This is a fortified village forty li northeast of Heishui City. It was recently built and is called Heyuan Village.

Because they haven't had time to replenish their ranks, Heyuan Village currently only has three thousand soldiers.

It was a small fortified town, which appeared somewhat lonely and desolate on the snow-covered plain.

This area is also the northwestern border of the Song Dynasty; further north lies the Mongolian grasslands.

Winters in the Northwest are so cold that all the animals burrow into their holes and refuse to come out.

The soldiers of Heyuan Village usually stayed indoors, warming themselves by the firewood. When they had nothing to do, they would drink a few cups of wine to warm themselves up.

Regarding alcohol, the imperial court also allowed it to be supplied to a certain extent, but the quantity was limited and the military controlled it very strictly.

"I think Yue Fei is nothing special. His reputation is all hype. If he were on the battlefield, he wouldn't be much better than me!"

A burly man with a full beard was drinking, speaking loudly and without any attempt to hide his identity.

One of the soldiers quickly said, "Boss Liu, keep your voice down. If this gets to Yue Fei's ears, we'll be in big trouble!"

Liu Shan kicked the soldier, who screamed in pain and almost spilled the wine in his hand.

"Screw him! I'm on the same level as him! What can he do to me? If he wants a one-on-one fight, I'm ready anytime. It'll be a good opportunity for me to take him down and make a name for myself!"

After saying that, he raised his head and laughed loudly, and the others laughed along with him.

"Yue Fei has no chance to turn things around. He has been demoted from Commander of the Garrison Command to Captain. If he wants to climb back up, he will have to kill Wanyan Wuzhu!"

"He can't do anything now. Everyone else has a hundred people, but he only has a few. Nobody wants to follow him!"

"The higher-ups are unwilling to assign him any more people. It seems like someone wants him dead!"

"Who told him to be so arrogant!"

"I heard that his military achievements overshadowed others, which is why he offended so many people!"

"The army hates this kind of person the most. He has no ability himself and only takes credit for others' work. He deserves to be demoted here now!"

"..."

Yang Zaixing wanted to rush in and teach the people inside a lesson, but Yue Fei stopped him.

At this moment, Yue Fei was leading a few men out to patrol ten miles to the north.

At this time, the armies in the Northwest were basically equipped with warhorses, and the regular army was mainly composed of cavalry.

Yang Zaixing had a fiery temper and was defiant of everyone except Yue Fei. When Yue Fei stopped him, he obediently did not go in to cause trouble, but instead followed Yue Fei northward.

Wang Gui said from the side, "Boss, no one will come out in this weather. Let's find a place to warm ourselves by the fire."

Yue Fei said, "I remember there's a village ahead. Let's go take a look."

After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, a small village appeared ahead, with wisps of smoke rising from its chimneys, making it look particularly lonely in the snowy landscape.

Wang Gui joked, "The eldest brother has a good memory. He remembered it even though we passed by from afar last time."

"Wang Gui, we're not here to warm ourselves by the fire. We're here to ask the villagers if there's anything unusual happening nearby. We have important business to attend to!"

"yes!"

Although he was demoted to the Northwest and became a minor constable, his former subordinates remained loyal to Yue Fei. In their hearts, Yue Fei would always be their commander.

They also believed that sooner or later, they would once again become famous throughout the Song Dynasty.

When the group entered the small village, they found that there were no living people left; everyone had been killed, and their deaths were extremely gruesome.

Zhang Xian said, "It's the Mongols coming down!"

Yue Fei immediately said, "Be careful of your surroundings, watch out for ambushes!"

He had barely finished speaking when an arrow shot toward his head.

In the blink of an eye, Yue Fei swung his spear, deflecting the arrows in front of him, and the group immediately hid inside the house.

As soon as I entered the house, a large axe came crashing down from the side.

Yang Zaixing shouted and blocked the axe blow with his spear.

With a clang, the axe was knocked aside. Before the tall, burly Mongol could even be shocked, Yang Zaixing kicked him in the stomach, sending him crashing into the wall.

Yang Zaixing reacted very quickly. The moment the man crashed into the wall, he stabbed him in the neck with his spear. The spearhead shredded the neck and was pulled out with a lot of blood. The Mongol man stared wide-eyed, and died instantly.

There was also a Mongol man inside, who was killed by Yue Fei with a spear thrust through his chest.

The group quickly closed the door.

"This is the military axe of my Great Song Dynasty!"

Yang Zaixing picked up the axe from the Mongol man's hand and examined it closely. It was exactly the same as the military axe used by the Song army, and it was even engraved with the word "Song".

Wang Gui asked in confusion, "How come these barbarians have military axes from our Great Song Dynasty?"

"He is Yelü Dashi's man. In recent years, the court has provided Yelü Dashi with a lot of military equipment in order to counterbalance the Jin state."

Yang Zaixing angrily said, "Isn't the court raising a tiger to cause future trouble? It must be those idle civil officials who came up with this idea again. Now Yelü Dashi's people are using our Song Dynasty's military equipment to attack us!"

Yue Fei said, "Take back what you just said. This is His Majesty the Emperor's order."

Yang Zaixing clicked his tongue: "Even if it's His Majesty's order, it's still wrong!"

Yue Fei said, "Obeying military orders is our duty as soldiers! Especially the military orders of His Majesty the Emperor!"

Yang Zaixing's face immediately turned serious: "Yes!"

Yue Fei sighed and said, "If it weren't for Yelü Dashi's restraint, the Jin Kingdom would have already launched a larger-scale war against our Song Dynasty, not to mention the war to destroy Xia. You and I would probably have been fighting the Jin Kingdom to the death long ago!"

Yang Zaixing boasted, "What's there to be afraid of! If Wanyan Zongwang dares to come, I'll be the first to wipe him out!"

"The Song Dynasty is naturally fearless now, but in the past few years, the country was in turmoil and the political situation in the court was unstable. His Majesty's strategy was formulated from the highest level of the Song Dynasty, which is beyond our comprehension."

"So what do we do now?"

"Yang Zaixing, you must go back immediately and inform Commander Wang to put the fortress on full alert. We do not yet know the number of enemy troops or their intentions, so tell Commander Wang not to act rashly. It would be best to send someone to Blackwater City to report the situation!"

"Boss, let me go back. I'm worried I'll get into a fight with that guy surnamed Wang!"

"This is an order; you must convey my message!"

Yang Zaixing quickly replied, "Yes! Even if I'm pierced by a thousand arrows, I'll still deliver your message!"

Yue Fei patted Yang Zaixing on the shoulder: "Don't say that. As long as you're alive, we'll have a lot to do in the future."

The group suddenly rushed out, quickly mounted their horses, and then split up to distract the enemy.

Yang Zaixing rode his horse back quickly along the way he came.

It started snowing, and the snow-covered plains were silent.

No one knew that a war was about to break out.

At this moment, Heyuan Village on the northwest front is the outpost of this war.