Chapter 939: Harassment, Then Attack

As the spring night deepened, the vast Han army camp lay in complete silence. Apart from the occasional sounds made by patrolling soldiers, there was no other movement—even the horses, cattle, and sheep were perfectly still. It was a time for rest, and also bound by military law, yet though it was quiet, it had not a trace of peacefulness.

The campfires in each battalion were sparse, but when viewed across the entire Han army camp, they stretched endlessly, nearly merging with the starry sky. The night sky was exceptionally clear, like a curtain washed clean by spring rain, and the sparse, dim cold stars made the heavens seem all the more vast and distant.

The Han Emperor's arrival at the field headquarters had naturally been noticed by the Liao army in Yunzhong City—after all, there had been no attempt to conceal it. The waves of "Long live!" cries nearly made the entire city tremble.

The defenders' morale could hardly avoid being affected by the Han Emperor's arrival. It wasn't that Liu Chengyou's prestige had already spread into the hearts of the Hu barbarians beyond the northern frontier—it was simply that the Han army had been reinforced again, and circumstances compelled it. Therefore, Yelu Talie decided he needed to do something to welcome Liu Chengyou and, in passing, boost morale.

For Yelu Talie, whether the Han army outside the walls numbered two hundred thousand or three hundred thousand, he did not care—either way, it was not something the Liao army could face head-on. And with such a multitude, the Han army could not possibly commit all its forces to battle at once. Relying on the sturdy city walls and ample preparations, Yelu Talie remained composed, and with this confident bearing, he inspired his officers and men and steadied their hearts.

In fact, Yelu Talie was even thinking that if he could ultimately hold Yunzhong with the Han Emperor personally overseeing the battle, then no matter how much damage was inflicted on the Han army, it would be a great victory for the Liao army. Because that would affect the Han Emperor's prestige and sap the Han army's morale.

Therefore, Liu Chengyou's personal journey to Yunzhou also left little room for maneuver. Neither attacker nor defender had any retreat, and a cruel, fierce life-or-death struggle was destined to be unavoidable.

Inside the imperial tent, Liu Chengyou was sleeping soundly with a beautiful woman in his arms—he had indeed been quite exhausted along the way. However, a sudden burst of battle cries rose from outside the north city wall. Liu Chengyou sat up with a start, his hand reaching directly under the pillow to pull out a dagger, and he called out warily: "Someone!"

"Your Majesty!" The duty guard general was Liu Tinghan, a commander who had shown both valor and cunning in the great battle at Nankou. Liu Chengyou had taken a liking to him and transferred him directly to serve as his personal guard—a meteoric rise indeed.

"Go find out what happened," Liu Chengyou ordered.

"Yes!"

The imperial tent was situated deep within the field headquarters, quite far to the rear, so by the time the sounds arrived, they had already diminished considerably. Still, the impact of the commotion was not insignificant.

"Your Majesty!" The Noble Consort also awoke from her slumber.

"No matter! It should be a Liao night raid!" Liu Chengyou said. The Han army had rich experience in guarding against night raids—those deep trenches, high ramparts, sturdy stockades, and traps had not been built with wasted manpower and resources.

Of course, the Liao army had also learned the might of the Han army's fortifications, and so they had no intention of charging the Han stockade. They only deployed three thousand cavalry, who galloped through the open ground the Han army had deliberately left for assault operations, shouting cheers, blowing horns, and loosing arrows...

The purpose was just two words: harassment—to deny the Han army a good night's sleep. In Yelu Talie's words, this was a welcome ceremony for the Han Emperor, which was why the Liao troops who rode out were in quite high spirits.

This kind of night raid disturbed both the enemy and oneself—the Han had their stockades, the Liao had their city walls—but with the Han army's greater numbers, the impact they suffered was evidently greater. Of course, the Han army had basically grown accustomed to this level of Liao harassment. The officers of all ranks in camp followed orders to keep the soldiers sleeping—even if they couldn't sleep, they had to keep their eyes closed.

Naturally, the soldiers on night patrol and guard duty did not dare relax in the slightest. Facing the Liao army's arrogant taunts, the Han army was also holding back their anger. Each stockade mustered a thousand crossbowmen who shot with powerful bows and heavy crossbows, inflicting some casualties and dampening the enemy's arrogance—but the harassment had achieved its effect nonetheless.

Inside the imperial tent, Liu Chengyou quickly received the report. Seeing that measures had already been taken, he said no more and continued sleeping with the beautiful woman in his arms. But after this disturbance, the quality of his sleep plummeted. Being an emperor was an extremely stressful profession, especially for an enlightened sovereign, and especially while in the midst of a campaign army.

