Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 321 Where are the good people anymore?
Shengle.

On the battlefield, smoke and dust filled the air.

The Rouran cavalry clashed fiercely with the reinforcements from Hengzhou.

Anagui did not hold back.

Risking the Khan's dignity, Anagui led his elite Khan's guards in a charge against the weakest point in Yuwentai's formation—

The tribal soldiers of Hengzhou!

In the years since Anagui led the Rouran people away from the southern desert and back to the northern desert, they have not simply been passively waiting.

Although the Rouran did not occupy the southern Gobi Desert, they could still connect with the Western Regions and the Donghu. Anagui recruited Turks as blacksmiths, and the Khitan and Shiwei as vassals. They accumulated armor, weapons and warhorses, and could also levy taxes in the Western Regions to make up for the shortage of supplies.

Therefore, among the 100,000 cavalrymen that Anagui led south, although there were some tribal guerrillas with tattered equipment, his personal Khan's guards were well-equipped, even better than the strongest prefectural troops in Hengshuo and Shuo provinces.

In contrast, the tribal soldiers whom Yuwen Tai lured to surrender after arriving in Hengzhou were much poorer in equipment. Of course, if they weren't poorly equipped, the scale of the rebellion wouldn't have only caused annoyance and discomfort to Erzhu Tianguang and other members of the Erzhu clan.

After losing their leader and surrendering, these tribal soldiers were ignored by everyone in Hengzhou. After all, Yuwen Tai, whom they followed, was also a marginalized figure in Hengzhou, so these underlings were naturally even less welcome.

They came to Yuwentai's aid without even leather armor or a full supply of arrows. It was only with Erzhu Tianguang's special permission that they were able to gather the basic weaponry.

These tribal soldiers quickly began to collapse under the attack of the Rouran Khan's personal guards.

From the sky, the Rouran cavalry looked like an arrow, piercing straight into Yuwentai's formation and scattering it.

The Rouran Khan's personal guards were skilled in both archery and horsemanship. As they approached, a separate stream of arrows from their charge mixed with those of the other Rouran archers and continued to fire at Yuwen Tai's main camp.

Arrows rained down on Yuwen Tai's main force, but did not cause major casualties.

Rouran lacked iron, so the arrows used by Rouran archers were not iron arrows, but bone arrows. Moreover, the arrows were curved and had poor accuracy, relying on their destructive power through large-scale scattering.

Yuwen Tai's main force consisted of his own Yuwen family's troops and the soldiers from the Six Garrisons given by Erzhu Rong. They were fully armored, well-equipped, and had extremely rich combat experience, making them adept at dealing with the Rouran archers' arrow rain.

Before arriving here, Yuwentai and Yu Jin exchanged a portion of their troops as a condition of their oath.

Currently, his ranks include hundreds of Han soldiers from Shuozhou, and he also has men in Yu Jin's army. Even Yuwen Hu is on Yu Jin's side.

These Han soldiers were more experienced than the soldiers of the Six Garrisons under Yuwentai.

They initially had some obvious rifts with the Six Garrisons, but under the immense pressure of the Rouran cavalry, they had no choice but to put aside their past grievances and work together to deal with the crisis.

Outside the battle formation, the Rouran cavalry kept firing their guns, but Yuwen Tai remained restrained and did not retaliate with full force.

Under the onslaught of the Rouran Khan's personal guards, the tribal troops that Yuwentai had positioned outside the main camp were on the verge of collapse.

Their fighting strength was weaker than Yuwentai had imagined.

However, Yuwen Tai was not intimidated by this.

Having grown up in the north, Yuwen Tai knew very well that elite troops had to be under his own control. This was why, even though he knew the tribal soldiers were numerous and unruly, he did not break them up or reorganize them.

If the troops are mixed together, the combat strength of his five thousand men will be reduced.

Even without mixing different units, he still has at least one elite force at his disposal.

Small in number, but usable.

Yuwen Tai knew that even if the tribal soldiers eventually collapsed, his main force would not lose its fighting spirit.

Whether it was the troops of the Yuwen clan or the soldiers of the other six garrisons, the bonds between these soldiers were very deep, connected by blood ties, region, and shared hardships. When faced with dire circumstances, their fighting spirit would be even stronger.

Anagui led the Khan's personal guards into the battle formation, scattered the tribal soldiers, and then, ignoring the scattered tribal soldiers, turned his horse around to charge Yuwentai's main camp.

Both Anagui himself and his Khan's personal guards were so engrossed in the killing that they had lost their minds.

It can be pleasurable to dominate weaker opponents!
"Khan, Yuwen Tai's main force consists entirely of troops from the Six Garrisons..."

Anagui could no longer listen and said:

"Those damned soldiers from the Six Garrisons, let's wipe them all out at once!"

"The Han soldiers of Keshengle..."

"No more than two thousand people!"

With the battle situation now at this point, victory was within reach, so how could Anagui possibly give up?

Anagui had long since forgotten the warning from the Rouran prime minister. He led his elite troops and charged forward.

