Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather

Chapter 960: Chapter 679: Strike the Snake at Its Weak Spot

Yanqing State, in the central army camp of Chongshan Town.

Yang Chengye was discussing the next strategic layout with his subordinate generals.

They had temporarily completed the encirclement of the Capital City on all sides, but the Da Liang army continued to defend the Capital City without any intention of launching an attack.

This did not align with their plan.

According to their plan, they wanted to lure the snake out of its hole.

The encirclement from all sides meant a dispersal of forces, giving the Da Liang army opportunities to divide and conquer, smashing them individually.

Yang Chengye didn’t want to attack the high-walled and deep-moated Capital City; he wanted to lure the Da Liang army out. However, the Da Liang army had no intention of leaving the Capital City, rendering his carefully orchestrated battle plan futile.

“Everyone, what are your thoughts?”

Yang Chengye looked at those in the tent.

Within the tent were two veteran generals, Niu Zhuang and Yang Mingwu, along with a group of young commanders including Yang Qinhua, Liang Xiu, Song Jie, and Lu Miaoheng.

Luo Feiyu commanded the Eastern Army, and Yang Qinteng was in charge of commanding the Western Army; they were not present.

Niu Zhuang pondered while looking at the map.

At this point, they were already not far from the Capital City, only a little over five hundred li. If the Da Liang army still didn’t attack, they would have no choice but to march to the Capital City and engage in a siege battle.

“Marquis, the ones who should be anxious now aren’t us, but the Da Liang army. We have a continuous supply of provisions, but the Da Liang army doesn’t. Although they currently occupy the Capital City, there’s not much provisions inside the city. They can’t afford to drag this out.”

Yang Chengye nodded slightly. Their greatest advantage was not fearing a war of attrition; the longer it dragged on, the more advantageous it would be for them.

They had a year’s worth of provisions stored, along with support from overseas at Divine Wood Island. Even if the war lasted a year, they could afford the consumption.

For Da Liang, it was different. Although Da Liang now occupied several provinces, the livelihoods in the three provinces of Longyuan hadn’t recovered, making it impossible to provide Da Liang with much provisions. As for Shanhe Province and Bashu, they were even less able to provide food to Da Liang.

“We can stall for a while, drag it out until their provisions run low, until they have no choice but to leave the city and engage!” Niu Zhuang thought this was the most prudent approach at the moment.

Yang Chengye felt that this was too passive, but he couldn’t think of a better plan at the moment.

Siege?

Currently, he was not facing the Da Rong Court, but the Da Liang army.

The Da Liang army was able to easily capture the Capital City because the morale inside the city was scattered, coupled with Wang He’s defection during battle.

But if they were to siege, they would face a Da Liang army that had just won a battle and was full of high morale.

Therefore, he was reluctant to siege.

Just as Yang Chengye hesitated over whether to delay a little longer, footsteps suddenly sounded outside the camp.

“Salute to Old Marquis!”

The personal followers responsible for guarding outside the camp saluted.

Old Marquis!

Yang Chengye paused, then rejoiced.

My dear grandfather finally decided to appear!

Before he even got up to leave the camp, the curtain of the tent was already lifted, and Yang Zhenshan, An Yuxing, Zhou Tianci, and Liang Shengze entered in succession.

“Salute to Old Marquis!”

The generals inside the tent simultaneously saluted.

“Grandson salutes Grandfather!” Yang Chengye also rose to salute.

Yang Zhenshan nodded slightly and said calmly, “No need for formalities!”

Without any formality, he raised his head to look at the map hanging on the screen.

After everyone straightened up, he finally spoke, “You’re planning to delay?”

Niu Zhuang replied, “Old Marquis, it’s not about delaying, but rather letting Da Liang wear out their provisions first and lowering their morale!”

Yang Zhenshan shook his head, then walked up to the senior position, unceremoniously removing his grandson from it.

At this point, the weaknesses of Chongshan Town were exposed; they lacked an experienced strategist.

Both Niu Zhuang and Yang Mingwu were veteran generals who had been through many battles, but neither excelled in strategizing.

Yang Chengye was steady and intelligent, but his shortcomings were also clear: he had never commanded a proper war before.

They might have an overall perspective and be able to analyze the situation accurately, but they were hesitant in decision-making, lacking the true capability of commanding a large army.

