Water Margin: The opening scene involves assassinating Emperor Huizong of Song and forcibly taking L

"You know perfectly well what the leaders of each tribe are thinking."

“If Erliduo does not act first, the troops in Hesuguan City will surely rebel when the main force of the Ming army arrives at the city gates.”

Wanyan Talan angrily said, "Then how are we supposed to fight now? The morale of the army is already wavering!"

Wanyan Xiyin was speechless.

........

Chapter 3432 The Liao Princess

South of the city.

A teenage military officer rushed to the city gate and said, "Father, Hesuguan Road may be gone."

"The Ming army used artillery to hurl more than ten heads, all of them the heads of tribal chiefs!"

Xiao Zhongxuan frowned deeply: "Did you recognize which one?"

The young officer, named Xiao Anjie, said, "I didn't see it with my own eyes; I only heard it from others."

"But some military officers recognized Gao Biao, Da Pan, Li Jing and others as the heads of the chieftains of various ethnic groups."

“Eriduo has already suffered a crushing defeat. How can Jinzhou City possibly hold out? Father, you should make plans as soon as possible!”

Xiao Zhongxuan was Xiao Zhonggong's younger brother, and their mother was a princess of the Liao Dynasty.

When Emperor Tianzuo fled, his last armed force was led by Xiao Zhonggong.

Xiao Zhongxuan stayed behind to protect his mother, but was captured by the Jin soldiers.

Later, Xiao Zhonggong was captured by the Jin army along with Emperor Tianzuo.

Both brothers were forced to surrender to the Jin dynasty and showed extreme loyalty to the Jin state.

A few years ago, Xiao Zhonggong fought a fierce battle with the Ming army and was killed on the battlefield.

As a member of the Liao royal family, he suffered the loss of his country and family due to the Jin dynasty.

Were they truly loyal to the Jin dynasty?

Xiao Zhongxuan said, "Your grandmother, aunt, mother... they are all in the capital. If you and I, father and son, rebel, your family will surely die!"

Xiao Anjie countered, "Does Father think the Jin Kingdom can still win?"

"If we resist stubbornly and the Ming army marches on Shangjing, what will become of my grandmother and mother?"

Xiao Zhongxuan was extremely conflicted and felt caught in a dilemma.

Xiao Zhongxuan grew up amidst hardship and displacement, and spent several years as a prisoner of war with his mother.

Only after their elder brother was also captured by the Jurchens did the two brothers surrender to the Jurchens.

They were extremely cautious, fearing that the slightest mistake would give the Jin state a handle to punish them.

To put it simply, whether Xiao Zhongxuan was a civil official or a military general, he never dared to embezzle a single penny in the Jin Kingdom.

When he governed the local area, he did not allow minor officials to embezzle.

Moreover, he never sought the limelight; when he strolled through the state capital he governed, the people didn't even recognize him.

Historically, he served as the prefect of Shuozhou and Luzhou, and the Han people in both places built shrines in his honor.

How could someone who is so cautious that he wouldn't even dare to embezzle dare to easily raise an army in rebellion?

"Father, do you really intend to be loyal to the Jin Dynasty?" Xiao Anjie questioned. "Have you forgotten how the Jin people slaughtered the Khitan people?"

"Have you forgotten how the Emperor of Liao died a humiliating death after being imprisoned by the Jin army?"

"And how were the Liao dynasty's empresses and princesses divided up and humiliated by the Jurchen barbarians?"

Xiao Zhongxuan's tone became increasingly calm: "We must not act rashly. Even if we are to surrender to the Ming, it should not be us who take the lead. As long as we do not lead the rebellion, our families will be safer."

"If someone rebels, we can simply go with the flow."

"You must remember, even if you surrender to the Ming Dynasty, you must never make it public."

“We are all people of a fallen kingdom, and we are all relatives of the Liao dynasty. No matter which country we live in, we are always suspected by others.”

“Once convicted, one will surely die and one’s entire clan will be exterminated.”

"If you and your son serve as officials in the Ming Dynasty in the future, you must not embezzle or accept bribes, you must not disobey orders, you must not get involved in factional struggles, and you must not harass the people."

"We'll do whatever the emperor tells us to do."

"We were loyal subjects in the Jin Dynasty, and we were also loyal subjects in the Ming Dynasty."

"As long as one is loyal to the emperor and loves the people, one can gain the emperor's trust."

Chapter 3433 Only a Fool Wouldn't Surrender

Xiao Anjie exclaimed with delight, "Father has agreed to surrender to the Ming?"

Xiao Zhongxuan nodded: "Go with the flow."

Just then, a messenger rushed in: "General Xiao, the southern bandits are about to attack the mountain stronghold. You must immediately lead the Khitan troops to its rescue!"

Xiao Zhongxuan was a very good liar, and his brother even died fighting for the Jin Dynasty.

Among the generals of various ethnic groups in Jinzhou, Wanyan Talan surprisingly trusted Xiao Zhongxuan the most.

The three mountain strongholds in the south were all subjected to fierce artillery fire.

This morning, along with the severed head, thirty cannons were also brought in.

In addition to the twenty cannons in Li Jinyi's possession, a total of fifty cannons were to be dragged to attack the mountain.

Under constant bombardment, the morale of the Jin soldiers stationed at the mountain stronghold plummeted.

Jin cavalry emerged from the city from the east and west, attempting to attack and harass the Ming army's flanks.

But with several hollow wagon formations in place, the Jin cavalry, after suffering hundreds of casualties, dared not continue their attack.

Xiao Zhongxuan led his troops to the mountain stronghold, where the Jurchen general stationed there obeyed his every command.

