Chapter 662 Beyond the Blade (12)
When the night gradually deepened, Long Hui was already dead.
His armless body was hung on the flagpole. The body was beaten to pieces, and the blood dripping from his body gradually condensed into red ice edges in the night wind.
Most of the corpses of the other generals who were hung on the flagpole were like this.
There were also fires burning between the camps of the Resentful Army and Xia Cun, reflecting everything in the night. More than a thousand prisoners captured by the resentful army were surrounded not far from the flagpole. Naturally, they did not have campfires or tents. At this night, they could only huddle together for warmth. Many of the injured people gradually froze to death. . Occasionally, in the light of the fire, soldiers from the resentful army would drag out one or a few restless prisoners and beat or hack them to death. The screams echoed in the night.
The defenders of Xia Cun watched all this from a distance and silently.
Ning Yi and others had not slept well. Qin Shaoqian and some generals were discussing countermeasures in the command room. He occasionally came out to take a walk and take a look. The firelight at night was like a river flowing in later generations. On one side of the camp, there were still people building and reinforcing the breach in the camp wall that was knocked open the day before yesterday. From a distance, things in front of the Resentful Army camp could also be vaguely seen. See.
Juan'er brought tea in and stood beside Ning Yi when she came out. In the past few days, the outside of Xia Village was being fought hard. She was very busy helping inside, distributing supplies, arranging for the wounded, and handling various details. Many times, she had to arrange the lives of Ning Yi and others. The girl at that time also looked haggard and quite tired. Ning Yi looked at her, smiled at her, and then took off his coat to put it on her. The girl took a step back and shook her head frequently.
"It's not cold, uncle, you put it on."
Her expression was determined, Ning Yi no longer forced, and just said: "Get some rest early."
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Juan'er nodded, looked far away in the direction of the Resentful Army camp, and stood for a moment: "Uncle, are those people being arrested, is it troublesome?"
She didn't understand the various changes that had occurred since the war. The meaning and extent of what it represents is that today I have only talked about what happened, and I have also felt the sudden sinking of emotions in the camp - in the already extremely tense atmosphere, this is certainly not a good thing.
Ning Yi thought for a while, and finally smiled and said: "It's okay, we can handle it."
The Jurchens' southern invasion was caught off guard, but as things have developed today, many joints have also been Able to see clearly. The Battle of Bianliang has reached a critical moment of life and death - and this only opportunity to determine life and death was fought for by everyone.
In a sense, Ning Yi is not a die-hard who believes in the spirit of sacrificing for the country. He is extremely flexible in many things. When it comes to sacrificing for the country, the Wu Dynasty is in his heart It’s hard to tell how much identification there is. However, from the initial fortification of the wall to clear the country, to the later gathering of defeated troops, fighting for power and looting Moutuogang, and then to defending Xia Village, the reason why he came here is simply because: this is the only way to break the situation.
He doesn't understand military matters. He currently knows something about the battlefield, but he only has a partial understanding. But one thing he understands is that people who look forward and backward, always think about taking tricks, and know the pros and cons cannot get things done. Many generals and ministers in the Wu Dynasty were like this, and many people were like this. They retreated when they faced difficulties, and in many cases Actually, it's not a good habit. When the Jurchens put their lives on the line, the Wu Dynasty people might not win if they put their lives on the line, but those who are unwilling to put their lives on the line will never win.
Whether it is war or work, at the highest level, putting your life on the line is just the most basic prerequisite.
So he did everything he could, strengthened the walls and cleared the country, inspired Wanyan Zongwang with letters, robbed Moutuogang, and in the end, trapped himself here. There was no way out. He could not pull out the more than 14,000 people who had been hastily integrated. Elm cannons, mines and other items could only play their greatest role on the defensive. If Bianliang can be defended and the Jurchens' reserve force can be exhausted here, then the only glimmer of hope for the Wu Dynasty may appear - at that time, peace talks can be possible.
If it was for the country, Ning Yi might have left long ago. But he stayed just to do what was at hand, because only in this way could things succeed.
But a war is a war after all. As the situation has developed to this point, Ning Yi has re-examined the situation in front of him countless times. The seemingly evenly matched stalemate and the tensed military will seem to be a stalemate, but in fact In the next moment, it’s no wonder who collapsed. After all, the most likely person for this incident to happen was the defenders of Xia Cun. Neither Ning Yi nor Qin Shaoqian could accurately estimate to what extent the morale of more than 14,000 people could be sustained, and even to what extent the four thousand elite soldiers among them could be sustained. On the other hand, Pharmacist Guo may have an idea.
More than 10,000 people led by the general named Long Hui launched a rescue operation here. Knowing that there was such a thing may cheer up the morale of the army, but the result of the defeat was undoubtedly a blow. And when things develop to the current situation, once the more than a thousand prisoners are driven to attack the city, and the morale and numbers of the troops fluctuate, Xia Cun will probably face the most difficult situation.
