novelden Chapter 169 Sudden Enemy Attack
Chapter 169 Sudden Enemy Attack
However, the calm did not last long.
Just as the Ye Dynasty was preparing for war with all its might, neighboring countries suddenly began to stir.
The eastern sea area, which was once a prosperous trading region frequented by Yechao merchant ships, is now shrouded in dark clouds.
The unidentified vessels, like ghosts, frequently darted between the waves, appearing and disappearing unpredictably.
Under the cover of night and fog, they wantonly plundered the merchant ships of the Night Dynasty.
Those ships, laden with goods and hope, were suddenly met with pitiful cries under the attack of pirates.
The cargo was looted, and the crew members were either brutally murdered or ruthlessly thrown into the sea.
Within just a few months, the maritime trade of the Night Dynasty was almost paralyzed. The once bustling port was now deserted, with only broken planks and an atmosphere of despair floating on the sea.
Xu Ruyu and Xu Ruyan were entrusted with the critical mission of protecting the sea frontier and led the navy to patrol the sea area.
The two brothers had firm eyes, knowing that this expedition was of extraordinary significance, not only concerning the economic lifeline of the Night Dynasty, but also the dignity and prestige of the nation.
They boarded the warship, the sea breeze howling and blowing their cloaks, making them flutter as if playing a war song for them to go to war.
The vowels, on the other hand, demonstrate exceptional organizational skills from the rear.
She went deep into the workshops of artisans, discussing with them day and night to meticulously build new warships.
She personally oversaw the design of every line and every piece of wood, often arguing heatedly with the craftsmen over a single detail until the most perfect solution was achieved.
At the same time, she actively prepared supplies, and food, arrows, medicine and other materials were continuously transported to the port, providing a solid support for the soldiers on the front line.
During the transport, they encountered a sudden downpour, which made the roads muddy and caused many horse-drawn carriages to become stuck.
Upon learning of this, Yuan Yin personally led the soldiers and civilians to push carts and pave roads, enduring hardships to ensure that the supplies were delivered on time.
At sea, the Xu brothers encountered unprecedented challenges.
The enemy ships were small and agile, like cunning sea wolves, moving freely through the waves.
Their mysterious weapons terrified the Night Dynasty's navy. The powerful fireballs were like the breath of a demon; once launched, Night Dynasty's warships would instantly be engulfed in flames, with wood chips flying everywhere, screams echoing, and repeated damage.
Xu Ruyu remained calm and composed, his gaze as sharp as a hawk's as he carefully observed the enemy's tactics amidst the chaos of battle.
After a long period of observation and analysis, he finally discovered that the enemy's weakness lay in the lack of coordination between the ships; their seemingly fierce attacks were actually individual efforts.
Therefore, he made a decisive decision and devised a strategy of attacking in a dispersed manner and defeating them one by one.
Following this plan, the Yechao navy broke into smaller units and surrounded the enemy ships from multiple directions. Utilizing the sturdiness of their own warships and the bravery of their soldiers, they gradually turned the tide of the battle.
After several fierce naval battles, the sea was stained red with blood, and countless wrecks floated on the surface. The Night Dynasty navy finally succeeded in repelling the invading enemy and captured their mysterious weapon.
At that moment, cheers erupted on the warship, and the soldiers, looking at the battered but still standing warship, were moved to tears.
At the same time, alarms were also sounding from the western border.
A fierce nomadic tribe amassed its forces like a surging tide and crossed the border.
They rode swift horses, brandishing long swords, leaving devastation in their wake.
The village was burned down, the people fled in terror, cattle and sheep were looted, and fields were trampled.
The billowing smoke and the pitiful cries sounded like the painful groans of the borderland.
This time, General Qi Qing, who was nearly seventy years old, personally led the Li family army into battle. He stood tall and straight, riding his warhorse, like a war god descending to earth.
His apprentice, Chi Xian, the new leader of the Li family army, took the lead in battle. He was brave and fearless, charging into the enemy ranks, wielding his long sword with a cold glint in its light, each swing bringing up a cloud of blood mist.
Inspired by him, the soldiers fought bravely against the enemy, their battle cries shaking the heavens and the earth.
They used their exceptional military skills to set up an ambush in the valley.
The soldiers hid on both sides of the valley, with the grass and rocks providing them with natural cover.
When the enemy troops charged into the encirclement like a pack of greedy wolves, Qi Qing gave the order, and immediately arrows rained down and stones rolled down, plunging the enemy troops into chaos.
Immediately afterwards, the Li family army, like tigers emerging from the mountains, launched a surprise attack and engaged in fierce close combat with the enemy.
The battle was exceptionally fierce; blood stained the valley floor, and corpses piled up like mountains.
But the Li family army did not back down. With a firm belief in defending their homeland, they fought to the death.
