Feng Yuanji stared fixedly at Xiao Jingnan, his turbid eyes surging with complex emotions.
After a long while, he let out a heavy snort and turned his gaze to the sand table. "Even if we add your 100,000 troops, it's still a pipe dream to retake the six southern cities."
"The six southern cities—Yanchuan, Qingzhou, Yuecheng, and Longji Pass!"
His finger tapped on the sand table, tracing a sharp trajectory.
"Yanchuan has a flat terrain with no natural barriers around, so it's the easiest to capture. But precisely because of its flatness, once we break through, we'll surely face a counter - attack from the Anluo people, leading to a stalemate."
"Qingzhou is the granary of the south. Among them, Fangao and Barkol Granaries are already three times the size of Shou'an Granary. But as an important granary, the Anluo people have also stationed a large number of troops there. Just the Fangao Granary alone has 50,000 heavily - armed soldiers!"
"Yuecheng is close to the southwest and is surrounded by water on two sides. The Jiupan River winds around the city. It's a gathering place for southern commerce... And precisely because of its well - connected waterways, the Anluo people's warships can reach the city walls of Yuecheng in a single day. Once we attack the city, their reinforcements will swarm in like wolves smelling blood."
Finally, his finger hovered slightly trembling above Longji Pass. "As for Longji Pass..."
A layer of despair welled up in his turbid eyes. "With Wugushu's rattan - armored soldiers guarding there, they're invulnerable to swords and guns, and impervious to fire and water. How can you win?"
Outside the tent, the military flags were fluttering violently in the fierce wind, while inside the tent, it was deathly quiet.
"It seems General Feng has read all the military reports and maps I sent," Xiao Jingnan said with a smile, following the direction of Feng's hand and pointing at the southern cities in turn. "Since General Feng already has a plan in mind, let's follow your suggestion. We'll first take Yanchuan, and then break through Qingzhou, Yuecheng, and Longji Pass."
"As long as we capture these four cities, the two cities in the southeast will naturally fall without a fight... By then, all the six southern cities will belong to the Great Sheng Dynasty!"
"You make it sound so easy!" Feng Yuanji glared at him with wide tiger - like eyes. "Do you know how many troops the Anluo people have? Almost twice as many as ours! With our current situation of insufficient food and dilapidated weapons, how can we talk about victory?"
"Ah, this..."
Xiao Jingnan scratched his nose. "General Feng had already recruited civilian merchant convoys to transport grain when you were in the capital, and you also bought a large amount of grain and weapons along the way... I thought you had already anticipated the situation in Shou'an."
Feng Yuanji's face twitched violently a few times and finally turned into a cold snort as he flicked his sleeves and turned around.
He had indeed anticipated it—since the day he left the capital, he had expected that Kang Chuanyi, the governor of Lingxi, wouldn't cooperate.
But he never expected that the other party would even burn down the granary...
When he first arrived outside Shou'an City and heard that the granary had been destroyed, he couldn't believe it at first. That's why he didn't enter the city immediately but came to Shisanli Pu to investigate first.
But unexpectedly, the investigation only made him more terrified.
Such a large granary wasn't destroyed by the enemy but burned down overnight because of the dirty schemes of their own people...
How cruel.
So cruel that it made his blood run cold.
He could already imagine the tragic situation of the Lingxi people selling their children and daughters during the famine...
"Even with all the grain I bought along the way, it's only enough for two and a half months' consumption. And with your 100,000 troops, we might not even last two months..." Feng Yuanji said stiffly.
"One month," Xiao Jingnan said quietly. "We don't have two months. At most one month, we must return in triumph."
—Zhao Yanke was currently in Shou'an, and the capital was empty. Even with Prime Minister Fang and Grand Tutor Lü in charge, there was a risk of something going wrong. So they had to fight a quick battle and return as soon as possible.
Hearing his words, Feng Yuanji was first shocked, and then his expression became complex and strange. His gray beard stood on end, and his breathing became heavy. "You... You have a way?"
"It's not really a way. It's just a fight to the death," Xiao Jingnan tapped on the sand table with his finger. "After capturing Yanchuan, we'll only leave 20,000 troops to defend it, and the rest will head south."
"However, we won't first take Qingzhou and then attack Yuecheng and Longji Pass... Instead, we'll divide our troops into three routes and attack these three cities simultaneously!"
...
"You're crazy?!"
Feng Yuanji's pupils suddenly contracted, and he looked at Xiao Jingnan in disbelief.
They already didn't have enough troops, and yet he wanted to divide them?
But Xiao Jingnan seemed not to hear him. His slender fingers moved like a snake on the sand table.
"Qingzhou is the granary and a place of vital importance. As long as we take Qingzhou, we won't have to worry about food in the future... We need at least 150,000 troops here."
"Yuecheng not only has smooth waterways but also is adjacent to an iron mine in the west. As long as we capture Yuecheng, we'll surely find a way to make weapons. Since we need to cut off the water - way reinforcements, we need 100,000 troops here."
"As for Longji Pass..." Xiao Jingnan's lips curled slightly. "I have my own plan for this place. I'll personally lead 30,000 troops there."
"As long as Yanchuan can hold out for ten days and make the Anluo army run around exhausted... By then, we can take the three cities."
"300,000 troops. It's just right."
Xiao Jingnan said softly.
Feng Yuanji stood there stunned, as if he were listening to a fantasy story.
After a long time, he finally managed to squeeze out a voice from his throat. "Your way of fighting is clearly going to bury the 200,000 sons of the Feng family army and the remaining 100,000 troops of the Xiao family in the south..."
Xiao Jingnan raised his eyebrows slightly. "What? Does General Feng still think that if we lose this battle, they'll have a way out when they return to the capital?"
"No, General Feng. There's no way out... long ago."
He reached out his hand, and his slender fingers grasped the edge of the bronze sand table. With a sudden jerk—
Mountains, rivers, towns, streets... and dozens of small black - red flags all fell down accordingly!
They scattered all over the ground at Feng Yuanji's feet. The mountains toppled, the towns collapsed, and the red flags lay limp in them, like pools of dark - glistening blood.
It was nothing but a scene of devastation.
Xiao Jingnan's voice was terrifyingly soft. "General Feng has been hesitating all this time. Isn't it because you haven't made up your mind whether to fight to the death or to preserve the 200,000 elite of the Feng family army?"
"Unfortunately, in your eyes, they're fine young men, but in the eyes of the person in the capital, they're just dust under their feet. Even 200,000 of them would be too few to fill the trenches."
Suddenly, a fierce wind blew outside the tent, swirling the broken stones and sand on the ground.
Xiao Jingnan stood against the light, his outline as if gilded with the blood - red setting sun. "So, General Feng, why don't you gamble with us with all your might?"
"If we win, we'll take 300,000 brothers home. If we lose..." A determined smile curled his lips. "It's just dying on the battlefield. Only then can we be worthy of our manhood."