Chapter 81: The Victory at Fuyang

While Liu Zhiyuan was deliberating over recalling Liu Chengyou and the Longqi Army, Liu Chengyou, at Cizhou, won his first military victory since crossing the Taihang Mountains eastward—and a great victory at that.

Because of the Anyang massacre, the entire Longqi Army burned with shared hatred, becoming an army of the aggrieved. After holding that public memorial ceremony and carrying out simple aftermath work in Anyang, Liu Chengyou led the Longqi Army, filled with the flames of vengeance, northward to "pursue" the great Khitan army.

Although Yelu Deguang did not particularly fear the Longqi Army and even seemed somewhat dismissive of Liu Chengyou, he could not possibly remain entirely unguarded. While leading the main force north, he still left behind a supporting army at his rear.

He had originally left a force at Ye County on the border of Xiang and Ci prefectures, intending to ambush the Longqi Army, but Liu Chengyou was steady as an old dog and did not take the bait. After Yelu Deguang's main force passed Cizhou, he left Yelu Jieli to lead troops stationed at Handan, and also demoted Gao Tangying to Defense Commissioner of Cizhou, ordering him to lead his own troops to station at Fuyang, jointly controlling Cizhou.

As for the original Prefect of Cizhou, Li Gu, because someone reported his assistance in the rebellion of the Cizhou bandit Liang Hui, he was seized and tortured by the Khitan and was now a prisoner in the Liao camp.

Before leading his army north, Liu Chengyou had long since scouted out the situation in Cizhou. With the speed of thunder he surrounded Fuyang. Gao Tangying, with too few troops, dared not sally forth, and only before Liu Chengyou's arrival sent men to Handan to request reinforcements, then hunkered down to await aid.

Liu Chengyou's objective, of course, was not merely Fuyang. From the very start he harbored the intention of besieging the city to strike at the relief force. After setting up camp and securing all the advantageous terrain around, he simply waited for the reaction of the Liao army to the north.

Over at Handan, Yelu Jieli received the request for reinforcements and was overjoyed. Almost without a second thought, he led ten thousand cavalry and infantry straight south, heading directly for Fuyang, intending to annihilate the Longqi Army beneath the city walls.

Yelu Jieli's approach was extremely overconfident. He did not carefully scout the Longqi Army's situation, made no adequate preparations for the march, and gave no deep thought to tactical variations—he simply came all the way.

From beginning to end, Yelu Jieli seemed never to have taken Liu Chengyou seriously. His thinking had completely failed to turn the corner; he was still immersed in last year's unstoppable southward campaign that destroyed the Jin, as if he had not noticed the changing situation.

In fact, even up to the point of the northern retreat, in the half year of clashes with Han troops, the Khitan army had not yet suffered any major setback. As for the successive rebellions of the various prefectures and the assaults by the people of the Central Plains and Hebei they had endured, though these had kept them exhausted and harried, they had not yet felt bone-deep pain.

The result proved that underestimating Liu Chengyou would come at a price.

The Longqi Army at this time could be said to be gathering talent in abundance. Though its numbers were somewhat thin, it stubbornly harbored the ambition to swallow the Handan Liao army in one gulp. On the sunny bank of the Fu River, the Longqi cavalry and infantry units, waiting at ease for the weary foe, fought a pitched battle against Yelu Jieli's army arriving from the south while simultaneously holding off Fuyang city.

Similar to the earlier battle against Geng Chongmei's army, Liu Chengyou completely delegated authority, letting the subordinate army commanders act according to the established operational plan. The difference was that this time Liu Chengyou personally sat in command of the central army, coordinating the overall situation, with Zhang Yanwei, Guo Rong, and Xiang Xun assisting him in making on-the-spot adjustments. At the same time, he personally beat the war drum to boost morale.

This battle was one in which the Longqi Army fully unleashed its combat power—with inferior numbers, it fought a frontal engagement against the Khitan cavalry and infantry in a contest of raw strength.

With the Fu River to the south and Fuyang to the east, there was a sense of fighting with their backs to the water, of being placed in a death ground. Added to that, the Longqi Army was well-trained, high-spirited, and fully prepared before the battle, so from the moment the lines engaged, they held the upper hand throughout.

