Although the fourth prince, Wanyan Wushu, wasn't personally well-versed in military geometry, he didn't stop his subordinates' clamor. Instead, he furrowed his brows and waited for the noise to die down on its own. Seeing that their commander had finally been acting normal for a few days, only to revert to that same old expression today, Wanyan Balisu and the others didn't dare to be too unruly and quickly returned to their seats to observe the battle.

Soon, the drums began to beat loudly beneath the city, and the horns on the city walls sounded continuously. As countless soldiers poured out from the Jin army's front lines, hundreds of siege ladders densely appeared in sight, and the battle immediately erupted.

It's said that because few people have ever witnessed what a massive army looks like, few can truly understand the momentum of thousands upon thousands of people charging forward together... In reality, ordinary people might become weak in the knees when faced with hundreds of warhorses charging at them, let alone a true army of thousands carrying weapons and shouting as they advance.

However, facing the Jin army's first large-scale, formal siege, the Song soldiers on the city walls were all silent... On one hand, many had grown accustomed to these scenes over the years. Even Zhao, the Emperor, watching from the watchtower in the rear bailey, remained unmoved. On the other hand, Chen Gui, the Minister of War who was in charge of the defense, had issued a military order that no one in the first rank on the city walls, except those specifically assigned, was allowed to speak without authorization!

Therefore, after the horn sounds ceased for a moment, there was only the Jin army's drumming, followed by tens of thousands of Jin soldiers shouting and killing under the leadership of their respective officers, creating a deafening roar.

Charging at the forefront were laborers carrying baskets, their task was to continue filling the trenches with earth... Unexpectedly, they rushed all the way to the front without a single arrow being fired, much to their delight. They poured debris and frozen earth into the dried-up and frozen moat before hurrying back.

Due to the viewing angle, Zhao Jiu, in the city's watchtower, which was actually quite far away, couldn't see the scene directly in front of him. He could only observe from the side, leaning out. Whether for better or worse, due to the clear weather, the Emperor could even see the joyous faces of those laborers dressed as Song people after they successfully dumped their earth. Naturally, he couldn't help but frown.

"Your Majesty."

At this moment, someone beside him suddenly spoke. "There's nothing that can be done about this. When I was in the Jin camp, I was just like them, responsible for filling the trenches with earth."

Everyone turned to look and saw that it was none other than Yan Xiaozhong, the Vice Prefect of Kaifeng. They all sighed, but had nothing to say.

However, Zhao, reclining on his chair, upon hearing these words, asked another question: "In the Jin camp, could you get enough to eat?"

"It's hard to say whether you could eat your fill on ordinary days." Not only were others surprised, but Yan Xiaozhong, who was short, dark, and skinny like a dwarf, was also slightly stunned, then he shook his head repeatedly. "But there was always something to eat. The Jin army's discipline was relatively strict, and there were very few instances of embezzlement... But when it came to battles like this, you might not necessarily get to eat."

"How so?" Zhao Jiu was puzzled for a moment. "Is it because swords and arrows have no eyes?"

"No." Yan Xiaozhong replied with a straight face, seriously. "When such a thing happens, death is an unavoidable consequence. But even if you return to camp alive, you'll likely go hungry... As I remember correctly, the Jin people will definitely use sticks to claim earth. These laborers receive a stick of wood, the length of a finger, for each basket of earth they carry. They insert it into their hair or behind their ears. After dumping the earth successfully, they return the empty basket and the stick. The Jin overseer will then shave the bark off the stick with a dagger, making it bare. The laborer can then use this bare stick to get a bowl of rice in the evening. Those without a bare stick deserve to go hungry."

In the sunlight, Zhao Jiu narrowed his eyes slightly: "A 'stick-Han'? I thought that was something from the Northern Qi era, like a 'penny-Han'?"

"Becoming a 'stick-Han' isn't easy either." Ignoring the increasingly dark expressions of the surrounding ministers, Yan Xiaozhong continued to explain to the Emperor. "I know clearly from my time in the Jin army... Those who can eat in the evening are mostly thugs and rascals among the laborers. Their sticks are mostly stolen after the battle. The Jin people aren't exactly fair enforcers; they only care about shaving sticks and distributing food, regardless of anything else. So, these laborers who fill a basket of earth, thinking they've earned a chance to live, will be driven back to work by the Jin people. Even if they manage to survive for days, they will be exhausted in the evening, and their sticks will be taken away by gangs of 'stick-Hans,' leaving them hungry for the night. They'll be weaker the next day, and die even faster."

