Chapter 2709 Paralysis
The emperor was standing on a slope with a group of generals and ministers, looking at the city in the distance, with the camp gate next to them.
Manbao and his companions came out of the woods happily, and immediately saw the emperor not far away, so they turned around and tried to bypass the imperial guards and return to the camp.
The imperial guards who were scattered around met Zhou Man head-on. They looked at each other, and Zhou Man pulled Bai Erlang and turned away. The guards hesitated for a moment and then turned back to report to Yin Li.
Yin Li looked back at them, and seeing their backs slipping back to the camp with their backpacks on their backs, he withdrew his gaze and pretended not to see them.
The emperor looked at the city in the distance and sighed. He asked everyone, "Do you have any good ideas?"
Duke Zhao said with a dark face, "The one guarding Anshi City now is the second prince of the Gao family. He is a steady man."
He was just too stable. Every day they sent people to the city gate to engage in verbal battles. Not only did they make personal attacks, they also cursed people's ancestors for eighteen generations. But he was very patient, and the generals inside were also very patient and just refused to respond.
It is not impossible to attack the city, but the sacrifices will be great. Anshi City is easy to defend but difficult to attack, and the number of defenders inside is far greater than theirs, which is very disadvantageous to them.
Other methods that everyone had thought of included, but were not limited to, sneak attacks from behind, using gold and silver treasures to sow discord, and they had even considered digging a tunnel.
But after it was proposed, they rejected it themselves.
Bai Shan hesitated and asked, "Could the refugees enter the city through other gates?"
The emperor's eyes flashed slightly and he looked at Yin Li.
Yin Li lowered his eyes and thought for a moment before saying, "I will make the arrangements."
The emperor nodded and said to the Duke of Zhao, "We will launch a strong attack tomorrow. After two days, if we cannot break through, we will retreat."
The emperor looked at the city in the distance with a deep gaze. They could leave temporarily.
Manbao and Bai Erlang knew nothing about this. When they returned to the tent, they took out the ginseng and looked at it. They couldn't help but smile at each other.
Bai Erlang just looked at it for a long time with deep fascination, then handed it to Zhou Man, "I don't know how to handle this thing, so I have to give it to you."
Manbao took it and said to him, "Don't worry, I will definitely take care of it for you."
The emperor walked back to the camp with his hands behind his back. Halfway through, he suddenly remembered, "Oh, where is the prince consort?"
Why didn't he come to such an important meeting today?
Everyone looked at each other and then at Bai Shan.
Bai Shan: ...
He lowered his head and replied, "The White Prince Consort has gone into the mountains to dig herbs."
The emperor asked, "Is the medical bill still short of medicine?"
Duke Zhao was startled and stared at Bai Shan.
Bai Shan smiled and said, "It's better to be prepared. These days, Prince Consort Bai and Master Zhou are not busy. They can go into the mountains to dig some herbs from time to time. They may be useful in the future."
The emperor did not ask any further questions, but turned to ask Duke Zhao, "Have you checked the logistics department?"
He said, "I couldn't spare the time before, but now that I have to wait, I should check it out so I can have a clearer idea."
Duke Zhao immediately said, "Several people have been detained, and I am having them interrogated."
The emperor asked, "Do you want Yin Qing to help?"
Duke Zhao declined, saying that this was the Ministry of War's business and he did not want Yin Li to interfere.
Yin Li didn't want to get involved either, he was very busy.
Not only did they have to protect the emperor, but they also had to select spies and send them to Anshi City.
To be a spy, loyalty is the first priority, followed by adapting to the local faces, language and customs, etc. The ability to kill is the last requirement.
Yin Li began selecting his men from the entire army, while the Duke of Zhao went off to deal with a previous logistical incident. Liu Huan couldn't help but run to them to complain, "I can't even sleep peacefully now. I'm afraid I'll be dragged out and questioned."
Bai Shan: "...What does this have to do with you? Aren't you in charge of the military equipment provided by the Ministry of Industry?"
"Yes, but the people living next to me are all logistics officers. They went out these days and never came back, or they were dragged back by someone."
Man Bao frowned slightly upon hearing this. "Asking about the crime now would only destabilize the army. Why are Your Majesty and Duke Zhao asking about the crime now?"
Didn't she take so long to prepare the medicine? She just wrote it down first and didn't have an attack on the spot?
Bai Shan seemed to be thinking about something, "Maybe it's time to return to the capital."
Man Bao glared, "So soon? The last batch of herbs hasn't been delivered yet. We have supplies, why are we retreating?"
Bai Erlang and Liu Huan also looked at Bai Shan.
Bai Shan coughed lightly and said nonchalantly, "It's getting cold. Anshi City has been difficult to capture for a long time. Your Majesty must be thinking about the soldiers."
Bai Erlang: "It's not like they can't take it for a long time, right? We've only been besieging it for eight days. It's normal for a siege to last one or two months, right?"
Liu Huan: "Yes, the Ministry of Works has received an official document, instructing the Ministry of Revenue to prepare a batch of new thick clothes, which are on the way. Together with the spoils of war from the siege, we will not be short of thick clothes for the time being."
Bai Shan said, "We will just listen to your Majesty."
Then two days later, the emperor really ordered a retreat.
Manbao was shocked, but she didn't have time to express her objection at this moment because there were quite a lot of wounded soldiers in the medical tent.
Duke Zhao launched two consecutive days of attacks, and many soldiers were injured. She has not yet dealt with the wounded soldiers sent back after today's attack.
By the time she finally took care of the wounded, the camp was already packing up, preparing to retreat the next day.
Manbao was stunned, "They really are retreating."
Bai Shan nodded and said to her, "Maybe we should return to the capital."
Manbao pursed his lips, "Isn't this anticlimactic?"
Bai Shan reached out and touched her brow, chuckled and said, "Your Majesty has his own plans, don't bother him."
Seeing that he didn't look worried at all, Manbao was stunned for a moment and then became thoughtful.
They hadn't been out for long this time. Although the weather was cold, the siege had gone smoothly, and the supplies hadn't been exhausted. A lot of preparations were made for a personal expedition, and if the emperor just went back like that, not only would he be unwilling, but neither would the court officials, so...
Manbao turned around and packed his luggage, "Okay, I'll be back soon."
The soldiers in the camp were also surprised, and their morale was somewhat low due to the unfavorable siege results in recent days.
The Duke of Zhao said nothing. The next day, he used the rear road as the front road, left some people behind to defend the rear, and then the entire army broke camp and left.
When the Goguryeo soldiers in Anshi City saw this, they immediately ran happily to tell Prince Gao Er.
The second prince thought for a moment and said, "Perhaps this is a strategy used by the enemy to lure them in. We should continue to defend the city and not leave."
The emperor retreated to Liaodong City and began to deal with subsequent affairs, such as picking out some families in nearby cities and ordering them to move inland, either to the Central Plains or to the south of the Yangtze River. In short, they had to leave here.
At the same time, he issued an imperial edict to appease the people in the captured cities, and dispatched generals to garrison the local areas. He established the Liaochengzhou Military Governor's Office in Liaodong City to manage the military and political affairs of several nearby cities.
Government decrees were issued one after another, and soldiers began to set up checkpoints and watchtowers on the road leading to Anshi City, as if they were planning to use this as a boundary to govern Goguryeo.
Prince Gao Er in Anshi City also hesitated, "Are they really leaving?"
See you tomorrow
(End of this chapter)
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