Blood splattered everywhere as a Jurchen soldier's neck was pierced by a long spear. He let out a howl, reaching to grab the spear, but the next moment, a Zhou soldier kicked him off the city wall. The Zhou soldier didn't have time to celebrate before a scythe hooked around his neck and with a pull and a tug, the Zhou soldier fell down screaming in a pool of blood.
On the city walls and below, fierce close combat was everywhere.
No one knew how long it had been; the Jurchen soldiers, more than half of whom were dead or wounded, finally stopped their onslaught. The survivors dragged away the dead and wounded Jurchen soldiers and retreated with the sound of a horn.
The glow of the setting sun shone on the majestic city. The city, both above and below, was no longer as it was before; bloodstains were everywhere, with corpses and severed limbs. Long ladders used for scaling the walls were scattered on the ground. The bricks of the city walls were covered in marks of blades, spears, and arrows, and smoke from fires rose everywhere.
The sounds of fighting receded, leaving behind the moans and cries of pain and grief.
The living were shedding tears, the lightly wounded were groaning, and the severely wounded were wailing in pain.
The sound of armor and swords clashing could be heard among them; it was the soldiers clearing the city walls to prepare for a re-deployment to meet another enemy assault.
Uncle Qinghe was covered in blood, his helmet lost to who knows where. His whitened hair was almost snow-white, fluttering messily in the wind.
He stood on the city wall, looking at the ravaged sight with a heavy expression.
"How many casualties this time?" he asked.
"Haven't sorted it out yet," a general said with his head down, "but roughly estimated, more than a thousand have died in battle."
For a siege and defense, this number of casualties was considered normal.
However, this had been the umpteenth time, and the accumulated numbers were staggering.
Moreover, the reason this casualty number was considered normal was because more soldiers would fill in after losses; but now, they had no reinforcements to supplement.
One dead, one less; one wounded, one useless.
Uncle Qinghe turned his head and looked around.
The original military formation had already contracted to its defenses. Although the tents and flags were still there, Uncle Qinghe knew that this army had been devastated.
On the Jurchen side, Uncle Qinghe looked forward; compared to the camps that were previously unseen, they were now densely visible.
This battle, victory had long been dismissed. Defeat and death were inevitable; it was just a matter of time.
"Lord Bo." Suddenly, a general stepped forward and said softly, "After observing, the Jurchen is weak on the west side. How about we protect Lord Bo and break through?"
The words made the other generals' expressions waver slightly.
"Yes, Lord Bo, as long as the green hills remain, there'll be no worry for firewood."
"Lord Bo, I am willing to stay behind to resist the enemy. Please break through and avenge us in the future."
One after another, generals stepped forward and spoke.
"Nonsense!" Uncle Qinghe interrupted them deeply, "I, Zou Jiang, have never fled before the Jurchen."
The generals' expressions were complicated.
"Lord Bo, we are not saying you fled out of cowardice," one general sincerely said, "but dying like this is not worthwhile..."
Uncle Qinghe interrupted again.
"You are wrong; dying like this is worth it," he said somberly, "The most crucial point of this defensive battle is morale. If we break through, morale will collapse, and our troops will immediately disperse, everyone fleeing."
He pointed ahead with his hand.
"Facing tens of thousands of Jin thieves lurking around, can you not imagine the outcome?"
The generals looked ahead, faces pale, as if seeing the scene of everyone fleeing while the Jin Army's cavalry ravaged and slaughtered mercilessly.
"In such a scenario, we won't be able to break through at all," Uncle Qinghe said calmly, "Moreover, if we collapse first, our reinforcements outside will surely be compromised."
Reinforcements...
Still thinking about reinforcements.
The generals looked bitter, days had passed, not a single reinforcement was seen, either they all fled and avoided battle, or they were decimated by the Jurchen people.
No news came in, nor did the Jurchen show any sign of defeat or retreat.
They felt like an isolated boat thrown into the ocean.
Lord Bo was still waiting for reinforcements, perhaps deceiving himself to boost morale.
"The Jin thief's forces are strong, yet as long as we hold the camp tight, we have a greater chance of survival than fleeing into the wilderness," Uncle Qinghe said solemnly, "By the time reinforcements arrive, with our combined internal and external forces, we surely can fight a way out."
As he spoke, his voice rose.
"From the day we became generals and soldiers, we were determined to sacrifice for the country, and fight valiantly against the enemy. If anyone dares to speak of cowardice again,"
He said this as he swung his long sword downward fiercely, splitting a Jin soldier's helmet lying on the ground.
"Let justice be served on the spot."
All the generals kneeled solemnly and responded in unison.
"Come, prepare meals while you can," Uncle Qinghe said, looking backward, "The provisions are running low, so distribute them sparingly."
The generals responded in unison again, rising to carry out the orders.
Uncle Qinghe stood alone in place, turning to look back.
Reinforcements...
These northern lands were no longer his domain, his heart was full of indignation.
The night seemed to be the trumpet for ceasefire in many places,
In front of a small hill, watching the Jurchen retreat like the falling tide, a person pushed away the dead soldiers lying on him, rolling and crawling over the chaotic battlefield, tumbling into a gully.
