I am Emperor Shizu of Song

Chapter 153 Forcing Back the Jin Army, Respectfully Inviting the Retired Emperor to Return to the Capital
Two flowers bloom, one branch each.

Zhao Zicheng returned to Bianjing, and the emperor and his ministers in Bianjing urgently discussed subsequent peace talks and defense strategies.

Inside the Jin army camp, the Jurchen high-ranking officials all appeared solemn and prepared for a major crisis, unsure how to cope with such a significant and sudden change.

Zhao Zicheng's escape brought shame and humiliation to all the generals of the Jin army's eastern route.

According to the traditional military law of the Jurchens, all the surviving Meng'an and Mouke troops who died in the battle should have been beheaded after Zhao Zicheng broke through the encirclement in such a humiliating manner!

How can a commander of a thousand or a hundred die in battle while all his soldiers survive? Those who came back alive are all cowards!
However, because the implications were too broad and the repercussions too severe, it was ultimately Wanyan Zongwang, the commander-in-chief who was already seriously injured, who personally intervened to pardon everyone.

This military law is not something to be strictly enforced. At least three Meng'an soldiers died at the hands of Zhao Zicheng and his men that day. If military law were truly enforced, would they kill all three thousand-man detachments of survivors? Did the Jurchens have that many soldiers?

Military law is harsh and inhumane; it's only used to force soldiers to fight to the death, not to actually slaughter their own people. Given the special circumstances, we had no choice but to accept it.

Zhao Zicheng can be considered the first person to force the Jin people to abolish their own military law. With Zhao Zicheng as a special case, you had no choice but to break the rule, even if you didn't want to.

Even after Wanyan Zongwang announced the amnesty, there were still a few particularly stubborn and inflexible men who earnestly pleaded for strict adherence to military law and that no exceptions should be made. In the end, Wanyan Zongwang, disregarding his injuries and displaying his imposing authority, rebuked them:

"If this military law is truly followed, will you all be buried with me after I die? If I die, it will be considered that I was assassinated by Zhao Zicheng on the battlefield!"

Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent, and their focus shifted entirely to Wanyan Zongwang's health.

"The Second Prince will be fine! Although that strange and vicious firearm was sharp, the physician has said that the shrapnel was not deep, and the main lead fragments have been removed! The Second Prince should rest and recover well, and he will surely recover soon!"

The one leading the conversation was Wanyan Zongbi, the fourth brother of Wanyan Zongwang.

Wanyan Zongwang weakly waved his hand. He knew his own condition; the physician simply didn't have the ability to remove all the lead bullet fragments. There were bound to be tiny, hard-to-clean debris still inside.

He estimated that if it was just a suppurating wound, he might be able to hold on for another month or two. However, if it were complicated by poisoning, the two factors combined might mean he wouldn't be able to survive even a month.

If I were to die, how could the Jin Eastern Route Army maintain unified command? Chaos would inevitably ensue.

So he took a few breaths and began to arrange his affairs after his death: "Unfortunately, Zong Han on the western route is also making little progress. I heard that the Song general Wang Bing is also fighting to the death and refusing to retreat, and Taiyuan City is difficult to take. If the stalemate continues, I fear something unexpected may happen."

The best course of action now is to try to force the Song people to provide military funds and provisions, and then feign a retreat northward. Even if we don't wait until the autumn harvest to move south, we should at least wait until the summer wheat in the Heluo region is harvested, dried, and about to be stored.

After I return, I will immediately report to His Majesty and have Zonghan command both the eastern and western armies simultaneously, so that they can join forces. Fourth brother, I will recommend you as the deputy commander after the combined forces are assembled. After this setback, our Great Jin has been forced into a desperate situation. Only by going all out to capture Bianjing and take the Song emperor prisoner can we turn the tide. Nothing else matters!
"Ahem... If we can't take Taiyuan then, so be it. We'll transfer all of Zonghan's troops here, leaving only a small force to block Hukou Pass and Jingxing Pass, ensuring that the Song army in Shanxi can't harass our rear from the Taihang Mountains. As for the Song people west of the Taihang Mountains, let them fend for themselves for now!"

