The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 1220 - 1198: The Rout

Chapter 1220: Chapter 1198: The Rout

Yang Heshu was holding his position at the office of the Governor of Maozhou, while Yin Li was resting in the mountains, biding his time.

As day broke, a large army emerged from the mountain pass, making it clear that the Prince of Yizhou was not willing to delay any longer, as rebellion is also a matter that requires striking quickly and decisively.

Upon receiving the scout report on the military situation, Yin Li said: "Let them come out of the mountains. Do not attack just yet. Order Huang Ming to lead five thousand soldiers to set up an ambush at Baishan Pass..."

"General, the scouts report that the Prince of Yizhou is not among them, and that there are only ten thousand troops coming out this time."

Yin Li said: "If I were him, I would also not dare to dispatch all my troops at once. I would definitely need to seize Maozhou and Mianzhou first before proceeding."

"Then aren’t we just going to alert the enemy with our actions?"

Yin Li smiled and said: "So what if we alert them? Haven’t we checked that this ravine only has one pass that can be used by troops to enter and exit?"

The ravine they had chosen was particularly well-suited, easy to defend but hard to attack. Essentially, as long as they held that pass, outsiders would not be able to invade.

And that mountain pass had the kind of perilousness that could be described as ’one man can hold the pass against ten thousand enemies.’

This is both a bad thing and a good thing.

If they can’t get in, then those inside can’t hope to get out either.

Yin Li curled the corner of his mouth and said: "After the alarm, do they even dare to flee deep into the mountains?"

His eyes were deep as he continued, "Inside is not like Dongxi Village, where they have fertile fields to farm. Their provisions won’t last long, so they must come out. Pass the order down, tell Huang Ming to just scare them, only one rule: allow them to retreat, but don’t let them break and run."

The deputy general accepted the order and went to carry it out.

But the thing about war is that it’s very hard to control. Victory or defeat is one thing, but to control a whole fleeing army is another.

Nevertheless, quite a few of the rebel troops managed to escape from the mountains and began scattering in disorderly flight.

Meanwhile, the east gate of Maozhou City was thrown open, starting to admit the villagers who fled in with half belief and half doubt.

But most people did not believe the words passed by those three soldiers last night, so the majority did not come.

Yang Heshu did not say much, only sighed.

He had only a thousand troops, and it was already difficult enough to ensure the defense of Maozhou City, naturally, he couldn’t afford to disperse his forces to the countryside, so he could only hope that the villagers themselves would manage some defense.

The speed at which the defeated soldiers scattered was very fast; by evening, he received distress messages from the villages saying that the marauding soldiers had entered and begun robbing and killing.

Yang Heshu set aside these messages asking for help, hardening his heart, and said: "Tell the messengers that the city doesn’t have the manpower to spare at the moment. Tell them to hide in the mountains or to form groups to resist."

The local official from Maozhou almost wept, his own home was outside the city, but he could only bow and withdraw.

After he left, Yang Heshu asked Captain Song, "Have the garrison troops deserted?"

"The deputy general, Ding Qian, took eight hundred men and fled. Now, his whereabouts are unknown."

"What about the rest?"

"The rest are those who were unwilling to go with him. There are a total of six hundred and eighty men led by a colonel. I didn’t dare to let them enter the city, so I’ve temporarily stationed them outside the city."

Yang Heshu then said, "Invite the county magistrate of Wenshan County and gather the officials from the Governor’s office. Taking mostly local officials of low rank as guides, divide the troops stationed outside the city into six groups, each consisting of one hundred and twenty men. Each group shall include local officers led by a Centurion, and they shall go out to suppress the rebel troops."

"They don’t have weapons; Ding Qian confiscated all their arms before he left."

"Take from the armory of the governor’s mansion, and if that’s not enough, allocate more to them."

Captain Song opened his mouth to object, but as soon as Yang Heshu raised his eyes to him, he continued: "Another thing, now that the Prince of Yizhou has truly rebelled, we must send an urgent report to the capital, and inform all the cities in the Jiannan region that the Prince of Yizhou has rebelled, instructing them to immediately close their gates and prepare to defend against the enemy."

Yang Heshu handed over the documents bearing the seal of the governor of Maozhou and his own seal to Captain Song. The implications contained within were profound enough to warrant deep contemplation.

Captain Song took them, hesitated for a moment, but ultimately did not object to the matter of the weapons and took his leave after bowing to receive the order.

Yang Heshu sat in the hall, looking at the runners bustling and scurrying outside. After a sigh, he instructed the scribe who was shivering and recording continuously beside him to let the people outside in.

Yang Heshu was immediately swamped by the crowd and various affairs.

Rebellion is, after all, known only to a few, and the officials of Maozhou City woke up to find that the day had changed drastically.

The governor’s mansion had been breached, and numerous bodies were still piled up at the entrance, many of whom were familiar faces. Their beloved and respected governor had been locked away in the dungeon, and they couldn’t even catch a glimpse of him.

Then, like a bolt from the blue, the news struck them. Their governor was siding with the Prince of Yizhou in rebellion and therefore had been subdued as a traitor.

The officials, both high and low, were trembling with fear, eyeing Yang Heshu seated at the hall’s top and Captain Song standing beside him. Even if they harbored various doubts and anger, they dared not voice their questions at this moment, fearing they would be treated as accomplices of the Prince of Yizhou and subdued just the same.

But there are many problems associated with warfare within the territory, and with a ceaseless stream of big and small issues. This time the conflict is different, starting from within, making matters even more chaotic.

Yang Heshu lacked experience, but his expressionless face conveyed an air of calm.

He began dealing with matters methodically, and both the officials of Maozhou and the prefect of Wenshan County who rushed over gradually calmed down as they watched.

Yang Heshu worked in the main hall until the third watch of the night, by which point the busy officials could hardly stay on their feet due to exhaustion.

He then concluded with a declaration: "Let’s stop here for tonight. With rebels outside, there will only be more civilians seeking refuge in the city tomorrow. You all should come early and arrange for the people affected by the disaster, ensuring that the pharmacies, medical centers, and grain stores are prepared."

"Understood."

Yang Heshu looked up at the sky outside and sighed: "Winter is upon us, and it’s getting colder. I hope this military calamity will end soon."

Otherwise, it’s not the cold of Maozhou’s weather that will kill people, but the lack of medicine and medical care when they fall ill.

After all, not everyone in this world can afford to see a doctor or buy medicine.

The officials responded, especially those from Maozhou. A good portion of them were locals.

Yang Heshu went to sleep, but the Prince of Yizhou hidden deep in the mountains couldn’t sleep. With soldiers having fled back, he already knew about the ambush on the eight thousand troops he had sent out.

He sat in front of his desk, staring blankly at the map on it.

His two sons sat beside him in a daze, and several generals sat quietly below, all silent. A counselor couldn’t help but whisper some advice: "Prince, you haven’t closed your eyes for a full day and night, please rest for a while."

The Prince of Yizhou tightened his cheeks and asked, "Ziwen, what do you think is our best course of action to break through?"

The counselor remained silent.

A general seated nearby spoke up directly: "Prince, grant me ten thousand soldiers, and by tomorrow, I will carve out a bloody path for you."

After a moment of silence, the Prince of Yizhou said: "The brave troops of Dongxi Village are no more. How could I bear to have you take such a risk? If we bypass this great mountain and head out, wouldn’t we directly reach Mianzhou?"

"That’s not advisable," the counselor Pei Ziwen immediately interjected: "Prince, it is not possible to enter these deep mountains."