Chapter 63: Ruthless Tactic
Li Ye’s personal soldiers laughed and teased, “I actually preferred how arrogant you all were before. Weren’t you the ones saying we were just a bunch of crippled veterans, and that we only relied on bribed Scavenger Mountain mercenaries? So, do you understand our strength now?”
“Please don’t be angry, brothers. It was us who were blind and failed to see the Sixth Prince’s true abilities.”
“I must beg His Highness to let me stay in the army. From now on, I’ll follow him through fire and water without regret!”
“That’s right! We should be following a hero like the Sixth Prince. We’ve just arrived and already earned great merit. Over at the Marshal’s side, we can’t even eat properly, let alone fight.”
“I’ve seen through it now. That so-called noble son Shi Wushuang—so what if he’s skilled? He doesn’t care one bit about the lives of us lowly soldiers. In his eyes, winning battles is his achievement, and our lives are worthless.”
“Exactly. Only His Highness treats us like real people. He’s a prince, yet he constantly thinks of us. I’ll put my life in his hands.”
...
Inside the camp, Li Ye sat listening to the incoming reports. One piece of bad news followed another, completely washing away the joy of their recent victory.
“Has Qin Qingxue lost her mind? As a general, how could she not understand the basic principle of ‘never chase a cornered enemy’?”
“Isn’t Shi Wushuang with her? Couldn’t he see it was a trap?”
“Because of their stupidity, over thirty thousand of our Great Yuan troops have died. It’s unforgivable!”
Zhao Wudi’s expression was equally grim. Even with the previous chain of losses, the garrison troops had never suffered such devastating casualties. For the main army to arrive and suffer a crushing defeat on the first day—it was a bitter pill to swallow.
Princess Ruyue, deeply distressed, quickly said, “Since the Emperor has issued a decree that if Qin Qingxue loses, Your Highness is to take over command, then for the sake of minimizing our losses, you should head to the city immediately and claim your authority.”
“That wouldn’t be wise,” Li Ye said. “Our main forces are already trapped in the city. If we go there, we’ll have to face the Annan army head-on. With just this small force, we might not even stand a chance.”
Lei Ying quickly voiced his agreement, “He’s right. Based on our intelligence, more enemy reinforcements are on the way. Their total numbers are no less than 150,000. Their plan was to cripple us in one battle and then trap our main force in the city. Their goal is to annihilate us completely.”
Lei Zhan followed with another shocking update.
Zhao Wudi realized the situation was dire. “Although the Emperor ordered me to protect Your Highness, in the field, a general’s orders take precedence. My ten thousand elite troops will obey Your Highness completely.”
He had already seen in the last battle that Li Ye was far from ordinary. In fact, he was a brilliant strategist, and Zhao Wudi admired his command abilities. He didn’t hesitate to express full support.
“I also believe now is not the time to seize back command,” Li Ye said after a moment of thought. “Qin Qingxue and Shi Wushuang will never admit defeat so easily. They’ll still try to turn the situation around. And as you all know, my relationship with the two of them is terrible. There’s no way they’d hand over control willingly.”
Princess Ruyue was furious. “But look at the situation! Because of their misjudgment, our army suffered heavy losses. If we lose another battle, it could mean total annihilation!”
“Heh, it won’t come to that,” Li Ye said calmly. “They were careless in the beginning and paid dearly for it. They’ll definitely be much more cautious from now on.”
“Then what should we do? The main army is trapped in the city. There’s no way they’ll break out any time soon. If they’re surrounded for too long and run out of food, it’ll be a complete massacre,” Princess Ruyue said anxiously.
“We could send my ten thousand cavalry to harass the enemy’s rear lines. At least that’ll make them hesitate to throw all their forces into a siege,” she suggested.
Li Ye shook his head. “Your cavalry is too few. If the enemy refuses to engage in direct battle, it won’t do much good.”
“Then what? Are we supposed to just wait for defeat?” She was at her wits' end. The enemy’s strength was overwhelming—several times their number, familiar with the terrain. Winning against such odds seemed nearly impossible. None of the tactics she had learned applied.
Li Ye tapped his fingers on the table, staring at the map, deep in thought. After a long silence, he asked, “Investigate the full details of their defeat. Even if Qin Qingxue’s army isn’t used to the southern climate, it shouldn’t have been that catastrophic. At most, they should have retreated—not collapsed completely.”
“I’ve already sent people to investigate, but since the front is full of enemy scouts, we need to be extra careful,” Lei Ying replied.
“Step it up. Know the enemy, know yourself—only then can we win every battle. We must learn from this loss and understand the enemy’s strengths if we want to come up with a better strategy.”
“Please rest assured, Your Highness. Even if it costs me my life, I’ll find out the truth,” Lei Ying promised, then left the tent with his men.
Li Ye pointed at the border route on the map. “For Annan to field over 100,000 troops, they must have mobilized everything they’ve got. Their homeland should now be completely undefended.”
He continued, “If we march swiftly around their main forces and strike directly into Annan’s territory, creating chaos, I refuse to believe they’d still have the nerve to continue this siege.”
“What? You want to lead these twenty thousand troops into Annan?” Princess Ruyue gasped. “If the attack fails and we’re surrounded, we could all be wiped out!”
She was completely shocked. Li Ye always claimed he didn’t know how to fight wars, yet every tactic he used was bold and ruthless.
Zhao Wudi’s eyes, on the other hand, lit up. “It’s risky, yes—but I think it’s a brilliant plan! With Annan’s homeland undefended, if we strike straight into their capital, we might even capture their king! Let me take ten thousand cavalry and charge in. Your Highness can stay behind with the rest of the troops. That way, we break their siege and Your Highness stays safe.”
“No,” Li Ye shook his head. “It’s not that I doubt you. But if you take ten thousand cavalry into Annan, you’ll fail.”
“Why?” Zhao Wudi was displeased. He was one of the most capable generals in court. He had led cavalry to great victories even on the grasslands against fierce opponents.
“Don’t take it the wrong way, General Zhao,” Li Ye said calmly. “It’s not about your ability. It’s the terrain in Annan—it’s too complex. Cavalry can’t perform at full strength there. If surrounded, the consequences would be disastrous. And don’t forget, we might have to storm cities too. That’s another weakness of cavalry.”
Zhao Wudi fell silent, frowning thoughtfully.