Frost for a Thousand Years

In the woods by the river, seven horses were tied to trees, their heads bowed as they ate the fine rice on the ground.

"Please have some water, Your Excellency."

A cavalryman came over and presented him with a leather water jug.

At this moment, the Duke of Li was shirtless, his arm bandaged.

After tying the knot, pick up the water bottle and drink.

Then, he looked around at the remaining six people.

Of the thousand cavalrymen who came, only these six remained after they fought their way through.

It can be said that half of the main force in the camp has been lost.

"This Song Shi'an is quite something," the Duke of Li suddenly laughed. "These rabble have managed to bring me to this state."

Although Song Shi'an had a large number of men, the actual combat troops he mobilized were only a few hundred.

Moreover, since they came from the Huai County Military Farming Ceremony disguised themselves as laborers, their warhorses were left to Wei Wusheng's main force, and his several hundred cavalrymen were recruited after being turned against him.

They have combat capabilities, but not that many.

Although the encirclement was layered upon layer, it consisted of ordinary people carrying pickaxes, hoes, straw shields, and wooden shields.

"Your Excellency, you are truly exceptionally brave, practically a god descended to earth," a cavalryman said with particular respect. "We have never seen such a powerful lord before."

When their sneak attack failed, they already had a vague feeling that they were doomed.

They even had high hopes for the deal proposed by Song Shi'an to exchange lives for health.

But to everyone's surprise, the old man didn't hesitate at all.

"No one can threaten me," the Duke of Li said with considerable sarcasm. "Who does Song Shi'an think I am?"

He had defeated too many opponents in the past, and things had gone too smoothly for him, to the point that he felt he could control everything.

As long as the tactics are correct and implemented step by step, success can be achieved.

But he forgot that on the battlefield, the most important thing is 'people'.

The stories of Zhang Liao defeating 100,000 with only 800 men, Wang Jian's attack on the Mongol camp with only a few dozen men at Diaoyu City, and Wen Yang charging into the ranks of thousands of cavalry seven times on horseback—which of these stories is not true?

Positional warfare is about fighting spirit, momentum, and creating fear.

"What are your names?" Duke Li suddenly asked.

Upon hearing this, everyone quickly and enthusiastically spoke up:
"My name is Wang Wei, Your Excellency."

"My name is Liu Zhan."

My name is Sun Tong.

"..."

After the six people announced their names, the Duke of Li raised his finger and solemnly addressed each of them in turn: "Wang Wei, Liu Zhan, Sun Tong..."

The dignified Duke of Li actually recited the names of each of them and even matched them up.

Everyone felt incredibly honored.

The Duke has indeed fallen from grace, but if he hadn't fallen from grace, would you have had the chance to be remembered by him?
Even if the Duke loses and is to be purged, his family has so many members, and every single one of them is a person of high status.
The Celestial Dragons are all dead, so why can't we die?

This is the best chance for these ordinary, low-ranking soldiers to defy fate.

“Song Shi’an only won this battle, and Yu Xiu is dead, so he can’t really be considered to have won,” the Duke of Li said to them. “I still have camps, I still have troops. Before he kills everyone, I will have the opportunity to cut off his head, just like that arrogant Yu Xiu.”

"Yes!" Everyone clenched their fists and responded firmly.

However, the Duke of Li's confidence was not as strong as these people's.

He knew that killing Yu Xiu would only upset Song Shi'an, but it wouldn't help him in any way.

After this battle, it will be very difficult to achieve anything significant again.

The difficulty lies not only in this, but also in Zhao Yi and the imperial court of Sheng'an...

It's likely that it will drift away with the wind.

"Duke, there are people there."

At that moment, a group of laborers came to fetch water from the river.

It should be a nearby settlement.

The vast majority of this territory has already fallen under Song Shi'an's rule.

Fortunately, the warrant for his arrest couldn't be issued so quickly.

The Duke of Li calmly turned his gaze in that direction and said, "Skin them alive."

Soon, these men, carrying knives and unharnessing their horses, suddenly emerged from the forest, surrounded the laborers, forced them to strip naked, and then killed them one by one.

Then the seven men donned armor, and like Song Shi'an, they draped themselves in the clothes of laborers to complete their disguise.

