Jinting Han people

The Han army was naturally unaware of the changes occurring within the Jin army.

The day after the loss of Lady City, Liu Xian remained in a state of confusion. He could accept the loss of Lady City, since the palisades had not yet been lost. However, he noticed many strange things about the Jin army's actions during the capture of the city.

Logically, if the Jin army's command intended to capture the city, their tactics should have been more complex than this. They could have had Ying Zhan's troops launch a fierce attack while Zhou Qi's forces outflanked the rear from the north, potentially achieving greater results and even annihilating Huan Yi's forces within the city. Alternatively, after capturing the city, they could have created a show of force to lure Han reinforcements, then attacked the palisade while it was weakened, which could very well have breached it. Or they could have simply followed the defeated army within the city, directly overwhelming the main Han force – all viable strategies.

Strangely, in response to Zhou Qi's actions, the various Jin army units lacked a corresponding, more systematic tactic. Not only did they fail to show any signs or leak any information beforehand, but they also showed no coordination afterward, even appearing more bewildered and sluggish than the Han army. As a result, this operation, which had the potential to change the entire battle situation, ended up being a flop, which undoubtedly puzzled Liu Xian greatly.

He speculated that this was more likely an isolated operation by Zhou Qi's unit, rather than a plan orchestrated by the entire Jin army's high command. Only this explanation could account for the loose coordination between the various Jin army units, and how such a significant operation could have been kept secret.

The question remains: what exactly is Zhou Qi's intention? Liu Xian pondered repeatedly, but remained uncertain. He had initially assumed that Zhou Qi was merely putting on a show for the Jin army and posed no real threat to his own forces. Therefore, in order to maintain this balance, he refrained from launching a deliberate attack to avoid creating enmity, and simply instructed his troops to be appropriately vigilant.

However, it now seems that if someone, under the command of a general, still disobeys military orders and acts arbitrarily in the army, there are only two possibilities. One is that there is a deep-seated hatred between the enemy and allies, and even if they disobey orders, they will fight to the death; the other is that they want to use this opportunity to establish prestige and seize power. Liu Xian believed he had little enmity with the Wu people and did not think that Zhou Qi could seize military power under the leadership of the Wang brothers. This made him feel as if he were looking through a thin veil, always one step away from the truth.

There was no other way; for both armies engaged in battle, the most important thing right now was how to win the current battle. Zhou Qi's focus, however, wasn't on Jingzhou at all, but on inciting Jiangdong to declare independence. If Liu Xian, amidst the fierce fighting on the Yangtze River, could still consider Jiangdong, a thousand miles away, he would truly be a god. Of course, he wasn't the only one; Li Ju, Li Feng, and other generals also failed to realize this.

There was no use in thinking about it further, so Liu Xian changed his approach and assumed that the Wu people had a deep-seated prejudice against him. He then used this as a premise to consider the upcoming battle.

With the fall of Lady City, a gap several miles long appeared on the southern front of the Han army. Although Li Ju temporarily reinforced the palisades, the increased battle line was a fait accompli. The Han army was already stretched thin, and this further stretching left their defenses vulnerable. In contrast, the Jin army still had ample manpower and could even intensify its offensive. Under these circumstances, continuing to hold the palisades became several times more difficult.

Faced with this difficult problem, the generals had different opinions.

As the elder, He Pan took the lead in suggesting to Liu Xian: "Your Highness, our army has been in Yi'an for a long time, and the people's hearts have now turned to us. Perhaps we can conscript able-bodied men from the city into the army to meet our immediate needs."

To maintain the image of the Han army as a royal force, Liu Xian, upon arriving in Jingzhou, only mobilized the populace for corvée labor and did not conscript soldiers within the city. This resulted in nearly 70,000 displaced people gathering in Yi'an City. If soldiers were conscripted from among them, 20,000 could be recruited in a short time. However, even so, the displaced people were a mixed bag, making it difficult to form a good fighting force in a short period of time, and they were also difficult to command, making them not an ideal choice.

Therefore, Fu Chang and others disagreed, saying, "Conscripting soldiers is too hasty, Your Highness. It would be more reliable to abandon the palisades, retreat into the city, and let the laborers help defend the city walls."

This is one solution, but it also presents a hidden worry. If the Han army holds the city, they might have to abandon the dikes outside the city. Once the Jin army takes over the dikes, they will have many options. Whether they use them as leverage to besiege the city for a long time or wait for the spring tide to breach the dikes, it will put the Han army in a more passive position and affect the morale of the people and the army in the city. This is the situation that Liu Xian has always wanted to avoid.

Since they were unwilling to abandon the dikes and unwilling to conscript able-bodied men, there was really only one option left: to confront the enemy head-on.

