You, a tyrannical ruler, roam the heavens; you cannot understand my joy.

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After Wanyan Zongbi ordered the attack, the Jin army attacked like a pack of wolves, simultaneously rushing towards the Song army's long defensive line.

Upstream at Laoguanzui, the Soviet Union and Germany deployed their limited forces at several key passes.

Every single one is crucial!

Every place is short of troops!

The beachhead, where most of the fence had been destroyed the day before and was barely blocked with sandbags and vehicle wreckage, became the site of the fiercest fighting.

boom!

Click!

Large numbers of Jin soldiers carried massive iron-clad logs, shouting slogans as they repeatedly rammed the remaining palisades.

With each impact, sandbags shattered, sending wood chips flying everywhere.

Behind the palisade, Song army commander Liu Heng, his face covered in blood, roared, "Hold on! Use your bodies to push through!"

He and more than ten soldiers stood shoulder to shoulder, desperately holding up the swaying fence and sandbag wall.

A spear suddenly pierced through the gap, penetrating the abdomen of a young soldier.

The soldier screamed, but gripped the spear shaft tightly with his other hand, shouting to his comrades, "Cut...cut him!"

With tears in his eyes, his companion swung his sword, severing the spear shaft, and then pierced the Jin soldier.

Boom!

A moment later, a loud crash was heard, and a section of the fence finally collapsed completely, filling the air with smoke and dust.

"Charge in!"

A Jin general brandished his sword and roared, and the Jin soldiers behind him charged in like a flood!

Liu Heng's eyes widened in fury as he brandished his iron whip and charged forward: "My men, fight to the death!"

The narrow gap was instantly filled with the bodies of soldiers from both sides, the sounds of swords piercing flesh, bones shattering, and dying screams mingling together.

The ground was quickly covered with thick blood plasma, making it so slippery that it was difficult to stand.

.....

Left wing, slope.

The slope here is gentle, which is not conducive to defense, but it can be used to outflank and threaten the main position.

Sude deployed fifty swordsmen and shieldmen and twenty archers here.

The Jin army discovered this weakness, and a hundred-man team waded through the water to try to climb it.

"Fire! Aim for the water and the slope below!"

The archer captain's voice trembled. Arrows fell sparsely, and several Jin soldiers were hit and fell into the water, but more howled and rushed up the slope.

"Shield formation! Push it down!"

"Swordsman and shield bearer Du Bo Wang Can roared!" The soldiers formed a tight shield wall and pushed forward with all their might.

A fierce Jin soldier suddenly leaped up, ignoring the spear thrusting at him, and threw himself onto the shield. The huge impact caused the shield formation to pause.

Another Jin soldier nearby seized the opportunity to throw a flying axe, which "thudded" into Wang Can's shoulder blade.

Wang Can roared in pain as his shield slipped from his grasp, creating an instant gap in the formation, which was then swarmed into by the Jin soldiers.

"Fix it! We'll hold this line even if it kills us!"

The deputy took over command, and the battle instantly descended into a brutal melee.

Stabbed figures continued to tumble down the slope, crashing into the river and splashing up scarlet water.

.....

Right wing, rocky beach.

The area is filled with jagged rocks, making it difficult for large ships to approach, but small boats and swimmers can land sporadically.

Su De only released thirty men here, using the scattered rocks as cover to block their advance.

A dozen Jin soldiers, with short blades in their mouths, silently swam closer and suddenly leaped out from the cracks in the rocks.

"There are some here too!" the Song army sentry exclaimed.

The battle erupted instantly upon close combat.

Fighting amidst the rocks involves no formation whatsoever; it all comes down to individual bravery.

Li Yong, a platoon leader in the Song army, was fighting a Jin soldier wielding a curved sword in a narrow crevice.

The golden soldier's blade was swift, tearing a bloody gash in his ribs.

Instead of retreating, Li Yong advanced, roaring as he rammed his head into the opponent's face. Taking advantage of the opponent's dizziness, he cleaved the opponent's collarbone with an axe.

He staggered backward, leaning against the slippery stones to catch his breath. He saw two more Jin soldiers climbing up over the corpses of their comrades. A flash of despair crossed his eyes, which quickly turned into ruthlessness. He pulled a tinderbox from his pocket. Next to it were piles of miscellaneous items soaked in fish oil as a precaution...

......

Behind, temporary arrow towers and supply points.

On the two simple arrow towers, the archers' fingers were already worn raw and bleeding, and their quivers were almost empty.

They mechanically drew their bows and released their arrows, aiming at any moving golden figure below.

Below the tower was the passageway for transferring wounded soldiers and supplies, now crowded with wailing wounded and exhausted laborers.

"Fire! Watch out for fire!" the lookout suddenly shouted a warning.

A cannonball came whistling through the air, but missed the arrow tower and instead struck the crowded passageway below it.

boom!

Debris, limbs, and stretchers flew everywhere, clearing a small area in an instant, leaving behind a bloody crater and a series of screams that abruptly ceased.

