The prefectural capital of Ningxia Prefecture.
It was late at night, yet the prefectural capital was still brightly lit, with people constantly rushing in and out.
Wei Lin, the Deputy Prefect of Ningxia Prefecture, rubbed his tired eyes and continued to gaze at the map before him, his brow furrowed with worry.
Ningxia Prefecture had not experienced any major wars for many years. It was precisely when Prefect Kong Li left Ningxia Prefecture for Hongdu that such a significant event occurred.
If this was not handled properly, not only his official position but even his life might be at risk.
Wei Lin shook his head, dismissing thoughts of future consequences. He had to deal with the current situation first.
"Report!"
A messenger entered the hall and announced, "A report from the front line: Tang Shi County has fallen! The enemy forces are still advancing!"
"Withdraw."
Wei Lin waved his hand feebly.
Most of the news he had heard these past few days had been bad. Wei Lin had become somewhat numb. Another county had fallen. It was worth noting that to defend against incursions, Ningxia Prefecture had established far more counties than the inner regions.
This allowed Ningxia Prefecture to hold on for a while longer by relying on its counties.
But what was the use of merely holding on? Were they to watch idly as the enemy approached the prefectural capital?
Wei Lin, still somewhat agitated, asked an official, "Is there still no news from the Protectorate?"
A subordinate in the hall replied cautiously, "The Protectorate says they are gathering troops, but it is currently the Tianzhu Festival, which makes rallying the soldiers somewhat troublesome."
"Procrastination!" Wei Lin cursed vehemently. Even at such a time, their actions were still sluggish.
Ningxia Prefecture was in a peculiar situation. Besides the Prefectural Governor's Office and the Prefectural Commandant's Office, there was also a Protectorate.
The Prefectural Governor's Office generally handled the normal affairs of Ningxia Prefecture, while the Prefectural Commandant's Office was responsible for the general conscription and training of prefectural troops and yamen runners, similar to other prefectures and counties.
The Protectorate, however, was special. Because the northwest region was not originally Wei territory, when Wei conquered this land, they established the Western Army specifically to suppress local resistance and defend against incursions. The Protectorate was the yamen responsible for managing the Western Army.
As the Western Army grew in size, the Protectorate's status also rose accordingly.
The Protectorate had one Grand Protector and four Generals. Of course, over time, the position of Grand Protector was usually held concurrently by the Prefect of Ningxia Prefecture, while the Generals were appointed by the Ministry of War, and they operated independently.
Precisely because of this, Prefect Kong Li of Ningxia Prefecture usually worked in the Protectorate, and Deputy Prefect Wei Lin thus remained in the Prefectural Governor's Office.
Since the Prefect and the Grand Protector were the same person, the two parallel systems could generally coordinate and operate smoothly.
However, at this moment, this parallel system had encountered a degree of chaos due to Kong Li's unauthorized departure from Ningxia Prefecture for the capital.
Ningxia Prefecture had a considerable number of prefectural troops, and their combat strength was quite formidable. It was precisely for this reason that the Western Army was actually stationed further east than the prefectural capital.
This was not a decision made by Ningxia Prefecture itself. In the past, Shangdang Prefecture often faced crises, and the Western Army was frequently dispatched to reinforce Shangdang Prefecture.
Gradually, because the enemies to the west were too weak, and generally could not even defeat the prefectural troops, the Western Army was no longer regularly guarding the border.
As a result, when the Romans first invaded Ningxia Prefecture, they did not encounter any significant resistance. This greatly boosted the Romans' confidence. Initially, the Romans did not commit many troops, but later they increased their forces significantly and launched a full-scale offensive.
At this juncture, Wei Lin, the highest-ranking official in Ningxia Prefecture, became extremely anxious. On one hand, he ordered Prefectural Commandant Zhang Hu to lead the prefectural troops in reinforcement; on the other hand, he ordered the county magistrates and county commandants of each county to defend to the death.
Furthermore, he dispatched people urgently to the Protectorate, requesting the Western Army to dispatch troops for rescue.
But the problem lay precisely in this link!
Wei Lin was merely the Deputy Prefect of Ningxia Prefecture; he was not affiliated with the Protectorate. Why should the Generals of the Protectorate listen to Wei Lin?
Of course, these Generals had also underestimated the urgency of the front-line situation, thinking it was merely a minor incursion and did not take it seriously.
Ningxia Prefecture, located in the northwest, was not rich in products. Transporting various supplies was extremely difficult. Therefore, the Protectorate and the Prefectural Governor's Office had clashed openly and covertly many times.
Kong Li, caught between the two, constantly played a mediating role, rarely truly resolving the issues.
In fact, such problems were very difficult to solve. The Prefectural Governor's Office, even with the Western Army, continued to develop its prefectural troops, providing many weapons and armor to the prefectural troops. In the eyes of the Western Army, these weapons and armor rightfully belonged to them, leading to continuous disputes.
The Generals of the Protectorate received Wei Lin's documents but paid no attention to them, only dispatching less than a thousand men initially as a token gesture.
Many officers of the Western Army learned of this and secretly mocked the incompetence of the Prefectural Governor's Office and the Prefectural Commandant's Office.
Furthermore, most of the prefectural troops recruited were local people from Ningxia Prefecture or migrants who had been completely assimilated.
In the Western Army, even if some soldiers settled down here, they still retained their original customs and lifestyles. This led to many conflicts during everyday interactions.
Based on these factors, the Protectorate's attitude in the early stages was very passive, with no intention of dispatching troops for rescue. They even allowed most of the soldiers to take leave due to the ongoing Tianzhu Festival.
The Protectorate intended to use the soldiers' leave as an excuse to evade subsequent accountability.
However, they did not expect that Wei Lin would then send successive documents to the Protectorate, explaining the situation and informing them of the Romans' true strength.
The Generals of the Protectorate quickly realized the problem and immediately wanted to gather soldiers to face the enemy. However, due to the custom of camping out during the Tianzhu Festival, rallying the soldiers encountered significant trouble.
Moreover, because of this festival, many civilians were nowhere to be found, and the Protectorate was unable to requisition civilian laborers.
At this point, the Protectorate also began to panic, but it was difficult to gather the soldiers. They could only try their best to adjust the army.
"These scoundrels!" Wei Lin cursed. "At a time like this, are they going to watch the enemy rampage across the territory of our Great Wei just for a festival?"
"When the Prefect returns, I will definitely impeach him properly."
However, it was meaningless to talk about these matters now. Wei Lin could only try his best to salvage the situation.
Wei Lin looked at the map and asked, "At this point, where should the Prefectural Commandant be?"
The subordinate next to him replied, "The Prefectural Commandant has led the army away for several days. Judging by the date, he should be nearing Zhou Kou County."
"Zhou Kou County."
Wei Lin mumbled the name a few times and then looked at the map, saying, "Isn't Zhou Kou County not far from Tang Shi County?"
"Yes, Zhou Kou County is not far from Tang Shi County."
Wei Lin said with some concern, "I hope Prefectural Commandant Zhang acts cautiously, leads his troops to firmly defend Zhou Kou County, resists the enemy, and holds out until the Western Army arrives for reinforcement. Otherwise, if they rashly engage the enemy, the outcome is likely to be grim."
"My lord, please rest assured. The Prefectural Commandant is also a veteran of the battlefield and will not have any problems," the official next to him comforted him.