Chu Qiao stood quietly for a long time, until the soldier's voice gradually became lower and disappeared. The snowflakes fell slowly onto his face, but they did not melt. Instead, they accumulated little by little.
The wind blew her clothes like a swaying old dream. The sky was desolate and vast. The world was so big, but they seemed to have been abandoned by the whole world. Chu Qiao thought of many things, including the aspirations, persistence, and ardent expectations and hopes from her youth. She recalled the time many years ago when, in that cold and dark prison cell, the young man put her hand in his arms, and it felt warm. Yan Xun told her many things about Yanbei with bright eyes, the white snow there, the green grass there, the herds of horses there, the fire thunder fields there, the Huihui Mountains there, the hardworking people there, the kind people there, there was no war there, only peace and tranquility, like a paradise.
Yanbei, Yanbei...
Chu Qiao slowly raised her head, tears streaming from the corners of her eyes. Her back was straight as a javelin, and the heavy snow fell on her shoulders.
There is no one to protect you, so let me protect you instead. Let's wait together for them to come back. No one thought that the defeat of Beishuo City would be so swift and so tragic. In less than five days, Beishuo was completely defeated by Zhao Qi's fierce offensive. If it weren't for the defensive tools left by Chu Qiao, the golden dragon flag of Daxia would have been raised on the top of Yanbei City by now.
At this moment, Cao Mengtong stood on the top of the city wall, looking at the Xia army rushing towards him, and felt that the heaven and earth seemed to be shaking. He couldn't figure out where his million-strong army had gone. Why did they suffer such a complete defeat when they were in a strong position? But at this moment, he had no time to think about these things. Lu rushed forward and shouted loudly: "General, run! If you don't run, the Xia army will attack us!"
"Run?" Cao Mengtong turned around and asked woodenly, "Run?"
"Yes!" Lu Zhi shouted, "Xia Andu fled with the Beishuo Army. I heard that Chidu City has not been lost. The girl named Chu Qiao has been guarding it with her soldiers. We can escape to Lancheng from there. Sir, hurry up, it will be too late if we don't leave now!"
"Run?" Cao Mengtong's reaction was very slow. In just a few days, his hair had turned completely white. He murmured, "No, I can't run."
"General! That old bastard Xia An has run away. He is the general defending Beishuo. If he runs away, what are we still doing here?"
Cao Mengtong sighed sadly, looked at Lu Zhi with his old eyes, and said, "He can run, but I can't. Lu Zhi, I am the general leader of the fight against the Great Xia Northern Expedition Army. If I run away, Beishuo City will be finished."
"If you don't leave, Beishuo will be doomed, General, don't be stubborn!"
Cao Mengtong shook his head and said, "No, Lu Zhi, go ahead if you want to leave."
Lu Zhi was stunned for a moment, then he shouted, "Sir, are you really not leaving?"
Cao Mengtong said affirmatively: "No."
"Then I won't leave either!" the rude man shouted, "Isn't it just death? Sir, you promoted me and took care of me, just like my own father. If I have to die, I will die in battle with you!"
Cao Mengtong was so moved that tears welled up in his eyes. He patted Lu Zhi on the shoulder and said, "A person's true character is revealed in times of adversity. Lu Zhi, I have not valued you in vain."
"Sir, please allocate 20,000 troops to me. I want to rush out of the city and fight the enemy to the death!"
"Okay!" Cao Mengtong said proudly, "I will give you my last guard. They are the most loyal troops in Yanbei and the most elite troops in the Second Army. Lu Zhi, don't let me down!"
"I will definitely live up to the general's trust!"
Half an hour later, the north gate was opened wide, and Lu Zhi, with the last of Cao Mengtong's personal guards, took away all the gold, silver and jewelry in the city and fled in panic.
Cao Mengtong stood on the city wall, watching his beloved general leave him, spurted out a mouthful of blood, and fell to the ground dejectedly.
The Xia army attacked again, and the whole city was in an uproar. Everyone was running around in panic. The north gate was sealed by military officials sent by Cao Mengtong, and no one was allowed to escape.
Rolling, roaring, shouting, and blood filled the entire city. The Daxia army had already run to within 200 steps of the city. They set up ladders and began to climb again. The sun gradually sets, and the sky and the earth are blood red. This is the last attack of the day. The enemy blows the charge horn and mobilizes the soldiers to capture Beishuo City today!
"Surrender! Those who surrender will live!" Daxia sent more than 300 soldiers with loud voices, shouting again and again under the city. From time to time, some citizens in Beishuo City wanted to open the city gates and surrender, but they were all killed by officers from the Military Law Department. The screams and sounds of fighting were getting closer and closer, so close that one could almost smell the blood on Xia Bing's body.
"General! General! The Third Division needs reinforcements!" An officer covered in blood ran up and crawled forward and said.
Cao Mengtong looked at him and shook his head slowly. The elderly general drew his sword and took two steps forward with murderous intent. How many years has it been since he last went into battle and killed the enemy? For so many years, he has been ridiculed and called the "Runaway General". The only time he was brave in his life led to a huge mistake. If at the beginning, he had listened to the words of the girl named Chu Qiao... At this moment, he couldn't help but have such a thought, and then he shook his head ridiculously. What's the point of thinking about this at this moment? He smiled bitterly and said slowly: "I am the final reinforcement."
"General!" The officer was stunned, and suddenly burst into tears, crying, "It is my incompetence to let the general, who is in his sixties, personally fight in the battlefield!"
The old general shook his arm and said slowly: "Let's die together in battle!"
"yes!"
