Mo Sang – CH 129

Chapter 129. Desperate Measures

General Huang Yanming of the Huaiyang Army had been trapped on a shallow isle for four days.

His vanguard, Chu Xing, leading the Yangzhou Runzhou army, crossed the river seven days ago. They had launched countless attacks, suffering heavy losses, yet had made no progress.

The soldiers were utterly exhausted, and their rations were nearly depleted.

They could not advance, nor could they retreat by boat.

Huang Yanming, his eyes bloodshot, his face taut, forced a show of strength and determination as he moved among the huddled, weary soldiers.

Vanguard Chu Xing followed behind him.

Chu Xing’s face was swollen and bruised on one side, and he had been wounded in the thigh by an arrow, causing him to limp.

Around the hour of Chou¹, he personally supervised the battle, leading a fierce attack, but still could not advance an inch.

The soldiers were utterly exhausted, and morale was low.

After inspecting the area, Huang Yanming stood on a black rock, gazing at the continuous, dark Mofu Mountain from the ridge of Yanzi Isle.

Chu Xing leaned against a rock, looking up at Yanzi Isle.

Huang Yanming watched for a while, then slid down and sat on the rock.

The letter he had urgently sent to Commander Gu before leading his troops across the river should have been received by Commander Gu by now, but who knew what was happening on Commander Gu’s side?

The Southern Liang’s surprise attack on Hefei was certainly not just about capturing it; they definitely wanted to move north to Xuzhou or Xiangyang to join forces. If so, the Southern Liang’s troops heading to Hefei would number in the hundreds of thousands, making things incredibly difficult for Commander Gu.

Perhaps Commander Gu had already abandoned Hefei and retreated to Huaiyin…

The Southern Liang had already occupied Hefei; moving north along the river was like a rat in a bellows, while moving south was like a mouse in a bellows. But how could they cross the river from Yanzi Isle?

Huang Yanming was lost in thought.

“General, let everyone rest a little longer. I will lead the attack again; this time it will definitely be a surprise,” Chu Xing said, his voice hoarse, barely audible.

“You rest a little longer. Let’s look over there and see if we can bypass Yanzi Isle and head south,” Huang Yanming said slowly.

Chu Xing nodded in agreement.

This predicament was all because he had been too impatient. He was prepared to die in battle. If the general could find a retreat route south, he would cover the rear and fight to the death to hold off the enemy for the rest of the army.

……………………

From where the Yunmeng Guards were resting to Jiangdu City, it was only about a hundred li.

Li Sangrou and the Yunmeng Guards, along the riverbank, scouted the route and surveyed the surrounding area. They did not travel fast, and it was just past noon when they were not far from Yanzi Isle.

The Yunmeng Guards’ outposts saw the Qi army flags and raised their own flags in the distance to signal them.

The scout urgently reported to Huang Yanming, who was sitting on the large black rock, looking at Yanzi Isle, and discussing something in hushed tones with Chu Xing.

Upon hearing the scout’s report, Huang Yanming quickly stood on the rock and, following the direction the scout was pointing, tiptoed to look at the flag.

Chu Xing also straightened up, leaning on the rock, and craned his neck to look.

It was a triangular signal flag, held aloft by a galloping Yunmeng Guard and stretched flat by the wind.

It was red with gold trim and featured a flying tiger.

Huang Yanming looked at Chu Xing, who shook his head.

They had never seen or heard of such a flying tiger flag before; it was ostentatious and conspicuous.

“Bring him here! Be careful!” Huang Yanming ordered, jumping off the rock and striding forward. Chu Xing, dragging his limp, hurriedly followed behind.

Six or seven guards, their longswords pointed at the Yunmeng Guard outpost, entered the camp. When they were about ten steps away from Huang Yanming, the Yunmeng Guard outpost stopped, cupped their hands, and said, “We are here to reinforce you on the orders of our commander.”

“Which commander? Who is your commander?” Huang Yanming stared intently at the outpost.

“Commander Gu, my general’s surname is Qiao, and his given name is An,” the Yunmeng Guard outpost said with a smile.

“Huh?” Huang Yanming looked at the Yunmeng Guard in disbelief. “Who? Qiao An?”

