Autumn arrived, and the leaves gradually began to turn yellow.

In the ninth year of Tianhui, under the diligent governance of Wuqimai, the second emperor of the Jin Dynasty, the Jin state was thriving, reigning supreme as the strongest nation under heaven.

Dating, Western Capital, was at this time the Jin Dynasty's military center in the southwest, where the Marshal's Residence of Wanyan Zonghan was located. To some extent, it was now almost capable of rivaling the political center in the north.

However, although Wanyan Zonghan held a lofty and immensely powerful position in the Jin state, and after the death of the former Second Prince of Jin, Wanyan Zongwang, few among Aguda's direct descendants could directly contend with him, leading to rumors of two courts, one in the north and one in the south. In reality, there was not much major friction between the Jurchen court and the Marshal's Residence, because there were still many founding ministers of the Jurchen dynasty holding the fort.

Especially Emperor Wanyan Wuqimai, who had been sharp and conspicuous under Aguda but restrained his temper after ascending the throne, being gentle internally and assertive externally, was still the brightest star among all the celestial bodies. This emperor, who could fight a hundred men on the battlefield and wrestle with tigers and bears, was actually kind and honest in front of his own people. At the beginning of his reign, he was dragged down and beaten twenty strokes for secretly drinking fine wine, and he did not resist.

After ascending the throne, although the Jurchen armies continued to march south, the Jurchen domestic governance was actually stable and harmonious. Wuqimai encouraged agriculture and sericulture while reforming the domestic system, making many efforts to abolish slavery and improve the economic system. During the third campaign against the Wu Dynasty, he had already begun to promote the redemption of slaves in the country, protecting the lives of slaves to a certain extent, and began to implement policies to curb land annexation. Although the external battles were fierce and severe, the Jin state at this time did indeed appear peaceful and stable. As a ruler who maintained the status quo, Wuqimai was worthy of his position as emperor.

With him in charge, the Jurchen advance appeared smooth, and even the proud Zonghan had sufficient respect and awe for him.

However, in these years of national stability, one brilliant Jurchen hero after another had indeed fallen in constant battles.

The former Jurchen God of War, Second Prince Zongwang, died of illness during the Jurchen's third campaign against the Wu Dynasty.

The God of War, Wanyan Loushi, sacrificed four years ago in the great battle to conquer the Northwest.

In the eighth year of Tianhui, Anban Bojilie (the crown prince in the Jurchen Bojilie system), who was also the biological younger brother of Aguda and Wuqimai, Wanyan Xiye, died of illness. Although Xiye did not have the fame of Zonghan among the people, nor the nearly invincible military exploits of Loushi, his stable character made him a famous general with high expectations and a lofty position. In the first two campaigns against the Wu Dynasty, although Zonghan and Zongwang were each marshals of an army, it was actually Xiye who sat in command with the title of supreme commander. If he had not died, he would have been the next emperor of the Jin Dynasty.

In the same year, General Cibushi was captured and beheaded after being ambushed in a great battle in Yanzhou, Northwest.

Generals die in a hundred battles, and brave men return after ten years. The fall of one general star after another did not stop the Jurchen's advance. On the northern Mongol grasslands, Shulv Su led thousands of cavalry in battles against the rising Mongol tribes, suffering slight setbacks. An army that participated in the conquest returned in triumph from the south.

They entered through the south gate and presented their spoils of war to the generals. However, this time the army's return did not bring back many spoils of war. After all, its scale could not compare with that of the campaigns against the Wu Dynasty. However, the Northwest War, which had dragged down the Jurchen conquest for four consecutive years and caused the Jurchen to lose two famous generals in succession, did indeed attract the attention of many interested parties.

That rebellious man who murdered the ruler in the south, the devil entrenched in the northwest, and the powerful Black Flag Army were now finally crushed by the Jurchen's iron-blooded conquest.

