“My third younger sister and fourth younger sister-in-law are assisting on the city wall. If they’re not afraid, how can I be afraid?”
Pingcheng had a shortage of defenders. Princess Xu enlisted young and strong individuals from various families to aid on the city wall. Concubine Guo, Yin Hui, Wei Ying, and Fu Shan all participated. Initially, Yin Hui had intended to join them, but Princess Xu assigned her a solo task. Since the Liaodong army besieged the city, Princess Xu seldom returned to the palace. She entrusted housework to Xu Qingwan and tasked Yin Hui with looking after the children. Even Fu Shan entrusted Ba Lang, not yet a year old, to her care.
Yin Hui spent the day tending to the children. With Ba Lang asleep and the other children in the studying hall, she found time to make clothes.
Naturally, she felt no fear, knowing her father-in-law and Wei Luo would arrive in time.
Although the battle occurred several months earlier than in the previous life, subsequent events mirrored those of the past.
Ji Xianxian, unlike Yin Hui, couldn’t sit still. Observing Yin Hui engrossed in making clothes, she sought out her mother-in-law, Concubine Li. As expected, ten days after King Yan’s departure, Lu Long received the news. He abandoned dealing with the remaining Yan army and led a force of three hundred thousand troops to Pingcheng.
—–
Once the three hundred thousand troops were mobilized, Wei Luo and Feng Su, who only had more than sixty thousand people, could only chase after them. They were ready to respond to King Yan or Pingcheng at any time, but they couldn’t rush up to head-on.
After the heavy snow in Pingcheng, Lu Long and Wu Jian successfully joined forces outside Pingcheng, with a total of three hundred thousand troops.
Seeing Wu Jian, Lu Long sarcastically said, “I have long heard that Pingcheng is a heavy fortress in the north, but now that I see it, it really deserves its reputation. Even the brave Liaodong Army can’t attack it.”
Wu Jian’s eye muscles twitched, and he responded, “If Duke Guo is here to lend support, does that mean he has already captured King Yan? Presumably, it’s true; King Yan only commands a force of just over one hundred thousand horses. How could he be your opponent?”
Lu Long puffed out his chest, snorted, stroked his beard, and surveyed Pingcheng standing amidst the snow-covered ground. “Our army will take a brief rest today and launch the attack on the city tomorrow morning!”
There were nine gates in Pingcheng, and each gate had only more than a thousand people stationed, so he sent more than forty thousand people to each gate to attack. Could they still fail?
Lu Long had always been arrogant and self-willed. When he mentioned that siege tactic, his generals did not say a word. First, they felt that Lu Long would not listen to what they wanted to say. Secondly, they believed the tactic could indeed capture Pingcheng, ensuring victory in the end.
Wu Jian attempted to speak several times, but he couldn’t shake off Lu Long’s taunt. He had tried to attack Pingcheng for twenty days without breaking its defenses.
Therefore, in the early morning of the next day, the five hundred thousand troops of the Imperial Court actually divided into nine groups to attack the city gate.
On the city wall, Wei Yang looked at the densely packed army, coming from all directions like ants, and his face turned pale.
Princess Xu stood beside him and smiled instead.
If an army of five hundred thousand troops attacked one side of the city gate together, it would take less than half a day to break through Pingcheng. Dividing the troops would make it more difficult to attack the city.
Although there were only ten thousand troops defending Pingcheng, there were more than two hundred thousand people in the city. Under the call of Princess Xu, these men and women were either holding swords and weapons, or holding their own kitchen knives and hoes. The city guards manned the walls separately, beating down any imperial soldiers who managed to climb up.
Lu Long’s first siege ended in failure.
On the second day, Lu Long went to attack the city again. Generals of the Yan Army, including Wei Luo and Feng Su, led three cavalry to attack.
On the third day, Lu Long specially reserved soldiers and horses to guard against the sneak attack of the Yan Army. The army continued to attack the city in nine routes. As a result, the soldiers ran to the foot of Pingcheng city with the ladders, but they saw a thick layer of ice on the city wall at some point. It was slippery everywhere. When they just put up the ladder, the Yan Army on the city wall pushed the ladder lightly and it fell down.
It was only later that Lu Long discovered that it was Princess Xu and Wei Yang who asked people to keep pouring water on the city wall. It was already late October, and the dripping water turned into ice.
Because of that layer of ice, Lu Long’s army was blocked for another four or five days. On that day, the army finally broke through one side of the gate of Pingcheng. Before Lu Long could order the whole army to attack, someone came to report that King Yan had returned.
Lu Long’s heart tightened, and out of fear of King Yan, he immediately ordered the army to withdraw for ten miles.
When King Yan returned, he not only brought back the twenty thousand elite soldiers who had accompanied him to Jin but also arrived with a total of one hundred fifty thousand cavalry from Duke of Jin, Li Chao, and the three guards.
Observing Lu Long’s retreat, King Yan pondered for a moment and instructed Liao Shisan to send Li Chao’s wife, concubines, and children to Pingcheng first, entrusting Princess Xu with their well-being.
Following the order, Liao Shisan led a contingent of soldiers and horses, escorting several carriages in the middle.
Duke Li Chao of the State of Jin rode on his horse. Observing the carriages heading toward Pingcheng, he seized the reins and addressed King Yan, “I will assist you in achieving great things. Please honor your promise and protect my wife and children.”
King Yan responded with a smile, “Fear not, Brother. I was compelled by circumstances to make this regrettable move. Fortunately, you value love; otherwise, you’d choose death over surrender. I could only let your wife and children go; I wouldn’t truly harm them.”
Li Chao’s lips twitched, choosing to pretend that what the prince said was indeed true.