Jinting Han people

Chapter 198 Return to Fenyin (4k)

It's funny to say that the Jin army took three days to march over a hundred miles, but when they were defeated and retreated, they only covered the distance in one day.

Liu Xian and Zhang Guang gathered the remaining soldiers and rushed back, traveling day and night, and finally arrived at the Jin army camp in Fenyin City at dusk the next day.

This journey was incredibly arduous. Just think of the army's previous marches, how impressive and impressive they were. Nearly six thousand sturdy, easy-to-use horses were dispatched from Chang'an, not to mention the various pack horses and mares led by reins. The horses' backs were laden with helmets, full-body armor, long spears, ring-handled swords, and arrows of all shapes and sizes, including armor-piercing and whistling arrows. The pack horses also trembled with the sheer volume of wheat, millet, and rice, along with replacement clothing, fodder, kitchen utensils, and everything else.

Now they were covered in wounds, exhausted both physically and mentally. Their baggage was gone, their bows and quivers were incomplete, and without their packhorses, most of the companion horses they had used for replacements had also been lost. Sometimes the knights had to take turns riding each horse.

But the worst was hunger and thirst. Water was easy enough; Liu Xian and his men could still fetch it from the Fen River. But food was a problem. Nearly all the refugees along the way had fled, leaving them with nowhere to resupply. Fortunately, they encountered a persimmon grove halfway, ripe as they were, so the soldiers each shared two. Even so, by the time they reached Fenyin, their legs were weak, their eyes glowed green with hunger, and their stomachs were practically boiling with acid.

Fortunately, the Fenyin camp, the starting point for the Jin army's supply, was still in operation. By the time Liu Xian and Zhang Guang rushed back, Sun Xiu, Li Han, Beigong Chun, Bai Yun and the others had already fled back, and there were probably three to four thousand remaining soldiers.

The camp happened to be cooking a fire, just millet porridge or something. When everyone smelled the delicious aroma, they were instantly driven mad with hunger. They quickly dropped their weapons, threw off their armor, and swarmed like locusts into the cook's camp to grab the food. For a moment, everyone was scrambling for food, and the usual discipline and order were gone.

As an official, Liu Xian certainly ate better, but it was only three pancakes and a bowl of milk, nothing compared to the fine wine and meat he had enjoyed when he set out. However, few complained. After a hard battle, surviving was a blessing. Many people didn't dare to think about how many men and horses had been killed on the battlefield.

After the soldiers drank a belly full of water and porridge, the mental fatigue became even more difficult to bear. They each found a place in the barracks and lay down to fall asleep. For a while, the Fenyin camp was filled with the sound of soldiers' snoring.

After finishing his meal, Liu Xian didn't rest immediately. Instead, he went to the well to wash his face. It was already Mid-Autumn Festival, and the chill of the well water penetrated his bones. When it splashed on his face, Liu Xian groaned, and his previously numb consciousness regained some clarity.

By this time, the sky had completely darkened, the moonlight shining down, bringing a sense of tranquility to the bustling camp. Liu Xian didn't dare sleep, so he lit a torch and wanted to go see how many wounded soldiers he had brought back with him were and their current conditions. Unexpectedly, just as he was about to leave, Li Sheng stopped him.

"My Lord, you've been busy all day and all night, why don't you take a rest?"

Li Sheng had obviously just washed himself, cleaning off all the dirt on his face and body. He changed into a loose, dark-colored Confucian robe and said to Liu Xian:

"My Lord, if you have time, I have something to tell you."

"Oh?" Liu Xian was stunned at first, and then he became curious. Li Sheng was usually a taciturn person. Except when he told him to do something, he seldom took the initiative to talk to him. Unexpectedly, after losing the battle this time, Li Sheng would act out of character. What did he want to say?

Liu Xian said, "If you have anything to say, Binshuo, just tell me directly."

Li Sheng didn't say it directly. Instead, he looked around and said to Liu Xian, "It's not convenient here with so many people. Let's talk inside the tent."

This made Liu Xian even more curious. They entered the tent and after closing the door curtain, he lit the candle. When they faced each other, Li Sheng whispered to Liu Xian, "My lord, do you think we can still fight this battle?"

Liu Xian pondered for a moment and analyzed, "We brought back over 3,000 people, and over 3,000 people have also returned to the camp. I estimate that some more people will escape and return in the next two days. If we gather some more remnants, I estimate that we still have over 10,000 troops. Although the rebels won, I think they also suffered heavy casualties. We can still fight against the enemy army."

