In order to become a Heroic Spirit, I had no choice but to cause trouble in history.

The rain of arrows has arrived.

Zao Ji rushed over from behind Zi Juan and stood in front of her.

"Ugh—Pfft... Ah? Cough cough cough—"

Zijuan stared blankly at the long sword lodged in her chest and spat out a mouthful of blood.

Fan was riddled with arrows and had no chance of survival, but a relieved smile, like that of a victor, still graced his lips.

He missed; the longsword didn't pierce Zijuan's heart directly, but instead pierced her lung, so Zijuan didn't die immediately.

Also submerged in the rain of arrows was Zijuan's Zaoji.

It shielded Zijuan from all the arrows, gently licked her face, and without a whimper, quietly knelt down and fell.

The battlefield was still a chaotic battle, with the Northern Chu army holding an absolute advantage.

But the place where Zijuan was was eerily quiet.

In her eyes, everything became blurry and slowed down.

"Little Four—!"

! ”

The slow, drawn-out, heart-wrenching scream reached Zijuan's ears.

...Is that my second brother?

Second brother, are you calling me?

Zijuan was no longer thinking about anything.

She just felt so cold, really so cold.

She knelt on the ground, head tilted back, with the dead Zao Ji behind her and the equally dead Fan Hui in front of her.

It's so cold.

It happened once before, it was so cold, so very cold.

When was that...?

In the village after the earthquake and mudslide, the lonely little girl lost her father, her mother, and her younger brother. She knelt on the ground, crying helplessly and in despair.

Zijuan looked at the little girl and felt a sense of familiarity.

And then...

"Little Four!"

! ”

"Little Four, Little Four..."

Da Pi was thrown aside, and Xiang An fell off Tuan Chi's back, but despite the burning pain in his chest and abdomen, he ran to Zi Juan's side, knelt down, and picked her up.

His childlike eyes trembled as he stared in disbelief at the long sword in Zijuan's chest, muttering the words "Little Four" under his breath.

"...Second...Brother..." Zijuan murmured softly as she lay in Xiang An's arms.

Her childlike eyes reflected Xiang An's pain.

"Xiao Si, Xiao Si..." Tears welled up in Xiang An's eyes, and his extremely painful voice was mixed with the stench of blood churning in his throat.

He held Zijuan in his arms, his heart filled with grief, his whole body trembling.

“...Second Brother..." Zijuan called out again, slowly using all her strength to raise a hand and gently climb up Xiang An’s face, brushing against Xiang An’s gray-black beard.

A happy smile graced her face as she nestled gently in Xiang An's arms, like a baby.

"...It's so warm..."

pat.

Zijuan's hand fell to the ground.

Xiang An knelt in the center of the victorious Northern Chu army and looked up at the sky.

Then, he roared out his filial piety.

The sorrow and pain of the mourner caused the entire battlefield to weep.

......

Northern Chu won.

The decisive victory at Xiayi, where 80,000 Han troops were defeated, 30,000 were annihilated, and two Han generals, Ren Ao and Fan Hui, were achieved. This was an unprecedented victory for Northern Chu in its war against Han.

However, Northern Chu also suffered heavy losses.

It wasn't a loss of troops, but rather the loss of Zijuan, the highly respected and beloved general of Northern Chu, who was also the adopted sister of King Xiang An of Northern Chu.

Xiang An sat in his tent outside Xiayi, just sitting there.

Zijuan's body was placed next door, along with Zaoji's body.

wow-

The tent flap was pulled open, and Xiang An looked up.

It was Xiang Lu.

"Xiang An..." Xiang Lu already knew about Zi Juan's news, and called out to Xiang An in a low voice.

"Fourth Uncle..." Xiang An's voice trembled with tears as he looked at Xiang Lu, "Little Fourth is dead..."

Xiang Lu looked at Xiang An, sensing the helplessness in Xiang An's voice, his jaw trembled, and for a moment he didn't know what to say.

"Xiao Si is dead..." Xiang An repeated the sentence, tears welling up again as he shook his head blankly.

Xiang Lu felt a sharp pain in his heart, and looking at Xiang An like this, he felt that he was worse than dead.

However, even in his grief, he had to stand by Xiang An's side.

"Let's bury Xiao Si properly..." he said, patting Xiang An's shoulder in a hoarse voice.

"Mmm, mmm... mmm..." Xiang An nodded, sobbing, but couldn't stop.

......

"Bury him...." Liu Ji looked at Xiang Jing's decapitated body, sighed, and felt sorrowful.

Although he was fighting on the front lines, he was still aware of what was happening behind the scenes.

Ren Ao and Fan Hui died in battle, and Lu Wan took over the command of the army, relaying information from the battlefield to Liu Ji.

He did not hold a grudge against Xiang An.

Whether you call him ruthless or overly realistic, Liu Ji's understanding of the war was clear from beginning to end.

You have no right to resent your opponent, because as long as you are on the battlefield, you will constantly create hatred.

He was only saddened by these two childhood playmates, his good friends and subordinates who had followed him since Pei County.

"Don't worry, it will be over soon, very soon..." he murmured. "Old buddies, your deeds... the Great Han will not forget, will not forget..."

Liu Ji looked north.

Han Xin was almost there.

On the main battlefield, he could immediately destroy Western Chu, and then he only needed to turn around to encircle Xiang An, who had planned to surround him.

At that time, the main force of Northern Chu will be surrounded by Han troops.

Han Xin from the north, Liu Ji from the east, and Xiao He from the west were able to surround Xiang An completely.

At that point, victory will be absolutely assured...

......

The Northern Chu army camp.

Xiang An held a large rock in his arms, his expression calm.

He wielded his large halberd and shaved the boulder into a rectangular shape.

He personally dug the tomb for Zijuan; now all that's missing is this tombstone.

"Zi Huai, a pillar of the Northern Chu state, holding the official rank of Grand Commandant and General Who Pacifies the North."

He held an eight-sided Han sword, engraved with Zijuan's name.

After a moment of silence, he began to wield his sword again and carved a line of small characters below.

"The Lady of Langya, a heroine for all time."

Nodding to the guard beside him, Xiang An gently placed the two coffins, one large and one small, into the deep tomb chamber, along with Zijuan's armor and her slanted silver-topped spear.

The larger coffin contained Zao Ji, and the smaller one, naturally, contained Zi Juan.

Xiang An scooped up a handful of yellow earth and placed it on the coffin.

------------

Chapter 996 Jiangdong Suicide

The sixth day of the sixth lunar month.

The Northern Chu army marched eastward, intending to suppress the Han army, while Liu Ji's Han army joined forces with Ying Bu in the southeast, effectively surrounding Xiang Yu, the King of Western Chu, at Gaixia.

"His strength could uproot mountains, and his spirit could cover the world."

The time is not right, and my steed will not go.

My steed will not go; what can I do?

"My dear Yu, my dear Yu, what can I do?"

Xiang Yu was in dire straits.

Even at this point, Xiang Yu still managed to break through the Han army's encirclement with a small force and flee southeast towards the river.

They escaped to... the west bank of the river, to Wujiang Pavilion.

Throughout their escape, a group of pursuers sent by Liu Ji followed them closely.