After the clash, they fought fiercely for nearly half a day without breaking the enemy's formation. Then, with one counter-charge, the Khitan cavalry and infantry under Yelu Jieli were caught completely off guard. The Longqi Army's morale blazed, and the more they fought the braver they grew, pushing the battle line back more than two li.

By the time Yelu Jieli finally managed to stabilize his position, a battalion of cavalry that Liu Chengyou had pre-arranged, commanded by Han Tong, struck from the rear, directly routing the Khitan army. A great victory!

Originally, Yelu Jieli had also intended to coordinate an attack from inside and outside with Fuyang city to annihilate the Longqi Army. Unfortunately, right up until his defeat, Gao Tangying in Fuyang city made not the slightest move.

This rather surprised even Liu Chengyou; in the end, he never even needed to use the reserve force he had prepared to deal with the Fuyang defenders.

He pursued the fleeing and routed enemy for over thirty li before Liu Chengyou recalled his troops, with considerable gains. Of the cavalry and infantry army led by Yelu Jieli, absolutely fewer than half could return north; the rest were either dead or captured.

North of Fuyang lay Taicheng Town, near which were the tombs of Lian Po and Lin Xiangru. Liu Chengyou sounded the gong to halt the pursuit here.

"Your Highness, that barbarian chieftain Yelu Jieli fled quickly—we failed to capture him alive!" As the pursuing units gradually returned after paying respects to the Lian Po shrine beside the town, Zhang Yanwei took the lead in reporting to Liu Chengyou.

"A defeated general is not worth mentioning for bravery. As for one Yelu Jieli, if he fled, then he fled." Liu Chengyou clasped his hands behind his back, sweeping his gaze over the somewhat dilapidated shrine, and asked casually: "What are the results of the battle?"

"Though there is no detailed report yet, a rough estimate can be made. Between the fighting beneath the walls and the pursuit battles, we killed and wounded over three thousand enemy troops. In addition, the various units captured more than a thousand prisoners in total. Those of the enemy who scattered and fled are too numerous to count." Guo Rong reported to Liu Chengyou.

"Order the cavalry north to continue the pursuit and continue reconnaissance of the Khitan army's northward retreat!" Liu Chengyou nodded and commanded: "All other units, clean up the battlefield and return to Fuyang to rest and reorganize!"

"Yes!"

"Your Highness, how should we deal with those prisoners?" At this moment, Zhang Yanwei suddenly asked.

Turning back around, Liu Chengyou looked at Zhang Yanwei and saw that his face carried a heavy murderous look. Meeting Liu Chengyou's gaze, the hard flesh on Zhang Yanwei's face seemed to radiate ferocity as he said coldly: "These prisoners are almost all Khitan!"

Frowning slightly, Liu Chengyou asked in a low voice: "What do you all think should be done with them?"

"Kill them!" Zhang Yanwei answered without the slightest hesitation, murderous aura blazing: "Avenge the people of Anyang!"

Liu Chengyou looked at Guo Rong. Guo Rong's expression was as calm as ever, not carrying emotion like Zhang Yanwei, but merely saying placidly: "Your Highness, we do not have surplus troops to guard these prisoners, nor do we have surplus grain..."

Liu Chengyou naturally understood Guo Rong's meaning. He waved his hand and said indifferently: "Then kill them!"

In agreeing to kill the prisoners, Liu Chengyou may have had some intention of venting his subordinates' desire for revenge, but what he truly considered was that in their current circumstances, they had no spare capacity to look after these Khitan, and releasing them was even more impossible. Moreover, the Khitan were not like the Yan people from before!

Matters that violate the harmony of heaven and are not conducive to peace need not be described in detail.

Returning south all the way back to Fuyang city, cleaning up and handling the aftermath, the victorious army pressed toward the prefectural seat of Cizhou with an even more majestic and invincible momentum. Liu Chengyou could clearly feel that after this battle against the Khitan troops at Fuyang, the entire Longqi Army had entered a state of vigorous self-confidence, with extremely blazing morale.

Arriving beneath the city walls, just as he was planning to settle Fuyang as well and enter the city to rest, Liu Chengyou received a report from his subordinates: "Your Highness, the city has sent word that they wish to surrender!"