Wanyan Zongwang anticipated his impending death and, with great difficulty, revealed all the ideas he had conceived during his recovery period, discussing them with his generals.

He had realized that although the absolute number of Jin soldiers lost was not large, their morale had been severely damaged by this setback. In contrast, the Song army would inevitably be encouraged.

The Jin people had too small a population, and once they suffered a setback, they could not afford to spread their resources too thin. They had no choice but to concentrate all their strength on one point and gamble everything.

He temporarily withdrew his fist, just to better prepare for the next strike.

The Jin army's previous strategy of splitting its forces into two routes to advance south was relatively prudent and cautious. The consideration at the time was that if the Song army in Shanxi did not capture Taiyuan, it might be able to advance eastward through the Taihang Mountains, potentially threatening the Jin army's retreat and logistical supplies.

Moreover, when the Jin army launched its attack, they did not expect the eastern route army to advance so smoothly, actually having the opportunity to reach the gates of Bianjing (Kaifeng). If they had known this would happen, the Jin people might not have bothered to divide their forces and would have simply gambled everything on a single, desperate attack.

Once we've captured the Song emperor, what else is there to worry about? We can simply force him to sign treaties ceding territory, or even demand his surrender and the destruction of the Song dynasty.
The situation is becoming increasingly dangerous, and Zongwang sees things more clearly now. If another battle breaks out, Taiyuan cannot be completely ignored, but since the fortified city is difficult to capture, there's no need to pursue a complete takeover. The better option is to besiege it without attacking, or to cut off reinforcements and create a diversion. This way, fewer Jin troops will be needed on the Shanxi battlefield, allowing for a greater concentration of forces on the main battlefield in Bianjing.

Zongwang felt that as long as Wang Bing couldn't leave Taihang, that was enough. As for whether Wang Bing himself would die or not, or whether he would die immediately, that wasn't really that important.

Dajin also needs to learn to focus on the big picture and let go of the small details, and to address the primary contradictions.

Wanyan Zongbi and the other young generals were initially unable to accept such a cowardly approach, but after calming down, they were gradually impressed by Zongwang's insight.

If Zongwang's body truly cannot withstand the strain, the Great Jin cannot immediately gamble with their lives, as the army is very likely to descend into chaos.

However, the impetuous young Wanyan Zongbi still earnestly advised his elder brother: "Even so, we cannot show too much weakness. Even if we cannot break through Bianjing City, we must attack Zhong Shidao's camp to establish our authority!"

Only by establishing our authority at all costs can we safely withdraw our troops and extort money from the Song people. Otherwise, we'll be defeated and flee, and the Song people will no longer fear our Great Jin; they might even pursue us!

Zongwang was initially annoyed by his fourth brother's stubbornness, but his brother's unintentional remark about "being pursued" inspired him. He quickly realized that he could use this opportunity to devise a plan.

"The Song people dare to pursue? Ha, I am still alive, they will only be throwing their lives away if they chase me! But what makes you so confident that you can launch a strong attack on Zhong Shidao's camp?"
Zhong Shidao's troops are not weak, and they can rely on a fortified camp. How many casualties would our Great Jin have to suffer to ensure the breach of their stronghold? It would be better to use a counter-strategy, lure Zhong Shidao into pursuit, and then counterattack!

Wanyan Zongbi: "How do I seduce her?"

Zongwang's eyes sharpened: "Men, order the central army to wear mourning clothes and say that I was assassinated by the Song envoy, and that my Great Jin has no choice but to retreat. Then immediately break camp and head north, but don't go too fast. Make it look like you're reluctant to part with the provisions and supplies, and have the infantry protect the carts and supplies as they slowly retreat."

Wanyan Zongbi's eyes lit up, and the main Jin generals beside him also realized that this plan to lure the enemy was good, although it was a little embarrassing at first.

But there doesn't seem to be a better option right now.

……

Zhao Zicheng remained in Bianjing (Kaifeng) to bide his time and recuperate. Zhao Huan also waited in the palace for the Jin envoy to come and negotiate, but he waited and waited, and three to five days passed without him arriving.

