[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-overthrowing-han":3,"chapter-overthrowing-han-overthrowing-han-chapter-164":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Overthrowing Han",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1222923,1620,"Chapter 164: Offering a Stratagem","overthrowing-han-chapter-164",164,"\u003Cp>Once the Goguryeo people found the right method, what remained was purely trading lives for attrition!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Gongsun Xun did not engage them in any contest of bloody valor either. He could see clearly from the platform: as soon as the first palisade was dragged open in three breaches, he immediately signaled Xu Rong, ordering him to voluntarily abandon the first palisade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, the Goguryeo offensive on the first day went no further than that... after all, the sky was growing dark, and given the quality of Goguryeo soldiers, they were simply incapable of sustaining night combat. If the Han army were to counter-charge, they might well scatter overnight — that would be a fine mess. And Minglin Physician was not so foolish as to make such a mistake, so the Goguryeo people ultimately, after wrecking the first palisade, simply left behind a mountain of corpses and withdrew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus ended the first day of formal battle. Han casualties were almost entirely disproportionate to Goguryeo losses, and the price the Han army paid was little more than that single palisade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But say what you will, the Goguryeo people had, after all, grasped the method for dealing with the Han army's defensive works... As for the problem that this method was destined to cost massive casualties, truth be told, the Goguryeo forces, with their extraordinarily abundant manpower, clearly did not value lives!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, by the second day, the Goguryeo forces, having mastered the countermeasure, even drove forward the slaves and women originally used for grain transport to serve as human shields. Wails resounded across the battlefield. Not to mention the Han soldiers at the front line, even Gongsun Xun, watching this scene from afar, was momentarily shaken.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And thanks to the Goguryeo people's utter disregard for life, the second day's fighting not only dragged down and hauled away the second palisade that the Han army had hastily repaired overnight, but also breached the first palisade in front of the camp wall!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"At this rate, we absolutely cannot hold out more than three more days!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Compared to the rank-and-file soldiers immersed in 'great victory,' senior officers like Xu Rong saw the situation far more clearly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Well said. Even though Wang Shuzhi and Jianjuwei have been making plenty of pre-fabricated palisade sections in the rear, and we can patch together another defense line overnight... what of it? Tomorrow, if the Goguryeo people spare neither livestock nor lives, they can completely uproot this battered palisade in half a day, and by afternoon they'll be swarming the walls with ladders!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The Goguryeo people have lost so many, surely they'll need a day to rest and regroup before formally scaling the camp walls?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Even if Minglin Physician orders a day of rest, that merely delays things by one day. The day after, they will still assault the camp walls directly, and once the walls are scaled, it will come down to hand-to-hand combat!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That is precisely the point. Most of the troops, seeing the heavy enemy losses at the first two palisades and believing the camp walls to be sturdier than the palisades, are all elated, thinking victory is assured... But in truth, how would they know that the heavy casualties we inflicted before relied entirely on the coordination between the camp walls and the palisades? The archers on the walls were the main killing force! Once the walls are scaled, it becomes a melee battlefield, and the archers can no longer shoot down at leisure from their elevated position. At that point, our army's killing power will be greatly diminished.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"In truth, our army is mostly cavalry to begin with, and not well-suited for defense.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And what of it? In this situation, can we possibly sally forth and attack? The terrain is too restrictive, and the enemy camp is pressed far too close.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"After all, this is merely a camp in a mountain valley. The watchtowers and high platforms above are all hastily erected, and the height and thickness of the camp walls themselves are far inferior to proper city walls! And given the Goguryeo people's relentless, fight-to-the-death momentum, I fear that once it comes to hand-to-hand combat, we won't last two days... Adjutant Xu's estimate of three days is well-founded.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And compared to here, the left and right flank camps are in even greater danger. Their camp walls are weaker, and they only have a slight terrain advantage. Moreover, once the left and right flank camps are lost, the main camp will be surrounded on three sides, and I fear it will immediately become untenable.