“My old adversaries have all gathered together again this time!”

Han Qian browsed through the latest intelligence reports transmitted from Jinling, smiling as he set down his ink-dipped brush on a stack of documents. He stretched lazily and said to Xi Ren.

“If Shen Yang and Yang En could continue controlling the Chu court’s central government, Liang-Chu relations might remain moderate for a few more years. But they’re quite old after all. With Shen Yang monopolizing the Chancellor position for over fifteen years—only three to five precedents existed even in previous dynasties—even without Yang Zhitang, Huang Hua, Yang Yuanyan and others fanning flames behind the scenes, if he continues clinging to power refusing to leave, he’ll be sitting on pins and needles, won’t he?” Xi Ren knelt beside the long desk, organizing documents for Han Qian. “However, with your little sweetheart down south, she won’t easily let Shen Yang and Yang En leave court. And Emperor Taihe of Chu has begun forming his own views—he should trust Shen Yang and Yang En more. I think Shen Yang and Yang En might still hold out at court for two or three years, not necessarily being forced to retire in resignation this year…”

“What ‘little sweetheart’ of mine?” Han Qian asked with a smile.

“Such a precious clock—Luoyang Academy barely managed to control the deviation to one-eighth of a quarter hour, yet you couldn’t wait to send it to Jinling as a treasure offering. You truly miss her!” Xi Ren said.

“Don’t I miss you too?” Han Qian reached out to embrace Xi Ren.

Xi Ren dodged aside, glaring at Han Qian reproachfully: “Look where we are—what are you doing with those hands?”

Now only when accompanying Han Qian on inspections of military and political affairs outside Luoyang, evading Zhao Ting’er and Wang Jun’s surveillance, would she be intimate with Han Qian. She rarely attended him at bedtime and even less wanted any formal conferment. In Shangyang Garden she wouldn’t let Han Qian near her at all.

Han Qian had Xi Ren sit across from the imperial desk, smiling helplessly. Returning to the previous topic, he had long noticed the deliberately spread rumors gradually circulating in Jinling city. Combined with today’s latest intelligence, the situation in Jinling was indeed worrying. He said:

“Youthful passion is most easily exploited. Sima Tan bringing Xuzhou-Sizhou territory to submit to Chu—such great temptation, few in the Chu court can remain unmoved. However, Sima Tan will certainly need to see Yang Zhitang return to the central government before feeling secure in submitting. Emperor Chu is young and impetuous, his heart set on expanding Great Chu’s territory. If Shen Yang and Yang En don’t stand up to dissuade him, that’s one thing. But if they do stand up to dissuade him, without Yang Yuanyan, Huang Hua, Yang Zhitang even needing to orchestrate anything behind the scenes, the first to grow impatient with and displeased by Shen Yang and Yang En might be the very youth they cultivated themselves.”

“Young and reckless—perhaps he’ll truly only focus on opposing Great Liang as the enemy, unable to see the danger and killing intent around him. If Shen Yang and Yang En also realize this, perhaps their hearts have already grown cold? But this way, won’t your little sweetheart face even greater trouble, unable even to control her own son?” Xi Ren asked.

“Perhaps this way, the ultimate problem might become simpler?” Han Qian said with a trace of uncertainty.

At this moment Qin Wen entered to report that Wang Zhe, bringing Staff Headquarters clerks, had brought the recently re-organized Shouzhou Army materials to Lingyun Pavilion, asking whether Han Qian wanted to review them now.

“Are Li Zhigao, Tian Cheng, Guo Que all at Staff Headquarters?” Han Qian asked.

“They’re all there right now,” Qin Wen said.

“Then send someone to summon them all here,” Han Qian said.

Qin Wen had someone go to Staff Headquarters to summon Li Zhigao, Tian Cheng, and Guo Que for an audience. Wang Zhe, bringing clerks, first carried in a large stack of materials to the great hall.

The intelligence involved in these materials—Wang Zhe, Yin Peng and others would report to Han Qian at any time. But Han Qian, at regular intervals, was always accustomed to personally reviewing materials from a period of time himself, hoping to make new discoveries.

“How many months has Xu Mingzhen been bedridden? Xu Jin and Zhao Mingting lead three thousand cavalry in Bianzhou with no accomplishments—what movement is there in Songzhou?” Han Qian asked Wang Zhe while browsing through documents.

