Chapter 212 [VIP]
The north wind whipped up sand and gravel from the Gobi Desert, which clattered against the black iron armor.
The Turkic Khan, Jielinashle, tightened the reins, gazing at the Wu banner fluttering in the wind atop the Yumen Pass, his wolf-like eyes burning with a ghostly blue flame.
“The cities of the Central Plains are like ripe walnuts.” He raised his gold-inlaid whip. “Today, let them hear the sound of a walnut cracking.”
"Kill! Kill! Kill!" Tens of thousands of Turkic cavalrymen raised their weapons and shouted, their voices like thunder, making the soldiers on the city walls tremble.
Suddenly a hand slapped him on the shoulder, startling the soldier so much that he almost dropped his weapon.
Li Mu whispered, "What are you afraid of? They are also born of parents. They have one head and two hands. If a knife is chopped off their necks, they will go to see the King of Hell. Cheer up and don't let these barbarians scare you out of your wits!"
"yes……"
"Speak louder!"
"Yes!" The soldier straightened his chest, his previous fear gone.
After surveying the city, Li Mu descended from the city wall with a grave expression. His strategist, Lang Qianping, rushed over and asked, "How did it go?"
"Judging from the situation, we're probably going to attack the city today."
"Reinforcements have not yet arrived; if we attack the city now, we may not be able to hold it!"
"We have to defend it even if we can't. Once Yumen Pass falls, Dunhuang, Suzhou, Ganzhou, Liangzhou, and Shanzhou behind it will probably be wiped out by the enemy in one fell swoop." The two hurried towards the military camp.
Lang Qianping said, "More than ten urgent military dispatches have been sent, but why is there still no news from above? Is His Majesty really planning to abandon the Northwest?"
"We can't worry about that now. I've already sent someone to Jizhou to deliver a message. Zheng Guang will be here with reinforcements soon. We'll hold out for a month and wait for the reinforcements to arrive."
"yes."
Most of the people inside Yumen Pass have already evacuated, and those who are still unable to leave are the elderly, weak, sick, and disabled. Everyone keeps the gates tightly closed and dares not come out easily.
"Will this work?" an elderly woman asked, leaning on her cane.
The old man next to him placed the millstone in front of the door, saying, "It should be fine. A millstone this heavy, even two oxen couldn't break it."
The old woman sat down next to the little boy. "I heard that Old Sun's family next door also passed away yesterday."
The old man said, "Hey, he's always been a coward. He's so old and he's still afraid of dying."
"Yes, at my age, where can I run to? I'll only be a burden to my children and grandchildren." The old woman looked around. "I'd rather stay here and die in this house."
"Alright, stop thinking about that. We can't go out to herd the sheep these days, so let's pick some vegetables from the garden to feed them."
The two supported each other as they walked towards the backyard. There were thousands of elderly people like them in the city, and since they couldn't be persuaded to leave, they could only risk their lives to protect them.
Around noon, war drums sounded outside the city, signaling preparations to attack.
The drumbeats were deep and muffled, thumping as if striking the heart.
Li Mu donned his armor, tucked the amulet Lin Sui had made for him into his pocket, and gripped his spear, ready to face the enemy.
The army inside the city is ready, with sharpened longswords and pointed crossbow bolts, just waiting to take the lives of the Turks!
At the hour of Wei (1-3 PM), when the horns ripped through the sky, the Turks launched their attack!
Hundreds of thousands of Turkic cavalry spurred their horses forward simultaneously, the sound of their hooves thundering across the land, causing bricks and stones on the city walls to fall off in a flurry.
Li Mu stood fearless atop the city wall. As the Turks drew closer, he shouted, "Crossbowmen!" and raised his spear. "Fire!"
A rain of arrows pierced the sky, densely packed like locusts in flight. Three rows of crossbows fired simultaneously, their specially designed armor-piercing arrows whistling as they pierced leather shields with a sickening thud.
