Taiheiki

Chapter 241 Changes in Situation
Nie Sheng didn't speak, but simply nodded, though he could still hear Wei Cong's words echoing in his ears: "Sheng, with your Uncle Zhao gone, I feel like I've lost an arm. You must work hard!"

"Godfather, I will definitely not let you down!" Nie Sheng clenched his fists and secretly vowed in his heart.

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Wancheng, the residence of the Prefect of Nanyang.

"According to the military intelligence sent yesterday, the government troops fought fiercely with the rebels in Xinye and Huyang for several days, beheading more than 3,000 and capturing mountains of armor and weapons..."

In the inner hall, a captain was addressing military intelligence to a hanging map. The Grand Minister of Agriculture, Zhang Huan, sat in the center; his head was bald, his beard white, and his weathered face, like a poplar tree worn smooth by centuries of wind and sand, was expressionless. The officers on either side held their breath, none daring to utter a sound to disturb him.

"Lord Wei has already sailed east and arrived at Sangluo Island. He claims he will cut off the bandits' supply lines. In seven or eight days at the earliest, and half a month at the latest, the E'zhai bandits will surely collapse without a fight!"

As the captain recounted the story, he drew an X on the location of Sangluozhou with a charcoal pencil, representing Wei Cong's troops. This caused a stir among the officers on both sides.

"Wei Cong has finally moved!"

"Yes, ever since he arrived in Jiangling in March, he has not moved an inch, watching as Feng and the bandits fight to the death. The imperial court has issued one urging edict after another, but he has pretended not to hear them."

"Yes, the Moth Bandit army is now marching north along the Han River, their advance reaching Wancheng. He's jumped out of the way; I must say, this fellow has learned military strategy quite well!"

"Yes, others may disobey the emperor's orders when they are in the field, but this one simply ignores them completely. In my opinion, let alone Wancheng, even if the Emei bandits reach the gates of Luoyang, he won't send troops unless he's absolutely certain of victory!"

The officers' complaints were incessant. Although Zhang Huan's army was a newly recruited force from the four prefectures of Qing, Xu, Yan, and Yu, most of the officers were veterans who had fought alongside him in Liang, Bing, and You prefectures for two or three decades. They had seen Wei Cong's every move and knew exactly what he was planning. From a military strategy perspective, it was fine, but the problem was that if anyone else dared to do this, a single imperial edict in Luoyang would send them to prison. Only Wei Cong was fearless; if the court dared to issue an edict to arrest him, he would dare to lead his troops back to Jiaozhou and declare himself king.

Cough!

Zhang Huan's cough was like a signal; the officers simultaneously fell silent, holding their breath and focusing their attention on their former superior. Despite their complaints and criticisms, no one could emulate Lord Wei's methods; everyone had their own destiny, and they still had to obey General Zhang's orders.

"The fighting in Xinye and Huyang has been raging for five days. The new recruits are not up to the task and need to be replaced!" Zhang Huan said, "Hu An, you go to Xinye, Liu Fu, you go to Huyang. Replace the garrison in two days!"

"Yes, sir!" The two officers bowed, acknowledged the order, and left through the door.

"Xu Shu, you will take over the troops from Xinye and Huyang, fill the vacancies, and have them retreat to Anzhong to recuperate!"

"Here!"

Zhang Huan seemed to have an invisible map in his head, issuing military orders methodically. He withdrew the troops that had been fighting the Moth Bandits on the front line for many days and replaced them with fresh troops. In such a complex military operation, he was able to issue a series of executable military orders in an orderly manner based on the situation of each unit, road, and city. This was something that only a veteran general who had experienced decades of military service could do.

"Send out enough scouts, especially in the direction of Sui County!"

When Zhang Huan issued his final order, his face was etched with exhaustion; clearly, the series of commands had drained most of his energy. He wiped his forehead and said to his attendant, "I'm going inside to rest for a while. Wake me immediately if there's any military intelligence!"

"Here!"

Zhang Huan's rest did not last long. After only about an hour, his attendant woke him up: "General, an envoy has arrived from Luoyang!"

“The envoy from Luoyang? Who is he?” Zhang Huan sat up from his bed.

"Cavalry Commandant Yuan Benchu!" the attendant whispered, "He's brought three thousand men!"

"Having reinforcements is a good thing!" Zhang Huan breathed a sigh of relief: "Come on, help me change my clothes first!"

With the help of his attendants, Zhang Huan changed into a scarlet robe and put on a military cap. When he arrived at the front hall and saw the handsome and imposing young man walking towards him, he couldn't help but feel the envy that an old man feels for a young man.

