Destroy Jin and conquer Song, and carry the Northern Expedition through to the end

Chapter 456: Stubbornness Always Leads to Misfortune

"Li Qi died in battle..." Even though he had witnessed many people's lives and deaths, Li Qi's death in battle still made Liu Huai dazed for a moment.

This plan of making a feint to the east and attacking in the west to surprise attack the Jin navy had been almost completed during the military meeting. Theoretically, as long as the Jin navy dared to enter Yuxi, they would be dead, and the Dongting Lake navy and Chaohu navy would not even suffer too much damage.

After all, they wanted to use fireships to burn down the camps. As long as they didn't engage in close combat, the power of water and fire would be enough to wipe out the Jin navy.

However, plans cannot keep up with changes. Who would have thought that the chief of the Shenfeng Army and the commander-in-chief of the Jin Navy would be so brave that they would personally block the attack of the Dongting Lake Navy, forcing Li Qi to use the most intense means of boarding, and the casualties became tragic.

He Zizheng, covered in water stains and burn marks, looked utterly miserable. He could only nod his head upon hearing this: "I saw it with my own eyes. Commander Li and the Jin thief's naval commander, Wanyan Zheng, perished together... I was too far away to rescue him in time."

Liu Huai shook his head. He knew He Zizheng had also been through a tough battle. "Warfare is dangerous, how can I blame you? It's just that heroes face death, and their ambitions are unfulfilled. It's a pity."

Yang Chun bowed and said, "General, should we withdraw our troops now, or continue to hold the East Gate?"

If Yang Chun dared to act pretentiously before, now he didn't even dare to be reserved.

There was only one way to establish prestige in a war, and that was to defeat the enemy. After all, war was dangerous, and life was the most important thing. Even with a thousand promises and ten thousand preferential treatments, nothing could compare to saving everyone's life.

Facing the Yuxi River that had turned into a river of fire, Yang Chun, the acting governor of Luzhou, was actually a little in awe of the young man in front of him.

What does age matter in the face of this string of bloody lives?

Liu Huai ignored Yang Chun's change of tone and said firmly, "Retreat according to the predetermined plan. The Jin army has already circled behind us. If we don't retreat now, we will be attacked from both sides. Chao County is the place for the decisive battle."

At this time, almost all the people in Dongguan had evacuated to Chao County, and those who did not evacuate to Chao County were also dismissed. Dongguan became a military city. In addition to the more than one hundred soldiers brought by Liu Huai, there were only Chen Ruhui's one thousand local soldiers and Yang Chun's three thousand remnants.

Jin cavalry had already appeared on the north side of Dongguan, but the water was safe. The carrying capacity of the Jingnan Army's ships was sufficient to complete a quick retreat.

"Yes, sir!" Yang Chun responded loudly, but Chen Ruhui looked reluctant.

After all, this was their hometown. Even if the people had evacuated, they could only take some livestock and valuables with them. Things like tables, chairs, and benches could not be taken away. In the era of pure manual labor, these were all hard-earned wealth. How could they be so easily abandoned?
Seeing this, Liu Huai could only gather himself and advise Chen Ruhui, "As the saying goes, if you save the land but lose the men, you lose both the land and the men; if you save the men but lose the land, you save both the land and the men. Today's retreat is for tomorrow's victory. County Magistrate Chen should understand this principle."

Chen Ruhui sighed and nodded with difficulty.

Soon, taking advantage of the chaos of the Jin army outside the city, all the defenders of the East Gate crossed the river and boarded ships, heading north.

Two hours later, the Jin army climbed onto the top of the East Gate city wall, and Wanyan Liang finally learned the news of Wanyan Zhengjia's death.

"Zheng Jia...Zheng Jia is really dead? They actually...really died on the fire ship?"

Wanyan Liang looked at the burning Yuxi and murmured softly.

The ministers around him didn't know whether Wanyan Liang was asking someone else or talking to himself.

However, seeing Wanyan Liang's appearance, the soldiers became silent, and the joy of conquering the East Gate was greatly dampened.

Da Huaizhong sighed in his heart, he knew why Wanyan Liang looked so distraught.

The reason is simple. Wanyan Liang, Da Huaizhong, and Wanyan Zhengjia had been playing together since childhood. They were not only ruler and subject, but also close friends.

In the ninth year of the Huangtong reign of the Jin Dynasty (1149), when they saw that the opportunity was right before their eyes, the two friends made almost no mental preparation and instantly decided to put their heads on their waistbands and follow Wanyan Liang to launch a coup.

A few dozen days ago, when the Wanyan Zheng family was in danger, Wanyan Liang sent Hezha Meng'an to rescue them for the first time. This is enough to show the position of the Wanyan Zheng family in Wanyan Liang's heart.

"Your Majesty..." Wanyan Yuanyi, who was commanding the troops at the front line, rode over with a complicated expression.

"Let me guess, there is nothing in Dongguan City, and there are very few casualties. Am I right or not?" Wanyan Liang sighed.

"Your Majesty is wise." Wanyan Yuanyi had nothing to say about this and admitted it readily.

Wanyan Liang clapped his palms with his horsewhip and asked in a deep voice, "How many corpses did the Song army leave behind?"

Wanyan Yuanyi thought about it and realized that if the Song army had left behind corpses, the Jin army would have cut off their heads and reported their achievements. However, there were very few people reporting their achievements at this time, so there could only be one possibility.

"Didn't those Song people leave even their corpses behind?" Wanyan Liang took one look at Wanyan Yuanyi's expression and understood everything.

"It seems the Song people are well prepared." Wanyan Liang shook his head: "I wonder what else is waiting for me in Chao County."

"Your Majesty!" Seeing that he was surrounded by his close ministers, Wanyan Yuanyi did not need to be shy: "This is the last chance. I request Your Majesty to personally lead Hezha Meng'an to Tushan Zhen's headquarters to supervise the army!"

You cannot run away when you are on the battlefield. Not to mention that a general's desertion will inevitably make the war hopeless, but when you are facing a large enemy army, if you are separated from the protection of your own army, you will be hunted down by the enemy's light cavalry and easily killed by the enemy.

Emperor Tianzuo of the Liao Dynasty is an excellent example.

If he had not abandoned the city and fled, Wanyan Yinshu would not have captured him so easily.

Wanyan Yuanyi was absolutely right. This was Wanyan Liang's last chance to leave. If he really went to Chao County and engaged in battle with the Song army, even if Wanyan Liang wanted to leave, Wanyan Yuanyi would not let him go.

By then, within a radius of 100 miles, the safest place would be to stay among three Wanhu households.

Wanyan Liang shook his head slowly.

This was a regular army of three thousand households, and including the signed troops, it was nearly 60,000 people. If Wanyan Liang turned and fled, not only would these people lose their lives, but all the gold and silver seized along the way, as well as the fertile land occupied in Lianghuai, would also have to be relinquished.

On the other hand, as an emperor, Wanyan Liang could not accept the political turmoil caused by the disappearance of the three Wanhu systems.

"I have made up my mind. No need to say more. Let's march our army towards Chao County." Wanyan Liang said decisively, "Tell the people at Yuxikou to retreat."

"Gang the East Gate?" Seeing that he could not persuade Wanyan Liang, Wanyan Yuanyi could only sigh and continue to arrange military strategies.

"No!" Wanyan Liang threw his whip to the ground and said, "Destroy the East Gate for me!"

(End of this chapter)