The Turkic cavalry at the forefront fell to the ground along with their horses, only to be trampled into a bloody pulp by the iron hooves of those following behind. But more enemies surged in like a tide, with ladders piled high on the city walls.
As the sounds of fighting rang out, Chen Qianhu, who was standing to the side, drew his long sword, which flashed with a cold light. The head of a Turkic warrior who had just climbed onto the rampart flew off, and blood splattered into a hideous pattern on the yellow earthen wall.
The soldiers behind him formed a fish-scale formation, their spears thrusting forward in succession, and enemies screamed as they fell to the ground.
However, the difference in numbers between the two armies was too great. Although the Turks claimed to have 300,000 troops, at most 150,000, they were still many times larger than the border garrison. They could not possibly kill them all!
Li Mu brandished his spear, feeling that the tip had become dull, yet a steady stream of Turks continued to pour in. Gradually, the number of soldiers on the city wall decreased, and they were replaced by Turkic soldiers.
"General, we can't hold on any longer! We must retreat into the city!" Several subordinates stood in front of Li Mu to provide cover.
"No, what will happen to the people in the city if we evacuate them!"
A cold arrow suddenly flew from not far away, striking the neck of Li Mu's deputy general, Lin. Blood splattered all over Li Mu's face. Before dying, the deputy general, clutching his neck, still managed to urge, "General... the greater good is at stake..."
"Lin Qing!" Li Mu's eyes instantly reddened. He rushed to the Turkic soldier who was shooting arrows and pinned him to the ground with a single spear thrust.
Yumen Pass cannot be defended...
Li Mu gritted his teeth and stomped his foot angrily, "Withdraw! Everyone, retreat back to the city!"
*
In July, news of the fall of Yumen Pass reached Jizhou, more than two months after Wang Ying and his group left Shanzhou.
The army of Ji Province finally received the news and went to the northwest to provide support. In addition to the Ji Province army, there were also the Zhennan army and the Youzhou Iron Cavalry, a total of 120,000 troops going together.
Unfortunately, it was the rainy season, and the Yellow River was flowing rapidly. The troops were all stuck on the road and unable to cross the river, causing them great anxiety.
As the Xiongnu attacked city after city, the ministers who had initially advocated for peace in the court finally fell silent.
They understood that the Turks had come with the intention of destroying their country, and even if they gained temporary peace, they feared they would face an even fiercer offensive.
To escape the war, powerful families fled south with their gold and silver, causing upheaval in the court and among the people.
In mid-autumn of August, the border-guarding army had retreated to Liangzhou, which was only three days' journey from Shanzhou.
With reinforcements slow to arrive, nearly half of the garrison troops have been killed or wounded, and the remaining soldiers lack food and medicine. It seems that Liangzhou will not be able to hold out for long.
The Xiongnu were completely bloodthirsty, and a third of their 160,000-170,000 troops were lost. Zhenbianhou was a tough nut to crack! They thought it would only take a month at most, but it's been almost three months, and they've managed to hold on!
Liangzhou City is situated on a terrain with steep mountains on both sides and only one road in the middle, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack. A direct assault would certainly result in heavy casualties.
However, spies reported that they were running out of food supplies and that reinforcements would not arrive for at least half a month. If they could hold out for another ten days, Liangzhou would fall without a fight.
Jieli Khan raised his hand and said, "Let's set up camp here and rest. We'll be fully prepared to take the capital in one fell swoop!"
"yes!"
The Turkic army set up camp outside the city, preparing to besiege it. They had no shortage of food and supplies, and had burned, killed, and looted all the way they came. The cattle and sheep raised by the local people became their food.
Li Mu, who was in the city, also saw through the enemy's intentions. At the moment, the city's food supplies were only enough to sustain the troops for three or four days at most. Almost everyone who could escape had fled, and the remaining civilians could not provide much food. Once the food supplies were exhausted, the Turks would collapse without a fight.
