The fifteenth day of the first month, the Lantern Festival. In the Guan and Shaan regions, spring rain arrived just in time, yet unexpectedly, this place was already densely packed with soldiers.

Within the dilapidated remnants of Tong Pass, at the Jin army camp roughly built on the old site of the pass, around a watchtower clearly showing signs of fire damage, armored soldiers stood in neat rows, tents were orderly, and troops constantly patrolled the perimeter, unaffected by the fine spring rain... clearly, this was a vital military location.

Indeed, on the top floor of the watchtower, a Jin general in lamellar armor sat behind a desk with a furrowed brow. He watched as soldiers hastily removed his general's flag and erected a makeshift rain shelter above him and around the desk. His brand-new, gourd-shaped silk-lined iron helmet with a red tassel sat on the desk, the tassel already soaked with rain.

At the same time, behind him, the magnificent Yellow River was still clearly visible through the light rain... the so-called mountain-and-river-lined Tong Pass was right here.

This Jin general was about fifty years old, with a lean, sallow face, but a large frame and piercing eyes... if Zhao Ju had been here, he would have found this man somewhat similar to Han Shizhong.

However, whether Han Shizhong was down on his luck, struggling, or prosperous and triumphant, he could never hide the street-urchin air about him. This Jin general, on the other hand, clearly possessed something that opposed that urchin air - a kind of hard-earned, deep-seated bitterness, tinged with a touch of cruelty.

This kind of aura could be seen in many high-ranking Jin generals, originating from the hunter identity forged in the fishing and hunting era of the lands beyond the Great Wall, where survival demanded ruthlessness.

That's right, this man was none other than Wanyan Loushi.

As everyone knows, the Jin dynasty rose suddenly and unexpectedly, achieving East Asian military dominance in just two decades, truly deserving the description "swallowing thousands of miles like a tiger." And although anyone could offer a so-called rational explanation for this country's rise from political, economic, military, cultural, or geographical perspectives, ultimately, no one could deny the cloud of Jurchen heroes who gathered around Emperor Taizu of Jin, Wanyan Aguda.

Otherwise, why wasn't it the Great Song that destroyed the Liao?

These heroic figures, counted one by one, included, not to mention Wanyan Aguda himself, his brothers Wanyan Wuqimai, Wanyan Zhamu, Wanyan Wusai, and Wanyan Xieye; his sons, Crown Prince Wanyan Wuben, Second Prince Wanyan Wolibu, and Third Prince Wanyan Eliduo; and distant relatives like Wanyan Zonghan, Wanyan Xiyin (Wanyan Gushen), Wanyan Yinshuke, Wanyan Bendu, Wanyan Moulianghu, and Wanyan Ganlu... all of whom had extensive military experience, with a few being both civil and military geniuses, but all of them worthy of being written about in great detail.

However, the abilities of these heroes varied. A ranking could be made.

For example, after the destruction of the Liao dynasty, the internal consensus within the Jin was that the first meritorious official was none other than Wanyan Zonghan, whom the Song people had always referred to as the 'State Chancellor.'

Wanyan Zonghan was of course extraordinary. No one could deny his talent.

But his status as the first meritorious official was, after all, at the level of a political leader, the supreme commander, supported by the entire Western Route Army of 100,000 troops and the united faction of the distant Wanyan clan. It wasn't to say that he was simultaneously a god of war, unmatched in martial prowess, amazingly resourceful, and skilled in domestic affairs.

In fact, everyone knew that when it came to specific military achievements, Wanyan Loushi and Wanyan Yinshuke, his two subordinates, had earned eight out of ten of Wanyan Zonghan's military merits.

And among them, Wanyan Loushi was recognized as being superior to Wanyan Yinshuke.

There's no need to say more about his battle record. Just one thing: This fifty-year-old general with a furrowed brow in the spring rain was the first person under the Jin military Meng'an and Mouke system to obtain hereditary Meng'an status through military merit.

He was the Jin army's number one general!

At least, the already deceased Wanyan Aguda thought so.

