Chapter 372: A Hundred Li

On the evening of the twenty-third day of the sixth month, at the southern foothills of Mount Taixing in northern Wu'an, the towering, unbroken Mount Taixing softened here into gentle hills. The dense forests gradually thinned, leaving only scattered thickets and brush at the outer edges. These hills slowly extended into Henan territory, merging with the flat, open plains beyond.

On the plain beyond the mountains stretched a refugee encampment that ran for miles. Large groups of refugees headed toward the hills, gathering firewood and drawing water at the mountain's edge. Some mounted soldiers led their horses to graze in various spots. The forces of the Eight Great Kings and other bands had just arrived here and were beginning to set up camp and cook.

Two mounted bandits rode along the mountain for a while, then disappeared behind it. Not long after, they emerged back onto the plain several li away and spurred their horses eastward.

Three li northwest of Huixian, the land was a withered, sallow yellow. The successive droughts and turmoil had nearly drained this land of all vitality.

The main camp of the Dengzhou garrison was situated right here. Two deep trenches had been dug, their bottoms bristling with sharpened stakes. Behind them rose an earthen rampart, topped with javelins lashed into chevaux-de-frise. At intervals stood wooden watchtowers, each manned by a few soldiers on duty. Patrol riders were scattered around the camp's perimeter, driving anyone who looked like a refugee or commoner ten li away.

On the western road, yellow dust billowed. Several Dengzhou patrol riders galloped swiftly toward the camp, escorting two men who looked like bandits. After a brief exchange with the duty officer at the gate, they entered the main camp.

Inside the central command tent, Chen Xin, Zhu Daichun, several Company Commanders, and staff officers sat around a large table, studying the intelligence brought back by the patrol riders. Over the past two days, the bandits had suddenly become active. More than a dozen bands had appeared in Huixian and Huojiaxian, and they had even fought a skirmish with the local Henan "Mao" troops. Dengzhou scouts had detected a significant number of bandits moving north of Xiuwu, but their mounted troops were out in force, and the scouts could only confirm the nearest bands: Zhang Fei, Old Zhang Fei, Yi Kuai Yun, and the Eight Great Kings of the Southern Camp.

These bands had also taken the initiative to attack Dengzhou patrol riders, leaving them unable to guess what the bandits were planning. Every unit had heightened its alert. Geng Zhongming's force was redeployed to the vicinity of the Huixian county seat to prevent him from being isolated and ambushed by the bandits.

Chen Xin was growing somewhat anxious over these bandits. They had a considerable number of mounted troops, and their campsites were unpredictable. By the time government forces received word of their location, the bandits had usually already moved on. The government troops often came up empty-handed. Although they had won one victory, it had not been decisive.

The group was scratching their heads over the map when Wang Mafu's loud report came from outside the tent. "My lord, the Special Operations Unit's Baoya has returned with urgent intelligence."

Chen Xin slapped the table upon hearing this. "Let him in at once."

Moments later, Baoya hurried in. His expression was extremely harried. No one bothered with pleasantries. After a hasty salute, Baoya leaned over the map and briefed them on the bandits' movements. Then, pointing to the area north of Xiuwuxian, he indicated each spot in turn. "My lord, Zijing Liang has reached Xiuwu and is encamped near the southern foothills of Mount Taixing. Zhang Xianzhong is directly east of him, three li from his camp, roughly a hundred li from our position. The Dashing King Gao Yingxiang has also arrived, six or seven li southeast of Zijing Liang. At least seventeen bands, large and small, are moving toward Xiuwu. They may attack the county seat, or they may head toward Huixian. I judge that Zijing Liang will remain camped there for several days, so I rushed back to report."

Chen Xin stroked his chin and asked, "Zijing Liang is camped near the southern foothills of Mount Taixing, and the Dashing King's position is also not far from the high ground. Both have prepared to flee at any moment. They are massing their forces and moving toward Huixian. This is exactly the time for us to fight a proper battle. What are your opinions?"

"I believe there are two possibilities," Zhu Daichun said, leaning in to look. "The two largest bands are both north of my position. They are guarding against us relieving Xiuwu, or they are preparing to invade Huixian and then plunder northward into Beizhili."

Huang Yuan raised his hand. "I believe there is another possibility. If the bandits are massing in large numbers at Xiuwu, they may attack the county seat to draw out one of our eastern forces for a relief mission, then swarm and besiege it."

