On the third day of the second month of the tenth year of Jianyan, the Battle of Huolu took place. Within one day, both the Song and Jin sides deployed a total of more than 300,000 troops in a local battlefield covering hundreds of square kilometers, and the victory was decided through an unprecedentedly fierce frontal battle.
The result was that the Song army won a great victory and the Jin army was defeated.
Although it is difficult to verify the specific results of the battle in a short period of time, according to the rough figures later... the Jin army's death toll reached at least 30,000, including direct deaths in battle, being hunted down and slaughtered after collapse, and trampling on each other while fleeing. In fact, there may be more, because the corpses could not be dragged out of the gradually solidified trench; and the number of prisoners, including a large number of wounded, was close to 50,000.
Considering that the Jin army's 16 Wanhu were not at full strength, and probably had only 130,000 or 140,000 troops, the number of captured and dead troops accounted for nearly two-thirds of the total strength of the Jin army.
Among the remaining 50,000 to 60,000 people, only one Wanhu led by Aguda's sixth son Wanyan Erluguan remained intact, while the rest were scattered in a state of collapse on the vast plains on the south bank of the Hutuo River. Even the defeated army that returned to Zhending City became negligible because the Song army captured the floating bridge at the river mouth in time.
At the same time, the casualties of the Song army were actually very serious, with no less than 8,000 killed or missing, no less than 5,000 seriously injured, and the rest of the casualties from injuries and illnesses directly exceeded 10,000.
To be fair, this number of casualties would have caused the morale of the entire army to collapse under normal circumstances. However, with this opportunity for a great victory, the contrast between the two sides was so great that morale was boosted instead.
In fact, early the next morning, the Song army continued its massive advance.
Among them, Wu Jie was in charge of the affairs on the other side of the Taiping River and south of the Hutuo River. He commanded with confidence and divided the troops into three. One part stayed in the original Jin army camp in Huolu to clean up the battlefield and rest... After all, the Jin army's armor and weapons left on the battlefield were probably the most precious wealth of this era; the other part, mainly infantry, marched to the surrounding prefectures and towns in an appropriate and orderly manner to exercise necessary strategic control; the last part , mainly cavalry, Commander Liu Qi's Imperial Camp Cavalry went all the way east, trying to cross the Qinshui River to take Gaocheng in order to block the Jin army's escape route, while the Khitan, Xi, Mongolian, and Dangxiang light cavalry, with a base of thousands of people, spread out in all directions, roughly eastward, indiscriminately searching for and hunting down the fleeing Jin army.
In addition, under the command of Han Shizhong, the left army of the imperial camp used the captured pontoon bridge to cross the river in large numbers and approached Zhending City. They also transferred the wounded and corpses according to the previous order of Emperor Zhao... The wounded and corpses of the Jin army, who had been roughly stripped of their clothes and armor, were delivered almost continuously, including many mutilated bodies, and then they were neatly placed side by side on all four sides outside the city, and the wounded and corpses were mixed together.
In this situation, if Wanyan Eluguan and the Zhending garrison troops had previously only had a literal feeling about the so-called "crushing defeat", with their minds completely blank with shock, now they were completely shocked and felt as if they had lost their hearts.
This was not the end yet. As evening approached, the Song army took the initiative to stop the transportation and retreated to the camp... Perhaps it was out of fear, perhaps it was fear that the city would not accept them, or perhaps they simply could not bear the pain from their wounds, the wounded outside the city suddenly lost control and cried bitterly, and in an instant swept through the entire ranks of wounded outside the city, and the wailing and crying echoed throughout the surrounding areas of Zhending.
Not only that, the defenders in the city came out to support them, and they actually cried along with the wounded in fear. As the wounded entered the city crying, the families of the officers in the city who had failed to find their relatives also wailed. Finally, there was crying inside and outside the city, and even senior officials and generals could not stand the pressure and cried along with the whole city.
The sound was so loud that it could be heard clearly in the newly established camp of the Song army several miles away. The soldiers of the Left Army of the Imperial Camp and the troops of Dong Xian and Shao Yun had to have dinner accompanied by the crying. Amidst the constant discussion, some people even felt sympathy.
