Chapter 426: Collapse (Continued)

By afternoon, with still a considerable time before dark and the fine spring rain showing no sign of stopping, the Jin army had already collapsed entirely across the entire front.

Now, before the total collapse arrived, Jin Wushu, left behind to guard the rear camp, though already terrified to the extreme, still managed to make a series of desperate preparations... On one hand, he had Taishinu escort Yu Yunwen to meet with the Zhao Song emperor, hoping to delay the inevitable total collapse as much as possible; on the other, he ordered his personal guards to open all camp gates and drawbridges, and prepare flags behind the drawbridges for necessary support; he also had the remaining troops in camp drive the conscripted soldiers out from the other side to clear space, while ordering people to clear the camp's pathways and grounds to facilitate troop entry and assembly.

Yet all these preparations—at least the immediate ones—became completely useless the moment the earth-shattering collapse arrived.

From front to back within the camp, control was lost across the entire line. The vast majority no longer heeded military orders. Looting and fighting spread everywhere alongside desertion and flight. Of the arranged signal flag-bearers, eight or nine out of ten also turned and left... At first, Wushu tried to lead his personal guards in executing the flag-bearers to enforce discipline, but as the first wave of routed troops reached the camp, even his own remaining personal guards lost their last shred of confidence and stopped following orders.

This was, of course, understandable—for even though countless drawbridges and camp gates had been opened wide before the camp due to the earlier deployment, when the routed troops turned back, a massive stampede still occurred. Countless armored soldiers were pushed directly into the moats by those behind them, and then these core fighting forces of the Great Jin Empire fought and shoved each other with weapons on the drawbridges and in the muddy ditches for a chance to escape.

They trampled each other, tore at each other, and did not hesitate to swing war-hammers. Some even tried to strip off their armor in the mud, just to climb into the camp one step earlier.

In an instant, the armor, weapons, and mud in the moats caused massive casualties that might have otherwise taken half an hour of chaotic fighting to produce.

In truth, seeing this, not only did Wushu completely give up his efforts, but even the few others in the camp who had still been strictly following orders lost all discipline and directly turned to flee.

"Prince Wei! Prince Wei! Fourth Prince!"

Hong Ya, panting heavily, called out several times toward the watchtower. "The situation is beyond saving. If you don't leave now, are you going to let the entire Great Jin Empire be buried here? We should hurry back to Zhending Prefecture!"

Wushu, his face deathly pale, finally nodded blankly, then dazedly climbed down from the watchtower, nearly falling outright. But before he could fall, several personal guards rushed forward and, pulling and lifting, got their prince to the ground, while someone quickly brought over a warhorse.

"No! I can't go to Zhending Prefecture!"

Wushu mounted his horse in a daze and rode forward slightly with Hong Ya and a few dozen trusted personal guards. When they reached a crossroads within the camp, he suddenly regained some clarity. "With such a great rout, those few pontoon bridges on the Hutuo River won't let many people cross. The main body of troops will still have to go east... But if they go east, you know, Hong Academician..."

Of course Hong Ya knew... Wasn't it that most of the Jin army's routed troops would hastily remain south of the Hutuo River, and Yue Fei would likely circle around from downstream? But at this point, how could he dare to interject on this matter?

As the person in the army who was probably most psychologically prepared for the Jin army's total collapse, he had been much more clear-headed than Wushu just now, yet he didn't dare say a single extra word, for fear that if something went wrong later, suspicion would fall on him.

The muddy mess with Yu Yunwen was already enough to make one worry and fear!

"I'll go to Shiyi first, see if I can gather troops along the way and cross the river as soon as possible." On the other hand, when Wushu saw that Hong Ya wasn't speaking, he misinterpreted it, thinking the civil official was simply afraid of death. "Hong Academician, trouble you to go to the rear camp and take the rear camp troops to Zhending Prefecture. Earlier I had Gao Qingyi summon the Sixth Prince to send reinforcements. Now you need to stop them—don't let them come here to die anymore. Have the Sixth Prince defend Zhending well... hold it for as long as you can... and have Pusuyue take good control of those pontoon bridges on the river, gather as many as he can!"

When he started saying this, Wushu tried to take his gold token from his waist to hand to the other, but for some reason, he kept talking until the end without managing to remove it. Finally, Hong Ya, sweating profusely from anxiety, rode his horse over himself, reached out while still mounted to unfasten it, and snatched it away.

After snatching it, the two men each turned their horses, preparing to go their separate ways. But after taking a few steps, Hong Ya couldn't help reining in his horse slightly and, still mounted, clasped his hands toward Wushu while holding the gold token:

"Fourth Prince, take care of yourself!"

