Jinting Han people

Chapter 249: Xianbei Attack Linjin
On the other hand, the speed at which the Xianbei reinforcements gathered was not ideal.

After getting the consent of Tuoba Luguan, Feng Yu immediately informed Li Han in Malan Mountain of the news of the reinforcements. When the Jin army in Malan Mountain heard the news of the reinforcements, they were extremely excited and believed that as long as the reinforcements arrived, they would be able to rescue Niyang immediately.

At normal speed, it only takes three days to gather the troops, and twenty days to march south from Bingzhou, so the reinforcements should be able to reach Xiayang in late April or early May at the latest.

However, this was not the case. Having just concluded several large-scale wars, the Tuoba Xianbei had run thin, their bones protruding. If they were forced to gallop long distances in a short period of time, they would likely die along the way. Therefore, although the Tuoba Xianbei had assembled their forces, they were in no hurry to set out. Instead, they leisurely raised their horses on the Hetao grasslands.

After learning the reason, Lü Quyang was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. He could only repeatedly ask to see Yuwenxun Niyan, who was in charge of the reinforcements, to urge him to send out the troops as soon as possible.

But Sunnyyan insisted on one answer, saying:

"This trip south is to rescue your country, and no specific time has been set. Our horses are not well-fed at the moment. If something goes wrong along the way and the rescue is unsuccessful, wouldn't your envoy's trip be in vain?"

Yuwenxun Niyan's answer made sense, but being thousands of miles away, who knew how long Niyang could hold out? Lu Quyang could only ask repeatedly:
"But there has to be a time to send out troops! When do you plan to march?"

Facing Lu Quyang's anxious face, Xun Niyan always replied with a smile:

"Almost there, very soon!"

A month passed. By mid-May, midsummer had arrived. The dazzling sun hung high in the clear sky, its radiance awe-inspiring, yet the Xianbei still did not set out. Yet, it was clear that the Xianbei had fed their horses expensive wheat and beans, causing their skeletons to gradually disappear beneath their fat.

At this time, Lü Quyang was almost numb to the Xianbei people's procrastination. But at this time, Yuwen Xun Niyan sent someone to inform him:
"The entire army is ready and can march south."

"When?"

"In two quarters of an hour!"

Only then did Lü Quyang realize that the Xianbei weren't simply procrastinating, but rather overly arrogant and self-centered, unable to listen to others' opinions. After hurriedly packing their belongings, they set out from Shengle that same day. Yuwen Xun Niyan, Tuoba Luguan's son-in-law and leader of the Yuwen tribe, had no intention of taking the shortcut south through Bingzhou to contact Jin officials. Instead, he plunged headlong into the vast loess of Shuofang, heading straight for Guanzhong.

Guided by Baba Che, they crossed the great river from Shaling and then passed through Meiji, Zhenlin, Qiuci, Sheyan, and other places. The ruins of the Later Han Dynasty cities still stood on the loess, surrounded by rivers and green grass, giving them a sense of desolation. However, now, these lands belonged to the Tuoba Xianbei.

After arriving in Fushi, Yuwenxun Niyan rested for a day, replenishing supplies with a local tribe, and then turned east until he saw the Yellow River roaring in the valley. Then, they turned south again. Meanwhile, the Xianbei encountered many Jin people seeking refuge in the mountains and forests. Seeing the Xianbei from afar, these refugees immediately dispersed, but after they left, they could not help but gaze at them from afar.

When the Xianbei army was only thirty miles away from Xiayang, Yuwenxun Niyan stopped and made as if to set up camp here.

This puzzled Lu Quyang. He asked, "Why don't you continue south? Xiayang is just around the corner."

Twenty days had passed since their departure, and it was already early June. The long journey, with its harsh weather and open air, had exhausted Yuwensun Niyan and his soldiers, and they felt the need to find a rooftop to rest. However, Yuwensun Niyan replied, "There's no rush. Let's discuss the current situation in Guanzhong first."

"Why not?"

"Beware of enemy spies!"

After studying Qi Wannian's tactics for some time, Yuwenxun Niyan discovered that Qi Wannian seemed to have a thorough understanding of the Jin army's movements, and that several successful operations were achieved by exploiting political flaws within the Jin army. This wasn't something one could simply speculate on, suggesting that Qi Wannian had deployed a considerable number of scouts and spies in Guanzhong. Having figured this out, Yuwenxun Niyan decided not to rush into Guanzhong to rest and recuperate. This was the only way to conceal his presence and pave the way for a decisive turn in the tide of the war.

After setting up camp, Yuwensun Niyan sent troops to contact Li Han to inquire about the specific enemy situation in Guanzhong. Li Han was overjoyed to hear that reinforcements had finally arrived. He immediately wrote down the information he had obtained on a piece of silk book and handed it to the reinforcements.

