Chapter 904: The Great Battle at Nankou 4

While the Han army at Nankou was desperately resisting the heavy siege of the Liao army, the relief forces they awaited were not advancing quickly. Gao Huaide was eighty li from Nankou, and Youzhou was less than a hundred li from Nankou as well; news of the fighting at Nankou had in fact been reported to both places long before.

Of course, there were reasons for the slow response. The messenger riders traveled at double speed, and Gao Huaide's side received the military report of An Shenqi's plan to concentrate forces and annihilate the attacking Liao army before the si hour had even begun.

However, Gao Huaide did not dispatch troops at the first moment. He held his cavalry in the center, supporting the two main armies and keeping the surrounding routes open, but with a certain emphasis—the twenty-third was also the day Murong Yanzhao's army formally launched its attack on Tanzhou.

At the earlier imperial council, the basic operational policy established was to attack in the east and defend in the west. Therefore, with major movements by the Han army in the Tanzhou direction, and new developments at Nankou, Gao Huaide could not help but hesitate inwardly, not daring to act on his own authority.

However, within an extremely short time, Gao Huaide formed a basic judgment of the situation and reacted. Rather than dispatching troops directly, he sent trusted officers from his staff racing to Youzhou to report the matter and request instructions from Emperor Liu Chengyou.

But at the same time, Gao Huaide assembled the cavalry at Niulan Mountain, ready to strike the moment orders arrived. Although he dared not act on his own, Gao Huaide's heart naturally leaned toward marching to Nankou—after all, over a hundred thousand Liao troops were no small force, and the Han army at Nankou might not be able to handle them with ease. As for Tanzhou, Murong Yanzhao had over a hundred thousand men against a mere forty thousand defenders—what need was there for him to support that front?

On the other hand, Gao Huaide was also quite tempted by An Shenqi's proposal to concentrate forces and annihilate the Liao army. Since the northern expedition began, there had never been a case of over a hundred thousand Liao troops sortieing in force, and in Gao Huaide's view, their proactive attack was an opportunity.

Though tempted, Gao Huaide's "conservative" choice delayed the arrival of reinforcements at Nankou by nearly two full shichen.

Youzhou was somewhat farther away, so the Han Emperor stationed in the city received news of Nankou even later. As for An Shenqi's report, Son of Heaven Liu Chengyou had only one reaction—astonishment, surprise.

At that time, Liu Chengyou was wholly focused on the situation at Tanzhou, after all, that was the main direction of attack, and Murong Yanzhao had reported in advance that the general assault would begin on the twenty-third.

However, before there was any result from Tanzhou, trouble arose at Nankou. But Liu Chengyou showed great seriousness toward the news from Nankou—not for any other reason, but for those over a hundred thousand Liao troops that had taken the initiative to attack.

Still, he did not act immediately upon hearing the news, ordering the Youzhou forces to race north to Nankou at once. Matters of state and military affairs were not so rashly handled—to act directly upon hearing a report without distinguishing truth from falsehood was truly inadvisable.

Liu Chengyou summoned the civil and military officials accompanying the imperial entourage, and the sovereign and his ministers together listened to the messenger's report, carefully interrogating the details. Only after basically clarifying the situation at Nankou did he discuss the matter with the officials.

Much like the Emperor's attitude, Guo Rong also showed extraordinary concern, and within that concern was a measure of vigilance. Zhao Kuangyin, meanwhile, directly proposed that the Liao army's unusual movements must mean they had some scheme—this sudden attack meant the actual situation was probably not as optimistic as An Shenqi imagined, and it must be taken seriously.

As for the proposal to dispatch troops, Guo Rong and Zhao Kuangyin both expressed approval—after all, with the Han army's strength at Nankou, dealing with a Liao army that had sortied in such force would hardly be easy. Prince of Yan Zhao Kuangzan also supported this proposal, and with the endorsement of these three, the others had little room to object.

There was, however, some dispute over the number of troops to be sent. The Han forces remaining to guard Youzhou consisted mainly of the Longqi Army, part of the Tieqi Army, the Inner Palace troops, and the Yan army, supplemented by some local troops and a large number of laborers from You and Ji.

Liu Chengyou's intention was that, apart from the Inner Palace troops and some auxiliary soldiers and laborers, the remaining nearly fifty thousand infantry and cavalry would all be given to Guo Rong and Zhao Kuangyin to lead to Nankou.

To this, several of the accompanying ministers rose in opposition, with clear reasoning: if this were done, the troops protecting the Emperor would be too few, and the risk too great. If anything happened to the Emperor, even annihilating the entire Liao army at Nankou would be meaningless.

After all, it was loyal counsel, and also consideration for himself. Though it did not match his wishes, Liu Chengyou still put on an appearance of humbly accepting advice, and explained his own considerations to the assembled ministers.

Liu Chengyou's reasoning was simple: over a hundred thousand Liao troops launching a major assault without any obvious prior warning clearly meant they had come prepared. Even if the fifty thousand infantry and cavalry from Youzhou marched north, there would be no absolute advantage in numbers, and defeating—let alone annihilating—them would not be easy. If anything unexpected happened, the Han army at Nankou could even face a crisis, and that was something to be avoided at all costs.

Liu Chengyou feared sending too few troops—how could he disregard the military situation at Nankou for the sake of his own safety? As for his security, with a strong city to rely on and the Inner Palace troops and Yan people to protect him, there would be no major problem.

And the Han army at Nankou concerned the entire northern expedition—no mistake could be allowed. Getting worked up, Liu Chengyou even directly declared that if they feared for his safety, then he would personally lead troops north himself; with a great army protecting him, he would naturally be safe.

