Chapter 443: Alpha Wolf (Swindling Monthly Tickets)

A few li beyond White Goat Mountain, Chanyu Touman sat at ease on a folding bed, patting his knee as he watched the Xiongnu launch yet another assault on the Qin troops occupying the hill.

The attacks had been going on for three days. The first day was a slow encirclement to prevent the Qin army from breaking out. The second day was probing attacks to gauge their strength and drain their arrows. Only today, after figuring out where the Qin had scattered their wooden caltrops and with several thousand more Xiongnu cavalry arriving from the Hetao as reinforcements, did Chanyu Touman decide to launch the general assault!

Once the sunlight grew blinding — the moment most unfavorable to the defenders — the Xiongnu would surge like a tide and strike fiercely at the eastern face of the Qin formation!

During the lull, the Chanyu also took the time to praise Ju Wu, the former Grand Tutor of Yan, who had just arrived.

"Grand Tutor Ju, this stratagem of yours fits perfectly with how we Xiongnu hunt and wage war. How did you put it back then?"

After the Xiongnu were attacked by the Qin Empire last year and lost the Forest Barbarians and the Huama Salt Ponds, Ju Wu offered this plan of "strengthening the defenses, clearing the countryside, and luring the enemy deep." The Xiongnu expelled all visitors from the Central Plains and began a long, half-year migration, moving the old, the weak, and the livestock all north of the Yin Mountains. The Chanyu's consort and youngest son were sent even further, to the lands north of the Gobi Desert — the safest place of all.

Having ridden for days on end from the Hetao, Ju Wu was utterly exhausted. Avenging the state of Yan and his beloved disciple, Crown Prince Dan, had become the driving force that kept him alive in this land beyond the frontier.

He took a sip of the harsh, throat-burning fermented mare's milk, frowned, and said in the Xiongnu tongue: "Our forces concentrate at one point, while the enemy's forces scatter across ten. Thus we can strike the enemy with tenfold strength, creating a situation where we are many and the foe is few."

Chanyu Touman clapped his hands. "Yes, that is exactly what you said. Although the Xiongnu have long fought the Yuezhi and the Eastern Barbarians this way — tricking them into dividing their forces so we can use many to strike few — it was only after hearing Grand Tutor Ju's words that I truly understood the principle!"

Ju Wu smiled faintly. "This is not my stratagem; it is Sunzi's."

"Sunzi?"

Chanyu Touman looked utterly baffled. "Is the master well acquainted with this Sunzi? Was he a man of Yan?"

The people of this land — there is none with whom one can share understanding. This was not the first time Ju Wu had felt such loneliness. He sighed. "Sunzi was not a man of Yan, but of Qi. He died over two hundred years ago."

"Over two hundred years." Chanyu Touman was astonished. "Back then, our Xiongnu ancestors had not yet pitched the first felt tent on the steppe. So he was an ancient. And where is this Qi? Was it a friend of Yan?"

"Qi lay south of Yan. It was no friend of Yan."

Ju Wu recalled the scene from a century ago, when Kuang Zhang of Qi invaded Yan and plundered wantonly, and then General Yue Yi led the Yan army into Linzi of Qi, repaying every past grievance in full. He said, "It was Yan's mortal enemy! Just as the Xiongnu are to the Yuezhi and the Eastern Barbarians."

"But none of that matters now. Qi, and Yan, and Chu, Wei, Zhao, Han — all alike have been destroyed by Qin!"

What a pity that after King Zhao, Yan never again had men like Yue Yi or Su Qin to assist in governance.

"The Emperor of Qin is truly formidable."

Chanyu Touman spoke this line out of nowhere, his admiration entirely sincere. The Xiongnu revere heroes, and in the Chanyu's eyes, the Qin Emperor was a mighty warrior. To destroy six states with one state — how could that be easy? The Xiongnu had been locked in a stalemate with the Yuezhi and the Eastern Barbarians for a century. Although the Xiongnu were the strongest and held the heart of the steppe, they had never been able to finish them off. If caught in a pincer attack, they would even suffer repeated defeats.

At the same time, he also felt how truly vast the Central Plains were. Just Yan and Zhao alone were already more populous and powerful than the Xiongnu. If seven such states were combined, how boundless would that be...

"It seems Qin is indeed huge. No wonder they can send so many soldiers."

So many that Chanyu Touman actually began to entertain thoughts of retreat. The Xiongnu always advance when it profits them and leave when it does not. He knew that if they stubbornly held the Northern Jia and the southern bend of the Yellow River, the Xiongnu would likely lose their land and be wiped out as a people.