The horses, having eaten and drunk their fill, had almost turned their blue stripes back on.

The seven continued their escape.

.........

As Song Shi'an watched Yu Xiu's head and body being sewn back together and wrapped in the leather of the horse carcass, a tear rolled down his cheek, deeply grieving.

He underestimated the man's power.

What's even more unexpected is that at his age, he's still so brave.

"My lord... the message has been sent out. They will do everything in their power to capture the Duke of Li and bring him before you, to be torn to pieces." San Gou reported, head bowed.

"Finding a needle in a haystack, how easy is that?"

Song Shi'an never expected to be able to capture the Duke of Li at this time.

The Huaiyang camp had nearly 100,000 soldiers and civilians under its command. Although he had ignited most of the area and converted them, many civilians had fled like kites with broken strings. He could only control less than 30,000 to 50,000 people.

In such a vast area, especially in ancient times, asking them to rescue a single person seems absurd.
If they were to disguise themselves again, it would be even less likely that they could be caught.

Just like how the Duke of Li wanted to kill him, but after being deceived by Yu Xiu, who was his double, he never had the chance to kill him again.

Even with so many people surrounding him, they couldn't take him down, and it would be difficult to catch him in the wild in the next day or two.

"My lord, it is my fault for being useless," San Gou said with great shame. "Please punish me."

"Punishment?"

After asking the question in return, Song Shi'an looked at him and said with great confusion, "Didn't we win?"

Yes, Yu Xiu is dead, which is very painful for Song Shi'an.

But in terms of the situation, he was already very close to success.

It takes at least two days to get here from the military agricultural camp to the Duke.

It will take two more days to get back from here.

For four whole days, he was unable to perform any micro-management or command.

All Song Shi'an needs to do during this period is to quickly take over all the camps, leaving him with only an 'isolated island', and then he will have achieved a major strategic victory.

"San Gou, take 80% of the troops and take the county town," Song Shi'an said.

"My lord, I only need 50%." San Gou knew that Song Shi'an was going to take 20% of the men to fight elsewhere, so he insisted.

"With 80% of our troops, we will take Huaiyang City within two days," Song Shi'an said, glaring at him. "If we fail, I will cut off your head."

"……Yes!"

The three dogs received the order and immediately carried it out.

After putting aside his grief, Song Shi'an was about to accept this complete victory.

.........

Wang Shuishan now realizes just how difficult Song Shi'an's life has been.

He was only leading a few thousand men to hold the garrison and farm, and he felt this strained in the face of an attack by thousands of troops.

Song Shi'an was facing Ji Yuan at that time.

Fortunately, there is still a sufficient supply of food.

"Sir, is Lord Song really coming?" At this moment, an officer came up to him and said anxiously, "We have already lost more than a thousand people."

His several thousand men were a mix of civilians and a small number of soldiers, while the several thousand men on the other side were purely military.

Even the weak garrison troops were much stronger than ordinary people.

"Does it matter?" Wang Shuishan asked back, turning around.

"Huh? This..." The officer was stunned for a moment, unsure of what to say.

Doesn't this matter?
"Let me tell you about the general trend of the world," Wang Shuishan said. "In Huai County, it's a battle between Lord Song and Duke Li. Whoever wins will control the court."

The officers didn't quite understand what this had to do with their lives.

Then Wang Shuishan said, "They won the world, while if we lose, we will only lose these insignificant lives. So, is our life or death important?"

"Does Your Excellency mean..." The officer suddenly realized something and asked, "We are not considered important by the Duke of Li and Lord Song?"

“If the Duke of Li really wants to get rid of me, he can do it within three days by sending a large army. If Lord Song really wants to come to my rescue, he only needs to show his face to join forces with me,” Wang Shuishan told him. “But the death of one of me cannot allow the Duke of Li to win. The rescue of one of me cannot allow Lord Song to win either.”

To put it bluntly, this place is not important at all.

"No wonder I've never seen such a powerful, all-out assault on a fortress," the officer realized.

It seems that the Duke of Li has been besieging the city and attacking reinforcements all along.

Lord Song's first thought was to attract troops and then attack the Jiangpu branch camp to seize control of the river.

The duel between those two important figures is not about this, but about determining a winner in their duel.