Wushu turned his head blankly to look back at him, nodding slightly in the rain. But then, the two finally each turned their horses and went their separate ways.

And if Wushu and Hong Ya, being in the rear camp, still had a little time and mental space to maneuver, then before the total collapse, Wanyan Huonü, Wanyan Poushu, and Jiagu Wulibu—the three generals positioned at the very front of the high ground along with their troops—bore the brunt of it. They realized in the very first moment that the tide had turned and was beyond human power to change.

Yet, faced with this earth-shattering situation, these three veteran generals, all former trusted subordinates of Loushi, behaved completely differently.

The sixty-four-year-old Jiagu Wulibu let out a long sigh, then turned his horse and headed back to camp, attempting to flee. Moreover, contrary to most of the scattering troops, he led several dozen cavalry personal guards against the current toward the east, clearly intending to go against the grain, using the immobility of the Song iron curtain formation to calmly avoid the main body of routed troops, and also to conveniently take the Hutuo River route to Zhending Prefecture.

He knew well the importance of crossing the river as quickly as possible.

As for Wanyan Huonü and Wanyan Poushu, the two, as if by unspoken agreement, stopped where they were. They let the troops around them scatter, but just stared blankly at the dragon banner atop the mountain, unmoving.

This was also understandable. Others still had reasons to flee, still had the instinct to survive. But what about Huonü and Poushu?

They had nothing left.

No more long-sustaining belief in revenge, no more last hope of defeating that dragon banner, not even the capital to stand on anymore... Their troops were at the very front now, probably the hardest to escape. And in this battle, someone had to take responsibility for the defeat.

Prince Wei's level was one thing, but it was also an undeniable fact, witnessed by all, that Huonü and Poushu had launched the first attack, leading to the last large group of elite cavalry being cut off by Song cavalry, resulting in neither flank's strategic objective being achieved. There was no need even to argue it.

With this thought, under the fine rain, Huonü reined in his horse and smiled as he looked back at the few dozen riders still behind him:

"You go find General Poushu... He is the Taizu's nephew by a concubine. Going back, he still has a life to live. In the future, retreating beyond the passes, among the white mountains and black waters, who knows, he might even stage a comeback and avenge my father... Don't waste your lives here needlessly... Go quickly!"

The few dozen personal guards looked at each other, none moving for a moment. But as the Song army's great formation rolled forward ahead, and elite Song armored soldiers nearby spotted a Jin general and targeted him, about a dozen riders finally bent low and rode off east to find Wanyan Poushu.

Huonü had originally planned to throw away his helmet and draw his sword to kill himself as soon as they left. But seeing that there were still a dozen or so riders behind him, he instead spurred his horse forward, avoiding the Song army's main formation, and charged along the gaps in the caltrop array toward that visible but unreachable dragon banner.

Seeing this, a few more of the dozen riders peeled away, leaving only seven or eight following behind.

Now, within the caltrop array, although the presence of the caltrops meant the Song troops were more scattered and less densely packed than the surrounding formations, there were still enough heavily armored warriors to easily stop these dozen or so cavalrymen, who couldn't build up much speed anyway.

But Huonü had been watching for a long time. He had already spotted a group of Song troops wielding long blades but no blunt weapons, gathered at one corner of the caltrop array in front of the dragon banner. They looked easy to bully. So now, taking the lead, relying on his superb horsemanship and outstanding martial skill, he dodged left and right, weaving his way past the swarming heavily armored warriors, and led a few riders straight to that group of foreign-armored blade-wielders. Meeting head-on, these foreign-armored soldiers were indeed no match for Huonü and his personal guards. One hammer blow was often enough to deal with them, while their long blades, swinging past, had no effect. The few who had swapped for hammers or axes clearly couldn't use them well... For a moment, they were tied up by Huonü's guards, and Huonü himself nearly charged alone to within two or three hundred paces of the dragon banner.

At this point, between Huonü and the formation under the dragon banner—clearly made up of imperial guards—there was only one foreign-armored warrior with a long blade left.

Seeing this, the formation before the dragon banner remained as steady as a mountain, making no move at all. Even the surrounding Song army formations made no move to rescue, because no one thought this single rider could break through over a thousand imperial guards. Even Huonü himself only thought that if he could die in the Zhao Song imperial guard formation, letting the Zhao Song emperor see him die without turning back, then he would have no regrets.

Unexpectedly, just as Huonü's blood was boiling, as he and the long-blade armored soldier opposite drew near, the latter not only did not retreat but let out a great shout and swung his blade to meet him.

Seeing this, Huonü did not hesitate either, swinging his hammer to counter.

