It is the Seventh of Seventh. The first large-scale battle between Chen and Yuan commences two years after the Battle of Shangjing.
This year, there is flooding in Jiangzhou, refugees fleeing from every corner of the land, unrest in the north, and the nation is at its weakest. Great Chen is plagued by problems on the inside and threatened from the outside. No one could have imagined that the newly appointed Governor of Hebei, who hasnât even been in his position for a month, would mobilise a largescale battle against the Mongolians alongside the Commandant of Hejian.
In this battle, the Mongolian army fails to capture the city overnight, and itâs also repeatedly attacked by sudden ambushes. At midnight, Wu Du even initiates a new series of attacks.
âCharge â!â Hebei army, two thousand strong, charges into the Mongolsâ rear formation.
Without the interference of cavalry behind them, Batu certainly could have doubtlessly taken Ye, and yet Wu Du seems to have no plan to fight him head-on â every single time the two sides make contact, he immediately retreats.
Duan Ling observes them for a long time, and he notices several times that when the Mongolian army is attacked from behind and seems about to change formation so as to confront Wu Du, the troops seem unwilling to take direction. They donât agree with each other, causing them to repeatedly miss the chance to attack.
Thatâs it. His army isnât of one heart. In all likelihood, those battalion commanders arenât willing to listen to Batuâs orders, and all they want is to take Ye as quickly as they could. Military commands not reaching the troops is the most verboten error in the philosophy of war, and if Batu hadnât captured him previously, perhaps there wouldnât be so much conflict within the Mongolian troops now. How unexpected for Batuâs actions to have led to this.
Two battalions of one thousand men each besiege the city in turn. Leading the militia in the city, Duan Ling wards off the Mongolsâ battering ram and scaling ladders.
With an ear-shattering boom the battering ram slams against the city gates, and dozens of people dash over to the gates to keep it shut. Duan Ling runs up the city gate tower, flitting across the top of the wall at the head of his archers, shooting one arrow after another; each arrow that leaves his bow is quickly followed by a Mongolian soldier falling to the ground.
Itâs pandemonium both on top of and beneath the wall. Wu Du takes point in front of his army, blood spraying wherever he goes; almost no one can block even a single move of his. Where the Lieguangjian strikes, it cuts through armour along with the person wrapped inside it.
Duan Ling gasps for breath with his back against the city wall. The Mongolian army has finally realised that if they donât get rid of the troops lying in ambush outside the city, thereâs no way they can ever take Ye. Soon, nearly two thousand men split away from the Mongolian army, and they charge towards Wu Duâs division to hold back his repeated attacks.
Their offence at the city gates immediately ease up, and the city defenders overturn oil pans and light up firewood, filling their surroundings with black smoke. Duan Ling turns to the Mongolian soldiers escaping from the smoke and shoots them whenever he sees them. Those who are hit by the arrows topple at once.
Dressed from head to toe in black armour in the night, Wu Du is like a ghost; as soon as the Mongol army advances, he would charge into the forest. Soon enough, the forest is on fire and thick smoke wafts out, making the Mongolian soldiers cough violently. Then Wu Du is at the head of his men charging out from the side again. The Mongolian force seems to be continuously decreasing in size â theyâre actually dying bit by bit in this black-clad warriorâs hands as this guerilla war wages on!
Batu gives out a furious shout and charges towards him on horseback. By then, Wu Duâs right arm is weak from all the killing, and he tosses his sword to his left hand, saying coldly, âYouâre right on time.â
Then Benxiao is charging towards him. Wu Du and Batu gets into melee distance on horseback; Batu wields a long black iron spear weighing nearly thirty catty, while Wu Du wields the Lieguangjian. The two collide, carried by the strength of two horses charging at each other.
With a metallic ring, the iron spear trembles â and the spearâs pole is cut in half with one sword slash from Wu Du! Benxiao crashes right in the direction of Batuâs horse!
Batuâs warhorse is hit so hard that it ends up rolling onto its side. Wu Du turns on the spot with half of his body still on horseback, and he thrusts the Lieguangjian out and across with a horizontal slash!