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And if the left and right flank camps fall, what of the two young masters of the Gongsun family? The two of them are still in those camps and have not come over. For this matter alone, believe me, none of us would be able to return to Liaoxi.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The group fell silent for a moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Where is the General?\" After a long pause, Xu Rong, who had been the first to voice concerns, could not help asking again. \"Why has he not yet arrived?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"He is with Registrar Wang comforting the wounded.\" Han Dang, who had just come up onto the platform, answered frankly. \"My young lord has converted his own original command tent into a place for the wounded to recuperate. That is why he asked us to come to this high platform and await the military council.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Comforting the wounded is certainly the manner of a famed general of old.\" Xu Rong frowned. \"But the situation before us...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And what of the situation before us?\" Just then, a familiar voice came from the steps below the high platform — it was unmistakably Gongsun Xun returning from comforting the wounded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"General!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Young Lord!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"My Lord!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Sir!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A chaotic jumble of various forms of address immediately rang out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"All of you, hold still.\" Gongsun Xun appeared on the high platform with Wang Xiu, and in his hand he was actually carrying a steaming clay bowl of hot broth. \"Adjutant Xu was just speaking of the situation before us?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Indeed.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And how is the situation before us?\" Gongsun Xun asked gravely after taking a sip of the hot broth. \"Two days of bitter fighting, everyone is exhausted, yet this is precisely when we must be all the more vigilant. I hope you will speak frankly, Bojin.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Rong hesitated, wanting to speak but stopping... Truth be told, he did not believe that Gongsun Xun, who had grown up on the frontier, fought major battles against the Xianbei, and had earlier seen through the Goguryeo ambush at a glance, could fail to understand the most basic developments of the battle. Had he not noticed that everyone else kept their mouths shut?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To put it bluntly, matters had reached this point. A great enemy was before them, and the commanders present were either like the several tribal chieftains who had no retreat left, or like Han Dang, who was Gongsun Xun's trusted confidant from the start. Even Xu Rong himself, because his own troops were now mixed into the main force, was firmly bound to this battle!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In other words, whether by design or by chance, through this great battle, Gongsun Xun had already gained absolute authority in this army, and everyone now held him in awe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Let me guess — you all wish to say that our palisade tactics are now useless, and that we must devise some extraordinary stratagem in response, or else the situation will inevitably deteriorate?\" Gongsun Xun asked with a smile, carrying his hot broth and sitting back down in the spot where he had, in fact, been seated for two full days — on a small camp stool beneath the White Horse Banner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That is precisely so.\" Only then did Xu Rong dare to bow and acknowledge this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then do you have any extraordinary stratagems?\" Gongsun Xun set the clay bowl of hot broth at his feet, then asked gravely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The enemy is not adept at night fighting. Perhaps we could launch a night raid!\" Xu Rong was the first to propose.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"How would we conduct a night raid?\" Gongsun Xun continued to ask gravely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The two camps are too close together. What makes it convenient for them to attack us naturally makes it convenient for us to attack them.\" Xu Rong frankly laid out his idea. \"The enemy camp is vast and deep yet crude and shoddy. The enemy's morale is assured yet their quality is poor... I propose that tomorrow at dusk, when the mist rises and they have just withdrawn to rest and regroup, we sally forth once. I do not expect to break their camp or anything of the sort, but even causing some disruption would be worthwhile.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gongsun Xun nodded slightly at these words, but then slowly shook his head: \"Using offense as defense is correct, but unless it is to deliver the decisive blow or we are forced to it, there is no need to deliberately attempt it... The enemy has only just arrived, barely three days in. How do we know they are not on guard? No matter how small the force, if it is swallowed up by the enemy in turn, it will severely damage morale. We can keep this idea in mind for now. If it truly becomes necessary, it is still feasible.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Rong immediately bowed, accepting this acknowledgment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, the so-called countermeasures amounted to little more than this one suggestion. When Gongsun Xun continued to ask each person in turn, the answers he received were all largely the same... nothing more than taking the initiative to attack, and because it was difficult to achieve results in daylight, they were all night raids, all variations of circling the camp and throwing torches.