Frost for a Thousand Years

On the day Zhao Yi was about to start the battle, several thousand soldiers broke away before dawn and spread rumors that they had suffered a major defeat at the front.

To stabilize morale, Zhao Yi personally led his personal guards to suppress deserters among the Qinzhou people, killing anyone who tried to escape. The remaining soldiers who had settled in the fields were also placed under temporary house arrest. For a time, the army was divided, with the Qinzhou faction and the Sizhou faction becoming increasingly wary and suspicious of each other.

Wei Wusheng was incredibly audacious. He had just received several thousand troops, and without any political instruction, he launched a full-scale attack after only meeting with the generals.

In this way, Zhao Yijun was defeated on the spot, with no power to resist.

The temporary camp's granary was captured, and the army had no time to retreat. In the struggle for horses, they trampled each other, resulting in heavy casualties.

Zhao Yi hastily retreated with only a thousand or so Qinzhou soldiers to seek refuge with Hua Zheng, who provided him with logistics and occupied the Jianxing General Camp.

However, the troops in the main camp were not originally from Qinzhou. After their defeat, they rallied to the King of Qin. Mutinies broke out frequently, and countless soldiers deserted.

In the end, only one thousand soldiers from Qinzhou, less than two thousand soldiers from Sizhou, and five or six thousand soldiers and civilians remained.

Wei Wusheng's army gradually took over the surrounding branch camps and gradually gathered his former troops.

The military strength of both sides has been completely reversed.

They lost.

In the camp, only the two of them remained, looking at each other in bewilderment.

After closing his eyes and holding his breath for a while, Hua Zheng spoke: "After the great victory, the Prince of Qin personally led his elite Imperial Guards and gave them no way out. What's even more insidious is that he declared that the Qinzhou soldiers were never their enemies, but rather the leaders of a rebellious regime that deliberately sought to split the court. He said that as long as they surrendered, they would be treated as his comrades."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yi couldn't fathom how those scattered soldiers, without a commander and like kites with broken strings, could possibly not surrender.

But then he suddenly realized...

What did you call me just now?
King of Qin?

Why are you speaking so respectfully?
“Without food and supplies, without logistics, those scattered troops won’t escape. After we wipe them all out, they will eventually come looking for us,” Hua Zheng said.

“No,” Zhao Yi retorted, “they have already found us.”

"Do you mean controlling those branch camps and surrounding us?" Hua Zheng asked.

“The branch camps are just some settlements on the plains, without controlling any key routes. How can they completely lock us down here?” After a moment of hesitation, Zhao Yi told him, “People from the palace have come. The Empress revealed that the court has officially appointed Song Shi’an as the governor of Sizhou. All counties in Sizhou need to send people and troops to assist in stabilizing the situation.”

"Why didn't you tell me about this?!" Hua Zheng asked, utterly bewildered. "And why didn't the Empress come to me directly?"

Hua Zheng held a higher official position and shared the same surname as the Empress Dowager, making them relatives.

Logically speaking, shouldn't such news be told to one's nephew?
How should I tell Zhao Yi?

"Hua Taipu, you ask me why?" Zhao Yi asked, "We are the Crown Prince's men, and we are sworn enemies with Wei Wusheng. Yet you address him as the King of Qin?"

The old aristocracy's tendency to compromise reappeared.

“Whether I address him or not, he is still the King of Qin,” Hua Zheng argued after being exposed. “That title was personally bestowed by the Emperor Emeritus.”

"You still dare to call me the retired emperor!"

Zhao Yi raised his finger and made a pointing motion like a husky pointing at someone, looking quite serious.

Huazheng didn't know what to say, so he lowered his head and touched his chin. People tend to make a lot of small gestures when they are embarrassed.

"The Empress ordered Sizhou to submit to Song Shi'an, yet she also revealed this matter to me. Don't you really know what she meant?" Zhao Yi questioned.

"The Empress Dowager wants us to run away."

Huazheng stopped pretending and went straight to the Empress Dowager.

“Yes, she has accepted the fact that she is the Empress Dowager, and the power will be handed over to Song Shi’an and Wei Wusheng. But why go to such lengths?” Zhao Yi stood up, walked to Hua Zheng, and said earnestly, “The Empress Dowager is making us run away.”

The highest directive was issued and then leaked.

There are undoubtedly two signals being sent.

