Chapter 519: 3 days later, the city is burned by flames

Chapter 519: 3 days later, the city is burned by flames

Chapter 519 Three Days Later, Flames Burn the City (Happy Lantern Festival)
What? Nothing?

Hearing this, Xue Shence and Sun Xiaozhun were stunned and puzzled: "What does Mo Zhaorong mean by this?"

Behind the two men, the local generals and officials who pleaded guilty voluntarily or passively all looked confused because the two "main generals" took the initiative to admit their crimes.

Mo Chou looked around at the faces, smiled, and said, "Don't you two want to ask how we know that the city is under attack?"

After a brief pause, she answered:
“On the way, we accidentally rescued a shadow guard and learned that the main force of the rebels was attacking the city, so we sent additional cavalry to break through the defense line.

Governor Zhao made a judgment and guessed that the thieves were heading for the Taicang Silver Mine, so he led a team of light cavalry to suppress the rebellion in advance. "

Is this really the case? Has Zhao Duan gone to help?
Xue Shence and Sun Xiaozhun were startled at first, and then they were filled with joy and surprise:

With Zhao Duan's ability and setting off early, it is indeed possible to stop the thieves from destroying the mine.

The rest of the people couldn't help but show their relief and surprise at having survived the disaster.

If something happens to the silver mine, someone will always have to take the blame. And at a time when people are needed, if it is reported to the court, Xue Shence and Sun Xiaozheng may not be in trouble, but the people working under them will be more likely to be dragged out and convicted.

That King of Hell Zhao, before he even arrived, had already acted like a giant umbrella, shielding them from disaster.

Of course, everything is just speculation and has not been confirmed yet. But even if the silver mine is still destroyed, Zhao Duan's initiative to go there means that this "commander-in-chief" has taken a large part of the responsibility.

By chance, they all silently felt grateful to Zhao Du'an.

"Governor Sun, please arrange for the two battalions of reinforcements to enter the city to rest. I will go to the west gate to wait for Governor Zhao to return victoriously." Xue Shence said.

Sun Xiaozhun responded and made a "please" gesture to Shi Meng, Yuan Feng and others.

Mo Chou said, "In that case, I will go with Envoy Xue."

The Taicang silver mine is in the west. If Zhao Duan returns, he must return through the west gate.

When Zhao Duan rode to the city gate, he saw from afar that the gate was wide open and a group of people were waiting. When he got closer and saw their faces clearly, his tense heartstrings suddenly relaxed, he exhaled and smiled:
"Envoy Xue, it's been a long time since we last met in the capital!"

Xue Shence was dressed in military uniform. Unlike the military officer robe with a lion embroidered on the chest when he was in the capital, the chest guard of his armor was carved with the head of a strange beast.

He looks to be in his forties or fifties, with fair skin and a short beard. Although he looks much more haggard than before, one can still vaguely see the arrogant attitude of the "God of War of Dayu".

"I haven't seen you for a few months, and you are even better than before!" Xue Shence was not good at boasting or being polite, so this compliment was his limit. He looked at Zhao Duan carefully, sighing with emotion:

"I heard that the governor escorted His Majesty back to the capital over a thousand miles, and even defeated King Heng. I am not as good as him in such achievements."

From now on, if anyone says that you, Old Xue, can't flatter others, I will get angry with him... Zhao Duan smiled, threw the reins to his subordinates, walked over, nodded to Mochou again, restrained his smile, and got straight to the point:

"It seems that the city is safe, so I am relieved. The rebels who wanted to blow up the silver mine have been eliminated by me. Now I leave Tang Ping and others there to prevent any more accidents.

In addition, the rebels destroyed Songjiazhuang and tried to burn the farmland. When I arrived, it was too late. I only had time to wipe them out. Where is Sun Xiaozheng? The aftermath of this matter will be taken care of by him as the prefect."

Kill farmers and burn farmland?
Xue Shence, Mo Chou and others frowned, but during the war, such things could not be avoided, and they were more concerned about the safety of the silver mine.

"Governor Sun has placed reinforcements in the city, and the generals who were previously dispersed to the surrounding granaries have also returned one after another," Xue Shence said.

"Please ask the governor to come with us to the government office to discuss the subsequent plan to defeat the bandits."

Zhao Duan nodded:
"Master Xue, just call me Envoy. We are officials in the same court, so there is no need to be estranged."

Xue Shence shook his head and said seriously:

"There is no joking in the army. Since you are the commander-in-chief, you should address me like this."