However, such a great general had been frowning and rarely smiling since setting out on this southern expedition... With the rain shelter erected, Wanyan Loushi still sat behind his ornate hawksbill desk, staring silently at the sky. Apart from the occasional flash of his somewhat intimidating eyes, he seemed like a wooden puppet. None of the officers or attendants dared to speak to him until the neighing of horses sounded below the watchtower and someone rushed up.

"Father..."

The newcomer was about thirty years old, none other than Wanyan Hounu, the eldest son of Wanyan Loushi, who had just broken through Huazhou to the west. Upon reaching the top of the tower and seeing his father's expression, he couldn't help but step forward, lean close to the desk, and ask in a low voice, "Is it the old injury acting up in the rainy weather?"

"Can it be easily endured?"

Wanyan Loushi finally chuckled, and the officers and guards around him also breathed a sigh of relief.

Seeing this, Wanyan Hounu forced a smile... He naturally knew what kind of suffering his father was enduring in the rainy weather, but he was ultimately powerless to help.

"What's the situation at Fushui Town?" After laughing, Wanyan Loushi remained motionless but asked about military affairs. "My orders to you included dealing with that place before you returned, didn't they?"

"Reporting to Father, it has been done as you ordered, all slaughtered." Wanyan Hounu immediately replied solemnly. "But the two Meng'an who carried out the order also said frankly that quite a few people escaped into the area between Mount Taihua and Mount Shaohua to the south... Moreover, according to them, the rain is heavier to the west. Although the fire was started, they estimate it won't burn everything clean."

"Slaughtered generally is enough." Wanyan Loushi nodded slightly, not taking it to heart.

Wanyan Hounu nodded, hesitated slightly, but still actively inquired, "Father... Fushui Town is opposite the Shayuan Supervisorate, between Chang'an and Tong Pass. We've gone back and forth through here seven or eight times in recent years. Even the richest villages and towns have little wealth left, and there are no fortresses or soldiers there, let alone any resistance. Why was it necessary to slaughter them?"

"Military law cannot be abandoned." Wanyan Loushi calmly replied. "Actually, it was my mistake in the beginning. My back was at its worst before the rain, and I got the amount of grain that Fushui was supposed to send here wrong... If someone from their town had come to explain it clearly at that time, I would naturally have corrected it. But they tried to deceive me with old grain and horse feed mixed with water, so they could not be spared."

Wanyan Hounu first nodded in understanding but then sighed.

Wanyan Loushi smiled at the sound: "You are a ten-thousand household commander, and I am also a ten-thousand household commander. If a commander doesn't agree with another commander, you can say so. Why sigh and put on airs?"

That's right... Wanyan Loushi and his son, Wanyan Hounu, were actually of the same rank and the same military position at this time - both Wanhu (ten-thousand households), both Dutong (commander).

It wasn't that Hounu had risen too quickly, but that Wanyan Loushi had risen as high as he could... The hereditary system only went up to Meng'an. The usual practice for leading troops was Wanhu, and the temporary title for commanding military tasks was various Zhaotaosi (Pacification Commissions) or Junwusi (Military Affairs Commissions) Dutong. Above that, the military positions were the several Marshal positions in the Duyuanshuaifu (Grand Marshal's Office), and the political positions were the Bojilie (Council of Chieftains).

In fact, considering the changes in the functions of the Duyuanshuaifu, Dutong, who had previously had real power as marshals, now generally had somewhat reduced power.

This might be an inappropriate consequence of the Jin's chaotic system, but it might also be related to Wanyan Loushi's origins.

Because according to rumors, Wanyan Loushi's Wanyan was not the Wanyan of the imperial clan but a surname bestowed after the Wanyan tribe defeated the Qishui tribe in the past. Then Wanyan Loushi, as the chief of the Qishui tribe, had a true identity that was somewhat between a house slave and a member of the imperial clan.

But in any case, perhaps because of this background, although Loushi had made outstanding military achievements and enjoyed unanimous trust from above and below, and in fact had long enjoyed command of the Western Route Army, he had always struggled to get a marshal's title and had always been the commander of the Shanxi Military Command.