Qi Wannian's deployment in Guanzhong has not changed much, and is basically the same as when he surrounded Niyang:
In addition to the nearly 100,000 troops surrounded in Niyang, 20,000 were deployed in Linjin, led by Juqu Mokang, to supervise the movements of the Jin army in Tongguan while monitoring the changes in the situation in Hedong.

At the same time, he stationed 10,000 men at Weiqiao, led by Yang Nandi, to prevent the Chang'an army from moving north to relieve the siege, while also guarding the rear food supply route for the main force in Niyang. Of course, up to this point, King Liang Sima Rong still had no intention of leaving Chang'an.

Although they had never met, Li Han guessed Yuwen Sunniyan's intentions: he knew that Sunniyan wanted to turn the tables and take Qi Wannian by surprise. So he enclosed a letter with Li Han's own suggestions.

His point was that Sunniyan didn't need to join him, but could lead his troops south and attack Weiqiao directly. Yang Nandi would never have expected such a sudden emergence of such a surprise force, and defeating him would be easy. As long as Yang Nandi was defeated and Weiqiao was surrendered, the road between Chang'an and Niyang would be opened, and the huge pressure on the border defense would inevitably force Qi Wannian to lift the siege and withdraw his troops.

But Xun Niyan simply laughed it off after receiving the letter. He said to Lu Quyang, "I have raised horses for over a month and then traveled a thousand miles to come here. If I only fight this small number of enemies, not only will the world laugh at me for being a Xianbei, but I'm afraid my father-in-law will also think I'm incompetent."

Lu Quyang was a little confused and asked, "May I ask, sir, where do you plan to attack?"

Xun Niyan replied: "Of course it's Linjin!"

Linjin was the first city to be captured after Qi Wannian's uprising. It was only after the seizure of Linjin's supplies that Qi Wannian truly gained the capital to challenge the Jin army. However, after suffering successive battles and being at the center of the conflict, Linjin had become almost a deserted city. Aside from the 20,000 stationed rebels, there were almost no ordinary civilians in the city.

If the Hu people in Linjin were defeated, the rebels would lose their control over Tongguan and Hedong, which would undoubtedly cause panic among the Hu people, and Qi Wannian would likely withdraw. However, compared to the attack on Weiqiao, the number of Hu people in Linjin was nearly doubled. War is not simply a matter of adding up the number of people, which means that the difficulty of victory has more than doubled. Lu Quyang was quite concerned about this and asked:
"Master Yuwen, are you sure of victory?"

Xun Niyan replied confidently, "Just stand by and watch!"

It was a beautiful, clear night, with a bright moon hanging high in the sky. The ground looked as if covered with glittering snow. Even without torches, people could clearly see the road ahead for hundreds of steps.

Seizing this opportunity, Yuwenxun Niyan led the Xianbei cavalry out of the Dahe Gorge, bypassed Xiayang City and Longmen Ferry, and unnoticed, circumvented Hanyuan from the west. From then on, the mountains receded, revealing an unprecedentedly wide and flat plain before the Xianbei.

Well-fed war horses galloped across the flat ground, their hooves clattering against the dirt as their speed grew faster and faster, like a gust of wind sweeping through the night. The refugees along the way were awakened by the rain-like clatter of hooves. They looked toward the source of the sound, somewhat bewildered, but before they could wake up and see what was happening, the Xianbei cavalry had already vanished into the night.

Xiayang is a total of 150 miles away from Linjin. If ordinary infantry march, it will take about five days to reach it, but cavalry are galloping across the plains, so one night is more than enough.

The Hu people of Linjin actually had a sentry post ten miles north of Linjin. However, this post was primarily for defense against the east, and had not anticipated the arrival of cavalry from the north. When the Xianbei cavalry suddenly charged, those outside the post were completely unaware, while those inside were still asleep, and were instantly slaughtered by the Xianbei with swords, leaving them no time to offer any resistance.

By the time the Xianbei had roared away and continued their march south, the guards outside finally arrived. They lit bonfires to warn Linjin City. The blaze was exceptionally bright in the moonlight, like a speck of white amidst thick ink. Even from Linjin City, over ten miles away, it could be seen clearly.

But by then it was too late. The Tuoba Xianbei were advancing like lightning, their vanguard already reaching the gates of Linjin. When the first hundred cavalrymen arrived, the city gates had barely closed. As they circled the city walls, they discovered that while the outer walls had been repaired, gaps patched, and trenches dug, they were largely half-baked. There had been no time to build wooden sheds on the walls, no stakes driven into the trenches, and even dozens of piles of horse fodder outside the city walls, which the defenders hadn't had time to move in and had left behind.

These vanguard troops did not stop and continued to search everywhere. When Yuwen Sun Ni Yan arrived, they brought back dozens of captives who had not had time to enter the city.