Zhao Jiu remained silent, simply leaning out and watching the battle. The watchtower, which had been somewhat lively, became quiet after this 'explanation.'

"Enemy ladders are one hundred paces away from the 'Yellow' platform!" Just then, a loud announcement suddenly rang out from the silent city wall in front, immediately attracting everyone's attention.

Clearly, this was the real reason why those laborers filling the trenches were able to survive today. Behind them were countless 'sturdy laborers' carrying siege ladders... These people were likely carefully selected by Zhang Yu, the commander of the Jin army's labor camp. They were officially part of the auxiliary army, not just mere 'stick-Hans.' At the very least, many of them had a piece of wood to use as a shield to protect their flanks. Many also had a knife at their waist, something unimaginable for a 'stick-Han' who could hardly find an inch of iron.

If not, why would the Jin people use sticks as tokens?

Back to the present, as soon as the announcement rang out on the city wall, it was immediately followed by a continuous barrage of similar reports:

"Enemy ladders are one hundred paces away from the 'Hong' platform!"

"Enemy ladders are one hundred paces away from the 'Lie' platform!"

"Enemy ladders are one hundred paces away from the 'Yu' platform!"

As these commanders on the platforms (protruding areas on the city walls) made their reports, the archers and crossbowmen behind them on the corresponding sections of the city wall almost immediately prepared their weapons, entering a state of readiness.

Then, as a large number of Jin army siege weapons entered the range of the city walls, the archers and crossbowmen on the city walls, under the command of the flags on the platforms, began to fire in an orderly manner at the specific locations designated by the commanders... Most of the 'Zhang Yu's army' carrying the siege ladders only had a piece of wood, and only a very few leaders had a full set of leather armor. Therefore, a single round of dense volley from each platform caused many siege ladders to be abandoned on the ground, and the newly formed sturdy laborers quickly scattered.

Seeing this, Zhang Yu's personal guards, as well as the direct *meng'an* of Wanyan Balisu's department, who was in charge of the northern camp, rode forward on horseback, using their sabers and hooves to force these people to move forward again. They also demanded that Zhang Yu's main force, holding shields, lined up in formations, and with a certain percentage wearing armor, not hesitate any longer, but follow immediately... Because some siege ladders were, after all, approaching the moat that had become an ice-filled trench, preparing to cross it.

According to the design of most cities' defenses, behind the moat, or rather, the protective moat, there should only be a sheep-and-horse wall (a low wall outside the city wall, inside the moat, named for the residents outside the city storing livestock during wartime, a standard feature of medieval East Asian cities), only about one person high. As long as one crossed this low wall defense, one could enter the final stretch of flat area, about thirty to fifty paces wide, in front of the city wall, and from there, attempt to attack the city with siege ladders.

Correspondingly, facing the advance of the enemy's main force, which was well-equipped, the platforms on the city walls immediately became alert. Under the command of the squadron leaders on each platform, the archers and crossbowmen on the city walls began to focus their volleys on these better-equipped soldiers.

The *Kedi* bows, *Shenbi* crossbows, and even small ballistae were no longer stingy with their arrows. Zhang Yu's main force quickly suffered heavy casualties.

Not only that, Wanyan Balisu's personal guard *meng'an*, due to excessive supervision, rode into range and was shot dead along with dozens of men by a sudden volley of arrows from the Song army.

Seeing this, many people on the watchtower finally breathed a sigh of relief, even Lü Yihao felt somewhat relieved. However, not far north of the city, Wanyan Wushu and dozens of Jin generals watched this scene coldly, remaining unmoved.

In fact, all the Jin people's attention was almost entirely on those siege ladders, focused on how many siege ladders successfully reached the frozen moat, and how many could successfully cross the sheep-and-horse wall. Some had even begun to estimate how many siege ladders needed to be deployed at once to ensure that the entire sheep-and-horse wall fell, then was leveled, and finally, to launch "goose carts" to ram the city gates.

