The soldiers of Da Qi huddled behind the city walls, eating hot meals while licking the physical and mental wounds brought to them by the war.
The city walls were covered with traces of blood and fire, and the damage seen everywhere on the walls proved the brutality of the battle.
At this time, Yelu Song's face was as gloomy as the sky before a storm. He sat in the center of the spacious and luxurious tent. The generals around him were silent as a cicada and dared not make a sound.
Yelu Song's sharp, hawk-like eyes scanned the crowd, and he slowly asked in a low, majestic voice, "How was the battle today?"
The entire tent was dead silent, with only Yelu Song's words echoing in the air.
After a long time, a general finally stepped forward and reported to him in a stammering voice the situation of today's battle.
As the general recounted his story, Yelu Song's mind flashed back to the horrific scenes on the battlefield—arrows raining down from the city walls, soldiers falling like harvested wheat; ladders being toppled and erected again and again, countless warriors charging towards the city walls...
However, when he heard the casualty figures, even Yelu Song, who had been on many battles and had a heart as hard as stone, could not help but be slightly moved.
Such a huge loss of life has far exceeded his initial expectations.
He originally thought that with the powerful combat capability of his elite troops, he would be able to easily capture the city with only 50,000 to 60,000 casualties.
But now it seems that things are far from that simple.
When the figures of 70,000 deaths and 50,000 wounded were reported, even he, a battle-hardened commander, gradually lost his clear and accurate judgment of the situation.
In just one day of siege, more than 100,000 soldiers were killed or wounded, which would have been impossible in previous battles.
Ye Turang slapped his thigh fiercely and said, "Your Majesty, if the Da Qi people hadn't used flaming oil to block the battlefield, our soldiers could have easily climbed up the city wall relying on the pile of corpses!"
Everyone present nodded, and a sense of frustration rose in everyone's heart.
In the past, if a siege battle had reached this level, the Liao and Jin dynasties would have had a great chance of winning.
There was no need for ladders, they could just step on the corpses to reach the city wall. For the warriors of Liao and Jin, this was like a smooth road ahead.
The city was about to be broken, but who would have thought that Da Qi still had a certain amount of kerosene left.
Yelu Song frowned and said, "Are you worried about how much kerosene Da Qi has left?"
"I don't think there are many of them left. From what I observed, the pile of corpses wasn't burning thoroughly. There are obvious gaps in two places on the city wall. It's just that our men didn't understand the situation and retreated."
The general who spoke said with red eyes: "Tomorrow! As long as we give us a chance to rest and recuperate, we can do this again tomorrow and we will definitely be able to capture the city!"
After hearing this, many people frowned slightly.
Seventy thousand people have already been left here today, and you’re going to come again tomorrow?
Everyone suffered losses in today's siege. Do we really have to lose everything in this battle?
Seeing that no one spoke, the general who stepped forward said impatiently: "Everyone, hundreds of thousands of people are still here. Are you willing to retreat just like that?"
Yelu Song also nodded. He gritted his teeth and said, "I know what everyone is thinking, but now that things have come to this, we can't retreat. Otherwise, the warriors of our tribe will have died in vain!"
Everyone understands the truth, but when they think of the casualties among their subordinates, many people still feel heartbroken.
But in the end everyone reached a consensus to launch another general attack tomorrow.
Just as everyone was discussing when to start tomorrow, a messenger walked in from outside with a panicked look on his face, "Your Majesty, our baggage train was attacked. The leader was killed, and only two hundred soldiers escaped. The ladders we just built have also been burned!"
What! ?
Everyone in the tent looked drastically different!
…
Just a few hours ago, Luan Hongyan and a group of people from all over the world quietly arrived at the rear of the Liao and Jin army.
This time, these heroes of the martial arts world were able to gather together and nominate Luan Hongyan to become the leader in the fight against Liao and Jin.
As for why a woman should be given such a heavy responsibility, the reason is very simple.
Since when, a mysterious rumor has been quietly circulating in the world.
It is said that Luan Hongyan has a close relationship with the world-famous Master Lu, and there are even rumors that Luan Hongyan has become Lu Chen's bedmate.
Back then, when the four cities were hit by the epidemic, Luan Hongyan stepped forward without hesitation and led everyone to the epidemic area to provide assistance.
This righteous act not only made people more confident in her relationship with Lu Chen, but also won her family the highest honor - a golden plaque of "Good Family" bestowed by the court.
When this plaque was hung high on the gate of the Luan Mansion, the old man of the Luan family was so happy that he couldn't stop smiling all day long.
Since the Four Cities Incident, the entire underworld's view of Lu Chen has undergone a drastic change.
People gradually realized that this national teacher was indeed a man of his word.
If you do things for him, he will really give you benefits!
Because of this, everyone willingly followed Luan Hongyan to fight against the Liao and Jin armies, hoping to achieve great military exploits and thus receive rewards and favor from the Imperial Master.
A group of martial artists were lying on the grass slope. At this time, a hero with excellent lightness skills came running over from a distance with a few jumps.
When he arrived in front of the crowd, he first bowed to Luan Hongyan, and then said, "Alliance leader, the Liaojin grain transport team is still three miles away from us."
Luan Hongyan also bowed to him and said, "Thank you, Brother Miao. Miao Qingfeng's flying skills are truly extraordinary!"
After these days of tempering, Luan Hongyan is no longer the naive girl who just entered the world of martial arts.
She now understands the rules and social customs of the underworld.
For people in the underworld, face is more important than anything else.
Since they took such a big risk to investigate the enemy situation, it was only right for Luan Hongyan to praise them like this.
And she was very good at praising. If you want to praise someone in the martial arts world, you must praise his nickname and his skills.
Sure enough, after hearing Luan Hongyan's words, Miao Qingfeng immediately smiled.
In such a major event as the fight against Liao and Jin, he was able to help with his proud kung fu. Who wouldn't call him a hero in the world in the future?
Miao Qingfeng bowed again and said, "Alliance leader, let's prepare. Those Liao and Jin dogs only have a thousand men. If we attack suddenly, we will definitely catch them off guard!"
Luan Hongyan nodded, took a deep breath, and said, "Everyone, it's time to make great achievements! Let those Liao and Jin thieves see that the men of Da Qi are brave! Let our friends in the martial arts world see what it means to be a great hero!"
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