Chapter 100: Reaching Kaiyuan

In the fourth year of Hongwu, August, at the Liaodong border.

The autumn wind already carries a chill, and the vegetation begins to turn yellow.

A cavalry force of ten thousand men is racing north along the official road, their hooves kicking up clouds of dust.

Zhu Yong rides a warhorse, clad in black iron armor, with Double Hammers hanging on either side of the saddle.

He shows little expression, only occasionally lifting his head to glance at the sky.

It has been about twenty days since departing from Yingtian, marching nearly a hundred li each day, the men weary and the horses exhausted.

But the news that Kaiyuan is under siege lashes each man like a whip, preventing them from pausing.

"General, the Lia River lies ahead; after crossing it, another 120 li leads to Kaiyuan," Wang Gui urges his horse forward, pointing ahead.

Zhu Yong nods and says to the nearby messenger, "Relay the order: the whole army shall rest for one hour at the Lia Riverbank, feed the horses, and inspect weapons."

"Understood!"

The order is passed down, and the march gradually slows.

Upon reaching the Lia Riverbank, it is already the Shen Hour.

The river flows turbulently, and the opposite bank's forest looks gloomy in the twilight.

The soldiers dismount; some go to the river to draw water, some take out Dry Rations to chew, and some inspect the horses' horseshoes.

Zhu Yong sits on a large stone, takes the Water Bag handed by Zhang Wu, and drinks a few sips.

"General, the scouting cavalry reports that Kaiyuan City has been besieged for eight days: the Goryeo Army fields 30,000 men, the Nüzhen Army 20,000, totaling 50,000. The defending commander is Liaodong Capital Commissioner Ye Wang, with only 8,000 troops under him; the situation is critical."

Chen Heng walks over to report.

"Fifty thousand... we have only ten thousand; we must find a way," Zhu Yong subconsciously scratches his head.

Chang Mao says beside him, "General, we are cavalry, adept at open‑field combat; perhaps we should charge straight at the besieging forces and catch them off guard."

Zhu Yong shakes his head, "Fifty thousand is no small number; a reckless charge would be costly. We must first scout the enemy's dispositions."

Losing even a single brother among ten thousand grieves him deeply.

He stands, walks to the riverbank, and gazes at the opposite shore.

In his memories of a past life, he knows little of early Ming Liaodong campaigns, only that Goryeo and Nüzhen frequently raid the border.

But the exact tactics must rely on his experience in this life.

"Wang Gui, take a hundred light cavalry, cross the river at night, locate the enemy camps, their grain stores, and where the main command tent stands.

Remember, do not stir the grass and scare the snakes," Zhu Yong says, turning around.

Li Wenzhong's elder cousin truly is

"As you command!" Wang Gui takes the order and departs.

"Chen Heng, you lead men to the nearby forest, see if there are local hunters, and inquire about the terrain here."

"Understood!"

The two split up and act separately.

Zhu Yong again says to Chang Mao, "Let the brothers eat their fill and rest well; cross the river at midnight tonight, and we must reach outside Kaiyuan City before dawn tomorrow."

Chang Mao hesitates, "General, we've been marching hard for over twenty days, the men are weary and the horses exhausted; should we rest a day before fighting?"

Zhu Yong shakes his head, "Kaiyuan cannot wait; Ye Wang has held out for eight days, we don't know how much longer he can last. Arriving a day early will save lives inside the city."

Chang Mao says no more and goes down to issue the orders.

The soldiers, hearing that battle is tomorrow, silently begin inspecting their weapons.

The spearheads must be sharpened, the bowstrings tightened, and the arrows counted.

No one speaks; only the sound of whetstones grinding metal, a rustling hiss.

……

At the same time, Yingtian Prefecture, Wu Wang Fu.

Guanyin Nu sits by the window, holding an unfinished Scent Pouch in her hand.

Needle and thread dart across her fingertips, stitching a pair of playing water mandarin ducks.

She has already ruined three of them; her mind is restless, and the stitches are crooked.

"Princess, it is late night, you should rest," Xiao Zhu whispers.

Guanyin Nu shakes her head, "I'll sit a while longer; you go down first."

Xiao Zhu and Xiao Ying exchange a glance and step out.

