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

Chapter 630 Helpless and in Disarray

It is unclear whether Heshi Lieliangbi made a mistake in his haste, or whether the military envoys he sent were intercepted along the way, or whether the vast Taishan mountain range was simply too expansive for information to be transmitted smoothly.

In short, by December 1st, both Heshi Lieliangbi and Tudanzhen had returned to Daming Prefecture, and only then did Tudanzhen, who was in Xucheng, learn of the outcome of the great battle.

Then Tu Danzhen almost lost his composure in front of Tu Dan Yongnian.

"Heshilie Liangbi! Heshilie Liangbi! That bastard!" Tu Danzhen kicked over the table in front of him and cursed, "Two commanders! Two commanders! And they were defeated just like that! And in a place like Pingyin! They have nowhere to run!"

"Tell me, this scoundrel Heshilie Liangbi always mocks Ni Liang. Ni Liang, as the emperor, only lost four 10,000-household units, while Heshilie Liangbi lost two 10,000-household units for no reason. What face does he have to talk about others?!"

Tudan Yongnian was also anxious, but not because Heshi Lieliangbi had been defeated.

After realizing that something was amiss in Chaoxian that day, he did nothing but immediately flee to Huaidong. It's truly unrealistic to expect such a person to have any lofty patriotism.

Tudan Yongnian was anxious for a simple reason: Tudan Zhen's two thousand-plus clan soldiers had nowhere to escape to.

Xucheng, this wretched place, is bordered by the Loyal Army to the east, the Song Kingdom to the south, the vast swamp of Liangshanbo to the west, and the main force of the Han army to the north.

With such a situation of being surrounded on all sides and facing enemies from all directions, even Xiang Yu would have collapsed, let alone these two.

"Ah Zhen, now is not the time to talk about this. What should we do?"

Tu Danzhen, panting heavily, finally said after a long pause, "What's the panic? Our army is all cavalry. If we want to retreat, surely we can find a way? The key is... which side should we join now?!"

Tu Dan Yongnian remained silent for a moment.

You were shouting "Ni Liang, Ni Liang!" quite enthusiastically just now, why are you hesitating now?
Besides Wanyan Yong, where else can we turn to? Perhaps we should turn to Liu Dalang?
Isn’t this ridiculous?
Tu Danzhen glanced at Tu Danyongnian and knew what he was thinking. She flicked her sleeve and said, "That scoundrel Heshi Lieliangbi is still alive! If we go back like this, can you guarantee he won't pin all the blame for the defeat on us?!"

"Given his favor with His Majesty, if he were to say that the defeat in this battle was entirely due to the two of us hesitating in Dongping Prefecture, what should we do?"

Upon hearing this, Tu Dan Yongnian immediately hesitated.

The extent to which Heshilie Liangbi was favored was beyond common sense. Putting aside everything else, even though Wanyan Yong and Wanyan Liang were practically fighting to the death, they still allowed Heshilie Liangbi to wear the seals of both countries' prime ministers, which was simply unbelievable.

At this moment, Yila Dao strode into the main tent and anxiously asked, "Have you heard?"

Tu Danzhen snorted and then said, "Of course I've heard about it..."

At this point, Tu Danzhen suddenly paused, "I heard it from a close relative who risked their life to deliver the message. Where did you get this information from?!"

Yila Dao stamped his foot and said, "Naturally, it's the private soldiers of those wealthy families in Dongping Prefecture who escaped back from the mountain gullies. The news is already spreading like wildfire, and it can't be kept secret anymore! Now those wealthy families are all coming to me for an explanation, what explanation can I possibly give?!"

Tu Danzhen's face turned ashen. He hadn't considered the variables of the powerful families in Dongping Prefecture before, but now that he had taken them into account, he instantly felt that he could no longer stay in Dongping Prefecture.

Those powerful figures are all cowardly and opportunistic political hypocrites. They betrayed Geng Jing because the Jin army was powerful, so why can't they betray the Jin again because the Han army is powerful?
This does not mean that the powerful families of Dongping Prefecture dare to fight Tu Danzhen's two thousand elite soldiers head-on. Even if they resort to underhanded tactics, Tu Danzhen cannot tolerate it.

They did such shady things without any psychological pressure as they poured croton juice into the horse feed, destroyed bridges and roads, and secretly set fires.

"No, we have to leave now! Immediately! Travel light!" Tu Danzhen made up his mind, then looked at Tu Danyongnian and Yila Dao and said, "Dongping Prefecture has become a dangerous place, and since Liu the bandit has won a great victory, there's no reason for him not to come back. By then, we won't be able to leave even if we want to!"

Tu Danyongnian, however, was still deeply immersed in the previous topic. Upon hearing this, he said somewhat absentmindedly, "Go? Where to go? Back to Xuzhou?"

Before Tu Danzhen could answer, Yila Dao said directly, "Xuzhou is already a dead end! How can we go back? First, head south, bypass Liangshanbo via Jizhou, then go north through Puzhou back to Daming Prefecture."

Tu Dan Yongnian was also in a state of confusion and had no idea what to do, so he could only look at Tu Dan Zhen.

