Chapter 99

Pingtao, a key town in the southwestern part of the Taiyuan State, stands firm. On the plains twenty miles south of the city, the main force of the Jinyang Army and the rebel general Huyan Hao of the Xiongnu Liu Han were fiercely battling, having been locked in combat for several days. This day was no exception.

Although Huyan Hao was a renowned fierce general of the Xiongnu, his battlefield decision-making skills were far inferior to those of Yuanshi Gong. In the battles of the past few days, he had suffered significant losses at the hands of the Jin army.

For today's battle, Huyan Hao divided his forces into three formations: the vanguard, the center, and the rear. The vanguard mainly consisted of several units of Wuhuan cavalry, tasked with probing the enemy. The center formation was the strongest, with the armies of various subordinate tribes concentrated here, extending along the tributaries of the Fen River to both flanks. Huyan Hao personally led several thousand Xiongnu troops in the rear formation, ready to engage in battle as the situation demanded.

This arrangement was a thoroughly defensive formation. Despite having nearly twice the number of troops, the Xiongnu were forced to take a defensive stance, which caused considerable dissatisfaction among the various commanders. However, once the battle began, the Xiongnu quickly found themselves on the defensive again.

Huyan Hao was in a state of great distress. He repeatedly sent messengers to urge the front-line commanders, but he could not reverse the unfavorable situation. Some of the tribal forces, fearing significant losses, showed clear signs of slackness. Huyan Hao was furious but could do nothing to the tribal leaders at the moment, so he sent his elite troops to stabilize the situation.

Although the Jinyang Army was outnumbered, they were a core force of elite troops who had entered Bingzhou with Yuanshi Gong. Their combat capability was extremely strong. At the same time, they relied on their commander's precise predictions and outstanding battlefield command to firmly control the initiative. In every critical area, the Jin army could timely deploy superior forces, gradually breaking through the Xiongnu lines.

The right flank was the breakthrough point Liu Kun had planned. He sent his personal guard commander, Lin Jian, and his elite troops to launch a fierce attack on this side of the enemy.

In a short half-hour, Lin Jian charged into the enemy lines four times. Like a giant wielding a large hammer, he repeatedly drove a solid iron wedge into the wood. Wherever he and his troops went, blood surged, and the enemy retreated.

After several intense battles, Lin Jian's face was stained black and red with blood, sweat, and dust. A deep sword wound on his left chest had only been bandaged simply, with the exposed flesh looking extremely terrifying.

"Charge one more time! One more time, and we will succeed!" Lin Jian looked at the Xiongnu formation, gritted his teeth, and turned back to ask, "How about it?" Initially, he had nearly a hundred of Liu Kun's personal guards behind him, but now only about thirty remained. However, their fighting spirit had not diminished, and none of them showed any intention of retreating.

A moment later, Lin Jian spotted a gap in the enemy formation and charged forward.

He dodged a thrusting spear, grabbed the spear handle, and with a swift upward slash, severed the enemy's arm. Then, he rushed forward, kicked the blood-spraying, armless body forward, knocking over two more enemies. Just as he was about to pursue, he heard a fierce wind behind him. In a flash, Lin Jian, who had developed instincts from countless battles, bent down and fell to the ground without even turning to look.

A powerful force swept past his back. It was a wolf-tooth club, a heavy weapon commonly used by the Xiongnu. If it had hit him directly, even a wild bull would have suffered broken bones. Fortunately, Lin Jian's quick dodge saved his life by a hair's breadth. Nevertheless, the jagged teeth of the club tore through his leather armor and ripped off a large piece of skin.

Lin Jian let out a fierce cry, turned around, and slashed the enemy general who wielded the wolf-tooth club to death. His subordinates also charged forward, and with a thunderous clash, the two armies collided like two desperate beasts. In the instant of the collision, more than fifty soldiers were killed or wounded.

Soon, Lin Jian realized his judgment was correct. Although the Xiongnu's initial momentum was fierce, they quickly showed signs of exhaustion. This area was indeed a weak point in the Xiongnu line! Lin Jian roared and, after cutting down several Xiongnu soldiers, the pressure around him suddenly eased.

