No one was spared; the joy and laughter of the past vanished in an instant, leaving only desolation and sorrow.
The incident dates back to the autumn harvest season, when the Youzhou region suffered a severe drought that was rare in many years.
The persistent drought has caused the land to crack, and the shocking fissures resemble painful wounds on the earth.
Under the scorching sun, the crops gradually withered, resulting in a complete crop failure.
As winter drew ever closer, the harsh weather conditions plunged the Yi and Di people into dire straits.
Extreme food shortages and hunger and cold became the norm for the Yi and Di people.
Many people have to rely on eating tree bark and grass roots to barely survive, struggling on the edge of life and death.
The adjacent Tianxuan border region, on the other hand, has a superior geographical location, abundant water resources, and new improved varieties of crops.
The people worked hard, the granaries were full, and their lives were prosperous and stable.
This stark contrast ignited the greedy desires of the barbarians, who were filled with ill intentions. Their deepest desires were instantly set ablaze, like a raging fire that was difficult to contain.
On a dark and windy night, all was quiet, and the villagers were all sound asleep.
Suddenly, the sound of rapid hoofbeats broke the silence of the night.
A pack of fierce barbarians, riding swift horses and wielding gleaming blades, stormed into the peaceful village.
Their figures looked particularly ferocious in the night, like demons from hell.
Most of the villagers were still asleep when they were awakened by a cacophony of shouts and cries.
They sat up in terror, their eyes still blurry with sleep, and were instantly overwhelmed by the sight before them.
His mind went blank, and before he could react, he was mercilessly stabbed to the ground by the barbarian's sharp blade.
The barbarians roamed the village with impunity, stealing grain and valuables and plundering the villagers' life savings.
Their faces beamed with greedy and cruel smiles, and they turned a deaf ear to the people's desperate pleas.
It's as if these innocent lives are nothing more than prey to be plundered at will.
After succeeding, the barbarian people were filled with fear and unease.
They knew that Tianxuan was a great nation with strong national power and a powerful army. Once this evil deed was discovered, it would surely be met with severe retaliation and punishment.
In order to destroy evidence and evade due punishment, they made an even more heinous decision—to set fire to the village and kill people to cover their tracks.
They threw torches at the houses, and the raging fire instantly engulfed the entire village.
The sounds of the burning fire, the cries of the people, and their pleas for help mingled together, creating a tragic tale of human suffering.
The entire village was bathed in the red glow of the fire, as if stained with blood, turning it into a living hell.
Because the message traveled a long distance and the border region had a complex terrain with rolling mountains and extremely inconvenient transportation, a considerable amount of time had passed before the message reached the capital.
Those barbarians who robbed grain, killed and burned had already fled back to Youzhou with their loot, disappearing without a trace thanks to their familiarity with the terrain.
The Emperor sat on his magnificent dragon throne, his brows furrowed as he looked at the urgent battle report, his face so dark it seemed as if water could drip from it.
His eyes revealed anger and worry, like the suppressed tension before a storm.
His fingers tapped lightly on the armrest, producing a dull sound that seemed to strike the hearts of the ministers with each tap.
Anger and worry surged within him like a raging tide, refusing to subside for a long time.
In previous years, most of these heinous incidents were committed by the Xiongnu. Under the careful control of the imperial court, the situation on the border around Youzhou was relatively stable.
This year, however, such a horrific tragedy suddenly occurred, which the Emperor found very strange.
Could it be that Youzhou has changed its leader, and the new leader is ambitious and attempts to expand his power through plunder, thus breaking the existing peaceful situation?
Or perhaps there are other forces behind them secretly instigating them, attempting to provoke trouble and profit from it?
These questions swirled in the emperor's mind, making him deeply uneasy.
He rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on, and pondered to himself that the specific situation within Youzhou was still unclear, and the true intentions of the barbarians were also unknown.
However, since the barbarians dare to invade the borders of Tianxuan, they must not be tolerated or condoned.
In the Emperor's view, expanding the territory and enhancing the prestige of the nation was a move in line with the times. Now that the barbarians had taken the initiative to provoke, it provided a perfect excuse to send troops.
However, the thought that the opportunity to send troops was obtained at the cost of the lives of a village filled him with guilt and helplessness.
He secretly vowed that such a tragedy must never be allowed to happen again, and that the people of Tianxuan must never become victims of war.
This military expedition is not only to destroy Youzhou, but also to seek justice for the dead and let their wronged souls rest in peace.
We must also protect every inch of Tianxuan's land and every citizen, ensuring that the country's borders are as solid as a rock and no longer subject to invasion by foreign enemies.
He wanted to let the barbarians know that the price of violating Tianxuan was something they could not afford.
At the same time, he also wants to take this opportunity to comprehensively reorganize the border defense system, strengthen control over the border areas, and improve military deployment.
Establish a more effective early warning mechanism to make the border of Tianxuan an insurmountable barrier and ensure the long-term stability of Tianxuan.
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