Yun Ye had never imagined that the situation at Cheng Yaojin’s position would be critical to this degree. With Old Cheng’s temperament, unless he truly couldn’t hold on any longer, he would never open his mouth to ask for help from anyone—not even if that person was Yun Ye or his own son, Cheng Chumo.
Among the several armies, his conditions were the most deplorable. When the Great Tang prepared to march against Tubo, the most elite sons of Guanzhong had already been divided up by Yun Ye, Guo Xiaoke, and Li Jing. What remained for him were only the garrison troops from the twelve prefectures of Hexi. Their equipment could only be considered third-rate among the Great Tang military. Yet under these conditions, Old Cheng still swept through like a whirlwind, crossing the Huang River to strike at Xifu. At one point he pushed the battle line all the way to Greater Feichuan, spreading the flames of war from Tuyuhun all the way into Tubo territory. Moreover, he had confronted Songtsen Gampo’s two hundred thousand troops for a full two years without falling into disadvantage.
Two years’ time—the cutting winds and harsh frosts of the plateau had not worn down Old Cheng’s will. On the contrary, they had made it increasingly resolute.
By now, the claim of the entire world attacking the Tang had long become a joke among Chang’an residents in the taverns. They raised their cups to celebrate each of Yun Ye’s great victories, despised Li Zhi’s sinister and vicious methods, felt passionate and stirred by Liu Renyuan’s invincible achievements across ten thousand li of maritime territory, and cheered for Li Jing’s swift crushing of Tubo’s fierce assault on Shazhou.
Old Cheng’s military achievements appeared dim and lusterless under the halo of these brilliant victories. Due to human nature, the people of Chang’an also liked to hear pleasant things. At this time, if someone told them that at Greater Feichuan there was still a force in imminent danger, they would certainly be despised by everyone.
Old Cheng had already persisted on the plateau for two years. The lengthy supply routes and difficult march routes destined him to be unable to receive more assistance. Greater Feichuan was truly the place of bitter warfare.
Yun Ye clearly knew that at this moment he should petition Li Er to let him go up and replace the already exhausted Old Cheng. Li Er probably also understood very clearly that he should order Cheng Yaojin to withdraw from Greater Feichuan and retreat to Hexi to plan for future circumstances.
More than one person in the court saw this crisis, but everyone unanimously shut their mouths. Old generals had old generals’ dignity. If Li Er ordered a change of command, with Old Cheng’s temperament, he would certainly slit his own throat.
So under this dilemma, Yun Ye had been lavishly giving away his equipment—for instance, to Sun Renshi, to Xue Rengui, and also jokingly tempting Li Jing. However, on his Camel City he always kept one set of thoroughly prepared equipment. These things were what he reserved for Old Cheng. He very much hoped that Cheng Yaojin would open his mouth. As soon as he did, these supplies would be transported along the rugged roads to Greater Feichuan, eight hundred li away, at the first opportunity.
So when Zhou Chong appeared before him, he was so happy he nearly jumped up. He very much wanted Zhou Chong to shut his mouth, say nothing at all, and quickly scram with the prepared supplies, fearing to hear from this fellow news that Old Cheng was sick or had fallen in battle.
On the battlefield, no place was safe. A single stray arrow could take the life of the most noble general. From ancient times to the present, there were many such examples.
Now Zhou Chong had brought the best news for Yun Ye—the old fellow was still stubbornly alive. That was enough. With one command from Yun Ye, the Camel City began advancing toward Blackstone Pass. Li Jing sent eight letters in a single day asking about Yun Ye’s motives and what he was preparing to do. Yun Ye brushed them all off with the boring excuse that he was preparing to go to Blackstone Pass to bathe in hot springs.
Since arriving at the Camel City, Zhou Chong’s mouth hadn’t stopped. After a large basin of noodles went into his stomach, he was still not satisfied. Eating the candied fruit that Liu Jinbao brought him, bare-backed, he let the military physician treat the frostbite on his body.
He had always believed there was no difference between the Western Expedition Army and the Hexi Army he now led. He felt it was perfectly natural and right to request supplies from this army. Thinking back to how he had bitterly begged the Grand Commander to reach out to the Western Expedition Army while at Greater Feichuan, a trace of bitterness arose in his heart. However, now he was very satisfied—his pleading hadn’t been in vain. The Grand Commander had ultimately agreed after all. Tilting his ear to listen to the clamor outside, he felt extremely happy. This was the noisy sound of logistics officers preparing supplies for him.
Faintly he heard mentions of fire oil, gunpowder, something called thunder-fire arrows, something called hand grenades—these things, judging by their names alone, were instruments of mass destruction. There probably wasn’t a single easy one to deal with. As for grain, medicine, and such things, Commander Yun would presumably prepare them well.
He fished half a peach from a jar, admired it for a while, then stuffed it all into his mouth. The honey-like juice filled his oral cavity. Damn it, how long had it been since he’d eaten fruit?
“One hundred medical officers, fully armed, carrying complete bandages and medicines, each additionally carrying thirty catties of load. One hundred squad leaders, fully armed, carrying fifty catties of load. Ten crossbow formation commanders, gunpowder crossbows, fire oil crossbows, equipped two grades above the highest standard allocation…”
Tian Yuanyi was extremely busy. On this winter day, steam rose all around his person, and beads of sweat continuously slid down from his forehead. To completely pack three thousand men, over a thousand camels, over ten thousand warhorses, and thirty-two hot air balloons required great patience and skill.
