Chapter 42 Stepping into the Game with One's Own Body

As a founding emperor, Zhao Kuangyin naturally understood very well what kind of disastrous consequences would arise if officials were condoned for embezzling military awards. Therefore, after Zhao Dezhao personally escorted Li Ying back to Kaifeng City, Zhao Kuangyin unhesitatingly issued an imperial decree to behead Li Ying in public to serve as a warning to others. At the same time, he scolded Zhao Pu, who was in charge of the Secretariat, in the most severe terms and ordered him to personally ensure that the deserved rewards were doubled and issued to the Song soldiers on the same day.

For this reason, the morale of the Song army was visibly boosted. On the morning of the next day, they set out northward as scheduled, heading toward the Jin territory to participate in the campaign against Northern Han. Zhao Dezhao also entrusted his newly opened pawnshop to Song Qi and Liang Zhouyu, and led Liang Zhouhan and Wang Zhifa north with the army. He joined this Northern Expeditionary war in the role of an army supervisor—a figure universally despised and loathed by everyone, just like the villains in classical novels.

Due to issues regarding the subordination of his troops, Zhao Dezhao's own maternal uncle, He Huaipu, was unable to join the northern expedition this time. However, the two generals Huyan Zan and Yu Jingsheng did appear on the roster of those on the expedition. Zhao Dezhao did not pull strings for his uncle; instead, he chose to leave his uncle behind in Kaifeng to help look after the pawnshop. Meanwhile, he made a straightforward demand to Ding Deyu, the commander-in-chief of the reinforcement army: he requested a military unit commanded by a commander to be placed directly under his personal orders.

Naturally, Ding Deyu could not refuse such a minor request. Without blinking an eye, Ding Deyu immediately smiled and said, "No problem. I shall dispatch an order to Huyan Zan, instructing him to lead his men and follow your commands."

To Ding Deyu's surprise, Zhao Dezhao shook his head with a smile and said, "The Vice Commander has misunderstood. This prince does not want General Huyan Zan this time; I want General Yu Jingsheng and his cavalry."

"His Highness wants Yu Jingsheng?" Ding Deyu was utterly puzzled and said, "General Huyan's martial arts are so formidable. Having him by your side would provide better protection for your safety!"

"Precisely because General Huyan possesses formidable martial arts and extraordinary bravery, keeping him by my side would be a waste of his talent. It is better for him to remain under the command of the Vice Commander on the battlefield where both armies clash, so he can achieve military merit and bring glory to himself and the imperial court," Zhao Dezhao explained. "As for General Yu, although he may fall short of General Huyan in martial arts and valor, he commands cavalry, which will be of great use to me."

As the commander-in-chief of the reinforcements, Ding Deyu naturally preferred to keep the fierce and battle-hardened Huyan Zan under his own command. Therefore, he eagerly agreed to Zhao Dezhao's request without hesitation. Yu Jingsheng, who had been named by Zhao Dezhao, arrived before Zhao Dezhao that very afternoon with his cavalry to await orders.

"Split the cavalry under your command into small squads and send them out in rotation. Search the villages and towns along our northern route as thoroughly as possible. Find me cows covered in pustules and suffering from foot-and-mouth disease or rinderpest, and buy them back at a high price! I have great use for them!"

This was the first command Zhao Dezhao gave to Yu Jingsheng upon seeing him again!

The marching route of the Song army was as follows: setting out from Kaifeng, they first arrived at Luoyang, then crossed the Yellow River at Mengzhou, continued straight north toward Luzhou where the main force commanded by Li Jiuxun was stationed, and finally marched north from Luzhou to reinforce the Taiyuan battlefield. Generally speaking, this route was relatively flat and open, and the key throat passes were under the control of the Song army, making the march quite smooth.

This also provided Zhao Dezhao with an opportunity to calmly study ancient military knowledge. Knowing that the turbulent era had not yet ended and the formidable Khitan enemy was still lurking threateningly on the North China Plain, Zhao Dezhao devoted his primary energy—unprecedentedly—to studying and exploring, aiming to accumulate experience in commanding troops and fighting battles for his long-term grand strategy.