They also lacked decisiveness, perhaps due to having lived in stable times for too long, or maybe it was because they hadn’t experienced war for too long, resulting in indecisiveness.

They only thought about acting safely without big mistakes, forgetting the strategic idea that ‘war is deceit.’

In fact, Yang Chengye should have brought Lin Zhan, not leaving him in the rear in charge of logistics.

Lin Zhan was the disciple taught by Yang Zhenshan himself.

However, saying this now held no significance; Yang Zhenshan simply thought Yang Chengye was too steady, which was why he hadn’t come forward to help his grandson command.

“Issue the order!”

Without explanation, he gave a direct order.

“Yes!” Everyone responded without any objection, waiting for the command.

“Order Zhou Lan to immediately lead Beiyuan Town southwards, and promptly clear out all enemy forces within Longyuan!”

“Order Yang Qinteng to lead the Western Army into Longnan, directly attacking Han Zhong Prefecture!”

“Order Yu Tonghai to lead the Beihai Navy south to Ru Nan Prefecture, to guard against Chen Hengchang moving north!”

Not engaging in a siege battle in the Capital City was correct, but there was no need to play an attrition game with Da Liang.

Since Da Liang liked staying in the Capital City, let them remain there while we go to capture the major base, Han Zhong Prefecture.

The foundation of Da Liang is not the Capital City, but Longnan.

If Longnan is lost, Da Liang will become a band of nomadic robbers without a base.

“Strike where it hurts the most. Where is Da Liang’s vital point? It’s not the Capital City, nor the 300,000 Da Liang troops in Shanhe Province, but Longnan, it’s Han Zhong Prefecture!”

“Do not focus on attacking the Capital City, focus on attacking Han Zhong Prefecture!”

“Pass the order, instruct Luo Feiyu to lead the Eastern Army to rendezvous immediately, then the Central Army to head south and attack Baoding Prefecture!”

“We must go from passive to active, block the Da Liang army’s retreat back to Han Zhong Prefecture, and at that time, we take over Baoding Prefecture city, leaving them to attack the city!”

“Of course, to prevent the Da Liang army from acting contrary to the plan, issue orders to strengthen defense in Jizhou and mobilize garrison troops from all around Ping Yuan to Jizhou!”

As Yang Zhenshan issued orders, he explained.

The more people listened, the brighter their eyes became, and they looked at Yang Zhenshan with eyes growing brighter.

In fact, Yang Zhenshan’s plan was not flawless. Firstly, Longnan and Han Zhong Prefecture are not easily conquered. Yang Qinteng’s 15,000 soldiers alone might not be enough to take Han Zhong Prefecture, but that doesn’t matter. As long as Yang Qinteng can create an imposing presence, Da Liang will not dare to gamble and will certainly find a way to return forces for support.

Secondly, if the Da Liang army does the opposite, ignoring Han Zhong Prefecture and instead heads to Liaodong, it should also be difficult for Liaodong to resist Da Liang’s 300,000 troops.

Yang Zhenshan had considered this possibility too. If the Da Liang army truly dares this, he could lead the Central Army and Eastern Army in pursuit.

It’s likely Da Liang’s army will only reach Jizhou before they can catch up.

Moreover, Jizhou not only has high city walls but also rivers to defend.

Perhaps Jizhou cannot withstand an attack by 300,000 Da Liang troops, but delaying for half a month to twenty days shouldn’t be difficult.

By then, Da Liang’s army will be in an even tougher spot.

The third flaw is Chen Hengchang from Jiangnan. If Chen Hengchang seizes the opportunity to head north, the pressure on Yu Tonghai will be significant.

Yang Zhenshan also considered this point, being ready to let Yu Tonghai abandon Ru Nan Prefecture, allowing Chen Hengchang to advance northward.

Once Da Liang is dealt with, they can just turn around and deal with Chen Hengchang.

This way the plan carries many risks, but Chongshan Town has a significant margin for error.

Chongshan Town could even abandon the Capital City and Shanhe, retreat to Jizhou, and take the chance to capture the three provinces of Longyuan.

Simply put, Yang Zhenshan’s goal in this battle is not the Capital City and Shanhe Province, but the three provinces of Longyuan.

