Tang Dynasty Mingyue Song Dynasty Pass

Chapter 923 The army presses down on the city, threatening to destroy it.

The next day, before the mist had even dissipated, layers of iron waves surged on the horizon outside Bianjing.

Three hundred thousand Wu troops marched in formation, their banners like a sea, their armor gleaming in the sun, and the dust kicked up by their horses blotting out the sky. Layer upon layer, trenches, barricades, and camps stretched for dozens of miles, completely surrounding the vast city of Bianjing.

The four gates of the outer city were tightly closed, and the drawbridge hung high; inside the city, though no fire had yet been lit, there was already a palpable sense of impending doom, as if dark clouds were pressing down on the city and it was about to be destroyed.

Those outside are not allowed to enter, and those inside are not allowed to leave. Only a protracted and fierce battle hangs over the city walls, waiting for blood and fire to determine the victor.

In this battle, the Wu army's strength was unprecedented, while the Song dynasty's reinforcements had long hesitated to advance, and there was no more reinforcement to be expected around the capital. Su Chen naturally held the lifeline of the nation firmly in his grasp. He divided his 300,000-strong army into four routes, each attacking one gate.

Outside the north city, Pan Mei led 30,000 heavily armored infantry and cavalry, armed with powerful bows and crossbows.
Outside the western city, Pan Renche was overseeing the battle. He was skilled in water and fire attacks and had secretly diverted a tributary of the Bian River to prepare for flooding the trenches.

Outside the south city, Lin Renzhao commanded pontoon bridges and battering rams, and prepared hundred-foot-high siege ladders, intending to seize the outer city's barbican;
Outside the eastern city, Cao Bin and his newly recruited elite troops, known as the "Returning Righteous Army" of 60,000, took the initiative and focused on recruiting and accepting defectors.

In addition, Su Chen dispatched Shen Huzi with 30,000 light cavalry to rush towards Huazhou along the north bank of the Yellow River. If the Liao people took advantage of the situation to move south, the iron cavalry would block their advance and prevent the barbarian horses from watering in Bianliang.

As for the dozen or so young and strong generals, including Tai Shizhao, Jing Hong, Bian Zhanyu, Li Saidong, Chai Songyun, Ma Donglin, Ma Zhanchao, Wu Yanrou, Jin Hui, and Pan Weizheng, they were all new talents personally promoted by Su Chen over the years and honed on the battlefield.

They either commanded an army or led a wing, and were subordinate to the four marshals. They were all capable subordinates and commanders, and had experienced many major battles in recent years, growing very rapidly.

The bugle call to patrol the camp had faded into the distance, but the flags in front of the central command tent still fluttered in the wind. After giving his final military orders, Su Chen rubbed his aching temples. Dusk was approaching, and the sunset, like a golden-red ribbon, slowly spread from the horizon to the camp gate.

Su Chen removed his heavy armor, wearing only a moon-white battle robe with a trace of ink on the cuffs. He walked out of the command tent and sent someone to summon the three young ladies, wanting to take them for a stroll to relax.

Meng Yutong was still dressed in a light blue scholar's robe, her hair tied up with a jade hairpin, her eyebrows and eyes were like a painting, and she was free and unrestrained.

Peng Jingjing was also dressed as a man, with a short sword at her waist. She was tall, fair-skinned, and beautiful. The setting sun made her smile shine even brighter.

Princess Yongqing wore an elegant dress and a green silk shawl, possessing a captivating beauty. When she lowered her head, her earrings swayed gently, like a pool of spring water stirred by the wind.

Of these three women, two are Su Chen's wives, and one is his fiancée, so they are all very close.

Yongqing and Su Chen only had a verbal engagement agreement and didn't have much affection for each other. At least Su Chen didn't know Yongqing very well, but Yongqing still liked Su Chen for many years. He had recited poems and essays about him since he was a child, read his chivalrous novels, and heard about his many legendary experiences. He was the male god of his dreams.

Therefore, Yongqing always felt like he was in a dream while following Su Chen.

The four of them walked up the gentle slope outside the camp. In the distance, the most magnificent city under heaven gradually lit up with thousands of lights in the twilight, like the Milky Way falling to earth.

