The prince is more stable

Chapter 410: Foolish Criticism
Victory or defeat, rise and fall, growth and decline, all depend on the word "fate".

Over the course of thousands of years, the rise and fall of nations have been nothing more than this.

Some people appear at the right time. They are destined to change this era and make the country and dynasty turn from bad to good. Their mission is to silently keep the people away from war and enjoy peace again.

Those who are destined to be eliminated will be eliminated, and no one can reverse the trend of the world.

Thousands of Liao troops launched a second charge against the Song army. After witnessing the power of the Song army's firearms, everyone knew that this was the last charge in their lives.

Why charge forward when you are clearly destined to fail?
Perhaps it is the dignity of being a soldier, and perhaps also the reluctance to see the new era replacing the old one.

However, no matter how tragic the charge was, within three hundred steps, they were destined to become dead souls under the guns of the Song army.

Round after round of gunfire, lives were harvested like leeks.

Zhe Keshi stood in the Song army formation, watching the Liao army rushing forward without hesitation and determined to die, and then falling on the battlefield in batches. Zhe Keshi was deeply shocked. Although the enemy was facing him, he couldn't help but feel a sense of respect in his heart.

Each served his master, and it was his duty to kill the enemy and serve his country. But the enemy soldiers were real warriors, and they fought to the end with dignity, and still did not flee or retreat. The respect for the soldiers was without distinction between friend and foe.

The way to show respect to the enemy is to kill them with all your strength and maintain the last bit of dignity in their lives.

"Entire army, advance!" Zhe Keshi shouted with red eyes.

The Song army, which had been standing still and killing the enemy in three-stage rotation, finally moved. They advanced forward step by step without showing any weakness, and the flintlock rifles in their hands did not stop.

Every step they took extended the range of the flintlock rifle and accelerated the death of the Liao army.

The Liao army did not retreat and rushed towards the Song army. The two armies fought fiercely, but it was still difficult to change the outcome of the one-sided massacre.

The Liao general who led the charge had already fallen in a pool of blood, his body lying on his back with his eyes open, staring blankly at the dark sky.

Perhaps he never understood until his death why an era of invincibility ended so abruptly and without any sign beforehand.

This shouldn't have been the ending, but why?

Ten thousand Liao troops hurriedly responded to the battle. After less than half an hour of fighting, there were only about a thousand Liao troops left on the battlefield, and they were still charging forward.

Suddenly, a thunderous roar of killing erupted from the Liao army camp behind him, and then tents in various parts of the camp caught fire, and the entire camp was shrouded in flames.

The desperate Liao army turned their heads and saw that in the dazzling firelight, three thousand Song soldiers suddenly appeared in the camp, also holding flintlock rifles. They occupied the empty camp and then approached them step by step from behind.

Attacked from both sides, there is no hope of survival.

"Kill!" Zhe Keshi ordered coldly.

Rounds of gunfire once again shook the sky.

The last thousand or so Liao soldiers did not choose to escape. In fact, they could not escape at all. Under the current circumstances, it was impossible to escape in any direction.

"Kill!" The last remaining Liao general roared.

The Liao army was desperate and numb, and subconsciously raised their swords and continued to charge.

Zhe Keshi watched coldly, sighed silently, and said: "The Liao army on the opposite side, lay down your weapons and surrender, and you can live!"

The Song army soldiers immediately repeated Zhe Keshi's words.

"Put down your weapons and surrender, and you can live!"

However, the charging Liao army turned a deaf ear and continued to charge stubbornly and fiercely.

Zhe Keshi shook his head and sighed, "Alright, I'll give you some final respect. Form your ranks and fire!"

After the last gunshot, there were no Liao soldiers left standing on the battlefield. Only dozens of war horses were standing alone, staring at their fallen masters with their heads down, neighing sadly.

The camp was on fire, the flags were destroyed and the spears were broken, the wounded were wailing, and the plain was barren.

A war has ended, and the outcome was not surprising.

The Song army still maintained its intact formation, quietly watching the endless piles of corpses of the Liao army.

Zhe Keshi walked out of the formation, sheathed his sword, remained silent for a long time, and suddenly bowed and clasped his fists towards the corpses of the Liao army scattered on the ground.

"You are all men of steel. Please allow me, the enemy general, to pay my respects."

Zhe Keshi then turned around and said, "Take in and treat the wounded, count the casualties and the results of the battle, and send a fast horse back to the camp in the eastern suburbs of Zhending Prefecture to report to Lord Zhao."

"In this battle, all 10,000 Liao troops were annihilated, and not a single one escaped."

After a pause, Zhe Keshi said again: "Tell Lord Zhao again that the Liao army was defeated by weapons, not combat effectiveness and morale. The enemy army refused to retreat even if they were killed, which is really admirable. Our Song army's royal division must not underestimate any Liao army." Above the sky, in the dark night sky, a hint of fish belly white suddenly appeared in the east, like a sharp sword, piercing the darkness.

That is the dawn, the hope, the light that is destined to replace the darkness.

…………

Zhending City.

The value of the three-year tax exemption is still increasing. With the implementation of this policy by the court, Zhending City has regained its vitality many years ago.

