When Ruan Yan and Yin Peng rushed to Linhuai, Feng Liao, Guo Rong and others didn’t make things difficult for them, immediately arranging for them to meet with Han Qian.
Facing Ruan Yan’s interrogation, Han Qian stood atop the city wall, gazing at the Huai River which had entered the third month and now displayed magnificent water momentum, calmly explaining:
“On the twenty-sixth, scouts from Tangyi who had penetrated into northern Xu Prefecture inadvertently intercepted a secret Liang military report, confirming that Prince He of Liang Zhu Rang and Privy Council’s Liang Shixiong were secretly plotting to launch a rebellion while Emperor Zhu led his forces to campaign against Luzhou. This Marquis calculated that Chen Kun of Hejin Army and Han Yuanqi of Cai Prefecture Army were Emperor Zhu’s direct trusted generals. Upon learning the news, they would certainly lead their forces at the first opportunity to relieve Bianjing, to resist the rebels while awaiting the main Liang forces’ return south. This Marquis then had all units watch for opportunities to take over Hao Prefecture. It’s not that this Marquis forgot to inform Huaidong—it’s just that even if this Marquis sent someone to Huaidong to report, Prince of Xin wouldn’t have believed it, so why bother with such futile effort? Minster Ruan, wouldn’t you say this is reasonable?”
Ruan Yan nearly spat out a mouthful of old blood.
What kind of bullshit reason was this?
“Does Marquis Han know that if Tangyi could have promptly informed Huaidong, our two armies could have entangled Liang State’s Hejin Army and Cai Prefecture Army, causing Bianjing City to fall into rebel hands, Liang State would have fallen into unprecedented great chaos? And our Great Chu forces wielding halberds to directly advance on the Central Plains would have been within reach! Marquis Han became famous in his youth and is Great Chu’s foremost strategist—how could you make such a great blunder at this time over the trivial gains before your eyes?” No matter how good Ruan Yan’s temper was, at this moment he couldn’t help but bitterly reproach Han Qian.
Han Qian immediately turned cold-faced, staring at the white-templed Ruan Yan, saying impolitely: “Minister Ruan, this Marquis respects you as a Great Chu elder of equal standing with my father and grandfather, but that doesn’t mean I must tolerate your wild accusations. You say this Marquis sacrificed righteousness for trivial gains—then please, Minister Ruan, return to Chu Prefecture immediately and ask Prince of Xin to open the Hangou waterway. As long as Tangyi naval warships can go north from Hangou into the Huai River, this Marquis is willing to personally lead armored troops and join hands with Huaidong Army to incorporate Xu and Si into our Great Chu territory, rather than wasting words here! Minister Ruan, it’s easy for you to just move your lips!”
Ruan Yan was rebuked by Han Qian and his speech faltered, not knowing for a moment how to respond.
“Feng Liao, please escort Minister Ruan and General Yin down to rest. They’re also fatigued from their journey!” Han Qian said coldly to Feng Liao.
“Minister Ruan, General Yin, please.” Feng Liao indicated that Ruan Yan and Yin Peng should descend the city wall first.
Yin Peng glanced at the iron-faced Ruan Yan and silently walked down the wall walkway first.
Currently, Tangyi naval forces had no passage to directly enter Hongze Lake and the Huai River, which was Tangyi Army’s greatest limitation at present. Otherwise, even if Han Qian didn’t first attack Xu and Si, after Tangyi naval forces entered the Huai River, they could attempt to cut off Shou Prefecture forces’ connection with the northern bank, or have the opportunity to join hands with Li Zhigao to first eliminate the isolated and unsupported Shou Prefecture forces.
However, would His Highness agree to let Tangyi naval forces borrow passage through Hangou (Shanyang Canal) to enter the Huai River?
Even counting on his toes, Yin Peng knew His Highness would do everything possible to obstruct Tangyi naval forces from entering the Huai River, so there really was no excuse to accuse Han Qian of withholding such crucial information.
Of course, Yin Peng also didn’t believe that what Han Qian had just said was necessarily the truth.