The Liao cavalry circled Yunzhong City twice and then returned to the city. However, about an hour later, while he was still half-asleep, he heard the same commotion again—this time with war drums thundering as well.

Tonight, the defenders of Yunzhong were being very lively, making quite a racket, giving the Han Emperor a double "courtesy."

By the time dawn approached, Liu Chengyou rose early. His fatigue had not been dispelled much; instead, he had gained a bit more drowsiness. Washing his face with cold water helped considerably.

He took people with him to inspect the camp. Though the morning light was still dim, the entire Han camp was already beginning to stir—the most obvious sign being the wisps of cooking smoke rising from the several supply camps.

Learning that the Emperor was touring the camp, Fu Yanqing came to find him. Among the Emperor's fathers-in-law, in terms of physical health, this Prince of Wei was probably the fittest. Excusing him from formal etiquette, Liu Chengyou had him accompany the inspection of the various camps, and asked: "I slept poorly last night. How was the Prince of Wei's sleep?"

Hearing Liu Chengyou's question, Fu Yanqing's heart gave a start, and he immediately responded: "The Liao cavalry ran rampant and disturbed Your Majesty—this is your subject's fault. I beg Your Majesty to punish me!"

Seeing this, Liu Chengyou shook his head and waved his hand, saying: "It's no trouble for me to go one or two nights without sleep, but what about the soldiers? They are the ones who must go into battle and fight the enemy bravely. If they cannot rest properly, where will their spirit and strength come from?"

Then Liu Chengyou asked: "With the Liao cavalry harassing us like this, is there no way to counter it?"

Hearing the question, Fu Yanqing thought for a moment and replied: "Your Majesty, harassment of this sort is like mosquito bites and fly buzzing—if we simply ignore it and rest peacefully, that's all that's needed. If we make a great show of force, we'd be playing right into the Liao army's hands!"

"What you say, I understand as well!" Liu Chengyou said. "But even mosquito and insect bites still itch..."

"It's just that our camp is pressed right up against the city walls, and the Liao troops come out in varying numbers each time. I previously sent cavalry to strike at them specifically, but the results were minimal," Fu Yanqing said. "However, the Liao army's harassment has equally little effect on our forces. If they think they can resist the imperial army with such tactics alone, that is nothing but wishful thinking!"

Fu Yanqing's tone was not particularly agitated, but it radiated confidence. Seeing this, Liu Chengyou did not continue to offer opinions on the matter, only stating: "As for the siege, you may act with full authority!"

"Thank you for Your Majesty's trust!" Fu Yanqing said.

"We are both sovereign and subject, and also father-in-law and son-in-law—no need to be so formal!" Liu Chengyou's face was bathed in spring breeze, and his tone became exceptionally gentle.

The first light of dawn had appeared, and the morning glow was growing stronger—clearly a sign of good weather. Good weather meant that the attack and defense were about to begin. Around the hour of Chen, the Han army camp stirred once more. There was no deliberate display, but the naturally emanating momentum and commotion was already startling—after all, this was the movement of nearly three hundred thousand men.

After finishing their morning meal, the Han army, under the command of their generals, marched out of camp in force to form battle lines, adjust their siege equipment, and prepare for the assault on the city. The siege plan had long been discussed and settled between Fu Yanqing and the other generals, so everything proceeded methodically according to orders.

At the same time, there was no single main direction of attack—they adopted a tactic of besieging from all four sides, making every side a main assault. After all, the Han army had enough manpower, and this also split the defenders' forces, denying them the chance to concentrate their defenses.

Although Yunzhong City had been built near water, a tributary of the Sanggan River could not serve as a defensive barrier. The city walls were solid, but facing such a multitude of Han troops, the pressure they bore was immense—which was precisely why Yelu Talie had never passively waited to be beaten, but continuously launched active sorties and harassment.

For the four-sided Han command: Fu Yanqing on the north, Zhao Kuangyin on the west, Murong Yanzhao on the south, and Gao Huaide on the east, while Emperor Liu Chengyou personally oversaw the battle from the north. In the central army, an observation platform five zhang tall had been built early on, and from its summit one could survey the entire battlefield.

As for the defensive situation of Yunzhong City, the Han army had already experienced and understood it during the previous probing attacks. Therefore, the first assault after the Emperor's arrival was made with all their strength and without holding anything back—from the very start, they fought as if to the death.