Batu immediately draws his sabre with a backhand, and with his left foot pushing against the ground he howls, âUp!â
He pulls on the reins so hard that the corner of his horseâs mouth is bloody. But struggling on four hooves, it pushes itself off the ground. With his left hand, Batu slices his sabre across Wu Duâs sword edge. Wu Du shouts in approval and changes his move to pare back at him, but by then Batu is already steering his warhorse out of the formation.
Everywhere he looks, there are wounded soldiers, and the sky is gradually brightening. Duan Ling spies a line of black in the distance rolling towards them.
âChange formation â!â Qin Long shouts.
Their reinforcements of two thousand men have arrived, and they charge onto the hill, their marching formation turning into a charging formation. As they charge fiercely forward, they spread out in a straight line.
âForward!â Qin Long howls.
âWithdraw!â Wu Du shouts.
Qin Long launches his assault while Wu Du withdraws his men out of the battle beneath the city walls at nearly the same time. The Mongolian army immediately changes formation in order to ward off Qin Longâs attack, but itâs already too late; thousands of horsemen are fighting at close-quarters on the battlefield, going insensate with killing â theyâve already turned the ground beneath Ye into a meat grinder where limbs go flying.
âI leave this place to you!â Wu Du shouts, suddenly exiting the area.
Duan Ling is about to order someone to let Wu Du back in the city, but Wu Du is leading his men away by going around the city walls.
The Mongolian army is finally crushed, but they donât seem to be in a panic at all; as they retreat theyâre still constantly restructuring, leaving the area along the other side of the city wall. Qin Long leads his army in pursuit, hot on their tail. Duan Ling says decisively, âEveryone, get on your horses! Come with me!â
As the Mongolian army is passing by the eastern gates theyâre still constantly restructuring their ranks. Suddenly, the eastern gates are thrown wide open and Duan Ling charges out with a hundred archers and a thousand militiamen. The Mongolian army never expected an ambush to be waiting for them here, and not daring to stay and fight, they scatter in retreat.
The Mongolian army that was about to regroup again is once more dispersed. Qin Long makes his way to Duan Ling to rendezvous with him.
Zheng Yan shouts, âGovernor! Youâre having too much fun! Hurry back here to guard the city already!â
âNever mind the city!â Duan Ling says loudly and merges his troops into Qin Longâs army.
Itâs not until theyâve chased the Mongols out ten miles and more and the sky is completely bright that Qin Long says to him, âDonât chase them anymore! We have to head back and defend the city!â
Duan Ling was going to try and see if they could catch Batu, but now that the Mongols are defeated theyâre a complete mess so thereâs no way they can even find Batu anymore. He can only abandon that idea.
Yet as theyâre about to withdraw, a division lying in ambush charges out from the side of the road â but itâs Wu Du.
Before the Mongol army even manages to recognise them, theyâve already been charged apart. Duan Ling yells, âWu Du!â
âWhat are you doing out here?â Wu Du yells back, âDidnât I tell you to stay in the city?â
âI was worried that theyâd attack the eastern gates while they had the chance â there arenât enough guards there.â
Right now, only dozens of men are garrisoned in Ye. Qin Long gives Duan Ling a thumbs up, âYou people have really got guts.â
âLeave them,â Wu Du says, âget a new horse and come with me. Qin Long, you go with Zheng Yan. Weâll outflank them on the Xunshui shore.â
For this battle, the die has already been cast for the Mongolians. Aside from fording the river, they have no other means of escape. A violent dispute had broken out within their ranks and theyâre locked in argument. Meanwhile, there are archers with whistling arrows that Wu Du had hidden in the forest, passing messages back and forth, and suddenly the Mongols feel as though there are soldiers lying in wait everywhere around them, leaving them no choice but to hastily ford the river.
When theyâre halfway across the water, Wu Du and Qin Long launch their attack once more with their troops. This one is actually the most devastating defeat for the Mongolian army; the attack leaves the Xunshui filled with floating corpses, and they end up killing at least a thousand Mongolian soldiers.
Finally, not even two thousand Mongolian soldiers manage to ford the Xunshui and retreat to the northern shore. The two sides confront each other at a distance.
âDonât come back again!â Duan Ling says across the river, covered in blood; the hand heâs been using to pull his bowstring still wonât stop shaking.
âLetâs withdraw,â Wu Du says, âthe defence in Ye is weak. We have to get back there as soon as possible.â
In the end, Duan Ling still hasnât managed to see Batu. This battle ends here.
