Chapter 135 Defending Daxing to the Death
Zhang Bo was brought into the camp. Since he was nominally the commander, it was not appropriate to exclude him.
Lin Changning was surrounded by several commanders of a thousand and a few less wounded commanders of a hundred. With Tartars in front and rebels behind, the garrison had only a little over three thousand men left. It was really too difficult for three thousand men to defend a city without food and supplies.
Qi Rong glanced at Zhang Bo: "Commander, has the letter been sent?"
Zhang Bo's expression was not good, but he nodded and said sarcastically, "The young master has already put a knife to my head, so naturally I dare not refuse."
Qi Rong ignored Zhang Bo and began military deployment directly. Pointing to the three cities behind Daxing on the sand table, he said, "These three passes have all surrendered to the enemy, and the area around Changsheng has been occupied by the Tartars. This is the latest news I have received. The imperial army and supplies will probably not be able to reach Daxing. The reason I have gathered you all here today is to discuss a countermeasure."
Commander Ma's face darkened: "We're surrounded by wolves in front and tigers behind. If we had enough food, we could hold out with our three thousand men from Daxing. But even if we slaughter all the livestock, we won't last more than a few days."
Commander Zhang also said, "If the rebels were to attack now, that would be truly..."
Qi Rong pointed to the location of the Prince of Sheng on the sand table: "No, the Prince of Sheng will not send troops to Daxing now. I received news the day before yesterday that the Prince of Sheng said that Daxing's soldiers and generals are hard to come by. If they are willing to join the Prince of Sheng, they will immediately send people to help them, and the grain and fodder will also be distributed to Daxing to relieve Daxing's predicament."
The group looked at each other, their expressions hesitant. After a long while, Lin Changning took the lead and knelt down, saying, "We are willing to follow the Crown Prince's lead!"
Seeing that Lin Changning's actions had been followed by a group of commanders and officers, they knelt down and said in unison, "We are willing to follow the Crown Prince's lead!"
Old Zhou nudged Old Ma with his elbow and whispered, "Look at him, learn from him."
Qi Rong reached out to help everyone up: "Get up, everyone. I don't want you to pledge allegiance to Prince Sheng."
Zhang Bo, who was standing, looked unwell. Seeing that the troops were wholeheartedly loyal to Qi Rong, he knew that he was probably not in a stable position as commander. He flicked his sleeve and sat down on the chair behind him.
Qi Rong ignored Zhang Bo, thinking that he should just act as a mascot when necessary, and it was best for Zhang to stay out of other matters.
What are your thoughts?
Old Zhou spoke first, pointing to another city on one side of the sand table: "Has Changlong Pass also submitted to Prince Sheng?"
Qi Rong shook his head: "Changlong has not, but I imagine their lives are just as difficult as ours."
Lin Changning carefully examined the sand table and said in a deep voice, "The most urgent task is not to protect Daxing. Daxing has already been abandoned. The imperial army will definitely not be able to arrive before the food supplies are exhausted. Even if they can arrive, we and the people in the city will not be able to hold out until then. If the Tartars attack Daxing again, we will truly be trapped like turtles in a jar."
Qi Rong nodded in agreement: "Changping is right. The most urgent task is to find a way to evacuate the people first. Prince Sheng probably won't attack Daxing, but the Tartars are different. Nearly 10,000 of them have entered the pass. We have neither food nor support. If we stay in Daxing, we will be courting death."
Old Zhang interjected, "Your Highness, then tell us what we should do? We're all rough men, so if you have a solution, just give the order, and we'll cooperate."
Lin Changning and Qi Rong exchanged a glance and simultaneously pointed to the same place. Qi Rong announced loudly, "Go to Taiyuan!"
A group of people looked at Qi Rong with some confusion. Lin Changning explained, "Abandon the city and move the people to Taiyuan. The Tartars can reach Daxing in as little as two days. Today, we will reorganize our troops. One group will lead the people of Daxing to move to Taiyuan, while the rest of the troops will stay in the city. The people can reach Taiyuan in at most a week by passing through Changlong Pass. So, as long as the remaining troops can hold out for three days, we can all retreat from Daxing together."