Peng Jingjing couldn't help but rein in her horse in amazement: "That's Bianjing? It's even more magnificent than in paintings! I've never been there before, but I've heard it's very prosperous, even more so than Nanjing or Hangzhou." She had grown up in Nanjing, accustomed to the misty rain of the Qinhuai River and the weeping willows of Xuanwu, but had never set foot in the heart of the north. Now, gazing into the distance, she saw the outer city walls coiled like a giant dragon, the crenellations of the city walls densely packed like scales; the inner city's towers and pavilions layered upon each other, their eaves piercing the evening glow; the Bian River and Cai River flowed through the city like two silver ribbons, with thousands of sails appearing and disappearing, and lights moving about.

Meng Yutong and Yongqing both lived in Bianjing, so they had some understanding of the city.

Meng Yutong gently pulled on the reins and said with a smile, "Jingjing, don't be blinded by appearances. Bianjing is so big that you can't see it all in a day; but if you're talking about exquisite beauty, it's still not as good as Jiangnan. Jinling has the Zhongshan Sunset and Wuyi Sunset, and Hangzhou has the West Lake and Broken Bridge in the snow. These are rare sights in the North."

Although her tone was calm, she couldn't hide a trace of melancholy at revisiting a familiar place. Back then, she traveled to Bianliang disguised as a man, manipulating spies, and getting drunk at Fanlou. Now, the place remains, but everything has changed drastically.

Yongqing lagged half a step behind, quietly raising her eyes to look at Su Chen's profile—the silhouette bathed in the glow of the setting sun gradually overlapped with the "Su Lang" she had sketched countless times in the deep palace. Her fingertips unconsciously tightened their grip on the reins, her heart pounding like a deer's: So it really was possible that one day she could stand shoulder to shoulder with him, watching the same twilight.

“I… have never been to Jiangnan.” Her voice was as soft as the wind. “I’ve only read in poems, ‘Spring waters are bluer than the sky, painted boats sleep in the rain,’ and ‘The woman by the wine shop is like the moon, her fair wrists are like frost and snow.’ I really want to go there and see if it’s as beautiful as described in novels and poems.”

As soon as she finished speaking, she secretly raised her eyes, her gaze sweeping over Su Chen's profile before quickly lowering them again. That hint of girlish sentiment was made transparent by the setting sun.

Meng Yutong did not respond, because she was a princess of the Shu Kingdom. The Shu Kingdom was destroyed, and her family was wiped out, all because of Yongqing's father.

Although this was not Yongqing's fault and had nothing to do with her, there was still a cause-and-effect connection between the two. Meng Yutong's country was destroyed because of Yongqing's father, and she was separated from her family by death. Meng Yutong also plotted against Zhao Kuangyin's brothers and Zhao Dezhao, accelerating their break.

Therefore, this cause and effect is still very significant. All phenomena are empty, but cause and effect are not. Now, Meng Yutong and Yongqing will both be Su Chen's women, and they will spend every day together in the future. To have to share a husband with the daughter of one's enemy is such a cruel twist of fate.

"After you and Su Lang are married, we will travel to the south of the Yangtze River. The willows of Su Causeway in March, the waters of Qinhuai in June, and the tides of Qiantang in September will all be there for you. I will host the trip, and we will go boating, listen to songs, and admire the flowers while we are drunk."

She spoke lightly, but in reality, she placed everyone in the most suitable position.

Peng Jingjing is much more mature now, and she is no longer jealous of another woman marrying Su Chen. Su Chen is too powerful, and it is destined that she alone cannot control him. In the future, when he becomes emperor, Peng Jingjing will only be one of the imperial concubines, and even the empress will have a hard time competing with her.

Peng Jingjing felt that the Zhao siblings were currently of great help to Su Chen, having persuaded 100,000 Song soldiers to surrender. In the future, Su Chen would need the support of former Song officials to establish himself in the Central Plains. Having connections with Zhao Dezhao and Yongqing would make him more acceptable to the people and officials of the Song Dynasty. Therefore, she would take extra care of Yongqing. In the future, with the palace walls wide open, having one more friend was always better than having one more enemy.

So her words, like a soft ribbon, gently wrapped around the subtly tense atmosphere.

Yongqing lowered his head, his fingertips unconsciously stroking the reins, but the tips of his ears quietly turned red.

Su Chen looked up and saw the lights of Bianjing gradually lighting up in the distance, like the Milky Way falling to earth.

He suddenly reached out and grabbed the reins of Peng Jingjing and Yongqing on the left and right, and said loudly, "Let's go. We will attack the city tomorrow. Once this major event is over, we won't have to fight every day anymore."

All three women harbored some longings. They did not want to live such a life in the military, constantly on edge. They still hoped for a peaceful life of being good wives and mothers, and enjoying tranquility.