Then one day in April, a scout team from the Imperial Guards, after scouting enemy positions from afar, brought back a major piece of news to the garrison of Bianjing.

The responsible general dared not neglect the matter and reported it directly to the chief minister, who then verified it briefly before reporting it to the emperor.

"Your Majesty! The Jin troops have retreated! They are holding a funeral for Wanyan Zongwang, who is said to have been assassinated by a Song envoy!"

Upon hearing this news, Zhao Huan was filled with a mixture of surprise, joy, and fear. He feared it wasn't true, yet he also feared it was.

"Wanyan Zongwang is dead? He was really killed by Xiu Wang's hidden weapon? The Jin people really withdrew their troops?" Zhao Huan's mind was buzzing, and he didn't know how to respond for a moment.

However, the Jin people soon sent an official envoy, who did not negotiate with Zhao Huan, but instead angrily denounced the Song people for their treachery:

"You dog emperors of the Han people! How could you be so despicable, shameless, and treacherous! Under the guise of negotiations, you actually sent assassins to kill us. Your despicable behavior is even worse than that of Yan Dan! However, my Great Jin Kingdom is not only composed of the Second Prince, but also many other heroes. Once our army has gathered its forces, my Great Jin Kingdom will surely use the full force of the nation to conquer Bianjing, exterminate your entire Zhao family, and make all these despicable villains receive their due punishment!"

After hearing the Jin envoy's threat, Zhao Huan panicked again, and even felt a little guilty that Zhao Zicheng had caused trouble and was being accused of assassination by the Jin people.

Moreover, didn't Zhao Zicheng say before that the Jin people were afraid of losing face and would definitely not dare to publicize Zongwang's injury? How come the Jin people suddenly contradicted themselves?

Zhao Huan immediately sent someone to invite Zhao Zicheng, speaking in a very stern tone, to question him about the whole affair and to ask him to help come up with a solution.

After listening briefly, Zhao Zicheng replied sincerely, "Your Majesty must not be deceived by the Jin people. I think the Jin people are just bluffing and trying to intimidate Your Majesty! Besides, the Jin people attacked first. I was just fighting fairly and taking the opportunity to retaliate. If Your Majesty does not believe me, you can let the Jin envoy confront me!"

Zhao Zicheng really couldn't confirm whether Wanyan Zongwang was dead or not, because he had indeed hit the other party at least once that day.

Zhao Huan, however, was too lazy to bother with such details. He was simply furious and said, "What's the point of questioning! There were only you and the Jin people present at the time, and there was no one else to testify. Now the Jin people are all telling the same story, and even if our Great Song is in the wrong, there's nothing we can do."

After thinking for a moment, Zhao Zicheng suggested, "If that's the case, Your Majesty should at least announce internally that your younger brother has fulfilled his mission, retaliating and killing Wanyan Zongwang and breaking through the encirclement when the Jin people attacked first."

Now that we have completely broken ties with the Jurchens, we must crush their arrogance, abandon all illusions, and wage a protracted war against them to the very end!
The Jurchens' audacity in announcing Zongwang's death will severely damage their morale! Even if they can temporarily maintain their composure, chaos will inevitably ensue! The impact of this event will far surpass that of the Song Dynasty's killing of the Liao general Xiao Talan during the Treaty of Chanyuan!

To be fair, Zhao Zicheng's change of tactics was quite in line with military strategy. Since the Jin people were no longer playing by the rules, daring to announce Wanyan Zongwang's death and then adopting a posture of blaming the Song Dynasty with a shared hatred of the enemy and slandering the Song people for assassination.

Then the Song Dynasty should completely abandon its illusions and stop seeking to gain "reason" and "virtue" in diplomacy; it should simply seek "prestige." If the Jin people don't want prestige, then we'll take it from them, and it doesn't matter if we leave the reason to the enemy.

In any case, once on the battlefield, being in the right can certainly boost morale, unite people, and foster a sense of shared purpose. But being in the "power" is also good; it can help soldiers overcome cowardice and gain a psychological advantage.

