The Rebirth of Han Yuxi

Chapter 0575 Defeat (1)

Bao Xiaofan originally thought it would only take three days to wipe out the rebels. However, after three days, the rebels had suffered minimal casualties, while his forces had to endure heavy losses. Almost half of the 30,000 soldiers were killed or wounded.

Bao Xiaofan was no fool. If the first dayʼs failure was due to underestimating the enemy, three days of fighting confirmed his suspicion: there was a skilled strategist among the rebels who excelled in battlefield tactics.

His subordinates suggested that Bao Xiaofan request reinforcements from Ji Xuan, but Bao Xiaofan refused. The rebel force numbered less than 10,000, while he commanded 30,000 troops. If he asked the Governor-General for help, how could he remain in good standing with Ji Xuan in the future? Bao Xiaofan believed that as long as he could identify the mastermind behind the rebels, he would be able to crush them. Unfortunately, Bao Xiaofan would not live to see that day.

When Ji Xuan received word that the entire 30,000-strong army had been annihilated, he thought he had misheard. There was no way an anti-rebel army of 30,000 could be completely wiped out.

The messenger explained, ”The rebels were incredibly cunning. They lured our forces into a trap.” In truth, Bao Xiaofan had been far too arrogant in assuming that the rebel scum would be easily defeated. Knowing that the enemy only had 8,000 men, he hadnʼt taken them seriously at all. He didnʼt even send scouts ahead of his army and just led them straight into battle instead. A proud army would surely fail. With the rebels well prepared, Bao Xiaofanʼs forces fell into their carefully laid trap the moment they entered Nanzhou.

Ji Xuanʼs face darkened. Thirty thousand soldiers were annihilated by what he considered to be a ragtag band of rebels - that was a humiliating defeat, especially considering that the rebels numbered less than ten thousand. If such a disgrace were made public, it would be an intolerable blow to his reputation. Ji Xuan snapped, ”What about Bao Xiaofan? What use is he?”

The messenger bowed his head and replied, ”Daren, General Bao has been assassinated.” Bao Xiaofanʼs death left the army leaderless, allowing the rebels to strike. Without this chaos, the rebels would never have been able to destroy a well-equipped army completely.

Ji Xuanʼs face grew even grimmer. The commanderʼs safety was paramount on the battlefield, and Bao Xiaofanʼs personal guard should have been on high alert. How could he have been assassinated? Ji Xuan demanded, ”What happened?!” Something about this didnʼt add up.

The messenger lowered his head even further as he answered, ”General Bao saw a woman he fancied in the outskirts of Nancheng, but that woman turned out to be a spy for the rebels.” No one had expected an ordinary civilian woman to possess such extraordinary martial arts skills.

It was at this point that Ji Xuan understood what had happened. Bao Xiaofan had fallen for a beauty trap, and his lust had blinded him to the danger. Ji Xuan was furious to the core. He had always known that Bao Xiaofan had a weakness for women. But Ji Xuan had dismissed it as a harmless vice, reasoning that many men enjoyed beautiful women. After all, Ji Xuan himself was surrounded by plenty of beauties. It never occurred to him that Bao Xiaofan would indulge in such behaviour during a military campaign.

Ji Zhu, Ji Xuanʼs trusted aide, advised, ”Daren, this matter must be reported to the Imperial Court.” An incident of this magnitude could not be covered up, and it would be better to report it sooner to mitigate the fallout. However, Ji Zhu knew that once this news reached the capital, Ji Xuan would inevitably face the Emperorʼs wrath.

Ji Xuan replied, ”The report will be submitted, but the rebels in Nancheng must be eliminated as soon as possible.” If those rebels werenʼt eliminated, Ji Xuanʼs reputation would never recover.

Ji Zhu nodded and said, ”Master, the scouts reported that the traps set up in Nancheng were all designed based on its terrain. Using the terrain to lay such traps requires extraordinary skills, not something ordinary people are capable of. The rebels are just ordinary people—who among them could have such skills? Master, thereʼs something fishy going on here.”

Ji Xuan urged, ”Speak freely.”

Ji Zhu replied, ”The rebels themselves arenʼt terrifying. What worries me is that someone might be pulling the strings behind the scenes. If thatʼs the case, things could become troublesome.”

Ji Xuan agreed, ”Using the terrain to set up traps, combined with tactics like night raids, does indeed seem like the work of someone with military expertise.”

With this in mind, Ji Xuan commanded, ”Send someone to investigate immediately. We must find out who is behind this.”

Ji Zhu asked, ”Do you already have someone in mind?”

Ji Xuan replied, ”The most likely suspect is Yun Qing. Besides, he has been stockpiling a considerable amount of grain. This man has clearly been harbouring rebellious intentions for some time.” Whether Yun Qing was truly behind this or not, Ji Xuan had already decided to frame him. Pinning this crime on Yun Qing would also help Master Guojiu eliminate a major threat.

Ji Zhu agreed with Ji Xuanʼs idea but noted the difficulty of execution: ”Without solid evidence, it will be difficult to bring Yun Qing down.” If the Great General of the Border City could be overthrown so easily, how could he become such a thorn in Master Guojiuʼs side? Even with concrete evidence, there was no guarantee that they could bring Yun Qing down.

Ji Xuan wasnʼt naive and understood the difficulty: ”Even if we canʼt bring Yun Qing down, it will make the Emperor wary of him.” As long as the Emperor became suspicious, with Master Guojiu working alongside him, Yun Qing wouldnʼt remain at large for long.