A tattered, bloodstained military flag was presented to Zonghan as a trophy by the Jurchen army. The generals of the Marshal's Residence announced the fact that Ning Fei was killed in battle and his head was displayed, and that the Black Flag Army was completely wiped out. Thereupon, cheers rang out in the nearby streets and squares. The Jurchen people who knew the inside story about that army in the Jin state had a rather complicated attitude. On the one hand, two Jin generals, Loushi and Cibushi, died in the Northwest, and some were willing to admit his strength. On the other hand, some Jurchen people believed that such a record showed that there were problems in the Jin state, which was no longer invincible as before. Of course, no matter which view was held, it was temporarily diluted after the Black Flag Army was destroyed.

Chen Wenjun watched the army's return for a while in the crowd, and the city was very lively. Returning to the mansion, Xiyin was practicing calligraphy in the study. Seeing her come in, he put down his pen and smiled: "Did you go to see the triumphant return? I was feeling a little bored."

Chen Wenjun shook her head, her eyes looking at the most conspicuous position in the study. Xiyin's study was full of famous paintings and antiquities from the south. At this time, what was hung in the center was a piece of calligraphy that could hardly be called the work of a famous person.

"君臣甘屈膝，一子独悲伤。
去矣西川事，雄哉北地王。
损身酬烈祖，搔首泣穹苍。
凛凛人如在，谁云汉已亡！"

"Jun chen gan qu xi, yi zi du bei shang.
Qu yi xi chuan shi, xiong zai bei di wang.
Sun shen chou lie zu, sao shou qi qiong cang.
Lin lin ren ru zai, shui yun han yi wang!"

This calligraphy written by Ning Yi had been hung in the study since Xiyin's return from the north. At first, it was hung in the corner. Since the start of the Northwest War, its position had been constantly changing. After Cibushi's death in battle, Xiyin had taken it down once, but later it was still hung in a more central location. Today, it was finally moved to the very center.

"“凛凛人如在，谁云汉已亡……'Lin lin ren ru zai, shui yun han yi wang...'” Chen Wenjun looked up at the calligraphy and recited it softly. She had come to see this calligraphy in the past, but now when she looked at it again, the complexity in her heart could not be told to outsiders.

Xiyin leaned closer: "Yes, 'Lin lin ren ru zai...'. Ning Liheng, before he murdered the ruler in the Wu Dynasty, was a good friend of Qin Siyuan. Looking back on the events of that year, Qin Siyuan of the Wu Dynasty was a scholar of Confucianism, the eldest son of the Qin family died in Taiyuan, and Qin Siyuan died at the hands of traitors after being exiled. The second son of the Qin family started an uprising with Ning Liheng. These three years in the Northwest are worthy of these words. I underestimated him. It is a pity that I could not have a meeting with him while he was alive."

Xiyin spoke with a touch of emotion, and Chen Wenjun could understand more of the deeper meaning in his words. For the past three years, the Jurchens were in the rear, with the puppet Qi army in front, which was Xiyin's idea. The reason was that the Black Flag Army's firearms were powerful, and the Jurchens had not found a good way to restrain them, so they first used the puppet Qi army as a vanguard to test the cannons. The Jin domestic also constantly improved its cannons in response to the war.

Who knew that once this was delayed, the war became almost endless. Last year, Cibushi was beheaded on the city wall of Yanzhou, and Xiyin was extremely ashamed. After that, the Jurchen army strengthened its offensive even more. Although it had now mastered artillery technology and created a super crossbow specifically for shooting down hot air balloons, Xiyin had always felt that he was responsible for Cibushi's death and the manpower and material resources that the Jurchens had invested in these three years.

Chen Wenjun was silent for a moment, then tilted her head and said: "I did hear someone say that Ning Yi was full of tricks, and this time he may have faked his death to escape. Has Master seen his head?"

There was no emotion on her face. Xiyin looked at her, then smiled with a complex expression: "Indeed, some people think so. Actually, the head is not enough to prove anything. The things that are cut down on the battlefield can be faked if someone recognizes them and sends them over. Fan Hongji, who had dealings with him, did say that it was Ning Yi's head, but it is also possible to misidentify."

