Gate. We lost more than half our men dead or wounded. The remnants, led by Yuan Chonghuan, Zu Dashou, and Man Gui, took refuge in the barbican. Sun Zushou died in battle."

Wei Zhongxian cursed: "A bunch of useless trash."

Wang Tigan continued: "Fortunately, this battle also cost the Jianzhou barbarians dearly. From what Yuan Chonghuan says, the Jianzhou barbarians seem inclined to retreat."

Wei Zhongxian's worry turned to joy: "Truly?"

Then he paced excitedly back and forth in the hall, muttering to himself: "If the Jianzhou barbarians withdraw, His Majesty's illness might well improve…" The rest of his confidants, however, wore faces full of worry.

Wei Zhongxian looked at his men's expressions, and his excitement gradually faded, replaced by rising fear.

This time the Jianzhou barbarians broke through the pass, the chief culprit was Ji-Liao Supreme Commander Yan Mingtai—and he was a diehard member of the eunuch faction, having built no fewer than ten shrines to Wei Zhongxian's living image. Once the Jianzhou barbarians withdrew, who should be rewarded and who punished?

The men who distinguished themselves in this battle—Yuan Chonghuan, Zu Dashou, Man Gui and others—were all subordinates of Sun Chengzong, and Sun Chengzong was an adversary of the eunuch faction.

If someone at court seized upon this point to attack, how should they respond?

How was Wei Zhongxian to account for this to the Emperor?

Moreover, the Tianqi Emperor's condition had been deteriorating for over a year without any sign of improvement. If he were to pass away, where would he, Wei Zhongxian, and his sons go? Wei Zhongxian calmed himself: "If… if something untoward should happen to His Majesty, who do you all think should succeed to the throne?"

For a moment, no one in the hall spoke; the silence was suffocating.

The Tianqi Emperor had no sons. According to the iron law of the *Ancestral Instructions of the August Ming*, "When a father dies, the son succeeds; when an elder brother dies, the younger brother takes his place," Prince Xin, Zhu Youjian, was the sole heir. However, everyone present knew that Zhu Youjian was nineteen years old, of grave and decisive character, and had long been dissatisfied with Wei Zhongxian's monopoly on power.

Letting Prince Xin ascend the throne was equivalent to handing over the lives and fortunes of the eunuch faction.

But words like usurpation or regency—such grossly treasonous talk—no one dared utter either.

After a long while, Wei Zhongxian said: "What of the young sons of Prince Fu and Prince Rui? Or perhaps claim that a palace consort carries a posthumous child?"

The crowd remained silent, and Wei Zhongxian pressed them with question after question.

Cui Chengxiu spoke cautiously: "I fear there are righteous armies abroad."

At present, the Guanning Army was clenched in Yan Mingtai's grip. Even if the man was a coward who feared death, at least he wore the same trousers as the eunuch faction.

The greatest threat to Wei Zhongxian was Zhu Xieyuan, who sat in the southwest commanding an army of one hundred fifty thousand.

Like Sun Chengzong, Zhu Xieyuan was a traditional scholar-official, a hard-liner, who held the eunuch faction in great contempt.

Were it not for this man's pivotal role in suppressing the southwest rebellion, and the additional consideration of checking Lin Qian, Wei Zhongxian would have removed him from office long ago.

Now that great matters were afoot, nothing else could be spared—even if it meant letting the southwest situation rot, this man had to be replaced first.

But replacing a man required a pretext. Zhu Xieyuan had deep roots in the southwest and enjoyed considerable popular support; a hard approach would certainly not work.

Wei Zhongxian thought for a moment, a smile spreading across his face, and asked: "His Excellency Zhu is from Shaoxing, Zhejiang, is he not? Are both his parents still living?" His subordinate replied: "His father still lives. This year marks his eightieth birthday."

