Chapter 121: The Hardest Bone to Chew, Chewed with Ease

In Youzhou, when word came that the Yan troops under Zhao Yanshou had broken through the Yi River defense line and even easily crossed the Juma River, the Southern Capital's Acting Governor Yelu Jieli was furious, cursing them as trash.

"What are Dingzhou and Mozhou doing? With so many troops, they couldn't stop the Yan army?" Yelu Jieli muttered to himself, his face full of murderous intent: "That traitor Zhao Yanshou, those rebel Yan troops — they truly were colluding with the Liu clan all along, sabotaging our army. Back at Luancheng, we should have killed them all to prevent this disaster. The Han — truly cannot be trusted!"

Fortunately, in the council hall were only Khitan and Xi men; the Han officials had all been dismissed outside. Otherwise, Yelu Jieli's words would have been another violent provocation to the already fractured barbarian-Han conflict.

"The Longqi Army marched north in force, advancing on two fronts, pinning down the southern line's armies too heavily — that's what let Zhao Yanshou exploit the gap," one defending general tried to explain on behalf of the Liao army in the south.

"The Longqi Army, always the Longqi Army! That Liu brat, he dares to bully us Khitan as if we have no men!" Yelu Jieli shouted useless nonsense.

"Acting Governor, you should focus on preparing to deal with the Yan troops!" one general said.

"Do I need you to remind me?" Irritated by the tone of that suggestion, Yelu Jieli glared, thought for a moment, then said harshly: "Have the garrison at Zhuozhou march east, and the garrisons at Tan and Ji come south. I'll personally lead the army out to encircle and destroy them. Since Zhao Yanshou dares to thrust deep with an isolated force, seeking death — let's oblige him!"

The moment these words fell, the several defending generals below immediately grew anxious. One of them advised: "Acting Governor, you must not! The Southern Capital is currently depleted — we don't have many troops to begin with. If we divide our forces to sally out, the Southern Capital will be in danger. The Han in the city, nursing grievances from the earlier upheaval, are already restless. Without sufficient force to overawe them, trouble could easily break out!"

"Hmph!" At this, Yelu Jieli shot back immediately: "Do you think I don't know that? How much longer can the southern line's armies delay the Yan troops? If Zhao Yanshou leads the Yan army to the Southern Capital, and the Han populace in the city rises up in agitation, the threat to us will be even greater!"

"Besides, the city currently has a majority of cavalry. Since Zhao Yanshou dares to come, if we don't go out and crush them in open battle, are we supposed to passively fight a siege with him?"

Yelu Jieli's words seemed to make good sense. That barbarian general who had raised the objection was momentarily struck speechless.

"But what about the Southern Capital?"

After thinking it over, Yelu Jieli issued his military orders: "Conscript a batch of Hu from the city, issue them weapons and armor, and have them cooperate with the remaining troops to hold the city, waiting for the garrison troops from Tan and Ji to march south. Clear the streets and close the markets in the city, seal off all the wards — especially where the Han live. Anyone found wandering about freely — kill them first!"

Though doubts remained, Yelu Jieli had made up his mind, and the others had no room to object. He was the Southern Capital's Acting Governor appointed by Yelu Ruan, wielding military and civil authority over all the prefectures and counties of the Southern Capital Circuit — his power was immense.

Soon, Yelu Jieli mustered his troops and headed south, straight toward Gu'an. Then, a little over an hour after his departure, the Liao general left guarding Youzhou received word: the Yan army had taken the water route north, crossing paths with Yelu Jieli by pure chance — Yelu Jieli had charged into empty air.

While the situation in Youzhou grew ever more rotten, on Yelu Ruan's side, things were progressing very smoothly. An army of a hundred thousand escorted the late emperor's body back to the capital. Along the way it was just normal marching; the Khitan tribes along the route showed no intention of blocking them. Even if they wanted to block, they would need the courage to face an attack by a hundred thousand troops.

During the march, Yelu Ruan experienced what it meant to be "the one all look to." Still within the Central Capital Circuit, the Liao's Five Divisions Yilijin Yelu Anduan and Xiangwen Yelu Liuge sent riders ahead to report their submission, requesting to lead their tribal warriors as the vanguard. Then, leading his troops north, he reached Taide Spring, where he encountered Yelu Lihu's army.

