Chapter 499: Strategic Advance

The civil unrest in Bozhou and Beizhou severely disrupted the transmission of information, or rather greatly increased the amount and speed of false news, thereby concealing the true urgent military intelligence.

It was just after night fell that day; Huangfu Weiming, who had inspected the construction progress of Yecheng's "Xinggong" during the day, dragged his weary body back to the government office and immediately joined an important banquet without pause.

The autumn harvest is approaching, and the requisition of military grain is a top priority.

The silk from Beizhou was almost all used up last year, and essentially it all went to the large households in Youzhou, who purchased the grain from them.

Since the war began, grain prices have continuously risen. Hebei's "industrial structure" has also changed accordingly; the large households have expanded the area for grain cultivation and reduced silk production.

Therefore Huangfu Weiming finds it quite difficult to collect some silk and exchange it for grain from the large households.

Tonight's banquet, attended by representatives of the large households from Youzhou, is precisely to "borrow grain" from them—a kind of borrowing that will never be repaid.

At this moment, in the hall of the office, the sounds of strings and bamboo instruments drifted among the seats; several tall, half‑naked Hu women with fragrant shoulders danced gracefully. At the table, some people buried their heads in vegetables, some squinted at the Hu women's hips, and others whispered faintly with their attendants behind them.

Watching this scene, Huangfu Weiming couldn't help but yawn; he had the illusion that he had become a Ji Ge.

Of course, now the top heaven is just a shrunken, knock‑off, poor‑man's version of Ji Ge.

Huangfu Weiming does not like these flashy airs, but life is often unsatisfactory, and many things, many scenes, are performed for others to see.

Not participating simply isn't an option.

The Hebei rebels have not captured Luoyang as planned, which has already given many fence‑sitting opportunists different ideas.

However, so far the army has not suffered any major setbacks, so most people still have confidence in them. Yet as time passes, the voices of doubt will only grow louder.

Huangfu Weiming's banquet, with its sounds of wine, women, dogs, and horses and a carefree demeanor, is also meant to steady people's hearts!

He has leisure to appreciate song and dance; to outsiders, if the commander is so confident, then the Hebei rebels must have a bright future.

Often, when the situation is still unclear, confidence matters more than strength.

At that moment, Huangfu Weiming's aide Li Shiyu quietly approached him and whispered a few words in a low voice.

The great commander's facial muscles twitched sharply! Even the hand that held the wine cup trembled slightly as he set the cup on the desk!

But he quickly regained his composure, gave Li Shiyu a slight wave, and said nothing.

Li Shiyu left with a sorrowful expression, yet the banquet continued.

Huangfu Weiming acted as if nothing were wrong, chatting merrily with the large‑household representatives from Youzhou and elsewhere, never mentioning the "borrowing grain" matter. He only spoke of some old events from when he was the military governor of Youzhou.

Things like striking the Khitans and sweeping away border bandits.

Those large‑household representatives also flattered Huangfu Weiming, calling him a pillar of the nation and the like.

The atmosphere at the table was very friendly and harmonious, like old friends reuniting, and it didn't disperse until the hour of Hai. After the guests gradually left their seats, Huangfu Weiming's complexion instantly turned extremely gloomy.

He walked steadily into the government office's study; Li Shiyu had already organized the relevant news onto several sheets of paper, neatly laid out on the desk.

"Grand Marshal, the military intelligence has been compiled, please review."

Li Shiyu made a requesting gesture toward Huangfu Weiming.

The latter smoothly sat on the cushion, picked up the papers on the desk, read them line by line, and after finishing, his face was full of disbelief!

He read them again, word for word, before confirming he hadn't misread.

"Is it a civilian uprising, or did the Yinqiang Xiaojie Army cross the Yellow River?"

Huangfu Weiming asked in confusion, his face clouded with darkness, as if a storm were about to break.

"Reply, Grand Marshal, both are true, so the situation is very complex.

