Chapter 52: Speed is of the Essence in Warfare

In just three days, Chen Mu led his army to sweep through six Persian towns and countless villages. Each place followed the same policy: no harm to civilians, but anyone bearing arms was executed without mercy. All weapons were confiscated, and half the grain was taken.

As he marched, Chen Mu marked the locations of towns and roads on his map, scouring all settlements near the borders of the Great Xia. By his estimation, at their closest, they were only a day's march from Wen'an County in Great Xia. Yet they did not return for supplies.

Because speed was of the essence.

Their raids on these towns were for the sake of resupplying. Now, provisions and water were plentiful, and the King of Persia had likely already received word of their actions. It was time to march deeper into Persian territory.

Nevertheless, Chen Mu sent a hundred men back to Wen'an County to request that Zhao Lai lead troops to take over these towns, ensuring nothing would be left to chance.

…

The Persian capital was a vast city, home to a hundred thousand civilians and over ten thousand soldiers. The city walls and gates were formidable, with a wealth of defensive tools at the ready.

But the King of Persia was deeply unsettled.

He had already heard from refugees fleeing several towns to the capital, reporting that their homes had been massacred. Based on their descriptions of the banners, the king knew Chen Mu had arrived.

What was even more terrifying was that a coastal town reported Chen Mu's army had come from across the sea.

Had Chen Mu flown here?

The border guards had sent no news, and the spies planted in Great Xia had also sent no word. There could be no mistake—Chen Mu's army could fly. This conclusion shattered the Persian king's confidence entirely.

He resolved to flee.

He convened a council, feigning a stance of fierce resistance, then handed over the city’s defense to a general. That night, he quietly departed the capital with his concubines and servants under the cover of darkness.

The general and the soldiers remained unaware, still preparing for a life-and-death struggle with Chen Mu.

Meanwhile, Chen Mu’s army pressed on toward the Persian capital. The roads were wide and well-marked, making navigation easy.

On the way, they encountered little resistance—Persian generals had withdrawn their forces, abandoning the outlying towns and concentrating their strength in the capital.

Chen Mu’s forces arrived unimpeded outside the capital and made camp.

Here, Chen Mu discovered a new problem: there were no trees in the area.

The surroundings were nothing but barren desert, with no rivers in sight. Perhaps the oasis had been enclosed within the city, and the water supply was drawn from underground rivers.

This meant that besieging the capital would be pointless—more importantly, Chen Mu couldn’t build siege engines on site.

The wood they’d gathered along the way was suitable for tents, but large siege engines like catapults and siege towers required sturdy timber, and none could be found here.

If they attempted a direct assault, casualties would be high.

Was there a better way?

As Chen Mu pondered, an idea suddenly came to him.

“We can dig a tunnel.”

Zhang Zhong replied, “But this is all desert—if we dig, the tunnel will collapse.”

Chen Mu shook his head. “We don’t need to dig from far away—just right under the city wall. The sand beneath must have been reinforced during construction, so it should support a hollow space.”

Zhang Zhong was puzzled. “But if we dig under the wall, the Persians on the battlements will see us. The soldiers digging will be attacked.”

“Even if we succeed, the Persians can just guard the tunnel entrance. Our men would be walking into a trap.”

Chen Mu smiled and said, “Not so. We can use battering rams as cover—this way, the Persians won’t see us digging. While their attention is on the battlements, we can sneak in through the tunnel. By the time they react, it will be too late.”

Zhang Zhong paused in surprise. “Use battering rams for cover? Ingenious!”

Chen Mu continued, “Yes. Once our soldiers are inside, the Persians will be thrown into chaos. We’ll act according to the situation then.”

After discussing further, Chen Mu ordered that several tents be dismantled to build two battering rams.

The next day, Chen Mu led his troops to form ranks outside the city, preparing for the assault.

On the battlements, the Persian general was full of fighting spirit, unaware that his king had already fled.

Seeing Chen Mu approach, he shouted to his men, “Do not fear!”

“Chen Mu has no stone-throwing machines or wheeled towers—if we hold the city, he cannot break in!”

The Persian soldiers, believing their king was still among them, were equally full of resolve.

“Defend our kingdom!”

“We will hold the city!”

Outside, Chen Mu rallied his soldiers with a final speech before ordering the assault to begin.

Lacking siege towers, the soldiers advanced with shields, suppressing the defenders with crossbows as they came within range. Then, holding new scaling ladders, they prepared to storm the walls.

Meanwhile, two battering rams slowly rolled toward the city gates.

Thanks to the Persian king’s convincing performance, his soldiers remained fiercely motivated, and for a time the battle appeared evenly matched.

Many of Chen Mu’s men managed to climb the walls, but the Persians fought bravely, keeping their numbers on the battlements roughly equal.

Given the disparity in combat prowess, the Persian general should have been satisfied with the situation—they were fighting on home ground, with easy resupply and reinforcements. If this continued, Persia would surely prevail.

But meanwhile, Chen Mu’s key unit—the sixteen warriors beneath the two battering rams—were hard at work digging a tunnel right under the enemy’s nose.

Half of them operated the ram, pounding at the gate as a diversion; the rest dug with shovels, their true purpose.

As they battered the gate, they discovered the Persians had piled stones behind it—meaning no one was stationed there, so their digging would go unnoticed.

The fight on the walls raged on, both sides locked in close combat without any tricks.

Before long, the subterfuge beneath the battering rams bore fruit—the tunnel was complete.

As per Chen Mu’s plan, the lead soldier signaled his nearby comrades to charge through the tunnel together.

Once dozens of Chen Mu’s men had entered, the Persians finally noticed.

But it was already too late.

While some of Chen Mu’s forces held off the Persian counterattack, others moved the stones aside and flung open the city gates.

At the sight of the open gates, Chen Mu immediately ordered his entire army to advance.

Those at the front continued to fight atop the walls, preventing the Persians from shooting arrows, while the rest surged through the gate into the city.