A moment later, seeing a siege ladder easily using the protection of the riverbank and the sheep-and-horse wall, landed easily from the bottom of the moat, and Zhang Yu's soldiers easily tossed it over the low sheep-and-horse wall. What shocked the Jin generals was that no Song soldiers appeared inside the sheep-and-horse wall to engage them! They all looked towards the fourth prince, Wanyan Wushu... Because the area behind the moat and the sheep-and-horse wall, and in front of the city wall, was traditionally the best place to defend with the support of overlapping fire from above, and sending troops out of the city to fight was a conventional, and even the most effective, means of defending the city.

Honestly speaking, even during the Jingkang Incident, troops from Tokyo often launched attacks from behind the sheep-and-horse wall. Yet Nanyang, with its ample troops and supplies, hadn't sent troops out of the city to fight!

Who had ever heard of defending a city without going outside?

The fourth prince, Wanyan Wushu, was clearly taken aback, seemingly finding it difficult to understand. Almost immediately, however, he nodded towards Wanyan Balisu, who was first on his left.

Upon receiving the signal, Wanyan Balisu immediately waved his hand, instructing the two *meng'an* under his command who were waiting for orders to immediately advance and join the battle. Those two Jurchen *meng'an*, arrayed in front of the high platform, upon receiving the military order, didn't hesitate at all. They immediately dismounted and launched a ground assault towards the heavily fortified city walls of Nanyang, preparing to participate in scaling the walls.

"There's something not right with the Song people's sheep-and-horse wall."

As soon as the troops of the two *meng'an* left, and seeing that several more siege ladders had been placed over the sheep-and-horse wall, while the Song army on the city wall still maintained some excessive composure and order, Wanhu Han Chang was the first to express his doubts.

"Indeed, something's not right."

The older Chizhan Hui stroked his beard and made a definitive statement. "It's not just the sheep-and-horse wall... Something has been off from the beginning. The city made preparations so early, they must have cannons, but from the first day until now, we haven't seen a single cannon stone fly out."

"That's right." Han Chang narrowed his eyes and continued. "Even if they want to save stone cannonballs, or don't want to reveal the cannon positions too early in order to use cannons against cannons, why aren't those cannons on the platforms being used? First the cannons aren't moving, then they sit back and watch as our army fills the river and crosses the sheep-and-horse wall, there must be something else they're relying on."

"Why can't it be that the Song civilian officials in the city have made another blunder?" Wanyan Balisu said with a smile that wasn't quite a smile. "I heard that in Tokyo, someone fired a cannon and hit the second prince's camp, but was publicly executed by his own people... The problems in the Song army, are those really problems?"

"That was because the previous Song Emperor was timid as a mouse, intent on making peace." Wanyan Wushu finally spoke, directly refuting Balisu's speculation. "This Song Emperor in Nanyang is not that kind of fool!"

Wanyan Balisu neither refuted nor agreed, but immediately shut his mouth... He had figured it out anyway, he couldn't curry favor with this fourth prince, and yet he was the fourth prince, as well as the Marshal Left Supervisor of the Grand Marshal's Office. So, it was better to cooperate non-violently.

Since Balisu kept silent, the others were also bored and simply waited quietly for changes in the situation in front.

However, the problem lay here. As the Jin army continuously deployed troops based on the so-called progress, the situation in front actually showed no change at all...

The laborers, in order to live to eat a mouthful of food tonight, continued to risk their lives running forward, either carrying baskets of earth and corpses to fill the trenches, or holding up wooden boards to carry siege ladders, at most reducing considerable casualties due to the active participation of Zhang Yu's main force and the two Jin *meng'an*; otherwise, everything remained the same;

Zhang Yu's soldiers, for rewards and to avoid the supervision team, mustered their courage to charge towards the moat, rushing up the positions where the laborers had successfully placed the siege ladders, often becoming scattered and suffering countless casualties before reaching the sheep-and-horse wall;

And the Jin army's two *meng'an* all fought in iron armor, truly brave and fearless, even taking the initiative to fire up at the city walls before the frozen moat, and demanding that the Han Chinese soldiers in their own *meng'an* form formations below the city and fire back. Therefore, although there were constant deaths and injuries due to the constant arrows overhead, it couldn't stop them from crossing the dry and frozen moat and climbing over the low sheep-and-horse wall.

However, regardless of the difference in combat power or the difference in battlefield position, there was only one result, and that was that anyone who managed to successfully cross that narrow sheep-and-horse wall disappeared without a trace...