Wei Zhongxian smiled: "Eighty years old—such an advanced age. Even if he were to pass away suddenly, it would count as a happy funeral. For His Excellency Zhu to observe mourning for his father would be entirely beyond reproach." As he spoke, his eyes—half-smiling, half-not—fixed on Tian Ergeng. This man controlled the Embroidered Uniform Guard and was Wei Zhongxian's number-one enforcer for dirty work. Seeing his adoptive father's gaze fall upon him, Tian Ergeng already understood his intent, rose, and clasped his hands: "Your son understands."

Wei Zhongxian said: "This job must be done quickly, but the methods must be clean. After all, he is eighty years old—don't let the old man suffer."

Tian Ergeng said: "Your son will make certain no one sees through it."

With that said, Wei Zhongxian began discussing how to deal with the other generals commanding troops.

The eunuch faction had held power for a long time; the generals commanding heavy forces throughout the Great Ming were basically all their own men.

Men like Zhu Xieyuan—appointed by the eunuch faction through gritted teeth on the strength of ability alone—were few and far between.

The planning continued until the rising sun shone in the east.

A young eunuch came to report that Hong Taiji had withdrawn his army and was pillaging toward Liangxiang, Gu'an, and Fangshan—apparently preparing provisions and supplies before returning east. The forces of Yuan, Zu, and Man followed close behind, preparing to coordinate with Yan Mingtai in a pincer attack on the Later Jin army.

Upon receiving the news, Wei Zhongxian broke into a smile. Wasn't the pretext he needed right here?

If the three lost the battle, that was reckless advance through underestimating the enemy—grounds to strip them of military command.

If no battle was fought, that was letting the enemy slip away and missing the opportunity—grounds to seize their authority and throw them in prison.

Even if they got lucky and won, that could be spun into a promotion as a pretext to transfer all three into sinecure posts.

Just as he was savoring how to deal with the three men, another military dispatch arrived at the Directorate of Ceremonial.

None of them understood what was happening, thinking to themselves: "Didn't they say the Later Jin army had withdrawn? Where did this memorial come from?"

Cui Chengxiu opened the military dispatch and read it, his face instantly filling with shock.

Wei Zhongxian saw his expression and immediately grew alarmed: "Is something wrong?"

Cui Chengxiu looked up in a daze and said, "On the third day of the first month, at the Battle of Yongning, the She-An rebel army fell into a trap and was utterly defeated.

Our forces beheaded over twenty-eight thousand in battle, captured more than thirteen thousand, the rebel main force was annihilated, the rebel leader She Chongming was killed, and An Bangyan fled back to Shuixi with the remnants of his forces—they are now barely hanging on... This is a great victory!"

Wei Zhongxian was stunned for a moment, then clapped his hands and laughed: "Excellent! Excellent, Lord Zhu! Heaven aids me—the great plan can succeed!"

Tian Ergeng asked cautiously, "Godfather, regarding Old Master Zhu—should we still send the 'birthday gift'?"

Wei Zhongxian said without hesitation: "Send it! Of course we'll send it!"

Since the She-An Rebellion had been essentially pacified, there was even less reason to keep Zhu Xieyuan around.

Wei Zhongxian could even afford to be more aggressive.

He pondered briefly and said, "Draft an edict—the Jianzhou barbarians are plundering the capital region; order Zhu Xieyuan to step down as Governor-General of the Five Southwestern Provinces and return to the capital to await orders. Zhongyue (Cui Chengxiu's courtesy name), pick one of our own to fill the vacancy."

Given the state of Tianqi's health, no one knew how long he could hold on, and Wei Zhongxian dared not wait a single moment.

Waiting for Old Master Zhu to die, and for Zhu Xieyuan to observe mourning and resign his post, was still too slow.

A single transfer order to bring him back to the capital, immediately stripping him of military command, then informing him of his father's death on the road back so he would go home to observe mourning—that would be much faster.

Cui Chengxiu's eyes rolled, and he had already thought of a candidate.

That very day, the mounted riders delivering the "birthday congratulations" and the soldiers carrying orders to the southwest departed the capital.

