Chapter 41 The Total Collapse

By afternoon, with considerable time remaining before nightfall and the fine spring rain still showing no sign of stopping, the Jin army had already completely collapsed across the board.

To be sure, before this total collapse arrived, Wushu, remaining at the rear camp, was terrified, yet he still tried his best to prepare… On one hand, he sent Taishi Nu to take Yu Yunwen to meet with the Zhao Song emperor, seeking to delay the possible total collapse as much as possible. On the other hand, he ordered his personal guards to open all the camp gates and drawbridges, with flags prepared behind them for necessary support. Simultaneously, he had the garrison troops drive the conscripted soldiers out of the camp from the opposite side to clear space, while also ordering the camp passages and grounds to be cleared to facilitate the entry and reorganization of troops.

However, all these preparations, at least the immediate ones, proved entirely ineffective when the earth-shattering moment arrived.

The entire camp, from front to back, fell into chaos. The vast majority of soldiers ignored military orders, and looting and infighting spread everywhere, accompanied by desertion. Most of the flag-bearers assigned to guide the troops also turned and fled… Initially, Wushu attempted to execute the flag-bearers with his personal guards to maintain order, but with the arrival of the first wave of fleeing soldiers at the camp gates, even the personal guards of the ruling prince lost their last shred of confidence and ceased following orders.

This was, of course, understandable. Even with countless drawbridges and gates opened in front of the camp due to the previous deployment of troops, large-scale trampling still occurred when the fleeing soldiers returned. Countless armored soldiers were pushed directly into the moats by the rear ranks. Consequently, these core forces of the Great Jin struggled and fought amongst themselves on the drawbridges and in the muddy ditches for a chance to escape.

They trampled each other, tore at each other, and even wielded war hammers without hesitation. Some even tried to remove their armor in the mud, just to be able to climb into the camp sooner.

In an instant, armor, weapons, and the mud in the moats caused a massive reduction in numbers, perhaps greater than what had occurred in a half-hour of intense fighting earlier.

In fact, upon seeing this situation, not only did Wushu completely abandon his efforts, but the few others in the camp who were still adhering to military orders also lost their discipline and simply turned and fled.

"Prince of Wei! Prince of Wei! Fourth Prince!"

Hong Ya, panting heavily, shouted several times towards the watchtower. "The situation is beyond saving. If we don't leave now, are we going to bury the entire Great Jin with us? Let's hurry back to Zhending Prefecture!"

Wushu, his face deathly pale, finally nodded blankly. He dazedly climbed down from the watchtower, almost falling. However, before he could fall, several personal guards rushed forward, half pulling and half carrying their prince to the ground, and someone quickly brought over a warhorse.

"No! I can't go to Zhending Prefecture!"

Wushu, in a daze, mounted the horse and advanced slightly with Hong Ya and a few dozen trusted personal guards. When they reached an intersection within the camp, he suddenly regained some clarity. "With such a massive collapse, the few pontoon bridges on the Hutuo River can't possibly accommodate many people. The bulk of the troops will still have to head east… But if we go east, Hong Chengji, you know what will happen…"

Of course, Hong Ya knew… Wasn't it that most of the fleeing Jin soldiers would hastily remain south of the Hutuo River, and Yue Fei would likely encircle them from downstream… But in the current situation, how could he dare to interrupt?

As perhaps the person in the army most psychologically prepared for the total collapse of the Jin army, he had been much more clear-headed than Wushu just now, but he hadn't dared to say a word, for fear of being suspected if something went wrong in the future.

Yu Yunwen's muddy waters were enough to cause anxiety and fear!

"I'll go to Shiyi first, to see if I can gather troops along the way and cross the river as soon as possible." On the other side, Wushu, seeing that Hong Ya didn't speak, misunderstood, assuming the civil official was afraid of death. "Hong Chengji, I'll trouble you to go to the rear camp, and take the people there to Zhending Prefecture. I had Gao Qingyi summon the sixth prince to send reinforcements. Now you must stop them and not let them come to their deaths. Let the sixth prince defend Zhending well… Defend it for a day if possible… Also, tell Pu Suyue to manage those few pontoon bridges on the river well, and gather as many people as possible!"