At some point, the streets in the city gradually became bustling, and more and more merchants came to and fro.

The shops on the street that once had their doors closed and struggled to make a living all day long are now all open. The shop assistants stand outside, shouting loudly and energetically about the business, while the shop owners sit inside, fiddling with an abacus with a smile on their faces.

A more obvious change is that both land and housing prices in Zhending City have increased.

In particular, the prices of shops on the street have more than doubled compared to before. Many merchants from other places have flocked to this border town to take advantage of the three-year tax exemption policy. They bought shops and stockpiled goods. Among these merchants, there are even merchants who came from the Liao Kingdom after hearing the news.

Bustling and bustling, good things come and good things go.

The city is still the same city as before, but the spirit of the people in the city has gradually changed. They may not live the way they want, but they are definitely living much better than before.

Niao Niao took her two Japanese sisters and walked on the streets of Zhending City. The three girls were chatting and laughing. Their stunning looks attracted the attention of passers-by, who looked at them with either admiration or evil.

However, no one dared to harass them. The three women were dressed luxuriously and had elegant temperaments, obviously coming from wealthy families. In particular, there was a group of burly men following them closely to protect them. Any man who wanted to approach them would retreat in embarrassment under the gazes of these strong men.

The three women held hands and walked into a cosmetics shop.

Women dress up to please themselves. Their men are commanding thousands of troops to fight for their country and kill the enemy. They can't help much in the men's world, but they will dress themselves up well so that when men come home at leisure, they can be fascinated by their beauty and get a brief relaxation.

This is probably the only way they can help their men.

The cosmetics shop was a bit crowded. The shopkeeper was a middle-aged woman. Seeing the influx of customers in the narrow shop, she was already smiling and greeting the customers warmly.

It has been many years since we have seen such a prosperous business. Both businessmen and ordinary people have a goal in life.

Most of the guests are women, and men rarely come in.

When the two girls, Nian Nian and Niaoniao, walked in, the female shopkeeper's eyes suddenly lit up, her smile became more warm and kind, and she took the initiative to greet them and introduce the best rouge and powder to them.

The three girls, Nian Nian and Niaoniao, were choosing cosmetics with great interest, and were whispering to each other from time to time, exchanging their opinions on the cosmetics.

At this moment, I heard some discordant discussions.

"Have you heard? Our new prefect has left the city. It is said that he is mobilizing troops outside the city to fight the Liao people outside the border." A female guest whispered.

Where women gather, there is always discussion and gossip.

Another female guest immediately said, "I heard it! Tsk, how brave they are! They actually dared to attack the Liao people. It has always been the Liao people who attacked us. In all these years, I have never heard that we could take the initiative to attack them..."

A female guest smiled faintly and said, "Our new prefect is very young, only in his twenties, and he's a relative of the current official. He must have been accustomed to being domineering since he was in Bian Jing. He doesn't like being beaten, so he likes to beat others."

"Zhending Prefecture exempted taxes for three years, which was indeed a kind gesture, but they took the initiative to attack the Liao people..."

"This new prefect was praised by the whole city not long ago, and was called a bodhisattva incarnate. But now he has become confused. The Liao people are so powerful, how can we Song people afford to offend them? This battle is a bit risky. I just hope that when the Liao people counterattack, they won't harm the people in our city."

The seemingly calm female guest smiled calmly and said, "If the Song army is defeated, the Liao people will definitely retaliate. If they occupy Zhending City, it's hard to say what will happen. After all, it was our Song army that started it this time..."

"To be honest, my husband has already packed his bags after hearing that the Song army has left the camp to attack the enemy outside the city this morning. He will take his family out of the city for temporary shelter this afternoon."

"Zhending City is probably no longer safe. The official said he wants to find a place to live in Taiyuan Prefecture in the south, and all the business in the city will also be gradually transferred to Taiyuan Prefecture..."

The female guest sighed and complained, "Why are we fighting when everything is fine? We should be thankful that the Liao people didn't come to attack us. But he actually provoked the Liao people. He doesn't know how to live or die, and has caused our people to suffer. I don't know if I can get used to the food and accommodation in Taiyuan Prefecture..."

Several female guests nearby also echoed the sentiment. The female guest who was speaking must be from a well-off family, and the other female guests could not help but sound a bit flattering in their words.

Not far behind them, the two girls, Nian Nian and Niaoniao, had already stopped choosing cosmetics. They listened to the female guests' discussions in silence, and their faces gradually turned from joy to ashen.

Listening to the complaints of the female guests, and thinking of her own men and the Song army soldiers who risked their lives to kill the enemy just to protect these ignorant people, Niao Niao couldn't help feeling sad.

Snapped!
Unable to bear it any longer, Niao Niao grew increasingly angry. She fiercely threw down her powder box, turned around and pointed at the group of gossipy female guests, angrily shouting, "You fools, shut up!"

The female guests were stunned and looked at her in confusion.

The two Japanese sisters were a little scared, after all, it was not their home ground, but they still mustered up their courage, stood beside Niao Niao, and glared at the female guests angrily.

(End of this chapter)