When they get back to the city, they see wounded soldiers everywhere. The cost of this battle has truly been too great.
âMake a casualty count,â Wu Du instructs. He enters the governorâs offices and lies down right there on the floor; his armour and helmet clang on the floor, blood seeping through the gaps. He has no idea whether itâs his own blood or the enemyâs blood.
Duan Lingâs martial artist robes are already tattered all over, revealing the White Tiger armour he wears beneath. He too, lies down on the floor, leaning against Wu Duâs leg. He feels like heâs going to fall apart from exhaustion.
Outside, there is cheering.
âGovernor, Commandant General,â the lieutenant says, âFor the army of Ye, four hundred and seventy-two dead, and one thousand thirteen wounded; for the army of Hejian, thirty-six dead, six hundred and one wounded.â
âSo many casualties?â Duan Ling says with his eyes closed, âIâll visit and compensate the bereaved in a little while. I need to sleep for a bit ⊠I canât stay up anymore.â
Early autumn in Jiangzhou, all the way along the highway itâs a stretch of golden yellow.
The messenger spurs his horse through the main streets with word of Yeâs Seventh of Seventh victory. The messenger has travelled by both day and night to bring this dispatch to Jiangzhou, sending a great quake through the entire imperial court. At morning assembly that day, every civil official and military officer is struck dumb by the news.
âThe Mongols have retreated to the north of the Xunshui,â Xie You says. âThey will likely not enter Great Chenâs territory again in the near future.â
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âThey got into a confrontation with the Mongolians without asking the imperial court for a written order to declare war,â Su Fa says. âWhat are they going to do if the Mongols come back for revenge when winter arrives?â
âEven the fastest horse travelling nonstop will take a fortnight to arrive in Jiangzhou from Ye.â Mu Kuangda says, âGetting here and back will take a full month. When the Commandant of Hejian took office, His Majesty had already given him a secret imperial edict giving him full authority to act at his discretion. And besides, the Mongols were no longer attacking because they saw a good opportunity to do so, but because they wanted to invade our territory. Whether it was out of a passion to defend the nation or of sound reasoning, this was a battle they should have fought.â
Cai Yan says, âIt was a battle of four thousand against five thousand. They have surprisingly gained a decent victory.â
âYour Highness,â Xie You says, âthis wasnât a battle in which one could use numbers to judge the disparity of either sideâs strength.â
Li Yanqiu doesnât say anything; heâs still looking at the map.
Xie You take a step forward and explains this to the officials of the court, âThe Mongolian military is expert at guerrilla warfare, and not so much at laying siege to a city. In territories east of Yubiguan, whenever towns along the border need to confront the Mongols, the most oft used approach is to shut the city gates and refuse to come out. But this time, the Commandant of Hejian, Wu Du, had chosen to take his army and lie in ambush, attacking the rear of the Mongolsâ formation when they attack the city. Then they coordinated with Qin Long to outflank the enemy from two sides, chasing them all the way to Xunshui. Even though I did not see it with my own eyes, according to whatâs written in Wang Shanâs dispatch Iâm sure thatâs what happened.â
âThis battle tactic is one the late emperor used consistently.â Li Yanqiu remarks casually, âThat year in Shangjing when he fought alongside YelĂŒ Dashi against Ăgedei, this is what he did â setting up ambushes to attack the enemyâs rear formation. Even though all glory for this battle belongs to Wu Du, Wang Shanâs contributions must not be overlooked. If he hadnât intercepted the Mongolian militaryâs secret missive, and then informed Han Bin at Yubiguan to attack their reinforcements, presumably we would have already lost Ye.â
No one speaks. Cai Yan seems quite anxious and preoccupied. Li Yanqiu turns to him and asks gently, âWhat do you think, my son?â
âYeah,â Cai Yan replies, âThen letâs leave it for the Ministry of War to assess.â
Mu Kuangda adds, âWe have driven the Mongols out of Hebei, but the autumn harvest for the Ye and Hejian regions were neglected regardless. With the militia conscription a month ago besides, they couldnât worry about farm work at the same time, so weâll probably have to allocate some extra grain to help them get through this winter.â
The Minister of Revenue heaves a sigh. âIf more refugees head south from the north, I really donât know what else we can do for them. We can only provide enough for Ye.â
âGet that done then.â Li Yanqiu rises, saying, âAssembly dismissed.â
Autumn has come, and the sky feels even wider; the wind blows and grass bends, and from a distance, it looks like there are waves of yellow on the wheat fields. As soon as the Mongols retreat, Duan Ling disbands their forces and tell them to begin the autumn harvest so that it wonât be too late. For a time, the whole city of Ye seems empty â everyone has gone out to bring in the wheat and to grind flour.
