——
The night was as cold as frost, and the pale moonlight shone outside the city of Xijing. At this point, the war had come to an end.
Today's battle yielded an impressive result.
Under the moonlight, Mongol cavalrymen were clearing the battlefield.
There were far too many corpses of Tu Yunbing. Although it was winter, if they were not dealt with soon, they could easily breed a plague. Therefore, this battlefield needed to be completely cleared.
As for the boulders and iron-feathered arrows that were shot out, if any were intact, they should not be discarded; they should be collected and saved for the next attack.
This was a great victory, but some of Tu Yun's troops still managed to escape, and the battle was not yet completely over.
But where could this fleeing Tu Yuan army go? Everyone knew the answer.
At that moment, a group of Mongol soldiers were digging the ground, shovels they had borrowed from the people in the city.
Meanwhile, on the other side, some people were pushing wooden carts and throwing the scattered corpses onto them.
Wooden carts carrying piles of corpses arrived at the edge of the deep pit.
Of course, it's impossible to just throw it down like that.
This Tu Yuan army is well-equipped, so it can be guessed that they must be the backbone of the Tu Yuan Kingdom. Their weapons, shields, and silver-white armor must all be removed.
Tuyuan Kingdom is rich in metal minerals, and these pieces of equipment are of excellent quality. To discard them would be a waste of precious resources.
Although it was impossible to wear their armor or use their distinctive teardrop-shaped shields, there were many blacksmiths in Xijing City.
Simply hand these military equipment over to them, make some minor modifications, and they become the weapons and equipment that the Daqian people are accustomed to using.
As for those damaged weapons, they can be melted down in an iron furnace and made into brand new weapons or farm tools.
As the equipment was removed, the naked corpses were thrown one by one into the deep pit.
There were too many corpses, so Bai Qi had given instructions to dig bigger and deeper.
After all, a pit that needs to bury hundreds of thousands of people can't be too small or too deep.
——
At the city gate, Qin Ze stood with his hands behind his back, listening to Bai Qi's report.
Bai Qi remained calm and composed, speaking slowly and deliberately:
"Reporting to my lord, according to incomplete statistics, about 300,000 of Tu Yuan's troops were killed in today's battle."
"The number of people is not accurate because some people were smashed by stones and their flesh was mangled and crumpled up, so it is impossible to determine exactly how many bodies there are."
"Some were burned too badly, so we can only estimate a rough number."
"300,000 people is a conservative estimate; the number is likely to be higher."
"I have ordered the bodies of these people to be dug up and buried, so there will be no hidden dangers."
Qin Ze nodded slightly.
Bai Qi continued, "The weapons, armor, shields, and other items captured are countless, and about half of them are well preserved."
After saying this, he paused for a moment, then said, "That's about right."
At this moment, Dian Wei rushed over. Unlike Bai Qi's calm expression, Dian Wei's face was clearly filled with excitement.
"And there are also some siege weapons!"
"Although most of them were damaged by stones, some were still intact. These people sent them all the way from Tuyuan Kingdom, and they just ran away like that. Were they rushing to deliver them to us? Hahaha!"
"It must have been really tough for them, traveling such a long distance in such cold weather. It must have been very difficult for them."
As Dian Wei's loud laughter rang out, Bai Qi's indifferent face finally changed. He slightly raised the corners of his mouth and chuckled.
Qin Ze naturally smiled along with him.
"Excellent, today's battle was fought very well."
"If we had fought them head-on, we would have lost some men, but thanks to these weapons, we didn't lose a single one."
"But many of Tu Yuanjun's men have escaped. We must continue our efforts and wipe them all out in one fell swoop."
As soon as Qin Ze finished speaking, Bai Qi nodded in agreement, his eyes regaining their sharpness.
"About half of them escaped, and the number of heavily armored cavalry was large, making them a force to be reckoned with."
"But as long as they're still working hard, they're bound to be trapped!"
"Continue the attack tomorrow and annihilate them all!"
Qin Ze nodded slightly, looked up at the bright moon, and said softly:
Whether or not all of these Tu Yuan soldiers can be left here depends on whether Huo Qubing can successfully complete the mission.
"It seems we'll have to wait until tomorrow to receive a reply."
At this point, Qin Ze changed the subject and looked at Bai Qi, saying, "Transport those war tools out of the city. Load all the usable boulders and iron-feathered arrows onto wooden carts. Head to Tu Yuan's main camp early tomorrow morning."
"This time, the roles have reversed; it's our turn to attack them!"
"Yes, my lord!" Bai Qi replied in a deep voice.
After he finished speaking, he summoned a soldier and said calmly, "Bring a shovel tomorrow."
The soldier nodded.
Bai Qi stroked his chin and muttered a curse under his breath:
"Damn it, we have to dig it in two batches."
——
Under the bright moonlight, the night wind blew, and the air was icy cold.
On the open field, a defeated army was walking on the wasteland.
Perhaps it was the extreme cold, or perhaps it was the defeat, but many in this army were trembling and pale.
They walked along the road, their feet sinking into the mud, shivering all over.
At the very front, Mokodin hung his head, his pale face bearing an unspeakable air of hardship.
At this moment, a lieutenant rode up from behind, his face equally grim, and he said in a trembling voice:
"Marshal, more than half of the men...did not come along."
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