Chapter 32 – Famous General and Incompetent General (3)

Chapter 32 – Famous General and Incompetent General (3)

Even before the march could begin, they had been hit by a surprise raid at the gathering point.

After the enemy retreated, the commanders quickly assembled. Groans of despair erupted from the generals all around.

"All the grain has been burned. We will have deserters soon."

"It's all over. We'll starve to death before we even make it back."

Logistics is one of the most critical aspects of war, and grain is the most important supply of all. With such a catastrophic situation unfolding, someone had to take responsibility. Senior General Yu Gwang-se closed his eyes, still in shock.

It was then that a junior officer dashed into the command tent, his face flushed with excitement.

"G-General! There are still forty supply wagons left intact!"

Everyone's eyes snapped toward him. Forty wagons meant a whopping eight hundred bags of grain.

One of the generals asked in disbelief, "Forty wagons are left? I saw with my own eyes that every single wagon was set ablaze."

"They were gathered on one side of the vanguard's camp! The soldiers from Hanzhong managed to defend them!"

The despair vanished from the commanders' faces, replaced by sudden hope. Yu Gwang-se opened his eyes, slapped his palm on his thigh, and stood up.

"Hanzhong? Are they not General Jang-yang's men? I thought they only sent a hundred?"

The officer caught his breath and replied calmly, as if expecting the question, "The number of enemy cavalrymen they cut down exceeds five hundred."

The commanders gathered here were all local warlords with considerable influence. Mutual murmurs of admiration arose among them.

"General Jang-yang sent the absolute elite of his corps."

"So the rumors of a rising star in Shaanxi were true."

"I see now that defending Hanzhong was by no means a fluke."

The Wolf Fang Squad's performance forced the other warlords to re-evaluate General Jang-yang. With a brighter expression, Yu Gwang-se looked at his staff.

"Chief of Staff, how long can we survive on this amount of grain?"

"Three days, sir. But if we ration it strictly, we can stretch it to ten days."

Ten days was more than enough time for the assembled army to return to their respective headquarters without starving. However, Yu Gwang-se had no intention of backing down.

"How long will it take to reach Luoyang on a forced march?"

"Please reconsider, General. The enemy has a vast number of warhorses, meaning they are likely to engage us in open field battles. We must construct large numbers of wooden palisades and advance with extreme caution. But to do that, our grain is too…"

Yu Gwang-se's face hardened. "I asked how long it will take."

"Even without any skirmishes, it will take at least five days, sir… It is impossible to conquer Luoyang before our remaining grain runs out. You must order a retreat now."

"We can easily procure the necessary grain from the villages along our path."

"What?"

The chief of staff doubted his ears. The other generals also looked at each other, their expressions shifting. "Procuring" was a polite euphemism; it meant outright pillaging and extortion.

Unable to watch this any longer, General Hancheng stepped forward.

"There is Huihuan Town along the way, but that town has already been plundered by the Hui Dynasty."

"That was months ago. Now that the harvest season has passed, we will find more if we squeeze them hard enough. I will hear no further objections on this matter."

Then, County Commander Wang Jun, who had joined from Uichang with a force of two thousand, spoke up with a look of deep dissatisfaction.

"Great General Yue Fei always forbade his men from touching the people's property, even if they were starving to death. If the people turn their backs on us, we cannot win the war."

Suddenly, Yu Gwang-se's figure vanished from his seat. In the blink of an eye, he reappeared in front of Wang Jun, kicked his shin, and roared, "I told you not to bring up Yue Fei in front of me!"

Crack!

"Urgh!"

Yu Gwang-se's movements, having reached the Flower Realm, were terrifyingly fast.

The surrounding generals caught Wang Jun as he stumbled back. Although they felt resentful, they could not openly rebel against the Senior General's command.

Panting heavily, Yu Gwang-se calmed his breathing and looked at the warlords.

"General Ugo, you will take charge of securing the grain. And as a reward, I will grant the soldiers from Hanzhong permission to plunder for one day."

* * *

Having achieved great merit, the Wolf Fang Squad was receiving special treatment. While everyone else was busy cleaning up the debris from the raid, they were the only ones permitted to rest. The soldiers of the other units did not complain about this decision.

