Chapter 91: The Battle of Luancheng (3)

The impact of the night raid spread far faster than Yelu Ruan had imagined, and it diffused in a highly targeted "directional" manner. As the sounds of battle closed in from all around, the three Yan camps were quickly alarmed, and soon grew restless and unstable. Receiving the warning, Yelu Jieli led his Khitan soldiers to prepare for battle at the first moment, ready to fight while also standing by to suppress any possible uprising.

Yelu Ruan had previously put Yelu Jieli in charge of the Yan troops, but in such a short time, how could he possibly have them fully under his control? The situation was urgent, and in the haste, his methods were harsh and oppressive. But the biggest problem was that the Yan soldiers' weapons had not been confiscated...

Large numbers of Khitan cavalry galloped back and forth through the Yan camps, fierce and menacing, yet also flustered and uneasy. In one of the spacious military tents, several Yan generals were gathered — all commanders of Commander rank or above — and like Zhao Yanshou, they had been directly taken into custody.

Each wore a dejected expression, with hints of resentment and indignation. After all, they had been stripped of military command "for no reason," detained, deprived of their freedom, and even threatened with death. When the sounds of the raid came, these men reacted with extreme sensitivity.

"Someone is launching a night attack!" one man stated the obvious.

"The commotion is clearly not small. I wonder who dares to be so bold!" A Commander sat up straight, peered outside, and said in a low voice.

"The Khitan are probably in for a heavy loss!" another general said with certainty, a note of schadenfreude in his tone. Being inside the Liao camp, they naturally understood how complex and chaotic the situation was. Facing a surprise attack under such circumstances, anyone with even a modicum of military sense knew what a disaster this would be.

As they conferred, a cold and stern command rang out from outside the tent: "The General orders that these Yan generals be watched closely. Anyone who dares to make a move will be killed on the spot!"

Soon, many heavy footsteps sounded outside the tent, and the guards at the entrance were visibly reinforced. Seeing this, the detained Yan generals' faces grew even darker, and their unease deepened further.

"At a time like this! They won't let us out to reassure the soldiers, suppress the unrest, and command the troops — they still insist on holding us!" one general said in a hoarse voice, his face full of fury.

"We are Yan men after all. The Khitan have always deeply suspected us!" another replied coldly.

"At this rate, I fear we'll lose our lives sooner or later!"

At this moment, one man rose and lowered his voice to a whisper: "I say we just charge out, rally our brothers, and rebel against them!"

As soon as these words fell, everyone's expressions shifted — some were tempted, some hesitant, while others remained calm and objected: "The situation outside is unclear, and the Khitan have superior numbers and strength. We must not act rashly. Acting recklessly will only get us killed. Moreover, our roots are mostly in Yan lands, and Youyan is still under Khitan control. If we vent our anger in the moment and implicate our families and clans, it will be too late for regret!"

"Hmph! In the campaign south to destroy the Jin, how many battles did we fight, how many brothers did we lose, how much merit did we earn! And what did we get in return? Little benefit, and plenty of suspicion. The Khitan, meanwhile, are busy looting and killing. Fighting for them like this simply isn't worth it. I can't worry about what comes later — rather than sit and wait for death, let's rebel first and worry about the rest after..."

In fact, quite a few favored making a move amid the chaos. Every man present harbored dissatisfaction and resentment. They were all warriors typical of the era — push them too hard, and they would dare to rebel right before your eyes. Few could keep a cool head.

At that moment, the sounds of battle erupted right outside the tent — close enough to be heard clearly. After a burst of clashing blades and screams, a squad of Yan soldiers burst in. The several junior officers leading them each sought out their superiors, shouting: "General, your brothers have come to rescue you!"

Seeing these loyal subordinates, their drawn long blades still dripping with blood, the Yan generals exchanged glances. This time, their opinions were unified.

Soon, amid a roar of "Kill the Khitan!" the Yan camp descended into chaos. Under the command of their respective officers, they launched attacks on the surrounding Khitan, and the first to suffer were the cavalry who had followed Yelu Jieli to take over the Yan troops.

