Red Mansion: Picking up a Lin Daiyu

Chapter 126: Attack Guangning Again
As time went by, the army led by the King of Qin was gradually moving forward. If they could conquer Guangning City, the Liaoxi Corridor would be under their control.

This laid a solid foundation for the subsequent advancement. With such forts and camps, the food supply route would be secure.

Eyidu, the Jurchen commander stationed in Guangning City, was no fool. Being well versed in military tactics, he prepared to send troops to attack as soon as he received the news that the King of Qin was building a fort. He did not want to let the King of Qin have such an easy time, so he stored the artillery less than 40 miles away from the city.

The elite Jurchen cavalry set out, with 500 armored cavalry in the center as the backbone, and light cavalry harassing on both sides. Their goal was to burn down Daxing Fort, which was closest to Guangning City, and buy time for their own construction fortifications.

Upon hearing the news of the Jurchen invasion, the King of Qin responded quickly, personally selecting two thousand black-armored soldiers and three thousand light cavalry, and dispatched all the elite cavalry he brought with him. Then he used mule carts to pull cannons, guarded by a chariot camp, and rushed to Daxing Fort together.

However, things did not go as planned. The King of Qin handled everything very well, fully demonstrating the qualities of a seasoned border commander. However, due to overwork and old illness, he collapsed under his horse in battle.

During the war, the King of Qin, who had an extremely strong will, was able to stay awake and continue to command the battle even after falling off his horse.

"I'm fine. Don't gather around me. Keep the formation steady. There's no need to retreat. If the cavalry charges, there will be chaos once they turn around. Hold the line first!"

The King of Qin took a few deep breaths, and his face was stained abnormally red and purple. He did not look like he was okay.

After a fierce battle, the former general Liu Qianhu, who led the troops, came to the side of the King of Qin and said, "Your Highness, the front line is safe. I will take you back to the city first."

The King of Qin frowned, took off his water bag, took a few sips of wine, calmed down for a few breaths, and then said, "Help me get on the horse again, and don't let me leave!"

After returning to Ningyuan City, the King of Qin slept soundly for a while, and when he woke up it was already dark.

What he saw were all the generals and officers guarding the city, sitting on the floor in the house. They were all silent, just waiting for him to wake up.

The King of Qin felt a little pain in his body and tried to move, but he was powerless. He gave up the idea of ​​sitting up for the time being and asked the generals below, "Daxing Fort, how is it?"

Hearing the voice, the soldiers were extremely surprised and stood up to salute the King of Qin.

Captain Liu, who brought the King of Qin back to Ningyuan City, said, "Reporting to Your Highness, our army fought bravely and repelled the invading enemy. We beheaded more than 300 enemies, injured 1,000 enemies, and seized hundreds of weapons and armor. Our army lost more than 100 people, which can be called a great victory. Daxing Fort was not affected, and people have been sent to continue digging deeper trenches to prevent the Jurchens from harassing us. In about five days, Daxing Fort will be able to take shape."

The King of Qin slowly let out a sigh of relief. Seeing Yin Taihe and Yan Song's eyes red below, he comforted them and said, "I am fine. I have just been working too hard recently and was jolted by the horse. I slipped and fell off the horse. I will be fine after a few days of rest."

"What a joke! I have been a soldier for half my life, but I fell off my horse in the middle of a battle and almost caused a disaster. Alas."

"Forget it. I will rest for a few more days. After the Daxing Fort is built, I will lead the army to the battle. Before that, Yin Tai and you will lead the entire army. You must be cautious and don't rush into anything."

Yin Taihe wiped the moisture from his eyes and bowed to the ground, "Your Majesty, I obey your command."

……

On the fourth day of the winter month, the King of Qin had been recuperating for nearly ten days, but still had not recovered.

In the meeting hall of Ningyuan City, Yin Taihe discussed countermeasures with the generals and soldiers.

"The military physician treated His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. His foundation is damaged and it is difficult to replenish it. If he wants to stay in bed, he must recuperate for at least three months. The activities of the Jurchens have become more frequent recently. The rebel general Geng Bingwen is also sending troops to Guangning City for support. The Jurchens have even built an outpost fortress in front of the city. If we miss the opportunity again, I am afraid it will be difficult to capture Guangning City."

"If Guangning City is not taken, our throat will be blocked. We cannot advance into the heart of Liaodong. When will we be able to wipe out the rebels and return to the court?"

"I just received another report from the capital. The Northern Barbarians have already lined up outside Zijing Pass and will march to the capital soon. If this continues, it will be detrimental to the capital."

Yin Taihe distributed the battle report to all the soldiers for review, and everyone looked unhappy.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince has great trust in Yue Ling and has no doubt about his ability, but I will tell you the truth. How can someone who has never really experienced the battlefield command a large army of hundreds of thousands of people? Moreover, he is facing 100,000 Wala cavalry. Even if he can hold out for three months, it would be considered a meritorious service in defending the city. To be fair, if it were you, who could defend the city for a year or two?"

"So, we must make a breakthrough here. That is, we must capture Guangning City, defend Guangning and Ningyuan, and build a few forts. The rest of the troops will return to the court, which will not hinder the next expedition to Liaodong. When His Highness was sober, he also wanted to capture Guangning City as soon as possible. Why should we delay any longer?"