Yet, as the mounted man and the foot soldier collided head-on, Huonü suddenly lost sight of his target. And after riding about a dozen or so paces onward, his armored warhorse let out another neigh, then crashed to the ground, flinging Huonü directly onto a nearby set of caltrops.

Though protected by his armor and not dramatically impaled, it was still enough to cause him excruciating pain, render him immobile, and leave him at the mercy of others.

In a daze, wedged between two wooden spikes of the caltrop, Huonü forced his eyes open and saw a large mass of entrails and blood sliding and tumbling down the slope from behind his horse's flank. The horse's intestines were dragged dozens of paces from its belly. And just then, from within that pile of entrails, a blood-soaked figure stood up and limped toward him.

Huonü knew full well then that this was a desperate gambit for survival. He could only say that this bastard, while using the slippery ground to slice open the horse's belly, had somehow managed not to be trampled to death by the horse—truly a stroke of incredible luck.

Of course, now was not the time to think about the other man... Huonü tried hard to get a look at himself but couldn't turn his body. He could only sigh inwardly. Dying so easily was fine, but not dying before the dragon banner, not dying in front of that Zhao Song emperor and countless famous Song generals—that was still somewhat of a grievance.

Of course, the grievance soon faded.

Yuan Weiyi, covered in blood, stepped forward step by step. Under the solemn gaze of the surrounding Song troops, he first took the gold token from the other's waist and bit it between his teeth, then flipped open the faceplate and, with a dagger from his back, stabbed it straight into the face. Only then did he hastily step on the corpse and raise the gold token high toward a direction on the heights.

Zhao Jiu, who had advanced personally to the front of the caltrop array after swinging his sword, stood motionless with his hands behind his back. Seeing this from afar, he merely pointed a finger. And with that single point, Yuan Weiyi, as if relieved of a great burden, slumped to the ground and inexplicably burst into loud sobs.

Now, because Pusan Beilu's corpse was not immediately found, and Wanyan Balisu was only discovered with his command flag broken, Wanyan Huonü was the third Battalion Commander—after Ali and Tuhesu—that the Song army confirmed to have been slain in this battle, and in fact the fifth Battalion Commander to be killed in action.

It was now afternoon, less than half an hour after the Jin army's total collapse, and the rain had not stopped.

On the other side, since Zhao Jiu had swung his sword and ordered a general assault, the commanders aside, all the generals urged their troops forward. He himself, for some reason, no longer wished to advance. Seeing from afar a Jin general nearly charging the formation alone, only to have his horse fall and throw him before reaching it, and the gold token being displayed, he knew Huonü was dead. His mood grew increasingly listless. He completely lost the desire to speak or move further, merely letting Shao Chengzhang move his camp stool and table, sitting and watching the great army pour down the slope, pursuing and killing the fleeing enemy.

But just as the emperor sat down again, news suddenly arrived.

"Qu Duan has surrounded Wanyan Poushu... Wanyan Poushu wants to meet with me before the formation?" Zhao Jiu frowned. "Loushi's deputy general?"

"Yes." Liu Yan replied without hesitation. "He is also the son of Wanyan Shemu by a concubine. Wanyan Shemu was Aguda's half-brother, so he is Aguda's nephew."

"With such status, it wouldn't hurt to see him." Zhao Jiu sat upright in the rain. "But I have no interest today... Tell Qu Duan to kill him quickly, then go trample the enemy camp before the formation."

Liu Yan bowed and left.

About half an hour later, the order reached Qu Duan. Qu Duan nodded in understanding, said nothing, and just looked with his eyes at a Jin soldier before the formation who had no weapon or horse. The latter understood and turned back into the Jin ranks.

Around Wanyan Poushu were still several hundred Iron Pagodas. Hearing the reply, they all looked at their commander. Poushu looked around, especially at the chaos in the moat before the camp behind him, and then acted quite straightforwardly.

"The Song emperor looks down on us, but we cannot demean ourselves. The Great Jin has no surrendering Hezha Meng'an." Poushu said loudly as he removed his helmet and neck guard. "But at this point, I cannot force you to fight and die... All of you, flee! Don't think about the horses stored in the camp. First, remove the horse armor. After crossing the camp, discard your armor. Our horses are good. Find a shallow spot, hug their necks, and you can cross the Hutuo River. Let as many escape as can. When you flee back to Yanjing, go find the ruler. In the future, if the ruler must return beyond the passes to establish his enterprise, he will still need you to guard him."

As he spoke, the man untied the braid at the back of his head, shook off the blood and filth clinging to it, then directly drew his blade and slashed fiercely at the carotid artery in his own neck. With a single cut, blood gushed like a spring, washing away all the grime and rainwater around his neck.