The next day, the new Governor-General of the Five Southwestern Provinces, eunuch-faction member Zhang Woxu, holding the imperial sword of authority, set out on his journey to the southwest.

That month, Hong Taiji stripped the four prefectures of the capital region bare—all wealth and livestock carried off, common folk taken as captives, and whatever could not be carried away burned to the ground. Afterward, he left a small force to garrison the Ji Garrison and Zunhua and the other cities, while his main army swaggered back through the passes to the outside.

Yan Mingtai, fearing the enemy, avoided battle, and Yuan Chonghuan's forces could not act alone—they could only trail behind, watching helplessly as the Later Jin army departed, as if seeing Hong Taiji off.

When the military dispatch was made public, the capital was thrown into uproar. Yuan Chonghuan, Man Gui, and Zu Dashou were thrown into prison to face charges.

Yan Mingtai, protected by the eunuch faction and skilled at self-preservation, shifted all blame cleanly onto others, reorganized the Guanning Army, returned to Shanhai Pass, and continued serving as Supreme Commander of the Ji-Liao region.

Beyond this, Wei Zhongxian also took the opportunity to purge mid- and low-ranking officers in the capital region, inserting large numbers of his confidants and tightening his grip on military power. The Tianqi Emperor lay ill in bed day and night, state affairs were handled entirely by Wei Zhongxian, and Qianqing Palace was strictly guarded by Ke Shi and Wei Zhongxian—not only could Prince Xin not see the Emperor, even Empress Zhang found it harder than climbing to heaven to see her husband.

Spring had arrived on the North China Plain, yet the cold remained bone-piercing. Heavy snow fell for days on end, and the entire capital was shrouded in wind and snow.

The eunuch faction had been in power for years, leaving most court officials as sycophantic, wealth-coveting men.

Nan'ao happened to have inexhaustible gold and silver, making it very convenient to buy such people off.

Lin Qian received the transfer order for Zhu Xieyuan a full five days earlier than Zhu Xieyuan himself.

In early February, the vanguard of the Nan'ao army had finished assembling and was sailing up the Pearl River, heading for Wuzhou.

On the twelfth day of the second month, at dawn, the Nan'ao army arrived beneath the walls of Wuzhou.

The Nan'ao army had chosen its timing too well—it coincided precisely with the handover between two governors-general, and all manner of unusual movements were overlooked. Only when the army arrived at the city walls did the Wuzhou garrison wake up as if from a dream.

By the time the Nan'ao army had already set up artillery positions outside the city, the Wuzhou garrison was only just mustering its soldiers and closing the city gates.

The Prefect of Wuzhou and the Assistant Regional Commander in charge of city defense were roused from deep sleep and hurried up onto the southern city wall, where they immediately drew in sharp breaths of cold air.

Looking out over the river, they saw warships of the Nan'ao army covering the surface—large and small vessels numbering at least a hundred or more, nearly cutting the broad West River in two. On the water some two hundred paces from the city wall, more than ten Fujian junks were drawn up in a line, each with three or four cannons on its side, seemingly being loaded and sighted. Wuzhou city bordered the West River to the south and the Gui River to the west, with mountains and hills to the east and north—a natural moat and wall. An enemy attacking would not even have room to form ranks; the city truly held every geographical advantage.

Yet such a formidable fortress, before naval gunboats, became nothing more than a live target for target practice.

Soon, the Fujian junks finished adjusting their formation and fired from the blind spots of the city wall's Folangji cannons.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Over thirty Siren cannons fired in rotation, and the southern city wall of Wuzhou immediately erupted with thunderous roars as solid iron shot slammed down, sending dust into the sky.

Several shells also flew into the city, smashing countless houses, and the city was instantly thrown into panic.

After one round of bombardment, there were almost no casualties—but the blow to morale was immense.

The raised dust left the soldiers on the wall covered in grime. A Battalion Commander, hunched over, came before the Prefect and the Assistant Regional Commander, clasped his hands, and said, "Your Excellency, General, the wall is dangerous—please return into the city."