Weapons, gunpowder, fire oil, gunpowder bombs, plus fuel oil—all these things were loaded onto camel backs. As for grain and medicines, they were all carried on horseback. As for cold weapons, Lord Cheng didn’t lack those. Only crossbow arrows—load as many as possible. So much so that the three thousand soldiers all became the main transport force. After carrying their own things, each person shouldering a bundle of crossbow arrows was a must.
When Zhou Chong emerged from the room, he was astonished to discover that all the supplies had already been sorted by category and arranged on the Camel City. As long as they got through tonight, before sunrise tomorrow, they would be distributed strictly according to loading allocation standards to every person, every camel, every horse, and every hot air balloon. This gave Zhou Chong a new understanding of the Camel City’s efficiency.
“Adjutant Tian, Old Zhou has a small request. I wonder if the adjutant could be flexible?” Zhou Chong approached the weary Tian Yuanyi with a smiling face and said quietly.
Tian Yuanyi looked Zhou Chong up and down, as if examining a beast of burden preparing to carry cargo. After looking him over, he pointed to a small wooden cabin and said, “The strong liquor you want is in that cabin. You can take as much as you can carry, but don’t add burden to others. I’ve already arranged loads for every bit of their strength. So if you want to drink, you must carry it yourself.”
“This isn’t quite proper, is it? A supply convoy always needs guards. You’ve arranged everyone to full capacity—how will we maintain vigilance? How will we resist enemies? Leaving out a thousand cavalry is the minimum requirement.” Zhou Chong furrowed his brow.
“Observation and vigilance will be handled by those hot air balloons tethered to the camels. Combat will naturally be handled by the crossbow formations. You all just need to work hard to bring these goods to Greater Feichuan.”
“The Grand Commander said that after you depart tomorrow, the main army will immediately attack and advance toward Jishi Mountain and Xingxing Gorge, ultimately attacking all the way to Blackstone Pass, helping you attract all the enemies. As for the Tubo scouts, you’ll need to eliminate them yourselves.”
“You only have five days to pass through the no-man’s land. With so many people and livestock, in five days you’ll consume large quantities of grain and fodder, so you’ll be able to free up some warhorses, and there will be cavalry available for combat. This way, when you pass through the Tubo defense zone on the western line of Greater Feichuan, you should be able to have over a thousand cavalry. Add the crossbow camp and you can fight a battle. Commander Cheng will presumably also come to meet you. This is currently the best method. Don’t have doubts. This is the result of precise calculations by Commander Yun, Minister Du, Old Master Liu Fang, plus a group of staff officers. You just need to execute it.”
Tian Yuanyi wiped the sweat beads from his forehead, cupped his hands toward Zhou Chong, and began preparing to allocate sufficient camels for use without damaging the Camel City’s reserve forces.
Zhou Chong discovered that everything in the Western Expedition Army was completely different from the armies he knew. The soldiers in the Western Expedition Army preparing for Greater Feichuan were all skillfully preparing their harnesses, while the soldiers he’d brought were standing dumbfounded before the mountain of supplies in front of them…
One hundred veteran soldiers who looked like squad leaders each took charge of twenty soldiers. Regardless of whether they were colonels or centurions, without further ado they began hanging harnesses on them. Black gunpowder bombs were hung on the hooks of the harnesses, a short crossbow was installed on their lower abdomens. As they installed these, they loudly warned: “These gunpowder bombs are your weapons against enemies. As long as the enemy approaches, just light them and throw them out. Don’t be like that idiot Tushi who threw them out without lighting them. Whoever does this will have to go retrieve the unexploded gunpowder bombs for me.”
“You’d best treasure this short crossbow like your lifeblood. When fighting, the crossbow arrows on it are all pre-strung. If you hold the crossbow arrows the wrong way, congratulations—you can beg the Grand Commander to send you to the imperial palace for service.”
“Don’t tell me about your rank. I’m a master sergeant. Among the common soldiers, I’m the biggest. Even if the Grand Commander enters the new recruit camp, he has to listen to me. I know you’re fierce generals and fierce soldiers, but don’t show off in front of me. If you have the ability, walk these eight hundred li first, then boast—it won’t be too late.”
“The Grand Commander originally wanted to replace you all and substitute our Western Expedition Army brothers. That way I could have it easy. But military regulations don’t permit it, so I can only use today’s single day to train you, tell you how to use these things. Those who learn—congratulations, you’ve kept your little lives. Those who can’t learn—also congratulations, you’ll never again have to struggle bitterly in military camp.”
“What? You’ve long since not wanted to struggle? You bastard, by then you’ll already be dead and stiff. Who cares if you struggle? Now everyone, about face! We’re going outside the Camel City to teach you how to use gunpowder bombs and short crossbows.”
Under the squad leaders’ shouts, these cavalrymen who had just finished eating and drinking not long ago were led outside the Camel City. Before much time had passed, Zhou Chong heard waves of thunderous booming sounds coming from not far away.
He picked up a set of harnesses and observed them carefully. After quite a while he still hadn’t figured out what they were for. Just as he was confused, he heard Cheng Chumo speak: “Brother Zhou, these are harnesses to hang on the body. With this thing, you can reasonably distribute weight across your entire body and mobilize your whole body’s strength. This way you can carry more things. This thing was manufactured by the Academy, so there’s no need to doubt it.”