"Your humble servant pays respects to the Grand Minister of Agriculture!" Yuan Shao bowed respectfully to Zhang Huan on the steps. Three days ago, when he received the military order to go to Wancheng to reinforce the city, he was somewhat surprised. Could the situation at the front have become so tense that even his newly recruited soldiers were being sent there?

"Please rise, Yuan Shao!" Zhang Huan stepped down the stairs and helped Yuan Shao up. "Good, good, good! Indeed, seeing is believing. You are a man of great stature and extraordinary bearing. The country is going through a turbulent time. If all the younger generation were like you, we old folks would be at ease!"

"I dare not presume to be a junior scholar!" Yuan Shao asked in a low voice, "Before I set out, I heard that the Moth Bandits' offensive was extremely fierce, I wonder—"

"Come in and talk!" Zhang Huan grabbed Yuan Shao's arm and led him back into the room. The two sat down as host and guest. "You received the previous information. The Moth Bandits did launch a fierce attack on Xinye and Huyang a few days ago, but they have been repelled."

"I see!" Yuan Shao breathed a sigh of relief. "Did the royal army suffer many casualties?" "Yes!" Zhang Huan nodded. "Casualties are inevitable on the battlefield, but the situation has changed. Wei Cong's naval forces have set off from Jiangling, sailed down the river, and established a camp at Sangluozhou. The E'zhai's supply lines have been cut off!"

"Oh? That's good news!" Yuan Shao laughed upon hearing this. "Those bandits will surely retreat. We only need to pursue them relentlessly, and we will surely achieve a great victory!"

“Things aren’t as simple as you make them out to be!” Zhang Huan said. “Wei Cong didn’t take control of Xiakou; instead, he occupied Sangluozhou. That makes a huge difference!”

Yuan Shao watched as Zhang Huan pointed to two places on the map. Xiakou, which is present-day Wuhan, is the confluence of the Han River and the Yangtze River. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, most of the Wuhan area was lakes and marshes, with only a few fortified cities located on high ground. The later city of Xiakou was garrisoned by Sun Quan during the Three Kingdoms period. When the Emei bandits sailed upstream along the Han River, they left a large force to garrison those fortified cities controlling the confluence of the two rivers.

Sangluozhou is a sandbar in the Yangtze River at the junction of Anhui, Jiangxi, and Hubei provinces, facing Poyang Lake on one side and Leize Lake on the other. Wei Cong's navy's decision to occupy Sangluozhou instead of attacking Xiakou was clear—he wasn't cutting off the Mohe rebels' route from the Yangtze to the Han River, but rather presenting a posture of attacking the Mohe-controlled counties of Yuzhang, Lujiang, and Jiujiang. If it were the former, the Mohe rebels' only option would be to return with their entire force to defend the area and fight Wei Cong to the death; but the latter gave them more options—they could divide their forces or retreat. In other words, he didn't have to face the full pressure from the Mohe rebels alone.

"So, Benchu, you understand now!" Zhang Huan sighed. "Although Wei Cong has sent troops, the situation isn't actually as good as everyone thinks. Xiakou is still in the hands of the Ezu rebels, and their navy can enter the Yangtze River from the Han River without any obstacles. Once they enter the Yangtze, the outcome of this battle will be very difficult to predict!"

Yuan Shao nodded. It's important to understand that while the Han River and the Yangtze River are both rivers, they represented entirely different concepts in naval warfare at the time. The Han River was at most a kilometer wide; such a narrow body of water meant that the loser in a naval battle had nowhere to escape and was destined for total annihilation. Even today, the Yangtze River is ten to twenty times wider than the Han River. Furthermore, during the Eastern Han Dynasty, the middle reaches of the Yangtze River contained the vast Yunmengze and Penglize lake systems. With such a vast expanse of water and complex terrain, once the Mohe rebels' navy entered the Yangtze River system, even with Wei Cong's extraordinary abilities, it would be impossible to completely annihilate them. Without eliminating the Mohe rebels' navy, the idea of ​​completely eradicating them in the Yangtze River basin was a pipe dream, leading to a protracted and quagmire—the last thing the Eastern Han court wanted.

"That's why I don't quite understand it!" Zhang Huan sighed.

"Don't understand? You mean Wei Mengde?"

“Hmm!” Zhang Huan nodded. “If he did this simply to avoid facing the entire army of the Moth Bandits alone, then I can understand. After all, when outnumbered, deliberately opening the way to ambush their retreat is a common tactic in military strategy. But if he deliberately opened the way to prolong the battle, exhausting and breaking the Han Dynasty, then that’s terrible. To be honest, the Han Dynasty really can’t afford to drag this out any longer!”

"This...this shouldn't be that bad, right?" Yuan Shao said with a wry smile.

"I hope so!" Zhang Huan sighed. "You two are old friends, what do you think of him?"