“Xu Mingzhen contracted a malignant illness—this news has been repeatedly confirmed. Currently his son Xu Sizhao handles Shouzhou Army affairs in Songzhou. Internal sources also transmitted news that Xu Mingzhen’s dispatch of Xu Jin and Zhao Mingting to Bianzhou for reinforcement should contain precautionary intent…” Wang Zhe said.

“This isn’t surprising,” Han Qian said.

“However, among Shouzhou Army officers, some discussions are secretly spreading, saying that after Xu Mingzhen dies, if Xu Jin controls Shouzhou Army’s military authority, it could eliminate the obstacles to resubmitting to the Chu court,” Wang Zhe said. “Your subject suspects that even though Xu Jin and Zhao Mingting were dispatched to Bianzhou for reinforcement, these small movements in Songzhou are actually being orchestrated by people they secretly sent…”

Han Qian shook his head with a smile, sighing: “All clever people! Indeed, even though Xu Jin, Zhao Mingting and others are all on the rebellion list from back then, regardless, Xu Hui and Xu Mingzhen are the principal criminals who must be punished.”

“Since Duke Wen and Lord Wen both received pardons from the Chu court, ultimately serving effectively under your command with重用, then in many Shouzhou Army officers’ eyes, as long as after Xu Mingzhen dies, it’s not Xu Sizhao succeeding but Xu Jin, Zhao Mingting and others resubmitting to the Chu court, they should all have opportunities to repent and reform at the Chu court, even redeem themselves through merit,” Wang Zhe said. “More importantly, under Xu Mingzhen, though Xu Jin is an adopted son, his ability and prestige are both stronger than legitimate son Xu Sizhao—at least under current circumstances, Xu Sizhao isn’t a successor who can reassure Zhao Mingting, Xu Jin and other Shouzhou Army generals. What cannot currently be confirmed is whether Xu Jin and Zhao Mingting have secretly contacted Prince Xin’s mansion or Prince Shou’s mansion…”

Li Zhigao, Tian Cheng, and Guo Que soon arrived at Lingyun Pavilion in response to the summons.

Rubbing his hands as he entered Lingyun Pavilion, after performing courtesies, Tian Cheng sat down behind the long desk and said: “This weather is visibly growing cold—the officers and soldiers besieging Jincheng will have to endure a hard time!”

“This morning when I opened the window and saw white frost in the garden, I realized the weather had truly turned cold,” Han Qian said.

After Feng Yi completed his diplomatic mission to the Shu Kingdom, while traveling via Liangzhou to Jinling, Kong Xirong with Han Donghu and Li Xiu led three routes of troops, successfully capturing Yangcheng west of Zezhou and numerous passes and fortified settlements in the Taihang mountain passes to the south, advancing their forces beneath Jincheng, the Zezhou administrative seat.

Currently, besides Kong Xirong and Han Donghu leading sixty thousand troops attacking Jincheng from north and south while controlling the Taihang passes and Qinshui River valley strongholds, Li Xiu led Taiyue Campaign Army to sweep through the region north of Zezhou and southern Luzhou.

For both enemy and friendly forces, fighting bitterly in freezing conditions was extremely arduous.

However, what Great Liang most needed to guard against wasn’t tens of thousands of officers and soldiers having to persist in fighting in icy conditions, but to closely watch for subtle changes that could occur at any moment in the southern front situation.

On the northern front, generals like Wen Bo, Kong Xirong, Han Donghu, and Li Xiu were responsible for combat and defense in the Taiyuan and Jinnan directions. The situation was relatively clear, with nothing worth Luoyang losing sleep over. Conversely, the southern front’s seemingly calm surface was filled with too many strange variables.

Having finally stabilized the Shu army, Jinling city was now surging with waves—the situation was no longer under their covert control.

Han Qian had urgently dispatched Feng Yi to Jinling, but this might not have much effect.

Currently, Meng Army was continuously conscripting troops from Taiyuan, Hebei, Yanyun, even from the Bohai region, filling them into Luzhou city in northern Jinnan. Besides the Jinnan region serving as a link between Taiyuan and Hebei and Henei with strategic importance that couldn’t be ignored, Han Qian also believed Meng Army must have noticed the subtle transformation occurring within the Chu court’s internal atmosphere.

In fact, aside from the Shouzhou Army variable, the situation of the Sima clan bringing Xuzhou-Sizhou territory to submit to the Chu court had basically become clear.

