《岳飞》Yue Fei

[Hitai de Bodemloze]

在濒临崩国
农夫成卫士
进北收复地
从没再回家

Amidst a country on the verge of collapse
A farmhand rises to become its defender
Journeying north to reclaim lost lands
He will never see home again

This is the tale of Yue Fei, China's greatest hero

Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two

[Hitai de Bodemloze]

Prologue
1130 AD

The shoreside silt glistened like the silver of stars as it gently caressed the great banks of the Changjiang, the river that carved China in twain. An afternoon sun beat overhead as a taskmaster as harsh as any whip-wielding camp instructor, serving still to accentuate the natural twinkle of the gentle waters they marched beside. And although verdant trees rich with luscious emerald tones lined the riverside road, the marching of a hundred upon a hundred footfalls had already turned the ground beneath them to mud, robbing them of what in vain could perhaps be thought of as a true concordance with nature.

The army coiled like a snake as it followed the river west, away from the pastures of Hanyang and towards to ancient city of Xiangyang. Their freshly woven banners, silk tapestries of a deep and succulent magenta, barely fluttered in the ephemeral summer breeze, yet still stood erect, a reminder they needed not of whom they were and what they fought for. Emblazoned upon their flags, brazen and proud yet still virtuous and gallant, was the emblem of their dynasty: the character song. A tree beneath a roof, it represented shelter and refuge; a place to grow old and lay roots underneath the eternal protection of Heaven’s blessed son. Yet this protection was now compromised, their safety threatened. Gladly did they raise such proud banners to restore all that their dynasty stood for.

They were farmhands, mostly. A mixture of young and old. Some wore scars of battle, others the dark tans of a lifetime’s toil in the field. Many had weaver’s hands, whilst yet others had callouses and blisters from work with metal and wood. Some eyes danced with excitement, others with a lethargy born of too many winters and too many sons. Yet none were jaded and none were scared. All burned with a fire, albeit among some did it burn brighter.

They had been called to war and they had all answered without a hesitation, for if they did not, then no one would. The enemy, a vile mixture of steppe peoples from beyond the wall, rallied together behind a perverse mockery of a dynasty their own to wage war upon the Middle Kingdom. They knew not how these barbarians had scored victory upon victory, but they knew now that the northlands had fallen beneath the mighty hooves of Mongol horses; that at the capital of Kaifeng the banners of the Song no longer danced in the wind; and that the hordes of their enemies were still penetrating further south, unsatisfied as if a virile lover always with one concubine too few. The Song court had fled to the shores of the Changjiang, yet their shadow was forever haunted by the insatiable riders of the Jin dynasty. Attempts at defence and counter-attack alike were swept aside, rendering the once stalwart men of Song impotent and their efforts near-futile. Time had been bought for the Emperor, Son of Heaven, to flee once again, yet the advances of the barbarian Jin were not halted.

All men knew they lived upon a knife-edge, at a time of flux and fluidity, of treachery and tragedy, of daring and desperation. The actions of men could count for nought or for all the gold under Heaven. It was a time only a few men would ever experience, for centuries could pass without such import. It was a time where legends could finally be born, rising from the slumber of generations to paint history with tales to be remembered until the sun would cease to rise.

So they marched, awaiting the unknowns ahead of them as children returning to the bosom of a father they had never known. What lay ahead of the riverside road they surged along they could not know, but their duty to their Emperor, to their country and to their families caused them all to flock to the banner of the Jinghu Army, newly raised in the Xiangyang basin with the sole purpose of marching north to reclaim the lost capital of Kaifeng; all under the command of a man known only as Yue Fei…

[Hitai de Bodemloze]

I guess I should answer some questions in advance.

Am I back on TWC?

Maybe. I still have a lot going on in real life and I don't have the time to do the kind of shifts I was pulling here before. But...

Another AAR?

To be honest, I love after action reports; I've been captivated by them ever since I first stumbled across Takeda, many, many moons ago. But more importantly, I've still not completed one, so this after action report - I hope - will be me crossing that goal off the bucket list. It won't be that long, but it will, fingers crossed, be completed.

Yokai?

Eh, despite my efforts, Shogun 2 dying on me really killed my enthusiasm. But I do love the story of Yokai and it's a tale I do want to tell. However, I have another long-term project on the go at the moment off-site, a novel in fact, which is what I want to focus my energies on. Plus the actual literary quality of Yokai was horrible and I was never happy with it, even if it was fun to write. Ask me again next year~

Are you actually playing the game this time?

I am indeed; this will be an actual after action report, based off of my experiences in a campaign game on M/M, cause I'm a scrub. My self-imposed objective is simply to take a city called Kaifeng, which isn't all that far away from my faction's starting area to be fair. Whatever happens, the story will end when I reach the city - what happens on the journey there is up to the game. I'm looking forward to finding out.

