lady, please calm down

Chapter 386 Glacial Blood Rain

Major national affairs are in military service and sacrifice.

In the twelfth lunar month of the first year of Xuanqing, due to the feud between Qi and Jin, the war was approaching. Jiarou proposed at the court meeting that he wanted to hold a suburban sacrifice outside the city to appease the people and pray for the soldiers on the front line.

Gong Shaoyi, the imperial censor, seconded the proposal, and Du Zhaoqing, the Minister of Rites, also agreed after hesitation.

The main reason is that Jia Rou's proposal cannot be opposed from any standpoint and the people are panicking. Jia Rou's move can not only give the outside world a clear signal that "the court supports the King of Chu", but also play a role in appeasing the people's hearts.

On the twenty-sixth day of the twelfth lunar month, Jiarou led hundreds of officials out of Nanxun Gate to hold a suburban sacrificial ceremony.

Ceremonial guards and guards stretched for miles.

Cai Yuanyuan, who was among the officials, looked at Jiarou who was being admired by all the people, and couldn't help but whisper to Du Zhaoqing beside him: "Your Highness, you always get some advantages every time you make a move."

Du Zhaoqing bowed slightly and replied in a low voice: "Now, everything must be done with the war situation in Hebei first. Your Highness's sacrifice in the countryside will do more good than harm to the King of Chu."

"I naturally know"

This suburban ceremony cannot be arranged at will. According to Zhou rites, it can only be held once every three years, and the 'Emperor' will personally preside over it.

This suburban ceremony included "praying for the frontline soldiers," which was the key to the Huaibei faction's willingness to cooperate. After all, the war was about to begin, and the moral principle of "distinguishing one's reputation" and the legal recognition given by the court were very important.

But in this way, the eldest princess who was originally the 'regent' would inevitably gain a wave of majestic reputation through this important ceremony.

Generally speaking, Jia Rou was known to the world as a "temporary worker" in the past, but through Jiaozhi, he did the work that only "regular workers" could do.

After the sacrifice in the suburbs, some officials who were lurking in the court due to the power of the King of Chu might have some different changes in their hearts.

In Cai Yuan's eyes, Jia Rou, who is docile and cooperative on the surface, is just a child's play in private. However, the situation in Hebei is the most important thing at the moment, which means coaxing children to play and maintaining the current internal unity of Qi State.

Similarly, because of the situation in Hebei, the entire Daqi seemed to have pressed the pause button, and everyone's eyes were focused on Hebei Road.

Even Cheng Biyong, a wealthy gentleman on Jingxi Road who was involved in the Xuandemen Incident in Tokyo, had a temporary truce with Feng Shuangyuan, the governor of Jingxi Road who had been chasing and intercepting him for two years. Both sides seemed to have to look at the situation on Hebei Road. Then decide what to do next.

But when it comes to concern, no one is as concerned as Huaibei.

After half of the troops moved north, the alert level in Huaibei was raised to a higher level. Not only were the villagers organized for training during the winter, they even issued some swords, guns and weapons for the first time.

The men in the workshop also need to spend an hour every day for training, and there is no need to hesitate to slightly delay the production plan.

The daily training for female factory workers includes first aid such as "cleaning, stopping bleeding, and bandaging."

In short, once this sophisticated war machine in Huaibei is launched, 'all the people will be soldiers' is by no means an empty talk.

Huaibei is far away from the battlefield. The reason for this is to prevent Zhou State from taking the opportunity to make a sneak attack.

However, Chen Bokang, the leader of the Zhou Dynasty's Huaixi Economic Strategy, sent a message to Chen Jingyan in the late twelfth lunar month. It probably meant that Huaibei and Huainan were closely connected, and Huainan would never do anything to take advantage of others' danger.

Chen Jingyan believed this statement 30%, but the information brought by Li Mulezi's hidden line in Huainan confirmed Chen Bokang's statement. The other side was calm, and there was no large-scale mobilization of sergeants.

Chen Jingyan felt more relieved now.

On the other hand, there was a slight movement in Sizhou, east of Suzhou in Huaibei. Yang Dalang, who was in charge of Shouzhou, had sent a group of new troops to garrison to shock.

Compared with the busy armies and government offices at all levels in Huaibei, the people are much deserted.

More than 20,000 soldiers left home, leaving more than 20,000 worried families.

This New Year has no taste.

The same is true at Prince Chu's Mansion in Sajin Alley. Even though there are three more little ones in the mansion this year, the atmosphere is far less lively and joyful than in previous years.

