Usurping the Mongols: My Father-in-Law is Genghis Khan

“Four hundred thousand? That many? Quick! Let's go take a look.”

Although he had anticipated it, Zhao Shuo was still very happy to hear that they had captured so many horses.

He and Gerile went together to see the captured warhorses.

This look was even more of a surprise.

Among the four hundred thousand horses, twelve thousand were tall and handsome Liaodong horses.

And among these twelve thousand Liaodong horses, forty thousand were blue horses.

Blue horses are distributed among various horse breeds, but without a doubt, blue horses are the most likely to produce excellent steeds.

For example, in historical records, Huo Qubing, the Champion Marquis of the East, rode a large blue horse.

Bucephalus, the divine steed of Alexander the Great of the West, was a blue horse.

And the great man of later generations rode a small blue horse.

This time, the blue horses seized from Huan, Chang, and Fu prefectures will greatly help improve the combat power of the Mongols.

Fifty years later, a scholar praised the gains of this Mongol attack on the Jin Dynasty, writing in a poem: "Victorious, chasing north, passing through Yandu, even more, obtaining four hundred thousand from Jin sources, with peerless large and small blue horses."

Jin sources are another name for the Jin Dynasty.

The number of four hundred thousand is not reliable.

Zhao Shuo was unsure how many horses there were in Huan, Chang, and Fu prefectures, because the numbers in various historical materials were too chaotic.

The "Secret History of the Mongols" says "nearly a million," which is slightly less than one million horses.

But other materials mostly say "several million" or "millions," which is too exaggerated.

"Peerless large and small blue horses" refers to the divine and handsome nature of this batch of blue horses.

Or perhaps, the four hundred thousand mentioned in this poem refers to the total number of blue horses obtained by the Mongols during this invasion of the Jin Dynasty?

In any case, Zhao Shuo was very satisfied with the captured warhorses.

The horses in the Huan Prefecture stud farms were driven to Huan Prefecture City by Wanyan Kuang, but there were also cattle, sheep, and camels, which also became Zhao Shuo's spoils of war, with as many as six hundred and eighty thousand sheep.

If they didn't eat some to reward the soldiers, were they waiting for the New Year?

Zhao Shuo announced that starting today, mutton would be eaten freely for seven consecutive days.

Not only that, but he also ordered a slogan to be spread: "Wanyan Chengyu falls, the Mongols eat their fill."

For a time, the thirty thousand soldiers cheered.

By the morning of the next day, good news came one after another.

Before Wanyan Kuang's messengers reached the stud farms of Fu and Chang prefectures, the Mongol army arrived and seized all the livestock inside.

Fu Prefecture captured 220,000 horses, and Chang Prefecture captured 190,000 horses.

In other words, the number of horses captured by the Mongols this time was about the same as recorded in the "Secret History of the Mongols," less than one million.

Moreover, the Mongol army was good at learning.

Zhao Shuo prepared so many cloth bags, and the other Mongol armies followed suit, directly "running horses up the city walls," and successfully occupied Fu Prefecture and Chang Prefecture.

Having achieved such great results and made a fortune that they had never dreamed of before, the entire Mongol army was jubilant.

In stark contrast to them were the Jin soldiers stationed on the Yelhuling defense line. Having lost Wushabao and Wuyueying one after another, and even losing the three prefectures of Fu, Heng, and Chang, many soldiers' families fell into the hands of the Mongols. At this time, even the stupidest people understood that the Jin army's situation was not good, and a cloud of sorrow and misery hung over them.

Yelhuling, Huan'erzui, Black Wind Pass.

This was where Wanyan Chengyu and Dujisizhong were stationed, and Grand Councillor Wanyan Kuang of the Great Jin Dynasty had fled here by dusk yesterday.

However, Wanyan Kuang was now in a coma.

There was no way around it; Wanyan Kuang was, after all, in his twilight years. Even if he went to bed early and rose early, lived in luxury, and was in a good mood, he only had half a year to live. This time, not only had he not slept for thirty-six consecutive hours, but he had also run wildly for five hundred miles in one night, and then spent a great deal of effort deploying city defenses. Then, when Zhao Shuo attacked the city, he fled in a panic for more than a hundred miles.

