Chapter 1107

After tidying up the troops, they reorganized and advanced toward White Wax Pass; by the time they arrived at White Wax Pass, Xiong Tianba had already led those hundred brothers away proudly.

Dawn arrived unnoticed; Dongliang Jun, after a night of arduous defense, successfully repelled three attacks by the Yong army. Later that night the snow stopped and freezing rain began to fall, making the Yong soldiers suffer terribly. Qin Yangming realized this siege was far more difficult than he had anticipated; heaven did not favor him, never taking his side. At daybreak he just confirmed a piece of news: East Luo Granary had been seized by Hu Xiaotian in a surprise attack. The news chilled Qin Yangming to the bone; he knew what losing East Luo Granary meant.

Strategist Zhai Yuan, seeing Qin Yangming's ashen face, could already guess his mood; he dared not speak up, quietly waiting aside.

Qin Yangming said, "How many days can our provisions last?"

Zhai Yuan whispered, "Two days!"

Qin Yangming looked at the smoke-filled watchtowers of Dongliang Jun not far off; if they persisted in the siege, perhaps they could take Dongliang Jun within a day, but what then? What about East Luo Granary? If they could not retake East Luo Granary, their supply lines would break; even with a far superior force, how could they fight on empty stomachs? Hu Xiaotian was indeed ruthless, cutting off his retreat by striking at his base.

Deputy General Yang came forward to report, his expression somewhat flustered: "Reporting to the General, a hundred warships from Wuxing Commandery are sailing toward Dongliang Jun; they must be reinforcements."

Qin Yangming's mood grew ever heavier; Wuxing Commandery daring to send troops must have heard the news that East Luo Granary had fallen, making the situation increasingly unfavorable for them. He drew a deep breath, as if trying to squeeze out the suffocation in his chest, but this deep breath not only failed to help, it made his inner feeling even heavier—so heavy he felt on the verge of choking. He turned to Zhai Yuan, who hastily lowered his head. Zhai Yuan wasn't afraid of Qin Yangming's mighty presence; he simply didn't want to speak up at this moment. In his heart he had always secretly criticized Qin Yangming's deployment of such a large force, seeking absolute safety, which was essentially making a mountain out of a molehill. The loss of East Luo Granary was beyond Zhai Yuan's expectations; in his view, Hu Xiaotian's attack on East Luo Granary was only theoretically possible, and he never imagined the enemy would actually dare to carry it out—and succeed.

"What do you think?" Qin Yangming squeezed out these words through clenched teeth, finding himself in such a predicament. His first thought was not self-blame, but resentment toward the useless strategists and aides around him, who had failed to guess the enemy's tactics.

Zhai Yuan said, "East Luo Granary must not be lost; even if we capture Dongliang Jun, losing East Luo Granary would still make it impossible to answer to the court."

Qin Yangming snapped, "Do I need you to say that? I'm asking you. What should we do now?"

Zhai Yuan said, "Gather all our forces and attack East Luo Granary; we must retake it within a day."

Qin Yangming bit his lip; actually he didn't need Zhai Yuan to tell him—he already knew what to do. Given the current situation, what other choice did he have? Qin Yangming tightly shut his eyes. Feeling the icy rain striking his face drop by drop, his face seemed numb: "Retreat!"

Yu Tianxing saw the Yong forces besieging the northeastern two gates begin an orderly withdrawal, knowing the enemy had confirmed the news that East Luo Granary had been breached; this news would surely crush Qin Yangming's morale. It left him unwilling to continue fighting, and all Qin Yangming could do next was stake everything, muster his full forces and launch a desperate counterattack on East Luo Granary, striving to seize it back.

Hu Zhongyang and Tang Tiehan came to Yu Tianxing's side, watching the Yong troops gradually retreat outside the city gate, their faces lit with joy. Hu Zhongyang said, "Mr. Yu, are they really retreating?"

Yu Tianxing smiled and said, "Qin Yangming has no choice; East Luo Granary has already been taken by our lord. Losing East Luo Granary means they lose their supplies; if they stay here, they'll face an untenable situation—let alone seventy thousand, even a seventy-thousand-strong army would collapse without a fight." Yu Tianxing's expression brimmed with confidence. Hu Zhongyang silently sighed; Hu Xiaotian truly is blessed with immense fortune—not only does heaven aid him, but he also has someone like Yu Tianxing, exceptionally clever and almost demonic, at his side. Earlier, defeating Tang Boxi's command of the thirty-thousand Southern Yang Fleet had seemed somewhat lucky, but this time, without breaking a sweat, he caused Qin Yangming's nearly seventy-thousand-strong army to abandon its encirclement. Such stratagems are rare under heaven; with such a strategist beside Hu Xiaotian, what great undertaking could fail?

Hu Zhongyang remained doubtful about Hu Xiaotian's capture of East Luo Granary, and whispered, "Did Sir Hu really take East Luo Granary?"

Yu Tianxing nodded with a smile and said, "Absolutely; if everything goes well, General Zhao Wusheng's five thousand troops have already entered East Luo Granary and joined with our lord."

Chang Fanqi was still guarding the West Gate, shouting curses, when a scout came to report—only to learn that a large army had already reached the West Gate of East Luo Granary and was entering the city through that gate.