At this moment, there was a sudden sharp sound outside the city, and rapid drum beats were heard among the Xia army. The Xia army under the city were all stunned when they heard the sound, and immediately turned around with panic on their faces.
Cao Mengtong and the officer from the Third Division were also stunned. They looked up and saw a black shadow suddenly appear on the distant horizon. Then, the black shadow turned into a stream, gradually expanding and getting bigger from a point to a surface. Suddenly, the black-armored troops leaped out of the horizon, rushing forward at the speed of thunder. A large flag with a white background and red clouds fluttered above their heads, like a ball of burning fire!
"Reinforcements have arrived!" A deafening cheer suddenly erupted from the top of the Beishuo city wall. The soldiers cried with joy and shouted loudly.
"It's our troops! Our reinforcements have arrived!"
"The Envoy of the Southwest Prefecture! It's Lord Chu!"
"Lord Chu is here! We are saved!"
Instantly, the black-armored cavalry let out an earth-shaking roar, "Fight for freedom!"
The neat military appearance and rapid charging speed were accompanied by low sounds like thunder in the sky. The team was getting bigger and bigger, with more and more people. There were actually as many as 20,000 to 30,000 people, all of them high-speed cavalry. They held their swords at an angle and controlled their horses with their feet. In the reflection of the setting sun, thousands of warriors rushed forward, killing the enemy in a dense formation, like a storm!
"The Southwest Envoy! They are the rebels of the Southwest Envoy!"
Compared with the cheers from the top of Beishuo city, there was a round of wailing inside the Xia army. Their army was huge and they suddenly encountered the enemy in the rear. They had no time to change their formation. Moreover, the combat effectiveness of the Southwestern Army led by Zhao Qi was far inferior to that of the Northwestern Army led by Zhao Yang. The Southwestern Town Governor was even more powerful. For a time, the rear was defeated like water and was in chaos.
"Long live Lord Chu!" The soldiers on the top of Beishuo City cheered loudly. Many of them hugged each other and shed tears on the wall.
"Sir!" He Xiao rushed forward and shouted, "The enemy's strength is much greater than ours, we should not engage in a head-on confrontation!"
Chu Qiao shook her head coldly and said in a deep voice: "Our army is a fresh force, and we won by surprise. We are so powerful that the Xia army can't figure out our strengths and weaknesses. This is a godsend opportunity. If we lose this battle, we will never have a chance to win again!"
The troops rushed forward frantically, with overwhelming momentum. Before the military order from the central tent of the Xia army reached the rear, nearly 100,000 troops in the rear had already been knocked to the ground by the enemy's first attack. Chu Qiao gave the order to ignore the other stragglers and charge with the entire army to defeat the central camp!
Xia Jun's nightmare began. Although it was only a force of tens of thousands of people, they had clear banners, high quality, and came very quickly. They moved with incredible agility and speed. Wherever they passed, there was chaos and panic.
"The whole army, maintain formation! Follow me!" He Xiao took the lead, followed by a flag-bearing officer holding a large flag with a white background and red clouds. Chu Qiao was in charge of the army, riding his horse wildly. The soldiers fought bravely. The silence and depression that had been suppressed for a long time finally broke out. The army roared like a dragon, sweeping across the entire Xia army formation.
"Fight back! Reorganize the formation!" Zhao Qi shouted loudly and hard while riding on his horse. He tried his best to stabilize the army, and even ignored the dissuasion of the guards behind him and came to the edge of the battlefield. However, at this moment, an arrow seemed to have eyes and shot towards him. A personal guard rushed forward recklessly and stood in front of them. The arrow pierced his chest with a streak of blood. Zhao Qi was so frightened that he fell off his horse and escaped danger in a miserably manner.
The army moved extremely fast and rushed over in a flash. Chu Qiao knew Zhao Qi. She looked sharp and jumped off the horse, stepping on the man's back. There was a flash of silver light and a sword shadow passed by. Before Zhao Qi could even scream, she cut off his head!
"Zhao Qi is dead! Surrender now!"
boom! It was like a thunderclap exploding in the plain, and the 400,000-strong army was actually defeated by the enemy's attack. Chu Qiao had a slender figure, sitting high on the horse's back, holding Zhao Qi's head high, with sharp eyes and a straight back.
The Xia army was thrown into chaos. Cao Mengtong on the tower saw this and immediately shouted, "Open the gate! Open the gate! Charge with all your strength!"
The gate of Beishuo City was finally opened, and the soldiers who had originally lost their will to fight rushed out together. The defeat of the Xia army was a foregone conclusion!
On October 27th, Chu Qiao abandoned Chidu and burned down the city. The fire stopped Zhao Yang in his tracks, and he could only watch Chu Qiao leave with less than 10,000 men. On the way, Chu Qiao met Lu Zhi, who was escaping from Beishuo on a fast horse and rushing to Chidu. Upon learning that Lu Zhi had defected to Beishuo, General Cao Mengtong's personal guards mutinied and hacked him to pieces. Twenty thousand personal guards immediately joined the camp of the Southwest Town Envoy.
Afterwards, under the leadership of Chu Qiao, they went around the enemy's rear and launched a surprise attack, dealing a heavy blow to the Xia army on the fire mine field in front of the Beishuo city gate.
In this battle, more than 70,000 enemies were killed. Most of the dead were trampled to death by war horses while fleeing. 30,000 were captured. Chu Qiao, the commander-in-chief of the Southwest Town Envoy, personally killed the enemy's commander-in-chief, the strongest contender for the throne of Great Xia - the third prince Zhao Qi. This was an immeasurable blow to the Xia army.