Chapter Fifty: Arrival at the Gates of Shan County City

The night was slowly falling, and Pang Zhong was riding a large black horse at the head of the formation.

Ahead of him was only a vanguard camp of five hundred men. Such a marching arrangement carried a fairly high risk; if they were to encounter an ambush by the rebel forces, Pang Zhong, as the commander of the vanguard, would likely find himself immediately surrounded. Yet, all the way here, Pang Zhong, filled with a bold spirit and a desire to wash away the humiliation of the defeat at Lingbao with a massive victory, had continued to march in this manner. He had indeed factored in the possibility of a rebel ambush: the vanguard camp was advancing in intervals of hundred-man units, so if they were ambushed or subjected to a sudden attack by the rebels, the five thousand men on his left and right would rapidly deploy their formations and charge in.

During the advance, Pang Zhong continuously received reports sent back by scouts and other soldiers regarding conditions along the route and whether enemy scouts had appeared ahead. Most of the rebel scouts in the direction of the advancing main army had been dealt with by the soldiers of the Special Training Camp, and a few lucky ones who slipped through the net were also eliminated by the elite scouts dispatched by Pang Zhong. Judging from the feedback from all sides, up to now, the rebel forces had not discovered the movement of their army, and there were no unusual activities within the city of Shanzhou; the rebels had neither reinforced their defenses nor sent out troops to intercept them.

Perhaps this was solely because the commanding general, Cui Qianyou, was not inside the city. If Cui Qianyou had been outside the city, Pang Zhong believed the rebels would not have remained so indifferent. Although no precise intelligence had been transmitted back to Shanzhou city, the fact that a large number of scouts sent out by the city had failed to return was in itself an abnormal situation. The unexplained disappearance and failure of numerous scouts to return to the city could only mean that they had been eliminated by the opposing force, and the enemy's main army was about to arrive.

An experienced military commander would certainly have already made preparations in response.

Upon receiving the news that the rebel forces had not made any major moves, Pang Zhong could not express how fortunate he felt. He truly admired Yang Xi's decisiveness in handling matters, daring to go against convention and immediately deciding to lead the main army out of the pass to launch an offensive upon receiving the intelligence that Cui Qianyou had left Shanzhou, preparing to capture this gateway out of Tongguan. Pang Zhong believed that had he been in command, he could never have made such a decision so swiftly and ordered the army out of the pass on the very same day. He would surely have submitted an urgent report to the imperial court, waited for its approval, and then mobilized and made arrangements. For the entire army to be ready and set out by the third day after the order was issued would already have been considered quite remarkable.

What kind of efficiency was this?

It seemed that Heaven was surely favoring the Great Tang and favoring him, granting a defeated general like himself the opportunity to avenge his past humiliation and achieve military merit.

"General, eight li ahead is Shanzhou city! The rebel forces have already discovered the movements of our grand army!"

Just as Pang Zhong was periodically lost in his thoughts while spurring his horse forward, a soldier rapidly ran up to him and reported the situation in a loud voice.

"Understood!" Pang Zhong gave a brief acknowledgment and immediately ordered the entire army of soldiers to quicken their pace, arrive beneath the walls of Shanzhou as soon as possible, and deploy into an attacking formation. That their movements were discovered by the rebel forces did not come as a surprise to Pang Zhong, but to be detected only when they were a mere eight li away from Shanzhou was indeed quite unexpected—it could be considered a stroke of great fortune.

A distance of eight li could be traversed in very little time, leaving the rebels with precious little time to prepare.

Once the rebels discovered their army appearing before the walls of Shanzhou, they would undoubtedly be utterly shocked. In their haste, the defensive deployment they hastily cobbled together certainly would not be comprehensive. If his army launched an attack before the rebels could establish a thorough defense, the results would surely be magnificent.

Upon issuing the order, Pang Zhong immediately had someone notify Yang Xi, who was trailing about seven or eight li behind, while he himself whipped his horse into a fast gallop.

Cui Qianyou had been summoned back to Luoyang by An Lushan, who intended to lead his army back to Fanyang to guard his old base, in order to discuss military strategy.