This guy is publicly expressing that he has no second thoughts and is showing his loyalty to the court... Zhao Duan's eyes fluctuated and he nodded:
"Just call me Master Xue if that's easy to say."

……

……

Huaishui Road, Baihua Village.

Wearing patched clothes, with his hair tied up with a wooden hairpin, carrying a wooden sword on his back and holding a whisk in his hand, the Guhuo Zhenren walked in the sea of ​​flowers.

The steps are hurried.

Looking up, the sea of ​​flowers that used to grow beautifully has become much more messy and unkempt because the villagers have fled in recent days and no one has taken care of it.

He ignored the empty houses in Baihua Village, and did not visit the house where the empress and Zhao Duan were practicing together. Instead, after confirming again and again that he was not being targeted by anyone, he quickly went up the back mountain.

Following the mountain path, we arrived at the dilapidated temple hidden in the barren mountains.

"Fortunately, the formation is still there."

Guhuo Zhenren pulled up a stone pillar from the corner of the yard. Seeing the illusion slowly dissipate, his tense heartstrings relaxed and a smile appeared on his gloomy face:
"You scared yourself. Even if you are a celestial being, you can't find anything special here without searching for it. It seems to be just a coincidence."

The old Taoist priest flicked his whisk, walked through the dusty and dilapidated Taoist temple in his cloth shoes, reached the depths, and flipped the switch.

With a heavy "crumbling" sound, the stone wall slowly opened up a secret passage, leading to one of the treasure troves he had created with years of hard work.

"Huh?" When Guhuo Zhenren walked down the stairs, he finally realized something was wrong. The ground was too clean and the dust shouldn't be so thin.

But when he walked into the secret room, his pupils suddenly narrowed, and the whisk in his hand fell to the ground with a "click". The old Taoist staggered, stepped back several steps, covered his heart with his right hand, his face dull, and rubbed his eyes in disbelief!
But the treasure house that should have been "full of treasures" is now empty, with not a single hair left!
"my darling!……"

Guhuo Zhenren burst into a heart-wrenching wail, as if struck by lightning, and his face turned pale. Suddenly, as if he thought of something, he suddenly opened another secret door in the secret room and entered a hidden patio.

There is a hot spring here, with a mature black and white tree planted in it. But now, the hot spring pool has long dried up, and the mysterious creature with jade leaves had been uprooted long ago, leaving only a few "leaves" that have lost their spiritual power, dried up and cracked on the ground.

The old Taoist priest fell to the ground, the light in his eyes gradually disappearing:

The sky is falling.

……

……

Taicang Prefecture Government Office is located in the north center of the city. The building is magnificent and has an official style.

In the inner courtyard of the yamen, in a house that was temporarily used as the "front-line headquarters", generals and high-ranking officials in the city gathered and sat down in order of rank.

The atmosphere was restless, filled with the tension of war.

Zhao Du'an, as the "Grand Commander-in-Chief of Quelling the Rebellion" conferred by the empress, was equivalent to a governor and held a key position, being the nominal "number one" chief of the Western Front Theater.

Mo Chou, who had deliberately changed back into a female official's robe, put on a black gauze without wings, and decorated her eyebrows with plum blossom makeup, sat beside him. She was positioned as a "deputy military supervisor".

On Zhao Duan’s right hand side, Xue Shence was sitting upright in armor, expressionless, and intimidating without even getting angry.

On the left, the prefect Sun Xiaozheng sat upright, taking off his black gauze hat and putting it back on his head.
——With his official position of a fourth-rank prefect, he should have been ranked behind the commander of the Beijing Camp, but because he was the chief officer of the prefecture and also the chief official of the court, there was an unspoken rule that civil officials of the same rank were half a level higher than military generals, so he was ranked third.

Further down were Shi Meng, Yuan Feng, some military officers under Xue Shence, and local civil officials in the prefectural city.

Zhao Duan glanced over and saw that most of them were familiar faces. He coughed lightly and spoke first:
“This governor is following the order of Your Majesty and is leading reinforcements here to quell the rebellion.

As for Taicang Prefecture, I have been here last year, and many of my colleagues here should still have an impression of it. I will not waste any unnecessary greetings or nonsense. This governor has just arrived, and is not clear about the situation on the front line.

Today's meeting is to discuss the follow-up matters of suppressing the rebellion, and it will be chaired by Privy Envoy Xue."

Xue Shence nodded, pointed to a sand table placed in the center of the hall, and explained:
"The situation is roughly like this now. The Huai River is split in two. Prince Mu of Yunfu is now taking root in the Huai River. Intelligence shows that Prince Mu is networking with some of the noble families in the Huai River to raise military funds. He is planning to build a second Prince Mu's Palace in the Huai River."