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To put it bluntly, most of these men, whether Han or Hu, were almost all from the northern frontier regions. They excelled in cavalry and were skilled in offense, not defense. Ask them about raiding or pursuit, and every one of them could talk your ear off; even those who couldn't articulate it could still do it. But ask them to devise defensive methods, and that was indeed asking a bit much.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then let it be so!\" Gongsun Xun said with a faint smile, his expression unreadable. \"If any of you have ideas, feel free to tell me privately, or send word to me. But with a great enemy before us, your primary duty remains to hold the defense lines firmly.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was essentially dismissing them. The men dared not linger and took their leave one after another.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The guards may also withdraw for now. Zibo, stay.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gongsun Xun's sudden words at this moment stirred a flicker of expectation in the hearts of those turning to leave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Has the young lord kept me because he has private words to share?\" Lou Gui asked curiously once the others had dispersed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Private words spoken before three people are no longer private.\" Gongsun Xun could not help laughing at this. \"Zibo, there should indeed be private words between you and me, but it is not for me to speak to you, but for you to speak to me. Let me ask you: given the current situation, the Goguryeo people clearly intend to fortify their camp and fight a dull war of attrition against us. Without some extraordinary stratagem, I fear the situation truly will collapse. With Shenzhengnan and Ziheng both absent, you are the rare scholar in this army. Do you have anything to teach me?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lou Gui immediately smiled bitterly: \"So the young lord thought I was holding something back?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I saw that you, Zibo, had made considerable progress earlier, and could not help but have some expectations.\" Gongsun Xun was also quite frank. \"But truly, do you have no thoughts at all?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lou Gui first shook his head helplessly, but then could not help asking in return: \"Compared to the past two days, I actually feel that you, young lord, seem considerably more at ease now... Could it be that you already have some plan in mind?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What are you saying?\" Gongsun Xun immediately laughed again. \"The day before yesterday, on the eve of battle, we spied out the enemy's true strength and weakness, then smeared our faces with blood and swore oaths to face the foe — morale was roused. Then, after the fighting began these past two days, although there were some hidden worries, the battle results could still be called outstanding, so naturally my spirits were high. But by this afternoon, the palisades were completely broken, leaving only the lone wall, and we still have no solution... The situation is growing worse and worse. How could I possibly be more at ease than I was the past two days?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lou Gui could not help but sneer at this: \"Then, young lord, let us set aside today's matters for now. The day before yesterday, on the eve of battle, when you spoke at length about the national fate of Goguryeo, how much of that was truth and how much was fabrication?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gongsun Xun was embarrassed by these words... Truth be told, although he had spoken so convincingly about the Goguryeo people the day before yesterday, to the point that he had even half-believed it himself — after all, considering the situation Goguryeo faced at that moment, it did seem to hold some truth when he thought about it!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the thing was, before coming here, he had specifically inquired in detail from his own mother. This Goguryeo not only did not perish later, but gradually grew powerful, becoming the true hegemon of the Liaodong region, and was only destroyed several centuries later by the Great Tang, a dynasty as renowned as the Great Han. Had it not been for that, he would not have regarded his opponent so highly before!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In other words, Gongsun Xun knew very well in his heart that if one truly spoke of the Mandate of Heaven, Goguryeo was probably the side with the greater mandate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, what Gongsun Xun knew even less was that his mother's head was filled with nothing but half-baked historical knowledge. In history, this very Goguryeo had indeed rapidly declined after Minglin Physician's death, to the point of being annihilated. It was just that later, the Goguryeo people took advantage of centuries of fragmentation and turmoil in the Central Plains to successfully restore their kingdom and then grow powerful once more... The Goguryeo of his mother's so-called 'Three Campaigns against Goguryeo,' although sharing the same language and ethnicity as the Goguryeo before him, was not of the same lineage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That matter was probably... unfounded?\" Although somewhat embarrassed, Gongsun Xun ultimately maintained his composure in the darkness and turned to ask another question. \"However, aside from defensive stratagems, I do have some other matters to consult you about, Zibo.