Chapter 297: Attack in Lieu of Defense

When Fang Chongyong was leading the Yinqiang Xiaojie Army to raid the area around Wei Yuan, the Tufan began to exert force in Shanzhou!

The Tufan elite of the southern road army on the Shanzhou battlefield, composed mainly of heavy infantry, forged a path, setting out from the plateau around Dafei River, charging at Stone Fort City and the surrounding strongholds without regard for casualties!

Caught off guard, the Tang forces saw Dingrong City, which lies across the mountains from Stone Fort City, fall with a single blow. From then on, the Tang relief route was blocked, and Stone Fort City became an isolated fortress.

In this battle, the Tufan army unusually fielded mainly minor nobles, heavy infantry clad head‑to‑toe in leaf armor that left only their eyes exposed, leading the charge. These "iron cans" could take dozens of arrows without falling; the Tang swords, spears and arrows could not pierce their armor, causing the Tang a heavy loss in the fight!

Wang Zhongsi hurriedly dispatched elite troops of the Lintao Army to garrison Anrong City (Huangyuan County, Qinghai) north of Dingrong City. After gathering clear intelligence on the battle, Wang Zhongsi did not act rashly; instead, he selected five hundred warriors from the Lintao Army as the vanguard of a strike team, tasked with charging the Tufan heavy‑armor formation on the open mountain road.

Each member of the strike team wielded a massive staff‑flail in both hands, swinging to slay the enemy, wearing light armor, carrying no shields; their style was reckless, allocating all skill points to attack.

The term "giant staff‑flail" refers generically to blunt‑weapon types. It is a standardized piece of equipment in the Tang army, defined as "a large stick made of sturdy wood, four to five chi long, wrapped in iron—called a He Li staff; with spikes driven into it like wolf teeth, called a wolf‑tooth staff."

Wang Zhongsi equipped the Lintao strike team with the He Li staff; since it cannot pierce armor, he treated it as a "kinetic weapon."

Sure enough, the tactic proved remarkably effective, and the two strike teams immediately turned the unfavorable situation against the Tang forces.

When the Lintao He Li staff strike team entered the field, the unprepared Tufan heavy infantry fell back step by step; after a bloody clash beneath Dingrong City, the Tufan main force retreated to Dafei River.

The Tang army, having won a small victory, dared not pursue and simply withdrew from Dingrong City, which had been seized by the Tufan and whose foothold was still unstable.

Although Wang Zhongsi recaptured Dingrong City, it did little to alleviate the crisis of the siege of Stone Fort City.

Taking advantage of the interval while the Lintao Army was being moved to Anrong City, the Tufan elite of the northern road army on the Shanzhou battlefield launched a rapid assault on the Heiyuan Army garrison (Xining City, Qinghai). Since the Heiyuan elite had earlier been redeployed to Stone Fort City for rotation, the Tang troops remaining in the wooden fort were now wounded soldiers and second‑line units.

Just appointed by Wang Zhongsi as the Heiyuan Army's commander, Ge Shu Han was struck by three arrows yet stayed in the line. At the critical moment, Ge Shu Han tore off his blood‑stained coat, led his personal guard shirtless into battle atop the wooden fort, fighting the Tufan elite in a bloody clash and ultimately safeguarding the Heiyuan Army's main camp.

The Heiyuan garrison lay slightly behind the Tang front line, providing a modest strategic buffer, and served as the supply depot for the Longyou Town Tang forces.

If lost, not only would the main Longyou Town force under Wang Zhongsi be unable to retreat from the front and have its rear cut off by the Tufan, but the entire Longyou Town army would fall into a food shortage.

Then the war could not be fought any longer!

Upon hearing the Heiyuan main camp's urgent call, Wang Zhongsi pulled three thousand cavalry from the front‑line units for reinforcement, finally repelling the northern road Tufan elite.

Now the Longyou Town Tang forces in Shanzhou have contracted their defensive line; the Starfall Gorge once held by the An people, and the river‑confluence area where the Baishui Army was garrisoned, have been voluntarily abandoned, concentrating troops to desperately defend Stone Fort City. The Tufan, however, are not advancing blindly; they are gradually tightening the noose, squeezing the operational space of the Longyou Tang forces.

In terms of casualties, the Tufan have certainly lost more men; yet the strategic advantage in Shanzhou now firmly rests in the Tufan's hands.

