A resolute choice

Feng Chengqian urged the central army to continue advancing. Before they had gone far, he saw a black line appearing in the distance, rapidly closing in.

"Go..."

Just as he was about to send someone to investigate the situation, the thunderous sound of galloping hooves reached his ears, growing louder as they approached.

"This... this is..."

Feng Chengqian felt as if every step of the warhorses was trampling on his heart; his speech became stuttered.

It was the lieutenant by his side who reacted swiftly. Realizing what was happening, he strained his voice and roared,

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack! It's a Cavalry raid! All troops, form ranks! Assume a defensive formation!"

While many were still standing dazed, not yet having reacted, some of the quicker ones were already scrambling to adjust their formation. Meanwhile, arrows from repeating crossbows were already hurtling toward them with immense kinetic energy.

"Ah..."

The sounds of agonizing screams finally broke everyone out of their stupor. They raised their weapons one after another, preparing to resist.

However, contrary to their expectations, the Cavalry did not charge directly into their ranks. Instead, they split into two groups in front of them, heading toward the flanks, followed by another volley of arrows.

The Xiaoguo Army's first round of attacks on the enemy ended quickly. The entire force then halted, turned their horses around to reorganize their formation, and loaded their last magazine of arrows.

Taking a breath, Xia Luqi looked at the Southern Yue Army, which had already huddled together. He revealed a cruel smile, clamped his legs against his horse's belly, and began to accelerate once more.

Watching the thundering Cavalry, a sliver of fear grew from the depths of Feng Chengqian's heart. He looked at those around him and found that everyone shared the same expression of terror and confusion.

"Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh..."

Another rain of arrows fell, but because they were prepared this time, the Southern Yue Army's casualties were significantly lower.

With the two rounds of carnage finished, the Xiaoguo Army did not linger and rode away. Their objective had been achieved; there was no need to stay longer.

Watching the retreating Cavalry, the Southern Yue Army finally breathed a sigh of relief. However, they did not dare to continue their march. Feng Chengqian ordered them to set up camp on the spot while sending messengers to notify the vanguard to return and regroup.

Soon, the news brought back by the messenger caused Feng Chengqian's heart to sink to the bottom.

"You say the vanguard has been completely wiped out? Not a single survivor?"

The messenger shook his head.

"Your subordinate only saw a field of corpses. No one else was to be found."

"Your Highness, I fear the vanguard has met a grim fate. What should we do now?"

By now, Feng Chengqian had roughly guessed the Qian Army's plan. With a grim expression, he said,

"The primary purpose of this Cavalry is to delay our march. I fear the main enemy force will arrive soon. Pass down the order: cook at the third watch, break camp at the fifth watch. We must reach Shao Prefecture as quickly as possible before the enemy can react, otherwise, we will be completely wiped out."

The lieutenants in the commander's tent were all struck with alarm. After cupping their fists in acknowledgment, they set off to perform their tasks.

Just as Feng Chengqian had anticipated, they had barely traveled ten li when the Cavalry reappeared. After two rounds of repeating crossbow fire, they once again rode away.

This continued for several days. The Southern Yue Army could only cover twelve or thirteen li a day. The remaining distance of about a hundred li to Shao Prefecture seemed to have become an insurmountable chasm.

In the backyard of the Prefectural Office in Shao Prefecture, a thin, dark-skinned middle-aged man walked into the courtyard. He bowed to Feng Chengdao, who was currently drinking and carousing with dancing girls.

"Third Highness, the Scouts report that the His Highness the Crown Prince is currently facing great difficulties. Furthermore, the enemy is pursuing them with all their might and is now less than fifty li away from the His Highness the Crown Prince's army. Should we..."

Feng Chengdao looked displeased, clearly annoyed that his pleasure had been interrupted. He glanced at the middle-aged man.

"We have less than ten thousand troops here in total. Do you think we can defeat the Qian Army and rescue my elder brother with just these ten thousand men? That is the most elite army under Gao Yuan's command."