The gully was crowded with soldiers, all covered in wounds, their expressions terrified and despairing.
"Lord Qi, the Jurchen have retreated," the newcomer said hoarsely, "let's withdraw under the cover of darkness."
Among the soldiers, a general with a shoulder wound looked over.
"We cannot withdraw," he said, "Lord Bo is still waiting for reinforcements."
"My lord." The person's voice was hoarse, tinged with tears, "The Jurchen people have laid siege so many days, so many times, I fear Lord Bo is no longer with us."
He looked around at the people nearby.
"We only have this few people left, even if we break through, what could we possibly do?"
Break through, how could they possibly break through, if they could have broken through, they would have done so long ago, why wait until now.
The general's expression was a mix of sorrow and anger.
"But, we cannot retreat anymore."
"My lord." The person was on the verge of tears, "You have already been very brave, you have not failed the dynasty and Lord Bo, while others retreated along with the many reinforcements, you did not."
The general stood up, slamming the sword in his hand onto the ground heavily.
"It's not that we won't retreat, it's that we cannot retreat now." He shouted hoarsely, pointing behind him, "Do you think the Jurchen people have not surrounded us from behind, that they really forgot? This is nothing but a cat playing with a mouse, they're just waiting for us to retreat. Once we do, they'll drive us into the Jiangshui River in this freezing weather, with few horses left. How do we retreat? How do we escape? By then we'll freeze, starve or be exhausted to death, and the Jin Army needs only to watch from a distance without lifting a spear or shooting an arrow."
Those present listened, turning ashen-faced.
It turned out they had fallen into an ambush long ago.
They thought they were aiding others to attack the Jurchen people, but it turned out the Jurchen people had long opened the trap for them to step into.
"Since the Jurchen people ambushed Lord Bo, how could they not have prepared in advance against the reinforcements that would follow?" The general sat down again, saying dejectedly, "No wonder those guys caught wind of reinforcements and refused to come, pulling their troops away. Truly admirable are these old generals of the northern lands, familiar with the Jurchen people."
Those around thought of the troops that had fled before the action, unable to tell if it was anger or envy they felt.
"Why didn't they tell us." Someone muttered.
"Even if they told us, would we have listened?" Someone else said quietly.
This remark plunged the surroundings into silence.
"Alright, there's no use talking about this now, we can't retreat now, we can only continue to defend and attack." The general took a deep breath and looked up, expression firm, "Wait for Lord Bo to break through, or for reinforcements to arrive."
The first sentence raised everyone's spirits, but the second dashed them.
"Lord Bo must still be alive, the Jurchen people are continuously gathering troops to attack." The general said, "We still have hope."
What else could they do?
Retreat and die, advance and die, so, wait for death.
The gully was deathly silent until suddenly the ground trembled, followed by the sound of hooves and the light of torches.
"The Jurchen people are coming again!"
The people in the gully shouted, faces ashen.
This time they didn't even give them time to breathe, it seemed they had lost their patience for toying with them.
The general raised his sword.
"Form up, prepare for battle." He said hoarsely.
The remnant soldiers who held long spears, what formation could they muster against the Jurchen cavalry? It wouldn't last through three charges.
The soldiers gripped their long spears tightly and leapt out of the gully, numbness setting in at the face of death.
The cavalry had yet to approach when the buzz of arrows slicing through the air resounded, forcing the soldiers trying to form up into disarray and making them leap back into the gully.
Thud, thud, thud, the arrows struck the ground, they were fire arrows, instantly igniting the area and lighting up the gully, revealing the soldiers like lambs to the slaughter.
The approaching Jin Army laughed wildly.
One of the soldiers suddenly grabbed a bow and, with his last arrow, shot at the Jin Army.
The soldier's archery was excellent, with precision, it flew toward the leading Jin soldier.
Clang, the Jin soldier raised his bamboo armor and deflected the arrow, sneering as he lifted his hand, drawing the bow and shooting.
By the firelight, a soldier groaned as the arrow pierce him, making him fall back.
The laughter grew louder.
Not only was there despair before death, but humiliation as well.
The general leapt out of the gully, without a word, charging towards the oncoming enemy with his sword raised.
He was going to meet the cavalry with his own flesh and blood.
One way or another it was death, maybe getting close could take one Jin soldier down with him, so all the soldiers leapt out, whether able to run or not, whether with whole arms or broken limbs, gripping their weapons, biting their lips silently, rushing forward.
The buzzing sound sliced through the night sky.
The general's eyes widened, waiting for the arrows to arrive, but the next moment he saw the archers of the Jin Army in front falling off their horses with screams.
What was going on?
The general was stunned for a moment, another wave of buzzing sounded, the general instinctively looked up, and by the firelight from behind saw countless sharp arrows flying overhead.
They came from behind, heading toward the Jin Army.
From behind!
In disbelief, the general turned to look back, but the firelight obstructed his vision, so he could see nothing in the darkness, but he could hear.
He heard the panicked, angry cries of the Jin, the screams of Jin soldiers falling to the ground, and the ground trembling in the night as if a thousand troops were charging in.
Reinforcements!
Reinforcements!
......
.......
(The double voting period has started, if you have votes, and the friends who specially saved them until now, you can vote, thank you everyone!)