Chapter 500: The Reckless One Meets the Cautious King

"All of you, get up! Grown men of seven feet on your knees — what kind of decorum is that!"

Inside the prefecture hall, Fang Chongyong rebuked them with displeasure written on his face.

Only then did the generals rise to their feet.

"This map of Hebei is not very detailed, but by and large it is not wrong."

Fang Chongyong turned to the side, pointing at a map of Hebei hanging on the wall, and continued, "If Huangfu Weiming sends out a surprise force to thrust straight into Liaocheng and seal off our route of retreat across the river to the south, then sets up palisades here, digging deep trenches and building fortifications — how should we respond?"

Hearing this, the generals all frowned, their expressions shifting slightly.

By all logic, the Hebei rebel army could not possibly move faster than they could, nor be closer to Liaocheng than they were.

It was essentially impossible for the rebels to plug that gap.

Yet nothing was more feared than the word "what if"!

"Bring me a charcoal pencil!"

Fang Chongyong held out his hand, and Che Guangqian pulled a charcoal pencil from his robe and handed it to him.

"If I were Huangfu Weiming, I would have the Weizhou troops block the gap at Liaocheng, and then send Li Guiren with cavalry on a flanking encirclement of Beizhou. By common reasoning, after losing Liaocheng, Beizhou would surely become untenable, so we would certainly seek a ferry along the Yellow River to cross, and eventually make our way back to Bianzhou.

If we head east, the far bank is a long, narrow strip of land pinched between the Yellow River and the Ji River — long and narrow. Once pursued by the rebel army with no way to quickly cross the Ji River, even with every skill under heaven we would have no room to use them.

Heading west, though closer to Bianzhou, is also closer to Yecheng, where Huangfu Weiming could concentrate his forces and seal us off from all sides, just like this."

Fang Chongyong drew several marching routes on the map, all starting from the Hebei rebel army's current encampments. Since Yuwen Kuan had already disclosed the full deployment of the Hebei rebel army, the current state of the battlefield was no longer a blind guess for Fang Chongyong.

How the enemy would deploy their forces was, in fact, already traceable.

If one looked only at the marching routes currently shown on the map, once Liaocheng was occupied by the Hebei rebel army and its defenses reinforced, the Yinqiang Xiaojie Army would definitely lose this battle.

"Jiedushi, so we need to head for Liaocheng right now and get moving fast!"

He Changqi broke out in a cold sweat and hastily spoke up with his suggestion.

Yuancheng, the prefectural seat of Weizhou, was only just over two hundred li from Liaocheng, the prefectural seat of Bozhou! If the Hebei rebel army over there launched a surprise attack on Liaocheng, it would take two days at most — fast enough to arrive in a single day and night.

How could that not make one afraid?

"Returning to Liaocheng would be fine, of course, but this time we haven't bitten Huangfu Weiming hard enough. They still have plenty of strength left to stir up trouble south of the river.

The main force under Li Guiren's command still hasn't been mobilized on a large scale, which means they haven't abandoned their intention to march south."

Fang Chongyong let out a long sigh and continued, "Are you not afraid that come winter this year, the Hebei rebel army will march south in retaliation? If you can hide for a while, can you hide for a lifetime?"

The generals all fell silent.

Perhaps they had greatly damaged the political structure and grassroots social relations of Bozhou and Beizhou, destroying Huangfu Weiming's rule over those two prefectures.

But that was, at most, only half of the Wei-Bo regional command!

Without those two prefectures, Hebei's strength remained intact. Even if the productive capacity of those two prefectures was lost, as strategic nodes along the canal, they would still pose no real problem.

This battle had not yet inflicted damage deep enough to cripple the Hebei rebel army.

"Do any of you have a viable suggestion? If not, then follow my orders."

Fang Chongyong asked with some impatience.

"Jiedushi, this humble officer still has a question."

Che Guangqian stepped forward, clasped his fists, and asked, "How do we get back to Bianzhou? Once we march north, the rebel army will certainly pursue and intercept us from all sides — returning by crossing the Yellow River from its north bank will be impossible. By then, even if we could take Youzhou, it would be meaningless!"

