You have truly caused me great suffering!

Datong, as the center of Yunzhou, was once one of the five capitals of the Liao Dynasty—the Western Capital.

It served as the military and political center of western Liaoning, with a well-developed city defense system.

The city is 24 li in circumference and over 3 zhang high, complete with watchtowers, battlements, and arrow towers.

The city has four gates: the east gate is called "Welcoming Spring", the south gate is called "Chaoyang", the west gate is called "Dingxi" and the north gate is called "Gongji". Each of the four gates has a barbican.

The moat outside the city is about 15 meters wide and about 5 meters deep.

If the Jurchens hadn't been bad at defending cities and hadn't been unfamiliar with improved gunpowder, and hadn't taken the initiative to come out of the city to fight, it really wouldn't have been easy to take them down.

Han Shizhong counted the number of people and found that apart from the servants and slaves brought in by the Jurchen Tartars, there were less than a hundred original residents of Datong in the city.

“Not a hundred people are left. This city has been massacred.” Han Shizhong scratched his head and asked, “How many people were here before the Jurchen Tartars came?”

Li Xiaozhong blurted out, "There are more than 60,000 people in Datong City. If you include all the surrounding counties and villages, there should be more than 100,000 people."

Han Shizhong clicked his tongue in astonishment: "Were all the people outside slaughtered too?"

"almost"

The ruthlessness of the Jurchen Tartars is self-evident; these statistics speak for themselves.

Moreover, Yunzhou was not an isolated case; they fought and killed wherever they went.
Li Xiaozhong said, "However, it also has some connection with us."

"Ok?"

"When the commander first made a deal with Wanyan Balisu, who was left behind in this area, he spent money to buy people. He then went crazy and kidnapped people to sell, plundering them with great care."

Han Shizhong had also heard about this. His camp included both Khitan and Jurchen troops, who fought extremely bravely and relentlessly against the Jurchen Tartars of the Jin Dynasty.

"The military commander's purchase of men left the prefectures of Yunnei vulnerable. Wanyan Zonghan couldn't order his men to plunder everywhere, so he could only transport grain and fight us. That's why he couldn't hold out for more than two days." Li Xiaozhong had clearly planned these things countless times, and he spoke with great confidence and expertise.

Wanyan Balisu plundered all the prefectures in Yunzhong too thoroughly.

The Jurchens' traditional skill was to plunder wherever they went. He wiped out their population, making it impossible for them to sustain their war effort, effectively helping the Dingnan Army implement a scorched-earth policy.

Now that Balisu has been separated to the west, it's hard to say whether it's a blessing or a curse for him.

If he were with Zong Han, he would probably have been beheaded by now.

Now, even if the entire Jurchen tribe wanted to kill him, no one could succeed.

Unless the clouds are breached again, spanning the entire territory of the Liao Dynasty, Wanyan Balisu cannot be found.

Buying people from the Jurchens cost Chen Shao dearly, almost causing his financial schemes to collapse.

Once you get through it, the benefits will come one after another.

Especially this time in Yunzhong, he was able to win over people's hearts so quickly because many of his men were either bought by Chen Shao or were refugees from Yunzhong.

These people followed Chen Shao and fought their way back to the various prefectures of Yunnei, which meant that Chen Shao had many local native followers.

It is naturally very beneficial to get things done.
-
The beginning of the new year.

Everywhere in Taiyuan, east of the Yellow River, lanterns and decorations were hung to celebrate the victory at the front.

They don't care which side you're loyal to.

All we know is that the Jurchen Tartars could no longer advance south.

Our home was saved.

The Hedong region, especially the Wutai Mountain and Taiyuan area, is very close to the various prefectures in Yunnei, so they were well aware of what the Jurchens were doing on the other side of the mountain.

Just hearing about it sends chills down my spine. If the Tartars were to attack, that would be terrible!

Chen Shao had been feasting with the wealthy gentry of Hedong, but today was an exception.

