I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 401 A dead Taoist friend is not dead but a poor Taoist

...

The outer city of Jin's capital, Shangjing, was breached, and the inner city gates were easily smashed by the Song army.

This made all the Jurchens in the city realize that they were now fish on the chopping block of the Song army, and whether they were killed or tortured depended entirely on the Song army's mood.

The cold autumn wind swirled with withered yellow leaves, crashing against the inner city walls of the Jin capital like countless tiny cries.

The distinctive smell of gunpowder lingered in the broken inner city gate, its odor carried by the wind, sending chills down the spines of those within the city.

The loud crash of the Song army smashing open the city gate still echoed through the streets and alleys. The city gate, which used to be crowded with people, was now deserted, with not even a single guard standing in it. The Song army could enter the inner city with ease.

Clearly, the soldiers and civilians in the inner city had completely given up resistance.

The other side of the inner city became a living hell.

Many parts of the inner city were set on fire, and the fire destroyed thousands of houses in the inner city.

These fires were definitely not set by the Song army, but by the defeated Jin soldiers and lawless individuals within the city.

The people fled through the streets and alleys like headless flies. Some helped the elderly run from the east to the west of the city, while others carried children and squeezed from the west to the east. The muddy roads were littered with discarded shoes, grain sacks, and cries.

When they met, both sides were filled with the same bewilderment—neither knew where was safe, and the person who was leading the way just a moment ago might be cut down by the fleeing soldiers' swords the next second.

Children clutching their fathers' clothes were separated in the crowd, their cries drowned out by the roar of the fire; women turned back to look for their husbands, only to catch a glimpse of their blood-stained sleeves in the crowd; and desperate families, cornered by the fire, tied ropes to charred beams and hanged themselves, their toes dangling in mid-air, swaying gently in the wind.

Taking advantage of the chaos, the defeated soldiers and the city's villains looted and plundered with impunity. Some disguised themselves as Song soldiers, kicked open the vermilion gates of mansions, looted their gold and silver treasures, and even raped their women; others directly brandished knives and threatened to rob princes and ministers of their grain and cloth, and even committed murder and arson before leaving.

The nobles and officials had long lost their former dignity. They hastily took off their brocade robes, put on coarse cloth and short clothes, and even smeared mud on their faces. They trembled among the refugees, afraid of being recognized by the fleeing soldiers. The women of noble families were in an even worse situation. They dared not leave any makeup on, grabbed mud from the roadside and smeared it on their faces. They tore their silks and satins into rags and let their hair fall loosely over their shoulders. They looked no different from begging women. Even so, they still had to be wary of the malicious gazes of the fleeing soldiers.

Many people also fled from the east and west gates of the inner city to the outer city, hoping to find a chance to escape Jin Shangjing. They helped the elderly and children to escape, but many old people and children were crushed or trampled to death.

The corpses of the elderly and infants, crushed and trampled to death, piled up on both sides of the city gate. Rain washed the mud from their faces, revealing pale, lifeless features. Those who managed to squeeze through the side gates reached the riverbank only to find that the outer city was also shrouded in panic. The river was murky, and the banks were filled with other fleeing people. Their cries of despair drifted away on the river breeze, mingling with the sounds of fire from the inner city, becoming the most mournful elegy of the capital, unbearable to hear.

Fortunately, the people in the city managed to stay awake until dawn.

These reports gradually reached the palace. After learning of this, Wanyan Wugumai dispatched his personal guards to suppress the fleeing soldiers and wicked people.

At the same time, Wanyan Wuqimai sent people to post a notice saying: "The two countries have made peace. Anyone who sets fires, kills, plunders or steals property inside or outside the capital has been ordered by the Emperor to be killed by soldiers. We hope that the residents can live in peace. Anyone who disobeys will be beheaded."

Then, Wanyan Wuqimai issued a proclamation saying, "The two countries have made peace. The previously distributed weapons and armor are hereby ordered to be handed over to the court immediately by their holders..."

Subsequently, Wanyan Wuqimai arranged for his personal guards to patrol the inner city, and the chaos was effectively brought under control.

Around noon, Wanyan Zongpan and Tudan Ye returned and reported Song Jiang and the others' intentions to Wanyan Wuqimai.

When Song Jiang and his men saw that Wanyan Wugumai and the pro-war Jin ministers had left the city, the pro-peace Jin ministers felt relieved and looked at Wanyan Wugumai with anticipation.

Wanyan Wuqimai knew that these pro-peace Jin ministers hoped he could lead the pro-war Jin ministers out of the city; in other words, they hoped he and the pro-war Jin ministers would not delay their surrender of the city to save their lives.