The archer on the arrow tower witnessed this scene, his eyes wide with rage, yet his hand remained even more unsteady as he tried to shoot.

A young archer, looking at his empty quiver and then at the surging Jin soldiers below, abruptly threw down his bow, drew his short sword, and shouted to his companion, "Out of arrows! I'm going down!"

Without waiting for a reply, he slid down the rope and rushed toward the nearest gap.

......

Flanking the command post.

This is the barrier of the earthen fortification where the Soviet and German central forces are located, guarded by the last three hundred relatively intact reserve soldiers.

A detachment of elite Jin troops charged straight in under the cover of a hail of arrows, clearly intending to decapitate the enemy.

"Form a circular formation!"

The elite forces of both sides clashed.

The veterans silently parried and slashed, their efficiency terrifyingly high, but the Jin soldiers were more numerous and their coordination was skillful.

As Song soldiers fell one after another, the circular formation gradually shrank.

One of the Jin soldiers, a particularly fierce warrior, killed two men and headed straight for the veteran.

"Grass!"

A wounded soldier got up from the side and used his body to block the shot.

The spear pierced through the wounded soldier's chest, who clung tightly to the shaft. The veteran seized the opportunity and severed Meng An's arm with a single stroke.

......

In the shallow waters, several small Song Dynasty boats, either destroyed or stranded, lay scattered about, forming a floating fortress.

The remaining sailors and some of the retreating infantry clung to the ship's hull, putting up a final stand.

The Jin army's small boats surrounded them and boarded them.

The space on the ship was smaller, and the fighting was even more bloody and brutal. A Song Dynasty sailor had his arm cut off and fell into the water, but he used his remaining hand to cling tightly to the side of a small Jin Dynasty boat.

No matter how the Jin soldiers on the ship poked and stabbed, they wouldn't let go, until another Song soldier threw a fire pot that set the small boat on fire...

The entire Laoguanzui defense line was like a raft about to fall apart in a storm, leaking and crumbling everywhere.

Sude stood on the earthen mound, taking in the hellish scene below.

Everywhere you look, there are battle lines struggling to hold on, on the verge of collapse.

Directly ahead on the main beachhead, the core barrier made of wooden palisades and sandbags had been breached by the Jin army with their flesh and blood and giant logs, leaving several horrifying gaps.

He witnessed with his own eyes how Captain Liu Heng was pierced through the body by several spears at the breach. The burly man did not fall down immediately. Instead, he opened his eyes wide with anger and used his last strength to throw the chipped knife in his hand at the enemy group before collapsing to the ground and being overwhelmed by the surging Jin soldiers.

The gentle slope along the river on the left flank has already been largely lost.

Previously, you could see veteran Wang Can leading his swordsmen and shieldmen in a defensive formation.

At this moment, Wang Can's familiar mountain-patterned armor was being trampled under the feet of a Jin army sergeant, surrounded by the corpses of Song soldiers in red coats and Jin soldiers in mixed-colored clothes lying on the ground.

Scattered resistance still erupted in various parts of the slope, but it was like a spark about to be extinguished.

Thick smoke is billowing from the rocky mudflats on the right flank, and flames are dancing in the morning mist.

Not a single one of Squad Leader Li Yong and his men returned; only the flames soaring into the sky and the faint sounds of explosions mixed with screams and cries could be heard.

The two simple arrow towers behind, used for lookout and support, were teetering on the verge of collapse after bearing too much fire from cannons and arrows.

The arrows on the tower have long since become sparse, with only a few stray arrows occasionally seen shooting out at an angle. The wooden planks of the tower are covered with arrow clusters, making it look like two giant hedgehogs from a distance.

Closer still, the last layer of the circular formation protecting this earthen command post was also on the verge of collapse.

The silent veteran who had followed him for many years had just fallen into a pool of blood while trying to block a wave of elite Jin soldiers rushing towards the command post, and the gap in the circular formation was rapidly widening.

On the distant riverbank, beside the wreckage of several stranded or burned warships, sporadic fighting and flames still rose, as the naval brothers continued their final resistance.

Su De's eyes were bloodshot, and his fingernails dug deep into his palms, drawing blood.

If the imperial court could send 30,000 reinforcements—no, even just 10,000 elite troops!

What's up with this?

If they had enough troops, the Jin army, though numerous, would only suffer crushing defeats against the formidable Yangtze River!

But the reality is that the few thousand soldiers under his command are the last remaining blood and bones that the Jianghuai defense line can squeeze out!

That's it.

Reinforcements are no longer possible.

Since we cannot defend this territory, then I, Su De, will live and die with this old stork's beak and with these loyal and brave men under my command!

He gripped the worn-out, chipped sword in his hand tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force. His gaze, cold as ice, was fixed on the ever-approaching tide of Jin soldiers below.

The only way to repay the country's kindness is to die!

Boom!Boom!Boom!Boom!

Just then!

The steady sound of war drums pierced through all the fighting on the battlefield, coming from behind the defensive line and from the depths of the reeds!

Su De was shocked and could hardly believe his ears!

The sound of the drums...