In his tent, he and Xu Jin devised a plan to allow the refugees from various prefectures in Yunnei who had been bought by Chen Shao or had fled to return to their hometowns.

After a year and a half of sheltering them, many people must have settled down and are unwilling to leave.

After all, life in Dingnan Army Fortress was very comfortable and pleasant, and some people were reluctant to return to this place that was always at risk of being attacked by the Jurchen Tartars.

However, some are willing to return, finding it hard to leave their homeland.

“What I mean is, try to get as many people back as possible,” Xu Jin said. “The various prefectures in Yunnei were almost wiped out by the Tartars. Now that we have occupied most of the cities, we have nothing to fear from their return.”

Chen Shao nodded, saying that bringing back the refugees from the various prefectures of Yunnei was the best solution.

This vast land cannot remain uninhabited forever.

In fact, during the brief period when the Song Dynasty redeemed Yunzhou, it also relocated people to fill the void.

However, right from the start, the Jin army broke the alliance and recaptured Yunzhou.

From that time onward, this place would only return to the embrace of the Han Dynasty in the Central Plains once again, when Xu Da launched his Northern Expedition.

Chen Shao breathed a sigh of relief and said, "In that case, let's improve the treatment for those returning home. There are large tracts of land vacant in the various prefectures of Yunnei. We can remeasure the land and encourage cultivation. Other members of the Dingnan Army who want to come to Yunnei will also receive the same preferential treatment!"

"It's best not to delay next year's spring planting."

Xu Jin said, "We can emulate the military-agricultural system of fortified villages, planting first and then distributing the land, or distributing it the following year!"

There are large tracts of land here; it would be such a waste to leave them empty.

Chen Shao was confident that he could hold off the Jurchen Tartars and prevent them from entering and causing damage.

Even if you don't come to hit me, I'll still hit you!
He had already begun to actively spy on Weizhou long ago.

To deal with the Jurchens of today, once we start, we can't stop. We must fight to the death, and the war will only end when one side falls.

Otherwise, they would definitely seek revenge.

The areas now occupied by the Jurchens truly have potential.

The Youyan and Liaodong regions had soldiers, grain, warhorses, and iron, and their technology was not lagging behind.

Moreover, the road to the south is wide open, and historically, few who occupied this area failed to achieve great things.

Xu Jin stood up and walked over to Chen Shao, along with several staff officers and clerks, who were gathered around the map, discussing the details of the population migration.

The Jurchen Tartars were so brutal that almost none of the people who fled from Yunzhong had any relatives left.

The Dingnan Army provided them with excellent accommodations, and the area felt safe. Most of these people, who had been ravaged by the Tartars, probably wanted to stay far away from the Tartars and live a peaceful life.

To get them to return to their homeland, we must offer them very high welfare benefits.

"We can mobilize more of their respected members to persuade their children to return to their hometowns."

"If all else fails, we can spread the word and entice the people of Hedong to move north."

Would the Song Dynasty be willing to accept this?

"who cares."

Everyone chimed in, talking non-stop.

Just then, a guard suddenly walked in and said that someone from the imperial court had arrived.

The crowd exchanged bewildered glances. Although they weren't particularly afraid of the imperial court, it was still somewhat awkward when the person in question suddenly arrived while they were speaking ill of or scheming against others.

Chen Shao straightened his clothes and sat in the tent to wait.

Soon, the Song envoy arrived and entered the main tent.

Chen Shao glanced at him and saw that the man who had come was a middle-aged scholar with many wrinkles on his face and white hair at his temples. He did not recognize him.

The newcomer first looked around Chen Shao's tent and found it to be very simple. Apart from the wooden plan, map, and sand table, there was only a suit of armor hanging there.

Inside the tent were two beds, not even separated by a curtain, and everything was clean and tidy, without any perfume or fragrance.

