Chapter 338: Breathing

"Li Ke exhausted the land's yield, while Bai Gui delighted in watching for shifts in the times — thus, what others cast aside, I take; what others take, I give."

In Maoling city, word arrived that Wan Xiu's recruitment of Chang'an famine victims as soldiers and civilian laborers was proceeding with blazing success — the troops had already exceeded the projected three thousand, and north of the Wei there was no longer any need to specially conscript laborers to haul grain. Only then was Diba Jiao thoroughly convinced of Diwu Lun's wisdom.

"This was originally the way of merchants and traders, yet the King has applied it with living flexibility to military contest. To have achieved such extraordinary results — truly it is unheard of since ancient times."

"It's still what I learned back when I made coal briquettes and ran a business," Diwu Lun said with a laugh. "Principles are dead, but people are alive. Sometimes you have to go against the grain — just like Cen Junran's attack on Yao Pass: others reduce their cooking fires to lure the enemy, but he increased his cooking fires to lure the enemy. That is the subtlety of application, held entirely within the mind."

Looking back to when they had fought their way into Chang'an a little over half a year ago, the question of how to govern the vital capital region had been a colossal problem that Diwu Lun was utterly unable to solve — and the moment when he felt he was in the greatest danger.

Tens of thousands of soldiers not yet fully trained, along with officers lacking firm resolve, were thrown into a dazzling world of pleasure. At any moment they could be captured by a life of ease, sink irretrievably into the city's countless grand mansions and lavish palaces, and collapse entirely.

And he did not have enough officials on hand to take over the enormous city. A thousand tangled threads, one hopeless knot — he could only keep on the old officials of the Xin Dynasty. Yet these men were steeped in corruption: send out one dan of grain, and they would leave you with barely a dou, while all the resentment would ultimately land on Diwu Lun's head.

The realm was already in a state of war, but the people of Chang'an wanted to live days of peace — a wish Diwu Lun naturally could not fulfill. So he hastily turned in his paper and slipped away.

Yet just when all the surrounding regimes were concluding that "Chang'an is a place of peril, not to be taken," Diwu Lun changed his mind and came to see Chang'an as a great treasure house.

"The beginning of a hegemon's path lies in taking the people as the root."

Chang'an still had two hundred thousand people. In a chaotic age of plummeting population, if they were employed properly, they too could burst forth with tremendous strength.

"To go back now is to use order to await disorder, to use stillness to await clamor — this is mastering the mind."

Diwu Lun had Ren Guang send a hundred thousand dan of grain to Wan Xiu, ordering him to recruit ten to twenty thousand able-bodied young men from Chang'an, send them out, and assign army officers to train them. Before the end of the twelfth month, apart from the twelve capital gates being taken over by Wei troops, the one hundred sixty wards, eight avenues, and nine lanes within would be left to them to maintain public order.

"Let the people of Chang'an govern the people of Chang'an. An outsider could never figure out all the twists and turns inside."

And by imposing military control, they could also temporarily shut out the corrupt ward-level administration that had festered in Chang'an since Han and Xin times. Whether it would surge back later — that was a question for another day.

In addition, Diwu Lun decided to make the Privy Treasurer Song Hong the "Metropolitan Magistrate of Jingzhao," managing the entire capital. A matching contingent of officials was also prepared one by one, mostly drawn and reassigned from the various commanderies and counties north of the Wei and even from Hedong. The idea was to set up the whole framework in advance, so they would not be scrambling once they entered the city, and to let them use the army as their backing as they went off to match wits and courage with the minor clerks still scraping by in Chang'an.

Preparations were complete, but the time to formally enter Chang'an had not yet arrived.

Diwu Lun leaned against the warming stove, holding a bowl of steaming meat broth. He gave half to Diba Jiao and ate with relish, pointing south with his spoon.

"Whether the day of entering the city comes early or late, and how many more days of cold and hunger the people of Chang'an must endure — that lies with the enemy, not with me!"

