Chapter 87: Stay Steady (Seeking Recommendations)

Liu Qi charged at the forefront, leading the soldiers in formation outside the city of Shunchang, preparing to confront the approaching Jin army. Though the soldiers didn’t fully understand the purpose behind Liu Qi’s arrangement, seeing him astride his horse at the very front, bold and resolute, filled them with reassurance—surely, their commander would not lead them to ruin.

Once the Song army had completed their formation, they saw, from a distance, the vast and mighty Jin army advancing like a rolling tide. The phrase “over ten thousand strong” felt woefully inadequate; this Jin force numbered a full hundred thousand, an awe-inspiring sight. Far off, clouds of dust billowed, the earth quaked beneath the thunder of hooves—their momentum was truly terrifying.

Most of these Song soldiers had come from the south and had never witnessed such a spectacle. Even in the recent battles against the Jin’s main force, they had fought from atop city walls; never before had they faced the enemy so directly, with nothing but open ground between them. Some among them began to panic.

“Steady yourselves—do not fear. Today, I’ll show you that the Jin army is not so invincible after all!” Liu Qi, noticing the soldiers’ unrest, quickly called out, “At my command, everyone, grip your cudgels in your mouths!”

Though fear gripped their hearts, the soldiers felt their courage swell at Liu Qi’s words. As the saying goes, “When the commander is ready to die, the soldiers have no thought of living.” Their terror diminished considerably.

“Hmph, some people are only good at boasting from the rear, but when it comes to real fighting, all they do is cower behind us. I see…” At that moment, the left deputy general, Huang Guangxing, noticed Wei Nan was absent from the ranks and couldn’t resist a sarcastic remark.

“Enough! If you’ve nothing useful to say, keep silent.” Liu Qi shot Huang Guangxing a glare, already growing weary of him. An army divided can never hope for victory. This time, Wei Nan’s efforts were crucial; perhaps in the past Liu Qi had looked down on scholars, but now his perspective had changed completely.

From afar, Wanyan Chang saw the Song army arrayed outside the city as if to “welcome” him—and, astonishingly, it was infantry arrayed against his forces. At the time, the Jin cavalry was famed for its unstoppable might, known as the Iron Cavalry of Jin.

Yet now, as Wanyan Chang led his iron cavalry to attack Shunchang, the city’s defender, Liu Qi, had deployed infantry to meet them in battle—was the man mad?

“General, it seems our guess was right—this Liu Qi is nothing but an ignorant braggart. He dares lead infantry against our cavalry? It’s like striking a stone with an egg! I request permission to lead ten thousand of our iron cavalry and crush the Song army at Shunchang,” the strategist Wanyan Diwo petitioned Wanyan Chang.

Wanyan Diwo, though a strategist, was also a warrior in his own right. Seeing his eagerness, Wanyan Chang nodded, “Very well. I grant you ten thousand elite cavalry—destroy the Song army for me!”

“I obey, my lord. I will bring you Liu Qi’s head, or face the consequences under military law!” Wanyan Diwo declared, brimming with confidence; and indeed, he was a formidable commander, hence his bold promise.

Wanyan Diwo led his ten thousand iron cavalry in a furious charge. “Hyah, hyah!” he urged his steed on, eager to swoop down upon the Song army and wipe them out in one fell swoop. The horses thundered forward, raising clouds of dust; from a distance, the charging cavalry seemed like ten thousand arrows, poised to reap the lives of the Song soldiers.

“General, the Jin cavalry is coming! Let our cavalry hold the line!” Huang Guangxing, the left deputy general, called out anxiously to Liu Qi.

“No need to panic—hold your ground!” Liu Qi replied with certainty.

“If we don’t act now, we’ll be wiped out! Order the cavalry to the front, withdraw the infantry to the city walls! With the defenses, we might hold off the Jin. But standing here, we’re nothing but sitting ducks!” Huang Guangxing pleaded.

“This is an order—obey it!” Liu Qi said sternly, his tone brooking no dissent. He had once admired Huang Guangxing, but now, faced with true danger, he saw that the man was all bluster and no resolve.

“I don’t care about your orders! I’m done—if you want to die, go ahead without me. I’m leaving!” With that, Huang Guangxing wheeled his horse and galloped back toward the city.

As a deputy general, he had the privilege of a horse. His desertion dealt a heavy blow to the Song army’s morale.

“Huang Guangxing, are you disobeying direct orders?” Liu Qi shouted after him.

But Huang Guangxing offered no response, fleeing all the faster toward the city.

Liu Qi cursed inwardly, fearing that the men would lose their nerve after this. Yet, to his surprise, apart from Huang Guangxing, not a single soldier broke ranks or attempted to flee.

Meanwhile, the Jin cavalry, undeterred by Huang Guangxing’s flight, only increased their speed under Wanyan Diwo’s command. In moments, they would be upon the Song lines.

Suddenly, with a muffled thud, Wanyan Diwo’s warhorse inexplicably faltered—its front legs buckled, and horse and rider pitched forward. Yet Wanyan Diwo, skilled and daring, showed no panic. He kicked off from his horse, somersaulted through the air, and rolled twice upon landing, barely steadying himself.

But though he had regained his footing, the cavalry behind him could not be stopped. Ten thousand horses surged forward at full gallop—there was no way to halt their momentum. Wanyan Diwo dodged one horse, then another, but there were simply too many. In the end, he could not escape; a horse struck him down.

He was trampled by one horse, then dozens, then hundreds. When the cavalry finally thundered past, Wanyan Diwo’s body was gone—he had been ground to pulp beneath thousands of hooves.

So ended the life of Wanyan Diwo, a talent of his age, without ever having exchanged blows with the Song army—trampled to death by his own cavalry.

Yet the collapse of Wanyan Diwo’s horse was not the end, but the beginning. Like a fuse, from that first fall, the Jin horses began to lose strength and collapse in succession. The once-formidable iron cavalry, before even clashing with the Song troops, fell into utter chaos.

With their commander dead, the remaining cavalry was leaderless, and disorder spread in an instant. Defeat came without a fight.