Hearing this, the generals all nodded slightly and whispered among themselves.

Che Guangqian made perfect sense. None of them feared pressing forward boldly — as long as there was ultimately a way out, they could steel themselves and keep going.

If it was merely a case of "taking a jaunt," then what would be the point?

People all hoped to walk in brocade by daylight — not to die wearing brocade!

"You are still not very familiar with our Great Tang's official system. In fact, before the Kaiyuan era, there was a very special office called the Hebei Maritime Transport Commissioner."

Fang Chongyong said unhurriedly.

At that moment, it was as though the roof had been lifted by a god, letting sunlight pour into the room and dispel all darkness.

The generals present were neither fools nor laymen — they understood the moment they heard it!

"Back then, to ensure smooth supply of provisions to the Youzhou border army — which is now the Youzhou Jiedushi and the Pinglu Jiedushi — the court specially opened a sea route.

For this purpose, a corresponding office was established, namely the Hebei Maritime Transport Commissioner.

Today this office has been consolidated under the Youzhou Jiedushi and is not widely known, but its function still exists.

This sea route has ports on the northern end that connect directly to the Yongji Canal.

Merchants had long shipped grain and provisions from Jiangnan, Jiaodong, and other regions by sea to the ports first. After unloading and reloading, the goods would travel by canal to Youzhou and Pingzhou. This route sailed along the coast, and there were many places along the way to disembark.

Moreover, as the route continued to be extended and developed, one could reach Goryeo and Japan to the north, and go as far as Guangzhou to the south.

With so few of us, could we really fear not finding a sea vessel to return?"

A smile finally appeared on Fang Chongyong's face. Though his plan was not to "take a tour" up north before leaving, the way back was indeed by sea.

"No more questions, then? If not, we withdraw."

Fang Chongyong waved his hand broadly, turned, and walked out. The generals all followed him out in single file. They took nothing with them — utterly carefree.

Only He Changqi, bringing up the rear of the column, grabbed Che Guangqian's arm and asked in a low voice, "There's a question I still don't understand."

"What's there not to understand?"

Che Guangqian asked back with a look of bafflement. He felt that Fang Chongyong had already made things clear enough — to the point that it could practically be called "leaking military secrets."

"Huangfu Weiming certainly knows that the main force of our army is in Hebei. Why don't they seize this chance to march south to Bianzhou and lift the siege by striking at the enemy's base?"

This was a question He Changqi had never understood, yet it was indeed exactly how things stood.

Fang Chongyong was not worried about Huangfu Weiming marching south now, and the latter had indeed not sent any troops south.

"If Huangfu Weiming takes Henan, then the Huai region and Jiangnan would certainly be lost, and by then more than half the realm would be his.

If things came to that, it would no longer matter who won between Li Longji and Li Chang, so both sides had been keeping a close watch on Huangfu Weiming all along.

Once the Hebei rebel army marches south, those two would stop fighting each other and would surely join forces against Huangfu Weiming, determined to keep Henan from falling."

Che Guangqian still patiently explained the matter.

In truth, Fang Chongyong did not yet count as Huangfu Weiming's greatest threat—or rather, for the time being he did not yet qualify!

A military commander like He Changqi excelled at donning armor and charging into battle, not at analyzing strategy.

The so-called "opportunities" he saw were often traps.

It was just like playing chess: you think you can capture the opponent's horse, but after making the move, you discover that you did indeed capture the horse—yet your own side loses a whole pile of pieces!

A complete loss that outweighs the gain.

Huangfu Weiming had depth of strategy and excelled at controlling the big picture; he would not make such a basic mistake. Many commanders present did not raise this issue—only He Changqi did, which already spoke volumes.

To make two great enemies who were preparing for a decisive battle join hands against you—is that not the greatest strategic failure?

No matter how foolish Huangfu Weiming might be, he could not be foolish to that extent, could he?

Che Guangqian felt that He Changqi was worrying over nothing.

"If you ask me, Huangfu Weiming is simply not decisive enough. He should just kill, kill, kill, and wait until he has carved through the various prefectures of Henan before saying anything else. Whatever difficulties arise can be dealt with then.