The Iron Pagodas around him surged forward, encircling Poushu's warhorse, carefully supporting Wanyan Poushu's gradually weakening body to prevent him from falling.

At the same time, the Song cavalry on the outer perimeter could no longer restrain themselves and began attacking and slaughtering. The Iron Pagodas had deliberately left an opening behind them, yet they risked being enveloped by the Song army's iron curtain on the east flank and the grand formation on the high ground, fighting to the death without retreating.

Only when the bleeding from Poushu's neck gradually subsided and his pupils dilated did the Iron Pagodas supporting him carefully lay him flat on his horse. Then they returned to their own units, unfastened their horse armor, took turns covering the rear, and struggled to scatter and flee.

Not a single one surrendered.

A quarter-hour after the total collapse, Wanyan Poushu, Aguda's own nephew—though not a Wanhu, he led four Hezha Meng'an—fell by his own blade before the battle line.

At this point, the Jin army's front line had lost the last shred of its already meaningless, feeble resistance.

The Song cavalry, who had long received orders to pursue without cease, charged forward at the front, successfully chasing the chaotic Jin army all the way to their camp. There, countless exhausted Jin armored soldiers, both infantry and cavalry, had long since fallen into panicked disorder. Trampling and mutual slaughter had already begun, but with the arrival of the Song cavalry, the previous chaos seemed like mere child's play.

Countless Jin soldiers, clad in heavy armor and carrying heavy hammers at their waists, were wantonly chased and butchered by Song light cavalry that had inflicted almost no casualties throughout the entire day.

Elubu witnessed with his own eyes: entire squadrons and groups of Jin armored cavalry, in complete disarray, were often chased by a small squad of Mongol light cavalry until they fled in panic, plunging headlong into the camp's front ditch, which was filled with mud and corpses, or recklessly directing their desperate charges onto the drawbridge leading back to camp, causing other Jin soldiers on the drawbridge to fall into the ditch.

And that camp-front ditch, now filled with muddy water, bloodstains, armor, weapons, bodies, and wails of agony, had already become a living hell.

"Don't look anymore!"

Yelu Ma Wu, who was usually taciturn, stepped forward and grabbed Elubu. "Let's go! If we don't leave now, the ditch will be filled level with corpses!"

Elubu turned his head to face him, his face full of bewilderment: "Why has it come to this? Even if defeat is certain, even if it's a crushing defeat, how could it be like this?"

"It was always going to be like this." Yelu Ma Wu sneered and shook his head, then released his grip, turned, and took a reserve warhorse from his personal guard that had not been on the battlefield, mounting it. "I have seen the Khitans like this with my own eyes, and I have seen the Song people like this too... Now it's the Jurchens' turn. Why shouldn't it be like this? Are the Jurchens truly three-headed and six-armed, a different breed from us Khitans, the Song people, and the Mongols?"

Elubu was left speechless.

"The camp is doomed; staying is useless!" Yelu Ma Wu suddenly became stern and barked on the spot. "There are horses here. General, if you want to survive, go quickly to the pontoon bridge in the north, to Zhending Prefecture... If you want to try and save your subordinates, go to Shiyi to reorganize, then gather the troops before the Qinshui and Hutuo Rivers... Just don't stand here in a daze."

Elubu slowly shook his head, then stepped forward, took the warhorse, and mounted it.

And so, the two of them led several hundred riders out of the rear camp gate. No sooner had they exited and taken a few steps south than they heard several cries of surprise amidst the noise behind them. The man turned his head and discovered that Elubu, the veteran general of the Eastern Route Army renowned for his valor, had silently headed north towards Zhending without a word.

More than half of the men followed him.

Ma Wu reined his horse in place for a moment, hesitated briefly, but ultimately shook his head, turned, and led the remaining men southward, spurring his horse.

Leaving aside Ma Wu for now, on the other side, Elubu galloped north. After passing the general area of the camp, he saw a large, orderly body of men in the distance. Catching up, he found it was Hong Ya, along with the rear-camp civil officials, staff officers, and some remaining garrison troops. What was even more astonishing was that the veteran general Jiagu Wulibu was also among them.

The three met, exchanged a few words, each breathed a sigh of relief, then merged their forces and continued north to find the pontoon bridge over the Hutuo River.

After traveling another two li, the road began to run parallel to the end of the Taiping River. Before they saw Pusuyue's troops or Elugu's reinforcements, they first encountered Gao Qingyi leading over a hundred riders towards them.

Seeing this, Elubu and Jiagu Wulibu both lowered their heads slightly and fell back, while Hong Ya hurriedly rode forward to meet them.

