Chapter 1270: Striking on All Fronts

"What about the other armies?" Emperor Liu's attention shifted away from the eastern route, which concerned him most, as he looked at Shi Shouxin and asked. All outward emotion had already been withdrawn from his face, leaving it perfectly calm.

The central and western route Han armies had achieved some gains in the opening phase of the war, but these were all minor harvests—neither here nor there, and utterly inconsequential. Since then, up to the present, there had been no greater breakthroughs.

Accordingly, Shi Shouxin's reply carried a note of caution as he said: "Liao's defensive arrangements are exactly as we predicted before the war—they are concentrating their forces to hold Liaodong, showing every sign of defending it to the death.

After Yelu Xiezhen returned to Liaoyang, he urgently redeployed troops and stockpiled grain and weapons at the Liao Eastern Capital. Over this past month or more, Liao has also been actively preparing for war internally; the Liao emperor has been conscripting troops throughout the realm, with every indication of supporting Liaodong at any moment.

On the central and western routes, they have adopted a conservative, contracting strategy—their armies, tribal peoples, and civilians all withdraw deep into their own territory, refusing to engage, refusing to contest.

Thus, as of now, the armies of Liu Tinghan and Yang Ye still have no new battle results to report!"

After hearing this account, Emperor Liu's expression did not change, though his demeanor seemed to tighten slightly. He said: "In other words, since those minor skirmishes last month, both armies have made no further progress?"

It was impossible to discern Emperor Liu's mood, but Shi Shouxin dared not conceal anything and honestly answered with a single word: "Correct!"

"How far along has Liao's war preparation progressed?" Emperor Liu asked.

Shi Shouxin immediately replied: "According to secret reports from the Military Intelligence Office and the Wude Office, Liao has massed roughly one hundred thousand troops in Liaodong, and gathered over two hundred thousand in the great desert, distributed across the western desert, Monan, and the Supreme Capital region—with the elite of the Supreme Capital assembled together!"

"Over three hundred thousand men—given Liao's current circumstances, arming and assembling that force must have strained them to their limits!" Emperor Liu said.

Shi Shouxin: "Though Liao claims to command a million bowstrings and that every citizen is a soldier, by our estimation, given Liao's national strength, merely maintaining these three hundred thousand troops is already difficult. If the offensive-defensive standoff is prolonged and the war of attrition drags on, even if we cannot achieve a swift victory, by grinding onward, the advantage still lies with us—we could even drag Liao to the point of collapse... Of course, this is the most conservative estimate!"

Under Emperor Liu's influence, the Great Han's civil and military ministers, dukes and generals had all become adept at discussing national strength and grand strategy. Hearing this, Emperor Liu said leisurely: "For Liao, isn't this rather stifling? The Great Han has also invested so much in troops, people, and wealth—even if we drag Liao down, the Great Han's own losses in national strength will hardly be trivial!"

Though he spoke thus, Emperor Liu's tone had lightened somewhat—the slight upturn at the corners of his mouth was clear proof. Evidently, when it came to war, Emperor Liu still preferred this style of overwhelming with superior force, steady progress, and crushing victory. Moreover, he was accustomed to this way of fighting, even if it cost enormously, even if the price was immense.

"However, the imperial army has completed its reorganization and has already thrown itself fiercely at Liaodong, yet Liao has shown no sign of reinforcing Liaodong!" Shi Shouxin added.

"What is the reason for this?" Emperor Liu asked.

Shi Shouxin: "We speculate there are no more than two reasons. First, they must keep watch over the great desert, guarding against our central and western route armies. Second, since the great battle in Liaodong has not yet begun, they want to first observe how the fighting goes, and make more thorough preparations in the rear—sharpening their weapons and feeding their horses, ready to move as circumstances dictate..."

"Seen this way, the pressure we've put on the Khitan is still insufficient. At this rate, they still have surplus strength and ideas!" Emperor Liu said coldly: "Do they really think those hundred thousand troops in Liaodong can withstand our eastern route army?"

Hearing this, Xiang Xun, who had been pondering at the side for some time, spoke up on his own initiative: "Your Majesty, if that is the case, the Liao army in Liaodong can only adopt a completely defensive posture. We attack, they defend—then our army will thoroughly seize the upper hand!"

"Or perhaps the Liao army intends to use the Liaodong defenders as bait, to exhaust and weary our forces. After all, we are on a distant expedition in foreign lands; as time drags on, troops grow weary, strength flags, morale falls—and then they respond with elite reinforcements, suddenly striking out..." Shi Shouxin added a supplementary point.

Hearing this, Emperor Liu's back straightened involuntarily, and his expression turned exceptionally grave. In his mind, many similar battle precedents flashed through at once.

"What Minister Shi says has merit!" Emperor Liu responded, but quickly calmed himself and said with a light laugh: "However, that still requires the enemy in Liaodong to be able to hold out!"

"And it requires our army to be unprepared!" Xiang Xun could not help but glance at Shi Shouxin—this Commissioner of Military Affairs truly had some talent—and said to Emperor Liu: "Your Majesty, perhaps we could send a dispatch to the field headquarters, to remind them of this!"

