Chapter 569
Going to Guangning to give Yuwen Tao a warning
Chapter 569 Going to Guangning to give Yuwen Tao a warning
"In the two major battles of the Bone-Eroding Path, more than half of Cai Qiu's 200,000 troops were garrison troops, each with a strength of over 10. This is the core reason why the first battle on the south side resulted in such heavy losses!"
Hou Bing is currently working with Yuwen Yong to deal with Cai Yunzhou, the renowned Sword Saint Cai Qiu. His strength is truly extraordinary. If the two of them do not join forces to restrain him, and Cai Yunzhou is allowed to charge into the enemy formation below, although it may not be enough to reverse the current battle situation, it would be easy to cause heavy casualties among the Xia army soldiers.
Of course, his and Yuwen Yong's goal was only to restrain him; killing him was definitely out of the question.
Therefore, while keeping Cai Yunzhou occupied, Hou Bing kept an eye on the battle below. When he saw the 20,000 Xia troops on the north side advancing triumphantly and penetrating into the heart of Cai Qiu's army formation, his expression immediately relaxed.
At the same time, he also figured out why the Xia army suffered far greater losses than ever before in the great battle on the south side of the Bone-Eating Road the night before last.
The soldiers of the four vassal states' garrison troops all have a strength of 10 or more, while in the Great Xia Dynasty, only the Yun Jiao and Long Wu units, plus the Long Jinwei, have this strength. The rest, even the top-ranked Tu Long and Hu Bao units, have an average soldier strength of only 6 or more.
It should be noted that in the battle on the south side, more than half of Cai Qiu's 200,000 troops were garrison troops, and in terms of individual soldiers alone, they far surpassed those of the Great Xia.
Fortunately, the Great Xia was the defender, and Yuwen Tao temporarily dispatched over 100,000 Earth-Digging Realm cultivators to provide support. Moreover, the lord was present, as were the fourteen Beast King puppets. Otherwise, it's uncertain whether they could have held out that night.
He had previously dared not send scouts to observe the 70,000 troops stationed at Guangning Mountain, but after they entered and roughly assessed the situation, he discovered that the soldiers' strength was generally above level 6, with a small number even below level 6.
In other words, the army stationed at Guangning Mountain was only the lowest-ranking county guard of Caiqiu. Considering that the previous battle had depleted much of Baishui County's overall military strength, it is very likely that this army of 70,000 was temporarily put together by Cai Yunzhou.
"This is definitely a patchwork. The level of their battle formation is far inferior to Cai Qiu's army, which participated in the two major battles of the Bone-Eating Path! It's like the heavens are on our side, hahahaha..."
Like Hou Bing, Yuwen Yong was also observing the battle below. Seeing Cai Qiu's army being routed and his own army breaking through the camp from the north, merging with Hou Bing's army on the east side, and the more than 90,000 rebels on both sides completely scattering Cai Qiu's army, he couldn't help but burst into excited laughter.
Yuwen Yong's laughter instantly pierced the entire battlefield.
Cai Qiu had at least twenty Xianyang-level warriors, but facing thousands of enemies, they could only take to the air to escape after a brief battle.
Even taking off wasn't necessarily safe, because behind them, the Xia army's Shenji crossbows had already been quietly set up and were constantly firing at them.
"Ha ha ha ha……"
Yuwen Yong's laughter was extremely grating to Cai Yunzhou. His face flushed red, and he pushed the Heaven-Slaying Sword Technique in his hand to its limit. His killing intent towards Yuwen Yong and Hou Bing had reached its peak.
Clang...
Unfortunately, despite the sword striking Yuwen Yong and his companion countless times, and even nearly destroying their armor, it could not penetrate the skin beneath their armor, let alone the flesh and bones below.
"Cai Yunzhou's strength is at least 28 jun. If it weren't for the Dragon Molting Soft Armor, even if we joined forces, we probably wouldn't be his match!"
Yuwen Yong caught a glimpse of the dragon-molted soft armor beneath the main armor and frowned slightly.
His basic strength is only 7 jun, and even with his sacred runes and martial arts, he can only exert a maximum strength of about 12 jun; Hou Bing is even weaker, with a basic strength of only 5 jun.
In a direct confrontation, even with the Dragon Shedding Soft Armor, he and Hou Bing combined would not be a match for Cai Yunzhou. However, at this moment, the Xia army was advancing with unstoppable momentum, and the two only sought to restrain Cai Yunzhou. Naturally, they would not engage him in direct combat. Instead, they landed in the low-altitude area and, with the help of the giant crossbow bolts fired by the Divine Machine Crossbow and the assistance of the low-altitude soldiers, constantly harassed Cai Yunzhou to prevent him from affecting the battle below.
The Great Xia Dynasty deployed more than just the two of them for this battle. Lu Yin, Hou Ying, Zhang Qingyuan, Meng Yi, Hong Guang, and others were all present. Like the two of them, these people did not fight Cai Qiu's Xianyang-level warriors to the death, but only interfered with them, preventing them from entering the main battlefield below.
Originally, the raiders were seeking a swift victory.
