Yanchi Pass was a city on the southernmost edge of the desert that lay just at the end of the seemingly endless sands. Traveling half a day past it would take one out of the vast desert, where the vibrant sights of the Grand Ruen would unfurl like a gradually unfolding painting.
Yanchi Pass was southwest of the North Suppressing, North Defending, and North Watching Passes. If those three passes were ever to fall, Yanchi Pass would assume the heavy responsibility of being the Ruen Dynasty’s primary border fortress.
Due to the strategic location of the Yanchi Pass, the Ruen Dynasty had invested significant manpower and resources to make it a true border stronghold. Compared to the Yanchi Pass, the North Watching Pass was like a sandcastle constructed by children.
Yanchi Pass was bordered by the three frontier passes to the east and the Jibei and Ningye provinces to the south, which made it an incredibly crucial stronghold geographically.
If Yanchi Pass fell, the gates of the Ruen Dynasty would be completely open, allowing their enemies to come and go as they pleased. For this reason, the Ruen Dynasty placed great importance on it.
Luckily, thanks to the three frontier passes, the Northern Qiang’s annual skirmishes never made it as far as Yanchi Pass. In recent years, Yanchi Pass simply served as a supply depot and a hub for troop rotations.
With its nearly ten-foot-tall walls, abundant provisions, and a permanent garrison of twenty thousand soldiers, Yanchi Pass was more than capable of defending itself.
The years of peace were shattered today. As the vice commander of Yanchi Pass, Lu Shuo held the most authority there aside from the chief commander. Especially now, when the commander was absent, the twenty-thousand-strong garrison fell entirely under his jurisdiction.
Lu Shuo always considered himself different from the idle playboys who wasted their lives in the capital... He was a man willing to go to the battlefield. Although he owed his position to his father, who was the Vice Minister of War, he nonetheless believed himself to be braver than those spoiled children of nobility.
Lu Shuo had always thought of himself as a hardened soldier, just like the veterans who had survived bloody battles... even if he had never actually fought one.
Since Yanchi Pass was protected by the three frontier passes, there was little chance for the war to reach him. Yanchi Pass was also rich in resources due to the priority the Imperial Court placed on it. This was why his father and the Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, Lu Qiaoshen, had been comfortable placing him here.
Until today, Lu Shuo was confident in his situation near the frontline. However, he now felt like the sky was falling.
Lu Shuo was already standing atop the wall when a few city guards rushed over to report the changing situation to him. No report was necessary by then; the mass of Northern Qiang troops surrounding them stretched as far as the eye could see, visible to anyone who was willing to use their eyes.
If this were a normal situation, Lu Shuo might have begun strategizing about how he could use the twenty thousand garrisoned troops to hold the city. But with the Northern Qiang host arrayed against them...
"Damn it..." Lu Shuo swore under his breath.
Just two days ago, the imperial court ordered the chief commander and the majority of Yanchi Pass's twenty-thousand-strong army to reinforce the North Suppressing Pass. Now only two thousand defenders were left to safeguard Yanchi Pass.
But why was the Northern Qiang army here? What about the three frontier cities? Wasn’t the fighting supposed to be there? And the imperial army... had they been defeated?
There was no time left for Lu Shuo to ponder this. Yanchi Pass stood alone on the vast desert plain, swarmed by countless Northern Qiang soldiers from the north, east, and west. Only the south side had fewer enemy troops, perhaps because the city had yet to be fully encircled.
To Lu Shuo, Yanchi Pass seemed like a piece of meat, and the Northern Qiang soldiers, like countless ants, surging forward endlessly to devour it.
In the distance, a deep horn sounded... It was the signal for the Northern Qiang to attack.
One of his lieutenants shouted in Lu Shuo’s ear, "Vice Commander! Give the order! Vice Commander... are we going to fight or not?"
To fight or not? Lu Shuo snapped out of his daze and saw the endless mass of Northern Qiang soldiers flooding beneath the walls.
He screamed his first order, "Retreat! Retreat now! Retreat through the southern gate!"
What could two thousand troops do against an army of a million? Lu Shuo felt that he was still relatively sane. He knew he might face charges for abandoning the battle without a fight, which might even put his father’s career in jeopardy. But no matter what, Lu Shuo thought, It was better than dying here at Yanchi Pass!
The southern gate of Yanchi Pass swung open suddenly, and two thousand cavalry charged out. Lu Shuo rode in the middle of the cavalry formation, flanked by his two personal guards. The Northern Qiang forces that were attacking the city were mainly infantry that lacked the heavy armor and defenses necessary to withstand the cavalry’s onslaught.
Some Northern Qiang infantry were scattered at the first clash. Only a few of the cavalry at the edges of the formation were knocked from their horses and immediately slain by the fearless Northern Qiang spearmen.
By the time the cavalry had broken entirely free of the Northern Qiang encirclement, the two thousand remaining Ruen Dynasty soldiers had dwindled to less than three hundred.
"We... we made it out?" Lu Shuo’s left arm bore a deep wound to the bone, a parting gift from a Northern Qiang soldier. Only now did the fear on his face lessen slightly. He could hardly believe it himself... he had led two thousand men through tens of thousands of soldiers. How had they survived?
"This doesn’t seem right..." One of his guards, soaked in blood, frowned deeply.
The other guard turned from his horse and looked at the distant Yanchi Pass, which had been swallowed by the mass of soldiers. Surprisingly, no Northern Qiang troops were pursuing them.
After a moment’s thought, the guard spoke, "Vice Commander, something doesn’t seem right... The Northern Qiang aren’t chasing us. It’s as if they intentionally let us escape. But... why?"
Lu Shuo was taken aback. Even though his position came from his father’s influence, he was no fool. He was genuinely intelligent, which was why he’d been stationed at Yanchi Pass. He thought back carefully over the events and finally pieced it together.
After a pause, he murmured, "Indeed... I should have realized earlier. The troops at the south gate weren’t numerous, but it wouldn’t have been difficult for them to stop us either. The resistance we faced wasn’t as strong as expected."
Another one of his guards nodded. "If they intended to let us go... that would explain why the forces at the south gate were noticeably lighter than at the other gates."
The other guard asked, "But... but why would they want to let us escape?"
"It’s not that they wanted to let us escape... heh heh..." Lu Shuo’s raspy voice drifted out. "They feared we’d be cornered and lash out desperately..."
The two guards looked at him to see his pale face as he slowly turned to look at them.
"Lash out?" One of the guards frowned, thinking over his commander's words. "But even if we fought desperately, we couldn’t hold the city."
"Heh... Even if we fought to the death, it would be useless..." Lu Shuo’s body wavered, and he let out a bitter laugh. "We couldn’t hold the city, but... but we would burn the grain."
Both guards drew in a sharp breath.
Everyone knew that for decades, Northern Qiang had failed to break into the Ruen Dynasty not only because of the inhospitable desert border, but primarily because of chronic grain shortages for a sustained invasion.
With empty eyes, Lu Shuo gazed at the distant Yanchi Pass, which he had surrendered with his own hands. "We have become traitors to the Ruen Dynasty."