At this point, Liu Xian also felt that the chances of winning were not very high, so he retreated and said, "If this is not reliable enough, our army can also hold the camp and confront the enemy, and then transfer troops from Chang'an. This way, the chances of winning can be restored to 70% or 80%.

Unexpectedly, Li Sheng shook his head decisively and said, "No! My Lord, we absolutely cannot fight this battle now!"

"Hmm? Why does Binshuo look at it like that?"

"Sun Xiu's abandonment of the army has completely destroyed the morale of the troops. As long as he remains in command, how can the troops feel at ease? If he continues to shamelessly sit in the army, there's no way we can win!"

Liu Xian was speechless when faced with the question raised by Li Sheng. He pondered for a moment before continuing, "Bin Shuo is indeed right. This is indeed a problem. However, after suffering this loss, we can force Sun Xiu to give up his power. Although Sun Xiu has various problems, he is a smart man and will compromise."

Li Sheng showed an expression of "as expected". It seemed that he had guessed what Liu Xian would say. He retorted:
"My Lord, this may be possible, but we cannot make such an estimate. You are a person who wants to accomplish great things. When necessary, you still have to place the hope of success on yourself, not on others, especially a villain like Sun Xiu!"

"What does Binshuo mean?"

Li Sheng's voice was already very low, and now it became even lower, with only the sound of airflow, but Liu Xian still heard it clearly. What he said was:
"The barracks are now in disarray, morale is unstable, the situation is chaotic, and the soldiers hate him to the core. He probably has few defenses around him. My lord, you might as well draw your sword and kill him now!"

Liu Xian was startled and immediately looked up at Li Sheng, who nodded firmly. "My lord, think about it carefully. Sun Xiu hates you to the core and has repeatedly tried to harm you. Has he given up now? This is a golden opportunity! Let's strike first and kill him! Afterwards, we can collude with Zhang Junsi's subordinates and say he died in the chaos. No one will stand up for him!"

"Then, you can join forces with the generals to win this battle. No one will hide your contribution, and then you can divide the money looted by the rebels. Revenge, merit, and wealth, all accomplished at once. It's like killing three birds with one stone!"

Hearing this, Liu Xian couldn't help but look at Li Sheng with a new perspective and exclaimed, "Bin Shuo, Bin Shuo! I had no idea you had such talent..."

Li Sheng lowered his head and smiled, "My Lord, when we first met, I should have said that among my six brothers, my five elder brothers are all proficient in the righteous way."

"..."

"I'm good at scheming and plotting, and I knew my lord wouldn't like it, so I kept it to myself." Li Sheng advised Liu Xian again, "But now is indeed a good time to strangle the venomous snake! My lord, this is a fight for life and death. How can you be soft-hearted and ignore the overall situation?"

Liu Xian hesitated for a moment, then smiled bitterly and said, "Bin Shuo, how could I be soft on Sun Xiu?"

"But in the current situation, Sun Xiu is the de facto ruler of Guanzhong. He's just suffered a defeat and is still replenishing his food and fodder. If I kill him, who will provide supplies for the rear?" "The King of Zhao is still in Chang'an. He and Sun Xiu have been in cahoots for years. If they were to investigate now and disrupt the rear, what would we do? The entire Guanzhong region might not be in chaos, but Hedong and Xiayang would definitely be finished!"

"By then, am I going to abandon these old people in Hedong and flee directly to Shuzhong? This is simply impossible!"

But these words did not convince Li Sheng. He continued to argue, "My Lord, this is nothing to worry about. Even the waters of the four seas cannot harm Sun Xiu..."

Unexpectedly, before he could finish his words, he heard footsteps outside the tent, and he immediately shut up. Liu Xian went out to see who was there. It turned out to be several of Sun Xiu's guards. They said to Liu Xian, "Lord Liu, Sun Changshi has summoned all officers above the sixth rank to his tent for a meeting."

This military order also ended the argument with Li Sheng about Sun Xiu. The two looked at each other and couldn't help but think helplessly: Even in the chaotic situation after the defeat, Sun Xiu attached great importance to his own safety and didn't reveal any flaws.

Liu Xian immediately said goodbye to Li Sheng, picked up his sword, and left alone with the guards. Sun Xiu's tent was now brightly lit. Liu Xian entered and was amused. Everyone was there, though all looked dusty and dejected. This was especially true for someone like Li Han, who was once so meticulously organized and spotless. His beard and hair were now unkempt, stained with mud, like a stray dog, his elegance completely gone.