He nodded to himself. This Chen Shao was also from the Western Army, but he did not have the extravagant style of the Western Army generals.

I heard that when Liu Yanqing was conquering Liao, whenever he set up camp, his personal guards would carry expensive and exquisite crossbeams.

The central command tent was decorated like a villa.

When he came in, the people were still gathered around the table, but they all turned to look at him.

I don't know what they were discussing, but judging from the atmosphere of them gathering together to discuss things, they seemed like a team that gets things done.

"Greetings, Commander." The middle-aged man clasped his hands in greeting.

"No need to be so polite. And who are you?"

The middle-aged man said, "Your humble servant is Chen Guoting."

Chen Shao nodded and said to the person next to him, "This is the newly appointed Censor-in-Chief. He was demoted to Huangzhou for offending Cai Jing, and Li Gang recommended him back."

Chen Guoting stared at Chen Shao in astonishment.

Chen Shao smiled but didn't say anything. He was fully aware of any developments in the imperial court.

When Wanyan Zongwang marched south, the people of Bianliang were filled with fear and dread, all afraid of war.

At this moment, Li Gang stepped forward. Regardless of whether the emperor liked him or not, it was a good thing to have someone willing to fight.

Li Gang was thus appointed as the commander of the four walls of the capital, in charge of the defense of the capital region, and he recommended a large number of officials to return to the capital.

Among them were Zong Ze, Zhang Suo, Fu Liang, and Chen Guoting, all of whom were very talented and resolutely advocated for war.

"I have been entrusted by Li Boji to come and request the General to lead troops eastward to kill the rebels and defend the Emperor!"

Chen Shao said, "When Yuwen Shutong came here before, I made it very clear that it wasn't that I was unwilling to advance eastward, but rather that I didn't have the necessary conditions."

"Of the two Jurchen armies, the western army probably had a larger record when it destroyed the Liao dynasty. Wanyan Zonghan had countless elite soldiers and fierce generals under his command, and after I defeated them, he thought about revenge day and night."

"If I leave, he will probably come back to fight again immediately. At that time, the soldiers on the front line will lose their commander and how will they defend against the enemy?"

Chen Guoting frequently served as an envoy to the Liao and Xia kingdoms. He was eloquent and was carefully selected by Li Gang to persuade Chen Shao.

Upon hearing this, he said, "With the military commander's divine might and victorious advance, the Jurchens are terrified. If Wanyan Zonghan knew that the military commander was advancing eastward, he would certainly not dare to attack Yunzhong Prefecture again, and would definitely go to support the eastern army."

A burst of snickers rang out from inside the tent, but Chen Shao and the others remained silent.

He said sincerely, "I have already spoken with Yuwen Shutong before. I am willing to advance eastward, but I am worried about whether my troops will have enough food after I leave."

"I came here from Dingnan Army, trekking thousands of miles to fight for the country. It has been half a year now! In these six months, I have only seen the imperial grain transport team come once, and it only transported 100,000 shi of grain."

"Moreover, not a single treacherous official in the court has been eliminated. How can you expect me to proceed eastward with peace of mind?"

Xu Jin, standing to the side with a cold face, said, "I'm afraid that once our commander leaves, the imperial army will attack from the rear."

Chen Guoting frowned and said, "This is outrageous! How dare you slander the imperial court like this!"

"What about Zhang Jue?" Xu Jin asked without the slightest fear.

The moment Zhang Jue uttered those two words, the atmosphere became strange. Even Chen Guoting, known for his eloquence, was speechless.

Ultimately, he was too concerned about his reputation and couldn't possibly reveal the reason why Emperor Huizong (Zhao Ji) shifted the blame.

Because it's just too shameless.

"We can only fool ourselves, not anyone else. We urge the court to show some sincerity and send some military rations to help us defend Yunzhong. Our Dingnan Army, with only one unit of land, has already relieved enough pressure on Bianliang by holding off half of the Jurchen army."

