Chapter 68: The Way of Benevolence and Forbearance (Part 1)

  Central Yinzhou, east of Liu City, old county in western Liaoning.

  This land is located on the east side of the waist of the Medical Witch Mountain, west of the tail of the White Wolf Water, at the intersection of the old road in western Liaoning. It has been a place where military strategists must contend for control since ancient times. In the Spring and Autumn period, it belonged to the Guzhu State, during the Warring States period, the Yan State set up the Liaoxi County, after the Han Dynasty, it was changed to Changli County. The Sui Dynasty established the Yan Prefecture, in the second year of the Zhenyuan reign of Emperor Dezong of the Tang Dynasty, the Yan Prefecture was upgraded to a military city and the Ting'an Military Region was established. As the internal and external troubles of the Tang Dynasty became more serious, the power of the Silla people who established the prosperous country in Haedong extended to the Yingzhou, taking advantage of the gradual withdrawal of the various military states outside the pass, quietly incorporated the old county of Liaoxi into its territory.

  Any empire, after being established for over a hundred years, will encounter various complex problems. The Balhae Kingdom, which had experienced a hundred years of prosperity, was no exception. From the time of Dae Yu-hwa's ascension to the throne, the Balhae Kingdom began to decline. The royal family and the entire ruling class became increasingly corrupt, with internal power struggles within the court, and fierce resistance from the northern Black Water Mohe tribes. All these factors severely weakened the national strength of the Balhae Kingdom. After Dae Muye's ascension to the throne, not only did he fail to revitalize the kingdom, but instead, he exacerbated the situation, plunging the Balhae Kingdom into chaos and darkness.

  If it were placed on a normal day, the internal situation of the Tang Dynasty was also chaotic. The emperor was weak, and the vassals were in contention. The two brothers didn't care about each other's business. You played with your beacon fires rising everywhere, I indulged in my paper drunkenness and golden dreams, and everyone got what they wanted. However, now that the Khitan has appeared, the situation of Bohai State suddenly became unfavorable. As the various Khitan tribes took turns advancing eastward, Bohai State lost a pasture today and a city tomorrow. Although the territory of the country had not been damaged so far, the land that was secretly invaded from the Tang Dynasty was gradually being eaten away by the Khitans.

  The Bailang River flows downstream, also known as the Daling River by locals. The riverbank is home to the ancient city of Yan Prefecture in western Liaoning Province. This city wall has not been seriously repaired under the rule of the Bohai State, and the less-than-two-zhang-high city wall is full of broken pits everywhere. The original defensive equipment has remained unchanged for decades, still recorded on the account books. All the allocated funds have been embezzled by officials and generals. However, inside this simple and dilapidated city wall stand various tea houses, wine towers, brothels, as well as luxurious mansions of nobles and officials.

  The city walls were lined with defenders, wearing Tang military uniforms and holding Tang-style broadswords and wooden spears. Even the commander's flag hanging limply on the tower was similar to that of the Tang army. Behind the semicircular team flags fluttered a few strands of yarn, and if not for the curved stirrup pattern embroidered on the flag surface, it would be indistinguishable from the Great Tang in the Central Plains. This is the Bohai State, which imitated the Tang system in everything, revered the Great Tang, learned from the Great Tang, accepted the Tang's imperial seal, followed the Tang's jurisdiction, and was deeply influenced by the Tang culture. Even the military system and government administration were all modeled after the Tang. The idea that the later Goguryeo people considered themselves to be the orthodox successors of Han culture originated from this.

  Such a defense would be nothing in the eyes of the skilled Khitan warriors, and it would surely fall within half a day!

  The preparations were made by more than 2,000 Khitan troops from Liu City, with 1,000 regular soldiers and 1,000 auxiliary soldiers. To be honest, this number of troops was roughly equal to the Parhae people on the city wall. There were also 2,000 Parhae people guarding the city, with both sides having the same military strength, but the difference lay in the fact that the Khitan people below the city were coming with great victory, while the Parhae people on the city wall were defeated troops.

  Three days ago, in the battle of Dalin River, 2,000 Khitan people and 3,000 Bohai army formed a line against each other. As soon as they clashed, the Bohai army was unable to withstand it, and under the fierce attack of the Khitan people, their formation retreated. Qiedan's general, Jun Tulie, saw this opportunity and immediately led 100 elite cavalrymen to charge into the enemy lines, instantly crushing the already shaky Bohai army, killing over a thousand soldiers, and forcing the remaining Bohai troops to retreat into the city of Liaoxi, where they were besieged.

  The Khitan did not take advantage of the new defeat of the Bohai army to immediately seize the city, but instead slowly set up camp outside the city, listening to the Bohai army's tidying up and clearing inside the city, and opening the east gate of the county city, allowing the Bohai envoys to come and go freely.

  Tuli suppressed the requests of his brave warriors to fight, and sent out all his cavalry scouts, focusing on the direction of Yanzhou City and Huaiyuan Army more than 100 miles away in the east, waiting for news.

  Enduring for three more days, when even he himself had some doubts about his judgment, Youji finally received the news he needed - the Bohai reinforcements from Huairou Army were heading in this direction, about sixty miles away from Yanguo City.

  "How many men? How many cavalry and infantry? What about the armored warriors and archers?" Tu Li stared at the returning Tou Ma, asking carefully.