Wang Zhongsi still has a strategic counter‑attack unit, the newly formed but not yet fully staffed Tianwei Army. He has kept it idle, stationed in Zhengzhou City for rest. Should the situation deteriorate further, its deployment in a critical spot is not ruled out.

But if the Tianwei Army also takes the field, it would mean Wang Zhongsi has no room for maneuver; the battle would then be forced into a passive response to Tufan moves, with no chance to counterattack.

"General Ge Shu, thanks to your steadfast blood‑battle, the Longyou Tang forces have escaped disaster! I, the Jiedushi, have recorded your great merit and will award you after the war!"

Inside a modest infirmary at the Heiyuan garrison, Wang Zhongsi looked at Ge Shu Han, who was being treated by the medical officer, and spoke. The medic removed the Tufan arrows, applied a golden wound‑healing medicine, and wrapped the wound with breathable hemp cloth, allowing a slight sigh of relief.

"General Ge Shu, the Tufan arrows are all coated with excrement, extremely poisonous; you cannot be careless."

After the medic finished treating Ge Shu Han's wound, seeing Wang Zhongsi wave his hand, he quietly exited the room.

"Go to Huangshui County to convalesce; I will have Gai Jiayun take over your post."

Wang Zhongsi let out a light sigh, seeming not in a good mood.

General Ge Shu clearly understood Wang Zhongsi's situation, and lowered his voice to ask:

"Wang Jiedushi, the Tufan army, one to the south and one to the north, is like a pair of tongs squeezing us."

"If we cannot hold the north, we will be crushed in the He‑Huang region. If we cannot hold the south, we will lose Stone Fort City and give the Tufan their wish."

"Now the Tufan are luring us to reinforce the northern line; they never intend to occupy the area where the Heiyuan Army resides. I, the junior officer, think that once the Tufan capture Stone Fort City and solidify its defense, they will withdraw directly."

General Ge Shu's gaze was precise; at a glance he saw exactly what the Tufan's flamboyant tail‑wagging was meant to achieve.

No matter how fierce the fighting in the north, with the Tang Empire's abundant strength, the Tufan can seize the He‑Huang valley plains held by the Heiyuan Army; when the Tang forces are ready for a major counterattack, the Tufan will still be able to push them back.

If, for at least ten years, the Tang border forces are not severely weakened, the Tufan cannot achieve their goal.

Do the Tufan know this? In fact, they are very clear about it in their hearts.

What the Tufan are counting on is Stone Fort City.

By seizing Stone Fort City, the Tufan would hold the main route the Tang army uses to reach the Jiǔqǔ region of the Yellow River.

The Tufan appear ferocious in battle, but they are merely employing an attack‑instead‑of‑defense strategy, which is highly deceptive.

"What you say, Jiedushi, I am well aware of. I have Li Guangbi command the Tianwei Army as a reserve, intending to strike back when the Tufan forces are exhausted, seizing the Jiǔqǔ region at the opportune moment."

"Now the Tufan seem to have strong momentum, yet Longyou Town is already struggling to hold, and the Jiedushi is worried about this."

Wang Zhongsi let out a long sigh; war is a profoundly materialistic affair—relying on emotion and sentiment cannot secure victory. The balance of power between the two sides accounts for most of the factors that determine success.

For example, Wang Zhongsi now feels like a clever housewife trying to cook a meal without rice.

The Tufan mobilize the entire nation's strength to assault Stone Fort City, while Longyou Town is merely a segment of the Tang border forces. If the Tang hold this location, they must expend more manpower and resources than the Tufan to maintain it, a consequence dictated by geography.

If the Tang truly decided that merely defending Fengxiang would suffice, then the defense would of course be much easier.

Being close to Guanzhong, troops and supplies are plentiful. Yet this approach would require ceding a large swath of Longyou's land to the Tufan, ultimately feeding and fattening the Tufan.

In the end, a strong and well‑mounted Tufan assault would still tighten the border defenses around Fengxiang.

Therefore, for the Tang, whether to defend the northwest, where to defend, and how far the national border should expand is a highly dialectical question with no clear answer.

Wang Zhongsi is not Ji Ge; he cannot decide where the Tang should hold or abandon. He can only, with his limited forces, secure Longyou Town's basic position, thereby reporting to the court.