Before Hong Ya could speak, Gao Qingyi hastily asked:

"Vice Minister Hong, how goes the battle?"

"The earth has split and the mountains have crumbled; the entire front has collapsed. I am here on the orders of the Prince of Wei to tell you not to bring the Sixth Prince's reinforcements any further. Let the Sixth Prince gather the troops and guard the city carefully, and have Pusuyue restore order at the pontoon bridge..." As he spoke, Hong Ya raised the gold tally in his hand high. "Then, I myself must go to the lower reaches of the north bank of the Hutuo River to assist the routed soldiers."

Jiagu Wulibu was slightly taken aback behind him, but Gao Qingyi's face turned pale. He stood frozen for a moment before asking again: "Is there absolutely no hope?"

"Absolutely no hope." Hong Ya said impatiently. "The Song army has swept the battlefield; not a single unit of our army can maintain its formation. Even the Fourth Prince can only go to Shiyi for now, to prepare to gather and reorganize the routed troops outside the battle zone... Master Gao, turn around quickly and come back with us!"

Gao Qingyi grew even more panicked, but under the other's urging, he finally turned his horse and followed downstream.

The group grew larger. After traveling a while longer, the sounds of battle behind them gradually faded into the distance, while the sound of rushing river water ahead grew louder. Knowing the Hutuo River was near, they quickened their pace. A few more steps brought the Hutuo River into view, and on this side, Pusuyue's camp was orderly, with banners clearly visible. Only then did they fully breathe a sigh of relief.

As expected, the young Pusuyue spurred his horse and led his men out to greet them, hastily inquiring about the battle:

"Master Gao, why are you back so soon? Vice Minister Hong, the battle ahead... Why is General Elubu here? And General Wulibu?"

"To be honest with you, General." Hong Ya had long since given up all pretense and now spoke without any burden, riding forward to inform him directly. "A great defeat ahead. The Song army swept through, inflicting heavy casualties. Not a single position of ours could hold... The Prince of Wei has gone to Shiyi to gather troops on the periphery of the battlefield. He gave me this gold tally and ordered me to tell you to control the pontoon bridge firmly, gather as many routed soldiers as possible, and make necessary dispositions when needed."

Pusuyue was stunned for a moment. His gaze shifted from the gold tally in the other's hand, glanced at Elubu and Jiagu Wulibu, and then he nodded blankly.

But soon, he swept his eyes over the pale-faced Gao Qingyi and asked Hong Ya again: "Since that is the case... may I ask Vice Minister Hong, is there any news of General Shaohe?"

Hong Ya didn't know how to answer for a moment, but Gao Qingyi directly covered his face on his horse.

"It's hard to say." Elubu suddenly interjected. "The Song army's victorious thrust came from the east. General Yelu Ma Wu, General Wanyan Wolun, and I were all on the eastern line. We scattered first and managed to escape into the camp. General Wulibu was probably rotating troops in the camp just before. But aside from that, on the western line and at the center, the troops were too densely packed and scattered later. Everyone was blocked at the drawbridge in front of the camp gate. The trampling casualties were heavy... Nephew, let me be blunt. Shaohe's position was dangerous to begin with, and there's still an hour until dark... At this rate, by nightfall, even if Shaohe survives by luck, his Bohai Wanhu unit will likely suffer heavy losses."

Hearing this, the group almost simultaneously looked up at the sky, their expressions all turning even grimmer.

After a long while, Pusuyue finally nodded: "In that case, I will see you across the river. The Sixth Prince is surely waiting anxiously in Zhending City for your news."

The group sighed deeply, but no one objected. Instead, they quickened their pace, passed through Pusuyue's camp of only two or three thousand men, and then boarded the pontoon bridge over the Hutuo River from the rear of the camp.

The Hutuo River was a great river, and it was the flood season, and this was the river mouth. Building the pontoon bridge had been no easy task. There were only four such bridges here. One could imagine how many of the routed troops from the rear would actually make it across.

But these few had already stolen their lives and couldn't be bothered to worry about such things.

In fact, after the group boarded the bridges separately and crossed the river, they finally felt completely relieved. Some even slumped down on the spot, while Pusuyue unhesitatingly turned and went back.

And so, the group rested there for a while before preparing to move on. But just as they were about to set out, they heard a commotion from the camp on the opposite bank.

The group, now as skittish as birds startled by a bow, dared not be careless. They hurriedly found a small earthen mound near the pontoon bridge, rode up to look, but saw neither pursuers nor large groups of their own routed soldiers fleeing. Instead, they saw Pusuyue's banner leading about a thousand riders directly out of the camp, heading against the Taiping River towards the battlefield.

Seeing this, how could the group not understand?

