Chapter 277 Encounter

Therefore, the Western Kang court was ill-prepared for Northern Liang retreating after having reaped enough benefits, and for Gao Yuan's sudden offensive.

It was not until the Nanyue Army, like a hot knife through butter, captured two county towns in rapid succession and marched straight to the gates of Song Prefecture, that the garrison commander of Song Prefecture, Ye Ci Jian, finally woke up from his dream and hurriedly began preparations.

Upon receiving the distress letter from Ye Ci Jian, Tuoba Rui felt his head spinning. He summoned his deputy generals to discuss the matter. After informing them of the situation in Song Prefecture, Tuoba Rui asked,

What do you all think we should do to rescue Song Prefecture?

Commander, This humble general believes we should not attempt a rescue. The Nanyue Army excels at surrounding a point to intercept reinforcements. There are at least a dozen locations on the way to Song Prefecture suitable for ambushes. I fear that as soon as our Yaizhou army marches out, we will...

That is correct, Commander. This humble general believes that is precisely the Nanyue Army's plan. We must not fall for their trap!

Others put forward different opinions.

If we don't go to the rescue and lose Song Prefecture, what will we do when the Sovereign blames us?

Exactly. Once Song Prefecture is lost, Yaizhou will have no barrier and will likewise be impossible to hold.

The group argued back and forth, and both sides made valid points, leaving Tuoba Rui unable to make a decision.

At this moment, Tuoba Chao, who had remained silent, spoke up.

Commander, This humble general believes that if we are to rescue Song Prefecture, we should commit our entire force. If we are to abandon it, then we should simply give up Song Prefecture directly and consolidate our forces to defend Yaizhou with all our might. As long as Yaizhou remains in the hands of Great Kang, we can decide when to retake Song Prefecture.

Tuoba Chao's words made Tuoba Rui's eyes light up, and he immediately made up his mind.

This plan suits me perfectly. Pass the order to send someone to Luoxie City to report the emergency, and have the entire army prepare to follow me to rescue Song Prefecture.

Tuoba Rui made his decision, and the others had no further objections; they stood up together and saluted.

We obey your command!

Gao Yuan had not expected Tuoba Rui to be so bold as to commit his entire force to rescue Song Prefecture. However, this was good news—a golden opportunity to pacify both prefectures in a single battle.

After careful consideration, Gao Yuan summoned Chen Dao.

Shuzhi, I intend to have you lead the Baier Soldiers to take a detour and seize Yaizhou first, to block any potential Xikang reinforcements and cut off Tuoba Rui's retreat. Do you have the confidence to do this?

Although he enjoyed being by Gao Yuan's side, Chen Dao did not want to miss the opportunity to take charge on his own. He immediately stood up and cupped his hands.

This humble general will certainly live up to the Lord's trust.

Good, I am glad you are confident. Take the Baier Soldiers and five thousand Xuanjia Army troops and immediately take the mountain path to Yaizhou. Remember, once you occupy it, you must reinforce the city defenses immediately.

This humble general understands. However, my Lord, if I take all the Baier Soldiers with me, and the Xiaoguo Army has not yet arrived, your safety...

Gao Yuan waved his hand.

I have forty thousand of the Beiwei Army by my side. If they cannot protect my safety, then even if the Baier Soldiers were here, it would just mean more lives lost for nothing.

After sending Chen Dao away, Gao Yuan called for Liu Rengui and the others to discuss how to win the battle of Song Prefecture.

Liu Rengui's proposal was to intercept Tuoba Rui's reinforcements outside Song Prefecture, using the same old tactic of surrounding a point to intercept reinforcements, wiping out the reinforcements first before attacking Song Prefecture.

However, Gao Yang raised an objection. He believed that Tuoba Rui must already be prepared for an ambush, so an ambush might not achieve the expected results. If they couldn't capture them quickly and the city garrison sortied, they would be attacked from both sides.

Since the Nanyue Army had siege equipment like the linchong siege tower and scaling ladders, it would be better to let the enemy enter the city first before considering the siege. If all else failed, they could adopt a strategy of long-term encirclement and siege.

Given the size of Song Prefecture, supplying tens of thousands of troops would be very difficult. As long as they besieged it for a few months and waited for the garrison's food supplies to run out, they could take Song Prefecture without a fight.

