With that in mind, who would still be willing to take on such a grueling task?
And the only one who could spur them into action, to coordinate as much as possible, was the emperor himself.
At this ti, the stringent imperial edict had completely halted all their actions.
In the beginning, these troops assembled for the King’s defense might have hesitated, but as information from various sources arrived, they finally began to act.
The Western Army not only didn’t collapse in the field battle against the Jin soldiers, but they even gained the upper hand;
The Jin soldiers temporarily retreated, seemingly intending to withdraw to their camp at Moutuo Ridge;
Other troops rallied for the King’s defense have also started moving, and though it was not clear if it was in compliance with the imperial edict, at least they were no longer motionless as mountains...
All this information, together with the harsh imperial edict and an emperor known for executing entire families if threatened, eventually moved these troops, forming a massive encirclent.
They surrounded the Jin soldiers who had withdrawn into the camp at Moutuo Ridge!
The Deputy Generals from the Western Army took on responsibilities akin to those of a Lord Governor.
Besides helping these main generals set up camp and arrange defenses, they had two other important duties: one was to ensure these troops held their positions at all costs, with deserters executed on the spot; the other was to analyze the current battlefield situation with these generals, making them understand that a desperate fight at this ti could lead to great rewards.
...
At this mont, within the ranks of the rallying troops.
Commander Wang Jianxiong imdiately knelt in salute, "General Liu!"
Liu Fa quickly helped him up, "General Wang, please dispense with formalities. You are the earliest among the troops assembled for the King’s defense to arrive here, your loyalty to the court is evident. My visit this ti is also by His Majesty’s command to reward the troops.
"Bring up the rewards for the troops!"
Soon after, a large chest was carried forward, filled to the brim with neatly arrayed gold and jewels.
Wang Jianxiong’s own rank wasn’t high, and he didn’t bring many troops with him, just over ten thousand n.
However, he was the first to arrive among all the troops gathered for the King’s defense. Although he had not yet played a significant role in the great battle against the Jin soldiers so far, his loyalty was beyond question.
Therefore, Liu Fa, leading a contingent of close guards, made his way among the gathered troops to reward them, starting with Wang Jianxiong’s n.
In real history, during the second siege of the capital, Wang Jianxiong did indeed arrive, but ultimately unable to hold out against the Jin soldiers, his forces quickly perished. But now, with the various troops for the King’s defense arriving in droves, he would play an unmistakable role.
During the entire Jingping Rebellion, the capital was besieged twice, spaced about ten months apart.
On the first siege, there were at least four to five hundred thousand troops rallied for the King’s defense, so the Jin soldiers retreated; but for the second siege, a re forty thousand rallied troops arrived before and after, which was a key reason for the Jingping Rebellion.
As for where these troops went during the second siege?
The reasons behind that are quite complex.
On one hand, the betrayal of Taiyuan led to the Jin’s Western Army overtaking Taiyuan and then directly cutting off Tong Pass, preventing the Western Army from arriving in ti to assist, while various other Rebel Armies were blocked by the Jin for different reasons.
On the other hand, it was because Prince Nine, later Emperor Gaozong of Qi, while serving as the Grand Commander over the military affairs of Hebei, congregated troops from the surrounding areas and simply did not allow them to rally for the King’s defense.
These troops assembled for the King’s defense were all under the control of Prince Nine, the Grand Commander over Hebei’s military affairs, and without his orders, they dared not move.
In addition, Emperor Yingzong of Qi’s orders changed from day to night; at tis he directed the troops to co to the capital, other tis told them to withdraw, stating that peace talks had been successful, and on the journey, he did not ensure their grain and military supplies, leaving it up to the local governnts to arrange by themselves. Moreover, during the second siege of the capital, the Jin forces arrived too swiftly and Emperor Yingzong was completely unprepared, so the troops assembled for the King’s defense could not arrive in ti...
All these reasons combined, led to the Qi Dynasty having practically no troops able to fight during the second siege of the capital.
However, in this slice of history where Fan Cun is present, all that has changed.
Taiyuan still stands, and the main force of the Western Army has been led by Fan Cun directly to the capital ahead of ti, so there was no issue of being cut off by the Jin soldiers;
Prince Nine did not beco the Grand Commander over Hebei’s military affairs, so the various troops rallied for the King’s defense were still able to arrive;
Although not many troops assembled for the King’s defense were able to reach the capital in ti during the Jin’s encirclent, Fan Cun, with the elite Western Army, had relieved the siege of the capital and stood against the Jin for a while. During this period, the troops for the King’s defense naturally arrived one after another.
In conclusion, at this ti, the Qi Dynasty’s military strength had a comprehensive advantage in numbers, otherwise they would not have been able to subtly encircle the Jin forces at Moutuo Ridge.
As for the supply of military provisions and rewards, that could naturally be resolved as well.
Originally, the capital was the hub of convenient waterways for transportation. The previous lack of grain was due to the Jin’s siege, which stopped the transport of food. But now that the Jin had retreated to Moutuo Ridge, the grain could naturally be delivered.
Regarding rewards, Fan Cun had confiscated the hos of so many officials in the capital, so it was easy to allocate so gold, silver, and treasures to reward the soldiers.
The two n sat down in the military tent, and Wang Jianxiong asked, "General Liu, your recent crushing defeat of the Jin soldiers has truly boosted the morale of our troops! But as the commander-in-chief, isn’t it inappropriate for you to co personally to reward the troops at this ti?"
Liu Fa smiled, shaking his head slightly, "My visit this ti is not solely to reward the troops.
"It is also to discuss the stakes at hand, to ensure that all the troops assembled for the King’s defense advance and retreat together. In this battle, we shall completely obliterate the Jin soldiers and eradicate future troubles!
"As for the military camp... with His Majesty personally overseeing it, what’s there to worry about?"
Indeed, the idea for Liu Fa to reward the troops was proposed by Emperor Taizu of Sheng.
Emperor Taizu was well aware that although victorious now and seemingly having established an encirclent, this cordon was too fragile, almost crumbling upon touch.
To defeat these Jin soldiers, this was clearly not enough.
It was for this reason that the Jin soldiers had not yet realized the severity of the situation and still thought they could break out at any ti.
Thus, Emperor Taizu sent Liu Fa to the midst of these troops gathered for the King’s defense; on one hand, to evaluate their condition, to build their confidence and boost their spirits, and on the other hand, to identify and rectify any gaps promptly, potentially filling the holes in the encirclent with a portion of the Western Army’s forces.
To tie all these troops together, it had to be soone of sufficient importance; otherwise these troops might verbally agree but fail to act in practice.
There was no one more suitable for this role than Liu Fa.
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