It was also during this period that Zhao Dezhao was shocked to find that the gunpowder weapons of this era were shockingly backward. They were mixed with all sorts of messy and utterly useless ingredients, so much so that when using them, Song Song soldiers had to use a red-hot iron awl to forcefully pierce into the gunpowder in order to ignite the gunpowder weapons of this era.

It was likewise at this time that Zhao Dezhao discovered that the armor of this era was frighteningly heavy. Aside from providing sufficient defense, it was practically useless. Furthermore, in terms of variety, cotton armor—which could both keep soldiers warm and resist early firearm bullets—was nowhere to be found, and even the secondary cloth-covered armor had not yet appeared. As a result, the absolute core heavy infantry of the Song army had to use carts to transport their armor, putting it on only temporarily before entering battle. This made usage extremely inconvenient, and their mobility was painfully pathetic.

In terms of weaponry, the much-touted Mo dao still had a large number of equipment in the Song army. However, Ding Deyu directly told Zhao Dezhao that the Mo dao of this era had clearly gone into decline. As for the reason, it was naturally because the armor defense of this era had become excessively abnormal; the Mo dao that flourished in the Sui and Tang dynasties could hardly pierce the armor of the present day anymore. Instead, heavy blunt weapons such as maces, cudgels, and hammers had regained their brilliance, becoming the ultimate divine weapons for dealing with heavily armored troops.

"There are too many areas that need reform, and this northern expedition is indeed severely underprepared. Fortunately, our goal this time is merely to weaken Northern Han and the Khitan; otherwise, if the objective were to devour Northern Han, we would have almost no chance of winning this time."

Secretly rejoicing that the difficulty of this northern expedition was low, Zhao Dezhao was soon given a rude awakening by harsh reality. Just as they entered the territory of Luzhou, news suddenly arrived from the front line that the main force of the Song army led by Li Jiuxun had suffered a rather heavy defeat at Tuanbai Valley. Li Jiuxun was furious as a result and sent a dispatch demanding that Ding Deyu accelerate his northward march and reach Tuanbai Valley as soon as possible to assist him in avenging his defeat and washing away his humiliation.

As the army supervisor, Zhao Dezhao naturally learned of this news at the very first moment and even met the emissary sent by Li Jiuxun. When Ding Deyu asked the messenger about the details of Li Jiuxun's unexpected defeat, the envoy sent by Li Jiuxun answered truthfully:

"Reporting to the Vice Commander and Your Highness, we were somewhat careless this time. Vanguard General Kang Yenze was arrogant and impetuous, engaging the enemy general Liu Jiyue at the valley bottom. The enemy forces feigned defeat and lured us across the Mian River, then seized the opportunity to release water from the upstream, using the water like soldiers to rout our vanguard. That dog Liu Jiyue seized the opportunity to counterattack, not only routing our vanguard completely but also inflicting heavy injuries on General Kang Yenze, causing us to suffer a disastrous loss."

Ding Deyu remained silent, pondering attentively over the map for a long time before saying, "Accelerating the northward march is not a problem. However, what worries me is that doing so probably won't be of much use. The terrain of Tuanbai Valley is narrow and unfavorable for troop deployment. Even if we reach Tuanbai Valley, we won't be able to change the battlefield situation. The enemy forces occupy favorable terrain, advancing to attack and retreating to defend; it is almost impossible for them to give us any opportunity to encircle and annihilate them."

"Vice Commander, this is the military order of the Grand Commander."

The envoy sent by Li Jiuxun reminded him cautiously. Fortunately, Ding Deyu immediately replied, "Do not misunderstand. I have no intention of defying orders; I merely feel that doing this holds little significance, and I worry that it will cause the soldiers to labor in vain without achieving any actual effect."

Having said that, Ding Deyu added a sentence in his heart, thinking, "Li Jiuxun must be beside himself with rage and burning with anger and humiliation this time."

Fearing to affect solidarity, Li Jiuxun's envoy shut his mouth. Zhao Dezhao then curiously asked from the side, "How many enemy soldiers are there in Tuanbai Valley? How many troops does Grand Commander Li currently have at his disposal?"

"Reporting to Your Highness, the enemy forces in Tuanbai Valley number around twelve to thirteen thousand," the envoy answered truthfully. "The troops currently under the Grand Commander's command number approximately thirty-seven thousand, of which about six thousand are cavalry."

