"“Three reasons,” Wuzhu replied with his head held high. “First, spring is approaching, and the temperature may warm up at any time. When that happens, the tributaries and small rivers of the Huai River will thaw, and there may be a spring flood… which will make crossing the Huai River difficult.”"

Ari, Elubu, and a group of Jurchen Meng'an soldiers all nodded in understanding.

“Second,” Wuzhu continued casually, “you've all heard the decree from that Zhao brat, something about defending the territory against the Jin, and not allowing negotiations. It’s all nonsense, but one thing needs attention: the decree to recruit volunteer soldiers and militia, and incorporate them into the national army… I'm not saying I'm afraid the bandits and militia in Huainan will hear the news and come to Shouzhou to support them, but dealing with them will be time-consuming and laborious. It’s better to settle this matter sooner rather than later.”

Elubu and the others frowned slightly, evidently thinking of the volunteer army in Hebei that kept popping up like weeds, and the bandits in Jingdong who had directly become the main force against the Jin. They couldn't refute it.

“Third, General Ari doesn’t understand the cunning of the Zhao family,” Wuzhu continued, looking down from his seat. “The Zhao Song emperor on the other side was baited by me, and lost control, that’s true, but he may not really intend to defend to the death…”

“What do you mean?” Ari asked with a frown.

“General Ari, have you considered this?” Wuzhu replied with his head held high. “Is it possible that the little official on the other side is genuinely afraid of me, acting so determined and fierce on the surface, spitting on me, calling for defending the territory, entrusting the crown prince to the prime minister, but actually intends to deceive everyone and take the opportunity to flee?! If we take things seriously as you say, and wait until the ships and supplies are ready before crossing, what if the Song Emperor has already fled across the Yangtze River?”

Ari instinctively wanted to refute, but when he thought of what the two emperors of Tokyo had done in the past, he was speechless.

“That’s it,” Wuzhu said, feeling relieved to have refuted Ari, and simply spread his hands. “I have arranged everything perfectly. We will start building pontoon bridges to cross the river the day after tomorrow! Do you have anything else to say about this?”

Ari and Elubu exchanged glances, and after thinking about it, and considering that their previous objections had been dismissed in the mud-smearing military discussion, they had nothing to say and nodded.

With the two generals and the commander-in-chief in agreement, the people below naturally had nothing to say.

However…

“However, besides crossing the river, there is one thing we must be wary of,” Elubu said casually as he stood up first to leave the meeting.

“It doesn’t matter. If General Elubu thinks it should be done, then do it!” Wuzhu was slightly stunned, but quickly realized what he meant, and looked nonchalant.

Elubu nodded repeatedly and left the tent first. The military discussion was completely dismissed.

However, just as Shi Wenbin, who had just managed to control his emotions, followed at the end, preparing to take his leave, Wuzhu suddenly called out to him: “Military Advisor Shi doesn’t need to go to the rear camp tonight. Just find a place to sleep here in front of my tent… This is a favor I’m granting you!”

Shi Wenbin was puzzled, but he had no room to refuse. He could only bow repeatedly and thank the Fourth Prince for his grace. Wuzhu didn't explain further and went to the back to enjoy himself.

As for Shi Wenbin, since he was staying in the central army tent, he had no bedding, no place to wash, and he didn't dare sleep on the furs on the Fourth Prince's seat, nor did he dare use the wine in the tent to keep warm. He could only huddle in a corner and suffer… Frozen and exhausted, he could hear the sound of galloping horses outside the tent, and the clanging of armor and blades. Then, songs and dances came from the tent, with faint sounds of women pleading. After it finally quieted down, the military advisor thought of the decrees he had read that evening, of his family left in Yishui, of the fear and resentment he had endured these past few days, and of the fact that he had no other way out. He secretly cried for half the night before finally falling asleep.

“Is that Zhengfu?” Zhao Jiu, who had woken up in the middle of the night in the Eight Gong Mountain imperial tent, which was now much wider because it had been rebuilt with wood, casually asked, looking towards a familiar figure by the lamplight near the tent door.

“Your Majesty!” Yang Yizhong, who had been dozing off in a chair inside the tent door, quickly got up and replied. “Why is Your Majesty awake? Is something the matter?”

“No, I’m just worried about the battle situation… The Jin are clearly planning to abandon Xiachai City and try to cross the river first. According to Han Shizhong’s previous arrangement and plan, this should be a good thing, but I still find it unbearable!” Zhao Jiu, sitting on the bed, spoke frankly. “You must know, I have never been on the battlefield myself, nor have I seen a proper battle.”

