After discussing until dawn, the officials finally reached an agreement.

Li Gang was assigned to oversee the defense of the Yangtze River, but he would stay in Jiankang to handle logistics and troop deployment.

Zhang Jun would serve as his deputy, responsible for frontline command, and Yue Fei was assigned to serve under him, following his orders.

However, before leaving, Cao Guo gave him a secret order, granting him the authority to make on-the-spot decisions on the battlefield and act as he saw fit, without having to follow orders from superiors.

The translation is: "You have special privileges, so go quickly and achieve great success to earn a high official position."

After the incident in Guide Mansion, Jin Wuzhu's view of the Song Emperor began to change.

He felt that this enemy was somewhat dangerous.

Therefore, he made a secret agreement with his uncle, Wang Yan, who was the commander of the Eastern Front at that time, to launch an attack on the Yangtze River defense line together.

In order to ensure victory, he specifically borrowed the top general of the Jin Dynasty, Wan Yanlou Shi, from his brother, Wan Yanzong, in the western region.

He displayed a strong intention to capture Jiankang.

At this time, the Jin forces attacking the Yangtze River defense line, including the eighty thousand troops led by Jin Wuzhu, combined with the additional twenty thousand brought by Wan Yanlou Shi, amounted to a total of one hundred thousand soldiers.

In response to the Jin forces' attack, Cao Guo also gathered a hundred and fifty thousand troops for defense. Zhang Jun and Yue Fei led eighty thousand troops in frontal defense, Han Shizhong commanded thirty thousand troops stationed on the left flank of Jiankang, and Liu Guangshi led twenty thousand troops stationed on the right flank, forming an encirclement. In addition, there were twenty thousand troops under Cao Guo's command, stationed in Jiankang as a mobile reserve.