At the end of February, Yuan Guowei, Han Daochang, and their party’s mission was thoroughly completed. It was time to embark on the journey back to Jinling to report to the Emperor.
On the day Yuan Guowei and Han Daochang departed, Han Qian and Wang Jun specially came out from Shenjia Stockade to see them off.
Gentle spring rain floated from the sky. Han Qian, worried that holding the umbrella would tire Wang Jun, took the oiled paper umbrella himself, sheltering both of them from the rain.
The weather had indeed become mild and moist. Green grass shoots emerged from mountain foothills and stream valleys. The colors between heaven and earth had also become much more lush.
Han Qian didn’t treat Yuan Guowei as an outsider. At parting, he conveyed some important matters:
“The great Wujin Ridge victory was hard-won. To consolidate our gains, in my memorial I’ve requested the court urge the Marquis of Xinjin to attack Huo Prefecture and Guang Prefecture northward from Wusheng Pass and Pingjing Pass, quickly recovering Guang and Huo prefectures as Great Chu territory. The Left Vermillion Bird Army should also follow the Marquis of Xinjin into Guang and Huo prefectures to fight, rather than remaining in Shu Prefecture accomplishing nothing. Although the Shouzhou army suffered this heavy blow, considering Xu Mingzhen may subsequently abandon Chao Prefecture city and continue contracting the defensive line backward, my Tangyi troops in Huaixi still bear extremely great military pressure. This time in my memorial, I’ve specially requested His Majesty’s gracious permission to expand Tangyi troops into Left and Right armies. When the time comes, I’ll still need Lord Yuan’s help in speaking on my behalf…”
“Whatever is within my power, Yuan will certainly not decline.” Yuan Guowei donned his rain cape, cupped his hands toward Han Qian, Wang Jun, and others seeing them off, then mounted his military horse with Han Daochang. Surrounded by escorts, they headed south along the stream path.
This time, Yuan Guowei and Han Daochang only needed to cross through Huaiyang Mountain’s heartland to reach the upper Dragon Pool River bank, where they could take boats eastward.
Afterward, traveling without stopping via Chao Lake and Yuxi River into the Yangtze, they returned to Jinling City on the fourth day of the third month.
Yuan Guowei didn’t accompany Han Daochang to the Han Mansion for banquets. He directly returned to the palace to report, but the moment he stepped into the palace, he could still sense the subtle atmosphere pervading it.
That such an atmosphere existed didn’t strike Yuan Guowei as abrupt or strange.
According to regulations, Han Qian’s memorial should be sent to the Secretariat first and didn’t need him to carry it into the palace.
After Yuan Guowei returned to the palace, he first sent a junior eunuch accompanying him to inform Chongwen Hall, but all the way until the sky darkened, Emperor Yanyou didn’t send anyone to summon him for questioning.
Since His Majesty didn’t summon him, Yuan Guowei wasn’t anxious either. After dark, Jiang Huo came with two junior eunuchs in blue, carrying two tiers of food boxes to drink wine with him.
The moon was bright with few stars. The weather was only slightly cool. Yuan Guowei directly set out food and wine in the courtyard, ordering the junior eunuchs in blue to withdraw. He drank wine and chatted leisurely with Jiang Huo under the new moon.
“Aren’t you going to ask what His Majesty’s reaction has been these past few days?” Jiang Huo, seeing Yuan Guowei contentedly drinking wine, couldn’t help asking first.
“The great Wujin Ridge victory came too quickly, too fiercely, too unexpectedly—leaving various parties wanting to drag their feet but unable to. What else is there to ask?” Yuan Guowei spread his hands and asked in return. “Surely we can’t blame the Marquis of Qianyang for this battle going too smoothly and too beyond people’s expectations, not giving various parties time to drag their feet?”
Jiang Huo shook his head and smiled. He had worked with Yuan Guowei for many years with profound friendship. After a while, he lowered his voice and said: “His Majesty and the Empress Dowager summoned Prime Minister Shen into Chongwen Hall the night before last to inquire whether the Marquis of Xinjin could be appointed Regional Commander of Sui and Ying prefectures’ military affairs. Prime Minister Shen remained silent for a long time, neither saying yes nor saying no…”
“Besides using the mutual checks and balances he most fears, does His Majesty have no other methods? In the twenty-one years since Great Chu’s founding, besides the early period when the Prince of Eastern Zhejiang served as Regional Commander of Wuyue, no Regional Commanders have been appointed. Opening this special precedent now, won’t things become even harder to manage afterward?” Yuan Guowei smiled bitterly and shook his head, not knowing how to evaluate this matter Jiang Huo mentioned.
Jiang Huo didn’t want to discuss this matter further either. Having just informed Yuan Guowei of it, he changed the topic to continue discussing other events that had occurred in Jinling over recent days:
“You may not yet know—yesterday the Privy Council received a report saying the Shouzhou army yesterday began clearing civilian households from Chao Prefecture city. The Privy Council estimates the Shouzhou army may withdraw from Chao Prefecture as early as mid-to-late April. Otherwise, when South Fei River’s water force rises further, Tangyi navy’s large warships will be able to drive straight into South Fei River, making them even more passive. Before you returned, during yesterday’s morning court, an official from the Censorate submitted a memorial requesting that the Marquis of Qianyang be additionally granted the title of Tangyi Campaign Commander-in-Chief to comprehensively manage Huaixi military and political affairs…”
“This is also what should naturally follow, but this is also good. Great Chu’s northern front being formally divided into three war zones can at least reduce some entanglements.” Yuan Guowei said.
