September 12, Luoyang, Jia De Hall.
The long-silent North Palace finally convened a grand audience. Exciting news was announced one after another during the meeting.
Huaxin, the Grand Marshal, was promoted to the position of Grand Tutor. Dongzhao, the Palace Guard, was transferred to the position of Grand Marshal. Xingpi, the Palace Counselor, filled in for Dongzhao as Palace Guard. Finally, at the age of sixty, he climbed into the ranks of the Nine Ministers.
General Man Chong, the former General, retained his title of general. Due to his meritorious service in coordinating military affairs and leading the army to defeat the Liao Dong troops twice, he was granted an additional 1,400 households in his domain.
Before this, the three top achievers in the army were decided in Yingchou. Man Chong, the left-wing forest general, was granted an additional 1,000 households; Liu Ye, the right monitor of the Grand Secretariat, was granted an additional 800 households; and Xin Pi, the palace guard, was granted an additional 800 households. There were also numerous people who were awarded titles and marquises due to their merits.
Leaders like Tian Yu, Xian Yu Fu, and others all received an increase in their households. Xu Shi, Lu Yu, and Pei Xian each gained 200 additional households.
This is the benefit of being a Grand Counselor.
Whether it was the previous campaigns to conquer Yuan, or the current expedition to Liao Dong, as close confidants of the Emperor, Grand Counselors have also earned credit for providing counsel. This has provoked envy from the nine ministers and secretaries in court.
What's wrong with two hundred households? Titles can be passed down through generations, and who would ever think it's too little?
After all, they have recovered all of Liaodong and established the new administrative region of Yingchou with seven counties. Such rewards are still reasonable. However, the rewards for Man Chong, Xin Qin, Liu Ye, and Xin Pi provoke some thought among the officials.
The specific increase in households was announced by the Grand Secretary Liu Fang to the assembled officials, prompting some discussion and emotion from the ministers in Jia De Hall.
Remember, the rewards for the military achievements in the campaign against Liao Dong have already been doubled.
During the previous campaign against Longyou, the Grand General Cao Zhen received an additional 2,000 households, while Zhang He, ranked second to Cao Zhen, received an additional 1,000 households.
If not counting the doubling, the result of this expedition should have been 700 additional households for Man Chong, 500 for Xin Qin, and 400 each for Liu Ye and Xin Pi, which is a bit less compared to the previous two times.
The many ministers who participated in the campaign, however, did not show any unease; they should be rewarded promptly and efficiently.
In short, it was because Guangsun Yuan was too inexperienced and unreliable. Even being called a showman would be an exaggeration. The biggest challenge was actually the long march and transportation of supplies.
...
At a time of bustling activity in the court of Luoyang, in a place at the northernmost part of Youzhou, the atmosphere was entirely different.
Ke Bilaini escaped from Quanzhou at midnight on the ninth day, passing through Yongnu, Lundian, Changping, and Dongdu Mountain pass before reaching the surroundings of Guangning near the Shuangning County in Youzhou at noon on the twelfth day.
Over three and a half days, a distance of nearly six hundred li was covered, setting a new record for large cavalry units in Youzhou. On later maps, it appears as though the pursuit extended from the Jing province all the way to Zhangjiakou.
Of course, the three men following behind—Jiang Wei, Cao Zhao, and Cao Shuang—were not idle. Compared to the Xianbei cavalry, the cavalry of the Great Wei had better armor, finer horses, and more determined soldiers with superior physical fitness. To be honest, they still had a chance of winning.
However, Ke Bilaini's 2,000 Xianbei light cavalry, driven by their urgent desire to return home, were traveling day and night without any intention of battle. They only cared about heading northwest. It was already difficult for Jiang Wei's mounted soldiers to catch up with them. To attack and force them was even more difficult.
The three and a half days of long-distance pursuit were a severe test for Ke Bilaini as well as Jiang Wei, Cao Zhao, and Cao Shuang.
On the afternoon of the ninth day, Ke Bilaini had ordered the looting of towns along the route to gather supplies of grain and forage. However, as soon as the cavalry dispersed, before they had time to launch an attack or pillage, they saw the Wei cavalry riding in pursuit from a distance.
Ke Bilaini had no choice but to continue on his journey, fearing the Wei cavalry would catch up.
But such intense marches are inevitable, and both Ke Bilaini and Jiang Wei faced this problem.