However, they're just going through the motions!

Xiao Zhongxuan had already informed his officers halfway there with his troops.

Preserving our strength should be the priority; we should not engage in a deadly battle with the Ming army attacking the mountain.

When it's time to fire arrows, fire arrows; when it's time to flee, flee.

The fighting lasted from mid-morning to afternoon, and all three mountain strongholds fell.

Xiao Zhongxuan led the "remnants of his army" back to the city and immediately went to apologize.

He knelt before Wanyan Talan and said, "This humble general is guilty and has no face to see the marshal. Please execute this humble general to deter the army."

Wanyan Talan, of course, would not execute him. He even helped him up, saying, "General Xiao, please rise. You are not wrong; it is the Southern bandits who are too powerful."

Xiao Zhongxuan said, "It's because many heads were thrown in this morning, and the army is spreading rumors that Hesuguan City has fallen."

"Now, the soldiers under my command all feel that our army is bound to be defeated, so their morale is low and they dare not fight."

"Otherwise, even if the Southern bandits had powerful firearms, they wouldn't have been able to take down the mountain stronghold in half a day."

These words were all true, and Wanyan Talan had no choice but to believe them, because the morale of the Jurchen soldiers was also low.

After occupying the southern mountain stronghold, the Ming army attacked the eastern mountain stronghold the next day and quickly captured the remaining two strongholds.

At this point, all of the Jin army's outer defenses around Jinzhou had fallen.

Another day passed, and the team was still missing one player.

They also set up cannons on the mountains to the east and south, firing indiscriminately into the city to intimidate people.

Every day, a large number of cavalrymen were dispatched to shoot surrender-persuasion messages into the city.

The letter promised that as long as one betrayed the Jin and surrendered to the Ming, all past mistakes would be forgiven, and the Ming army would only kill Jurchen people!

They bombarded the area while simultaneously trying to persuade the insurgents to surrender.

After several days, the Han, Xi, and Khitan peoples were all getting restless.

On the seventh day of the siege on three sides, the Ming army began its formal attack on the city.

Under the cover of artillery fire, siege engines pushed forward one after another.

Just as the Ming army was scaling the city wall, the Xi general Xiao Shunxian suddenly launched an attack, leading his troops to charge towards the nearby Jurchen soldiers.

As chaos erupted here, another Han general took action.

Wang Bolong, the commander of the Han army, remained loyal to the Jin dynasty, but his soldiers did not share that sentiment.

Especially for mid- to low-ranking officers, who can't be loyal to them?

Why insist on sticking to just one thing?

Wang Bolong enjoyed high-ranking official positions, a life of luxury, and the opportunity to marry a woman from a wealthy family in Bohai.

These mid- to low-ranking officers didn't enjoy the same generous treatment as Wang Bolong!

Chapter 3434 Too Late to Shout Surrender

"You've rebelled! How dare you disobey military orders!"

Wang Bolong roared at the approaching Han soldiers.

An officer shouted, "Han sons, stop risking your lives for the Jin dogs!"

"The Han emperor is about to rule the world! From now on, everyone will serve as his soldiers! Kill them!"

A few days ago, Han Chinese cavalry in Liaodong suffered heavy losses after colliding with a wagon formation.

They were already terrified of the Ming army, and with the city about to fall, why would they be willing to die with Wang Bolong?

The Han soldiers turned their spears and charged towards their commander.

Wang Bolong was utterly horrified and immediately cried out, "I also want to surrender to the Ming! Quickly, follow me and pledge your loyalty to the Han Emperor..."

"kill!"

Suddenly, several of Wang Bolong's personal guards sprang up and attacked him from behind.

Wang Bolong, clad in heavy armor, was only wounded. He tried to say something more but was tackled to the ground by his personal guards, who then slit his throat.

Soon, a guard raised his head and said, "I have killed the Jin general Wang Bolong. Quickly follow me to capture the city gate and claim the reward!"

On the south side of the city, Xiao Zhongxuan indeed followed the trend and ordered, "Khitan soldiers, listen to my command, lay down your weapons and open the city gates."

.....

When Gao Yongchang rebelled in Liaodong, he declared himself emperor and established his own state, and a large number of Liao generals surrendered.

When Gao Yongchang was attacked by the Jin Dynasty, his generals surrendered to the Jin one after another, and even captured his wife and children to claim rewards.

Later, when the Jin army marched towards Yanjing, Liao generals along the way either fled or simply surrendered to the Jin state with their troops.

Now, fortunes have turned, and the same drama is playing out again.

At this moment, Wanyan Talan, who was guarding Jinzhou, finally understood the despair of Emperor Tianzuo and Gao Yongchang.

These bastards have all switched sides; they're the kind of people who side with whoever wins!

Wanyan Talan even had to be grateful to Xiao Zhongxuan, because while the other rebels were attacking the Jurchen soldiers, only Xiao Zhongxuan's Khitan soldiers did not come to attack.

Otherwise, the Jurchen soldiers would have had difficulty even escaping Jinzhou City.

"Go east!"

Wanyan Xiyin shouted.

The east gate slowly opened, and Wanyan Talan and his son Wanyan Shengdu led the Jurchen cavalry out.

They led their troops out of the east gate, but dared not continue eastward, for there were Ming troops in the mountain stronghold ahead.

They galloped north along the river for two miles, only to see Ming cavalry pursuing them on the opposite bank.

Then the sound of hooves rang out behind them, as Ming cavalry led Xi cavalry in pursuit.

"Let Gao Jianu lead the troops to cover the rear!"