Yang Yizhong clearly hesitated to speak.

“What do you mean?” Zhao Jiu asked directly, seeing it clearly in the lamplight. “Is there anything we can’t say to each other?”

“Actually, Your Majesty has been on the battlefield,” Yang Yizhong said with a forced smile. “Before Your Majesty fell into the well, when we were going from Hebei to Nanjing (Shangqiu), we were blocked by bandits on the road. Your subject was fighting in the front, covered in blood. Your Majesty thought I was injured, so you summoned me to your side to ask about it, and then rewarded me with wine… That was when Your Majesty took a liking to me, and then asked for me from Grand Commandant Zhang.”

Zhao Jiu couldn’t help but laugh dryly.

Yang Yizhong quickly explained: “However, fighting the Jin is naturally different… The Jin are strong and can endure hardship. When fighting them, unless they take the initiative to retreat, you can only claim victory by killing the enemy general, or even killing them all. Moreover, after the Jingkang Incident, the Jin took all our armor, and their strength seems to be even greater than before.”

“That’s what I’m worried about!” Zhao Jiu shook his head and sighed even more. “Although I shouted fiercely the other day, in reality, at this moment, in this situation, the Jin army is strong and our army is weak, and it is impossible to reverse this reality easily. I am terribly lacking in confidence.”

“If we can hold this battle and wait for the enemy to retreat on their own, our momentum will gradually turn around,” Yang Yizhong quickly comforted him again.

“Let’s not talk about that,” Zhao Jiu quickly shook his head. “I know my own limitations. All I can do in this battle is sit here under the Dragon Banner on the northern ridge of Eight Gong Mountain to boost morale. The battle still has to be fought by Han Shizhong, Zhang Jun, and Wang De… But Zhengfu!”

“Your subject is here!”

“I only cared about my own pleasure in what I said the night before last, but it caused you trouble.”

“Your subject doesn’t dare!”

“But I was speaking from the heart… Listen to me.” Zhao Jiu said suddenly. “I know what you all think afterwards. You think I was using retreat as a way to advance, and that my intention in saying those outrageous words was to force the civil officials in the temporary capital to accept my bottom line of defending the Huai River to the death… But that was truly from the bottom of my heart.”

“Your Majesty!” Yang Yizhong was extremely helpless.

“Zhengfu, think about it… You should have seen clearly in these few months that you have been with me that I am really afraid of death, and I really dare not end my own life!” A few eunuchs peeked out from the back door, but then shrank back. Zhao Jiu ignored them and continued to speak frankly. “And can anyone accept the humiliation of being called the Marquis of Chonghun? So if we really lose this time, I am sincerely asking you to end my life for me! This is not a request from a ruler to his subject, but a private plea from me, Zhao Jiu, to you, Yang Zhengfu! You don’t have to agree to leave any loophole, just keep it in mind for the sake of national hatred and family grievances!”

Yang Yizhong remained silent.

“From today onwards, don’t come to the imperial tent to stay up late,” Zhao Jiu said with effort. “Because the battle could start at any time, and the strength of the Jin is clear for all to see. When things get desperate, everyone will have to go to the battlefield. There’s no need to leave a great talent like you idle… You must conserve your energy early.”

“Yes!” Under the lamplight, Yang Yizhong finally replied with difficulty.

A night passed in silence, and morning arrived in an instant.

Over at the Jin camp in Huaibei, Shi Wenbin, who had finally endured the night, felt that he had completed the 'overnight' task and hurriedly left the tent, preparing to return to his residence in the rear camp to tidy himself up. However, the military advisor of the Jin Fourth Prince was stunned at the tent door… Overnight, the dozens of Song defectors from the Jingdong Circuit who were traveling with the Jin army, who were Shi Wenbin's partners in the rear camp, and his former colleagues who usually competed for favors and made sarcastic remarks, had all been beheaded!

At this time, dozens of heads, of different shapes, were all hanging on both sides of the general's platform in front of the central army tent, and were faintly covered in ice.

Hearing the movement, a few soldiers on duty in the central army, who were Jurchen, Xi, and Khitan, turned around and saw Shi Wenbin, who had been tied up here and whipped the other day, but had escaped the disaster today. They pointed and talked, taking pleasure in it.

This time, Military Advisor Shi fell to the ground, speechless and lost for words, but in the end, he didn't cry.

ps: No, I've been too busy these last few days of the year, I need to adjust quickly… I can’t be in this semi-tired state during the new book period… If I’m not even excited myself, no wonder the collections aren’t going up.