You have to have either reason or power; you can't abandon both. If the enemy seizes one, your side is forced to seize the other as well. Unfortunately, Zhao Zicheng's pragmatic stance clearly failed to persuade the cowardly Zhao Huan, nor did it persuade the reasonable officials around him, such as Li Bangyan and Bai Shizhong.

These people couldn't see things clearly. They thought that the Song Dynasty should always insist on being in the right, no matter what. Even if the other side offered them power, the Song Dynasty should still insist on being in the right. If it couldn't stand up, it would rather have neither than be unreasonable and give the other side a handle to use against it.

These fools and pedantic scholars have really gone mad from reading too much; they're not worth discussing anything with!
Ultimately, after discussing with Li Bangyan, Zhao Huan firmly disagreed with officially publicizing the story of "Prince Xiu killing Wanyan Zongwang by entering and leaving the Jin camp seven times" and issued an official gag order to avoid completely enraging the Jin people.

At the same time, Zhao Huan also realized that the Jin people were determined to fight to the death. If he let the Jin people go back this time, regroup, and come back with a better leader, the storm would definitely be even more intense.

Thus, a group of people with conflicting opinions voiced their own views, even urging Zhao Huan to force Zhong Shidao to quickly send troops to pursue the "retreating" Jin army, and warning Zhong Shidao:

The next time the Jin army comes, they might be using their entire nation's forces. We must take advantage of the fact that the Jin army's eastern route is isolated, has lost its commander, and is demoralized. We must strike hard against the Jin army and try to defeat them piecemeal, severely damaging a portion of the enemy!
Zhong Shidao suspected that the Jin people might be treacherous and urgently petitioned the emperor to be cautious and not act rashly, but Zhao Huan forced him to fight.

Upon receiving the imperial decree, Zhong Shidao felt as if the emperor's ideas were completely unpredictable and that there was no unified thinking at all!

If war is inevitable, then a thorough propaganda offensive should be prepared! Directly proclaim that the Jin army's commander-in-chief was killed by Xiu Wang after seven charges in and out of the enemy lines! Use whatever rhetoric is most morale-boosting!
If we don't want to fight, then we should keep quiet and maintain a low profile.

Now, we need to fight on the military front, but we're not allowed to use propaganda to establish authority or boost morale by any means necessary. Isn't that just contradicting ourselves?
But Zhong Shidao had no choice. The rigid civil-military system of the Song Dynasty left him with no autonomy and he could only bite the bullet and send troops to pursue them.

As a result, Zhong Shidao had only sent troops to pursue them for a short time, and had only managed to pull back the Jin soldiers who had retreated less than the distance of a prefecture, when he turned back and attacked again.

Moreover, the Jin soldiers fought with great ferocity. Even Wanyan Zongwang, who was already seriously wounded, personally appeared in front of the two armies, both riding his horse and brandishing his sword to boost the morale of the Jin soldiers, and shouting at Zhong Shidao's Song army formation:

"Listen up, you Song pig over there! Your dog emperor has fallen for my Great Jin Kingdom's trap again! Zhong Shidao, you defeated general are utterly incompetent, you couldn't even see through my feigned death to lure the enemy! You're even inferior to Sima Yi! Soldiers, kill!"

The Song army's morale plummeted to rock bottom because of Wanyan Zongwang's sudden appearance. He was still shouting and yelling like a dragon and a tiger in front of the battle line, and a group of people were shouting and amplifying his words.

The Song army dared to pursue and engage in open battle because they had heard that Wanyan Zongwang was supposedly dead. Although the government did not allow the details of his death to be publicized, seemingly out of shame for the stigma of "assassination," the news of his death was at least likely true.

But now that Wanyan Zongwang has suddenly come back to life, the Song soldiers, whose mentality was already unstable, naturally felt that they had fallen into a trap.

In a close contest, the brave prevail. At such a critical juncture, a sharp drop in morale and a wavering of people's hearts can be extremely fatal.

Although Zhong Shidao possessed the talent of a renowned general, he was not capable of manipulating people's hearts. Once caught up in this situation, after a fierce and bloody battle, the Song soldiers ultimately collapsed first, and the Jin soldiers then fought back with all their might.

