Chapter 65: The Langya Coup |
Hearing these words, Wei Wusheng froze completely.
Xinyue was also dumbfounded.
But in the next moment, Xinyue immediately set down her bowl. She went to the entrance of the main tent, dismissed the guards, and then stood watch alone at the tent entrance, her gaze sharp as an eagle's.
Wei Wusheng also stood up, looking at Song Shi'an—this man whose determination felt terrifying. After a long while, he finally smiled and said, "A crime worthy of exterminating nine generations—are we about to commit it now?"
Song Shi'an could clearly see that Wei Wusheng was reluctant.
That deliberately joking tone said it all.
Because when people want to win, they absolutely do not smile.
"Your Highness," Song Shi'an looked at this man and reminded him, "After death, who cares if floods consume the world?"
"If we do this, after death, the floods truly will consume the world."
Although Langya's supplies represented one-third of the entire frontline's resources, that didn't mean that if this third was lost, there would still be two-thirds available.
Defense was fundamentally about holding fortified positions.
And there wasn't just one strategic location.
Assuming Liang Prefecture currently had a hundred thousand troops stationed, then at most forty thousand could be mobilized for field battles—and that number already violated the red line.
The rest absolutely could not be touched.
Ji Yuan's ability to march south with a hundred thousand troops meant he commanded at least three hundred thousand soldiers.
Back to this question.
If this entire third was completely lost, General Xiao Qun would have zero supplies left to use.
In that case, they could only requisition from Si Prefecture.
A thousand Forbidden Army troops traveling light without supplies, marching day and night without rest, would still need twenty days.
These were the military resources needed by the entire frontline—even covering forty li per day would already be considered miraculous speed!
"If we consume these supplies and still lose, General Xiao Qun will be extremely passive at that time," Wei Wusheng warned. "More importantly, if we lose such a battle after seizing power, it will absolutely cause a mutiny. All of Liang Prefecture might completely fall."
Wei Wusheng was absolutely right.
And he had left out one more point.
If the grain and supplies were burned or destroyed during a siege, that would still be acceptable.
But if they fell into Ji Yuan's hands...
Xiao Qun: I'll fuck your mother's cow!
"Your Highness, please sit."
Song Shi'an extended his hand.
"..." Wei Wusheng was somewhat agitated, but in Song Shi'an's presence he still calmed down and took his seat.
Then Song Shi'an said, "Allow Shi'an to analyze for Your Highness how Ji Yuan won."
As he spoke, he placed his finger on Wuwei and drew several circles.
"Let's set aside the fall of Tongmen Pass for now," Song Shi'an analyzed for him. "Besieging Wuwei with a hundred thousand troops—if it truly lasted half a year, the amount of grain Ji Yuan would need to consume would be enormous. Even if all of Northern Qi mobilized, it would be difficult to sustain. Moreover, he still needed to transport it overland from the rear, losing more than half in transit. Why didn't Zhao Xiang use the advantage of defensive positioning to establish fortified camps and wear him down for five months, then launch a full military assault? At that point, the Wuwei garrison would certainly coordinate, attacking from both inside and out?"
"You tell me."
Song Shi'an continued, "Because Wuwei was completely surrounded—not even a bird could fly out. At the same time, the surrounding strongholds and encampments were gradually breached. The strategic routes and river crossings were also controlled by the enemy. Zhao Xiang couldn't receive any intelligence from the front. The longer he waited, the more panicked he became. Every moment he feared—what if Wuwei suddenly fell? What if he delayed and was impeached by those in the rear? What if he showed signs of cowardice and the Northern Liang aristocratic families all defected—what would he do then?"
This was psychology.
Both Ji Yuan and Zhao Xiang were enduring.
This was actually somewhat similar to the Battle of Changping back then.
The Qin-Zhao war actually lasted three years, but the Battle of Changping itself was only five months.
The original situation was a stalemate. Although Zhao suffered defeats, they were basically minor strategic losses—using the loss of strongholds to delay the offensive, then gradually retreating to defend. Lian Po's thinking never changed: hold firm.
But in the rear, all the court could see was—defeats, lost cities, lost territory, Lian Po getting beaten back into his shell.
Later, an agent provocation scheme led to Zhao Kuo's appointment, and everyone knows the outcome.
