Chapter 143 Gone

The news arrived a bit earlier than Liu Chengzong had anticipated.

Fu Renxi returned half a day later, bringing with him the message from the Fenzhou Garrison.

"General, the Left Centurion of the Fenzhou Garrison sent men to ask about my situation. They want me to request reinforcements so that their garrison troops can cross the border. What should I do?"

This news did not bring joy to Liu Chengzong, nor did it cause fear; instead, it stirred a deep sense of suspicion. He asked, "How did they receive the news so quickly?"

He knew very well that he was no famous general of antiquity, entirely undeserving of the title of a master strategist. Even with another lifetime's memories, those memories could only provide a far-seeing vision of the future. Acting blindly upon them would lead to death within two steps. After all, that was a character who couldn't even coordinate a twenty-five-man dungeon run properly.

Yet those memories still bestowed upon him a powerful talent: calculation.

Amidst the most fundamental tasks, vast and complex computations became effortless for him. Fenzhou Garrison was located in Fenyang, more than a hundred miles away, with the Lyuliang Mountains blocking the path. Even if someone had seen the wolf smoke and sent word that very instant, the messengers wouldn't have crossed the Lyuliang Mountains by now. How could Fu Renxi have established contact with the Fenzhou Garrison so swiftly?

Were they all Li Bei?

He did not believe it.

Yet reality compelled him to accept it as Fu Renxi said, "The Left Centurion of the Fenzhou Garrison is stationed in Shilou. It seems they secretly crossed the border a few days ago."

Liu Chengzong pondered for a moment, mentally cross-referencing this intelligence with the information provided by the women rescued from Yaitou Mountain, and the pieces fit together.

Those two women had returned to find their homes plundered by bandits and subsequently burned down by government troops—most likely the work of the Fenzhou Garrison soldiers.

These men had not yet departed and remained stationed in Shilou.

It seemed they had grown addicted to plundering.

"Since they want to cross the border, let them cross for that chest of gold. Request reinforcements—tell the Fenzhou Garrison that my forces are vast and that they will need to bring their entire army to deal with us."

Hearing this, Fu Renxi exclaimed in shock, "General, that will never do! I do not know how things are in Shaanxi, but in Shanxi, the garrison and flag troops are no weaker than the border troops."

Garrison flag troops no weaker than border troops?

Could that be possible?

Even Yang Yanchang would never dare claim his flag troops were stronger than the border troops.

Yet Fu Renxi stated it plainly and explained, "The General may not know this, but the Fenzhou Garrison is different from other garrisons. Originally, it was merely a defensive thousand-household post. During the Chenghua era, it was upgraded to the Fenzhou Garrison's Central Post, while the Left and Right Posts were converted from the pasturage offices of the Qingcheng and Yonghe princely estates. To this day, they remain closely tied to the eastern and western prefectures of Fenyang."

"Though the princely estates are hardly benevolent masters, their provisions are indeed far superior to ours."

What a pathetic state of affairs: government soldiers eating less than garrison flag troops.

Though he thought this to himself, Liu Chengzong was not an arrogant or overconfident man. He weighed the situation briefly in his mind and instructed Fu Renxi, "In that case, send word to Shilou that my forces are numerous but weak, easily routed yet prone to scattering in all directions. Tell them to bring seven or eight hundred additional men beyond the Left Post to assist."

Liu Chengzong stayed here with the intention of laying siege to a point to lure reinforcements.

His men had already scouted the road conditions: the sole route from Yonghe County eastward into Pingyang Prefecture was through Xizhou.

Passing Xizhou, one had to choose one of the three mountain paths—northern, middle, or southern—through the Lyuliang Mountains to reach the Fen River Plain.

Though roads were plentiful, Liu Chengzong actually had no choice.

The northern route led to Fenyang, the middle route to Huozhou, and the southern route to Linfen.

The Fenzhou Garrison was stationed in Fenyang, while the Pingyang Garrison was stationed in Linfen.

