The collapse of the building was sudden.

April of the eleventh year of Wu Jian Shuo marked one of the most crucial periods in determining the fate of the world. The Battle of Jiangning was raging fiercely, and thousands of miles away in Xiangfan, hundreds of thousands of defending soldiers were still struggling under Wanyan Zonghan's relentless assault.

Since the start of close-quarters combat in the latter half of the previous year, the Wu Dynasty had demonstrated its formidable national strength and profound foundation in the face of the Jin's fourth southward invasion.

Nearly ten years of forbearance and preparation, even after losing the Central Plains, had allowed the Wu Dynasty to establish an even more prosperous economic system in the Jiangnan region. This supported a giant-like body of relative strength. In the ensuing year-long warfare, although the Wu Dynasty suffered occasional defeats and remained largely on the defensive, its substantial foundation and endless supply of soldiers made up for those losses. Even though the Yangtze River defense line was breached, the key strongholds supporting the Jiangnan structure held firm, even creating a back-and-forth situation in certain areas. This stalled the Jin army, which had come staking everything, near the Yangtze River, preventing them from advancing further south for a long time.

If such a situation proved the enormous overall strength that the Wu Dynasty still possessed, the Zhenjiang incident at the end of April perhaps profoundly illustrated the various hidden wounds and contradictions within the Wu Dynasty's giant frame.

Compared to the Jin's first southward invasion more than a decade earlier, although a million Wu Dynasty troops were defeated at once by the Jin's powerful forces, many people in the world still maintained the dignity of the former superior nation. Defeated, they could flee, but there were not many who defected to the enemy. Even if their combat power was poor, resistance throughout the Central Plains region was endless.

However, after more than a decade of brewing and change, the glory of resisting the Jin had largely shifted to the tragic words of entertainers and scholars. Although for ordinary people, the events of the Jingping years had always been a great humiliation, and the clamor for resistance against the Jin was growing louder and louder, among the Wu Dynasty's upper echelons, powerful figures, and wealthy families, the proportion of those connected to the Jin, or even those who had defected, had greatly increased.

Over the past ten years or so, while being in a state of opposition, the Jin and Wu sides were also constantly deepening their connections. When the balance of power on the surface became clear, most intelligent people would make their own calculations. By the time of the battle of Zhenjiang at the end of April, it was less of a contrast between attack and defense, and more of a fierce collision of the overall strengths of both sides.

This was a battle unlike any that had come before. Even though it appeared to be nothing more than Wanyan Xiyin's successful use of spies and subversion, the layout for normal combat had begun with purpose as early as last year. The Jin's infiltration of the Wu Dynasty and the panic in the Lin'an court made this seem like a large-scale remake of Ning Yi's Liangshan incident.

Compared to the rapid transmission of information, the movement of tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of troops, every major action, seemed very slow. In mid-April, when Wanyan Xiyin's army turned towards Zhenjiang, various parties already sensed the unusual nature of his all-or-nothing behavior, but to keep up with his movements, the Wu Dynasty's armies also needed enough time. In the process, everyone had to guard against the possibility of the other side feinting an attack.

By April 19, when Xiyin began preparations for attacking the city, the surrounding armies could confirm the reality of the entire operation and surround Zhenjiang.

On the 22nd, Xiyin sent envoys to sow discord among Jun Wu and others inside Zhenjiang, and on the same day, he issued a large number of leaflets into Zhenjiang, spreading the information that those who participated in the defense of the city would have their nine clans exterminated, while those who surrendered the city first and rendered meritorious service would be enfeoffed as lords of ten thousand households. At the same time, he also constantly spread the news and evidence that certain high-ranking officials of the court had already surrendered to the Jin. In such an atmosphere, the Jin army launched a full-scale attack on the city that afternoon.

Wanyan Xiyin's fierce attack on Zhenjiang was also an all-or-nothing move. Almost all high-powered exploding shells were recklessly thrown onto the city walls. In the intervals between the bombardments, the Tushan Guards launched desperate assaults on the ramparts. At this time, more than 200,000 troops had set out from the southeast and south of Zhenjiang to come to its aid. Inside Zhenjiang, Jun Wu and others increased the enforcement of the military law team and adopted a one-on-one guarding strategy for the generals in the army, even changing the defensive areas of each team before the siege battle began.

If Xiyin's attack failed, the Tushan Guards he led, as well as the tens of thousands of soldiers led by Yin Shu Ke and A Lu Bao, would likely be surrounded by a large army and eventually buried under Zhenjiang. Even if they broke through with heavy losses, the morale of the Wu Dynasty people would be boosted, and the Jin's fourth southward invasion could only end in a dismal defeat.