"Furthermore, we must quickly execute the treacherous and wicked, so as not to discourage those of us who are loyal to the emperor and love our country, and who are willing to die for our country."

Chen Guoting sighed inwardly.

He didn't want to kill the treacherous officials?

The reason he was demoted to Huangzhou was because after the Fang La Rebellion, he submitted a memorial stating that Cai Jing, Wang Fu, Zhu Mian, and others could not escape blame and should be punished according to the law.

That's why he was demoted. Originally, they were going to send him to Haizhou, but he was a legitimate old party scholar-official with someone protecting him, so he refused to leave once he got to Huangzhou.

Since they had already been driven out of Bianliang, Cai Jing couldn't be bothered to argue with them.

In the eyes of both the old and new parties, once they left the capital and Bianliang, they were nothing.

You might as well write a couple of poems of demotion; from now on, the affairs of the court and the nation will be none of your concern.

Although Chen Shao could not do without the Song Dynasty, he did not dare to completely trust it. However, he still sincerely said to Chen Guoting: "Although the court has suffered repeated defeats, its general strategy is correct. Recruit righteous troops in Hebei and appoint more virtuous officials. Sooner or later, we will be able to defeat the Tartars."

"I hope that all of you in the court will join forces with our Dingnan Army, work together with one heart and one mind, and annihilate the Jurchen Tartars. Now the northern border has been completely ravaged by them. If we can accomplish this, then the Central Plains will be free from external threats for the next hundred years!"

There was absolutely nothing wrong with what he said, but Chen Guoting's face fell.

That's the logic, but Bianliang is really on the verge of collapse. A large number of people in the court are now advocating peace and want to negotiate with Wanyan Zongwang, hoping to get some money and people in exchange for letting them leave on their own.

The emperor, however, remained hesitant and indecisive. Moreover, even at this point, he refused to punish his close advisors.

The best course of action now is for Chen Shao to lead his troops eastward. He has just defeated Wanyan Zonghan, and his army's morale is at its peak.

Moreover, the court was indeed very wary of him and hoped that he would take the initiative to come to court. Even giving him a high position as a Privy Councilor would be better than letting him command troops outside.

Throughout the many years since the founding of the Song Dynasty, Tong Guan commanded the largest army, having once controlled all military forces in the Northwest, Southwest, and Hedong regions.

The second one is probably Chen Shao.

Although Tong Guan commanded hundreds of thousands of troops, no one thought he would rebel, because he was a eunuch and all his power came from the emperor.

As long as the emperor gives an order, not many people will continue to follow him.

Chen Shao was different; his subordinates only knew of Chen Shao, not the emperor.

Even his most important subordinates were mostly people from the Western Xia, and were not originally from the Song Dynasty.

He had his own wealth, food, and countless warhorses.

He actually had the qualifications to rival the imperial court long ago, but he never declared himself king or emperor.

As long as he is willing to serve as an official in Bianliang, even if it is an exceptional promotion or a departure from the traditional emphasis on civil officials over military ones, everyone would be happy to see it.

If the Northwest Dingnan Army can be brought back to the imperial court, the Jurchen Tartars will no longer be a threat, and the Song Dynasty may very well achieve an unprecedented victory over the northern barbarians.

Li Gang used to be most wary of Chen Shao, and would often submit memorials to the court requesting that it be on guard against Chen Shao.

Now, they are also strongly advocating for Chen Shao to come to the capital, and even guaranteeing that as long as he is willing to come to the capital, he will be appointed as the front-line commander of this resistance against the Jin.

It doesn't matter if we give up all power.

Chen Shao saw Chen Guoting out, shook his hand, and said, "Now is a time of national crisis. Please go back and be sure to pass on my message. Tell him that my heart is open and honest, and I ask the officials in the court not to make unfounded suspicions and waste their energy."

