Chapter Fifteen: The Strategy of Besieging Wei to Rescue Zhao

The sudden disastrous news forced the Divine Strategy Army to halt and set up camp on the spot. But this was the northern border, with harsh climate; even with sufficient provisions, freezing to death was still a very real threat.

“Beining City has been taken. That means our path forward is cut off, and behind us, the 150,000-strong Great Qi allied forces should be reacting any moment now,” Zhuge Xuan said gravely inside the command tent.

Guan Xingsheng furrowed his brows, his face full of rage. “These spineless idiots couldn’t even hold a city. Your Highness, let me lead the troops and retake Beining City directly.”

“No!” Zhuge Xuan immediately vetoed the suggestion. “We have been marching tirelessly, exhausted and unfamiliar with the northern climate. Attempting to seize the city now would mean not even half our usual combat strength could be mustered.”

“Wise words, strategist,” Zhao Luoying agreed.

“Then what do we do? We can’t just sit and wait to be slaughtered. Or perhaps we could retreat back to Tianshan City,” Guan Xingsheng complained anxiously, his voice muffled.

Zhuge Xuan shook his head with a sigh. “It’s too late for that. Don’t forget, there are 150,000 troops waiting for us at Wanli Slope.”

“Currently, we face enemies on both front and back—fronted by the Jurchens, and behind us the vast allied army. Without controlling Beining City, our entire force will surely be annihilated.”

“Furthermore, Beining City is the only foothold Your Highness has. If lost, how will we withstand the repeated retaliation from the Great Qi Emperor?”

Zhuge Xuan’s words fell into a heavy silence. Everyone lowered their heads in thought, except Qin Xuan, who had been silent but kept his gaze fixed on the regional map on the table. His fingers tapped rhythmically, as if pondering something deeply.

Zhao Luoying recognized this as Qin Xuan’s unique habit—he always calmed himself by focusing when faced with major decisions.

“The Jurchen capital, Daman City, is not far from Beining City. If we bypass Tianshan City and take a shortcut, our army could arrive there within two days,” Qin Xuan said, pointing to three locations on the map: one marking Daman City, the Jurchen imperial city; one for Beining City; and the last marking their current camp.

Looking at the map, everyone was surprised to find that the distances to both Beining City and Daman City from their position were roughly equal.

“Your Highness, you mean to...” Zhuge Xuan, ever the strategist, immediately grasped Qin Xuan’s plan.

Qin Xuan smiled faintly and nodded. “Exactly. We’ll ‘besiege Wei to rescue Zhao.’”

“Beining City has just fallen, so it must be heavily guarded by Jurchen troops. But by the same token, Daman City’s defenses will be weakened.”

“Most importantly, the Jurchens would never expect us to have reached this spot already. Nor would they think we would abandon Beining City to strike directly at their home base.”

Qin Xuan grew more animated as he spoke, a flush of excitement rising in his chest.

Zhuge Xuan caught the contagion of his enthusiasm and continued: “If we catch them off guard and the Jurchens send reinforcements, they will have to divert troops from Tianshan City. At that moment, we can launch a counterattack and easily recapture Beining City.”

“What if the Jurchens don’t send reinforcements?” Guan Xingsheng challenged.

“A capital city, or a conquered city? If you were the Jurchen emperor, which would you choose?” Zhao Luoying answered before either Qin Xuan or Zhuge Xuan could, leaving Guan Xingsheng speechless.

Qin Xuan nodded approvingly at Zhao Luoying. “Right now, we must confirm two things: one, how many Jurchen troops remain in Beining City; two, where the Great Qi allied forces are, and whether they have already reached the northern border.”

The number of Jurchen soldiers in Beining City would determine how many men Qin Xuan would dispatch to attack Daman City and how many to seize Beining City opportunistically.

Likewise, the movements of the Great Qi allied army were crucial. If they were already close, no matter how brilliant the plan, the Divine Strategy Army would be caught in a pincer attack and face total annihilation.

After posing these questions, Guan Xingsheng and Du Manjiang immediately set out to gather intelligence.

Hundreds of scouts spread out like a fishing net, most moving toward Beining City, some returning toward Wanli Slope.

Meanwhile, inside Beining City, Tulan, who had just beheaded the city’s defending general, stood proudly atop the city wall.

He had led 80,000 troops and taken the city with the loss of 8,000 soldiers.

Given Beining City’s formidable defenses, even losing several times that number wouldn’t have guaranteed a victory.

But the problem was the city’s commander—a coward terrified of death—who, after just a few charges by the Jurchen army, had willingly opened the gates.

“His Majesty’s prediction was correct. Beining City is like a block of tofu, easily torn apart by our Jurchen forces,” praised a strategist nearby—none other than the Jurchen national advisor, Gurna.

“Tulan, that so-called strongest prince of Great Qi, the so-called war god King Chu, will he really come here?” Tulan’s eyes gleamed with eagerness.

“He will,” Gurna nodded confidently. “According to our spies, recently King Chu forced the Great Qi Emperor to issue a self-critical edict. The emperor has since dispatched 150,000 allied troops to completely annihilate the Divine Strategy Army.”

“Ha! Let him come. I, Tulan, will make sure his head falls first.”

Also a commander, Tulan’s greatest ambition was to face King Chu Qin Xuan in battle.

Elsewhere, at Wanli Slope, after days of tense waiting, Sun Wei could no longer sit still.

“This won’t do. We can’t wait any longer,” Sun Wei resolved and immediately summoned his troops to march toward Tianshan City.

Liu Zhizhong wanted to stop him, but seeing Sun Wei’s determination, he reluctantly followed.

After several hours, the allied forces arrived outside Tianshan City, less than ten miles from the Divine Strategy Army’s camp.

Strangely, the Divine Strategy Army showed no sign of movement.

“Left vanguard, prepare to charge!”

“Archers, cover the rear!”

“Center army, sweep the formation!”

“Charge!”

Sun Wei did show some command talent. He issued a series of precise orders, but the Divine Strategy encampment remained deathly silent.

Soon, a cavalry scout galloped in with a report.

“Commander, ahead are only tents and a group of prisoners. No Divine Strategy soldiers sighted!”

At that moment, Sun Wei’s rage exploded. He bellowed, “Damn King Chu! How dare he deceive me!”

Beside him, Liu Zhizhong was pale with fright and hurriedly suggested, “King Chu is truly cunning. Commander Sun, perhaps we should enter Tianshan City first and then reconsider our strategy?”

“Go into your mother’s city!” Sun Wei shouted furiously, pointing at Liu’s nose and cursing, “Use your pig brain and think! The Divine Strategy Army has surely already crossed Wanli Slope. What good would entering the city do now?”

“Order the troops to march immediately to Beining City!” Sun Wei roared, his gaze dark and venomous as it swept Liu Zhizhong. “General Liu, you’d better pray we catch up with the Divine Strategy Army. If not, I’ll be the first to cut off your head!”

Liu Zhizhong trembled violently and spurred his horse forward.

No one had expected that by not entering the city this time, Sun Wei had instead left himself with the greatest vulnerability.