On the twenty-seventh day of the twelfth lunar month, after dinner, Hutou completed the recitation of three poems, one ancient prose, and one parallel prose under Ayu's supervision, and then went to his sister's bedroom, rubbing his slightly sore wrists.

"Sister."

Unexpectedly, after pushing the door open, he saw his sister sitting on the edge of the bed crying.

Mao'er quickly wiped away her tears and pretended that nothing had happened and said, "Have you finished your homework?"

"Ah."

I originally wanted to complain to my sister that the homework assigned by Sister Ayu was too heavy, but when I saw that my sister was crying and her eyes were red, Hutou was sensible and did not make trouble for her sister anymore. Instead, she squatted by the bed and held her sister's hand, and said with concern: "Sister Ayu , why are you crying?"

In Hutou's eyes, Mao'er is both sister and mother, tough yet gentle. Hutou can't think of anything that could make the princess cry.

"Sister is not crying, her eyes are a little dry." Mao'er said harshly, not wanting to show his fragile side in front of his sister.

The tiger head's big, intelligent eyes scanned her sister's face and said, "Sister, are you worried about my brother?"

"."

Mao'er didn't expect to be seen through by her sister at a glance. To cover up her embarrassment, she criticized in a soft voice: "How many years have passed and you still can't change? You should call me brother-in-law, but you are called 'brother' all the time. Who doesn't know, and thinks that sister is... Where is your sister-in-law!"

"Hey, I'm used to it."

Like a coquettish tiger, he put his chin on Mao'er's lap and looked up at his sister with a silly smile.

Since she became pregnant, Mao'er has focused almost all her energy on the child. Although Hu Tou is by her side all day long, Mao'er has just discovered that her sister actually looks like an adult.

Those peach blossom eyes were inherited from their mother and were a common appearance feature among their sisters.

The baby fat on the face is also gradually fading away. The figure is gradually getting taller.

Perhaps due to good nutrition, Hutou, who is just thirteen years old, is already close to Mao'er in height, so it will not be a problem to surpass his sister in the future.

While feeling emotional, Mao'er joked: "In a few years, Hutou will get married. Jun Ru's brother, the eldest son of Peng Lushuai's family, is about the same age as you. Who does Hutou like?"

The eldest sister is like a mother, and now she is marrying young. Mao'er talks about this in a joking way, and she is really not in a hurry.

Growing up in an environment where Hutou never received orthodox Confucian education, the most profound influences on her were teachers such as Yu Nong, Chen Chu, and Cai Hua.

These people all have one thing in common: they don't shy away from talking about the relationship between men and women.

Especially Cai Hua, people believe that when you meet the man you like, you can get him on the bed and wait until the meal is cooked.

She and Chen Chu are the result of her courage to practice.

Therefore, under the inadvertent influence, Hutou was not ashamed to talk about the love between men and women with his sister, but obviously, the two people mentioned by his sister could not enter Hutou's eyes.

"They two! Besides, they are childish!"

"."

Mao'er pinched her sister's cheek speechlessly and said with a smile, "How old are you guys?"

"What does this have to do with age? Some people have stood up to the throne and become local heroes when they were teenagers; some people still only use firecrackers to scare women for fun when they are teenagers!"

Hu Tou said it seriously, and the smiling Mao'er suddenly felt that there seemed to be something in his sister's words, but before she could ask her in detail, Hu Tou said first, "Sister, did you really miss your brother and want to cry just now?"

"."

Mao'er felt embarrassed for a moment, but then he sighed silently and said: "The situation your brother-in-law faces this time is far more dangerous than before. The Kingdom of Jin has never been defeated in the past twenty years, what if?"

Mao'er choked and couldn't speak any more.

Back then, she had personally experienced Ding Wei's troubles. The vicious Jin Man was a childhood nightmare engraved in her bones, and she was naturally worried about the officer's safety.

But Hutou was not affected by his sister's emotions at all. Instead, he curled his lips and said in a slightly disdainful tone: "What's the worst? The Jin people have never been defeated before, that's because they haven't met my brother before!"

"." Cat blinked its charming peach blossom eyes and couldn't help but be curious. Now she is not the only one who is worried. Chen Jingyan, Chen Jing'an and other high-level officials in Huaibei are also staying awake at night, fearing that Huaibei's years of accumulation will be destroyed in Hebei.