"Let's all work together and focus our efforts on the Jurchens. The Jurchens are a small tribe, while the Khitans have already been destroyed. This is a golden opportunity. If we don't seize it, we will suffer the consequences. Let's not waste this opportunity."

Chen Guoting knew he should do his best to persuade Chen Shao to go to the capital, and he also knew that what Chen Shao said was most likely just sophistry, but he just felt he couldn't refute it.

Deep down, there was even a tiny hope that all of this would be true.

Even after returning, Chen Guoting still faced the threat of Wanyan Zongwang's massive army, but he couldn't help but imagine the wonderful future after defeating the Tartars.

He had a good impression of Chen Shao, but after leaving the military camp, the cold wind made Chen Guoting more sober.

He recalled the rumors that Tong Guan and Tan Zhen had both spoken highly of Chen Shao, considering him a grateful, loyal, and reliable person.

Later, they all wished they could kill Chen Shao with their own hands.

Was he faking it or not?

Chen Guoting sighed, completely baffled.

He did not leave immediately, but instead turned to his next target. He had another mission: to get Wang Bing to join the battle as soon as possible.
-
After seeing Chen Guoting off, Chen Shao plopped down and told his men to continue the discussion.

He closed his eyes, lay back in his chair, and began to contemplate the situation in Bianliang.

On the eastern front, there have been both victories and defeats, but overall, the losses outweigh the victories.

Yao Gu of the Western Army is leading troops to defend the emperor, but apart from that, there are not many other capable armies.

Those poorly trained soldiers, whose armor was as thin as paper and who couldn't even draw their bows, were basically sent to their deaths if they went to Bianliang to defend the emperor.

When the Jurchen Tartars charged, Chen Shao had no idea how they were going to stop them.

Therefore, what he said was from the bottom of his heart, telling them not to trust the loyalist troops.

Chen Shao had witnessed firsthand how incompetent the Song Dynasty's local militia were. When they quelled Fang La's rebellion, the role of those local militia was nothing more than adding fuel to the fire.

Seeing Chen Shao meditating with his eyes closed, Xu Jin suddenly panicked and quickly left the table to come to Chen Shao's side.

"General, don't let these people's words disturb your mind."

Chen Shao nodded.

Even if Chen Shao himself had no intention of going, the Dingnan Army would have done everything in its power to stop him.

Today, Chen Shao carries the interests of countless people on his shoulders, and every step he takes is of paramount importance.

At this moment, Chen Shao felt very confused. It was impossible for him to lead his troops eastward because he really did not trust the Song Dynasty.

Zhang Jue's case is just one example; the Song Dynasty's attitude towards military generals has always been quite disheartening.

Moreover, he wasn't even one of their own.

However, if they didn't go, Wanyan Zongwang's forces would suffer heavy losses in Hebei.

Although Chen Shao had focused most of his energy on the battle in Datong Prefecture recently, he had also been reading the military reports from Bianliang.

If the Western Route Army and the Dingnan Army were evenly matched, then Wanyan Zongwang on the Eastern Route Army would have virtually no chance of winning.

Not to mention Wanyan Zongwang, even Guo Yaoshi was someone they couldn't withstand.

Chen Shao snapped out of his reverie and approached the group to continue discussing the relocation of the people.

In any case, it's always right to take care of your own little corner of the world first.
-
The battles fought by the Eastern Route Army were indeed far more brutal than the military reports Chen Shao had read.

After Gao Qiu painstakingly trained an army, he fell seriously ill and never recovered.

He's still lying on the tatami mat and can't get up at all.

However, Zhao Ji was reluctant to send this army into battle, but instead kept it by his side to protect his safety.

If necessary, he planned to break out of the encirclement with the emperor; this was Zhao Ji's idea.

As a result, the new army of the capital garrison, which had cost a lot of money and was trained by Gao Qiu and others, had not even been on the battlefield since the start of the Song-Jin war.

