Tiger Guards

Chapter 612 Unrest on the Western Front
Liangzhou, Jincheng.

Han Sui defended the city, and banners bearing imperial edicts to suppress the rebels were erected at various points on the city walls.

Outside Jincheng, Zhang He, Yang Qiu, and Zhu Ling's armies each chose their own locations to set up camp, without affecting each other.

Zhang Xiu was ordered to plunder the four commanderies of Hexi. Along the way, he recruited and conscripted brave men from both Han and Hu tribes, and frequently transferred these newly recruited troops to the front lines in Jincheng to dispel Grand Tutor Zhao's doubts.

These new recruits, recruited by Zhang Xiu, came to the Jincheng front as auxiliary soldiers to participate in camp construction and trench digging.

More than 5,000 people dug day and night and have dug a trench five feet deep and seven feet wide outside Jincheng. The excavated sand and soil were piled up around the trench to serve as a secondary obstacle.

The weather turned cold, making digging difficult.

Combined with the existing irrigation canals outside Jincheng, once the excavation is completed, water from the Yellow River can be diverted to flush the canals.

Alternatively, the city could be surrounded without connecting to the Yellow River, using only simple trenches and sand barriers.

Zhang He climbed the nearest mountain ridge and looked down at the siege fortifications.

Outside the city's fortifications, latitude and longitude lines had been set up, with a wooden stake driven into the ground every fifty paces. Flagpoles were tied to these stakes, with red flags for latitude lines and blue flags for longitude lines.

The crisscrossing red and blue flags clearly marked the distance to the outside of Jincheng.

It was also by relying on these lines of latitude and longitude that Zhang He created a very accurate sand table.

Zhang He preferred to climb to a high vantage point to observe the situation rather than use a sand table.

He stood on high ground, studying the measurement techniques of Grand Marshal Zhao, clenching his fist and raising his thumb to measure distances.

Just as Zhang He was measuring the distance, Zhu Ling led his guards up the mountain.

At this time, Zhang He's guards had already taken out curtains and set up tents, with the tent doors facing the direction of Jincheng.

Zhu Ling remained silent and walked a dozen steps away from Zhang He.

After finishing the distance measurement, Zhang He took out his leather-bound notebook with embossed lettering and recorded the results and some of his thoughts.

After the ink had dried completely, Zhang He carefully put away the notebook that the Grand Tutor had personally given him.

"General Wenbo."

Zhang He stepped forward and cupped his hands in greeting. Both of them were generals without official titles, but their actual positions were still captains of the Five Battalions.

Whether or not Han Sui could be besieged and killed would directly determine whether he would become a colonel or a general with a miscellaneous title.

As for the higher-ranking generals... in this battle, whoever gets Han Sui's head will achieve that rank.

Of the five generals sent by Zhao Ji, Zhang Xiu was a county marquis and a general with a miscellaneous title. Therefore, he was able to seize the four counties of Hexi on his own. He had the advantage of local influence and local support, which allowed him to quickly disintegrate the resistance in the four counties.

Zhang Xiu could naturally engage in discussions with others from the perspective of fellow villagers on topics that others found difficult to discuss.

Therefore, it was a foregone conclusion that Zhang Xiu would be rewarded and promoted separately after the war, which is why Zhang Xiu did not participate in the Battle of Jincheng.

Yang Qiu was also a general with a miscellaneous title. Although he was a general during the reign of Li Guo, he was also a general appointed by imperial decree.

Even if he surrendered to Zhao Ji, a general is still a general, and he still maintained his dignity and basic status.

After participating in the campaign against the Hu, the merits he accumulated only made up for some of his shortcomings. Now, Yang Qiu only wants to steadily besiege and kill Han Sui, and does not want any other variables to arise.

The other is General Wang Qi, who will arrive later and oversee the transport of supplies for the army to Jincheng.

When Wang Qi arrived, it was no longer a contest between Zhang He and Zhu Ling for credit, but a three-way struggle for credit.

In truth, Zhang He was not particularly willing to be close to Zhu Ling, who was nominally a fellow townsman from Jizhou.

Zhu Ling was too ruthless. In order to follow Yuan Shao, he watched helplessly as the enemy killed his entire family. Later, he was ordered by Yuan Shao to lead seven battalions to reinforce Cao Cao, but he ended up staying with Cao Cao after the battle.

Zhang He felt a lot of pressure being partners with someone like that.

At this moment, Zhang He's attitude was indifferent and not particularly warm.

Zhu Ling had gotten used to it all; he knew he wasn't well-liked. Even though he now had a family and children... such a family and children could no longer be reliable hostages.

If someone sends one of their family members or children to Zhao Ji, it can be considered a pledge.

Zhu Ling's coldness towards her closest relatives, even if she gave birth to more than a dozen children and sent them to Jinyang... would hardly have any effect as hostages.

Zhu Ling also bowed and greeted him: "General Junyi, I have heard that Han Sui sent an envoy to collude with the Qiang people in Huangzhong. If the Qiang people in Huangzhong make any moves, our army is only 15,000 men, divided into three parts. If we are suddenly attacked, we will be divided and defeated one by one."