Seeing Anagui's wolf-head banner heading towards his main camp, Yuwen Tai was overjoyed.

Yuwen Tai was a cold-faced king. Although he was extremely excited inside, he remained calm on the surface.

Under the onslaught of the Rouran Khan's personal guards, the number of arrows coming from all directions to Yuwentai's main force decreased significantly.

For the Rouran people, victory seemed to be just around the corner.

To Anagui's and his Khan's personal guards' disappointment, unlike the overwhelming impact they had just experienced, Yuwentai's main force was as solid as an iron plate.

They simply couldn't break through!
The Rouran people did not have organized armored cavalry and could not confront well-formed, armored infantry on the plains, even if the enemy was far fewer in number than the Rouran cavalry.

Anagui led his tribe through the harsh conditions of the northern desert, forging a tenacious will and endurance. However, this will and endurance could not completely replace the role of the vest.

The Khan's personal guards, charging forward, were defeated in the battle against the Six Garrisons' troops. Their warhorses neighed in pools of blood, and the soldiers on their backs fell to the ground and were strangled by the Six Garrisons' troops.

At the beginning, the outcome of the battle between the two sides was not clear.

However, as the charge continued, the momentum of the Rouran cavalry's advance became noticeably hampered.

Instead of charging headlong into Yuwentai's main force, Anagui sensed something was wrong and didn't want his personal guards to sacrifice themselves in the battle. Therefore, he prepared to order the charging cavalry to retreat and bring in archers to continue firing.

But by this point in the battle, his 30,000 cavalrymen were already too scattered. Those archers who had retreated and were about to rest were now weary after seeing Anagui's personal guards' offensive stalled and being called back up.

The Rouran's two offensive tactics, archer scattering and cavalry charges, were both ineffective against Yuwentai's Six Garrisons.

Just as the Rouran changed their formation, Yuwen Tai, who was in the middle of the battle formation, seized the opportunity and gave the order to attack.

Target—the wolf-head banner of the Rouran Khan!

……

Upon learning of the Rouran attack, Yu Jin led over a thousand cavalrymen to reinforce the battlefield.

When Yu Jin arrived at the battlefield, he found that the situation was better than he had imagined.

The Rouran's 30,000 cavalrymen were scattered across the rugged hills outside Shengle, their ranks broken and disorganized. The Rouran Khan's wolf-headed banner was being chased by an army, fleeing in disarray.

Yu Jin was overjoyed.

"All troops, advance! Head straight for the wolf-head banner!"
-
Luoyang.

Tianzhu General's Mansion.

A burst of hearty laughter echoed from inside the mansion.

"I thought that the Rouran Khan's southward march was so aggressive that Hengshuo would be in turmoil. Who would have thought that 30,000 Rouran cavalry would be defeated by my Hengzhou troops at Shengle and flee north in disarray."

A smile crept onto Erzhu Shilong's face as he looked at Erzhu Rong. The Erzhu clan members in the room were also all smiles, but Erzhu Rong's expression was serious, as if he were deep in thought.
"General Tianzhu, after this defeat, the Rouran ruler has also realized the extent of our power. Perhaps we can start talking now."

Driving the Rouran people out of the southern desert was no easy task, and Erzhu Shilong had never even considered it.

Sheng Lezhi won the battle, but he did not completely annihilate the Rouran's 30,000 cavalry because his own troops were too few to form an encirclement and annihilation force.

At most, it dampened the Rouran ruler's southward advance!

With the collapse of the Six Garrisons system, there are no permanent troops stationed north of the Yin Mountains. Even if you manage to drive them out once, the Rouran can return again. The Rouran can remain in the southern Gobi Desert indefinitely, but your army cannot stay there forever.

Unless, of course, they can wipe out 100,000 Rouran in one battle.

However, at this time, the Erzhu clan could not organize a large-scale army to march north and fight a decisive battle with the Rouran.

Therefore, talking is the best approach.

Erzhu Shilong's words did not move Erzhu Rong. The people in the room also sensed something was wrong. After waiting for a long time, Erzhu Rong asked:

"Has Jin Yongcheng received this military intelligence report?"

"Hengshuo's military intelligence is sent from Pingcheng to Jinyang and then to Luoyang. It passes through our hands all the way, so Da Yeshuang wouldn't have found out so quickly."

Upon hearing this, Erzhu Rong seemed to have made up his mind.

"To quell external aggression, we must first secure internal stability. It's time to settle things with Ohno Sō!"

Those inside the room were stunned by Erzhu Rong's words, but soon they were overjoyed.

Erzhu Shilong, in particular, was very excited. He remembered that not long ago, Erzhu Rong had warned him not to neglect Daye Shuang.

But today, the murderous intent is palpable!
Erzhu Rong explained:

"The previous alliance with Da Yeshuang was due to the Rouran's southward advance. Even if we win the decisive battle against Da Yeshuang in Luoyang, our forces will suffer heavy losses. At that time, the Rouran will plunder extensively, Hengshuo will be lost, and Jinyang will be in danger. Now it seems that the Rouran are nothing special, and Da Yeshuang is a hidden danger that should be eliminated first."