But they had witnessed too much of life and death today, and for a moment, they were all speechless.

Except for one person.

"What meaning is there for me to live?" Gao Qingyi's nose stung, and he collapsed on the spot in the rain, weeping bitterly. "Shaohe and I have been through life and death together for so many years. His fate is unknown, and I didn't even dare to ask. Yet a junior shows such disregard for his own life... Truly, I am shamed to death!"

The others listened with varied expressions.

Hong Ya simply sneered: "Master Gao, you have failed not only Shaohe. Have you not also failed the Fourth Prince? This entire campaign was planned with your counsel. Though circumstances forced it, and there were no great errors... Since we have been defeated and brought about today's calamity, someone must bear the responsibility... Fifteen Wanhu units. Even if only one percent of the fault is yours, you should pay with your life!"

Upon hearing this, Gao Qingyi nodded repeatedly: "What Vice Minister Hong says is absolutely right."

Saying this, ignoring the others present, Gao Qingyi directly undressed in public, then walked down the slope and waded into the swollen waters of the Hutuo River.

To this, everyone remained silent, watching coldly.

And sure enough, after taking seven or eight steps, with the water reaching his chest, Gao Qingyi probed with his foot and found what seemed to be a deep pit ahead. He dared not move further, just stood there, tilting his head back and weeping.

Seeing this, the people on the bank couldn't be bothered to watch any longer. They turned their horses and headed towards Zhending City.

But Hong Ya, thoroughly exasperated, shouted from the bank: "Master Gao! That's enough! A clever man like you, who understands the situation better than anyone—why didn't you go to be buried with Marshal Nianhan when he died? You took the opportunity when Gao Jingshan saw you out of the city. On the road earlier, you didn't ask about Shaohe's fate. How is it that seeing Pusuyue go against the current makes you lose face? If you truly want to die, do you need to take off your clothes? Come up quickly and follow me to see the Sixth Prince!"

Having said this, Hong Ya paid him no further attention, left a horse behind, and turned to leave. Gao Qingyi, half ashamed and half helpless, cried in the river for a good while before finally returning to the bank, putting on his clothes, wiping his tears, and mounting his horse to follow.

Throughout the entire journey, not a single person was willing to cross back to the opposite bank to deal with and take over Pusuyue's military camp.

Leaving aside for now this group who had escaped with their lives, on the other side, the central and western contingents of the Jin army were, as Elubu had judged, because of their overly dense battle formations, plunged into a situation of being completely slaughtered after their collapse.

The Song army's cavalry, whether armored or light, trampled and harried relentlessly from three sides at once, while men and horses of the Jin army fell together. Finally, as the iron curtain on the Song army's eastern flank and the main formation in front gradually drew near, the Jin army began to surrender en masse... starting with the Han'er Army, then the Khitan and Xi tribes, and finally, some Jurchen soldiers, unable to withstand the terror of being butchered, began to surrender in organized units.

These surrenders, crowded before the camp, were certainly heartening, but they also considerably hindered the Song army's pursuit. Many Jin soldiers on the inner side, taking advantage of this, slipped into the camp, and then, using the camp for cover, scattered and fled from the other side of the long, strip-shaped encampment.

Some headed toward Zhending, some toward Shiyi, but more, driven by the will to survive, split into countless small bands, desperately and aimlessly struggling eastward, scattering across the great plain of Hebei.

But at this moment, there was truly no way to care about so much; they could only quickly transfer the surrendered troops and pursue and trample those units on this side of the camp who had not yet surrendered.

And because Yelu Yudu knew the inner workings of the Jin army high command, he was ordered to supervise the search and inspection of the Jin army troops. For a time, silver and bronze tokens flew back and forth with Khitan riders, messages were transmitted continuously, all arriving directly before the Emperor.

One basket after another in front of Zhao Jiu was filled with bloodstained tokens. After a short while, even three gold tokens, clearly washed and wiped by rain, were delivered into the hands of His Majesty, placed beside the several gold tokens already there.

The gold tokens of a Marching Myriad Household had inscriptions on them.

The first token was clearly Shaohe's gold token.

"Dead or alive?" Zhao Jiu grew increasingly listless.

"Should be dead. General Yelu said this token was taken directly from a corpse," Liu Yan leaned in to report. "And General Yelu himself identified him. Although half his head was smashed, he could still roughly make out that it was Shaohe."

The second gold token was very interesting. Its shape was completely different from Shaohe's token. One side was actually flat, and the other side had rough, blurred inscriptions, like some shoddily made thing.

"Whose is this?" Zhao Jiu was momentarily puzzled.