Once Chongshan Town occupies the three provinces of Longyuan, then Liaodong, Liaoxi, and the three provinces of Longyuan can connect into one area, then taking Longbei Town and Suzhou Town, plus Shuzhou, the Yang family would effectively hold half of Da Rong’s territory.

As for Shanhe Province and the Capital City, if necessary, they could be left to Da Liang and Chen Hengchang to fight over.

There was naturally no disobedience to Yang Zhenshan’s orders from Chongshan Town.

As each order was issued, various Yang family armies moved into action immediately.

Zhou Lan led 30,000 Beiyuan troops to proceed south, capturing the southern regions of Longyuan Province.

Yang Qinteng led 15,000 Rescue Camp troops to maneuver while assisting Zhou Lan’s Beiyuan army and advancing towards Longnan.

Yu Tonghai led 15,000 soldiers from the Beihai Navy, abandoning the Jin Hai Guard, advancing towards Ru Nan.

Meanwhile, Luo Feiyu’s Eastern Army met with the Central Army and immediately proceeded south to Baoding Prefecture.

Baoding Prefecture was on Da Liang’s grain route, and Da Liang had positioned 8,000 troops in the city to defend it, but faced with the aggressive Chongshan Town army, Baoding Prefecture’s garrison only held out for three days before being breached.

The series of military maneuvers from Chongshan Town left the Da Liang army in the Capital City bewildered.

Initially wanting to leave the Capital City to intercept Chongshan Town, they later realized that Chongshan Town had formed a four-way attack position, so they thought of defending the Capital City and waiting for battle, guarding the city.

Thus, they waited in the Capital City for Chongshan Town’s army to attack, but unexpectedly, Chongshan army’s repeated maneuvers turned the originally encircling situation quite mysterious.

It wasn’t just Emperor Tianwu who was puzzled; even Zhang Luan was at a loss, unable to discern what the Chongshan Town army was intending to do.

Not until Chongshan Town reached Baoding Prefecture did Zhang Luan realize Yang Zhenshan’s intention.

The atmosphere in the resplendent Taiji Palace was exceptionally heavy.

Emperor Tianwu sat on the dragon throne, solemnly watching the gathered civil and military officials under his command.

“How should we proceed next? Do any of you have a plan?”

The civil and military officials frowned and pondered, undecided for the moment.

“Elder Zhang!” Emperor Tianwu could only turn his gaze to Zhang Luan.

Zhang Luan stepped forward and said, “Your Majesty, under the current circumstances, we can only abandon the Capital City and retreat to Han Zhong Prefecture!”

“What!” Emperor Tianwu could no longer remain calm, standing up abruptly.

The others also started talking amongst themselves, some agreeing with Zhang Luan, while others thought he was talking nonsense.

They had taken great trouble to capture the Capital City; the battle consumed vast amounts of money and provisions, and cost tens of thousands of soldiers their lives. Now they were being asked to abandon the Capital City, how could they bear to?

Zhang Luan took a deep breath and asked, “Your Majesty, is the Capital City more important or Han Zhong Prefecture?”

Emperor Tianwu’s expression changed again and again, “Can we not have both?”

“No, if we insist on having both, we may end up losing both! And we will definitely lose Han Zhong Prefecture first—not just Han Zhong Prefecture, but even the three provinces of Longyuan will be lost!”

At this moment, Zhang Luan saw things quite clearly; he understood Yang Zhenshan’s plan, though it was already too late.

The path in front of them had only two directions: one was to defend the Capital City stubbornly, giving up Han Zhong Prefecture; the other was to turn the troops around, waging a battle with Chongshan’s forces at Baoding Prefecture. If they won, they could return to defend Han Zhong Prefecture, but if they lost, everything would become an illusion.

Emperor Tianwu furrowed his brow in contemplation for a while before slowly speaking, “Return to Han Zhong Prefecture!”

He had no other choice; strategically, he might have many options, but let’s not forget he had his wife and children, who were all in Han Zhong Prefecture.

And so, the Da Liang army withdrew from the Capital City, but during the retreat, they scoured the entire city of the Capital City thoroughly.

The Capital City, once Da Rong’s most prosperous city, had now become the city with the most disasters.

First, many noble officials fled, then it was breached by the Da Liang army, and now it was ransacked by the Da Liang army.

Fortunately, the Da Liang army only looted belongings and did not massacre inside the Capital City.