Jinting Han people

Chapter 510 The Battle of Wei River (Part 1)
After the previous frontal assault, the Western Expeditionary Army realized that a direct attack on the Hedong Army's main camp was probably not a good strategy.

Although Liu Xian deployed only about 5,000 troops in Weinan, the existence of three Wei River bridges allowed him to easily change the defenses of his Weinan camp. The distinction between Weinan and Weibei only applied to the General Who Conquers the West, who could not cross the river. For Liu Xian's camp layout, it was essentially a unified defensive system, practically a city spanning the Wei River from north to south.

Yan Ding analyzed this, saying that these three small fortifications in Weinan were like wing fortifications in a city defense, specifically designed to wear down the enemy's forces.

A winged city is a small city jutting out from the main city, named for its resemblance to wings. While seemingly isolated, a winged city can actually receive support from the main city at any time. This allows the defenders to tie down enemy forces several times their size with only a small force. Even if the attackers capture a winged city, they cannot breach the defenders' main defenses and must continue advancing, giving the defenders another opportunity to counterattack.

Compared to ordinary fortified cities, Liu Xian's deployment was more complicated. Normally, attacking a city with a winged fort doesn't preclude simultaneously attacking the other cities without winged forts; the attacker can employ a multi-pronged attack strategy, overwhelming the defender. However, now that Liu Xian controlled all three Wei River bridges, and the Western Army lacked a way to cross the river, they had no choice but to grit their teeth and attack these three small fortified cities.
The result was exactly as had happened before. Even though the Western Army had the advantage in every aspect, they were unable to capture the camp and suffered heavy casualties.

During the truce, the Western Expeditionary Army Command had been discussing how to deal with this difficult problem. Several strategies were offered, each with its own merits. Now, the time had finally come to implement them.

That morning, the sky was clear, a pristine blue without a single cloud, and the sun shone brightly overhead. The warm sunlight streamed down, causing the surging Wei River to churn with countless golden sparks. But then, a north wind howled, the summer heat dissipated, and the temperature suddenly dropped. The soldiers had already donned fur coats, and they could occasionally see flocks of wild geese flying by, disappearing into the distant, majestic Qinling Mountains, leaving only the rustling of fallen leaves. In the blink of an eye, it was already Mid-Autumn Festival.

At this moment, Zhang Guang was patrolling the camp at Xilei in Weinan when he saw some soldiers gathered on the Wei Bridge, seemingly discussing something among themselves. He couldn't help but feel curious and asked Liu Yi beside him, "What are they talking about? Do you know?"

Liu Yi was his old subordinate. They had fought side by side against the Qiang tribes in Malan Mountain years ago and had become sworn brothers. Therefore, when he later sent troops to support the court, Liu Yi was the first person he thought of. Now that Liu Yi had returned to Guanzhong with Liu Xian, he had been reassigned to Zhang Guang's command.

Liu Yi glanced into the distance and saw several familiar faces. He replied, "My lord, they are probably discussing the military ranks that the marshal has been reassigning this time."

"Military rank?" Zhang Guang responded with an "oh." In this world, what people seek is nothing more than wealth and status. Liu Xian's reorganization of the army was tantamount to a tacit indication of the current status of different personnel within his power. It was understandable that the soldiers were discussing this.

He said, "What's there to discuss?"

Liu Yi said, "Everyone is indignant on behalf of you, Lord Ming. You have a connection with the Marshal and thought you could benefit from it and get promoted a couple of ranks. But you've ended up being ranked the same as those scheming people like Wei Bo. It's really infuriating."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Guang was greatly displeased and rebuked him, saying, "What kind of talk is this! Are you speaking up for me? Are you just expressing your own grievances? With a formidable enemy at hand and the crisis not yet over, you're already discussing these things? Do you think we've already won?"

"Go and arrest the one who led the conversation, give him a good whipping, and then tell them that the marshal has sent word that the Western Army will soon be fighting again. Wealth and honor are earned through one's own hard work and fighting. If you are truly capable, be the first to go into battle and kill the enemy. What kind of man complains here? If the marshal withholds their credit when the time comes, I will take responsibility for them!"

Since he said so, Liu Yi dared not delay and quickly led his soldiers over to disperse the crowd gathered on the Wei Bridge. Although Zhang Guang was kind, he was strict in disciplining his troops and extremely unforgiving. When the soldiers heard that he was coming, they scattered like sheep. Only a few leaders remained, who were tied up by Liu Yi and publicly whipped.

At this moment, Zhang Guang's two sons, Zhang Wen and Zhang Yuan, were by his side. They were both adults and brave warriors who charged into battle in the army. Seeing this, they both felt that their father was making a mountain out of a molehill. Zhang Yuan said cautiously, "Sir, this is not a big deal. Military discipline requires a combination of kindness and severity, focusing on the major issues and letting go of the minor ones. You are being far too harsh."

