Chapter 337 The Decapitation Begins

The battle in Jianzhou had turned into a war of attrition; Mao Biao and Gao Xianzhi were evenly matched, with both sides experiencing alternating victories and defeats.

The Yue Army held the upper hand in combat effectiveness, but the Southern Qian Army ultimately possessed the home-field advantage.

Watching the casualty numbers steadily rise, Gao Xianzhi began to feel anxious.

After all, this was the first time he had been entrusted with the heavy responsibility of commanding an entire army alone; if he failed to complete the task, how could he face Gao Yuan upon his return?

While he was frowning in worry, Mao Biao was also suffering from a massive headache within the Southern Qian Army's Jianzhou camp on the other side.

Although it currently seemed like casualties were similar and several offensive and defensive maneuvers had ended in a draw...

All of this was built on the foundation of them having lost Tingzhou and having already proactively abandoned the lands of the three prefectures: Zhangzhou, Quanzhou, and Fuzhou.

To put it bluntly, even if Gao Xianzhi could not advance another step from now on, the result would still be a massive profit for Southern Yue.

Furthermore, aside from the eight thousand garrison troops scattered across various locations, he only had fewer than fifteen thousand men left at his side.

Over these past three months, during several clashes with Gao Xianzhi, the Qian Army had already lost over ten thousand men.

Losing troops, losing generals, and losing territory—this was a complete and utter crushing defeat.

On the Jiangzhou battlefield, the main force of Wen Pin's army, which Zhu Song had been searching for for a long time, finally appeared.

However, the place where they appeared drove Zhu Song mad; Wen Pin had directly sent troops to retake Poyang, cutting off the Southern Qian Army's supply line.

Continuing the offensive was no longer possible; Zhu Song's best choice now was to abandon the attack and retreat.

This meant that all the efforts of the past three months were basically in vain.

Of course, there was another suicidal tactic, which was to disregard everything and take Xunyang, and at this moment, Zhu Song wanted to gamble with his life.

Wen Pin's biggest miscalculation was failing to anticipate that Zhu Song would be so desperate; his only consolation now was that the garrison he had arranged in Xunyang City was sufficient.

Inside the city, Official Zhang Xun was stationed with five thousand Xuanjia Army and three thousand Beiwei Army troops, and with a full supply of defensive materials, Wen Pin estimated that even if Official Zhang Xun were a complete incompetent, holding out for three to five months should be no problem.

Little did he know, the person he had arranged was simply a defense fanatic, essentially a super-enhanced version of Huo Jun focused on internal affairs.

Zhu Song was the first to experience this; on the fifth day of the siege, Official Zhang Xun organized the Beiwei Army to launch a proactive strike under the cover of night, not only slaying hundreds of Southern Qian soldiers but also burning down seven siege towers.

This greatly surprised Zhu Song, Jiang Huaizhen, and the others; initially, when they heard that the one defending the city was a civil official, they felt victory was certain, which is why they decided to storm Xunyang.

They hadn't expected to be hit with such a sharp blow and caught off guard within just a few days.

Left with no choice, the three of them had to take turns leading troops on night watch to avoid being ambushed by Official Zhang Xun again, yet even so, Official Zhang Xun still managed to find opportunities for several more raids, pushing Zhu Song and the others to the brink of a breakdown.

The three finally realized that this Xunyang City was not as easy to handle as they had imagined.

On the sea to the east of the Capital City, as the morning mist dissipated, the sun once again shone upon the surface of the water.

People who had enjoyed a good night's sleep had just finished breakfast and stepped out of their homes, preparing to begin a day of hard labor, when someone suddenly cried out in shock.

"Look over there! How does it look like there's an island?"

The person beside him scoffed.

"Are you still dreaming? How could there be an island... Holy crap, there really is an island!"

To their horror, what appeared next was not just one island, but a dense, dark mass rapidly approaching the shore.

As the distance closed, the commoners realized these were not islands at all, but ships—a fleet composed of massive vessels they had never seen before, with flags they had never encountered flying from the prows.

"'Yue'? Which vassal state's flag is that?"

