That evening, at the Imperial Palace in Beijing.
Li Jingang received three urgent reports at the same time.
The first letter, written by Ma Zongliang himself, came from Yishuichuan. It detailed the disastrous defeat of the day and stated that the power of the Yin army's artillery was "beyond human strength to resist."
The army of 200,000 had already lost more than 40,000 men, and requested a temporary halt to the attack, while urgently dispatching craftsmen to develop countermeasures against firearms.
The second letter came from the Yellow River ferry crossing. The garrison commander urgently reported that Han Zhong had led an army of 30,000 to the north bank. Every day, they pretended to cross the river. Although they did not actually attack, their army was so powerful that the pressure on the north bank defense line increased sharply.
The third letter came from Shanzhou. Guo Chong reported that more than 10,000 cavalrymen of the Yin Army from Longmen Pass had marched eastward, continuously attacking the city and collecting boats to prepare to sail downstream. The situation was critical.
Three urgent reports lay on the emperor's desk, the flickering candlelight illuminating Li Jingang's gloomy face.
Chancellor Feng Liang, Minister of Rites Cui Mian, and other high-ranking officials stood on both sides, not daring to utter a sound.
After a long silence, Li Jingang slowly spoke: "What do you all think we should do?"
Feng Liang stepped forward with a stiff upper lip: "Your Majesty, although General Ma suffered a minor setback, his main force still numbers 150,000, which is twice that of Zhao Muyun."
"Strictly order them to continue the attack and be sure to crush the main force of the Yin army. As for Han Zhong, they need boats to cross the river and cannot cross for a while. Just strengthen the defense of the south bank crossing. The enemy in Shanzhou is no more than ten thousand. Order Guo Chong to go out of the city and wipe them out."
"A minor setback?" Li Jingang grabbed Ma Zongliang's urgent report and threw it on the ground. "Twenty-five thousand casualties in one day, and you call that a minor setback? Dozens of casualties from a single artillery shell, and you call that a minor setback?"
Cui Mian pondered for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, although artillery is powerful, it is heavy and difficult to move. Today, it is being used in field battle, which means that Zhao Muyun has brought out all his resources. We can order Commander Ma to build deep trenches and high walls to avoid their sharp edge. We can attack when they run out of ammunition."
"When will we be able to break this deadlock?" Li Jingang roared. "Zhao Muyun is in the south, Han Zhong is in the north, and Yin Jun of Longmen Pass is in the east... We are surrounded on three sides. Tell me, how do we break this deadlock?"
The hall was deathly silent.
At this moment, a young eunuch entered tremblingly: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, an urgent report from Hangu Pass."
"read!"
"The garrison commander of Hangu Pass reports: At dusk today, about a thousand cavalrymen of the Yin army were spotted thirty li west of the pass. They are suspected to be the vanguard of the enemy advancing eastward from Longmen Pass. Troops have been dispatched to pursue them."
Li Jingang's pupils contracted.
Hangu Pass was the last line of defense for the capital region.
If Hangu Pass is lost, the enemy can advance unimpeded and reach the capital!
"What is Guo Chong good for?" he roared in fury. "The enemy is advancing eastward right under his nose, and he hasn't noticed at all?"
Feng Liang said urgently, "Your Majesty, please calm down! The Yin army must have advanced swiftly with light cavalry and bypassed Shanzhou. The most urgent task is to strengthen the defense of Hangu Pass and then order Guo Chong to lead his army to join forces with the garrison at Hangu Pass to attack the enemy from both sides."
Li Jingang forced himself to calm down.
Besieged on three sides... truly besieged on three sides.
Zhao Muyun has tied down his 200,000-strong main force at the Yi River; Han Zhong has restrained the northern defenses of the capital region on the north bank of the Dahe River; and now the Yin army at Longmen Pass has moved eastward to threaten Shanzhou and Hangu Pass.
"Issue the decree." Li Jingang finally spoke, his voice icy, "Order Ma Zongliang to build deep trenches and high walls to temporarily avoid the Yin army's advance, but he must harass them day and night, and not let Zhao Muyun have any peace."
"Order Guo Chong to lead the army eastward to annihilate the Yin army at Longmen Pass, and transfer 10,000 imperial guards from the capital region to reinforce Hangu Pass."
"Your Majesty, the Imperial Guards in the capital region only have 20,000 left. If we transfer another 10,000, the defense of the capital will be in trouble..." Cui Mian said worriedly.
"Ten thousand Imperial Guards are enough for the capital," Li Jingang waved his hand. "That's settled then!"
The officials received the decree and withdrew.
In the empty hall, Li Jingang sat alone on the throne, watching the flickering candlelight.
He suddenly remembered something his superior had said ten years ago when he was still a junior colonel in the border army:
"On the battlefield, the most terrifying thing is not that the enemy is powerful, but that you have no idea what other tricks the enemy has up their sleeve."
Zhao Muyun's artillery, the threat from Hebei, the eastward advance of Yin's army at Longmen Pass...
These things were beyond his expectations.
"Zhao Muyun..." he murmured the name, his eyes filled with murderous intent, "Once I capture you, I will make you taste the pain of being torn to pieces."
Outside the palace, the night wind howled, like the wailing of ten thousand ghosts.
The fighting at Yishuichuan had ended on the second day, but the flames of war across the land were only just beginning to rise.
Under the cover of night, atop the city walls of Xijing, Emperor Yinji of the Great Yin Dynasty, accompanied by his younger sister Yinyao, gazed eastward.
That was the direction Zhao Muyun was fighting.
"Brother, can my husband win?" Yin Yao asked softly.
Yin replied without hesitation, "Master never fights a battle he is not confident of winning. We will surely win this battle!"
"But the Fengtian Army is powerful..."
"Powerful?" Zhao Yin sneered. "Li Jingang may seem powerful, but he is actually weak inside. He has been rebelling for two years, and his foundation is unstable."
"But our Great Yin has a master, and the hearts of the people of the world... We will not lose this battle."
He turned to look at his sister: "Yao'er, Master fought a bloody battle at the Yi River for the sake of the people; we are guarding the capital, and we are also guarding the capital for the sake of the people. As long as the people's hearts are with us, the Great Yin will not perish."
Yin Yao didn't seem to heed these grand principles. She touched her already protruding belly and muttered to herself:
Kuangyin, your father will surely return victorious and safe.
The brother and sister gazed at the faint firelight in the darkness in the distance.
Those were the campfires of the Yishui battlefield, and also the undying light of hope in this long, dark night.
......
On the third day, the morning light pierced through the clouds, illuminating the hell on earth.
On both banks of the Yi River, war clouds loomed like a low-hanging iron curtain.
At the Fengtian Army camp on the north bank, 150,000 troops have been assembled.
After two days of bloody fighting, the remains of more than 50,000 soldiers still lie on the south bank beach, shrouded in morning mist and soaked in blood.
Ma Zongliang, fully armored, ascended the central command platform.
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