Winter gave way to spring, and the weather grew warmer day by day.
Receiving good news one after another, Xiao Ming’s mood brightened considerably. He left the General Staff Department, with Niu Ben and Luo Quan following him, responding with affirmations as they walked.
It was clear that conquering the six cities in a short time was impossible. War needed time. This vast northeastern land, from south to north, would take months to traverse in a circle.
However, precisely because of this vast area, if the entire Northeast were under the Great Yu Empire’s control, its rich resources and land would provide significant assistance to the Great Yu Empire’s industry.
The three ascended the steps to the Shanhai Pass city wall. Niu Ben continued to ask, “Your Majesty, if that’s the case, what about Qi Guangyi?”
“The barbarians have just suffered a defeat and are surely in a panic, with no intention of attacking Qi Guangyi. Moreover, with Luo Hong’s men there, Qi Guangyi now has an impregnable camp. This way, there’s no need to worry about supplies or retreat routes. So, let him remain in Jinzhou to continue disrupting the barbarians’ spring plowing. However, this time, he can expand his range a bit and plunder further afield,” Xiao Ming said.
Luo Quan also said, “That’s right. Moreover, Liaozhou and Pingzhou are both in our hands. Qi Guangyi can also go to these two cities at any time. Thus, with these three places connected, the barbarians’ days will be even harder.”
With that, the three burst into laughter simultaneously.
Having settled the strategy for occupying the Northeast, Xiao Ming, Niu Ben, and Luo Quan, protected by imperial guards, set off for Pingzhou City at noon that day. At the same time, Xiao Ming had the accompanying newspaper reporters send news of the great victory in Pingzhou City back to Qingzhou Province.
This war had stirred the hearts of countless people throughout the court. It was time for them to cheer.
The next day at noon, Xiao Ming and his entourage arrived at Pingzhou City.
After a day of busy work, the Pingzhou battlefield was basically cleared, and apart from the bloodstains on the ground, everything was back to normal.
Learning of Xiao Ming’s arrival in Pingzhou, Lu Fei and the other two were already waiting outside the city.
“We, your humble servants, greet Your Majesty.”
In front of the still-being-repaired city gate, Lu Fei and the other two bowed.
“Dispense with the formalities!”
Xiao Ming looked at the trenches in front of the city gate. This scene made him frown.
In cold weapon warfare, armies rarely used trenches, but it was not unprecedented in history. After all, the trenches dug by the barbarians now were in no way comparable to the trenches of World War I.
For Xiao Ming, this was merely similar to the Battle of the Trench in 627 AD.
In that year, the Bedouin tribe of Ghatafan and the Jewish mercenaries of Khaybar, led by Abu Sufyan, besieged Medina.
Despite the vast disparity in numbers, the defenders, led by Muhammad, organized the defense by digging trenches around the outskirts of Medina, successfully thwarting the enemy’s cavalry and infantry siege of the city.
Therefore, in his opinion, it was not surprising that this method was taught to the barbarians by the British. After all, historically, Europe had been entangled in that region for a long time.
“So these are the barbarians’ trenches?” Xiao Ming said with emotion.
Lu Fei nodded, “Precisely. If not for these trenches hindering our advance, we wouldn’t have taken Pingzhou City in such a short time.”
“Did you see any British people in this battle?” Xiao Ming asked.
“Yes, I did. Initially, this British man remained hidden in Pingzhou City, but when we entered the city, we saw him fleeing frantically on horseback. This person looked very different from the barbarians; there’s no mistake.” Lu Fei said decisively.
Lu Fei’s words once again confirmed that the British were involved in the war between the Great Yu Empire and the barbarians. This was nothing less than a provocation for him. Because of the British’s malice, he had now paid a higher price than ever before to defeat the barbarians.
Clenching his fists tightly, Xiao Ming gritted his teeth. When he stabilized East Asia, that would be the time for him to engage in battle with the Western powers. Then, he would surely make the British lose everything.
As he spoke, Xiao Ming and his entourage walked into the city. The soldiers along the way, upon seeing Xiao Ming’s arrival, all looked excited, standing on both sides of the road and saluting Xiao Ming.
Xiao Ming smiled, returning the military salute. His identity was now the Emperor of the Great Yu Empire, and also the commander-in-chief of this expedition.
After the Battle of Pingzhou City concluded, the soldiers were all stationed within the city. To comfort the soldiers, Xiao Ming specifically walked around the city with everyone.
When he came this time, he also had Niu Ben prepare a lot of mutton and pork. At each location, he would have Niu Ben distribute these meats to the commanding generals, instructing them to make meat porridge for the soldiers.
Along the way, Lu Fei and the others were all beaming with joy.
For a soldier, the most disheartening thing was to be buried in a foreign land, forgotten. Now, the Emperor of the Great Yu Empire personally came to Pingzhou City to visit the soldiers of this battle. How could they not be excited?
After comforting the soldiers, Xiao Ming then went to Lu Fei and the other two’s camp.
At this point, Xiao Ming asked a grave question, “How many casualties did the barbarians suffer in this battle, and how many soldiers did we lose?”
At the mention of this question, the joy of victory faded from everyone’s faces. Lu Fei was silent for a moment, then said, “Yesterday, we cleared the battlefield. This time, over forty thousand barbarian cavalry were lost. Our cavalry suffered about eight thousand casualties. On the infantry side, including slave soldiers and barbarian soldiers, we found a total of one hundred and seventy thousand corpses, and we lost thirteen thousand six hundred men.”
Niu Ben, hearing this, said, “Your Majesty, this is already incredible for a battle.”
“That’s right, Your Majesty. Since the founding of the Great Yu Empire, no one has ever been able to kill over two hundred thousand barbarians at the cost of over twenty thousand casualties,” Luo Quan said excitedly.
They had expected heavy casualties, but this result exceeded their expectations.
Xiao Ming felt a pang of pain. These were all his soldiers. However, he also understood that war meant death; his soldiers could not be invulnerable.
“Ensure that every fallen soldier’s remains are returned home. Do not let the families of the soldiers feel disheartened.”
Xiao Ming said solemnly. He understood that this casualty ratio was extremely exaggerated. The ratio of losses between the two sides basically reached ten to one. To achieve such a huge strategic victory with so few casualties, any emperor of the Great Yu Empire throughout history would probably wake up laughing.
But for him, this was not enough. After all, these were still barbarians in the cold weapon era. If they were to fight Japan or Western powers, the losses would be even greater.
At this moment, he finally understood how much his ancestors had sacrificed to achieve a peaceful and prosperous era.
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Lu Fei responded. “As Your Majesty commanded, every soldier now wears his dog tag around his neck. We will find their families based on these dog tags.”
Xiao Ming nodded. This “dog tag” was what was commonly referred to as a dog tag in modern times, used to identify soldiers.
Looking at the map Lu Fei had spread on the table, Xiao Ming’s expression became resolute. “This time, we must eliminate the northern border threat and no longer let the common people of the Great Yu Empire suffer massacres. The blood of our soldiers must not be shed in vain.”