It was neither the war drums of the Jin army nor the standard drumbeats of their own army, but rather...

He turned his head sharply and looked in the direction of the sound. He saw that the reeds in the distance parted and fishing boats, which looked simple but were extremely sturdy, sped out like arrows!

The ship was packed with people!

They wore coarse cloth jackets and carried harpoons, steel knives, and even heavy oars and clubs!

But on those faces, etched with wrinkles by the river wind and the sun, the eyes were as fierce as those of jackals fighting for their lives!

At the very front of this fleet, a woman in red stood prominently at the bow of a slightly larger fishing boat!

She stood tall and straight, her hair tied up with a red scarf, wielding huge drumsticks in both hands, vigorously beating a massive war drum in front of her!

The sound of the drums comes from this!

"It's Madam Liang!"

"She's Marshal Han's wife!"

Beside him, a sharp-eyed guard shouted out in a hoarse voice!

Su De's pupils contracted sharply, and his heart felt as if it had been struck by a heavy hammer!

Liang Hongyu!

How did she end up here?

And you brought so many fishermen with you?

Yes!

Marshal Han!

It must be Marshal Han!

He had already anticipated the lack of troops and secretly sent his wife to contact fishermen and martial arts masters along the river. At this critical moment, they broke out and attacked!

An indescribable surge of emotion, mixed with immense shock and the ecstasy of escaping death, instantly overwhelmed his previous despair and grief!

"Reinforcements! It's our reinforcements! Madam Liang has brought reinforcements!"

Sud roared with all his might, his voice booming like thunder throughout the crumbling defensive line:

"Brothers! Follow me and kill! Drive the Jin dogs down the river!"

"kill!"

The Song army remnants, who were on the verge of collapse, were now as if they had been given a stimulant, and new strength seemed to surge from their exhausted bodies!

Upon seeing that familiar red figure and hearing the stirring war drums, the instinct for survival and the fury of revenge intertwined and erupted, unleashing a deafening roar. They actually withstood the pressure from the Jin army and launched a counterattack!

At the same time, Liang Hongyu's fleet of fishermen, like tigers descending a mountain, crashed into the Jin army's flank and rear formation of ships and small landing forces!

These fishermen, who risk their lives on the river year-round, are excellent swimmers and move as nimbly as finless porpoises.

They didn't care about any formation; three or five small boats surrounded a slightly larger Jin army ship, taking advantage of their small size and agility to quickly get close.

"Stab the bottom of his boat!"

A dark-skinned old fisherman roared, his harpoon precisely piercing the waterline of a small Jin army boat, stirring it violently, and the river water surged in instantly.

The Jin soldiers on the boat panicked, and another young fisherman seized the opportunity to throw out a grappling hook, which hooked tightly onto the side of the boat and pulled hard, causing the small boat to capsize.

"Throw the fishing net!"

Elsewhere, several fishermen worked together to cast out several huge fishing nets, which swarmed a small group of Jin soldiers who had just landed on the mudflats.

The Jin soldiers were entangled in the fishing nets, their movements were hindered, and they were instantly torn apart by the fishermen and Song army remnants who rushed up with harpoons and steel knives.

The folk martial arts masters were even more valiant. Relying on their personal martial arts skills, they would jump onto the Jin army's ships or beaches, and wherever their blades flashed, Jin soldiers would fall.

A martial arts master wielding a staff, his staff flashing, swept several Jin soldiers into the river.

The other wielder, a short-bladed man, moved like a ghost, specializing in attacking the lower body with ruthless methods.

As Liang Hongyu beat the drum, she roared, "Fellow villagers, kill the Jin dogs and protect our homeland!"

"Counterattack!"

"A full-scale counterattack!"

Seizing the opportunity, Su De pointed his sword forward and led the soldiers who were still able to fight, in coordination with the reinforcements brought by Liang Hongyu, to launch a fierce counterattack against the Jin army on the beach!

The Jin army's offensive, which had been surging like a tidal wave just moments before, froze instantly under this series of sudden attacks, and then collapsed at an even faster pace!

"Oh no! We've been ambushed!"

"Behind us! Behind us are nothing but barbarian ships!"

"Retreat immediately! Retreat to the north bank!"

Panic spread like a plague among the Jin army.

The Jin soldiers, who had already landed on the beach and were engaged in fierce fighting with the remnants of the Song army, suddenly discovered that a large number of fierce enemies had appeared on their flanks and rear.

These enemies are cunning and ruthless, playing by their own rules. They attack relentlessly with fishing nets, grappling hooks, harpoons, and even burning oars.

Even more deadly was that the Song army, which was originally on the verge of collapse, suddenly burst forth with astonishing fighting power as if it had been revived in the last moments of its life, and launched a counterattack!

"Hold on! No retreat! Form formation! Form formation!"

A Jin soldier shouted hoarsely, trying to regain his footing.

However, a harpoon shot from an unknown direction pierced his throat with pinpoint accuracy. He clutched his neck, his eyes wide with disbelief, and collapsed to the ground.