“Up ahead is Yezi Gully. Originally there was a wooden bridge over the stream leading to the eastern bank, but two days ago scouts returned to report that the bridge was washed away by mountain floods just days earlier—it wasn’t marked on the combat map. Although the stone foundations of the bridge remain, we can’t find large timber nearby, so repairing the wooden bridge in a short time is very difficult. Besides this, about ten-some li to the south there’s a valley pass. When Yezi Gully reaches that point, the riverbed suddenly widens by over twenty zhang. The river shallows aren’t deep, and cavalry can directly swim across…”

Feng Xuan watched as the combat staff spread the map on his saddle and traced out the army’s advancing route with a charcoal pencil, then asked:

“Where has Cao Ba’s unit gotten to?”

“General Cao Ba has divided his unit into three groups—one route taking the northern line through Hengshan Valley, one route taking Nantang Bamboo Bridge. He personally led one contingent of troops eastward through this valley ford crossing before noon and should now be resting at Gaolong Plateau.” The combat staff circled a plateau east of Yezi Gully and marked Cao Ba’s morning advance route.

Feng Xuan looked up at the overcast sky and said: “There may be sudden rain. Have we sent people north along Yezi Gully to monitor the water conditions?”

When fording shallow beaches, the greatest fear was encountering sudden upstream rain causing stream waters to surge.

Although there were dedicated personnel responsible for reconnaissance of nearby terrain and enemy situations, when executing new combat plans, Feng Xuan would always confirm every detail to avoid omissions.

After receiving affirmative answers from the combat staff, Feng Xuan signaled his cavalry unit to advance toward the valley ford downstream. He squinted slightly, gazing at the rising sun in the east. It had been a full night without the latest news transmitted from Baqiao main camp. At this moment, he wasn’t clear whether the main Chengde Army forces had crossed the river northward last night, and he felt somewhat worried in his heart that the timing of his eastward advance might be slightly premature.

Although Wang Yuankui had sent secret envoys to see Jing Zhen and Kong Xirong, agreeing to unconditionally surrender all troops and献 the city, the night before last, the Chengde Army had sent another contingent of elite troops across the Wei River to further strengthen control over Liquan and Chiyang on the western bank of the Jing River.

Jing Zhen and Kong Xirong anticipated that Wang Yuankui’s so-called agreement to surrender was very likely a delaying tactic. He would most likely lead his forces to flee along the river valley on the western bank of the Jing River toward the depths of the northern Wei plateau into Qingzhou and Yuanzhou territories.

Previously, when the Longyou army deployed from Tianshui and crossed Long Mountain eastward to Fengxiang, they had divided into two routes:

One route was Li Zhigao leading Zhang Song, Deng Tai, Zhao Ci, and other units advancing eastward along the southern bank of the Wei River, later rendezvousing with Zhou Tong and Hao Zixia outside Qizhou city to besiege Wang Xiaoxian’s remnant forces in Qizhou.

The other route was Feng Xuan leading Houmo, Cao Ba, Lu Ze, Li Zhi, and other units advancing eastward along the northern bank of the Wei River, recovering cities along the middle reaches of the northern Wei River bank such as Long County, Qishan, and Yong County, while simultaneously undertaking the combat mission of blocking Wang Xiaoxian’s northern escape route from the northern bank to the northern Wei plateau.

Unexpectedly, Wang Xiaoxian showed considerable backbone—not only dying rather than surrendering, but from beginning to end never leading forces across the Wei River to flee into the mountain ravines of the northern Wei plateau for stubborn resistance. This caused Feng Xuan’s northern route interception plan to fall through.

The garrisons at Long County, Qishan, and Yong County all surrendered at the first sight of trouble. These past days they hadn’t managed to fight any battles, leaving Cao Ba and other generals thoroughly depressed.

Although this time they similarly undertook the combat mission of cutting off the Chengde Army’s northern escape route under Wang Yuankui from the north, Cao Ba still worried that this useless bird Wang Yuankui would directly choose surrender, leaving them with only tedious tasks like occupying cities and rounding up surrendered troops along the way.

However, Feng Xuan was more inclined toward the judgment of Jing Zhen, Kong Xirong, and others.

When Zhao Mengji led Shu troops in the northern campaign against Guanzhong, Wang Yong staged a military coup to seize control of the Shu state. Zhao Mengji and tens of thousands of Shu soldiers had since been stranded in foreign lands. Initially occupying Qi, Feng, and other areas, their days were extremely difficult. Even after submitting to the Mongols and garrisoning Mengzhou, life wasn’t comfortable—officers and soldiers had to tighten their belts to get by.

Zhao Mengji himself also lived extremely frugally and austerely. After the great victory at Zhiguan Ridge, Zhao Mengji ultimately chose to submit without proposing overly unrealistic conditions.