At first, the Jin generals didn't pay much attention to this phenomenon, because even if the Song army didn't have the courage to send troops out of the city to fight, they would certainly use the advantage of the platforms and city walls to launch close-range arrow attacks on the sheep-and-horse wall. Under the crossfire and the Song people's most proud archers and crossbowmen, this area was the area with the greatest casualties, and it was supposed to be a one-in-ten-thousand chance of survival.

But over time, the fact that not a single siege ladder had been successfully erected on the city wall after crossing the sheep-and-horse wall was somewhat absurd.

"Is it a *luchai* or a trap?" Wanyan Balisu said thoughtfully. "*Luchai* (鹿柴) is a type of defensive stake barrier. "Can't be that they've scattered iron caltrops like the Liao people did in front of Yuguan Pass (Shanhaiguan) in the past, right?"

"Even scattering iron caltrops didn't stop us from capturing Yuguan in fifteen days." The old general Chizhan Hui became increasingly frustrated, but actually stood up. "And Yuguan was quickly captured that day because the Emperor Taizu personally braved arrows and stones to actively investigate the Liao people's secrets, so we could win in one battle... I'm going to see what tricks the Song people are hiding!"

"General, please sit down."

Wanyan Wushu immediately spoke, but then looked at Wanyan Balisu.

And Balisu didn't dare to be negligent. He quickly got up and personally stopped Chizhan Hui... What a joke, Jurchen generals traditionally valued personally braving arrows and stones, but he was the supervisor of the northern camp, today's battle was his responsibility, how could he let someone else do it?

If Chizhan Hui really went, he would be laughed at by those in Yanjing when he returned to the army.

Therefore, as soon as he stopped Chizhan Hui, Wanyan Balisu vigorously shouted a name on the platform: "Gu Ying, where are you?!"

A *meng'an*, only in his twenties, quickly stepped forward, bowing respectfully. His age formed a stark contrast with the surrounding generals, instantly attracting everyone's attention.

"Take your knights to the back of the sheep-and-horse wall and find out what's going on, or don't come back!" Balisu ordered sternly, and then drew his saber and threw it in front of the man.

Upon hearing these words, the general simply kowtowed on the ground, then picked up the saber and turned away swiftly.

Seeing this young general lead his men dismount and set off, Han Chang finally became thoughtful and asked Balisu, "Is that the commander's nephew? Little name is Talán, the one with the same name as the Deputy Marshal?"

"That's right." Balisu sat down again, but that didn't stop him from responding proudly. "He's my nephew!"

"I remember when we attacked Liao, your brother gave him armor and weapons, and at that time we laughed at the Deputy Marshal, saying big and small Talán, we might not be able to remember clearly in the future." Chizhan Hui, who had also sat down again, laughed. "Sure enough, in the blink of an eye, he's already become a *meng'an*... It's just that the Deputy Marshal has also become a Deputy Marshal."

"Names are irrelevant, let's see his ability." Balisu continued to speak proudly, and even Wanyan Wushu nodded slightly.

It was said that Balisu's nephew was naturally the son of Wanyan Yinshuke, the Prefect of Taiyuan. Such a relative of the imperial family actually personally led hundreds of cavalry to dismount and investigate the most dangerous area under the enemy's city walls, something unimaginable on the Song side. But in the Jin camp, it was still a matter of course.

It could only be said that this was the Jurchen people.

Regardless of whether they had begun to degenerate, or to what extent they had degenerated, at this moment, they were still the most powerful cold-weapon army in East Asia, and even in the world.

This wasn't an exaggeration; it was a fact.

In the early twelfth century AD, the Holy Roman Empire was merely a name, Byzantium was in decline, West Asia and North Africa were fragmented, the Crusades were in full swing, and the Ghaznavid Dynasty in Central Asia and India was disintegrating. Saladin, who would later achieve some success, had not yet been born. At this moment, civilization in East Asia still led the way... Therefore, with the demise of the Liao Dynasty and Yelü Dashi's westward movement, it was natural that the Great Song Dynasty politically, culturally, and economically dominated everything in this world. And the de facto military hegemon of East Asia, the Jin Dynasty, was also truly invincible.