However, the enemy forces are few and not worth fearing; the civilian uprisings in Bozhou and Beizhou are of considerable scale and should not be underestimated.

Beizhou is the great granary of Hebei; if its grain stores are burned, it would affect the main army's southward march."

Li Shiyu said cautiously, fearing to anger Huangfu Weiming.

The reports received so far are neither comprehensive nor specific; they are scattered and even contain contradictions.

But the only certainty is that Beizhou and Bozhou have already slipped out of their control! The prefectural and county governments have ceased to exist!

The Yinqiang Xiaojie Army, with only a few thousand men crossing the river, nevertheless caused a huge impact.

"Xuanwu Town's six prefectures, Fang Qing this scoundrel does not hold his ground, yet dares to cross Hebei!"

Huangfu Weiming crumpled the paper in his hand and tossed it onto the ground.

He murmured calmly, his blue veins on his forearm already bulging, his fingertips turning white from the grip.

Clearly his anger had reached its limit, yet he was desperately trying to suppress it.

"Li, the magistrate, the four routes of troops—now the Wei Lingxun detachment has been disbanded, leaving three routes of troops.

The Li Guiren unit garrisoned at Wei Zhou's Liyang stays put for the time being.

The An Shouchong unit stationed at Wei Zhou's Guantao, and the Tian Qianzhen unit stationed at Xiang Zhou's Linhe—of these two forces, which is better to send reinforcements to?"

Huangfu Weiming asked in a deep voice, tapping the desk with his index finger.

"Tian Qianzhen only commands ten thousand troops, originally stationed at Linhe to guard against a sudden southern enemy raid on Xiang Zhou. Sending him to pacify Beizhou and Bozhou may not settle them quickly.

Although An Shouchong is a detachment, it was originally intended as the main force for a feigned southward attack; better to let An Shouchong advance east into Bozhou, cut off the Yinqiang Xiaojie Army's rear, and trap them like a turtle in a jar.

Only…

Li Shiyu hesitated.

Actually moving troops is not the problem; the difficulty lies in grain.

Beizhou's main granary has been destroyed; although other nodes still have some stores, they are insufficient for large‑scale military operations!

Li Guiren's forces at Liyang use the canal and the Yellow River as the two main grain‑transport routes, sufficient to sustain the army's needs.

But An Shouchong's troops, moving upstream along the canal, would need grain to be delivered from the opposite end of the canal.

Simply put, the area closest to the Beizhou canal is now the most grain‑starved! An Shouchong's contingent does not have much fodder.

Thus the most convenient grain road, after losing the supply from Beizhou's great granary, has become stagnant water.

It's like a person who can shop at a huge supermarket just a few meters away every day and never stores food at home.

Once the supermarket closes and there's nowhere nearby to buy anything, that person's life is completely disrupted.

"Liyang has abundant fodder; let the transport ships deliver grain to An Shouchong. I now issue a military order: have An Shouchong lead troops to Qinghe County to pacify the rebellion."

Huangfu Weiming waved his hand and let out a helpless sigh.

"Commander, if this happens, how can we still march south on Bianzhou this winter?"

Li Shiyu grew anxious. If Huangfu Weiming truly issued such an order, the "full offensive" would become a "focused offensive."

That was exactly how Yuan Shao lost back then.

With the diversionary force crippled, Fang Chongyong could concentrate his troops to deal with the Hebei rebel army's attacks, and he would have a chance to turn the tide.

"Beizhou cannot fall into chaos. Hebei will never find a second supply route this convenient."

Huangfu Weiming sighed softly. The burned provisions and such were secondary; the main issue was the convenience of the Yongji Canal—there was no alternative route to replace it.

The reason later feudal dynasties dared to establish their capital in Youzhou was precisely because of the northern section of the Grand Canal—the segment north of the Yellow River.

Although it did not completely overlap with the Yongji Canal's route, the logic and the political-economic needs were the same.

Beizhou's stored grain could be accumulated again, but if the supply route was lost, then everything was ruined!