Only Guanyin Nu remains inside the room.

She puts down the Scent Pouch, walks to the wall where a Liaodong Map hangs.

Her finger lightly traces the two characters marking Kaiyuan on the map.

Where is the Prince now?

He should be near the Lia River by now!

She recalls the conversation they had in the room the night Zhu Yong set out on the campaign not long ago.

He said that when he returns, they will have several children…

Guanyin Nu's face flushes red, and her hand instinctively rests on her lower abdomen.

She doesn't know if she'll become pregnant… it will certainly happen…

"Please return safely…" she whispers in prayer.

Moonlight outside the window pours like water onto her face, reflecting deep worry between her brows.

……

August 18, Yin Hour.

On the north bank of the Lia River, a cavalry unit slips silently through the forest.

Zhu Yong rode his horse, looking straight ahead.

Wang Gui had already scouted the enemy and returned, and now was whispering his report beside him.

"General, the besieging enemy forces have set up camps in three locations: the Goryeo Army's main camp is at the East Gate, about twenty thousand men; the Nüzhen are at the West Gate, about fifteen thousand men."

"There is also a camp outside the South Gate, a mixed Goryeo‑Nüzhen unit of about fifteen thousand, and the North Gate is backed by mountains; the enemy there has only set up a sentry post with few troops."

"What about the Grain and Fodder?" Zhu Yong asked.

"The Grain and Fodder is mainly stored in Dongying and Nanying; the Nüzhen in Xiying seem to bring their own Dry Rations, and they have few supplies."

Zhu Yong nodded, having formed a plan in his mind.

"Chang Mao," he said softly.

"The junior commander is here!"

"You take three thousand cavalry, swing around to the north, enter the city through the North Gate, tell Ye Wang that reinforcements have arrived, and have him prepare to receive them."

"Yes!"

"Zhang Wu."

"The junior commander is here!"

"You take two thousand cavalry, lie in ambush in the western forest, wait until we engage here; if the Nüzhen come to aid, break out from the flank and cut them off."

"As you command!"

"Chen Heng, you take two thousand cavalry, ambush to the east, and when the Goryeo main force leaves its camp to rescue the South Camp, strike their flank and rear."

"Yes!"

"Wang Gui, follow me with the remaining three thousand cavalry and charge straight at the South Camp."

The assignments finished, and each commander set out.

Zhu Yong looked ahead; the horizon was already tinged with a pale, fish‑belly white.

He gripped his Double Hammers and said to the three thousand cavalry behind him, "Brothers, the fort in Kaichuan City has been under siege for eight days, casualties unknown. Today we arrive to make those Goryeo people and Southern Barbarians know the price of offending Great Ming!"

The three thousand cavalry remained silent, but their eyes burned with fire.

"Charge with me!" Zhu Yong led his horse forward, bursting out of the forest.

The three thousand iron cavalry followed close behind, their hooves sounding like thunder, shaking the earth.

The Goryeo‑Jurchen Allied Army in the South Camp had just gotten up and were lighting fires to cook.

Suddenly hearing the hoofbeats, they had no time to react before a black cavalry unit surged into the camp like a flood.

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!" someone shouted in the Goryeo language.

But it was already too late.

Zhu Yong charged at the front, swinging his Double Hammers left and right, leaving a trail of people thrown and horses overturned.

A Goryeo commander raised his sword to block, but a hammer struck his chest, sending him flying three Zhang away and toppling a tent.

The three thousand cavalry surged like tigers into a flock of sheep, thrusting spears and slashing with sabers.

The camp instantly descended into chaos; Goryeo soldiers and Nüzhen rushed to fight, but they were no match.

"Hold steady! Form a formation!" a Nüzhen commander shouted in halting Mandarin.

But no one listened to him.

The camp was ripped apart, the soldiers fighting individually, soon being isolated and surrounded.

Zhu Yong caught sight of that Nüzhen commander and spurred his horse forward.

The Nüzhen commander swung his sword, Zhu Yong blocked with his left hammer while his right hammer already struck the commander's shoulder.

"Crack!" the shoulder bone shattered.

The Nüzhen commander let out a terrible scream and fell; Zhu Yong delivered a final hammer blow, ending him.