Zhang Guang scratched his head and sighed, "Normally, I wouldn't care, but we're in the middle of a major battle. How can we relax for even a moment? Last time, I was too soft-hearted and agreed to help Wei Jun ask the marshal for permission to fight. As a result, we lost several thousand men for nothing. Wasn't that a terrible outcome?"

"Moreover, the army is newly established, and this is the time for mutual restraint. If such remarks are allowed to spread, it will cause infighting among colleagues, which will greatly affect morale. How can we then fight side by side on the battlefield?"

His earnest teachings were well received by Zhang Wen and his companion. Coincidentally, just as they were discussing the war, troops were once again dispatched from Chang'an.

Facing the biting north wind, nearly 100,000 Western Army soldiers filed out of the city and spread out in a battle line stretching for more than ten miles north of Chang'an. Soon, the war drums thundered incessantly, and the people of Hedong could see them arrayed in front of their respective camps in Weinan. However, this time, unlike before, they did not distribute their soldiers evenly in front of the three camps, but instead presented a formation with a heavier force in the west and a lighter force in the east.

As a seasoned general, Zhang Guang immediately began to speculate on the enemy's intentions: After the lesson learned last time, the Western Army probably believed that attacking three camps simultaneously was not enough to fully demonstrate their numerical superiority. It would be better to concentrate their forces, break through one camp first, and recapture the Wei Bridge one by one, gaining inch by inch. Although it might not be enough to win in one fell swoop, it would be more prudent.

This was indeed a good idea, and if Zhang Guang were still the opposing general, he would probably have taken the same action. But for him, now the commander of the Western Fortress, it was not good news, as it meant that the Western Army's offensive against him would be unprecedentedly fierce.

Fortunately, Zhang Guang was never one to lack courage. The rebellion of Qi Wannian back then was far worse than the current situation. At that time, all the other allied forces were wiped out, and he was in Malan Mountain, leading a mere few hundred men, yet he was besieged by Qiang people many times his size. Cut off from all communication, he was completely unaware of the changes in Guanzhong. What despair that must have been! Even so, Zhang Guang refused to surrender. His loyalty and courage were once compared to that of Geng Gong reborn.

Seeing that the Western Army was about to launch an attack, he gave orders to Liu Xian while simultaneously ordering his soldiers to form ranks in the camp. As for the officers he had just ordered to be whipped, he comforted them and had them fight alongside Zhang Yuan and Zhang Wen, to show his closeness and ease their resentment.

He encouraged his soldiers once again: "If we can hold on and win, what are mere riches and honors worth? If we can be remembered for a thousand years and die a worthy death, even losing our lives will be like ascending to heaven!"

Then, pointing to the Westerners who were about to complete their formation not far away, he jokingly belittled them, saying, "The enemy thinks that they can win because they have more people, but they don't know that no matter how many pigs and sheep they have, they can't beat our tiger and wolf army!"

Seeing Zhang Guang's composed demeanor, the previously somewhat agitated Zhaowu soldiers immediately calmed down, preparing for the upcoming battle with a more composed attitude. However, unexpectedly, after assembling their ranks, the Western Army did not immediately charge into battle. Instead, they first pulled out a group of well-dressed men and led them to the western fortress. The leader called out, "Gentlemen, I am Pei Feng, the newly appointed clerk of Xinping. Does anyone recognize me?"

Most of the soldiers were former soldiers from the Yongzhou army, and many recognized Pei Feng. Hearing the voice, they looked up and were astonished to find that the newcomer was indeed Pei Feng. Not only was he alive, but his complexion was ruddy, and he was in excellent spirits. He rode a tall horse, wearing a fiery red fox fur coat, and addressed the crowd:

"Gentlemen, after I was captured in the Battle of Bacheng, the Grand Commandant not only did not blame me, but also personally released me and comforted me greatly. Only then did Pei Feng realize that there were many misunderstandings between us and the Grand Commandant. The Grand Commandant is truly a loyal minister of the court! He eliminated the King of Zhao, attacked the King of Qi, and quelled the usurpation of the King of Changsha, all for the sake of the country! He had absolutely no selfish motives!"

"Gentlemen, do you know that the Grand Commandant has already appointed me as the Prefect of Anding? If you were to defect and join me, you would be promoted and given titles. Why fight to the death for Liu Xian? He is nothing but a traitor to the court, while you all receive salaries from the court!"

After saying this, he didn't stop, but repeated it again and again, shouting loudly. The soldiers of Xilei couldn't help but tremble, and even Zhang Guang thought to himself, "This is bad." He hadn't expected that the Western Expeditionary Army Command would actually resort to psychological warfare!