Merely intercepting a single secret Liang military message and decisively believing it all, yet rushing to mobilize Tangyi’s Left Army deployed on the eastern front overnight before Hejin Army and Cai Prefecture Army made unusual movements—when had military operations become so frivolous?
Linhuai, as the old administrative seat of Hao Prefecture, had quite an expansive city layout, but over these years its prosperity had faded. Everywhere were collapsed buildings, muddy streets and alleys after continuous spring rains, and households full of terror.
There weren’t many households within Hao Prefecture City, less than a thousand, and most were official and civilian families who had been coerced by the Peace Palace to cross the river and flee north after the Jinling Incident.
Even if they weren’t the family members of core officers who later integrated into Shou Prefecture forces—this group was either concentrated in Shou Prefecture City or had relocated to settle in Bianjing—they had originally been either wealthy or noble in Jinling City.
Because of this, after crossing the river they still had the means to settle in Linhuai City and acquire property, using slaves and dependent tenant farmers to cultivate fields outside the city. They were already luckier than millions of others, but could their luck continue?
These people had no idea where cruel fate would drift them.
Currently, the city still allowed grain and oil shops, firewood and charcoal shops, clinics, medicine shops and other establishments serving people’s livelihood to continue operating. Curfew was also only enforced after dark, but the streets were full of fierce soldiers in armor bearing weapons—who would dare casually go out?
Ruan Yan and Yin Peng, accompanied by Feng Liao, headed toward the post station. Along the street, the dilapidated buildings were all tightly shut. Apart from patrolling soldiers, not a single pedestrian could be seen on the long streets.
The post station was also extremely crude and decrepit.
In such a short time, the official residence where Han Qian temporarily lodged as commander hadn’t even been properly cleaned, so there was no way to attend to auxiliary buildings like the post station.
Currently, they had only selected a few courtyards for Ruan Yan, Yin Peng and accompanying personnel to stay in, then selected an official from the Military Intelligence Staff Office to serve as postmaster, bringing some hands to settle Ruan Yan and Yin Peng properly, also responsible for monitoring their movements.
However crude, at least mats and tables were provided.
Ruan Yan was a civil official and quite old. This journey racing non-stop from Chu Prefecture to Linhuai City had exhausted him thoroughly, his bones feeling scattered, but after arriving at the post station, he didn’t show the appearance of being so angry at Han Qian on the city wall that his soul nearly left his body. He called Yin Peng into his room and asked: “Earlier on the city wall, there was a young civil official behind Han Qian. My old eyes are dim, but he looked somewhat familiar—is that Wang Yan from Wang Wenxing’s family?”
Wang Wenxing was Wang Wenqian’s cousin and Wang Jixiong’s nephew.
This man loved calligraphy, paintings and ancient artifacts. In earlier years he served as an administrator in Sheng Prefecture Military Commissioner’s Office. After Sheng Prefecture forces were destroyed, Wang Wenxing withdrew to rural seclusion and never entered official service again, dying of illness before the Jinling Incident.
Wang Yan and Wang Zhe were both Wang Wenxing’s sons. From childhood they studied diligently, firstly influenced by their father Wang Wenxing, and secondly because in the clan they were lowly concubine-born sons. Even in Huaidong they hadn’t entered official service.
Yin Peng had recognized Wang Yan the moment he climbed the city wall, but he could only pretend not to know. He hadn’t expected this old fox Ruan Yan to remain expressionless earlier yet had already recognized Wang Yan.
“Minister Ruan has good eyes. It’s been a long time—Wang Yan has changed considerably. Standing there not speaking, I didn’t dare recognize him.” Yin Peng said.
“In your view, why exactly did the Marquis of Qianyang confirm Liang State’s turmoil? General Yin wouldn’t truly believe Tangyi dared trust without doubt based solely on intercepting a single secret message, would you?” Ruan Yan didn’t want to dwell on Wang Yan’s matter and asked.
“Perhaps the Marquis of Qianyang has eyes and ears deeply infiltrated in Liang forces, just as Wen Ruilin was infiltrated beside Duke of Changguo back then, so that the Marquis of Qianyang could firmly believe the intelligence was accurate,” Yin Peng speculated.