Ji Zhu nodded, ”Master Guojiu seems to have been delayed by something and hasnʼt returned to the capital yet. Master, I think itʼs best to keep our people in check for now.” Ji Zhu, who was well aware of the shortcomings of Ji Xuanʼs subordinates, was often frustrated by their behaviour. Unfortunately, Ji Xuan had always dismissed their mistakes as insignificant, leaving Ji Zhu no choice but to turn a blind eye. However, given the delicate situation, further missteps could significantly escalate matters.

Ji Xuan agreed with Ji Zhuʼs suggestion.

Yun Qing received the news of the anti-rebel armyʼs annihilation two days after Ji Xuan. Upon hearing the news, Yun Qing thought that the anti-rebel army was a bunch of good-for-nothing. The Feng Dajunʼs battle plan, which took into account the terrain of Longnan, gave the rebels a significant advantage. But no matter how advantageous the terrain was, it was impossible to destroy a 30,000-strong anti-rebel army completely. This could only mean that the 30,000 troops were useless.

A scout reported to Yun Qing, ”General, the annihilation of the anti-rebel army was mainly due to the assassination of their commander, Bao Xiaofan.” Already at a disadvantage, the army was leaderless after Bao Xiaofanʼs death, so their defeat was inevitable.

Yun Qing asked, ”Bao Xiaofan was assassinated? Since when did the rebels have such skilled operatives?” While assassinating a commander wasnʼt unheard of—he himself had done it before—it was no easy feat. It required not only a highly skilled assassin but also inside help.

When Yun Qing learned that Bao Xiaofan was killed after abducting a civilian woman who turned out to be a rebel spy, his expression turned grim. As the saying goes, a crooked upper beam resulted in a crooked lower beam. With a superior like Ji Xuan, notorious for his lustful tendencies, it wasnʼt surprising that his subordinate would indulge in such behaviour even in the middle of a battle.

The scout continued, ”General, as of my departure, the rebel forces had grown to over 20,000. In my estimation, they will soon seize neighbouring counties to expand further.” Since those people had chosen to rebel, it was only natural for them to seek greater strength and numbers.

Yun Qing wasnʼt surprised by the rebelsʼ growth. He simply said, ”You may leave now. Report back immediately if thereʼs any new information from Nancheng.”

Returning to the rear courtyard, Yun Qing saw Zaozao playing with a handful of grass. As soon as she spotted him, she threw the grass aside, raised her arms, and joyfully called out, ”Dad, hug...”

Yun Qing took Zaozao from Mama Lanʼs arms and said, ”Look how dirty you are! Later, your Mom will spank you again.” Zaozao was incredibly energetic. Even with three people watching her, she always managed to get her clothes dirty. Every time Yuxi saw her like this, she would spank her little bottom.

At only one and a half years old, Zaozao didnʼt understand what her father meant. She just shouted, ”Mom, mom...” She hadnʼt seen her mother for half a day and wondered where she had gone.

Despite his daughterʼs mischief, Yun Qing found her innocent and carefree demeanour enough to make all his worries disappear. He asked Mama Lan, ”Whereʼs Madam?”

Mama Lan pointed toward the house and replied, ”Madam is inside making clothes for the General.” Yuxi made new clothes for Yun Qing every season. His clothes wore out particularly quickly, so whatever she made each year rarely lasted into the next.

Carrying Zaozao into the house, Yun Qing dismissed the servants. ”Everyone, leave us.” There were some things he didnʼt want the others to hear.

Yuxi put down her sewing and stood up, asking, ”Is there any more news from Nancheng?” Two days earlier, they had heard of the devastating losses suffered by the anti-rebel army.

Before Yun Qing could respond, Zaozao stretched out her hands, leaned over to Yuxi, and called out loudly, ”Mom, hug…”

Seeing that Yuxi was six months pregnant and could no longer carry Zaozao, she said, ”Be good. Mom canʼt hold you right now. Let your Dad hold you instead.”

Zaozao refused and cried out, ”Mom, hug, hug…”

Yuxi smiled and said, ”Take her to Mama Lan!” Everyone in the household was already spoiling this little girl. If she also gave in to her, no one would be able to handle her in the future.

Mama Lan quickly came in.

”Waaah…” When Zaozao realised that Yuxi not only wouldnʼt hold her but was going to hand her over to Mama Lan, she clung to Yun Qingʼs clothes and began to cry loudly.

Yun Qing hesitated momentarily before suggesting, ”Just let her stay here. She wonʼt be a bother.”

Donʼt let her age fool you - Zaozao was only a little over a year and a half old, but she was pretty smart! If crying worked this time, she would definitely try the same trick again in the future. So, there was no room for compromise. Seeing this, Yuxi realised that gentleness wouldnʼt work, so she called Zijin to take the pitifully crying Zaozao out of the room.

Yun Qing was a bit puzzled and asked, ”Youʼre so strict with her, but why is she still so attached to you?” He spoiled Zaozao endlessly, yet as soon as she saw Yuxi, she wanted nothing to do with him. Yun Qing had always felt resentful about this.

Yuxi smiled and replied, ”I carried her for ten months and gave birth to her. Of course, sheʼs close to me.”

In truth, Yuxi suspected the child was so attached to her because she had nursed Zaozao herself. She had noticed that in many noble households in the capital, the children often grew closer to their wet nurses than to their own mothers. Therefore, Yuxi decided to nurse all her future children herself and not leave them to wet nurses.