Chapter 438

First Volume, Chapter 438: The War Fire Ignites

Lin Taibao stared at Qin Feng in disbelief, exclaiming in shock: "Launch a preemptive strike against the Di? Do you know how many of our Liang sons will die?"

Facing Lin Taibao's accusation, Qin Feng's expression turned grim, his voice thundering: "Do you think I want to throw lives away? When two nations stake everything on a death struggle, are only our Liang men's lives precious, while the Di's are not? The enemy commits fully—how can our Liang falter in fear?"

Faced with Qin Feng's roar, Lin Taibao, though seething with resentment, said nothing more.

The Liang Emperor stared at Qin Feng for a long while, then finally made his decision, rising to announce loudly: "By my decree, mobilize the troops of Jiangnan and the Central Plains, prepare the army for war, ready for any contingency! All movements on the Northern Border shall obey the Qin Special Envoy's orders. Since the Di have staked their nation's fate on a fight to the death, our Liang shall meet them to the end!"

…

On a hill ten Li outside Beixi County, Chen Si, clad in light armor, one hand resting on his zhan dao's hilt, gazed toward Beixi County.

In the past one Envoy, frontline messengers had reported over a dozen times.

"General! The Beixi County garrison has left the city!"

"General! The Beixi County garrison has retreated back inside!"

"General! The Beixi County garrison has come out again!"

"Withdraw, General! The outer Wengcheng of Beixi County is easy to defend and hard to breach. Forcing entry into the Wengcheng leaves us surrounded on all sides. If we don't storm it, the Beixi County garrison, relying on their high walls and powerful bows, rains arrows down from above—we can only keep retreating. Each time we pull back, the Beixi Black Cavalry emerges under cover of light cavalry, relentlessly chasing and wearing us down. When we stabilize and prepare to counterattack, the Beixi cavalry instantly retreats into the city."

"At this rate of attrition, our ten-thousand-strong force has already lost over a thousand men!"

Chen Si's face was cold and stern, his gaze unaffected by the constant bad reports.

With over two thousand losses, a force of ten thousand would be halved in combat effectiveness; if losses exceeded three thousand, they would lose combat capability entirely and must retreat for replacement. Otherwise, caring for the wounded and collapsing military morale would be fatal.

Six full days have passed since the offensive against Beixi County began; despite only probing attacks, losses have already exceeded a thousand.

The strength of Beixi County was even greater than Chen Si had previously estimated.

With the forces Chen Si currently commanded, capturing Beixi County was like a madman's dream. But… it didn't matter. This ten-thousand-strong force was bait. At this very moment, the vanguard camp had already begun attacking the Border Army.

In addition, the main forces were gradually advancing to the front line. If this continued, within ten days, three hundred thousand troops would converge on the front!

Chen Si's eyes narrowed: "Now, the Liang Kingdom's Northern Border troops are fully occupied defending Beixi County and the Bian Jun Zhong Zhen, unable to protect the autumn harvest. When our army turns south, we'll seize all grain from both nations' northern borders—and without even resting, we can strike straight for the Central Plains with one-strike victory!"

"Qin Feng! With your talent, you must have foreseen my first two moves—but did you foresee this final, breaking-the-cauldrons-and-sinking-the-boats strike?"

Chen Si immediately ordered: "Beidi War Command: continue attacking Beixi County—no retreat! In two more days, the Liang Kingdom's Northern Border will begin its autumn harvest—that will be the day of decisive battle!"

Just as Chen Si issued this death order, a blood-soaked messenger tumbled from his horse, crawling and rolling to Chen Si's feet.

"General! The vanguard camp's siege is failing! The Liang Kingdom's Bian Jun Zhong Zhen did not hold the city—they sent troops out to meet us in open field battle! The Liang Piaoqi General's forces have rushed from the flank to reinforce, and now the vanguard camp is locked in a stalemate!"

Hearing this, Chen Si's eyelid twitched violently, yet he remained composed: "The three Northern Border forces each have their own agendas; the Piaoqi and the Former General have long-standing grudges. How could the Piaoqi rush to reinforce the Border Army so quickly? Has the Northern Border troops been unified under command? Qin Feng? No!"

"Qin Feng may be powerful, but his influence in the Northern Border is weak. The three forces would never obey him lightly—unless Qin Feng has enlisted a high-ranking ally. But… who could command the three Northern Border armies?"

As Chen Si struggled to comprehend, another messenger arrived.

"General! The Beixi County garrison has launched a full-scale counterattack!"

Chen Si's brow lifted: "Another probing counterattack?"

The messenger's face turned deathly pale, trembling: "N-no! They've sent out everyone—everyone!"

Chen Si's brow furrowed deeper: "Everyone? Beixi County holds its city and is invincible—why risk everything in open field battle? Doesn't the Beixi County garrison know open field combat favors our Di?"

Realizing this, Chen Si's voice deepened: "Fine! Meet them head-on!"

The messenger's eyes filled with despair: "General, the supervisory deputy general reports—if we don't retreat now, the entire siege force will be annihilated."

"What?!" Chen Si's eyes flashed with shock.

"How many troops does Beixi County have?"

The messenger's voice shook violently with terror: "I… I don't know! It's too chaotic, I can't tell—but conservatively, at least ten thousand! The Beixi Heavy Armor Black Cavalry leads the charge, light cavalry harasses both flanks, infantry forms the rear guard and charges forward—we can't hold! The Beixi Black Cavalry… they're… not a thousand—they're at least three thousand!"

Learning the true strength of Beixi County, Chen Si was stunned.

Since Qin Feng received the title of Supervisory Special Envoy and gained authority to expand his forces, how little time had passed—yet the Beixi County garrison had grown to this scale! Especially the Beixi Black Cavalry: Chen Si had heard rumors—if only a thousand strong, they'd be no threat. But now they numbered three thousand!

Where in the world did Qin Feng get so many Highland Horses?!

Could it be…

Chen Si's eyes widened: "Damn it! Qin Feng has secretly allied with Gaoshan Country!"

As for the garrison inside the city—they must be the starving refugees who flooded into Beixi County and were gradually trained and transformed!

If Chen Si hadn't been wounded and returned to Jingdu for treatment, he would have slaughtered every last refugee—how could Beixi County have gained so many people?!

Today's Beixi County is harder to crack than the Bian Jun Zhong Zhen!

Realizing the Beixi County front had turned dire, Chen Si made no hesitation—he ordered decisively: "Retreat! Once the Beixi County garrison returns to the city, establish a garrison thirty Li away to contain them. Also, send messengers immediately to the rear to mobilize reinforcements—Beixi County and the Bian Jun Da Ying must be fully tied down to create an opening for our main army's entry!"

As he spoke, Chen Si's face darkened. Qin Feng was in Jingdu, a thousand li away—yet Beixi County's maneuvers were so precise, as if Qin Feng himself were commanding.

Chen Si hurriedly asked: "Who is the Beixi County garrison commander?"

The messenger shouted back: "Prince Li Zhang, son of the Ming Prince!"

Hearing the names "Ming Prince" and "Li Zhang," Chen Si's face turned instantly pale—no wonder the three Northern Border armies had all obeyed Qin Feng. The high-ranking ally was none other than the Ming Prince.