Chapter 41 A Choice with Clear Gains and Losses

"What!"

Everyone was astonished.

Wei Xiao strode past the crowd, stepping up to the scout who had brought the news, and anxiously demanded, "What is the current situation in Dongping City?"

Startled by her imposing aura, the bandit looked helplessly at his leader.

At this moment, Xue Chengqian stepped forward.

"Dongping is a vital stronghold of the northern frontier. It is said that the Northern Barbarians have concentrated multiple armies there, clearly determined to take it at all costs. The fall or holding of this city will directly affect the entire strategic situation of the borderlands. Please give us a detailed account of what you saw."

Naturally, Sun Fushan would not question Xue Chengqian's judgment and immediately ordered his subordinate, "Hero Xue's words are my words. Tell us everything you witnessed in detail."

The scout hurriedly reported, "When we looked toward Dongping City, the area was densely packed with Northern Barbarian cavalry. There were also numerous towering siege engines. There were simply too many of them to count! By the time we turned back to report, we could already hear the sounds of battle over there. The Barbarians must have already begun their assault on the city. As for the situation inside Dongping City itself, we truly do not know."

An invisible pressure weighed heavily upon the hearts of Xue Chengqian and his companions.

Earlier, the Song brothers had also scouted that the Northern Barbarian army was surrounding Dongping City, making their surprise raid on Dayu Village somewhat of a calculated risk.

However, prior to today—

Neither they, nor anyone else in the entire Great Liang Dynasty, would have dared to believe that the Northern Barbarians would actually dare to launch a full-scale assault on a heavily fortified major stronghold in the north!

Before this, people would have simply thought the Northern Barbarians had lost their minds. After all, the Barbarians were notoriously poor at siege warfare, whereas the Central Plains dynasties excelled at defending cities. Yet, the Barbarians were choosing to attack their enemy's strength with their own weakness.

Yet now, the northern territories were trampled at will by the iron cavalry of the Northern Barbarians. The Liang army found it nearly impossible to maneuver and provide support in the open field, and every so-called vital stronghold had practically become an "isolated city."

Conversely, the Northern Barbarian army possessed seemingly unlimited time and infinite troops, constructing siege engines at will!

Under such circumstances, who could guarantee that Dongping City, this so-called "vital stronghold," would not eventually be breached?

Xue Chengqian said in a deep voice, "Brother Sun, your men are more familiar with the local terrain. Please have them guide two of my subordinates to get as close to Dongping City as possible and gather more detailed intelligence."

"No problem!"

Turning his head, Xue looked toward Wei Xiao and Su Youfang. "The two of you have heard it as well. We know nothing of the situation in Dongping. I must ask you both to enlighten us."

Su Youfang instinctively retorted, "How can we do that? The defense plans of Dongping City are military secrets. If someone were to fall into the hands of the Northern Barbarians, wouldn't that leak military intelligence and put the soldiers and civilians of Dongping in grave danger?"

Wei Xiao, however, could no longer care about such matters. Panic-stricken, she pleaded, "Communication with the outside is now completely severed; we must rely on you to carry messages back and forth. I beg you all to show righteousness and lend a helping hand. Ask whatever you wish!"

Seeing that Wei Xiao no longer trusted them and blindly placed her faith in Xue Chengqian and his group, Su Youfang let out a cold snort and retreated to the side, no longer concealing his dissatisfaction even in front of his superior officer's daughter.

Disregarding him, Xue Chengqian directly inquired about the troop strength and defense posture of Dongping.

He could understand Wei Xiao's state of mind, but if they were to speak of rescue, the first priority was to know whether Dongping City could hold out, and whether they possessed the capability to break out of the city and coordinate with reinforcing troops.

"My father is the commander of Dongping City. With a formidable enemy at the gates, he has resolved to live and die with the city. That is why he repeatedly urged the imperial court for reinforcements and wrote to me personally, ordering me to join the reinforcements and enter the city so that all the officers and soldiers could understand his unwavering resolve."