First, I was forced to relinquish control of the court.

Secondly, you should also give up any illusions about continuing the struggle as soon as possible.

"Where can you escape to?" Hua Zheng asked.

“Qinzhou,” Zhao Yi said. “The Empress Dowager’s intention is for us to return to Qinzhou. As long as we go back, we will still have troops and territory.”

"But what about our families in Sheng'an City?" Hua Zheng asked.

“They can naturally evacuate, and they don’t need to go through here; they can head north directly from Sheng’an,” Zhao Yi said. “Besides, Song Shi’an and Wei Wusheng control the court, not the whole country. We have troops and land in Qinzhou; how dare they touch our people? Isn’t it just like how the court has to put a lot of effort into dealing with him when he has troops and land in Beiliang?”

"So you're not going to move either?"

"Then let's go! Everyone, get back to Qinzhou. At least on our territory, we are kings!" Zhao Yi became unusually excited and outspoken. "If we don't escape now, or if we're too late, the prefects and magistrates of the nearby counties can kill us and take our heads to Wei Wusheng!"

When they had no soldiers and no power, any bandit could kill them.

This is why, in ancient times, evacuations always involved taking the army with them.

In ancient times, being a refugee or bandit was not a specific profession; it was a major category alongside scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants.

Many heroes died at the hands of Little Karami.

Faced with this difficult question, Hua Zheng fell silent again. Then Zhao Yi became anxious, grabbing his collar and saying, "Don't think that just because you and Prince Jin are childhood friends you'll be protected. Prince Jin himself can't even protect himself. His throne was stolen!"

Prince Jin, what a load of nonsense!

"Do you think I'm stupid enough to think that the Prince of Jin can protect me?"

Hua Zheng sighed deeply, then looked at the agitated junior and asked, "Do you think the Duke of Li will let us off after we've fought like this?"

"..." Zhao Yi's heart tightened, and then he argued, "He knew all along that the emperor would be used as a shield, but he didn't say anything, just wanting me to defy the world. Isn't his selfishness justified?"

"Child, if we're only talking about right and wrong, then the Crown Prince should succeed to the throne and become emperor!"

Hua Zheng is about ten years older than Zhao Yi, and also a generation older, but this is the first time he has used such a form of address.

That silly boy, he's really not very bright.

"Why were we able to surrender?" Hua Zheng countered. "We still have value in warning the world."

In other words, it has the value of united front work.

"What do you mean by 'a warning to the world'?" Zhao Yi's pride was shattered by these words. "We are from Qinzhou! We still have Qinzhou! Hua Taipu, where is your pride?"

“If we lead the youths of Qinzhou, these kids who share our surname, and they lose miserably, their bones buried far from home, and then go back to Qinzhou to tell them we’ve lost Sheng’an, how can we still have any pride? General Zhao!”

Neither of them could convince the other.

The atmosphere froze.

Just then, a civil official walked in from outside the barracks. He was about to report something to Hua Zheng when he saw Zhao Yi's excitement and froze on the spot.

Zhao Yi's spider senses were triggered, and he quickly created distance, pulled the sword from the sword rack, and pointed it at Hua Zheng: "Have you already conspired with Wei Wusheng?!"

After being exposed, the civil official also became nervous and wary of Zhao Yi.

"Are you trying to use my head to gain merit and curry favor with that Wei Wusheng? Speak!" Zhao Yi gritted his teeth, wishing he could behead him.

"Sigh—" Hua Zheng sighed and said, "If I wanted to kill you, would I have waited until now? Don't you think that all the people under your command are loyal to you?"

"What nonsense! How could the people of Qinzhou be disloyal to me?"

"You failed to rescue Wu Jue, leading to the Wu family army's crushing defeat. You trusted Ran Tuo too easily, and he surrendered without a fight, joining Wei Wusheng. You launched a general offensive, but lost everything without even a single decent battle." After listing each point, Hua Zheng asked, "Do you think the remaining people will still follow you?"

"..."

Zhao Yi didn't think so.

They fled here earlier out of sheer survival instinct.

Now they all just want to live, and Wei Wusheng is peacefully evolving the situation, so they won't cause any more casualties.

They would not believe in their own leadership abilities.

“My barracks are open, you can leave,” Hua Zheng said calmly. “If you don’t believe me, you can take me hostage.”

"I disdain it!"