Through interrogation, we learned that since Juqu Mokang's troops were responsible for monitoring the enemy forces in the two directions of Hedong and Tongguan, most of the defenders were not in the city, but were scattered in an area of 50 miles east of the city in small teams of more than 60 people. At this time, there were only more than 3,000 people left in the city.

Xun Niyan also knew that while they were nominally gathering intelligence, they were actually carrying out further looting and plundering, seeking wealth. This was partly due to their greed for wealth, and partly due to their limited food supply, leaving them with no other options. As a result, the military discipline of these Hu people had become extremely lax, and they lacked much combat effectiveness.

Xun Niyan laughed at Lü Quyang and said, "These little thieves have no food to eat. Why are they still defending the city?"

Linjin was a large city, and ten thousand men were not enough to completely surround it. But the current situation was greatly in his favor, so Xun Niyan simply divided his troops into two groups, one under his command and the other under Baba Che. After a short meal, they prepared to attack from the south and the east of the city respectively.

The sun rose, windless, its fierce sunlight blazing down upon the city of Linjin. The defender, Juqu Mokang, climbed the tower to survey the enemy's formation. He was stunned to discover that the enemy's banner was the same "Cloud-Thunder Goshawk" banner used by the Tuoba Xianbei. He was utterly horrified. He had personally faced the Tuoba Xianbei in Shuofang, always defeated, never victorious. Now, confronted unprepared, how could he not be terrified?

Juqu Mokang immediately shot a letter from the city wall, revealing his intention to negotiate peace. But when the letter was handed to Yuwenxun Niyan, he didn't even look at it and wrote on the back:
"If you don't surrender within one hour, the whole city will be massacred!"

Juqu Mokang certainly didn't dare surrender, but the Xianbei wouldn't wait. In fact, the siege had already begun. The Xianbei allocated a third of their forces to round up refugees and captives from the surrounding area. Soon, they had captured over a thousand people and brought them to the city. They were forced to cut brush and dig earth to fill the trench. The Xianbei pressed on from behind, pushing those who were slow or weak into the trench.

The defenders on the city were terrified when they saw that the opposite side was filling up the trench at an extremely fast speed. They rained down arrows, causing some people to fall into the trench to death. However, the people behind them covered the trench with soil and soon filled it up.

It was just noon, and the Xianbei soldiers had rested for a while, all recovering from their fatigue. Yuwenxun Niyan then encouraged them, saying, "Although this is my first time leading you into battle, I know your talents well. You have traversed the frontiers before, infuriating the tribes. Now, on Jin territory, if you can win another battle, won't you become famous and become the world's foremost warriors?"

Encouraged by this, the soldiers were all eager to try and immediately began their astonishing siege method.

These men unloaded their bows and arrows, fastened only their belts with daggers, and, holding a lance about ten feet long, launched a roar toward the city that shook heaven and earth. Together, they rushed over the earth-filled trench, rushed to the base of the city wall, and then tied their lances together to form a ladder.

The fully armed pioneers grabbed the sharp tips of the spears, and the people behind them held the ends tightly and rushed towards the earthen wall. Like a surging wave, dozens of people climbed onto the wall with each wave. Although many people either did not step firmly or were stabbed by swords and knives of the defenders, and then fell from the top of the wall with dirt and dust, there were always people who successfully stood on the top of the wall.

Seeing the men climbing the ramparts, the Hu people defending the city immediately attacked, mimicking a pack of wolves. However, the Xianbei were so fast that before the first man was driven away, a second and then a third had already scaled the walls. The defenders were already few in number, and their inferior numbers left them struggling to cope. Before long, the Xianbei had secured a significant number of stable footholds.

Some Xianbei held burning torches in their mouths as they climbed. Once they reached the tower, they hurled them at the straw and wooden structures below. The flames quickly engulfed most of Linjin City. The crackling sound of burning wood, blending with the roars of fighting and shouting from above and below, instilled an insurmountable fear in the resisting Hu people.

In less than two hours, the defenders on the city wall saw that the situation was hopeless, and many of them gave up and fled to the west of the city.

This also means that the Xianbei people won the victory easily.

Lu Quyang was truly eye-opening. He had never imagined that breaking a city would be such an easy task.

After the city was broken, Yuwenxun Ni Yan did not occupy the city, but divided the cavalry into three teams and pursued the rebels in the direction of their escape. Any rebels who tried to stop, as well as the scattered soldiers who tried to gather around, would be ruthlessly killed by the Xianbei people.

The Xianbei pursued and slaughtered the rebels for a full day and night, until they had covered nearly thirty miles before letting the fleeing Zaohu go. Countless bodies were hacked to death or trampled to death along the way, and many were so frightened by the killing that they never returned to the ranks. The exact number of rebel casualties in this battle has become a mystery that will never be fully solved.

The Battle of Linjin was the most one-sided battle since the rise of Qi in the 10,000th year. The news of the Xianbei appearing on the battlefield shook the entire Guanzhong region.

(End of this chapter)