Of course, besides the Liangzhou army led by Li Zhigao and Chai Jian, Zhao Mengji was the first enemy commander to lead his forces in integrated submission. Even if only to buy a fine horse’s bones for a thousand gold, Han Qian would treat him generously.

Naturally, although Zhao Mengji had led forces participating in campaigns against Heluo, he hadn’t gained any advantage.

Furthermore, Zhao Mengji’s submission to the Mongols was compelled by circumstances, and Zhao Mengji’s predicament ultimately all originated from Han Qian initially helping Wang Yong stage the military coup.

Therefore, the Great Liang sovereign and ministers had higher acceptance of Zhao Mengji.

Toward Wang Yuankui, the Great Liang sovereign and ministers’ perception was much worse.

Wang Yuankui was the most direct culprit of the Heshuo upheaval. Not only did he invite the Mongol army to invade southward, but he willingly served as the Mongol army’s vanguard hound, pursuing and killing large numbers of Liang troops all along, developing extremely deep blood feuds with former Liang generals.

If Wang Yuankui controlled greater leverage, or if the Chengde Army’s submission could greatly change the direction of the battle situation, Han Qian might work hard to persuade Gu Qian, Zhou Daoyuan, Jing Hao, and others to recruit the Chengde Army with more favorable conditions.

However, compared to Zhao Mengji, the current Wang Yuankui had fallen into a predicament with no external reinforcements and enemies on three sides. The Great Liang forces held absolute initiative in Guanzhong. Not to mention Gu Qian and others—even Han Qian himself would not leave behind hidden troubles to avoid three to five thousand casualties.

Therefore, the conditions offered to Wang Yuankui—they could even preserve his noble title of Prince of Yongzhou Commandery, allowing each generation of Wang clan descendants to inherit titles降 one rank, and the Council could reserve a seat for Wang Yuankui—but Wang Yuankui must unconditionally surrender all troops for reorganization.

Different from Zhao Mengji, Wang Yuankui had served as a regional official for over twenty years. After submitting to the Mongols, his campaign of conquering cities and seizing territory went extremely smoothly all along.

In Wang Yuankui’s view, military authority had brought him all this, making it unlikely he would easily relinquish military power even when reduced to desperate straits.

When Li Zhigao led forces attacking Qizhou, Feng Xuan already had the awareness of leading forces from the north to block and intercept the Chengde Army’s northern escape to Qingyuan. After Wang Xiaoxian perished in the sea of flames and Qizhou territory was fully recovered, he first led a contingent of troops into Qishan northwest of Qizhou.

However, after the Longyou army attacked Guanzhong from the western flank, Han Qian’s transmitted edict explicitly stipulated that the three routes of forces attacking Guanzhong—Huatong Army, Shangluo Army, and Longyou Army—needed to coordinate operations, clearly designating Jing Zhen as commander-in-chief, with Kong Xirong, Li Zhigao, and Feng Xuan as deputy commanders to jointly discuss subsequent combat plans.

Perhaps Jing Zhen himself had no intention of recruiting Wang Yuankui to surrender. He repeatedly sent messengers rushing to Qishan to see Feng Xuan, requiring Feng Xuan not to too hastily assemble troops from northern Wei River areas at Qishan, and not to prematurely dispatch troops eastward to enter the Jing River banks, in order to leave Wang Yuankui with the illusion that if negotiations failed, he could still flee north along the Jing River.

Kong Xirong and Li Zhigao did not oppose Jing Zhen’s decision.

Compared to mobilizing countless troops and siege equipment to besiege Yongzhou city—whose fortifications were reputedly the strongest under heaven, with who knows how long the siege would drag on before capturing it—if possible, they all hoped to lure the Chengde Army out of Yongzhou city into the northern Wei plain north of the Wei River and west of the Jing River to fight a war of annihilation.

Only in this way could they end the Guanzhong campaign in the fastest time possible.

Whether the Guanzhong campaign could conclude cleanly and decisively, or whether it would drag on for half a year or even longer without capturing Yongzhou, would have extremely subtle yet direct and far-reaching impacts on subsequent battle situations on the northern and eastern fronts, and even on relations between Liang-Chu and Liang-Shu.

Feng Xuan also waited until Wang Yuankui dispatched troops to further strengthen control over Chiyang and Liquan before ordering cavalry units under Houmo, Cao Ba, Lu Ze, Li Zhi, and others to advance eastward from Qishan and other areas.

From Qishan to Chiyang city in the southern Jing River valley was only about a hundred li, but the northern Wei plain had experienced continuous warfare these past years. Roads had suffered severe damage with no one repairing them.