What mod are you using?

It's called Shaoding. It's in Chinese and there's no English translation, but if people want to play it, I can find a download link for you.

[Seven of Spades]

What mod are you using?

I was about to ask that, good luck with your AAR

[Alwyn]

Oh my! Hitai is telling a new story, I feel like it's Christmas morning already . Your description of the army marching out is captivating. This army's mission into the unknown looks like a dangerous one, when the barbarians beyond the wall have won victory after victory.

[McScottish]

Wait...what's the sound...far off in the distance...so faint...

I knew this was going to happen

Good to see you 'back' Hitai, we've missed you! Guys...guys?!

Anyway, I look forward to reading all about this, as well as your eventual triumphant novella. Subscribed!

[Hitai de Bodemloze]

Thank you all~

I'll throw a campaign screenshot in here and there too. I generally wouldn't do that, cause I feel it breaks immersion, but even I'm not familiar with half the locations I'm talking about, so a map or two might be helpful.

[Hitai de Bodemloze]

Chapter One
Xiangyang, 1130 AD

To his surprise, Li Dao was only a few years shy of the Jinghu Army commander’s none too advanced age. Still fresh-faced and unscarred, the young general Li had accepted summons to Xiangyang in the summer, yet after meeting General Yue for the first time, Li could not help but feel a little perturbed. Only three years his elder, Yue didn’t strike Li as an imposing or inspiring leader; not what he had initially been expecting. Somewhat short, with the round, doleful eyes of a dog and a face still waiting to be etched with a permanent stubble, it was difficult to believe this was the man now entrusted by the court to lead a campaign north to retake the capital. The last of the country’s soldiers, resources and hopes were now in his hands.

Li knew that his commander had fought the enemy invaders atop the walls of Kaifeng itself when the city had fallen three years previously. Although Yue Fei bore no visible scars, he had combat experience and one could hardly argue with an order from the Emperor himself to thus entrust him with such responsibility. Unless of course there truly was nobody else the Song could call upon…

That Yue Fei had any experience at all was of a benefit to Li and the newly born Jinghu Army, although even if a child could walk it gave him little advantage in a race against men. A mixture of farmhands and peasants, complemented by only a remnant of the imperial army that had so ignominiously capitulated following the fall of Kaifeng, Li had his doubts this rag-tag force could even march in a straight line, let alone do battle with the veteran horselords of their Jin rivals.

In truth, even he himself knew little of command. Although he was now styled a general, his position owed nothing to his skill or experience, but instead to the country’s severe lack of talent. Li’s only accomplishment was having led a futile resistance against the rebellious magistrate of Jiangling. Li’s hometown, directly south of Xiangyang, had cast off its Song colours the previous winter, as Jin soldiers advanced further and further south. Gathering together loyal schoolboys and labourers whilst armed with little more than farmtools and rocks, Li attempted to resist the insurrection, but they were scattered within a matter of hours by the well-drilled garrison. Disgraced, Li fled to Jingmen, a dozen li west, yet the deaths of his comrades and the betrayal of his kinsfolk still haunted him; spectres of his failure and that of his country’s writ-large.

Yet even such a sorry episode marked him as a greater talent than most others in the Xiangyang basin. When the Jinghu Army was established the next year, Li Dao was created general; something that still left a sour taste in his mouth whenever he was addressed as such, akin to slap in the face. Arriving at the headquarters in Xiangyang, Li was briefed on the Emperor’s expectations and the Jinghu Army’s campaign objectives. Li listened to Yue’s grandiose schemes to recapture the former capital, thousands of li to the north. In truth, he thought them absurd and naïve. A dozen cities stood between Xiangyang and Kaifeng, each with its own garrison; they had neither the equipment nor the supplies for multiple protracted sieges. Not to mention the Jin central army itself, which would surely crush the meagre and inexperienced Jinghu force, for they themselves were barely five thousand strong. Yue Fei’s quiet optimism was not as infectious as he perhaps might have hoped and it was with a heavy heart that Li saddled his horse the following spring as the army began to mount its offensive. He doubted he would ever see the south again.

Campaign Screens

[Merchant of Venice]

WHAT THE ACTUAL- damn it I can't swear on this site.

Here I am, about to delve into the large number of subscribed threads I haven't checked yet but before I do I take a quick glance at all the AAR forums. Then I see that the latest AAR post in the M2TW forums is titled Yue Fei. And I go, "Chinese?". And somewhere deep down in my mind thinks Oh no, not him. And then I look at the user. I thought he was gone, I mutter in disbelief. The seeing-fires were right, the prophecy is true. "Maybe he's just replying to an AAR" I say. I click on it. And the OP is by him. Nobody is safe now....