"What do the Zhao Song officials say?"
Not to mention the crying all over the city, just say that as the lightly injured Jin soldiers were able to enter the city, an unexpected person was directly summoned by Eluguan, and was publicly questioned by Hong Ya, the Minister of War and the Chief of the Privy Council of the Great Jin Kingdom who was temporarily in charge of Zhending affairs, in a lobby full of high-ranking Jin soldiers.
This person was none other than Tai Shi Nu, who was simply released back to Zhending City just because no one knew where Wuzhu was. As an envoy who had gone to see Emperor Zhao before the battle, he actually returned safely this time. It was natural for him to be summoned for questioning.
"Let Minister Hong know that I have not seen Emperor Zhao Song since yesterday." The slave of the Imperial Tutor lowered his head in shame, obviously ashamed and angry. "Even though I saw Emperor Zhao Song yesterday and talked to him a lot, he probably didn't care or pay any attention to me, let alone say anything else... I am back alive this time, probably only because of my identity as an envoy, and because the emperor killed too many people yesterday and was too lazy to kill again, so I am lucky enough to survive."
Hong Ya felt a little disappointed. He turned around to look at Wanyan Eluguan who was sitting in the middle. He saw that Eluguan had a stiff face and seemed not to be listening at all. He then looked at the expressions of the people in the hall. As he thought, most of the civil and military officials in the hall were disappointed. Only a few seemed slightly relieved.
After roughly noting down these people, Hong Ya nodded directly to Tai Shi Nu: "Since you are back, it is God's will. There is no need to think too much. Just settle down and wait for the news from King Wei!"
When Taishi Nu came in and didn't see Wushu, he roughly guessed that his master was not here. However, at this time, the superiors were obviously discussing military and national affairs, and the Fourth Prince was not there. How could he, a guard leader, have the right to interrupt even if he was respectable? So he bowed his head and thanked Eluguan and Hong Ya in turn, then went back to rest, preparing to find Hong Ya privately to ask about Wushu's situation later.
As soon as Grand Tutor Nu left, the hall became noisy again... Obviously, as mentioned before, the wounded and dead bodies that almost blocked the four gates made everyone in Zhending City face the reality completely. Now the whole city is crying, and the morale of the remaining troops from top to bottom has collapsed... Even if there are a whole army of tens of thousands of people and countless stocks, they must discuss their retreat.
But in this situation where the earth is collapsing and the mountains are breaking, how can we easily think of a way out?
"Can we lead the army to withdraw at night?"
"Where to retreat?"
"Wuji in the east, Xinle in the north are both fine... Of course, it's just a temporary stop. What I mean is, since we were defeated so badly yesterday, this Wanhu in the city has become even more important. If we can bring him back to Yanjing, he will be a reliable support."
"Even if there is a place to retreat, how should we retreat? How can a whole Wanhu in the city, half of which are infantry and half are cavalry, retreat under Han Shizhong's nose? Does the so-called Left Army of the Song Army have no cavalry? It is the spring flood season, and we encounter a small river on the road. What if we are caught up with it? You and I both know that this Wanhu is the last resort, how could the Song people not know? As for Yanjing... Taiyuan... let's not talk about it!"
"You are asking me these questions, but who should I ask? What if we don't retreat now? The whole city is crying and the morale is broken. No one dares to fight. As for the existence of Taiyuan, of course I know about it, but the more so, the more it shows that this place is definitely impossible to defend!"
"What are you talking about ? Even if we can't defend the city, we have to do it! Because once we leave the city, we will die. If we stay in the city, we can survive for a few more days..."
"After a few days, all the people in the hall will be captured in one fell swoop today! If we escape at night, even if we lose, we can still let everyone gamble on their fate!"
"Have you ever thought about this? If we leave, the Song army will march straight in from the north bank of the Hutuo River. We won't even have to chase us. The Fourth Prince and tens of thousands of defeated soldiers on the other side of the river will not be able to return north!"
