Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

The light of heaven sprinkled through the broken clouds, and the smell of blood spread over the city of Xijin. An eagle cast its shadow in the north wind, quickly crossing the battlefield and overlooking the earth.

The shadowy figures were running, and wherever the shadows passed, there was a crimson color, surging towards the khaki color.

The stone bullets drew arcs in the air and exploded on the top of the city wall. Stone chips flew up along with the broken stones. The Song soldiers who were climbing below with shields on their backs quickly raised them up. A crackling sound was heard, followed by several shouts and curses from under the city.

"Oil--"

The sound of shouting came from the top of the city wall. He Ji, who was climbing, suddenly changed his expression and immediately raised the shield in his hand to block his head.

Snapped--

"what--"

Screams rang out all around. Several soldiers who were splashed with hot oil fell down, covering their faces. Then there was another short scream.

There were also those who were drenched directly, the greasy smell mixed with the smell of scalded flesh spreading in the air, the screaming and groaning in pain made the hairs of those around them stand on end.

"Smash!"

He Ji had just breathed a sigh of relief and reached up to continue climbing, but the roar he heard made his heart jump, and his arms, which had just been relaxed, suddenly tensed up.

bang bang bang-

There was a muffled sound from the shield above his head, and his muscular arms trembled constantly. This man from western Beijing bit the knife in his mouth and made "hmmmm" sounds through his nose, while climbing up against the pressure of falling rocks.

The roaring shouts and cries of killing filled his ears. He Ji felt his blood boiling and he crawled faster and faster.

On the city wall, a pair of Liao army generals with similar faces looked at the figure moving forward bravely, and at the same time walked towards the parapet on his side. "clang..." There was a slight hum of metal, and an iron knife with a flashing cold light was unsheathed.

"I'll be the first to climb up!"

When he thought his plan was almost done, He Ji exerted force with his arms and legs, leaped up suddenly, loosened his teeth, stretched out his hand, raised the knife and chopped suddenly.

Several spears stabbed at him.

boom!
The blade cut it off, and the figure with his feet on the city wall grinned, lowered his body, and the blade flashed. The two Liao soldiers in front screamed and lay on the ground wailing, holding their broken legs.

He Ji took two steps forward, trying to widen the gap. Then two figures came with hurried footsteps, and two iron knives, one on the left and one on the right, chopped down fiercely with evil winds.

Clang——

bang——

He Ji threw the knife and shield in his hands to the side, and he felt two strong forces pressing down on him. He let out a roar, "Ah--" and held on hard, before he could raise his eyes to see the owners of the two knives.

On his left, Yelu Zongyun raised his foot and kicked the outside of his knee. He Ji's majestic figure knelt down. On his right, Yelu Zongdian took a step forward and raised his leg covered with armor and skirt fiercely.

thump—

When a muffled sound was heard, He Ji felt his nose sore, stars in his eyes, and tears flowed uncontrollably. He was also decisive. He immediately put down the shield in his hand, reached forward, grabbed the jade belt on Yelu Zongdian's waist, and pressed the knife in his hand against his neck.

The second son of the Yelu family also reacted quickly. He immediately dropped his knife and tried to block his arm, but his elder brother on the other side had already stabbed with his knife.

puff--

The sharp edge pierced the flesh, and blood spurted out from the other end. Yelu Zongyun pulled hard, and the blood spurting from the neck immediately splashed all over his face. He instinctively reached out to wipe the sticky and smelly blood off his face.

When he reappeared in his vision, he saw his brother reaching out to push the corpse, but He Ji's corpse was holding on to his jade belt tightly and he could not break free for a while. He immediately raised his eyebrows and slashed downwards with his sword.

"Ah!" Yelu Zongdian suddenly retracted his hand, blood spurted out, and He Ji's armless body fell to the ground.

"Damn it, big brother, do you want to kill me? You slashed me without even saying a word."

"We are all brothers. I thought you could be in tune with each other." Yelu Zongyun grinned and then shook his head: "Let's go. It seems there is still some time over there."

He took a step and turned to walk towards another section of the city wall.

The shouts of fighting on the top of the city were boiling. Some soldiers hurried forward and desperately stabbed the Song soldiers climbing below with their spears. Yelu Zongdian looked back, bent down to pick up the iron knife, and curled his lips: "...The devil has a telepathic connection with you, but he is not a beautiful lady."

He took a step forward to chase after his brother, and his personal soldiers followed behind him. Amidst the slashing of swords and stabbing of spears, the Song army that had climbed up the city wall fell down. The brutal chopping and killing sounds coupled with the screams of the dying made the figures even more crazy, and the soldiers, who were blood-thirsty, were desperately pressing forward.

"This won't do!" Xiao Bodie ran on top of the city wall, the blade of the iron knife in his hand was full of rice-sized gaps, and he shouted loudly: "Raise the flag and ask for help, ask for help quickly!"

A brand new flag was slowly raised on the top of the city wall.