These two garrisons meant he could not rashly advance into Huozhou, lest he be caught in a northern and southern pincer movement on the plain. Meanwhile, the road from Fenyang to Xizhou allowed a retreat further west to Yonghe County, whereas Linfen offered no alternative mountain path to flank his rear.

Therefore, to advance toward Linfen, the northeastern Fenzhou Garrison had to be eliminated first; likewise, to advance toward Fenyang, the Pingyang Garrison had to be destroyed.

Total annihilation was unnecessary; as long as the majority of their forces could be wiped out in a single stroke, leaving the remainder too terrified to fight in the open field, the objective would be achieved.

Remarkably, Fu Renxi was thoroughly cooperative, showing no inclination to view matters from the perspective of the government troops or consider the interests of the Fenzhou Garrison.

Fu Renxi’s ancestors had guarded the borders for four generations: his great-grandfather perished beyond the frontier, his grandfather fell in battle in Joseon, and his father died in Liaodong.

Only in his generation had he finally attained the rank of a battalion commander.

Yet he yearned to go to Liaodong, unwilling to garrison this forsaken pass.

For a long time, Fu Renxi had been tormented by how to realize this ambition.

To go to Liaodong, one needed elite troops. To have elite troops, one's subordinates had to be well-fed. To keep them well-fed, one had to plunder the common folk.

Yet once they plundered the common folk, his subordinates would cease to be elite troops; with Zhang Honggong’s precedent before them, even a well-fed army would mutiny upon reaching the capital region.

Fu Renxi had grown resigned, completely devoid of solutions—until that night when Chengyun had knocked open his fortress gates.

The two shared a cup of coarse tea leaves, yet the words Chengyun spoke opened a brand-new door for him.

Government troops did not rob the wealthy, and even when they robbed the common folk, they remained underfed; but rebels could rob.

If the rebels plundered and shared a portion with him, combined with the half-rations allocated by the court, wouldn't his soldiers finally be well-fed?

Yet this realization only left him lost: What was he supposed to do then?

A man could not live merely for the gratification of his appetite. Though eating well was vital, Fu Renxi had always been well-fed; it was his soldiers who went hungry. Thus, his soldiers had no ideals, but he did.

He had no intention of fighting rebels just to eat his fill and idle away his entire life, returning to his hometown as a retired battalion commander of low rank. What meaning was there in that?

Chengyun had said: Is that not simple?

The Liu family had operational experience in such matters.

They even laid it out step by step: First, dismantle the local administrative organs; next, destroy the relay stations responsible for communications; then, annihilate the government troops as an organized force; and finally, hand the victory over to Fu Renxi.

Was that not merely a matter of enemy heads? Were enemy heads a problem?

Fu Renxi could never have imagined that the problem plaguing him all winter would be so effortlessly untangled by a young man from Yanan Prefecture.

You want to go to Liaodong? My master will make you a Brigade General.

Once a Brigade General, would you not have to serve a term in the Jizhou Garrison?

Opportunities to fight the Eastern Captives would be endless.

Fu Renxi deemed it feasible, and besides, he had long held a deep resentment toward this Master Huo.

Which of his own soldiers was not more worth than this parasite who sat idly in his position? Why should that bastard live in luxury while he could do nothing, constrained by impotence?

There was no help for it.

Now that someone was willing to stir the pot, Fu Renxi was determined to fan the flames.

In Shilou County, north of Yonghe County, flag troops from the Fenzhou Garrison's Left Centurion Post were billeted across four desolate villages.

Zhang Zhan, the commander of the Left Post, was lecturing his centurions and platoon leaders.

Among the three posts of the Fenzhou Garrison, each had its own commander. Zhang Zhan’s ancestor during the Chenghua era had risen as high as Assistant Commissioner-in-Chief of the Shanxi Regional Military Commission, only to be demoted to commander of the Left Post after being reported for employing military companions for personal labor.

Over the decades that followed, the command of the Left Post had remained firmly in the hands of the Zhang family.

They committed no further offenses that drew accusations, nor did they achieve any new merits for the court.

They simply muddled through.

Yet in recent years, muddling through had become untenable.

