Chapter 449: Strangulation and Counter-Strangulation

"One, two, three, heave!"

"One, two, three, heave!"

On the banks of the Fen River, in the middle section of Queshu Valley, a dozen or so Tang soldiers were organizing the boatmen to tow the boats. Grain ships from Guanzhong, traveling upstream, were being towed by local boatmen through this stretch of the Fen River where the water was shallow and fast-flowing.

This was the territory of Lingshi County. In the tenth year of the Kaihuang era of the Great Sui (590 CE), Emperor Wen of Sui, Yang Jian, made an inspection tour of the north and had the waterway excavated—that is, clearing the canal between Chang'an and Jinyang.

A giant stone was obtained, resembling iron yet not iron, resembling stone yet not stone, grayish in color and ringing when struck. It was deemed a spiritual omen, and so was named "Lingshi" (Spirit Stone), and the southwestern portion of Pingzhou County was carved out to establish Lingshi County.

Although it was only spring now and the weather could not yet be called hot, the boatmen responsible for towing in Lingshi County were already drenched in sweat.

Bare-armed and wearing thin short tunics, they gripped the tow ropes for all they were worth, not daring to slacken for an instant. Once they stopped, the grain ships heading upstream could no longer advance, and might even drift backward along the Fen River.

These grain ships had all departed from Puzhou, loaded at Fengling Crossing, and then towed upstream all along the route by boatmen from various places, like a relay baton being passed along.

Doing so indeed ensured a steady supply of provisions to Taiyuan City and also saved on animal transport capacity. But for the various prefectures and counties along the way, this was also an enormous burden.

Just as the boatmen were pulling with all their might, the sound of hoofbeats suddenly came from the north!

A large cavalry force swarmed in, killing everyone they saw!

The boatmen scattered in panic, fleeing into the mountain forests on both banks. After the grain ships lost their motive power, they slowly drifted southward. The boatmen aboard hid in the cabins, not daring to come out—anyone who poked his head out would be shot dead by the cavalry on the riverbank.

But hiding in the cabins was of no use either. This stretch of the Fen River was very narrow. The cavalry hurled earthen jars filled with fierce-fire oil onto the grain ships, then set them ablaze!

One ship after another, every vessel in the entire fleet began to burn fiercely.

"General Sun, it's done this time!"

A cavalryman shouted to the cavalry general leading the unit, his excitement written all over his face.

"Some famous general who swept across the Western Regions—nothing special! All because he had a good father!"

This rebel general of Turkic origin named Sun Xiaozhe said with a mocking expression.

At this moment the surprise attack had already succeeded, and the rebel cavalry behind him all clamored and jeered.

"Withdraw! The government forces have deployed heavy troops in Jinzhou to the south. Our few men aren't even enough to fill their teeth."

Sun Xiaozhe cursed and laughed for a while, then led his men northward all the way, withdrawing from Queshu Valley.

Leaving behind only the grounded grain ships in the Fen River—half submerged in the water, half still burning on the river's surface.

A grim and wretched scene.

……

Twenty li south of Taiyuan City stood Dongwo Relay Station. Originally, it was simply the most important relay station on the route between Taiyuan City and Chang'an.

Later, the relay station was integrated with a military supply post, becoming a military camp of the Tianbing Army. After that, because the Hedong battle line kept shifting northward and the Tianbing Army kept deploying further forward, Dongwo Relay Station became a market town centered on a wooden fort of the military camp, while still retaining its function as a relay station.

People came and went in a ceaseless bustle.

But ever since Huangfu Weiming rebelled in Hebei, Dongwo Relay Station had shut its doors outright, and was then occupied by the rebel forces under Cai Xide, serving as a bridgehead for attacking Taiyuan City!

Yet today, when Fang Chongyong personally led three thousand troops of the Yinqiang Xiaojie Army here, he found that the rebel forces had already withdrawn completely, not a single one left behind.

"Jiedushi, could someone inside Taiyuan City be passing information to that bandit Cai? Yesterday the scouts said the rebel army was sharpening their swords here, and today they've vanished without a trace?"

