Chapter 64: Dispatching Troops
Tangzhou City is the closest city to Xiqi and is also the gateway to the interior. Xiqi has been eyeing this pass covetously, frequently invading the border to harass and plunder people, livestock and property.
Therefore, the most powerful army of Darong is stationed here all year round.
Five years ago, Zhen Ruizhi led his troops to garrison Tangzhou. When Xiqi invaded, he was forced to defend the isolated city. In the end, it was Zhao Yuzhang who fought back from the city and repelled the Xiqi army, bringing several years of stability to the border.
Now, the army stationed here is the Right Eagle Guard, the main force of the Twelve Guards. Its commander is Duan Rong, who was once a subordinate of Zhen Ruicai.
At this time, outside Tangzhou City, yellow dust filled the sky, and the dark clouds in the sky looked like thousands of Xiqi cavalrymen, pressing towards Duan Rong's Right Eagle Guard with great momentum.
Meanwhile, King Motuo of Xiqi was leading his cavalry in a swift charge towards Duan Rong's army. He brandished the bloodstained scimitar in his hand and wantonly harvested the heads of his soldiers.
"You, the Darong Dynasty, have betrayed us and brutally murdered my innocent brother! Today, I, King Medog of Xiqi, swear to crush Darong to the ground and make your people pay for my brother's death!"
Duan Rong stood on the city wall and saw clearly the situation on the battlefield below the city. The Xiqi soldiers were unstoppable, while his army was retreating step by step.
He immediately ordered, "Retreat! Retreat back into the city and close the gates!"
Upon hearing the order, the army immediately began to retreat, but the soldiers charging in the front row were already deeply trapped in the enemy's formation and could not retreat at all.
The city gate's heavy iron gate fell down without hesitation, and the deafening roar was like thunder.
The soldiers who failed to retreat in time looked back, but before despair could appear in their eyes, a cold light flashed, and with blood splattering, their heads fell to the ground.
The war in the northern border was reignited, and the news quickly reached the capital.
"Urgent news from Tangzhou!" A post horse came galloping in a cloud of dust, passed through the city gate, and rushed towards the direction of the imperial city.
In a blink of an eye, this report arrived at Tianji Hall and was placed on Chi Lan's desk.
After reading it, Chi Lu's eyes flashed coldly, and her face seemed covered with ice and snow.
"The envoy's murderer hasn't even been identified, and Xiqi has already sent troops to the border. Should I say you're too slow, or that King Xiqi is too quick?"
In the hall, the officials from the Yiluansi and the Ministry of Justice, who were in charge of investigating the murder of the envoy, all lowered their heads and remained silent upon hearing this.
Wu Wenxiu, the secretary of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, Xiqi learned the news so quickly and raised troops to invade the border. I'm afraid there must be a traitor within."
Chi Li raised her eyes and glanced at her, "An internal thief?"
Wu Wenxiu nodded and continued his analysis, "Medog's younger brother, Baima, was a peace advocate. It was his idea to send an envoy to our country to promote peaceful exchanges between the two countries. Now that he has been murdered, it will inevitably strengthen the power of the Xiqi pro-war faction. I believe the traitor wanted to kill the envoy in order to provoke war."
Chi Li was a little surprised. She didn't expect Wu Wenxiu to be so perceptive. She could see through Xie Qinjian's true intentions when the identity of the murderer was not yet clear.
Her expression eased slightly, and she sighed softly, "It's a pity that Xiqi took the initiative to attack, so we can only fight back."
She disliked war and even detested the cannibalism. In the eyes of the rulers, soldiers' lives were just bargaining chips that could be easily sacrificed, and women were not even bargaining chips, but merely spoils of war for the victors.
This made her feel humiliated and despised.
She was by no means a kindhearted person, nor did she possess an overflowing sense of compassion. It was just that as a woman, she simply could not tolerate any man stepping on the heads of his kind, and thus on her head.
However, since they like to resort to violence in everything, then she can only respond with violence, right?
Chi Li looked at Wu Wenxiu and ordered in a cold voice, "Draft an imperial decree immediately to mobilize the Left Eagle Guard, the Left and Right Tiger Guards, and divide them into three groups to advance to Tangzhou and launch a counterattack against Xiqi!"
Wu Wenxiu hesitated for a moment before agreeing, "Yes! Then, Your Majesty, investigate the traitor..."
"Continue the investigation. However, this way, we won't have to hide the news of the envoy's murder. Okay, everyone, leave."
After saying that, Chi Qi stood up, waved her hand, and strode towards the back hall.
She has always been efficient in handling government affairs and never gets bogged down in trivial matters or wastes time.
Besides, Xiqi's surprise attack was within her expectations. It was like a game of chess. Since the game had already started, she had to make her move without regret. Indecision would only make her the loser.
However, this incident was indeed beyond the expectations of the ministers.
At the court meeting the next day, the ministers argued fiercely about whether Xiang Xiqi should admit his mistake and seek peace or insist on fighting.
It's just that the custom since ancient times is that anyone who asks for peace is a traitor, and anyone who advocates war is a loyal minister.
What’s interesting is that those civil servants who did not lead troops themselves turned out to be the advocates of war, and they showed rare and overwhelming support for Chi Kuai’s policies, thereby gaining the admiration of their peers.
However, generals such as Qian Qian, who had actually fought against Xi Qi, seemed very depressed.
At the military parade, they lost to the Jinwu Guards, who had only been training for half a year. They had been ridiculed and insulted countless times, both openly and covertly. When they walked on the street, people would throw rotten cabbages at them. "What a disgrace to men!"
If they were to be defeated by Xiqi again this time, they would have no choice but to follow in the footsteps of their former superior Zhen Ruicai and commit suicide to apologize.