But the situation is exactly the opposite now.
Cai Qiu was certain that the Great Xia would not continue its northward advance, so he did not send any more troops. Therefore, the 70,000 troops stationed at Guangning Mountain had no external support whatsoever.
The situation was different for the Great Xia. All the Xia soldiers knew that the main force of the Xia army was currently stationed in Hegu Village, 15 kilometers to the south. Therefore, the longer the battle lasted, the more advantageous it would be for them.
The lord may have already received the news and is watching from the sky.
With this in mind, the Xia soldiers naturally fought even more fiercely.
On the other hand, the soldiers of Caiqiu were in a state of frantic retreat, and they also knew that the main force of the Xia army was nearby. As time slowly passed, they became more and more desperate, and their fighting spirit was dissipating at a speed that was almost visible to the naked eye.
"Guangning Mountain, too, must be lost..."
At this moment, despair also dominated Cai Yunzhou's heart. Looking at the miserable state of Cai Qiu's army, a gray-white light flashed in his pupils, as if he could already see his uncle Cai Qiuhu's furious scene.
...............
"What crime is it to send troops without the order of a commander?"
While the battlefield below was raging, no one noticed that a dozen figures had already quietly arrived high in the sky above Guangning Mountain.
Xia Hong looked down at the victorious Xia army, but his face showed little joy. In fact, his brows furrowed slightly. He turned to Yuwen Tao behind him and asked him a question in a low voice.
Upon hearing this question, Yuwen Tao's heart skipped a beat. After thinking for a moment, he cupped his hands and replied, "Reporting to the lord, I gave Hou Bing 20,000 troops and gave him orders to keep an eye on the prisoners of war in Caiqiu. Before we set out for this battle, he sent someone to tell me that he was going to lead 10,000 troops to clear out the area around the prisoner-of-war camp."
As for Yuwen Yong, the 20,000 troops under his command were assigned to him by me after the great battle on the north side of the valley the night before last. At that time, the general order I gave him was to wipe out the defeated soldiers of Caiqiu after the great battle. Before attacking Guangning Mountain, he also sent a messenger to report that the defeated soldiers had fled to the Guangning Mountain area and that he was to lead troops to pursue and wipe them out.
Your subordinate did not expect that these two would be so bold as to lead an army of 30,000 to attack the Guangning Mountain camp. This is not their fault, but my negligence. I beg you, lord, to punish them!
Yuwen Tao was genuinely a bit bewildered at this moment.
He truly hadn't expected that Hou Bing, so eager for merit, would not only play a word trap with him, but that his elder brother Yuwen Yong would also deceive him.
Who would have thought that these two men, leading an army of 30,000 and rallying more than 90,000 rebels, would dare to attack Guangning Mountain without authorization?
Of course, the outcome is good now.
Guangning Mountain has already been captured, and judging from the situation below, the losses are definitely within acceptable limits. Therefore, there are two versions of the blame for these two men.
One approach is to handle the matter strictly, ignoring their military achievements and treating them as disobeying military orders, which would be quite serious. The other approach is to let them off lightly. Hou Bing only dispatched 10,000 troops to attack Guangning Mountain, leaving 10,000 to guard the prisoner-of-war camp. Indeed, nothing went wrong at the prisoner-of-war camp. Yuwen Yong had told him before the battle that he was coming to wipe out the defeated soldiers in the Guangning Mountain area, so strictly speaking, neither of them disobeyed military orders.
Since he neither disobeyed military orders nor failed to perform such a great service, he should naturally be rewarded according to his merits.
Of course, these two interpretations depend mainly on the lord's attitude.
What crime is it to disobey military orders and send troops out without authorization?
Xia Hong's question seemed to have already indicated his stance, but Yuwen Yong keenly noticed that although Xia Hong's expression was somber, his tone did not carry much anger.
Therefore, he chose to take a gamble, taking the blame upon himself and saying a few words for Hou Bing and Yuwen Yong. However, since he was unsure of Xia Hong's true attitude, he was naturally very uneasy.
On Xia Hong's side, after hearing Yuwen Tao's words, he raised his eyebrows slightly and looked at the fierce battle below that was nearing its end. His originally gloomy expression slowly relaxed.
Let's not even talk about Hou Bing. After all, there's still Yuwen Yong below him, and it's inevitable that Yuwen Tao would speak up for these two.
Xia Hong had already figured out Hou Bing and Yuwen Yong's motives for initiating the war while he was flying over from Hegu Village.
The current size of the Great Xia Dynasty is enormous.
The internal factionalism and the proliferation of cliques are much more severe than they were a few years ago. While he certainly doesn't want to see this situation, he is well aware that it is inevitable.
Since it cannot be avoided, we can only accept it.
The question he needed to consider was how to balance these different factions, keeping them in a competitive relationship while ensuring they could better serve the Great Xia.
Hou Bing was only the commander of the Flying Peng Army, and Yuwen Yong was only the deputy commander of the Dragon Martial Army, plus the general of the Fifth Battalion of the Jinyang Allied Army. With their authority, they could not fully command their respective 20,000 troops.