He moved his finger forward to the junction of Huaishui and Linfeng, pointed at a small flag there, and said in a deep voice:

"The one stationed here is Zhao Shixiong, the commander of the Southwestern Frontier Army. This name is familiar to all of you. He is also the most formidable opponent among the Yunfu rebels. However, after the news of His Majesty's return to the capital spread, Zhao Shixiong stopped his march northward and is now digesting the territory."

Finally, he moved his finger forward again, to a county town called "Ning'an" in Linfeng Road, and said slowly:
"This is the base camp of the rebel vanguard general Su Dan. Su Dan is stationed in the city. To the northeast of Ning'an County, there is another county called Wenshui, where his small Centaurs are stationed. They form a horn with Ning'an County and look after each other.

The general stationed here is Su Dan's brother-in-law. With Wenshui County as a bridgehead, there are small-scale rebel forces in the surrounding villages and towns, led by Su Dan's confidants. "

Zhao Duan looked down at the sand table map and immediately understood the geographical pattern.

Sun Xiaozhun was full of energy and said, rubbing his hands:
"Because there are few soldiers in the city, it is difficult to hold on, so we have been unable to launch a counterattack. However, now that Governor Zhao has arrived with two large camps, and with Lord Xue in command, it is a foregone conclusion that we will be able to counterattack and take back Ning'an and Fenshui!"

Everyone nodded secretly to this conclusion.

It's not blind confidence, but it's natural.

Once the reinforcements arrived, the situation reversed. Now Taicang City has many soldiers and strong generals, so it may be extremely difficult to defeat Zhao Shixiong, but if they can't even deal with Su Dan, everyone present should die to apologize.

Shi Meng suddenly looked worried and asked, "Will Prince Jing give us some time?"

He met the gazes of his comrades and said seriously:
"The army is on the move, and Prince Jing on the eastern front must know about it. It will take some time for the Privy Councilor to arrive on the western front. If the Jiancheng Dao rebels start a large-scale chaos at this time, making the eastern front unstable and thus tying up our forces, how should we respond?"

Zhao Duan said nothing, but turned to look at Xue Shence, wanting to hear the answer from this "God of War".

The most embarrassing situation of fighting on two fronts appeared: there was King Mu in the west and King Jing in the east.

The imperial army had a chance of winning if it attacked either side alone, but was unable to deal with both at the same time.

Yuan Feng also echoed:

"Now that the two princes have reached an alliance, they must know that the lips and teeth are cold, so it is impossible for Prince Jing to sit back and watch us fight the Yunfu rebels with all our strength."

Xue Shence's expression remained unchanged, he had already made up his mind, and said in a firm tone:

"In my opinion, Prince Jing will not cause trouble before completely recovering the territory that was swallowed up by Linfeng Dao."

He turned his gaze towards Zhao Duan and explained:

“Although Prince Jing and Prince Mu are allies, this alliance is very fragile. Both sides do not want to see the other side being wiped out, but they also definitely do not want to see the other side become stronger than themselves.

Now Prince Jing is defending the conquered territory of Huaishui and has never set foot in Linfeng, while Prince Mu has taken over part of Linfeng's territory. Under such circumstances, Prince Jing may also want to use the court to weaken the strength of the Yunfu rebels. "

Sun Xiaozhun also nodded, agreeing with this judgment:
"It has been a while since the Privy Councilor arrived at the western front. Prince Jing must have known about the reinforcements leaving the capital. However, there has been no action on the eastern front, which already shows the attitude."

This is an ugly power struggle... Zhao Duan sighed and shook his head in laughter. If the two vassal kings worked together, the imperial court would not be able to do anything to them, and even their titles might have been lost long ago.

But the problem is that it is impossible for the two princes to be "united", and the so-called cooperation and alliance are only out of necessity.

He pondered:

"So, you two think that Prince Jing actually hopes that we can weaken some of Prince Mu's military power?"

Xue Shence nodded seriously:
"I guess the limit that Prince Jing can accept is to let us take back the temporary territory including Ning'an County. But if we want to go further and continue to attack Huaishui, Prince Jing will no longer sit idly by."

Zhao Duan tapped the table lightly with his fingers to attract everyone's attention. He smiled and said:

"This is a good thing. The enemy has a grudge, so we can take advantage of it. There is no reason not to eat such a piece of fat meat. In this case, we should counterattack as soon as possible, retake Ning'an County, and drive out the rebels."

