Chapter 124 So That's It
At the junction of the dim grassland and the blue sky, several thick black smoke beams pierced straight into the sky.
A blood-red sunset was reflected in the shimmering river. Thousands of war horses crowded in the shallows to drink water, while further down the river, groups of soldiers gathered around a campfire to keep warm.
In mid-September of the 21st year of Yongde, 8,000 Xiliang cavalrymen led by Xiao Zhuo penetrated deep into the heart of Xirong and stopped to rest by the Ulun River.
General Meng Yue reined in his warhorse in front of Xiao Zhuo, jumped off nimbly, and threw the reins to the soldier beside him.
After days of fighting, his armor was covered with dust.
"My lord, the nearest Western Rong army is to our southwest, two days' journey away," Meng Yue rubbed his shoulders, which were numb from whipping. "They've been frightened by our attacks and don't dare to send cavalry in pursuit alone."
After hearing this, Xiao Zhuo put his hands behind his back, signaled to Song Zhen standing next to him, and said, "Put a stone here."
Song Zhen bent down, picked up a stone from the ground, and placed it on the huge rock in front of him.
On the boulder, a single red stone sat alone in the center. To its south, four stones fanned out around it. The stone Song Zhen had just placed was the closest to the red stone.
"My lord, although the enemy is slow to act, the positions they hold are crucial," Song Zhen pointed at the layout of the stones. "We don't understand the terrain as well as they do. If we risk passing between the two Western Rong armies, we'll be caught in a pincer attack."
"The enemy is advancing steadily, seemingly intent on pushing us north," Xiao Zhuo pondered. "King Duoma abandoned the siege of Leshan. Someone must have been giving him advice..."
Meng Yue was drinking from his waterskin. Upon hearing this, he put it down, wiped his mouth with his sleeve, and said, "According to the captives, it was a centurion named Xiu Muye who suggested this to King Thomas. King Thomas even promoted him to captain of a thousand men."
"Xiu Mu?" Xiao Zhuo raised his eyebrows, "So he went to King Doma."
Song Zhen looked at Xiao Zhuo: "My Lord, do you know this person?"
"I've dealt with him before," Xiao Zhuo said, lowering his eyes. "This man's son once led his troops to plunder Xiaogang Village, but I killed him."
"We can just slaughter those Western Rong beasts," Meng Yue said nonchalantly. "My lord, we've lifted the siege of Leshan. The King of Western Liang... well, he hasn't even sent any troops to help us."
He originally wanted to say that the King of Xiliang was a coward, but considering that he was surrounded by Xiliang cavalry, he held back.
A hundred thousand strong troops of the Western Rong came out in full force to surround them. Lord Xiao Zhuo had already decided on a tactic of attacking them from the front and back together with the King of Western Liang, and was just waiting for the King of Western Liang to send out his troops.
As a result, King Mei Cheng of Xiliang was probably frightened. Not only did he not dare to send troops to attack the enemy's rear, but he led his troops all the way back to Yongwei County and stayed indoors.
This wave of operations is speechless.
The friendly forces rescued him, attracting the enemy's attention. But instead of helping the friendly forces, he actually escaped first.
"That's fine. I promised Meipu I'd help him break the siege of Leshan." Xiao Zhuo waved his hand to signal Meng Yue to stop. "Now we just need to find a way to escape the enemy and return to Dayan."
Song Zhen picked up the fan that only had a few feathers left and fanned it twice, saying, "My lord, given the current situation, I think the best strategy is to continue north along the river and wait for the enemy to show a weakness."
"Continue north?" Meng Yue interrupted. "If we continue north, those barbarian kings of the Western Rong will see an opportunity and will surely surround us. Then we'll be stuck."
Xiao Zhuo said, "General Meng is absolutely right. We cannot continue north. We must first gather military supplies and then find a breakthrough point."
Seeing that Xiao Zhuo had reached a conclusion, Song Zhen stopped insisting and pointed his fan to the north of the red stone on the boulder:
"My lord, there's a decent-sized Xirong village thirty miles to our north. We can go there and plunder it, and that'll give us enough food for a few days."
It was already late autumn, and the grass on the grasslands had begun to wither in large areas. Although the war horses could still find food, Xiao Zhuo's 8,000 cavalry still needed to eat.
Fortunately, the scouts had already surveyed the terrain within a hundred miles around, and he could make a judgment based on the scouts' intelligence.
Meng Yue agreed very much and said, "My lord, let's set off now."
In his opinion, given his lord's character, he would definitely adopt the military advisor's idea.
During the initial campaign against the Northern Di, the lord often led cavalry deep into Northern Di territory. Cavalry's key strength lay in their mobility, and they couldn't carry large quantities of food. Instead, they raided nearby Northern Di villages for supplies. Only in this way could the army maintain its combat effectiveness.
It was with this flexible tactic that the lord won victory after victory, striking fear into the Northern Di. Everything that was happening now was just a repeat of what happened back there.
He was already familiar with all this.
"Is there any other way?" Xiao Zhuo did not agree, but asked Song Zhen.
Song Zhen was stunned for a moment, as if he had not expected Xiao Zhuo to ask this question. He hesitated for a moment and said, "If my lord does not want to plunder that village, there is another way, but it is a bit dangerous."
Xiao Zhuo remained calm and said calmly, "What's the solution?"
"Leave the village and continue to the northeast for fifty miles. The Western Rong has a grain storage camp there. It is not yet clear how many troops are stationed there." Song Zhen picked up a stone and placed it to the northeast of the red stone.
"Let's go there to grab some food." Xiao Zhuo pointed to the location of the grain storage camp.
Meng Yue was shocked and said to Xiao Zhuo, "My Lord, you can't do this."
The village is close by, and filled with villagers, so even if we plunder it, we won't encounter much resistance. Attacking the enemy camp from afar, rather than from a nearby location, will only lead to casualties. They only have 8,000 men, no reinforcements, and no food. We should avoid fighting if we can.
What happened to my lord? Instead of enjoying the easy and fun looting, he actually took the initiative to fight the enemy.
Xiao Zhuo said in a deep voice: "Follow my military orders."
Meng Yue clasped his hands helplessly and said, "As you command."
He turned around, wondering, his lord seemed to have changed. In the past, his lord didn't need the military advisor to remind him; he would just do these things naturally. Could it be that Shen Yuexi had influenced him?
Speaking of the lord's wife, she's quite a remarkable person, capable of crafting such a formidable weapon as the repeating crossbow. It's just that her personality isn't quite ruthless enough.
Just as Meng Yue was about to order his soldiers to lead the troops, a horseman came galloping in the distance and reined in. The horse neighed loudly, its front hooves lifted off the ground, and it snorted heavily.
A scout jumped off his horse, ran to Xiao Zhuo, and knelt on one knee:
"My lord, I just received news. Of the four armies of the Western Rong, the 50,000-man force led by King Doma has split 20,000 southwards. Their leader is General Sumonai, a general of the 10,000-man force. They've been marching for a day."
Meng Yue and Song Zhen looked at each other, neither of them getting the point.
Isn't their goal to capture the lord? Why did they suddenly send an army south?
Xiao Zhuo shuddered and waved his hand, saying, "Probe again."
"Understood, sir." The scout stood up and was about to mount his horse when another rider came from a distance, raising a cloud of dust.
The man dismounted from his horse, rushed in front of Xiao Zhuo and said:
"My lord, I have gathered all the information. King Doma has divided his army into 20,000 troops, led by General Sumonai and Deputy General Xiumuye. They launched their attack yesterday, targeting the Langya Pass."
Xiao Zhuo raised his palm and slammed it heavily on the boulder:
"I see!"
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