Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

"Report! The puppet Wujiang South Commander Liang Huafeng has landed at Jiangyin with 30,000 troops!" "Report! Liang Huafeng's troops have reached Wujin!" "Report! Liang Huafeng's troops have arrived at Danyang!" One military report after another reached the camp of General Wei Guo, the Prince of Qin, Zhuo Siji, who was overjoyed and exclaimed, "The fish have entered the net!" In fact, Liang Huafeng's army had been under his control ever since they left Chongming Island.

Liang Huafeng was a skilled strategist. He chose to enter the Grand Canal via Caijing Dam from Jiangyin, then proceed along the canal through Wujin and Danyang, approaching Zhenjiang Prefecture's capital, Dantu. His troops were transported by warships, allowing for a swift evacuation should the situation change. To lure the enemy deeper, Zhuo Siji deliberately failed to occupy Danyang and other areas, allowing the Wu army unimpeded passage. Now, the time to reap the rewards had finally arrived!
"Order Henan Admiral Cai Lu to immediately cross the Grand Canal and seize Lücheng Town, then block the Grand Canal with sunken ships and intercept Wu's army along the north bank of the Grand Canal." "Order Jizhou General Xuan Youcai and Tongzhou General Zhang Wei to lead troops to intercept Wu's army along the south bank of the Grand Canal." "Order Huiningchi General Baitalazhi and Chizhou Assistant General Xu Shihua to lead troops to seize Danyang." "Order Xiangyang General Yang Laijia and Xuzhou General Liu Chaofu to lead troops to besiege Dantu City." "The remaining generals will follow me to ambush the Liang bandits in Dantu Town." What a fine Prince Qin! He issued five military orders in one go, each one a deadly move.

"My son, you must hold Danyang. If our army makes a bad run, you'll have a way out," Liang Huafeng instructed his second son, Liang Nai. After arriving in Danyang, he left his son with 5,000 elite troops to guard the city as a backup plan.

"Father, rest assured, with your son here, Danyang will definitely not be lost!" Liang Nai patted his chest loudly.

Liang Huafeng gave his son some more instructions before leading 25,000 elite troops to Dantu. Coincidentally, just one day after he left, General Baitalazhi of Weihui Ningchi and Xu Shihua, the military commander of Chizhou, were ordered by the Prince of Qin to lead 20,000 troops to capture Danyang.

"Send the order to concentrate the cannons on the south city and bombard it first. Once the cannon fire stops, each unit will take turns attacking the city with 3,000 men. Danyang must be captured within two days!" Baitalazhi ordered sternly.

"General, do not worry. This is just a small town. It can be taken in a day or two." Seeing that the garrison in Danyang was small, Xu Shihua, the military commander of Chizhou, smiled disdainfully.

"Don't be careless. The city is small but fortified, and it may not be easy to take," Baitalaji said with a stern face, though he himself felt that conquering Danyang was not a difficult task. Since surrendering to the Wei, they had repeatedly achieved military merits, and everyone, from top to bottom, had become somewhat complacent.

The siege was surprisingly difficult! Liang Nai, a son of a military family, divided his troops into two groups, taking turns defending the city and resting, and the defense was carried out in an orderly manner. Although Danyang was a small city, it was extremely well-fortified. No matter how hard Baitala Zhi and Xu Shihua tried, they could not take it in a short time.

Although Danyang was not captured, the other garrison forces made good progress. Cai Lu's troops in Henan easily captured Lücheng Town, which had few defenders, and then blocked the canal with sunken ships and deployed defenses along the north bank of the canal; Xuan Youcai, the general of Jizhou, and Zhang Wei, the general of Tongzhou, also arrived in time to deploy defenses on the south bank of the canal.

Inside the Suzhou City Governor's Office, Jiangsu Governor Han Shiqi anxiously awaited news. He had a close relationship with Qu Jinmei, the Grand Canal Transport Commissioner. After Qu Jinmei surrendered to the Wei Kingdom, he wrote to summon Han Shiqi, and Han Shiqi secretly surrendered to the Wei Kingdom as well, intending to offer Suzhou as a gift. However, the city was guarded by the troops of Zhang Dazhi, the General of Suzhou and Songjiang, and the Jiangnan Admiral Liang Huafeng's army was stationed on Chongming Island near Suzhou. He dared not make any rash moves.

"Governor, the commander has already sent people to find out. Liang Huafeng has taken all the elite troops from Chongming, Suzhou, and Songjiang to Zhenjiang to reinforce Liu Zhiyuan. Zhang Dazhi only has 5,000 men left," Liu Feng, the trusted confidant and military officer of the governor's garrison, rushed in to report excitedly.

Having finally received the news he wanted, Han Shiqi showed a look of joy.

"Prosecutor, let's get started," Liu Feng said anxiously.

“Zhang Dazhi is brave and skilled in battle. Even with only five thousand men, our four thousand garrison troops are no match for him,” Han Shiqi said after a moment of contemplation. “Send someone to invite Zhang Dazhi to the governor’s office for a meeting. Tell him that the garrison’s navy has attacked Changshu and that I need to discuss this with him.”

At this time, Nagat, the Prince of Tucheng of Wei, was leading a navy of over 20,000 men on the Yangtze River, frequently harassing the banks of Suzhou, Songjiang, and Changshu. Therefore, upon hearing that the Wei navy was harassing Changshu, Zhang Dazhi, the General of Suzhou and Songjiang, had no doubts and went to the governor's office with only a dozen or so personal guards. As soon as he entered the front courtyard, he was surrounded by the governor's banners, and squads of archers drew their bows and aimed their arrows at him.