Besides the Jing River—the Wei River’s largest tributary—the northern Wei plateau’s Laolong Mountain, Cuoe Mountain, Yaowang Mountain, Yao Mountain, Huanglong Mountain, Liang Mountain, and others had numerous stream rivers developing, flowing longitudinally from north to south into the Wei River. Combined with thousands of years of thorough development of land on both Wei River banks, the irrigation canal system for watering agricultural fields was also quite developed.

However, the floating bridges and wooden bridges originally erected over these streams and canals had gone unrepaired these years, either destroyed by floods or suffering deliberate damage.

All this greatly hindered the speed of Feng Xuan’s eastward advance.

Of course, this was also what they had long anticipated. Even knowing this, they deliberately delayed without rushing to transfer the logistics camp north to repair roads and build bridges.

All this was to strategically create for Wang Yuankui and Wang Mao the illusion that opportunities for northern escape still existed.

Of course, when Feng Xuan specifically advanced from Qishan and other areas toward Chiyang and Liquan, encountering damaged roads and bridges all along the way truly made him want to curse.

To overcome difficulties in the army’s advance and quickly complete assembly on the Chengde Army’s northern escape route, Feng Xuan could only divide over twelve thousand cavalry and infantry into more than ten routes advancing dispersedly toward Chiyang County territory.

Wang Yuankui had commanded the Chengde Army for over twenty years. Nearly half of the forty-thousand-strong Chengde Army were cavalry. Feng Xuan dividing over twelve thousand cavalry and infantry to advance naturally risked considerable danger. However, compared to leaving the Chengde Army on the northern Wei plain for annihilation rather than letting them escape to Qing and Yuan prefectures to the north to become a lingering menace to the Guanzhong plain like maggots on bone, these risks had to be undertaken.

What Feng Xuan urgently wanted to know at this moment was, first, whether the main Chengde Army forces had crossed the Wei River northward last night, and second, if the main Chengde Army forces had indeed crossed the Wei River northward last night, how long could their small number of troops first entering Chiyang delay the Chengde Army’s main forces?

There was also the fact that Feng Xuan was still not very certain whether the main forces could cross the Wei River and enter the northern bank for battle before nightfall tomorrow.

This was because Wang Yuankui had scuttled large numbers of boats in the river bend where the Ba River flowed into the Wei River. The Luoyang navy and auxiliary troops clearing these sunken ships was time-consuming and laborious. Warships could not enter the upper Wei River and Jing River for coordinated operations anytime soon…

To clear the northern escape route, Wang Yuankui not only strengthened control over Liquan and Chiyang north of the Wei River and west of the Jing River, but also had his son Wang Mao lead over ten thousand elite cavalry units into the western regions of Chiyang and Liquan as well as Wuting County territory.

Wang Yuankui understood clearly in his heart that the floating boats and wooden bridges over the Jing River had all been destroyed. Before the Luoyang navy advanced westward, it would be difficult in the short term for Liang army forces entering Tongzhou to cross the Jing River and threaten the main northern escape forces of the Chengde Army.

Currently, the greatest threat to the Chengde Army was the over ten thousand cavalry troops that the Liang army had swept through cities north of the Wei River and southwest of Long Mountain half a month ago.

This was also the main force of the Liang army’s cavalry units.

The Liang army’s cavalry units had always been limited in scale. On the battlefield, they mainly assisted heavily armored infantry, responsible for protecting flanks or checking opposing cavalry units, rarely independently deployed in battlefield operations.

Moreover, due to the heavy dependence of spring-arm bed crossbows, scorpion crossbows, and other heavy siege equipment on roads and bridges, cavalry units during rapid flanking maneuvers could not carry these heavy siege weapons. Their siege capability was obviously also significantly weaker than heavily armored infantry.

The Chengde Army’s cavalry units had garrisoned the southern regions of Yan, Tan, and other prefectures in earlier years, long undertaking the heavy responsibility of resisting Mongol southward advances. They could be said to be the most elite cavalry among Jin armies. After following Wang Yuankui in submitting to the Mongols, their combat effectiveness had not diminished.

Wang Mao, currently leading ten thousand elite Chengde cavalry to block the Liang cavalry charging from the Qishan direction and screen the western flank of the northern withdrawal route, still had considerable confidence.

At this moment, he was more concerned about the speed at which the main Liang army forces would flank around to the west of Xianyang to cross the Wei River.

Besides twenty thousand cavalry, the Chengde Army also had twenty thousand infantry plus nearly twenty thousand Wang clan relatives, servants, and family members of various generals and officials. After abandoning Yongzhou city, their withdrawal speed along the western bank of the Jing River would not be fast.

