Chapter 192: Real Relatives

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At the end of September, Yanjing City welcomed its first reinforcements.

Yet, surprisingly, this first reinforcement was neither the main Liao army nor a major Liao tribe, but a very small tribe—"Xiao Gulu."

The Xiao Gulu were also known to the Song Ren as "Xiao Boli," "Xiao Hu Lu," "Xiao Hu Lu," and "Xiao Ju Lu"; they were a branch of the Tangut people, related to the Zhe clan and the Li Shi of Western Xia.

The various Tangut tribes had a complex relationship with the Liao court, sometimes submitting, sometimes rebelling, shifting repeatedly between Song, Liao, and Western Xia.

As part of the Tangut people, the Xiao Gulu participated in these activities.

But for nearly a century, Xiao Gulu had remained loyal subjects of the Liao, showing particular reverence for Liao imperial authority.

Their settlement lay in Tiande, Yunzhong, and other regions—that is, the central part of modern Inner Mongolia—far from Yanjing.

Moreover, altogether, the Xiao Gulu numbered fewer than seven thousand people, including many women, children, and elders; the actual able-bodied warriors capable of fighting were fewer than two thousand.

Yet despite this, Xiao Gulu arrived first at the gates of Yanjing to come to the emperor's aid.

Zhao Yu did not know how Yelu Yanxi felt, but he himself held a certain fondness for this small tribe.

Then again, fondness was fondness—it did not mean Zhao Yu would show mercy to Xiao Gulu.

Zhao Yu thought, "If you choose to pluck chestnuts from the fire, you must be prepared to get burned—or even burned alive."

After consultation, Zhao Yu sent Zhao Liangsi into the city to demand from Yelu Yanxi and his court the horses, cattle, sheep, camels, mules, and donkeys carried by Xiao Gulu, to make up for the interest owed to the Zhao Song dynasty—that is, to fill the gap of two hundred thousand horses.

Zhao Yu also instructed Zhao Liangsi to tell Yelu Yanxi and his court that if Xiao Gulu did not hand over their horses, cattle, sheep, camels, mules, and donkeys by dawn the next day, he would send troops to crush the tribe.

Zhao Liangsi conveyed Zhao Yu's message to Yelu Yanxi and his court exactly as given.

After Zhao Liangsi left, the Zhuhe Sect, led by Xiao Fengxian, advocated handing over Xiao Gulu's horses, cattle, sheep, camels, mules, and donkeys to the Zhao Song dynasty, since the interest would eventually have to be paid anyway.

But Xiao Changge, Yelu Heluwan, and other members of the pro-war faction strongly opposed this, arguing that giving Xiao Gulu's livestock to the Zhao Song dynasty would chill the hearts of all armies and tribes coming to aid the emperor, deterring others from coming to his rescue.

Moreover, if every army that arrived was stripped of its horses, cattle, sheep, camels, mules, and donkeys—its combat power crippled and its provisions seized—what use were these reinforcements? They would merely become more people exploited by the Zhao Song dynasty.

Though Yelu Yanxi was foolish, even he could see the logic in Xiao Changge and Yelu Heluwan's words: a nomadic people without horses were like lambs awaiting slaughter; no matter how many came, they were merely sent to die, and the Liao would still have to feed these useless reinforcements.

Seeing Yelu Yanxi hesitate, Xiao Fengxian understood he did not wish to hand over Xiao Gulu's livestock. He urged, "The Song Zhu has clearly stated that if you do not pay, he will attack Xiao Gulu tomorrow. With at most one or two thousand warriors, how can they resist the Song army? If Xiao Gulu is defeated, other reinforcements will be terrified and dare not come to aid. This act may also destroy peace talks and provoke a full-scale southern invasion."

Yelu Yanxi knew that if matters developed this way, control would be utterly lost, and the Liao dynasty might face annihilation.

Therefore, this trajectory must be prevented at all costs.

Ultimately, after deliberation, Yelu Yanxi and his court decided to send a secret messenger out of the city to notify Xiao Gulu to retreat immediately to Juyong Pass and await further orders.

Fearing discovery by Zhao Song forces, the Liao used a "meat letter."

A "meat letter," also called a "wax pill silk letter," involved writing a secret message on silk, sealing it inside a wax ball, and hiding it within the body—such as the thigh or arm—to transmit confidential information with extreme secrecy.

This method was commonly used in wartime during this era to ensure messages were not easily discovered or intercepted by enemies.

But the Liao did not know that Zhao Yu, to improve intelligence operations, had specifically ordered Yuwen Xuzhong (Zhang Chun's renamed identity) to establish the Jin Yi Wei.

With this dedicated intelligence agency and Yuwen Xuzhong—a master of espionage—at its helm, and with Zhao Song holding such overwhelming advantages, it was no exaggeration to say Yanjing City had been penetrated by the Jin Yi Wei like a sieve; even Yelu Yanxi's own entourage harbored Jin Yi Wei spies.