And regardless of Great Liang’s advantage in naval warships, if Liang-Chu relations turned hostile, Huainan Province with only its current thirty thousand garrison troops facing nearly two hundred thousand Chu troops encircling from three sides, still firmly believing Chu troops wouldn’t strike first in betrayal—this was somewhat blindly overconfident and arrogantly presumptuous.

At this time they couldn’t even rule out the possibility Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan were plotting to send troops to raid and seize Huaixi. Their insufficient garrison in Huaixi would also become a direct inducement prompting Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan to strike.

“Zhang Xian and others in Jinling are promoting that Emperor Yanyou at fourteen led troops to achieve the great victory at Xichuan—their intent is quite obvious.”

Li Zhigao said contemplatively regarding the latest transmitted intelligence.

“If behind Emperor Chu there were only Empress Dowager Changxin presiding over court from behind the curtain, regardless of how Yang Zhitang, Yang Yuanyan and these people caused trouble, Empress Dowager Changxin should be able to delay until four years later before having Emperor Chu assume personal rule. But the arrangement made back then of honoring both Empress Dowager Changxin and Empress Dowager Mingcheng equally—the lingering disaster is only truly manifesting now. Once Emperor Chu, young and impetuous, instigated by others, conflicts with Empress Dowager Changxin, Empress Dowager Mingcheng will become the most critical chess piece for Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan to advance the situation!”

“So Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan might still bypass the Chu court and recklessly use troops they directly control to venture an attack on Huaixi, then exploit Emperor Chu’s youthful impetuosity to oppose Empress Dowager Changxin and the reproaches of Shen Yang, Yang En and others, thus dragging the entire Chu army into the war situation?” Tian Cheng frowned, asking with a trace of uncertainty.

Han Qian nodded. Intelligence converging from multiple directions now all pointed toward this possibility. They currently had to take precautions in this direction.

Currently Yang Yuanyan in Chuzhou directly controlled thirty thousand elite direct troops. Prince Shou mansion’s forces were mainly garrisoned in Yangzhou and Runzhou with twenty thousand troops. Additionally there were over fifteen thousand elite troops led by Zhao Zhen garrisoned in Suizhou.

These were forces directly controlled by Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan—already exceeding sixty thousand men.

If considering that Sima Tan’s Xuzhou-Sizhou Army would very likely venture to participate in their plan, then relative to Great Liang’s garrison in Huaixi, they occupied a great advantage.

However, Han Qian believed that after suffering so many losses under his hand these years, Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan shouldn’t be so blind as to believe they could definitely capture Huaixi completely in the shortest time, nor so blind as to believe that with only their direct forces, after attacking into Huaixi they could withstand Great Liang deploying elite reinforcements from western Henan and Yongzhou to Huaixi.

So even if Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan initially ventured to bypass the Chu court’s central government, they would still subsequently have to find ways to drag the entire Chu Kingdom into warfare against Great Liang.

Only this way could they have sufficient confidence to capture all of Huaixi and hold the Huai River line.

After they first acted with military force on their own authority, the young and impetuous Chu Emperor Yang Bin would very likely become the key to whether they could successfully drag the entire Chu Kingdom and entire Chu army into warfare.

“With Yang Zhitang’s caution, he might still only dare venture such risky action after persuading Gu Zhilong to participate in their plan,” Wang Zhe said. “We currently have two points we cannot confirm. First, have Xu Jin and Zhao Mingting secretly sent people to contact Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan? If so, this will also become a factor prompting Yang Zhitang and them to venture. Another is whether Gu Zhilong himself has thoughts of venturing—currently our hidden agents cannot confirm… From another angle, perhaps we can make an issue of Xu Jin and Gu Zhilong, causing Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan to abandon thoughts of venturing.”

If they could persuade Xu Jin and Zhao Mingting to seize Shouzhou Army after Xu Mingzhen’s death and submit to Liang rather than Chu Kingdom, this would directly change the southern front situation’s configuration. The shock to Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan would certainly be considerable. Simultaneously enabling Gu Zhilong to draw clear boundaries with Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan, becoming the peace faction supporting Empress Dowager Changxin, would further weaken Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan’s confidence in venturing.

“Do you think Xu Jin and Zhao Mingting might be willing to surrender military authority and happily become wealthy gentlemen?” Han Qian looked toward Li Zhigao and Tian Cheng to ask.