Brilliant, poetic start, my friend. Drooling over your prose in the prologue. Interesting to see an AAR about a subject not previously done before but I know will be done well by someone who has such knowledge of the topic. Things look desperate for the Song and if CK2 has taught me anything, nothing can stop the Mongols (the Jin were mongol invaders, right?).

I am both scared and so very excited about this new adventure.

[SanyuXV]

WHAT THE ACTUAL- damn it I can't swear on this site.

Here I am, about to delve into the large number of subscribed threads I haven't checked yet but before I do I take a quick glance at all the AAR forums. Then I see that the latest AAR post in the M2TW forums is titled Yue Fei. And I go, "Chinese?". And somewhere deep down in my mind thinks Oh no, not him. And then I look at the user. I thought he was gone, I mutter in disbelief. The seeing-fires were right, the prophecy is true. "Maybe he's just replying to an AAR" I say. I click on it. And the OP is by him. Nobody is safe now....

Brilliant, poetic start, my friend. Drooling over your prose in the prologue. Interesting to see an AAR about a subject not previously done before but I know will be done well by someone who has such knowledge of the topic. Things look desperate for the Song and if CK2 has taught me anything, nothing can stop the Mongols (the Jin were mongol invaders, right?).

I am both scared and so very excited about this new adventure.

Is it him, is it really him? This can't be, I'm dreaming.......

Merch you perfectly described how I had reacted too. Hitai, this is beautiful if I must ask, may we please have some more??

[Hitai de Bodemloze]

WHAT THE ACTUAL- damn it I can't swear on this site.

Here I am, about to delve into the large number of subscribed threads I haven't checked yet but before I do I take a quick glance at all the AAR forums. Then I see that the latest AAR post in the M2TW forums is titled Yue Fei. And I go, "Chinese?". And somewhere deep down in my mind thinks Oh no, not him. And then I look at the user. I thought he was gone, I mutter in disbelief. The seeing-fires were right, the prophecy is true. "Maybe he's just replying to an AAR" I say. I click on it. And the OP is by him. Nobody is safe now....

Brilliant, poetic start, my friend. Drooling over your prose in the prologue. Interesting to see an AAR about a subject not previously done before but I know will be done well by someone who has such knowledge of the topic. Things look desperate for the Song and if CK2 has taught me anything, nothing can stop the Mongols (the Jin were mongol invaders, right?).

I am both scared and so very excited about this new adventure.

Is it him, is it really him? This can't be, I'm dreaming.......

Merch you perfectly described how I had reacted too. Hitai, this is beautiful if I must ask, may we please have some more??

You guys Such compliments are ill-deserved, but I hope I can live up to your expectations.

My Song dynasty knowledge is actually really bad! Never really had the chance or want to study them, but after reading up a bit on Yue Fei, there is some interesting stuff there. Oh and the Jin were Jurchen, so different, but not that different; from the same general area, but a bit further east. I doubt the Chinese really saw them as any different at least.

Edit: I'm actually very touched by all the kind words here and in the rep comments I've received You're all far too kind.

[Alwyn]

Two generals, one of whom has confidence neither in himself or the other commander, will lead an army of defeated soldiers and inexperienced peasants against triumphant Jin veterans. I'm really looking forward to seeing what will happen next.

[Shankbot de Bodemloze]

Welcome back.

I'm looking forward to reading this, if your past work is of any indication it will be excellent. Good luck with writing your novel as well, if you would like someone to give it a read over?...

EDIT:

...Drooling over your prose in the prologue...

I drooled over Yokai, and he said the literary quality of that was poor!

[Hitai de Bodemloze]

Good luck with writing your novel as well, if you would like someone to give it a read over?...

It's in Chinese It's not very good though, since my language is obviously limited; my girlfriend read the first 10,000 words and said it was awful! But its fun to challenge oneself and I've had a blast writing in a foreign language nonetheless.

I drooled over Yokai, and he said the literary quality of that was poor!

It honestly was. By the end of the first act I had given up trying. If you compare the first chapter with the last, then you'll see a vast difference in quality. Literary devices, descriptive language, it all went out the window and most of the chapters are just dialogue strung together with some inner monologues. I had loads of fun writing it and as I say I love the story, but it's not something I can be proud of in a literary sense, because I know I'm a better writer than that. I still maintain that A Thunder That Shook The Heavens is probably the work I'm most proud of in a literary sense, even if it is one of my more forgotten stories. The original Shogun has been re-released on Steam though...

