Chapter 95

Indeed, as Xue Tong had said. The question of where the enemy came from could be answered by simply asking upon returning to the city; however, with the smoke signals rising high over Jinyang, the soldiers were in chaos, and if the officers did not quickly take control, who knew what might happen.

Thus, everyone was in no mood to talk much and hurriedly urged the troops into the city.

Once the smoke signals were raised, the entire city would enter a state of extreme tension. The troops stationed in the city needed to be mobilized; additional personnel needed to be dispatched to key points on the city walls; stones, wood, and siege weapons needed to be urgently prepared; civilians farming outside the city either had to be evacuated or brought into the city; and all able-bodied men in the city needed to be recounted and prepared to receive weapons. At this moment, Jinyang was in such a state, with countless messengers running back and forth for various matters, and the four city gates were bustling with people. Fortunately, Lu Yao's troops moved quickly, or they would have been blocked outside the city.

Upon reaching their own camp, Deng Gang served the soldiers with food. The variety of food and drink was extremely abundant, clearly prepared in advance to welcome the soldiers' triumphant return. However, most of the soldiers had no heart for eating, all anxiously awaiting the next news.

As the commander, Lu Yao did not enter the camp. He ordered Deng Gang to bring felt carpets and a table, and he dismounted to rest at the camp gate.

Their camp gate faced the main road leading to the south of Jinyang. After a while, there was no sign of large troop movements or the gathering of able-bodied men. The streets were filled with panicked residents, some fleeing from outside the city, and others carrying valuables, planning to escape. Although soldiers at each intersection were shouting to make people return to their homes, the number of soldiers was too few, and they themselves were somewhat panicked, gradually losing control of the situation.

After a while, the guard general responsible for defending Jinyang, Linghu Sheng, sent a messenger to order Lu Yao and Xue Tong to immediately go to the Daxia Gate for a meeting. The messenger was in a hurry, eager to go elsewhere, but Lu Yao still detained him for a moment to inquire about the battle situation.

By comparing the information relayed by the messenger with his own deductions, Lu Yao realized the current situation:

The Xiongnu claimed to be the leaders of the Hu tribes, with twenty thousand mounted archers, but those who knew better knew this was not true. The Southern Xiongnu's influence over the northern tribes had long waned and could be ignored. The forces Liu Yuan relied on for his uprising were only the five tribes of the Xiongnu. Even including the various mixed tribes, the total force would not exceed eighty thousand. Considering that the Han state faced the hundreds of thousands of troops from the Luoyang Imperial Guard across the Yellow River to the south, and was suppressed by the military stronghold of Ye to the east, while also fighting against Yue Shi to the north, these eighty thousand troops were stretched thin.

This time, Liu Yuan's large-scale invasion involved about forty to fifty thousand troops. After deducting the forces left to guard the Chanyu's court and the necessary border defenses, this was indeed the maximum mobile force the Xiongnu Han state could mobilize. Therefore, Yue Shi also led his entire army to engage in a decisive battle in the southern counties of the Taiyuan state.

However, no one had expected Liu Yuan to make such a determination. Even more unexpected was that the general in charge of the region, General Long Jimeng, had colluded with the Xiongnu. When the main forces of both sides were engaged in a fierce battle around Jiezhou, the Xiongnu's elite force of over twenty thousand, led by the Left Xianwang Liu He, stationed along the Yellow River, ignored the strategic Mengjin pass and suddenly moved north. They broke through the treacherous Zhi Pass and, with the help of Long Jimeng, captured Huguan in just one day and night!

The defenders of Huguan who refused to surrender to the Xiongnu were all massacred, and this force did not linger in Huguan. They continued north with the support of Long Jimeng's loyal troops, capturing cities like Xiangyuan, Wuxiang, and Yangyi along the way, and their advance directly threatened Jinyang.

"The situation is dire!" Lu Yao clenched his fists and shouted.

Now, the main base of the Jin army was under serious threat. If the main force could not return in time, the hard-won achievements of the past few months would be lost in an instant. If the enemy attacked from both front and back, the thirteen thousand troops led by Yue Shi would be completely annihilated. And if Yue Shi led his troops back to save Jinyang, and the battle at Jiezhou turned from a win to a loss, with Liu Yuan's Xiongnu army in pursuit, the outcome would still be total annihilation.

Lu Yao had hoped that the situation was not as dire as he had imagined, but the confirmed situation was ten times more urgent than he had thought. This made him feel dizzy, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead, and he was at a loss for words.

After the messenger left, Lu Yao pressed his left palm with his right hand, making a cracking sound, and looked at Xue Tong, saying bitterly, "There is a folk song from the end of the Han dynasty: 'When recommending scholars, they do not know books; when examining filial piety, fathers live separately. The poor and honest are as dirty as mud, and the high-ranking generals are as timid as chickens.' This was already a sign of the end of an era. Who would have thought that in our dynasty, a third-rank general with a salary of two thousand stones would collude with a foreign tribe to betray his comrades-in-arms..."

Xue Tong suddenly became alarmed and said angrily, "Since the Hu people have captured Shangdang, Gao Xiang... Gao Xiang..."

He had been anxious about the situation in Shangdang and almost forgot about Gao Xiang! Gao Xiang, originally a squad leader under Lu Yao, had transferred to Long Jimeng's command a few months ago and was said to be highly favored. But Xue Tong knew that although Gao Xiang was strong and rebellious, he hated evil and would never collude with traitors. Since the Hu people had swept through Shangdang, Gao Xiang was in grave danger!