In the end, the nomadic tribes suffered a crushing defeat, and the remnants fled in disarray. The border land, ravaged by war, was left desolate and bleak, but it also bore witness to the bravery and fearlessness of the Li family army.
Meanwhile, within the court of the Night Dynasty, a crisis was quietly emerging.
The old minister who colluded with the enemy and betrayed the country was Zhao Qi, who once held an important position in the court. He had served as an official in the night court for many years, but due to his own selfish desires, he secretly colluded with neighboring countries.
His associates included Qian Su, who controlled part of the garrison in the capital, and Sun You, who was in charge of the distribution of provisions.
Zhao Qi attempted to use his connections and influence in the court to open the border gates of a neighboring country and offer up the empire of the Night Dynasty in exchange for his own wealth and glory under the new regime.
However, after the incident in Yuyao, Xu Qian had secretly investigated all the officials in the court and found that although the court seemed prosperous, there was actually a lot of corruption in the officialdom.
Collusion for personal gain is commonplace, but most people are very careful, outwardly appearing upright and honest, and are praised by the people.
The sheer number of officials involved forced Xu Qian to carefully consider how to purge them.
After discussing with Chen Xiao, they decided to continue to secretly observe whether those officials had any other dirty deeds or the extent of their collusion.
Therefore, over the past six months, Xu Qian and Chen Xiao had noticed that several people were acting suspiciously several months ago, so they began a secret investigation without making a sound.
He first secretly instructed his most trusted and meticulous confidant to conduct a secret screening of the daily correspondence and documents of officials in the court, paying particular attention to records of exchanges with subtle connections to neighboring countries.
During the investigation, Xu Qian noticed that Zhao Qi had frequent contact with some unidentified foreign businessmen, and these businessmen were acting suspiciously, always entering and leaving Zhao Qi's residence late at night.
He quietly arranged for his most capable undercover agents to track and monitor these merchants.
After several days of surveillance, it was discovered that they were colluding with a secret intelligence organization in a neighboring country, and were frequently transmitting confidential information about the military deployment, food reserves, and personnel changes within the court.
Meanwhile, when Xu Qian was reviewing the accounts related to the garrison of Beijing, he discovered that there were many unreasonable records of military expenditures and material allocations in the section managed by Qian Su.
The whereabouts of some military supplies were unknown. After in-depth investigation, it was discovered that some of these supplies had been diverted to suspicious outposts on the border of neighboring countries.
Following this clue, Xu Qian gradually uncovered the collusion between Qian Su and Zhao Qi, who used falsified accounts and misappropriated military supplies to curry favor with neighboring countries in exchange for their support and protection in their treasonous plot.
As for Sun You, who was in charge of grain and fodder allocation, Xu Qian discovered that he had recently been in close contact with some illegal grain merchants in the area.
While these grain merchants were buying up grain at high prices, they were secretly transporting large quantities of grain to border areas.
Xu Qian sent men to intercept one of the grain transport convoys. From the escorts, he learned that Sun You had accepted huge bribes from a neighboring country and intended to cut off the Night Dynasty's grain supply at a critical moment, putting the army in a difficult situation, thus cooperating with Zhao Qi and Qian Su's treasonous actions.
Xu Qian pieced together these fragmented yet crucial clues to form a complete chain of evidence, thus confirming Zhao Qi, Qian Su, and Sun You's crimes of treason and collusion with the enemy.
In order not to alert them, Xu Qian pretended not to know anything and continued to interact with them normally, so as to lower their guard.
On the other hand, he secretly summoned his trusted ministers, all of whom were loyal and trustworthy to the Ye Dynasty, such as Li Zhongqing, whom he had personally promoted, and Zhang Yiping, a family friend.
They jointly discussed the encirclement and suppression plan and formulated detailed strategies.
Xu Qian knew that in order to successfully eliminate this group of traitors, he had to first control the key forces in their hands.
He arranged for Li Zhongqing to transfer Qian Su away from his garrison camp under the pretext of discussing the defense of the capital. At the same time, he sent elite troops to secretly infiltrate the camp and take over the military power, thus depriving Qian Su of his military support.
As for Sun You, Zhang Yiping led a team to capture him unexpectedly when he went out to inspect the grain warehouse. They also blocked information related to grain distribution to prevent the enemy from using the grain to create chaos.
As for the mastermind Zhao Qi, Xu Qian personally took action.
After receiving confirmation that Zhao Qi would meet again with a secret envoy from a neighboring country at his residence one night, he led the Imperial Guard to surround Zhao Qi's residence.
Just as Zhao Qi and his secret envoy were gleefully discussing the details of treason, Xu Qian burst through the door.
Zhao Qi attempted to resist, but his guards were quickly subdued by the powerful offensive of the Imperial Guards.