All kinds of supplies from Youzhou were transported via the canal to Beizhou as a transit point. If this line was severed, there would be no need to fight at all.

Clearly, Fang Chongyong struck extremely ruthlessly this time, and with deadly precision!

He struck at the Hebei rebel army's most painful spot.

"Commander, are we no longer attacking Bianzhou?"

Li Shiyu asked in a trembling voice.

For this battle, they had prepared for nearly half a year, front and back. Just like that, they were not fighting anymore?

Huangfu Weiming rubbed the space between his brows, his face full of disappointment.

Many times, man proposes but heaven disposes—those words were truly no idle talk.

In the end, he could not help but let out a long sigh: "Let's just treat it as that little beast Fang Qing getting lucky this time. Let him be smug for a few months first."

Huangfu Weiming was well-versed in grand strategy, his mind full of depth and contours. He was not the kind of person who acted recklessly on impulse.

As long as the Hebei rebel army's strength remained intact, he held ample capital in his hands. There was no need to gamble head-on when the enemy held the dealer's seat.

Fang Chongyong had indeed played brilliantly this time, but so what?

It merely delayed the Hebei rebel army's full southward march!

If one judged by the merchant's logic that "not making money counts as losing," then this time they had indeed lost big.

But from a military standpoint, this was merely a successful small-scale surprise raid and a brief, limited occupation.

Huangfu Weiming felt that once a victor emerged in Guanzhong, he would still have other options—he could take the capital in his hands and gamble it elsewhere.

On the contrary, he could not make a premature move now and alert the enemy!

There was no need to fixate on Fang Chongyong and fight to the bitter end. The other side couldn't possibly capture cities and seize territory in Hebei anyway.

"What the Commander says is quite right. It is just that this subordinate feels it is a pity, that is all."

Li Shiyu also shook his head and sighed. This time, it truly was a great pity.

"The autumn harvest is approaching. I believe that the Sage in Hedong should be about to stir up trouble soon enough.

How could there be no opportunity?"

Huangfu Weiming gave a cold, mocking laugh.

After putting down the civil unrest in Beizhou and Bozhou, Huangfu Weiming would also need to adjust his deployments and revise his next route of advance.

"This humble officer will go pass the orders at once!"

Li Shiyu hastily withdrew and trotted off to relay the orders.

Only after he left did Huangfu Weiming reveal a bitter expression, shaking his head and sighing incessantly.

Clearly, his decisive adjustment just now, his apparent indifference to past gains and losses—all of it had been deliberately put on.

In truth, the blow Fang Chongyong had struck this time pained him to death; he had long since been completely devastated by it. He simply could not afford to show it in front of others.

"The strike on Beizhou was indeed brilliant, but so what? It works once but not twice. Will you still have the chance next time?"

Huangfu Weiming muttered to himself. Running through the battle in his mind, he had already roughly sketched out Fang Chongyong's playbook.

Before the battle, he had colluded with Prince Yong, Li Lin, to play a two-man act, feigning a posture of attacking Lu County. He deceived the Hebei garrison across the river and lulled Wu Lingxun into complacency.

Recalling Wu Lingxun's ability in warfare, Huangfu Weiming felt it was perfectly normal that Fang Chongyong had succeeded. If An Shouzhong had been stationed there, perhaps the defeat would not have been so disastrous.

After successfully ambushing Liaocheng, Fang Chongyong had launched a lightning strike on Beizhou, almost without pausing for breath, with no intention whatsoever of holding the city.

Or rather, attacking Liaocheng was merely passing through. The other side's objective had been Beizhou all along!

Truly worthy of being one who had survived a hundred battles, a commander capable of holding his own front!

Huangfu Weiming sighed inwardly. This father and son of the Fang family were genuinely high-caliber—not a single one easy to deal with.

"But what was that civil uprising about?"

Huangfu Weiming searched everywhere for the piece of paper from earlier, only to discover that he had already crumpled it into a ball and thrown it on the ground.

He quickly picked it up and unfolded it, reading through the analysis of the battle situation once more. The more he read, the more confused he became.