Li Zhigao and Tian Cheng both shook their heads, indicating that Wang Zhe sending people to secretly persuade Xu Jin and Zhao Mingting was a good idea, but this possibility wasn’t high.

In their view, even if sending people to contact Xu Jin and Zhao Mingting, they could have Han Yuanqi and Zhao Wuji stationed in western Henan directly dispatch messengers, but shouldn’t expose the high-level spies lurking in Songzhou all these years.

“Is it now necessary to have Second Central Campaign Army contract south from southern Jincheng?” Li Zhigao asked.

Currently Gao Shao, Yang Qin, and Lin Haizheng stationed in Huainan Province, though they’d fully raised vigilance, couldn’t change the fact that Huainan Province’s garrison was only thirty thousand—even with emergency military expansion, only fifty thousand troops were available.

Han Yuanqi and Zhao Wuji controlled more troops in western Henan, but western Henan’s south had to defend Dengzhou Prefecture, Yunyang Prefecture, and Junzhou Prefecture, while the east had to resist Eastern Liang Army’s Zhu Rang and Liang Ren’s forces as well as Xu Mingzhen’s Shouzhou Army. When necessary they could only deploy slightly over ten thousand troops to reinforce Huainan Province.

However, if at this time Han Donghu’s Second Central Campaign Army had to prepare to reinforce Huainan southward at any moment, they would inevitably have to slow the offensive against Jincheng, directly impacting arrangements for warfare in Jinnan.

Frankly speaking, this was also the natural disadvantage of Great Liang occupying the realm’s center, facing enemies on four sides.

If they now directly transferred tens of thousands of elite troops south, they could force Yang Yuanyan and Yang Zhitang to abandon their venture. But the Meng Army to the north would also gain breathing room as a result. If the situation dragged on, Eastern Liang Army and Shu Army might both reverse course.

Han Qian contemplated briefly: “What do you think—can we transfer Lin Haizheng to serve as Henan Deputy Military Commissioner and Henan Campaign Army Commander, have Zhao Wuji go to Huainan as Deputy Military Commissioner and Huainan Campaign Army Commander, while rotating Cao Ba and Li Chi’s elite units with Chuzhou garrison…”

“Won’t this be too risky?” Li Zhigao couldn’t help asking worriedly.

In the past six or seven years, Great Liang’s warfare focused mainly on the northern front. Even with comparable troop scales, northern front troops—whether officers’ and soldiers’ physical fitness, drill training, combat experience, or equipment level—were all superior to southern front troops.

Swapping Zhao Wuji with Lin Haizheng while rotating the most elite Cao Ba and Li Chi brigades with Tuzhou garrison troops would greatly enhance Chuzhou garrison’s combat strength. But after Huainan’s eastern front infantry, cavalry, and navy were reinforced, plus one reserve brigade stationed in southern Chuzhou, total forces would only be around seventeen to eighteen thousand.

To Chuzhou’s east, Yang Yuanyan led thirty thousand troops stationed in Chuzhou, with Prince Shou’s mansion having ten thousand garrison troops in Yangzhou. To Chuzhou’s northeast, across Hongze Lake was the Sima clan’s Xuzhou-Sizhou Army, with mobilizable troops reaching over sixty thousand.

Though Great Liang had fully developed workshop manufacturing in Heluo, Dengjun and other places in recent years, dispatching large numbers of craftsmen to Yongzhou and Qizhou after mid-year with Yongzhou Academy also beginning construction, Huainan remained Great Liang’s manufacturing stronghold.

Among them, Wujian Mountain west of Chuzhou Prefecture accounted for over one-third of Great Liang’s entire coal and iron mining and smelting scale. Donghu and Shouchun’s shipyards accounted for seventy percent of Great Liang’s shipbuilding industry. Donghu and Chaozhou Prefectures’ textile industry accounted for half of Great Liang’s…

Conventionally speaking, even if abandoning combat plans for Jinnan midway, they should first ensure Huainan’s front line was absolutely secure, even trying as much as possible to block enemy forces at the periphery, not allowing them opportunities to enter Huainan’s strategic depth for wanton destruction.

“If worried it’s too risky, then have Lu Ze lead Imperial Guard Army’s First and Second Cavalry Units plus one hundred spring-arm siege crossbows, temporarily under Huainan Campaign Army command to focus on strengthening Chuzhou front line defenses. Besides this, we cannot reinforce more troops to the southern front. With Yang Zhitang’s courage, if I transfer too many elite troops to Huainan, I fear he’ll shrink back again…” Han Qian said while stretching.

