Chapter 1177: Progress on the Eastern Route

Night fell quickly, and amid these highland peaks and sheer cliffs, one soon lost all sense of time. Having received definitive news from the guide officer, Wang Quanbin relaxed somewhat. Along this entire march—not to mention the soldiers under his command—even he, the commander-in-chief, had been anxious, merely concealing it beneath a stern and resolute countenance.

The general from before approached again, and Wang Quanbin pointed to the pile of firewood he was sitting on, saying, "Changqing, sit!"

The general was likewise covered in grime and dishevelment, his age somewhat hard to discern, but he was definitely in the prime of his life, and he was a man of learning—his bearing showed it—though the expression in the shadows appeared somewhat stiff.

This man was named Shangguan Zheng, the Army Supervisor of this western route Han army. He was versed in both civil and military affairs—or rather, he came from a civil background, having passed the imperial examinations. Over the years, in the Great Han army, generals with jinshi credentials were truly rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns.

Seeing Wang Quanbin's gesture, Shangguan Zheng clasped his hands and said, "This subordinate will stand!"

"Having walked so long in these high mountains and gorges, don't your legs ache?" Wang Quanbin smiled, then his tone turned firm: "Sit!"

"Yes!"

He obediently sat down. The two truly were birds of a feather, though by now their sense of smell seemed to have failed them entirely—they showed no reaction at all.

"Mid-Autumn Festival is almost here, isn't it?" Wang Quanbin said.

"Tonight is exactly the fifteenth!" Shangguan Zheng replied. "This subordinate just checked—the moon is full and bright, almost bright enough to light the road! If we weren't in these deep mountains and dense forests, we might be able to march by night under the moonlight!"

Looking up, from this vantage point the bright moon was not visible, but one could faintly sense the clear radiance reflected off the mountain walls. Wang Quanbin grumbled a bit: "At this moment, in the capital, they're probably holding a Mid-Autumn night banquet, eating those little cakes! Once this campaign succeeds and we return to court, we must make sure Your Majesty rewards us well..."

After venting for a while, Wang Quanbin asked Shangguan Zheng again: "You once followed Pan Mei to pacify the Two Guangs. How do the mountain roads of the Nanling range compare to this?"

At the question, Shangguan Zheng said with certainty: "The mountain paths of Lingnan are certainly rugged, but they ultimately connect with Hunan—no matter how rough, there were established routes to use. But this time, our western route army has climbed high mountains, waded through gorges, and nearly every road and path had to be carved out anew. The hardship and length of it truly cannot be compared with Lingnan!"

Hearing this answer, Wang Quanbin nodded, seeming quite satisfied with his response.

"Likewise, the time of the advance and the casualties among the soldiers are also more severe!" Shangguan Zheng added another line, yet his tone was quite calm, as if he didn't care much about it.

Wang Quanbin's expression turned grave, and his voice grew several shades darker as he asked: "What are the losses among the troops?"

Shangguan Zheng replied: "According to reports from the various armies and battalions, the dead, wounded, sick, and missing together number over three thousand. This is only a rough figure—if an exact count of losses is needed, we must find open ground and reorganize the army before we can know."

"In other words, the actual losses might be even greater?" Wang Quanbin said.

"Yes!" Shangguan Zheng said. "The road we traveled was too long, too perilous—hundreds of li with no sign of human habitation. If not for the Commander-in-Chief's advance reconnaissance and thorough preparation, perhaps half the soldiers would have been lost along the way, or even perished entirely in these desolate mountains..."

Hearing this, the old face of Wang Quanbin twitched a few times. With emotion, his tone carrying both regret and sorrow, he said: "So many fine lads, not fallen on the battlefield, but dead on the march—this old man has failed them!"

"The Commander-in-Chief is past sixty, yet still spares no effort, fears no danger, shares hardship with the soldiers, and crosses these sheer peaks. The troops all admire him deeply and are willing to die for him!" Shangguan Zheng clasped his hands and said.

"If we cannot destroy Dali, how can we comfort the heroic spirits!" Wang Quanbin's tone carried killing intent.

Shangguan Zheng said: "The Commander-in-Chief's surprise force coming through the highlands will surely achieve the same effect as Deng Ai pacifying Shu-Han!"

To this, Wang Quanbin made no reply, but instead considered seriously for a while, then instructed Shangguan Zheng: "Have Kang Baoyi take men to find a suitable valley for the army to camp and rest! Rest for two days, then march out of the mountains!"

"Yes!" While accepting the order, Shangguan Zheng couldn't help but ask in confusion: "Along this entire march, the Commander-in-Chief repeatedly urged haste, wishing we could fly over the mountain gorges. Now that we're almost through, why has he suddenly become unhurried?"

Wang Quanbin said blandly: "Once we leave these highlands, you'll have no time to stop and rest even if you want to!"

Shangguan Zheng went to relay the order, while Wang Quanbin closed his eyes, leaned against the woodpile, and wrapped his marching blanket tighter. This autumn night was cold—one of the reasons officers and men were falling ill.

Though his eyes were closed, his mind was active, repeatedly pondering whether there were any oversights in this campaign, how Dali was reacting, whether they had defenses in the northwest. And also—how was Wang Renshan's progress?

While Wang Quanbin led the main army, cutting through brambles and thorns among the highland peaks of the northwest, the progress of the eastern route Han army could be described as lightning-fast.

Since crossing into Dali territory, it had been smooth sailing all the way—from Jianchang Prefecture to Huichuan, there was almost no resistance. Facing the mighty, menacing Great Han army, Dali's border defense forces were completely caught off guard. Even though news of the Han army's southern campaign had long since spread, when the blades truly descended, many still had little resolve to resist.