Shi Meng laughed and said:

"Commander-in-chief, let our Shenji Battalion take over the battle to capture the city. This will give these villains a taste of the power of muskets and artillery."

New firearms... Everyone in the hall's eyes lit up. They were also quite curious about the new firearms that destroyed the Qingzhou rebels.

Yuan Feng said:

"Firearms are indeed powerful, but the times are different now. The enemy must be on guard. Using firearms now will not be very effective. When it comes to fighting on land, my Fifth Army Battalion is better at it."

The last defeat made him feel very angry and he wanted to do something meritorious to gain some honor.

"You two lords have come from afar, your troops are exhausted, and you don't know much about this place. It would be better for you to stay in the front and let us be the vanguard."

A strange officer stood up. He was a local general from Taicang Prefecture. He had been sent to guard the granary and had hurried back not long ago.

Zhao Duan raised his eyebrows. The battle hadn't even started yet, but a group of people began vying for a spot to fight.

Sun Xiaozhun tried to smooth things over and said with a wry smile:

"Please don't fight over it. It's not easy to capture the city. You know, the enemy general Su Dan is best at defending the city. Although we have soldiers now, we still need to make long-term plans if we want to recapture the lost territory."

Chen Gui, the chief officer of the Firearms Bureau, stroked his beard and spoke:

"What's there to be afraid of with just a county wall? Just give me ten cannons and a suitable location, and I can blow the wall apart!"

After the battle of Qingzhou, Chen Huoshen became a little arrogant and wanted to attack anyone he saw with his cannon.

Xue Shence glanced at him and said calmly:
"I have no doubt about the power of the Shenjiying artillery, but what if Su Danruo escorts a large number of civilians in the city to block the city wall? I have read this man's resume and he has done similar things before."

This... The complacent Chen Huoshen was stuck and unable to answer.

If civilians were used in the front and the city was bombarded with firearms... the result can be imagined. This disgusting method could not deal with the bandits, but it happened to restrain the imperial army.

As long as the imperial court dares to fire, the princes in various places will start to spread propaganda frantically, causing the legitimacy of imperial power to be shaken.

You know, the court’s strongest “weapon” today is not the army, but legitimacy.

The empress has announced to the world that all the princes are rebels, and once the court starts to attack the people, the empress will become a tyrant who should be attacked.

"Absolutely not! Firearms can only be used against rebels, never rashly open the city!"

Mo Chou, who had remained silent the whole time, spoke firmly in a tone that brooked no refusal.

The role of the "military supervisor" is reflected at this time.

Xue Shence nodded immediately:
"With our military strength, it's only a matter of time to recapture the lost territory. At most, it will take some effort. There's no need to resort to such means."

Everyone agreed, and the tone of the meeting was about to be set.

Suddenly, a general rushed in from outside the hall and interrupted the meeting:

"Report! Scouts ahead sent word that enemy General Su Dan has ordered Ning'an and Wenshui counties to prepare for burning the city. Although no action has been taken yet, they are already stockpiling tung oil, charcoal, thatch and other supplies!"

What?! Preparing to burn the city?
This news was like a bomb, suddenly changing the originally relatively calm atmosphere of the meeting!

"Speak clearly! Speak clearly quickly! Su Dan wants to burn down the city?!" A general stood up and asked loudly.

Xue Shence and others also looked on.

The general who reported the news was sweating profusely and stammered:

"Some of our scouts are lurking in Ning'an County to gather intelligence. The news they just sent back said that when Su Dan ordered the siege today, he also sent a copy of the Twelve Rules for Burning the City to various places, establishing strict rules.

This involves satisfying four 'signals' at the same time, so that the enemy-occupied areas will burn down the towns at the same time.

At the same time, the enemy was busy transporting food, money and other items from the two counties to the Huai River. Judging from their appearance, they knew they could not stop us, so they were ready to evacuate. "

The whole audience was silent!
Zhao Duan had a blank expression on his face, and a word suddenly popped up in his mind:

Scorched earth strategy!

Even though he didn't understand military affairs in his previous life, he was familiar with this tactic, which roughly means:
If the enemy is too strong and the troops cannot hold their territory, they will burn all local resources into a scorched earth before evacuating, leaving nothing for the enemy. In this way, even if the enemy captures the city, they will not get any supplies.

This is a classic tactic of "trading space for time". Zhao Duan had seen many successful cases using this strategy in his previous life.

However, he did not expect that this "juren general" would be so decisive!
"I see... No wonder I saw the rebels burning the fields when I went to the silver mine. Now it seems that this is part of Su Dan's overall strategy...