He shook his head, looked at the calligraphy in front of him, and sighed: "The court's withdrawal of troops is not such a superficial matter. Actually, the Black Flag Army has not perished..."

Xiyin paused here, seeing a flash of light in Chen Wenjun's eyes - Xiyin originally knew that she was concerned about the Southern Dynasty and sympathetic to the Black Flag Army, and Chen Wenjun did not avoid it - so he looked at her and smiled: "The Northwest War was fought in extreme chaos, and Liu Yu was incompetent and should be killed. Many things can only be sorted out now. A part of the Black Flag Army did escape from the Northwest. They even did more terrible things, and we are still investigating. The remnants of the Black Flag Army have now turned to the Southwest. Ning Yi's molting may have been arranged, but things always have accidents."

"What?" Chen Wenjun turned her head.

"The battlefield is ever-changing, he led the army in and out of death several times, it is very likely... fake death became real death, just like Loushi, who suddenly encountered an accident, no one could have expected it." Wanyan Xiyin said this with a complicated look and a sigh: "The Black Flag Army can't find him now... If it wasn't certain of this, even if there was a battle on the northern front, how could I have allowed the retreat. With his death, even if the Black Flag Army had a million soldiers, it would just be a thought, let them go..."

Chen Wenjun was stunned for a moment, but only after this moment did she smile bitterly.

"Then... what is the more terrible thing that Master is talking about?"

"It was also my miscalculation. If that Ning Liheng is still alive, it will be a little troublesome, but... if he is dead, let Liu Yu and the others in the south have a headache. This is the news I just received..."

Xiyin looked at the calligraphy again and chatted casually with his wife...

************

In the south, news about the destruction of the Black Flag Army and the beheading of the ruler-killing rebel Ning Liheng was gradually spreading throughout the world.

In the Central Plains, although the war had stopped, the fruits of that war on this land were still bitter and difficult to swallow.

Some information gradually emerged after the chaos of the war. After being known by some people, it turned into an even more chaotic situation.

In the imperial palace of Daming Prefecture, in this autumn after the end of the war, Liu Yu began to become suspicious and lived in constant fear. In recent days, he had successively killed more than ten palace guards.

Rumors from the bottom were spreading and expanding among the people.

It was said that in the three years of the Northwest War, the Black Flag Army had forced many prisoners to surrender during the war. This forced surrender was not just a general surrender. There were rumors that before the start of the Northwest War, after the Black Flag Army killed Loushi, the devil Ning Yi had been actively planning. He sent a large number of Black Flag soldiers, scattered in various parts of the Central Plains and places where people gathered.

When the Northwest War broke out and the Jurchens forced the Great Qi to send troops, Liu Yu's forced conscription began in these places. At this time, the Central Plains had already been washed by three wars, the original order had long been chaotic, and officials could no longer judge from the household registration who was a good citizen and who was a local. In this indiscriminate conscription, almost all the Black Flag soldiers had infiltrated the Great Qi army.

They were originally soldiers, and naturally performed well in the army, being promoted and standing out was not a problem. These people colluded with the people around them, and chose those who were strong and had ideas inclined to the Black Flag Army, surrendered to the Black Flag Army on the battlefield, and passed intelligence to the Black Flag Army in every major battle. In that war, a large number of people disappeared silently on the battlefield and became the nourishment for strengthening the Black Flag Army.

This was not the most terrible thing.

The most terrible thing was that in the current Great Qi army, no one knew how many people were still lurking in it. Some had become high-level generals, some were still developing members of the Black Flag Army, and some may have even been promoted exceptionally to become palace guards around Liu Yu.

In recent days, every soldier Liu Yu saw looked like a lurking Black Flag member.

Over the days, his spirit had weakened.

The night wind was blowing, rolling up the leaves, and it seemed that water was dripping under the eaves.

Drip, drip, drip... the sound was subtle and fragmented.

