Chapter 1 The Chaos is About to Begin

The thirteenth year of the Taikang era.

The world was in chaos and strife, with territories divided and powerful states rising up.

The celestial phenomena seemed to foreshadow this ominous year, with a blood moon appearing. A moon as red as blood is called a blood moon, which signifies war, famine, national disaster, and the death of the ruler.

What was terrifying was that right after the blood moon, a once-in-a-lifetime heavy snow fell for a full month, freezing the people to death their last remaining food supplies.

Countless people froze to death in various places, and the streets were filled with refugees.

Meanwhile, the emperor of Hanzhong had long neglected court affairs, indulging in elixirs and women all day long. The court was in chaos, corrupt officials were rampant, and the entire dynasty was on the verge of collapse.

...

Chongzhou.

The winter solstice has just passed, and the courtyard is covered with a thick layer of snow, as white as silver.

The maids and servants outside the courtyard were sweeping the thick snow when Chang Wu rushed in from outside in a panic.

"Sister Chunzhi, Sister Chunzhi, something terrible has happened!"

Chunzhi had just placed a bunch of winter plum blossoms in a blue-and-white jade vase and was admiring their appearance.

Hearing this, he frowned and scolded in a low voice, "Shouting so loudly so early in the morning, what kind of behavior is this? You've learned all the rules but forgotten them."

Chang Wu, sweating profusely from running, said urgently, "Sister, the Yanzhou army has already broken in, and you still have time to arrange flowers here?"

Chunzhi turned around abruptly, almost dropping the winter plum blossom in her hand, and exclaimed in shock, "Are you telling the truth? The Yanzhou army has really invaded?"

"It's absolutely true. The prefect and his soldiers are doing their utmost to defend the city gates. We don't know if they can hold them off. If they can't, it will only be three days. You should go and inform the young lady as soon as possible."

Chunzhi's heart tightened. Without thinking too much, she turned and walked into the house.

This winter was exceptionally cold. She rubbed her hands together before lifting the heavy curtain and quickly walking inside.

Upon entering the inner room, a warm fragrance wafted over, and a charcoal brazier nearby still had an unextinguished ember.

A purple-gold incense burner sits on an oil palm wood altar by the window, emitting wisps of fragrance.

In the elegantly decorated inner room, there was a canopy bed made of fine pear wood. Ji Shu only showed a small tuft of her long, black hair, as she was completely buried in the quilt.

"Girl, girl," Chunzhi whispered in her ear.

She wouldn't have woken her master at this hour unless the situation was urgent.

Ji Shu suddenly opened her eyes while half asleep and saw Chunzhi squatting by the bed, looking at her anxiously.

She gave a soft "hmm," her voice weak and feeble.

Chunzhi gently wiped the fine sweat from her forehead with a handkerchief and asked, "Did you have another nightmare?"

Ji Shu slowly sat up, parted the curtain, and asked in a slightly hoarse voice, "What happened?"

Chunzhi took the cloak and carefully fastened it for her, then went to the table and poured her a cup of hot tea.

Ji Shu took the teacup and heard Chunzhi say, "Chang Wu just came back from outside and said that the rebels are about to invade. We should make plans as soon as possible."

Before Ji Shu could even taste the hot tea, she was caught off guard by the news and blurted out instinctively, "How could it be so fast?"

The plot was clearly not going to unfold this way... She suppressed her surprise and forced herself to remain calm. "What's the situation outside? Has the Prefect's office sent any news?"

Chunzhi shook her head. She was also so flustered by the news that she couldn't care less about anything else.

Ji Shu: "Call Chang Wu in."

"yes."

Ji Shu paced back and forth in the room, completely puzzled. She couldn't understand it at all. According to the plot of the book, the attack on Chongzhou should have been after spring, when the ice and snow melted.

Why now? The weather is cold, and Chongzhou is easy to defend and difficult to attack.

It's really not a good time to attack the city.

In these chaotic times, Chongzhou is the most important city south of the Huai River, and its special location makes it a must-pass for merchants.

The Yanzhou army must be after the trade routes of Chongzhou.

If we seize Chongzhou, we will have the money bag in our hands. In this era, money and food are essential to maintain a powerful army. However, Chongzhou is also the most difficult city to attack.

When Chang Wu entered, he saw his young lady leaning against a pillow embroidered with gold peony flowers, holding a cup in one hand and a hot water bottle in the other.

She was draped in a thick fur cloak, and her jet-black hair, unadorned, flowed smoothly down her front and back.

Chang Wu dared not look directly at the beautiful woman, whose beauty was undeniable. He bowed and clasped his hands in greeting, saying, "Greetings, young lady."

A clear, melodious voice rang out from above: "What's the situation outside?"

Chang Wu replied, "The Xuanjia Army led by Pei Xingjian has been invincible all the way from Youzhou to Chongzhou. I'm afraid they will break into the city soon."

Ji Shuqing's beautiful brows furrowed, her delicate fingertips unconsciously tightening, and she felt increasingly incredulous.

This differed from the plot she had seen...

Seeing the young lady's serious expression, Chunzhi said with concern, "Young lady, you've just recovered from your cold, please don't worry too much."

"Besides, it won't be so easy for our Chongzhou to invade. Didn't bandits try to enter the city before, but they didn't succeed in the end? Our prefect has always paid attention to the defense of the border region, and the garrison will definitely be able to repel the rebels."

Chang Wu was about to speak when he thought, "How can these bandits compare to the Twelve Iron Cavalry of Yanzhou? Each of these Xuanjia Iron Cavalry units is an elite force capable of taking on ten men."

Ji Shu waved her hand at her and said to Chang Wu, "What did the prefect say?"

Chang Wu told him everything he knew: "The prefect has instructed the people, especially the elderly, women and children, to sneak out of the west gate in batches starting tonight to avoid disaster. They should be divided into three batches so that they will not attract attention or cause panic."

He held his breath and whispered, "The one leading tens of thousands of troops is none other than Pei Yanzhi, the lord of Yanzhou."

Ji Shu was greatly shocked; Chongzhou had actually provoked him.

Pei Yanzhi, courtesy name Jingchen, was a native of Yanzhou.

If we were to name the most powerful vassal king of this era, it would be the Xuanjia Army of Yanzhou, especially renowned throughout the world for its Black Xuan Iron Cavalry.

He took over Yanzhou at the age of twelve. In the past twenty years, he has repelled the Northern Di and made the Hu people tremble with fear. In Yanzhou, he is a god-like figure.

The entire Yanyun Twelve Prefectures were under Pei Yanzhi's jurisdiction, making them the most terrifying beasts of the entire Hanzhong Dynasty.

What Ji Shu knew was that five years later, he not only destroyed the Hanzhong Dynasty, which was plagued by filth, but also unified the world.

The storm is brewing, and the curtain of chaos has unexpectedly been raised in Chongzhou.

Ji Shu frowned almost imperceptibly, wondering what had gone wrong. She lowered her eyes, picked up the teacup on the table, and took a small sip.

Even if the prefect said it was true, no matter how discreetly they fled, how could so many people escape right under the noses of the rebels?

What's even more terrifying is that if all the elderly, weak, women, and children in the city run away, how far can they go?

In this chaotic world, how can one survive, and which city would dare to take them in?

Of course, these are all things to be discussed later.

She spoke to Chunzhi in a steady voice: "Chunzhi, hurry up and pack up your valuables. Dismiss the servants who should be dismissed. If any of them don't want to leave, let them stay and look after the house. Maybe we can come back after the war."

Seeing that their wives remained calm and composed even at this point, the panic in their hearts lessened somewhat.