He planted his long sword in the ground and looked around. The surrounding enemies were in chaos, and more and more Jin troops were pouring through the gap he had created into the Xiongnu lines.

"Ha ha ha! Good! Good!" Lin Jian laughed aloud, pointed his sword forward, and shouted, "Brothers, follow me!" A large number of Jin troops followed him, launching a rapid lateral assault on the Xiongnu who were defending along the river.

As the situation on the right flank improved, the Jin army gradually gained the upper hand in other areas as well. On the left flank, the brave general Lu Bosheng led over a thousand elite cavalry to encircle the enemy, forming a pincer attack. In the central battlefield, generals like Pang Chun and Zhang Yi took turns charging, forcing the Xiongnu army to retreat continuously.

The Governor of Bingzhou, Liu Kun, set up his main camp on a gentle slope. He sat on a Hu bed, holding a gold-sprinkled jade ruyi, directing the battle. As he issued orders, the central army's drums and horns sounded frequently, and messengers galloped back and forth. Brave generals led their troops in attacks and defenses. Looking around, countless banners fluttered on the battlefield, and arrows flew like locusts. Thousands of soldiers clashed to the death, and the cries of battle shook the sky.

General Han Shu, who was serving by Liu Kun's side, observed the battlefield and optimistically said, "The Xiongnu's formation is in disarray. In at most another hour, our army will achieve a complete victory."

Liu Kun stroked his black beard, though he did not respond, his expression showed a hint of self-satisfaction.

Just as another general was about to speak, a sudden cry of emergency news came from the rear of the camp, followed by a commotion.

Everyone turned to look and saw a rider galloping up the slope in a hurry. Those with keen eyes recognized the dust-covered rider as Guo Pan, a subordinate of Wang Xiu, the archer and horseman of Bingzhou, from Yangqu. Wang Xiu was a close general of Yuanshi Gong, stationed in Shangdang to monitor the Xiongnu movements in Henei. Why was his subordinate here? Many people immediately had a bad feeling.

Guo Pan dismounted as he approached, his legs giving way, and he almost fell to the ground. He staggered forward a few steps and shouted hoarsely, "Lord! Lord! Bad news! The Xiongnu... the Xiongnu have taken Shangdang!"

"What? What? Bad news!" The staff and attendants were initially silent, then burst into exclamations of shock.

The Xiongnu army was supposed to be blocked on both sides of the Zhaoyu River. How could they have the forces to take Shangdang? If Shangdang was lost, Jinyang would be in danger. Jinyang had only a weak force left to defend it. Could it hold? If Jinyang fell, the main force of the Jin army on the front lines would be caught between two enemies, becoming fish in a pot. What should be done next?... Countless questions sprang to their minds, none of which had answers. Many people rushed to ask Guo Pan, causing chaos.

Liu Kun frowned, then slowly stood up and coughed heavily.

The authority of the Governor of Bingzhou immediately restored silence. Liu Kun walked to Guo Pan with his hands behind his back and said calmly, "Why the panic? Speak slowly and clearly!"

Guo Pan bowed and, after a brief breath, said, "My lord, three days ago, General Long Jimeng colluded with the Xiongnu and betrayed Shangdang to the enemy. Our troops were scattered in various cities and forts and could not gather to resist, suffering heavy losses. The Xiongnu Left Xianwang, Liu He, led several tens of thousands of troops, broke through the key passes along the way, and is heading straight for Jinyang."

Liu Kun nodded slightly, his expression unchanged. After a moment's thought, he asked, "Where are the Xiongnu now?"

"Two days ago, Wang Xiu was patrolling the Wuxiang area and received reports that the Xiongnu vanguard had already passed Xiangyuan. We encountered the enemy scouts and fought our way out. Based on their speed, they should be approaching Jinyang by now."

"Hisss..." Even on the battlefield with thousands of troops, the sound of several dozen people drawing in their breath was clearly audible.