In fact, after absorbing a large amount of advanced cultural knowledge from the Liao and Song Dynasties, and acquiring the wealthy lands of Hebei, Youyan, and Liaodong, the Great Jin Dynasty was likely still the second strongest country in the world in terms of culture and economy. And the Great Song Dynasty, which had almost perished a year ago, was still the second largest military power in the world... Undeniably so.

If not?

At this moment, on this planet, no one could ridicule the Jurchen people's economic and cultural backwardness. Except for the Song people, no one could ridicule the Song people's military incompetence, except for the Jurchen people.

Yelü Dashi?

In the end, was it the Great Liao or the Great Song that perished?

It was said that Wanyan Gu Ying's participation in the battle immediately attracted the attention of the Song army on the Nanyang city walls, because this troop was clearly temporarily transferred, and the cavalry came directly, which was completely different from the two *meng'an* who were stationed in front of the enemy commander's platform, equipped with short weapons, shields, and sufficient bows and arrows.

Soon, the troop's intentions were also detected. They charged into the Song army's firing range in skirmishing formation, but dismounted in front of the moat that had been mostly filled, then scattered and crossed the moat, climbing the sheep-and-horse wall... Obviously, they wanted to understand what was happening behind the sheep-and-horse wall.

Of course, there was no story, just a simple moat! Inside and outside the sheep-and-horse wall of Nanyang City, there was a moat respectively! Two layers. This was the core idea of Chen Gui's city defense construction. He would never have fewer layers if he could have more, and he didn't expect to use it as some kind of secret weapon.

In fact, the inner moat behind the sheep-and-horse wall was clearly dug temporarily. It wasn't as deep as the outer one, nor as wide, and the ice at the bottom wasn't as thick either. It was just enough to cause great trouble for the attacking Jin army!

The outer moat was a real moat.

A moat, after all, needs to be filled. Tens of thousands of people filled it for three or four days, and today, with the thick ice that had finally formed, the Jin people finally crossed it, only to fall into another moat covered with ice spikes!

So what should they do?

In fact, as soon as Wanyan Gu Ying crossed over and slid to the bottom of the ditch, he was thinking about this simple question, and he quickly came to the most direct answer - climb back.

Just climb back from that slightly thick sheep-and-horse wall, as long as there weren't a dozen or so *Kedi* bows and *Shenbi* crossbows aiming at him, the double-layered armor he was wearing was enough to cope with it.

However, after finally climbing up from the inner moat, which already had many corpses, against the rain of arrows, and arriving at the narrow bottom part of the wall, Wanyan Gu Ying was shocked to find that the wall had actually grown taller?!

The sheep-and-horse wall, which was easily jumped over from the outside, could not be reached by stepping on several corpses from the inside?

Was it haunted?

"It actually has this magical effect!"

Gradually different from his angry and irritable appearance in the morning, seeing hundreds of elite Jin soldiers trapped in this trap like moths to a flame, although he didn't know that there was a big fish among them, Chancellor Lü Yihao, who had been holding his breath all morning, was still in a rare good mood. His posture of standing up to look and stroking his beard was also much smoother. "Was this method of being low on the inside and high on the outside also conceived by Minister Chen?"

"No." Yan Xiaozhong, who simply stood on the chair, blurted out. "Minister Chen has always liked inner moats, but he couldn't have thought of the different heights inside and outside the sheep-and-horse wall."

"Regardless of who it was, they should be rewarded!" Chancellor Lü waved his hand generously. "Although it's a small trick, not worth mentioning, it still has one or two points of cunning, and it's worth rewarding, especially with this initial victory."

The dark and thin Yan Xiaozhong looked at Lü Yihao, who had stood up, on the chair, and then looked at the person beside him, but simply cupped his hands on the chair, and then said frankly: "To let Chancellor Lü know, this subordinate participated in repairing the city defenses and knows it very well. It was the person beside you who came up with these one or two points of cunning."

Everyone looked at each other in astonishment, instinctively looking at Lü Yihao, and even Lü Yihao instinctively looked at the person beside him. However, when everyone looked together, they found that Lü Yihao's left side was another Chancellor Lü, who was also looking around, and had been silent for the past few days, so they shook their heads and then looked to Chancellor Lü's right side... And there, it was Zhao, still not speaking, as if he hadn't heard anything.

ps: The morning chapter of starting over has arrived.