275
Before the dawn fog had fully lifted, the camp woke to sound.
Metal struck metal, warhorses cried out, and officers' clipped commands overlapped in the air.
Park Seongjin fastened the rings of his armor before the tent and spoke.
"Re-form every o unit.
Each unit leader will confirm position immediately and report."
As the aide ran off, drums sounded from the northern ridge.
Two detachments moved at once.
The cavalry headed for the western lowlands, and the infantry took the southern high ground.
In the fog, the soldiers' armor shimmered like dull silver.
Park Seongjin drew a simple set of lines in the dirt with his finger.
"This is the main defensive line.
From this point, one hundred and fifty paces north.
Use the trees and the ridge to form a crossing formation.
Archers in the first rank, spearmen in the second, shield-bearers in the third to brace behind."
"Loyalty."
"Loyalty."
"Loyalty."
"Loyalty."
The junior officers sprinted off with their men.
The orders were clear, and the movement tightened immediately into shape.
A moment later, soldiers lined up below the ridge and raised their shields.
The formation took form fast, right before the eye.
"Arrow supply?"
"Two hundred tubs on hand.
We're securing more through the western canal."
"Good.
Don't waste a single arrow."
Park Seongjin lifted his gaze to the plain.
Beyond the fog, it still looked empty.
But he already knew.
Zhang Shicheng's cavalry was moving inside that whitened veil.
The aide ran back again.
"General, we need to fix the positions of the supply train and the medical corps."
"On the flat ground below the rear ridge.
This line is both our defense and our retreat line.
If there's a breakthrough, we must be able to fall back at once."
"Loyalty."
Park Seongjin rode slowly through the soldiers.
His eyes were settled, his voice low.
"Hold your tension.
This fight won't be long.
It ends the moment someone fails to bear the strain and breaks first."
The soldiers bowed their heads instead of answering.
Tension sat in their fingertips, and resolve sat in their eyes.
The time given to them now was the real thing.
The wind rose.
Thick fog split, and from far off came the vibration of hoofbeats.
The ground trembled.
The ring of iron carried on the wind.
Park Seongjin lifted his spear point.
"All units—maintain the square formation.
Prepare to fire."
In an instant, hundreds of bows took string.
Arrowheads glinted together under the dim sky.
The fire-control officer stepped forward and fixed his sightline.
The banner officer's legs trembled faintly, but his gaze stayed sharp.
Then every sound sank, for a heartbeat.
A moment later, a single enemy banner emerged from the fog.
Black characters on red cloth.
Park Seongjin narrowed his eyes and said quietly.
"They're here."
Inside the main command tent, a large map lay spread out.
The ridgelines and waterways around Yangzhou, the roads and village names, were written in dense detail.
Lamp light wavered, stretching shadows long.
Lee In-jung stood before it.
His gaze was calmer than the light of dawn.
An officer reported, catching his breath.
"Vanguard under Captain Park Seongjin has established a square formation on the northeastern heights.
The enemy appears to be part of Zhang Shicheng's main force—approximately two thousand."
"Two thousand."
Lee In-jung repeated it under his breath.
He stared at the map, then set his finger on a point.
"This is Park Seongjin's position."
"Yes, General."
"Then the southern plain still has room."
A staff officer beside him spoke carefully.
"If we extend forces to the south, the front lengthens.
There are many canals and farmlands—defense will be burdened."
Lee In-jung answered without taking his eyes off the map.
"That's a defensive calculation.
What we need now is a calculation to buy time.
We didn't come to crush Zhang Shicheng.
While he binds the Yuan forces, we also secure time."
Another officer asked.
"Full engagement?"
"We leave space."
Lee In-jung's gaze paused.
He could not know how the enemy would read their intent.
But the choice had already been made.
"We do not fall back.
Not to fight— to make them stop.
This is the best battlefield we can make right now."
He issued orders at once.
"Send a messenger to General No Jun-yeong on the left wing.
Detach three hundred and reinforce Park Seongjin's sector.
Garrison at the south foot of the ridge.
Deploy with the canal at your back."
"Loyalty."
"One more."
His finger swept across the map.
"Check the beacon towers north of Yangzhou.
Two columns of fire mean engagement begins.
Three columns mean withdrawal."
The tent fell quiet.
Officers traded quick glances.
Lee In-jung looked at them and spoke.
"If Park Seongjin holds, the line earns one day.
If we earn one day, Zhang Shicheng changes his math.
War is won with time."
He watched the lamp flame.
The light settled quietly in his pupils.
"To hold is to win."
Because the enemy's numbers were large.
A moment later, drums sounded outside the tent.
Messengers mounted and scattered in every direction.
A gray dawn hung in the sky, and the fog over the Yangzhou plain flowed slowly onward.