……

hula-

The Liao-character flag fluttered across the plains.

Thousands of eyes looked at the flag. After a moment of silence, Xiao Haili suddenly smiled: "Damn it, I didn't expect to see this flag raised again after more than ten years."

Yelu Yudu, Han Qinghe, He Zhongbao and others all smiled bitterly: "It's like a dream."

Han Chang and Yelu Ma Wu glanced at the flag without saying anything, and Xu Wen also sniffed as if nothing had happened.

"set off!"

Xiao Haili just said it casually, without paying attention to the thoughts of his subordinates. Amidst the loud shouts, the sound of horses' hooves hitting the ground echoed between heaven and earth.

……

Inside the Analytical Jin Mansion.

Yelu Dashi looked up at the big flag on the top of the city wall and took a deep breath. "Send the reserve troops up and tell the emperor's uncle to bring more stones and logs to the city."

Someone ran away quickly, and then the sound of horse hooves was moving away from here.

The sunlight gradually shifted away, the intensity of the siege gradually increased, and flags asking for help were raised several times on the southern city wall. Fortunately, there were enough young and strong people in the city at that time.

Yelu Dashi and Li Chuwen constantly adjusted the generals and soldiers who went to support, and barely blocked the wave of attacks.

"This won't work."

In the cold season, Li Chuwen was sweating profusely. He looked at the city defense map in front of him and pointed at the southern section. "The Song army is concentrating its attack here. If they don't give them time to rest, they will sooner or later make a gap." "I also know what Li Xiang said." Yelu Dashi threw the flag representing his generals on the table and took a breath. "How can we get a chance to repair the city wall?"

In the distance, the sound of fighting could be heard from afar, and the sound of horns and drums shook people's hearts. Li Chuwen walked around the room twice and stood still: "How about we send a messenger tonight to try to negotiate with the people of the Southern Dynasty? The most dangerous army at this time is the Qi army. Don't these people know the principle of lips and teeth being cold?"

He turned around and swung his sleeves: "Qi is a country of tigers and wolves. Its monarch Lu Bu was once a bandit and is not a good person. If our Liao Dynasty falls, when the hungry tiger is full and looking south, who can stop it?"

"I'm afraid the people of the Southern Dynasty are turning a blind eye." Yelu Dashi closed his eyes: "Tong Guan only wants to seize Yanyun and become a king."

"The eunuch is greedy for money, why not give him more money..."

"I heard that the emperor did the same thing last time, but the eunuch ignored it."

The two were silent for a while, and Li Chuwen sighed: "We have to try again."

"Then let's wait." Yelu Dashi also frowned: "We can talk about it later when the Song army retreats."

The two of them were looking worried when a personal guard came running in: "Lin Ya, Pharmacist Guo outside wants to see you."

Yelu Dashi and Li Chuwen exchanged a glance, their brows never relaxed, and finally said, "Please ask him to come in."

The cold wind caused the brazier in the house to sway, and the sound of steady footsteps echoed in the ears of the two men. Then, the figure of Pharmacist Guo appeared in front of them, clasping his fists and bowing: "Pharmacist Guo greets Dashi Lin Ya and Li Xiang."

Li Chuwen returned his greeting kindly, but Yelu Dashi, holding back his anger at being tricked by him last time, said, "General Guo, why are you here instead of waiting for orders in the army?"

"I'm here to challenge you to a fight." Pharmacist Guo stood up, glanced at the city defense map, and then looked at Yelu Dashi: "As the saying goes, if you defend for too long, you will lose. Besides, our army is not good at defending a city. It would be better to gather capable cavalry and attack from the south city to strike at the troops outside."

The figures standing together pondered for a moment, and Li Chuwen slowly spoke: "There are many Song troops outside. If we attack rashly and fail, wouldn't it be worse?"

"No." Pharmacist Guo said quickly, "Most of the Song army's soldiers and horses are infantry, and there are very few cavalry. Moreover, although they are outnumbered, we are not going to defeat them immediately with cavalry. We just want them to retreat first. Most of the soldiers on the city wall are new soldiers. I am worried that they will not be able to hold on for a long time and will collapse first."

"That makes some sense..." Li Chuwen pondered for a moment and looked at Yelu Dashi: "What do you think, Dashi Lin Ya?"

Yelu Dashi looked at Pharmacist Guo, who looked calm, and nodded reluctantly, "That's a solution. I've thought about it before."

He paused and said, "General Guo, please return to the camp first. I will issue the military order in a moment. At that time, you will send some cavalry to join the army, in addition to the 1,000 elite cavalry led by Zhao Heshou."

Pharmacist Guo raised his eyebrows and said, "All the cavalry of my resentful army are with Zhao Heshou. How come there are extra cavalry joining us?"

"There are still a lot of extra war horses in the city." Yelu Dashi said without thinking: "Send someone to get 500 war horses and select the best warriors who dare to fight to go out of the city and participate in the raid."

