Chapter 24 A Twist of Fate

The only thing Gao Yuan was grateful for was that the system only required him to start a war within six months, rather than demanding it be finished within that time.

However, looking at the system rewards, Gao Yuan knew there wouldn't be any peace in the coming days; the series of events was like a sow wearing a bra—one set after another.

But then again, once this series of events was completed, the rewards would be truly satisfying.

"Having been settled for so long, it really is time to make a move."

Gao Yuan comforted himself in this way, then picked up his pen to write a letter to Gao Yao.

With such a Commander-level figure who was skilled in both civil and military affairs around, Gao Yuan naturally passed the buck whenever he could.

At his core, he was still a salted fish longing for a relaxed life; if not for the pressure of the situation and the system's coercion, he would have long since checked out.

Turning his gaze back to the north, after three months of fierce fighting, the Northern Liang Army had completely shattered Northern Jin's defensive lines and reached the gates of Taiyuan.

Gao Yuan wasn't at all surprised by this situation; from the start, Li Zonghan's cooperation with the Turks had been a terrible move.

What were the Turks? They were jackals and the ancestral enemies of all Han people. By cooperating with them, Li Zonghan had essentially set himself against many people.

Furthermore, the characteristic of the northern nomadic tribes was that they did not engage in production and only knew how to plunder; the suffering of the common people in the areas occupied by Northern Jin was notorious.

They not only had to support the Jin army but also constantly endure the plundering of the Turks. Under these circumstances, as soon as the Northern Liang Army arrived, many commoners immediately defected.

When a regime reaches such a state, how could it possibly not fall?

As for potential competitors, Gao Yuan only paid them a bit of attention; in the short term, the only place where conflict might arise was the struggle for the Sichuan region.

On the other side, Gao Yao received Gao Yuan's secret order and immediately set to work, also writing a letter to report his requirements to Gao Yuan.

The Pagan Corps currently had only four divisions with a total strength of 33,000 men. Its Commander, Huo Jun, was also a general known for his defensive prowess, so to launch an offensive, he needed full support.

He needed not only the Central Corps but even troops transferred from other corps.

Gao Yao didn't care for winning with fewer numbers; in his view, if one was to fight, one should fight with overwhelming resources—simply steamrolling through was the way to go.

Previously, they lacked the means, so Gao Yuan always had to pull off heart-pounding maneuvers to win with fewer numbers, but things were different now; their pockets were full.

Upon receiving Gao Yao's request, Gao Yuan immediately issued orders to deploy the entire Central Corps, along with one brigade each from the Vietnam, Central-South, South of the Ranges, and Southern Yunnan corps—totaling ten thousand men—and to conscript thirty thousand laborers from various regions to head to Toungoo City.

In the sixth month of the fourth year of new era name, the Nanyue Kingdom's sudden large-scale movements drew attention from all sides. Particularly on the side of the Great Qian Imperial Court, troops from both the Jiannan Circuit and the Jiangnan West Circuit were moved south to guard against any contingencies.

Gao Yuan didn't bother sending anyone to explain their reactions because they wouldn't believe it even if he did.

Under Gao Yuan's instructions, Xue Linfeng and the others turned a blind eye to the spies who had been tailing them.

It wasn't until the Central Corps entered the territory of West City that those spies became certain Gao Yuan's objective was not to go north.

At this time in Chengdu, inside the Military Governor's manor, Wang Mian, Jiang Huaizhen, and Meng Zhenshan were sitting together.

Meng Zhenshan was still brooding over his previous crushing defeat, so he had actively pushed for this meeting.

"Commander Wang, This humble general believes that the current westward movement of the Nanyue Army's main force is our chance to reclaim Jia Prefecture and prefecture."

Wang Mian turned his gaze toward Jiang Huaizhen; compared to Meng Zhenshan, he trusted this man's judgment more.

Jiang Huaizhen hesitated for a moment before speaking up reluctantly.

"It is indeed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, I just fear..."

"There are no outsiders here, General Jiang Huaizhen, feel free to speak your mind."

"I fear that if we cannot achieve a swift victory and the war falls into a stalemate, the Imperial Court might hold us accountable."

After all, Meng Zhenshan's previous defeat was still fresh in their minds; if it happened again, or if there was even a hint of it, the Imperial Court would likely call them to account.