Of course, on the other hand, the fact that father and son were both Dutong and Wanhu also proved the prominence of the Loushi family in the Jin army, and no one could shake Wanyan Loushi's authoritative position in the Western Route Army... Even the marshals could not dismiss or replace Wanyan Loushi's Wanhu, because the full name of Wanyan Loushi's Wanhu status was Huanglongfu Wanhu.

The Huanglongfu of "Directly approaching Huanglong" fame, this was a manifestation of Wanyan Loushi's special status.

Enough of digressions.

Wanyan Hounu heard his father's joking tone but still appeared slightly solemn: "Father... I remember that day when we defeated 200,000 Song soldiers right here. At that time, you told me to save the Song soldiers who had fallen into the water, and you forbade the entire army from arbitrarily slaughtering or plundering the people, and you appointed a large number of Song people as local officials. Logically speaking, shouldn't this be what the Song people call 'both might and virtue'? But why is it that, over and over again, the Song people on both sides of this great river are still unwilling to become docile subjects of the Great Jin?"

"Perhaps their Song emperor has returned?" Wanyan Loushi sat there, lost in thought as he gazed at the rain in front of him. "Why be a docile subject to others when you can be one of your own people?"

"What about Xijing (the Jin's Western Capital, referring to Datong)?" Wanyan Hounu immediately retorted. "Xijing was originally Liao territory. The Khitans have long been gone, but when the Mongols revolted, they actually followed suit, causing us to spend the entire winter suppressing the rebellion in the north, wasting the opportunity to go south..."

Wanyan Loushi thought for a moment and shook his head: "Then our Great Jin's policies must indeed have something wrong."

"Father, in my opinion, we should also learn from Hebei and divide the land and population among the Meng'an and Mouke. People like Zhe Keqiu should be killed..." Wanyan Hounu finally couldn't help but say what he wanted to say. "Stop doing 'using Song people to govern Song people'!"

Wanyan Loushi finally narrowed his eyes and carefully sized up his son. He wanted to ask his son, is Hebei really any better?

The hundreds of thousands of so-called rebels in the Taihang Mountains can't be wiped out or defeated. Are they any better than the Khitan nobles rebelling in Datong?

When the Khitan nobles rebelled, Wanyan Loushi led his troops over and easily defeated them, then killed them all. But the Taihang Mountains have never been peaceful for a single day in years.

However, after a moment, the famous Jin general suppressed his inner impulse because he understood that it was common for these young people to have similar ideas... He thought that way when he was young, but after experiencing more, his ideas gradually changed.

Moreover, the most critical question was that he didn't know what was right.

Should Hebei learn from Shanxi's "using Song people to govern Song people," or should Shanxi learn from Hebei's method of dividing land among the Meng'an and Mouke in the area? Or are both wrong?

After all, as it stood now, neither strategy had achieved its goal. Neither Shanxi nor Hebei was peaceful.

With this thought, the Jin general frowned again: "These kinds of things should be discussed by the Emperor, the Grand Marshal, and the Bojilie. You and I shouldn't say too much... You go down and rest for a while, and we'll discuss military affairs after your younger brother returns."

Wanyan Hounu immediately fell silent... Although he was already middle-aged and his official position was theoretically equal, in front of his father, he was just an ordinary general besides their familial relationship. Therefore, seeing that his father was actually a little unhappy, how could he dare to say more?

Moreover, how could he enjoy himself downstairs when his father was suffering from the old injury in the rainy weather? So he simply stood there, supporting his saber, like an ordinary guard.

In this way, the father and son, one sitting and one standing, were silent in the dilapidated Tong Pass watchtower, letting the spring rain gradually thicken and the view become hazy, not knowing what each was thinking.

However, this silence did not last long. In less than a quarter of an hour, the sound of horses' hooves thundered on the road east of Tong Pass, and then several riders galloped into the pass and turned towards the watchtower.

The first person to climb the stairs was none other than Wanyan Mouyan, the Meng'an who had followed Wanyan Bali Speed east, and also Loushi's second son, in his early twenties, and Hounu's younger brother.

"Father! Brother!" Wanyan Mouyan was burly and brawny, inheriting his father's frame. He was covered in sweat as he came up and greeted his father and brother first.