“Zhang Canrong, the governor summoned me for a meeting. What is the meaning of this?” Zhang Dazhi shouted in alarm to Liu Feng, who was leading the group.

Liu Feng ignored him and coldly uttered a single word: "Shoot!" Instantly, a hail of arrows rained down, turning Zhang Dazhi and a dozen of his personal guards into pincushions.

After killing Zhang Dazhi, Han Shiqi immediately ordered Liu Feng to lead troops to break through the leaderless Susong Town and take control of Suzhou City; Ma Tengsheng, the Susong Inspector who had long been in cahoots with Han Shiqi, also led the officials of Songjiang Prefecture to respond.

"General, there are about three thousand guards stationed in Dantu Town," Liang Huafeng said, relieved upon hearing the scout's report. Dantu Town was not far from Dantu City, so it would be unusual if there were no guards there. The fact that there were only three thousand guards meant the guards hadn't expected him to reinforce Dantu from the canal, making it a good opportunity to catch them off guard.

"Land!" Admiral Liang decisively led his troops ashore. The defending soldiers were few in number and fled in disarray after a brief resistance. Wu's army pursued relentlessly, gradually penetrating deeper into the land. A seasoned general often has an intuition for danger; as the pursuit continued, Liang Huafeng suddenly sensed the danger and ordered a halt to the pursuit.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!" Countless shells fell into the formation, causing Wu soldiers to fall and their horses to tumble. Immediately afterwards, countless guards poured out from all directions.

"Quick! Get back to the ship!" Liang Huafeng gritted her teeth and fought desperately to break through the encirclement. She finally managed to escape back to the ship, but more than 10,000 of the soldiers who landed were annihilated by the Wei army.

"Return by the original route! Back to Chongming!" Liang Huafeng knew that he was no longer able to reinforce Zhenjiang, so he ordered a return trip.

The retreat was not easy. The Wei army's naval warships pursued along the canal, killing countless Wu soldiers. In particular, Wang Dacheng, the naval battalion adjutant, was at the forefront, getting close to Liang Huafeng's flagship.

What a brave Admiral Liang! He remained fearless in the face of danger and shot Wang Dacheng dead with an arrow from his warship. Only after Wang Dacheng's death did the Imperial Guards slow their pursuit.

Upon hearing the cannon fire from Dantu Town, Liu Zhiyuan knew that reinforcements had arrived. He led his troops out of Dantu City in an attempt to support Liang Huafeng. However, Yang Laijia, the deputy commander of the garrison and general of Xiangyang, and Liu Chaofu, the general of Xuzhou, had already dug trenches and planted fences around the city, making it impossible for him to break out no matter what he tried.

What worried him even more was that the cannon fire from Dantu Town came and went quickly, and the experienced Liu Zhiyuan immediately realized that the reinforcements were probably in grave danger.

Sure enough, two days later, the rear guard sent an envoy with Liang Huafeng's abandoned general's flag on the battlefield and a message from Prince Qin, Zhuosiji: "Surrender now and you may live; do not surrender now and you will be executed!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Zhiyuan sighed deeply and led Liu Bangzhu, Niyaha, Chen Wenda, and other generals, along with 20,000 garrison troops, out of the city to surrender.

Chosiji did not make things difficult for him, but dismissed him from office and reduced him to commoner status, while his generals, including his two sons, were retained in their original positions.

After fleeing to Danyang and reuniting with his son Liang Nai, Liang Huafeng had only about ten thousand men left. Having barely escaped the entanglement of General Baitalazhi of the Wei Huiningchi, they made their way to Lücheng Town along the Grand Canal, only to find the section of the canal blocked by sunken ships. Forced to abandon ship and go ashore, they encountered the troops of Cai Lu, the Henan Provincial Commander of the Wei, who were deployed along the canal. Cai Lu, well-rested and with over twenty thousand elite troops, was no match for Liang Huafeng's small and exhausted force. They were quickly routed.

Liang Huafeng, barely managing to break through the encirclement under the desperate protection of his son Liang Nai, fled to Wuxi with over two thousand defeated soldiers. Just as they were about to catch their breath, General Wei Zhenguo, Halachi (the third son of Liao King Sumur), arrived with two thousand Mongol cavalry. A fierce slaughter ensued! A scene of utter devastation!
After escaping from the jaws of death, Liang Huafeng and his son Liang Nai were left with only about twenty personal guards. They finally reached the walls of Suzhou, only to find fishing rods and fishing flags prominently displayed on the city walls.

"This...this...this..." Liang Huafeng reined in her warhorse, utterly terrified and at a loss for words.

The city gates slowly opened, and Lieutenant General Liu Feng led over a thousand men out.

Upon seeing him, Liang Huafeng immediately guessed what had happened and angrily shouted, "Has Han Shiqi betrayed us? Where is Zhang Dazhi?"

Liu Feng sneered, "Zhang Dazhi is stubborn and incorrigible; he has already been shot dead. This humble general is here on the orders of Governor Han to arrest the Admiral. Admiral, please do not be offended!" He then announced, "Take him down!"

The armored soldiers rushed forward and captured Liang Huafeng, Liang Nai and his son, along with more than twenty personal guards.

Upon hearing that Liang Huafeng had been captured, Zhuo Siji resolved to make an example of him and ordered the Liang father and son to be beheaded and their heads displayed to the public. (End of Chapter)