Even ordinary middle-aged people might die suddenly at this time, let alone an old man in his twilight years.

The fact that Wanyan Kuang was not dead at this time, but only had a stroke, meant that his body was solid enough.

Fortunately, before falling into a coma, Wanyan Kuang issued his last order: suspend all of Dujisizhong's duties, and Dujisizhong should quickly leave the Yelhuling defense line and return to Yanjing to await the emperor's disposal.

There was no need to listen to any reports from Wanyan Chengyu and Dujisizhong. As the stabilizing force of the Jin Dynasty, Wanyan Kuang understood as soon as he saw the memorial that Dujisizhong, a civil official, was only considering political gains and losses, which had affected Wanyan Chengyu's military judgment. It was better to kick him to the rear as soon as possible.

This was the last thing Wanyan Kuang could do for the Jin Dynasty.

On the Jin Dynasty's northwest front, although there were two councillors serving as commanders, one in charge of military affairs and one in charge of logistics, there was actually a difference in the status of these two commanders. Dujisizhong's official position was "Pingzhang Zhengshi," while Wanyan Chengyu's official position was "Canzhi Zhengshi." In other words, Dujisizhong was the chief commander, and Wanyan Chengyu was the deputy commander.

Now that the empire's prime minister had fallen into a coma and the chief commander had been transferred, Wanyan Chengyu had no heroic ambition to command nearly 400,000 troops alone. Instead, he felt depressed because of the current dire situation.

At this moment, someone came to report that Shimomo Ming'an was requesting an audience.

Shimomo Ming'an was a Khitan, and not only did he have a Khitan elite Meng'an (chiliarch) under his command, but he was also accomplished in both civil and military affairs. He had been sent by the emperor to meet with Temujin several times. Among these nearly 400,000 troops, he could be considered a person who could talk to Wanyan Chengyu.

Now, it would be good to send elite troops to raid these three stud farms, which would not only kill the Mongol garrison and boost the morale of the Jin army, but also kill as many horses as possible to reduce the Jin army's losses.

Wanyan Chengyu rejected Shimomo Ming'an's proposal: The Mongols were so powerful that even his son had been defeated by them with fewer troops. Who knew how many troops the Mongols had left at the stud farms? Could the Jin Dynasty's elite troops beat them in a sneak attack on the stud farms? This plan was too risky, and it would be better to defend the Yelhuling defense line.

Shimomo Ming'an could not persuade Wanyan Chengyu and had to leave dejectedly.

But as soon as he stepped out of the tent and took seven or eight steps, he saw someone coming towards him.

“Greetings, Duke of Fenyang!”

Shimomo Ming'an quickly bowed deeply.

The person in front of him was Guo Baoyu, the Duke of Fenyang of the Great Jin Dynasty.

Guo Baoyu was a descendant of the famous Tang Dynasty general Guo Ziyi, and also the grandfather of the famous Guo Kan in later generations. It is said that the story of the hero Guo Jing was based on Guo Kan.

However, Guo Baoyu was only forty-five years old now and was granted the title of Duke of Fenyang of the Great Jin Dynasty. Although he only had a Han Chinese elite Meng'an in his hands, he was much higher in status than Shimomo Ming'an.

“So it's General Shimomo, please dispense with the formalities.”

Of course, Guo Baoyu knew that Shimomo Ming'an was a talented person, so he quickly helped him up and said, “Did you come to see Councillor Wanyan?”

“Yes.”

Shimomo Ming'an did not hide anything and introduced the course of events.

After Guo Baoyu listened, he frowned slightly and said, “That's not good. Great minds think alike, I also came to offer this plan to Councillor Wanyan.”

“Don't go, it's useless. Councillor Wanyan, he... is too cautious in his use of troops.”

High EQ is “too cautious,” low EQ is “too timid.”

Originally, how could there be 100% safety in military affairs?

What was the difficulty in sending out a few thousand elites from 400,000 troops? If they lost, they would only lose a few thousand elites. If they won, they could take great advantage.

Why not do it?

Shimomo Ming'an had already seen that after a series of setbacks, Wanyan Chengyu, the famous general who had once led eight thousand troops to chase and kill fifty thousand Song soldiers, had lost his original spirit.