As he spoke, Wushu tried to take his golden token from his waist and hand it to the other man, but for some reason, he didn't take it off until the very end. Finally, Hong Ya himself became anxious and covered in sweat, personally riding over and snatching it away from Wushu on horseback.

After taking it, they each spurred their horses, preparing to go their separate ways. But after taking a few steps, Hong Ya couldn't help but slightly turn his horse around, and while still on horseback, he held the golden token and bowed sideways to Wushu.

"Fourth Prince, please take care!"

Wushu looked back at the other man blankly, nodded slightly in the rain, and then, finally, they each spurred their horses and parted ways.

If Wushu and Hong Ya, being in the rear camp, still had some time and space to think, then Yan Wanyan Huonv, Wanyan Poshu, and Jiagu Wulibu, the three generals at the forefront of the high ground, along with their subordinates, were the first to bear the brunt and realized immediately that the situation was hopeless and beyond human control.

However, in this moment of earth-shattering momentum, the three former trusted subordinates of Lou Shi behaved very differently.

Jiagu Wulibu, already sixty-four years old, let out a long sigh and immediately spurred his horse back to camp, attempting to escape. Contrary to most of the fleeing soldiers, he actually led dozens of personal guards eastward, seemingly intending to do the opposite, taking advantage of the Song army's iron curtain formation's slow movement to calmly avoid the large fleeing troops. This would also make it easier to go to Zhending Prefecture via the Hutuo River.

He knew the urgency of crossing the river as soon as possible.

As for Wanyan Huonv and Wanyan Poshu, they seemed to stop in place as if by agreement, then allowed the troops around them to scatter, merely staring blankly at the dragon banner on the hilltop.

This was understandable. Others still had reasons to flee, the instinct to survive, but what about Huonv and Poshu?

They had nothing left.

They had lost the belief in revenge that had sustained them for so long, the last hope of defeating that dragon banner, and even the last means of standing their ground… Their army was now at the forefront, probably the most difficult to escape. Moreover, someone had to be held responsible for the defeat in this battle.

The Prince of Wei's level was one thing, but it was a widely known fact that Huonv and Poshu had launched the initial attack, leading to the division of a large force of elite cavalry by the Song army's cavalry. As a result, neither of the strategic objectives on the flanks had been achieved. There was no need to even argue.

With this thought, Huonv reined in his horse under the fine rain and smiled at the dozens of remaining riders behind him:

"You all go and find General Poshu… He is the Taizu's (Emperor Taizu of Jin) illegitimate nephew and will still have a chance to live if he returns. In the future, when we retreat to the frontier, in the Changbai Mountains, we might be able to rise again and avenge my father… Do not waste your lives here… Go quickly!"

The dozens of personal guards looked at each other, none of them moving for a moment. But as the Song army's great formation rolled forward, and even more elite Song soldiers noticed the Jin generals and came to attack, more than ten soldiers finally bent down and left to find Wanyan Poshu in the east.

Huonv originally wanted to throw away his helmet and commit suicide as soon as everyone left, but seeing that there were still more than a dozen riders behind him, he simply spurred his horse to meet the enemy, avoiding the Song army's formation and charging towards the dragon banner along the gaps in the chevaux de frise.

Seeing this scene, several more riders left, leaving only seven or eight riders following behind.

Although the Song army in the chevaux de frise was scattered due to the presence of the obstacles, they still had enough heavily armored warriors to easily stop these more than a dozen riders who could not run fast at all.

