Days later, within Jizhongdu, the city of Beiping.
The hundred thousand strong Northern Expeditionary Army had advanced, leaving thousands of men to guard each city they captured.
By the time they reached this point, only about fifty thousand remained.
Han Shizhong was left as a bare commander, with most of the troops stationed along the way to guard cities being from his own Han family army.
On the city walls, civil and military officials stood by. Wanyan Dan, the third emperor of the Jin Dynasty and the legitimate eldest grandson of Wanyan Aguda, looked down upon the Yue family army outside.
Banners fluttered, five ten-thousand-man formations, their spearheads pointing directly at the gates of Beiping.
"So, the King of Yue has already died in battle in Nanjing?"
His voice trembled slightly as he asked the officials behind him.
In terms of seniority, Jin Wuzhu was his fourth uncle.
In terms of state affairs, he was also a founding pillar of the Jin Dynasty.
In terms of his talent for attacking cities and conquering territory, for the current Jin Dynasty, no one could surpass him; he was comparable to the pillar of the nation.
The battles of Luzhou and Bianliang, the news had already spread far and wide.
In those two battles, the Song army had broken through the city gates like a raging torrent, exceeding everyone's perception.
Although no news of Jin Wuzhu had returned, his fate could already be guessed.
Therefore, when he asked about this, all the officials invariably chose to evade the topic.
"Please rest assured, Your Majesty. The various forces coming to the rescue have been arriving successively."
"Moreover, we are the defenders, so these Song troops outside the city are not to be feared."
Wanyan Dan still felt uneasy. All his progress had relied on Jin Wuzhu's assistance. Now that both were absent, he felt like he had lost his backbone.
"No, the Song army has changed! In Luzhou and Bianliang, they were still defeated despite the advantage of the city walls. We cannot be careless now!"
"Transmit the order. Any reinforcements that arrive later are to enter the city immediately. No one is to engage the Song army outside the city!"
After saying this, he paced back and forth on the city wall, rapidly thinking of countermeasures. Suddenly, a person appeared in his mind, and he quickly said to the accompanying guards.
"How has the King of Liao been recently? Is he still able to don armor and fight?"
The guard he was looking at immediately adopted an expression as if his father had died.
"Replying to Your Majesty, given the King of Liao's condition, I fear he is unable to fight."
Wanyan Dan's mood immediately sank by half, but he still said unyieldingly, "Carry him! Carry the King of Liao over!"
"Tell him that this battle concerns the survival of the Great Jin!"
"He does not need to personally engage in battle, only to oversee the defense!"
"Yes!"
The guard quickly bowed and retreated, running down the city wall.
Within the King of Liao's mansion, Wanyan Zonggan leaned back in his chair, glaring at the maids in front of him.
A conspicuous patch of yellowish-brown liquid stain was on his white robe, emitting a foul odor. What was incomprehensible was that this smell surprisingly carried a hint of sweetness.
"Can't even catch a bird properly, what use are you to me!"
"Slap!"
Saying this, he whipped one of the maids. Her clothes instantly tore open, and reeds, used as stuffing, drifted out from within, like snowflakes.
The maid endured the pain, not even daring to whimper.
She knew very well that if she dared to make a sound, she would be beaten even more severely.
She could only weep in her heart. It was just a slight tremor of her hand when helping him urinate, and he beat her to death. These Jin barbarians were not human!
It was only because she was a Han woman, abandoned by the Song Dynasty!
Therefore, in Beiping city, any Jin person could touch her as they pleased, let alone this King of Liao of the Jin Dynasty.
"Your Highness, an imperial eunuch has arrived to deliver an edict."
At this moment, a servant walked over and reported to Wanyan Zonggan, not forgetting to cast a lecherous glance at the maids on the ground.
"Enough, stop looking. If you want them, take them. They are just a few cheap women, a gift for you!"
"Have someone bring my sedan chair!"
Wanyan Zonggan, having lived a long life, understood what the servant was thinking and casually bestowed them upon him.
When the sedan chair was brought, he sat in it with the help of several servants and left the mansion without looking back.
Outside the city, Zhang Xian stood beside Yue Fei.
"Commander Yue, another contingent of Jin troops has entered the city."
Yue Fei frowned. "Since yesterday, how many reinforcements have arrived in the city?"
"Approximately sixty to seventy thousand," Zhang Xian replied truthfully.
Hearing this number, Yue Fei walked over to Li Shimin to seek instruction.
"Your Majesty Taizong, are we really going to wait like this?"
In ancient times, sieges often employed a strategy of surrounding three sides and leaving one side open. However, after arriving here, Li Shimin, who had never questioned operational plans, suddenly requested to attack only one gate, leaving three gates for Jin reinforcements to pass through.
This left Yue Fei somewhat bewildered, and Li Shimin maintained an air of mystery about it, offering no further explanation.
Li Shimin, chewing on a white radish he had pulled from someone's field, casually replied.
"Just wait. These soft-shelled turtles in the city aren't worth the fight!"
One day, two days, three days...
The Yue family army waited outside the city for a full five days. It seemed that all the Jin reinforcements had arrived. From the third day onwards, Jin troops began to encamp outside the city, as there was no more space within the city!
Yet, despite waiting and waiting, Li Shimin did not order an assault.
The Jin troops within the city seemed to be deliberately cooperating with him, as they did not launch any active attacks. This made Yue Fei, who had been fighting for many years, suddenly feel as if he no longer knew how to fight.
He found Li Shimin to seek instructions. "Your Majesty Taizong, should we continue to wait?"
"Hmm~ Never mind. How many troops do the Jin have now?" Li Shimin casually tossed a card. "Eighty thousand!"
Yue Fei quickly replied, "Replying to Your Majesty Taizong, combined with those who entered the city and those encamped outside these past few days, there are about two hundred thousand."
"Two hundred thousand? Heh heh, now this is getting interesting!"
Upon hearing this number, Li Shimin's interest was piqued. He pushed aside the mahjong tiles and stood up, saying.
"Transmit the order, attack the city! Let Xie Bi'an use the Gatling gun to cover you!"
"Yes!"
Yue Fei cupped his hands in a salute and was about to turn to leave when he saw Yue Yun running towards them.
"Commander Yue, someone is here!"