At the very least, he wouldn't be in such a passive position right now!"

He Changqi said with a face full of disdain, seemingly looking down on Huangfu Weiming.

Che Guangqian shook his head with a wry laugh. If a reckless brute like He Changqi went up against Huangfu Weiming, he would be beaten so badly even his own parents wouldn't recognize him!

But He Changqi did get one thing right: Huangfu Weiming indeed had not let loose entirely, running wild without restraint.

Because what he wanted was an intact empire, not one littered with corpses and torn apart.

He Changqi's recklessness, while certainly dashing and perhaps useful, might gain the upper hand for a time.

But in vision and breadth of mind, how many ranks was he inferior to Huangfu Weiming?

Che Guangqian reflected inwardly: only when chess meets its match can there be a true back-and-forth. Someone like He Changqi did not even qualify to take a seat at the board.

At most, he was a slightly more formidable chess piece, pinned down on the board by someone else's hand—no amount of struggling could determine the overall situation.

As he walked and thought, his pace slowed considerably.

He Changqi asked with an impatient look on his face: "Old Che, why aren't you moving?"

"I am thinking—what if Huangfu Weiming leads his troops south without a care for consequences?"

Che Guangqian said casually, deflecting with a laugh, completely insincerely.

Who knew that He Changqi would snort with a look of contempt: "If he wants Bianzhou, then let him take it. We'll simply push all the way and take Youzhou, using Youzhou as our base. Wouldn't that be splendid? Why the hell should we fear him!"

You're treating Huangfu Weiming like a fool!

Che Guangqian didn't even know how to evaluate that statement.

The group exited the prefectural office and each went to muster their troops.

One shichen later, they boarded transport boats moored at the canal dock in Qinghe County, heading north along the canal toward Dezhou. Aboard was a great quantity of provisions, supplies, arrows, and javelins—they were abundantly stocked.

……

Yuancheng in Weizhou was a great city of Hebei, and it was also the later renowned Daming Prefecture. Weizhou likewise had a dense population and formidable strength. The reason it was poor was only because the locality had been subjected to the court's endless exactions—not because it lacked the ability to generate wealth.

Atop the walls of Yuancheng, the stalwart and somewhat fierce-looking An Shouzhong took the letter brought by a messenger. He opened it on the spot, skimmed through it at a glance, then nodded slightly and said to the messenger: "This general understands. I shall set out immediately with troops for Liaocheng."

This messenger was none other than Zhang Xiu, who had previously been to Bianzhou. He knew very well just how cunning, crafty, and skilled at disguise Fang Chongyong was.

Seeing that An Shouzhong did not seem to take Fang Chongyong seriously, he hastily spoke up to warn him: "That Fang Qing may be young, but he is treacherous and cunning. General An, do not underestimate the enemy!"

"Got it, got it."

An Shouzhong waved his hand impatiently, signaling Zhang Xiu to get lost.

Seeing that his advice had no effect, Zhang Xiu sighed helplessly and left in frustration, hoping only that An Shouzhong would not fall for Fang Chongyong's schemes.

After he left, An Shouzhong casually tore the letter to pieces and gazed eastward, seemingly preoccupied.

Seeing An Shouzhong's expression, his deputy commander Zhou Zhi leaned in and asked in a low voice: "Is General An worried about the matter in Beizhou?"

In fact, several days ago, An Shouzhong had learned of the fall of the Beizhou granary at the very first opportunity!

After all, Weizhou was not far from Beizhou—if no grain had been transported over, it meant something had definitely gone wrong there.

But An Shouzhong did nothing, only ordering the troops under his command to prepare to strike.

Then they kept "preparing," but never actually struck!

"General Zhou, I now order you to lead five thousand troops across the Yellow River south to seize territory. Would you dare?"

An Shouzhong pondered for a moment and asked in return, not answering Zhou Zhi's question.

"I would not dare."

Zhou Zhi answered honestly.

"But someone did dare to cross the river and attack Beizhou!"

An Shouzhong exclaimed, then continued asking: "A man like that—aren't you afraid of him?"

Zhou Zhi had no words to reply. He did not want to boost the enemy's morale and diminish his own side's.