The Prefect was already inclined to retreat, but his pride would not allow it. He was about to say something face-saving to give himself an out.

Another round of bombardment came from the river.

On the city wall, a Folangji cannon took a hit, letting out a great clang—the barrel was dented with a deep pit, and the thousand-jin cannon broke free of its recoil ropes, tumbling straight down the wall with a thunderous crash.

Chips of stone flew in all directions, one striking the Prefect on the neck and making his whole body convulse. The Prefect of Wuzhou could no longer care about face and hurried down from the wall. The bombardment continued from morning to night, lasting an entire day—the thunder of cannon fire and screams could be heard throughout the city.

At nightfall, the cannon fire temporarily ceased, and the Nan'ao army began scattering leaflets.

Some also took loudspeakers and piloted bird boats close to the city wall to urge surrender.

The surrender appeal needed no embellishment—simply truthfully describing how Guangxi had been squeezing the guard station soldiers was enough to make the Prefect tremble with fear.

The Prefect, anxious and terrified, endured until the small hours of the night, when finally the Assistant Regional Commander of Wuzhou came running up, gasping for breath.

"How is it?" The Prefect dispensed with all courtesy, his face full of hope as he asked.

The Assistant Regional Commander panted for a moment before saying, "The enemy's defenses are tight—both the Gui River and the West River have patrol boats."

The Prefect sat back down heavily in his chair, his face ashen: "So you're saying Wuzhou is surrounded?"

The Assistant Regional Commander smiled: "But the rebels are outsiders after all—they don't understand the local waterways. In the dry season, the Gui River is only a hundred-odd paces wide, and today is a big tide; when it goes out, the river will be even narrower. Soldiers who are good swimmers can make it across in one breath under cover of darkness."

Hope bloomed in the Prefect's eyes: "So the message requesting reinforcements has been sent out?"

The Assistant Regional Commander nodded smugly: "From here to Xunzhou is only a little over two hundred li. A fast horse can make it in a day or two at most. Once the Xunzhou naval forces come downstream, the siege of Wuzhou can be broken."

The Prefect breathed a sigh of relief. However weak Wuzhou's troops were, with the advantage of terrain, they could surely hold out for half a month.

He leaned back in his chair and said with relief, "That's good then."

The Assistant Regional Commander clasped his hands and said, "Once we repel the Nan'ao rebels and report to the court, it will surely be a great merit."

The Prefect waved his hand and said with feeling, "It's all Lord Zhu's brilliant foresight—how would I dare claim the credit.

If His Excellency had not anticipated the Nan'ao army's invasion and stationed heavy forces at Xunzhou to wait at ease, who knows how things might stand now." The Nan'ao navy's might was known to all the world, but in river warfare, the current was king.

No matter how many sturdy ships and powerful cannons one had, they could not match the advantage of being upstream.

As early as two years ago, Zhu Xieyuan had stockpiled large numbers of fire ships at Xunzhou. When the time came, they would attack downstream; on the narrow river, the Nan'ao army would have no room to advance or retreat and would face total annihilation.

The Nan'ao army's best option was to cut off its tail and flee, but even then it would suffer grievous losses and be unable to invade Guangxi again for years.

Thinking that Governor Zhu had already left office yet could still repel the enemy with strategy, the Prefect of Wuzhou could not help but admire him wholeheartedly.

While the Prefect of Wuzhou and the Assistant Regional Commander were speaking in secret, on the western bank of the Gui River, a man had already surfaced from the water.

He turned back to look at the Nan'ao warships on the river, seeing the ship lanterns stretching like a dragon along the water for five or six li, with not a single vessel noticing anything amiss.

The man could not help but reveal a smug smile, then quietly climbed ashore. Following the riverbank for less than three li, he reached the relay station, flashed his waist token, mounted a fast horse, and galloped toward Xunzhou Prefecture.

Yahei

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