Nan Wen raised his bewildered eyes. “...How am I fat? I feel like I’ve actually lost weight lately.”
He really wasn’t lying. Back when he was in Ge Feng, with fierce warriors like Zhou Sui around, all he had to do was follow orders. He ate when it was time to eat, trained when it was time to train, and slept when it was time to sleep. Life had been wonderfully easy.
But now things were different. He was in charge, and the formidable fighters like Ye Shang had all left. The burden of an entire county rested on his shoulders. He was constantly afraid that one mistake might let down his lord and the common people, so he worked diligently from dawn to dusk.
He had to oversee the training, the defenses, the patrols and reconnaissance outside the county, and even the guards at the cement workshop. He felt as if he had aged considerably.
Qiu Liao let out a derisive “heh.” “You make it sound as though I’m abusing you. Who handles all the troop deployments and formations? All you have to do is put in some physical effort. I’m the one who has to use his brain.”
Nan Wen chuckled and held out the half-eaten sweet potato. “Want some?”
Qiu Liao secretly rolled his eyes and continued studying the map. “I think we should add another entrance to the tunnel here.”
At present, Lin County had only one tunnel entrance. He was worried that something might happen, so they needed one or two additional entrances as backups.
Nan Wen examined the map and nodded. “All right. It’s not far from the main road. I’ll have them start digging right away.”
Lu You of Daqing received the news as well. He stared at the note in silence.
Li Zan’s brows twitched. “What is it?”
Lu You handed him the note. “The Jinyang Army has taken several counties in Donghu Commandery. They want us to find an opportunity to make our move.”
Li Zan was startled. He quickly took the note and read it. Gradually, his expression became rather complicated. “The Jinyang Army’s fighting strength is actually this formidable?”
Jin Feng looked faintly pleased. “I told you, the Jinyang Army is extremely powerful. Their repeating crossbows are especially deadly.”
For some reason, he felt a strange sense of pride, as though he had something to do with it.
Lu You and the others fell silent.
Was this what they called powerful?
It was clearly terrifyingly powerful!
Li Zan’s hand was trembling as he held the note. The Jinyang Army’s method of taking cities seemed completely different from theirs.
Lu You sighed and changed the subject. “Have the fields started being planted? Make sure the high-yield grain seeds Princess Jinyang gave us are planted exactly according to their instructions.”
Li Zan nodded. “Rest assured, General. We’ve set aside two-tenths of our farmland for the high-yield grain.”
“The rest is still planted with rice and wheat. We’ve also stored a large amount of water as the people from Ge Feng requested. Even if this year is as dry as last year, we shouldn’t have much trouble meeting our water needs.”
It wasn’t that they distrusted Jiang Jin. Rice and wheat were still the foundation of their food supply, so most of the farmland had been planted with them.
However, given the yield of the high-yield grain, even the portion planted with it would produce a considerable amount.
Lu You felt somewhat relieved and asked, “Have the people of Changhai County all been evacuated?”
Jin Feng hurriedly replied, “They have.”
Then he snorted coldly. “The Jiao Tribe acts as if they’re afraid we’ll go back on our word. They’ve been hounding us every day. What a pain.”
Lu You was helpless. “Hand the city over to them as soon as possible.”
Jin Feng gave a low response. His heart was full of reluctance, but there was nothing he could do.
When the Grand Chanyu of Wuqin received Tang Tishou’s letter, he already sensed that something was wrong. After reading its contents, his vision went dark.
Meng Su was startled. “Grand Chanyu, what happened?”
It took the Grand Chanyu a long while to calm himself. His voice was filled with gritted fury. “Apart from Dancheng and Heichun, all of Donghu Commandery has fallen into the hands of the Jinyang Army.”
Silence descended over the hall. A moment later, everyone finally processed his words and cried out in shock, “How is that possible?”
They had all guessed that the Jinyang Army would make a move while they were attacking Ze’a Commandery, but surely it would take several months, or at least half a year, to capture the territory.
How had they taken several of their counties so easily, in a matter of days and without making a sound? What kind of nonsense was that?
“General Tang is asking us for reinforcements. What do you all think?” The Grand Chanyu rubbed his temples, feeling utterly exhausted.
