Chapter 399: Xiliang's First Defeat

Jiang Jinshi briskly stepped forward, personally helped Luo Feng up, then patted his shoulder: "What crime have you committed? You, with a lone force, penetrated deep, resisted enemies many times stronger beneath the city walls, endured several days, and kept Chang'an from falling."

Moreover, you coordinated inside and out with the main force, dealt a massive blow to Xiliang—this is an unprecedented feat! How can you speak of weak defense? You and your soldiers are all Beijiang heroes, models for the world! Rise quickly!

That night, after confirming that order in Chang'an was initially stable and the routed troops were largely cleared, Jiang Jinshi, accompanied by Luo Feng, entered the imperial capital through the opened main gate of Chang'an, riding his horse slowly.

Countless Chang'an civilians hid behind door cracks and windows, eyeing this unfamiliar army with complex looks.

Jiang Jinshi did not go to the Huang Gong, but chose to temporarily station at the relatively intact former Jingzhao Prefect's Office.

He immediately issued a series of orders!

He posted notices to pacify the people, announced Beijiang's military discipline, opened granaries to distribute food to the poor, organized manpower to clear ruins, extinguish remaining fires, bury battlefield corpses, and asked city physicians to assist in treating the wounded.

At the same time he strictly ordered all troops not to disturb civilians, with violators to be beheaded. These measures, swift and effective, began to gradually calm the panic in Chang'an.

Yet Jiang Jinshi felt little relief in his heart! He knew that repelling Xiliang's vanguard and capturing Chang'an was only the first step.

How could the Xiliang king be content to let it rest?

……

"Useless! Fool! Forty thousand troops! And Mu Rong Ke's thirty thousand reinforcements! Seventy thousand men! Can't even take a ruined Chang'an! And Jiang Jinshi's rebels beat them, causing them to lose helmets and armor, suffering heavy casualties and losing generals!"

"How did that bald Yan, the brute, not die on the front line! And Mu Rong Ke, what the hell is he doing??"

Upon receiving the news, Wei Wenlie was furious, and the civil and military ministers below, led by Si Wushuang and Cui Yan, fell silent as cold cicadas, daring none to provoke him at this moment.

The detailed battle report brought back by scouts was like a slap across the faces of Wei Wenlie and the entire Xiliang civil and military.

Thirty thousand soldiers lost, a great general seriously wounded, and the largest strategic target east of Tongguan, Chang'an, fell into Beijiang's hands!

This was not only a military disaster but also a heavy blow to the Xiliang king's prestige!

One must know that many under the Xiliang king are fence‑sitting opportunists; such a prestige hit should not be underestimated.

"Your Highness, calm your anger; taking care of your health is paramount."

Cui Yan, steeling himself, stepped forward to console, "Victory and defeat are common in warfare; General Mu Rong and General Tu Fa Yan have done their best, but Beijiang's forces are massive, and their main force arrived at the right moment…"

"Did their best? Their best is to throw tens of thousands of boys' lives away and crawl back in disgrace?"

Wei Wenlie's anger rose, "And you! Lord Cui! Didn't you say the Scholar‑Gentry of Guanzhong were loyal to me?

You promised Chang'an would be within easy reach! What about the result?"

Luo Feng says a mere ten thousand men can hold Chang'an; did any of those Scholar‑Gentry elites step forward to respond? Huh?!

Cui Yan's face turned ashen, stammering, unable to speak further.

"Your Highness, do not be hasty!"

Si Wushuang stepped forward, his expression still calm, "The loss of Chang'an is indeed our army's setback! Yet raging now is useless, assigning blame is also useless. The urgent priority is to plan the next step, how to counter Beijiang, how to restore the situation, and even… turn defeat into victory."

Wei Wenlie took a deep breath, stared at Si Wushuang for a while, then asked:

"Wushuang! What do you propose? Should we just leave it at that?"

"Let that kid Jiang Jinshi gloat in Chang'an?"

"Then I will immediately gather all troops from Luoyang, Nanyang, and even Tongguan, mobilize the nation's strength, and attack Chang'an again!"

"I refuse to believe that Jiang Jinshi can hold back the entire Xiliang nation's army!"