Xue Tong, who was deeply close to Gao Xiang, was now extremely anxious.

Lu Yao also frowned deeply. He waved for He Yun to come forward and ordered, "Shangdang is not too far from Jinyang. Fugitives and stragglers will return in the next few days. Take twenty quick-witted soldiers and go to each city gate to gather information. If you can find Gao Xiang... or any of his subordinates, bring them to us immediately."

He Yun immediately accepted the order and left.

Shen Jin suddenly interjected, "Daoming, the situation is not good. Should we order the soldiers to prepare in advance, otherwise... there might be unforeseen events."

He was naturally impatient, and although he lowered his voice, many people around him could hear clearly.

Lu Yao glanced at him but did not respond.

Shen Jin became even more anxious, "Daoming! General! We are all from Bingzhou. How many of our comrades who have fought together for years are left? You must think of everyone!"

Lu Yao remained silent for a while before nodding slightly. Shen Jin immediately turned and returned to the camp.

Lu Yao watched Shen Jin's hurried back and took a deep breath, mounting his horse and heading to the Daxia Gate.

Xue Tong asked worriedly, "Daoming, can you hold up? Should I go instead, so you can rest?"

"I can hold up, don't worry," Lu Yao waved his hand. "But if you are concerned about Gao Xiang's fate, you might as well wait here."

"How can I let personal feelings harm public affairs?" Xue Tong replied resolutely.

The two rode quickly to the Daxia Gate in the north of the city. They tied their horses at the base of the city wall and climbed the steps to the top.

The earthen steps, long neglected, were unstable under their hurried steps. Soil and stones rolled down the slope, causing them to stumble. Lu Yao, with injuries on his back and legs, felt intense pain with every step, but he only paled and quickly regained his balance, continuing forward.

Halfway up the steps, they saw several warriors supporting a man in military attire coming down. His hair was disheveled, and his face was obscured, but his armor had been stripped off, revealing a bloody back, clearly the result of severe flogging.

Lu Yao and Xue Tong exchanged glances. Linghu Sheng was known for his long experience and usually served as Yue Shi's advisor, showing no particular talent. In the Battle of Banqiao, he had led troops against the enemy, but his tactics were only average. Who would have thought he could be so ruthless.

On the city wall, Linghu Sheng was lecturing several officers. Lu Yao and Xue Tong hurriedly bowed and stood to one side. Linghu Sheng returned a half-bow with a grim face and continued, "... Although we have received reports, the enemy situation is still unclear. You officers must remain calm! ..."

Lu Yao glanced sideways and saw that the smoke signal had been extinguished.

He knew that the man who had just been flogged must be the city gate commander, Zhang Qiao. He must have panicked upon learning of the large-scale invasion by the Hu people and lit the smoke signal without authorization, hence the punishment. At this moment, Yue Shi was leading the main force of Jinyang south to fight. If the front-line soldiers heard that Jinyang had fallen, it would cause chaos and give the enemy an advantage. Therefore, such news could be reported by messengers but must not be publicly announced through smoke signals.

Although Linghu Sheng's handling was harsh, it was a prudent and experienced approach. There were indeed no incompetent people under Yue Shi. Even in such a dire situation, they would try to seize every opportunity.

Linghu Sheng dismissed the officers and walked a few steps along the wall, leaning on the parapet and looking into the distance. He suddenly turned to Lu Yao and asked, "Daoming, how many of your soldiers are still fit for battle?"

Lu Yao stepped forward and replied honestly, "After deducting the casualties from this battle, we now have four hundred and twelve soldiers, of which over three hundred are injured. Additionally, there are thirty-nine old and weak civilians in the camp who can also wield weapons."

Linghu Sheng nodded and paced back and forth for a few steps. Although he was called an old general, he was only in his fifties, but decades of hardship had made his skin rough like the bark of a winter tree, giving him an aged appearance. At this moment, Linghu Sheng was very close to Lu Yao, and in Lu Yao's eyes, his gray beard trembled in the wind, making him look even more decrepit. He should have been enjoying his grandchildren at home, but the times forced him to continue fighting on the battlefield.

Lu Yao could not help but say, "Old General, although our troops are few, our morale is high. If you need us to serve, we are all willing to fight bravely to the death!"

Linghu Sheng's eyes flashed, and he approached Lu Yao, saying, "I know Daoming is a brave and capable commander, so I have a heavy responsibility to entrust to you... Daoming, are you willing to take over from Zhang Qiao and guard the Daxia Gate?"

Lu Yao was slightly taken aback.

Jinyang was surrounded by the Fen and Jin rivers, with floating bridges over the rivers at the southeast gates, which could be retracted in emergencies to block the enemy. The Daxia Gate was on the north side of Jinyang, with flat and dry terrain outside, far from the Fen River to the right and the Jin River to the left, making it a critical point.

The section of the city wall attached to the Daxia Gate was about two li long, about one-sixth of the total length of Jinyang's city wall. Guarding this section was no easy task, even if Linghu Sheng assigned all five hundred of Zhang Qiao's troops to him, Lu Yao's forces were still severely insufficient. With a total of only a thousand troops, even if all were deployed on the wall, there would be only two men per step. It might look impressive, but relying on such a small number to organize a defense was absurd.

Seeing Lu Yao's hesitation, Linghu Sheng sighed, "I know it is difficult for Daoming, but if not for the situation..."

Before he finished, Lu Yao deeply bowed to Linghu Sheng and solemnly said, "I accept the order!"

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