The most direct consequence was that before Yelu Yanxi's plan could even begin, the Jin Yi Wei received word of it.

As a result, the moment the Liao messenger left the city, he was captured by the Jin Yi Wei, who extracted Yelu Yanxi's imperial decree from his thigh.

At dawn the next day, before daylight broke, Zhao Song dispatched four light cavalry units totaling over ten thousand men to launch a surprise attack on Xiao Gulu.

These four light cavalry units moved like ghosts in the night, silently approaching Xiao Gulu's encampment under the cover of dawn.

The sound of hooves was softly swallowed by the soft grass, leaving only the rustle of wind brushing the grass tips, mingling with distant animal growls, adding a grim solemnity to the coming battle.

The Xiao Gulu people still slept, perhaps dreaming of their homeland's grasslands, flocks of sheep, and that distant, tranquil life.

Yet reality awoke them in the cruelest way.

As the first ray of dawn pierced the mist and illuminated the earth, Song arrows rained down like drops of rain, shattering the quiet night and tearing apart their peace.

Though caught off guard, Xiao Gulu's able-bodied warriors did not panic. They quickly assembled, seized their weapons, and met their numerically superior enemy with the tribe's characteristic resilience and bravery.

Arrows wove through the air like nets; the clatter of hooves, shouts, and clashing blades merged into a tragic tapestry of war.

It must be said, Xiao Gulu's warriors were fierce.

But the overwhelming disparity in strength made it impossible for them to resist the Song army's tidal assault.

Blood stained the grass; cries rose and fell; Xiao Gulu's encampment gradually sank into flames.

In this battle, the Song killed nearly a thousand, captured over three thousand, seized more than three thousand horses, and took over twenty thousand cattle, sheep, camels, mules, and donkeys; Xiao Gulu's chieftain, Xiao Gulu, was captured alive. Thus, the first reinforcement to arrive at Yanjing was annihilated by the Song army.

After the battle, Zhao Yu ordered Han Zhongyan to take the captured Liao messenger who had delivered the letter to Xiao Gulu, along with the wax pill containing Yelu Yanxi's handwritten decree, and confront Yelu Yanxi and his court.

Even a clay figure has three parts of earth's spirit.

Facing the Liao's underhanded maneuver, Han Zhongyan bluntly told Xiao Fengxian, "Our Great Song never wished to resume hostilities, but your court has shown not the slightest sincerity—attempting to deceive us with trickery! What have you done with our goodwill?!"

Xiao Fengxian could only nod meekly, offering no defense.

What was there to defend? The facts lay bare before them; to argue now would be to invite death.

Even without arguing, Xiao Fengxian feared the Song army might attack.

Xiao Fengxian was right.

While Han Zhongyan and Xiao Fengxian discussed this matter, Zhao Yu ordered the army to assemble, preparing to assault Yanjing City.

At Zhao Yu's command, hundreds of thousands of Song troops moved, advancing toward Yanjing in a vast, thunderous column. Banners blotted out the sun; war drums thundered; iron hooves shattered the earth's silence; dust rose as the Song army's authority and might were laid bare.

Upon hearing this, Yelu Yanxi forgot his imperial dignity and hurried to meet Han Zhongyan personally.

To Yelu Yanxi's slight relief, upon learning he was the Liao Emperor, Han Zhongyan bowed according to Zhao Song protocol: "Your subject Han Zhongyan pays respects to His Majesty, the Emperor of Great Liao."

Yelu Yanxi hastily raised Han Zhongyan and said, "I and your emperor are brothers; I have even married three princesses to your emperor. We are real relatives—why would I wish for war? It is my ministers who have misled me, causing this breach of harmony. I beg you, Han Qing, to convey my sincerity to your emperor and beg him to calm his anger."

Han Zhongyan's face grew solemn, and he said slowly, "Your emperor is benevolent and sought peace to resolve our dispute, but your court's actions are an outrageous insult."

Yelu Yanxi and his court bowed repeatedly, apologizing profusely.

Han Zhongyan's tone softened slightly, adding, "The Xiao Gulu affair is but the tip of the iceberg. Unless your court shows sincerity, the war between our two states may not be quelled."

Hearing this, sweat beaded on Yelu Yanxi's forehead; he knew the Liao's power had declined drastically and could not match the Zhao Song. If war broke out, his state might collapse. Worse, he was trapped in Yanjing—if war came, he would surely be captured by the Song, with unthinkable consequences. He hurriedly said:

"Han Qing speaks truly. I have already severely punished those ministers who sought to deceive your court, as a sign of my sincerity. Moreover, I am willing to add fifty thousand warhorses to atone for past wrongs, hoping our two states may restore harmony and pursue peace together."