Here, life or death can be determined.

"Our food supplies can last for another ten days or so, while their victory or defeat will not drag on for another ten days."

All Wang Shuishan needs to do is stay alive.

However, he was very worried about Song Shi'an.

That was a lifelong reputation, with almost no defeats in his life, truly the Duke of Li, the paragon of the Great Yu...

Can he really win?

Just then, a soldier came over and reported: "Sir, the troops surrounding us have started fighting, but they are not attacking us!"

"Who are we going to fight?" Wang Shuishan asked very seriously.

"Fight with the people who came to my rescue!" the soldier said. "I heard that reinforcements have arrived from all directions, carrying Lord Song's banner!"

"We're saved!" the officer exclaimed excitedly.

Wang Shuishan finally smiled and breathed a sigh of relief: "Shi An, have you solved it?"

...

"It's astonishing! When these soldiers and civilians saw you, sir, they seemed to have completely changed. They were incredibly brave and fearless, just like the vanguard in a siege!"

One of the lieutenants standing next to Song Shi'an said with great admiration.

"Then you haven't seen what I'm like in Beiliang," Song Shi'an said with a hint of pride.

"How could I not have heard of your illustrious reputation in Beiliang, sir? But seeing it with my own eyes is still truly awe-inspiring!"

From his horse, he watched as these men advanced towards the encircling army, gradually eroding their defenses. Even in one-on-one combat, they held their own.

There is clearly a difference in combat strength.

But adrenaline amplified them.

Of course, that's understandable.

Song Shi'an's personal visit was a signal that the war would end soon.

The group of people here doesn't have a leader at all.

They haven't even received any orders from the Duke of Li in the past few days.

They're practically just scattered, disorganized soldiers now.

Therefore, under the combined attack from within and without, the defeated army surrendered one after another.

In less than a day, the area was completely pacified.

By this time, most of the military settlements and camps had changed their flags and banners.

"Shuishan!" Upon seeing him, Song Shi'an excitedly picked him up.

"Shi An! You did it!"

After hugging him, Wang Shuishan said with great excitement.

“We accomplished some things, but not all of them.” Song Shi’an’s tone gradually became somewhat dejected. “Doctor Yu is dead. He was killed by Wu Qing himself.”

"..." Wang Shuishan's heart skipped a beat, and he also became heavy-hearted. "That lord has actually left?"

They were candidates in the same cohort, and naturally, they were also appointed to official positions in the same cohort.

The candidates for the imperial examinations and the juren (successful candidates in the provincial and metropolitan examinations) were basically all interviewed by Yu Xiu.

In ancient times, this was actually equivalent to a 'mentor'.

At that time, Wang Shuishan was only a seventh-rank official, and he didn't have many opportunities to befriend such a high-ranking figure as a fourth-rank official.

However, even during that brief conversation, Wang Shuishan could sense the other party's goodwill.

He just died like that...

“I let the Duke of Li escape,” Song Shi’an said, “but he can’t control the situation here anymore.”

"Besides the Huaiyang Camp, where else is not under our control?" Wang Shuishan asked.

He was surrounded and received virtually no news, so he had little understanding of the situation outside.

“I sent San Gou to attack Huaiyang City, and it should be captured around the same time. The other places have also basically changed hands,” Song Shi’an said. “There’s one more place, which is quite important, but we haven’t been able to take it.”

"Where?" Wang Shuishan asked.

“Fan Wuji’s branch camp,” Song Shi’an said.

"Didn't he surrender?" Wang Shuishan asked, puzzled.

“I sent him a message, but given his personality, it’s unlikely he’ll surrender,” Song Shi’an said. “You know him too; he’s neither a treacherous minister nor a coward. He’s not opposing us, nor is he aiding and abetting evil.”

“He’s a princeling… no, a Wu Wang faction member,” Wang Shuishan said. “He can’t betray his party so easily.”

The saying goes, "To repay your kindness on the golden platform, I would gladly die for you, like a jade dragon."

Everyone has their own beliefs.

In ancient times, this thing was called a 'jie'.

Anyone can try to overthrow the young Grand Secretary, but not me, Hu Zhongxian.

Anyone can waver and be a weather vane, kneeling before whoever wins. But Fan Wuji, from a family of military generals and a scholar who passed the imperial examination, cannot bring down the King of Wu.