But Empress Dowager Chi had already issued an imperial decree declaring war, and the ministers were also very excited. How could he refuse? He had no choice but to agree.
Looking at the bright side, perhaps this battle against Xiqi is his chance to avenge his previous shame!
The news that the imperial court was going to send troops to attack Xiqi soon reached the Jinwu Guard. After a day of training, the soldiers couldn't help but speculate and talk about it during their rest.
"Are we going to the front lines to fight too? I heard the Xiqi people are very brutal. Can we be their opponents?"
"Just go. We just follow the general's orders. Why think so much?"
"That's right. We have firearms, but we may not be a match for the Xiqi people!"
"Aren't there only a few hundred firearms? How many of us are there, and how many Xiqi soldiers are there? I don't want to go and die."
However, most soldiers are too lazy to think about these issues, nor do they consider whether fighting is a dangerous thing.
Their training is usually very hard, and they have to spend time studying every day. They have to memorize military orders, reward terms, martial arts techniques, etc. If they can't memorize them, the whole team will be punished. Even illiterate people can recognize a hundred or so characters by rote memorization.
But even so, they felt that life in the army was much more comfortable than at home. Although it was tiring, at least the rules were clear, and as long as they trained hard, they didn't have to worry about being scolded or beaten. They also had enough food to eat every day and even received a salary.
In the past, they worried that if they didn’t join the army, they would be looked down upon when they returned home, and they were also afraid of being discriminated against by their husbands after they got married. But since the general said that he would enlist them in the army, this only worry has disappeared.
Mei Junrong was an activist who wanted to join the military.
Because of her outstanding performance in the last military parade, she has been promoted from team leader to flag commander. Now she manages three teams, and the three team leaders must obey her orders.
She was naturally full of energy and vigor, and even her steps were full of energy as she walked in the military camp.
She was also the most supportive of the news of going to war. How could one accumulate merits without fighting? How could one get promoted without accumulating merits? How could one become a general without getting promoted?
She didn't join the army just to make a living.
Therefore, hearing her soldiers' fear of the Xiqi people made her somewhat irritated. "Why does the court spend money to support us? Isn't it because they expect us to win battles? If we only rely on the people's taxes to live a comfortable life, but become timid when it comes to fighting, wouldn't that just prove what the men say about us being cowardly? And it would be a waste of the General and the Princess's painstaking efforts to apply for our military enlistment."
The soldiers lowered their heads and accepted the scolding, not daring to say a word, with a feeling of unwillingness rising in their hearts.
Mei Junrong pointed to the training ground and said, "Gather the troops and go for training."
All the soldiers turned around and ran to the training ground to start team training.
Mei Junrong patrolled around the team, occasionally giving instructions to the soldiers on how to use swords and guns.
Once again, she walked to the end of the team. Suddenly, she noticed some movement in the small woods ahead. She immediately became alert and walked quickly. When she got closer to the woods, she slowed down her pace and gently parted the grass. She found that it was Liu Xiangyi, who was practicing the chopping motion with a shoulder pole.
She was slightly startled. Shouldn't she be making a fire and cooking at this time?
Looking at her swinging movements, which were very weak and powerless, he couldn't help laughing, "Liu Xiangyi, are you not full?"
Liu Xiangyi was startled and immediately put away the carrying pole. She turned her head and saw that it was her. The embarrassment on her face immediately turned into anger. She subconsciously wanted to fight back, but when the words came to her lips, she held them back.
She stopped and gave a perfunctory military salute, "Greetings, Mr. Banner General."
Mei Junrong smiled and nodded, "Your movements just now were too weak. If you want to practice swordsmanship, you must first have strength."
As he spoke, he drew the sword from his waist with a swift movement, spread his feet apart, stood in a steady horse stance, then flicked his wrist and slashed with the sword. The sound of the blade breaking through the air could be clearly heard.
Liu Xiangyi's face changed slightly. The reason why she wanted to practice here secretly was that she couldn't stand being inferior to Mei Junrong.
They were roommates who enlisted together in the army, and her family background was better than Mei Junrong's. But now Mei Junrong has been promoted, but she is still the worst soldier in the team.
If she had known this would happen, she would not have been lazy during training.
Thinking of this, Liu Xiangyi regretted it so much that her intestines turned green. She gritted her teeth and said, "Thank you for your guidance, Mr. Qi, but I have to go light the fire and cook dinner. I'll take my leave now."
After saying that, she picked up the basket beside her, put the shoulder pole on her shoulders, and her body became shorter. She walked away without looking back.
Mei Junrong looked at her swaying back and fell into deep thought.
Meanwhile, inside the central army tent, Zhao Mingyue was asking Zhao Yuzhang for orders, "Aunt, Mother wants to send troops to fight Xiqi. Let's send our Firearms Battalion as well. It's a good opportunity to curb the Xiqi people's arrogance!"
Zhao Yuzhang looked at the map on the table without even looking up. "War is no joke. If you have nothing to do, practice your spear more. Otherwise, go read some military books and ask Master Xue to teach you more."
Xue Qi laughed and said, "The princess has never been on the battlefield and thinks she can win by just fighting casually."
"Isn't it?" Zhao Mingyue asked back, feeling a little indifferent.
My aunt must be hesitant because she is afraid of the sacrifice of her soldiers in the previous tough battle in Tangzhou City.
As for Master Xue, since coming to the military camp, she and my aunt have become closer and closer, and they always work together to teach me.
Anyway, they all think that I am not good enough because I am just a kid.
But if you don’t try, how do you know it won’t work?
Zhao Mingyue thought somewhat unconvincedly.
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