[Hitai de Bodemloze]

Chapter Two
Dengzhou, 1131 AD

That spring they marched in two divisions. Yue Fei himself led the western column of two thousand, which included most of the army’s only professionally drilled troops. Li accompanied him at the former’s request, although was unsure as to why he was thus appointed. The eastern column was three thousand strong; mainly ill-equipped and ill-trained soldiers conscripted or recruited from the peasantry around Hanyang and Yuezhou to the east and south. They were led by Zhang Xian, whom had apparently fought alongside General Yue, and his adjutant Xu Qing. Although both older than Yue and Li, they were hardly aged themselves. An army of broken veterans and untrained peasants led by commanders who were little more than children; that this was the best force the Song could muster made a mockery of its century long history and prestige.

A young general by the name of Yang Zaixing was left to defend Xiangyang, whilst the Jinghu Army marched. Their first objective was the city of Dengzhou, which lay a few hundred li to the north. However, a rider was sent to General Zhang, ordering his column to occupy the township of Tangzhou, which lay to the north-east. At a war council, Li protested such a dangerous manoeuvre; to split their forces when they were already so critically outnumbered was to surely invite disaster. General Yue merely smiled, infuriating Li, and expressed his faith in the delusion that every Song soldier was worth a hundred of their barbarian invaders.

Li might not have become so agitated by this had their opponents actually been barbarian invaders. After the Jin soldiers had stormed Kaifeng, they had encountered difficulties placating and administering the local population, thus the Qi dynasty had been founded; a perverse mockery of the imperial kingdom, which ruled over northern China in Jin’s name. Traitors and brigands abound, they were despicable in Li’s eyes; selling out their country and bending their knee to barbarian overlords, without a single shred of honour or loyalty between them.

They arrived at Dengzhou the same spring, whereafter the Qi general in command of the garrison rode out to parley. Li had qualms about even speaking with, let alone trusting such a traitor, but Yue calmly rode out to talk with their enemy, whose name Li learnt was Yao Bangji. At his commander’s side, Li listened to their exchange:

“Turn back, lackey of your coward emperor, or the Princes of Jin will ride as demons through your ranks and scatter your army to the winds!”

General Yue smiled, weathering Yao’s barrage as if it were a mild breeze to a tree of ancient roots. “You should surrender the city general, for I know you have too few troops to withstand an assault.”

“Five thousand horse masters arrived not but a week ago, ready to sally forth at a moment’s notice.”

“Then summon them,” was Yue Fei’s only reply.

Yao scowled and turned his horse. The parley was thus over. When he asked Yue why he had taken such a risk, the general smiled. After General Zhang had taken Tangzhou, he had soothed the worries of the local populace and promised them there would be no retribution for their erstwhile allegiance to a foreign regime. In turn, they divulged to Zhang what they knew of Dengzhou’s garrison, as well as the fact not a single Jin soldier had been seen in the area for many months. The messenger from Zhang’s camp had arrived only that morning.

Whilst the Song force outnumbered the defenders of Dengzhou four-to-one, a frontal assault, whilst undeniably scoring them a victory should they attempt one, would yet still unnecessarily bleed men they could ill-afford to lose. Li recommended using a fire attack to smoke the defenders out, but Yue bade him stay his hand, for such tactics would endanger the local citizenry. Li had no qualms about putting the entire traitorous town to the sword, yet Yue held in his heart compassion yet for their kinsfolk, regardless of their foreign allegiance. Instead, Yue ordered the construction of several wooden palisades, which they positioned close to the walls of the city under cover of night. At dawn, from the safety of these siegeworks the Song archers unleashed a storm of arrows against the defenders; forcing the thinly spread Qi soldiers away from the ramparts. Ladders and ropes quickly entwined with the parapet and the city was carried within the hour.

Yao Bangji, captured and bound, was brought before General Yue, who offered him the chance to return to his home provided he renew his allegiance to the Song. Misguided and treacherous as he was, Li could not but help admire the general’s loyalty as he stubbornly declined. He was put to death in the town square the following day.

[Hitai de Bodemloze]

Not a huge fan of the picture in this chapter. I might go back and re-do it later. A shot of the parley between the generals would be nice, but I'm learning Medieval 2 is a lot harder to manipulate than Shogun 2, although I should be taking screenshots from the actual campaign battles anyway

Dengzhou and Tangzhou are on the map in the last chapter, but I might still add a campaign screen again, maybe.

[Alwyn]

I like General Yue already and I'm enjoying seeing him through the eyes of Li - for example when Li sees Yue as expressing the 'delusion' that one Song soldier is worth the lives of a hundred barbarian invaders. I'm impressed by General Yue's confidence and the way that he thinks for himself, coming up with a plan which combines compassion with devastating effect. (The picture appears very dark on my screen - I'd like to be able to see a bit more, so a different picture would be good. I found the previous campaign screenshot helpful, to see where the cities are).

[Roman Heritage]

Definitely keeping an eye on this - if it ever continues. By the way, you warned us, so no blame on you at all!