Snowflakes began to fall from the sky once more.

Inside and outside the valley of Xia Village, the large-scale battle was drawing to a close. Where the Resentment Army camp had once stood, flames and thick smoke raged. The corpses of men and warhorses, along with blood, stretched from the valley outwards. At the edge of the valley, small groups of Resentment Army soldiers were still resisting, either surrounded and slaughtered, or throwing down their armor and surrendering on their knees. Shouts of joy echoed through the snowy valley and over the ridges.

Some were plundering the property left behind in the Resentment Army camp, while those responsible for tending to the wounded were emerging from the camp to provide first aid to the soldiers injured on the battlefield. Voices were loud and clamorous, with victorious cheers predominating. Warhorses galloped across the foothills, and as they halted, the black-armored knights removed their helmets.

Smoke billowed everywhere. In the center of the valley, the bodies of Long Hui and others were laid down, wrapped in large flags. Soldiers passing by saluted them.

Outside the valley, the snowy ground was covered with messy footprints. The retreat of tens of thousands of people had churned up the entire snowfield. The scouts from Xia Village were pursuing in different directions towards the distant horizon. Qin Shaoqian stood atop the snowy ridge, holding a blood-stained greatsword in his hand, watching the distant scenery. Cheers had already erupted around him, but the heat in his mind had not yet subsided. He accepted some of what he saw, but couldn't fully digest the rest.

"Send out all the scouts...stay alert, lest Guo Yaoshi return...to catch us with a counterattack...hurry, hurry! Stay alert..."

The Resentment Army was utterly defeated and routed.

From the moment everyone decided to open the camp gates and morale surged across the hills and fields, he, as a capable general, had been confident in this counterattack. However, now that the situation was initially settled, recalling the strength of the Jurchens as they advanced south, the difficulty he and his Wu Rui Camp had faced in trying to stop them, the disheartening series of defeats suffered by hundreds of thousands of soldiers outside Bianliang City over the past few months, and the desperate, do-or-die battle in Xia Village...now that everything had turned around, he felt a sense of unreality...

This constant torment...even last night, they hadn't seen much possibility of breaking the deadlock or ending it. But now...had they suddenly made it through?

"...Where is Li Heng?"

He mulled over this, then recalled the decisiveness of his brother-like friend and mentor. On the chaotic battlefield, this brother, skilled in strategy, couldn't clearly grasp every change in the war, and sometimes couldn't understand the local advantages or disadvantages. He therefore never intervened in detailed decisions. However, on this morning, if not for his sudden display of decisiveness, the only chance of victory would have been lost in an instant.

Ning Yi's grasp and manipulation of the overall situation and morale in that moment was incredibly precise. The days of repression, devastation, and even despair, combined with everyone's desire to go all out before the pressure became unbearable, were compressed to the extreme. When the prisoners made their unexpected decision, many generals could only watch and hesitate. Even if they were moved, they could only hope that the soldiers in the camp would fight bravely. But he made an unexpected suggestion, betting everything.

In the subsequent battle, Guo Yaoshi demonstrated his ability to operate and control his soldiers, but for the Xia Village side, victory still came relatively easily. When Liu Shunren's army was annihilated in front of Xia Village, Guo Yaoshi had already begun to mobilize his direct line of troops to retreat. The cannon fodder who were dragged into the battlefield engaged in a melee with the Xia Village soldiers, which was almost a one-sided massacre. Guo Yaoshi still led the more than ten thousand main force that could survive after this almost cruel sacrifice.

It is difficult to fathom Guo Yaoshi's mood changes that morning, and it is also inevitably difficult to explain his thoughts when he decisively retreated. The Resentment Army was not incapable of fighting, but the reality was as cold as this winter. Xia Village had the possibility of fighting to the death, but the Resentment Army had no possibility of betting all its people in one battle.

Still wary of Guo Yaoshi's possible counterattack, Qin Shaoqian looked back. On the battlefield filled with smoke, snow was falling, and the valley, after days of fierce fighting, was filled with corpses and traces of war, a scene of devastation. However, at this moment, the emotions of victory, for the first time, were erupting among the crowds across the hills and fields. Accompanying the cheers and laughter were also faint sounds of suppressed crying.

