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Inside Pingyang City, Jia Qu had completely lost the polished appearance of a scion of a scholar-official family.
His usual headpiece was nowhere to be seen; his hair was simply secured with a wooden hairpin. His former silk robes had been swapped for a set of worn, ragged leather armor. Due to a mixture of mud and sweat, the collar of his white inner garment had turned a complete yellow-black. His face was smeared with grease and grime...
But these external changes were not the most troublesome part. The worst was the dire situation they now faced. Pingyang was not like a typical city with standard defensive supplies. Over these past few days of defense, Jia Qu had not only used up the logs painstakingly collected from the surrounding trees to serve as hurled timber but had also begun employing discarded bricks and stones from within the city—anything usable had been put to use...
Yet even these resources were about to be exhausted!
One couldn't very well throw the city's yellow earth at people, could they?!
Jia Qu truly had never imagined the situation would deteriorate to this point.
In his original plan, the idea was to have Ma Yue outside the city launch a surprise attack while the White Wave forces were wholly focused on the assault. Caught between two fronts, the undisciplined White Wave army would inevitably fall into chaos. A single counter-attack would then likely throw the White Wave into utter disarray, after which further actions could be taken based on the specific circumstances...
Moreover, once the White Wave's momentum was broken, even if they couldn't be completely defeated in one stroke, at the very least, they would have Ma Yue's cavalry harassing from outside and his own heavy infantry assisting in the city's defense from within. The city's food supplies were ample. Holding out for ten days wouldn't be a problem; even fifteen days seemed feasible!
But he hadn't accounted for the Xiongnu's sudden arrival completely disrupting everything.
Ma Yue was defeated, his entire force routed. It was like having one of Jia Qu's arms severed. Now he could only resist with the single arm left inside the city. How could he not be in a sorry state?
Furthermore, such a blow wasn't just a setback for Ma Yue; it also severely damaged the morale of the troops under Jia Qu's command within the city. Fortunately, a sudden, torrential downpour had granted Jia Qu some slight respite.
Taking advantage of the heavy rain, Jia Qu regrouped his forces, communicated with and encouraged every squad leader and platoon commander, arranged for soldiers to organize the remaining defensive equipment...
It rained the entire day. Yet Jia Qu moved through the city in the pouring rain, coordinating arrangements and handling affairs in an orderly manner, utterly disregarding his completely drenched state. Seeing this, the soldiers gradually began to set aside their preconceptions about his youth and grew more willing to follow his arrangements.
But Jia Qu understood clearly in his heart. While things were relatively calm now, it was only temporary. The sky had cleared, and the porridge-like yellow mud was gradually drying. At the latest by tomorrow, the White Wave Army would certainly launch a new offensive...
The most dreaded scenario in city defense was defending a completely isolated city.
And the problem they faced now was precisely that—defending an isolated city.
He, Jia Qu, had pledged a military order to hold for ten days. But even counting today, only six days had passed. What about the remaining four?
He had to hold on, no matter what. He had given his word, and he must see it through.
Lord Fei treated me with sincerity; I shall repay him with faithfulness!
Jia Qu's greatest worry now was that the White Wave forces would have no bottom line and would force commoners to join their siege, mingling them among their ranks. Adding a yellow cloth strip was far too easy. If a crowd of people wearing yellow strips contained a dozen or so enemy soldiers, should they kill them or not?
In the heat of battle, there was no time for careful distinction. These commoners, unless pushed to their absolute limit by the White Wave soldiers, were mostly in a state of blind obedience...
Though he understood in his heart that they would ultimately have no choice but to strike down the commoners along with the enemy, killing required strength. And he only had so many soldiers on hand; their strength was ultimately finite...
He could only hope the White Wave forces wouldn't sink that low, though Jia Qu knew this hope was unlikely to be realized...
××××××××××××××
Below Xiangling City, Han Xian and Li Le stood together, facing the White Wave soldiers.
To one side, over a dozen large cauldrons were lined up. Fierce fires licked their bottoms. Unidentifiable chunks of meat tumbled in the boiling liquid. A strange, pervasive odor hung in the air, lingering...
Han Xian might not understand anything called "human nature," but after surviving years of bloody conflict and witnessing endless life and death, he had seen too much. He understood the predicament he now faced.
Everything was now being sustained by a single, desperate breath of resolve. If Han Xian and Li Le uttered even one word of "retreat," it would instantly unleash a torrent, like a mudslide rolling down a mountainside, sweeping away all the soldiers they currently commanded in an instant!
Their grain and fodder had long since run out.
Although many of the commoners they had initially forced into their ranks had been taken away after Fei Qian's previous raid, the remaining combat troops still had to eat!
Without food, how could they have the strength to assault the city?
Therefore, they had no choice but to select some of the "two-legged sheep" from among the coerced commoners, slaughter them, and throw them into the pots...
But this act utterly shattered the morale of the remaining commoners. They now looked upon the White Wave soldiers as if they were sworn enemies. Organizing them for the siege was no longer as smooth as before. After merely driving them forward once, these commoners, upon reaching the base of the city walls, were incited to defect by the shouts of the city's defenders...
Who knew who might be next in the pot?!
A chaotic melee erupted immediately. The enemy soldiers mixed among the commoners were beaten to death. The remaining commoners were hauled up into the city by large baskets lowered by Wang Yi's men, one by one.
Although there was chaos and scrambling as the baskets were being raised, under the commands from the city walls, order was quickly restored. The people lined up separately along the wall; when a basket reached someone, they got in. Anyone who fought for a spot was shot dead immediately...
When the second wave of White Wave soldiers advanced, the baskets were naturally pulled back up. Incited by the shouts and encouragement from Xiangling's defenders, these remaining commoners, fighting for even the chance that a basket might be lowered again, clashed desperately with the White Wave combat troops, all dying beneath the city walls.
The White Wave combat troops gained nothing and suffered significant losses for nothing.
Therefore, any further attempt to capture Xiangling City could now only rely on these original White Wave veterans who had seen blood.
Han Xian stood upon a raised platform, looking down at the soldiers below. Summoning all his strength, he shouted: "This thieving heaven! This world, this age! It's either you eat others, or others eat you! Bring a bowl!"
Han Xian took a wooden bowl and walked to the side, to one of the large cauldrons. Reaching directly into the boiling pot, he scooped out a bowl of the meat broth. He blew on it slightly, and his gaze fell upon a severed finger floating within the liquid. The muscles on his face twitched several times. Even though this wasn't the first time he had eaten this, seeing such a sight felt as if someone had violently squeezed his internal organs; his entire stomach convulsed sharply.
Holding the bowl, Han Xian steeled his heart once more. Then, disregarding everything, he tipped the bowl to his lips and gulped down large mouthfuls, chewing a couple of times before swallowing!
"Only by taking Xiangling will we have flatbreads, will we have millet, will we have food! Only then will we have everything!"
Han Xian's voice cracked as he shouted: "All of you, step forward, one bowl each! And then—assault the city!"