The biggest reason why Hu Lin chose to hold on to Bianzhou was to protect the people in the city of Bianzhou from falling into the hands of the rebels and being slaughtered and bullied by the villains in this chaotic world.
Because he cared about the people and had just experienced a brutal battle, he knew the purpose of Duan Shiang's words just now, but he had to think about it - if he continued to defend in this way, once, twice, at most three times... once the Fanyang army entered the city, they would surely retaliate against the people of Bianzhou doubly.
He was not afraid of death, but he was afraid that the people behind him would be treated inhumanely because of his wrong decisions.
If you can hold it, you should fight to the last moment, but what if you know you can't hold it?
Originally, in Hu Lin's plan, even if the half-month deadline given by King Fan Yang had just passed, the Fan Yang army would be at the gates of the city, but he only needed to lead his troops to hold out for five days, and there would be a chance that reinforcements would arrive from Jiangdu.
However, before the half-month deadline, the Fanyang army attacked the city ahead of schedule.
After such a bloody battle, Duan Shiang's attitude was clear, and the Fanyang army he could mobilize was dozens of times larger than the Bianzhou defenders. If Duan Shiang attacked the city day and night, the Bianzhou defenders would not be able to hold out for more than three days even if they fought to the last drop of blood.
All of this almost made Hu Lin give up the idea of delaying and waiting for reinforcements. In terms of time, it was too late no matter how he calculated it...
Knowing that their chances of survival were completely cut off, he had to consider the future of the people in the city... Otherwise, his so-called perseverance and protection would become an act of harming the people just to satisfy his personal heroism.
Hu Lin turned around and took one last look at the scene in the city.
He was the governor of Bianzhou and the true father and mother official of this place. Over the years, he had devoted himself to local government affairs and people's livelihood. All this made him care about the people more than the war itself.
Duan Shiang's words did not hurt Hu Lin's will to hold the knife, but his heart as an official.
The sharp blade hanging in the world today is always more lethal to those with compassion in their hearts. This lethality often even carries with it the ridicule and malice from those who draw the blade in cold blood.
Duan Shiang looked at Hu Lin across the firelight, with a faint smile in his eyes.
When faced with these stubborn people, he occasionally admired them, but this admiration was always mixed with sarcasm.
At this point, Hu Lin’s persistence seemed to be turning into a joke of giving up halfway.
But Hu Lin did not regret it.
He calmly took off his cloak and handed it to a blood-covered soldier beside him.
The soldier knelt down with red eyes, holding the cloak.
"Sir!" The generals kneeling beside Hu Lin spoke up one after another.
"After I die, you don't have to fight with your lives anymore." Hu Lin whispered to them, "Try your best to save your lives and the people in the city, and wait for the arrival of Envoy Chang and the Jiangdu Army."
"Sir..." Tears rolled down the eyes of some generals. My lord has tried his best to plan a way out for them and the people of Bianzhou, but my lord chose to die for this!
"After that, if any of you can see Envoy Chang, remember to convey a message for me..." Hu Lin's face and words seemed to be blurred by the firelight.
"Hu Lin was incompetent and failed to defend Bianzhou... From now on, Bianzhou and Henan Province will be under the jurisdiction of Envoy Chang."
The generals were frightened and saddened when they heard this. When they tried to dissuade him again, they were stopped by Hu Lin's commanding tone.
With tears in their eyes, they could only bang their foreheads heavily on the blood-soaked bricks.
Hu Lin ordered someone to lower a ladder.
Duan Shiang watched the more literary figure walk down the ladder, holding a knife, and walk out of the fire.
"Civil Sergeant Hu is very courageous." Duan Shiang raised his hand and praised him. Then his eyes fell on Hu Lin's sword and he said, "Since Civil Sergeant Hu is good at swordsmanship, I will dismount and learn from him."
Duan Shiang jumped off his horse, threw his spear to the guard beside him, and took a long sword.
"I am Hu Lin from Bianzhou, please teach me, General Duan..." There was no fear on Hu Lin's face. As soon as he finished speaking, he drew his sword with a stern look in his eyes and attacked Duan Shiang.
Duan Shiang frowned, a murderous look appeared on his face, and he quickly stepped forward to meet the general.
The swords in the hands of the two men collided, making a ringing sound. Hu Lin was forced to retreat two steps, with flying sand under his feet, but he quickly stopped.
When they first fought, Duan Shiang was more of a test.
Hu Lin's skills were somewhat beyond his expectations, but they did not pose much of a threat to him.