On the ninth and tenth days, the Xianbei cavalry kept falling behind and were subsequently killed by the Wei cavalry that followed. On the morning of the eleventh day, Ke Bilaini had wanted to set an ambush in a valley to counterattack the Wei cavalry. He had prepared for a long time, but when the Wei cavalry arrived, he still chose to retreat and did not engage in battle, turning his horses and continuing northward.
If these Xianbei people had never seen how Wei forces fought, they might still be willing to charge. However, as they had seen the large army paraded in Dai and Tuyin, they knew the power of Wei cavalry charging. They had no desire to risk their lives in battle.
Without the intention to fight, only running away northward, Ke Bilaini had no choice but to accept the situation.
On the evening of the eleventh day, Jiang Wei, Cao Shuang, and Cao Zhao had already discussed and decided that they would collect all the horses in the army and gather them at one place, making up a total of 1,400 men with two horses each. The remaining cavalry was to be led by Cao Zhao as backup at the rear.
Even Wei cavalry had fallen behind by such a distance, let alone the Xianbei. Those who fell behind were either killed or fled into the forests. According to Jiang Wei and his colleagues' estimate, Ke Bilaini would be lucky if he still had 1,200 people in his command.
By noon on the twelfth day, at the southeastern side of Guangning City, Jiang Wei and Cao Shuang finally decided to charge into the enemy ranks. However, at this time, from the northern ranks of Ke Bilaini's army, a single rider slowly rode out.
"Which general is on the other side?" He Lian dismounted and shouted as he approached the Wei cavalry's ranks from a distance of more than twenty chi. He held the reins of his horse with one hand and waved his hand constantly with the other.
"Brother Gao, should we wait for him to come over or do something else?" Cao Shuang pulled back on the reins slightly, and his horse became somewhat restless as it pawed at the ground with its front hooves.
Jiang Wei shielded his eyes with one hand while looking out, and raised his horsewhip to point at the man, "In my opinion, Ke Bilaini will find it hard to escape today. Let him come over; see what he has to say. If he can surrender without a fight, perhaps our army can reduce some casualties."
"That makes sense." Cao Shuang nodded in agreement, gesturing for his personal soldiers to lead the Xianbei people from the other side over. They knelt and bowed respectfully from a distance of about two zhang, not daring to come any closer.
"He Lian?" Jiang Wei, after getting a closer look at the appearance of the man, advanced a few steps to where He Lian stood and roared angrily, "Villain! The night you left from in front of me with Ke Bilaini, did I do anything wrong to you or him? Why did you flee like that?"
He Lian knew he was in the wrong, so he kept hitting his head on the ground, his mouth mumbled incoherently, presumably speaking in Xianbei language.
"I'm getting impatient," Cao Shuang stepped forward and kicked over He Lian who was kneeling on the ground, then squatting down with his right knee pressing against He Lian's chest and forcefully grabbed his chest to ask,
"What does Ke Bilaini want you to do? Do you want to surrender or fight? Don't waste time and let him play with the future. We've been chasing for more than three days, and we have no patience anymore. Remember, swords and spears have no eyes!"
He Lian tears filled his eyes, and his voice hoarse as he said, "General, we only wanted to go home, never had any intention to be enemies with the Great Wei. Why can't you spare us?"
"Spare you?" Cao Shuang was enraged and laughed instead, getting up and bending over to pull up He Lian, then wiping away the tears on He Lian's face with his hand and hitting his face with his palm forcefully, "Alright, although you and Ke Bilaini are unfaithful to the Great Wei, although you and Ke Bilaini are deserters, I will still spare you."
"Mount your horse and return to your ranks," Cao Shuang took the horse's reins from his personal guards, handed them to He Lian. Then, turning around and shouting loudly, he ordered: "Send a message to all formations, prepare to charge into the enemy ranks!"
"Yes!" The personal guards received the order and rode off to inform the various cavalry formations. He Lian, of course, understood Cao Shuang's words and knelt beside him, holding his leg and begging repeatedly.
Jiang Wei knew what Cao Shuang meant, knowing that Ke Bilaini was stubborn and unyielding. Walking to He Lian's front, he said, "There is no other way today, and there is no room for turning back. Go back to your ranks and tell Ke Bilaini to lead the charge and meet death." (Chapter complete)