However, Huonv had been watching for a long time and had seen a group of Song soldiers wielding long sabers but no blunt weapons, stationed at a corner of the chevaux de frise in front of the dragon banner, seemingly vulnerable. So, at this moment, he took the lead, relying on his superb horsemanship and martial skills, dodging left and right, and actually avoided the swarming heavily armored warriors, leading a few riders to charge in front of the group of alien soldiers wielding long sabers. As the two sides met head-on, these alien soldiers were indeed no match for Huonv and his personal guards. Often, a single hammer blow was enough to deal with them, while the long sabers were useless when they grazed past. The few who switched to hammers and axes were clearly not used to them… For a time, they were entangled by Huonv's personal guards, and Huonv himself charged almost single-handedly to a position two or three hundred steps in front of the dragon banner.

At this time, only one alien warrior with a long saber stood between Huonv and the formation under the dragon banner, clearly composed of the imperial guards.

Seeing this situation, the formation in front of the dragon banner remained as steady as Mount Tai, without the slightest movement. Even the surrounding Song army formations did not come to rescue, because no one believed that this single rider could break through the thousands of imperial guards. Even Huonv himself thought that if he could die in the Zhao Song imperial guard formation and let the Zhao Song emperor see his immediate death, he would have no regrets.

Unexpectedly, just as Huonv's blood was boiling, as he approached the long saber warrior, the other man did not retreat but instead shouted and swung his saber to meet him.

Seeing this, Huonv did not hesitate and swung his hammer in response.

However, the two riders collided head-on, and Huonv actually lost his target. After riding about ten steps, his armored warhorse neighed again, then collapsed with a crash, throwing Huonv directly onto a set of chevaux de frise next to him.

Although he was protected by his armor and was not dramatically impaled, it was enough to make him suffer unbearable pain and lose his ability to move, leaving him at the mercy of others.

Dazed, Huonv, trapped in the narrow gap between the wooden spikes of the chevaux de frise, struggled to open his eyes and saw a large mass of internal organs and blood sliding and rolling down the slope behind the warhorse. The horse's intestines had been dragged dozens of steps from its abdomen. At this moment, a bloody figure actually stood up from the pile of internal organs and limped towards him.

Huonv knew immediately that the other man had used this desperate tactic to survive. All he could say was that this fellow had managed to slice open the horse's belly while sliding down the slope without being crippled by the warhorse, which was truly lucky.

Of course, now was not the time to think about the other man… Huonv tried to see his own appearance clearly, but he could not turn his body. He could only sigh inwardly that it was fine to die so easily, but it was a pity that he did not die in front of the dragon banner, in front of the Zhao Song emperor and countless Song generals. He could not help but feel somewhat aggrieved.

Of course, the grievance quickly dissipated.

Yuan Weiyi, covered in blood, walked forward step by step. Under the solemn gaze of the surrounding Song soldiers, he first took the other man's golden token from his waist and bit it in his mouth, then pried open the faceplate and directly stabbed a dagger from his lower back into the man's face. Only then did he hurriedly step on the man's corpse and raise the golden token high towards a certain direction.

Zhao Jiu, who had personally advanced to the front of the chevaux de frise after swinging his sword, stood with his hands behind his back and did not move. Seeing this scene from afar, he simply pointed a finger. With just that one gesture, Yuan Weiyi seemed to be relieved of a heavy burden and then collapsed to the ground, inexplicably weeping.

It was said that because Pusann Beilu's corpse had not been found for a while, and Wanyan Balisu's commander's flag had only been discovered broken, Wanyan Huonv was the third myriarch that the Song army had definitively killed in battle, following Ali and Tuhesu, and the fifth myriarch actually killed in battle.

It was now afternoon, only a quarter of an hour after the Jin army's total collapse. The rain had not stopped.

On the other side, since Zhao Jiu had swung his sword and ordered a general offensive, the commanders and generals urged their troops forward. For some reason, he himself was no longer willing to advance. Seeing a Jin general charging almost single-handedly into the formation, only to fall before reaching him, and displaying a golden token, he knew that Huonv had died. His mood became even more listless, and he did not want to say or do anything more, simply allowing Shao Chengzhang to move over his stool and table and sitting to watch the army pour down and pursue the fleeing enemy.