Counting from crossing the Wei River, even without considering interception and harassment by Liang cavalry, these forces carrying large quantities of chests and trunks filled with pearls, jade, and precious vessels would need at least three days to safely withdraw into the Jing River valley north of Chiyang—a mere eighty to ninety li.

These would also be the most dangerous three days. In Wang Mao’s view, the most critical factor was whether they could successfully block the main southern bank Liang army forces from crossing the river during these three days.

When Cao Ba led forces entering the northern territory of Wuting County, Wang Mao led over a thousand escort guards garrisoning a village stronghold northeast of Wuting County. By late April, the Guanzhong plain already had some early summer heat. Climbing a low mountain north of the village stronghold, he could observe the situation of large contingents of Liang cavalry assembling on the eastern bank of Mo River over ten li away.

Mo River originated in the plateau valleys west of Chiyang, flowing south through Wuting County territory to merge with Qi River flowing from the northwest direction, then passing White Stone Beach to flow into the Wei River.

Mo River was also the most important natural barrier on the western flank of the Chengde Army’s northern withdrawal route.

Having already entered early summer, rainfall in the northern Wei plateau began growing abundant, causing water levels in streams and rivers developing in the northern Wei plateau to generally surge.

All bridges along Mo River had been destroyed. Where water levels were shallow enough for cavalry to directly ford, there were only four or five river beaches. Wang Mao mainly deployed his elite cavalry on the eastern banks of these four or five shallow beaches to intercept Liang cavalry crossing the river.

“By his mother, the Chengde Army truly kills fiercely. We lost over three hundred soldiers but still couldn’t secure a foothold on the eastern bank.” Cao Ba watched Feng Xuan stride over, stepped forward to meet him, spat into the wild grass, and said with exasperation.

Cao Ba’s cavalry brigade was only organized with three thousand elite troops. Preliminary exploratory contact had already reduced forces by over ten percent, showing how determined the enemy’s sniping on the eastern bank was.

Moreover, enemy reinforcements from the north and east to Sanghe Bay were extremely fast. This was clearly not the most suitable ford point to organize a frontal assault.

However, even to disperse and delay the enemy’s intercepting forces, at every suitable ford location there were cavalry assembling, actively preparing to make ford attacks.

Feng Xuan climbed a gentle slope and saw that on the opposite bank, besides over three thousand enemy cavalry, there were also small numbers of infantry using chevaux de frise and caltrops to construct simple defensive lines outside the river beach to limit their forward cavalry from quickly penetrating deep into the opposite bank after crossing the river.

Besides this, the enemy also had small numbers of naval warships in the upstream direction. Cao Ba had previously organized personnel to construct floating rafts, but in such haste they could not form scale and had not played much role.

This was also the most awkward situation.

If given sufficient time—not even half a month, perhaps just three to five days—the logistics camp could withstand enemy harassment and construct a wooden bridge over two hundred paces long on the shallow beach at Sanghe Bay.

Even with just two extra days, transferring ten or twenty spring-arm bed crossbows and scorpion crossbows from the heavily armored infantry combat brigades on the southern bank to shoot at the opposite river beach could reduce the difficulty of cavalry rushing across.

However, in the current situation, even if they delayed two more days before crossing Mo River, the forty to fifty thousand Chengde Army forces would almost all escape into the Jing River valley north of Chiyang. Their combat objective of annihilating the Chengde Army south of Chiyang and west of the Jing River would completely fail.

Superficially, this wouldn’t prevent them from successfully recovering Guanzhong. But letting the main Chengde Army forces escape, allowing them to continue having the strength to threaten Guanzhong’s flanks—this battle could not be considered a great victory.

However, facing the predicament temporarily encountered, Feng Xuan said extremely calmly: “Now the enemy officers and soldiers all know they’re fleeing for their lives. Fighting fiercely—that’s not surprising…”

To completely annihilate the Chengde Army on the northern Wei River bank, they anticipated the interception battle would be quite intense. But Feng Xuan also believed that as long as they successfully cut off the enemy’s northern escape route, the enemy’s final morale and fighting will—like a last burst of energy before death—would quickly collapse.

“I heard from scouts that a contingent of Pingxia cavalry has entered Yongshou. They could possibly emerge from the Jing River valley and enter Chiyang by noon tomorrow?” Cao Ba asked.

The scale of the Chengde Army’s cavalry was already stronger than theirs. Now with a Pingxia Qiang cavalry contingent about to get involved, Cao Ba inevitably felt somewhat anxious, saying: “Tonight’s weather won’t be bad, and it’s mid-month with a full moon. We must organize a night crossing tonight, choosing a breakthrough point between Sanghe Bay and Wuting Ford to fight our way to the eastern bank.”

“The Pingxia people probably won’t be able to exit the Jing River valley…” Feng Xuan said with a trace of uncertainty.