No matter how absurd and ridiculous Pei Feng's words were, most of the soldiers couldn't understand them. All they could see was that the captured Pei Feng was indeed standing alive before them, not only alive but also promoted. Since ancient times, the lure of profit has been most tempting. If the army had retained its previous Yongzhou military structure, many of his former subordinates would likely have immediately defected to Pei Feng without further explanation.

Thanks to the reorganization a few days ago, a considerable number of soldiers from different backgrounds were mixed together. Although the original Yongzhou soldiers caused some unrest, they did not dare to act rashly under the reprimands of officers at all levels, and quickly calmed down.

But this wasn't a solution, Zhang Guang thought. If he couldn't kill Pei Feng and get rid of this traitor, the morale of the army would still not be boosted. However, Pei Feng was extremely experienced; standing outside the firing range, it was almost impossible to hit him with an ordinary bow and arrow.

Fortunately, Liu Yi, who was beside him, was an archer who could draw a three-stone bow. So, Zhang Guang turned to him in a low voice and asked, "At a distance of two hundred paces, are you confident that you can hit him?"

Liu Yi squinted and examined Pei Feng, who was still shouting in the distance, and estimated, "My lord, I can shoot at this distance, but I can't control the bow's strength, so I'm afraid I won't be able to hit the target."

Zhang Guang felt disappointed, but unexpectedly, the clerk Jin Miao asked, "What if we used crossbows instead? We have ten long-armed crossbows here, all sent by the Northern Expeditionary Army, which can fire three hundred paces."

Liu Yi made no promises. Instead, he took the crossbow and bolts, examined them closely, and then moved to the camp's fence without uttering a sound. After squinting for a moment, he marked a mark on the fence with a pebble, then set down the crossbow, cranked the handle, and drew the string fully. Finally, he loaded the bolt, placed the crossbow at the marked mark, and suddenly pulled the trigger.

Compared to ordinary crossbow bolts, this one was two sizes thicker. In an instant, the bolt shot out, flashing through the air like a black streak, clearly visible to everyone. However, this bolt was faster than anyone could imagine; before people even realized it, it had already successfully penetrated the ground.

Pei Feng was stunned for a moment, and then he noticed that his chest felt wet. Looking down, he discovered that there was a large hole in his chest, and blood was flowing out like a spring. Before he could even think about it, his body curled up and he involuntarily fell to the ground.

The entire place fell silent, then someone shouted, "May the traitor die a horrible death!"

Immediately, a group of people roared like thunder: "May the traitor die!"

The Western Army paled at the news. They had clearly not expected that this psychological warfare tactic would fail to achieve any effect and instead boost the enemy's morale.

At this moment, within the Western Army's ranks, the generals in charge of the battle were discussing among themselves, expressing great dissatisfaction with the situation. However, some were pleased; for example, Diao Mo gloated to Yan Ding, "Military Advisor, it seems your first strategy wasn't very effective!"

After Li Han's death, Diao Mo originally thought he would become the second-in-command of the Western Army, but unexpectedly Yan Ding suddenly appeared, which inevitably aroused his jealousy. Faced with Diao Mo's sarcasm, Yan Ding seemed to ignore him. He did not say a word and turned to Zhang Fu and said, "Lord Zhang, since the psychological warfare has failed, you should take command of the battle."

After the Battle of Bacheng, Zhang Fu's reputation had rebounded, making him the perfect choice for commanding the battle now. Upon being given this important position, Zhang Fu didn't say much. He simply laughed and readily agreed, "This is my duty. However, regarding capturing the fortress head-on, Commander, don't have too high expectations."

Yan Ding nodded slightly and said with a smile, "Of course I know that. We have other strategies, but as the art of war says, 'In all battles, one engages with the orthodox and wins with the unorthodox.' It also says, 'The variations of orthodox and unorthodox tactics are inexhaustible.' To defeat Liu the rebel, unorthodox strategies are indispensable, as are orthodox troops. For our strategies to be effective, we also need your frontal assault!"

"When do you plan to use this tactic again after joining the army?"

“Tonight.” Yan Ding’s gaze fell on the shimmering Wei River, and he quickly added, “Even if it doesn’t work out tonight, we have another night. Our plans are linked one after another. I don’t believe he can withstand it.”

Yan Ding was, after all, an arrogant man. Though he achieved success relatively late, his ambitions were sky-high. In Qin Prefecture, he had never encountered a worthy opponent, not even the former Chief Secretary of the Prince of Hejian, Li Han, whom he treated with indifference. Now that Li Han was dead and he was given a high position, how could he make a name for himself and achieve great things if he didn't defeat Liu Xian? Therefore, winning this battle was not only the Prince of Hejian's wish, but also Yan Ding's.

The sun shone brightly, and as the rhythm of the war drums changed, the large and small military formations began to move. The soldiers raised their ring-pommel swords high, and in the warm autumn light, the cold blades gleamed, creating ripples of light.

(End of this chapter)