However, just as the emperor had sat down again, news came again.

"Qu Da has surrounded Wanyan Poshu… Wanyan Poshu wants to meet me in front of the battle?" Zhao Jiu frowned. "That Lou Shi's deputy?"

"Yes," Liu Yan replied immediately. "He is also an illegitimate son of Wanyan Yama, who was a younger brother of Aguda, making him Aguda's nephew."

"With such status, it wouldn't hurt to see him," Zhao Jiu said, sitting in the rain. "But I have no interest today… Tell Qu Da to kill him quickly, and then go and trample the enemy camp."

Liu Yan bowed and left.

About a quarter of an hour later, the order reached Qu Duan. Qu Duan nodded in understanding, not saying a word, simply looking at a Jin soldier without weapons or a warhorse in front of the formation. The latter understood and directly returned to the Jin army's formation.

Around Wanyan Poshu, there were still hundreds of Tie Futu (iron pagoda soldiers). Hearing the reply, they all came to see their commander. After looking around, especially seeing the chaos in the moat in front of the camp behind him, Poshu was straightforward.

"The Song emperor looks down on us, but we cannot belittle ourselves. There are no Hezha Meng'an (tribal military units of the Jin dynasty) who surrender in the Great Jin." Poshu declared loudly as he removed his helmet and neck guard. "But now, it is impossible to force you to fight and send you to your deaths… Everyone, flee! Forget about the warhorses stored in the camp. First, remove the horse armor, then throw away your armor after passing the camp. Our horses are good. Find a shallow滩 (tān, shoal) and you can cross the Hutuo River by holding onto their necks. Escape if you can. When you return to Yanjing (present-day Beijing), seek out the emperor. In the future, if the emperor wants to return to the frontier to establish a new base, he will need you to protect him."

As he spoke, he untied the braid behind his head, shook off the blood and sewage attached to it, and directly drew his knife, slashing fiercely at the main artery in his neck. With just one slash, blood gushed out like a spring, washing away all the dirt and rainwater on his neck.

The surrounding Tie Futu rushed forward, surrounding Poshu's warhorse, carefully supporting Wanyan Poshu's weakening body, preventing him from falling.

At the same time, the outer Song cavalry could not wait to attack and slaughter. The Tie Futu, despite deliberately leaving an opening behind them, actually risked being surrounded by the Song army's eastern iron curtain and highland formations, fighting to the death for a while.

Only when the blood flowing from Poshu's neck gradually subsided, and his pupils scattered, did the Tie Futu who were supporting him carefully lay him flat on his horse. Then, they each returned to their units, removed their horse armor, took turns to cover the retreat, and tried to escape.

As expected, no one surrendered.

A quarter of an hour after the total collapse, Wanyan Poshu, the nephew of Aguda, who commanded four Hezha Meng'an, though not a myriarch, committed suicide in front of the battle.

At this point, the Jin army's frontline had lost its last, originally meaningless, trace of resistance.

The Song army cavalry, who had long been ordered to pursue relentlessly, rushed forward and successfully chased to the chaotic Jin army camp. Here, countless exhausted Jin soldiers, both infantry and cavalry, had long been terrified and out of control. Trampling and infighting had already occurred, but with the arrival of the Song cavalry, the previous chaos was only a small matter in comparison.

Countless Jin soldiers, despite wearing heavy armor and carrying heavy hammers, were wantonly chased and slaughtered by the Song light cavalry, who had not caused any damage all day.

Elubu personally saw teams and groups of Jin armored cavalry, in complete disarray, often chased by a small team of Mongolian light cavalry into the moat in front of the camp, full of mud and corpses, or desperately using their momentum to rush onto the drawbridge leading into the camp, causing other Jin soldiers on the drawbridge to fall into the moat.

The moat in front of the camp, full of mud, blood, armor, weapons, bodies, and wailing, had become a living hell.

"No need to watch!"