The Wolf Fang Squad members never stopped training whenever they had a spare moment. Even now, they were sitting in their temporary tents, quietly circulating their energy.

Just then, someone entered their quarters. Clad in silver armor over a crimson robe and wearing a helmet adorned with fine tassels, he was clearly a high-ranking general.

"Who is the leader here?"

So-mu stood up silently and faced him.

"I am So-mu, a centurion under General Jang-yang."

"You did well. You saved us back there. I will express my gratitude to your general separately later."

There was no way a general would come all this way just to deliver a simple thank-you.

"I merely did my duty, General. May I ask what brings you here?"

"The Commander-in-Chief has granted your men permission to plunder for a day as a reward. Go ahead, blow off some steam and boost the morale of your squad."

Allowing soldiers to pillage to raise morale was a practice that had been openly carried out since ancient times.

However, upon hearing General Ugo's words, the squad members felt their heads spin, as if their qi had backflowed during cultivation, leaving them completely dazed. So-mu was also taken aback, but he maintained a calm exterior.

"Where is our target?"

"It is Huihuan Town. If you hurry, you can reach it in half a day. Once our main army arrives, there won't be anything left, so I am giving you a head start to ensure you get your share."

"Then may we depart immediately?"

"Of course. I will see you there by this evening."

With that, Ugo turned and left the tent. At that moment, So-mu caught Ugo's low murmur through a transmission of internal force.

– Do not be too harsh on them. They are, after all, our own people…

To tell them to enjoy pillaging, yet ask them not to be too harsh—there was an inexplicable contradiction in the man's actions.

Once the general had disappeared, Il-gwang shouted in disbelief, "Pillaging as a reward? What kind of utter nonsense is this?!"

"What are you planning to do, Captain?" Cheong-hae asked.

So-mu did not budge. Il-gwang answered in his stead.

"What else? If the Wolf Fang Squad went around pillaging, what do you think our General would say to us?"

Even when his hometown of Baiyang County had been raided by the Hui Dynasty, Il-gwang had stayed behind until the very end to help the merchants. He was deeply angered by the current situation.

"He certainly wouldn't let us off easily."

The other squad members nodded in agreement.

Everyone looked at So-mu, who remained still for a long time. Seeing the cold, sharp intensity on his face, the squad members felt a chill run down their spines.

Their leader had always maintained his composure, no matter the circumstances. They had never seen him look so furious. Sensing the shift in the atmosphere, the squad members fell silent and waited for his decision.

Only after a long while did So-mu look out at the sky through the tent opening, his eyes filled with bitterness.

'How is what they are doing any different from the Hui Dynasty? What on earth am I doing here…?'

He had believed that once the Hui Dynasty fell, these horrific tragedies would end. The current situation was far more complicated than he had thought.

Just then, Il-gwang grumbled again, unable to contain his anger.

"The Commander-in-Chief is a real bastard the more I think about it. If someone like our General were in charge, he would never allow such beastly acts."

At those words, So-mu's gaze grew calm and clear.

'If greedy men hold power, these evils will only repeat themselves. As Il-gwang said, if General Jang-yang held high authority, this issue could be resolved to some extent. This must be the first step.'

He would help General Jang-yang rise to the highest rank possible.

Of course, given the General's upright character, there was a risk that he might meet a tragic end like Great General Yue Fei. But if that happened, So-mu would simply find a way to eliminate the source of the threat.

Once he sorted out his thoughts, his mind felt remarkably clear.

"You said Huihuan Town? Get ready, everyone."

Il-gwang blinked in disbelief. "What? We're actually going?"

"Why would a general personally come to give us this information? His intention was to send us first to minimize the damage to the town."

"What does that mean?"

"He wants us to go ahead and stir things up first. That way, the villagers will have a chance to escape before the main army arrives. It seems General Ugo had no stomach for pillaging either."

"So we have no choice but to go along with this?"

So-mu quietly gathered his weapons. "Of course not. We must go quickly and evacuate the villagers."

Il-gwang's face instantly brightened. "Haha! That's our Captain!"