Although the Jin army suffered heavy casualties during the previous stalemate and bloody battle, they persevered and fought fiercely, creating a formidable momentum. Once the Song army was brought to a state of collapse, the subsequent pursuit, reaping, and expansion of the victory became much easier.

In this battle, the Jin army also suffered several thousand casualties, a truly devastating blow. However, the Song army's losses increased too rapidly after the collapse, and in total, at least tens of thousands of troops were lost. The Jin army achieved an exchange ratio of at least five times, and possibly even close to ten times.

This is not something Zhao Zicheng can intervene in or control; the battle has been fought to this extent, and there's nothing more to say about it.

To be honest, in previous battles between the Song and Jin dynasties, the Song army's exchange ratio was actually much worse, with a brutal exchange ratio of one to dozens occurring more than once. Achieving an exchange ratio between five and ten was already a testament to the effectiveness of the military strategy.

Unfortunately, after the Song army suffered another crushing defeat and retreated to their camp, they were unable to seize the opportunity to clean up the battlefield, and thus did not know how many Jin soldiers had died or been wounded.

The Jurchens could continue to swagger and pretend they hadn't suffered many casualties, just like the later American imperialists who, despite being hit by missiles, would cover their faces and boast everywhere, "You didn't hit me."

Unfortunately, Zhao Huan was too cowardly, and Li Bangyan and Bai Shizhong were too stupid; they couldn't even see through the enemy's bluff.

After Zhong Shidao suffered another defeat, the Jin people took the opportunity to send envoys to extort a large sum of money and grain before agreeing to withdraw their troops, and Zhao Huan agreed.

Zhao Zicheng wanted to remind Zhao Huan: "Your Majesty, you must not be frightened by the Jurchens! When Wanyan Zongwang falsely claimed to be dead, I had some doubts. The Jurchens should not have so openly announced his death just to blame our Great Song."

But this time he personally appeared on the front lines of the two armies, encouraging the Jin people to humiliate our Great Song. Your servant brother dares to guarantee that he must have been seriously wounded and exhausted before he did this. His plan is just like Liu Bang after being shot by Xiang Yu, pretending to be calm and proclaiming "The enemy shot my toe".

That day, my younger brother personally wounded him severely with a hidden weapon. I guarantee his body cannot withstand such an attack! After this ordeal, he's doomed! Perhaps within the next few days! Your Majesty, you must not agree to their extortion!"

However, Zhao Huan no longer believed the fact that Zhao Zicheng said he had "seriously injured Wanyan Zongwang".

Only Zhao Zicheng witnessed this, and no one can testify for him. The emperor thought he was bragging, and that he might have just briefly entered the Jin camp, said some harsh words, and then escaped, only to be intercepted and fight a battle on the way—perhaps that was all.

Zhao Huan felt that more and more doubts were emerging, so how could he completely believe the nonsense and boasts of his distant cousin?

In the end, seeing that the Jin people agreed to withdraw their troops in exchange for money and provisions, Zhao Huan gritted his teeth and took out money and provisions from the Bianjing treasury. He also urgently raised and extorted a large sum from the people and sent it to Wanyan Zongwang, demanding that Wanyan Zongwang withdraw his troops as soon as possible.

After the money and silk were gathered, Zhao Huan sent the "money delivery envoys" to actually fulfill the agreement. These envoys were Qin Hui, who had just become the Imperial Censor in the first year of the Jingkang era, and Cheng Yu, who had just been exonerated.

On a side note, historically, Zhao Huan was originally supposed to send Qin Hui, the "territory-ceding envoy," to cede three towns in Hebei to the Jin Dynasty. However, due to the butterfly effect caused by Zhao Zicheng's efforts, the envoy was only reduced to a money-giving envoy. But Qin Hui's character remains unchanged; his deputy, Cheng Yu, who later became somewhat more resistant, was also eliminated by Qin Hui due to ideological differences.

Zhao Huan's extortion and appeasement tactics alienated the people of Bianjing. Whether they were high-ranking officials, wealthy merchants, or ordinary citizens, they were all greatly disappointed in Zhao Huan.