“It’s not that simple,” Ruan Yan shook his head and said. “Hejin Army withdrawing and Tangyi Army advancing, all in perfect order—this absolutely cannot be explained by an intercepted secret message or having a covert secret agent in Liang forces. Unless Hejin Army Commander and Hao Prefecture Governor Chen Kun himself is this secret agent…”
With Ruan Yan speculating this way, Yin Peng couldn’t respond.
“Regardless of how the Marquis of Qianyang learned of this matter, if Prince He of Liang Zhu Rang and Liang Shixiong truly secretly plotted rebellion, they must have planned for an extremely long time, perhaps even colluding with Jin forces—this turmoil in Liang State probably won’t subside in a short time. Can Xu Mingzhen hold out much longer on the southern bank of the Huai River?” Ruan Yan narrowed his eyes slightly, looking at Yin Peng and asking.
Without more sources of information, Ruan Yan couldn’t think that deeply for the moment, but he could guess that Liang Shixiong and Zhu Rang couldn’t possibly act rashly when Emperor Zhu Yu was about to capture Luzhou.
What he could think of as a reasonable explanation was that Jin State, to avoid the fate of destruction, sent a secret envoy to persuade Zhu Rang and Liang Shixiong to rebel.
However, this could also initially help them deduce subsequent changes in the situation along the Huai River.
Yin Peng silently looked at the teacup before the table. Rather than saying Ruan Yan was speculating how long Shou Prefecture forces could hold out on the southern bank of the Huai River, it was more accurate to say he was worried about how much benefit Tangyi could reap this time.
With great chaos in Liang State, even if it wouldn’t affect the southern region in the short term, Xu Mingzhen and Lady Sima in the Xu and Si region could still sit on the wall and watch.
The difference was that Lady Sima could still collect sufficient military supplies from Xu, Yi, Mi, Si, Hai and other prefectures to maintain over thirty thousand troops more than adequately, even having surplus capacity to further expand military preparations on a large scale. This actually restricted Huaidong Army from crossing the Huai River on a large scale to expand into the Xu and Si region.
However, Xu Mingzhen’s previous ability to hold out on the southern bank of the Huai River mainly depended on large-scale material support from Liang State’s heartland. For quite a long time in the future, Xu Mingzhen couldn’t possibly receive supplies from Liang State’s heartland again. With Hao Prefecture having completely fallen into Tangyi Army’s hands, how could Xu Mingzhen next rely on over five hundred thousand people to feed ninety thousand soldiers while also resisting the military forces of Han Qian and Li Zhigao attacking from left and right?
The best outcome for Xu Mingzhen might be to withdraw the main forces to the Huai River, obtain grain from Ying, Si and other prefectures on the northern bank, while only controlling a limited number of solid cities like Shou County and Huoqiu on the southern bank of the Huai River, ensuring the possibility of recapturing Huai West when Liang territory stabilized.
No matter who eventually prevailed in Liang State’s great chaos, Xu Mingzhen could account for himself and maximize protection of Shou Prefecture Army’s interests without damage. No one in Liang State would reproach him afterward for obtaining grain from the northern bank region of the Huai River.
However, if this came to pass, most areas of Shou Prefecture, Huo Prefecture, and Guang Prefecture on the southern bank of the Huai River would be divided between Han Qian and Li Zhigao.
In other words, the territory controlled by Tangyi would at worst increase by another prefecture and a half.
Moreover, since Tangyi Army was mobilizing at full speed, if they then boldly penetrated and infiltrated into Shou and Huo territory, if Shou Prefecture forces didn’t want to be entangled, they would have to contract their troops at the fastest speed to cities along the rear Huai River bank, leaving insufficient time to drive the civilian households in central Shou Prefecture and Huo Prefecture north.
This also meant that in these regions, at least another hundred to two hundred thousand people would fall under Tangyi’s control.
By then, not counting Xu Prefecture, the population and territory controlled by Tangyi would be no less than Huaidong.