He knew that once the reinforcements arrived, the occupied territory would have to be vomited out, so before we arrived, he launched a large-scale attack on the city and tried his best to destroy the mines and granaries... At the same time, he arranged for people to move the looted resources to the rear, and then prepared to burn the city..."

"And relying on the city, they can defend it to the death and delay time until the resources are sent away, or abandon the city and leave if they can no longer defend it... What a determined person!"

Zhao Duan took a deep breath and gained a deeper understanding of this "juren general" whose name he had only seen on paper.

Mo Chou's face changed, and she said anxiously:
"What should we do next? We don't have much time left! If we continue to nibble away at them bit by bit, taking steady steps, we will give them enough time to prepare for their retreat."

The situation changes again!
The good situation suddenly turned bad again!
Although a strong attack with artillery can achieve a quick victory, the enemy is willing to burn down the city and definitely does not mind using civilians as shields.

However, without using firearms, it would be difficult to regain lost territory in a short period of time.

The atmosphere was solemn, everyone's face was gloomy, and an atmosphere of anxiety began to spread!
"Why not send out experts to assassinate the enemy general? We have quite a few experts in cultivation now." Someone suggested.

"No! Do you think the enemy generals don't have the means to resist the strong men in the world? Moreover, every general is smart. As long as the commander is killed and the signal is sent, I'm afraid that cities will start burning immediately!" someone objected.

"Sir, leave it to me. Fight out of the city immediately. While the enemy hasn't reacted yet, maybe we can..."

"They have walls to defend! How can attacking a city be easy?"

"In my opinion, we should..."

For a moment, the hall was noisy and chaotic. Various ideas were put forward but were quickly suppressed.

Xue Shence raised his hand to suppress the noise. His face was extremely solemn, but his voice was still steady:
"Don't worry. Su Dan will not abandon his territory unless he is in desperate situation. King Mu will not agree to it either! Based on my understanding of this person, he will definitely try to fight with us. Only when he can't hold on, will he implement scorched earth policy. So we still have time."

After a pause, he glanced at everyone:
“Three days, it will take at least three days for the other party to complete the preparations for burning the city!
Everyone stay and discuss together. Before tomorrow, we must come up with at least three strategies for a smooth counterattack in the shortest possible time!"

He turned to Sun Xiaozhun:

"Governor Sun, please take care of all the affairs in the city."

Sun Xiaozhun nodded vigorously, and the dark and thin prefect's hair seemed to have become even whiter.

Xue Shence looked at Zhao Duan and Mo Chou again, and said ashamedly:

"Commander Zhao..."

Zhao Duan stood up and said calmly:

"I don't know how to lead troops in battle, so I won't participate in the specific tactical arrangements. I will go to the back to rest first. I am ordered to supervise the army, and the specific battle arrangements will be decided by Privy Councilor Xue."

He knew very well how terrible it was for an outsider to guide an insider, so he made it clear that he would not interfere in specific matters.

Xue Shence gave him a grateful look.

Zhao Duan turned his head and looked at Mo Chou who was still sitting there:
"What about you?"

Mo Chou bit her lip and said, "I'll listen here for a while, you go and have a rest first."

It sounds as if you can understand what he is saying here... Zhao Duan shook his head and walked out alone.

No one watched him leave. Even the generals of the Shenji Camp, such as Shi Meng and Chen Gui, were sitting in front of the sand table, concentrating on discussing tactics around Xue Shence.

The voices were loud and lively, but they had nothing to do with Zhao Duan.

Even though he defeated the Qingzhou army, everyone knew that it was the credit of firearms. Therefore, as long as the Shenji Camp was there and Chen Gui was here, it would be enough.

However, when faced with the decision-making and operations on a real battlefield, the arduous and almost impossible task of regaining as much lost territory as possible within three days was encountered.

Everyone's eyes will only be focused on Xue Shence.

Place your hopes on this "Military God of Dayu".

Just like when the enemy is attacking a city, as long as they see Xue Shence's figure like a flag on the top of the city wall, the morale of the army will be stabilized.

On the front battlefield, the "God of War" is the real protagonist.

The discussions behind him were getting farther and farther away. When Zhao Duan stepped out of the gate of the "command center" courtyard, he stopped briefly, turned his head to look back at the "conference room" deep inside, and looked up to see that dark clouds had covered the sky without him knowing when.

He whispered softly:
"Three days later, will the city be burned down by flames?"

"Heh, that's interesting."

-

ps: Happy Lantern Festival everyone
(End of this chapter)