"How can this official be so indecisive, failing to fight when he should and fighting when he shouldn't! In the end, he still suffers such a loss of sovereignty and national humiliation!"

"They actually gave the Jurchens a million taels of gold and several million taels of silver, which is more than they paid in tribute over several years! The court spent so much effort negotiating to get the tribute waived, and now they're sending it all back with interest!"

"Wouldn't it be better to distribute this gold and silver to the soldiers and encourage them to fight to the death!"

Before this, Zhao Huan had been on the throne for several months, and the people's resentment towards him personally was not yet so deep. Even if the people disliked the Zhao family emperors, it was mainly because they hated Zhao Ji, who had brought disaster to the country and the people for decades, and felt that it was the legacy of his old, good-for-nothing father.

Now that Zhao Ji has done this, the people have finally realized that neither of these two, father and son, should laugh at the other; they are both cowardly and stupid.

Zhao Zicheng saw it all, but he couldn't prove it himself, because he had no other witnesses to the fact that Wanyan Zongwang was about to die. He could only wait for the outcome to be revealed and the truth to come out.

In fact, less than ten days after the Jin army extorted money and supplies and withdrew, Wanyan Zongwang died—precisely from a combination of wound infection and lead poisoning.

However, Wanyan Zongbi, who temporarily took over command of the troops, was very good at enforcing strict military discipline and also ordered secrecy. Therefore, the ordinary Jin soldiers did not know that their commander-in-chief, Wanyan Zongwang, had died in the attack that led to the breakdown of negotiations between the Song princes.

It wasn't until the Jin army completely retreated, the eastern and western armies joined forces, and the situation was reported to Emperor Wanyan Wuqimai in the rear, that the Jin officially held a funeral for Wanyan Zongwang. Then, they immediately began to redefine military power and plan a second invasion southward.

Inside Bianjing, Zhao Huan was completely unaware that the Jin's so-called "peace talks and withdrawal" was merely a delaying tactic. If the Jin were truly prepared to fight again, they wouldn't need any excuse; the Jin were utterly shameless.

Historically, the Jin dynasty was relatively concerned with saving face, using the excuse that the Song dynasty had failed to fulfill its promise to cede the three towns east of the Yellow River in Hebei Province before launching another southern expedition. However, this time, due to the butterfly effect caused by Zhao Zicheng and various other circumstances, the Jin dynasty clearly no longer cared about saving face.

……

Zhao Huan was unaware that the Jurchens would soon temporarily retreat south. He felt that the Jurchens must have suffered some losses after their retreat, and even if they fought again in the future, they should at least have a few years to catch their breath.

Once the external pressure eased, Zhao Huan immediately began to consolidate his power through internal power struggles.

He actually promoted Li Gang's position in a seemingly respectable but actually demotion manner, effectively stripping him of a considerable amount of power. This was clearly an attempt to remove him from his post.

At the same time, he consulted with Li Bangyan and Bai Shizhong, these scoundrels who were incompetent at external struggles but adept at internal ones, and concluded that the greatest threat at present was not the Jurchens but the retired emperor who remained in Zhenjiang. Therefore, they should send someone to inform the retired emperor:

The Jin army has retreated, and the Song Dynasty has been saved. We request that the Emperor Emeritus return to the old capital.

Finally, Zhao Huan felt that although Zhao Zicheng had supposedly made meritorious contributions during his previous mission, the matter of Wanyan Zongwang was ultimately unclear, and it was unknown how much of Zhao Zicheng's boasting and exaggeration accounted for.

Regardless of whether Zhao Zicheng's actions were a great achievement or a fabrication, the fact remains that he caused such a major upheaval means that even if he is to be reused, he is certainly no longer suitable for use in the diplomatic field.

If further negotiations with the Jin are unnecessary, it would be a waste of talent for Zhao Zicheng to remain in the top diplomatic position. If further negotiations with the Jin are required, Zhao Zicheng's stubbornness will only cause trouble.

Giving Zhao Zicheng a promotion in name only, but a demotion in reality, and a job transfer seems to be the best option.

(End of this chapter)