“Okay, I'll listen to you, I won't go and touch Councillor's bad luck.”

Guo Baoyu patted Shimomo Ming'an's shoulder and was about to leave.

“Duke of Fenyang!”

Shimomo Ming'an stopped Guo Baoyu again, lowered his voice, and said, “Don't blame this humble official for speaking frankly, do you think this Yelhuling can be defended?”

He was a Jin Dynasty general and had a clear understanding of the strength of both sides because he had been sent to Mongolia many times.

“Of course, it can be defended. We have 400,000 troops here, and we also have the geographical advantage of Yelhuling. As long as the command is appropriate and the soldiers use their lives, can't we stop less than 100,000 grassland barbarians?” Guo Baoyu said without hesitation.

Of course, Shimomo Ming'an heard Guo Baoyu's implication, as long as “the command is appropriate and the soldiers use their lives” they could defend it. Could the Jin Dynasty “command appropriately and the soldiers use their lives”? Just now, Wanyan Chengyu had rejected his plan.

“Thank you for your teachings, Duke of Fenyang!”

Shimomo Ming'an turned and left.

Looking at his receding back, Guo Baoyu's mind flashed with a recent nursery rhyme that had spread throughout Hebei: “Shake, shake, Gu Gu, to Henan, worship the Yanqi!”

Yanqi was the legal wife of the Xiongnu Chanyu.

The people of Henan are worshiping Yanqi, what does that mean? It means that the Jin Dynasty will be destroyed by the Mongols.

This nursery rhyme, of course, had nothing to do with the Mongols. Even Zhao Shuo's subordinates lacked the talent to do such a delicate job.

In fact, discerning individuals within the Jin Dynasty could see that although the population was at its peak since the dynasty's founding, and they had defeated the Song Dynasty's Northern Expedition of hundreds of thousands of troops, giving the appearance of a golden age, in reality, the Yellow River had breached its dikes three times, paper money was worthless, and the gap between rich and poor was immense.

Coupled with the Jin court conscripting hundreds of thousands of soldiers to deal with the Mongols, the common people were selling their children and abandoning their homes.

Countless people were gnashing their teeth, cursing the dynasty's demise; the Jin Dynasty had truly reached its most perilous moment.

Powerful magnates began hoarding soldiers, horses, and provisions in preparation for the coming chaos.

Disgruntled scholars were stirring, eager to seize a piece of the pie in this turbulent era.

This nursery rhyme was likely the work of some frustrated scholar.

"If it weren't for the people's discontent, how could this nursery rhyme have spread so quickly throughout Hebei? Even within Yanjing, people are singing it. It seems that neither the battle situation at Yehuling nor the Jin Dynasty's prospects are looking good!"

Guo Baoyu thought to himself, sighing.

...

...

Ten days later, the Mongol vanguard arrived at Badger's Mouth.

The Yehuling defense line stretched for hundreds of miles, with some areas being more important than others.

The unimportant areas were those with extremely steep terrain and no roads. Even if the Mongols managed to climb up by chance, they wouldn't be able to bring up a large army, and warhorses would be impossible. Even if lost, there would be ample opportunity to retake them, so only a small number of elite troops and ordinary conscripts were stationed there.

The important areas were those with gentler slopes and roads, conducive to the Mongol advance.

Badger's Mouth was such a place.

The terrain here resembled the face of a badger.

The most striking feature was the badger's protruding snout.

This snout was a valley between two mountains, with a road in the middle, narrow on the outside and wide on the inside. The outermost valley entrance could only accommodate one person at a time.

The two mountains on either side of the snout stretched for three miles each and weren't particularly steep, allowing for human ascent.

Beyond those three miles were cliffs and precipices, making it difficult for humans to climb.

The Mongols most wanted to breach Badger's Mouth.

Wanyan Chengyu led 35,000 of the most elite troops, stationed here. (Black Wind Pass refers to that valley)

Among them, 20,000 were deployed on the low mountains on either side, each stretching for three miles. 15,000 followed Wanyan Chengyu, stationed at the bottom of the valley, ready to support the low mountains on both sides.