Zhao Yi sheathed his sword and then left the place with it.

Then he ordered the last thousand soldiers he had brought with him to leave.

As expected, not many people responded.

"After I meet with the Duke of Li, I will return to Qinzhou with him. Those of you who wish to come, please come with me!"

Zhao Yi could only use 'nostalgia' to win their hearts.

And this method did indeed work.

Nearly three hundred local militia followed him.

They went together to meet up with the Duke of Li, who was also breaking through the encirclement.

The Duke of Li's camp was briefly attacked by a man claiming to be Song Shi'an, but after it was confirmed that Song Shi'an was not there, the suppression was carried out quite easily and the enemy was driven back.

Before Song Shi'an personally led everyone to surround them, he led a small number of elite and loyal cavalrymen and the 'King of Wu' towards Zhao Yi's direction.

When the eunuchs arrived, they had already arranged a meeting place with them.

After this two-way journey, the two reunited in less than a day.

"General, the Duke is about a mile ahead," the lead cavalryman reported to him.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yi's heart began to pound.

He was terrified.

The man exerted a greater sense of pressure on him than the emperor.

Even though he himself had his own grievances and felt that Li Guo was too concerned with public and private matters, he dared not say such things openly.

All he could do was beg for forgiveness.

He knew that the other party would probably forgive him.

Because they are all from Qinzhou.

Because they were all disappointed people who were kicked out by Song Shi'an.

Because they share the same strategic goal of reviving the noble families of Qinzhou.

They must stick together for warmth...

"Follow me to see the Duke of Li."

Zhao Yi addressed the noble sons of the Zhao family.

They were his personal guards.

The Duke of Li came from that side, so he probably doesn't have many men left. Even if something really happens, I can handle it.

At worst, we'll both perish.

And so, he passed by with trepidation.

The Duke of Li was already sitting on a rock, waiting for him.

Beside him was the King of Wu, who looked extremely disheveled and quite dejected.

Zhao Yi dismounted and, when he was still a dozen steps away from the Duke, knelt on one knee, clenched his fists, and said tremblingly, "Your Highness, Your Highness, this humble general has lost."

“I expected this,” the Duke of Li said calmly. “You have no way to harm the emperor.”

"..." Zhao Yi didn't dare to speak, and kept his head down.

“I never expected you to be able to defeat Wei Wusheng,” the Duke of Li said again. “I had anticipated from the beginning that you would delay the battle.”

"Duke, Zhao Yi is incompetent and has brought shame upon you!" After being scolded like this, Zhao Yi dared to speak up, his voice trembling with tears.

"Useless bastards!" Duke Li suddenly roared, "Does losing this battle mean we've lost? We still possess the entire Qinzhou, we still have tens of thousands of troops, we can still fight our way back to Sheng'an. But, absolutely not, we will cry our way back to Sheng'an!"

Zhao Yi felt a surge of heat in his chest, and when he looked up at the Duke of Li, his eyes were already brimming with tears.

“Stand up,” said Li Guogong.

"This humble general...was wrong! This humble general will definitely wash away this shame next time, and will not make the same mistake again!"

Zhao Yi didn't stand up; instead, he pounded his chest with his hand, forcefully stating his position.

Even the King of Wu seemed to be somewhat infected.

He was willing to return to Qinzhou, because it was better than being imprisoned in Sheng'an by Song Shi'an.

Duke Li looked at Zhao Yi, handed his sword to the soldier beside him, and then slowly stood up. Zhao Yi watched as the elder approached, step by step, until he stood before him.

The other person raised their hand, and he didn't dodge. He wanted to take the slap and be woken up.

He no longer wanted to be inferior to others.

But instead of a slap, she gently stroked his head.

Calloused, rough hands gently brushed against his neck.

Zhao Yi immediately burst into tears, choking back sobs as he looked up at the other person...

Meanwhile, the Duke of Li's hand slowly came from behind, took out a dagger, and in the instant the other party's eyes widened in astonishment, he slit his throat with one stroke.

Instantly, blood surged.

Before Zhao Yi could even finish clutching his neck for a second, he collapsed to his knees in front of him.

"!" King Wu was so frightened that he collapsed to the ground.

At the same time, dozens of arrows flew out, swiftly killing the Zhao family members who were still on the ground and hadn't reacted.

The massacre was completed in the blink of an eye.