"How about I go?" Wang Shuishan suggested.

“That’s exactly what I think,” Song Shi’an said. “Tell him that loyalty to the Great Yu is also loyalty. Moreover, the King of Wu is not the one we oppose; we oppose the Duke of Li, who is holding the innocent King of Wu hostage.”

In ancient times, the connection between classmates and colleagues was quite useful in persuading people to surrender.

Otherwise, Cao Cao wouldn't have sent Jiang Gan to persuade Zhou Yu to surrender.

Fan Wuji may not have wanted to follow the King of Wu in his reckless behavior, but his admirable qualities forced him to be a righteous person.

Wang Shuishan personally went to persuade them, which was also a way to give them a way out.

“Okay!” Wang Shuishan nodded, then grasped Song Shi’an’s hand and said very seriously, “I will only send one person on this trip. You can keep the rest of the people.”

“No, I’ll give you five hundred men,” Song Shi’an said.

“No, I’ll go alone,” Wang Shuishan insisted. “Once you’ve taken Huaiyang City, you’ll need to gather all your troops to attack the Huaiyang camp. I only need one person, and then I’ll bring you several thousand more.”

"Take at least a dozen cavalrymen with you to protect your safety," Song Shi'an said with concern.

"Just give me five cavalrymen."

Wang Shuishan stretched out a hand.

"Ok."

Song Shi'an agreed.

Before they parted, the two bowed to each other and then went their separate ways.

……

"We pay our respects to the Duke!"

After the Duke of Li returned to camp with his wounds, the officials and generals saluted him in unison.

Duke Li solemnly passed by them, sat down in his seat, and said, "After a hundred-mile raid, I have personally killed Yu Xiu."

After he finished speaking, everyone was about to offer their enthusiastic congratulations. Then they paused for a moment, but after the initial shock, they still offered their congratulations in unison.

"The Duke is mighty!"

"This is a great victory!"

"Our army will win!"

Although that's what they said, they were all wondering what it meant to kill Yu Xiu.

What does this battle have to do with Yu Xiu?
Where is he?
Only Gao Yunyi knew that the Duke had been tricked by Song Shi'an, and he felt a little uneasy.

I was the one who found Song Shi'an's location for him, but when we got there, it was Yu Xiu instead. That old guy almost died out there. I hope he won't blame me...

Can you blame me?
Who knew that the person in the command post was actually this person?

That man who was my mentor Ouyang Ke actually chose to take sides at this time. Isn't that absurd?

“Their army has also suffered heavy losses and should be unable to launch any offensive for a short period of time,” said the Duke of Li. “You continue to hold your ground, and General Zhao Yi will send troops over.”

"Yes!"

After giving these instructions, the Duke of Li returned to his barracks.

Then, the army doctors began to treat the rotten flesh of the wound.

He gritted his teeth, cold sweat pouring down his forehead.

He's getting old.

If he were younger, when Song Shi'an appeared, he would have led those hundred men to charge at Song Shi'an instead of choosing to escape and break through.

If the spring breeze takes pity on the flowers, can it allow me to be young again?
Meanwhile, bad news kept coming in from inside the barracks.

"My lord, Wang Shuishan has been relieved by Song Shi'an, and most of our troops have already surrendered."

"Duke, Fan Wuji has been turned against us, and the whole group has turned against us."

"Duke, Huaiyang City was besieged and fell in less than two days. The county magistrate and the defending general were executed."

These successive pieces of bad news signaled the gradual demise of the Duke of Li's control over Huai County.

Soon, everyone will be coming over.

Under Song Shi'an's leadership.

It eventually devolved into a pure battle of offense and defense.

Just like Ji Yuan felt for him that day.

The only difference is that even if the Duke of Li managed to defend it, he would not receive any reward.

But how could he back down?

How could he possibly back down...?

This stubborn mentality persisted until a eunuch was brought into the camp.

He came at night.

“Duke, the Empress Dowager sent me to tell you something,” the eunuch said. “We can no longer stay in Sizhou. Song Shi’an has been officially appointed as the governor of Sizhou, and Sheng’an has issued an edict ordering all the prefects and military commanders to go to Huai County to pay their respects.”