Qu Qing limped across the ridge, which was the forefront of the Xia Village soldiers' pursuit. Some people were laughing together, with tears faintly in their laughter. He saw Mao Yishan behind a large rock, covered in blood, almost slumped in the snow. He laughed for a while, and then, for some reason, hugged his long saber and began to cry softly. After crying a few times, he wiped his tears and tried to stand up, but when he leaned on the rock and exerted force, he collapsed again, sitting in the snow and laughing "Haha."

Qu Qing did not go to help him. He walked past him from behind. Someone bumped into him, and someone came over, put his arm around his shoulder, and said something. He also smiled and punched the other person's chest. Then, he walked into the nearby woods.

In the woods, white snow and scarlet blood were still spreading, and there were still corpses occasionally. He walked to a deserted place, and the exhaustion in his heart surged up. He slowly knelt on the ground. After a while, tears flowed out. He opened his mouth and made a low crying sound. This continued for a while, and finally he slammed his fist into the snow. His head then slammed into the tree trunk in front of him. He slammed his head against the tree several times, and blood flowed out. He bit it with his teeth, and used his hands to smash and peel it. Finally, his head, hands, and mouth were covered in blood. He hugged the tree and cried with bloodshot eyes.

The crying of a man is not pleasant to hear, twisted like a madman.

He was once a general in the Wuwei Camp, with a team of two or three hundred men. On the night of the attack on Mu Tuo Gang, almost the entire army was wiped out. He left the main force in a daze, seeking survival, and unintentionally came to Xia Village. People talked about the ferocity of the Jurchens, the myth that they could not be defeated with ten thousand men, to excuse themselves, so that people felt that failure was excusable. He originally believed it too, but in these days, there were finally different things that he saw.

Nothing is invincible, but all his brothers are dead after all...

He hugged the tree trunk, his twisted and suppressed crying continuing intermittently for a long time...

At this moment, besides Qu Qing, there were many people crying in laughter.

In the wounded soldier camp above the valley, someone closed his eyes, listening to the sounds outside, and murmured, "We won?" The thin woman in charge of taking care of him nodded and suppressed her answer: "Yes." The wounded soldier whispered: "Ah, we won..." Finally stopped breathing, and under the pads beneath him, it was already a pool of blood.

Next to him, people were still successively treating the wounded, or collecting corpses. The cheers from below came, like a dream.

At this time, the entire mountain was immersed in an atmosphere that was as intoxicating as wine, but also with a bit of madness. Ning Yi quickly walked up the hillside, and saw the woman lying on the stretcher, it was Juan'er. She had blood on her body, bandages wrapped around her head, and one eye was swollen.

During the chaotic battle at the foot of the mountain, some of the Resentment Army soldiers who were separated and slaughtered broke through the undefended camp wall and rushed into the camp. At that time, Guo Yaoshi had already led his troops to retreat. They desperately launched a fight. All those behind them were wounded, sick, and disabled soldiers. Those who still had strength fought bravely. Juan'er was among them, chased and rolled down the hillside, hit her head, and was also injured in several places on her body.

"Is her life in danger?"

Ning Yi first grabbed the doctor who was treating Juan'er. At the same time, Hong Ti also went over to start examining her.

"Miss Juan'er's body is still good, although this time..." The doctor shook his head and said a few words. Seeing Ning Yi's expression, he quickly said, "There is no danger to her life."

"Will it affect her body in the future?"

"The bones in Miss Juan'er's hand, I'm afraid it will hurt if she encounters damp and cold weather in the future...in addition to that..."

The doctor said a few words, and Juan'er had already opened her eyes. One of her eyes was swollen, so she could only look at people with the other eye. She was injured and bleeding, and was quite miserable: "Miss Lu...Son-in-Law, Son-in-Law...I'm fine, Son-in-Law, are you injured..."

Ning Yi walked over, took one of her hands, reached out and touched her cheek, not knowing what to say. Juan'er struggled to smile: "Did we win?"

"We won." Ning Yi said, "Don't worry about these things, take good care of your injuries. I heard you were injured, and I was very worried about you... Well, it's good that you're okay. You take care of your injuries first, and I'll come see you after I've dealt with things."

