LFHYB -Chapter 193 How Did the Xuanjia Troops Get Here?

The route Li Shimin led his troops along was the North China Plain.

Even with the rivers and waterways crisscrossing the region, horseback travel wouldn’t have posed much difficulty—if they had the horses.

But who could afford so many horses now?

Li Shimin led his troops lightly equipped, running alongside them, covering the distance from Qilu all the way near Hefei.

Xu Shiji, Shan Xiongxin, and Cheng Zhijie were experiencing such a grueling long-distance march for the first time. Many of the soldiers under them were too.

They had worried that soldiers unaccustomed to such hardships might desert. Yet Li Shimin managed to lead this entirely ordinary, unremarkable force to the destination without losing a single man, and morale never faltered.

After a full day of hunger, the soldiers even displayed the bearing of seasoned warriors.

Xu Shiji, Shan Xiongxin, and Cheng Zhijie were all experienced generals. They knew that the greatest skill of a commander wasn’t in clever tactics—since most battles relied on simple bravery.

Only on the scale of a full campaign, composed of multiple battles, would strategy come into play.

So what was the greatest skill of a general?

Nothing else: it was drilling troops and leading them.

Those who had followed Li Shimin through Qilu might not have recognized his talent before, but this grueling forced march left them utterly convinced.

Had it been them in his place, they would have failed.

As Xu Shiji polished his weapon, waiting for Li Shimin’s orders, he couldn’t help but recall the historical accounts of Wu Qi.

Wu Qi was arrogant with people, yet ate and lived alongside his soldiers, who were willing to die for him.

He never relied on clever tactics, only on ample provisions, strong armor, and well-made weapons—allowing soldiers willing to die for him to crush all obstacles.

Prince Qin Li Shimin’s reputation differed from Wu Qi’s. He was supposed to be a master strategist. With few elite troops, he couldn’t overwhelm enemies directly and often relied on bold, risky strategies.

Yet for some reason, Xu Shiji felt that his lord’s “strategies” shared something in common with Wu Qi’s method.

It seemed like he had glimpsed a truth, but upon reflection, he couldn’t fully recall it. So he continued polishing his weapon, burying the sudden insight in his mind.

Xu Shiji was not yet a renowned general, but this seed planted in his heart would slowly grow and transform unconsciously.

Shan Xiongxin, by contrast, thought less deeply. This straightforward, fierce warrior was only concerned with why his lord was braver than him.

“The vanguard’s duties should fall to us, right? Why is he personally charging ahead? Ah, as Duke said, when we go to assist our lord, even a small delay erases our chance at glory,” Shan Xiongxin complained. “How can we achieve merit if our lord fights so well?”

Xu Shiji looked up silently: “Who told you our lord can’t fight? Both Han Gaozu and Han Shizu led troops in person.”

Shan Xiongxin was stunned: “What? The founding emperors of Han personally led troops? I thought, like the Sui emperors, they only commanded others. Look at that incompetent emperor killed by Zhi Shilang—he personally led troops, and how did that turn out? I thought wise emperors should never fight personally.”

Xu Shiji stopped polishing: “…Brother Shan.”

Shan Xiongxin stepped back warily: “Calling me brother can’t be good news.”

Xu Shiji took a deep breath and said slowly: “The lord we serve is a loyal minister of the Sui. Watch your words. And what do you mean ‘wise emperors shouldn’t lead troops’? That’s insulting our lord. Think before you speak. Soon, you’ll be entering government service. Do you want to be impeached by the censors?”

Shan Xiongxin scratched his head, frustrated: “So troublesome. Luckily, our lord probably won’t care.”

Xu Shiji: “…’Our lord won’t care’? How do you know? Are you already blinded by loyalty? Even if not blinded, don’t risk your life and future on his leniency! A minister must first be cautious!”

Though Xu Shiji said nothing more, Shan Xiongxin could tell from his expression that a lecture was coming.

He forced a sheepish smile, using the excuse of going to rally the troops, and sprinted off.

Xu Shiji gripped his spear harder, almost bending it, muttering: “Looks like I’ll have plenty of headaches with this sworn brother in the future.”

He polished his spear forcefully, making it squeak.

By this time, Li Shimin was already approaching Hefei.

They had reached the vicinity of Hefei several days earlier.

Because Yang Guang had overtaxed the people and rebellions had broken out, the populace suffered first under forced labor and devastation, then were plundered and slaughtered by insurgent leaders claiming righteous causes. By the time the Sui army arrived, fertile and populous lands had become desolate; the North China Plain, once the most prosperous region, was overgrown with wild grasses, often empty for half a day of marching.

Perhaps some displaced peasants hid in the mountains, but at the sight of Li Shimin’s advancing troops, they stayed well out of sight.

When Liu Bang ascended the throne, the population was so impoverished that not even matching horses could be gathered. Though conditions at the end of the Sui were not so severe, the once-bustling Central Plains had long since been overtaken by weeds.

Thus, Li Shimin’s thousand-mile march went largely unnoticed. Even without effort to conceal it, the cities remained unaware until the army was nearly upon them.

Dou Jiande did not know that Li Shimin had already arrived.

Yuwen Huaji was particularly incompetent at commanding troops. On the way back north with his soldiers, they hadn’t even gone halfway before most of them scattered. Now, as he had to return south, fewer than ten thousand troops remained.

When Dou Jiande pursued him, Yuwen Huaji barely resisted and was captured along with Yuwen Zhiji. Only Yuwen Shiji, who had never demonstrated any skill and had disagreed with his brothers midway, managed to survive by taking a little over a thousand soldiers to the western capital to join an old friend, Li Yuan.

