Chapter 15 The Fifteenth Day of the Twelfth Lunar Month in the Ninth Year of Jianyan

On the evening of the fifteenth day of the twelfth lunar month in the ninth year of Jianyan, the same day Gao Qingyi persuaded Wanyan Wushu, Prince of Wei, to persevere in fighting, Wushu continued his routine daily inspection along the river embankment with Taishi Nu.

Wushu looked up at the sky, which was gloomy and moonless. His thoughts flew back to Nanyang City during the Jianyan years. That was when the counterweight trebuchet first displayed its might, smashing to death Wanhu (Commander of Ten Thousand Households) Chizhan Hui (Chapter 51, Volume 2: Paradox).

How similar that time was to now. Back then, Wanhu Chizhan Hui died; now, Wanhu Wang Bolong had died. The focus of the debate within the army was whether to retreat… However, back then it was merely a failed attack, but now the failure meant utter doom. How long could this vast territory of the Great Jin Dynasty last?

In the freezing twelfth lunar month, the breath turned to mist on the banks of the Yellow River. Beneath that mist was the unconcealable exhaustion and numbness of every soldier. Many of them still didn't know that the battle situation was developing in a direction unfavorable to the Jin army. But even if they knew, what could they do? For ordinary soldiers in such an unprecedented war, survival was the greatest luck. Victory or defeat wasn't something commoners should consider. They only wanted to enjoy every mouthful of hot soup they could.

The Prince of Wei walked slowly along the river embankment with heavy steps, his gaze constantly sweeping across both banks of the river. Suddenly, he raised his hand to signal the guards to step back slightly, and grabbed Taishi Nu's shoulder, making him walk alongside him.

"You came to me, but I didn't punish Chelihe for the retreat. You couldn't avenge your superior. Do you resent me?" Wushu turned and stared into Taishi Nu's eyes.

Taishi Nu immediately lowered his head and knelt on the ground. "How could I? If I had stayed with Chelihe, I would have died without a burial place. The Prince of Wei is my savior. I'm grateful beyond words, how could I resent Your Highness?" Taishi Nu raised his head and looked at the Fourth Prince. "I know Your Highness has your difficulties. Chelihe, after all, grew up under the command of the Taizu (Great Ancestor); some things can't be helped."

Wushu helped Taishi Nu up, took his hand, and continued the inspection. "But I regret it. I should have personally carried out the military law. But I don't have the decisiveness of Wei Wang (King) Cao Cao; with my indecisiveness, I'm more like Yuan Shao. Isn't Wang Bolong a ready example? Such an incompetent general, burying my Wanhu. By the same logic, what's the use of keeping a crybaby like Chelihe? Keeping him will only ruin the overall situation."

"Actually, Wang Bolong's death yesterday really gave me a splitting headache," Wushu said with a self-deprecating smile on his pale face. "The feeling was worse than being soaked in the Yellow River. Because I truly understand that the Great Jin Dynasty's doomsday is near. The foundation laid by the Taizu may be ruined in my hands. So I want to thank Gao Qingyi; he really solved my headache problem."

Wushu walked along the river embankment at a leisurely pace. "Gao Qingyi is right. There are many reasons why Wang Bolong buried a Wanhu, such as our Wanyan clan's distrust of the Bohai people, so Wang Bolong dared to disobey Gao Jingshan's orders. But the root cause is..." The Fourth Prince sighed deeply. "Our army is no longer invincible when fully manned. Times have changed. The gap between the Song army and us is not that big. The Song army's 300,000 troops are not weaker than our twenty Wanhu back then."

"But our army is no longer the invincible twenty Wanhu of the past," the Fourth Prince said with heartfelt pain. "My biggest mistake in this life was not persuading my two older brothers to fully support General Lou Shi. I didn't get rid of Zhao Guanjia (Emperor Zhao), and later there was no chance. General Lou Shi must have long foreseen that our army's combat power would definitely decline day by day, so he didn't hesitate to risk his life to fight the Yao Mountain battle. However, the current situation must be even worse than he thought. An entire Wanhu, gone in two hours, without even making a splash."

Taishi Nu was silent for a long time, finally picking up the thread of the conversation. "That's why Your Highness trained the new army. Our Great Jin is still prepared. It's just that Yue Fei's troops have indeed exceeded the previous level of the Song army too much, but they are still besieged now. You and the Marshal have cheered up, and I believe you will definitely fight the next battle well."

Wushu smiled bitterly and shook his head. "You're not telling the truth... Today, Gao Qingyi is like my old friend Han Chang. Back then, General Han taught me a lesson on the banks of the Yellow River and made me understand the important affairs of the Jin Kingdom, that it was my duty to shoulder them; Gao Qingyi made me understand that the survival of the Jin Kingdom depends on this battle. Yue Fei is not so easy to defeat. The hope for the Jin Kingdom's victory does not lie here, but in the plain cavalry field battles."

Taishi Nu said cautiously, "Does Your Highness mean... that Yuan City is really beyond help?"

"Yuan City will definitely continue to be rescued, and Yue Fei will continue to be besieged, but rescuing Gao Jingshan is unlikely. I don't know how long Taiyuan can hold out, but I hope it can consume some of the Song army's supplies and equipment."

Taishi Nu was shocked, "Could it be that Taiyuan can't be held either?"

"Regardless of whether it can be held, the decisive battle will not be in Hedong; Hebei is the final scene," Wushu responded in a low voice.

"Success then means the Great Jin still exists; failure means the Great Jin is gone."

"So I want to ask you for a favor," Wushu turned to Taishi Nu seriously and said, "I and that Zhao Jiu of Cangzhou are lifelong enemies. After the siege of Jingkang, I never saw that Kang Wang who became emperor again. Some time ago, I accidentally learned that I had met that Zhao Guanjia on the Huai River, encountered him while sailing at night, but I didn't see him clearly; Nanyang is even more unnecessary to mention, seeing only the dragon banner ten li away; on Yao Mountain, the dragon banner was like Mount Tai pressing down on me, but I didn't have General Lou Shi's courage and still didn't rush to Zhao Jiu; and in Houtao, I retreated after only one glance at the Song army's camp..." Wushu sighed, shook his head, and said, "But this time I must see him with my own eyes. I know that he and his dragon banner will definitely appear on the battlefield. If there is a chance, I will definitely charge forward and cut him down from his horse!" Wushu gripped the precious sword that Yue Fei had given him.

"But if there is really nothing that can be done, you must do me a favor," Wushu looked at Taishi Nu, held his shoulders, and said calmly, "Then please cut off my head and send it to that Zhao Jiu of Cangzhou. I must take a good look at him again..."

"Even if it's after death."