"The Fourth Prince's life is life, but the Sixth Prince's life is not life?"
"Wait a minute... You guys don't care about the corpses and wounded outside the city? They are all our own men! Especially the wounded... their lives are not lives?"
"Well..."
"There is also the treasury... The warehouse in Zhending Prefecture is the main military warehouse built with the efforts of the whole country. It is where the Third and Fourth Princes usually patrol and stay. There are countless armors, food, arrows, swords, leather, gold, silver, copper and iron ingots in the city... Are we going to throw them to the Song people?"
“…”
“…”
Besides, Hong Ya, who was watching from the sidelines, had already seen it clearly... These people were talking about one thing and another, saying nothing more than that the situation was very bad, they couldn't defend themselves, and it was difficult to escape, so they were caught in a dilemma and were almost forced into a corner... This was of course, as the Song army had won the battle yesterday. Even the survival of the Great Jin Dynasty depended on the right time, the right place, and the right people. There was no way a mere Zhending Prefecture could have any grand plans.
But then again, if you really have to, it is still possible to survive by taking some extreme paths.
For example, if the entire city, starting from the Sixth Prince Eluguan, surrendered directly with countless civil and military officials who had retreated here, a whole army of tens of thousands of households, and countless government treasuries... this was what Hong Ya wanted to see the most. At this point, he desperately needed the Zhending City to gain merit and a way to survive in front of the official. At the same time, if everyone surrendered together, it would also effectively protect his family members in Yanjing.
Of course, this is too idealistic. Hong Ya is just thinking about it in his mind for the time being and does not have much hope of implementing it directly... No one in the hall dares to really say the word "surrender" now... We need to observe and seize the opportunity first.
In addition, there is another way, which is to abandon the wounded, leave the corpses, burn the treasury, and at the same time abandon Wuzhu and the scattered army in the south of Hutuo River, and then use the large army of ten thousand households in the city as bait and cover, and escape in different directions, then the dignitaries in the hall may be able to escape with a considerable probability.
But this is even more extreme...how does that sentence go?
The great Jin Kingdom has its own national conditions. Even though it suffered a crushing defeat, it still has to save face. Don’t you see, Gao Qingyi knew to walk a few steps into the river and then go ashore after he had walked away? So I’m afraid no one in this room can grit their teeth and say such words.
"If you ask me, why can't we abandon those corpses and the wounded, burn down the treasury in the city, and then use the entire Wanhu army as bait to lure Wuji, while we concentrate our elite guards to protect the Sixth Prince to Xinle?" At this moment, a Han general suddenly stepped forward and said something that stunned everyone in the room. Even Hong Ya was stunned.
Everyone was still in a daze when suddenly, someone's face flushed red and he stepped out to scold in public. It turned out to be a Han official in a red robe:
"Liu E! You are shameless and unworthy of being the descendant of King Liu! If you carry out this plan, you must kill me first!"
"If this strategy doesn't work, what else can we do?" The Han general named Liu E was furious when he saw the man jumping out. "Cheng Cai, tell me, how should we respond now?"
"We must defend Zhending to the death. We will hold it for as long as we can. If the city is captured, we will set it on fire to prove our loyalty!" The civil official named Cheng Cai responded without hesitation, but his opinion was almost the opposite of Liu E's.
"What nonsense are you talking about?" Liu E completely lost his composure after hearing this.
"What nonsense are you talking about?" Cheng Cai did not give in. "How can you abandon the army and save your life? I still say the same thing, if you want to do such a thing, you must kill me first!"
"Do you think I dare not kill you?" Liu E became more and more angry and simply stepped forward with the knife.
"I am an angel. Should I kill you or will you kill me?" Cheng Cai was not afraid and held his sword in the same direction.
The two men started shouting and killing each other as soon as they had a disagreement. When the civil and military officials around them saw this, no one tried to persuade them, and no one scolded them either. They just watched coldly.