"It's Wanyan Bendu's," Liu Yan answered without hesitation. "Wanyan Bendu was raised in Aguda's tent from childhood and was granted this gold token very young, promising him a future... Later, Wanyan Bendu always carried this token..." At this point, Liu Yan paused slightly before speaking. "Your Majesty, this man was captured alive and is right here. Would you like to have him brought up to see?"

Zhao Jiu was too lazy to see him at first, but looking around at the gathered generals who were gradually reassembling and all seemed interested, and considering that Wanyan Bendu was, after all, the esteemed Commander-in-Chief of the Longde Prefecture Marching Army, one of the top three figures on the opposing side in this battle, and that Yelu Yudu was not far away to the front, face had to be given, so he finally nodded.

In a short while, Wanyan Bendu, with his arms bound behind his back, was dragged up the high ground by Yelu Yudu himself with his men and thrown directly before the Emperor.

The man raised his head. Zhao Jiu looked down and was surprised to find that the man was crying profusely, not simply wet from the rain... Not only that, the man struggled on the slope to turn his head and look back. He saw below the slope that the Jin army was either dead, surrendered, or fleeing, and many Song cavalry were still chasing scattered Jin soldiers for sport. The vast battlefield, which had been a formidable formation in the morning, now had not a trace left. At this, he burst into tears and wailed without stopping.

Zhao Jiu finally spoke coldly: "Must the Gold Token Youth also become a Weeping Youth?"

Upon hearing this, Wanyan Bendu only cried even harder. After a long while, under the gaze of countless civil and military officials with varied expressions standing behind Zhao Jiu beneath the dragon banner, he finally managed to reply:

"It is precisely because I thought of Salihe that I am so sad... Let His Majesty Zhao know, Salihe and I both grew up in our late Emperor's tent. Though we were not sworn brothers, we were as close as brothers... That day when he was beaten and cried by Wu Jie at Qiaoshan, I defended him publicly, but in my heart I had always secretly mocked him... But today, seeing this landslide-like defeat, I finally understand... No matter how brave and proud a man may be, how can he not weep when he sees his own soldiers dying like weeds?"

Having said this, he knocked his head on the ground, weeping even more violently, gasping for breath, not stopping for a moment.

Zhao Jiu nodded: "Salihe did not lose his integrity; he hanged himself early. You should go with him!"

Upon hearing these words, before Wanyan Bendu could respond, Yelu Yudu directly picked up a large bow with a slack bowstring from the ground beside him, then pressed his knee against the other's back, looped the bowstring around his neck, and twisted it. Wanyan Bendu could no longer cry, only kicking and struggling continuously. But in a short while, he lost the strength to struggle. Then, some Imperial Guards stepped forward; one kept holding the bowstring taut while two dragged Wanyan Bendu aside, ensuring he died with his body intact and was completely dead.

Zhao Jiu nodded at Yelu Yudu, then turned to examine the third gold token.

This gold token was different from the previous two again, apparently more refined, and also larger in weight and size... Without needing Liu Yan or Yelu Yudu to explain, Zhao Jiu had already recognized the characters "Marshal" on it.

Clearly, someone had reported meritorious service for Balisu's gold token.

At this point, His Majesty was finally too lazy to look further. He directly turned his head and issued an order: "Liangchen!"

"Your servant is here."

Han Shizhong cupped his hands and stepped forward.

"Dispatch your cavalry, and take along two Command Department's reinforcements from wherever to seize the pontoon bridge facing the Hutuo River north of the Jin camp. The entire remaining Imperial Guard Left Army will return with me to Huolu County town," Zhao Jiu commanded calmly.

Han Shizhong immediately acknowledged the order.

"Jinqing..." Zhao Jiu swept his gaze past the bruised and swollen-faced Yu Yunwen, continued to look around, and then looked at Wu Da and instructed. "The military intelligence is not very certain, but there are indeed related reports. Yue Pengju, Zhang Rong, and Tian Shizhong may have already reached the Hutuo River mouth in Hejian Prefecture downstream... Don't move the Imperial Guard Left Army. Arrange the remaining troops as you see fit, ensuring the pursuit is handled properly. Don't neglect the battlefield surrender and resettlement, nor the cleanup."

Wu Jie had already known this news and even had plans in his mind. Besides, with today's great victory and the complete loss of control over the entire Jin army, the number of killed and captured far exceeded imagination. Although many had escaped, it was definitely not half.

So, Wu Da merely acknowledged calmly. Some generals who were unaware of the news were momentarily invigorated upon hearing this.

Having said this, Zhao Jiu was too lazy to say more and directly prepared to rise and return... He needed a good rest.

"Your Majesty!"