…

The zones controlled by the Wei army and the Longyou army south of the Wei were roughly bounded by the Feng River and Kunming Pond. The vast Shanglin Park was territory where Longyou cavalry roamed. Wei Ao used the three thousand men of the "Hu Cavalry Camp," formerly stationed at Xuanqu Village by Kunming Pond, as his vanguard. Commanding them was his trusted favorite general, a fierce warrior from the powerful clans of Didao in Longxi — Niu Han.

Niu Han was a typical stalwart of the lands west of the passes: over eight chi tall, broad-waisted and barrel-chested, a man of great valor, talent, and spirit who dominated the frontier. He was quite adept at dealing with the Qiang and Hu tribes, but regarding this war, he harbored doubts.

"Over the past two months, the Wei army has repaired the three Wei bridges that were burned when Wang Mang was driven out. Now they are transporting grain north of Chang'an — and they actually dare to come and go by the West Wei Bridge, right on the edge of the Feng River, where our patrol cavalry roam?"

Niu Han initially thought this was a Wei army decoy tactic, meant to lure them into raiding the grain so they could spring an ambush. So he carefully observed for several days but found no large enemy force lying in ambush nearby.

After all, they had the advantage of cavalry speed, and the Hu Cavalry Camp was quite familiar with this area. Watching helplessly for days as the Wei army transported grain and fodder while his own side could only chew rock-hard dry rations over here, Niu Han finally could not hold back. He first sent out several hundred horsemen to probe.

The operation went quite smoothly. Right under the noses of the Wei army scouts, they crossed the frozen, shallow Feng River, swiftly entered the area north of Chang'an, and struck the grain convoy.

But the Wei troops escorting the grain did not even put up a fight. They abandoned the carts and fled. When the carts were pierced open, the grain was golden-yellow, no mistake! But the Hu Cavalry Camp dared not linger. They burned the several hundred dan of grain and fodder, hastily withdrew, and reported back to Niu Han.

"General Niu, we return in triumph!"

Niu Han was even more baffled. Since Diwu Lun defeated Liu Bosheng, no one dared to underestimate the Wei army anymore — but wasn't this defensive gap far too large?

After that, the Wei army halted grain shipments over the West Wei Bridge and pulled their defense line back to the Central Wei Bridge and east of the Hao River.

"The Wei army is afraid!"

"General, let us press on eastward and cut off the grain shipments over the Central Wei Bridge as well."

Niu Han hesitated greatly, still suspecting this was a decoy tactic. After pondering for two days, it was instead a wealthy man who had fled the city who told Niu Han that he had been duped!

"That raid the day before yesterday was deliberately made lax by the Wei army. What they wanted was precisely for the Longyou army to strike the lifesaving grain of the Chang'an people — and to make sure the people of Chang'an saw it with their own eyes!"

"The Wei King's Grain Commissioner, Colonel Ren Guang, has already dispatched the literate men he recruited, along with the grain-hauling laborers from that day, to spread word of this through all eight avenues and nine lanes, informing the two hundred thousand commoners in the city!"

The able-bodied young men of Chang'an were to serve as soldiers in exchange for grain, working for relief, but the old, the weak, the women, and the children could still receive a mouthful of gruel to stay alive. One can well imagine how furious the long-starving people of Chang'an were — having just begun to eat relief grain, they suddenly heard that Wei Clan cavalry had struck and burned the grain.

And Ren Guang, with a sigh, had people tell them that due to the Wei Clan's troublemaking, the Wei army might not be able to deliver grain smoothly, and the Wei King might not be able to return before the end of the twelfth month…

These words filled the people of Chang'an with righteous indignation. On one hand, they furiously cursed the Wei Clan as unworthy sons; on the other, they wept and wailed, begging the Wei King not to mind the Wei Clan troops but to come quickly to Chang'an — the able-bodied young men of Chang'an were willing to lay down their lives for him.

That was not all. They even organized a group of several dozen Imperial Academy students and old Erudites as representatives, carrying a hastily drafted "Petition of Ten Thousand People." Just as in those years when all of Chang'an, one person one vote, had begged Wang Mang to become Duke Who Pacifies the Han and then Emperor, they now intended to rush north of the Wei, kowtow before the Wei King, and beseech him to come soon to the capital and deliver the myriad people from their hanging-upside-down plight.

