Chapter 128: The Southern Camp of the Garrison Army

The Great Xia prince, Li Daocheng, consulted with his military strategist, Mao Yanshun, on how they should proceed.

After some thought, Mao Yanshun said, “At present, the enemy has suffered relatively light losses around Pobian City. As for Xinquan City, it possesses powerful crossbows and will not be easy to attack. We would do better to commit all our strength to assaulting Dingbian City.”

“Very well. We shall proceed as the strategist has advised.” Li Daocheng nodded.

Li Daocheng then issued orders for Zhang Yuanpu and his nephew Zhang Wangrong, who were attacking Pobian City, and Chi Bugou and Shu Tianxiu, who were attacking Xinquan City, to lead their respective forces to Dingbian City and reinforce Bala Tian in his assault on Dingbian.

When the order reached Pobian City, Zhang Yuanpu and Zhang Wangrong immediately reorganized their troops, abandoned Pobian, and marched toward Dingbian.

Within Pobian City, Jin Xi and the magistrate of Pobian County both let out long sighs of relief when they saw the barbarian army withdraw. After several days of unbroken fighting, the fifteen thousand soldiers inside the city had been reduced to barely more than seven thousand. Jin Xi had been frantic with worry. He knew that Dingbian City was under siege, making it impossible to send a message or obtain reinforcements. They could only rely on the strength within Pobian and struggle desperately to hold their ground.

Just when they were about to collapse, the barbarians had unexpectedly withdrawn. Jin Xi could not help but breathe a great sigh of relief.

Likewise, Magistrate Kou, Commander Cao, and Little Ding inside Xinquan City were astonished to see the barbarians suddenly retreat. Little Ding thought to himself, If you had only held on for a few more days, you might well have taken Xinquan City. Why withdraw all of a sudden?

While Jin Xi and Little Ding were finally able to relax, Huang Wenlong found the pressure upon him increasing. Two more armies had appeared outside the city, together numbering roughly thirty thousand men. It seemed that Dingbian City could no longer be held.

As soon as the forces of the Zhang family uncle and nephew and the troops of Chi Bugou joined Bala Tian’s army, they launched a furious assault. Beneath the walls of Dingbian County, corpses piled up like mountains. Blood stained the thin ice covering the moat crimson.

Huang Wenlong and several other commanders within the city were stationed at the four walls, directing the defense. The battle was brutally fierce. Fortunately, the city had received a supply of arrows from Lu Yang’s forces; without them, the defenders would never have been able to withstand the barbarians’ savage assault.

The barbarians charged forward as though they had no regard for their lives—a crude and ruthless human-wave tactic. Unfortunately, the last thing Dingbian City could afford was a direct clash with them. The defenders were far fewer in number.

After barely two hours of fighting, more than a thousand soldiers in the city had already been killed or wounded. They lacked the new-style crossbows possessed by Xinquan City and could not strike the enemy from a great distance. By the time their own arrows could reach the barbarians, the barbarians’ arrows could reach them as well.

At times, the barbarians’ bows even shot farther than those of the Great Song soldiers. Fortunately, the battlements atop the walls provided shelter, while shield-bearers offered protection, so the defenders’ casualties remained relatively lighter than the enemy’s.

Seeing the situation, Huang Wenlong’s heart sank. If things continued this way, then by tomorrow his small army would be completely worn down, and Dingbian City would be lost.

The battle continued for another two hours, yet the barbarians showed no sign of withdrawing. The defenders suffered another thousand casualties.

Huang Wenlong stood atop the wall, frantic with worry, but he could think of no solution. At last, he gave a long sigh.

“My fate is sealed. I only pity the several thousand soldiers and tens of thousands of civilians within this city!”

Now, the only thing he could hope for was the sudden appearance of a miracle. Otherwise, he could do nothing but watch helplessly as his soldiers died one after another, until Dingbian City finally fell into barbarian hands.

The fighting continued until evening, yet the barbarians still did not retreat. Only ten thousand defenders remained inside the city, and that figure included several thousand troops brought by Lu Yang.

Huang Wenlong was consumed by rage and anguish, his mouth covered in blood blisters. What kind of torment was it to watch his soldiers fall one after another while being powerless to save them?

