The Northern Song Dynasty returned south, seeking the truth of the Dao.

According to Wang Huanzhen's original plan, after heading south from Zizhou, the next stop should have been Xintai. Xintai was not a large city, so there was a high probability that it would not become the Jin people's primary target.

He and Lin Qingyan could have resupply there. However, to his surprise, Zizhou had already fallen, leaving him with no choice but to venture into the wilderness with Lin Qingyan.

They encountered the Golden Princess on the road and were forced to hide in the mountains. This indirectly caused them to deviate from their course; seemingly heading south, they were actually heading west.

To the west of Zizhou lies Fengfu. The great river they had seen earlier beside the official road was the Wen River, which flows through Yunzhou and Fengfu. The small town now besieged by the Jin army is none other than Fengfu!

Holding Lin Qingyan in his arms, Wang Zhenhuan looked down at the densely packed Jin soldiers below the mountain, and a chill ran down his spine. Lin Qingyan, in his arms, had already begun to turn pale due to significant blood loss.

He was extremely anxious; Lin Qingyan desperately needed to find a place to get bandaged. But this was a battlefield, even the edge of a battlefield was still a battlefield. The rain of arrows that had just hit them was proof enough.

Where could they find shelter? The more challenging the situation, the calmer Wang Zhen became. His face remained expressionless as he looked around. He decided to descend the mountain first.

Although the view was expansive, arrows flew in from time to time; on the battlefield, no one cared whether you were a civilian or not. He glanced down at Lin Qingyan and took a deep breath.

Lin Qingyan couldn't wait any longer. There happened to be a manor at the foot of the mountain. It looked like it had been ransacked; the courtyard was still burning. Wang Huanzhen decided to go there to take refuge.

He took off the last of his clothes and tied Lin Qingyan to his chest. Then he drew his scimitar, cut off most of the arrow in half from her back, and crouched down as he rushed down the mountain.

The battlefield wasn't large, but it looked like the fighting had lasted all night. The area beneath the small city wall, less than three zhang high, was piled high with corpses. The shouts of the Jin soldiers and the sounds of battle echoed through the sky.

The entire battlefield reeked of the pungent stench of blood. The mountain peak where Wang Zhenhuan stood was located on the eastern side of the battlefield. On the side facing the battlefield, the trees on the mountain had all been cut down.

So Wang Zhen could only descend the mountain in the direction he had come from, and when he was near the foot of the mountain, he circled around to the farm at the foot of the mountain. Although there were stray arrows all along the way, fortunately, he escaped unharmed.

The haystacks in the farmyard had been completely burned. The entire farm was deserted, with scattered corpses and blood everywhere. Judging from the scene, almost the entire family had perished.

Wang Zhenhuan was not moved by the corpses. He had seen too many corpses in various states of death along the way and was almost numb to it. He went straight to the side room, pushed open the door and took a look.

The room was in complete disarray, and a young woman lay naked on the kang (a heated brick bed), her death extremely gruesome. Wang Zhenhuan frowned, then turned and led Lin Qingyan toward another room.

The room appeared to be a woodshed, containing only some dry firewood. It was relatively clean. He unbuttoned his clothes and laid them on the floor, then gently placed Lin Qingyan on top of them.

It seemed the movement was too strong and aggravated her wound. Lin Qingyan woke up from her unconsciousness, opened her eyes, and saw Wang Zhenhuan's back as he turned and left. She opened her mouth.

"Don't go, don't leave me..."

"You're awake? Don't move, the arrow is still in your body. I'll go find you some medicine!" Wang Zhenhuan turned around in surprise, knelt down beside Lin Qingyan, took her hand and placed it on his face, and said joyfully.

"I'm fine, please don't go. Stay with me, I want to see you." Lin Qingyan's face was pale, and her voice was barely audible.

Wang Zhenhuan was extremely anxious, but his expression remained unchanged. He gently stroked Lin Qingyan's forehead and comforted her, saying, "I won't leave. I'll just look around here and come back in a bit. Don't worry."

Lin Qingyan seemed to understand his words and gently released his hand. Wang Huanzhen, holding his curved sword, turned and rushed out. This farm was quite large and didn't look like an ordinary family's home.

Such manors usually keep a stock of medicines, so Wang Zhenhuan headed towards the main house first. The main house door was open, and the house was empty. Wang Zhenhuan went forward and checked each cabinet one by one.

Most of the cabinets had been opened, and everything inside had been looted. The few remaining unopened cabinets were filled with clothing and other daily necessities.

Wang Zhenhuan searched the entire room but found no trace of any herbs. His anxiety grew, and his expression became increasingly grave. If this continued, Lin Qingyan would bleed to death!

Fortunately, perseverance pays off. In a side room that seemed to be the servants' quarters, he found a packet of yellow powder. He held it to his nose and smelled it; it had a distinctly bitter odor.

He was overjoyed and reached out to taste a little. A strong bitter taste burst forth from his tongue. Good stuff! He hurriedly grabbed the powder and ran towards the woodshed.

"Qingyan! Don't fall asleep, I'm back! Don't fall asleep!"

He rushed back to the woodshed, and seeing Lin Qingyan's eyes slightly open, he breathed a sigh of relief. He turned Lin Qingyan over, tore open her shirt, and looking at her stained back, his eyes welled up with tears.

He carefully poured the yellow powder around Lin Qingyan's wound and then pressed it in with his hand. As the yellow powder was soaked in blood, the bleeding quickly stopped.

Wang Zhen let out a long sigh of relief, untied the strips of cloth that had been tied around the wound, and then carefully wrapped them around Lin Qingyan's wound. As for the arrows lodged in her body, they would have to find a way to remove them later.

After he finished doing all this, the battlefield outside suddenly fell silent. He was startled; had the Jurchens retreated? He hurriedly ran out of the woodshed and climbed onto the roof to look out into the distance.

On the battlefield not far away, the Jurchen troops who had been attacking the city had all regrouped and formed a square formation. The small city not far away also hurriedly opened its gates and began clearing away the corpses beneath the walls.

It seemed the final battle was approaching. Wang Huanzhen climbed down from the roof, silently praying that the Song army in the city could hold out until tomorrow. If Lin Qingyan recovered, he could take her away from here.

With a long, drawn-out horn call, the final battle began. All the Jurchen soldiers roared and charged towards the city walls with ferocious energy, wave after wave, fearless and relentless.

Less than an hour had passed since Wang Zhenhuan returned to the woodshed. Suddenly, cheers erupted from the battlefield, startling him. He climbed back onto the roof and peered towards the battlefield!

He discovered a fact that filled him with despair.

The city has fallen!!