"General! General!"
Just as Liu Xu was lost in thought, he suddenly heard the voice of an old servant from his home.
"Uncle Zhang, why are you here?"
Seeing the old servant, Liu Xu felt an inexplicable warmth in his heart.
"The Madam made some food and wine for you and asked me to bring it over!"
"I'm doing well in the army, just tell her to take good care of the child, no need to worry about me! Oh, this is something I got from Yuan City. It's a shame I forgot about it during the fight last night, but it should still be usable!"
As Liu Xu spoke, he took out a golden hairpin from his embrace.
Although the gold threads at the front were slightly detached, and the originally straight hairpin body was slightly bent, the old servant still took it with a smile.
"General, the city gate has been renovated. Do you think it's acceptable now?"
As soon as Liu Xu handed the hairpin to the old servant, a young officer behind him began to report on matters.
"Put the things here first, you can go back now!"
"Yes!"
Hearing him say this, the old servant could only respond with a "yes" and turned to walk down the city wall.
Although the affairs of the city were complex, with the cooperation of all civil and military officials, the entire Zhen Ding City operated like a precise machine.
Countless laborers were busy, some repairing the city walls, others transporting supplies. For two full days and nights, Liu Xu had reinforced the entire Zhen Ding City as much as possible.
However, no matter how well prepared the two sides were, the battle was bound to begin.
Although he had taken a knife to the chest, and even his breathing would cause the wound to ache, when the sun rose again, Han Qinghe stubbornly ordered his close attendants to put on his armor.
"General!"
Seeing Han Qinghe walk out of the tent again, all the deputy generals around him immediately stepped forward.
"Everyone, today's battle is either victory or death! I'll say it upfront, I will personally oversee the battle today. Anyone who retreats will have their commander executed, their captain executed, and if Han Qinghe retreats, he will be executed!"
"Yes!"
Faced with his fierce gaze, even the most arrogant Jurchen generals could only lower their heads.
Han Qinghe was in no mood for reason at this moment. If any of them dared to object now, Han Qinghe would probably have them executed on the spot without hesitation.
"Beat the drums! Advance!"
With his command, the rumbling sound of war drums immediately sounded, followed by the army, which had long been poised for battle, advancing towards Zhen Ding City in long lines.
"Brothers, the Jurchens' food supplies are running low. If we can hold on for three more days, they'll have to retreat in disgrace!"
Looking at the tense soldiers around him, Liu Xu laughed heartily.
"We've already held on for seven days before you returned, General. What's so difficult about holding on for three more days?"
Seeing that the atmosphere was a bit tense, several trusted aides standing by Liu Xu's side immediately began to shout loudly.
"That's right, what's there to be afraid of? Even if those Jurchens grow three heads and six arms, without food, they'll just become limp shrimps!"
"Let's fight them!"
"Let's fight them!"
When fear reaches its limit, courage is born.
Under the threat of death, the soldiers on the city wall quickly mustered their courage.
Below the city wall, the enemy forces were a dense black mass. Their only hope was to defend this wall; there was no other way. They would fight to the death!
"Dong—"
"Dong—"
"Dong—"
As the Jurchen war drums sounded, countless civilians, driven by fear, pushed the siege engines towards the city wall.
"Archers, prepare!"
Looking at the coarse cloth they were wearing, Liu Xu knew that he couldn't save them at this moment. Perhaps the only thing he could do was to help them find release as quickly as possible.
"General, those are our..."
Hearing Liu Xu's order, the deputy general standing beside him quickly tried to stop him, but he was forced back by Liu Xu's killing gaze halfway through his sentence.
"Look clearly, those are Jurchen soldiers, merely wearing the clothes of our Song Dynasty civilians. Pass down the order: anyone who approaches within a hundred paces of the city wall will be killed without mercy!"
"Yes!"
Forced by his gaze, the deputy general immediately understood his intentions.
Even though he knew in his heart that it was improper and would cause him endless trouble afterward, at this moment, he could only carry out the order.
"Swish—"
Taking a deep breath, Liu Xu drew his bow and shot a signal arrow.
"Anyone who lets this arrow pass will be killed!"
"Yes!"
Upon receiving his order, the entire south city wall fell silent.
Everyone held their breath, staring intently at the arrow standing a hundred paces from the city wall.
Whether the civilians were willing or not, under the threat of steel blades, they were like lambs waiting to be slaughtered, slowly approaching the city wall.
The moment they stepped within a hundred paces of the city wall, a volley of arrows flew from the wall.
A civilian without a shield and without armor immediately became the first victim on the battlefield.
Hearing the screams from below the city, Liu Xu closed his eyes in pain.
Under the threat of death, the civilians pushing the siege engines almost instinctively prepared to flee backward.
"Anyone who takes a step back will be killed without mercy!"
And below the city wall, Han Qinghe, like an emotionless executioner, issued a bloody command with a poker face.
Upon hearing his command, the Jurchen soldiers standing behind the civilians immediately raised their bows and arrows, drew them without hesitation, and shot the first row of Song civilians into hell.
In the tug-of-war between the two sides, these unarmed civilians held out for less than the time it takes an incense stick to burn before they were all slaughtered.
And their deaths propelled the siege engines to within thirty paces of the city wall.
"Attack!"
With the Song civilians dead, Han Qinghe waved his command flag again, and the Song soldiers who had surrendered took their place.
Compared to the civilians who had been trampled into mud, perhaps their only consideration was the armor they wore and the flimsy shields they held...
Urged on by the war drums, the war had just begun, and it had already reached a fever pitch.
Cloud ladders were erected against the city wall, ramshores moved rapidly towards the wall, arrows rained down from the wall, interspersed with rolling logs and stones.
In this moment, human lives were like weeds...