Chang Fanqi gritted his teeth, preparing to order his men to advance toward the West Gate; even if he died in a bloody battle, he wanted to die in East Luo Granary. It was inexplicable how he had lost East Luo Granary—clearly his own territory, yet now he was barred from the gate. Chang Fanqi had never suffered such a setback in his life.

Just as he was about to leave, his deputy general beside him said, "General, look!"

Chang Fanqi lifted his gaze and saw, atop the city wall, a few soldiers accompanying an elderly woman with white hair, standing there. He saw clearly that the old woman was his mother; Old Lady Chang, advanced in years and blind for many years, unable to see anything before her, softly asked, "Where is Qi'er? Where is Qi'er?"

Chang Fanqi was worried to the extreme, yet dared not shout loudly, fearing to frighten his mother; raised by his mother since childhood, he was extremely filial, and now seeing his old mother under control, he wished he could sprout wings from his ribs and fly up to the city wall to rescue her.

Hu Xiaotian smiled and nodded at Chang Fanqi, supporting Old Lady Chang's arm and said, "Lady Chang, the General is drilling outside the city; it's windy up on the tower—you had better take her down to shelter from the wind and keep warm, lest General Chang see this and blame us."

Old Lady Chang said, "Wasn't Qi'er supposed to be here?"

Hu Xiaotian smiled, "Lady, please go rest first; once the General is free, I'll have him come see you right away."

After the old lady left, Hu Xiaotian returned to the arrow tower and, looking at Chang Fanqi glaring angrily from below the city, said, "General Chang, do you see? The old lady is well; I will certainly look after her on your behalf—you need not worry at all."

Chang Fanqi raised his twelve-foot serpent spear, pointing at Hu Xiaotian and said, "Hu Xiaotian, you vile wretch, you've seized my mother—I will cut you into ten thousand pieces, smash your bones and scatter your ashes, only then will my hatred be appeased."

Hu Xiaotian smiled and said, "I've heard General Chang is a filial son; I, Hu, have always held loyal ministers and filial sons in highest esteem, but since ancient times loyalty and filial piety cannot both be fulfilled, and people often must face such an agonizing choice." He gave Zhan Peng a look.

Zhan Peng drew his bow, nocked an arrow, and shot it diagonally downward; the arrow struck the ground about three zhang ahead of Chang Fanqi's horse. The guards in front of his horse rushed forward, picked up the arrow, and presented it to him. Chang Fanqi took the arrow; a small bamboo tube was bound to its shaft, and when he unscrewed it he found a slip of paper bearing the words: "Trade Qin Yangming's life for the old lady's life!"

Chang Fanqi sucked in a breath of cold air, closed the paper, and looked around—no one dared come near to peek at what was written. This Hu Xiaotian is truly ruthless, actually demanding that he kill Qin Yangming to spare his mother's life.

Hu Xiaotian smiled from the city wall and said, "General Chang, you should understand my meaning: the sea of bitterness is boundless; turning back is shore. You have lost East Luo Granary; returning would also be a capital offense. Better to surrender to me—I will guarantee you wealth and honor and a peaceful life." He spoke with full vigor, and despite the distance his voice rang clear in Chang Fanqi's ears.

Chang Fanqi shouted, "Despicable and shameless!" Though he resented it, he dared not give the order to attack. At that moment his deputy general said, "General, the troops are ready; shall we go to the East Gate to block the Kang army's forces?"

Chang Fanqi glared at him fiercely: "Who's in charge here—you or me?"

General...

Entering East Luo Granary through the East Gate were General Zhao Wusheng and his five thousand troops; on Hu Xiaotian's side, the garrison had grown to nearly eight thousand. With the help of defector Jiang Yunfu, they quickly ascertained the granary's general situation: it stored abundant provisions and also possessed two arsenals, enough arms to equip a fifty-thousand-strong force.

After seizing East Luo Granary, they dared not slacken in the least; they immediately began fortifying the city. Before long, Qin Yangming's troops would arrive in waves, and this time they would surely stake everything, sparing no effort to storm East Luo Granary.

Hu Xiaotian's side began rotating shifts; according to their initial assessment, even if they merely sat here consuming their stores, their eight thousand could hold for twenty years without problem. With East Luo Granary's provisions as a backup, and relying on its sturdy walls and lofty arrow towers, they would remain confident even against Qin Yangming's sixty-thousand-strong force. After the snow came freezing rain, temperatures dropped sharply; inside they were well fed and warm, while the Yong troops outside would soon run out of supplies. Moreover, this sudden freezing rain drenched their cotton uniforms, making the harsh weather more deadly than the army's firepower. If Qin Yangming persists in the siege, the Yong casualties will surely be heavy.

Hu Xiaotian's side lay in wait for the enemy to exhaust themselves, while Chang Fanqi, held back by his mother's captivity, dared not launch an attack despite letting his troops shout curses. The first reinforcements to arrive were over ten thousand troops led by Huang Chengxin, under Chang Fanqi's command; upon seeing that East Luo Granary had indeed fallen to the Kang army, Huang Chengxin also felt uneasy and dared not propose an assault.

Today is Lao Zhangyu's birthday, please give a few Monthly Tickets as a gift! (To be continued~^~)