In September, the city of Jiangning on the south bank of the Yangtze River was surrounded like an impenetrable prison.
The light of dusk illuminated the horizon. Under the sky, the towering city walls that were like small mountains were showing signs of collapse. Since the beginning of the year, Jiangning had already experienced nearly eight months of attacks. The city walls were riddled with holes that twisted and warped bit by bit. Fresh blood dyed the top of the city walls red, and then it was burnt black by kerosene. Sandbags and rolling logs were piled high into the moat, and countless corpses were strewn across the battlefield between the city walls and the Jurchen camp, rotting away.
The stench of corpses spread, and crows flew in waves, landing on the ground from time to time. Several catapults were still weakly throwing boulders over the endless piles of corpses at several key points in the south and east of the city.
On top of the city walls, the soldiers of the Wu dynasty, who looked like stubborn rocks from afar, were still holding their ground.
Beyond the land of corpses outside the city walls, the main force of the Jurchen army under Zong Fu's command and the Han army of the Central Plains, who had tasted the sweetness of plundering, were still defending the first and second lines of the siege. Under the shadow of the setting sun, all kinds of simple and crude barracks were densely packed on the ground, pushing forward into the seemingly endless distance.
The Wu dynasty army that had surrendered to the Jurchen army and then been driven to the vicinity of Jiangning now numbered more than a million. At this time, half of these soldiers had been stripped of their weapons, and they were separated into relatively sealed camps. There was an open space between the camps, and the Jurchen cavalry would occasionally patrol and kill anyone they saw.
Every day, Zong Fu would select a few troops and drive them up the city walls to fight. In order to break through Jiangning as soon as possible, Zong Fu had offered extremely high rewards to the troops that entered the city. However, after more than two months, no one had received the so-called rewards, and the number of troops that had died or been injured kept increasing …
Flames crackled and burned, and columns of smoke rose from the shabby tents. An iron pot with porridge was set up on the fire, and cooks from the army cooks' army were throwing green and gray wild vegetables into it. A soldier in ragged clothes walked over and asked, "Can those vegetables be eaten? They're already like that!"
"If there's food, just say it's good."
"Throw away the black ones."
"You can't eat them. I've already thrown them once. You'll die if you don't eat them!"
"Your mother …"
The emaciated soldier didn't want to argue with the strong Cooks' Army Unit. Both sides stared at each other with bulging eyes. After a while, the soldier wiped his face and angrily turned around to leave. A trace of grief and indignation flashed across the stupefied faces of the surrounding soldiers. The eyes of the Cooks' Army Unit, who were covered in dirt, turned red.
"If there's enough to eat, I'll let you eat this pig meat. Go get some rations. It's not even Lidong yet, and we've just finished harvesting the grains … Damn it … Do you want to cook me …"
The cooks' eyes were stained by the smoke. As he spoke, tears rolled down his cheeks, smearing the soot on his face.
"Alright, alright. Fatty, you don't have much meat left …"
Amidst the chatter in the clearing, the soldier who had left earlier suddenly ran back. His expression was one of resentment, and it was clear that he could not let it go. He rushed towards the wild vegetables in the cooks' hands, but someone blocked his way. "What are you doing!"
"You can't eat it when it's dark —"
"F * ck you, you're looking for trouble!"
"Kill me! Come on! Kill me! " Tears flowed down from the soldier's eyes. He unbuttoned his shirt, revealing his bony chest. "It's just the autumn harvest. My family planted the land! They've all been taken away by those female Zhenrens. Now we have to help them fight the war. What are we doing! You cowards don't dare to speak! Kill me! If you go and tell those female Zhenrens, you'll die sooner or later! You can't eat it when it's dark — "
As he cried, the soldier who had pushed him earlier wanted to punch him, but he gritted his teeth and pushed him away. Someone in the crowd said, "… He's crazy."
Someone pulled him. "Hurry up and go away. Don't get everyone in trouble …"
"What else can I do? Do you want to rebel …"
The voices were high and low, and for a moment, it was noisy. The cooks clenched his teeth and reached out to pluck more wild vegetables. After a while, the soldier was pulled away. Someone's voice rang out, "I'm going to die anyway. This matter ends here. If anyone dares to tell on me, I'll kill him even if I have to die!"
Behind a shabby tent not far away, Tie Tianying was quietly watching the scene with his hunched back. Then, he turned around and left.
The orange light of the setting sun shone down from the sky. It seemed that the camp was in chaos, and the soldiers were gathering and eating. He followed the soldier who had stirred up trouble and walked through the crowd.
