Song Xiu

Chapter 84 Li Shoujie was dumbfounded
The route we took to get here was roughly the same as the route we took to get back.

The routes may be roughly the same, but that doesn't mean the feelings are the same.

When the 20,000 Northern Han troops marched south, they were in a grand and imposing manner.

At that time, under Liu Jiye's leadership, they were in high spirits and full of wonderful expectations for making great achievements.

And what about now?

Led by Liu Ji'en, the 20,000 Northern Han soldiers looked gloomy and, eager to return to their hometowns, refused to look south again.

Such a drastic change naturally attracted the attention of people in Shangdang City.

After Liu Jiye led his troops to arrive, the heavy weight in Li Shoujie's heart finally lifted.

In Li Shoujie's view, with the armies of the Northern Han and the Two Han dynasties protecting Luzhou, even if Li Jun suffered a defeat at the front, the worst-case scenario for him would be to seek refuge in Taiyuan.

In chaotic times, what more could one ask for than to survive?

Unexpectedly, this period of ease did not last long before a soldier on the city wall reported:

"The Han army is retreating!"

"How can it be!"

Upon hearing this, Li Shoujie, who was painting, was so shocked that he couldn't even hold his brush.

The ink-stained brush tip fell limply and tumbled, instantly staining the entire painting.

At this moment, Li Shoujie had no mind to care about any paintings.

He burst out from behind his desk and demanded sharply:
"Why would the Han army suddenly withdraw without any reason!"

Could it be that Song reinforcements have arrived?

The person who came to report was a retainer of the Li family.

If it weren't for this identity, Li Shoujie would probably have thought this person was a spy sent by the Song army to deliberately disrupt the morale of the troops in the city.

It's not that Li Shoujie has poor stress resistance.

Who would have thought that the Han army would abandon the easily attainable Luzhou and suddenly choose to withdraw?

Li Shoujie had long regarded the 20,000 Han soldiers as his lifeline, but now that his lifeline was about to slip away, Li Shoujie felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

For a moment, Li Shoujie was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, pacing back and forth in the study.

Li Shoujie subconsciously wanted to summon Lü Qiu Zhongqing, but then he thought that Lü Qiu Zhongqing had already left the city to pacify the counties for him.

After pacing back and forth for a long time, Li Shoujie, still unable to sort out his thoughts, became increasingly flustered.

Left with no other choice, he rushed out of the room.

After reaching the city wall at top speed, Li Shoujie looked out from the high vantage point and could vaguely see the tail of a marching army of tens of thousands of people.

After glancing at it a few times, Li Shoujie angrily slammed his fist on the battlement:
"The Han army is untrustworthy, and Liu Jiye is untrustworthy!"

To avoid displeasing the Han army and to demonstrate his trust in them, Li Shoujie had not sent anyone to constantly gather information outside the Han army camp.

The Han army would never have thought of actively publicizing the dishonorable act of changing generals on the eve of battle.

In this way, Li Shoujie was temporarily unaware of the changes within the Han army.

Naturally, Li Shoujie pinned the blame for Liu Jiye's betrayal on him.

Even Li Shoujie, the commander-in-chief, was unaware of the changes within the Han army, let alone the others who had rushed to the city after hearing the bad news.

Looking at the long line of retreating troops outside the city, many of the officials who witnessed this scene had faces full of dejection.

What people fear most is that when hope arrives, it is suddenly taken away.

An official, dragging his somewhat weak body, approached Li Shoujie and said:

"Commander, hurry! Quickly send someone to inquire with the Allied forces!"

Even at this moment, some people still held onto the idea that the Han army might change their minds.

Even the mediocre Li Shoujie knew that if the Han army didn't even bother to consult him beforehand about such a crucial matter as withdrawing troops, it meant that the Han army had essentially given up on him.

What use would it be to send someone to inquire at this point and stop the Han army?
While Li Shoujie was still furious, one of his subordinates pointed to a distant spot outside the city and exclaimed:

"Are those... those Song soldiers?"

The official's exclamation drew the attention of many people on the city wall.

Following the direction he pointed, everyone saw an army of several thousand men marching in an orderly fashion, about a few miles behind the Han army.

Perhaps because of the distance, the people on the city wall could not see the flags of that army clearly, but if they thought about it carefully, they would know that apart from the Han army, the only army that could move north from the direction of Huguan was the Song army.

This scene left Li Shoujie and the others somewhat stunned.

Are the Song army pursuing the Han army?

After a long silence, someone finally couldn't help but voice the question that had been on their mind.

Upon hearing this question, Li Shoujie's face turned pale.

At first glance, this question may seem absurd.

It is a fundamental principle of military strategy to not hinder the return of troops!

Besides, how can a few thousand people chase after tens of thousands?

Even the most absurd things, when presented vividly before one's eyes, leave no choice but to believe them.

However, upon realizing this, was Li Shoujie the only one on the city wall whose face turned pale?

Gradually, an even more "absurd" conjecture emerged in everyone's minds.

"What if the Han army suffers a major defeat under the pursuit of the Song army?"

When this thought came to mind, Li Shoujie was unaware that the expressions of the people behind him had become dangerous.

Upon learning that the Han army had set up camp ahead, Zhao Dexiu also ordered the entire army to rest on the spot.

While resting, Zhao Dexiu summoned Tian Chongjin and others:
"Pass down the order that, starting today, every soldier shall build two stoves when encamping."

Double the amount every two days.

Upon hearing Zhao Dexiu's order, Cao Bin's eyes lit up, while some generals looked puzzled.

“Lord, Sun Bin reduced the number of cooking fires, but our army doubled them.”

As the art of war says, "Do not stop the retreating army," but instead pursue them.

What is the reason for this?

The general's face was full of curiosity.

The generals in the army were already impressed by Zhao Dexiu, and his question was a request for guidance, not a challenge.

Seeing that more than one person looked puzzled, Zhao Dexiu smiled and explained:
“In the past, Sun Bin feigned weakness; now I am feigning strength.”

The enemy has many soldiers, while our soldiers are few.

In any battle against the enemy, if the enemy is numerous and we are few, we must set up more flags and increase the number of fire pits to demonstrate our strength to the enemy.

If the enemy cannot ascertain the size and strength of our army, then they will not easily engage in battle with us.

With pursuers close behind, they were unable to fight, and morale plummeted once again.

The principle of not hindering the return of troops is a fundamental tenet of military strategy.

However, to be called an army, one must have high morale.

The enemy's morale is declining daily, and they are focused on heading north, greatly reducing their fighting strength.

When the enemy's morale collapses, what is there to fear, even if they are numerous!

In the military, morale is like a soldier's health bar.

Zhao Dexiu was using a strategy of "showing strength" to continuously bleed the already demoralized Han army dry.

There was another important reason for following behind the Han army: to continue to amplify the unease in the hearts of the Han army.

As their anxiety grew, the Han army became increasingly eager to return home.

This was enough to ensure that Liu Ji'en would only be able to choose the shortest route back to China.

This is crucial.

After listening to Zhao Dexiu's analysis, the generals suddenly understood, and they all bowed in submission and left.

After the generals had left, Zhao Dexiu looked at Cao Bin, who was standing to the side:

"Guohua, there's one more plan I need your help with."

Looking at Zhao Dexiu's small request, Cao Bin felt both happy and sad:

It's really impossible to get it clean.

(End of this chapter)