To be honest, if given a choice, Wanyan Wuqimai would certainly not have been willing to hand over the vast Jin capital to the Song army. This city carried too much glory, splendor and hope for the Jin state. Every brick and stone was engraved with the hardships of the Jin people in expanding their territory, and every inch of land was soaked with the blood and sweat of the Jin people.

But now the situation in the city is like a candle in the wind. The Song army has breached the outer city and the inner city is in such chaos that the situation is out of control. If we do not compromise, I'm afraid all the people in the city will be nothing but bones in a grave.

Wanyan Wuqimai gripped the armrests of the dragon throne tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force. The dragon patterns carved on the armrests hurt his palms, but this was nothing compared to the surging pain and resentment in his heart.

"Father, the situation is critical. The Song army is powerful. If we do not comply with the conditions of the Song Dynasty, I fear the people in the city will suffer a terrible fate."

Wanyan Zongpan advised.

Wanyan Zongjun also advised, "The situation is beyond saving now, and we must not seek our own deaths."

Other pro-peace factions also urged Wanyan Wuqi to buy.

As for the pro-war faction?
Firstly, the leaders of the pro-war faction, such as Wanyan Zonghan, Wanyan Zongwang, and Wanyan Zonggan, had already been detained by the Song army. The remaining Wanyan Xiyin and others, in terms of status and position among the Jin people, were far inferior to Wanyan Zongpan and Wanyan Zongjun, so their voices were naturally not as loud as those of the pro-peace faction.

Secondly, the current situation no longer allows the pro-war faction to run rampant, nor can it allow them to choose the Song Dynasty to seek their own demise. They don't even dare to talk about fighting the Song Dynasty anymore. After all, everyone can see that if they still want to fight the Song army at this time, it would be like a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

Therefore, the pro-peace faction holds an absolute advantage in this negotiation.

Even Wanyan Wugumai had no choice but to listen to the pro-peace faction.

In the end, in order to escape the danger of the city being raided as soon as possible, and for the sake of the lives of everyone in the capital city of Jin, Wanyan Wuqimai finally mustered up the courage to go out of the city to see Song Jiang in person.

Therefore, Wanyan Wugumai even issued a special edict to explain the situation to the people in the city:
"The Great Song Dynasty firmly desires to order me to go to the outskirts of the city. For the sake of the nation and its people, it is my duty to go personally. I hereby instruct all of you to understand my intentions, to remain calm and avoid causing any disturbance. To prevent any mishaps, I hereby issue this edict, so that all may be informed..."

Wanyan Wuqimai did not leave the city alone; he also brought out the pro-war faction members in the city, such as Wanyan Xiyin, as requested by Song Jiang and his men.

Some might ask, how did Song Jiang and his men know which of the Jin ministers in the city were in favor of war and which were in favor of peace?
That's simple; it was the list given to Song Jiang and his group by the pro-peace ministers of the Jin state.

In the eyes of the pro-peace ministers of the Jin Dynasty, the pro-war ministers who betrayed the Jin Dynasty were not traitors, but rather a routine political maneuver—being merciful to political enemies is being cruel to oneself, a belief ingrained in their bones after years of immersion in officialdom.

Moreover, they were all too aware of their current predicament: the Jin army's defenses were in complete retreat, and the Song army had not only besieged the city but had also captured the outer city of the Jin capital and even smashed the inner city gates. If they did not find a way out quickly, when the city fell, neither the pro-war faction's street fighting and martyrdom nor the Song Dynasty's purge would bring them a good end.

Given the current situation, the best option is to surrender obediently.

This would at least save their lives. If they performed well, they might even be able to continue enjoying wealth and luxury in the Song Dynasty.

At least that's how the pro-peace ministers of the Jin Dynasty viewed it.

The pro-war ministers of the Jin state were precisely the best pledge of allegiance they could offer.

Besides, these people usually oppose them in the court, oppose their advocacy of peace, and prevent them from secretly communicating with the Song army. If it weren't for them, how could the Song army have reached this place?
Now, by using the Song army to eliminate them, we can both eliminate the constraints from the court and demonstrate our loyalty to the Song Dynasty—a win-win situation.

As for national interests?

It's utterly insignificant when it comes to saving your life.

Do you know what "better to die than to die" means?
Do you know what the saying "Husbands and wives are like birds in the same forest; when disaster strikes, they fly away separately" means?
If even husband and wife are like this, what about political enemies?

Moreover, those who play politics are always the most unscrupulous.

In short, when faced with survival, so-called camaraderie and national righteousness became meaningless. As long as they could survive and retain their official positions and wealth in the new court, they didn't care even if the pro-war faction of the Jin Dynasty suffered bloodshed and the Jin's defenses collapsed due to the loss of their commander. After all, for politicians, the death of the enemy is always the best guarantee of their own safety.

Even more so, they even mixed personal grudges into the list.