The logic was identical to Fu Renxi’s: when survival became impossible, one had to find something to lean upon. Other stones could polish jade; what one could not resolve oneself, others could solve.

At the same time, one could solve problems that others could not.

For instance, the expansion of the princely estate's farmland: if a landowner was unwilling to sell his land while alive, could he not simply be killed?

For flag troops struggling to survive, acting as wicked accomplices—was that disgraceful?

It was not disgraceful.

However, over the past two days, Zhang Zhan had been furious.

His subordinates at Yaitou Mountain had lost contact.

They were part of the irregular personnel attached to the Fenzhou Garrison's Left Post. Zhang Zhan still maintained several such bands under his command.

Composed of vagrants, bandits, outlaws, and ruffians from various locales, they were a true rabble, yet because their fatal weaknesses were held in Zhang Zhan’s grasp, they were immensely useful.

Their greatest virtue was absolute discretion; even if captured by local officials, they dared not leak their connections to the Fenzhou Garrison.

They, the Fenzhou Garrison, and the Qingcheng Princely Estate formed a massive spiderweb entrenched throughout Fenzhou Prefecture.

This dynamic had taken a new turn since the previous winter, when numerous reinforcements fled back from the borders and formed various bandit factions operating across Shanxi.

Logic suggested these bandit groups should have created greater convenience for the Fenzhou Garrison’s operations, but Zhang Zhan cared little; the local officials posed no threat to him.

Instead, these bandit factions threatened to snatch their food and even endangered the princely estate's manors.

The soldiers he had sent to Yaitou Mountain to observe the situation had fled back empty-handed, failing to bring intelligence on Yaitou Mountain but instead reporting that Huojia Village was besieged by bandits who had raised wolf smoke.

Master Huo of Huojia Village... Zhang Zhan had a vague recollection of him. He had served as an official in Yangzhou for a few years, and upon returning to his hometown, looked down upon everything, holing himself up in some insignificant little mountain.

If you held it in such contempt, why return? You should have stayed in Yangzhou.

A foolish fellow indeed—in any case, Zhang Zhan despised that sort of trash.

Failing to find news of Yaitou Mountain while receiving word that Huojia Village was besieged was not a bad outcome.

After all, as someone who had served as an official in Yangzhou for years, his family must have hoarded no small amount of silver.

Bandits might not be able to breach his stronghold, but Zhang Zhan certainly could!

"Listen well, all of you. When we reach Huojia Village, first wipe out those upstart bandits from parts unknown. Tell your flag troops to keep themselves strictly in check."

Zhang Zhan swept his stern gaze across the platoon leaders: "Do not put on that demeanor of being worse than bandits. Make Master Huo understand that wherever the Fenzhou Garrison's Left Post passes, not a blade of grass is disturbed."

One platoon leader asked, "General, if not a blade of grass is disturbed, why bother with Huojia Village at all? I hear this Master Huo is exceptionally stingy. Even if we eliminate the bandits, he is hardly likely to give us anything."

Zhang Zhan worried deeply for his subordinate's intellect: "What is it you want him to give you? If we don't 'disturb a blade of grass,' do you expect those high walls of Huojia Fortress to open for us because we asked nicely? Will you headbutt the fortress walls down?"

Hearing this, the platoon leaders suddenly understood: the commander did not mean true non-disturbance, but merely *temporary* non-disturbance.

Calculating the time, Zhang Zhan slept through half the night until Centurion Chen, rushing from the Fenzhou Garrison, arrived with his forces, bringing their total strength to over 1,700 men. Only then did he have the platoon leaders distribute persimmon cakes to the flag troops.

The persimmon cakes had been plundered from the villagers of Xizhou, who had prepared them as offerings to the Kitchen God for the New Year.

Perhaps in this turbulent historical era, every commander possessed a certain confidence of his own.

As for Zhang Zhan, he had never once considered the strength of the bandit forces besieging Huojia Fortress.

He had participated in Shanxi's martial assemblies and possessed some understanding of the Xuanfu and Datong border troops; those border troops were far inferior to his flag troops when it came to provisions.

As for warfare, discipline and morale were paramount, but those could only be discussed once bellies were full.