Liu Kun stepped forward, about to ask more. Suddenly, Guo Pan collapsed, fainting. He and Wang Xiu had been fighting hard and then traveling hundreds of miles without rest to deliver the message, reaching the point of exhaustion. He had barely managed to hold on until now.

The attendants quickly called for a doctor to treat him.

Liu Kun paid no attention to these trivial matters, only pacing back and forth in deep thought.

Xu Run suddenly stepped forward, bowed deeply, and said mournfully, "My lord, Long Jimeng was a person I recommended. I thought he was capable, but I never imagined he was a treacherous wolf! I trusted a villain, putting the entire army in danger... I know my crime is unforgivable, and I wish to die!" With that, he suddenly drew his sword, intending to commit suicide.

The others were too slow to react. By the time they saw the blade touch his skin, several people rushed forward to hold Xu Run. Fortunately, he did not sever any major blood vessels, but he did cut a deep wound. The doctor, who was just checking Guo Pan's pulse, was now busy with Xu Run, causing more chaos.

After a while, it was determined that Xu Run was not seriously injured, and Liu Kun waved his hand, ordering him to be taken away, "This is not your fault, Xu Zhonglang. You are taking too much responsibility."

He continued to pace back and forth with his hands behind his back, not saying anything for a long time. The surrounding people held their breath, waiting in silence.

Although it was a critical moment, Liu Kun's mind was filled with unrelated thoughts: The current crisis was primarily due to his mistake in placing the traitor Long Jimeng in a key position. Xu Run had certainly advised and recommended, but ultimately, the responsibility lay with him for misjudging the person. Now that Xu Run had taken the blame, it saved him from much embarrassment.

"Xu Zhiquan is indeed very sensible," he thought to himself.

As for how to deal with the current situation... Liu Kun continued to think.

Many people looked at Liu Kun's calm face, expecting him to solve all the problems as he usually did. However, Liu Kun knew that Liu Yuan's move was too ruthless, too risky, and too unexpected. In a short time, he had devised seventeen or eighteen strategies, but none of them were effective. The Jinyang Army was in a desperate situation, and he had no solution.

Unless... unless they could hold Jinyang. No, just holding Jinyang was not enough. Holding Jinyang would only prolong the war into a war of attrition. The meager resources accumulated over the past few months could not withstand such a war. After a few rounds of back-and-forth, they would surely lose.

Therefore, they must decisively defeat the troops led by the Xiongnu Left Xianwang Liu He to secure a glimmer of hope for the beleaguered Jinyang Army. But where could he find the troops to do so?

If only he had another ten thousand troops! Even five thousand would be enough. If Jinyang had five thousand elite troops, the situation might be different. Thinking of this, Liu Kun could not help but feel resentment towards his predecessor. The Duke of Dongying was truly despicable, fleeing in fear of the enemy and even taking two thousand households of Bingzhou's military and civilians to Shandong. If those two thousand households were still here, the situation would not be so dire.

With myriad thoughts in his mind, Liu Kun's face showed no signs of tension. He continued to pace back and forth, as if he had a plan. His every move was like he was preparing to issue orders, but if one looked closely, they would see that he was already breaking out in a cold sweat.

With no way forward or back, perhaps the only option was to continue south and fight the Xiongnu to the death, seeking a noble end? Liu Kun shook his head imperceptibly. His anxiety continued to build, and with a faint "snap," the gold-sprinkled jade ruyi in his right hand was unconsciously broken.

At that moment, the rear of the camp became noisy again, and another messenger galloped in.

******

Crab will be taking his child to participate in the kindergarten entrance interviews on Saturday and Sunday, which will be very tiring, and he will have no time to write, so he is taking a two-day leave.

As an apology, he will add an extra chapter in the afternoon today.

Thank you for the support of all the brothers and sisters. The red tickets are greatly appreciated, and Crab is deeply grateful.

Additionally, thank you to the readers Lanya and Jiankangdi for their enthusiastic support. The book is only 300,000 words, but it already has two "ju ren" (scholar-officials) supporters, Lanya and yy67382183. Crab is secretly delighted, feeling like Fan Jin passing the imperial examination. Another bow.

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