"Second Brother is just in time." Wanyan Hounu was also casual when he saw his younger brother arrive. The brothers were much different in age, with the eldest brother being like a father, so they were particularly close. "Father is waiting for Second Brother's report!"

Wanyan Loushi knew that his two sons were always proud of their Jurchen identity, but now they were actually using Song terms of address so fluently, which made him momentarily dazed. But with military matters at stake, he was too lazy to think too much and simply nodded towards his second son.

"Father, Shanzhou cannot be attacked!" Wanyan Mouyan said. "I listened to your command and followed Bali Speed to Shanzhou City. Bali Speed led the main force in the rear, and Wuli Bu and I took 2,000 elite troops to block the Song people in the narrow road to the east. But unexpectedly, the main force of the Song army had already left the narrow road and occupied key positions to set up camps, seemingly to echo Shanzhou City... Wuli Bu and I attacked a camp that hadn't been set up yet, killing two or three hundred people, but the Song people were increasing, and the bows and crossbows were getting denser and denser. We really couldn't hold on, and plus Father had ordered me to return today, so I came back directly. I met Bali Speed on the way, gave him a report, and he told me to tell you that Shanzhou cannot be attacked."

Hearing this, Wanyan Loushi didn't say a word, but Wanyan Hounu solemnly asked, "Second Brother, did you see clearly how many Song reinforcements there were?"

"There were more than 10,000 when we were fighting, but they kept coming, so I estimate it's more than 20,000." Wanyan Mouyan was just a vanguard general and was too lazy to think too much. He simply answered his father and brother.

Hounu sighed at these words and looked at his father again: "Father... Shanzhou is inherently narrow, not conducive to siege warfare or cavalry field battles. Now that there are 20,000 reinforcements and they have occupied the narrow road behind us, Shanzhou City can be constantly supplied. Plus, Li Yanxian is deeply trusted by the people of Shanzhou and is good at military affairs. Going to Shanzhou to confront them head-on would seem foolish."

Wanyan Loushi nodded slightly: "Then what do you mean? Should we go attack Chang'an?"

"That's what we should do." Wanyan Hounu supported his saber and armor and nodded immediately.

Wanyan Loushi didn't answer, just shook his head slightly, and then looked at his second son again: "Mouyan, was there a banner of Han Shizhong among the Shanzhou reinforcements?"

Wanyan Mouyan immediately shook his head: "I know Han Shizhong, definitely not! Looking at the flags, it should be those few from the Song army's Imperial Guards Middle Army, but I didn't see the flag with the Wang character, which is strange."

Wanyan Loushi nodded and looked at his eldest son again without saying a word.

Wanyan Hounu was puzzled for a moment, but after thinking for a while, he suddenly realized: "Father means that Han Shizhong is detouring through Wuguan to support Chang'an?"

"Correct." Wanyan Loushi finally nodded. "Han Shizhong's Huai River Army has always been behind the defensive line and is not connected to any of the front lines, so whenever there is a battle, his Huai River Army is the first combat force that can support other places. Now that the Song people have sent a large number of reinforcements, if they have moved troops from other places, it's impossible that they haven't moved Han Shizhong... And if Han Shizhong isn't in Shanzhou, then he can only be going to Chang'an from behind."

"Then are we attacking Chang'an or attacking Shanzhou?" Hounu was finally at a loss.

At this time, Mouyan also seemed to remember something and spoke to his father again: "Father... Bali Speed has been scolding you from Hucheng in the east for the past seven or eight days, saying that you must be confused. You've been holding your troops at Tong Pass for several days without letting him advance, wasting the opportunity to fight!"

"Does Bali Speed want to die?" Hounu was furious upon hearing this. "If he dared to say that to my face, he would already be dead! He's just bullying you for being just a marching Meng'an! You don't even have a hereditary Mouke!"

Mouyan immediately fell silent.

After Hounu's anger subsided, he couldn't help but explain for his silent father: "Father clearly wants to stabilize the rear and ensure the route of retreat before launching an attack... This is the proper thing to do."