Ever since Ge Feng had been occupied by the Jinyang Army, he felt that he had not enjoyed a single day of peace.
Tie Yu said anxiously, “Then we must send reinforcements. Otherwise, Donghu Commandery will be lost. Our only salt works are in Fuchuan.”
Meng Su shook his head. “Don’t forget about Lin County and Daqing Commandery. The moment we move our troops, they’ll surely attack us together. How will we deal with that?”
Tie Yu was unwilling to yield. “Then are we just going to hand Donghu over to them?”
Meng Su looked at the Grand Chanyu. “The best course of action now is to have General Tang hold the cities and wait until the Grand General captures Ze’a Commandery before sending support.”
The Grand Chanyu frowned. “How much longer will Qu Shilang need to take Ze’a Commandery?”
He Xin replied, “At present, only Feng’an County remains. But because it’s the final county, its defenders are putting up even more determined resistance. I estimate it will take a few more days.”
“A few days shouldn’t be a problem for General Tang and his men, should it?” asked a short, stocky man.
He was one of Quzhao’s fierce generals, Chang Gai.
Concern flickered across Meng Su’s face. “Don’t forget, the Jinyang Army has repeating crossbows. Although the counties of Xianglu and the others were caught off guard, the fact that they were taken so easily is proof of the army’s strength.”
Tie Yu frowned. “Are you saying Tang Tishou and the others can’t even hold out for a few days?”
Meng Su sighed. Though he did not want to admit it, that was the truth.
Tie Yu thought for a moment before suggesting, “Since only one county remains in Ze’a Commandery, could we have the Grand General send part of his forces to reinforce Donghu?”
Meng Su shook his head. “That would be too little, too late. If the main force from Ze’a Commandery marches out, it will have to detour through Zhou County and Shanguan County. It would take at least three or four days to reach Dancheng.”
“Besides, the Grand General is at a critical stage of the campaign. It wouldn’t be wise to withdraw troops from him. It would be better to have him accelerate the assault.”
“Once Feng’an County falls, they can use Ze’a Commandery’s ships to travel by water and land at Fuchuan, catching the Jinyang Army off guard.”
“That’s called fighting fire with fire. The Jinyang Army used this very tactic to force us into a dilemma, unable to protect one place without abandoning another.”
“When the time comes, I’d like to see how the Jinyang Army responds once Fuchuan falls. Will they abandon Fuchuan, or send reinforcements?”
He looked around at everyone before continuing. “However, if we want to retake all of Donghu Commandery, the Grand General’s forces alone will not be enough. We’ll still have to send reinforcements from our side.”
The Jinyang Army’s cities were notoriously difficult to conquer. Qu Bai’s experience had already made that clear. The price they would have to pay this time would likely be far greater than they imagined.
Everyone’s expression turned grim.
The Grand Chanyu’s eyes grew especially cold. “If we do that, our forces here in Wuqin will inevitably be stretched thin.”
Meng Su shook his head. “As long as we hold the cities, it shouldn’t be a problem. Besides, aren’t our people negotiating with Daqing? As long as Daqing doesn’t make a move, we’ll be fine.”
The Grand Chanyu furrowed his brows tightly and said nothing.
Seeing his hesitation, Meng Su said helplessly, “The alternative is to abandon Donghu Commandery. In any case, as long as we capture Ze’a Commandery, we’ll have the salt works there.”
“No!” Tie Yu slammed his palm on the table. “Donghu Commandery belongs to us. How can we simply hand it over to the Jinyang Army?”
Chang Gai shook his head as well. “No. Donghu’s land is fertile. If we lose it, our grain supply will drop by at least sixty percent.”
Qiu Liao soon received word that Quzhao had sent out troops. He smiled and said, “The time has come. Make our move.”
A few hundred elite soldiers emerged from Lin County through the tunnels and slipped quietly into Daqing.
The Grand Chanyu was listening to the scouts’ report.
“There’s been no movement in Lin County. We haven’t seen any troop deployments.”
But before he could fully relax, Tie Yu hurried in. “Grand Chanyu, Daqing has surrounded Tao County!”