All the generals agreed with Yin Taihe's opinion. Yan Song, the garrison commander of Shanhaiguan, suggested, "Now that the Jurchens are also strengthening their fortifications, why don't we build another fort 20 miles in front of Daxing Fort as a temporary garrison? There will be a place to store artillery and gunpowder, and we don't have to worry about being harassed by the Jurchen cavalry outposts while marching."

"Repair the fort! Repair the fort! Repair the fort! We have done nothing else while His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has been bedridden!"

Yin Taihe pointed out the window, feeling angry. "While we were building the fort, were the Jurchens idle? The walls of Guangning City have been built up to more than two meters high. Now the power of our artillery will be reduced. If we wait any longer, we don't know how much thicker and higher the walls will be!"

Yan Song knew that Yin Taihe always had a hot temper, but because he was of a lower rank than him, he still calmly considered and said: "Now, we'd better wait for His Royal Highness the King of Qin to wake up and ask for instructions before sending troops. If we rush out and attack the city, if we lose, the consequences will be disastrous."

"General Yin, there is no need to rush ahead and take risks. Now is the time to take steady steps. There will be plenty of opportunities to fight the enemy in the wilderness and achieve the feat of beheading them in the future."

The words of greed and recklessness were like stepping on Yin Taihe's tail. Yin Taihe immediately slammed the table and stood up, furious, pointing at Yan Song and said: "Are you the general or am I the general? His Highness is drowsy every day, how can he ask for instructions? You are wasting the opportunity to fight. If we wait, the enemy will only increase in number, and our food and supplies will only be consumed more and more!"

Looking at Yan Song in front of him, Yue Ling's appearance somehow appeared in his mind again.

“Only the generals who are buried in the ground can lie on the list of merits.”

"When the general wins the military honor next time, I will respect him. Before that, please respect me..."

The two sentences seemed to be engraved in Yin Taihe's bones and could not be erased from his mind.

"Tomorrow, I will lead the troops to fight. You just need to defend your city. If I capture the city, you will be credited with the achievement. If I lose, I will bear all the blame alone!"

Yan Song, who had a good temper, couldn't help himself at this moment. He also stood up and looked at Yin Taihe and said, "General Yin, can you not be so reckless? I have no objection to you leading the troops to the battle, but I think we need to make more preparations."

"Besides, if we fail, how will you bear the blame? His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is still lying here sick, do you want to put him in danger? Now is the time for us to do something wrong, not to seek credit!"

Seeing that the two were about to quarrel and start fighting, all the soldiers rushed forward and separated them.

While pulling Yan Song out, he pushed Yin Taihe back to his seat.

"Don't pull me in. I have to give this old soldier two slaps today to wake him up! What's going on? He still has his eyes on merits and responsibilities. Can this be summed up in one word?"

"General Yan, please say less. General Yin is also considering the overall situation. The war in the capital is indeed tense..."

Yan Song's shouting and cursing disappeared. Yin Taihe slowly exhaled and said to the people around him: "The plan remains unchanged. We will still attack Guangning City in two days. I can't mobilize your highness's black armored army, but the three thousand elite light cavalry must protect the flanks of our march and resist the enemy cavalry."

"Pass the order down, prepare your troops and horses, and set out in two days."

"As ordered."

At that moment, another soldier came to the hall to deliver a message.

"General, an envoy from Goryeo."

"Goryeo?"

Yin Taihe looked around at everyone, "Did your highness ever mention anything about Goryeo?"

Everyone shook their heads and said they didn't know.

Yin Taihe frowned and said, "Please come in first."

"Yes."

After a while, envoys from Goryeo came to the hall to meet the emperor.

"Greetings, General Yin. When we entered the city, we learned that the Crown Prince was seriously ill. We were deeply saddened. I wonder how the Crown Prince is doing now? Is he getting better?"

Yin Taihe said calmly: "The situation is stable at the moment, nothing serious is happening."

The Goryeo envoy prayed again and said to Yin Taihe: "General Yin, our Goryeo has been suffering from the invasion of the Jurchens for many years, and the people are living in dire straits. The land routes are now blocked by the Jurchens, so we got together two ships and sailed across the ocean to come here. On the ships are some of our supplies, all of which are some tributes to the crown prince and the Great Chang army."

A soldier came to Yin Taihe's ear and whispered, "General Yin, we have checked. There is only fodder and a few boxes of gunpowder on the ship, which are used for the small cannons on their ship. Their weapons are limited to the swords on each of them. They are not a big threat to us."

Yin Taihe's expression eased a little, and he said to the Goryeo envoy, "What was the agreement between you and His Highness before?"

The Goryeo envoy hurriedly said, "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has asked us to raise troops to fight the enemy at the border with the Jianzhou Jurchens, and to harass Helan City and several large cities in Jianzhou. We have also sent troops. We are just waiting for the royal army to conquer the north and work with us to eliminate this scourge of the Jurchens."

Yin Taihe knew the purpose of the envoys' visit, so he said to those around him, "Arrange a place for them to stay, let them recuperate for a few days, and then let them return home."

　thirteen

　　
　
(End of this chapter)