Liu Yu woke up from his dream, his back covered in cold sweat. He felt like he saw a black shadow by the bed, and then... there really was a black shadow by the bed.

The man in black leaned over, one hand like an iron hoop, firmly clamping his mouth. Those eyes were looking at him, face to face.

"Emperor..."

The voice rang out, and the man took out a dagger and put it on his neck, gesturing for a moment, and then began to point the tip of the dagger at his eyes, slowly stabbing down.

"...Kill another emperor..."

Liu Yu struggled, but the strength on that hand was still increasing, and the bones in his cheeks were creaking. A wet and hot feeling came from under the quilt, and he was so frightened that he had lost control of his bladder, his eyes tightly closed.

The hand clamped to his mouth suddenly released, and then a heavy blow struck down, and Liu Yu fainted.

When he woke up the next morning, the red marks on Liu Yu's face had not faded, and great chaos had already appeared in the palace.

Rumors about inner demons and the Black Flag Army were spreading among the people...

**************

The impact continued. In Jiangnan, the news of Ning Yi's death and the destruction of the Black Flag Army had been spread among the people. Apart from a few scholars who began to mourn the deceased Zhou Zhe and lamented the "reversal of chaos and restoration of order," the voices of public opinion this time seemed quiet.

In the southern suburbs of Jiangning City, large areas of courtyards were built on the original scenic hills, and there were also troops from the Wu Lie Camp stationed nearby. This area was now the other residence of Prince Junwu for studying natural science. A large number of elm cannons and iron cannons were now manufactured here and distributed to various armies. The prince himself often resided here.

In late autumn, a man with a severed hand knocked on the wooden door of a courtyard. This man was tall, stood firmly, and had several scars on his face. At first glance, he was a veteran of many battles. After reporting certain passwords, the one who came out to receive him was Lu Agui, the chief steward of the Prince's Mansion. This veteran brought back news about Xiaocanghe and the three years of the Northwest War. He was an internal agent that Lu Agui had personally planted in the Xiaocanghe army.

This man's name was Lin Guanglie. He had been in Xiaocanghe for several years, and he joined the Black Flag Army and fought bravely, rising to the side of the rebel Ning Liheng. He was captured in the last few chaotic battles in the Northwest and suffered inhumane torture. While being held in custody, he and several Black Flag Army generals escaped from prison, personally cut off his arm, and escaped with his life in nine deaths. At this time, he went south to report the news.

Naturally, he also received a hero's treatment. After listening to the relatively important information, Lu Agui settled him down and sent someone to inform the prince, who was still in the capital at this time.

Lin Guanglie was arranged in the best mansion and received the best treatment. On this day, Lin Guanglie went out to Jiangning for shopping, shaking off the two guards who had been arranged to protect him. After leaving the city, he walked along a small road, and not far away, he saw Lu Agui and a team of soldiers waiting in front.

Lu Agui's eyes were suspicious. The person in front of him was a talent he had carefully selected, highly skilled in martial arts and with a loyal personality. His mother was still in the south, and he had even saved his life... On this day, Lin Guanglie knelt down on the mountain road, kowtowed to him to apologize, and then told him about his last things in the Northwest.

In the three years of the Northwest War, enemies came in an endless stream. Even though Ning Yi had made many arrangements, the war was still extremely tragic. In the last year, the Jurchens strengthened their offensive. Everyone ran around, and Ning Yi also joined the battle with his direct troops. Lin Guanglie was already in this team at that time.

Swords and swords on the battlefield had no eyes. Although everyone protected him, Ning Yi had also been injured several times. In a desperate environment, he charged with everyone, and he had also said that one day he might end up like Wanyan Loushi. In those times, Ning Yi liked to talk to people, and many of his thoughts were not hidden from others. He talked about his views on war and the world. Everyone might not understand, but over time, they knew what kind of sincerity he had.