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Young Lord, please speak.\" Lou Gui was straightforward enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Tell me, if I truly held sufficient countermeasures — I said if,\" Gongsun Xun sat on his camp stool, pointing distantly toward the enemy camp to the southeast and asking with a smile. \"Should I present all the countermeasures at once, or should I reveal them one by one? Should I show them right at the start, or should I wait until the front line is finally about to break? Which would most effectively strike at the Goguryeo men's morale?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That depends on what the Young Lord ultimately intends to achieve.\" Lou Gui could not help but stroke his beard and chuckle. \"In truth, if one really does have multiple countermeasures, presenting them all at once versus one by one is merely the difference between victory and slaughter... The former lets the battle situation be decided swiftly; the latter more effectively inflicts casualties on the enemy army.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gongsun Xun nodded slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"As for sooner or later,\" Lou Zibo continued, still smiling. \"If the Young Lord merely wishes to swiftly resolve the enemy before him and relieve the immediate predicament, then naturally he should present the countermeasures as soon as possible. But if he wishes for the enemy army's morale to collapse utterly and beyond recovery, then he should reveal them somewhat later.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I understand.\" Gongsun Xun nodded again. \"Zibo's analysis is very apt.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then I presume the Young Lord has reached a decision?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What decision could I possibly have reached?\" Gongsun Xun could not help but laugh. \"You speak as if I truly gained sufficient countermeasures just from going out with Shuzhi to visit the wounded.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Does the Young Lord truly have none?\" Lou Gui was speechless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Has Zibo truly not thought of any additional countermeasures for me?\" Gongsun Xun countered with a question of his own.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I truly have not thought of any.\" Lou Gui was honest enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then I truly have none either.\" Gongsun Xun shook his head and laughed. \"But I do have four thousand reinforcements!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lou Gui was instantly dumbfounded, then overjoyed: \"It is actually so?! A letter was only sent to Ziheng the day before yesterday, asking him to request reinforcements — how could they arrive today?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They were not requested by Ziheng,\" Gongsun Xun laughed and spoke frankly. \"They were obtained for me by Shen Zhengnan several days ago from the Xuantu Grand Administrator, Ju Teng. It took quite a few days to assemble them, and they arrived this afternoon at the Liaohe fork camp. I only received the news just now while I was down below... They originally intended to come tomorrow, but I am preparing to have them wait a while longer at Ziheng's side.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Well worth the wait!\" Lou Zibo said excitedly. \"Four thousand reinforcements are enough to reverse the situation. If Ming Lin Physician had known our army was not eight thousand but twelve thousand men here, he might not even have dared to attack! And if our army can hold out a few more days and then reveal the reinforcements, I fear the enemy army will collapse in an instant... No wonder the Young Lord asked me whether it should be sooner or later, whether to reveal them all at once or in batches — it was actually a full four thousand reinforcements?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gongsun Xun's heart stirred, but he neither denied nor confirmed it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the other side, Lou Zibo, having received what he took as confirmation, felt a great weight lift from his heart, and he turned to leave at once.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But halfway through his departure, he suddenly turned back:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Young Lord, I have a plan that might allow these four thousand troops to both gradually increase and suddenly appear all at once — would you care to hear it?!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gongsun Xun could not help but let the corner of his mouth curl slightly upward, then he lifted the long-cold pottery bowl and took another light sip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>————I am the dividing line of mutual understanding————\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Attack where they are unprepared, strike where they least expect it — this is the victory of the military strategist, and cannot be divulged in advance!\" — Sunzi's Art of War, Chapter on Planning\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>PS: Thanks to book friend Tian Qianzhi for the generous red reward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Also, new book group 684558115 — everyone can join.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",3201,"2026-06-04T19:42:03.441Z",1,"Novelzhen Translator","c07d4dcc099699b0dd3eb2abf902b247507c25f9d4db63fabbcb2b84d886bb32","overthrowing-han-chapter-165","overthrowing-han-chapter-163",548,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Foverthrowing-han-cover.jpg"]