The Jin's frenzied attack, coupled with the defenders' declaration of exterminating nine clans afterward, brought enormous pressure to the troops in the city, but it also made the defenders' resistance more resolute. However, compared to the attackers, the key to the success or failure of the defense was not the strongest point, but a single critical flaw was enough.

At dawn on April 25, a flaw appeared. A young general named Geng Changzhong led his small number of personal guards in a rebellion, attempting to open the Shuangjiao Gate on the east side of Zhenjiang after contacting the Jin. His rebellion was not entirely successful, but the Jin took advantage of the internal strife to launch a fierce attack on the Shuangjiao Gate, occupied the city wall, and opened the gate. From then on, the Jin army poured into Zhenjiang from the east.

Flames and explosions raged within the city, and the battle spread and advanced. The Jin soldiers' morale soared after entering the city, but soon they were met with a head-on blow and desperate resistance from the defending army. Jun Wu led troops out of the camp and launched a city-wide counterattack against the Jin, while also organizing the people in the city to escape from the wharves and roads on the other sides.

Perhaps not many people could understand Jun Wu's mood at that time. The resistance of hundreds of thousands of people was destroyed by one person's weakness – of course, if this person could hold out a little longer, perhaps other weaklings would appear. But in the darkness of this morning, Jun Wu did not fall in this head-on blow. He rode on a silver-armored warhorse, wielding a precious sword and running around, constantly issuing orders, boosting the morale of the soldiers, and guiding the direction for the fleeing people.

There were still naval transport ships and merchant ships docked at the wharves near Zhenjiang. Officials from the Crown Prince's Palace – including Wenren Bu'er – tried to persuade Jun Wu to board a ship and escape the hopeless Zhenjiang, but Jun Wu directly refused such persuasion. He ordered the navy to carry the people across the canal to facilitate the escape of the people in the city, and at the same time ordered the defending army in the south of the city to open a road for the people.

Zhenjiang was a hub where the Grand Canal and the Yangtze River intersected. By last year, the population gathered in the Zhenjiang area had reached more than a million. After the war, the people nearby scattered, and there were still more than 400,000 people living in the city. On this night, slaughter and flames spread in the city, and the fleeing teams were vast and mighty. The entire city was plunged into boiling battles.

Breaking Zhenjiang was the most crucial step in Xiyin's entire war plan. When the goal of breaking the city was achieved, even he entered a state of excitement. Shortly after the Tushan Guards and a group of Jin elites entered the city, the defending army's counterattack came head-on. At this time, Zhenjiang had been breached. According to Xiyin, all Wu Dynasty soldiers would face the fate of having their nine clans exterminated after the Jin Kingdom ruled this place. The entire city's resistance instantly entered a white-hot state.

At this time in Zhenjiang, Xiyin led the Tushan Guards, plus some of the troops of Yin Shu Ke and A Lu Bao, the number of Jin soldiers was close to 70,000, while the Wu Dynasty army in Zhenjiang was only slightly over 100,000, but on the 25th after the city was breached, the battle of Zhenjiang against the Jin hit a most tragic climax. Some generals led their soldiers in crazy charges, and never retreated even after fighting to the point of exhaustion and death. Some of the Tushan Guards who had entered the city were even stunned by this fierce counterattack, and retreated repeatedly.

On the morning of the 25th, half of the city was engulfed in flames, and a large number of people were still fleeing towards the outside of the city. At this time, the battle had also begun to break out near the escape route outside the south gate of the city. A Lu Bao's army tried to seal off the southern road, but was fiercely resisted by the Wu Dynasty army arranged by Jun Wu to be here. The Wu Dynasty General Zou Tianchi, who led 20,000 Wu Dynasty troops to guard this side, was nearly 60 years old. He had not retreated since Jun Wu had arranged him here. His troops either collapsed or died in the next two days, and some even surrendered. When he faced A Lu Bao's fierce attack two days later, the old general was blown away by a shell. After he climbed up, his right arm was already bloody and his whole body was covered in blood. The old general led everyone in a charge with one hand holding a knife, and finally fell on the staggering way forward.

This was just a small episode in the entire Battle of Zhenjiang. On the morning of the 25th, Jun Wu, who had been running around all night, was able to catch his breath slightly. He drank rice porridge brought by his wife in a house on the street, wiped the tears that could not help but flow from his eyes in a place where no one was around, and then got back on his horse and ran to various battlefields to boost morale. During this period, countless people persuaded him to leave Zhenjiang immediately, and even some people who had not been able to escape saw the Crown Prince's tired appearance and opened their mouths to persuade the Crown Prince to board a ship and leave. Jun Wu shook his head and shouted in a hoarse voice.

"The soldiers guarding the city are risking their lives, how can I leave first! If I leave, you will have no way to survive!"