After more than twenty moves, Duan Shiang had basically figured out Hu Lin's moves, and the former soon showed signs of being defeated.
Soon, Hu Lin's right arm was cut and blood gushed out, but he did not even pause for a moment in his action of swinging the knife to deal with the attack.
Looking at the situation below the tower, the generals on the tower were extremely anxious: "If this continues, my lord, I'm afraid..."
At this time, soldiers rushed into the city and brought another "bad news".
“Report——!”
"The garrison at the rear gate has rebelled!"
"Enemy cavalry has entered the city from the rear!"
The soldier in charge of patrolling the city quickly ran up to the tower, reported in panic, and knelt down to ask for orders: "... please respond quickly, sirs!"
"What did you say..." The officer grabbed the soldier's armor and said in disbelief, "Where did the cavalry come from? How could the garrison in the rear rebel?"
Knowing that among the states in Henan Province, some people would choose to join the King of Fanyang, they also deployed 2,000 soldiers to defend the rear gate, and the leader of the soldiers was his most trusted subordinate! "...I also heard from the soldiers in the rear that the defenders opened the rear gate and let the cavalry in!"
"It must be the Xuzhou Army!" the soldier said, "The Xuzhou Army has already made unusual movements!"
"Impossible..." The military officer's face turned pale, and he felt that the news was doubtful. Although he could not think of other possibilities for the time being, he trusted his men and they would not open the city gate without orders!
The soldier anxiously glanced at the situation below the city, and said in a difficult but decisive tone: "You stay here, I will personally lead people to check it out!"
If the cavalry really entered the city, the people in the city would be in danger in an instant, which was the situation that the governor least wanted to see! The soldier quickly walked down the tower, grabbed a horse, and galloped away with his men.
After galloping for only half a minute, the soldier heard the sound of approaching horse hooves, which seemed to shake the houses on both sides of the city.
Because it was wartime, the people in the city stayed at home and dared not go out. The streets were cleared, and the cavalry poured in unhindered.
Not only is there no hindrance...
When the soldier reined in his horse, he even saw his trusted guards who were stationed in the rear, riding their horses in front to lead the way for the cavalry.
Looking at his confidants galloping towards him, the soldier gripped the reins tightly, still not believing that they would betray him.
The horse's hooves stepped on the ground and also on the soldier's heart. He stared at the guides who were getting closer and closer, as if waiting for some kind of judgment that would determine the survival of Bianzhou.
"...General!" The leader also saw him and shouted loudly, his trembling voice full of excitement and excitement.
The soldier was stunned for a moment, then suddenly looked up at the cavalry team that had appeared closely behind him.
The streets in the city were narrow and not suitable for marching. Only three or four cavalrymen could march side by side. However, the team that followed was winding endlessly, which showed how huge it was.
Soon, the soldier saw a striking black-bottomed golden-lettered military flag from the rolling cavalry team.
That is...
The soldier's cheeks trembled, his eyes felt a burning pain, and his throat suddenly choked. Then, without even saying a word, he turned his horse's head and wanted to go back as quickly as possible - Sir! Go save the lord, so that the lord doesn't have to die for Bianzhou! As the iron hooves galloped, in a three-story building with a closed door in the city, several brightly colored figures secretly peeked from the second-floor fence. After seeing the waving military flag clearly, the first woman who came to her senses cried with joy: "It's the Chang character flag...! It's General Ningyuan!"
"The one entering the city is General Ning Yuan! Not the enemy!"
"General Ning Yuan is here!"
Seeing the two girls excitedly about to go downstairs, one of the most beautiful women hurriedly grabbed them and said, "What are you doing? Behave yourself!"
"Sister Haitang, it's General Ningyuan who's coming, what are you afraid of?"
“You can’t go out either!” The pretty girl’s eyes were red. “…Being trampled into pulp by the horses’ hooves is a small matter, but delaying the march is a big deal!”
As she spoke, she still held the two girls tightly, and turned to look at the fleets of cavalry passing by outside the fence. Tears rolled out of her smiling eyes - it's great, Bianzhou City is waiting for General Ningyuan again! Since the Xuzhou governor colluded with the Fanyang army, the Xuzhou governor has repeatedly ordered people to kill the scouts sent by Bianzhou to the east to inquire about and pass on information.
Xuzhou is only two hundred miles east of Bianzhou, and Luoyang is west of Bianzhou. In addition, Bianzhou is surrounded by rivers to the north and south. As a result, Bianzhou’s news channels have been almost cut off in recent days.