But if he simply retreated like that, where would he, the mighty Chanyu of the Chengli Gutu, put his face? Banishing his eldest son Modun had already stirred discontent among many noble tribes in the realm. If he fled in disarray without even putting up a fight, tribes that held him in contempt would probably break away from his control before he even reached the northern Gobi.

The alpha wolf must not only drive out all rivals within the pack, but also demonstrate his strength in the hunt to keep his position as leader.

The moment he appears weak and incompetent, a young, strong wolf will immediately issue a challenge!

Therefore, to preserve his rule, the Chanyu had to annihilate this Qin force before him, seize their weapons to strengthen his own main tribe, let the entire steppe know of his victory, and only then withdraw.

But what after that? What should be done then? Losing these men was, to the mighty Qin, no more than a single hair on an ox. That Zhang Ping — Chen Ping — had also said that there were thousands upon thousands of minor officials as formidable as himself in Qin!

Ju Wu proposed: "The Chanyu could withdraw north of the Yin Mountains and let the Qin occupy the Northern Jia and the Hetao, where not a single person or animal remains. To hold these places, they would have to leave behind several hundred thousand men. These men need to eat too. In summer and autumn it is manageable, but come winter, when food cannot be transported through, the Qin will surely shiver from the cold, and two or three out of every ten will lose their fingers to frostbite."

"When the snow melts in early spring, the Xiongnu will sweep back. But do not seek a decisive battle — just kill a few thousand, carry off the settlers, and return. If this continues over time, within ten years the Qin army will be unable to put down roots and grow grain in peace, forced to rely on grain shipped from the Central Plains. Qin will inevitably grow weary, and the Qin army can then be defeated!"

Perhaps by then, the state of Yan would have a chance to be restored...

On the day the altars of Yan are reestablished, even if he, Ju Wu, were dead, he would still be worthy of comparison to Shen Baoxu, who wept at the Qin court!

Though Chanyu Touman's goal was clear and Ju Wu's schemes reached far, their plan could not even surmount the first hurdle.

Just as the Chanyu and Ju Wu sat conversing on the folding bed, the Xiongnu's first fierce assault ended hastily. Facing a group of weary foot soldiers, the Xiongnu cavalry gained no advantage. After being shot at by powerful crossbows, they retreated in disarray.

The Grand Danghu Xubu Sheng and the Gudu Marquis Huyan Lan came over, knelt on the ground, and stammered, "Great Chanyu, the Qin have once again deployed the formation they used at the Huama Salt Ponds. We... we cannot advance..."

Feng Jie, single-mindedly seeking merit, had left his supply train far behind in the Forest Barbarians' territory, advancing lightly with chariots, cavalry, and foot soldiers. But Feng Jie was also a man who had fought many battles. When surrounded by the Xiongnu, he did not panic unduly. He immediately ordered all officers and men to offer up their war chariots, and in a place devoid of hills or trees, they set up the Four-Warrior Chariot Formation. The rest relied on the terrain to defend, with strong bows and powerful crossbows facing outward.

The thousand crack crossbowmen lent to Beidi last year were also present, and they had experience dealing with the Xiongnu. When the Xiongnu cavalry launched their fierce charge, the foot-drawn and arm-drawn crossbows fired in rotation. A thousand crossbows loosed as one, and the Xiongnu fell as the bowstrings sang. Several hundred Xiongnu were wounded, and they all cried out, "Those men who draw the string with their feet!" and retreated.

The Grand Danghu and the Gudu Marquis were at their wits' end. The Xiongnu excelled at mounted archery but could not break formations. Against the Qin army's formations, they had no solution at all.

"Incompetent!"

Chanyu Touman refused to believe it was hopeless. He relieved the two of them and had other Xiongnu nobles command their tribes in renewed attacks. The results were no better. Even when they managed to break in by luck, on the hills of White Goat Mountain, the Qin soldiers fought on foot among the trees and grew fiercer the longer they fought, killing several hundred more Xiongnu.

After two consecutive assaults met a wall and nearly a thousand men were lost — while the Qin casualties had not yet reached that number — Chanyu Touman finally realized this Qin force was not as easy to fight as he had imagined. It was completely different from their rout when their chariots and cavalry were struck mid-river crossing...

Ju Wu, of course, knew full well that this was precisely the kind of battle the Qin army excelled at. He said: "Forested mountains with piled stones, rivers that flow straight through, hills and ravines — these are grounds for infantry, where one chariot or cavalryman is not worth two foot soldiers. Moreover, the Qin soldiers have sturdy armor and sharp blades, mixing long and short weapons, with roving crossbowmen darting about and crack troops firing in volleys. The Xiongnu's leather cases and wooden shields cannot withstand them. The Chanyu need not use his own weakness to attack Qin's strength. Since you have already killed and wounded several thousand Qin cavalry earlier, why not simply withdraw? As long as you retreat north of the Gobi, Qin can do nothing to the Xiongnu!"