He Changqi asked Fang Chongyong beside him with a grave expression.

The two were inspecting inside the wooden fort at Dongwo Relay Station and found that the supplies were all still there—only the rebel soldiers were nowhere to be seen.

Clearly, this was the other side putting on a posture of "if you want this territory, take it yourself."

Dongwo Relay Station was not the rebels' base to begin with, and was only twenty li from Taiyuan City. Cai Xide judged there was no need to hold it at all, and so withdrew overnight.

Of course, leaving now did not mean they would not come back.

If Fang Chongyong stationed troops here, too few might not withstand Cai Xide's thunderous assault; too many would require constant transport of provisions from Taiyuan City, thus creating an additional supply line that needed maintaining out of thin air.

This was similar to how the rebel forces, after consuming the provisions originally stockpiled at Dongwo Relay Station, had to rely on Yuci County to the east for transporting supplies. And if the strategic stalemate continued, once the provisions from Yuci were exhausted, they would have to be transported from Hebei.

That was why the situation in this campaign was exceptionally complex and treacherous—it was not simply a matter of taking a sword and hacking people down.

Fang Chongyong's expression was also grim; he knew he had encountered a formidable opponent this time.

"We'll discuss it back at Taiyuan City."

Fang Chongyong waved his hand, not bothering to explain the underlying tactics to He Changqi in detail.

However, when he returned to Taiyuan City with the Yinqiang Xiaojie Army, Yan Zhenqing came directly to his door to inform him of bad news:

The provisions from Puzhou had been set ablaze on the banks of the Fen River in Queshu Valley—ships and grain burned together. The boatmen responsible for towing were dead or fled. In any case, Taiyuan City would not be receiving this batch of supplies.

"Cai Xide is very skilled in the use of troops. He must not be underestimated."

Fang Chongyong took a deep breath, suppressing the fury in his heart as he spoke.

In the study of the Hedong Jiedushi's office, Fang Chongyong's trusted subordinates, such as He Changqi and Wang Nande, all wore grim expressions.

In summary, Cai Xide had now anticipated Fang Chongyong's anticipation. The Yinqiang Xiaojie Army had marched out only to find nothing, and the provisions from Puzhou had been burned by the other side in one fire!

Utterly infuriating!

This style of fighting made Fang Chongyong feel very uncomfortable, and he had his own difficulties that outsiders could not understand.

Not far north of Taiyuan City was Yangqu County; less than ninety li north of Yangqu County was Chitang Pass. It was this pass that blocked another of Shi Siming's forces, preventing Taiyuan City from being completely encircled by the rebel army.

However, when Fang Chongyong sought out locals from Taiyuan to describe the geography of Chitang Pass, he could not help but feel a wave of fear in retrospect.

Less than thirty li east of Chitang Pass was Shiling Pass, with Guanmao Mountain connecting the two, placing them in a "mutually supporting angle."

Thus its military importance was critical—whether attacking south from the north or north from the south, victory allowed rapid advance and defeat allowed mutual reinforcement, making it a strategic pass that excelled in both offense and defense.

But there was actually a prerequisite: that both passes had sufficient troops to support each other, and enough time to do so.

This did not mean that either pass was impossible to breach. This was entirely different from the situation at Tong Pass.

In other words, what Xin Yunjing had said about "fighting a bloody battle at Chitang Pass" already indicated that this pass was not so reliable.

If it were truly an impregnable natural barrier held by a single man, what need would there be for a "bloody battle"?

This was like a sword suspended above his head, preventing Fang Chongyong from freely concentrating his forces to sweep through Hedong. Because once he moved his troops away from Taiyuan City, Shi Siming might launch a fierce assault on Chitang Pass—and breaching it was not out of the question.

Yangqu itself was open plains with no natural defenses to speak of. Within a day or two, if Chitang Pass were breached, the rebel army would be at the gates of Taiyuan City.

The peril in this was like something that weighed three or four taels off the scale, but over a thousand catties on it. As long as the rebel army had not yet breached Chitang Pass, ordinary people in Taiyuan could not see any sign of danger at all.

