After bidding farewell to Yang Sanhua, Yang Chen spent only one night with Zhou Di before hastily returning to the naval headquarters. Upon his arrival, he was greeted with a piece of news that shocked him deeply: President Jin Quan and Takayama from Wasoku had signed a surrender agreement. Yang Chen pounded his fist on the table in anger, cursing:
"Chen Shubing is selling out the entire country to the Wasoku! How could Jin Quan, that puppet, sign this surrender agreement without the consent of the Chen family?" he let out a heavy sigh and continued, "Now we are in trouble. Zaihua, get me in touch with Qi Yue on the phone. I don't know how my father and other warlords will react to this news but I have to share my thoughts with him right away."
Yang Chen informed Qi Yue over the phone:
"Qi Yue, I have to share some bad news with you. That bastard Jin Quan and Takayama have signed a surrender agreement, which means the Chen family has officially surrendered. I'm not sure what Chen Yufeng's attitude is right now, but you should prepare for the worst."
Qi Yue responded gravely:
"Young Marshal, I also have another piece of bad news with you. Chen Yufeng has gone missing. I just got off the phone with Pang Dehai. Apart from this, Pang Dehai also told me that he received orders from Chen Shubing to lay down their weapons and cease all resistance." Yang Chen remained silent for a while after hearing this, then Qi Yue continued, "However, Pang Dehai doesn't intend to follow this order so he came to ask me whether his troops could retreat to our side if they can no longer hold out."
"Accept them! Accept anyone willing to resist the Wasoku." Yang Chen declared firmly, "Right now I have no idea what the Grand Marshal thinks about this, but I, Yang Chen, will never give up. I won't rest until we drive these Wasoku people out of our country."
"Young Marshal, your determination is all I need to hear. Please rest assured that we will hold our final defensive line and prevent Wasoku people from advancing further south directly."
"Qi Yue, please be careful. But also, stay vigilant against the Chen family's army. If they counterattack, I don't think you have the capability to hold our defensive line, so I advise you to disperse your troops and switch to fight guerrilla-style, just like what we did against the Chen family before. At that time it is unnecessary to engage in recklessly fighting without considering the consequences."
"Young Marshal, don't worry." Qi Yue reassured, "We've played this game with you more than once or twice. I know our forces are the weakest here, and the Wasoku people will definitely come for us. The Grand Marshal has sent 5,000 soldiers to support us, but I don't think there is no more soldiers he can share with me because his defensive line is also under pressure from Wasoku and even the Chen family."
"I see. Take good care of yourself. Do your best to buy us time for deployment or retreat."
"Yes, Young Marshal. Victory!"
"Victory!"
After hanging up, Yang Chen asked Yang Zaihua:
"Zaihua, ask Fang Yu whether he can dig up any information about Chen Yufeng. If he finds anything, tell me the details as soon as possible."
"Yes, sir."
Yang Chen muttered to himself:
"Dad, what would you you do in this situation?"
Within two days, Yang Chen learned of everyone's reaction. His father, Yang Tianhu, issued a statement on the same day, firmly refusing to acknowledge the surrender agreement and declaring the entire eastern region to resist the Wasoku. He vowed to drive them out of the Midland. Liao Feng in the south also issued a statement, similarly refusing to acknowledge the surrender agreement and declaring war against the Wasoku. However, there was no response from Feng Xiao in the west. Unexpectedly, Chen Shuyu, the eldest son of the Chen family, also issued a statement. He refused to recognize the surrender agreement and called upon all Chen family's soldiers to rally, refuse to lay down their weapons and begin advancing eastward to resist the Wasoku people. From this moment, the brothers in Chen family were irreparably divided, each choosing a different path.
All the news continued to pour in to Yang Chen. Apart from Chen Yufeng's disappearance, which left Yang Chen deeply concerned for his safety, Chen Yutian had suffered a stroke, and the brothers in the Chen family had officially split. The situation in the north remained unpredictable, but one thing was certain: the Wasoku were advancing rapidly southward. Although Pang Dehai led some of the Chen family's soldiers in a desperate resistance, ultimately, due to Chen Yufeng's disappearance and Pang Dehai's inability to rally the soldiers take its toll, many generals followed Chen Shubing's orders and abandoned the fight. Pang Dehai and a few loyal generals had to lead a portion of their forces in retreat and soon join Qi Yue's troops. Meanwhile, Chen Shuyu's eastward campaign encountered fierce resistance from Chen Shubing's forces. Chen Shuyu was ultimately defeated due to ineffective command and had to retreat southward, where he joined Yang Tianhu's forces in the north. All of this occurred within two months of Jin Quan's surrender agreement being signed. Yang Zaihua asked in confusion:
"Doesn't Chen Shubing have always been in Shengjing? When did he manage to infiltrate his influence into the Chen family's army? Until now, I don't understand how the situation in the north has changed like this?"