"If the alpha wolf cannot swallow the meat already pinned beneath its paw, and even chips a tooth, then it shows the wolf king has grown old! Useless!"

Chanyu Touman glared at Ju Wu. He had banished his eldest son and lost the Forest Barbarians and the Huama Salt Ponds — that had already stirred discontent. Ordering the various tribes to migrate had offended some tribes as well. Now, though he had gathered over sixty thousand riders with all his might, only thirty to forty thousand could truly fight. The rest were watching from the periphery, ready to advance if it profited them and leave if it did not. If Touman retreated at the first setback and word spread afterward, the entire steppe would likely laugh at him!

So he had to achieve some more results. Touman was now riding a tiger and could not dismount!

At that moment, the Grand Danghu Xubu Sheng, who had just been stripped of command, hastily spoke up: "Great Chanyu, though the Qin brought some grain, that stream on White Goat Mountain dried up many years ago! The Qin cannot get a single mouthful of water!"

"The Qin can dig wells." Ju Wu knew the Xiongnu lacked this skill. He said, "That is, they draw water from beneath the ground."

"How much can they draw?" Xubu Sheng shook his head. The Qin had over ten thousand mouths to feed — it would never be enough to drink!

Chanyu Touman understood. He looked at the Dusi Tu River, cut off behind them by the great Xiongnu host, and smiled.

"Cattle and sheep can go a day without grazing, but they must drink every day. The same goes for men. Let us keep them surrounded for now. In this scorching heat, these Qin will sooner or later faint from thirst. Then we shall attack in one fell swoop and see if they still have the strength to draw their bows and aim!"

Ju Wu, however, was somewhat worried. "When I came, I heard that the Qin army from the south had sent over a hundred scouts, hoping to make contact with the Qin army in Shangjun. When they saw the Chanyu's great hunt, they turned and fled. Though the eagle-shooters led men to chase and kill most of them, capturing over ten, a few still escaped."

"The scouts said that two Qin armies from the south have already joined forces at Helan and could march north at any moment. And the main Qin force that went to Touman City found nothing — I fear they too will send men to the lands south of the Yellow River to search for the Chanyu's great army..."

"Grand Tutor Ju, set your mind at ease. This Chanyu has long been prepared!"

Chanyu Touman was not afraid. He had long since deployed a thousand riders in each of the four directions — east, south, west, and north — to watch for enemies coming from any side. The moment they detected any movement by a large Qin force, they could swiftly lead everyone away on horseback and withdraw at leisure.

"Furthermore, the Qin army is mostly foot soldiers, with few chariots and cavalry. If chariots, cavalry, and infantry all come together, whether from the south or the north, it will take quite a few days. If they send only chariots and cavalry alone to rescue this Qin force..."

The Chanyu smiled as he had someone lift the leg of lamb that had been roasting before him for a long time. He sprinkled some salt on it, picked up a silver knife, and sliced down heavily. He said fiercely, "Then this Chanyu will take the opportunity to devour them!"

This alpha wolf was not picky at all. Any meat delivered to his mouth, he could swallow in one gulp!

PS: Updating this early (late?), of course, is to swindle monthly tickets.

Also recommending two books. One is "The Sinicization Master" by my old friend San Hong, which hit the shelves today:

Zhou Mingzhang transmigrated to a parallel world with the database of an entire server, wanting to become a copycat author, only to discover the database contains no domestic works. What can I do? I'm pretty desperate too. He had no choice but to go back to his old trade and keep sinicizing. Thus Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry became Penglai Academy of Arcane Arts, the white-robed wizard Gandalf became the Qi-cultivator Gandalf, and Ned Stark became Guo Donglin, Lord of Winterfell.

One is a historical novel written by a reader, *Northward Expedition Against the Qing*.

Kill! Kill! Kill!

Yangzhou's ten-day bloodshed not yet dry, Jiading's three massacres raise wolf-smoke anew.

The tears of the remnant subjects run dry in the barbarian dust; beneath the knees of Han men, fine rivers and mountains.

Clutching their bellies, laughing, they point at the rat-tail queues; clapping hands, they boast of Han robes and headdress.

Today we gather a crowd of three hundred million, to slaughter every Tatar invader and Han traitor.

Those interested and facing a book shortage, take a look.

(End of chapter)