After all, the Yehuling defense line stretched for five hundred miles, and some troops had to be stationed in the rear. Stationing 35,000 of the most elite troops on this mere six-mile stretch of the defense line was not a small number. Moreover, the terrain limited the number of troops that could be deployed.

Temujin led an 80,000-strong army straight for Badger's Mouth!

This time, Jebe led the vanguard with only 3,000 troops.

Seeing Jebe's small force, Wanyan Chengyu employed a ruse, luring Jebe's troops into the valley in an attempt to ambush and annihilate Jebe's 3,000 men.

However, Jebe saw through Wanyan Chengyu's plot, feigned defeat, and retreated out of the valley, killing all the pursuing soldiers.

With that plan foiled, Wanyan Chengyu chose to defend to the death.

He ordered men to use iron chain carts to completely block the valley entrance.

The entire army stood guard, preparing to face the Mongol army's strong assault.

That evening, Temujin and his main force joined up with Jebe's vanguard.

At the first watch of the night, inside Temujin's golden tent.

Zhao Shuo, Muqali, Bo'erchu, Qasar, Belgutei, Jebe, Surchatai... all the Mongol valiant generals came to discuss matters.

"The Jin dogs' defense of Badger's Mouth is tight, but it is definitely not impenetrable." Temujin pointed to the map of Badger's Mouth and said, "Look here, the outermost part of Badger's Mouth is cliffs and precipices. They think we won't attack from here and have only sent a small number of troops to guard it. Therefore, Muqali!"

"Here!"

"You lead 3,000 elite soldiers, tonight at the second watch, taking advantage of the night, climb up from the outermost cliffs of Badger's Mouth and raid the Jin army."

"Yes."

"A Shuo, the warriors of your Balu Battalion are the most numerous. From now on, you lead the entire Balu Battalion to attack Badger's Mouth with all your strength, giving the Jin dogs no respite!"

"Yes."

Zhao Shuo also nodded and accepted the order.

Temujin's strategy was simple.

Zhao Shuo led the Balu Battalion to attack head-on.

Muqali led 3,000 elite soldiers to climb the cliffs and launch a surprise attack from the side.

When Muqali's surprise attack threw the enemy into chaos, Zhao Shuo could launch a full-scale assault from the front.

Both tasks were arduous.

If Zhao Shuo's frontal attack wasn't fierce enough to attract the Jin army's full attention, Muqali's raid might be discovered.

If Muqali's surprise attack wasn't timely enough or lethal enough to reduce the pressure on Zhao Shuo's frontal attack, Muqali would be surrounded by the entire enemy force, facing a slim chance of survival.

At such a critical moment, Temujin could only entrust such tasks to Zhao Shuo and Muqali to be completely at ease.

...

Back then, after the Battle of Keyimen, the Mongol army's Balu Battalion was left with only 6,000 men.

Zhao Shuo had 1,000 Balu Battalion soldiers under his command, and the others had 5,000.

After attacking Wushabao and Wuyueying, Zhao Shuo incorporated more than 16,000 people into the Balu Battalion, and the other Mongol nobles gained nothing.

However, after conquering Fu, Chang, and Huan prefectures, a total of 5,000 Jin soldiers, including Zhao Shuo's, were incorporated into the Balu Battalion.

Therefore, Zhao Shuo could now command 27,000 Balu Battalion warriors.

Their predecessors were the regular armies of the Jin and Xia dynasties!

"Soldiers of the Balu Battalion!"

Blazing torches illuminated the scene as bright as day as Zhao Shuo looked at the 27,000 Balu Battalion soldiers below the platform.

He loudly said, "You should know what the Balu Battalion is for! It is for storming fortifications! In every battle, the entire army is only allowed to attack, not retreat. If ten households retreat, the commander of those ten households will be beheaded. If a hundred households retreat, the commander of those hundred households will be beheaded! If the commander of ten households dies in battle, all ten men under his command will be beheaded. If the commander of a hundred households dies in battle, all one hundred men under his command will be beheaded. After victory, you can get 10% of the spoils of war.

The latest and greatest novels are at 6_9_book_., please prioritize reading them there!

Tonight's Battle of Yehuling is extremely important to our Mongolia.

I'm only giving you two hours, only two hours.

If you can't break through Badger's Mouth within two hours, all the Balu Battalion soldiers will be beheaded!