Yang Chen sighed and replied:
"This is what my father once told me. Don't forget Chen Shubing's mother. She was one of Chen Yutian's concubines, his favorite one. She has several brothers who held various positions in the Chen family's army, which gave Chen Shubing significant influence. This is the first reasons. Secondly, the eldest son of the Chen family has always been suppressed. Although his mother was the legitimate wife, she was bedridden due to poor health and counldn't manage the household or support her own son effectively. In everyone's perception he should be his father's rightful successor. Actually Chen Shuyu was placed in a position where he was never valued. This left a power vacuum, allowing Chen Shubing to position himself as the future successor of the Chen family. Thirdly, let's not forget our investigated into the ties between some generals and Wasoku women some time ago. I believe there are many generals in the Chen family's army, possibly including Chen Yutian himself, who are associated with Wasoku women. Chen Shubing is very close to Jin Quan in Shengjing. Instead of monitoring on him, he built his influence there. The worse is that he maintained connections with the Wasoku. To be honest, I'm starting to question what role Chen Shubing played in all of this. Actually we failed to uncover enough information about his activities in Shengjing, which was a significant oversight. This caused us to misjudge the situation and miss the chance to anticipate how events would unfold. It is on me. Don't think more about this, Zaihua. You go and take a break for a while. I don't need you here right now."
Yang Zaihua said with concern:
"Young Marshal, you should get some sleep too. You've gone another night without sleep."
"Alright, I will rest for a while. By the way do you have any news about my wife and Zichun? Do they come back to Qudu?"
"Sorry, sir, I don't have received any news about them yet. But don't worry, Young Marshal. I will inform you as soon as I get any information.
Yang Chen waved his hand dismissively, signalling Yang Zaihua to leave. With his eyes closed, Yang Chen murmured:
"Suqiao, go back to Qudu with our son. It is the safest place for you both."
Yang Chen managed to sleep for less than an hour before Yang Zaihua gently woke him. He glanced hazily at Yang Zaihua and asked:
"What's the matter?"
"I just got a call from Qi Yue." Yang Zaihua reported, "He said they couldn't hold the frontline any longer and were preparing to disperse with Pang Dehai to conduct guerrilla warfare in different areas. He warned us to prepare for the worst, fearing that the Wasoku maybe march directly southward."
Yang Chen nodded grimly:
"Yes, they have held out for half a month. Gather our troops here, preserve our strength and get me connected with Wang Lei immediately."
As soon as the call connected, Yang Chen didn't give Wang Lei a chance to speak and said directly:
"Listen, Wang Lei, the situation has deteriorated seriously now. I don't think it is possible for you to come back. Unfortunately I don't have much time to coordinate with the Liao family but I'm confident that Liao Feng will have no issue accepting you. Once resistance becomes untenable, please retreat to the south. We're preparing for guerrilla warfare."
"Young Marshal, I just want to ask you one question. Are you planning to give up?"
Yang Chen's voice was firm:
"When did you have ever seen your Young Marshal frightened? I will never let the Wasoku have an easy time in our country."
"I see, Young Marshal. I, Wang Lei, swear to follow you to the death. Please rest assured that we will obey the Liao family's orders wholeheartedly as long as they fight against the enemy with soul and spirit. Of course you can count on me to be a he trouble-maker in the Wasoku's side."
"Take care, my brother."
"Take care, Young Marshal."
After hanging up the phone, Yang Chen continued issuing his order:
"Zaihua, relay my orders to all commanders and generals: If possible, have them retreat west and rendezvous with the rest of our forces. If retreat isn't feasible, instruct them to remain hidden nearby and conduct guerrilla warfare. At the same time, inform the local government. Let the people retreat west or south, transfer any valuable assets, and hide anything that needs to be concealed. We must not leave our treasures for the Wasoku to take. There will come a day when we reclaim everything. I, Yang Chen, swear to stand with them till the very end." Then he glances at Yang Zaihua and added, "After making your phone, let's head to Yucheng. I need to bid farewell to Zhou Di."
Sitting in the car, Yang Chen asked again:
"Did you manage to contact my wife?"
"Yes, I did. I spoke to Mrs. Junior Yang but she refused to talk to you so I had to tell her to leave Cangwu as soon as possible."
Yang Chen was silent for a moment before asking:
"But why does she continue staying there?"
"She told me that her mother, Mrs Hu, is in poor health and she wants to spend more time with her. Young Marshal, I really don't understand why the Madam refuses to answer your calls."
"She's venting all her grievances against my mother onto me." Yang Chen said with a sigh, "Did you tell her to bring Zichun back to Qudu as soon as possible?"
"I did, and the Madam told me she knew."