Yelü Mawu, who was usually very taciturn, stepped forward and grabbed Elubu. "Let's go! If we don't leave now, the moat will be filled with corpses!"

Elubu turned to face him, his face full of confusion: "Why is it like this? Even if the defeat is certain, even if it is a complete rout, how can it be like this?"

"It should have been like this," Yelü Mawu said with a sneer and a shake of his head, letting go of his hand, then turning to take a reserve warhorse from the camp that had never been to battle from his personal guards and mounting it. "I have personally seen the Khitans look like this before, and I have also seen the Song people look like this before… Now it is the Jurchens' turn. Why can't it be like this? Are the Jurchens really three-headed and six-armed, and not the same kind as us Khitans and those Song people and Mongols?"

Elubu was actually speechless.

"The camp is destined to be unable to hold. It's useless to stay!" Yelü Mawu suddenly said seriously, scolding him on the spot. "There are horses here. If the general wants to survive, hurry to the pontoon bridge in the north, to Zhending Prefecture… If you want to try to save your subordinates, go to Shiyi to reorganize and gather troops in front of the Qin River and the Hutuo River… Anyway, don't stay here in a daze."

Elubu slowly shook his head, then stepped forward, took the warhorse, and mounted it.

In this way, the two of them led hundreds of riders out of the rear camp gate. As soon as they left the gate and took a few steps south, they heard several exclamations in the midst of the noise behind them. When they turned back, they realized that Elubu, the veteran general of the Eastern Route Army known for his bravery, had gone north towards Zhending without saying a word.

Most of the people followed him.

Mawu turned his horse around in place for a while, hesitated for a moment, but finally shook his head and turned around, leading the remaining troops south.

Leaving aside what Mawu did, on the other side, Elubu galloped north. After crossing the camp, he saw a large and orderly force in the distance. When he approached, he realized that it was Hong Ya and the civil officials and military advisors of the rear camp, as well as some garrison troops. Even more surprisingly, the old general Jiagu Wulibu was also among them.

The three of them met, exchanged a few words, and each breathed a sigh of relief, then joined together and continued north to find the pontoon bridge on the Hutuo River.

After traveling two miles, just as the road began to run parallel to the end of the Taiping River, before they saw Pu Suyue's troops and Eluoguan's reinforcements, they first saw Gao Qingyi leading a hundred riders to meet them.

Seeing this situation, Elubu and Jiagu Wulibu lowered their heads slightly and fell behind, while Hong Ya hurriedly took the lead to meet him.

Before Hong Ya could speak, Gao Qingyi asked anxiously:

"Vice-Minister Hong, how is the battle?"

"The earth is collapsing and the mountains are crumbling. The overall situation has disintegrated. I am here on behalf of the Prince of Wei to tell you not to lead the Sixth Prince's reinforcements here, and to let the Sixth Prince gather his troops and carefully defend the city, and to let Pu Suyue reorganize the order of the pontoon bridge…" As he spoke, Hong Ya raised the golden token in his hand high. "Then, I myself must go to the downstream of the north bank of the Hutuo River to receive the fleeing soldiers."

Jiagu Wulibu was slightly stunned behind him, but Gao Qingyi's face turned pale directly. He was stunned in place for a moment before asking again: "Is it completely hopeless?"

"Completely hopeless," Hong Ya said impatiently. "The Song army is sweeping the battlefield. None of our troops can maintain their organization. Even the Fourth Prince can only go to Shiyi first to prepare to gather and reorganize the fleeing soldiers outside the battlefield… Director Gao, quickly turn around and go back with us!"

Gao Qingyi became even more alarmed, but finally turned around at the urging of the other man and went with the flow.

The group became larger and larger. After traveling for a while, the sounds of fighting gradually faded into the distance, but the sound of the rushing river ahead became louder and louder. Knowing that the Hutuo River was approaching, everyone could not help but speed up. After walking a few more steps, they saw the Hutuo River in front of them, and Pu Suyue's camp was neat, and the flags were distinct. Only then did they completely breathe a sigh of relief.

