male goblin
Han Shizhong took out the dagger that he always carried with him from his chest and handed it to Liang Hongyu. Liang Hongyu took the dagger. The ruby on the scabbard emitted a dazzling light under the sunlight. She pulled out the dagger. The blade was as sharp as cold light. If she was captured in this battle, she decided to end her life with this knife.
Wanyan Chang stood beneath the city walls, staring intently at Chuzhou City like a wolf. The wrinkles between his brows deepened, and his facial muscles twitched slightly with anger. He had assumed Chuzhou City would be a piece of cake during this southern invasion, but he hadn't expected the siege to drag on. This left him feeling frustrated and humiliated. He clenched his fists, his knuckles turning slightly white from the strain, and the rage within him seemed to ignite the very air around him.
"Hit the water gate! Break open the water gate!" Wanyan Chang stood on the ship and roared at the top of his lungs.
When Han Shizhong led his soldiers to the Water Gate, the ramming ships were already approaching. He shouted loudly: "Brothers, hold on! We must not let the Jin soldiers break through the Water Gate!"
"Bang!" The first ramming ship slammed into the city gate with a deafening roar. The gate trembled violently, emitting a heart-wrenching creaking sound, as if it would collapse at any moment. "Squeak... squeak..." The sound of the ramming ship was like the groans of death, hammering at the hearts of the Chuzhou defenders.
The soldiers shouted in unison and used their shoulders to push against the city gate, "Bang! Bang! Bang!" The ramming ships hit the city gate one after another, and each impact made the city gate shaky.
The defenders on the city walls were shaken to the point of unsteadiness, some nearly falling. They gripped their weapons tightly, their palms dripping with sweat. Their eyes revealed tension and fear, but more than that, determination and resolve. They knew this was a bloody battle for their survival, and defending the Watergate was their shared conviction.
Some of the soldiers on the city wall pushed the rolling logs down the wall with great force. The rolling logs hit the ramming ship with great force, making a dull sound. Some of them raised the battering ram and threw it at the ramming ship with force. The battering ram drew an arc in the air and hit the Jin soldiers accurately. The Jin soldiers fell down with screams. Others poured kerosene on the torches and threw them at the ramming ship. A raging fire instantly broke out.
But the Jin soldiers were fearless and continued to attack, their momentum undiminished. Some used their shields to block the attacks from above and gradually approached the city gate; others brandished their weapons and fired at the defenders on the towers. Arrows rained down, and many on both sides fell.
Liang Hongyu watched the battle at the Water Gate from afar on the city wall, feeling extremely anxious. Her hands tightly grasped the battlements, her eyes tightly closed, her gaze heavy and focused on the direction of the Water Gate.
The banging sounds became heavier and heavier, the creaking sounds of the water gate became more and more frequent, beads of sweat ran down the cheeks of the gatekeepers, their expressions became more and more nervous, but their bodies were firmly against the city gate. As time went by, they gradually felt powerless.
Qiu Feng looked at the city gate that had been knocked open and said anxiously, "Miss, if you can't come up with a solution, the city gate will be knocked open by the Jin army."
Liang Hongyu's eyes were fixed on the city gate, her brain working rapidly. In her anxiety, her gaze inadvertently stopped on a wine jar in the corner of the city wall. She and Han Shizhong both had strict military discipline, so how could there be an empty wine jar here? Suddenly, an idea came into her mind.
She turned to Qiu Feng and said, "Pass the order! Gather all the wine and liquor in the city and transport it all to the city wall!"
With Qiu Feng's understanding of Liang Hongyu, she knew that she had come up with a solution, and immediately went downstairs to carry out the order.
When the people in the city heard that they would use wine to repel the enemy, they responded and brought the wine stored in their homes to the foot of the city wall in carts. The soldiers brought the wine to the top of the city wall and poured it down jar by jar. The aroma of wine filled the air.
"Light it!" Liang Hongyu gave an order, and the soldiers threw the torches down.
"Boom!" A massive fire instantly erupted at the city gate, the raging flames like a dragon, engulfing the Jin soldiers who had rammed the ship. The area beneath the city gate suddenly became a sea of fire. The screams of the Jin soldiers, the crackling of burning wood, and the sizzling of boiling wine intertwined. The air was filled with the sickening smell of burnt barbecue. The area beneath the Chuzhou city gate instantly became a living hell.
Wanyan Chang stood in the distance, watching the scene unfold before him, his eyes bloodshot. He had never imagined Liang Hongyu would resort to such a method to resist his advance. He had thought Chuzhou City was secure, but he hadn't expected to lose at the last moment. If this continued, the losses would only intensify. So he made a difficult decision: to retreat. Withdrawing his troops might offer a chance to make a comeback, but fighting again might mean death.
"Retreat! Retreat quickly!" Wanyan Chang roared at the top of his lungs, his voice full of unwillingness and fear, and his body was shaking with anger.
The Jin soldiers were like dogs that had lost their homes, scrambling to escape the sea of fire. Some were burned and rolled on the ground in pain; others crowded together, trying to escape this hellish place.
Looking at the Jin soldiers fleeing in a panic, deafening cheers came from Chuzhou City.
"The Watergate is defended! The Watergate is defended!" The soldiers defending the city shouted loudly and hugged each other to celebrate this hard-won victory. The joy of surviving the disaster surged in the hearts of every soldier.
Chuzhou City, this war-torn city, finally escaped the clutches of the Jin people temporarily.