When Liu Chengyou made this final statement, the accompanying ministers grew anxious and dared not raise further objections. Preventing the Emperor from personally going to the front lines was what they all desperately wanted to achieve, and with the situation at Nankou unclear and Liu Chengyou describing it as so critical—the Emperor was a man who followed through on his words—they feared he might truly lead troops himself, and so dared not say another word.

And so, the matter of dispatching troops and their numbers was finally settled. Matters of war brooked no delay; Guo Rong and Zhao Kuangyin hurried off to rapidly mobilize the various imperial camp armies and prepare for the expedition.

Of course, Liu Chengyou also considered Gao Huaide's side, and sent flying riders with an imperial edict ordering him to march west and coordinate with An Shenqi's main army. But less than half a shichen after the decision, Gao Huaide's messenger arrived, and at his request for instructions, Liu Chengyou rarely lost his temper.

He had already given Gao Huaide a certain degree of autonomy to coordinate with the two main armies—if he lacked even that much decisiveness, did he need to come specially to ask? Of course, it was hard to be too harsh, after all, this was also a display of his elder brother-in-law's reverence for Emperor Liu's authority.

Liu Chengyou personally instructed Gao Huaide's messenger to return at top speed, adding one more directive: the Liao army's large-scale sortie was unusual; when marching west to fight, he must be careful, and whenever encountering enemy situations, he could make decisions on the spot without requesting further approval.

The imperial camp army at Youzhou was still mainly infantry, so even with urgency, there were still many preparations needed before marching north. But under Guo Rong and Zhao Kuangyin's overall coordination, everything proceeded in an orderly manner.

Before the Youzhou forces had even departed, An Shenqi's second military report arrived—this time, a direct request for reinforcements. This made the Han Emperor and his ministers realize that things had indeed changed, and the situation at Nankou was not optimistic.

Thus, under Liu Chengyou's urging, preparations for the relief force were immediately accelerated. Shortly after noon, fifty thousand Han infantry and cavalry, fully equipped, departed Youzhou under the leadership of Guo Rong and Zhao Kuangyin, marching toward Nankou.

This time, the remaining five thousand Yan troops left in Youzhou city were also sent out—from this point on, there was not a single soldier of the original Yan army left in Youzhou. Prince of Yan Zhao Kuangzan, however, was kept behind; Liu Chengyou's task for him was to manage the deployment of the Yan people and assist with city defense.

A little over half a shichen after the troops departed, Liu Chengyou finally received a warning from Han Hui and learned the latest situation at Nankou. Only then did he understand that An Shenqi's army's situation could no longer be described by the words "not optimistic."

For the first time since the northern expedition began, Liu Chengyou felt worry, tension, and unease. He nearly couldn't resist the impulse to slap himself—his words had become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Just as he had said, the Han army at Nankou concerned the entire northern expedition; if anything truly went wrong, it would be equivalent to vomiting up all previous gains, and even that might be hard to make up for.

Moreover, if An Shenqi's army had problems, it would not be as simple as losing a battle or some troops—the consequences and impact would be incalculable. The desire to recover Yanyun would become a bubble, and the price the Great Han had paid for this northern expedition would surely become a bitter fruit; in the worst case, it was not impossible that it would trigger national turmoil.

Precisely because he deeply understood the severity of the consequences, Liu Chengyou was deeply worried about the fighting at Nankou, unable to sit still or rest easy. Calming down and reflecting on the Liao army's major counterattack this time, Liu Chengyou had to admit that he seemed to have underestimated the enemy—his deployment toward Juyong Pass had been overconfident. Unconsciously becoming complacent had actually led to such a perilous situation.

Too worried in his heart and eager to unburden himself, Liu Chengyou summoned An Shouzhong, who was in charge of palace security, for a talk, and asked him: "Your father is at Nankou, besieged by an enemy several times his strength, in a situation as precarious as a pile of eggs—with the fear of annihilation. Do you wish to lead troops north to support him?"

Upon learning of the military situation at Nankou, how could An Shouzhong not be worried? But having served by the Emperor's side for many years, he understood his temperament. The moment Liu Chengyou opened his mouth, An Shouzhong understood—the Son of Heaven was worried about the danger at the front and wanted to head north himself.

To this, An Shouzhong gave a solemn bow and said in a deep voice: "My old father is in danger—as his son, how could I not worry? However, my duty is to protect Your Majesty's safety. Beyond that, I have no other thoughts!"

Looking at An Shouzhong and seeing his serious expression, Liu Chengyou could not help but sigh, and did not voice his intention to personally go to the front.

Gazing northward, worry flickered constantly in his eyes. Under such circumstances, all he could do was place his hopes on the Han army at Nankou holding out in resistance, on the two relief forces arriving in time, and on the soldiers maintaining their fighting spirit.

However, after some consideration, Liu Chengyou sent Guo Tong to Tanzhou to inquire about the siege situation, and also to deliver an order to Murong Yanzhao: depending on the situation, he should detach troops to march west and support Nankou.

Even as he continuously strengthened his resolve inwardly, the crisis at Nankou would not let Liu Chengyou rest. Finally, after waiting anxiously in Youzhou city for two shichen, in the evening, Liu Chengyou could no longer sit still. Overriding the objections of the civil and military officials, he led the Inner Palace troops north toward Nankou.

He no longer cared about any danger—he had only one thought: the Son of Heaven personally leading troops to the front, hoping it would inspire the morale of the army.