Thus, through the close cooperation of Xu Qian and his trusted ministers, the group of traitors who had colluded with the enemy was quickly wiped out, the court was purged, and the threat to their inner circle was temporarily eliminated.
Guangling.
Prefect Qi Yanshang remained steadfast in his post and actively organized defenses.
He knew that Guangling County was geographically important, and if it fell, the neighboring country's army could easily advance.
So he personally inspected the city's defenses, reinforced the city walls, trained soldiers, and stockpiled supplies.
Feng Li and Qi Ruyan were also there to help out.
Feng Li was resourceful and wise. She devised a series of ingenious defensive strategies for Qi Yanshang, using the terrain of Guangling County to set up traps and obstacles, making it difficult for the invading enemy to succeed easily.
Qi Ruyan was responsible for comforting the people. She went deep into the countryside, listened to their concerns and demands, distributed supplies to them, and organized women and children to evacuate to safe areas.
Through their joint efforts, Guangling County, despite facing immense pressure, remained steadfast and became a solid defensive line for the Night Dynasty in the south.
Xunyang.
Prefect Zheng Hanying and Governor Zheng Pianran both gave it their all.
Zheng Hanying organized soldiers to set up defenses along the riverbank, ready for battle.
He personally directed the navy to patrol the river to prevent enemy forces from launching surprise attacks by water.
Zheng Pianran actively raised funds and supplies for the army. He traveled around, discussing with local wealthy merchants and persuading them to donate generously.
At the same time, he organized the people to reclaim wasteland and grow grain to ensure an adequate supply of materials during the war.
Thanks to their efforts, the defense system of Xunyang County was gradually improved, and the people maintained a relatively stable life amidst the flames of war.
Beijing.
Chen Xiao was not idle either; she acted as a pillar of strength, stabilizing the morale of those behind her.
She traveled incognito through the streets and alleys, reassuring the people.
Her voice was firm and powerful as she promised the people that she would protect the Night Dynasty and help them regain their confidence in life.
Once, rumors spread throughout the capital that the Ye Dynasty was about to perish, causing widespread panic among the people.
Upon learning of this, Chen Xiao immediately wrote an imperial edict and posted it on the imperial notice board outside the capital city, refuting the rumors with facts and reason, and calming the people down.
At the same time, she actively negotiated with envoys from some neighboring countries.
In the magnificent palace, Chen Xiao faced the envoys from various countries with a firm gaze and sharp words. She meticulously analyzed the neighboring country's conspiracy, exposing their ugly face of trying to take advantage of the internal strife in the night to divide up the benefits.
She used her wisdom and eloquence to win the support of international public opinion.
Thanks to her tireless efforts, some countries that had initially adopted a wait-and-see attitude have declared their neutrality and will no longer be enemies of Yechao.
This undoubtedly gave Yechao a brief respite in the complex international situation.
Through this series of trials, although Ye Chao also suffered losses, it also united everyone, and the young people, led by Chen Xiao, gradually grew in the face of adversity.
During the War of Resistance Against Japan, some backward villages were filled with the scars of war, with ruins and wreckage everywhere, and the villagers were immersed in grief over the loss of their loved ones and homes.
However, at the same time, the Night Dynasty's army was tempered in the flames of war, the soldiers became more valiant and skilled in battle, and the generals' command abilities were also improved.
The nation's cohesion was stronger than ever during the crisis, and the people spontaneously contributed to rebuilding their homes.
Yuan Yin and Xu Ruyan's relationship also became more unbreakable under the baptism of war.
During their brief time together, all they could see were their concern and worries for each other.
No words are needed; a single glance can convey boundless love and support.
They became great heroes in the hearts of the people of Yechao.
On cold nights, many villagers sit around campfires, recounting their stories.
It tells the story of the Xu brothers' heroic command at sea and Yuan Yin and Chen Xiao's outstanding performance on the battlefield and in the rear.
These stories, like warm flames, give each other the courage and strength to face war.
...
Three months later, as the situation gradually stabilized, they began to plan the reconstruction of the Yechao border and the restoration of its former prosperity.
Chen Xiao discussed reconstruction plans with the court officials. In her mind, blueprints gradually took shape, including plans for port restoration, merchant ship reconstruction, and farmland reclamation.
To ensure the feasibility of the plan, she also consulted with Xu Qian and invited local gentry and business representatives to participate in the discussion and brainstorm ideas.
Yuan Yin, Xu Ruyan, and Qi Yanyun went deep into the countryside to organize the people to carry out self-rescue and mutual assistance.
They encouraged women to spin and weave, men to rebuild houses, and children to help deliver supplies.
Through their joint efforts, the war-torn border region of Yechao is gradually regaining its vitality, like a pearl reborn from ruins, about to shine brightly once again.