Chapter 987: First Volume, Chapter 987: The Variable of the Xiongying Brigade

First Volume, Chapter 987: The Variable of the Xiongying Brigade

At this moment, no one dared speak out; even Ning Hu remained silent.

Because everyone realized a more grave issue: Jing Qianying, as the central figure of this war, if she followed the Expeditionary Brigade and headed straight for the Ezhou North Line, she would surely already be targeted by the Xiongying Brigade.

And in reality, this possibility was extremely high.

After all, the Di possessed home-field advantage and superior intelligence; the Xiongying Brigade's direct strike against the Expeditionary Brigade was not only for strategic reasons, but more importantly, likely because of Jing Qianying.

At this very moment, Qin Feng wished he could sprout wings and fly directly to Ezhou to command the battle himself.

When news had been sealed off and he knew nothing of the battlefield, Qin Feng had been frantic; now that he had partial information, his anxiety had only intensified.

He had no idea what the situation was in Ezhou right now; without direct, accurate intelligence, even if he was desperate, he could not formulate a proper deployment—blind command would only backfire.

"Xu Mo, I'm counting on you—don't let me down," Qin Feng muttered softly, staking his entire fortune on Xu Mo.

At this moment, Ezhou was littered with corpses; the battle between the Beixi Expeditionary Brigade and the Xiongying Brigade had erupted into full-blown fury from the very first moment.

Xu Mo held his ground, never relaxing for a second, for he knew clearly that in this Winter War, Qin Feng could not afford to lose.

If they lost, the fate of Heaven would reverse.

Not only would Sangzhou be reclaimed by the Di, but the Northern Border of Shedynasty would also be threatened; without this buffer land, Shedynasty would be forced to station heavy troops along the Northern Border, indefinitely delaying the campaign against the Powerful Clans of the Nan Jing.

Most critically, Qin Feng and everyone trapped in Changshui County would surely die without burial.

This battle—pull one hair and the whole body moves!

Xu Mo held nothing back, pushing his talents to their limit, listening to the messengers' reports while assessing the situation.

"General, the Third Battalion's Five Lines have been tactically encircled by the Enemy Army and cannot break out—all, including the Gate General, have perished in military death."

"General, the Enemy Army is attempting to encircle our left flank; the Guerrilla Colonel asks how to respond."

"General, two thousand infantry on the right flank are coordinating with cavalry against the Enemy Army—the situation is unfavorable to us."

"General…"

Every military intelligence report from the Front Line was unfavorable; Chen Si frowned tightly, his mind racing as he searched for a solution.

The Expeditionary Brigade, supposed to be the finest in open field battle, had been driven to this brink—clearly, the Xiongying Brigade had prepared for a desperate, bloody fight.

Elite against elite, with comparable numbers, crushing or annihilating the enemy was unrealistic.

Moreover, the enemy had begun fighting to the death; continuing the battle would be extremely disadvantageous for us.

After all, the Xiongying Brigade could simply disengage and retreat, but the Expeditionary Brigade bore the critical mission of breaching the Ezhou DefensiveLine—if we failed to achieve a swift victory and became bogged down in a consumption war, it would disrupt Qin Feng's entire strategic deployment.

The best option now was to recall all troops, concentrate our strength, and deter the enemy from launching an easy attack.

But this method was too risky—if our forces concentrated and the enemy simultaneously launched a full-scale assault, the consumption war would become a decisive battle, resulting in even greater casualties.

Besides, Chen Si's main force would arrive before the light cavalry reinforcements.

After much deliberation, Xu Mo chose to retreat.

"Beidi War Command: leave the Third Battalion to continue engaging the enemy; the Main Force retreats south."

Upon hearing Xu Mo's retreat order, Jing Qianying immediately intervened.

"General Xu, if we retreat now, won't it disrupt Feng'er's deployment? The Young Master said Feng'er's goal is a swift victory, to shatter the Ezhou DefensiveLine."

"We've come all this way—retreating now will waste precious time if we have to charge forward again."

Though it was Jing Qianying speaking, Xu Mo remained resolute: "Third Miss, our most critical mission is no longer to breach the enemy's defensive line."

"Since the Xiongying Brigade appeared, the battlefield's dynamics have changed; our priority now is preserving our strength and preparing for another engagement."

"If we cling to this meaningless fortified position, not only can we not guarantee victory over the Xiongying Brigade, even if we did, we'd suffer a thousand casualties to kill eight hundred—leaving us too weak to assault Chen Si's defenses."

"At that point, the main assault would shift to the Rear's Main Force, which would inevitably become bogged down in a consumption war with Chen Si, unable to achieve a swift victory."

"You are the core of this war, and the Expeditionary Brigade is the spearhead of the battlefield—neither can be spared."

Though Jing Qianying felt torn—she was so close to Qin Feng, just one final step away from seeing him—

seeing Xu Mo's firm resolve, she had no choice but to follow the retreat.

She gazed northward and sighed: "Feng'er, wait a little longer—hold on. We'll reunite soon."

"If Changshui County falls, I will not survive alone."

Hearing Jing Qianying's words, Xu Mo, while ordering troop movements and organizing the retreat, offered reassurance.

"Fourth Miss, don't be so anxious; instead of worrying about Brother Qin, worry about ourselves first."

"According to the Brocade Guard's military intelligence report, large forces are still massed around Changshui County—meaning Changshui County has not fallen."

"Moreover, during this period, there have been no large-scale military deployments or rapid logistics movements near Changshui County, indicating no further military siege has occurred."

"I estimate Changshui County is now impregnable—the enemy has shattered their teeth and dare not attack again."

If these words came from anyone else, Jing Qianying would dismiss them as comfort—but from Xu Mo's mouth, they carried an entirely different weight.

After all, Xu Mo was the general Qin Feng had nurtured with countless efforts, the undisputed Main General of Beixi County.

Xu Mo's judgment of the front-line situation was undoubtedly precise.

Realizing Qin Feng was not in immediate danger, Jing Qianying's heart settled; she no longer hesitated and immediately followed Xu Mo's retreat southward.

Since the Expeditionary Brigade still had many troops scattered across the battlefield, the Xiongying Brigade had divided its forces to attack them; when Xu Mo led the Main Force southward, the Xiongying Brigade lacked the capacity to intercept.

When Wu Kang learned the Expeditionary Brigade had begun its southern retreat, he was stunned—he had never anticipated that the elite Expeditionary Brigade would retreat with such decisiveness.

Wu Kang couldn't help but exclaim: "No wonder he's Qin Feng's right-hand man—so decisive! He hasn't been blinded by the Expeditionary Brigade's elite advantage. Any other general would have fought head-on and refused to yield an inch."