The Southern barbarians, upon receiving urgent dispatches from the capital, immediately mobilized their forces and advanced toward the southern border of Daliang, reigniting the flames of war, poised to erupt at any moment.
Ten thousand Northern Garrison troops were dispatched to Hengjiang to intercept and seize vessels, strictly prohibiting the northbound passage of "merchants." Nevertheless, a considerable number of escapees, carrying vast quantities of potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn kernels, and grains, managed to reach the north of Hengjiang.
In the Jiangnan region, sugarcane ripened. However, following the publicity from newspapers, the populace did not rush to purchase it. Instead, they allowed Liang Xiao’s sugar workshops to acquire it all, rushing to produce white sugar. In addition to Luzhou itself, some was also transported from places like Chuzhou to Luzhou.
The sugar-making technology provided by Liang Xiao was based on the white sugar production techniques recorded by Song Yingxing in his Ming Dynasty work, "Tiangong Kaiwu." After more than two years of improvement, it had reached a state of perfection, even surpassing the quality described in the text.
White sugar possesses a higher caloric content than an equivalent mass of raw rice, being more than three times that of cooked rice after adding water. Therefore, it is an extremely portable strategic resource.
The common people of Daqian did not understand the concept of caloric content. However, the army, through two years of practical experience, had come to understand the utility of white sugar, thus listing it as an important strategic material.
News of Anguo Sugar Workshop supplying white sugar to the army spread like wildfire, greatly boosting the morale of all soldiers.
They had been fighting the rebel army for half a year, and their sole hope now was for their supplies to keep pace, thus preventing the tragic scene of cannibalism within the cities.
The army of King Nan, Xiao Chang, also attached silk scrolls to arrows and shot them into the besieged cities, offering inducements for surrender in the Jiangnan region.
Without exception, all commanderies ignored the calls for surrender. Subsequently, the King of Nan resorted to threats.
"If the city falls, all will be slaughtered!"
This move not only failed to deter the Jiangnan military and populace but instead incited their fury.
However, the Jiangnan region was frequently subjected to surprise attacks by rebel cavalry, necessitating the constant dispatch of troops to repel them. Consequently, overall, the battle loss ratio was the worst since Liang Xiao’s military reforms, standing at a mere one to fifteen.
Of course, the loss ratio in defensive battles still reached a gratifying one to thirty, but the open-field battle loss ratio was less than one to ten, and at its worst, it even dropped to one to four.
"The enemy has repeatedly attempted to bypass the city and disrupt the roads, but they have all been repelled by our cavalry. As for their infantry, with the commanderies tying them down, they currently lack the audacity to do so."
The soldiers reported the progress of the war to Liang Xiao in the military camp, and Liang Xiao was reasonably satisfied.
The Great Qian Dynasty was not entirely on the defensive; occasional sorties to intercept and deter the enemy were indispensable, but the overall strategy remained largely defensive.
With Zhuo Ying and Gongsun Ye jointly coordinating defenses, no cities in Jiangnan had fallen so far, which was already an astonishing achievement.
Including the Kingdom of Daliang, the total number of rebel troops approached six hundred thousand!
Of course, this was also due to the Great Qian Dynasty dispatching a large number of scouts to constantly monitor enemy movements; the movements of hundreds of thousands of troops could not occur without any trace.
"If the enemy had more cavalry, our pressure would undoubtedly increase tenfold," Zhuo Ying sighed.
Liang Xiao said, "Jiaozhou is not a horse-breeding ground, so they would have to send cavalry from the Peacock Dynasty. The logistical support required along the way would be unbearable for them. The final number of the enemy's Celestial Sun cavalry should be around fifty thousand. Even so, after withdrawing the Jiangnan iron cavalry, we would only have twenty thousand cavalry. Therefore, we must first bring in the Divine Archery Corps."
Gongsun Ye had already received permission from the court for the deployment of the Jiangnan iron cavalry. After all, the region from Jinling to Wuzhou also required a large number of cavalry for various reinforcements, and Liang Xiao’s Zhongzhou cavalry was also on its way.
"Marshal! General Yue Yun has arrived!"
The urgent report from outside brought joy to Liang Xiao and the others, who rushed out of the camp to welcome him.
Yue Yun, covered in dirt but with a smile, saluted Liang Xiao: "Your subordinate has been ordered by the Grand General to accept the Marshal's command!"
