Destroy Jin and conquer Song, and carry the Northern Expedition through to the end

Chapter 489: War and Snow Will Lead to Chaos

The 32nd year of Shaoxing, New Year’s Day.

Good luck in the new year.

But in Caojia Village, there was no joyous atmosphere.

Widow Cao pressed her arm and found a sunken hole on her arm that did not heal for a long time. She instantly fell into great panic.

She remembered that before her mother died when she was a child, she had gained weight like this, as if she had overeaten. Unfortunately, she was so young at the time that she actually thought her mother had secretly eaten something delicious, and she started crying on the spot out of hunger.

My daughter is much more sensible than I was at that time.

"Mom, mom, have some water." A five-year-old girl with a big head brought out a bowl of cold water and handed it to Widow Cao.

"Good girl, come back to bed quickly." Although the two of them still had clothes on, they could hardly stand in such weather. They could only lie on the bed and crawl into the haystack to keep the little heat in their bodies.

The little girl put the cold water aside.

It’s not that she doesn’t want to boil some hot water, but the family has been out of food and cooking for four days, and there is nothing left to boil at home.

"Uncle doesn't want us anymore..." The little girl snuggled into her mother's arms and said gloomily, "If I were a boy, would uncle keep me?"

Widow Cao rubbed her daughter's messy hair and said, "That's not the case. Uncle just went out to find food. Where else could he go in such heavy snow?"

In fact, Widow Cao was not sure either, but she could only say this to comfort her daughter.

The little daughter nodded slightly, and seemed to be very hungry, and rubbed against her mother's arms again.

Widow Cao's family had almost all been wiped out in a previous minor flood in the Huai River. She fled to the northwest of Hezhou, and then lived with another man who had fled from an unknown place in this small village in the mountains.

But the good times did not last. After she had finally cultivated a few acres of land, the tax collectors came to her house again. Her husband was taken away and never returned.

Widow Cao could only endure the hardship in this village.

It’s not that no one wanted to matchmake for her, but they all wanted to get rid of the money-losing goods first. Widow Cao refused, so the matter was delayed.

Then, the Jin army came.

The mountains were suddenly filled with rioters who were neither soldiers nor bandits, and the situation quickly became dangerous.

Some time ago, a man with a northern accent named Gu Shun fled to the mountains, came to this small village with a basket of pancakes on his back, and communicated with several families in the village who were living together.

At this point, Widow Cao really had no choice but to find a man. It just so happened that this man had no background but was quite brave, so even though she knew that the man had a family in his hometown, after getting some assurances, the two of them slept in the same bed the next day.

Propriety, righteousness, integrity, and even the most basic human desire for reproduction are suppressed to the lowest level in the harsh environment. There is no right or wrong, everyone just wants to survive.

Even if the pancakes the man brought were eaten sparingly, they would not last several days for several families. Therefore, during a snowstorm, the man took the axe from his home and borrowed a short spear, saying that he was going to collect some firewood and catch some prey.

And then it was gone forever.

There were more and more rioting soldiers and civilians in the mountains, and they became more agitated and rampant as the snow fell.

There's no food.

After the neighbor looked at her daughter with a strange look the day before, Widow Cao sealed the door with a doorbolt and never opened it again.

However, human willpower cannot ultimately resist hunger. After a moment of trance, Widow Cao suddenly realized that if she did not go out to find some food, the final outcome would be that both mother and daughter would starve to death.

After thinking for a moment, Widow Cao was too weak to get up. She stuffed her clothes with straw, put the last hatchet in the house on her waist, and staggered to open the door.

"Nannan, after I go out, you should lock the door and go to bed. Don't open the door for anyone who comes unless I call you." Widow Cao held her daughter's little face and gave a solemn instruction.

Seeing her daughter's bewildered expression, Widow Cao opened the door, walked out and closed it tightly.

The cold wind rushed in instantly, but was blocked by the door.

After hearing her daughter put the door bolt in place, Widow Cao took up her hatchet and moved forward in the snow, taking one step forward, one step deep and one step shallow.

There are always troubles around a widow. As a woman, it is naturally a bit of a feat to be able to keep some family property.

She walked around the small village with the hatchet in her hand, stopping for a moment in front of each dilapidated house before leaving. She knew someone was looking out through the crack in the door, but she didn't care.

After making a silent threat, Widow Cao continued to carry the hatchet and walked towards the gentle slope on the side. She had no hunting skills, but if she could find the field mice and the food they stored, then she and her daughter would be able to survive this.