He did not know whether he could hold out until the moment the city walls were breached. By then, he had already made up his mind: he would live or die with Dingbian City.

Just as Huang Wenlong was sinking into despair, a soldier hurried over to report, “My lord, a large army has been spotted approaching from the southeast. We do not know whether they are reinforcements.”

The southeast? Lu Yang’s forces had arrived from that direction the last time. It was the road leading toward Yongzhou.

“Take me there at once!” Huang Wenlong cried.

It was as though he had seen a spark in the darkness of night. The seed of hope seemed to sprout once more within his heart.

The soldier led Huang Wenlong to the gate tower atop the southern wall. Looking toward the southeast, they saw dust billowing in the distance, with banners appearing and disappearing through the haze. Indeed, an army was rushing toward Dingbian City.

The barbarians noticed the approaching force as well, and their assaults from the east and south temporarily slackened. They too were uncertain whether the newcomers were friend or foe.

Before long, the army entered everyone’s field of vision. Someone with keen eyes made out the large characters emblazoned on its banners: South Camp of the Auxiliary Army.

The soldier who recognized the banners immediately shouted with excitement, “The South Camp of the Auxiliary Army! Reinforcements have arrived! Reinforcements have arrived!”

The other soldiers who heard him began cheering as well.

“Reinforcements are here! Reinforcements are here! We’re saved!”

When Huang Wenlong heard that reinforcements had arrived, tears of excitement streamed down his weathered face. The aid they had awaited for so long had finally come. Dingbian City was saved, and its people would be spared the ravages of war.

The army of the South Camp of the Auxiliary Army charged straight into the barbarian ranks, cutting through them in a furious assault. The barbarians were thrown into chaos, caught completely off guard.

The South Camp numbered more than fifty thousand men. They stormed into the barbarian formation and routed them utterly. Only after retreating twenty li did the barbarians manage to steady their ranks.

Huang Wenlong immediately ordered the gates opened to welcome the reinforcements into the city. Had they not arrived in time, Dingbian City would have been in grave danger.

Fei Wen, the military commander of the South Camp of the Auxiliary Army, rode into Dingbian with his head held high and an expression of utter disdain. At his side was a military adjutant named Bian Hongtai, along with more than a dozen junior officers of commander rank.

Huang Wenlong hurried forward and clasped his hands.

“Thanks to your timely arrival, Lord Fei, Dingbian City has been saved. Otherwise, the city would have been in peril. Please accept my gratitude!”

Huang Wenlong and Fei Wen held equivalent rank; Huang Wenlong even outranked him by virtue of his additional post as Military Commissioner of Yongzhou. The reason he treated Fei Wen with such courtesy was that he was sincerely grateful for the South Camp’s timely appearance. They had not only saved his life, but also rescued every soldier and civilian within Dingbian City.

Fei Wen merely remained mounted and gave a contemptuous snort. Then he followed the others into the city, while Huang Wenlong assigned men to clear the battlefield.

Fortunately, it was the eleventh month of the lunar calendar, and the corpses on the field had already frozen stiff. An epidemic would not break out immediately. Otherwise, so many dead bodies would surely have bred pestilence.

Huang Wenlong ordered every corpse on the battlefield—barbarian and Great Song alike—to be gathered into piles and burned.

Before long, heaps of bodies, each as large as a hillock, had been stacked together. Bright flames leapt and danced across the mounds, while the stench of charred flesh seeped into the nostrils of everyone present. One skeleton after another was reduced to ash.

The surrounding snow had long since been dyed red. Beneath the pure moonlight, it appeared all the more vivid. Facing that bleak and desolate scene, many soldiers could not help covering their faces and weeping.

Among those heaps of corpses were many men who had been their closest brothers, companions with whom they had shared every day and night. In the blink of an eye, they had been separated forever, and the living could scarcely bear it.

Every fallen warrior might have left behind a happy family. They had parents, wives, and children—people who thought of them every day and waited for their return. But they would never go home again, and their loved ones would never see them again.

Thus it was:

Beneath the border walls, the bones lie piled high;
At home, wives and children await the husband’s return.
He cast his head down and shed his blood upon the field—
Once he departed, he would never return.