xymnovel Chapter 131 Defeat and the Slaughter of Yi Lijin
Chapter 131 Defeat and the Slaughter of Yi Lijin
The 18th day of the ninth month in the third year of the Qingtai era (1264), Jia Chen year.
Inside the palace, the emperor remained silent, the prime ministers were speechless, and only the sound of the eunuch reading the military report could be heard, recounting the battle three days prior.
"The Khitan army, with 3,000 light cavalry, attacked without armor, but was once again repelled by our army. Yang Guangyuan and An Yanqi led the infantry of the left and right flanks in pursuit. Seeing their weakness, the soldiers fought to chase them. When they reached Fenqu, the northern barbarians crossed the river and left."
"Our army crossed the river to pursue them, but the Khitan ambush troops rose from the northeast, cutting our infantry in two."
Zhang Jingda's main camp was backed by the western mountains, and the central army camp was set up at Longquan Temple, about fifteen li from the Fen River.
Yang Guangyuan's left flank, numbering over ten thousand, pursued relentlessly until they reached the riverbank. Some soldiers even chased the Khitan army across the Fen River, making it impossible for them to maintain their formation.
The Khitan army seized this opportunity to launch an ambush.
The one who led the ambush was Yilijin Dilugu of the Northern Court. His father was Qia Shen, the eldest son of Nuolisi. Nuolisi was Abaoji's great-grandfather and was revered as Suzu.
Yelü Deguang had to address Dilugu as his great-uncle, which was an incredibly high seniority!
"Where are you going, Southern soldiers!"
The mournful sound of horns rang out from all directions, and endless Khitan troops surged out from their hiding places along the river bend, leaping out from any direction, from the southeast to the northwest.
The government troops chasing the fleeing Khitan cavalry were immediately bewildered, unsure which side to defend on.
Yang Guangyuan shouted "Oh no!" and turned his horse around to flee: "We've been ambushed! Retreat immediately!"
In an instant, the positions were reversed, and the pursuer became the pursued.
"Bohai High-Level Model Worker is here!"
Gao Mohan, also known as Gao Song, came from the Gao clan of Bohai, and his wife was a princess of Goryeo. He possessed extraordinary strength and was a brave and skilled warrior, exactly the formidable general that Yelü Deguang had described. (Note 1)
His three thousand elite cavalrymen, like wolves and tigers, charged straight at Yang Guangyuan's troops. The Left Wing Army, which was in a hurry to retreat, was scattered and fell into chaos.
Gao Mohan drew his bow and shot two arrows, killing two men. He then threw the bow to the ground and charged into the disorganized government troops.
He didn't use long spears or large lances; instead, he drew out an iron mace and swung it around like the wind.
The mace is a weapon that is usually three feet long, with an oak or walnut handle and a front end that is only the size of a duck egg. Don't underestimate this solid iron ball. Those with slightly weak strength simply cannot swing it. A single blow can cause serious injuries such as broken tendons and bones.
Gao Mohan's iron mace had a handle five feet long, with the tip the size of a melon, covered with long nails and short spikes, making it far more formidable than ordinary weapons. Legend has it that during the Three Kingdoms period, the barbarian king of the Five Streams, Shamoke, used this very weapon.
With one blow, the government soldier who was hit staggered back a few steps and immediately fell to the ground.
The wound was caused by a bent and deformed armor plate, with a deep indentation, and the body inside had countless broken bones.
Gao Mohan picked up his weapon and casually swung it left and right, with two muffled thuds, hitting the heads of two government soldiers who were unable to dodge.
The helmet-protected head was hit hard, and blood and foam came out of the eyes, ears, mouth, nose and all other orifices. The head was even smashed into the neck cavity, and the neck was immediately shortened.
The two collapsed to the ground, and Gao Mohan, without giving them a second glance, began searching for his next prey.
He set his sights on Yang Guangyuan, who was on the run.
Yang Guangyuan turned his head to look at the battle situation, and when his eyes met Gao Mohan's, he lost all his previous arrogance and boasted about making merit. He spurred his horse and rode away, with his personal guards following closely behind. The left flank army collapsed.
……
"Those who crossed the river to the north were mostly killed by the Khitans."
