Dream of the Red Chamber: Start by gaining Zhao Yun's martial prowess, and be ennobled in a sin

Inside Sister Feng's courtyard, Sister Feng and Qin Keqing were enjoying a deep sisterly bond.

After mentioning mutual assistance, Sister Feng glanced at Qin Keqing with her phoenix eyes, her fair face pausing for a moment before she continued with a hint of deeper meaning:

"Besides, I might need your help someday, so just don't bother me then."

Looking at Qin Keqing's stunning beauty without makeup, her pitiful and charming appearance, and her gentle and tender personality, it's no wonder that the man from the East Mansion wanted to have an affair with her.

Suddenly, Sister Feng felt that perhaps her third brother's intentions weren't so simple.

Men are like greedy cats; how can they not love beautiful women!

Just like their own Chain II, they want to put everything dirty and smelly into their own bowl!

If... if my third brother really does get together with Keqing in the future, even if she's just a mistress, then I'll have really made a huge profit from this favor!

Thinking of this, Sister Feng couldn't help but hug Qin Keqing tighter, becoming even more affectionate in her attitude!

Qin Keqing didn't think much of what Feng Jie said, assuming it was just polite words to comfort her.

With a husband and father-in-law like that, there's no hope for her future, let alone helping others.

Qin Keqing's almond-shaped eyes, beneath her delicate, jade-like eyebrows, dimmed as she softly said:

"I'm an unlucky person... I'm afraid this is how I'll spend the rest of my life suffering!"

"My aunt has helped me so much, and even if I wanted to repay her, I'm afraid I couldn't!"

Sister Feng frowned slightly and said softly:

"Who can predict the future? Life is unpredictable, and I don't think you're destined for misfortune... judging from your appearance!"

Keqing did not respond.

Outside the window, the moon had quietly moved a little further.

All was quiet except for the whistling wind and the occasional chirping of insects and birds.

………………

Ten days later.

It is located ten miles outside Yulin City in the northwest.

There is a wide, open slope, with the Mu Us Desert to the north and the Wuding River to the south.

A new cemetery has been erected on the hillside. The walls are made of rammed earth and have not yet been renovated, revealing their original yellowish-brown color.

The gate was made of pine, and the freshly cut wood still exuded the fragrance of resin.

Above the gate hangs a plaque with five large characters in black on a white background: "Tomb of Loyal Martyrs of the Han Dynasty".

The plaque was inscribed by Jia Jing himself, with strong, sharp strokes, the strokes as sharp as knives.

Inside the cemetery are rows and rows of new graves, more than 24,000 in total.

They lined up from the top of the slope all the way down, densely packed, like a silent military camp.

In front of each grave stands a wooden plaque inscribed with the deceased's name, place of origin, and the Han army to which they belonged.

In front of the cemetery is a huge stone monument.

The stone tablet is engraved with more than 20,000 names, all in tiny characters, arranged from the top to the bottom of the tablet.

These 20,000-plus Han army names mainly fall into two categories:

First, there were nearly 20,000 Han soldiers who died defending Yulin and Suzhou at the very beginning of this Northwest campaign.

Secondly, there were several thousand Han soldiers who died in battles against the grasslands.

In front of the stone tablet was an altar made of stacked stones.

The altar was over a meter high, covered with a white cloth, on which were placed three kinds of sacrificial animals.

There were also dozens of jars of wine, dozens of plates of fruit, and countless dry rations.

On either side of the altar were two rows of white banners, fluttering gently in the wind like hands beckoning souls.

Just after Chen Shi (7-9 AM), the sun rose in the east.

Inside the Martyrs' Tomb, bugles sounded loudly, and more than 100,000 Han soldiers from the Northwest gathered from all over.

They gathered in a large open space in front of the altar, standing in neat rows, silent and still.

More than 100,000 soldiers wore armor of various colors, including those from Gansu, Ningxia, Yansui, and Guyuan, as well as elite black-armored cavalry from the Ba Shang camp.

Their armor was different colors and their banners were different.

But their posture was the same: straight backs, eyes fixed straight ahead, and solemn expressions.

Behind the soldiers were countless civilians from the Northwest who came upon hearing the commotion, a dark mass of tens of thousands.

There were elderly women with white hair, women holding babies, and elderly people with children and canes, but the young and middle-aged adults were the fewest.

They stood at a distance around the cemetery, many of them relatives, widows, and children of the soldiers who died in the Northwest War.

Their son, husband, father, and brothers are buried in this cemetery.

They looked grief-stricken, some holding paper money, others wiping away tears.

Everyone was waiting for the sacrificial ceremony, initiated and presided over by the newly appointed First-Class Duke of Jing, Champion General, and Northwest Military God, to begin.

Around the altar were marching drums, and more than ten shirtless, strong men with double hammers beat the drums.

As the drums sounded, more than ten heavily armored Han generals and a group of Northwest civil officials emerged from the crowd.

They climbed the steps and stood on either side of the altar and on the steps, facing the army and the people.

The military officers stood at the front, with the first one on the left being the newly appointed Marquis of Weining of the Great Han, Zhu Que, and the first one on the right being the newly appointed Marquis of Zhenbei of the Great Han, Niu Jizong.

The two men were clad in black armor, with swords hanging at their waists, and their faces were cold and stern.

Unlike before, the two added a wide white cloth belt called "Su Tao" or "Mourning Belt" to their original belts, symbolizing leaving martial arts for mourning.

Behind the two were military officers including Han Wu, Feng Tang, Zhou Yingyuan, Ma Guocheng, and You Shiyong.

And a dozen or so generals, deputy generals, and brigade generals from the four northwestern garrisons, arranged in order of rank.

Following the military officers were the civil officials, including the governors of Shaanxi, Yansui, and Ningxia, as well as the military and grain storage officials and censors of various towns.

Most of the civil officials wore blue robes and didn't talk much; they just stood quietly.

Occasionally, he would glance at the huge stone tablet with eyes full of fear and suspicion, then quickly lower his head again.

This is the Martyrs' Tomb built in the northwest by order of Jia Jing after he requested permission from Emperor Jingsheng to commemorate the Han soldiers who died in battle.

Emperor Jingsheng issued an imperial decree appointing Jia Jing to preside over the first sacrificial ceremony and issued a court gazette stating that "even the smallest soldier's actions are related to the fate of the nation."

At the same time, he ordered the local officials in the northwest to offer sacrifices twice a year, in spring and autumn, to "honor virtue and reward merit, and encourage loyalty and integrity."

As time went on, the drumbeats became more and more rapid, and the horns sounded in unison.

The deep, resonant drumbeats seemed to pluck at the vast expanse of time, causing this entire world to tremble with emotion.

"tread!"

"tread!"

"tread!"

……

A figure emerged from the crowd, facing the eastward-moving rising sun, and slowly appeared in the sight of countless people.

Jia Jing was not wearing armor today, but rather a blue silk robe, a white gauze undergarment, a plain skirt, black shoes, a plain belt, and a Liang crown on his head, all in a simple and elegant color scheme.

With a solemn expression and focused gaze, he walked step by step onto the altar.

Behind him, Tang Bin, a pale-faced official from the Ministry of Rites with a long beard, wore a blue court robe with a golden pheasant embroidered on his badge. He followed closely behind, his expression solemn, holding a yellow silk ribbon and sacrificial offerings.

Tang Bin traveled day and night from the capital city to the Northwest, and arrived just two days ago.

He came here partly to announce the rewards bestowed upon Jia Jing and others.

On the one hand, it was to assist Jia Jing in completing the sacrificial ceremony for the fallen soldiers in the Northwest, demonstrating the importance the court attached to it.