"Damn it!" Lang Qianping couldn't help but curse. "Isn't the imperial court treating us like dirt?! Forty thousand soldiers guarding a three hundred thousand-strong army, without reinforcements or supplies—are they planning to use our lives to stop the Turks?!"
Li Mu sighed, "There's no point in saying more. Go down and give the order to organize the grain and fodder. These next few days... eat sparingly. If all else fails, kill a horse for food. Liangzhou is the last line of defense. If it really falls..."
Lang Qianping understood what he was about to say, and they both saw helplessness and despair on each other's faces.
After everyone left, Li Mu took out the crumpled amulet from his pocket, sniffed it, and seemed to still smell his husband's scent.
He was a man with a tragic life. His childhood was filled with misery because his mistress disliked him and his father was unkind. Although he had his own mother to take care of him, she was, after all, a concubine who had to be subservient to her master to make a living. The two of them lived worse than the servants in the mansion.
Later, after being sent to the army and finally gaining a foothold, he had to endure the machinations of his mistress...
There aren't many people in this world who truly care about him, and Lin Sui is the best one.
At first, he just wanted to find a stepfather who could treat Qing'er well, but he didn't expect to fall in love with her himself. Sui'er was so gentle that she healed the scars in his heart that had lasted for more than 20 years and let him taste the feeling of being loved for the first time.
"I don't know if I'll ever have the chance to see you again. If I'm no longer here, please take good care of yourself..."
*
"Thirty-one, thirty-two, thirty-three..." Truckloads of grain were transported to Jizhou.
All of this grain was purchased by Wang Ying and Lin Sui from nearby counties. Each truckload contained about 800 jin of grain, and a total of 35 truckloads contained about 28,000 jin of grain, which was more than enough.
That night, Wang Ying brought all the grain to the experimental field, where Chen Qingyan was already waiting. "I bought so much."
"Sui'er and I are worried that this is not enough. This is only part of it. Adding the grain that was stored in the experimental fields before, four thousand shi should be enough for the army for a while."
"That's enough. I'll be in Liangzhou tomorrow. I'll let you know if I need anything then."
"Once we get to Liangzhou, find an opportunity to take Li Mu to the experimental fields so that he can meet Lin Sui."
Since this ability will be used in front of Li Mu anyway, it might as well do him a favor. Although Lin Sui hasn't said anything during this time, she must be worried sick. Letting him see her will put his mind at ease.
"Alright, I'll head out now to avoid being discovered." Chen Qingyan didn't come alone; he had specially dispatched a team of thirty men from Shanzhou to escort him to Liangzhou.
Although it's only a three-day journey, we can't be careless. If something happens to me, the supplies won't be delivered.
After running day and night for three days, we finally arrived at Liangzhou City. The city gates were closed, and we had no idea what the situation was like inside.
As the carriage approached the city gate, a soldier on board exclaimed in surprise, "Who goes there? Why are you here?"
These past few days I've only seen people leaving the city, but this is the first time I've seen anyone coming from out of town.
"I am the Assistant Magistrate of Shanzhou, and I have come here specifically to see the General Who Guards the Border!"
Upon hearing this, the soldier quickly opened the gate and led him into the city. The streets were eerily quiet; the once bustling streets were now deserted.
"If you keep walking along this road, you'll see the military camp. But I have to guard the gate, so I won't go any further."
The carriage sped along for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn before arriving at the gate of the military camp. Tens of thousands of soldiers had already set up camp inside the city. Some were patrolling, some were training, but most were resting because they hadn't had a proper meal for two days.
Li Mu was taken aback by Chen Qingyan's sudden visit and quickly got up to greet him. "Cousin, what brings you here? The situation in Liangzhou is tense right now, and I'm afraid we won't be able to hold out for long. I'll have someone send you back right away!"
Chen Qingyan raised her hand to stop him, "I'm here to deliver grain."
"Where will this grain come from?" During this period, all the tax grain from the entire Northwest has been supplied, and there is simply not much grain left!
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