But if you break through Badger's Mouth within two hours, all the surviving Balu Battalion warriors can get 50% of the spoils of war.

Not only that, for every head you chop off, you'll get an extra five taels of silver. For every two heads you chop off, you'll get an extra ten taels of silver... and so on, with no upper limit.

After tonight, anyone who has chopped off three or more heads can leave the Balu Battalion and become a regular warrior of our Great Mongol Empire.

Anyone who has chopped off five or more heads will be rewarded with an additional beauty for every five heads.

Have you all heard clearly?"

As soon as Zhao Shuo finished speaking, the 30,000 Balu Battalion soldiers erupted in a burst of enthusiastic roaring.

"We've heard clearly!"

"We are willing to die for the Consort!"

"Break through Badger's Mouth in two hours!"

"Breaking through Badger's Mouth means money and beauties!"

...

The vast majority of Balu Battalion soldiers had already presented their certificates of allegiance and could not turn back.

Moreover, Zhao Shuo had previously announced that there would be an unlimited supply of mutton for seven consecutive days, which included the Balu Battalion soldiers under his command. Although the other Mongol nobles weren't as generous as Zhao Shuo, the spoils were simply too numerous. How could they possibly finish eating hundreds of thousands of sheep? They also gave their Balu Battalion soldiers a feast of mutton for three days.

This food was even better than that of the Jin army's elite troops.

The newly joined Balu Battalion soldiers were initially won over.

Moreover, the previous Balu Battalion warriors told them that the Mongols kept their word, and Consort Zhao Shuo kept his word even more, never giving any discounts. As long as they won the battle, they could not only share a large amount of money, but also possibly have female slaves bestowed upon them.

There was such a good thing?

It would be good enough if the Jin army could issue military pay normally, how could there be such treatment?

Some of the newly joined Balu Battalion soldiers were eager to try.

Now, in the Battle of Badger's Mouth, with both the powerful military law of "Ba Dui Zhan" and generous rewards, what else could the Balu Battalion warriors do?

Fight with all their might!

It must be said that the warriors of the East Asian region are the best warriors, both disciplined, hardworking, resilient, and tenacious. The more dangerous the moment, the more able they are to calm down. They disregard the lives of others, and when necessary, they can also disregard their own lives.

The army they form, as long as they are given enough treatment, is the strongest army in the world!

"Very good." Zhao Shuo waved his hand and said, "I will personally celebrate your victory when we break through Badger's Mouth!"

"Yes!"

The 27,000 men responded with a roar, dispersed, and waited for the signal for the general attack.

There was nothing to attack at the valley entrance, which was already completely blocked by dozens of iron chain carts. Attacking here was no easier than climbing cliffs and precipices.

The Balu Battalion's target was the low mountains on either side of the valley entrance, a total of six miles.

The defensive measures of the low mountains were like this: the front was a series of breast walls, behind which were simple military camps built by the Jurchens with wooden fences. At the end of the camp was the top of the mountain, where the Balu Battalion warriors' target was located.

Although the defensive measures were somewhat crude, the Jin army was high above, had prepared a large number of defensive equipment, and it was really difficult to break through Badger's Mouth.

The first batch: five thousand men.

It wasn't that they couldn't send more troops, but the massive logs rolling down the mountain required enough space to dodge.

If thirty thousand men charged together, a single rolling log could inflict massive losses on the Balu Camp, a meaningless sacrifice.

Therefore, the first wave of Balu Camp warriors numbered only five thousand.

These five thousand men weren't lined up in a single row but were divided into three ranks.

At the very front were the strongest warriors newly recruited into the Jin army, each clad in three layers of iron armor and wielding a massive shield.

The second rank held fully drawn, ready-to-fire repeating crossbows.

The third rank carried the weapons of three men: bows, wolf-fang clubs, spears, or broadswords.

Seventy *zhang* (approximately 233 meters) behind the first wave of five thousand was the second wave of five thousand.

Another seventy *zhang* behind them was yet another five thousand.

In total, six waves launched a continuous, saturating attack on Badger's Mouth, overwhelming the Jin army.

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"

"Kill the barbarians! Defend our nation!"

"Barbarians, go to hell!"