Chen Xin nodded. "That makes some sense. It might well be aimed at us. How do you think we should counter it?"

Encouraged by Chen Xin's approval, Huang Yuan spoke with greater confidence. "I believe we should turn their own scheme against them. First notify the nearby Xuan Provincial Governor, Deng Regional Commander, General Ma, and Zuo Liangyu's force. We need not fear the bandits' numbers. We pretend ignorance of their trap, march straight in and let them surround us. We hold them in the center. Once the bandits have gathered, the Provincial Governor commands the main army to advance in one sweep, and we coordinate from within and without to annihilate them. But the best method is to lure them eastward, here to Huixian."

"At their speed, it will be very difficult to catch the bandits' mounted troops," Zhu Daichun said, shaking his head. "Killing any number of those refugees is useless. I hear that many people in Huaiqing and Weihui prefectures have joined the rebels. I think it's more likely they intend to head toward Linxian. We can use our cavalry to lure them east and test their reaction. If they don't follow, they probably mean to strike the Xiuwu county seat. We then await Lord Xuan's orders and move to relieve it together with the other friendly forces. The key element will be the mounted retainers of each officer."

The staff officers all agreed with Zhu Daichun's idea. Chen Xin looked around the room. Seeing Zhong Lao Si with his arms folded, still staring down at the map, he called on him. "Zhong Caisheng, speak up. What do you think?"

Zhong Lao Si looked at Chen Xin. "My lord, you said in the accelerated officers' course that the simpler the plan, the easier it is to execute. I just think, why are we guessing at a bunch of bandits' plans? Let them scheme however they like. We ignore their plan and just fight our own. Since Zijing Liang and the Dashing King have come to Xiuwu, that's a good opportunity. It's not far from the Huixian camp. We don't play any tricks with them. One forced march, go over there, and smash Zijing Liang. That's it."

Chen Xin and the others were momentarily stunned. Huang Yuan couldn't help saying, "We're all infantry. If the bandits' mounted troops flee for their lives at top speed, they can cover two or three hundred li in a day. No matter how fast our forced march, we can't catch mounted troops."

Zhong Lao Si replied bluntly, "Of course we can't catch them. That's why even if you lure the enemy into Huixian, even if we and the Sichuan troops gather, we still might not be able to trap them, because we still lack enough horses. Not to mention those friendly forces might not be willing to come. I see they're quite happy with their looting. The bandits may run fast, but they still have to sleep at night. So we march at night. A forced march of a hundred li, no armor worn, can absolutely be done in one night. We launch the attack at dawn, and they won't even have time to mount their horses."

Everyone hesitated somewhat. If Huang Yuan's analysis was correct, there would be seventy to eighty thousand bandits north of Xiuwu, with several thousand elite mounted troops. Yet Zhong Lao Si still wanted to deliver himself right to them and attack. If they truly were surrounded and the bandits attacked from all sides, deep down everyone still had some concerns.

Even someone like Baoya, who often operated behind enemy lines, felt some misgivings. "Zijing Liang's position isn't on the outermost perimeter. Apart from the Mount Taixing foothills to his north, other bands are camped on his east, south, and west. The easiest ones to spot us would be the bands camped to the east: Yellow Tiger Zhang Xianzhong, Shang Tianlong, and Xue Rengui, all within ten li east of Zijing Liang. No matter which route we take, we can't avoid them. An army of several thousand men can't possibly slip through the gaps between their camps unnoticed. Once the outer bands are alerted, Zijing Liang can flee at any time."

Zhong Lao Si shook his head. He grabbed a charcoal pencil and was about to draw on the map. Zhu Daichun quickly tried to stop him, but Chen Xin waved a hand at Zhu Daichun. "Let him draw."

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Zhong Lao Si leaned over the table. He drew a circle at Zijing Liang's position, marking it as Zijing Liang and the Dashing King. He added a few smaller dots around it. Then he drew a line from Huixian, stopping near the small dots, turning north into the Mount Taixing range. From within the mountains, he drew a line all the way to a point directly north of Zijing Liang.