Ever since Junwu's army broke into Jiangning in June, both Wanyan Zongfu and the other forces had been waiting for the moment when the last light of the Wu dynasty would be extinguished. In July, wave after wave of people attacked. Zongfu mixed the elite soldiers with the surrendered soldiers and tried to break the siege. The city walls of Jiangning were breached several times, but they were killed again soon after. It was said that the crown prince of the Wu dynasty had personally led the charge in several battles.
By mid-August, people had become numb to such attacks. Some of them were even in awe of the stubborn resistance of the less than 200,000 soldiers in the city.
However, none of this helped to improve the situation.
Zhou Yong's escape had destroyed the morale of all the people of the Wu dynasty. The soldiers surrendered one after another, gradually forming a huge avalanche. Some of the generals really surrendered, while others felt that they were just pretending to be courteous and waiting for an opportunity to set things right. However, after arriving at Jiangning City, their supplies and rations were all controlled by the Female Zhenren, and even most of their weapons were removed. Only when they attacked the city did they distribute inferior supplies.
At this stage, the order to surrender was more of a choice made by the generals. The soldiers still could not understand the fact that the Wu Dynasty was already beginning to die. In the process of attacking Jiangning, some soldiers still wanted to surrender on the battlefield and join the Jiangning Crown Prince to help kill the enemy. During the whole attack, Wanyan Zongfu had given random orders to some of the troops to pretend to surrender.
Throughout the attack, Wanyan Zongfu had given random orders to some of the troops to pretend to surrender. In the current situation, the guards in Jiangning City didn't even have the leeway to take in, isolate, or distinguish between friend and foe. The Han army outside the city numbered in the millions. In a disadvantageous situation, if the other party shouted that they wanted it, then they would accept it. These troops would quickly become an uncontrollable gunpowder depot in Jiangning City.
The people quickly discovered that the 200,000 or so Jiangning defenders wouldn't accept any defectors. The morale of the Han soldiers who had been driven onto the battlefield was already low. They couldn't contend against the soldiers on the city walls, and they had no choice but to surrender. A portion of the soldiers stirred up their last shred of courage and charged into the Jurchen camp behind them. Afterwards, they met with unsurprising consequences.
In the two months that followed, the surrendered Han army suffered several mutinies. The Jurchen's cavalry killed a large number of those who tried to escape. The resources of the mutinies were distributed to the surrounding Han soldiers who participated in the suppression. As for the surrendered generals of the Wu dynasty, they were dragged out by the Jurchen to be beheaded in public. As a result, in August and September, although the atmosphere enveloping the camp grew increasingly desperate, there were fewer and fewer rebels. Some of the generals and soldiers were even looking forward to the early collapse of Jiangning.
As long as Jiangning was breached, everyone would no longer have to suffer in this life and death dilemma.
More than ten years passed. In the end, these swaying people had no choice but to walk into a dead end.
At the end of April, Tie Tianying was seriously injured in the assassination attempt against the Jurchen emissary. Later, in May, Linan was breached. Although he was lucky enough to keep his life, he had to flee with great difficulty, and his injuries worsened. In August, when his injuries were completely healed, he stealthily went to the vicinity of Jiangning. All he could see was this desperate situation.
There were still many forces that supported the Wu dynasty in name, but no one dared to charge into Jiangning and face the Jurchen's vanguard. Jiangning consisted of the Beiwei Army, the Subduing Sea Army, the former Zhenjiang Army, the Jiangning Army, and so on. There were more than two hundred thousand soldiers defending the city. But even with the Crown Prince's tenacious support, Jiangning remained unmoved in the face of the daily attacks of the surrendered Wu dynasty. But after more than two months, Tie Tianying couldn't clearly see how dire the situation in the city had become.
In late August, the news that Zhou Yong, who had fled to the sea, had passed the throne to Junwu was brought ashore and quickly spread throughout the world. This meant that in the eyes of those who were willing to believe it, the Crown Prince in Jiangning was now the legitimate Emperor of the Wu dynasty. But in the camp of the surrendered soldiers outside Jiangning, it was already difficult to cause too many ripples. Even if he was the Emperor, he was also in a hopeless situation.
Seeing this situation, even the experienced Tie Tianying couldn't help but shed tears. If he had made this decision half a year earlier, the situation in the world today would probably be completely different.
He considered risking his life to enter Jiangning and rendezvous with the Crown Prince and the others. He also considered hiding among the soldiers and waiting for an opportunity to assassinate Wanyan Zongfu. He had many other ideas, but not long after, relying on his many years of experience, he discovered some people who were out of place in this desperate situation.