Yelu Yanxi opened his mouth, and the Liao ministers all thought, "Trouble!"

Fifty thousand warhorses—even for the Liao, a land famed for its horses—were no small number, especially after already agreeing to twenty thousand.

But Yelu Yanxi was Emperor, his word was golden; he had already spoken—could his ministers openly contradict him, especially before foreign envoys?

Moreover, the Song troops were already attacking the city; if they didn't sacrifice more land now, it would be hard to quell the matter.

With Yelu Yanxi's promise of fifty thousand horses, Han Zhongyan returned to report.

Thus, with a face-saving exit, Zhao Yu ordered the siege halted.

But the matter was not over.

The Xiao Gulu tribe arrived first not because they were fast, but because other Liao armies knew that coming now meant certain death—they could only stand against the Song troops by gathering in large forces and threatening them.

Precisely because they understood this, the Liao armies had been assembling at Juyong Pass, Gubeikou, Song Ting Pass, and Pingzhou, waiting to unite fully, agree on a time, and jointly relieve Yanjing City.

The Xiao Gulu tribe, greedy for glory, entered Yan territory through the southern An Kou, and ended up merely delivering themselves to slaughter.

On the tenth day after the Xiao Gulu tribe was crushed by the Song troops, Xiao Xiamu arrived with approximately eighty thousand allied troops—composed of Khitan, Xi, Han, and Bohai forces—before Yanjing City.

Xiao Xiamu's wife was Princess Weiguo, Yelu Sagaze, daughter of Emperor Daozong of Liao; his sister, Xiao Tansi, had been taken by Emperor Daozong as his second Empress; thus, he was both Emperor Daozong's son-in-law and brother-in-law, of extremely noble status, and having previously earned great merit suppressing rebellions, he possessed sufficient command ability to be elected supreme commander of the allied forces.

Almost on the same day, Deputy Commander Yelu Yu led thirty thousand elite Liao cavalry to the outskirts of Yanjing City.

Additionally, the Song reconnaissance patrols reported that over a hundred thousand Liao troops were passing through Juyong Pass.

Clearly, Yelu Yanxi had summoned the hundred thousand Liao troops stationed along the Song-Liao-Xia borders.

In other words, Zhao Yu's strategic objective for this campaign had already been half-achieved: the Liao would no longer interfere in the Song's recovery of Xia—they were too preoccupied now.

Seen this way, Zhao Yu's personal campaign could be said to have succeeded half-way.

But the closer they came to this point, the greater the test for Zhao Yu and the Song Dynasty.

Never mind other matters—the sudden arrival of over two hundred thousand Liao reinforcements was already a nightmare to handle.

One could even say that a single misstep might render all Zhao Yu's prior efforts futile.

Unlike the reckless Xiao Gulu tribe, Xiao Xiamu, upon arriving before Yanjing City, immediately stationed elite cavalry in a vast, open, flat region in the north—ideal for mounted warfare—pressuring the Song forces directly.

Zhao Yu did not choose to stubbornly hold on; he ordered Guo Cheng to disregard political concerns and act solely from a military standpoint.

With Zhao Yu's understanding, Guo Cheng swiftly ordered the Song troops to lift the siege, consolidate their forces, occupy advantageous terrain, and prepare for large-scale warfare…

With the Song troops lifting the siege and Liao reinforcements steadily arriving outside the city, the pressure on Yelu Yanxi and his ministers instantly eased.

Yelu Yanxi immediately ordered the demolition of the Song's defensive fortifications outside Yanjing City, the filling of trenches, and demanded that Xiao Xiamu send him ten thousand fine horses at once, so he could flee the city at any moment.

The Song Dynasty did nothing to stop this—they watched silently as Yelu Yanxi and his court prepared to escape.

Once he could flee Yanjing City at any time, Yelu Yanxi finally let out the breath he'd been holding.

Then, Yelu Yanxi ordered Yelu Heluowan and his son Yelu Chun to establish an effective command structure so he could personally lead the armies.

Meanwhile, Yelu Yanxi sought to rearm the Liao troops inside Yanjing City, stripped bare by the Song Dynasty.

Notably, as more and more Liao reinforcements arrived outside the city and the Song lifted the siege, morale among the city's soldiers and civilians began to rise.

Seeing this turn of events, Yelu Yanxi's spirits lifted.

But as long as the Song troops remained, Yelu Yanxi—already terrified by Zhao Yu—could never fully relax.

One day, after consulting with his Liao ministers, Yelu Yanxi dispatched envoys carrying regional specialties from the northeast—ginseng, antlers, Northeastern tigers, black bears—to visit Zhao Yu outside the city.

In truth, the "visit" was merely a facade; Yelu Yanxi's true aim was to probe what it would take for Zhao Yu to withdraw his troops…

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(End of Chapter)