After everyone had stated their views, they turned their gaze to Gao Yuan, waiting for him to make the final decision.

Surrounding a point to intercept reinforcements was naturally the option with the highest potential return. Although the risk was great, once the reinforcements were defeated, it would not only reduce the pressure of the siege but also strike at the confidence of the garrison, achieving a decisive victory in one battle.

Letting the reinforcements enter the city and conducting a long-term siege was a safer option. Although this would increase the consumption of resources during the war, it could reduce casualties.

However, Gao Yuan had a bit of a gambler's nature in his bones; he was definitely not the type to play it safe. Therefore, he ultimately made the decision to choose Liu Rengui's plan.

However, Gao Yuan did not interfere with the specific implementation, leaving everything to Liu Rengui. He chose to lead three thousand troops to keep an eye on the Song Prefecture garrison to avoid being attacked from both sides.

Tuoba Rui never expected that Gao Yuan would choose to confront him head-on, and instead of sending troops for an ambush, he chose to set up a formation and engage in a positional battle.

In his previous engagements with the Nanyue Army, he had always suffered crushing defeats. This left Tuoba Rui with a desire to wash away his shame. Hearing that the Nanyue Army wanted to engage in an encounter battle with him, Tuoba Rui and his subordinate generals immediately began to rub their hands in anticipation.

Of course, they were not purely acting on impulse; Tuoba Rui had carefully analyzed the situation before daring to face the Beiwei Army directly.

The Nanyue Army's Cavalry had not come, only infantry, while they had five thousand Cavalry—and the most elite Cavalry in all of Great Kang at that. This gave them the confidence to win this encounter battle.

However, Tuoba Rui clearly underestimated the difficulties of this journey. Although they were very careful to guard against large-scale ambushes, they would unexpectedly encounter small-scale attacks.

One day it might be soldiers gathering firewood on the mountain being shot by hidden arrows; the next day it might be soldiers and laborers in the rear guard being ambushed, or perhaps someone shooting fire arrows in the middle of the night to burn down some tents or food supplies.

Although it did not cause any major losses, these small-scale attacks made the entire Xikang Army feel like they were jumping at shadows.

With days of marching combined with restless nights, the low morale of the entire army could well be imagined.

In contrast, Gao Yuan's side was eating well and sleeping soundly, truly a case of waiting at ease for the exhausted enemy.

On the fifth day of the eighth month of the seventh year of Shaoxing, thirty li northeast of Song Prefecture, the Xikang Army, which had trekked arduously for more than ten days, finally encountered their opponent: the Central Corps Beiwei Army of the Southern Yue Kingdom of the Great Qian Dynasty.

Seeing the Beiwei Army standing in strict formation, Tuoba Rui and his men suddenly felt a sense of relief. They would rather roll up their sleeves and fight a battle with the Nanyue Army than continue living those days of constant fear.

However, after carefully observing the Nanyue Army's preparations, Tuoba Rui felt another headache coming on.

This time he did not see the formation that had caused their Cavalry to suffer a great loss last time, but placed between the two formations were two rows of anti-Cavalry stakes. This was clearly prepared specifically for their Cavalry.

Everyone turned their gaze to Tuoba Rui. They knew that if they recklessly charged ahead, the best outcome would be to sacrifice the lives of all their Cavalry to carve out a bloody path.

Tuoba Rui's mind raced, trying to find the best solution.

However, Liu Rengui's side did not give him much time to think. As the horn sounded, the first row of Sword and Shield Soldiers stepped forward, picked up the anti-Cavalry stakes, and moved them forward by about twenty paces.

About a quarter of an hour later, the anti-Cavalry stakes were pushed forward another thirty paces. Such an aggressive posture immediately enraged all the Xikang people.

Commander, let us attack.

Yes, if we don't attack and let them keep pushing step by step, soon there won't even be enough distance for a Cavalry charge.

Rest assured, Commander. This humble general will lead the Sword and Shield Soldiers forward and will definitely destroy all those anti-Cavalry stakes.

Looking at the indignant expressions of his subordinates, Tuoba Rui knew that morale could not be allowed to flag, so he immediately gave the order:

Sword and Shield Soldiers, move forward! You must destroy all those anti-Cavalry stakes!

Understood!