"Tell those men that Zhao Yi disobeyed orders, suffered heavy losses, and has been executed." Duke Li casually tossed aside his dagger and said, "The rest of you, come and join me. I'll take you home."

"Yes, sir!" The messenger went to relay the message.

"Duke!" King Wu, slumped on the ground, couldn't help but exclaim, "How could it have come to this? How could it have come to this!"

“Your Majesty, please stand up.” The Duke of Li extended his hand and said to him, “This shows a lack of imperial dignity.”

"..."

The King of Wu stared at him in astonishment, feeling fear at the title he had longed for.

He understood everything.

The Duke of Li's return to Qinzhou was not only intended to hinder Sheng'an, but also to divide Dayu.

Why did Zhao Yi die?
Because Zhao Yi, like Ye Changqing, was one of his absolute confidants.

The new emperor's confidant, who was also a military general, how could he possibly stay?

The Duke of Li's treacherous heart is more terrifying than anyone else's.

He was indeed the most politically astute and capable military general of the Great Yu Dynasty. In Qinzhou, he might very well have been able to establish a state.

A nation even more powerful than Northern Yan.

However, if he were to become ruthless, he would absolutely not hesitate to replace himself as emperor.

The King of Wu was frightened; he braced himself on the ground with both hands and unconsciously began to retreat.

Meanwhile, the Duke of Li walked towards him step by step.

With a bang, the King of Wu was unable to retreat.

The soldiers standing behind him blocked his way.

He watched helplessly, as if watching a ghost story, as the Duke of Li stretched out his hand in front of him...

The slap didn't land; instead, it landed on his cheek.

The King of Wu was so frightened that he felt like he was suffocating, and he even felt a phantom pain in his neck.

Until the other party grabbed his hand, pulled him up, and said, "Send His Majesty into the carriage."

The soldiers thus "sent" the King of Wu, whose heart was already dead, onto the carriage.

With his more than one hundred men, plus Zhao Yi's three hundred, the Duke of Li led four hundred relatively elite troops toward Qinzhou.

He only has one route home, and that's an open secret.

There was no other way; the Empress Dowager had issued that order, and he would be in danger no matter which county he passed through.

If his head were taken by those minor officials of the third or fourth rank and given to Song Shi'an, he could become one of the Nine Ministers.

One emperor and one courtier.

Many people were eager to become subjects of the new emperor.

no problem.

Song Shi'an, you won. This is the gift of the victor.

I lost, so I should slink back to Qinzhou like a stray dog.

But in this world, there is no such thing as a single battle that truly decides the fate of the world.

My son Wu Jing is now the Governor of Qinzhou, and my son Wu Qiong is also quite intelligent.

Even if I fall in the long river of time, the Wu family of Qinzhou will still be able to continue fighting with you.

The Great Yu empire was won by my grandfather and me, and it will not be easily handed over to you!
And so, the Duke of Li, along with the Crown Prince, retreated.

With enough dry rations on him and the fine rice he had left for his horse, he didn't need to stop to resupply.

Moreover, the enemy forces they encountered in the area north of Jianxing had not yet gathered, and the insignificant obstacles only resulted in the loss of a dozen or so men from their entire cavalry force.

Two days and two nights later, he finally arrived at Bijian Valley.

In the early days of the Dayu Dynasty, there were still passes here. Even the previous dynasty still had them.

However, the great Wei Ye made a significant contribution by directly removing and dismantling the pass, making it freely passable.

This was to prevent the nobles from locking up Qinzhou and growing powerful.

As people moved around, commerce and trade also flourished.

Qinzhou has become extremely close to the Central Plains.

In addition, the old emperor's methods of stationing troops in batches and mixing them into different units resulted in Qinzhou being subject to considerable constraints and control by the central government during this reign.

Of course, there's no point in saying all this.

Once the Duke of Li returns, he will be the King of Qinzhou.

Or at least half of Qinzhou, he was king.

With half of that, he could raise an army of forty to fifty thousand men, and he would show Song Shi'an what it means to be vigorous even in old age.

However, just before actually entering the pass, he couldn't help but look back.

How could he not miss his prosperous Sheng'an, the premier capital of the land?
"Walk."

The Duke of Li issued an order, and more than three hundred cavalrymen escorted the 'new emperor' into Bijian Valley.

