Chapter 310: Unification Achieved

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Juyong Pass is only a hundred miles from Yanjing City; at light cavalry speed, it takes just over two hours to reach Juyong Pass from Yanjing City, and even regular infantry can arrive within one to two days.

Yet the Western Support Army took nearly three days to cover this distance.

This was not due to delay—rather, the Western Support Army was negotiating with the Western Army on the other side of Juyong Pass about a joint assault.

Yes.

Juyong Pass must be taken.

As soon as Xu Huiyan received the imperial edicts issued by Xiao Puxiannu and Xiao Sesè, he personally led a light cavalry unit carrying the territorial envoys—Prince Xiao Bodi and Han official Cao Yongyi—to persuade the garrison at Juyong Pass to surrender.

But the commander of Juyong Pass, Xiao Hugu, was a close minister of Yelu Yanxi; as the Liao dynasty neared collapse, he remained by Yelu Yanxi’s side through constant flight and participated in planning resistance against the Jin. Later, he was wounded in a breakout, and when Yelu Yanxi reached Yanjing, he specifically left Xiao Hugu with three thousand elite troops to guard Juyong Pass—a crucial, well-connected stronghold—so he could be swiftly rescued if needed.

Xiao Hugu knew that Yelu Yanxi had abdicated in favor of Yelu Ao, but he believed Yelu Yanxi had been forced to do so and that Yelu Ao was merely a puppet of the Zhao Song dynasty; he insisted either that troops be sent south to compel Zhao Song to restore Yelu Yanxi to the Liao throne or that Xiao Puxiannu and Xiao Sesè be expelled and power returned to Yelu Ao—in short, he adamantly refused to allow Zhao Song to dictate Liao’s fate.

In Xiao Hugu’s view, he could not trust Zhao Song; after all, the enmity between the two dynasties ran deep. Zhao Song had done well not to exploit Liao’s weakness—how could they possibly aid Liao’s restoration? Liao must restore itself through its own strength.

When Xiao Bodi and Cao Yongyi demanded he hand Juyong Pass over to the Song Army, Xiao Hugu not only refused to obey the imperial edict—he detained both envoys and sent word to Yelu Chun and others: “If you are loyal subjects of Great Liao, you must march with me to drive out the Song troops, then head north to resist the Jurchens and reclaim every inch of Liao’s territory—not aid the tyrant by allying with our enemies and surrendering Liao’s realm.”

Faced with this situation, Xu Huiyan could only send messengers to Jinpo Pass to consult with Tong Guan; three days later, both sides would launch a pincer attack on Juyong Pass.

Three days later.

The Western Army’s general Yao Gu and the Western Support Army’s general Huo Anguo attacked Juyong Pass simultaneously.

As dawn crept over Juyong Pass’s battlements, logs and boulders rained down like a storm.

Yao Gu’s vanguard had barely reached a hundred paces from the pass when the front-line soldiers were crushed into pulp by a boulder the size of a millstone. The Liao archers on the battlements stood nailed to the parapets, their arrows so dense they blocked the morning light—any Song soldier who dared show his head was certain to die.

Huo Anguo’s side was even harder. The western mountain path was steep to begin with, and the Liao had carved hidden channels halfway up the slope, through which scalding oil, molten metal, and sparks poured down the stone steps. Song soldiers climbed over their comrades’ corpses; the moment they touched the oil or metal, they screamed, flailed, and tumbled into the deep ravines beside the path, their cries swallowed whole by the wind.

At noon, arrow slits on the gate tower suddenly spat flaming arrows, igniting the Song siege ladders beneath the pass. Flames raced up the pine ladders; the soldiers at the very top became human torches, screaming as they slashed at the battlements—only to be pierced through the chest by long spears, their bodies hanging from the ladders, crackling like kindling, now perfect targets.