"That being the case, why is Grand Commander Li still urging us to march north and reinforce him as soon as possible?" Zhao Dezhao asked with some puzzlement. "Our frontline troops are still about three times the number of the Northern Han enemy forces; we are fully capable of avenging ourselves with our own strength. Why urge us to speed up our northward journey?"

"Your Highness, your view here is somewhat like discussing military strategy on paper," Ding Deyu smiled and said, "Fighting a war is not simply a matter of comparing troop numbers. The enemy occupies favorable terrain and has built sturdy camps. Even if our army launches a frontal assault relying on our numerical advantage, we have no guarantee of victory."

"The Vice Commander has misunderstood. I am not complaining that Grand Commander Li does not know how to win with superior numbers," Zhao Dezhao shook his head and said, "I just find it strange. Since we have a sufficient numerical advantage on the Tuanbai Valley battlefield, why don't we think of a way to lure the snake out of its hole and draw the enemy forces out of their perilous position to fight?"

After raising this question, Zhao Dezhao quickly added, "In the past, it certainly wouldn't have been so easy if we wanted to lure the snake out of its hole. But the situation is different now. Our vanguard has just suffered a setback, and the enemy morale is soaring. As long as we deliberately expose a few flaws and put out some bait, there is a very good chance we can lure the enemy out of their nest and wipe them out in a terrain that is more advantageous to us!"

"Your Highness's words are very true. If we have any way to lure the snake out of its hole at this moment, it is indeed much more likely to succeed than usual." Ding Deyu acknowledged Zhao Dezhao's analysis and then frowned as he said, "But the question is, how can we lure the snake out of its hole? How do we entice the enemy out of their nest?"

Scheming and swindling had always been Zhao Dezhao's specialty, so without batting an eye, he immediately smiled and said, "Isn't that easy? We happen to have a ready-made, prime piece of bait right now, which is guaranteed to tempt the enemy forces, prompting them to take the initiative and fall right into our trap to be annihilated by us."

"A ready-made, prime piece of bait? What kind of ready-made, prime piece of bait?" Ding Deyu was even more puzzled.

"Naturally, it is this prince." Zhao Dezhao patted his chest and said with a crafty smile, "Vice Commander Ding, suppose you were the enemy's commanding general and suddenly saw the opportunity to kill this prince on the battlefield or even capture him alive, would you be tempted? We only need to make use of this..."

After finishing his cunning scheme—which he had thought up in the blink of an eye—with a sly smile, Zhao Dezhao took the initiative to volunteer, saying, "Vice Commander, what do you think? If feasible, this prince will act according to this plan and see if it can succeed."

Ding Deyu was greatly tempted, but in his haste, he found it difficult to make such a resolute decision. Sensing his hesitation, Zhao Dezhao added, "Rest assured, Vice Commander. This prince is not someone who doesn't know the immensity of heaven and earth. Even if this fails, we basically suffer no losses. But once successful, not only can Grand Commander Li wash away his humiliation and avenge himself, but you, Vice Commander, can also claim a substantial share of the credit. In any case, that is far better than heading straight to Tuanbai Valley to fight a grueling, hard-fought siege battle."

Upon reflection, Ding Deyu realized that Zhao Dezhao's words made a lot of sense. After carefully scrutinizing all the links in the plan and finding that there was indeed not much danger, Ding Deyu gritted his teeth and said, "Since Your Highness is so insistent, this subordinate dare not stop you. Let's do it! I shall write a letter to Grand Commander Li right now, dispatch it by expedited courier, and ask him to act according to the plan. I also ask Your Highness to prepare to set out immediately, and I will arrange for light cavalry to escort Your Highness northward first!"

"There's no need for such trouble." Zhao Dezhao decisively waved his hand and said, "The northern route is entirely under our control. This prince will simply lead Yu Jingsheng's men and advance northward first."

Offering some of his experience, Ding Deyu smiled and said, "Your Highness, you must consider this more thoroughly. You are an imperial prince, and moreover, the Grand Imperial Prince of the current Emperor. If the cavalry protecting you is too small, won't the enemy find it suspicious?"