He said this to the people, and then went to the edge of the battlefield to constantly encourage the soldiers guarding the city: "The Jin will not give us a way to survive! They will not give the people of our Wu Dynasty a way to survive! I am with you, and before the people evacuate, you will not retreat, and I will not retreat –"

Zhenjiang was not small, but on this day, some soldiers and even some people saw the Crown Prince running around two or three times. His robes gradually became dirty and gray, the voice of his shouting gradually became hoarse, and his movements gradually weakened, but the words and movements of his shouting became more and more resolute. Some of the originally timid soldiers therefore stepped on the road to rush towards the Jin.

On the evening of the 25th, Jun Wu fell off his horse, and Wenren Bu'er, who was following him, came to persuade him to leave again. Jun Wu refused again: "I can't leave, the army's morale is usable, the people's hearts are usable, I see it, we still have hope!"

Wenren Bu'er shook his head: "Zhenjiang has fallen, and what happens after that is a trivial matter. The Wu Dynasty cannot be without Your Highness! If Your Highness goes to Lin'an, there is still a glimmer of hope, Your Highness..."

Jun Wu kept shaking his head, his face was already gray and black, and even mixed with some blood stains. At this time, tears flowed out: "It's not a trivial matter! How can the lives of tens of thousands of people and hundreds of thousands of troops be a trivial matter! Senior Brother Wenren, I know what you're thinking! But do you see it? The people's hearts are usable, they can fight, they dare to fight, Zhenjiang has not been defeated yet! They fight in, we defeat them, there are hundreds of thousands of people nearby coming over, we will leave Wanyan Xiyin here! We still have hope!"

In Jun Wu's eyes, there was a determination and fanaticism to see the last hope. Perhaps it was also because he saw the resolute and heroic resistance on the 25th that Wenren Bu'er felt sad in his heart, but he did not persuade him anymore. On the 26th, the Jin troops who had entered the city had begun to persuade them to surrender. The resistance was still fierce, but it had begun to decline.

On the 27th, half of Zhenjiang fell into a sea of fire. At this time, there were still hundreds of thousands of people who had not been able to escape. The defense line outside the southern suburbs of Zhenjiang had begun to be in critical condition under A Lu Bao's fierce attack. When Jun Wu led his troops to support, the old general Zou Tianchi had already died on the way to charge towards Chao A Lu Bao.

On the south road leaving Zhenjiang, on one side of the Grand Canal, the mountains and valleys were full of fleeing people. Jun Wu collected the defeated soldiers and organized a defense line, while also urging the soldiers and civilians in Zhenjiang to evacuate quickly. At this time, the situation in the entire Zhenjiang was already precarious. A cavalry unit of the Tushan Guards found the direction of Jun Wu and killed towards this side. The surrounding generals and staff once again persuaded him, Jun Wu stood on the hillside, looking at the fleeing people below: "Can't we defeat them?"

The guards following Jun Wu set up a defensive formation, and the soldiers also urged the people to leave as quickly as possible. When the opposing cavalry appeared, it was in the afternoon of this day. The sunlight reflected the water flowing on the Grand Canal, and there were wildflowers and green grass on the shore. Jun Wu erected the royal flag on the hillside, watching the guards repel the cavalry's charge. The cavalry detoured to approach the crowd and shot arrows into the crowd. The guards' cavalry chased after them and fought in the chaos. After a while, there was a commotion among the fleeing people. Some people cried, some shouted, and gradually, some men in the crowd put down their belongings, one, two, three... gradually turned into a group, and surged towards the battlefield on this hillside.

The sunlight was dazzling, making people dizzy. The advancing Jun Wu fell in Wenren Bu'er's arms, the place where he was shot seemed to hurt a lot, but it didn't matter.

--It's just this feeling.

He was no longer afraid.

A slight smile appeared on Jun Wu's pale face.

"...Kill the enemy."

He said hoarsely and softly.

More Jin were still besieging. At Shen time (3-5 pm), after confirming Xiyin's intention, the Beiwei Army cavalry team, which had been rushing at the fastest speed, under the leadership of Yue Fei, slanted into the battlefield. He rushed into A Lu Bao's main force, and in less than half an hour, beheaded the Jin general A Lu Bao in the most ferocious manner.

At this time, the main Beiwei Army cavalry had been reduced to about 5,000 after a long period of fighting. Yue Fei personally served as the commander and came to the battle, beheading A Lu Bao. He was so excited that his warhorse and the spear in his hand were covered with blood. By the evening of this day, this cavalry crossed the battlefield and, before Xiyin led the Tushan Guards to kill Jun Wu, made a desperate blow like a white rainbow piercing the sun to the main camp of this famous Jin general –