The situation now was this: whoever dared obstruct the Wei army's grain shipments, whoever tried to stop the Wei King's return to Chang'an, would be the mortal enemy of Chang'an's two hundred thousand people!

"Now everyone in the city gnashes their teeth at the Wei Clan. They would rather be Wei dogs than live as Han subjects!"

"Diwu Lun is treating us as raiders — raising raiders to terrorize the people?"

Niu Han listened, utterly dumbfounded. The next day, when he tried to repeat the old trick and sent over a thousand cavalry to strike the grain convoy at the Central Wei Bridge, they were met with a head-on, crushing blow by the Hao River!

Besides the Wei army, there were also the newly recruited Chang'an soldiers from the past ten-odd days, arrayed in loose formations off to the side, waving banners and shouting battle cries.

"If we press any farther, I fear we'll be outflanked by Wan Xiu's troops coming from south of Chang'an."

Niu Han thus withdrew resentfully and went to Zhouzhi to report the frontline situation to Wei Ao. Unless the Longyou main army continued to push eastward, relying on cavalry alone in this deep winter, there would be no further gaps to exploit.

"Diwu Lun is certain that Longyou will not launch a major offensive."

Wei Ao smiled bitterly. Diwu Lun had not guessed wrong. He, Wei Ao, was very cautious in his use of troops — after all, it was not his original profession. Because the logistical pressure in winter was immense, and the grain the powerful clans could provide was limited, the ten-thousand-odd Longyou infantry had reached their limit when their supply line stretched three hundred li from Chencang to Zhouzhi. To advance any farther risked Diwu Lun sending troops by transport boats across the Wei River to force a crossing and cut off their retreat!

So they could only encamp far off and send cavalry to harass. But even the strongest cavalry had a limited raiding range, and the Hu Cavalry Camp lacked the daring of a man like Lai Xi. The counties south of the Wei were already a wasteland; apart from army camps and grain convoys, there were no worthwhile targets to strike…

"The Greenwood has already lost Yao Pass, and Tong Pass has been completed. Diwu Lun no longer has any worries to his rear."

Wei Ao was deeply troubled. He had received word from north of the Wei: Diwu Lun's main army was massed, civilian laborers from all over had been organized, and the countryside was stripped clean. The plan to launch a direct surprise attack on the Five Tombs and Yueyang was also unworkable.

The likelihood of this venture achieving a great victory was slim. They could only remain locked in a stalemate for now and choose to seize the one thing they might possibly gain.

"Our advance in winter was, from the start, meant to use offense as defense."

"Pincering Geng Yan, taking the entire Northern Territory, and securing the Xiao Pass road to gain a commanding position — that was always the objective of this campaign!"

…

Follow the public account: Book Friends Base Camp — follow and receive cash and coins!

"Longyou sent out troops in three columns — such a grand deployment. I thought they were going to do something major, but in the final analysis, it turns out it was all just for my little, insignificant city?"

When Geng Yan received the edict that Diwu Lun had sent — its bearer having evaded the Longyou cavalry with great difficulty — he finally learned of the Wei Clan uncle and nephew's dispositions and could not help but laugh.

This winter had not been too easy for Geng Yan either. Back when he had first destroyed Liu Bosheng, his appetite still unsated, he had eagerly led five thousand men to pursue Lai Xi. But unfortunately, these troops were Wan Xiu's original unit; young Geng was not familiar with them, and no matter how he used them, they never felt right in his hands.

And Lai Xi was exceedingly slippery, darting through the mountain gullies, and still managed to escape to the Northern Territory, where he took refuge with the Longyou main army that was then campaigning there.

After Geng Yan reached Beidi, he took in the two-thousand-bushel official of Beidi and the great gallant of Maoling, Yuan She, who had been driven from his commandery seat by the local strongmen.

Young Geng had originally wanted to make a big push in Beidi, but Diwu Lun was busy dealing with internal problems at the time and ordered him not to open hostilities with the Western Han — stall for as many days as he could.