Liang Xiao was highly pleased and praised, "With General Yue in charge of the cavalry, there will be no worries."
The western front had chosen to hold its ground, and the people of the Western Regions were protected, hence there were not many open-field battles, and the Great Qian iron cavalry had limited opportunities to display their prowess.
Therefore, Lü Yi left only Hilacrius, a fierce general, behind and sent Yue Yun to Jiangnan, making it convenient for Liang Xiao to command the cavalry.
As long as Yue Yun spent some time integrating with the Zhongzhou cavalry and familiarizing himself with their officers, he could completely gallop across the battlefield. After all, the cavalry systems of the Great Qian Dynasty were largely similar, with only the White Robe Soldiers and the Great Qian Gallopers being exceptions.
"I heard that a fierce general has emerged from the Celestial Sun tribe in the western border, known as the invincible Achilles?" Liang Xiao said with a smile.
Upon hearing this, Yue Yun's expression became grave.
"He indeed possesses the might of ten thousand men, his martial arts far surpassing both Hilacrius and myself, and he also possesses divine strength! Even though the Marshal sent a spear crafted from silver and gold, I still lack the confidence to withstand eighty rounds without defeat!"
"The first time our iron cavalry attempted to pursue and was obstructed was due to this man! In my opinion, only General Tian can defeat him!"
Listening to Yue Yun's lament, Liang Xiao simply smiled and nodded.
He had heard of this person while in the capital and had also wished to go to the western border to test his mettle against him.
However, compared to personal performance, the overall situation was naturally more important, and Jiangnan now needed him far more than the western border.
The aristocratic clans of the Great Qian had slunk away with their tails between their legs. However, the Jiangnan region, once heavily impacted by these clans, still harbored many local gentry and wealthy landowners who secretly supported these clans, albeit in a more covert manner.
The reports from the Hidden Wolf Guard and the Cloud Sky Guard all confirmed their cooperation with the Four Great Clans and Jiaozhou, yet they could not produce sufficient ironclad evidence to prosecute them. The authorities could only maintain surveillance, but even the most vigilant eye could falter.
For example, some grain merchants in Jiangnan, besides the Lu family, had openly sold grain to Jiaozhou when the aristocratic clans were in power, mixing grains with rice. Yet, Jiangnan, known as the "land of fish and rice," frequently suffered from famine.
Those grains undoubtedly became the provisions for the Jiaozhou army, and these merchants then slipped away to Daliang, continuing to drive up rice prices...
The enemy's ambition to destroy Daqian remained unquenched, and the King of Nan and Daliang had become the pawns and objects of investment for the aristocratic clans and local magnates.
"The Grand General has consistently held the pass at Yumenguan, resolutely refusing to initiate an offensive. The enemy in the western border continues to reinforce their troops and stubbornly refuses to retreat. According to intelligence from the Hidden Wolf Guard, the Kushan Dynasty and its surrounding areas, especially to the north, are under the control of the Celestial Sun tribe. To the west, various warlords are rising, such as the Lionheart King, Attila, and Saladin..." Yue Yun explained.
Liang Xiao's expression grew solemn, and he said in a deep voice, "If there is no unexpected turn of events, our decisive battle with the Celestial Sun tribe in the future will be in the western border, not Jiangnan, as the western border is closer to the Celestial Sun tribe's homeland!"
As the generals went to mobilize troops, only Liang Xiao, Zhuo Ying, Yue Yun, Yue Qingtian, and a group of Shadow Guards remained in the camp.
"General Yue, it seems you had something you were not convenient to say just now?" Liang Xiao asked with a smile.
Yue Yun glanced at the people behind Liang Xiao. After a moment of hesitation, he smiled bitterly and said, "It is the Grand General's intention. Before I departed, the Grand General specifically instructed me to inform the Marshal that under no circumstances should you engage Achilles in battle!"
Note: It's the third day, and the temperature is 38 degrees... and on top of that, for the past few days, my neck has been hurting with a sharp pain in a sinew at the back whenever I move it (possibly a stiff neck). I had many thoughts but felt too disheartened and deleted them. It will be difficult to guarantee the quality and quantity of updates before I recover. In short, I hope everyone is well, pays attention to prevention, rests well, and wears appropriate clothing to avoid catching a cold...