But he also had to admit that An Shouzhong made sense.

To plunge deep into Hebei with an isolated army and still reap great gains—this was truly not something an ordinary person could accomplish!

The kind of person who was both audacious and fierce.

"Actually, I had long felt that this group would be difficult to deal with. If we had sent troops a few days ago, the enemy's edge would have been at its sharpest and their situation unclear. Had we gone, there would be no guarantee we wouldn't have suffered a major loss!"

An Shouzhong leaned close to Zhou Zhi's ear and whispered.

The latter suddenly understood.

No wonder this fellow had ordered the troops to hold their position—it was for this reason.

Weizhou was very close to both Beizhou and Bozhou. By all logic, sending troops to reinforce them would have been very convenient, yet An Shouzhong simply stood by and did nothing!

The reason was fear of being dealt a crushing blow head-on by the enemy!

"General An, then how should we face the enemy?"

Zhou Zhi asked with a look of confusion on his face.

Before, one could say the enemy situation was unclear. Now that Huangfu Weiming has sent over the military orders, you can't still claim the enemy situation is unclear, can you?

"We won't rush. We'll follow slowly behind that army. When they stop, we stop; when they move, we move. We'll match their pace, absolutely not advancing rashly, just tailing them the whole way."

A sly smile appeared on An Shouzhong's ferocious face, and the combined aura of his whole face became indescribable. Those small eyes of his narrowed, as if scheming over some wicked deed.

"But that way, the rebel army will still be seizing cities and capturing territory!"

Zhou Zhi still didn't quite understand what An Shouzhong's approach was. Constantly tailing them—wasn't that just letting the enemy army attack cities unchecked?

"They attack, but they're not attacking my An's cities;

they plunder, but they're not plundering my An's lands.

But the brothers who die are all soldiers under my An's command. General Zhou, don't mix up the priorities."

An Shouzhong's narrowed eyes suddenly widened, and a cold glint flashed in an instant!

Zhou Zhi's heart tightened. He quickly nodded in agreement, not daring to argue back.

Seeing him so submissive, An Shouzhong nodded in satisfaction.

He placed one hand on Zhou Zhi's shoulder and said, "Avoid their sharp edge, strike when they return weary. Let them go wherever they want to go—what is there to fear? Since Bei Prefecture has no more grain, this time bring fewer cavalry and procure provisions on the spot."

A trace of cold sneer surfaced on An Shouzhong's face.

A worthy opponent is exactly what's good—slaughtering chickens and killing dogs, what fun is that!

"In a moment, muster ten thousand troops. Let them rest well, eat their fill, and prepare dry rations. We set out tomorrow."

An Shouzhong gave orders in a low voice—still the same routine approach, not rushing at all.

Zhou Zhi looked surprised and asked in puzzlement, "General An, setting out tomorrow is one thing, but why not muster twenty thousand troops?"

An Shouzhong glanced at him, patted his own large belly, then turned and walked away, too lazy to explain to Zhou Zhi.

It was only when they reached the foot of the city wall that Zhou Zhi suddenly understood, realizing what An Shouzhong meant.

Normally, supplying twenty thousand men was no issue, but right now Bei Prefecture's granaries were most likely paralyzed.

If you lead twenty thousand men out and, at the critical moment of engaging the enemy, there isn't enough food to eat—then what!

That would be a catastrophe!

Since Huangfu Weiming's military orders stated that the enemy army numbered only several thousand, An Shouzhong felt that with his way of fighting, ten thousand men was already enough.

There was no need to charge in and risk running out of provisions!

"General An, what are the odds of completely annihilating the rebel army this time?"

Zhou Zhi suddenly recalled this matter and called An Shouzhong back to ask.

The latter thought for a moment and said, "If it works out, then it's a ten-out-of-ten certainty. If it doesn't, General Zhou had better think about which horse to ride for a fast getaway."

An Shouzhong seemed to be in good spirits and even teased Zhou Zhi with a jab.

You damn well have absolutely no confidence at all!

Zhou Zhi cursed inwardly. After hearing those earlier words, he had actually thought An Shouzhong was brave!