Besides, Zhending Prefecture was the actual headquarters of the Jin Dynasty's front line. Because of the war, many important people of the Jin Dynasty gathered here, not only princes, Wanhu, Meng'an, and Mouke, but also many other types of people... For example, Hong Ya was the envoy from Yanjing; and Liu E was the former Defense Commissioner of Enzhou. Because Enzhou was conquered by Tian Shizhong early on, he retreated all the way to Zhending; and Cheng Cai was a dignified Hanlin scholar of the Great Jin Dynasty. He was the envoy sent by Yanjing to comfort the troops when the loss of Taiyuan was not yet known half a month ago. He was Hong Ya's predecessor.
But these are not the point.
The key point is that Liu E's identity is somewhat special. He is the youngest of the three direct brothers who are currently in charge of the Liu family, a prominent clan in Yanyun.
The so-called Liu family is the descendant of Liu Peng, the former governor of Lulong in the late Tang Dynasty. His family served as prime ministers in Liao for generations. Liu E's father, Liu Yanzong, was favored after surrendering to Jin and was even appointed to Yanyun government affairs. However, this family had a strong presence in Yanyun, so they were always feared by the Jin high-ranking officials. In addition, Liu Yanzong attached himself to Nianhan after Aguda's death, which was suspected of changing his family background, which led to the high-ranking officials' unanimous rejection. Therefore, he was lifted up early and died in depression. The Liu family's position in the Jin high-ranking officials and their leadership position in the Yanyun clan were also replaced by the Han family, who were deliberately supported by the Jin high-ranking officials.
But no matter what, the family's family background and foundation are there, so among the previous kings, Liu E's father Liu Yanzong still became the only Han Chinese who was posthumously conferred the title of king in the Great Jin Kingdom. The power of the Liu family and Liu E himself cannot be ignored under the current situation.
But this is where the interesting thing happens—Cheng Cai is also a representative figure of the Yanyun Han ethnic group.
Cheng Cai's grandfather, like the father of Lin Jingmo, a famous official of the Song Dynasty, both had domineering nicknames. Lin Jingmo's father was nicknamed Lin Jiumu, and Cheng Cai's grandfather was nicknamed Cheng Yiju. Lin Jingmo had nine brothers, and Cheng Cai's father had six brothers. Together with their two fathers, they were all Jinshi, but one side was from the Song Dynasty and the other side was from the Liao Dynasty.
In addition, there are two particularly outstanding ones among the Lin Jingmo brothers, called Da Lin Bachelor and Xiao Lin Bachelor... When Cheng Cai's father Cheng Mu surrendered to the Jin Dynasty, he was already a governor, and has been serving as a governor ever since. He is still in charge of the defense of Jingzhou. When Cheng Cai rose to power, the father and son served in the same court, and have always been called Old Cheng Governor and Little Cheng Bachelor.
Who dares to ignore such a family?
The only difference is that the Jin army defeated almost all the military forces south of Yanshan Mountain in one battle. The Jurchens themselves had not yet started a riot, but two children of the Yanyun clans broke out into such an almost irreconcilable dispute, which was particularly interesting.
Let's cut to the chase. The argument had reached this point and it was doomed to be impossible to reach a conclusion through discussion. So everyone's attention gradually focused on one person in the hall - the Sixth Prince E'luguan.
Wanyan Eluguan was the sixth son of Taizu Aguda, and had an already noble status. He had previously served as the governor of Datong and was in charge of a region. The Wanhu in the city this time was the one brought back by Eluguan from Datong. In addition, the third prince died of an acute illness, the fourth prince was defeated and his life or death was unknown, and the second prince and the fifth prince (the father of the current king) died early. Not to mention in Zhending City, he was probably one of the most famous people in the entire Jin Dynasty.
Therefore, as long as the Sixth Prince speaks, no one in Zhending City can resist.
However, under the watchful eyes of everyone, Eluguan was in a daze, at a loss, unable to make any conclusion, as if he was affected by the tragic scene outside the city... It's no wonder, the Fourth Prince Wuzhu was the youngest royal family member who participated in the entire founding war of the Jin Dynasty. For the young Eluguan, it was just a dividing line. After Eluguan participated in military activities, the Great Jin Dynasty had already taken shape, and basically all the battles were smooth sailing. He lacked much military experience and combat experience.