“Yes.”

Huang Yanming chuckled. The name Qiao An was not unusual; many people shared the same name.

“How many men have come? Hefei…” Huang Yanming had not finished speaking when he saw the Yunmeng Guard rushing towards them in a line, his eyes widening instantly.

This approaching black line was sharp and filled with killing intent.

“A great victory at Hefei! The Liang army has retreated to Jiangnan,” the outpost replied with a smile, glancing back.

“Oh?” Huang Yanming’s face lit up with joy, but his smile quickly vanished as he hurriedly ordered, “On alert!”

“I will go!” Chu Xing rushed forward.

If it was not reinforcements but the enemy, he had to hold them off.

Qiao An charged ahead, with Li Sangrou close behind. Twenty or thirty paces from the battle formation with its shields and spears, the two dismounted and strode forward.

Behind them, a short distance from where they could be shot, the Yunmeng Guards reined in their horses and awaited orders.

Shields and spears parted to make way. Qiao An, in front, and Li Sangrou, following closely behind, strode up to the stunned Huang Yanming. Qiao An bowed deeply. “General. It’s me.”

“You are not…” The word “dead” trembled on Huang Yanming’s lips, but he did not utter it.

“I joined the Yunmeng Guard.” Qiao An looked at Huang Yanming, a slight smile appearing on his face.

“I thought back then, maybe you… Sigh, you are just alive, sigh! Just being alive is good enough! When I heard about you… I regretted it so much. I should have stopped you, tied you up, and stopped you. I regretted it for over ten years… you… good, good!” Huang Yanming kept patting Qiao An, tears streaming down his face.

“In the past few years, I regretted not listening to you, but!” Qiao An’s voice rose slightly. “Now, I do not regret it at all.

The Yunmeng Guards are now under the command of the General. In the Battle of Hefei, the Yunmeng Guards followed the General, charging at the forefront.”

“You…” Hearing that the Yunmeng Guards were under the command of the General, Huang Yanming was incredibly surprised. He was about to ask more when Li Sangrou interrupted him.

“Let’s get down to business. We can have a long talk over drinks when we get back,” Li Sangrou reminded him gently with a smile.

Chu Xing, standing close to Huang Yanming, watched from Qiao An as Huang Yanming’s tears welled up, then glared at Li Sangrou.

“I was being impolite,” Qiao An said, somewhat embarrassed, and instinctively cupped his hands in a respectful gesture. “By order of the Commander-in-Chief, five hundred cavalry from the Yunmeng Guard are assisting the General in retreating to Jiangbei.”

“Where do we cross the river? Ruxukou?” Huang Yanming asked immediately.

From the moment he saw Qiao An, he became alert and quick-witted.

“If we cross the river at Ruxukou, it’s like this: we are here now, and the crossing point is here.” Li Sangrou squatted down and drew a simple map on the sand with her finger. “Wu Huaiyi’s remnant camp is here, about thirty li from the crossing point.

Also, this place can only accommodate one boat.”

“From here to the crossing point, it’s about a hundred li. We’ve scouted along the river for about ten li and have not seen any Liang troops,” Qiao An added.

“And who is this young lady?” Huang Yanming suddenly realized he did not recognize the young lady, and besides, how could there be a young lady here?

“This is General Sang,” Qiao An introduced solemnly.

Huang Yanming’s eyes widened in astonishment.

He’d never heard of this General Sang!

“General Sang killed Wu Huaiyi with a single arrow and severed the Liang army’s banner. Wu Huaiyi was the commander-in-chief of the Liang army’s northern expedition,” Qiao An said, lowering his voice as he looked at Huang Yanming.

Huang Yanming let out a loud “Uh,” and Chu Xing’s eyes widened as he sized Li Sangrou up and down.

“Let’s get down to business,” Li Sangrou reminded him again, looking at Huang Yanming and asking, “Who is the garrison commander of Jiangdu City? Do you know?”

“They say his name is Zhang Zheng,” Huang Yanming replied. “We captured two garrison soldiers who fell from Yanzi Isle. They survived for a while, and we asked them a few questions.” He paused, then frowned, “Both of them addressed Zhang Zheng by his given name.”