Pharmacist Guo hesitated for a moment and said, "It's not that I don't want to, but the Song army has too many people. How about Lin Ya give me some more money as a reward? I believe that there will be brave men under a big reward."

"The court is not wealthy, so I'll give you 20,000 strings of cash as a settlement allowance." Yelu Dashi looked at him irritably and waved his hand, "This is just the first time, and it won't happen again."

Pharmacist Guo didn't care what he said. He showed a look of great joy on his face, thanked him repeatedly, and then walked out.

Li Chuwen watched him leave, his eyes slightly moved: "In this time of national crisis, he still wants to take advantage of the court. This man should be killed."

Yelu Dashi also looked unhappy: "If it weren't for the fact that his troops were still useful, I would have killed him long ago."

Then he looked at Li Chuwen and said, "I will ask the Emperor's uncle to come and take charge of the situation with Prime Minister Li. The situation is critical now, so I will lead the troops out of the city to fight."

"Lin Ya is a man of great loyalty and courage, and no one in the court can match him." Li Chuwen was moved and bowed, "Don't worry, leave the city. The Crown Prince has been through many battles, and I am not an inexperienced military expert either. I can't say for a long time, but I can still protect the city wall within a few hours."

"That's enough." Yelu Dashi smiled and walked out of the door.

The cold wind was howling outside, and soldiers in winter clothes kept running in the city. Amidst the shouts, carriages and horses carrying supplies for defending the city passed by, and wounded soldiers were carried at a trot into the temporary medical facility.

Pharmacist Guo returned to where his troops were, had someone lead the horses back to the camp, and called Zhen Wuchen and Liu Shunren: "I have persuaded that fellow Yelu Dashi to lead his cavalry out of the city to fight, but he wants me to go out with him. You two can select 500 men to accompany him."

"Then Zhao Heshou..."

"I will contact him and tell him what to do then." Pharmacist Guo looked at the two men and said, "You two should inform them to tie white cloth on their arms as a mark, and when the city gates are opened, create chaos in the city, and then cooperate with the Song army to capture the city."

"Okay." The two generals nodded vigorously. Zhen Wuchen looked at him and said, "General, you should also be more careful. You only have 1,500 cavalrymen, which is less than the Khitans."

Liu Shunren nodded repeatedly.

Pharmacist Guo laughed and patted the two men on the shoulders: "You worry too much. The hundreds of thousands of Song troops outside are all our reinforcements. It is you two who have the heavy burden on your shoulders. These soldiers and horses in the city were all your enemies at the beginning."

The two generals nodded with heavy expressions, then turned around to select the soldiers who would follow Pharmacist Guo into battle.

The light outside moved a little, and the sound of a bull horn rang out in the sky. Pharmacist Guo raised his head and exhaled a breath of white air, then waved his hand forward: "Follow me, the commander of the army, and set off."

The war horses roared and galloped in the city. Soon they joined the 6,000 cavalry selected by Yelu Dashi. When Guo Yaoshi saw the generals of his own army among the soldiers, his eyes flashed and he signaled to his personal soldier beside him. The man hurriedly ran towards where Zhao Heshou was.

woo-

The horn sounded, and Yelu Dashi, wearing iron armor and a cloak embroidered with a wolf's head, ran to the front quickly, reined in his horse, and shouted: "The Southern Song thieves are so rampant, the Wolf God is above! They use 100,000 ants to challenge our capital. Even if we only have 8,000 tiger soldiers, are we afraid? When Taizu and Empress Dowager Chengtian were alive, how dare the Song people covet our territory?"

The loud voice made the cavalrymen below look more serious. Yelu Dashi glanced at them and said: "Today, let the Song people remember once again how terrible our Liao army is. Warriors, follow me and kill——"

"kill--"

A roar came from the mouth of the cavalry in the rear. Yelu Dashi smiled with satisfaction, raised the iron spear in his hand and pointed it outward: "Open the door!"

……

At the same time, a scout ran back to the cavalry and said, "General Xiao, the Song army ahead is attacking Xijin Prefecture very urgently, and the flags for help have been raised several times on the top of the city wall."

"... Xijin Prefecture is so weak now, where is the Song army's central army?"

"One and a half miles from Xijin Prefecture, we can see that their army formation is very majestic."

"The central army should always be where the best troops are." Xiao Haili nodded, then looked at the people behind him: "Would you all like to follow me to attack the central army of the Song people?"

Han Qinghe, He Zhongbao, Xu Wen, Hu Yanzhuo and other generals who accompanied him on the expedition bowed to him solemnly and said, "We are willing to follow the general's arrangements."

"Okay." Xiao Haili smiled. "Later, Yelu Yudu and Dong Ping will be the vanguard, Han Chang will be on the left, and Yelu Mawu will be on the right. They will help me defeat the Liu guy."

"Here!"

The sound was like a loud bell, and then the horses galloped forward, killing intent surged. (End of this chapter)