69novels Chapter 1080 Yue Fei, Xue Rengui, and Lü Bu!
Chapter 1080 Yue Fei, Xue Rengui, and Lü Bu!
"But what?" Lu Bu turned his head, his gaze sharp as lightning.
“But a general cannot rely solely on bravery,” Gao Shun said, mustering his courage. “He must know how to appoint people wisely, he must be fair in rewards and punishments, he must…”
"Enough," Lü Bu interrupted him. "You also think I'm a reckless fool?"
Gao Shun knelt down on the ground: "This humble general dares not."
Lü Bu waved his hand, signaling him to retreat. He was left alone on the city wall again. A cold wind blew, carrying the distant sound of war drums. Cao Cao was preparing for the final attack; he knew it.
Perhaps tomorrow, perhaps the day after, this city will fall. Then he will die, Diao Chan will be captured, his men… he doesn't know.
He thought of Ding Yuan and Dong Zhuo again. Both of his adoptive fathers had died under his halberd. The world called him a "traitor who served three masters," but he didn't care. In chaotic times, who wasn't just trying to survive? He was simply being more direct.
"Fengxian, if you could change your temper..." Chen Gong's words rang in my ears.
It's too late, everything is too late. That's just the kind of person he is: proud, arrogant, suspicious, and fickle. He can't change, and he doesn't want to change.
He stood up and looked towards Cao Cao's camp outside the city. In the firelight, he could vaguely see Cao Cao's central command tent. That short man was his greatest adversary in this life.
"If I had another chance..." he murmured to himself.
Just then, a soft white light suddenly enveloped the city tower. Lü Bu turned around in surprise, only to see the light grow stronger and stronger, enveloping him completely. He tried to draw his sword, but found that his body was completely out of his control.
"This is..." Before he could finish speaking, the white light suddenly contracted.
On the city tower, only the unfinished wine remained, gradually cooling in the cold wind.
In the twelfth month of the eleventh year of Shaoxing, in Lin'an, at the Dali Temple prison.
Yue Fei sat on a straw mat, gazing at the snowflakes falling outside the iron bars of his window. It had been twenty-nine days. Since being imprisoned on trumped-up charges, he had been counting the days every day.
"Marshal Yue, it's time to eat." The jailer brought over a bowl of coarse rice and a dish of pickled vegetables.
Yue Fei nodded and took the bowl of rice. The food was simple, but he ate slowly and earnestly. After many years in the military, he was already used to hardship.
But in my heart, I still can't let it go.
Ten years of Northern Expeditions, four campaigns. From the recapture of the six prefectures of Xiangyang to the great victory at Yancheng, from the crushing defeat of the Jin army at Zhuxian Town to the imminent advance on Bianjing. Each time, he was one step closer to his dream of "straight to the heart of the enemy and welcoming back the two emperors." But each time, he was summoned back by an imperial edict.
"Ten years of hard work, wasted in a single day!" He recalled the grief and indignation he felt when he received the twelve imperial edicts.
Even more tragically, he was not defeated by the Jurchens, but by his own people. Qin Hui's framing, Zhang Jun's false accusations, Zhao Gou's suspicions... these were more terrifying than the Jurchen cavalry.
“Father.” Yue Yun’s voice interrupted his thoughts.
Yue Fei looked up and saw that his son had also been brought in. Yue Yun's face bore scars, but his eyes remained resolute.
"They've captured you too," Yue Fei said, his voice slightly hoarse.
Yue Yun knelt before his father and said, "I am willing to live and die with you, Father."
Yue Fei patted his son's head without saying a word. He recalled many years ago, when he taught Yue Yun martial arts in their hometown of Tangyin. At that time, Yue Yun was just a child, holding a wooden sword, saying that he wanted to protect his country like his father.
Now, the son has truly become a general, but he is also truly going to die alongside his father.
"Yun'er, do you regret it?" Yue Fei suddenly asked.
Yue Yun shook his head: "I have no regrets. My father taught me to be loyal to my country until my dying breath."