Although Li Gang petitioned the court several times to temporarily hand over command of the new army to him.

However, Emperor Huizong was determined not to budge and insisted that this force stay to take care of him.

In order to get Zhao Ji to release this army, Li Gang submitted several memorials directly to Zhao Ji, stating how terrifying the Jurchen Tartars were, which greatly frightened Zhao Ji.

These past few days, Zhao Ji has been feeling rather unwell. He wakes up very early every day, often touching his neck and lamenting that his once fine head is still intact.

These guys used to party every night, with banquets and dances until dawn.

Even Zhao Ji (Emperor Huizong) can't care about these things anymore. Apart from going to Shenxiao Palace with his servants, including Liang Shicheng, to pray for his well-being every day, he hides in Genyue and doesn't come out.

Although he appointed Li Gang as the commander of the four walls of the capital, he still disliked the man.

Because if Li Gang saw him, he would either force the Emperor to lead the army in person, or force the Emperor to quickly pass the throne to the Crown Prince so that the Crown Prince could lead the army in his place.

Early in the morning, he had just finished his breakfast when he heard that people from the Imperial Household Department were rushing over.

Needless to say, there's another urgent military situation.

Zhao Ji suddenly sighed, feeling agitated and not wanting to listen to any of the military intelligence.

He stood up abruptly, flicked his sleeves, and left.

Not hearing it saves you the trouble!
-
In another military camp in Taiyuan Prefecture, Hedong.

The Huanqing Army, fully armored and armed, stood guard with their hands on their swords, surrounding the area tightly.

Some of his subordinates and staff wanted to come and pay their respects to the top general of Hedong and Hebei, but they were all politely turned away.

Wang Bing took Chen Guoting's arrival very seriously and welcomed him in with great courtesy.

This time, Chen Guoting learned his lesson and went straight to the point, not giving Wang Bing a chance to refuse.

Wang Bing was fully aware of the military reports from Bianliang, and he knew that the situation was extremely critical.

"I hope the Grand Commandant will send reinforcements soon!" Chen Guoting said emotionally, clasping his hands in a fist salute.

Wang Bing sighed. He knew that after this bow, he would have to leave.

But once I left, Hedong would belong to Chen Shao, and apart from Chen Shao's Lingwu Army, there would be no other decent force there.

It should be noted that Wang Bing, having also spent decades navigating the treacherous waters of officialdom, had long since seen through many things.

Chen Guoting's words and actions indicate that he had received a death order when he arrived: if Wang Bing did not send troops eastward, he would be punished in the future.

Unlike Chen Shao, Wang Bing lacked Chen Shao's confidence and had no choice but to compromise.

He led his still-immature new army, along with the Huanqing Army, whose morale was very low, to the east to defend the emperor.

Seeing that he didn't speak, Chen Guoting assumed that Wang Bing, like Chen Shao, was also preparing to disobey the imperial decree.

Just as he was about to continue speaking, Wang Bing nodded and said, "Since it is the Emperor's will, I will set off eastward in a few days."

Chen Guoting was overjoyed and said, "Grand Commandant Wang is a man of great integrity!"

Wang Bing smiled bitterly to himself. Leaving Hedong was not difficult, but returning would be.

While I was here, Chen Shao was somewhat wary of me, but after I left, he could more recklessly devour Hedong.

He has already occupied all the states within the Yunnei region, and the northern bulwark is in his hands.

If we regain control of Hedong, we won't need to station all our troops there. As long as we have Taiyuan, who can possibly subdue us?

To put it bluntly, in Wang Bing's view, Chen Shao posed a greater threat than the Jurchen Tartars.

He really wanted to tell Chen Guoting, but he considered that even if he did, they wouldn't be able to do anything, and it might even anger Chen Shao.

Wang Bing remained silent, not uttering a single word.

With the Song Dynasty now in a precarious state, it is absolutely crucial not to offend Chen Shao. (End of Chapter)