They had no way of knowing that the Jiangdu army was approaching, so when the soldiers patrolling in the city suddenly saw the cavalry entering the city, they were like frightened birds, thinking that the Xuzhou army had arrived.
The first person who made a wrong judgment told the second person the wrong information. The patrol soldiers, who were already on high alert, did not dare to delay and quickly passed the news to the city wall ahead.
After the soldiers left the main city tower, the defenders on the tower fell into panic.
Their governor could die at any time, and the Xuzhou army broke into the city from behind?! The atmosphere on the top of the tower changed significantly. Hu Lin, who was resisting Duan Shiang's attack below, heard a few scattered words and pieced together the news that "the Xuzhou army entered the city."
Duan Shiang also heard it.
A hint of interest flashed in his eyes. Once the Xuzhou army arrived, things would be even easier.
If he had known that the Xuzhou army would arrive so timely, he might not have had to deal with Hu Lin.
However, being able to take the life of the Governor of Bianzhou on the battlefield is actually a good thing... It is just right for the rest of the people to see the fate of those who disobey!
Duan Shiang swung his sword again, and his moves were even more murderous.
Hu Lin, who was already covered in wounds, tried his best to raise his knife to block. However, the next moment, the blade, which was already cracked, suddenly broke in the middle. With a "bang" sound, Hu Lin suddenly lost strength, retreated several steps, and finally fell to the ground.
But Hu Lin quickly gritted his teeth and knelt up. The Xuzhou army had arrived and was heading straight into the city...
Without a weapon in his hand, Hu Lin's body was shaking, his teeth were stained with blood, the huge pain and blood loss made it difficult for him to stay awake. For a short time, he couldn't even tell the truth from the false, but his eyes burst into resolute anger -
Seeing Duan Shiang approaching with his sword again, Hu Lin was about to meet him with his bare hands: "...You must not hurt the people of Bianzhou!"
He used almost all his strength, and when he approached Duan Shiang, he suddenly lowered his body, and used his wounded body to knock Duan Shiang to the ground.
Duan Shiang didn't expect Hu Lin to still have such fighting spirit. After being knocked to the ground by him, he quickly turned around, pressed Hu Lin under him, and raised his sword to stab it straight into Hu Lin's chest.
However, at this moment, several generals jumped down from the top of the city wall using ladders. Two of them fought with Duan Shiang's guards, while the other one jumped forward and used his spear to deflect the sword in Duan Shiang's hand.
The spear turned and quickly stabbed at Duan Shiang's face. When Duan Shiang retreated to avoid it, the general hurriedly pulled Hu Lin up and protected him behind him.
Duan Shiang showed a trace of anger on his face: "General Hu, this is against the rules!"
"General Duan used hostages and the people of Bianzhou as threats, and as a general he challenged my master to a life-and-death duel. Can this be called upright?" The general holding the spear said angrily, "General Duan wants to learn from me, but I wonder if he dares to fight me!"
Duan Shiang laughed instead: "A group of people who are about to die..."
This group of people saw the Xuzhou army entering the city and simply ignored them, intending to die with them, right?
However, Duan Shiang simply disdained to pay attention. When he raised his hand, suddenly a dense stream of sharp arrows attacked Hu Lin and others.
Several Bianzhou generals raised their swords to resist, but some of them were still accidentally hit by arrows. At this time, the archers on the city wall also hurriedly released arrows.
The arrows from above were more likely to gain the upper hand. Duan Shiang was protected and retreated by his personal guards, but he did not agree in his heart. He had already regarded today's battle as a sure victory, and these people from Bianzhou in front of him were just struggling in their death throes.
"Remember to leave Hu Lin's head behind. This general may need it—"
"yes!"
Duan Shiang had just finished saying this when he suddenly noticed a change in the momentum on the tower of Bianzhou. However, he had already retreated dozens of steps away and could not hear the sound from above.
However, he didn't need to hear clearly, because the next moment, the slowly opened gate of Bianzhou city gave him the answer.
The heavy and sturdy city gate was opened, and several Bianzhou soldiers ran out quickly and quickly removed the iron spike fence that was blocking the outside of the stone tower at the city gate to block the enemy and war horses.
Duan Shiang frowned subconsciously, sensing something strange.
And the next moment, iron cavalry suddenly rushed out of the city like an inky tide.
Someone on the top of the Bianzhou city wall shouted, "Reinforcements! Reinforcements from Jiangdu!"
The sound was soon drowned out by the sound of war drums again.
The drumstick had long disappeared, and a general was pounding the drum with his fists. Each blow left a bright red bloodstain, but it also stirred up a hope of survival. (End of this chapter)
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