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"Assistant Governor Lu is dead." Fei Qian swayed gently on his horse, sighed, folded the just-received letter, placed it in his robe, and said to Huang Cheng.
Fei Qian still remembered Lu Chang's somewhat round face and plump build, but this person existing in memory would never be seen in reality again. After a while, even if he wanted to recall, it might be hard to find any trace in his mind.
Towards Lu Chang, Fei Qian held neither much liking nor dislike. He felt like someone from the same building in a modern housing complex—having met a few times in the elevator during commutes, chatted a few times—and then suddenly hearing news of that person's death.
A bit of surprise, a bit of sorrow, that's all.
Huang Cheng, however, was startled beside him. An assistant governor? A two-thousand-bushel official? Dead just like that? Not some random person, but the second-ranking figure beneath the commandery governor, died so inexplicably?
Fei Qian nodded. "In his letter, Liangdao says Assistant Governor Lu was ambushed by Yellow Turban bandits on his way to Xiangling, struck by arrows and died…"
Huang Cheng's mouth fell open. "Ambushed by Yellow Turban bandits?!" Yellow Turban bandits actually learned to ambush? That was almost like seeing an old sow climb a tree.
The Yellow Turbans' immense momentum came from their families following along. Basically, they were farmers who couldn't survive and thus rebelled under the Zhang Jiao brothers. Generally, they knew no military strategy, often just swarming forward in battle. Even knowing how to form basic ranks or prepare reserves was considered advanced.
But now, they could execute such a high-skill military action as an ambush? Simply…
If it were regular troops laying an ambush, that would be no issue. But for ragtag forces like the Yellow Turbans to ambush?
Ambushes rely on surprise. But among the Yellow Turbans, those accustomed to lax discipline, even if hidden, would have some chatting, joking, defecating, urinating—inevitably revealing traces. Once detected, could it still be called an ambush?
Yet Lu Chang died just like that.
The White Wave Army…
"Shuye, do you know how the White Wave Army developed?" Fei Qian asked.
Huang Cheng shook his head. "No."
Fei Qian fell silent.
Now that operations were expanding, Fei Qian increasingly felt the need for more people—whether in military affairs, administration, or intelligence gathering—all areas where he was deficient.
Huang Cheng was an expert in martial prowess, a good helper on the battlefield. Seemingly simple and honest on the surface, he was actually quite quick-witted. But expecting Huang Cheng to perform overall strategic analysis and planning was clearly unrealistic.
Lu Chang was dead.
Jia Qu's letter also hinted at some conjectures but couldn't draw conclusions, naturally unable to offer Fei Qian suggestions. After all, Jia Qu himself was only sixteen, with no prior experience in such matters. So, managing this much was already quite decent. But to go further required time and experience accumulation.
And Fei Qian was short on time.
Therefore, Fei Qian decided that after this campaign, regardless, he must issue some sort of "Call for Talent" decree, "Restoration" decree, or something—find a way to attract more talent…
Although Fei Qian had some general impressions of the Three Kingdoms period—knowing Cao Cao would burn Yuan Shao's path to hegemony at Wuchao, knowing Zhou Yu would burn Cao Cao's Bronze Sparrow Terrace dream at Red Cliffs, knowing Lu Xun would burn Liu Bei's ambition to conquer the east at Yiling—what help did that provide for the current situation?
None at all.
He didn't know the specifics of the White Wave Army, didn't know how many troops were stationed in Yong'an, couldn't even discern the White Wave Army's next move…
In truth, this battle wasn't as confident as Fei Qian had sounded back at the Beiqu camp. It carried high risk.
But it had to be fought—partly for territorial needs, and partly because Yong'an was upstream on the Xinshui River. Controlling Yong'an meant controlling the entire Xinshui River basin. Moreover, Yong'an was relatively close to Xihe Commandery. If they could ally with Xihe Commandery, it would relieve considerable pressure in many aspects.
But now, all matters, all pressure, had to be shouldered by Fei Qian alone first.
Regardless of whether Jia Qu's conjectures held merit, Lu Chang's unexpected death served as a warning bell for Fei Qian. Whether Lu Chang was too anxious to hurry and neglected precautions, or the White Wave Army harbored capable individuals, both indicated the current situation was extremely complex—complex enough that a single misstep by Fei Qian could lead to a stumble, even death.
"Change course, head to Xiangling."
Xiangling lay south of Yong'an, east of Beiqu, north of Linfen, on the eastern bank of the Fen River, near the Lüliang Mountains, positioned at a transportation hub.
Yong'an was no longer an option.
With Xiangling's situation unclear, rashly advancing towards Yong'an risked being outflanked by the enemy, cutting off their retreat. With soldiers trained for less than two months, how much courage could they muster to fight their way out?
Therefore, they had to proceed cautiously, altering their route eastward first, checking Xiangling's situation before considering further steps.
On Han Dynasty battlefields, a city represented control over a region. Yong'an controlled the connecting point between the northern and central sections of the Lüliang Mountains, while Xiangling controlled the node into the Taiyuan-Jinzhong hinterland. Losing a node meant losing a region, losing a passageway.
If Xiangling fell too, then for Fei Qian or for Hedong Commandery Governor Wang Yi, they could only retreat to Linfen County south of Xiangling.
He hoped Xiangling could hold…
Otherwise, the situation would rapidly deteriorate.
Originally, the White Wave Army was only in Yong'an. If unwilling to retreat into the Lülian Mountains, they had only two routes: south to attack Xiangling, or west to attack Puzi County. But if Xiangling fell, besides the westward route towards Puzi, they could also go east into the Taiyuan region of Jinzhong, go south to attack Linfen and then Anyi, and even possibly go west to attack Fei Qian's Beiqu camp. Although territorially only one city apart, their potential offensive directions multiplied.
The White Wave Army… what exactly did these people clinging to the Yellow Turban dream want to do?