“Zhang Zheng fled to Jiangdu City during a famine. He first worked as a guard at the Yichun Brothel. Later, Su Wan, the top courtesan of the brothel, was taken into the General’s Mansion by Wu Huaiguo and became his concubine.

Su Wan had a younger brother named Su Qing, who was very close to Zhang Zheng.

After Su Wan entered the General’s Mansion, Su Qing took a minor post in Wu Huaiguo’s army and brought Zhang Zheng with him.

Within a few years, Zhang Zheng distinguished himself and rose to the rank of commander of a thousand-man unit.

Zhang Zheng is ruthless, cunning, unscrupulous, and extremely brave.

Wu Huaiguo said more than once that when the Qi-Liang War broke out, at least under his command, the most outstanding men would undoubtedly be Su Qing and Zhang Zheng.

Zhang Zheng is extremely proud and speaks impulsively, making him unlikable. However, Wu Huaiguo liked him very much, often keeping him by his side and carefully instructing him.

Zhang Zheng only has eyes for two people: Wu Huaiguo and Su Qing.

Because of Zhang Zheng and Su Qing’s backgrounds, the people of Jiangdu City looked down on them. Even the city’s commoners and laborers are polite enough to call them by their first names, but often refer to them as ‘Su the good-for-nothing’ and ‘Zhang the wolfhound.’

Zhang Zheng knows Jiangdu City inside and out. With him guarding it, it would be extremely difficult to breach.”

Li Sangrou was very familiar with Zhang Zheng.

Huang Yanming listened intently, then looked at Qiao An.

“We will talk about it when we get back. Do not worry.” Qiao An smiled.

“Zhang Zheng is extremely shrewd. You must have thought things through and made proper arrangements for the retreat,” Li Sangrou reminded him one last time.

“Please come over here!” Huang Yanming ordered his guards.

“I will look around. You discuss it,” Li Sangrou whispered to Qiao An, then moved aside.

Huang Yanming and the others formed a circle, writing and drawing on the ground, discussing for half an hour before standing up and rushing out.

Li Sangrou had just returned from her rounds when Qiao An greeted her, whispering, “The withdrawal will begin after dark. Everything is arranged. General Huang is meticulous; do not worry.

I will go arrange for someone to go back first and tell the other side to prepare for the rendezvous.”

“Let Hei Ma and the others go,” Li Sangrou said softly. “Firstly, they know the way well, especially where we disembarked. Secondly, we might have to swim across the river, and the Yunmeng Guards’ swimming skills might not be as good as Chuantiao’s.”

Qiao An did not say anything more.

In fact, the Yunmeng Guards were far inferior to Hei Ma and the others in these two aspects.

Li Sangrou called Hei Ma and the others over, instructing Hei Ma to take Xiao Lu, Datou, Mazha, and Chuantiao back to inform the north bank to prepare for the rendezvous.

Hei Ma happily agreed, and he and the other three, keeping a distance, turned and sped back.

The commanders who had returned had already led their troops onto the few large ships and dozens of small boats moored on the shore. They began dismantling the ships with a clanging and banging sound. The dismantled decks and masts were hoisted up and thrown down towards Yanzi Isle. Then, under the protection of shields, seven or eight men, each carrying a thin mast, would push the decks and other timbers piece by piece down to the bottom of Yanzi Isle.

The defenders on Yanzi Isle hid behind the battlements, watching the Qi army’s noisy dismantling of the ships and the pushing of planks and pieces of wood down to the bottom of Yanzi Isle.

The defenders quickly reported to Zhang Zheng. Zhang Zheng squatted beside the battlements, watched for a while, and then sneered disdainfully.

“They are going to use fire! Using fire to attack a place like Yanzi Isle? That’s a joke!”

“They are truly panicking and making rash decisions. They’ve lost their minds when death is imminent.”

Zhang Zheng retreated and ordered increased vigilance.

The Qi army worked tirelessly for an hour or two. By the time the sun was setting, they had completely dismantled all the boats near the shore. Any boats that could be pushed to Yanzi Isle were pushed across, leaving only bare hulls in the river.

