Chapter 1293: Thorns in the Back, a Fishbone in the Throat

Just as autumn was about to set in, the climate beyond the northern frontier was already shrouded in a coolness. Because of the war, farming and herding had been severely affected. Though the crisp high autumn had not yet arrived, the cattle, sheep, camels, and horses on the great desert grasslands would surely not be as fat and sturdy as in previous years.

Entering the second half of the year, what the Liao people welcomed would not be harvest and joy either. The past six months had already been torment enough—political turmoil, unending military strife—and the coming six months would clearly be even harder to endure.

For the lords and ministers of the Liao court, as news from the various battlefronts arrived, their moods fell like walking from scorching summer into chilly autumn—bleak and desolate, with not a shred of joy left.

Shangjing, the Liao palace, Chongzheng Hall.

The autumn sun gave no light, the breeze gentle and clouds thin, casting the entire palace in a hazy dimness. The interior of the great hall was likewise gloomy; only the bright glow of that row of candles could somewhat ease the gloom in the heart of the palace's master.

Yelu Xian was already wrapped in a fur robe, holding a thick black pair of scissors in his hand, stiffly trimming the candle wicks, as if through this act he could snip away the worries and troubles in his heart.

After trimming a row of red candles, the flames grew ever brighter, adding a distinct luminance to the entire hall. Setting down the scissors, Yelu Xian rubbed the cold sweat from his palms and turned to gaze at the great map of the Liao hanging behind him.

Because information was hard to gather, lacking historical and geographical references, and short on cartographic talent, Liao's maps were naturally not as fine as those of the Great Han—many places appeared blurred and rough.

Yet the vastness of the territory was still directly displayed upon it. Speaking of territory alone, even the southern Great Han, after more than twenty years of annexation and expansion, might not necessarily surpass the Great Liao.

Of course, Yelu Xian would not judge national strength by land area. The comparison of strength between the two sides, the superiority or inferiority of national power—he had a fairly clear understanding of it in his heart.

In his deep gaze, worry flickered. The succession of bad news and reports of defeat that had come in recent days had already become hard for this young emperor, who had only recently taken hold of the state, to bear.

His ancestors had carved out vast territories and a great foundation, yet it was precisely when it passed into his hands that the greatest crisis since the founding of the state more than half a century ago arrived. The powerful invasion from the southern Great Han Empire, a war that had lasted several months, had already torn open the Liao's seemingly invincible outer garment, exposing its frail essence compared to the Han. The balance of two powers standing side by side for over twenty years appeared so fragile as the wheels of history pushed forward by Emperor Liu rolled relentlessly onward.

Yelu Xian could be counted a mature-minded, resolute emperor, but since the Han-Liao war began, he had felt increasingly drained in both mind and body. As the war dragged on, that suffocating sensation grew ever more pronounced.

Although so far Liao had not lost large amounts of territory—only some passes in Monan, a peninsula in Liaodong, severed ties with the Western Regions, and a tangled mess northwest of the desert...

Yet the price paid to wage this war was not merely reflected in those vast but useless territorial gains and losses. Since the Han army's northern expedition, facing enormous military pressure, Liao had already been operating under a high state of war mobilization.

Production had been severely disrupted, soldiers and laborers had suffered heavy casualties and attrition, and the immense pressure of war was shifted onto the shoulders of the various peoples under Liao's rule, breeding widespread resentment. The internal contradictions accumulated in the past—especially those between the various tribes—also showed signs of erupting. Those subordinate tribes forcibly conscripted for soldiers and levied for grain to prepare for war were filled with grievance and anger.

And the various unfavorable reports from several battlefronts further catalyzed Liao's internal contradictions. The Jurchen tribes in the northeast began to stir restlessly; the Shiwei were even more fickle in their allegiance, with a tradition of rebellion; even those savages of the Kergas beyond the northern ridges began to make waves—not to mention the unresolved contradictions within the Liao imperial clan over succession to the throne.

The summer war had left Liao bleeding without end, and the future war seemed to have no end in sight. The Han army continued to arm itself, mustering troops and dispatching grain, maintaining high pressure and momentum—they would not stop until Liaodong was taken.

At this moment, Liao was like a great cauldron, its nobles, officials, soldiers, and tribal people like water stored within the vessel, beginning to boil under the flames of war.