The eunuch's tone as he read the battle report gradually lowered, but then, remembering that he should not be disrespectful before the emperor, he quickly raised his voice again. The abrupt shift in tone was extremely discordant.
From the emperor down to the ministers, they all remained silent, as if they were clay or wooden sculptures, and no one dared to utter a word of criticism.
"The Khitan troops pressed forward like a mountain, and the royal army suffered a great defeat."
Unable to withstand Gao Mohan's fierce attack, Yang Guangyuan's troops suffered a severe blow, with heavy casualties in a short period of time.
The Khitan army pressed their advantage and attacked the central army. Zhang Jingda led his troops in a desperate defense against the massive cavalry charge, shouting, "Where are Gao Xingzhou and Fu Yanqing? Why aren't they coming to our aid?!"
In the imperial court, Li Congke composed himself and asked the same question: "Where are the cavalry?"
The military report quickly read this passage: "Gao Xingzhou and Fu Yanqing were cut off by the ambush and could not help each other."
The cavalry advanced along the south bank and saw that the Khitan ambush was underway on the north bank. They quickly reorganized their troops to go to the rescue.
Unexpectedly, another army emerged from the northwest, and its leading general lost an eye.
It is common knowledge that any one-eyed general is a ruthless person.
Zhao Siwen, a native of Lulong, was quick-witted and exceptionally strong. He served in the staff of Liu Rengong, the commander of Yan, and was a former colleague of Gao Xingzhou in the Youzhou army.
Li Cunxu attacked Liu Shouguang, but Zhao Siwen led a detachment to resist him. He was hit in the eye by a stray arrow, and his clothes were torn and stained with blood, but he continued to fight until he was captured by Zhou Dewei.
Over time, he gained increasing trust and was appointed Prefect of Pingzhou, concurrently serving as Commander-in-Chief of Ping, Ying, and Ji Prefectures.
The Jin and Liang dynasties fought for control of six prefectures in Hebei, with Li Cunxu emerging victorious after a hard-fought battle. Meanwhile, the northern defenses were breached, and Yelü Abaoji seized the opportunity to conquer Yan territory. It was Yelü Deguang who led the army to capture Pingzhou.
Zhao Siwen had no choice but to surrender to the Khitan and then attacked Bohai. He was appointed as the commander of the Han army's militia. He fought bravely and captured Fuyu City. He was wounded several times, and Yelü Abaoji personally prepared medicine for him.
However, Zhao Siwen's most famous battle was at the West Tower in Shangjing.
When Shulü Ping uttered those fatal words to him in front of a group of Khitan noble leaders, "Please convey my message to the late emperor," Zhao Siwen immediately retorted.
"No one is closer to the Queen than she is; if she goes on to do so, then I will follow."
Even the ruthless Shulu Ping was speechless, finding himself in a predicament where he could not justify his own words.
She didn't want to go to see her deceased husband with Zhao Siwen, so she had no choice but to cut off her own arm!
In today's battle, Zhao Siwen ambushed the mountains of Lanzhou and Xianzhou, and suddenly led his troops out to block the path of the Central Plains cavalry!
Gao Xingzhou suddenly encountered a formidable enemy. His cavalry was exhausted from a long battle, and the enemy was also proficient in the tactics of Youzhou cavalry, making it difficult for him to break away for the time being.
"Let's retreat. If we don't leave now, once it gets dark, we'll find it even harder to maintain morale."
Fu Yanqing flicked away the blood and flesh stained with the four-sided iron mace: "It's too late to turn it around."
Gao Xingzhou was well aware that there was no chance of turning the tide in this battle, but he still couldn't get over the fact that he had abandoned his commander Zhang Jingda and allowed the Khitans to massacre the infantry.
"If we preserve our cavalry, we can still fight another battle. If we lose them all here, we'll have no chance to fight back."
Fu Yanqing pointed out an even more critical point: "The Khitan horses are fast. If they capture the main camp first, the entire army will be wiped out!"
Gao Xingzhou made a decisive decision, his spirits lifted: "I'll break through first, you hold off the pursuers, let's go!"
The Khitan ambush troops were not about to let go of their prey, and wave after wave of them came to intercept and kill them. Gao Xingzhou's silver spear flew, and he fought his way out. The rear guard came to pursue, but Fu Yanqing covered their retreat and blocked them.