"The State of Yue? Could it be that the Prince of Yue has arrived?"

"The Prince of Yue? Does our Great Qian have such a prince?"

"Oh, it's the former number one beauty under heaven, Princess Roujia, Zhao Xiyao."

"Ah, so it's her. But what is she doing in the Capital City? Is it for an audience?"

"Aren't you ill-informed? Don't you know the Duke of Yue said the current Emperor is a fake? Holy crap... could it be the Duke of Yue has come to attack?"

While the commoners were buzzing with discussion, the lead fast Treasure Ships had already passed through the bay and burst into the Capital City Port, now using the catapults and ballistae on their bows to launch attacks on the garrison ashore.

In truth, how could the high-ranking officials in the Capital City have ever imagined that one day a great army would strike them directly in the face from the sea? Consequently, the port's defenses were incredibly lax.

Aside from a few standard watchtowers, archery towers, and a very small number of soldiers, there were actually no other defensive measures; even their weapons were limited to blades, spears, and bows, with not even heavy weapons like ballistae equipped.

As for the combat effectiveness of these soldiers, it was even more difficult to describe. One must understand that guarding the docks was a lucrative post; with countless merchant ships passing through daily, if they wanted to moor peacefully in this port, which one didn't have to serve these military lords well?

Therefore, those able to be stationed here as soldiers were all people with backgrounds; they never trained on ordinary days, spending their time instead in brothels and taverns, each one becoming bloated and fat from indulgence.

Before the garrison inside the city could react and come to support, the soldiers stationed at the port scattered in all directions to save their own lives.

In less than half an hour, the entire Capital City Port was completely controlled by the Yue Army. Subsequently, squad after squad of Yue Army soldiers stepped off the warships, beginning to readjust to the feeling of solid ground beneath their feet.

Just as Gao Yuan stepped off the warship, he looked at the three pale, wriggling, squirming things tossed before him, which gave him a start.

"What the holy hell, what are these things?"

Cao Xing grinningly kicked the squirming things on the ground and bowed to Gao Yuan.

"Reporting to my Lord, these are the three commanders responsible for the Capital City Port."

Gao Yuan walked over to examine them closely, only then confirming that these three white, fat masses on the ground—like three slabs of leaf lard—were, strictly speaking, biological humans.

It was just that their physiques were exactly like those of many mukbang streamers from later generations; they could hardly be recognized as human anymore.

Looking up at the handsome officer staring down at them, the three mounds of flesh scrambled to kneel properly and kowtowed to Gao Yuan like chickens pecking rice.

"General, spare our lives! General, spare our lives!"

Gao Yuan took half a step back and said with a face full of disdain,

"It's not hard if you want to live. Give us an introduction to the troop deployments inside the Capital City."

These three mounds of people were quite straightforward, spilling everything about the Capital City's situation without reservation, like beans pouring from a bamboo tube.

The Capital City had a total of twelve thousand garrison troops, of which the most elite four thousand Yulin Guard were divided into two shifts to take turns guarding the Palace City; their barracks were in the south of the city.

Of the remaining eight thousand, three thousand belonged to the Patrol Camp responsible for daily law enforcement and catching bandits, with mediocre combat strength. Another five thousand were border troops who took turns guarding the capital, and they were the main force of the city's defense.

However, this army was not normally inside the city, but was stationed in a large camp ten li west of the Capital City.

Originally, this design was because Xiao Yu and the others worried that the various border armies were not of one mind with them; if stationed inside the city, they might cause trouble if exploited by someone with ulterior motives. Now, it had become Gao Yuan's breakthrough point.

Gao Yuan revealed a triumphant smile and immediately began to issue orders.

"Cao Xing, you lead three thousand troops to hold the port and receive the subsequent fleet. Jiang Qin, you lead eight thousand troops to immediately head to the south of the city and surround the Yulin Guard's camp. The rest will follow me to wipe out the Capital City Camp."

"Everyone remember, you must be fast and ruthless. Kill all who resist without exception; you must not let them escape into the city."

"As you command!"