…

It was the twelfth day of the lunar month, the moonlight was bright, and the Jin army stationed on the low mountain quickly detected the Mongol army's full-scale assault, issuing cries of alarm.

*Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh* ~ ~

The Jin army's bows and crossbows unleashed their power.

Previously, they had to fire at an upward angle to strike distant enemies, but now they could fire directly!

Moreover, they pushed the huge logs they had prepared, some as thick as three *chi* (approximately 1 meter), directly down from the mountain top.

And of course, there were also trebuchets.

Countless stones, carrying tremendous kinetic energy, rained down on the heads of the Balu Camp soldiers.

The Balu Camp soldiers were no pushovers either; they were originally regular troops from the Jin and Western Xia armies and had made ample preparations for this battle.

Even those who weren't in the front ranks of heavily armored soldiers wore iron armor, rendering the arrows and crossbow bolts fired at them virtually harmless. Only a few unlucky ones were directly pierced by the bolts fired from the ballista.

But there was little they could do against the massive logs and stones launched by the trebuchets; they could only try to dodge. If they couldn't avoid them, they could only blame their bad luck.

Closer!

Closer and closer!

In the blink of an eye, the heavily armored soldiers in the front rank were only eighty paces away from the Jin army's defenses.

It was at this moment!

*Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!*

The Jin army's repeating crossbows unleashed their power!

This divine weapon, invented by Western Xia, promoted by the Song Dynasty, and then learned by the Jin people, was capable of piercing three layers of heavy armor within eighty paces!

Back then, the Song general Wu Lin had created the "Staggered Formation" centered on the repeating crossbow, repeatedly defeating the Jin army. This led Wuzhu (a Jin Dynasty general) to say, "The Song's most ingenious military weapon is none other than the repeating crossbow, followed by the heavy axe. We fear nothing else, and now we will pay to have them copied."

A single volley of repeating crossbows from the Jin army eliminated at least half of the heavily armored soldiers.

The remaining heavily armored soldiers didn't dare to slack off and charged forward fiercely.

The armored soldiers behind them fired their repeating crossbows, inflicting heavy casualties on the Jin army, then took the weapons handed to them from the rear and charged forward as well.

Seventy paces! The enemy's various heavy crossbows and heavy bows unleashed their power!

At the same time, the Jin army hurled huge stones directly down the mountain!

There were also rolling logs, rocks, and boiling water!

In the blink of an eye, the five thousand Balu Camp warriors suffered heavy casualties, and only eight hundred brave warriors managed to climb over the low walls and engage the Jin army in close combat.

"Good!"

Although it seemed that nearly ninety percent of the first wave of Balu Camp warriors had been killed or wounded, Mo Chi Bie Du Wen, the commander of the second wave of the Balu Camp, couldn't help but shout "Good!"

Now that they were engaged in close combat, the Jin army could no longer push logs down the mountain, and their other defensive facilities would also be greatly affected. Wasn't this a great thing?

Just over four thousand Balu Camp warriors had made such great progress; what wasn't good about that?

"First, execute these cowards!"

During the charge of the five thousand Balu Camp warriors, over four hundred men couldn't bear the brutal battlefield and retreated one after another.

They were captured by Mo Chi Bie Du Wen's military law enforcement team.

*Wooo, wooo, wooo* ~ ~

Four blasts of the ox-horn trumpet sounded in succession, signaling the execution by the military law enforcement team.

In the blink of an eye, four hundred and eight heads fell to the ground!

Mo Chi Bie Du Wen even used an iron mace to directly smash the heads of three deserters.

No sooner said than done, from the moment the eight hundred Balu Camp warriors began close combat with the Jin army to the moment four hundred heads fell, only a minute had passed.

Mo Chi Bie Du Wen raised the iron mace in his hand and said, "In this battle, there is only advance, no retreat! This is the fate of those who retreat! Balu Camp warriors, charge!"

"Charge! Kill!"

"Kill the Jin dogs!"

"Break through Badger's Mouth, and there will be money and women!"

"Balu Camp warriors, only advance, never retreat, die without turning back!"

…

With cries of battle, the Balu Camp warriors in the following waves increased their speed and charged upwards!

The war quickly entered a white-hot phase.