Everything else is fine; he has been formally appointed as the governor of Sili Province.

Moreover, the surrounding county troops were to be mobilized to present their report to Song Shi'an.

This means that the originally fair and just one-on-one match was interfered with by the will of Heaven.

"Is the edict issued by Sheng'an? Isn't it her who issued the edict?" Duke Li sneered.

"Duke, even the Empress Dowager is helpless..." the eunuch said with difficulty. "Song Jing and Ouyang Ke have joined forces to force the emperor to abdicate, and none of the officials in the capital are able to respond. They all support Song Shi'an."

The nobles in the imperial court became mere figureheads.

"Did she tell me to run away?" Duke Li asked rhetorically.

"Duke, the Empress Dowager has also informed General Zhao Yi," the eunuch said. "He will be coming to meet you with the remaining troops soon."

"The remaining troops?" the Duke of Li demanded. "How is Zhao Yi's situation?"

"..." After a moment of silence, the eunuch said dejectedly, "If the fighting continues, not a single soldier will be left alive. The people of Qinzhou will all be wiped out."

Clenching his fists, the Duke of Li's cheeks trembled.

He admitted he lost, but he didn't admit he lost alone.

How could my teammates be so terrible?

However, he also felt that this was not accidental, nor was he being deliberately targeted.

The fact that the teammates were bad was already established beforehand.

His teammates didn't become bad just because they followed him; his teammates have always been bad.

After several generations of corruption, the nobility has become utterly despicable. Even someone like Zhao Xiang can serve as the commander-in-chief of the three armies. How can we fight against them?
Your Majesty, you were right. Your strategy for raising pigs in Qinzhou was indeed correct.

"Emperor, you have won."

Duke Li sighed, but his expression quickly darkened. In front of the eunuch, he said, "Even a centipede with a hundred legs will not fall down when dead. As long as I live, I will personally overthrow the Wei family's empire that you have been so carefully protecting."

"Duke," the eunuch said tremblingly in a low voice, "what about the Prince of Wu? The Empress Dowager wants him to return to Sheng'an..."

Before he could finish speaking, the Duke of Li gave him a cold look: "Do I need her to teach me how to do things?"

…………

The camp, besieged by tens of thousands of people, lowered its white banners.

Song Shi'an entered the camp.

All the surrendered officials, including Gao Yunyi, knelt before the camp gate.

However, Song Shi'an walked directly to Gao Yunyi and helped him up.

Then I took his hand and we walked inside.

"Lord Song, this sinner..."

"What Lord Song? What guilty minister? What's the point of talking about such things with our relationship?"

Song Shi'an immediately smiled and said.

"Oh dear, I..."

"Just tell me what's useful, stop with the pointless talk," Song Shi'an said. "What's the situation?"

Seeing this, Gao Yunyi couldn't be coy anymore and said directly, "Before you came, the Duke of Li disappeared last night. Moreover, the Prince of Wu also disappeared."

“I knew it.” Song Shi’an said calmly. “The Empress Dowager ordered all the surrounding counties to submit to me, so the Duke of Li lost all will to fight and had no choice but to leave.”

“But you have already won this battle,” Gao Yunyi said. “With Sheng An’s orders, tens of thousands fewer people will die.”

Song Shi'an was prepared to fight a bloody battle in Huai County and kill the Duke of Li in his hometown.

But the higher-ups pulled the plug, ruling him the winner directly, thus minimizing casualties.

“But the King of Wu is still in the hands of the Duke of Li, which is still a bit troublesome…” Gao Yunyi said.

Song Shi'an remained silent and did not speak.

They continued until they reached the Tuntian Camp.

Inside the main camp, there was a sand table.

A line was drawn on the sand table with a sword.

Upon seeing the three dogs on the line, he suddenly turned red with anger: "My lord, this old scoundrel is too arrogant!"

This line runs from here all the way to Qinzhou.

And this was the escape route of the Duke of Li.

By drawing it himself, he was clearly showing his disrespect to Song Shi'an.

I ran away!
However, Song Shi'an remained unmoved. He drew the sword from San Gou's waist and plunged it into the valley where Qin Si and Liang Zhou met, aiming for the midpoint of the line! (End of Chapter)