In desperation, everyone went to see Hong Ya again. This was the new angel sent from Yanjing, and he was entrusted with military affairs by the Fourth Prince Wuzhu. Even the Fourth Prince's own gold medal was in this man's hands. If they made a decision at this time, maybe everyone below would support it, and the Sixth Prince Eluguan would also go along with it.
However, Hong Ya, the Minister of the Court, who was known for his shrewdness and ability, looked around the hall. Although he was relieved, he looked embarrassed. He then spread his hands and said, "Everyone, although I am an angel and the Fourth Prince has entrusted me with military affairs, how can I make decisions easily in this situation?"
This was said quite sincerely, and everyone was helpless, so after arguing for a while, they finally dispersed.
However, many capable people among them, knowing that they were already at the point of being cut by swords and burned by fire, with life and death uncertain, were unwilling to delay at all... On that night, there was an endless stream of people who went to look for the Sixth Prince E'luguan and the Privy Councilor Hong Ya in private, so much so that Tai Shi Nu had to wait until the second watch before he was able to see Minister Hong.
"This is the situation with the Fourth Prince..."
Under the lights, accompanied by the faint sound of crying, Hong Ya explained the situation with a bit of helplessness. "In short, the Song army only sent the left army of the imperial camp and two central troops of the imperial camp to the north of Hutuo River. I'm afraid the Henan side will pursue us closely. We can only leave it to fate."
"If that's the case, I will set out tomorrow and risk my life to cross the river to find the Fourth Prince..." The master's slave was solemn for a moment.
"No." Hong Ya also said solemnly. "In the current situation in Zhending City, no one can easily leave alone, otherwise everyone will scatter... Everyone has a reason to leave!"
The Grand Master's slave was slightly stunned, and was unable to refute, so he turned around and asked seriously: "Then what should we do in Zhending?"
"What else can we do?" Hong Ya spread his hands in response. "We can't fight right now, and if we can't fight, we have to defend. If we can't defend, we have to leave. If we can't leave, we have to surrender or die... What else can we do?"
"Guard..."
"It's impossible to defend it, it's just a matter of enduring... I know what you mean... Leaving is something that only a very small number of people can do, it's just luck." Hong Ya interrupted. "The overall situation is like this, the real way out for the entire city is actually surrender or death."
Under the light, the master's slave was silent for a moment before asking again, "Even with these two points, what do you think Minister Hong should do?"
"It's not what I think. What can I, a minister who is temporarily blamed, do? It's mainly about the opinions of the people in the city..." Hong Ya paused before continuing. "There are still many people who want to surrender, especially the officers and soldiers below. There are also many people above. The only difficulty in life is death... But many people above are too embarrassed to surrender, and there are also a few who are determined not to surrender for various reasons and have made big promises, so the situation is stagnant."
"What are the pros and cons of surrendering or dying? Minister Hong, you must have an opinion, right?" Tai Shi Nu hesitated for a moment and continued to ask. "Just talk about the pros and cons for the Great Jin Kingdom."
"For the Jin Kingdom, there is no pros and cons." Hong Ya said with a sigh. "Defending to the end and being annihilated is of course a good thing. At least it can make the official across the river open his eyes and look at us a little, knowing that the Jin Kingdom still has loyal ministers and righteous men. In the future, he will not underestimate the Jin Kingdom... But can everyone in the city really die together? When the time comes to blow up the city or attack it, I'm afraid that nine out of ten people will surrender."
Upon hearing this, Tai Shi Nu smiled bitterly.
"But if we surrender, we should show our sincerity and let someone of the Sixth Prince's status talk to Emperor Zhao in person. Maybe we can leave some room for peace talks. If we can really negotiate peace, then I don't know how big this room will be!" Hong Ya couldn't help but stare at the other party's expression. "But I still say that there are always one or two idiots who didn't see the might of yesterday's battle and always thought they could go against the trend, and thus ruined things in vain!"
