Chapter 1305: First Volume, Chapter 1305: The Final Preparation

First Volume, Chapter 1305: The Final Preparation

After suffering tremendous losses, Zhao Yuxiong could only choose a reluctant military retreat.

Ning Hu and Zhao Zhenhai did not pursue, for a simple reason: their forces were too large; rash pursuit might scatter their formation and invite unpredictable risks.

Moreover, behind Zhao Yuxiong lay Dingtao County, still holding large garrison forces; even if they forced pursuit, they could not stop Zhao Yuxiong from retreating back into Dingtao County.

Yet this great battle was won, and won with a high casualty ratio, sufficient to severely shatter the morale of the imperial army.

Additionally, the imperial forces invading the Northern Border had already been blocked by various Northern Border units, even the Three Great Generals had dispatched troops to engage, halting the invaders south of the Northern Border and preventing further escalation.

Thus, Zhao Yuxiong's options were now severely limited.

Either launch another fierce assault, staking everything on a single gamble.

Or immediately retreat, declaring the North Expedition a failure.

And the final, worst outcome: waiting until logistical supply lines falter, turning against the entire army and inflicting immeasurable damage upon Shedynasty.

Although the yizhans near the battlefield had been struck, news still reached Jingdu.

The atmosphere in the Imperial Court had become extremely oppressive.

All officials remained silent, quietly awaiting the Liang Emperor's declaration.

The Liang Emperor himself felt as if sitting on needles, forced to seek broad counsel from his ministers.

"The situation on the Northern Front is extremely unfavorable to our forces; we cannot break through the front line, and the plan for full-scale invasion of the Northern Border has stalled."

"Our rear supply lines have suffered heavy damage!"

"If we cannot find a way to turn the tide, this war will surely go against us."

Hearing this, the officials still bowed their heads in silence, though their hearts brimmed with resentment.

Turn the tide? Throughout all of Shedynasty, the one man most capable of turning the tide has already been driven into enemy hands by the Liang Emperor—besides Qin Feng himself, who else could reverse this catastrophic situation?

Ministers who had already secretly coordinated their stance all turned toward Chen Zheng.

As their representative, Chen Zheng naturally had no choice but to speak out boldly: "His Majesty must immediately order a full withdrawal and declare the North Expedition a failure."

"If we continue fighting, Shedynasty will suffer the bitter fruits of Bo Bing Du Wu."

The very thing the Liang Emperor feared had finally come to pass: his ministers were now pressuring him.

The Liang Emperor did not wish to retreat—he simply could not. A retreat in such disgrace would leave Shedynasty unable to recover its national strength in the short term, making it impossible to deal with Qin Feng.

At that point, imperial authority would be shattered; even without Qin Feng lifting a finger, the Liang Emperor would reap the consequences of his own actions.

He could not allow this to happen, and immediately rebuked: "This war concerns the fate of the state—how can we retreat in haste?"

"Chen Zheng, since the war began, your stance has been inconsistent—do you intend to obstruct state policy?"

Facing the Liang Emperor's accusation, Chen Zheng's gaze remained unshaken, his voice still resolute: "My stance has never wavered."

"From the outset, I opposed this war."

"Though Shedynasty's national strength surpasses the Northern Border, we are still deploying our entire nation against a single region—and even 'entire nation' is merely outwardly strong, inwardly hollow."

"Can we disregard the lives of our people, dig up the earth three feet deep, squeeze every last resource, and concentrate it into a Heavenly Thunder Strike, launching a One-Strike Victory to crush the Northern Border?"

"No! We cannot!"

"The forces we can send to fight in the Northern Border can at most reach two percent of our national strength—and even that is enough to plunge all of Shedynasty into misery."

"And two percent of our national strength? To shake the Northern Border is pure fantasy."

"Has His Majesty still not realized how high the Northern Border's armor penetration rate is?"

"Since His Majesty does not know, let me tell you: in every ten thousand Northern Border troops, three thousand are heavy armor infantry; the rest are all half-armored soldiers."

"And the warhorses!"

"The Northern Border has twenty thousand pure cavalry, and even among their infantry units, each ten thousand soldiers are allocated one to two thousand warhorses and draft animals."

"Furthermore, each ten thousand troops are assigned five thousand to twenty thousand logistical personnel, the number depending on the mission."

"Tell me, Your Majesty—how are we supposed to fight such a war?"

Faced with Chen Zheng's relentless questions, the Liang Emperor was left momentarily speechless.

Under Qin Feng's painstaking management, the Northern Border was not merely wealthy—it was armed to the teeth.

The Northern Border, positioned between us and the Di, has ensured a century of peace between Shedynasty and the Di.

Such a prosperous and powerful region cannot be seized by force unless our strength exceeds seventy percent of theirs.

Yet now, Shedynasty, exhausting its entire national strength, can only muster two percent to attack the Northern Border—this is not warfare, it is suicide.

The Liang Emperor is gambling—and a high-stakes one at that. He bets that Zhao Yuxiong can crush Qin Feng, and further bets that Qin Feng, bound by concern for civilian welfare, will not fight with full force.

But the facts have proven: everything the Liang Emperor imagined, Qin Feng had already foreseen.

Qin Feng launched just one counterstrike, nearly destroying the entire Northern Front's supply lines and communication routes; had Qin Feng been more ruthless, those twenty thousand cavalry could have charged straight toward Jingdu, plunging Heaven into chaos.

But Qin Feng did not do so—he waited, waiting for Shedynasty to exhaust itself.

Or waiting… for a political strongman to arise and depose the Liang Emperor outright.

Clearly, that strongman has already appeared: it is Chen Zheng.

The Liang Emperor could only turn to Zhao Li: "Grand Commandant Zhao, what is your view on Chen Zheng's words?"

Zhao Li had long since stopped wanting to fight—or rather, he never wanted to fight at all. But now, like the Liang Emperor, he was riding a tiger, unable to dismount: his son Zhao Yuxiong stood firmly on the opposite side of Qin Feng; to retreat now would make the situation impossible to salvage.

Zhao Li, with no choice, could only grit his teeth and respond: "I believe we must not retreat. As the saying goes: one strike builds momentum, the second weakens it, the third exhausts it."

"If we fight, we must seize the Northern Border in one decisive blow—if we retreat, we will never get another chance."

With Zhao Li's support, the Liang Emperor immediately regained confidence.

Chen Zheng had long anticipated Zhao Li's backing; he did not argue further, only bowed: "If His Majesty refuses to retreat, let time prove how wildly mistaken today's decision is."

Saying this, Chen Zheng bowed again, and before the Liang Emperor could speak, he said firmly: "Your servant takes his leave!"

As Chen Zheng departed, half the court instantly followed him out.

This scene amounted to a final ultimatum to the Liang Emperor; he felt immense pressure, yet still believed the situation remained under his control.

After Chen Zheng left the palace, he went directly to visit Li Yong, who had been under Soft Detention.

Li Yong, who was fishing, couldn't help but smile slightly and chuckled: "After waiting so long, has my East Mountain rise finally come?"

"Hehehe!"