"But the His Highness the Crown Prince's side..."

"My elder brother has twenty to thirty thousand elites with him; they are the strongest fighting force of our Great Yue. I believe he will surely be able to carve out a path of blood."

Feng Chengdao thought for a moment and felt he should at least make a gesture, otherwise, it would be difficult to avoid criticism in the future.

"How about this: I will have Tan Xiang take five thousand troops west to rendezvous with them. At the same time, they can reinforce the defensive lines of Shao Prefecture, lest the Qian Army breaks through all at once. If we lose Shao Prefecture, we will all be doomed."

To put the thin middle-aged man at ease, Feng Chengdao immediately summoned Tan Xiang—the lieutenant who had previously offered counsel—and assigned him the task.

Seeing his goal achieved, the middle-aged man took his leave. However, he did not expect that as soon as he left, Feng Chengdao would reveal a sneer and look at Tan Xiang.

"Tan Xiang, do you know the real reason I am sending you?"

Tan Xiang was also a clever man and immediately nodded.

"Rest assured, Your Highness. This humble general will ensure that the His Highness the Crown Prince never enters Shao Prefecture."

"Hahaha! You truly are my trusted general. Go, go!"

Only then did he notice that the dancing girl sitting on his lap had a pale face and her hands were trembling. He immediately threw the delicate girl onto the ground and said with a cold face,

"This woman is yours now. Remember to clean up the mess."

Tan Xiang was overjoyed. He stepped forward, picked up the dancing girl from the floor, and left with a chuckle.

Feng Chengqian was now completely trapped in a predicament. Because of their slow marching speed, their food supplies had run out, and they were forced to start slaughtering their pack horses for food.

To lighten the burden and increase their speed, and since they no longer had pack horses, much of their baggage and equipment had to be abandoned, eventually becoming spoils of war for Zhao Meng and his men.

On the twentieth day of the fourth month in the third year of the Shaoxing era of Great Qian, Feng Chengqian's arduous march finally came to an end.

However, it wasn't because they had reached their destination, but because they were surrounded. The main force of the Central Corps led by Xue Linfeng, along with the main force of the Lingnan Corps led by Ma Song who had been following them, had arrived.

Nearly thirty thousand troops blocked the exhausted and hungry Southern Yue Army, compressing them into an open field.

Now, Feng Chengqian was faced with only two choices:

First, set up camp on the spot and hold out for reinforcements from Shao Prefecture;

Second, disregard everything and attempt a full-scale breakout, marching for Shao Prefecture at all costs.

After a simple analysis, Feng Chengqian felt that he had no chance of winning regardless of which plan he chose.

As for holding out for reinforcements, putting aside whether they could survive until help arrived without food, Shao Prefecture had very few troops. Sending them would just be throwing away more lives and might even lead to the loss of Shao Prefecture itself.

If they attempted a full breakout, the Qian Army would certainly pursue them with all their strength. His men on two legs definitely couldn't outrun Cavalry; the result would surely be heavy losses.

Inside the Southern Yue commander's tent, a gloom of despair hung over everyone. They all kept their heads down, silent.

Feng Chengqian struggled with his decision for a long time before finally convincing himself.

"Our army's provisions are exhausted. Staying here is just waiting for death; we would starve even without the Qian Army attacking. Therefore, I have decided to abandon all baggage and break out in separate directions at midnight tonight."

"Once you have broken through the encirclement, do not wait. Head for Shao Prefecture with all your might. We will save as many as we can."

To put it bluntly, this order meant every man for himself. It was an extremely tragic and desperate command.

With solemn expressions, the men looked at the resolute Feng Chengqian, feeling a wave of sorrow in their hearts.

No one spoke. After silently bowing to Feng Chengqian, they departed to their respective posts.

What Feng Chengqian did not expect was that his breakout order had already reached Xue Linfeng and the others before nightfall.

After dinner, both sides began to move, making final preparations for the battle that night.