"That's right." The Taishi Nu finally sighed when he saw the other party's attitude. "No matter what, anyone who experienced the battle yesterday would understand what it means to be invincible. At this moment, life and death, surrender and peace, Zhending and Yanjing, are all just the leftovers of the Zhao emperor's sweep of the army yesterday. They are not very meaningful. The key is to find a way to survive, for you and me, and for the Fourth Prince and the Great Jin Kingdom."
"That's exactly what you said!" Hong Ya finally raised his head and closed his eyes and sighed. "Just listen to the cries of the whole city and you will know what it means that the building has collapsed. After you left yesterday, the Fourth Prince and I looked at the battlefield and saw an iron curtain slowly sweeping over us. We felt hopeless and wished we could have you come back and put those false surrender words into practice... I'm going to say something unpleasant today. After yesterday's battle, don't even think about going south of Yanshan! It's useless to struggle any more. It's better to abandon Yanyun early and return to the frontier."
These words touched the heart of Taishi Nu...However, this man was very clever, otherwise he would not have been able to move so easily between Yelu Yudu, Yelu Mawu, Wanyan Balisu, and Wanyan Wushu. So, after a little sigh, he suddenly realized:
"Minister Hong wants me to go again and ask for surrender on behalf of the Sixth Prince, and then facilitate peace talks?"
"That's right." Hong Ya replied simply.
Hong Ya's response was a long silence.
However, Hong Ya is also very patient.
Sure enough, after waiting for a long time, the Grand Master Slave finally spoke with difficulty: "Didn't Minister Hong just say that there are some bastards in the city who are hindering this matter?"
“The second-generation rich kids from the great families of Yanyun are, of course, the most afraid of an attack from the official… But what can a few second-generation rich kids achieve when they go against the will of the people? I can destroy them with a wave of my hand.” As he spoke, Hong Ya really waved his hand.
"Sixth Prince...?"
"The Sixth Prince has already lost his composure. It seems that he has long been prepared to surrender, but it is only because of his status that he is forced to do so... We can take care of the matter and give him a push, and he will naturally nod his head."
"But isn't Minister Hong also a surrendered person? Isn't he afraid..."
"It is because I am a surrendered person that I have to take advantage of this situation to hide in it... I cannot act alone, otherwise I will be courting death."
“…”
“…”
"So... I have one last question." After several rounds of conversation, the master's slave couldn't help but feel dry-mouthed. "If we surrender now, will it be harmful to the Fourth Prince? He is still on the other side of the river and has disappeared."
"What's the problem?" Hong Ya smiled bitterly. "They say that losing Zhending will allow the Song army to march straight in, but in reality, if the Song army wants to attack somewhere else at this time, why would they care about Zhending? Besides, no matter how smoothly this matter goes, we have to wait until we meet with the Zhao Song emperor tomorrow to discuss it, and then it will be done at least the day after tomorrow... and the fourth prince will be at the Qinshui River tomorrow at the latest, and his life or death has nothing to do with us."
Tai Shi Nu became increasingly depressed.
"However." Hong Yaqing knew that he had said too much, so he quickly continued. "If the Fourth Prince could come back, I'm afraid he would agree to peace talks... It's really impossible to continue fighting... Peace talks are the general trend!"
The Grand Master's slave nodded, and finally nodded: "In that case, wait for Minister Hong's instructions tomorrow."
Hong Ya nodded: "No need for tomorrow, you can go back and wait for the movement and follow my signal."
Just like that, Tai Shi Nu said no more and left directly. Hong Ya did not move at all, but called a servant and asked him to invite two more people... After a moment, Elubu and Jiagu Wulibu arrived together.
Hong Ya was too lazy to even test these two people... because they had been on the battlefield yesterday, and their experience must be more unforgettable than his.
"The whole city surrenders, and then we take advantage of the situation to escape and return to Yanjing?"
Jiagu Wulibu frowned and looked at each other.