In this day and age, merely being able to ponder those two things was already an impressive feat.

Bandits? Could bandits eat their fill?

Could bandits speak of discipline?

Zhang Zhan did not believe it.

Before dawn the next day, the 1,700 flag troops from the Fenyang Garrison packed away their banners and set out. Though they were sixty miles from Huojia Village, they marched at an unhurried pace.

Passing from Zhaiyuan through forty miles of mountain terrain, they entered Yonghe County via Gejia River, plundering a village along the way.

This time they did not set fires; having slaughtered the adult males the previous night, they rested until morning and butchered the women as well.

Listening to the screams and desperate flight of the victims, Zhang Zhan felt a twinge of pity. Gazing at the blood-soaked corpses, he remarked, "If you must blame someone, blame the bandits of Huojia Fortress. Were it not for them, I would not have come."

Refreshed by a night's rest, the entire army marched with soaring morale toward Huojia Village.

Despite his profound self-confidence, Zhang Zhan remained extremely cautious along the way, deploying scout cavalry every thirty miles. However, it was not until they were within five miles of Huojia Village that they finally encountered enemy scouts.

The rebel scout cavalry dared not engage, dropping their armor and banners as they fled toward the valley to the southwest.

Receiving the vanguard's report and looking at the vermillion-lacquered helmet inscribed with the character "Courage" captured by his scouts, Zhang Zhan smiled with the absolute assurance of victory.

Is this the extent of their skill?

The main army promptly split into two columns: Centurion Chen led his forces along the flank mountain path to strike directly at the rebels' rear, dispatching a detachment to climb the mountains and establish contact with Yonghe Pass commander Fu Renxi, while Zhang Zhan himself led the main body slowly advancing up the valley from the front.

"General, the main force of the Fenzhou Garrison has passed the hidden mountain pass of the vanguard and is advancing toward the northern sector of the rear guard. They have dispatched a flanking detachment to detour north through the mountains—that sector is guarded by the central guard post."

Wei Qian'er, captain of the scout cavalry, choked with pent-up frustration as he reported to Liu Chengzong from the heights: "My men have all fallen back. Those bastards slaughtered every single person in the northern village."

Wei Qian'er's scout detachment had pushed fifty miles ahead, relaying intelligence to Liu Chengzong at Huojia Fortress every single moment, including through the previous night.

Though his scouts were not of border troop origin, their opponents were merely garrison flag troops, causing them no fear. Having already survived battles against Li Bei, they were veterans whose exceptional daring matched their skill.

At their closest, when Zhang Zhan's scouts established a post in the mountains, one of Wei Qian'er's scouts had failed to retreat in time and squatted right beneath the enemy post for half a night without being detected, slipping away safely during the changing of the guard.

Zhang Zhan’s entire force was virtually laid bare before Liu Chengzong’s eyes.

They were stepping one by one into the valley: Yang Yao’s forces were bringing up the rear; Wang Wenxi’s forces held the center; while Feng Rang and Cao Yao waited for them at the end.

Liu Chengzong planned outside Huojia Village, repeatedly tracing the sketched map before concluding: "It seems the enemy's flanking detachment will collide with the central guard post first, and then pass through the ambush site of the rear guard. Wei Qian'er, go pass the orders."

"Tell Chengyun to hold Yonghe Pass securely. Let Platoon Commander Feng lead his men to reinforce Platoon Commander Wang, engage the government troops early, wipe out the main force first, and then encircle the flanking detachment."

He turned to Gao Xian, who had been waiting patiently nearby, and said, "Brother Gao, sealing off this old Huo family's earthen fortress will be up to you for now."

With that, he led the personal guards and Cao Yao toward the southern heights, where the soldiers of the battalion's artillery platoon were concealed.

It was a strategic vantage point capable of bombarding the valley below while offering a panoramic view of the entire battlefield.

Soon, three miles to the north, the sounds of battle echoed.

Liu Chengzong and Cao Yao exchanged glances, each seeing the shared gleam of excitement in the other's eyes: The Fenzhou Garrison's Left Post was no more.