Now the internet Temple of Ten Sages elevates Zhao Kuo quite high, insisting that whoever fought that battle would have had the same result, that Bai Qi was just too formidable.
In reality, it was a strategic error.
If it had been Lian Po, there absolutely wouldn't have been the burial alive of those hundreds of thousands of surrendered troops.
As for claims that Zhao Kuo broke through the encirclement and held out for so long, demonstrating his tactical ability—that's nonsense too.
Because four hundred and fifty thousand troops cannot possibly be completely surrounded.
"Zhao Xiang couldn't maintain his composure. Ji Yuan was superior in psychological warfare," Wei Wusheng said.
"So Your Highness, we're not going to resist Ji Yuan head-on either," Song Shi'an said.
Song Shi'an moved his finger to Shuofeng City and said with absolute certainty, "Wuwei will fall sooner or later—there's no question about that. But after Ji Yuan takes the city, he'll need to divide his forces to garrison it, manage prisoners of war, and first pacify the other counties. The army that finally comes to attack Shuofeng will absolutely be less than eighty thousand. If we defend Shuofeng for more than half a month, the battle will become stalemated. If we hold out for more than two months, Ji Yuan's morale won't be as strong as before. If we keep defending until winter and he still hasn't withdrawn—as a renowned general, General Xiao Qun will absolutely descend along the Chishui River to relieve the siege of Shuofeng."
And the core reason for all this was:
Wuwei and Shuofeng were different.
Shuofeng's walls were weak, easy to attack and hard to defend. Even if it truly fell, then it fell.
Let him have it.
"If Shuofeng falls and we die, it's of no consequence," Song Shi'an stared into Wei Wusheng's eyes, doing his utmost to persuade him. "But as long as we drag out the time and trap Ji Yuan in a quagmire, General Xiao Qun will have a chance at victory!"
Wei Wusheng couldn't truly manage to not care what happened after his death.
Because he could make mistakes, but he didn't want to make some heaven-defying catastrophic error like a complete idiot, then have others clean up the mess.
Wouldn't that just be pure sabotage?
"That's all premised on being able to hold out until winter. What if it falls in less than a month?"
"Eight thousand remnant soldiers, a broken city, barely enough supplies to eat—how do we defend it?"
Song Shi'an asked back with considerable bewilderment, then pressed Wei Wusheng: "His Majesty abandoned it precisely because he felt it couldn't be held. The resources he gave us to work with—even if the God of War himself were reincarnated, he'd be powerless. Therefore, we can only take this treasonous action."
Nothing else to say.
But privately mobilizing national military forces and misappropriating massive amounts of supplies was absolutely a death sentence worthy of exterminating nine generations.
Do this, and they'd cancel the household registration of your entire home county.
Because this shit is rebellion!
Just then, Xinyue suddenly rushed in and said to the two of them, "Your voices are too loud—it's completely audible outside."
"..." Wei Wusheng froze instantly. "No one heard, right?"
"I was standing guard. No one approached for the moment," Xinyue shook her head, then said, "You must make a decision quickly!"
"Let me think."
Wei Wusheng raised his hand, falling into internal struggle.
At this moment, Xinyue said to Song Shi'an, "If our Forbidden Army enters Langya and the power seizure fails, it will absolutely cause a mutiny. Even His Highness might be detained."
"The army will be stationed along the river, far from the city. His Highness will only enter the city with me and a portion of personal guards," Song Shi'an replied without hesitation.
"What if we meet the garrison commander and he refuses? How then?" Xinyue reminded him again. "With just personal guards, we absolutely cannot subdue him."
"His Highness is an imperial prince—he need only press him step by step," Song Shi'an answered immediately, then coldly stated the next sentence: "No one dares lay a hand on an imperial prince."
That's right—this power seizure would be impossible for anyone else to succeed at.
Only the identity of an imperial prince could accomplish it.
Xinyue asked no more questions, then together with Song Shi'an, they both looked at Wei Wusheng.
After a long while, Wei Wusheng suddenly pressed down on Song Shi'an's hand with his own: "Remember—you never spoke to me about seizing power."
Holy fuck!
At this critical juncture, Wei Wusheng pulling this on Song Shi'an made him immediately furious: "Your Highness! You—"
Before he could finish, Wei Wusheng raised his head and looked seriously at Song Shi'an: "This matter, from conception to execution, was entirely my decision alone."
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