The situation was shifting in a direction unfavorable to their side, as the Tang army harbored intentions of launching a rapid attack on Fanyang or cutting off the courier route. After receiving reports from all directions and discussing the matter with his officials for several days, An Lushan finally made up his mind to personally lead a force of one hundred thousand men to reinforce Fanyang, preventing any mishap there and safeguarding the security of the courier route between Fanyang and Luoyang. At the same time, he ordered the Crown Prince, An Qingxu, to remain behind to guard Luoyang, leaving behind a large group of capable ministers and valiant generals to assist in its defense.

An Lushan was also preparing to summon his principal ministers and generals to deliberate on the specific situation, and Cui Qianyou, who was leading troops to garrison Shanzhou, was likewise recalled to Luoyang by An Lushan and An Qingxu.

After the Battle of Tongguan yielded no decisive result, the main army had retreated to garrison Shanzhou, stationing troops in numerous locations to strictly guard against attacks by the Tang army. Yet, months passed without the slightest movement from the Tang army, which merely shrank back within the walls of Tongguan and showed no sign of taking the initiative to sally forth. Whether it was An Lushan, An Qingxu, or Cui Qianyou guarding Shanzhou, all believed that the Tang army would take the lesson of the defeat at Lingbao to heart, choosing solely to defend rather than attack, and would never venture out of the pass to fight. Eventually, Cui Qianyou even dismantled some of the defensive positions, and upon receiving the order from An Lushan and An Qingxu summoning him to Luoyang for consultations, he departed with a peace of mind. However, before leaving Shanzhou, Cui Qianyou did make certain arrangements: the entire line fell back to defend Shanzhou proper, leaving no defensive deployments outside the city walls.

He believed that even if the Tang army sent troops to attack, relying on the tall and sturdy walls of Shanzhou, the Tang army could do nothing about it. Moreover, he had enforced a strict news blackout; aside from a few trusted generals, no one else knew that he had left Shanzhou and gone to Luoyang.

After Cui Qianyou's departure, military affairs were left in the hands of his deputy, Li Ling.

Li Ling likewise believed that the Tang army was incapable of actively attacking Shanzhou; they simply lacked the capability.

However, the news that arrived at dinnertime on the fourth day after Cui Qianyou's departure left him utterly dumbfounded.

"General! Outside the walls of Shanzhou city, a massive force of Tang troops has appeared—numbering in the tens of thousands!"

"What?" Li Ling, who was drinking wine and eating meat with two deputies, sprang to his feet in a fright, knocking over the wine flagon on the table before him without paying the slightest heed. "The Tang army is actually launching an active offensive against Shanzhou..."

"The Tang army is actually preparing to launch a surprise attack on Shanzhou?" Li Ling's deputy, Chen Huan, was also stunned into a daze.

Being a seasoned commander tempered by numerous battles, Li Ling snapped back to reality instantly. With a kick, he overturned the wine table in front of him, drew the saber at his waist with a resounding clank, and bolted straight outside. "Order all soldiers of the army to ready themselves for battle and strictly guard against the Tang army's siege!"

Following Li Ling's commands, the entire city of Shanzhou was thrown into chaos in an instant. Pandemonium reigned everywhere with chickens flying and dogs jumping, while the frantic shouts of men and the neighing of horses could be heard across the streets.

Li Ling led several deputies and personal guards in a rapid ascent of the western gate of Shanzhou city. One look at the scenery outside the walls caused him to draw a sharp breath of cold air.

Countless torches were ignited outside Shanzhou city, densely packed and stretching beyond the horizon, with successive waves of torches continually converging upon the scene. The Tang army had halted about one li away from the city, and numerous Tang soldiers were busily bustling about. From the looks of it, they were assembling siege engines such as catapults.

Knowing that the Tang army would launch a siege any moment, Li Ling issued orders once more, commanding the soldiers throughout the city to prepare themselves and throw their full strength into repelling the Tang army's assault. At the same time, he swiftly ordered soldiers to ride out of the city and dispatch an urgent report to Luoyang, hoping to catch up with Cui Qianyou and have this deputy commander-in-chief return to take charge of the situation in Shanzhou.