Qi Rong nodded: "I have already sent a message to the King of Chu by carrier pigeon, informing him that the 30,000 border residents of Daxing can be properly settled in Taiyuan. All we need to do is evacuate the people before the Tartars enter the pass!"
Old Zhou pursed his lips, looking somewhat troubled: "Everyone here has lived on the border for decades, so it might be difficult to persuade them to move to Taiyuan."
Lin Changning looked at Lao Zhou and said calmly, "Then let's get straight to the point. Daxing has no food or reinforcements. Nearly ten thousand Tartars are going to attack Daxing. If we don't leave this time, we'll just have to stay in Daxing and become skeletons."
Old Ma hesitated: "If we do that, we might cause a civil unrest, and it would be difficult to explain if we took the person directly to the imperial court in Taiyuan."
Qi Rong's indifferent gaze swept over Zhang Bo: "The imperial court will handle things on its own, won't it, Lord Zhang Bo?"
Zhang Bo snorted coldly and turned his face away: "The message has already been sent out, why are you asking me?"
Just as the group was engaged in a heated discussion, a commotion suddenly broke out outside. A panicked scout rushed into the tent, knelt on one knee, and said in a serious voice, "It's bad, Commander! A large number of Tartar cavalry have appeared thirty miles outside Daxing City!! They've already set up camp outside!!"
Lin Changning frowned: "What I feared most has come to pass. Your Highness, we cannot delay any longer. We must send them away to Changlong today."
Qi Rong looked at the soldiers below and nodded in agreement: "Have everyone divide into ranks and go door-to-door to inform everyone that they must have all the necessary items packed before nightfall, and send the people out of the city tonight! The rest of you, come with me to the city wall to prepare for battle!"
After saying that, he led his men to prepare to leave. Zhang Bo sat idly in a chair, feeling that these matters had nothing to do with him. He pursed his lips, took a sip of tea, and prepared to get up and return to his tent. He would most likely be going to Taiyuan to retreat. Of course, once they reached other places, he would head to the capital and make sure to file a complaint against these people.
Lin Changning glanced at Zhang Bo, who seemed indifferent to the matter, then turned and grabbed him by the collar, dragging him outside. Zhang Bo was shocked and furious: "What are you doing! You bastard! I am the commander of Daxing! How dare you treat me like this, you brat!!"
Lin Changning saw Zhang Bo draw his sword in a flash: "You have such a big mouth, you know you're the commander. Come with us to the city wall, don't even think about running away! If we live, you live; if we die, you die first!"
After saying that, he grabbed the person and chased after them. If they were even slightly slow, he would slap them with the back of his knife, making them so angry that their faces turned red and their necks bulged.
No one paid any attention to Zhang Bo's shouting. The issue of provisions, coupled with his greed for credit and recklessness, had caused this commander, who had been there for less than a month, to lose everything.
A group of people stood on the city wall. Looking into the distance, they could see smoke rising from many watchtowers. The densely packed Tartar army had set up camp thirty miles away. Unlike the usual few thousand people, this Tartar army was clearly coming to attack and seize territory. Lin Changning felt a little heavy-hearted. She was afraid that they alone could not hold out.
Zhang Bo gazed at the Tartar army from afar, his face pale. If such a large force were to break in, he, as the commander, would undoubtedly be the first to be sacrificed.
Old Zhang, seeing Zhang Bo's spineless appearance, nudged Old Ma with his elbow and sneered at Zhang Bo, "Tsk, look at that~"
Old Ma glanced at it disdainfully and muttered, "I don't know what the person upstairs was thinking, sending someone like this just to cause us trouble."
"Who can argue with that?"
Qi Rong glanced at them, and the two immediately fell silent. Standing on the city wall, Qi Rong shouted, "Before the 30,000 men of Daxing are evacuated, everyone, defend Daxing to the death!"
The generals atop the city walls clasped their fists and shouted, "Yes, Your Highness! We swear to defend Daxing to the death!"
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