The military system of the Great Xia Dynasty stipulates that soldiers must act according to the orders of their commanders. Therefore, unless there are special circumstances, the orders are usually transmitted to every soldier through the ranks.
In other words, the 30,000 Xia troops currently attacking Guangning Mountain all know what they are doing.
In other words, they were willing to gamble with Hou Bing and Yuwen Yong.
"The soldiers are all eager to make a name for themselves, but the battle with Caiqiu is about to end. They are worried that they will be sidelined and there won't be such a large-scale battle again. So even with the pressure of potentially being blamed by me, they dare to fight this battle..."
After reviewing the soldiers' mindset in his mind, Xia Hong smiled slightly and looked at Yuwen Tao, slowly saying, "I see. Since the two of them did not disobey orders and successfully captured Guangning Mountain, they are naturally meritorious and without fault, but..."
Given Yuwen Tao's character, he would never lie to himself to protect these two people. Therefore, it is highly likely that Hou Bing instigated Yuwen Yong to play a trick on Yuwen Tao.
With things having developed to this point, Yuwen Tao, as the head of the Military Affairs Department of the Great Xia Dynasty, naturally had to protect his two subordinates. If he, as the lord, offended Yuwen Tao, Yuwen Tao, the head of the military affairs department, would likely find it difficult to govern the army in the future.
However, saying nothing is not an option either.
Yuwen Yong and Hou Bing seized upon Cai Qiu's belief that the Xia army would not continue fighting, and their gamble paid off. If they were not given a warning, other generals would also start to follow suit and seek personal glory. It's impossible to be right every time, right?
The battlefield situation changes rapidly. It is unrealistic to expect commanders to follow orders rigidly and act solely according to command. However, military affairs are of paramount importance to the nation. To gamble with soldiers' lives so casually is to treat them like a game, which would be of no benefit to the future of the Great Xia.
The key is to find a balance between loosening and tightening!
Xia Hongqi had the intention to give them a warning, and his tone naturally became lower as he continued, "Although Hou Bing and Yuwen Yong are innocent, you, as the commander of the left wing, are completely unaware of your subordinates' movements. If it weren't for the scouts reporting the situation at Guangning Mountain, you would probably still be in the dark."
Knowing yourself and your enemy is the key to victory in every battle. If you can't even manage your own subordinates, you'll suffer greatly in the future.
This crime must be punished. Your punishment is to oversee the construction of Guangning City, where you will be stationed this year and fully responsible for defending against Cai Qiu!
Upon hearing this, Yuwen Tao's face immediately showed a bitter expression.
The punishment wasn't severe, but it had a significant impact on him.
First of all, since Xia Hong has determined that he is guilty, his year-end performance evaluation will definitely be affected. The year-end performance evaluation for a division chief can vary by millions of contribution points depending on the level of commendation, which is something he cares about very much.
Secondly, if he were stationed here for a year, he would definitely not be involved in the battle with Chencang. In other words, his chance to make a contribution in this round of battle was basically over.
Xia Hong had already intended to cease hostilities with Cai Qiu. Hou Bing and Yuwen Yong's eagerness to capture Guangning Mountain had clearly displeased Xia Hong, so it's estimated that he wouldn't wage war against Cai Qiu for many years to come.
Furthermore, if he can't return to Xia City for a year, he'll definitely lose his spot in the Martial Arts Pavilion. For him at this stage, losing even one spot in the Martial Arts Pavilion is a loss.
Finally, he realized that Xia Hong's tone carried a strong sense of warning.
Hou Bing and Yuwen Yong's little schemes couldn't be hidden from him, let alone the lord. These factional struggles had clearly made the lord a little unhappy, which was why he took the opportunity to give him a warning.
"Once this matter is over, I must have a good talk with my elder brother. He can't be instigated by others anymore. Hou Bing only gambled because the Longbei faction lost power. My Jinggu faction has no need for that at all. Yuan Cheng and others want to persuade the Director to let Xu Ning abolish my position as Director of the Ministry of War. They are simply overestimating themselves. I got this position not because of the Director!"
Yuwen Tao had thought it through very clearly. Whether he could hold onto his position as the Director of the Ministry of War depended entirely on Xia Hong's attitude, and had little to do with Xia Chuan.
He and Xia Chuan were rivals. Although Xia Chuan, as the Director, was the nominal leader of the Eight Ministries, he had never truly submitted to him from the bottom of his heart.
Therefore, even though he knew that Yuan Cheng and others were targeting him and wanted Xu Ning to eliminate him, he never panicked.
As long as the lord still trusts him and recognizes his abilities, he will not lose his position as the head of the military affairs department.
But right now, Xia Hong's reprimand served as a wake-up call for him.
He could vaguely sense a crisis.
"The war with the two vassal states should be nearing its end soon. With the camp's size increasing dramatically, a reshuffling of power is inevitable. We can't afford any mishaps at this critical juncture. Brother, and everyone else in the Jinggu faction, we need to start keeping them strictly under control!"
(End of this chapter)