People with certain battlefield experience can probably predict the possibilities before them. And the people in this valley now, although they have grown continuously in the days of fighting, are not yet invulnerable. As Ning Yi said when he faced the Liangshan troops in Zhujiazhuang, you may not retreat. Do the people around you have such confidence? Do you have such confidence in the people around you? Anyone who realizes this will inevitably lose morale.
Ning Yi failed to explain these things clearly to Juaner, but when she left, he looked at the girl's back with mixed emotions. As in every life and death situation in the past, he had overcome many hurdles, but before a hurdle, he actually thought about whether this would be the last one...
He closed his eyes. With my eyes, I recalled for a moment Su Tan'er's figure, Yunzhu's figure, Yuan Jin'er's appearance, Xiaochan's appearance, as well as the woman named after watermelon who was far away in the south, and there was something related to them. things. After a while, he sighed and turned back.
Below the camp, when Mao Yishan returned to the slightly warm shack, he saw Qu Qing sharpening his knife. No one else in the shack has returned yet.
"Damn it...I wish I could eat those people..."
The screams from the Resentment Army camp were faintly heard. No one spoke in the shack, only the sound of sharpening knives sounded. Shan sat there, silent for a moment, and looked at Qu Qing.
"Brother Qu, is tomorrow... going to be troublesome?"
Because Qu Qing was injured, he was lying down for the past two days, and Mao Yishan knew him In this period of time, I have never seen him show such a solemn expression. At least when he is not fighting, he just rests and sleeps soundly, and never sharpens his sword at night.
Qu Qing did not answer directly, but quietly sharpened it for a while. After a while, he touched the blade and exhaled white air from his mouth.
"I'm afraid it won't be easy, so you should sharpen it."
He threw the whetstone over.
Mao Yishan caught the stone and stood there stunned for a moment. When he sat on the edge of the bed and turned around to look, there seemed to be a faint moonlight in the sky through the gap in the shack.
The long night gradually passed.
When the sky was dark, the camps on both sides were already moving...
"Let them get up——"
With whips and shouts, the war horses ran between the camps. The gathering of more than a thousand prisoners has begun to be driven away. They have not had a drop of water since they were captured yesterday. After freezing for several nights, those who can still stand up are already extremely weak, and some of them are lying down. On the ground, it is impossible to get up again.
The corpses hanging on the flagpole in front have been frozen into miserable ice sculptures after this freezing night, with the bright red of flesh and blood in the ice edges.
"Let them get up! Let them go! Those who can't get up, give me a stabbing blow——"
The resentful army has already formed a formation, and the long whips waving from the prisoners' They came from behind and forced them to move forward. Behind the summer village camp wall in the distance ahead, figures stretched out one after another, all looking at this side.
He Can's teeth chattered and he started to cry.
He was one of the more than a thousand prisoners. He was originally a soldier under Long Hui. Yesterday, when the resentful army came to kill him, the few of Long Hui's men escaped. This had something to do with Long Hui's deadly battle, but the main reason was that the defeat happened too quickly. They were a step slower and were then surrounded. In the end, this group of soldiers probably died less in battle, but more were later surrounded by resentful troops and abandoned their weapons and surrendered. After all, they were not iron men. In such a desperate environment, surrender was a common thing.
Long Hui was killed until he was exhausted and one of his hands was cut off before being captured. He Can was not familiar with this Shangguan, but during the subsequent transfer, he saw the Shangguan being tied up with a rope. He got up and ran behind the horse. Members of the resentful army chased him and beat him all the way. Later, he was tied to the flagpole and whipped to death. He couldn't explain the thoughts in his mind, but some things had become obvious. He knew that he was going to die.
He walked past the flagpoles like this, supported by the people around him, crying, and glanced at Long Hui when he passed by. The frozen corpse was extremely desolate. The resentful soldiers beat him to the end. The corpse was completely unrecognizable. The eyes had been punched out and the flesh was bloody. Only his mouth was still open, as if he was saying something. He looked at it. After one glance, I didn't dare to look at it again.
The wind howled across the valley. In the valley, the atmosphere was so tense that it was almost frozen. Tens of thousands of people were facing each other, and the distance between the two sides was constantly shortening as the group of prisoners moved forward. In front of the Resentful Army formation, Medicine Master Guo stood tall on horseback, waiting for the reaction from the other side. On the platform in Xia Village, Ning Yi, Qin Shaoqian and others were also watching all this in awe. A small number of generals and messengers were walking through the crowd. . A little later, the archers had already set their last arrows.
Time seems to be flowing by in front of everyone's eyes.
The accident happened in a place that not many people expected.
In the entire battle formation, the area where more than a thousand prisoners were driven forward was the only noisy place, mainly coming from the shouts and curses of the resentful soldiers in the rear. They were driving away with whips, While pulling out his long sword, he cut off the soldiers who could no longer get up from the ground. Some of these people were already dead, and some of them were still alive. They were all killed by this sword. The smell of blood spread as usual. .
He Can felt his hand being pulled. It was the tall companion who had been walking beside him who suddenly stopped.