The sovereign's command could not be disobeyed, so Geng Yan had no choice but to have his men pose as gallant youths rushing from the Five Tombs to support the great gallant Yuan She, harassing the Longyou army. But they were no match for the onslaught of the Six Commanderies' sons of good families, and now they held only the two cities of Niyang and Chungu (present-day Changwu, Shaanxi) — as frustrating as it could possibly be.

Today, however, he was quite stirred. With his younger brother Geng Guo, he stood before a map explaining the terrain: "Going west from Chang'an to Longyou, the Wei River is flanked by range upon range of hills, making it hard to move large armies. Moreover, Mount Long cuts straight across — its slopes twist nine times, no one knows how many li high, and those who wish to ascend need seven days to cross. It is perilous beyond compare. So for traveling between the two regions, there are two commonly used routes."

"One is called the Xiao Pass Road, also known as the Northern Road or the Huizhong Road. It follows the Jing River valley northwest. After leaving Youfufeng, you reach our city of Chungu, and further west, you enter Anding Commandery."

"I see what you mean, elder brother."

Geng Guo understood at once: "This time, Longyou is coming east. Wei Ao south of the Wei is meant to pin down the King of Wei's main force. Wei Cui, who has seized Haozhi and Qi County, is meant to cut our supply lines and communications while striking northwest along the Jing River. And General Liu Long, coming from Anding Commandery, is striking southeast along the Jing River. In the final analysis, it is all to seize our city of Chungu!"

Exactly — this was why Geng Yan insisted on holding Chungu. An unremarkable little town among the hills and plateaus, it was like a thorn lodged in Longyou's throat, and the very root of this war.

"Longyou never expected Liu Bosheng to fall so quickly. They fear that once spring comes and the Great King has finished settling internal affairs, he will attack Longyou from two directions at once — the Wei clan will be in mortal danger!"

The situation now was this: Geng Shu, with two thousand men at Niyang, was holding off a joint force of several thousand from the Fu and Gan families of Beidi. The small city of Chungu had only three thousand defenders, yet faced a pincer attack from Wei Cui and Liu Long, two columns totaling over twenty thousand men. When Longyou first rose, sixteen powerful families pooled their strength, and their total force was at most forty thousand — halved as soon as the farming season arrived. Now, though it was the slack season and their numbers had somewhat recovered, and their power had expanded somewhat, this was still a full-scale commitment — they had emptied out their entire old stock.

"What does the Great King's edict say?"

"The Great King commands us to hold them off — just hold fast to the death. After spring, Wei Ao and Wei Cui will withdraw on their own, and the crisis will resolve itself without a battle."

In Diwu Lun's plan, the counteroffensive would not come until after spring. But was Geng Yan the sort of man to content himself with meekly hunkering down? Having taken in part of Yuan She's followers, the city's grain supply was growing tight. Now that he understood the focal point of this campaign was himself, he was all the more eager to act.

"The Xiao Pass Road is only one route into Longyou. There is another: the Long Pass Road. It passes through Yong County, heads toward Mount Qi, follows the Qian River, and leads all the way to Long Pass."

To put it in a metaphor, the Xiao Pass Road was Longyou's nostril, and the Long Pass Road was its mouth. In this bold advance, all Longyou sought was to breathe freely.

The straight-line distance between these two roads was actually very short — especially from the position of Chungu County, where two hundred li to the southwest lay several county seats along the Long Pass Road…

"So what if they have cavalry?"

Geng Yan, who had never stopped pining for the Youzhou shock cavalry, made a decision as bold — as utterly mad — as Lai Xi's great flanking march!

"It is the twelfth month, deep winter. Among these hills, plateaus, and ravines, cavalry move no faster than foot soldiers!"

"We'll make sure Longyou's chicken-thieving costs them a fistful of grain."

His fist slammed down hard on the Long Pass Road, there among the mountain gullies and plateaus: "I will find a way to strike the Long Pass Road by surprise, seize a county seat, and force Wei Ao to retreat in panic."

"Not only will we plug the nostril — we'll cover the mouth too! Leave them unable to draw breath!"