"Your Highness, that is not permissible!" Si Wushuang flatly rejected, his tone unusually tinged with urgency.

"Why not?!" Wei Wenlie shouted angrily.

Si Wushuang explained, "Jiang Jinshi's southward march this time is not merely to lift the siege of Chang'an.

According to scout reports, he dispatched a large army southward, pressuring Hebei, even sending troops into Lantian; he himself personally led the main force to garrison Chang'an… his strategic intent is already very clear!!"

He seeks the entire Guanzhong region, aiming to open a corridor from Beijiang's Shuning to Chang'an and throughout Guanzhong's interior, linking his forces into one and solidifying rule!

Wei Wenlie calmed slightly, signaling Si Wushuang to continue.

"Those key points connecting Hedong and Guanzhong have mostly fallen into Beijiang's hands, or are under the threat of its spearhead."

Jiang Jinshi is buying time, trying to secure this strategic corridor before our forces can react.

Once he fully opens it, Beijiang's troops, supplies, and resources can flow continuously into Guanzhong, and Chang'an will truly become an unshakable base.

By then, our army's attempt to seize Guanzhong will be as hard as climbing to heaven!

Wei Wenlie was no fool; hearing this, his face grew even uglier, yet he remained unwilling: "So we just watch him open the corridor with our eyes open?"

"Of course not."

Si Wushuang smiled confidently, "Your Highness! Our army has just suffered defeat, morale needs restoration, and Beijiang wields the momentum of a great victory; its edge is at its peak, so a strong assault on Chang'an now is far from optimal."

Even if we could win, it would be a pyrrhic victory, and the area east of Tongguan, even Luoyang, could become vacant, giving Beijiang or other forces an opening.

He shifted his tone, "Since Jiang Jinshi is racing to secure the corridor and fortify Chang'an, we should strike before he fully consolidates, targeting his weak points!"

Target Wu Pass! The southeastern mountains of Lantian! The Luo River valley south of Tongguan! And… Hanzhong!

The assembled civil and military officials all stared at Si Wushuang, awaiting his next words.

"Your Highness, Jiang Jinshi's main force of over a hundred thousand is stationed in Chang'an, with troops deployed on all four sides to guard key routes, so his strength is inevitably dispersed.

Especially to the south and west of Chang'an, towards Jingxiang and Bashu, are currently his relatively weak defensive points.

Our army need not clash head‑on with his main force; instead, elite cavalry can swiftly infiltrate and seize these strategic points!

Capturing Wu Pass can choke the throat of Guanzhong's routes to Nanyang and Jingxiang, severing any future southern advance of Beijiang and threatening its flank.

Controlling the southeastern rugged area of Lantian can establish a forward base, harassing the surroundings of Chang'an and denying it peace.

If we can exploit Beijiang's focus on Chang'an and the northern front, dispatching a special force along the Luo River valley in rapid advance could threaten its rear supply line, perhaps even…

If we can persuade the local forces south of Tongguan that have not fully defected to Beijiang, we could open a second battlefield.

"What about Hanzhong?" Wei Wenlie asked thoughtfully.

Si Wushuang replied immediately, "Bashu has newly pledged allegiance, and the people's hearts are unsettled. If we can deploy a contingent of elite troops to threaten Hanzhong from the direction of Longxi or Jingzhou, even if we cannot truly capture it, it will force Jiang Jinshi to divert troops and expend effort."

Si Wushuang, fearing the others might not understand, concluded, "This is the strategy of 'trading terrain for timing, using disturbance instead of direct attack.'"

While Beijiang's foothold remains unstable, we should massively expand into the strategic points surrounding its control zone, compress its development space, strike its supply routes, and wear down its troops and popular support.

At the same time, our army seized the time to replenish troops and horses, gathered provisions, and contacted the Scholar-Gentry strongmen in Guanzhong, Bashu, and even Jingxiang who were dissatisfied with Beijiang's new policies.

When Beijiang's troops grow weary and old, internal strife arises, or when our army is fully prepared, we shall then strike with thunderous force and decide the battle with Beijiang in Guanzhong!

Only then would it be the best strategy! If we now, in anger, raise troops and attack Chang'an again, we would surely fall into Jiang Jinshi's trap, merely wasting our national strength, with the outcome uncertain.