"...The battle in which I... was captured was one of the last few battles. I remember that the day before the fight, the weather was very hot, and we were all hiding in the mountains. When it was almost dark, we were sitting on the edge of the mountain to enjoy the cool air. I remember that the sun was as red as blood. Mr. Ning went to see the wounded and came back and told us that so-and-so was dead..." Lin Guanglie stood up as he said this, "He sat with us for a while, and what he said later, I will remember for the rest of my life..."

"He said... I chatter with you all day long, and some people say in my face, I'm so annoyed, I know... He said that I am actually afraid of death, I don't want to die and I don't want to be in pain, it's not good... He said, I don't want to say today why we have to die, we have to be in pain, but I am honored to fight with you, to charge up together, because you are people, you have noble and lofty things, not any rubbish, you have done the best effort for the best things... So, if something really happens one day, I really, haven't come here for nothing..."

The man stood there with tears in his eyes.

"I was caught by them, not long after, they said that Mr. Ning was dead, because of this, I was not killed. That night, I broke my hand, killed three people, and rushed out with everyone. I don't know if Mr. Ning is really dead, but when he said those words, I really felt that I was a person, not inferior to anyone, even compared to the emperor, I wouldn't be inferior..."

"Presumptuous!" Hearing the other party say this, Lu Agui's eyes turned cold and he roared. At the same time, a team of soldiers around him drew their swords. For a time, the mountain road was filled with the cold light of swords. Lin Guanglie took a breath and drew the steel knife from his waist with his only remaining right hand.

"Steward Lu, I appreciate your saving my life, and I respect you. I broke my hand, and I just thought that even before I die, I want to return this life to you. I brought you back the news of Xiaocanghe. Xiaocanghe is upright and there is nothing that can't be told to people! But I have finished the news, Mr. Lu, I want to send this life back to the Chinese Army. If you want to stop me, you can leave my life today. But there is one thing I want to make clear to everyone, after three years of fighting, I only have one hand left, I can still kill people, you be careful."

His figure lowered slightly, holding the knife horizontally, his eyes narrowed. At such a distance, he was only one person, and if he rushed out, he would probably be shot to death on the spot, but even so, at this moment, the pressure he gave people did not decrease in the slightest. This was a fierce tiger returning from the hell of the Northwest.

Lu Agui was silent for a moment: "If... Ning Liheng is really dead, what is the point of you going back?"

"Mr. Ning told us those words..." Lin Guanglie said, "If he is really dead, the Chinese Army will pass him down. Steward Lu, you can't save this world."

The autumn leaves were completely yellow, falling from the tree in the wind. In the confrontation between the two sides on the mountain road, Lu Agui raised his head and sighed silently.

This place was also the hometown of that scholar.

Now the wild geese have returned, and many people will not return. Either people are not there, or their hearts are not there...

************

In the southwest, Dali, Buddhism was prosperous, which was a peaceful and harmonious country.

Duan Xiaoc Qing, the daughter of Marquis Lianyi, Duan Baosheng, was thirteen years old this year. Although she had not yet reached the age of marriage, Duan Xiaoc Qing had been familiar with poetry and books, practiced needlework, and understood music since she was a child. At a young age, she had become a famous talented woman in Dali City. In the past two years, the people who came to propose marriage had broken through the threshold of the Marquis Mansion, making the Marquis Mansion very dignified.

Duan Baosheng had always been very proud of having such a good daughter, but of course he also knew that the main reason why his daughter could attract so much attention was not only that she had been beautiful since she was a child, but also that he had found a female teacher for her a few years ago. This female laywoman named Wang Jingmei was not only knowledgeable and proficient in needlework and music, but the most important thing was that she was quite proficient in Buddhism. She was introduced by Master Jingxin of Tianlong Temple and finally entered the Marquis Mansion to teach. Duan Baosheng had always been grateful for this.