Mao'er laughed and asked, "Why are you so confident in your brother-in-law?"

"Because my brother has never been defeated! I believe he can still win this time!"

On the same day, we went north for 1,500 miles.

The vanguard of the Jin army arrived in Leshou County, Hejian, and ordered Han Qi's pioneers to huddle in the city and build camps along the river.

The south bank was completely silent, with only a few riders monitoring the Jin army's movements across the river.

The next day, the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month, Wanyan Zongbi's army arrived.

There are more than 30,000 horse infantry, stretching for dozens of miles.

Standing at the head of Fucheng City on the south bank, I saw the golden camp flags on the north bank covering the sky and the sun. The black military uniforms that filled the field of vision immediately gave people a sense of oppression sweeping the world.

In the north city of Fucheng, a huge flag representing the commander-in-chief of Chen Chu was fluttering in the wind.

Tell the other side clearly that the good head of King Chu is here, and you can take it if you want!

The Jin army on the north bank only rested for one night and left camp on the morning of the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month.

There are three reasons why Jinjun coach Wanyan Zongbi is so anxious.

For one thing, this time the Jin Emperor tried his best to suppress Hailing King Wan Yanliang and ordered Zongbi to take command against everyone else. He was under a lot of pressure. Not only did he have to win this battle, but he also had to win beautifully.

Second, in the past, when the Jin army invaded the south, they often set out in autumn. When they arrived at the battlefield, it happened to be late autumn and early winter, which helped the Jin people adapt to the climate. But this time when they went south, due to the sudden incident and the court dispute, the golden window was very short for the Jin people to fight.

We must win and return north before summer comes, so we must fight quickly.

The third is the contempt for the Han army engraved in the bones of the Jin people. At that time, there were often scenes in the Central Plains of dozens of Jurchen warriors driving thousands of Han troops to flee in confusion.

Later, in the second year of Fuchang, the Jin-Qi coalition forces went south together and pushed the Qi border to the Huai River line. During the battle, the Jin people discovered that this Qi army was not even as good as the defeated Zhou army.

As a result, in their minds, there was an inherent impression that "one gold is worth ten men".

In this southern expedition, Zongbi had 6,000 Jurchens and nearly 50,000 Han, Liao, and Bo soldiers. With such a force, it was necessary to sweep across the Qi Kingdom and reach Tokyo to achieve the strategic goal.

At 6 o'clock in the morning and noon, Wanyan Puli, the vanguard officer of the Jin army, led 3,000 elite Jin soldiers and 5,000 Khitan soldiers to cross the river with a fan of five miles wide.

As for the Qi army, they only gathered about 3,000 horse troops two miles away on the south side of the river bank to meet the enemy.

He didn't even dare to use the river embankment barrier to block it slightly. This is in line with Wanyan Puli's consistent impression that the Qi army was "cowardly and afraid of fighting".

Wanyan Puli understood that the Qi army was preparing to charge into the formation with its cavalry army when a small number of its own troops had not yet been able to set up defenses.

Pu Li was not afraid at all. He only had to resist for a moment with his infantry. When his own cavalry troops came ashore and lined up, there were only thousands of troops, but they were nothing more than a mantis' arm as a chariot.

At this moment, there were more than a thousand infantry on the shore, and most of the follow-up troops were concentrated on the river.

Two miles away, three thousand horsemen gathered together, and their breath formed a pale white mist above the crowd.

More than a thousand infantry of the Jin Army formed a defensive formation, but saw that the opponent was still standing still. Thinking that the Qi Army was afraid of the battle and did not dare to move forward, some elderly soldiers in the queue couldn't help but screamed strangely.

For a time, the cold wilderness was filled with curses and ridicules.

The infantry dared to provoke the cavalry so arrogantly. There was a slight commotion in the Qi army's formation. Zhou Liang, who was riding in front of the formation with his eldest son, noticed it and turned around and shouted: "Hold still! Wait for the signal!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he saw a muffled sound above the head of Fucheng City in the distance, followed by a signal bomb trailing a red tail flame straight into the sky.

This was the attack signal. As the temporary commander-in-chief of this batch of horse troops, the eldest son, who was not good at speaking, also turned around from his horse and shouted to the many brothers behind him: "The King of Chu has said that this is the first time in twelve years that the armies of Han and Jin will fight together." In a head-to-head confrontation on the battlefield, victory or defeat is related to the hearts and minds of millions of people in the Central Plains, and to the honor and disgrace of our Han family! In this battle, we will advance and not retreat! A thousand victories!"