"Okay." Juan'er nodded. Ning Yi waved his hand and asked someone to carry her away. The woman's hand was still holding Ning Yi's finger, but after a while, she finally let go. Ning Yi turned his head and asked Yuwen Feidu next to him: "How many people were caught after entering the camp?" Before he could answer, he said again, "Tell someone to kill them all."

Yuwen Feidu nodded first, then hesitated a little: "Master, they say...killing prisoners is ominous..."

"Heh." Ning Yi rubbed his forehead. After a while, he patted Yuwen Feidu on the shoulder. "It doesn't matter. I'm not in the mood to consider the overall situation right now. All those who came in die, and those outside are kept. Go."

"Yes."

After Yuwen Feidu took the order and left, Ning Yi stood there for a moment before exhaling a long breath. Looking back, the scattered snowflakes were not dense, but they were still starting to cover the entire world, and the atmosphere between the distant mountains and nearby ridges, for the first time, seemed warm and peaceful amidst the devastation. Whether it was cheering or crying, the feeling of devastation and torment that made people want to collapse finally began to dissipate temporarily.

Looking back, the fighting and struggles of the past ten days, the devastation and torment, really gave people a feeling of being separated from the world. The possibility of repelling the Resentment Army in front of him was once out of reach. Hong Ti came from behind and took his hand: "Miss Juan'er is fine."

"First gather up the corpses of General Long and all the other brothers." Ning Yi said to the followers next to him, "Inform all the generals, don't let your guard down. Start commemorating General Long this afternoon, and prepare a good meal tonight, but the wine...is still one cup per person. Send someone to send the news to the capital, and see how the battle there is going. Also, track Guo Yaoshi..."

In the wind and snow, he waved his hand, and one order after another began to be issued.

A few miles away from Xia Village, on the snowfield, the battle between scouts was still going on. The corpses of warhorses and warriors lay on the snow and in the forest. The occasional outbreak of fighting left one or two lives behind. The survivors left in different directions, and soon after, they intersected again.

Near noon, the retreating main force of the Resentment Army slowed down.

Amidst the demoralized ranks, Guo Yaoshi rode on his horse, his face cold, without joy or anger. Along the way, the able generals under him had reorganized the formation again, and he paid more attention to the information brought back by the scouts. Among the senior generals of the Resentment Army, Liu Shunren was already dead, and Zhang Linghui may have been captured or killed. The remaining troops in front of him were all his direct line. After careful calculation, there were only about fifteen thousand people.

Thirty-six thousand people attacked a valley with only half their number, and the other side were just some remnants of the Wu Dynasty. In the end, their own side lost more than half. This was something he had never thought would happen.

At this moment, he stopped in the snowfield, reined in his horse and stood still. When he looked around, the world was the same white scene, making it almost impossible to tell the direction. Most of this army of theirs used to be composed of hungry people from Liaodong, but in order to survive, they later defected to the Wu Dynasty for reconstruction. The composition of it was also the refugees who had lost their property and land in the six states of Yanyun. They had no foundation, and they didn't know where to go. When several generals came over to ask Guo Yaoshi for orders, no one could see what he was thinking from Guo Yaoshi's calm face.

Messages were still being passed over. After a long time, on the snowfield, Guo Yaoshi pointed in one direction: "We can only...go there."

The faces of the generals were stunned, but soon after, they also stamped their feet and sighed. That afternoon, this troop of the Resentment Army set off again, and finally, went deeper into the wind and snow...

This day was the tenth day of the twelfth month of the thirteenth year of Jinghan. The Jurchens' war of invasion to the south ushered in a turning point for the first time. For the many troops around Bianliang at this time, the situation was surprising. In a short period of time, they all received the battle report from Xia Village. Due to the fatigue after the war, the army of Xia Village was mostly just licking their wounds and consolidating their combat power that afternoon. As long as they could still stand up, the soldiers participated in the commemoration of General Long Hui and the many people who died in battle in these ten days in the snow.

When the scouts who were sent out gradually returned, someone handed a letter to Ning Yi.