Huangfu Weiming was a scion of an aristocratic family, born with a silver spoon. From birth, he had been in the glittering world of Chang'an, where the people he received and sent off were either imperial princes or officials.

As for why the common folk at the bottom would suddenly rise up, he was completely baffled, not knowing what had actually happened.

Those people were very, very far from his world.

"Fang Qing is an outsider. He can't even speak the local dialect, and he doesn't have a single familiar face.

Would the local populace be incited by him to riot? Why would those people listen to him?"

Huangfu Weiming's brows furrowed into a deep crease. He felt it was basically impossible for Fang Chongyong to command a hundred followers at a single call in Hebei. No one would follow him unless a blade was pressed to their neck.

"An Shouzhong has the makings of a famous general, considerable military acumen, and composure in command. If he takes the field, he should be able to resolve these problems.

It is merely a minor civil uprising."

Huangfu Weiming pondered at length. Although he had not yet figured out all the details, he felt there was nothing wrong with his arrangements. With An Shouzhong holding twenty thousand elite troops in hand, quelling the situation should pose no great problem.

As for the civil uprising, Huangfu Weiming felt it was nothing to fear.

……

The Beizhou territory isn't large, but the county towns and market towns are unusually concentrated!

To the northeast lies Jingcheng, to the west Zongcheng, to the southwest Linqing, to the east Wucheng and Liting, to the northeast Zhangnan, etc.; the population is frighteningly dense.

Following the principle of "since you're already here," Fang Chongyong sent people to the villages to mobilize the populace to come to Beizhou Prefecture City, that is, to the granary outside Qinghe County, to collect grain, and also to distribute various swords, spears, wooden poles and other weapons.

That surging momentum was almost a one‑call, all‑answer response.

The Beizhou peasants, having received benefits, actively and eagerly "persuaded" the local county to open its gates, and also opened the granaries to release grain, shamelessly.

The northern state granaries of the world have all opened and released grain; why wouldn't the county's treasury do the same?

Now the peasants also have knives in their hands, and there are only a few people inside the county office; how could they dare not open the city gates? How could they dare not open the granaries to release grain?

Thus, in just a few days, the Yinqiang Xiaojie Army, with the "cooperation" of the local peasants, smoothly took over all the counties of Beizhou!

The process was so easy it was unbelievable!

Seeing the Beizhou main granary gradually "slimming," Fang Chongyong felt the timing was about right; it was time to lead the army forward.

That day, he gathered all his commanders at the Qinghe County government office to discuss the next strategic move.

Seeing that everyone wore pleased expressions, Fang Chongyong cleared his throat lightly and asked, "Gentlemen, the Beizhou matter is almost settled. Where do you think would be best for the next stop?"

He smiled, looked around at the crowd, and asked.

"Jiedushi, aren't we supposed to head south to Wei Zhou, threaten Huangfu Weiming, and then return from Bozhou to Lu County?"

Che Guangqian asked in confusion.

This was the strategy we had previously discussed, and we didn't even hide it from Prince Yong, Li Lin!

"No, no, no."

Fang Chongyong waved his hand lightly and said, "We'll follow the canal northward and take a detour to Youzhou."

Eh?

Upon hearing this, the commanders were all shocked and pale.

"Jiedushi! Going in alone with no support, that would be a dead end!"

Che Guangqian shouted loudly, clasped fists and knelt to plead. Afterwards, the other commanders also knelt on the ground.

They truly knelt before Fang Chongyong, the lord!

Even if we follow the canal, we must pass through Dezhou and Cangzhou before reaching the border of Youzhou. The problem is, Dezhou is manageable, but the combined area of Cangzhou and Youzhou equals three or four Beizhou!

Moreover, Youzhou is the old stronghold of the Hebei rebels!

Fang Chongyong's audacity is truly boundless!

Even if we could march all the way to Youzhou, how would we return?

The commanders remained knelt, and the scene became awkward for a moment.