Chapter 703: Fierce Battle at Sanjiangkou

At Sanjiangkou, the Han and Chu armies were locked in increasingly fierce combat, with both land and naval forces engaged in a ten-day bloody struggle along the line of Junshan, Baling, and Chengling.

Junshan faced Baling city across Dongting Lake, and to the north it could control the Yangtze waterway. After Han Tong led his army south and surveyed the terrain, fearing that the Chu army might advance north from Junshan and cut off the army's retreat, he heeded the advice of Commander Zhang Xun and sent troops ashore to launch a fierce assault on the Chu stockade at Junshan, seizing it in one stroke, after which he held it in defense.

Zhou Xingfeng was also a man who understood warfare, and seeing through the Han army's intentions, he dispatched his forces to fiercely attack Junshan. At first, relying on the advantage of his naval forces, he could barely hold the upper hand, but after the Jingnan navy came south, retaking Junshan became nothing more than a vain hope.

However, even after the prolonged fighting, Junshan remained the most fiercely contested location. The main force of the Han army had massed at the river mouth, and Zhou Xingfeng was determined to break through the Han army's defensive line at Junshan, then cut off the Han army's retreat and intercept their supply routes. To this end, both sides remained locked in a stalemate, with heavy casualties on both sides. The Chu army's direct combat deaths exceeded two thousand soldiers, most of them veterans under Zhou Xingfeng's command.

The Han army had originally been encamped on the wild shoals to the right of the main current, and had initially been on the defensive. However, crossing the water to fight cost too much and was not worth the gain; after two attacks, they gave up and shifted their focus toward the Junshan direction instead.

In light of this, Han Tong, after consulting with Formation Commander Du Hanhui, decisively turned from defense to offense, crossing Sanjiangkou to counterattack Chengling Pass. Although they had previously received military orders from Commander-in-Chief Murong, the overall operational strategy was to drag out and exhaust the enemy, and the Chu army's impatience was plainly visible, demonstrating the effectiveness of such tactics.

But first, there was the victory at Liyang to build on; second, Murong Yanzhao had personally led troops south. Han Tong and the other generals also knew to adapt in time, and moreover, they could no longer suppress their desire to achieve merit.

Of course, what gave Han Tong the confidence to fight across the river was the role of the Jingnan navy. After Wei Lin led his forces south and engaged the Chu navy, the two sides fought more than a dozen fierce naval battles, and he managed to drive the Chu navy completely out of the Yangtze, forcing them into Dongting Lake.

Thus, Sanjiangkou basically fell under the Han army's control. Under Zhou Xingfeng's relentless urging, the Chu navy launched several counterattacks, but none proved effective. To be fair, the Jingnan navy had been formed for years, trained for years, possessed good equipment, and their warships were fairly formidable. Although they too had long been untested in battle, their foundation was far better than the Chu army's, and they also held a numerical advantage. In comparison, Zhou Xingfeng's naval forces only excelled in ferocity and wildness, but with Wei Lin and the other surrendered generals fighting with such ruthlessness, they could not gain any advantage.

The naval forces led by Wei Lin truly fought with great effort this time, suffering over seven hundred casualties before and after, yet never complaining of hardship. The chief general Wei Lin himself was struck by a stray arrow, yet he still faced battle with resolute spirit.

Chengling Pass faced the mouth of the Yangtze directly, and was no more than fifteen li from Baling, the prefectural seat of Yuezhou. Once this pass fell, the Han army could take advantage of the momentum to advance south into Baling. The pass city was small, even somewhat dilapidated, and Zhou Xingfeng had set up three camp walls for defense, stationing nine thousand troops.

The offensive and defensive roles had shifted between the two sides, yet a fragile balance was still maintained. The Han army attacked Chengling in the north, the Chu army fiercely assaulted Junshan in the south, and the navies remained locked in stalemate at the river mouth.

But the scales of victory had been tilted toward the Han army from the very beginning; this was inherently an asymmetric war. Seeking a breakthrough yet failing to achieve one, the Chu army's hopes were beaten away over the course of more than ten days.

It was quite obvious that the Chu army's morale and combat effectiveness were continuously declining, and their attacks were becoming increasingly feeble. Truly feeble — from three days ago, Zhou Xingfeng had already begun rationing military grain consumption.

At Baling, Zhou Xingfeng had spared no expense in preparing over ten thousand dan of grain, with the original plan of supporting an army of thirty thousand for one month. However, once the war began, the consumption far exceeded imagination.

The golden crow sank in the west, the dying sun was like blood, colorful clouds filled the sky, and their brilliant light spread across the emerald waves of Dongting. Hills rose and fell along the shore, green trees provided shade, and there were many islets and caves in the lake — the whole scene formed a beautiful painting.

Yet the cruel war added a touch of blood to this painting. As the sound of the gong signaling retreat arose, the Han soldiers who had been attacking the stockade withdrew in an orderly manner from the northern camp at Chengling. There were no cheers, no relief — each wore a grave expression, leaving behind a field of corpses.

The Chu army's stockades were severely damaged in various places, appearing rickety and on the verge of collapse. It seemed that had the sky not been growing dark, they could have been directly breached. As for the Chu soldiers defending the stockade, they wore expressions of numbness.

The Han camp was set up along the river, not far from Chengling Pass. Han Tong, commanding the eastern route forces, stood on the watchtower observing the battle. Seeing the soldiers who had attacked the stockade returning one after another, he immediately arranged for people to receive them.