Some officials were not originally part of the pro-war faction, but were forcibly categorized as "pro-war" simply because they had impeached someone in the pro-peace faction or blocked their path when dividing up the spoils. They were eager to use the Song army to eliminate all their thorns in their side.

—Anyway, the city has fallen and the country is about to perish. As long as they can survive, under the rule of the Song Dynasty, without these political enemies to hinder them, they will be able to more easily preserve their wealth and status.

As for "national righteousness" and "the safety of compatriots," they are far less important than personal power in their eyes, and they don't care if it causes more innocent people to be involved in the killing.

Even worse, when the list was delivered to Song Jiang, the pro-peace faction specifically suggested that the Song army could first target the people on the list to intimidate the Jin people and persuade them to surrender the city.

To put it bluntly, this political struggle has never been about right or wrong, but rather a life-or-death struggle. The so-called "pro-peace" is nothing more than a fig leaf for them to protect themselves at all costs.

Wanyan Wuqimai, accompanied by the pro-war ministers of the Jin capital, left the inner city and arrived at the outer city amidst the anticipation of the soldiers and civilians.

When Wanyan Wuqimai and his men looked around, they saw that the outer city walls were covered with Song soldiers, a dark mass of them, their numbers like ants.

Moreover, after working day and night, the Song army built a large number of artillery racks, fences and other defensive works on the four walls of the city in just a few days, further strengthening its military control over the Jin capital.

The slow path leading from the outer city gate to the city tower had also been completely cut off by the Song army in order to prevent civilians from climbing the city.

Today, because Wanyan Wuqimai and the pro-war ministers in the capital of Jin went out of the city, He Guan specially ordered all the Shenji Army to go up the city wall, set up Li Lin cannons and Hudu cannons, strengthen the defense, and closely monitor the movements inside the city.

When Wanyan Wuqimai and his entourage arrived at the outer city gate, the gate was slowly opened.

Outside the city, there stood 50,000 Song cavalrymen standing guard on both sides.

With so many cavalrymen, even if Wanyan Wuqimai and his men wanted to escape, they certainly couldn't, especially since all their horses had been confiscated by the Song army.

Under the watchful eyes of the Song army, Wanyan Wuqimai and his men had no choice but to obediently go to the Song army's camp and walk right into their trap.

To Wanyan Wuqimai and his men's dismay, Song Jiang did not even meet with them.

Not to mention Song Jiang, even Zhang Shuye, Wu Yong, and others did not see them.

—When Wanyan Wuqimai and his men arrived at the Song army camp, they were imprisoned by the Song army. The Song army also erected a dense barbed wire fence around their tents and assigned heavy troops to guard them.

At the same time, Song Jiang sent orders to Wanyan Zongpan, Wanyan Zongjun, and other pro-peace ministers of the Jin state who remained in the city, instructing them to send all the horses, cattle, sheep, camels, mules, and donkeys out of the city.

All the troublemakers were captured and imprisoned by the Song army. As for the remaining pro-peace ministers of the Jin state, how dare they disobey the orders of Song Jiang and others?

Soon, Wanyan Zongpan issued an edict under the guise of leaving the city to guard: all livestock in the Jin capital, regardless of size, must be handed over to the court within three days, and then the court will hand them over to the Song Dynasty; those who conceal them will be punished with military law for their entire families; those who report them will be rewarded with three thousand strings of cash.

As a result, in the capital city of Jin, not only were horses, cattle, sheep, camels, mules, and donkeys captured, but even chickens, ducks, geese, cats, and dogs were seized by the Jin people and sent to the Song army.

Even the horses belonging to high-ranking officials, noble families, wealthy households, and rich merchants, as well as the horses ridden by the Jin army themselves, were handed over.

From then on, the people in the city completely lost any possibility of escaping from the Jin capital.

Immediately afterwards, Song Jiang sent orders to Wanyan Zongpan, Wanyan Zongjun, and other pro-peace ministers of the Jin state who remained in the city, instructing them to send all the soldiers and armor in the city out.

Song Jiang specifically ordered that no soldier or civilian in the city could keep even a kitchen knife. If anyone was found to have kept weapons or armor, not only would their entire family be executed, but their neighbors would also be implicated.

Song Jiang's reasoning to the pro-peace ministers of the Jin state was that these soldiers and armored soldiers were hidden among the people, which was not conducive to the restoration of order in the Jin capital, nor was it conducive to their surrender of the city.

Song Jiang demanded that the Jin soldiers collect all these weapons and armor and hand them over to him.

The Jurchens, who had already submitted, complied without a word.

As a result, all kinds of weapons and armor were piled up like mountains.

The Jurchens organized 100,000 laborers to transport the weapons by cart and by porters. It took several days to deliver all the weapons to the Song army camp.

At this point, the Jin people in the capital city were completely at their mercy, unable to escape...

……

(End of this chapter)