"Wan Sheng! Wan Sheng! Wan Sheng!"

Three thousand soldiers shouted three times in unison, and the cavalry column advanced slowly.

This shouting sound was deafening, completely suppressing the mocking laughter of the Jin army who landed.

Whether an army can fight can be determined not only by fighting with real swords and guns, but also by looking at certain spirits.

Pu Li, who had been through many battles for a long time, felt his heart sink for no reason. But this feeling also made him a little annoyed. The warriors of the Jin Kingdom had even defeated the Emperor of the Zhou Kingdom, so what did a few fish in front of him mean?

Thinking of this, Pu Li laughed a few times, looked back at the large number of subordinates on the river, and shouted to the infantry formation: "Young men, hold on for a moment, and when the army comes ashore, kill these fragile men." No scraps of armor will be left behind! Destroy Fucheng, kill Chen Chu, and then I will take you to taste the beautiful girls in Tokyo City!"

This shout really worked. He roared like a wild beast again.

On the ice of the boundary river, the nineteen-year-old pioneer Ma Jun Nian Duli also heard Shangguan's shout and couldn't help but feel excited.

When Ding Wei conquered Tokyo, he was still young and naturally had no chance to participate, but his Ama was one of them.

Throughout her teenage years, whenever Ama had a drink with others, she would talk about the splendor and prosperity of Tokyo, the girl's skin as smooth as satin, and the Han Chinese as weak as chickens.

In short, in Nian Duli's heart, the city of Tokyo is a paradise on earth where you can get whatever you want.

Now that Ama is drunk and drunk, it is his turn to enjoy the colorful world of the Han people!

Thinking of this, Nian Duli was a little distracted and accidentally slipped on the ice.

"Idiot, get up quickly and go ashore to form an array!"

Centurion Muke, who was stuck with Duli, cursed and continued to lead his horse forward.

Nian Duli stood up in a hurry and fell again in his anxiety. However, he inadvertently pushed aside the floating snow on the ice.

His hometown is in an extremely cold place, so Nian Duli is naturally not surprised by things like ice, but what surprised him was that there was a bamboo tube as thick as an arm inside the transparent ice.

The young man was very curious. Nian Duli lay on the ground and wiped away the floating snow on the left and right sides, but the head and tail of the bamboo could not be seen.

In the midst of surprise, Nian Duli seemed to see the bamboo tube under the ice flash for a moment, and then, a huge force without warning hit his chest.

It wasn't until he was flying in the air that he heard the sound of thunder one after another. The next moment, he didn't know anything.

From a God's perspective, under the miles-long river, it looks like a giant dragon that has been dormant for thousands of years is about to break out of the ice.

Accompanied by a dense and loud noise, pieces of solid ice burst violently, and ice cubes, people, horses, and bloody mist mixed with broken limbs and flesh flew up to the sky.

In an instant, the frozen river surface turned into turbid water with broken ice and body parts floating on it.

Those who were not killed immediately fell heavily into the water, and those dragged by the armor could not float up at all.

The large and small ice cubes flew up to a height of more than ten feet, and finally could not escape the gravity of the earth. They fell in a graceful parabola and smashed into the Jin army formations on both sides of the border river.

In an instant, the men fell on their backs, and the horses retreated continuously with a loud sound.

Even Zong Bi, who was supervising the battle on the north bank, asked the people around him with a confused look on his face, "What happened!"

But no one could answer.

After the ice was broken and limbs were broken, misty blood rained down on both sides of the boundary river.

Among the more than a thousand infantrymen who were still arrayed on the south bank, some were so shaken that their orifices were bleeding and fell to the ground exhausted, while some had their heads dented by ice falling from the sky.

In the rain of blood, the survivors looked at each other blankly, completely unaware of what happened.

At this time, the Qi cavalry troops who had rushed to the front of the formation were not affected at all.

Wanyan Puli, who was the first to react, wiped the blood from his face and shouted frantically at his subordinates who were in chaos: "Form up! Re-arrange!"

But the surviving Jin army didn't know whether they were frightened by this devastating power or deafened by the loud noise. They were all stunned, as if they couldn't hear Pu Li's shouts at all.

But the other party will not wait for them to recover.

At the front was a giant man, holding a black iron rod, and smashed it down on Wanyan Puli, who looked like an officer.

The Qi army at the rear ran straight into the Jin army's formation and advanced violently.

(End of this chapter)