One Yan camp, then another — they were like piles of dry firewood, and Liu Chengyou personally led his troops to set them ablaze.

With the Yan camp's rebellion, the chaos in the Liao camp rapidly slid into an irretrievable abyss. Meanwhile, the pressure felt by the Longqi Army was noticeably relieved. To avoid "friendly fire," at Liu Chengyou's command, the entire Longqi Army deliberately steered clear of the bloodthirsty Yan soldiers and continued their advance northward instead.

If the Yan soldiers were dry firewood, then the surrendered Jin troops were a pot of highly flammable, explosive oil — touch them with a single spark, and they would erupt directly.

The original hundred thousand surrendered Jin troops were divided mainly into two parts. One part was placed under the command of Du Chongwei and Li Shouzhen — two "Wu Sangui"-type figures — who were sent to Yedu and Yunzhou to pacify the regions and maintain rule for the Khitan.

Of the remainder, a small number were scattered across the localities, and some, like Wu Xingde and Luo Yangui, turned against the Khitan and rebelled. The rest were basically all in Yelu Deguang's northward-returning army, and these surrendered soldiers had suffered the most miserable experience of all.

Their families had been forcibly ordered to accompany the army, destined to be relocated beyond the northern frontier. Not only were they driven from their homes, but along the way, countless numbers died or were wounded. All along, rumors had circulated in the army that "the Khitan ruler intends to slaughter all the surrendered troops." At the walls of Anyang, they were forced to charge the city at the risk of death, all the way up to the massacre at Anyang...

One could say that the surrendered troops in the Liao camp were a group of "angry men" pushed to the brink of despair — filled with hatred and fury, ready to ignite at the slightest spark. When Luo Yangui led his troops charging into the camp, he barely had to exert any effort before receiving a fierce response, as they rose up en masse to attack the Khitan.

Unlike the Yan soldiers, they lacked weapons and armor, so they simply seized them directly from the panicked Khitan soldiers, hacking down every Khitan they could see. Thereafter, under Luo Yangui's guidance, shouting the slogans "Kill the barbarians!" and "Revenge!" they charged recklessly toward the north.

Across the dozen-plus li of the Liao camp, fighting soon broke out everywhere. Perhaps infected by the sounds of battle, the Han commoners who had been plundered and enslaved in the camp were soon stirred up as well, letting out roars and shouts as they rose in revolt to kill the enemy.

Throughout the entire Liao camp — the Longqi Army was killing Khitan, the surrendered troops were killing, the Yan soldiers were killing, the Han commoners were killing, and even the Khitan themselves were slaughtering one another...

Southeast of Luancheng, the Liao central army area had become the most fiercely contested and bloodiest region. Yan soldiers, Jin troops, and Khitan were all mixed together in chaotic battle, surging toward the imperial camp. The central camp's fortifications had been built fairly solidly. Relying on the palisades and abatis, and at considerable cost, Yelu Ruan personally led the imperial guard cavalry to firmly hold back the mutinous soldiers outside. Gradually, they began to gain the upper hand.

But by then, everyone had gone mad with killing...

Liu Chengyou stood at a slight distance, his army occupying a ruined camp, watching the slaughter before him. Especially the Khitan — they showed not a trace of hesitation or mercy when cutting down their own kind.

"These Khitan have all gone mad!" he murmured to himself.

"Your Highness, the Khitan central army has gradually stabilized. The Yan soldiers and surrendered troops are each fighting on their own, chaotic and disorganized — relying on this momentary bloodlust alone, they may not achieve much. Once the Khitan fully regain their footing and the mutineers' momentum falters, the enemy's tens of thousands of troops in the central army will be enough to extinguish the chaos!" Xiang Xun reminded Liu Chengyou once again at his side.

Their tacit understanding had long been established. The moment Xiang Xun finished speaking, Liu Chengyou immediately reacted: "Then it's up to us to deliver the fatal blow ourselves!"