As expected, the young Pu Suyue jumped on his horse and led the crowd to meet them, hurriedly asking about the battle:

"Why is Director Gao back so quickly? Vice-Minister Hong, the battle ahead… Why is General Elubu here? General Wulibu is also here?"

"To be honest, General," Hong Ya had already given up, and now he had no burden, and directly stepped forward to tell him. "There was a great defeat ahead, and the Song army swept the battlefield, inflicting heavy casualties, and none of our troops can gain a foothold… The Prince of Wei went to Shiyi to prepare to gather the troops on the periphery of the battlefield, so he gave me the golden token and ordered me to tell you to be sure to control the pontoon bridge and gather the fleeing soldiers as much as possible, and take action as necessary."

Pu Suyue was stunned for a moment, his eyes turned from the golden token in the other man's hand, and looked at Elubu and Jiagu Wulibu again, and then nodded blankly.

But soon, he swept a glance at Gao Qingyi's pale face, and once again asked Hong Ya: "If so… May I ask Vice-Minister Hong, do you have any news about General Shaohe?"

Hong Ya did not know what to say for a while, but Gao Qingyi directly covered his face on the horse.

"Hard to say," Elubu suddenly interjected. "The Song army's victory came from the east. General Yelü Mawu and General Wanyan Olun and I were all on the east line. We were the first to collapse, but we were able to escape into the camp. General Wulibu should have been in the camp to rotate troops. But apart from this, the troops on the west line and in the center were too dense, and they collapsed late. People were blocking the drawbridge in front of the camp, and there were heavy casualties from trampling… Nephew, let me tell you frankly, Shaohe's position was dangerous, and it is only an hour away from dark today… If this continues, even if Shaohe can survive by luck, his Bohai myriarchy will probably suffer heavy casualties."

Hearing this, everyone almost raised their heads and looked at the sky at the same time, their faces becoming even more ugly.

After a long while, Pu Suyue just nodded: "In this case, I will send you across the river. The Sixth Prince must still be looking forward to your news in Zhending City."

Everyone sighed for a while, but no one retorted, but instead accelerated and followed, passing through Pu Suyue's camp of only two or three thousand people, and then boarded the pontoon bridge on the Hutuo River from the rear of the camp.

The Hutuo River is a large river, and it is also the flood season, and it is also at the estuary. It is really not easy to build a pontoon bridge. There are only four here. It is conceivable how many fleeing soldiers will be able to cross when they come from behind.

Only a few people have already survived, but they are too lazy to care about those things.

In fact, after the group boarded the bridge separately and crossed the river, they were finally completely relieved and even collapsed in place. Pu Suyue turned around and went back without hesitation.

In this way, the group rested here for a while before they wanted to leave, but just as they were about to move, they heard a commotion in the camp across the river.

Already frightened, everyone did not dare to neglect, and hurriedly found a small土坡 (tǔpō, earth slope) in front of the pontoon bridge, and rode their horses to a high place to look. They did not see any pursuers, nor did they see a large number of their own fleeing soldiers. Instead, they saw Pu Suyue's banner leading about a thousand riders directly out of the camp and heading towards the battlefield against the Taiping River.

Seeing this, how could everyone not understand?

But they had seen too many life-and-death matters today, and they were speechless for a while.

Except for one person.

"What's the point of me living?" Gao Qingyi's nose felt sore, and he fell to the ground in the rain on the spot, crying bitterly for a while. "Shaohe and I have been through life and death together for so many years. His life and death are uncertain, and I don't even dare to ask. Instead, a younger generation is so determined to die… I am really ashamed!"

Everyone had different expressions when they heard this.

Hong Ya simply sneered: "Director Gao, you have not only failed Shaohe? Haven't you failed the Fourth Prince? You participated in this military formation and planned it, although it was forced by the situation and there was nothing wrong with it… But since the battle has been defeated and caused today's disaster, someone should be held responsible… Fifteen myriarchies, even if you are only one percent at fault, you should kill yourself to pay for your life!"