  After listening to Youji's detailed report, Tuli let out a long sigh. The 2,500-strong Bohai army, with half cavalry and half infantry, matched the intelligence they had previously obtained. It seemed that the Huirong army of the Bohai State was also fully deployed, and it was not in vain that Tuli had been waiting for many days under the city of Yanguo. The Huirong army was currently the last military force of the Bohai State in the entire Yingzhou, and the city was an important military stronghold controlling western Liaoning, with defenses much tighter than those of Yanguo. Attacking it would also be much more laborious. Although Tuli was confident of taking down Huirong, no matter what, the losses suffered from annihilating the Huirong army in a field battle would be much lighter than forcing an attack on the city.

  One battle will decide the fate of Yingzhou, this is the result that Tuli has been longing for. This eastern expedition has already been delayed for too long, and it's time to settle accounts with his brother who fled to the vicinity of Baitou Mountain. There can only be one Yelü Abaoji, and he will be elected by the elders of the tribe. This is a tradition that has been passed down for thousands of years among the Khitan people. Anyone who wants to violate this tradition will have to pay the price in blood, even if it's a close brother!

  Tuli led a thousand regular soldiers and all the elite cavalry out of the city, each equipped with two horses to ensure sustainability. He led his army in a big circle around the outside of the city, avoiding the view of the Yanjun garrison, then rushed eastward. At the same time, he ordered the vanguard to seal off the four gates of Yanjun, completely cutting off the Yanjun garrison's communication channels with the outside world. The rest of the auxiliary troops stayed under the city of Yanjun, making a show of force and intimidating Yanjun.

  The hastily dispatched Huaiyuan army was ambushed by the Khitan cavalry at Xilingou, thirty miles west of Yan Prefecture. The attack came from behind, while the Huaiyuan army's vigilance was directed forward. Several hundred infantrymen responsible for the rear guard hastily turned around under the command of the Sima, trying to form a square array to resist. However, by this time, Bohai had lost its former prosperity and the Jurchen people had also lost their bravery in defeating the Tang army's Yongwu Army. Not only was the formation sparse, but the soldiers were also timid and exhausted from rushing on the road. Under the first round of charging by dozens of Khitan cavalrymen, the several hundred infantrymen at the rear guard did what all the armies of the declining dynasty did - they threw down their weapons and flags and fled in all directions without hesitation.

  The collapse of the Huaiyuan army was quite astonishing, so fast that most Khitan cavalrymen did not even have time to react. The Khitans abandoned everything that might hinder their flight: weapons, bows and arrows, flags, armor, food and supplies, and then fled without looking back.

  Tuli chose to ambush the Huaiyuan army in Xiling Gorge, in order to better conceal his own tracks. This low-lying hill can provide effective cover for the ambush troops, making the Khitan cavalry's attack as sudden as possible, and also allowing him to achieve his tactical intention of bypassing the main force of the Tangut vanguard cavalry and launching a surprise attack from behind.

  The Khitan cavalry drove the defeated Mohe people forward, and the vanguard of the Huaiyuan army, which had not yet turned around, was rushed into a mess. The vanguard of the Huaiyuan army was mainly composed of cavalry, who tried to turn their horses' heads under the command of their general and attempted to counterattack against the Khitan cavalry's charge. However, this effort seemed so pale and weak, as the cavalry units that had gathered together were dispersed by the fleeing infantry, and they could only follow the fleeing soldiers in a state of panic, rushing towards another gathering point.

  The powerless Hua yuan army commander and his personal guards had to hastily flee towards the direction of Yan jun city, with over a hundred cavalrymen clustered together, making them an obvious target. Tulie simply called on the Er Langs to give up chasing after the escapees in other directions and focused on this group of Xianbei people. Under the repeated impact of the fierce Ma warriors, Tulie finally managed to intercept them before they could enter Yan jun city, and personally beheaded the commander of the Xianbei people under the city walls.

  The Battle of Xilin River, Tuli defeated the last fighting force of the Mohe people in Yingzhou, and it can be seen that the entire Yingzhou will no longer have any resistance. The power of Pin Department has reached its peak in two hundred years!

  In front of the thousands of soldiers and civilians in the city of Yan, the main general of the relief army was beheaded by the Khitan people under the city. This cruel fact greatly hit the morale of the defending troops. Tulie did not hesitate at all, and immediately ordered the attack on the city. The low and broken city wall was nothing in the eyes of the Khitan people, they had long learned how to attack cities in their conquests. Although there were no large-scale siege engines like those of the Han people in the Central Plains, this Yan Prefecture City was absolutely not a match for the Khitan people.

  Under the accurate archery of the Khitan people, the defenders on the city wall did not dare to show their faces. The Khitan people easily set up more than a dozen simple wooden ladders under the city wall, and one by one, the Khitan warriors climbed up the ladders and jumped into the city wall. Due to years of neglect, the city wall of Yanjing was full of pits and holes, and the city wall was low and dilapidated. Many agile people simply held their weapons in their mouths and climbed up the city wall with their bare hands. Relying on their individual climbing ability and bravery, the Khitan people easily ascended to the top of the city wall and firmly established their foothold on the city wall.

  In less than half a watch, the resistance of the defending army on the city wall was cleared one by one. After the Khitan soldiers who climbed up to the city wall drove the defenders down the wall, they directly rushed into the city.

  Tuli watched as the enemy's flag fell from the city wall, and his face, which had been tense for half a year, finally relaxed, even revealing a hint of a smile. The several tribal elders who followed him on the expedition saw Tuli's smile and their mood also improved somewhat, everyone in their hearts letting out a sigh of relief. Since Xiao Lang Jun Wuri left, no one had seen Tuli smile again, the gloomy atmosphere had been weighing heavily on the entire tribe, making it hard for anyone to breathe.