The Western Support Army tried scaling the cliff behind the pass, but the cliff face had already been drilled with countless holes, each filled with sharp iron spikes. The first soldier who reached halfway reached for purchase—his palm was pierced through. He screamed, lost his grip, and fell, striking a protruding rock; the sound of shattering bones echoed through the valley.

As the sun dipped westward, the pile of corpses before the pass had nearly reached the height of the gate. Yao Gu had no choice but to change tactics, ordering catapults to bombard the gate—but the massive stones slammed against the iron-reinforced doors left only faint white scratches.

Xiao Hugu himself beat the war drums atop the tower; the Liao soldiers’ war cries mixed with the thunder of falling logs made the earth tremble beneath their feet.

Huo Anguo’s deputy was struck through the throat by a stray arrow; he clutched his neck, trying to speak, but blood frothed from between his fingers.

Huo Anguo wiped blood from his face and saw the cliff beside the path had been piled with corpses into a gentle slope—built by soldiers’ lives. He gritted his teeth, seized a shattered shield, and roared as he led the charge upward.

Night had fallen thick; Juyong Pass’s tower, bathed in dying sunlight, resembled a bleeding beast, while the Song troops below still hurled their bodies against its fangs.

Zhao Di finally witnessed the cruelty of war—and his own bloodlust was awakened. He stepped to He Guan’s side and volunteered: “Commander, let me deploy the Divine Mechanism Camp—I’ll shatter this pass with cannons.”

In truth, He Guan also wanted to use Li Lin’s cannons.

But Zhao Yu had ordered: under no circumstances, unless absolutely desperate, were they to reveal this ultimate weapon.

So He Guan had hesitated.

Now that Zhao Di had volunteered, He Guan had both an excuse and a scapegoat—but as a former retainer of Zhao Yu’s, he had to consider Zhao Yu’s son. So he told Zhao Di: “We’ve only attacked for one day. What’s the urgency? A general must remain calm and steady, not rash. Mercy does not command armies. Your Highness must not show feminine weakness.”

To He Guan, Juyong Pass, though formidable, would fall sooner or later under the Song’s pincer assault—there was no need to deploy Li Lin’s cannons yet.

Night fell, yet neither the Western Army nor the Western Support Army ceased their assault on Juyong Pass.

Under cover of darkness, the Liao archers lost the precision they had during daylight.

But darkness also blinded the Song troops, making climbing and charging far more difficult.

In this darkness, both armies waged an endless, bloody stalemate around Juyong Pass.

By dawn, the Western Support Army alone had suffered nearly a thousand casualties.

Zhao Di could bear it no longer. He ordered Li Lin’s cannons placed at the pre-selected assault position and sent Hu Quan to notify He Guan: he was preparing to fire, and the other Song troops must coordinate.

Before He Guan could send anyone to stop him, Zhao Di, having timed it precisely, gave the order to fire.

Ten red-cannon artillery pieces lined up before Juyong Pass; the sudden roar shook loose stones from the walls, making them tremble.

The first shell screamed into the left parapet of the stone gate; stone chips flew like rain, several millstone-sized bricks torn clean away, revealing the gray-brown rammed earth beneath.

The remaining shells followed, howling in; Liao soldiers on the tower were swept away like chaff, screaming as they tumbled from the parapets. The crisp crack of breaking bricks mixed with cannon fire, echoing repeatedly through the valley.

The second salvo struck directly among the Liao troops; under the ferocious barrage of Li Lin’s cannons, Liao soldiers were torn apart, bodies piled high, casualties catastrophic.

The third salvo continued hammering the Liao on the tower, driving them into panic. One shell happened to land in a pot of oil; oil splashed everywhere, instantly igniting into a rain of fire that set Juyong Pass ablaze.

At that moment, the mountain wall of Juyong Pass suddenly collapsed, burying many Liao soldiers—including its commander, Xiao Hugu.

Seeing this, both Yao Gu and Huo Anguo immediately ordered a full-scale assault on Juyong Pass.

In a single battle, they captured the vital Juyong Pass.