Southern Chancellor Hulidi, Xi Supervisor Yinniyi, and General Pei'a successively defeated several Khitan forces that dared to block their way, allowing the cavalry, who had been fighting bitterly all day, to return to their camp.
Yang Guangyuan and An Shenqi were defeated and fled. Gao Xingzhou and Fu Yanqing led their troops back and retreated to their camp. Zhang Jingda's central army was unable to hold out on its own and fought its way out, gathering its remaining troops and retreating south to Jin'an Village.
With a large force gathered ahead, the Northern Court's Yili Jindi Lugu personally led his troops to intercept them, intending to annihilate this isolated army and behead the government commander.
"Do these northern barbarians really think we've been utterly defeated?"
Zhang Jingda was upright by nature, and despite his defeat, he remained undeterred: "My guards, follow me into battle!"
Thousands of soldiers responded with a roar.
These more than a thousand people are the result of his decades of military service, all of whom are carefully selected and loyal warriors.
Zhang Jingda accepted the spear handed to him by his subordinate. As the commander-in-chief, he had not intended to personally engage the enemy in combat, but the situation forced him to do so.
With drums beating to boost morale and the banners moving forward, the commanders-in-chief of the four armies of Taiyuan led their troops into battle!
……
Yelü Deguang received a flood of battle reports, all of which were good news.
They killed countless enemies, captured countless prisoners, and seized mountains of armor and weapons.
"Ha ha ha ha."
Overjoyed at the victory, Yelü Deguang burst into laughter.
After a stalemate lasting most of the day, Yelü Deguang had given up hope, but just as he was about to withdraw his troops, the enemy finally fell into the trap he had set. Yelü Deguang even wanted to thank the general on the other side for making this decision.
If there was any flaw in this battle, it was that incompetent generals like Hulidi, Yinniyi, and Pei'a actually let the Central Plains cavalry escape.
Yelü Deguang summoned several people and severely reprimanded them, saying, "You retreated in the face of battle, unable to even defeat a weary army, and were instead driven away in disarray by the enemy general. You have truly disgraced our people."
After all, it was a great victory, and a good scolding was enough to calm him down. However, upon hearing the next battle report, Yelü Deguang's face immediately darkened.
"Did Dilugu die in battle?"
Despite the favorable situation, several important officials were killed in battle, and Yelü Deguang could hardly believe his ears.
"How could tigers and wolves chasing a fleeing flock of sheep possibly be injured in return?"
"The southern soldiers were like madmen, recklessly charging after their commander. Even with the men fighting desperately to protect them, they couldn't hold them off..."
The messenger whispered his explanation: "However, almost all of them were killed. In the end, only a few personal guards remained, who led their commander away."
Yelü Deguang could no longer listen and closed his eyes in silence for a long time.
"By imperial decree, Tulu Jiong shall succeed his father's position as Yilijin of the Five Courts, and shall be named after his father's name to honor his loyalty." (Note 2)
Fortunately, Shi Jingtang also sent an envoy to report the victory at this time. The enemy general Zhang Yanqi fled without a fight, and Liu Zhiyuan pursued him and captured more than a thousand surrendered soldiers.
The stronghold was empty, the enemy had just suffered a defeat, and their foothold was not yet secure.
Yelü Deguang adjusted his mindset and seized this precious opportunity.
"Alright, let's surround them while we're at it!"
……
"At dusk, my cavalry was about to move their formation when the barbarian army advanced like a mountain. The royal army suffered a great defeat, and those who threw down their weapons piled up like mountains to die."
After the Chamberlain finished reading the last sentence of the military report, an indescribable atmosphere of oppression enveloped the court, and a heavy weight was placed on the hearts of every official, both the emperor and his ministers.
According to battle statistics, thousands were ambushed and killed in the Fen River, and most of the soldiers who went north were killed by the Khitans; during the pursuit, nearly 10,000 infantrymen died, while only the cavalry survived. (Note 3)
-----------------
Place Name Comparison
Lanzhou: North of Lancheng Town, Lanxian County, Lüliang City, Shanxi Province
Xianzhou: present-day Loufan County and part of Jingle County, Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province