Just then, Liu Yan suddenly stepped forward, pointing at Taishinu, who was still kneeling in the distance, and inquired. "How should this man be dealt with?"

Zhao Jiu was stunned for a moment, then asked: "Did he hear what Academician Yu reported earlier?"

"No."

Zhao Jiu nodded, unconcerned: "Then let him go back! Send him back to Wanyan Wushu!"

Liu Yan quickly nodded, and Yelu Yudu remained silent.

Just as His Majesty was about to leave again, Liu Yan pointed at the baskets on the ground and hastily reminded him: "Your Majesty, what about these? How should they be handled?"

Zhao Jiu turned his head to look and spoke clearly: "Store them for now... Tomorrow, once the Hutuo River pontoon bridge is in hand, take good care of today's Jin army wounded, and send these tokens along with them into Zhending city! The corpses can also be sent in. After tallying the military merits, send them to the city walls and let them bury their own dead."

The generals rarely became solemn again.

And His Majesty, seeing that there was nothing else, finally took off his helmet, sighed up at the sky, and then, holding the helmet, walked back toward Huolu on the opposite bank of the Taiping River.

Before the sky was completely dark, another report of victory was sent directly into Huolu town. It turned out that Cheng Min's, Dong Xian's, and Shao Yun's units under Han Shizhong, ordered to advance toward the Hutuo River, had unexpectedly run head-on into Pusuyue, the general guarding the pontoon bridge camp on the Hutuo River... The latter was beheaded on the spot. Subsequently, the Song army pursued and pressed the routed troops, easily seized the pontoon bridge, and sent patrol cavalry across the river to scout, approaching Zhending city to spy.

And counting Pusuyue, on this day, the Song army had killed eight Myriad Household generals, a full half of the sixteen Myriad Households in this battle for the Jin army.

Of course, Wushu, who had already arrived at Shiyi by this time, was unaware of this. However, after waiting until the sky was completely dark, he had only gathered a scattered force of less than twenty thousand, and among the Myriad Household generals, only Wanyan Wolun, Heshilie Taiyu, Yelu Ma Wu, Wulin Da Taiyu, and Pucha Huzhan, a mere five, had arrived!

At this point, how could this Great Jin Prince of Wei not understand that the brutality of this battle far exceeded imagination, and the number of Song army battlefield kills and surrenders was absolutely a terrifying figure!

And the previous plan of using the camp to receive the defeated troops and hinder the pursuit now seemed like a joke of cleverness overreaching itself!

It was probably precisely because of that strange camp that such brutal casualties had occurred. But thinking about it carefully, this was still wrong, because if the entire line hadn't collapsed at once, wouldn't the camp have rendered great service?

Of course, regardless, now was not the time to think about that, because even so, Wushu estimated that forty to fifty thousand men would escape. At this moment, he could not afford to abandon these routed troops... In fact, Wushu did not even dare to embrace these generals and weep bitterly, fearing it would affect morale.

However, just after they had eaten some hot food with these generals and explained the plan to head east separately at dawn the next day to gather troops and cross the river dispersedly, before the plan was even properly settled, they suddenly heard a commotion outside the camp. It turned out that the Song army, disregarding the darkness, had pursued them directly along the camp.

Faced with this situation, the barely assembled force of nearly twenty thousand in the camp instantly exploded, scattering like headless flies to the south, north, and east... The only direction they didn't go was the west, from which the Song army had come.

Wushu and the generals had no choice but to leave the camp separately, following the original plan to flee in different directions through the night, preparing to gather their troops under cover of darkness and escape eastward.

After leaving the camp, Wushu rode for a while. Hearing no more sounds of pursuit behind him, he looked up and peeled off his face mask. Only then did he realize that the rain had stopped sometime ago. Now, a night breeze brushed his face, stirring his heart. Looking back at his own camp, which still had a few sparks of fire, and seeing the countless routed troops still gathered behind him, he wanted to cry but dared not shed a tear.

He stopped for a long while, then Wanyan Wushu raised his head and let out a long, forceful howl toward the night sky.

Before the howl had ended, he pulled down his face mask and spurred his horse into a gallop.

At the same time, Zhao Jiu had already fallen asleep early in Huolu town... It had been a long time since he had slept so soundly.

PS: Thanks to Salted Watermelon, Jingyan Demon Blade, Bachelor Armor, Banxia Qianruoli, Blue Electric Current, Yang Hanzheng, Pigmalion, Jerrybao, and nine other big shots for their adorable support! Thanks to Xiahou Ningyuan, Past Drifting with the Wind a Hundred Meters Deep Blue, Dark Night V Empire, Yao Runian, and Gunslinger for their generous tips.

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