Li Ju's thoughts were closest to Liu Xian's. He was the first to suggest, "There's no need for such trouble. The enemy has been attacking for ten days, but as you all have seen, they've only achieved so little. Although they have a few capable men, they are no match for our army in a head-on confrontation. Why don't we simply remove the palisades and challenge the enemy? Let's give them a good beating in one battle. Let these scoundrels learn their lesson, and I don't believe they'll be able to fight again!"

This proposal was incredibly audacious, causing everyone present to turn pale and deem it too risky, repeatedly urging against it. Such a decisive battle would inevitably be a do-or-die gamble, allowing only victory and no room for defeat. Otherwise, if they were to fail, with the battlefield and the city so close, the Han army would have no time to recover from their defeat, neither to defend the city nor to rebuild their navy; it would be a utter and irreversible defeat.

However, Liu Xian didn't care about any of that. The Han army was already at a disadvantage, and the disadvantaged side couldn't afford to make mistakes. With the loss of Lady City, the Han army was already on the edge of a cliff, with no room for further errors. What he was thinking about were other scenarios.

Therefore, he first nodded and praised Li Ju, saying, "Shi Hui is indeed a man of great courage! I also want to fight the bandits, but I'm afraid that if I do, the bandits will mistakenly think it's a trap and dare not fight, which would be undesirable."

"What does my brother mean?"

Liu Xian commented, "Putting aside Zhou Xuanpei's tricks, from the perspective of the overall war situation, the Jin army's strategies and tactics since engaging with us have been entirely conventional. While being conventional may seem conservative and troublesome, it also means avoiding risks and minimizing mistakes. Therefore, if our army takes the initiative to lift the siege, the enemy will likely respond cautiously, proceeding step by step rather than launching a rash attack. If they seize the dike first, it will be a miscalculation on our part."

"Therefore, rather than actively withdrawing from the siege and challenging the enemy, it would be better for our army to create an opening. They are resting for a while today, but it won't be long before they fight again, and on an even larger scale. At that time, our army will use a counter-strategy to let the enemy open a gap and let them in, while we set up an ambush in the rear. When the enemy is in a state of euphoria, we will give them a head-on blow, which will surely have a miraculous effect!"

Although Liu Xian didn't yet understand the character of the Wu people, as a native of Luoyang, he knew the Luoyang scholars, led by Wang Yan, all too well. These people often boasted of their high social standing and considered themselves superior and extraordinary, but in reality, they were simply arrogant. Behind this arrogance lay ignorance; an ignorant heart is extremely fragile, unable to withstand setbacks and failures, and equally incapable of seizing advantages and victories. Once the situation changed beyond their control, they would likely be bewildered and lose their determination to fight back. From this perspective, if the Han army won the next battle, it would most likely be the last fierce military confrontation under the walls of Yi'an.

Having made up his mind, Liu Xian rose, his hand on his sword, his eyes flashing like lightning, and looked at his generals, saying, "We have been out of Sichuan for several months now. Although we have a strategy in place to fight a slow and steady battle, to wait for the opportune moment, there is no perfect plan. To win on the battlefield, we still need a decisive battle to crush the illusion of the pseudo-Jin regime. Generals, it is time for you to show your might. Do you still have the courage to fight again?!"

He Pan, Li Ju, and the rest of the generals drew their swords, stepped forward in unison, knelt on one knee, inserted their swords into their feet, and said loudly, "We are unworthy, but we will obey Your Highness's orders!"

Upon seeing this, Liu Xian laughed loudly, and then decisively said, "Good! You are all generals of Han. I know that among the generals of Han, there are only men who have died a hundred times, and there are absolutely no cowards among them!"

Of course, there were cowards among the Han army, but Liu Xian's words were actually an allusion. It was during the Battle of Yiling, when the Han army suffered a great defeat. Fu Tong of Yiyang covered Liu Bei's rear, fighting valiantly until all his men were killed. The Wu generals admired his bravery and tried to persuade Fu Tong to surrender, but Fu Tong cursed, "Wu dogs! What Han general has ever surrendered!" He eventually died on the battlefield.

From this perspective, the Battle of Yiling was indeed an unprecedented defeat in Liu Bei's career, but the fact that not a single one of the many defeated generals surrendered to the Wu army demonstrates the unity of the Han army. Liu Xian's use of the title "General of Han" to encourage the soldiers at this time had a significant effect on boosting their morale.

Having captured Lady City, the Jin army will undoubtedly use it as a base to launch a proactive attack on the palisade from the south. Therefore, this is the best location to feign defeat and lure the Jin army into a full-scale attack. However, feigning defeat is difficult to execute precisely. If it's too obvious, the Jin army might not fall for it; but if the defeat is too severe, it could easily turn into a real defeat. Therefore, Liu Xian needs to select a general skilled in luring the enemy and capable of maintaining composure even in defeat.

Liu Xian already had an idea. He called out Li Feng's name: "I'll give you three thousand men and ask you to put on a show. Can you do it well?"