It was not obvious when it was snowing, but after the snow stopped, the temperature became very low and the cold wind blew into her neck through the collar. Widow Cao could not help but wrap her clothes tightly again, but she was worried that the tattered clothes would be torn, so she loosened them again.

The field mice had been killed several times since the autumn, so Widow Cao did not go to the fields to look for them, but went to a small woods near the fields to look for them.

Amidst the stars in her eyes, Widow Cao finally found a vole hole and started digging with great effort.

After digging for a while, they suddenly heard a commotion in the distance, followed by crying and wailing. Widow Cao looked back and saw thick smoke rising from her own village.

Widow Cao felt her mind go blank, and by the time she came to her senses, her legs had already involuntarily run towards the village.

There are rebel soldiers entering the village!

My daughter! My daughter!
However, before reaching the village, Widow Cao saw more cavalry rushing towards them. With horns blowing and weapons in hand, they began a fierce battle with another group of people in the village.

"Gu Erlang, is this that village? Don't get it wrong again." A soldier asked Gu Shun loudly.

Gu Shun squinted his eyes and pointed at a barkless locust tree at the entrance of the village and said, "It's right here! I remember it clearly!"

After all, Gu Shun was from Shandong. He was a stranger in Lianghuai and a refugee everywhere. After being captured by Wanyan Wangxiang a few days ago, he led the Jin army in circles in the dark and had already lost his way.

I went to several wrong places, and only today did I find the right path and the guide.

Ding Daxing, the leader of the team, said to the soldiers behind him, "It doesn't matter if it's the village we're looking for or not. Those who need to put on armor should put on armor. Since there are rebel troops entering the village, we can't just ignore them. Pang San, you will take the lead and charge in later."

The soldier who had just spoken nodded nonchalantly, then led his own team of ten on horseback and rushed forward.

"Don't hurt the civilians!" Ding Daxing just warned, then shook his head and said, "Gu Erlang, you have made great contributions, but this is the army. Even if you register in front of the commander-in-chief, you still have to obey my orders. Do you understand?"

Gu Shun nodded repeatedly: "Of course."

Ding Daxing nodded and then waved his hand.

More than thirty armored cavalrymen began to charge.

There were only about twenty or so soldiers who came to this small village to rob. They had only thrown two torches and broke down the doors of two houses when they were hit so fiercely that they were stunned immediately.

These rebel troops were not elite Song troops, and some of them were even half civilians and half bandits. How could they be a match for the Jingnan Army?

After just one encounter, he shot and killed a few people, and the rebel army fled in all directions.

"Chase them! Leave no one behind!" Ding Daxing commanded loudly, then pointed to several houses that were already emitting thick smoke and said, "It's too late to put out the fire. Everyone, get out first! Quickly!"

"You...you're back..." Gu Shun was relying on his memory to find Widow Cao's house, but he only heard a timid voice beside him. When he turned around, he saw Widow Cao holding an axe. Seeing that the straw in her clothes had fallen away, Gu Shun couldn't help but laugh.

He jumped down from the mule, patted the saddlebag and said, "I brought some food, including some dried meat. Where's Nannan?"

At this point, Gu Shun was the first to react.

Among the houses that just caught fire, was one of them Widow Cao’s?
Thinking of this, Gu Shun started running, and Widow Cao immediately woke up from the dizziness and ran forward howling.

In just three breaths, Gu Shun ran to the house filled with smoke. Pang San was shouting at the top of his lungs to see if there was anyone inside, but there was no response.

Gu Shun was very anxious. He snatched Pang San's long sword and chopped it hard on the wooden door. After several consecutive hits, the wooden door loosened. Gu Shun threw down the long sword and rushed in directly.

Widow Cao staggered over, having thrown her hatchet somewhere. She collapsed at the door, completely exhausted, staring at the door from which thick smoke and flames were pouring out.

It seemed like a moment had passed, and it seemed like several days had passed. Gu Shun rushed out of the door holding the little girl, rolled on the ground twice, and then plunged into the snow pile.

Pang San and others hurried forward, pulled Gu Shun up, and looked at the girl in his arms again: "The child is fine, it's fine."

"Hahaha……"

"Woooooooo..."

Gu Shun and Widow Cao sat together, one crying and the other laughing, without saying a word for a long time.

Ding Daxing looked at this scene, sighed, and immediately ordered: "Hurry up and find dry firewood, burn the snow and cook! Our Jingnan Army is here, and you will have food!"

(End of this chapter)