Chao Maofa And His Wife Yongchi Put An End To Their Existence Sooner Than Give Up Their Charge At Chichow, But The Garrison Accepted The Terms Of The Mongols Without Compunction, And Without Thinking Of Their Duty.

Kiassetao attempted to resist the Mongol advance at Kien Kang, the modern Nankin, but after an engagement on land

And water the Sungs were driven back, and their fleet only escaped destruction by retiring precipitately to the sea. After this success Nankin, surrendered without resistance, although its governor was a valiant and apparently a capable man. He committed suicide sooner than surrender, and among his papers was found a plan of campaign, after perusing which Bay an exclaimed, "Is it possible that the Sungs possessed a man capable of giving such prudent counsel? If they had paid heed to it, should we ever have reached this spot?" After this success Bayan pressed on with increased rather than diminished energy, and the Sung emperor and his court fled from the capital. Kublai showed an inclination to temporize and to negotiate, but Bayan would not brook any delay. "To relax your grip even for a moment on an enemy whom you have held by the throat for a hundred years would only be to give him time to recover his breath, to restore his forces, and in the end to cause us an infinity of trouble."

The Sung fortunes showed some slight symptoms of improving when Kiassetao was disgraced, and a more competent general was found in the person of Chang Chikia.

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Words from 40136 to 40392 of 191255