When Gao Qingyi heard this, he nodded repeatedly: "Vice-Minister Hong is absolutely right."

Saying that, Gao Qingyi, regardless of everyone around him, directly took off his clothes in public, and then walked down from the slope and into the swollen river water of the Hutuo River.

To this, everyone remained silent, facing each other coldly.

As expected, Gao Qingyi walked seven or eight steps, the water reached his chest, and he probed with one foot, only to find that there seemed to be a big pit in front of him, so he dared not move any further, but just raised his head and wept in place.

Seeing this situation, the people on the shore were too lazy to look any further, and turned their horses around and headed towards Zhending City.

But Hong Ya was really annoyed, and directly scolded on the shore: "Director Gao! That's enough! You are such a smart person, you know the situation better than anyone else. As a result, you didn't go to be buried with Marshal Nianhan when he died. Gao Jingshan sent you out of the city and you went out smoothly. You didn't ask about Shaohe's life or death along the way. How can you lose face when you see a Pu Suyue going against the current? If you really want to die, do you still need to take off your clothes? Hurry up, come with me to see the Sixth Prince!"

After saying that, Hong Ya ignored him and left a horse behind, turning around and walking away. Gao Qingyi was half ashamed and half annoyed, and cried in the river for a long time before returning to the shore, then put on his clothes, wiped his tears, and rode his horse to follow.

Throughout the entire process, no one was willing to return to the other side of the river to handle the takeover of Pu Suyue's military camp.

Leaving aside these people who escaped with their lives, on the other side, the Jin army's central and western troops were indeed in a situation of complete massacre after the collapse, as Elubu had judged.

The Song army cavalry, whether armored or light cavalry, wantonly ravaged the area from three sides, and the Jin army died. Finally, as the Song army's eastern iron curtain and the great front gradually approached, the Jin army began to surrender on a large scale… Starting with the Han army, to the Khitan and Xi tribes, and finally some Jurchen soldiers could not resist the fear of being slaughtered and began to surrender in an organized manner.

These surrenders crowded in front of the camp were certainly heartening, but they also greatly hindered the Song army's pursuit. Many of the Jin soldiers on the inside took advantage of this situation to sneak into the camp, and then, using the camp as cover, fled from the other side of the long, narrow camp.

Some went to Zhending, some went to Shiyi, and more scattered in countless small groups, fleeing desperately eastward across the great plains of Hebei in the hope of survival.

But at this time, there was really no way to care so much, so they could only quickly transfer the surrendered soldiers and ravage those troops who were still in the camp but had not yet surrendered.

Because Yelü Yudu knew the inside information of the Jin army's high command, he was ordered to supervise the search of the Jin army's troops. For a time, silver and copper plaques flew back and forth with the Khitan knights, constantly transmitting information directly to the imperial presence.

The baskets in front of Zhao Jiu were filled one after another with plaques covered in blood, and after a short while, even three golden plaques that had been clearly washed and wiped by rainwater were sent to the Zhao emperor and placed next to the previous golden plaques.

The golden plaques of the marching myriarchs had writing on them.

The first one was clearly Shaohe's golden plaque.

"Dead or alive?" Zhao Jiu was getting more and more tired.

"It should be dead. General Yelü said that this golden plaque was taken directly from the corpse," Liu Yan reported, bowing. "And General Yelü himself recognized it. Although half of his head was rotten, he could still roughly make out that it was Shaohe."

The second golden plaque was very interesting. Its shape was completely different from Shaohe's golden plaque. One side was actually flat, and the writing on the other side was rough and blurred, like something crudely made.

"Whose is this?" Zhao Jiu asked, puzzled.