"As long as we can take back the two prefectures, or even invade Bo Prefecture, the Imperial Court likely won't say anything."

Wang Mian, however, had already thought of the worst outcome and shook his head.

"No, I actually think that even if we win, the end result will be an investigation by the Imperial Court."

"Why?"

"Has General Meng considered that the Nanyue Army's westward deployment is to campaign against foreign tribes? If we privately raise troops and engage in internal strife at this time, how will it look when word gets out?

To put it bluntly, some might even say we are colluding with foreign tribes. Have you two considered what kind of crime that would be?"

Hearing Wang Mian's words, both Jiang Huaizhen and Meng Zhenshan broke into a cold sweat.

They knew the mouths of those people in Lin'an all too well; they could talk black into white.

If... no, it wasn't even an "if"—they would definitely have such a label pinned on them.

By then, they would be truly unable to defend themselves; being executed would probably be the best possible outcome.

While the two were still reeling from the aftereffects of their fear, one of Wang Mian's attendants knocked on the door.

"Commander, an urgent report from Song Prefecture."

Upon hearing this, all three stood up and gathered together to examine the secret letter.

Tuoba Rui, a great general of Western Kang, had suddenly entered Yaizhou with over ten thousand troops.

Over the years, as Western Kang campaigned against Zhangzhung and Sumpi and suppressed internal rebellions, this young general had always been the top choice for the vanguard.

So, Tuoba Rui's appearance in Yaizhou—did it mean there was another large army behind him?

What did Western Kang's reinforcement of Yaizhou imply?

It was as plain as the lice on a bald man's head—they were clearly coming for Song Prefecture.

Well, forget about discussing the reclamation of the two prefectures; they had to deal with Western Kang first.

After some discussion, the three felt that since things were as they were, they might as well take the opportunity to recover Yaizhou, which would also be a significant achievement.

Reaching an immediate agreement, the three began making arrangements. Although Wang Mian was the Military Governor, he knew his own limitations very well.

Thus, he became the natural choice to stay behind in Chengdu to oversee the transport of military supplies and provisions.

Meng Zhenshan was responsible for leading troops to Song Prefecture to defend the city, while Jiang Huaizhen led the main force to wait for an opportunity.

In truth, Wang Mian and the others had completely misunderstood; Western Kang had no intention of attacking Song Prefecture.

It was simply that Li Yuanhao, the ruler of Western Kang, felt that Tuoba Rui had matured and wanted to post him away to gain some experience.

He had merely sent him with troops to Yaizhou for a rotation, not expecting the Jiannan Circuit to be so sensitive.

However, this indirectly helped Gao Yuan, as his main forces were currently elsewhere.

If the Jiannan Army were to launch an attack on Jia Prefecture and prefecture now, he would truly be at a loss.

Unlike Bo Prefecture and Wumeng, which had treacherous terrain, Jia Prefecture and prefecture were located on plains and had no natural defenses to hold.

Of course, it wasn't that there was absolutely no way; at worst, he could draw troops from various circuits and, together with the Baier Soldiers, hold out for half a year or a year without any problem.

It's just that the losses would be very heavy.

Since their original plan had fallen through, Jiang Huaizhen and Meng Zhenshan vented all their anger on the Western Kang people.

After squatting in Song Prefecture for over half a month, they finally received news that the situation in Yaizhou was merely a troop rotation.

This made the two famous generals feel like they had been played; anger rose in their hearts, and a wicked idea was born from their frustration.

"You're not going to attack? Well, I will!"

Immediately, the main force of the Left Martial Guard and the newly formed main force of the Jiannan Army, nearly sixty thousand men in total, marched grandly toward Yaizhou.

Hearing that the Da Qian main force was attacking, Tuoba Rui was also a bit flustered; after all, this was his first time being in sole command, and he still lacked experience.

He immediately recalled the troops that had already left after the rotation, but unexpectedly, they were discovered by Jiang Huaizhen halfway.

The result, naturally, was that these ten thousand Western Kang troops were ambushed by the Left Martial Guard and completely wiped out.

Tuoba Rui wanted to lead troops to their rescue but was blocked by Meng Zhenshan and forced to retreat into the city.