Li Zhigao and Tian Cheng exchanged glances, still somewhat hesitant.

After recovering Guanzhong, besides the First and Second Central Campaign Armies’ responsibility being to protect the national capital from left and right flanks, Han Qian also consolidated the First and Second Alert Brigades into Luoyang Imperial Guard Army, mainly responsible for national capital Luoyang city’s garrison and Shangyang Garden’s guard duties.

Guo Que concurrently commanded Imperial Guard Army. Huo Li and Lu Ze served as brigade commanders. Imperial Guard Army was organized into six units, plus logistics support personnel and guard bureau—totaling only eight thousand men, only about half of regular main force garrison troops, but was an elite cavalry combat force assembled by selecting elite military officers and veteran soldiers from various units.

However, no matter how elite Imperial Guard Army was, two cavalry units were only slightly over two thousand men—how much could this really strengthen Chuzhou’s defense line?

Seeing Li Zhigao and Tian Cheng both quite hesitant, Han Qian leaned forward: “You’ve also said that though enemy forces east and north of Chuzhou are numerous, if Yang Yuanyan, Yang Zhitang and Sima Tan dare venture recklessly, the first batch of troops they mobilize also cannot be too many. I’m now transferring Zhao Wuji, Cao Ba, Li Chi, and Lu Ze to Chuzhou—as long as they can severely damage or even annihilate the first wave of invading enemy forces, the Jiang-Huai situation won’t escape our control, and we might avoid full-scale warfare between Liang and Chu!”

Li Zhigao and Tian Cheng contemplated for a long time, finally nodding in agreement with Han Qian’s somewhat venturesome plan.

Though Xuzhou-Sizhou Army seemingly could mobilize the most troops, the Sima clan had always been slippery old foxes. For Xuzhou-Sizhou territory to attack into Huainan Province (Huaixi), Chuzhou to the south and Shouzhou Army to the west wouldn’t easily allow them passage. They would have to cross the over hundred li wide Hongze Lake to strike into northern Chuzhou or eastern Haozhou.

However, the Sima clan’s naval strength wasn’t strong. For them to send troops across Hongze Lake, they would inevitably have to wait until Chuzhou and Yangzhou troops entered Chuzhou.

Even if Xu Jin and Zhao Mingting secretly colluded with Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan, wanting to seize military authority from Xu Mingzhen and Xu Sizhao father and son, launching a mutiny and truly controlling Shouzhou Army required a process—they couldn’t send troops immediately.

Huang Lü as Commander led Left Wuxiang Army stationed in Chizhou. Though Gu Zhilong’s Yongjia Army also had nearly ten thousand elite troops transferred north, they were also stationed in Xuanzhou, Runzhou and other places south of the Yangtze River.

These two forces, blocked by the Yangtze River, even if participating in the venture plan led by Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan, would inevitably be the second echelon.

Additionally, directly controlled by Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan was Right Wuxiang Army commanded by Zhao Zhen, garrisoned in Suiyang. But for Right Wuxiang Army to attack north into Huainan’s Xinyang Prefecture, they needed to first capture passes like Wusheng and Pingjing located between Tongbai Mountain and Huaiyang Mountain.

Analyzed carefully, though Chu forces around Huainan’s periphery could mobilize many troops, if Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan wanted to bypass the Chu court’s central government, the first wave of vanguard troops striking into Huainan would be quite limited. Making the maximum estimate, just the forty thousand garrison troops from Chuzhou and Yangzhou.

If Feng Yi, Wen Ruilin, and Han Jianji could, through diplomatic means in Jinling, prevent Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan from rashly sending troops, that would naturally be best.

Otherwise, using seemingly inferior elite infantry and cavalry to lure Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan to strike, drawing their vanguard forces west of Fanliang Lake to inflict heavy damage.

Even if they wanted to exploit Yang Bin’s youthful impetuosity to seize control of the Chu court’s central government, after their troops entered Huaixi, their first offensive, even if not achieving an inspiring great victory, at least had to let the Chu Kingdom’s court and countryside see hope of victory to possibly suppress Empress Dowager Changxin, to possibly drive the seemingly conservative Shen Yang and Yang En from court…