"This is Wanyan Bendu's," Liu Yan blurted out. "Wanyan Bendu was raised in Aguda's tent since he was a child, and he was given this golden plaque when he was very young, promising him a future… Later, Wanyan Bendu always carried this golden plaque with him…" At this point, Liu Yan paused slightly before saying, "Your Majesty, this person has been captured alive, he is right here, do you want to bring him up to see him?"

Zhao Jiu was too lazy to see him, but looking around, the generals who were gradually gathering back all showed interest. In addition, Wanyan Bendu was the dignified commander of the Longde Prefecture army, one of the top three figures facing them this time, and Yelü Yudu was not far away to the side, so he had to give him face, and finally nodded.

After a short while, Wanyan Bendu, bound and tied, was dragged up to the high ground by Yelü Yudu himself and thrown directly in front of the emperor.

This man raised his head, and Zhao Jiu looked down at him, but he actually found that this man was crying incessantly, not just wet with rainwater… Not only that, he struggled to turn his head and look at the坡 (pō, slope), only to see the Jin army below the slope, either dead, surrendered, or fleeing, and many Song cavalry were still chasing and playing with the scattered Jin soldiers. The once mighty array of the early morning had completely disappeared on the huge battlefield. He burst into tears and wailed.

Zhao Jiu finally said coldly: "Does the Golden Plaque Gentleman want to be a Crying Gentleman too?"

When Wanyan Bendu heard this, he actually cried even more fiercely. After a long while, under the gaze of countless civil and military officials with different expressions behind Zhao Jiu and under the dragon banner, he勉力 (miǎn lì, tried his best) to reply:

"It is because I thought of Salihe that I am so sad… I want Zhao Your Majesty to know that Salihe and I both grew up in my Taizu's (Emperor Taizu of Jin) tent. Although we have no brothers in name, we are brothers in reality… He cried when he was defeated by Wu Jie at Qiaoshan that day. Although I publicly defended him, I could not help but ridicule him in my heart… But today, today I see this mountain collapsing, only then do I know… No matter how brave and proud a man is, if he sees his soldiers dying like weeds, how can he not cry?"

As he spoke, he slammed his head on the ground, crying even more fiercely, so much that he could not catch his breath, and did not stop for a moment.

Zhao Jiu nodded: "Salihe did not lose节 (jié, integrity), and committed suicide early. You should go with him too!"

Hearing this, before Wanyan Bendu could reply, Yelü Yudu directly took a large bow with a slack bowstring from the ground next to him, and then used his knee to抵住 (dǐzhù, hold against) the other man's back, only to套 (tào, place) the bowstring around his neck, and then twisted it again. Wanyan Bendu could no longer cry, but his legs kicked and struggled non-stop, but after a moment, he no longer had the strength to struggle. Then, soldiers of the Imperial Guard took the bow and held it constantly, and two others dragged Wanyan Bendu to the side, ensuring that he died with his whole body intact and completely dead.

Zhao Jiu nodded to Yelü Yudu, and then went to翻 (fān, turn over) the third golden plaque.

This golden plaque was actually different from the previous two, it was obviously more exquisite, and the weight and volume were larger… Without Liu Yan and Yelü Yudu's explanation, Zhao Jiu had already recognized the two words 元帅 (yuán shuài, marshal).

Obviously, someone had reported the success of obtaining Balisu's golden plaque.

At this point, the emperor was finally too lazy to look any further, and directly turned his head and issued an edict: "Liangchen!"

"Your minister is here."

Han Shizhong stepped forward with a bow.

"Send your cavalry, and also bring the reinforcements from any two command divisions to seize the pontoon bridge facing the Hutuo River north of the Jin camp. The rest of the Imperial Army's Left Army will return to Huolu County with me," Zhao Jiu said calmly.

Han Shizhong immediately responded.

"Jinqing…" Zhao Jiu swept his gaze over the bruised and swollen Yu Yunwen, then looked around again, before looking at Wu Da and ordering, "The military situation is not very accurate, but there are related words. Yue Pengju (Yue Fei) and Zhang Rong and Tian Shizhong may have arrived at the mouth of the