Duan Baosheng often had admiration for this female laywoman who was very outstanding in appearance, temperament, and knowledge. He had once thought about taking her as a concubine in the Marquis Mansion, and he had asked someone to propose marriage, but the other party politely refused, so there was no way. Buddhism was prosperous in Dali, and although Duan Baosheng liked the other party, he would not necessarily force her to marry him. In order to give the other party a good impression, he had always maintained a sense of propriety. Over the years, except for occasionally meeting her when she was teaching his daughter, Duan Baosheng did not meet this Lay Wang often.

In recent years, the external situation had been turbulent. The Wu Dynasty had suddenly been knocked from its original superior nation to the bottom, and the Central Plains and Northwest had been fighting constantly, and Dali had gradually become nervous. On this day, Duan Baosheng sent a guest away from the courtyard where he met guests, and on the way, he met Wang Jingmei, who was walking in the garden with his daughter.

He paid attention to the beauty in his eyes, slowed down his pace, and was still talking. The Lay Wang did not look this way, and Duan Baosheng was just looking at her profile. At a certain moment, she turned her head to look this way, and Duan Baosheng saw that the other party's face was pale.

What happened...

Duan Baosheng did not understand.

On this day, the woman formerly known as Li Shishi, now under the pseudonym Wang Jingmei, heard the news of Ning Yi's death in a corner of the southwest.

Before that, the army in the small valley where she had lived faced the ferocious Jurchens, dragged them down, and fought a great battle for three full years...

She once thought that this battle would go on endlessly, even so, the pain would not come surging like a landslide like this moment.

So many, many things suddenly surged up again, that figure, the simple fragments of childhood, that reunion in Jiangning, she was always full of misunderstandings about him, that person killed tens of thousands of people in Liangshan, chased after profits and manipulated human nature during disaster relief, the Jurchens came, he resisted outside the city, when the Right Prime Minister's Mansion fell, he kept running around, he killed the emperor and took her to the mountains in the northwest, and asked her to sort out those words.

At a certain moment, she thought of him, remembering that she had once liked him, but after he killed the emperor, she could no longer like him. Their arguments, he would not deliberately give way. Then, she went to Tiannan, and he blocked Tianbei...

Such a hard, stubborn, unyielding person, she almost... forgot him...

On this day, Duan Xiaoqing saw that her intellectual and beautiful female teacher did not know why she lost her composure. She hid in the small room on the side of her boudoir and cried for a long, long time...

The next day, Wang Jingmei resigned from Duan Baosheng.

*************

The wild geese returning south flew over the sky of the Wu Dynasty.

In the Central Plains, Liu Yu's regime began to prepare to move the capital to Bianliang.

Yue Fei led his army toward the northern front. After defeating two armies and recovering a state and county, he was reprimanded by the capital again. The Black Flag Army had left, and the Jurchens had no obstacles to go south, so they could no longer start border disputes.

Prince Junwu returned to Jiangning, listened to Lu Agui's account of Lin Guanglie's affairs, and sighed slightly. Outside, another batch of iron cannons and gunpowder was transported out of the workshop, and the improvement of various firearms was proceeding in full swing.

In the south, Li Shishi cut her hair, left Dali, and began her journey north.

Lin Guanglie walked on the road to the west, just like his journey south, passing through the steep and dangerous Mandao Pass.

After the defeat in Xiaocanghe and the destruction of the Chinese Army, Li Qianshun began to reorganize the business routes, preparing to start a vigorous effort in the spring. Then spring came...

The black iron cavalry roared like the wind, crushing the vast plains of the Blackwater of Western Xia in a powerful offensive like a hurricane, and after a short time, stepped into the Helan Mountain line. Beacon smoke burned, this was the beginning that no one knew.

——Mongolia, Genghis Khan Temujin, stepped onto the huge stage.

In the southern end of Tibet, a not-so-powerful tribal settlement called Dayang had gradually developed and began to have some Han settlements. An army that had once shocked the world was gathering and waiting here. Waiting for the opportunity to come, waiting for someone to return...

The peaks are gathered like spears, and the waves are like anger. The season for the deer chase has arrived.