On one side were fifteen thousand of the Jin Dynasty's most elite troops, and on the other side were twenty-three thousand Balu Camp warriors.

They began a fierce melee on the low mountain of Badger's Mouth. Shouts of battle, the sounds of flesh tearing, and the clashing of weapons were completely mixed together, rising and falling, echoing through the heavens!

"How is this possible? How can the Mongol infantry be so fierce? Aren't they only good at riding horses and shooting arrows?"

In charge of the Jin army's mountain top defense was Wanyan Jiujin, the commander of the Jin Dynasty's northwest line.

In fact, his original surname was Heshilie, but because of his bravery in battle and countless meritorious deeds, he was granted the imperial surname "Wanyan." Therefore, his current name is Wanyan Jiujin.

In fact, you can tell how brave this person is just by hearing his name.

The Jurchen custom was to use the child's weight at birth as the child's nickname. After the age of five, a formal name would be given. Some poor Jurchens simply continued to use the nickname, too lazy to give a formal name.

Wanyan Jiujin is still called Wanyan Jiujin to this day, and it is clear that he rose from the bottom, a Jin Dynasty general who fought his way up with every slash and thrust.

So much so that later generations often confuse him with Wanyan Chengyu or Husha Hu, because their nicknames were also Jiujin. This is actually wrong. In historical records, Wanyan Jiujin clearly died in the Battle of Yehuling, while those two were still alive and well after the Battle of Yehuling.

In short, this Wanyan Jiujin was indeed a remarkable Jurchen general.

But even such a brave general couldn't believe his eyes when he saw the Mongol infantry being so valiant, forcing the Jin army's most elite infantry to retreat step by step.

Just then, a *meng'an* (a Jurchen military officer) hurried to Wanyan Jiujin's side.

"Pacification Commissioner, something terrible has happened!"

"What is it?"

"We captured five grassland barbarian prisoners, but… but…"

"But what?"

"They were originally our people, and two of them were even Jurchens. The grassland barbarians forced them to kill their own people to come here and fight us to the death!"

"What? Our own people? Jurchens? No wonder these infantry are so powerful; it turns out they're our own people! That's not right!"

After his initial panic, Wanyan Jiujin quickly calmed down and said, "Since they are our own people, how could they work so hard for the grassland barbarians? Even if they offered a blood oath, it doesn't make sense!"

The *meng'an* said, "Because their military law is too strict. Only advance is allowed, no retreat. If ten households retreat, the commander of the ten households will be beheaded. If a hundred households retreat, the commander of the hundred households will be beheaded. If the commander of the ten households dies in battle, all ten men under his command will be beheaded. If the commander of the hundred households dies in battle, all hundred men under his command will be beheaded."

"The *badui zhan* of Zhu Quanzhong in the late Tang Dynasty?"

Although Wanyan Jiujin came from a very humble background, he studied diligently after becoming a high official and immediately thought of the *badui zhan* (a brutal military law of collective punishment).

The *meng'an* said, "Not only *badui zhan*, but these captured soldiers can also take ten percent of the spoils of war for each battle. For this battle of Badger's Mouth, they can take fifty percent of the spoils of war. Not only that, but there is also an extra reward of five *liang* of silver for each head, and those who make great contributions will also be rewarded with beautiful women!"

"How ruthless the Mongols are, with both heavy punishments and heavy rewards, how could those prisoners not work themselves to death for him? He is using our Jurchens to fight our Jurchens! How can we fight this battle?"

Wanyan Jiujin came from the very bottom, and he understood too well what the soldiers at the bottom wanted.

Because the national treasury was empty, not to mention that the northern border army often didn't receive their salaries, even the most elite troops' salaries couldn't be paid on time.

Rewards? Where would the money come from? The reward money that had been prepared was all taken by Dujisizhong to Wuyue Camp.

But the Mongols promised such heavy rewards, how could the morale of the two sides not be vastly different?

At this moment, Wanyan Jiujin felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over his head, chilling him from head to toe.

The *meng'an* anxiously said, "Pacification Commissioner, what should we do now? The brothers can't hold on anymore, please ask Councilor Wanyan to send reinforcements quickly!"

(Four-in-one chapter)