But Fang Chongyong understood that in the early years of the Northern Song, the Song army advanced by separate routes to converge and encircle Taiyuan City — not a single point nearby was "impregnable"; every one of them was taken by the Song army.

"Lord Yan, please make the arrangements. Starting today, implement food rationing. Confiscate all grain and fodder from every wealthy household in Taiyuan City and place them under unified management.

Additionally, send men to gather firewood around Jinyang Lake north of Taiyuan, in case of need!"

After a moment's thought, Fang Chongyong instructed Yan Zhenqing.

"Understood, I shall see to it at once!"

Yan Zhenqing gave a slight nod.

This matter was naturally difficult to carry out, but they had reached a life-and-death juncture, and Taiyuan City could run out of food at any time. If the rebel army could burn the transport ships once, they could burn them countless times.

What was the rebel army's purpose in doing this?

Simple — striking at what the enemy must save!

If Fang Chongyong ignored it and did nothing, the rebel army would only escalate their interception of the supply route.

If Fang Chongyong divided his forces and deployed troops from Taiyuan to protect the supply route, that would be exactly what the rebel army wanted.

You can't send too few men, right? Too few and they wouldn't be a match for Cai Xide's elite troops.

But if you send too many, can you still defend Taiyuan City?

There are those who spend a thousand days as thieves, but no one who spends a thousand days guarding against thieves.

Just as Fang Chongyong was about to issue his second military order, Duan Xiushi hurried in and whispered a few words in his ear.

Fang Chongyong's expression changed drastically!

"Jiedushi, has something major happened?"

Yan Zhenqing asked with a look of puzzlement.

"The rebel army is driving tens of thousands of civilians from Yuci County eastward — it seems they intend to take them to Hebei!"

Fang Chongyong said bitterly.

Everyone in the study turned pale with alarm.

Any commander who had fought regularly would understand that this tactic was exceedingly vicious.

If the government forces pursued, the rebel army would use the civilians as a rear guard — they didn't care about the lives of the Hedong people! In the chaos, these civilians would disrupt the government forces' formation.

The rebel army would then seize the opportunity to surge forward and roll them up like a falling curtain!

Who could withstand that?

If the government forces did not rescue them, how could they face the Hedong people? If the locals learned that the government forces could not protect them, would they proactively cooperate with the rebel army at the first opportunity in the future?

This was a dilemma.

"Jiedushi, you absolutely must not send troops! If we go out to fight, defeat is certain!"

Sure enough, He Changqi was the first to stand up and oppose sending troops.

The others, including Yan Zhenqing, all remained silent — not a single one raised the matter of sending troops.

Right now Cai Xide was playing his cards face up, plainly trying to bait Fang Chongyong — the other side wasn't even pretending anymore.

"If a battle is lost, the army can regroup. But once the people's trust is lost, it is very hard to win back.

If the people's trust is utterly forfeited, how can Taiyuan City be held?

General Duan, pass the order: whoever is willing to rescue the people of Yuci, follow me. No one else is compelled.

There are many Guest Troops in Taiyuan City, and many of them have no ties whatsoever to the local area. Asking them to risk their lives rescuing the people of Yuci County would truly be asking too much.

But many people, especially those of the Heavenly Troops Army, have their families right here in Taiyuan and the surrounding prefectures and counties. If even they are unwilling to step forward for the rescue, then they cannot blame me for being heartless."

Fang Chongyong looked around at everyone and said.

"Jiedushi, you absolutely must not! If we go out to fight, this battle is certain to be lost!"

Everyone in the study, including Yan Zhenqing, knelt before Fang Chongyong!

"Jiedushi, even if the rescue succeeds, Yuci County will no longer be habitable, and those civilians will still need to be resettled in Taiyuan City.

Our supply route is already cut, and adding all those extra mouths to feed — wouldn't that make Taiyuan City even harder to hold?"

He Changqi shouted at Fang Chongyong.