A few soldiers burned some tung oil on the hulls and threw in torches.

Before long, a string of torches lined the riverbank, their flames blazing brightly.

Huang Yanming stood atop the large black rock, shouting fiercely, “Fellow soldiers! We live as heroes, we die as ghosts! We must fight without hesitation! We will fight to the death for our country!”

Led by the commanders and squad leaders, tens of thousands of soldiers roared, “Without hesitation! We will fight to the death for our country!”

On Yanzi Isle, Zhang Zheng squinted at the deafening roar of the Qi army. After a moment, he took a deep breath, turned, and ordered, “The Qi army is going all out, fighting to the death! Prepare plenty of stones and logs, cook in advance, and be prepared!

Tonight, if we hold them off, they will all die; if we cannot, we will all die!”

Below Yanzi Isle, the Qi soldiers also lit fires, set up pots, drew water from the river, and poured their remaining rations into the pots, displaying an air of determination as they ate their last full meal.

Not far from the massive black rock, a squad of soldiers surrounded a large cauldron, each soldier taking turns tossing their remaining dry-fried food into the pot.

Behind the commander was a personal guard carrying a bag of fried noodles, pouring it into each cauldron.

“Eat your fill, just enough. Do not overeat! Overeating will slow you down,” the commander said, observing as he walked, occasionally offering a few words of advice.

A young soldier, leaning against the rock, finished tossing his dry-fried food, sat back down, head bowed, and slowly folded the oiled paper wrapping the food.

“What are you keeping it for? It’s useless,” his older comrade sitting beside him said, taking the paper from his hand and throwing it into the fire.

The flames flared up on the paper, leaping up briefly before subsiding again.

“The general said, ‘Fight to the death for our country.’ So, tonight, are we all going to die?” the young soldier whispered, sidling closer to his older comrade.

“If you do not die tonight, you will die tomorrow night. It’s all the same whether you die sooner or later, so the sooner you die, the less trouble you will have to worry about,” another comrade said resignedly.

“I do not want to die. When I joined the army, my dad and my uncle were soldiers who served for over twenty years, and never fought a battle. I’ve only just started…” The young soldier was on the verge of tears.

“Do not cry; it’s useless. Do not think so much; hurry up and eat.

I am telling you, do not think about anything. Just pretend there’s no war; just pretend it’s regular training. Just watch the captain, follow the captain, stick close, and that’s it.

Look, we’ve been fighting for days, and you’ve always watched the captain and followed the captain, and so far, nothing’s happened, right?

Do not think about anything; just keep your eyes on the captain, keep a close eye on him, and do not worry; nothing will happen!” The older comrade seemed very good at comforting people.

The young soldier looked much better.

As night began to fall, the soldiers finished their meal, and the captains, true to form, grabbed large stones and smashed the cooking pots.

A genuine act of “burning the boats.”

Darkness descended; thick clouds hung in the sky, having shrouded the area for several days in a dark and gloomy expanse.

In the still darkness, a drum suddenly sounded. The young soldiers, shield in hand, immediately rose and formed ranks. After a long while, the soldier closest to him moved, and the young soldier quickly followed, going from walking to running after a dozen paces, his pace increasing rapidly.

Li Sangrou and Qiao An reined in their horses, leading the way, vigilantly surveying their surroundings, and advancing upstream along the river at a pace that the infantry could keep up with.

Five hundred Yunmeng Guards followed behind Li Sangrou and Qiao An, spreading out in a fan shape, like a shield.

Closely following the Yunmeng Guards was the strongest and most physically fit Huaiyang Army’s central force, with the most exhausted vanguard sandwiched in the middle. Huang Yanming, leading his personal guards, watched the last column of soldiers catch up and gestured to his guards, “Go light the fire.”

Two guards, tiptoeing and holding their breath, ran to the pile of logs salvaged from the ship. One guard crawled through the gaps in the logs, then slowly emerged.

Huang Yanming and his rearguard had already run quite a distance. Two guards, running swiftly, caught up with the rest of the guards and rushed to Huang Yanming, reporting in hushed, gleeful voices: “It’s lit.”

Behind the increasingly distant Qi army, the heavy, rhythmic beat of drums continued.