"Wang Jiedushi, Stone Fort City must not be lost; if it falls, the court will punish us."

"If the northern line truly cannot hold, then let the Tianwei Army take over."

General Ge Shu suggested this to Wang Zhongsi.

"Understood, you rest first."

Wang Zhongsi gave a slight nod, as if neither agreeing nor refusing.

After Ge Shu left, a middle‑aged man wearing a headscarf and black Tang military uniform approached Wang Zhongsi, crossed his arms in a salute, and said nothing.

"Guang Bi, regarding the current situation, what do you think?"

Wang Zhongsi asked in a deep voice, his tone noticeably more cordial than when speaking to General Ge Shu.

"Jiedushi, I wish to go into battle.

The current situation is stalemated; a counter‑offensive on the Tufan northern road would break it.

Sever one of their arms, and the southern Tufan army will withdraw on its own."

Li Guangbi said with resonant force, his attitude extremely resolute.

He follows Wang Zhongsi to glorify the Li clan of Liucheng, not to come here to idle away!

When a chance to achieve merit and fame arises, how could one possibly give it up!

"What you just said sounds reasonable, but in fact it is not.

You can see it, and the Tufan people can naturally see it too; how could they be completely unprepared?

Counterattacking the Tufan northern front could indeed break the stalemate, but the Heavenly Might Army must not move. You are my trump card; you cannot be moved lightly.

Once it moves, this battle will be decided. Now is not the time to knock the Tufan army to the ground with a single punch."

Wang Zhongsi's eyes flashed like lightning, a glint of brilliance flashing.

Near the Hehuang Valley in Shanzhou, the Tufan and Tang military deployments were essentially open cards. The southern Tufan main force was garrisoned at Dafei River, the northern Tufan main force at Datong City north of Starfall Gorge, like the two ends of a pair of tongs.

Tactics such as striking the middle or interleaving cuts cannot be employed by the Tang, because the central node of this "pair of tongs" is the great mountains surrounding Qinghai Lake!

Soldiers hacking at people is one thing, but they cannot hack at a mountain, can they?

This is the geographical advantage the Tufan hold, which the Tang cannot change.

The Tufan southern supply base is at the Nine Bends of the Yellow River, the northern supply base around Weiyuan. For the Tang army of Longyou Town to pierce the Tufan line and cut their grain routes is essentially to wipe out the entire Tufan force.

Compared with the robust southern Tufan forces, the northern Tufan army is a detached detachment. Sever this arm, and the chance to counterattack the southern front and seize the Nine Bends of the Yellow River will arise.

This would permanently solve the problem of Stone Fortress City being threatened daily by the Tufan.

While the Tufan were scheming about Stone Fortress City, Wang Zhongsi was also scheming against them!

At present, Wang Zhongsi's situation is that one hand keeps catching stones thrown by the Tufan, looking flustered, while his other hand must stay ready to counterattack, unable to fully confront the Tufan invasion.

If the reserve forces are all deployed, what about the Tufan's remaining options? This possibility not only exists, it even aligns perfectly with the Tufan's usual tactics.

Li Guangbi's ideas aren't necessarily wrong; it's just that the troops he summons are unsuitable.

"Calm down for a moment; now is not the time."

Wang Zhongsi kindly patted Li Guangbi's shoulder and said.

"Jiedushi Wang, I am worried that if this continues, we'll eventually collapse. I have no idea what the court is doing; at this critical moment, they still refuse to send troops to support Longyou."

Li Guangbi sighed and, helplessly, made a snide remark.

"Watch your words! Can you even say such a thing? If you don't send troops, will you stop fighting?"

Wang Zhongsi, with a fierce expression, retorted, then waved his hand wearily.

In truth he was also dissatisfied, but could not voice it. Since he serves as the Military Governor of Longyou, he should use the border troops of Longyou Town to hold the ground—that is his duty.

Those below him may complain that the court does not send reinforcements, but he cannot.

"Take a rest; when it's your turn to go into battle, you must not be vague."

Wang Zhongsi said to Li Guangbi with a solemn face.

"Jiedushi, rest assured; when the time comes, your servant will give his all, and will not survive unless we succeed!"

Li Guangbi patted his chest, swearing earnestly.

"Go then, I have other duties, I won't escort you further."

