A special thank you to my patrons:
—Cain, kevin Williams, Jose Sierra, Salim, Acedia, kurtis newman, Nithin Samuel, Soumya Ranjan Pathy, Bob.
You can read 50 chapters ahead of everyone on p@treon.
P@TREON - [email protected]/lessaservantofcosmos
(just replace the "@" with "a")
ps: Please support me on P@treon. I can really use your help!
————————————————————
On the battlefields of the Han Dynasty, cavalry was always the most terrifying force.
The White Wave troops had just emerged from the gorge when they saw the corpses of Yong'an County town's routed soldiers killed earlier that morning. While still shaken, they were hit by two or three volleys of arrows from Fei Qian's troops ambushed on both sides, throwing their formation into chaos. Just as they tried to adjust, Fei Qian's hundred-plus cavalry charged head-on, instantly causing a rout, scattering in all directions.
Though cavalry couldn't chase effectively in the long, narrow mountain path, Huang Cheng had blocked the White Wave's retreat. Caught between both sides, the entire battle ended in about the time it takes an incense stick to burn.
Fei Qian stood at the rear center of the battlefield. After the cavalry charge finished, they gradually returned to Fei Qian's rear ranks, reforming. Cleaning the battlefield was always infantry work; cavalry handled reconnaissance, transport, raids, flanking, blocking, etc.
Fei Qian knew well: without this hundred-plus cavalry, he couldn't have deployed Huang Cheng's forces behind the enemy to block retreat before the White Wave arrived, nor could he have delivered a knockout blow when the enemy was in chaos.
No wonder in later Three Kingdoms, Zhuge Liang was forced to adopt a steady, step-by-step strategy—first taking Longyou, then seizing Chang'an. That's because Longyou was horse-breeding land. For Liu Bei's side, Sichuan horses with their short legs were inherently second-class disabled…
Cavalry came and went like the wind, covering a hundred li a day with no problem. Any infantry encountering cavalry on plains could only defend themselves at most. Trying to catch cavalry was laughable.
Of course, another reason for Zhuge's failure was that Jizhou, Yuzhou, Yanzhou, Qingzhou, including later Sili and Hedong, were the Han Dynasty's main grain-producing regions. The economic and population gaps accumulated over time also contributed to Zhuge's weakening efforts later.
Consider the Sun family, who held the entire Jiangnan region. Though Lingnan wasn't developed then, with little economy, Changsha and Lujiang were also rich rice-producing lands. Every time Sun Shiwan's dreams shattered at Hefei, aside from so-called command errors, might there also have been the dilemma of having no usable horses in Jiangnan?
Cavalry!
Fei Qian glanced around. After this White Wave matter was settled and he secured a foothold, he must send troops to Shang Commandery, seize a horse-breeding area. No matter what, he must first establish a cavalry unit…
Why was Dong Zhuo west of the pass so powerful? Because Liangzhou had many cavalry!
His original Bingzhou veterans, plus recruited Hu people, totaled about a thousand. Expand further?
First form two thousand?
Or three thousand?
Ah, cavalry were excellent, but there was an unavoidable precondition: cavalry were too expensive!
Heavy infantry were costly, cavalry were costly. The corner of Fei Qian's mouth twitched. Was it because his name was Fei Qian (Fei = expense; Qian = money) that everything became expensive…
×××××××××××××××
To keep a person alive, perhaps just a simple bowl of gruel was enough. But to live well wasn't so easy.
Yang Feng held a gruel bowl, somewhat distracted.
Two days ago, Hu Cai suffered a major defeat below the old Pingyang city walls, making Yang Feng both pleased and shocked.
Pleased because, after this defeat, Hu Cai's original direct troops were basically completely depleted, leaving less than a thousand, no different from a minor leader.
These past days, Hu Cai mostly stayed in his own tent, likely still licking his wounds…
But more shocking: attacking a dilapidated, virtually defenseless old Pingyang County town with superior forces, yet the result was a major rout?
In Yang Feng's original estimation, the greatest likelihood was mutual attrition, then he'd clean up afterward.
Now, this troop at Pingyang County town had such strong combat power?
Just then, someone outside the tent reported: a soldier from the front camp discovered something important and came to report.
Yang Feng put down the gruel bowl. "Enter!"
A White Wave soldier entered the tent, saluted Yang Feng with cupped hands, but said nothing.
Yang Feng looked up curiously, finding him somewhat familiar. Suddenly, his heart stirred.
"Commander, do you remember me?" The White Wave soldier smiled slightly.
"You…" Yang Feng instinctively wanted to ask how he infiltrated the camp. But recalling how he came and went freely amid Yong'an County town's chaos, and considering the White Wave camp's laxness, a single person slipping in wasn't very difficult.
"…Please sit." Yang Feng stared at the visitor, fell silent for a moment, then said, "What guidance do you have, coming this time?"
The White Wave soldier didn't stand on ceremony, sat cross-legged, smiled, and said, "Guidance I dare not. Just seeing the Commander so leisurely, I came for a look."
Yang Feng narrowed his eyes slightly. "Why say that? The vanguard newly defeated, awaiting reorganization. How can there be leisure?"
The White Wave soldier didn't expose Yang Feng's pretext. Instead, he said, "I have a word. I wonder if the Commander is willing to hear…"
"Speak freely."
"Actions require swift decisions. Hesitating, looking front and back, waiting to sell at the highest price—ultimately, this is disliked."
Having his inner thoughts spoken outright, Yang Feng's expression shifted slightly. Though there was an earlier agreement, such agreements couldn't guarantee execution. Ultimately, it depended on his own strength. Having Hu Cai attack Pingyang to deplete his forces was fine—they weren't his men anyway. But using his own troops risked losses…
Yang Feng snorted coldly. "Is this your young master's words?"
"No." The White Wave soldier slowly pulled a small piece of silk cloth from his belt. Clear writing was on it. He handed it to Yang Feng, saying, "…This is Hedong's intent."
Yang Feng took it, looked. It was a surrender offer written in the name of the Linfen County magistrate…
Yang Feng frowned. "Why only in Linfen's name?"
The White Wave soldier grinned. "Pingyang not taken, Xiangling not seized. What dissatisfaction does the Commander have?"
Yang Feng naturally understood the implied meaning: it wasn't that he had dissatisfaction, but that the person in Linfen wasn't satisfied. To obtain higher-level assurance, he must take Pingyang and Xiangling.
"Pingyang has cavalry, swift as wind. Hard to win quickly."
"Commander need not worry. Cavalry will come from the west soon."
"If truly so, I will immediately take Pingyang!"
The White Wave soldier nodded. Though matters were settled, he showed no intention of leaving.
"What else?" Yang Feng asked.
"Without proof or evidence, how to trust?"
Yang Feng's eyes flickered. He pondered for a long while, then said, "Good! You stay a moment. I shall obtain proof for you…"