Yue Fei's eyes welled up with tears. He was a man of strong character who rarely shed a tear. But at this moment, looking at his son's young face, he felt a deep sense of reluctance and guilt.
If he hadn't insisted on the Northern Expedition, if he hadn't offended Qin Hui, perhaps his son could have lived a peaceful life. But if he could do it all over again, would he make the same choice?
Yes, he would. He had the answer in his heart. Some things, even knowing they are impossible, must be done. Some people, even knowing they are invincible, must be fought against. This was his way, his conviction.
Outside the iron bars, the snow fell heavier and heavier. Such heavy snowfall is rare in Lin'an in winter; it was as if even the heavens were mourning this wrongful imprisonment.
"Marshal, the time has come." The jailer's voice rang out from outside the door, tinged with a hint of reluctance.
Yue Fei stood up and straightened his prison clothes. Although he was in prison, his spine remained straight, like a mountain.
Yue Yun also stood up and stood beside his father. The father and son looked at each other and saw the calm in each other's eyes.
The moment the jailer opened the cell door, a soft white light suddenly filled the cell. Yue Fei looked up in surprise and saw the light grow stronger and stronger, completely enveloping him and Yue Yun.
"This is..." Before he could finish speaking, the white light suddenly contracted.
In the cell, only the unfinished bowl of brown rice and the untouched dish of pickled vegetables remained.
In the first year of Yongchun, in the Western Regions, at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains.
Xue Rengui reined in his warhorse and gazed at the distant, snow-capped mountains. He was already sixty-eight years old, an age when he should have been enjoying his grandchildren at home, but he still volunteered to lead the western expedition against the Turks.
"General, the vanguard has made contact with the enemy." The lieutenant rode up.
Xue Rengui nodded and took the longbow from his back. This bow had been with him for forty years, from Liaodong to the Western Regions, from Goguryeo to the Turks, drinking the blood of countless enemies.
"Give the order to form ranks." His voice was still loud and clear.
The soldiers quickly formed ranks, their banners fluttering in the cold wind. Xue Rengui rode to the front of the formation, his white robe and silver armor gleaming in the sunlight. Though nearing seventy, he remained as upright as a pine tree, exuding an imposing aura.
"Xue Rengui is here! Who dares to fight him!" His shout echoed through the valley.
A commotion broke out in the Turkic army. Xue Rengui's reputation resounded throughout the grasslands. More than thirty years ago, it was here that he killed three Turkic generals with three arrows, frightening 100,000 enemy soldiers into dismounting and surrendering. The legend of "Three Arrows Settling the Tianshan Mountains" has been passed down ever since.
Now, the legend has returned.
A Turkic general rode out on horseback, wielding a spiked club and yelling as he charged. Xue Rengui remained calm and composed, drawing his bow and nocking an arrow with fluid, effortless movements, unlike that of an old man.
At the sound of the bowstring, the enemy general fell from his horse.
Another arrow, and the second general is killed.
The third arrow pierced the throat of the third general.
Three arrows, three men—a scene straight out of history. The Turkic army was thrown into chaos, the soldiers staring in terror at the white-robed old general as if they were witnessing death itself.
"Kill!" Xue Rengui drew his long sword and charged ahead.
The Tang army's morale soared, and they surged towards the enemy like a tidal wave. The battle lasted for an hour, and the Turkic army was routed, abandoning countless corpses and supplies as they fled in disarray.
As the sun set, Xue Rengui stood on the hilltop, gazing at the retreating remnants of the enemy. The setting sun, like blood, dyed the snow-capped mountains red, and also dyed his white robe crimson.
"General, we annihilated over 10,000 enemy soldiers and captured 3,000 warhorses in this battle," the lieutenant reported excitedly.
Xue Rengui nodded without speaking. Victory was commonplace for him, but each time, he would recall the tension and excitement of his first time on the battlefield.
It was the nineteenth year of the Zhenguan era. He was thirty years old when he enlisted in the army. Because of his white robe, he caught the attention of Li Shimin, thus beginning the legend of a great general.