“The Marquis of Xinjin’s power and influence is still too heavy. I wonder why Cishou Palace trusts the Marquis of Xinjin so much?” Jiang Huo slightly furrowed his brow, asking with doubt in his pupils.
Yuan Guowei hadn’t been in Jinling during this period, but could also surmise that besides Li Zhigao’s previous appointment as Military Commissioner of the five northern Xiang prefectures, this time being directly granted ceremonial insignia and appointed as Xiangbei Regional Commander, it should still be Cishou Palace’s side pushing with full force.
If Great Chu’s northern defensive front was truly adjusted according to three war zones, with Huaidong responsible for the lower Huai River region east of Hongze Lake, and Han Qian in Huaixi responsible for defensive lines against Liang forces extending from eastern Huo Prefecture to southern Shou Prefecture and Hao Prefecture, neither scale matched the western flank war zone composed of the five prefectures of Xiang, Ying, Sui, Deng, and Jun.
Xiangbei’s west bordered Liang Kingdom’s Liang Prefecture across the Han River. Its northwest needed to guard against Liang forces from Guanzhong via Dan River. Its north confronted Liang forces in Ru and Cai prefectures across Nanyang Basin. Its east confronted Shouzhou army-controlled Guang and Huo prefectures across mountain passes between Huaiyang Mountain and Tongbai Mountain.
On the surface, the western flank war zone bore the greatest military pressure, but this also meant the court would subsequently input the most resources to the western flank, granting Li Zhigao command of the heaviest military authority.
Besides local forces from Xiangbei’s five prefectures, three elite Forbidden Army combat units—the Left Vermillion Bird Army, Left Wuwei Army, and Left Shenwu Army—essentially the Forbidden Army’s most elite combat power, would all accept Li Zhigao’s control and deployment.
Or perhaps Cishou Palace’s side was using this as reason and pretext to open the special precedent of granting Li Zhigao the Regional Commander appointment?
Yuan Guowei didn’t want to delve too deeply into this situation. He said: “The Marquis of Xinjin’s power and influence is heavy, but after the Marquis of Xinjin goes west, if he doesn’t exert himself, all the prefectures along the Huai will probably be recovered by the Marquis of Qianyang.”
“True. Had I known this would happen, I should have requested this imperial decree delivery assignment earlier,” Jiang Huo asked with a smile. “Quickly tell me—how exactly was Wujin Ridge fought? How did we win in such a confused muddle?”
“Didn’t the dispatches sent back to the Privy Council mention much?” Yuan Guowei asked curiously.
“You didn’t send back a confidential memorial. Would the Marquis of Qianyang inform the Privy Council of every detail, no matter how minor?” Jiang Huo said, hinting that Yuan Guowei should think carefully about his explanation in this matter.
Yuan Guowei, going on imperial orders to comfort the troops, had supervisory authority.
The Privy Council received the victory report from the Wujin Ridge battle thirteen days after the actual event. Han Qian could claim roads were blocked and messengers he sent were intercepted by enemy forces midway. No one would expose his lie. But why hadn’t Yuan Guowei sent news back in time?
Moreover, the escorts who accompanied Yuan Guowei to Huaiyang Palace this time were all palace eunuchs. Not all of them would keep their mouths shut or fabricate lies for Yuan Guowei.
“I merely went on imperial orders to comfort the troops. Personally feeling my body quite inconvenienced, perhaps it’s time to request His Majesty’s permission to return to my hometown.” Yuan Guowei said lightly.
Jiang Huo nodded. He and Yuan Guowei were both at the age of sixty. They didn’t have many years left to toil. If His Majesty allowed them to retire and return home, they might enjoy a few years of pastoral pleasures. But would His Majesty let them retire and return home?
This topic was too heavy. The two immediately changed the subject to discuss the specific circumstances of the Wujin Ridge battle.
“So speaking, after the Marquis of Qianyang led troops out from Fucha Mountain, once the Shouzhou army failed to intercept them at any cost, their great defeat was already predetermined!” After hearing Yuan Guowei’s account, Jiang Huo couldn’t help saying with emotion. “Xu Mingzhen’s insufficient attention to mountain villagers and fugitive households in Huaiyang Mountain was also a cause of defeat.”
“Indeed. How many registered households there are in Huaiyang Mountain hasn’t been tallied yet, but just the main and tributary channels of South Fei River and Dragon Pool River in the mountains don’t cover a particularly wide area. Yet the nearly fifty civilian stockades the Marquis of Qianyang controlled at the first opportunity after entering had nearly thirty thousand people. Adding nearly twenty thousand military and civilians captured from Anfeng Stockade, before flooding the enemy camp, the Marquis of Qianyang had supplemented over six thousand troops and controlled the main tributary channels upstream of South Fei River. Otherwise, the Marquis of Qianyang couldn’t have won this battle…” Yuan Guowei said with emotion.
Although early on in Huaiyang Mountain, fewer than four thousand new recruits had voluntarily enlisted, during the tug-of-war, seeing elite soldiers suffer excessive losses, Han Qian subsequently forcibly drove nearly two thousand other able-bodied men captured from Anfeng Stockade onto the palisade walls to participate in defense.
From thrusting north from Fucha Mountain to using water to rout enemy forces at Wujin Ridge, Tangyi troops had cumulatively suffered over five thousand soldiers killed or seriously wounded in battle.
If new recruits hadn’t borne nearly sixty percent of those casualties, Han Qian couldn’t have held out at Wujin Ridge until the moment of using water to rout the army.
During the Jinling Incident, Yuan Guowei had participated almost entirely in forming the Chishan Army and Left Guangde Army. He felt this especially deeply, secretly sensing that perhaps this was the greatest difference between Han Qian and renowned generals of the era—not his unfathomable strategies…