When the scout was tracking Guo Yaoshi's team, he met a highly skilled old man, who asked him to bring this letter back and hand it over. After confirmation by several Green Forest people, the old man was the only surviving Senior Fu Lu beside Zhou Tong.

After having someone open the letter, it was discovered that it was a letter written in blood.

After Ning Yi finished reading it, he stood in the snow for a while, and then threw the blood letter into the fire to burn it.

This was just a small episode in the midst of a great war. The things written in that blood letter were not announced to the world until many years later. In the evening, the scout who returned from the capital brought back another urgent message.

The Jurchens stopped attacking the city this morning.

The reason was that the more than 20,000 Western Army troops led by Zhong Shizhong arrived under Bianliang City and officially confronted Wanyan Zongwang, trying to threaten Zongwang from the rear. Faced with this situation, Zongwang, who failed to attack the city, directly abandoned Bianliang City and launched a large-scale counterattack against the Western Army with elite cavalry - this may have been an act of venting his anger after failing to capture the city for a long time. The battle strength in Bianliang City was not enough, and they did not dare to go out of the city to rescue them. Later, outside the city, the two armies launched a fierce battle. Zhong Shizhong, although an old general, still took the lead and fought with all his strength, but after all, due to the gap in strength, when the scout left Bianliang City that afternoon, the more than 20,000 Western Army troops had already been defeated and retreated. Although Zhong Shizhong was still able to control part of the situation, if he continued to support, he would probably be completely annihilated outside Bianliang City.

Hearing such news, Qin Shaoqian, Ning Yi and others were all stunned for a long time. The Western Army was indeed famous in the eyes of ordinary people, and it also had combat power for many high-level Wu Dynasty officials, but having combat power did not mean that they could directly fight against the Jurchens head-on. In past battles, although the Western Army led by Zhong Shizhong had a certain amount of combat power, they still knew the situation when facing the Jurchens. They fought for a while, and if they couldn't beat them, they would retreat. Later, everyone hid next to them, and Zhong Shizhong led the army to hide. When Guo Yaoshi went to challenge him one-on-one, he just detoured all the way, unwilling to fight him head-on.

But unexpectedly, after Wanyan Zongwang had fiercely attacked the city for nearly twenty days, this old man suddenly arrived.

This time, he did not choose to retreat.

According to the scouts, in this battle, corpses were strewn all over the fields outside Bianliang City. Not only were they the corpses of Western Army men, but before the Western Army formed a rout, facing the world-renowned Jurchen elite cavalry, they had also achieved many results under the leadership of Zhong Shizhong.

The old man's intention was obvious. The Jurchens had been attacking the city for twenty days without success, and their combat power had already begun to decline, and their personnel had been severely reduced. The more than 20,000 Western Army troops may not be able to defeat the other side, but as long as they bet their lives and cause a certain amount of loss to the Jurchens, the Jurchen troops with huge losses may no longer be able to consider attacking the city. The Zhong Shidao and others in the city will also finally be able to choose to force the other party to make peace...

Just as Ning Yi and others in Xia Village were shocked by Zhong Shizhong's heroic and decisive actions, in Bianliang City, extremely tired people were cheering and crying with joy for the arrival of the Western Army. Relatively speaking, the news from Xia Village that came later was not yet known to everyone. Su Wenfang came to the wounded soldier camp and told the disheveled, pale-faced, and thin-bodied Shishi about the events in Xia Village.

Shishi looked at him blankly with wide eyes for a long time. After a while, she grabbed the collar of her clothes with both hands, lowered her body slightly, and cried in a suppressed and violent manner. Her thin body trembled, making a "woo woo" sound, like a bean sprout that was about to fall down at any moment. Tears fell like rain. Seeing this scene, Su Wenfang's eyes also turned red. He had been running around in the city for several days, and he was also gaunt, with a face full of stubble. After a while, he left here and continued to work for the Xiang Mansion.

In the Imperial City, the ministers had already gathered here, and were gathering messages from all sides, all of them somewhat happy. At this time, an old man named Qin Siyuan was saying something uninteresting in the hall.

This matter was...rescuing Zhong Shizhong.