As the exalted emperor of Liao, Yelu Xian could clearly feel the danger beneath this boiling. On the vast map, the markers of beacon fires everywhere—Yelu Xian seemed to see in them the desolate scene of the Great Liao heading toward its twilight, as if foreseeing his own difficult and tragic future...

"Your Majesty!" Han Derang, who had quietly entered the hall, looked at Yelu Xian and called out softly. His not-so-strong frame seemed to bear a burden of a thousand jun, making Han Derang's heart heavy as well.

In recent days, Han Derang's standing within Liao had risen sharply. This Khitanized Han minister, not yet thirty years old, had become the most important counselor at Yelu Xian's side. Yelu Xian trusted him greatly, even allowing him to enter the main hall directly without announcement.

"What other bad news has come? Where's the report of defeat from?" Yelu Xian snapped back to himself, took a deep breath, returned to his throne and sat down, forcing his expression to calm.

Though Yelu Xian put on a composed front, his demeanor still carried a trace of worry, a trace of anxiety, a trace of expectation. Though Han Derang wished he could bring news as exhilarating as the great victory at Yaozhou over a month ago to lift Yelu Xian's spirits, reality did not permit it.

Facing Yelu Xian's gaze, Han Derang maintained a calm bearing and reported solemnly: "Your Majesty, the Xi King's court has submitted a memorial: Zezhou has fallen, and the Han general Wang Yanchao has already led an army of tens of thousands northward, raiding Yuzhou. Since Wang Yanchao's army came north, they have already taken our two cities of Xinghua and Shenshan in succession, with nearly ten thousand of our troops dead or wounded.

The situation in the Xi King's territory grows increasingly critical. If Yuzhou is lost, the Han army can strike directly into the heartland of the Xi King's court! Now, among those under the Xi King's jurisdiction, morale is in turmoil. Xi King Chouning requests that Shangjing send troops to support him!"

Upon hearing this report, Yelu Xian's heart sank several degrees further, and his hands involuntarily clenched into fists. Liao was a grassland empire of multiple ethnicities combining farming and herding, and the Xi were one of the major ethnic groups within Liao, forming the foundation of its rule. When Yelu Abaoji had integrated the tribes under his rule in his early years, he had divided the Xi into six tribes, governed by the Xi King's court.

Over the past fifty or sixty years, Liao had established very firm rule over the Xi. The Xi King's power and the Xi people's autonomy had both degenerated over the long years, and they were not far from being completely absorbed by the Khitan. In the era of Yelu Jing, this process had already been accelerated. Last year, the Liao court had already begun to reclaim the Xi King's governing authority over his territory and tribal people, placing them under direct court administration, and re-established the Southern Capital Circuit, with its seat at Dading City, where the Xi King's court was located.

However, with Yelu Jing's assassination and the Han army's northern expedition, this process had been forcibly interrupted. The Raole region where the Xi people herded belonged to Liao's core ruling area, and geographically it also shielded Shangjing from the south.

This time, to deal with the Han army, the various Xi tribes had likewise been conscripted and heavily armed, which to a certain extent had left the Xi territories hollowed out.

Originally, due to geographical constraints, a Han army attack northward was not easy. But even with Wang Yanchao advancing steadily and methodically, after several months he had gradually pressed toward the Xi King's court.

If the crisis in Liaodong made Yelu Xian feel like thorns in his back, the direct threat to Xi territory was like a fishbone stuck in his throat—truly suffocating.

"It seems Chouning is truly old. In Liaodong, with a meager force against the full might of the Han army, they've fought to this very day. Yet facing a detached force, holding the advantages of terrain and popular support, he can't hold a few cities and passes—he's let them reach his very doorstep!" Yelu Xian's face twitched a few times, his tone carrying a measure of displeasure.

Hearing this, Han Derang said: "In recent years, the Xi have been unstable toward the court's policies, and the Xi King's dissatisfaction is well known to all! This time, over thirty thousand able-bodied men were drawn from the Xi King's six tribes. Facing the Han army, being unable to hold is understandable. Though Wang Yanchao's reputation is not as loud as other Han generals, he is a seasoned veteran of the battlefield, crafty in the use of troops. Moreover, the Han army excels at siege warfare, while the Xi troops are weak at defense..."

"Enough!" Rarely, Yelu Xian somewhat roughly cut off Han Derang.