Chapter Eleven: The Drum and Blade (I)

To defend one’s homeland, one needs not only responsibility but also strength.
Yet the military forces available in Suiyang City at the moment were far from impressive.
Zhang Xun brought with him over three thousand men, plus three thousand eight hundred soldiers under Xu Yuan—less than seven thousand in total. Relying on such a small force to withstand the fierce attack of a hundred thousand rebels was nothing but delusion.
But Zhang Xun had no choice but to hold onto this dream, for beyond Suiyang, there was no more Tang Dynasty left; he had nowhere to retreat.
Since he had decided to defend Suiyang to the death, he had to mobilize every available resource in the city. As Xu Yuan was gentle in nature, he took on the task of gathering military provisions and war supplies, while Zhang Xun served as the commander-in-chief, carefully assigning these seven thousand soldiers to every corner of Suiyang City.
Suiyang City was not large, with only about ten thousand able-bodied men within its walls. Zhang Xun ordered that all these men be assigned to the guards at the four city gates for emergency use. As for the crucial issue of food supplies, Zhang Xun was also very troubled.
However, the stored grain in the city was sufficient to last for three months. To stretch it out as long as possible, Zhang Xun ordered that the soldiers have two meals a day instead of three, while the civilians were given one dry meal and one liquid meal per day. This could extend the supply by another month or so.
By this point, Zhang Xun had done everything he could; all that remained was to hope for reinforcements.
“Wan Chun, you must personally deliver this letter to He Lan Jinming, the governor of Linhuai. I believe that through our friendship as classmates, he will surely lead troops to reinforce Suiyang!”
Zhang Xun handed the letter to Lei Wan Chun with firm conviction, a faint smile on his lips。……
Sons from ten provinces in mid-winter—their blood turned the waters of Chen Tao into a sea of red. The wilderness was vast and clear, with no sound of battle; forty thousand righteous soldiers died on the same day.
The barbarians returned, slaughtering everyone and still singing their barbarian songs while drinking in the ruined cities. The people turned northward in grief, day and night awaiting the arrival of the imperial troops.
Chen Tao defeated, Yongqiu defeated, Ningling defeated, Changshan besieged, Suiyang besieged……
Watching the shocking reports presented by his scouts, Li Kuo’s heart bled!
Why had things come to this? Why was the Tang Dynasty in such a dire state? Hadn’t Generals Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi already launched a strategic counteroffensive? Why were the Tang troops still being defeated by the rebels?
“Qilang, you need not blame yourself too much. After all, no one wants to see such a scene.”
Zhou Wucui sighed deeply, put away the reports, and asked, “Now, that man in Lingwu has sent you another ultimatum. Do you want to see it?”

Li Kuo waved his hand and said, “Since a choice has been made, there’s no such thing as right or wrong. Once a decision is made, we must look forward. Even if I wanted to turn back now, do you think there’s still a chance?”
Zhou Wucui shrugged and said, “That’s true. But how will the imperial court respond? Pretending to be ill isn’t a solution, and they surely know we’ve come to Ningling to help in the battle.”
“Just find some excuse to cover it up. If they insist on digging deeper, let them. Right now, all I need to think about is how to lift the siege of Suiyang.”
Days of working through the night on military affairs had left Li Kuo exhausted. His eye sockets were deeply sunken, and he had lost weight, yet he still held on stubbornly. Zhou Wucui felt deep sympathy for him and finally said through gritted teeth, “If nothing else works, we’ll fight them head-on. I don’t believe Tian Chengsi can withstand our fierce attack.”
“That won’t work. It’s too reckless—putting our men’s lives on the line. Tian Chengsi has at least twenty thousand troops, while we have just over five thousand cavalry. Charging head-on is too dangerous.”
Li Kuo shook his head, rejecting Zhou Wucui’s proposal.
“What then? Should we just wait here? Our supplies will last at most ten days. If we can’t meet up with Xiao Zhang and the others after ten days, our men will surely perish!”
Zhou Wucui clenched his fist in anger and shouted.
“General Zhou, don’t rush. Hasn’t the commander already sent people to gather information? I believe news will arrive soon.”
Seeing the two arguing again, Li Sheng stepped in to mediate. It was crucial to maintain unity during a military campaign; constant arguments would only give the rebels an opportunity.
“Report! Report! Commander, commander…”
Just as the atmosphere in the tent fell silent, sudden shouts came from outside.
“Report! Commander, I… I…”
The messenger pushed aside the curtain and entered the tent before fainting on the spot.
“Quick, wake him up and give him some water!”
Li Kuo frowned and gave orders to those around him.
With everyone’s efforts, the messenger gradually opened his eyes after a while.
“Commander, commander…”
The messenger paused, tears welling in his eyes.
“What happened? Speak slowly.”
Li Kuo sensed that something unusual had occurred but tried to stay calm.
“Commander, Tangzhou City… Tangzhou City…”
“Finish speaking! What’s wrong with Tangzhou City?”
Dou Qing, unable to stand by, urged him sharply.
Li Kuo glared at Dou Qing and said, “Brother Dou!”
“Ugh! It’s driving me crazy.”

Dou Qing waved his hand, signaling that he would not press further.
“Governor, Tangzhou City is under siege by the rebels! The troops stationed in Nanyang and Fangcheng have been sent there, but our men still can’t hold out. If you don’t return soon, it’s… it’s all over.”
The messenger sobbed softly, his voice filled with bitterness.
“What? Tangzhou City is under siege? How many do they have, and who leads them?”
Li Kuo was shocked. He had kept a low profile all the way since leaving Tangzhou—how could they have noticed him? Moreover, with the rebels focusing their efforts on besieging Suiyang, how could they spare troops to attack Tangzhou?
“Yes. I heard the enemy leader’s name is Sun Xiaozhe. He has about 20,000 men and came from the direction of Tongguan. At first, our men didn’t take it seriously, thinking they were just raiders looking for food and supplies. But as more and more troops gathered, we simply couldn’t resist any longer.”
So that’s how it is! If the rebels do have any idle troops left, it must be those stationed around the two capitals. An Qingxu has just ascended the throne and needs to keep a large army around Luoyang to secure his position. In contrast, since the rebels recently achieved a great victory over Chen Tao, the troops stationed in Chang’an seem less important now.
Sun Xiaozhe leading 20,000 cavalry to attack Tangzhou from Tongguan must have received insider information from within the city. Who could that traitor be?