"Yet, as you can see, the reinforcements accompanying me were ambushed by Northern Barbarian cavalry outside the city. The army was completely routed, and the number of troops that managed to successfully escape into the city is, frankly, not optimistic..."

The commander of Dongping City could be considered dutiful, having summoned reinforcements in advance.

Unfortunately, the strategic importance of Dongping far lagged behind that of Wangjiang City, and only a few non-elite reinforcement units had come to its aid.

The reinforcement contingent Wei Xiao belonged to had been discovered and shattered by the Northern Barbarian cavalry, and the rest of the reinforcements were likely in a similarly grim state.

After figuring out the situation, Luo Fang and the others all wore troubled expressions.

"Eldest Miss Wei, we all hold Commander Wei in high regard and would love to rescue him, but as you can see, with this meager force of ours heading toward Dongping, the Northern Barbarians could easily dispatch a single unit of cavalry to trample us into dust."

They had not lost their minds yet.

Despite winning their previous skirmishes against the Northern Barbarians, those victories were achieved against small scouting parties by taking advantage of the element of surprise.

In a frontal clash, they wouldn't even need the enemy's main force; an equal number of enemy cavalry would be more than enough to crush them.

Wei Xiao, however, was exceptionally reasonable and did not desperately badger them into an immediate rescue.

"This humble maiden would certainly not dare to demand that you launch a forced rescue. But since you come from Wangjiang, I wonder if you might escort me to Wangjiang City so I can appeal for reinforcements from Commander Lu."

"If we can secure a large army dispatched from Wangjiang, coupled with Hero Xue's brilliant strategy, this maiden is certain there will be a way to force the Northern Barbarians to retreat."

[Ding! The host has triggered a Mandate of Heaven Choice.]

[Setting out from Wangjiang to wage war with your troops, your original intention was to launch continuous small-scale raids to disrupt the Northern Barbarians' rear, while probing enemy intelligence and seizing opportunities to expand your own strength.]

[However, you have suddenly encountered Dongping being besieged by the main force of the Northern Barbarian army, and Wei Xiao's request directly contradicts your initial plan. More importantly, rescuing Dongping carries immense risks, and your relationship with Lu Xiaoyuan, the commander of Wangjiang City, is extremely hostile.]

[If you escort her back to Wangjiang, do you have sufficient confidence to persuade Lu Xiaoyuan to dispatch reinforcements, or will it only intensify the conflict between you and leave you with even less of a foothold in Wangjiang?]

[If you ignore Wei Xiao's request, where will the war in Dongping City head, and will the final outcome of the Dongping campaign ultimately impact the grand strategic situation of the entire northern frontier?]

Xue Chengqian let out a long breath.

In truth, the answer to this question was inevitable.

There were already nearly thirty thousand defending troops within Dongping City. With the Northern Barbarians gathering to besiege it, once the city fell, it would inevitably send a massive shockwave through the other vital strongholds of the northern frontier.

When faced with the massive army of the Northern Barbarians, fortifications they once believed to be impregnable might no longer be reliable, and many timid defending generals might choose to abandon their cities and flee.

However, if he complied with Wei Xiao's request, it would undoubtedly disrupt his original plans.

Look at how Sun Fushan's attitude had shifted upon learning his identity.

As long as he, Xue Chengqian, avoided the main forces of the Northern Barbarians, wandered the countryside, and demonstrated sufficient sincerity, it was entirely possible to bloodlessly win over those "righteous men" who held him in awe because of the Battle of Wangjiang City.

On one side lay considerable risks; on the other lay the possibility of growing stronger with almost zero risk. The immediate gains and losses were starkly apparent.

Yet, thinking of Commander Wei—who, facing the main force of the Northern Barbarians, remained determined to live and die with the city, even willing to summon his own daughter into the jaws of danger—

And looking back at Wei Xiao's pleading eyes, Xue Chengqian ultimately found himself unable to utter a refusal.