"Draft an edict!" Emperor Liu looked at Shi Shouxin and directly ordered.

"Yes!" For such matters within his purview, Shi Shouxin had in fact already made arrangements.

"Based on what you just said, the two armies at Shanyang and Yulin have not had a favorable impact on Liao?" After a moment's thought, Emperor Liu asked Shi Shouxin again.

There was naturally some impact—after all, they had forced Liao into a fluster and a hasty retreat north—but this had not produced any practical effect, and the pinning-down results the Great Han court had hoped for were not evident.

A look of hesitation on his face, Shi Shouxin mulled it over, then reported: "Your Majesty, Liao has decisively contracted beyond the northern frontier, stubbornly avoiding battle, and thus our gains have been meager. Aim for the highest and you achieve the middle; aim for the middle and you achieve the lowest. The court's orders to the two route commanders were only for feigned attacks and pinning operations, so the officers and men could hardly avoid being constrained in their operations..."

His old brows immediately knitted together. Clearly, Shi Shouxin was hinting to Emperor Liu that the previous military orders had fettered the frontline commanders in their operations. After deliberating for a while, he fixed his gaze steadily on Shi Shouxin, who met it with a completely candid expression.

Emperor Liu was also a decisive man, and immediately instructed: "Then change the tactics—take the initiative to strike out, and give them full autonomy! The objective remains pinning down the enemy; as long as it achieves results, they may make on-the-spot decisions at their own discretion, at the commanders' judgment!"

"Yes!" Shi Shouxin acknowledged.

Pausing briefly, Shi Shouxin further reported: "Your Majesty, Generals Yang Ye and Liu Tinghan have also submitted memorials requesting to take the initiative and strike out. At Shanyang, Liao has appointed the Southwest Pacification Commissioner Han Kuangmei as commander-in-chief, responsible for military affairs, with over twenty thousand troops operating along the northern foot of the Yin Mountains. Liu Tinghan intends to strike north against him."

"Han Kuangmei—the Han clan again. The Liao sovereign truly trusts these Han ministers, truly trusts them—so much as to entrust them with military power and assign them heavy responsibilities!" Emperor Liu said with a mocking laugh.

"These people who forget their ancestors—they have been in Liao for a long time. Though born Han, their hearts belong to the Khitan; they long ago ceased to care where their ancestral temples lie!" Xiang Xun said coldly.

Shi Shouxin said: "Han Kuangmei is the son of Han Zhigu. He is said to possess both civil and martial brilliance. In those years, it was this man who assisted Xiao Siwen in defending Tanzhou. Though he was broken by Duke Wei, he fought quite vigorously!"

"Then fight—beat these Han traitors until it hurts!" Emperor Liu raised an eyebrow and ordered.

Shi Shouxin nodded and continued: "Yang Ye has also submitted a memorial. He is currently increasing his requisitions of horses, grain, and weapons, preparing for a distant expedition. He intends to lead the Yulin cavalry deep into the great desert, striking directly at Liao's northwestern tribes, sustaining the campaign through warfare itself. That region is where Liao's rule is weak—if it can be thrown into chaos, we can sever one of Liao's wings, and also cut off east-west communication, coordinating with the Hexi army in offensive operations!"

"Yang Chonggui is still the Yang Invincible of old—full of boldness and courage. After all these years, he has not changed!" Emperor Liu let out a hearty laugh. His trust in and fondness for Yang Ye had likewise not changed after all these years.

"As for the requests of the two generals—grant them by edict!" As the laughter ceased, Emperor Liu replied.

"I can draft the reply shortly!" Shi Shouxin indicated.

"However, once this happens, they will be completely cut off from the border passes. Logistics become a grave concern, risk increases sharply, and victory or defeat becomes hard to predict!" Xiang Xun cautioned: "Moreover, Liao's strength in the great desert remains formidable—with only these fifty thousand troops..."

Sensing the worry Xiang Xun displayed, Emperor Liu seemed to take a broad view of it, showing great decisiveness as he waved his hand: "Why did we equip them entirely with cavalry, if not for operations beyond the frontier? This day was bound to come sooner or later—let them go and try it!"

"What is the situation with Hexi?" Emperor Liu asked about the Hexi army, which had received little attention.

Due to the extreme distance, the specific situation was even less controllable. Shi Shouxin answered simply: "Wang Yansheng and Guo Jin have split their forces into two routes, each leading one division out on campaign. One route, led by Wang Yansheng, goes north out of Juyan Marsh, trekking across the great desert on a distant expedition. The other, led by Guo Jin, strikes into the Western Regions!"

Regarding this, Emperor Liu could not give any specific instructions. Generals Wang and Guo had been preparing for years and had their own calculations about dispatching troops. By comparison, he was more concerned about another matter: "What about Liu Fang?"

"The Duke of Zhao has gone north with Wang Yansheng!"

"What about Liu Min?"

"He is also with Yang Ye's army..."