On the fifth day of the ninth month, he followed the back of the thin soldier. Before he reached the hiding place of the other party, the footsteps of the person in front of him suddenly slowed and he looked north.
At the end of the northern horizon was the towering and dilapidated city wall that was still being attacked by the catapults. As the setting sun shone on it, a huge white banner slowly descended from the top of the city wall. Even though it was several kilometers away, the white banner was still clearly visible to the eyes of the people watching.
Doubt flashed through Tie Tianying's mind. At this moment, his footsteps became weak. He still didn't know what had happened, but the news of the Crown Prince's death was immediately reflected in his mind.
Whispers spread through every camp like a tide. But not long after, as the Female Zhenren increased the bounty on Zhou Junwu's head, people learned of his death. Thus, the understanding that the Jianshuo Dynasty had ended also took shape in people's minds.
Some people couldn't help but shed silent tears.
But so what?
In such a desperate situation, no matter how tenacious and wise the former Crown Prince was … his death was only a matter of time …
*****
The buzzing sound spread across the land outside Jiangning City, forming waves within Jiangning City.
As the colorful waves spread across the sky, Jun Wu came out of his room, dressed in white. Shen Ruxin, also dressed in white, was waiting for him under the eaves. He looked at the setting sun and walked to the front hall. "Look at the sunset, it's like the current Wu dynasty …"
"Please … take care, Your Majesty …"
Jun Wu pressed down on the sword at his waist. He actually didn't have much self-awareness as an emperor. He wiped away the tears on his face and smiled. "Night is coming, but no matter how long the night is, the sun will rise again."
The only difference was … who could see it.
His eyes became stern, and he didn't continue speaking the words in his heart. News of Zhou Yong's death had reached the city last night. By now, some decisions had been made. The city was filled with white mourning. At the front hall, hundreds of generals dressed in hemp garments and white scarves were quietly waiting for his arrival.
This was probably the last emperor of the Wu dynasty. His succession had come too late, and there was no way out. But it was precisely at this time that people felt a stirring and tragic emotion.
"Soldiers!"
The sun gradually disappeared, and the flames burned fiercely. Jun Wu stood on the steps in front of the hall, letting his voice spread out.
"Today, I've learned that my father passed away at sea seven days ago. This means that the founding year of the Wu dynasty … has passed away. I've heard since I was young that the Wu dynasty lasted for more than two hundred years, and that its prosperity continued. But today, everyone, I want to say … it's no longer important … "
He unsheathed his sword in the rising flames.
"Today, I'll stand guard in Jiangning with all of you. In front of us are the Female Zhenrens and the millions of soldiers who surrendered to them. Everyone knows that we have nowhere to go! I still have the people of this city behind me, but our world has been invaded and ravaged by the Female Zhenrens. Our families and loved ones have died in their homes, on the way to escape, and we've been humiliated. We have nowhere to go. I'm not the Crown Prince, nor am I the Emperor of the Wu dynasty. Soldiers, here … I'm just a man who feels humiliated. The world has fallen, and I can't do anything about it. I want nothing more than to die here … "
He waved the sword in his hand. Looking down from the night sky, there were only specks of fire in the square. Then, a mournful mourning music rang out in the city, passing through the night and the day.
The news fermented in the barracks inside and outside the city.
The seventh day of the ninth month, sunny.
A huge dragon flag rose above the city walls of Jiangning, which was surrounded by white banners. Two hours later, accompanied by a solemn bugle call, Jiangning opened its gates. This was the first time Jiangning had opened its gates after more than two months of defense, surrounded by millions of soldiers. Everyone was alarmed, and their first reaction was that the Crown Prince was preparing to break out.
But he didn't.
Under the leadership of Jun Wu, who was now the Emperor of the Wu dynasty, the mighty army charged toward Wanyan Zongfu's barracks in the west of the city. The Subduing Sea Army charged from the front, and the Beiwei Army flanked them from the south. Other armies led by different generals charged out of different gates to meet the millions of soldiers in front of them.
"Here … I'm just a man who feels humiliated. The world has fallen, and I can't do anything about it. I want nothing more than to die here …"
"… I'll die with you all!"
At this moment, there was no way out. An army of indignation was bound to win. After more than two months of bitter battles, the number of Jiangning soldiers who could walk onto the battlefield was only about 120,000. However, no one retreated at this moment. The consequences of retreating and surrendering had been demonstrated enough by the millions of soldiers outside the city in the past two months. They rushed towards the rolling crowd.
"Today, I'll die here. As Han people, kill Jin Gou and Wanyan Zongfu with me …"
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