"Bullshit! If you don't save these people, in the future plenty of others will open Taiyuan City's gates to let the rebel army in!

Who will still believe we can hold Taiyuan?

Duan Xiushi, have you lost your mind? Why haven't you passed the order yet!"

Fang Chongyong drew the Gale Phantom Blade and cursed at He Changqi, pointing the weapon at him.

"Yes, sir!"

Duan Xiushi took the order and departed, leaving the others standing in awkward confrontation in the study.

"War is fought on spirit — the army's spirit must not be broken.

If we don't go this time, we will never be able to hold our heads up before Cai Xide again.

How can we even speak of victory or defeat?

We'd have lost before even fighting — how would we establish ourselves in Hedong after that?"

Fang Chongyong lifted each of the kneeling men to their feet one by one and said with a sigh:

"When enemies meet on a narrow road, the brave one wins. If Cai Xide wants a fight, then so be it.

What does it matter even if we lose this time?

The people of Taiyuan will know that we will surely come to their rescue. With the people united as one in the future, how could we fail to hold Taiyuan, fail to hold Hedong?

The grief of the local people who have lost loved ones will not be blamed on us — they will settle accounts with the rebel army.

Do you truly not understand the principle that water can carry a boat but also capsize it?"

Fang Chongyong patiently persuaded the gathered men.

"Jiedushi…"

He Changqi was still going to speak, but Fang Chongyong waved his hand and said: "No need for many words; those who want to go, follow me; those unwilling to go, guard Taiyuan; that's it."

"Received the order!"

The officers shouted in unison.

Fang Chongyong grasped Yan Zhenqing's hands and earnestly said: "Yan Sir, I entrust the defense of Taiyuan to you."

"Jiedushi, rest assured; I will surely defend Taiyuan City to the death, standing watch day and night."

Yan Zhenqing also adopted the soldiers' habit, clasping his fists toward Fang Chongyong in salute.

The group walked out of the government office, seeing many Tang troops gathered outside; upon seeing Fang Chongyong emerge, they all knelt on the ground and shouted: "Please, Jiedushi, lead us out of the city to save the people!"

Taiyuan and the surrounding counties are the gathering place of the Hedong army's families; these Tang troops before us have slightly different uniforms, clearly coming from different units of the Hedong army.

"Good! Then you all follow this Jiedushi!"

"Kill!"

Fang Chongyong drew the Swift Wind Phantom Blade, held it high, and shouted loudly.

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

The troops gathering outside the government office grew more and more, gradually forming a surging flood.

Soon after, the east gate of Taiyuan City swung open; Fang Chongyong rode ahead on horseback, followed by three thousand cavalry behind him, and a huge number of infantry trailed after, marching mightily toward the direction of Yujie County to the east.

……

"'Pa!'"

A horsewhip lashed an old man's face, flipping him to the ground; a rebel soldier stepped forward and punched and kicked him.

"'Damn it, trying to buy time—move faster, old man!'"

After the kicking, he still cursed, spitting at the old man lying motionless on the ground.

By the roadside, Sun Xiaozhe, with arms crossed, spoke to the contemplative Cai Xide, who was riding his horse: "General Cai, your tactic is truly excellent! If Fang Chongyong doesn't send troops, morale will collapse; if he does, it plays right into the general's plans—our ambush is ready, ensuring he has no return."

"'Fang Chongyong is a famous general who swept the Western Regions—how could he not know these things?'"

Cai Xide gave Sun Xiaozhe a glance, too lazy to bother with this bootlicking rat.

If it weren't for the fact that the other party is a confidant of Shi Siming, he would have lashed them with a whip long ago—brainless, still buzzing on and on!

"'Tell the cavalry: without my military order, no rash moves.'"

Cai Xide rebuked Sun Xiaozhe.

"'Good, good, good; this subordinate will go at once.'"

Sun Xiaozhe's face was all smiles, but the moment he turned around, his expression changed.

"'Damn, what a piece of junk—actually taking himself as the commander!'"

After walking away, he cursed and spat on the ground.

(End of chapter)