However, after saying this, Hounu himself felt absurd... When had his father ever thought about retreating when fighting a battle? In the battle where he crushed 30,000 Xia cavalry with a few thousand men, he basically divided and subdivided his troops, relying on small groups of elites to make long-distance raids to cripple the Xia.

Even before, when he fought a decisive battle against Fan Zhixu's 200,000-strong army here, his father, with only 10,000 cavalry, had not been 'proper'.

Even earlier, when the Jin army crossed the Yellow River for the first time, without boats, facing hundreds of thousands of Song imperial guards, it was his father who had his own son, Hounu, go upstream and lead 300 cavalry to cross the river at Mengjin, scaring tens of thousands of Song troops on the other side of the river into scattering.

When was Wanyan Loushi ever proper?

In fact, this time's expedition was already quite suspicious and was only made possible after Wanyan Loushi had specifically communicated and come to an agreement with the Duyuanshuaifu... But after the army went south, he had been 'proper' at Tong Pass for more than ten days, and even Wanyan Hounu was puzzled at the time, wondering what his father was up to.

"The fifteenth..." In the awkward atmosphere, Wanyan Loushi finally spoke and stood up from behind the desk. "We launched a surprise attack on the day of the New Year's festival. Let's assume that the news reached Tokyo in three or four days. Wouldn't the Song people have sent a large number of reinforcements from around Tokyo without stopping for a moment? Otherwise, how could they be so fast?"

"That should be the case." Wanyan Hounu calculated slightly and came to a conclusion.

"Then, assuming that Han Shizhong received the order one day later, he should be able to reach Chang'an in four or five days, right?" Loushi turned around, leaning on the tortoiseshell desk, and walked directly into the rain.

"Almost... but it's hard to say. Wuguan's road has a great reputation, but we've never traveled it, so we don't know what it's like." Hounu quickly followed. "But in any case, Chang'an will be difficult to attack."

"Yes." Loushi sighed as he looked at the Yellow River, which was now only an outline. "Han Shizhong is, after all, Han Shizhong. This man is the courage of the Zhao Song emperor and has a great reputation in the Western Army. Once he arrives in Chang'an, it will be more than just a matter of tens of thousands of reinforcements, because once he goes, he can freely deploy the troops from the Jingyuan and Yanfu roads, and even the troops from Sichuan will gather in Guanzhong..."

"Then it really can't be attacked." Hounu gritted his teeth behind him. "But there's still a chance to fight... Father, Yuwen Xuzhong is just a civil official and probably won't be of much use. I'll go now and lead 20,000 cavalry past the towns in the middle, ignoring them, and attack Chang'an directly to see if we can break it with one blow."

Loushi shook his head repeatedly: "Wait for four or five days. It won't be too late to go to Chang'an after Han Shizhong has really arrived."

Hounu was dumbfounded, feeling that he hadn't heard his father clearly.

But soon, as Wanyan Loushi, the Jin god of war, turned around and spoke to his second son again, Hounu confirmed that he wasn't dreaming.

"Mouyan." Wanyan Loushi looked at his second son. "Tell Bali Speed to wait a little while longer too. Wait until the Song reinforcements have completely passed the narrow road and the number has been counted, then try to attack Shanzhou... Tell him that if he dares to disobey my military orders, I will chop him up. Anyway, Yinshuke has gone to Yanjing, and no one will protect him!"

This time, not only Hounu, who had many years of experience as a commander and had experience in commanding troops, but also Wanyan Mouyan, who was only in his early twenties, felt dry-mouthed and almost thought that his invincible father had gone mad.

But both of them understood that this was their father, the most famous general in the Jin dynasty, Wanyan Loushi... Could they not recognize him when others couldn't?

So, after hesitating for a moment, as if possessed, Wanyan Hounu came forward in a low voice and asked: "Father, did the Song emperor promise you anything? Could it be that he's going to give Shanxi to our family?"

Wanyan Loushi, who had been tortured by pain for several days, laughed for the second time today because of his son.

ps: Thanks to classmate Yu Yunwen the seventy-seventh萌

I... I didn't copy this chapter, how to write, I'm in a hurry, waiting online.