The bereaved needs to be comforted, the injured needs to be visited; Duan Ling busies himself for three whole days, and heâs downright exhausted. When he gets back to the estate, Duan Ling changes Wu Duâs poultices inside their room. The arrow wound from before has left a scar, and this battle has once more given him another injury.
âFight a battle, add a scar,â Duan Ling says, âA few more years and youâll probably be covered in scars.â
âI should carry around a few more scars. When I get old, youâve become the emperor, and you donât want me anymore, I can show them to you so youâd remember how good Iâve been to you.â
âWhat are you talking about,â Duan Lingâs not sure what to say to him. Watching Wu Du has brought a stirring in his heart, and he wraps his arms around him, leaning over his well-defined shoulders and back. He presses his lips to the tattoo on Wu Duâs neck.
âIâm sure that kid wonât dare come back again,â Wu Du adds.
âHe will come back still,â Duan Ling says, âbefore summer next year, heâll definitely come.â
Batu has been defeated in one battle, and Duan Ling is quite aware of the reason behind that. It doesnât mean heâs incapable, but that there are differences in opinion among divisions of the Mongolian military itself. By the next time Batu comes back, heâll make sure heâs ready, and bring Amga with him so he can challenge Wu Du one on one. Heâd also marshal his forces garrisoned in Hulunbuir.
From now âtil the next summer, though short, will be their precious period of convalescence.
With new poultices applied, Wu Du puts on his outer robe and moves to get up. Duan Ling asks, âWhereâre you going this time?â
âIâll have to figure out where to find you some food.â
Duan Ling smiles. âIâm thinking about it. Itâs supposed to be my job, to begin with.â
Wu Du waves that off. âI have to support my family. Thereâs no other way.â
âHey, wait a second,â Duan Ling says, âThere are other things we have to think about how to solve. Weâll do it together.â
The Mongols have calmed down for now, and the Shadow Guard hasnât returned either. Is it because Wu Du has noticed their tracks? Or is it because Zheng Yan is here? Feng Duo is probably also a smart man, so aside from those two assassins, he must have sent many more. But the two hapless souls getting found by them by a stroke of luck was clearly not part of the plan.
As for how many assassins there are left and when theyâll launch their attack, those are all unknowns.
Duan Ling and Wu Du have discussed this problem among themselves many times; Wu Duâs attitude towards it is to cross that bridge when they come to it. They may be worried about assassins, but Feng Duoâs bound to be even more worried about them. As long as theyâre careful nothingâs going to happen.
Meanwhile, Duan Ling life is always unsettled, and it is a feeling that stems from lacking a sense of security ever since he was little. Heâd always rather take the initiative; even if he doesnât know where his enemy is, heâd do something out of habit. When he felt he had no hope of returning to court, he found some other thing to take its place, the civil exams for instance ⊠He wants to go fight the Mongols, and get rid of those assassins. This way he can at least feel a bit more at ease.
âWhen it comes to this youâre a lot like the late emperor,â Wu Du says.
âReally?â Duan Ling scratches his head. But the tactics behind this siege were entirely orchestrated by Wu Du, and it all had very little to do with him. Perhaps some tacit and deeper understanding has formed between them, so much so that heâs even affected Wu Du.
âYou were the one who wanted Han Bin to attack the Mongolian reinforcements first,â Wu Du says, âthatâs when I thought we should be the ones launching the assault.â
They walk and talk at the same time. Wu Du gives Benxiao a pat and says to Duan Ling, âGet on. Letâs go somewhere fun.â
The only thing in the world that can give Duan Ling a sense of security, aside from Wu Du, would be Benxiao. Every time Wu Du rides off to battle, all Duan Ling thinks about is how Benxiao will definitely protect him. Heâs beginning to understand the significance of a warhorse to a famed general â even if Wu Du is still a short distance away from being a famed general.