After pondering for a moment, Tu Danzhen said bitterly, "There's no time to think about that now, we need to survive! Men, pass on my orders! The entire army must immediately assemble, throw away all bottles and jars, and prepare for an 800-li march!"

The Tudan tribe soldiers moved very quickly, not only because they were well-trained, but also because they had a close personal bond with Tudan Zhen and dared not disobey any military orders.

The Tudan clan's soldiers would never make the mistake of hoarding large items such as cloth, women, or bronzeware, which would hinder the army's movements.

However, this was only a force of over two thousand soldiers. No matter how fast they moved, the commotion could not be concealed, and soon the news spread throughout the vicinity of Xucheng. Combined with the news of the Jin army's crushing defeat at Pingyin, the powerful families of Dongping Prefecture quickly made their judgment.

The Jin army is about to flee.

The Taiping Army was even less able to conceal the news.

Or perhaps the Taiping Army never intended to cover up the news.

Around the same time, six thousand Tianping soldiers, under the command of Xin Qiji, charged out of the foothills of Mount Tai with murderous intent, and split into five routes, covering the entire city of Xucheng like a large net.

All the Taiping Army generals who were still able to move, such as Li Tieqiang, Jia Rui, Shi Baiju, Du Shiba, and Zhang Anguo, came out in full force to launch a general purge of Dongping Prefecture.

When this army set out, it numbered as many as 20,000 soldiers. After a series of sieges, divisions, ambushes, battles, and betrayals, only 12,000 to 13,000 soldiers were gathered together, and only about 6,000 were still capable of fighting.

This was only because they needed to fight their way back to their hometown of Dongping Prefecture, so that these 6,000 soldiers could continue fighting. Otherwise, even with Xin Qiji's abilities, it would have been difficult for him to command the Tianping Army to fight again unless they rested for several months.

The reappearance of the Taiping Army naturally caused panic among the powerful clans of Xucheng. They betrayed the Taiping Army and sent them to hell, but they never expected that the Taiping Army would actually crawl out of hell.

Moreover, this Taiping Army had no further connection with the powerful families of Dongping Prefecture. After the death of Geng Jing, even someone as greedy and despicable as Zhang Anguo had completely lost faith in the powerful families and would no longer be swayed by words.

Most of the private armies of the powerful clans in Xucheng had already perished along with Kong Duanqi, so when faced with a fierce attack from the regular army, the relatively fortified manors of the powerful clans were as easily breached as cicada wings.

Xin Qiji directly arrested people according to the list. All the powerful families who had joined the rebels were executed on the spot, and the rest were imprisoned for trial at a later public hearing.

Xucheng is such a small place, so news travels very fast.

Just as Tu Danzhen was ready to leave at any time, several powerful figures from Sucheng made their decisions simultaneously.

Hold off Tudanzhen, don't let him leave!
Let the Tudan tribe soldiers fight to the death with the Taiping army.

If the Jin army wins, that would be best, as they could then negotiate with Xin Qiji and even Liu Huai.

If the Jin army loses, those powerful figures who prevented Tudanzhen from leaving can suddenly become loyal ministers who can redeem themselves through meritorious service.

It’s the best of both worlds.

Of course, Tu Danzhen did not want the powerful families of Xucheng to continue to enjoy their wealth. After making preparations and discovering that the Tianping army was only twenty miles away, he did not hesitate at all, simply abandoned most of his supplies, and ran wildly.

However, after traveling only a mile, when they crossed a small river about twenty paces wide, Tu Danzhen discovered that the wooden bridges that originally spanned the river had had their planks removed, leaving only a stone bridge that was passable.

Although the temperature in Shandong was low at this time, and thin ice was faintly visible on the river, it was still not frozen solid. To cross the river, one could either walk across this stone bridge or brave the cold wind and swim across.

Tu Danzhen immediately realized that something was wrong.

The Taiping army was still making trouble north of Xucheng. They couldn't fly over, so even if some scouts managed to sneak over, how could they know the Jin army's marching direction so accurately and make preparations in advance?
However, at this point, Tu Danzhen had no other choice. The army marched south along the lonely stone bridge.

Although the Tudan tribe's army numbered less than three thousand, they possessed a large number of warhorses and livestock. Therefore, this small river still delayed the Jin army.

That wasn't the end of it. When only half of the Jin army had crossed the river, a scout came to report that someone had dug a small ditch across the river.

Even though the river dries up in winter, preventing a massive flood, it still makes the road ahead muddy, forcing people to take a detour.

Yila Dao was already extremely troubled. He had realized that the powerful local magnates near Xucheng were starting to cause trouble.

However, when he tried to remind Tu Danzhen, he was scolded by Tu Danzhen in person.

Now what can we do? Are we supposed to wipe out the Taiping Army and the powerful clans of Dongping Prefecture with just these two thousand soldiers?
We must find a way to escape Dongping Prefecture!
Around the same time that the Jin army was in a state of chaos, Xin Qiji also met with the powerful leader of Xucheng who had come to pay him a visit.

(End of this chapter)