The onlookers all furrowed their brows simultaneously. Zhong Lao Si looked at Chen Xin. "My lord, they're only guarding against the other directions. They would never imagine government troops could thread through the mountain gullies. The defense in this direction is the laxest. Our Dengzhou garrison is the only government force with night march and mountain training. We use the mountains as cover, close in to the nearest point to Zijing Liang, then deploy frontally. Both wings strike concentrically, and we rout them in one blow. Once the strongest force, Zijing Liang, collapses, the surrounding small bands will certainly lose all will to fight. If we move fast enough, we might very well capture several of the ringleaders alive."

Huang Yuan objected, "Company Commander Zhong's plan looks good, but a night march of a hundred li… even if our pikemen go as light as possible, they still have to carry over thirty jin of iron armor…"

Zhong Lao Si cut him off. "Don't bring the iron armor. Don't bring the cannons or any of the baggage train either." Zhong Lao Si interrupted him. "Each soldier carries only five days' worth of dry rice. The cooks bring a small amount of cured meat. Other than that, they carry only their combat weapons. As for armor, take all the mail shirts from the musketeers in each unit and give them to the pikemen. Leave all the iron armor in camp. Ordinary musketeers can go without armor. Every soldier should carry extra powder and shot. If the surprise attack fails, we conduct an alternating retreat along the mountain terrain. Mounted troops can't maneuver easily in the mountains. With our firepower, the bandits won't be able to encircle us."

The group wore strange expressions, their heads swiveling as they stared at the map. The Dengzhou garrison had been built on the model of Qi's Army. That army's classic battle — a night march of one hundred and ten li through mountain paths — was a required case study in the military academy. Listening to the lectures, one's blood would boil. But when it came to doing it themselves, it always felt extremely risky, because they would have to abandon all their heavy firepower and supplies. It was like a gamble.

After a long moment, Chen Xin turned his head and asked Baoya flatly, "Are there any bandits camped in the mountains?"

Baoya thought for a moment. "Generally, no. In summer, there are too many mosquitoes and insects. No one wants to spend the night in the mountain forests. Whenever they can stay on open ground, they do."

"Can the forests north of Zijing Liang be traversed by an army?"

Baoya called over his companion. The two conferred briefly, recalling the terrain of the forests in that area. After a moment, Baoya said, "It can be traversed. That stretch of high ground is formed by a string of hills. Behind them is a continuous gully. There aren't many trees inside it, so marching is relatively easy. You can follow the gully to the north side of Zijing Liang. The final attack would require passing through the woods on the southern slope. It's not very dense there either, but it would pose some difficulty for the pikemen."

Chen Xin fixed his gaze on that spot, his eyes gleaming repeatedly, as if he was steeling his resolve. He still asked, "Do they usually post ambush sentries between the camp and the mountains?"

"They do. I've served as one once. They're not as vigilant as those in other directions. Most of them just sleep."

Chen Xin turned to the operations staff officer. "How many rivers are in between? Can they be forded at night?"

"Six rivers, large and small. The fording points are all marked."

"Good." Chen Xin slapped his palm down and looked at everyone. "Any more questions?"

Everyone shook their heads in unison. They knew Chen Xin had made up his mind. Their faces showed excitement. This surprise attack plan was both audacious and had a real chance of success. The thought of just over three thousand men raiding seventy to eighty thousand bandits a hundred li away made these officers' hearts race.

Chen Xin waited a moment. Seeing no further objections, he said to them, "An opportunity like this is rare. We've finally confirmed the bandits' location with difficulty. I have decided to take this risk. If we're going to strike, we strike the strongest. We pick Zijing Liang. We use Deputy Camp Commander Zhong Caisheng's plan. The central staff will immediately dispatch relay riders to contact the Sichuan troops under Ma Xianglin and the forces under Deng. Only ask them to converge on the area north of Xiuwu to pincer the bandits. Do not reveal our plan. In case the surprise attack fails, at least they can come and help somewhat. Order Geng Zhongming's force to march west at top speed to the northwest of Huixian. Find any fortified village, make a show of seizing grain, and drive off the bandit patrol riders in the vicinity. All staff officers are to begin drafting the detailed operations plan immediately. Unit commanders return to camp and begin preparations. The briefing will temporarily only go down to the Company Commander level. It will be communicated to the soldiers only just before we set out at nightfall. From this moment on, no soldier is to leave camp. Everyone must be ready to move out at any time. After nightfall, our main army will conduct a forced march along the edge of the Mount Taixing southern foothills. This time, we will show the bandits what a true elite army looks like."

The officers all rose together. "At your command!"

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