This area stretches for over ten miles, and while it is wide in most places, it is also very narrow in some places, allowing only three horses to pass at the same time.

Therefore, the new emperor's carriage could only enter alone.

Just then, a crow suddenly cawed.

Duke Li subconsciously raised his head.

Suddenly, countless boulders and logs rolled down from both sides of the valley, blocking the narrowest part of the pass and piling up several meters high.

Their army was cut off.

The first two hundred people were locked inside the pass, while the remaining less than one hundred were not.

In fact, those hundred people were let go.

Their goal is the King of Wu.

And the Duke of Li, who would certainly be by the side of the King of Wu.

Falling rocks, giant trees, and freely falling arrows came in dense swarms...

"Charge forward, move!"

With a loud shout, the Duke of Li led the remaining men to rush inside.

Gripping the reins tightly, his face was grim, and he kept muttering, "Impossible, this is absolutely impossible..."

He didn't think it was impossible to set up an ambush here.

An ambush can certainly be set up here.

There's absolutely no way that many people could be lying in ambush there.

Song Shi'an was surrounded by his own forces, which were less than one-fifth of his own. He couldn't even guarantee his own survival. How could he possibly send a large number of troops to ambush him here in advance?

It's as if he's already certain he'll win.

And on the basis of winning, you also need to make sure you kill yourself.

Impossible! Absolutely impossible!

The Duke of Li was not afraid of the ambushers, who were already waiting in front of him, a sparse number of soldiers.

Until he broke through a corner, the narrow space widened, and suddenly the view opened up.

Before him stood five hundred elite Imperial Guard cavalry, wielding gleaming spears and shields.

The strongest army in the world is here, waiting in comfort for the enemy to tire themselves out.

Upon seeing them, the soldiers of the Duke of Li's army instantly turned their fighting spirit into despair, losing all will to fight...

The Duke of Li, alone on horseback, stood before the crowd.

He didn't look at the soldiers, but instead surveyed the burial ground, roaring almost hysterically, "Song Sheng! You have insulted me too much! You have insulted me too much!!!"

The sound made Xinyue's body tremble.

She rode her horse to the front of the crowd, looked at the man, and asked coldly, "Wu Qing, do you still remember the Kingdom of Ji?"

The Duke of Li looked at her and felt she was a stranger.

"I am the daughter of the King of Ji!" Xin Yue roared. "Look at my face, do you recognize it?!"

After examining him closely, the Duke of Li was somewhat dazed.

He knew this person was Song Shi'an's woman.

But they didn't know her other identity.

The daughter of the King of Ji?
It's as if I can really see the face of the person whose head I cut off after destroying the country, and the one I'm holding in my hand.

"You're going to kill me." The Duke of Li laughed, saying to the somewhat familiar young girl, "I'm almost old and dying, and you've finally come to kill me?"

Xin Yue was not provoked at all and asked in return, "Do you know who my father-in-law is?"

The Duke of Li's face darkened.

"You nobles may be on the run, but once Song Dutang holds power, do you think he can let my father's killer go?"

Xin Yue knew he was deliberately making her revenge less satisfying, so she decided to give him a proper response before he died: "Wu Jing can't be caught, but Wu Qiong, and his sons Wu Yi and Wu Xu, who are your grandsons. Oh, and your daughter... When you wiped out my clan, you didn't spare them, did you?"

The Duke of Li's face grew darker and darker, and his eyes became increasingly fierce.

Xin Yue drew her sword, but suddenly stopped.

“Xin Yue, this is a place the Duke of Li must pass through. If I fail to capture him, you will have to take care of it.”

"I want to deal with him myself. I want to be with you. I don't need your help..."

“I will help you, and you must stay there and guard him. If he tries to run away, kill him.”

"it is good."

"Xinyue, if you have a chance to take revenge, think of me before you do it."

That gentle face appeared in her mind.

Xin Yue sheathed her sword.

He picked up the bow and crossbow, nocked an arrow, and released it with full force.

One arrow hit the arm, one the thigh, one the waist, one the shoulder...

After the Duke of Li fell from his horse with a thud, Xin Yue spurred her horse forward at full speed, drew her bow to its fullest extent, and aimed an arrow at the still-breathing Duke of Li, nearly shattering the bowstring as she shot it into his eye, accompanied by a heart-wrenching roar: "Ah—" (End of Chapter)