On the city wall, soldiers sat exhausted on the ground, their wounds still aching. Their faces were covered in dust and sweat, but their eyes revealed a sense of pride and relief. It was their perseverance and sacrifice that brought safety to Chuzhou City.
The streets of Chuzhou City were in shambles. Houses collapsed, walls streaked with arrow marks and blood. The bodies of Song soldiers and civilians lay scattered across the ground, and the air was thick with the smell of blood. The survivors emerged from their homes, observing the devastation before them, their eyes a mixture of relief at having survived, yet also of sorrow after the battle.
Some women, weeping, searched for their loved ones amid the rubble. Their mournful cries echoed for a long time in the silent streets, bringing tears to anyone who heard them. Children clung tightly to their parents' clothes, their eyes filled with fear and confusion.
A woman in a red outfit and a high ponytail was walking on the streets of Chuzhou City. Her body and face were covered in blood, her hair was messy and dancing wildly in the cold wind, and there was a hint of fatigue in her eyes, but she was still looking forward firmly.
Liang Hongyu patrolled the city, sword in hand, feeling a surge of emotion as she took in the scene before her. Although the war was temporarily over, post-war reconstruction was still waiting for Chuzhou City.
She came to a ruin, which used to be an inn, but now it has been destroyed beyond recognition by war. An old man was sitting beside the ruins, crying silently.
Liang Hongyu walked forward and asked softly, "Old man, are you okay?"
The old man raised his head, his eyes filled with gratitude and sadness. He looked at Liang Hongyu and said, "General, thank you for saving our city. I am an old man with nothing left but my life."
Liang Hongyu comforted him, "Don't be sad, old man. We will help you rebuild your home. As long as you are still alive, you have nothing to fear."
The old man nodded and said, "Okay, okay, I feel relieved with what the general said."
Under the organization of Liang Hongyu, the military and civilians of Chuzhou City began post-war reconstruction work.
Some of them cleared the streets of rubble and corpses, some repaired collapsed houses, and some took care of injured civilians and soldiers. Children and women also joined the reconstruction team. Children took small shovels to help clear the rubble, and women helped take care of the injured soldiers.
As night fell, tiny stars shone on the city walls, casting mottled shadows. The soldiers and civilians, exhausted from a day's work, finally drifted off to sleep, and the entire city of Chuzhou fell into a state of silence.
Liang Hongyu reached the top of the city wall and finally felt exhausted. She sat down against the wall as if she had no bones, and she didn't want to get up again. She took out the sword at her waist, tore off a piece of her red dress, and began to wipe it carefully.
A pair of blood-stained boots suddenly caught her eye. She raised her head and met the young man's smiling eyes. Han Shizhong sat beside her with a jar of wine and said with a smile, "Do you want to drink together?"
Liang Hongyu stopped polishing her sword and asked in confusion, "I'm afraid all the wine in the city has been contributed to the Jin army. Where did you get the wine?"
Han Shizhong handed the wine jar to her: "This is the only jar, do you want to drink? However, I didn't bring a bowl."
Liang Hongyu took the jar of wine, tilted her head back and drank it. The clear aroma of the wine stayed in her throat for a moment before flowing into her body. Her tired body seemed to come alive in an instant.
The two of them took turns drinking a few sips, both feeling a little tipsy. Liang Hongyu said drunkenly, "General Han, I'm afraid you won't be able to drink for a long time."
Han Shizhong looked at Liang Hongyu with eyes as gentle as water, and said seriously: "No problem, being able to fight side by side with you is like being drunk."
Liang Hongyu felt a tingling sensation in her heart as if a feather had brushed against her. The man before her had handsome features, his brows sharp as swords. He exuded the fierce aura of a battle-hardened general, yet at this moment, he was as gentle as the moon in the sky, his words brimming with a captivating tenderness.
Liang Hongyu admitted to herself that she had been bewitched by the male demon before her. After several life-or-death battles with Han Shizhong, Liang Hongyu finally understood one thing: she and Han Shizhong were both generals, both men whose heads were tied to their belts. She didn't know if she would see the sun tomorrow after this battle. She might as well enjoy the present and accept his feelings.
A breeze blew by, carrying a faint aroma of wine and post-war embers. The two were close to each other, the aroma of wine filled the air, and she mustered up the courage to kiss the corner of his slightly raised lips.
Han Shizhong stood there in a daze. This sudden kiss finally made him unable to control the desire in his heart. He put his arms around her shoulders and attacked her lips domineeringly. The two of them embraced and kissed each other in this quiet night, and only the sound of each other's heartbeats could be heard.
Their lips touched, and the aroma of wine filled the air. Countless nights of missing her seemed to be vented at this moment.
In front of the city gate, a young man stood with his head raised, a look of loneliness in his eyes. After the war, Asen had been searching for Liang Hongyu in the city, wondering if she was okay. When he found her, he happened to see this scene that was enough to break his heart.
The young man stood alone, the moonlight elongating his figure, further highlighting his cold and aloof figure. It was not until this moment that he realized that the person Liang Hongyu had in mind had always been Han Shizhong. They shared the same ideals and could support each other on the battlefield, sharing life and death.
It was time for him to leave. The boy's first stirrings of love were extinguished in this lonely night. The woman who had moved him had already found her own happiness. All he could do for her was not to disturb her.
That night, Asen left a letter and quietly left Chuzhou City, embarking on the road to Jiangnan. The last few words in the letter drifted gently in the evening breeze: "I hope you will face the wind and rain together, while I will enjoy the mountains and rivers."
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