Chapter 903: Wanyan Liang's Collapse, Full River Red

Three routes advancing simultaneously, the real and the feigned intertwined.

On the southern shore, the remnants of Han Chang’s forces and hastily mobilized local garrisons fortified themselves by the perilous terrain, watching the beacon towers. A battle over the control of Jiangnan, and even the fate of the entire realm, was like an arrow on the bowstring, ready to be released.

On the morning of May 28, at the first crack of dawn, the mist over the Yangtze River had not yet dispersed.

On the northern bank of the Yangtze, three arrows flew simultaneously into the twilight of dawn.

—Accompanied by the resounding of war drums.

The great battle erupted abruptly!

At the downstream Zhenjiang section, Yue Fei’s camp was the first to sound the war drums.

A hundred massive warships, resembling moving fortresses, slowly pressed towards the river’s heart, their mastheads perilously poised, with siege engines tense and ready to deploy.

Han Chang had long built high ramparts on the southern shore, densely arrayed with ballistae, and upon seeing the northern ships advancing, arrows and stones fell like a swarm of locusts, pouring down in a torrential downpour.

The massive ships shielded themselves with thick defenses, rowers pushed forward desperately, risking their lives in advance.

Suddenly, they heard a signal cannon from Yue’s forces, and dozens of swift boats shot forth from either side of the massive ships like flying fish, with valiant warriors crouched at their bows, clad in heavy armor, wielding axes and iron hooks, using the water currents and the larger ships for cover as they charged straight at the southern shore’s water barriers.

“Kill!!!”

“Kill!!!”

“Kill!!!”

“…..”

The shouts of slaughter thundered like terrifying crashes!

Today’s naval warfare in Kyushu had long undergone an epochal transformation from the past.

Alongside the rapid development of maritime trade and canal transport, the improvements in naval warfare were equally progressing!

Hundreds of fast boats, fishing vessels, and even rafts tied with bamboo wood appeared, not in formation, but taking advantage of the morning mist and the distraction of the fierce downstream battle, silently emerging from the reed beds of numerous riverbends. The ships bore no great flags, the soldiers did not shout, relying only on the familiarity of oarsmen with the waterways for quick and rapid maneuvers.

Soldiers leaped into waist-deep water, raising shields and wielding sabers, launching a vigorous assault through the currents.

More than that, dozens of men with exceptional swimming skills, a blade clenched between their teeth, silently swam beneath Jin Army’s small warships, boring through their hulls, and inserted gunpowder charges that had been long prepared for action.

The next moment, explosions and screams erupted in rapid succession.

No doubt, it was gunpowder!

This was the product of Northern Border craftsmen under Gu Hui, who had refined and improved the traditional gunpowder formula and usage.

Though not yet attaining the might of firearms from later generations, it was no longer a mere incendiary substance.

For naval warfare, there were primarily two uses:

Firstly, “Fire Hawks.”

Using earthen pots or thick paper to wrap refined gunpowder, mixed with iron caltrops and broken ceramics, coated with flammable pine resin and sulfur, and tied onto the short thick arrow shafts used by strong crossbows.

They were ignited with a fuse before being fired, with the crossbowman relying on experience to calculate the distance, aiming for it to explode in mid-air or fall onto the enemy’s ship deck or rooftop.

Upon exploding, it sounded like thunder, the blaze burst forth, the scattered iron shards and broken ceramics even if unable to directly sink a large ship, were enough to ignite sails and rigging, wounding deck crew, and the terrifying noise startled the horses, sapping the courage of the soldiers.

Secondly, “Underwater Dragon King Cannons.”

This device was even more intricate, using a hard wood shell with excellent sealing properties, filled with gunpowder, equipped with a time-delay fragrance fuse, using an ox bladder to maintain buoyancy, floating with the current towards the enemy’s ship bottom.

When the fuse burned out, the gunpowder exploded underwater with a thunderous roar, the wooden casing shattered, and though the immense impact might not breach the thick ship hull, it was enough to crack the planks, cause water to flood the hold, and make the Jin soldiers on board lose their balance, believing the forces of the supernatural were helping from beneath the waves.

At this moment, these improved firearms showcased their power.

As Yue’s fast boats neared, the crossbowmen at the prow fired the ignited “Fire Hawks” towards the Jin Army’s water barricades and makeshift fortifications on the shore.

With several explosions, thick smoke billowed behind several barricades, the defenders screamed as they attempted to extinguish the flames on themselves, their formations thrown into disarray. Even more terrifyingly, several projectiles skipped over the barricades, exploding among the assembled Jin Army ranks behind, causing chaos with overturned men and horses, inciting further disorder.

This unprecedented warfare method, combined with the Northern Army’s fearless assault and multiple internal rebellions, thoroughly shattered the already strained nerves of the Jin Army.

The combination of smoke, fire, thunderous noises, underwater attacks from unseen sources, and sudden betrayals from behind made the Jin Army’s defensive line along the Yangtze crumble irreversibly before noon.

—The overall situation was already decisively sealed!

Even before this grand battle began, everything had actually already been predestined!

The foundation of the Gu Clan was too profound.

Especially in the arena of naval warfare, even without Gu Hui deploying the Ryukyu Navy, the experience of the Gu Clan alone was unmatched by Wanyan Digunai’s Foreign Race.

Even though Wanyan Digunai had requisitioned the family resources of Jiangnan’s great clans.

Yet, with the shifts in public sentiment, this still could not turn the tide.

This was their inherent disadvantage.

How could they possibly reverse it?

Moreover, the most critical point was, to all of Jiangnan’s great clans, Wanyan Digunai appeared as one wanting to drag them all to their demise, and only Wanyan Digunai truly knew what he intended to do.

And this would likewise lead to greater chaos, inevitably causing the situation to collapse, to the point of total disintegration…..

…

On June 3, the aftershocks of the Yangtze line’s collapse, like a wildfire spreading across the fields, uncontrollably swept through the entire region of Jiangnan.

Amidst Han Chang’s defeat.

Near Jurong, he encountered an ambush by local militia returning to allegiance, pierced by numerous arrows and died, his remnants leaderless, either scattered as bandits, pillaging the countryside in a desperate bid to survive, only to be exterminated soon after by the advancing cavalry of Yue Fei and the local Rebel Army;

or surrendered in formation to the nearest Song Army, in hopes of preserving their lives.

From Zhenjiang to Wuhu, along several hundred li of riverbank, there was no organized Jin Army resistance.

Those Jiangnan counties and towns, originally hesitant and compelled to provide grain and money to the Jin State, upon hearing that the Royal Army had crossed the river and that the Jin Army generals’ heads had fallen, no longer wavered.

On June 5, within the city of Hangzhou, gentry representatives led their family guards and yamen attendants to surround the residence of the remaining Jin officers, executed them and their dozens of personal soldiers, then opened the city gates and sent elderly envoys bearing wine and meat to offer their respects to Yue Fei’s forces.