Zhao Dezhao immediately came to his senses and hastily raised his thumb toward Ding Deyu in praise. Without further ado, the two men acted separately: Ding Deyu hurriedly wrote a letter to the frontline commander Li Jiuxun, sending it off via a fast courier to gallop day and night to reach the Tuanbai Valley battlefield and contact Li Jiuxun; Zhao Dezhao hurriedly gathered Liang Zhouhan and Wang Zhifa, boarded a magnificent colored carriage, and headed north first under the protection of a thousand light cavalry. As for the forces under Yu Jingsheng, they were left behind by Zhao Dezhao to continue searching for the diseased cattle that had not yet been found.

.........

Next, let us look at the situation on the Northern Han army's side. Despite successfully fighting a brilliant battle at Tuanbai Valley, Liu Jiyue, the Guard Commander-in-Chief who commanded the Northern Han forces, still dared not show the slightest carelessness. Regardless of how high morale was or how persistently the Song army challenged them to battle, Liu Jiyue remained firmly resolved to close the camp and refuse to come out. He refused to take any further risks in battle, firmly guarding the strategic stronghold and adopting a posture of wearing the Song army down until their rations were exhausted and they were forced to retreat.

However, to Liu Jiyue's surprise, a few days later, the weather around Tuanbai Valley on that particular day was clear with a crisp autumn breeze—weather perfectly suited for a battle between two armies. Yet the Song army, which had been issuing battle challenges day after day, suddenly fell silent and ceased their curses and provocations outside the Northern Han camp. Liu Jiyue found this strange and inevitably felt suspicious and perplexed.

What surprised Liu Jiyue even more came later. At noon that very day, scouts flew back on horses to report that a detachment of Song light cavalry had escorted Zhao Dezhao, the eldest son of Song Emperor Zhao Kuangyin, and arrived near the Tuanbai Valley battlefield. Furthermore, Song commander-in-chief Li Jiuxun had personally led his troops out of the camp to greet Zhao Dezhao's arrival with grand ceremonies.

"The son of the Song bandit emperor has arrived? Is this confirmed?"

The news was too startling, so Liu Jiyue naturally had to inquire about the truth of the matter. Having received an affirmative answer, Liu Jiyue did not dare to be negligent. He quickly left the camp in person, ascended a high vantage point, and overlooked the situation of the Song camp from above. As the scout's report stated, the Song army had indeed deployed a large number of soldiers in formation to welcome Zhao Dezhao's arrival. The gates of the Song camp were draped in red and green silks, and gongs and drums beat deafeningly—a truly lively scene.

By this time, his deputy Feng Jinke had also arrived at the vantage point. After surveying the movements of the Song camp side by side with Liu Jiyue, Feng Jinke could not help but sneer, "The spectacle is certainly not small. With a thousand cavalry serving as guards, it seems the eldest son of Zhao Kuangyin has indeed come. Otherwise, Li Jiuxun wouldn't make such a huge fuss."

"What is Zhao Kuangyin sending his son here for?" Liu Jiyue grew even more puzzled and asked suspiciously, "I recall that none of his sons are very old. Logically speaking, they aren't qualified to lead troops on an expedition yet."

"Just building up credentials," Feng Jinke said with great confidence. "A common occurrence. If he wants his son to achieve military merit without letting him take risks, he lets his son hold a nominal post in the army. Once a victory is won, the son is legitimately bestowed with official titles and noble ranks so he can inherit the throne in the future."

Since such practices were customary, Liu Jiyue naturally nodded in agreement with Feng Jinke's analysis. Feng Jinke then sneered sinisterly, "Let's hope this little cub is brainless and charges into battle himself for the sake of military glory. Then we will have the opportunity to perform a great and extraordinary feat."

"How could things be that cheap? When have you ever seen an imperial prince personally putting on armor and charging into battle?"

Once again, the situation exceeded Liu Jiyue's expectations. Just as he finished refuting Feng Jinke's pipe dream, a personal guard suddenly galloped over, saluted Liu Jiyue, and said, "Reporting to the Grand Commander, a man claiming to be Wang Zhifa, an imperial envoy by the side of the Song bandit prince Zhao Dezhao, has come to our camp gate and requested entry. He says he has a letter from the Song bandit prince to be personally presented to you."

"The Song bandit prince wrote a letter to me?" Hearing this, Liu Jiyue became interested and immediately decided, "Let's go back and see what's going on."