……

Fusi City, the former capital of Tubo, lies on the west side of Dafei River, adjacent to Qinghai Lake, on its southwest. As the headquarters of the Tufan southern road army, the elderly Grand Scholar Qili Xu resides here to command remotely. Frontline battles of the southern Tufan forces are commanded by the Imperial Guard officer Enlan Dazalu Gong.

Inside a main hall of the principal building in Fusi City, two blood‑soaked Tufan commanders knelt on the ground to beg forgiveness, while Qili Xu, looking displeased, sat aloft, seemingly on the brink of eruption.

Fang Chongyong's cheap sworn brother Enlan Dazalu Gong stood beside Qili Xu, like a statue.

"Two Dongdai Imperial Guard units from Luoxie City suffered casualties and lost commanders yet still failed to capture Stone Fortress City, and even lost Dingrong City; how should military law punish them?"

Qili Xu asked weakly of Enlan Dazalu Gong beside him.

"According to military law, the unit's banner is to be hung like a fox's tail, and the commanding officer executed."

Enlan Dazalu Gong said expressionlessly.

"Carry out the military law."

Qili Xu nodded slightly and said.

"Grand Scholar, hold on. Your servant believes the fox‑tail banner must serve as a warning, but the execution of the commander can be postponed, allowing them to atone with merit and cleanse their disgrace.

Next time we attack Stone Fortress City, let them lead the vanguard."

Enlan Dazalu Gong said leisurely.

"If so, fine, let's do it that way."

Qili Xu nodded slightly, gently waving his hand.

The two kneeling Tufan commanders, as if granted a great pardon, hurried out of the hall.

"Is now the time?"

Qili Xu gestured to Enlan Dazalu Gong, pulling him close, and whispered.

Hearing this, Enlan Dazalu Gong shook his head, sighed deeply, and said:

"It's still not the time; as long as Longyou's Heavenly Might Army does not move, we will not move.

"Prolonged defense leads to loss; with the current Tang forces, we will eventually push the Heavenly Might Army in to plug the breach. That moment will be when we cast our net."

"Wang Zhongsi has been famous for a long time; his steady style seems hard to trap."

Qili Xu sighed, furrowing his brows. He was already a frail old man, a rare longevity in Tubo. Now the internal strife in Tubo, which escalated sharply after the previous Zhanpu was assassinated, made the elderly Qili Xu the "greatest common divisor" acceptable to both factions, allowing him to sit in Fusi City and oversee the overall situation.

The northern Tufan army also obeys his orders.

Since the early Kaiyuan era, Qili Xu has overseen military affairs on the Tubo–Tang border. He has seen too much of the world, and therefore feels deep anxiety about the current situation.

"Wang Zhongsi is like Lian Po at the Battle of Changping between Qin and Zhao; the Tang always produces a Zhao Kuo, we can wait."

Enlan Dazalu Gong shook his head slowly and said.

The Tang troops of Longyou Town, defending with all their strength against the Tufan's simultaneous two‑pronged attack in Shanzhou, are already in a very passive position.

Moreover, there are also two flanking detachments of the Tibetan army, attacking Min Prefecture and Dang Prefecture on the Longyou Zhen'nan line—a mad slap in the face of the Tang Emperor!

Wang Zhongsi was unmoved—could the Tang Emperor also be unmoved?

In such a perilous situation, Wang Zhongsi actually dares to hold back a reserve—being dismissed is only a matter of time.

Enlan Dazha Lugong refuses to believe that the Tang forces at Shan Prefecture can hold out! The Tibetan army's strategic goal is modest—just Stone Fortress—and incidentally weaken the Tang's manpower. Moreover, their preparations are thorough.

With ample preparations and a reasonable strategic objective, winning this battle is no problem. In fact, just now at Dingrong Fortress, the Tibetan Imperial Guard was driven back by the Tang army—the blame lies with the Tibetan commanders' battlefield command; they could have won.

Enlan Dazha Lugong also wants to beat those two good-for-nothings to death, but he is after all not yet the Tubo Grand Minister—winning over the people is still necessary; he cannot act on impulse.

How much longer do you estimate?

Qilixu glanced at the calm-faced Enlan Dazha Lugong and asked softly.

Fifteen days… no, about ten days will do.

(End of chapter)