"Zhou Xingfeng is about to reach his limit!" A satisfied smile appeared on Han Tong's face as he declared in a clear voice.

"Army Supervisor, let the Husheng Army take the attack tomorrow!" Beside him, a middle-aged general of sturdy build spoke with firm resolve.

"General Du can't hold back any longer?" Han Tong turned his head to look at him.

The general with an upright bearing was named Du Hanhui, holding the military post of Chief Commander of the Husheng Army of the Imperial Guard, and Formation Commander of the Southern Field Headquarters. Du Hanhui had originally been a Jin general, and after Liu Zhiyuan took control of the Central Plains, he pledged his allegiance. Since the founding of the Han, his most celebrated achievement was participating in the campaign against Yedu in the early years of the dynasty, putting down Du Chongwei's rebellion.

Beneath the walls of Yuancheng, he led from the front, fighting on despite being wounded, displaying extraordinary bravery. From that time on, he was deeply appreciated by two generations of Han rulers, and even during Liu Chengyou's later reorganization of the imperial army, he always remained among the senior generals.

However, in the several internal and external wars following Liu Chengyou's succession, he had no opportunity to distinguish himself again. Therefore, for this southern campaign, he directly sought out Liu Chengyou, kneeling to beg for permission to join the expedition. Seeing his firm resolve and eager desire for merit, Liu Chengyou agreed.

For this reason, among the generals in this southern campaign, there were indeed quite a few veterans — from Han Tong and Du Hanhui to Li Yun, each one holding in a pent-up drive and performing with great effort.

"These Jingnan troops have worrying combat effectiveness!" Du Hanhui pointed at the soldiers returning from attacking the stockade and said.

"That's clear to see. Liang Tingsi didn't hold anything back. The Jingnan troops are poorly trained, so the fact they fought this well is already commendable!" Han Tong replied, leaning on the wooden railing.

After returning to camp, Liang Tingsi, who had led his men in attacking the stockade, went directly to find Han Tong. Drenched in sweat, with a hint of emotion on his face, he asked Han Tong, who had just descended: "Army Supervisor, why did you recall the troops? Give me another half hour, and I can break through the northern stockade!"

Seeing this, Han Tong smiled slightly and replied: "General Liang need not be impatient. The sky has grown dark, which is unfavorable for combat, and there are still rebel troops inside Chengling who can provide support. The soldiers have been fighting for a long time and are weary; it's better to return to camp and rest first. You've worked hard as well, General. Come, let's return to the tent and have something to eat first!"

"Yes!" Seeing Han Tong's attitude was so good, Liang Tingsi could only take the opportunity to back down, suppressing the frustration in his heart.

Inside the military tent, Han Tong and all the commanders were seated together. Cooked fish and meat had been brought out, fragrant and appetizing. Before long, Wei Lin also walked in, his face full of delight, reporting the day's achievements to Han Tong: "Army Supervisor, this subordinate today captured and killed over two hundred enemies, seized five warships. The rebel navy is completely no match for our forces — they can't hold the mouth of Dongting any longer!"

"Good! Accumulate small victories into great ones. General Wei has worked hard; please take a seat and eat!" Han Tong gestured with his hand.

"Thank you, Army Supervisor!" Wei Lin clasped his fists, flicked his campaign robe aside, and took his seat.

Picking up a piece of fish, removing the bones, Han Tong said to the assembled generals: "Our army has been stationed at Sanjiangkou for over half a month now. After all this fighting, we know the enemy's strengths and weaknesses thoroughly.

Progress in the west has been smooth, and the Commander-in-Chief has already come south. We need to pick up the pace on our side as well. Over at Junshan, although the rebel attack has slowed, Zhou Xingfeng still refuses to give up. Since their navy can no longer hold out, it's time for us to take the initiative and launch a counterattack!"

"General Wei, tomorrow you will lead the navy in a full-force attack, break through the mouth of Dongting, and threaten the enemy's flank and rear in the direction of Junshan!" Han Tong instructed Wei Lin.

He then looked at Liang Tingsi: "General Liang, you will lead your men and go with General Wei to provide support, and smash the rebel forces attacking Junshan!"

"Yes!" Wei Lin acknowledged.

Liang Tingsi, however, had some concerns and couldn't help asking: "Army Supervisor, what about the Chengling stockade?"

"We still have our Husheng and Fengguo armies here!" Du Hanhui dispelled his doubts, speaking calmly.

His gaze sweeping over Han Tong and Du Hanhui, Liang Tingsi was clearly reluctant, but in the end, he swallowed his pride and accepted the order.

After leaving the military tent, Liang Tingsi could no longer hide the frustration in his heart, saying to Wei Lin who walked alongside him: "I fought at the northern stockade of Chengling for so long, lost so many soldiers, and was on the verge of breaking through — yet now they switch to the Husheng Army to attack. Isn't this stealing credit?"

Hearing this, Wei Lin hurriedly tried to dissuade him: "Watch your words! After all, we are surrendered generals. In this southern campaign to suppress the rebellion, having achieved something is already fortunate. Even if they are stealing credit, we can only accept it. Can we really contend with the imperial army?"

Liang Tingsi let out a sigh: "I understand the reasoning, but I just can't accept it!"

During this period of attacking Chengling, Liang Tingsi had indeed played a significant role; half of the soldiers who participated in the attacks were under his command.

Looking at Wei Lin, Liang Tingsi could not hide his envy: "You naval forces are lucky — they have no choice but to rely on you!"