"Yes." Hong Ya answered frankly. "After yesterday's battle, the situation was ruined. Only Yanjing had tens of thousands of new soldiers south of Yanshan Mountain. In addition, the lessons of Taiyuan City and Yuancheng are there. I am afraid that they will not be able to stop the Song army from cleaning up and resting, and marching straight to Yanshan Mountain... The problem now is that someone has to go back quickly to meet the eldest prince and the king, inform them of the critical situation ahead, and let Yanjing make a quick decision. They have to try their best to help gather the defeated soldiers and pull the new soldiers south to try to save the capital... There is no one more suitable than you two for this kind of thing ."
"And Zhending surrendered directly?" Jiagu Wulibu frowned slightly. "Are you really going to negotiate peace?"
"Forget it!" Erlubu suddenly interrupted. "At this point, do we still have any military hopes? Even if we do, we can't really rely on this. The Sixth Prince and Minister Hong have their own ways. It's good enough for the two of us to go back... Minister Hong, just tell us what you want us to do!"
Jiagu Wulibu also shook his head and sighed, and said no more.
"Kill Liu E and Cheng Cai." Hong Ya became more straightforward.
E'erlubu and Jiaguwulibu looked at each other without any doubt... They were also in the class today, so how could they not understand?
"It is easy to kill these two men. Not to mention that we have to return to Yanjing to kill them for our own sake, even if it is for the sake of our friendship yesterday, Minister Hong, we can kill them... But Minister Hong, you must know that after this battle, the strength of the Yanyun clan has been revealed, and there are no obstacles south of Yanshan Mountain. They are destined to act violently. After killing the two men, how can we prevent the news from reaching the ears of their clansmen?" Elubu asked without delay.
"How can I let you two take this responsibility?" Under the lights, Hong Ya was a little impatient. "As long as you two agree, I will immediately let Gao Qingyi go to Cheng Cai to report that Liu E has gathered private soldiers and some greedy people, preparing to burn the treasury first, and then take the opportunity to kidnap the Sixth Prince and escape... When the two sides collide, you two will send troops to help deal with it, and then they will die in the battle! And when the inside and outside of Zhending City are stable, we should surrender and go away... I will go to negotiate peace with the Sixth Prince, and you two will return to Yanjing to be the pillars of the country, isn't it the best of both worlds?!"
Elubu and Jiaguwulibu looked at each other again, still without any intention of refutation.
And Hong Ya did not hesitate at all. He stood up and went out to call his trusted attendants, asking them to call Gao Qingyi over... Although he was cautious in testing Tai Shi Nu at the beginning, after experiencing this wave, Minister Hong had already seen that anyone who had experienced yesterday's bloody battle would despair of the situation.
What the hell is Zhending, the Sixth Prince, the Yanyun clan…what do they mean in comparison to yesterday’s battle?
At least there is a consensus that it is difficult to preserve the area south of Yanshan Mountain, okay? The Jin Dynasty is about to perish, okay?!
In this situation, why can't I run? Why can't I kill the two bad guys? Why can't I save the country in a roundabout way? !
Of course, there may still be many important officials of the Great Jin Dynasty who are brave enough to persist, but those people are definitely not like Olubu, Jiaguwulibu and others who abandoned Shiyi, lost their subordinates, and fled here.
At midnight, chaos suddenly broke out in the city.
"Minister Hong, what's going on?"
The sixth prince of the Jin Dynasty, Eluguan, had not fallen asleep in the first place, and was even more frightened at this moment. When he hurriedly put on his armor and led his personal guards out of the hall of the Zhending prefect, he happened to meet a group of high-ranking officials in the city headed by Hong Ya on the steps, and he immediately asked them.
"Sixth Prince, don't worry too much." Hong Ya hurriedly led the crowd to meet him and told him seriously. "I just sent someone to inquire. It is said that Liu E, the defense envoy of Enzhou, was planning to burn the treasury and kidnap the Sixth Prince to escape. As a result, Hanlin scholar Cheng Cai got the news and led his troops to stop them... The reinforcements have already arrived."
E'eruguan was stunned for a moment, and first remembered what happened in the evening. He nodded slightly, but then he quickly realized that something seemed wrong.
As the riot quickly ended and news came that both parties involved had been killed in the riot, the feeling that something was wrong became stronger and stronger.