After capturing Yuwen Huaji, Dou Jiande used the gold, silver, and jewels that Yuwen Huaji had looted from Jiangdu—things the fleeing troops wouldn’t let go of—to reward his army, boost morale, and advance to the gates of Lujiang County, a famous military stronghold under Hefei city.

Though Lujiang County’s walls were strong, the previous county magistrate and deputy magistrate knew nothing about military affairs and were not particularly loyal to the Sui dynasty. When the rebel general Zhang Shan’an attacked, the city’s defenders offered little resistance, allowing Zhang to seize Lujiang. The current ruler of Lujiang, Zhang Shan’an, had no experience defending a city and did not get along well with the local populace.

By the time Li Shimin arrived at the gates of Lujiang County, Dou Jiande had been besieging the city for two days.

At that moment, Li Shimin’s supplies were almost exhausted, yet he calmly waited for Dou Jiande to breach the city, even if it meant his entire army would starve.

As Cheng Zhijie charged alongside Li Shimin, his mind kept turning over the situation.

It was one thing to predict that Dou Jiande would break the city within a day or two, and to realize that the day the city fell would be the optimal moment to strike. He could make that judgment himself. But that his lord could convince the entire army to endure hunger while waiting for the right moment—especially when half of those troops originally belonged to the Wagang—was truly impressive.

Although Li Shimin’s fame had already spread across the land, he was still young. When Cheng Zhijie first met him, despite all the aura surrounding Li Shimin, even a fierce general like Cheng Zhijie could not help but feel a trace of doubt, wary of trusting him fully.

While Cheng Zhijie was thinking, Qin Qiong suddenly whipped his horse forward, racing ahead of Li Shimin and leaving Cheng Zhijie behind.

Cheng Zhijie muttered, “…What’s going on?!”

He looked at Li Shimin, whose expression remained unchanged, as if he had anticipated this.

When Cheng Zhijie shifted his gaze back to Qin Qiong, the armored warrior had already charged straight at an enemy general, fully clad in armor, who hadn’t even reacted. Using the momentum of his horse, Qin Qiong struck the enemy off his mount with a lance.

“Qin Shubao is here! Rebel commander Dou Jiande, surrender!” Qin Qiong beheaded one soldier and retracted his lance with a roar.

While Qin Qiong drew the enemy’s attention, Li Shimin took down his powerful bow, letting arrows fly. One struck the largest flag in the enemy formation.

Crack! The bamboo pole split halfway, bending downward.

Li Shimin didn’t shoot a second arrow at the flagpole. Instead, he suddenly pivoted and fired at another enemy’s warhorse.

A scream rang out—the horse was struck in the head and toppled to the side.

“This way!”

Li Shimin charged toward where he had just shot, loosing arrow after arrow, tearing a path through Dou Jiande’s formation alongside Qin Qiong.

The Xuanjia (Black Armored) troops followed him with remarkable coordination, storming into the breach created by Li Shimin and Qin Qiong.

Zhang Shan’an had just surrendered, Dou Jiande’s soldiers were relaxed, and the formation was slightly chaotic.

When a cavalry unit suddenly appeared and charged into the infantry line, the foot soldiers immediately panicked.

Dou Jiande did have competent generals, however. Though two officers were killed instantly, others quickly ordered their men to regroup and attempted to shoot arrows at the intruding cavalry.

Shooting arrows at enemies inside your own formation was risky, as it could hit your own men. Archers hesitated slightly and weakened their shots.

Li Shimin lowered his head slightly and continued his charge through the rain of arrows.

Qin Qiong stayed just ahead of him, intercepting incoming arrows to protect Li Shimin.

Cheng Zhijie, beside Li Shimin, was sweating profusely.

Wait a second! Qin Shubao, you’re so unfair—why didn’t you give me a heads-up before charging ahead? We were supposed to guard our lord together!

Cheng Zhijie lagged slightly, afraid of disrupting Li Shimin’s rhythm, and could only kill silently, letting Qin Qiong display his prowess alone.

During the charge, someone in the enemy lines panicked while trying to mount a horse.

That person was Dou Jiande himself.

Li Shimin had already raised his flag during the charge. Dou Jiande recognized who was coming.

He never expected the Li Shimin from Qilu to suddenly appear at Lujiang County, let alone that the lead general would charge straight at him without turning.

Here’s what happened:

Zhang Shan’an had sent a surrender letter, causing Dou Jiande to halt the assault.

But he couldn’t simply enter the city. What if Zhang Shan’an was feigning surrender, luring him in for street fighting?

So Dou Jiande, while announcing a temporary ceasefire, held an emergency meeting to discuss whether to accept Zhang Shan’an’s surrender and what precautions to take when entering the city.

This meeting was extremely urgent—soldiers on the city walls were already withdrawn, and the gates were about to open.

Who would have thought that as soon as the meeting started, Li Shimin attacked?

Those black-armored soldiers—Li Shimin’s famed Xuanjia troops! The invincible armored cavalry that had carved their name into history!

Hearing Qin Qiong’s roar, even the battle-hardened Dou Jiande shivered.

Qin Shubao is here… could Li Shimin himself really have come? By what right could Dou Jiande even face Prince Li Shimin in person?

And wasn’t Prince Li Shimin still in the Central Plains? Attacking his main base in Hebei, Hejian Commandery?

Just a few days ago, Dou Jiande had received news that Hejian Commandery was in distress and couldn’t hold out long.

Even if he accepted that Li Shimin had arrived, being shocked didn’t help.

But how could the Xuanjia troops charge accurately through thousands of enemies? His command flag wasn’t even with him! He had deliberately left no flags during the meeting to avoid falling for Zhang Shan’an’s feigned surrender.

Dou Jiande finally mounted his horse, adjusted his helmet slightly, and felt a chill run through his scalp.