After these soldiers were captured, their swords and guns were confiscated, and they were not provided with food or water. However, other measures were nothing more than tying their hands with a long rope. Such restraint was very important to the soldiers. Generally speaking, the impact is limited, but many people no longer dare to resist.
He Can heard the tall man say: "I'm not leaving."
Then, a sad voice came from the side and in front: "Don't go forward!"
The war horses galloped past, and then there was a flash of swords. Someone fell down, and the knights of the resentful army shouted: "Go! Whoever dares to stop will die——"
A large number of people are still ahead Okay, He Can heard the sound of bows and arrows. The arrows shot over and the tall man fell down: "Let's go -"
Amid the roar, another voice suddenly sounded. This time, The voice had become high-pitched: "Brothers, our brothers are ahead! They have fought so hard and we can't help, so don't hold them back——"
After this burst of shouting, chaos and massacre began. The resentful soldiers pushed forward from the rear. Their entire formation also began to push forward. Some prisoners were still moving forward, and some rushed to the rear, pulling and falling. , deaths began to become more frequent, He Can walked unsteadily among the crowd, not far away, tall flagpoles and corpses were also shaking in his field of vision.
The moment the chaos occurred, Pharmacist Guo gave the order to advance. Xia Cun, Ning Yi ran a few steps and climbed to the watchtower beside the platform. The next moment, he shouted a few words downwards, Qin Shaoqian was stunned for a moment, then suddenly waved his hand. On the war horse not far away, Yue Fei raised his spear.
At the edge of the camp, Mao Yishan stood behind the camp wall, watching all the killings from a distance. His hand holding the knife was trembling, and his teeth hurt. A large number of prisoners were in that position. They stopped moving forward, some were crying and shouting, and squeezed under the butcher's knife in the back. However, all this is unthinkable. Once they approach the camp, the archers on their side can only shoot them dead. And at this moment, he saw the war horses running away from the side and behind.
There was a sound.
“The whole army is in formation, ready——”
"You saw--" someone shouted from the watchtower.
Countless soldiers carrying orders raised their flags and galloped forward on their horses!
"Those are our compatriots, they are being slaughtered by those bastards! What are we going to do-"
"Those cowards from the north! Come to our place! Kill our families!" Grab our stuff! Everyone, we’re here! There’s no more way—”
Mao Yishan listened to this voice. , feeling the movement of the entire valley, suddenly understood something. He dragged the knife, his hands were shaking, and his eyes were red and he smiled at his companion next to him: "Hahaha... Hahaha..." The laughter was exciting And strangely, this may be a moment that Mao Yishan has never experienced in his life. Before this, he had never had such a passionate desire to kill the enemy. When the prisoners were driven over, he knew in his heart that he could only defend his side. However, at this moment, the people above had already made the opposite decision.
Above, the huge flag fluttering in the wind has begun to move.
He Can staggered towards the resentful soldiers who were wielding swords. He was one of the survivors of the battle. When the sword cut off his arm, he fainted. At that moment, what he was thinking was: I am the same as General Long.
On that battlefield before, when everyone was surrounded by the cavalry of the resentful army, the general who was covered in blood shouted in despair: "We lost, we lost... don't be Use it..." He vaguely heard it.
The moment before he lost consciousness, he heard a sound like a flash flood and an earthquake from behind.
All the wooden doors in the Xia Cun camp opened with a bang. At one section, the soldiers pushed against the broken wall. At this moment, all their weaknesses are being exposed. Pharmacist Guo's horse stopped for a moment, raised his hand, and wanted to give an order.
"Today! Right here! They don't have to think about going back! Everyone-"
The voice was faintly like thunder: "We ate them-"
On the east side of the camp, Yue Fei The blade of his spear glowed with a dull, bloodthirsty light as he stepped out of the camp gate.
In the southeast of the camp, a general named He Zhicheng stepped on the wall. He pulled out his long sword, threw away the scabbard, turned around and said, "Kill!"
The main entrance, The swords and shields were arrayed, and the general in front immediately said: "Ready!"
Pang Liu'an commanded his soldiers to knock down the camp wall. Outside the camp wall were piled corpses. He stepped over the corpses. From behind, some people went out through the gap, and some people climbed over the wall and spread out.
To the west, Liu Chengzong shouted: "Kill——"
"Kill!!!!!!"
The roaring sound was like a flood bursting its banks, In a moment, the shock shook the entire mountain and the clouds in the sky solidified, and tens of thousands of troops faced each other on the spreading front. The Changsheng Army hesitated for a moment, and the defenders of Xia Cun rushed towards this side with thunderous momentum.
On this day, the once more than 18,000 people in the entire valley finally completed their transformation. At least at this moment, when Mao Yishan clutched the long knife tightly and rushed toward the enemy with red eyes, the outcome was decided by something beyond the blade.
Arrows flew feebly across the sky, and soon after, the two armies collided with each other in the most brutal manner...
I hope I have made the meaning of this topic clear.
(End of this chapter)