Sun Xiu's appearance was even more comical. He must have been in a hurry to get away, but he didn't ride much on weekdays, so his buttocks were rubbed raw. Now he sat with his legs spread apart, unable to close them at all, as if he had been toyed with by someone.

In addition, it is worth mentioning that Zhang Fang was quickly promoted to the position of military commander due to his merit of killing generals on the battlefield, and can also attend this meeting.

Li Ju saw Liu Xian coming in and hurried over to greet him, "Brother, you weren't injured in the battle, were you?"

"Haha, that's okay. I should be the one asking you this."

Li Ju glanced at Sun Xiu angrily, then lowered his head and said, "To be honest, I was not able to stop the enemy in the central army..."

"This isn't Shihui's fault..."

Before Liu Xian finished speaking, Sun Xiu coughed twice, asking him to stop immediately. He then said to everyone:
"Thinking carefully about this defeat, it was the result of our lack of planning before the battle. I hope you will all remember this lesson and take it to heart."

As soon as Sun Xiu opened his mouth, Liu Xian couldn't help but feel a sincere admiration: he was able to so shamelessly erase his own mistakes and throw the responsibility to the generals. Sun Xiu really had a special talent, which he could never do anyway.

Li Han and his men had originally intended to fight a couple of unsuccessful battles to put pressure on Sun Xiu. They hadn't expected Sun Xiu to simply sell out his entire army, forcing all of them to flee with him. This was truly a talent beyond imagination.

But no one could do anything to him, because he was the Chief of the Western Expedition appointed by the court and the commander-in-chief of the army. If the court did not take him down, no one would care even if he lost a hundred battles.

Liu Xian looked over and saw that all the generals present had a numb look on their faces. They were obviously frustrated by Sun Xiu's move and could only listen to him continue his outburst.
"But victory and defeat are common in war. Even a brave man like Xiang Yu suffered defeat at Gaixia, and a strategist like the Emperor Wu of Wei suffered the loss of Wancheng. Looking back, our defeat was only a loss of two or three thousand men, a minor one."

“But this may not be a bad thing.”

"Our army, despite defeat, remains undeterred and will surely seek revenge, while the enemy, brimming with pride and arrogance, will inevitably become arrogant and conceited. With this weakening and strengthening, I see our army having a better chance of victory!"

Liu Xian found it difficult to control his expression when he heard that such a funeral was being celebrated as a happy occasion. He quickly lowered his head, making his face look even more solemn.

The expressions of the others were similar. They seemed to have a thousand words to say, but when they saw Sun Xiu's smug look, they swallowed the words back.

Sun Xiu continued, "I plan to rest for five days before engaging the enemy in a decisive battle. What do you think?"

Upon hearing this, Li Han quickly advised, "Sun Changshi, the soldiers have been running wildly for nearly two hundred miles and have only just returned to Fenyin. They've lost a lot of arrows and baggage. With only five days to rest, I'm afraid they won't be able to recover!"

Li Han was speaking sincerely at this time. He certainly didn't want to share the credit with Sun Xiu, but he didn't want to have more failures on his resume. He still hoped that the war could be quelled next.

But Sun Xiu was too lazy to care about these things. He just wanted to lose another battle, let those who didn't listen to him die, and then he could transfer some of his own people to the rebels. At worst, he could just pile up the rebels and kill them alive. So he was very tough and said directly:

"Ha, Li Congshi, don't try to boost the rebels' morale! Who says the soldiers can't adjust? I, Sun Xiu, am just a Taoist priest. I rarely touch a sword, but now, just thinking about defeating the enemy and defeating the rebels, my blood is boiling. Could it be that your passion for serving the country is not as strong as mine?!"

"..." These words really stumped Li Han. He really didn't know why Sun Xiu was so excited.

Of course, Sun Xiu also knew that he couldn't push the generals too hard, so he added:
"I don't care what methods you use, and I won't interfere. I'll give you whatever you have now. Anyway, in five days, you must go out and fight this battle! The whole world is watching. Are we, the Western Expedition Army, going to become the laughing stock of the Nine Provinces? Before Mid-Autumn Festival, we must give the court an explanation! Otherwise, I will put you all to military law!"

After saying that, he said no more and walked out of the tent, leaving everyone in the tent looking at each other in bewilderment.

Liu Xian thought: If there really is a chance, I will definitely kill Sun Xiu.

Beigong Chun covered his forehead with his hands. He had probably never seen such a scene before. After a long pause, he said to everyone, "In that case, five days is five days. Let's just make do with it. At least there's no one to direct us."

After that, everyone present began to plan according to the map despite their sleepiness.

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(End of this chapter)