Li Feng had been following Liu Xian for two years. Liu Xian had come to a fairly comprehensive understanding of him. Li Feng was indeed intelligent and resourceful; he could not only adapt to changing circumstances but also possessed a rare strategic vision. However, he was not suited to be a general. The reason was simple: he lacked decisiveness. In a desperate battle against the enemy, he would inevitably hesitate and lack resolve. Therefore, in ordinary times, Liu Xian could only use him as a strategist.

However, Li Feng's wisdom comes in handy in such situations where he can lure the enemy. He can use his intelligence to lure the enemy, while his alertness allows him to better protect himself. He is perfectly suited to carrying out missions like feigning defeat.

Upon hearing the order, Li Feng was taken aback. After all, he had always believed that, given his background, the Prince of Han would never allow him to command troops again. Now that another opportunity was presented to him, how could he not seize it? He immediately cupped his hands and replied, "Please rest assured, Your Highness, I will do my utmost!"

Liu Xian looked at the other officers and generals, then his gaze settled on Meng He. He raised his hand and said, "Ahe, go and be Minister Li's deputy. It'll be a good opportunity for you to gain experience."

Although Li Feng was talented, he had not commanded troops for too long and lacked prestige in the army. Meng He and Liu Xian had a well-known relationship, like brothers, so Liu Xian appointed him as his deputy general to reassure the soldiers.

Then came the defense of the southeast and east sides of the palisade. These two areas had to be impregnable to prevent the rest of the Jin army from breaking through. Liu Xian then put Li Ju in charge of this matter, with four divisions under Huangfu Dan, Suo Lin, Wei Bo, and Zhang Qi, totaling more than 10,000 men.

Furthermore, Liu Xian gave He Pan 5,000 men, dispersing them to various locations to guard the navy. He also ordered He Pan to display numerous flags to create the illusion that the majority of the army was stationed on the dikes. This served two main purposes: first, to prevent the Jin army from making a desperate gamble with its remaining navy; and second, to cover the ambush below the dikes. He was primarily assigned to the troops under Guo Fang and Yan Yi.

At this time, generals such as Yang Nandi, Gongsun Gong, Zhang Guang, Wen Shuo, and Xi Jian were all out of the city. Huan Yi was wounded, and Liu Shen had been killed in battle. Liu Xian had very few men left to use. However, he carefully planned and preserved the remaining troops under Guo Mo, Mao Bao, Zhuge Yan, and Huo Biao as his most important ambush force. This force numbered only about ten thousand, and once the Jin army broke in, they would face an enemy several times their size. But Liu Xian was confident of victory. No matter how difficult the situation, could it be worse than the Battle of Mangkou?
In fact, without Liu Xian needing to say much, the generals who participated in the Battle of Mangkou had already recalled that day. Mao Bao had been stabbed several times during the Battle of Shenzizhou. When Liu Xian asked him if he was alright, Mao Bao laughed and replied, "These minor injuries are nothing to worry about. Your Highness, do you still remember five years ago at Mangkou, when I shot a hundred arrows in one night, killing dozens of people, and even cut my finger on the bowstring? The battle was so fierce then. This is nothing compared to that."

Guo Mo, remembering the humiliation Zhou Qi had inflicted on him on the battlefield, took the initiative to swear to Liu Xian: "Your Highness, please rest assured, no matter how rampant those Wu dogs like Zhou Qi are, as long as they come, I will chop them up and feed them to the fish with my blade!"

Guo Mo was never good at hiding his emotions, and his clenched teeth only made his sincerity more apparent. Liu Xian patted his chest and said "Good!" three times. Seeing this, the other generals also expressed their support, and Liu Xian encouraged them one by one.

By the time the meeting concluded, it was late at night. The generals, under the cold stars, left their tents, then rallied their spirits and began to hastily adjust the positions of their units according to plan. Although the Jin army had not yet launched an attack, it could do so at any moment; therefore, speed was crucial. The night was dark, and looking back, the city walls stood tall, their lights flickering. The safety of the entire city now rested on the shoulders of every soldier.

Liu Xian stood atop the city wall of Yi'an, silently observing the movements of the various units. A dozen or so trusted men accompanied him; no one spoke, only silence. The surrounding fields were shrouded in darkness, and the Jin army, stretching for dozens of miles, circled half of Yi'an in the distance. Near and far, flickering lights dotted the landscape, like stars fallen from the sky.

But as time passed, the firelight, stars, and darkness quickly vanished, leaving only a hazy light between heaven and earth, as if everything were in the beginning of chaos, with nothing but anything possible. Then suddenly, this chaos was shattered, and a vast sound resounded throughout the world, seemingly awakening the instinctive impulses deep within people's souls, and thus making everything in the world clear again.

Liu Xian understood clearly; it was the enemy's bugle call. (End of Chapter)