The image of Wei Cong flashed before Yuan Shao's eyes, and a sudden inspiration struck him. After thinking for a moment, he said, "He is a very capable person!"

“Of course I know he’s capable!” Zhang Huan glanced at Yuan Shao with dissatisfaction. “I’m asking what his views are on the court, on the Han Dynasty, and on the world. That’s the most important thing. What’s the use of just being capable? You can’t say Wang Mang wasn’t capable either, right? And then what?”

Yuan Shao was speechless at Zhang Huan's question. Given Wei Cong's actions in Jiaozhou, it was difficult for him to portray him as someone with unwavering loyalty to the court and the Han Dynasty. After thinking for a moment, he replied, "I really can't say for sure, but he did improve the land, promote the salt and iron industries, and fight against the barbarians in Jiaozhou, which certainly brought many benefits to the people!"

"If that's the case, then it's not so bad!" Zhang Huan nodded. "At least the people of Jiaozhou have benefited. I just hope that he will show some impartiality towards the Moth Bandits this time and quell this rebellion as soon as possible!"

Night had fallen, and Yuan Shao stood by the window, Zhang Huan's words from earlier that day still echoing in his ears. The rather unfamiliar concept of "public-mindedness" kept him wide awake. Yuan Shao had always considered himself a man of considerable public-mindedness; after all, in the eyes of the scholars of the time, the first thing for the world to be at peace was for the emperor to be close to virtuous men and keep away from petty men. And who were the most numerous petty men around the emperor? Naturally, it was the eunuchs and castrated men.

Therefore, for the scholars of that time, eliminating the treacherous and wicked men around the emperor was the greatest act of public duty. Yuan Shao thought this way, and he acted accordingly, and he truly succeeded, even exceeding everyone's best-case scenario—the eunuch clique that had begun with Emperor He of Han was completely eliminated by Yuan Shao and his young followers. But this did not mean that everything was perfect; power fell into the hands of Empress Dowager Dou and her father, Dou Wu; in other words, power fell into the hands of the empress's relatives.

Indeed, Dou Wu was well-versed in history and humble, but regardless, he was still a relative of the emperor, and his power stemmed from his daughter, not from his personal talent or virtue—a fact Yuan Shao was well aware of! Moreover, as Dou Wu's time in power increased, Yuan Shao also saw his shortcomings—he lacked genuine talent. In Wei Cong's words, he lacked the ability to wield power. Recalling everything Wei Cong had done in Jiaozhou and everything Dou Wu had done in Luoyang, Yuan Shao was forced to admit that Wei Cong was right.

"If Wei Cong were transferred back to Luoyang to be my deputy and assist me in governing the country, would the Han Dynasty be able to restore itself to the glory days of Emperor Mingzhang?"

The thought, like a spark falling into a haystack, spread uncontrollably. Frustrated, Yuan Shao loosened his collar, took his sword from the wall, and walked into the courtyard, brandishing it. Moonlight shone on the blade, reflecting a cold, eerie light. Yuan Shao felt the fire within him burning ever brighter, almost bursting from beneath his skin, burning him to ashes, and being swept away by a strong wind, soaring into the sky.

boom!
With a soft thud, Yuan Shao regained some consciousness and realized that his sword was deeply embedded in the tree. He pulled the sword out forcefully, chopped at the tree several times, and laughed, "That's exhilarating! That's exhilarating!"

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Nanyang Prefecture, Chaoyang County.

Moth Thieves' Camp.

"Great Master, I request an additional 10,000 reinforcements to capture Xinye City!" The speaker was Zhang Song, the Great Master's eldest disciple. He was a sturdy man who, having come from a mining background, held high prestige among the earliest miners to rise up in rebellion.

puff!
The cold laughter was jarring in the quiet tent. Zhang Song quickly located the source of the sound and asked angrily, "Qi Tie, what do you mean by this?"

"It's nothing!" Qi Tie dusted off his clothes. "I just remembered something! It seems like you said something similar seven days ago, Senior Brother. Right, you also said that if you were given 10,000 reinforcements, you would definitely be able to take Xinye City within five days!"

"You—" Zhang Song's face flushed red: "That's because the government troops sent reinforcements, otherwise I would have captured Xinye City long ago!"

"Nonsense!" Qi Tie sneered. "Didn't you anticipate that the government troops would send reinforcements to aid Xinye City? You didn't think that you were the only one asking for reinforcements, and that the garrison commander of Xinye City wouldn't also request reinforcements from above, did you?"

Zhang Song was stumped. He opened his mouth several times but couldn't say a word. Finally, he could only say, "Fine, fine, I'm fighting to the death with the government troops at the front, and you're hiding in the back making sarcastic remarks! Master, you be the judge!"

(End of this chapter)