The Rouran were advancing south with great momentum, and Erzhu Rong, unaware of their strength, was intimidated. But now, having seen the military reports from the north, Erzhu Rong understood the Rouran's capabilities, and his worries about the threat to his base in Jinyang disappeared.

Erzhu Shilong and the Erzhu clan members behind him bowed and said:

"General Tianzhu is wise!"

Erzhu Shilong asked:

"Should we mobilize troops tonight and attack Jinyong City while the enemy is unprepared?"

Erzhu Rong waved his hand.

"In that case, the loss would be too great."

Erzhu Rong finally agreed to a truce, not only because he was worried about the Rouran, but also because he was concerned about the fighting strength of the Chang'an cavalry.

His Jinyang cavalry and Chang'an cavalry are roughly equal in strength, and the number of them they bring from Luoyang is also about the same. If they were to actually fight, even if he won, it would be a Pyrrhic victory, or even a mutually destructive one.

Therefore, Erzhu Rong had reservations.

He believed that Li Shuang felt the same way.

"Order Erzhu Yangdu to lead the troops on the north bank to secretly cross the river, and then order Hebasheng's army to go north. After the two armies join forces, let Hebasheng attack Xin'an and Erzhu Yangdu attack Yiyang, cutting off Daye Shuang's way back!"

The reason for combining forces before sending Hebasheng to attack Xin'an was that Xin'an was guarded by Gao Ang and his 5,000 troops, and Hebasheng's forces were insufficient, while Erzhu Yangdu did not have the ability to do so.

"Tell Hebasheng to remember that even if we fail to capture Xin'an, we must not let Gao Ang break through. We must block the pass, build fortifications based on the terrain, and not let Da Yeshuang get through with a single soldier."

"promise!"

Erzhu Rong's expression was solemn as he said:
"Once the main army surrounds us, Jin Yong will become an isolated city. Even if Da Ye Shuang's cavalry is fierce and powerful, it will be nothing to fear!"

……

Jinyong City.

On the city wall at night, Li Shuang stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the stars in the night sky, and couldn't help but sigh.

"Your Majesty, why is this so?"

Hulü Guang asked from behind, his face full of doubt.

"Ah Guang, tell me, why has the world been in chaos for over three hundred years since the end of the Han Dynasty?"

"When Dong Zhuo entered the capital, the Han dynasty declined, and the rulers of the Wei and Jin dynasties were not virtuous monarchs."

Li Shuang nodded and said:

"In these three hundred years of chaos, rulers were no longer rulers, ministers were no longer ministers, and people no longer cared about friendship or morality. What else could they talk about!"

Hulü Guang listened and asked:

"Why does Your Majesty have such sentiments?"

"Erzhu Rong is going to attack me!"

Hulü Guang's expression changed, and he was shaken, but he still managed to remain calm. Because in front of him, the king whom Hulü Guang had always admired remained as immovable as a mountain.

How does Your Majesty know this?

"That scoundrel Erzhu Rong, I can tell what he's going to say just by the way he moves his butt."

Hearing this ambiguous answer, Hulü Guang felt even more confused, but then Li Shuang continued:
"Yuwentai and Yujin won a battle in Shuozhou, and the Rouran retreated. But Erzhu Rong kept this important military intelligence from me. What do you think?"

After listening, Hulü Guang understood after a moment's thought.

"They concealed military intelligence, intending to take advantage of our unpreparedness and attack us! Those powerful families in Luoyang..."

Li Shuang waved his hand and said:

"These days, where are there any good people left in Luoyang?"

Hulü Guang sensed a sense of crisis. Erzhu Rong must have been planning this for a long time before he dared to make a move, and his actions would surely be swift, ruthless, and precise.

"Your Majesty, in that case, should we withdraw from Jinyong City, leave Luoyang, and retreat to Shancheng?"

Li Shuang said:
"Erzhu Rong has been plotting for a long time, and he's been waiting to ambush us. Erzhu Yangdu led 20,000 troops across the river last night. If we make a move, Erzhu Rong will surely follow closely with his army. At that time, we will be attacked from both sides."

"What about that?"

Hulü Guang asked, puzzled, "How does Li Shuang know so much about Erzhu Rong's movements?"
Just then, Hou Mochen Chong walked up excitedly, beaming with joy.

"Your Majesty was absolutely right. I led my troops to charge into the Biyong outside the city, and I captured Erzhu Puti and more than thirty of his Erzhu clan's young men all at once!"

Hulü Guang heard this and felt something was wrong.

Houmo Chenchong left Jinyong City the day before yesterday, and Erzhu Yangdu crossed the river last night. He himself, the king, has been holding back for much longer than Bi Zhu Rong!
As Hulü Guang pondered, he heard Li Shuang sigh:

"The world is in decline, and people's hearts are no longer the same as they used to be."

……

(End of this chapter)