Wei Lin looked at the map for a while and said to the staff officer beside him, "Send another communication to the Protectorate. Ask them to dispatch troops for reinforcement as soon as possible. Ningxia Commandery is already in imminent danger."
"Tell them to send a detachment of troops, by any means necessary, to temporarily alleviate Ningxia Commandery's plight."
"Understood."
...
At this time, the faces of the people in the Protectorate were also grim.
Sun Liren spoke first, "We have gathered over fifty thousand soldiers these past few days. Why don't I lead these men westward first? If we go too late and something truly happens, it won't be good."
The others nodded in agreement. This was indeed the best course of action. Ever since they learned that a large army was indeed advancing and was unstoppable, these generals immediately convened their troops. However, after several days, only over fifty thousand soldiers had reported back.
Wang Ke's face was ashen. "I hope nothing has happened by now. Otherwise, none of us will escape punishment from the imperial court."
"I told you not to send all the soldiers out, but you insisted! Now look, the war is about to start, and we have no troops!" Zhou Yulong couldn't help but complain.
"What are you saying? Wasn't that a decision made by everyone together? Why are you saying this now?" Wei Bao glared, his eyes wide.
"What? Am I wrong?"
Zhou Yulong said indignantly, "Didn't I say at the beginning that we should leave some men in the main camp? If we had left some troops, we wouldn't be so passive now."
"Hmph! Didn't I also agree to leave some men? It was you who finally disagreed!" Wei Bao shouted.
"You have the nerve to say that!" Zhou Yulong, burning with anger, yelled, "You said to let the entire army rest, and only my contingent should remain in the camp. Can I agree to that?"
"Then why are you spouting this nonsense? No one is willing to be left behind arbitrarily. If it's a holiday, then the whole army rests together. What's the use of your idle talk?" Wei Bao retorted, not to be outdone.
"You..."
"Enough!"
Wang Ke directly reprimanded them loudly, "At this point, you are still arguing? Why aren't you thinking about how to defend against the enemy? What's the use of shirking responsibility now!"
"As long as we win the battle, the court won't punish us severely in the end. If we lose, not a single one of us will escape!"
Wang Ke was the highest-ranking among them. With Kong Li absent, Wang Ke held the most authority, and no one would dare to openly contradict him.
Moreover, Wang Ke's words made sense. In the State of Wei, as long as a battle was won, even minor shortcomings would not be a significant issue. However, if they suffered defeat, it would be difficult to get off easily.
Wang Ke looked at the map and said, "According to the dispatches from the Prefectural Governor's office, these Romans are different from the people on the plains. They are also adept at using siege weapons, and their combat methods are unusual, with a focus on both infantry and cavalry. They have even defeated the Xiongnu on the plains..."
Listening to Wang Ke's summary of the intelligence, everyone's faces became solemn. Being able to defeat the Xiongnu meant their combat power was indeed considerable.
On the northwestern frontier, the Western Army also frequently clashed with the nomadic tribes, with victories and losses on both sides.
However, generally speaking, smaller tribes affiliated with the Xiongnu or Xianbei were very weak. These people were typically afraid of death and lacked combat effectiveness, collapsing at the slightest touch.
Then there were the medium-sized tribes, which usually had their own tribal names, such as the Wuhuan and Majie. The tribes that had long occupied the areas outside the Wei border were such tribes.
These tribes generally had more able-bodied men and a greater will to fight. Although they could not defeat the Wei army in pitched battles, they could occasionally carry out sneak attacks, causing significant losses to the Wei army.
Furthermore, what gave the Wei army the most headaches about these tribes was not sneak attacks, but raiding. These people generally avoided direct confrontation with the Wei army because their tribal populations were not too large. They would mostly sneak across the border stealthily, evading the Wei army.
Finally, there were the large tribes like the Xiongnu and Xianbei. These tribes had large populations, occupied the most fertile grasslands, and possessed the best warhorses. Their warriors were also the strongest. These were the ones that posed the greatest threat to the Wei army.
Hearing that the Romans had defeated the Xiongnu, the generals fell into silence.
Wang Ke looked at them and said, "According to reports, these Romans have already captured several of our Wei cities and are continuing their advance."
"Hmph!" Wei Bao snorted coldly, "Those useless provincial soldiers couldn't even defend their cities. What good are they! We should have saved the money spent on them."
"The Roman army is numerous, and it's understandable that the provincial soldiers couldn't resist," Wang Ke offered a brief defense.
In fact, a part of the reason for the provincial soldiers' failure to defend the cities was insufficient numbers. The meager strength of the provincial soldiers resisting the Roman army was like a drop in the ocean.
This was also a consequence of not having faced war for several years. If it were a few years earlier, the Western Army would certainly not have handed over all city defenses to the provincial soldiers. However, in recent years, trade with several small tribes had been ongoing, and even raids had become rare, leading to a reduction in vigilance.
Thus, they were caught off guard this time.
Wang Ke asked, "How much longer will it take to assemble the remaining soldiers?"
Zhou Yulong replied, "Most of the soldiers can be assembled within a few more days at most. However, there is some disarray, and it might take a few more days to reorganize them. Otherwise, rushing them onto the battlefield might cause problems."
Wang Ke pondered for a moment and nodded, saying, "That is reasonable."
Wei Bao asked, "But right now, the people are celebrating the festival. It might not be easy to conscript laborers at this time."
Wang Ke frowned. This was indeed a problem.
After all, an army's expedition was not just about soldiers; a large number of laborers had to accompany them. Otherwise, how would the vast amounts of arms, military supplies, and provisions be transported?
They couldn't expect the soldiers to carry everything themselves, could they?
As Wang Ke pondered, Sun Liren interjected, "Just issue a notice saying that the Prefectural Governor's office is conscripting laborers. It won't be our idea, so the people can curse Wei Lin."
Sun Liren's words made everyone in the hall pause, followed by a tacit exchange of glances.
Having the Prefectural Governor's office take the blame was naturally the best option. If they hadn't urged so urgently, there would be no need to hastily conscript laborers.
Without further ado, Wang Ke silently instructed the scribes to draft the notice.