The Khitan's Empress Dowager Shulu had given Yelu Lihu the last elite unit remaining in the Supreme Capital along with troops from the various divisions of the Southern and Northern Courts — his military strength was not weak. However, Yelu Lihu simply did not command popular support. When battle was joined, he was actually crushed by that small vanguard force of the Five Divisions, scattered in a single charge, causing his entire army to collapse in rout. He fled back to Linhuang in disgrace to seek comfort from his mother.

On Yelu Ruan's side, the situation looked excellent. The road back to the capital seemed far less difficult than imagined — perhaps he had even been overly cautious and sensitive. Upon learning the outcome of the Battle of Taide Spring, morale immediately soared, and the slight trepidation he'd had vanished. Yelu Ruan's ship was steady now — basically no need to worry about facing Empress Dowager Shulu's vengeance should he fail.

Heading northeast all the way, from Youzhou to the Supreme Capital, was truly too far. In high spirits, Yelu Ruan was already harboring thoughts of shifting his center of rule decisively southward.

However, when word came from Youzhou that Liu Chengyou had sent Zhao Yanshou on a northern campaign, Yelu Ruan's good mood dissipated at once. Even in the height of summer, his face looked as if it were covered in a layer of frost.

"This Liu Chengyou — what boldness, daring to march north and stroke the tiger's whiskers! And entrusting Zhao Yanshou with the northern campaign — what magnanimity! Does Liu Zhiyuan know about this?" The words praised Liu Chengyou, but there was not a trace of goodwill in the tone.

Regarding the situation in Youyan, Yelu Ruan convened a pre-battle council. Naturally, his ministers held two opinions.

One side held that returning to the Supreme Capital to secure his position and establish his legitimacy was paramount. Led by Yelu Chage and others, they argued that with over twenty thousand troops still scattered across Youzhou and proper arrangements made before his departure, the region could surely be held no matter what.

The other side naturally advocated for immediately dispatching troops to reinforce. These men were led by Yelu Anduan. They believed that the people's hearts had already turned entirely to the new master, that Empress Dowager Shulu in the Supreme Capital was no longer a concern — but Youyan absolutely must not be lost. Otherwise, not only would this southern campaign to destroy the Jin end in a disastrous defeat, but even the fruits of earlier conquests would have to be vomited back up.

From Yelu Ruan's standpoint, he leaned toward Youzhou. Without agonizing too much, he weighed the options briefly and decided to send troops back to reinforce. He dispatched Yelu Shuogu to lead ten thousand cavalry, racing south by starlight to annihilate the invading enemy forces.

Yelu Ruan's reaction was not slow — he had acted the moment he received the news, and he was not overly worried. In his view, no matter how bad things got, as long as the Southern Capital was preserved, everything else was secondary — expendable, and recoverable in time.

Yet the situation in Youzhou deteriorated at a pace far beyond his imagination, and the first place to crack was precisely Youzhou itself.

Zhao Yanshou marched north from Gu'an, his success so smooth he himself could hardly believe it. All the way to the southwest of Youzhou city, where he abandoned his boats and came ashore, his army at the gates of Qingjin Gate — he had not met a single obstacle.

And only upon reaching the city walls did he discover that Youzhou's emptiness completely exceeded his imagination. That fool Yelu Jieli was even stupider and more self-righteous than he had expected — he had actually led his troops to Gu'an to intercept him.

Overjoyed, Zhao Yanshou immediately spread the news to all his forces. Thanks to the water route, the various Yan units had largely preserved their strength and fighting capacity. After a brief rest, he ordered the attack. Though Youzhou city was leaderless and somewhat chaotic in the face of the Yan troops descending from the sky, the defenders still held the gates under their respective officers' command.

But with a city as vast as Youzhou, how could they cover everything? Without heavy siege equipment, the first assault failed, and the second also failed. Yet relying on his familiarity with Youzhou, Zhao Yanshou quickly mapped out its defensive strength. With a city as large as Youzhou, how could the motley garrison troops cover every angle? He soon found a breach and entered through the water gate.

Breaking into Youzhou was so easy that Zhao Yanshou felt extraordinarily surprised...