"Minister Hong?" In the dark night, Erluguan couldn't help but discuss this with the most senior person around him. "Is there any explanation for this matter... Where is the reinforcement? Shouldn't they go to rescue Cheng Xueshi? Why did both of them die so easily?"
"Sixth Prince." Hong Ya looked back at the many civil and military officials who had uncertain expressions under the torches around him, and then looked back at Elu Guan, who was calm in front of the public. "I don't think it's necessary to ask so clearly about this matter."
"What do you mean?" Eluguan's hair stood on end.
"The matter itself is obvious... After yesterday's great defeat, people's hearts are in turmoil. They can neither fight nor defend. Escape is a life-or-death struggle, and death is the most difficult thing in the world... At this time, it is natural for people to want to surrender and live." Hong Ya helplessly spread his hands and explained. "Liu E and Cheng Cai may have fought for official business, or they may have just fought privately, but in any case, the two of them died together, which is undoubtedly a way for those who want to surrender in the city to go with the flow! If we continue to investigate at this time, wouldn't it force the whole city to rebel?"
Erluguan was stunned on the spot, and then couldn't help but want to find other people to verify this statement. But when he looked around, he saw the flames and the faint sound of sobbing. Almost everyone stood in silence, just staring at him in a daze, and he was completely terrified. In the end, not only did he not dare to ask anyone, but he couldn't hold back and shed tears in public.
After looking around for a long time with tears in his eyes, the Sixth Prince of the Jin Kingdom who stayed in Zhending finally walked down the stairs. Then, he seemed to come to his senses and looked at Hong Ya again, and said with a folded hand: "Minister Hong... please teach me, what should I do in this situation and with such people's hearts?!"
Hearing this, Hong Ya looked up and sighed, but didn't say a word.
Seeing this, the slave of the Grand Master finally came out and bowed his head, saying, "Sixth Prince! I was originally the personal servant of the Fourth Prince, and I am also the personal servant of the Sixth Prince... Please believe me, Sixth Prince... I am willing to enter the Song camp again, firstly to ask for surrender, and ask the Zhao Song emperor to allow the whole city to live; secondly to negotiate peace, and ask the Zhao Song emperor to treat the Sixth Prince with courtesy, and agree to a peace talk between the two countries! But please also follow the previous strategy of the Fourth Prince and work hard to promote peace talks between the two countries!"
Eluguan was stunned for a long time, watching that no one around him stepped forward, and no one refuted, but he finally nodded with all his strength: "Since peace talks are what Fourth Brother wants, Eluguan should obey your orders; if surrender is what the whole city wants, why should Eluguan care about the honor and disgrace of one person? Please trouble me."
Just as the Grand Tutor was about to speak again, Hong Ya turned around, bowed to Elu Guan, and then raised his head to comfort him: "Sixth Prince, don't worry about your reputation... If we can negotiate, it will be a roundabout way to save the country, so why bother about honor or disgrace?"
Many civil and military officials in the surrounding cities, especially those who had stayed in the camp on the other side of the river yesterday, seemed to have just woken up at this moment. They came out one after another to echo, just as orderly as when they escaped back with Hong Ya yesterday.
The remaining civil and military officials also stepped out after a moment's hesitation.
Of course, some people did not move.
A night in silence.
The next day, the fifth day of February, in the morning, Tai Shi Nu rode out of the city alone again, and then the whole city waited until the afternoon, and sure enough, they saw the dragon flag of the Zhao Song official family appear outside Zhending City, and the commander of the imperial guard, Liu Yan of Yanzhou, drove a horse to ask.
At this moment, Eluguan no longer hesitated, and immediately followed the agreement, took off his armor and robe, opened the city gate, and went out of the city wearing only a single layer of clothes to pay a visit to the Zhao Song government... However, he had no idea that after the chaos last night, at this moment, seventeen civil and military officials of all ranks had chosen to die in the city.
Of course, it doesn’t hurt to know.
Because there were only seventeen people, less than one thousandth of the casualties of the previous day.