Preventing the pillaging might disrupt the army's plans due to a lack of grain, but a victory achieved through such cruel means meant nothing to So-mu.

"Let's move out immediately. We don't have much time, so we run at full speed."

If the Commander-in-Chief discovered the Wolf Fang Squad's actions, they would face severe punishment—possibly even execution.

But So-mu was not one to act without a plan.

Sprinting out of the military camp, the Wolf Fang Squad utilized their light movement techniques and dashed toward Huihuan Town. General Ugo had estimated it would take half a day, but for them, two hours was more than enough.

The terrain from the Namso Plain to Luoyang was mostly flat. After half an hour of running, they easily spotted enemy scouts.

About twenty scouts had built a campfire and were preparing food. At So-mu's signal, the squad members fanned out and surrounded them.

"W-Who goes there?!"

"Enemies!"

A few scouts spotted the incoming squad and screamed, but it was too late. Over a hundred blades lunged from all directions, striking their vitals simultaneously.

Thwip! Splat!

In a single breath, all twenty scouts collapsed.

"We have no time, make it quick!"

Under So-mu's command, the squad members swiftly stripped the armor and helmets off the dead scouts. Packing the gear, they resumed running at full speed.

The Wolf Fang Squad repeated this process with every scouting party they encountered. By the time they reached Huihuan Town, they had managed to gather enough Hui military uniforms for everyone.

Huihuan Town was a desperately poor town to begin with. Over the months, the constant pillaging had left the villagers in absolute poverty. Shabby houses were clustered together, and the haggard faces of the residents could be seen through the gaps in their doors.

Having already suffered a brutal raid once, none of them expected another. But their worst fears were about to become reality.

A hundred soldiers suddenly appeared at the entrance of the village. They wore the uniforms of the Hui army, and their clothes were stained with fresh blood.

A few terrified villagers hid behind cover, watching them. The soldiers spoke loudly, seemingly unaware of their presence.

"Pillaging begins in four hours?!"

"That's right, don't move ahead and wait for the main force to arrive!"

"four hours! Haha, I'm going to make a fortune today!"

"Heh, today, we will strip this place bare in the name of the Hui Empire!"

The hiding villagers immediately scrambled back to spread the word.

They only had four hours. Everyone had to flee.

Panic quickly swept through the town. Chaos erupted as families desperately packed their belongings, and mothers ran out of their homes clutching their children.

"The Hui soldiers are coming!"

"Everyone, run!"

The streets were filled with terrified, fleeing villagers.

The evacuation procession hurried forward, but it suddenly ground to a halt near the front. A large wagon had its wheel wedged deep in a ditch. The wagon was overloaded with household goods, far exceeding its capacity.

"Push! Hurry!"

"Do something!"

The villagers grew increasingly desperate. To make matters worse, three soldiers were walking toward them.

These meager belongings were all the villagers had left. If they abandoned their wagons, they would starve anyway. They stood frozen, trembling in fear.

Just then, a fierce-looking soldier with a massive build barked at his comrades.

"Hey, you bastards! Didn't the general tell us to clear the road for the main march? Move this obstacle out of the way!"

It was a wagon that dozens of men had failed to budge. Yet, the two soldiers simply grabbed the sides and lifted it effortlessly.

Thud!

The wheel popped out of the ditch and landed back on the road. Nearby, about a dozen villagers held bamboo spears, trembling as they tried to threaten the soldiers.

"You bastards! You already took everything we had! Why are you back?!"

"Touch this wagon and we'll fight! We're dead either way!"

The fierce-looking soldier stared at them and yelled with a terrified expression, "How can this be?! There are too many of them! Run!"

As the three soldiers scrambled away, the villagers gained confidence.

"Come on! Let's move quickly!"

"We can do this!"

However, the fleeing procession had to stop again after barely two hundred paces.

Two paths lay ahead. The path straight ahead led to Kaifeng and Changsha, while the path to the right led toward the Song territory through the Namso Plain. Naturally, the villagers wanted to take the right path, but about twenty soldiers were blocking the way.

"How dare you try to escape to the Song territory!"

"Take one step in this direction and you die!"

The path the soldiers were blocking was the exact route Yu Gwang-se's army was using to advance.