"Talking behind a curtain."

Zhang He extended his arms, and Zhu Ling responded. The two quickly stepped into the tent, where charcoal had already been lit.

Sitting face to face, Zhang He warmed his hands by the fire before saying, "Ma Shoucheng has also sent an envoy to warn us. He has submitted a memorial to the court requesting military assistance. Whether this can be done depends on the Grand Tutor's decision."

Zhu Ling remained calm; he had genuinely never heard of such news.

Although he, Zhang He, and Yang Qiu came as allies, Yang Qiu established a separate camp on the upper reaches of the Yellow River, while simultaneously sending troops to garrison Yuzhong City.

If the Qiang tribes in Huangzhong make any unusual moves, Yang Qiu will definitely be the first to notice, and he will be responsible for resisting the first wave of attacks from the Qiang tribes in Huangzhong.

Meanwhile, on the outskirts of Jincheng, Zhang He and Zhu Ling were stationed on opposite sides, forming a pincer movement against Jincheng.

The auxiliary troops that Zhang Xiu successively dispatched were all assigned to Zhang He and obeyed his orders.

Therefore, Zhu Ling can be said to be frustrated and unfulfilled; even his troops were gradually replaced, becoming the Tiger Step Army and troops from Guanzhong.

Under these circumstances, Zhu Ling didn't even dare to trust his personal guards anymore.

People can influence each other. Given Grand Tutor Zhao's current power and influence, Zhao Ji doesn't need to personally intervene. He can simply send someone to privately contact Zhu Ling's personal guard leader and obtain their cooperation.

After all, someone like Zhu Ling, who leads troops and enforces the law strictly, yet struggles to protect even his own wife, children, and clan... it's truly difficult for him to gain the support of his personal guards or troops.

Zhang He was meticulous and deliberately revealed military intelligence that Zhu Ling was unaware of, while also observing changes in Zhu Ling's demeanor.

Zhang He was also afraid that Zhu Ling and Han Sui were colluding. The situation on the battlefield was unpredictable, and sometimes even correspondence was unnecessary. Simply reaching a tacit understanding was enough to pull off some tricks.

In fact, Zhang He also didn't quite understand why Grand Tutor Zhao insisted on sending Zhu Ling to the Liangzhou battlefield.

It was because Zhu Ling was on the Jincheng battlefield that Yang Qiu took the initiative to keep his distance.

If it weren't for the overwhelming force of his entire army, Han Sui would have already left the city to engage in open battle.

Han Sui also had no fewer than 10,000 men in the city. Given Han Sui's connections and influence in Liangzhou, as long as Han Sui could win a victory, the Han and Hu peoples in various places would rise up in response, and the army could expand to 50,000 or 60,000 men.

It was precisely because Han Sui dared not engage in open battle that Zhang He proceeded with extreme caution, using the method of digging trenches to surround Jincheng.

But Han Sui would never wait until the city's food supplies ran out before breaking out. He must be waiting for an opportunity to launch a coordinated attack from within and without.

Zhang He could only wait for Wang Qi's army to arrive, for the possible arrival of Ma Teng's reinforcements, and for support from Zhang Xiu, who had seized the four counties of Hexi.

Inside the tent, Zhang He was not good at speaking or socializing, and Zhu Ling was even more cold-hearted, both of them exuding a sinister and stern aura.

After sitting in silence for a moment, Zhang He said, "We should not count on Ma Shoucheng's reinforcements. Otherwise, after defeating Han Sui, Ma Shoucheng will have made great contributions, which will be detrimental to the Grand Tutor's decision to summon him to court."

"That's what I think too."

Zhu Ling responded with one sentence, then said, "If possible, I hope to join General Junyi in submitting a memorial to the Grand Tutor, requesting the assistance of the daredevil troops."

"Let me consider it. I will reply to General Wenbo before curfew. If possible, I will send a messenger to the Grand Tutor before nightfall."

Zhang He did not rush to agree, but instead said, "It is only natural that the Qiang people in Huangzhong would change their ways. The Grand Tutor's power is awe-inspiring to both Han and Hu peoples. Our army has besieged Han Sui in Jincheng, and Yang has deployed troops to defend Yuzhong. It is inevitable that the Qiang people in Huangzhong will be alarmed."

Zhu Ling still emphasized, "Even if we cannot win the war in Liangzhou, we should not let it go to waste. If the Qiang people in Huangzhong launch a large-scale attack, we might as well retreat to Longxi, with our backs to Tianshui, and join forces with Ma Shoucheng to defend it."

Zhang He also felt that Zhu Ling's opinion had some merit, as it lengthened the expedition distance of the Qiang tribes in the Hehuang region, shortened their own supply routes, and allowed reinforcements from the rear to arrive quickly.

If we retreat to Longxi and Tianshui, and Han Sui and the Qiang allied forces in Huangzhong pursue us, our side will surely be able to deliver a powerful punch that is ready to be unleashed!
The only problem is the war in Guandong. If the Grand Tutor's main force is tied down, then the Liangzhou battlefield can only barely hold on and wait for the situation to change.

(End of this chapter)