The Dali court did not exercise tight control over its territory, especially in the eastern and northern regions, where numerous tribes governed themselves almost autonomously. And the Jianchang and Huichuan areas near the Great Han border had been heavily bought off and divided during their interactions with the Great Han.

Wang Renshan led his army south—numerous in men, strong in horses and troops—and everywhere they went, resistance crumbled. The garrison troops Dali had deployed either surrendered or, rarely, stayed to fight to the death.

The various tribes densely scattered across the two prefectures reacted even more pragmatically. They all fortified their stockades and held their cities, showing not the slightest threat of attack, and all sent envoys to pledge allegiance to the Great Han, expressing their intent to remain neutral. They had no sense of being invaded at all, let alone any thought of fighting to the death for the Dali kingdom.

Wang Renshan, for his part, was happy to see this. He accepted the gifts from the various tribes, made clear the court's stance and purpose, and treated the tribes within their territory differently from the Dali court, all to achieve the goal of division.

Thus, the eastern route army spent most of its time marching and pacifying the tribes along the way. Moreover, according to the campaign strategy, Wang Renshan appeared unhurried, advancing steadily, with half his energy devoted to securing the grain supply lines and maintaining contact with the rear.

It wasn't until they reached Huichuan territory that they encountered relatively fierce resistance. The defending general of Huichuan Prefecture gathered the troops and tribes within his jurisdiction and held the prefectural city. To this, Wang Renshan showed no mercy—he skipped even the attempt to persuade surrender and directly ordered the assault.

Though the eastern route army lacked the large siege engines, they were still well-equipped, especially with siege protection equipment. Combined with hastily assembled catapult carts, it took only a single day before the defenders collapsed and the city fell. The Han army paid a price of over four hundred casualties and slew over three thousand of the enemy.

After taking Huichuan, Wang Renshan rested in place for two days before continuing south with his troops toward Nongdong Prefecture. Nongdong Prefecture was a vital thoroughfare, already in the heart of Dali, connecting inside and out—it was also where Dali's defenses were most thoroughly prepared.

Emperor Liu's edict to campaign against Dali had not been much of a secret, and after the Han army set out, Dali's ruler and ministers had already received the news. Facing this disaster falling from the sky, the entire court was in an uproar, and even Duan Sicong, the King of Dali, had his illness worsened considerably from fright.

The Great Han's mobilization for the southwestern campaign could be said to be merely lifting a finger, but in Dali's eyes, it was a crisis of national extinction that could not be ignored. Ever since the Great Han pacified Chuanshu, they had lived in fear for so many years—offering tribute, expressing friendship—yet in the end, they still couldn't avoid it.

In fact, over the years, Dali's ruler and ministers were not unaware of Wang Quanbin's activities in the southwest, and they had made some preparations. Therefore, after several days of frantic scrambling and bickering, they decisively resolved to send troops to resist.

While sending envoys to beg for mercy at the Eastern Capital, military responses were also underway. Ultimately, Buxie Duan Zibiao and Duan Yanzhen led thirty thousand troops eastward, hoping to block the Han army at Nongdong Prefecture. Of these thirty thousand, most were troops under the direct control of the Dali royal house, supplemented by private soldiers contributed by the great clans of Gao, Yang, Dong, and others.

Over the years, these clan forces within Dali had grown ever stronger, eroding royal authority, but in the face of national extinction and the mighty Han army, they did not hold back—those who could send troops sent troops, those who could supply grain supplied grain.

Moreover, proclamations were widely distributed, calling on the tribes within the country to gather troops to defend Dali and drive out the Han army. But the results were clearly far worse than expected—aside from the few who answered the call, most of the eastern tribes sat tight, watching the war develop. They wanted to rely on those tribes to slow and resist the Han army, but those people weren't stupid. Especially after years of political offensives by the southwestern officials, many tribes were physically in Dali but their hearts were with the Great Han.

Though efficiency was low, with Wang Renshan not advancing hastily, the two Duans leading the army finally managed to reach Nongdong Prefecture and set up their defense line. Wang Renshan led his army south, and the two sides first clashed at Dayao Fort. The fighting was fierce—the Dali army's will to resist was far more resolute than anything encountered before—and it took three days for the Han army to take it.

Thereafter, pressing the advantage, they advanced on the prefectural city. At Nongdong Prefecture city, the Han army met the most resolute resistance. Duan Zibiao gathered the defeated troops from Dayao Fort, joined forces with Duan Yanzhen, and added some tribal troops sent as reinforcements from the south, engaging the Han army in a life-and-death struggle.

This time, Wang Renshan held nothing back—every weapon the army had was put to use. Though he inflicted heavy casualties on the Dali forces, the city's defenses were not breached.

Wang Quanbin wanted to spring a surprise, but Wang Renshan was no pushover either—he had no desire to be merely a diversionary secondary force. What he envisioned was also fighting his way to Yangxiemie City. Even if Wang Quanbin was the commander-in-chief, he truly didn't want to play the supporting role.

However, as casualties among officers and men mounted and he found the city too strong to take by storm, Wang Renshan decisively changed tactics—besieging the city rather than continuing to hammer away. The two sides faced off at Nongdong Prefecture city, and the fighting died down.

The Dali army held their positions stubbornly, while Wang Renshan continued to operate under Wang Quanbin's banner, consolidating gains, pacifying tribes, accumulating strength, and waiting for the opportunity to launch a new round of assault.