The continuous fine rain, the autumn drizzle, like silk, like smoke, like mist, like a dream, fell on the body, cool and refreshing, like an illusion, like a dream, like poetry, making one feel as if in a dream.
The misty rain was also like an iron net woven by heaven, concealing the tragedy that was unfolding between heaven and earth.
"Giddy up... giddy up... giddy up..."
"Hoo! Hoo! Hoo!"
About fifty li from Xue Lin City, on a hillside, hundreds of Xiongnu cavalrymen, dressed in leather robes, brandished their curved sabers and charged forward with sinister smiles, catching up to the Yan army and some villagers who had retreated from Mawei Fortress.
Mawei Fortress was quite far from Xue Lin City and the other three passes. The sky was raining, and the roads were extremely muddy and difficult to travel. It was not easy for the defeated Yan army and villagers from Mawei Fortress to reach this place. However, just as they were about to reach Xue Lin City, they were intercepted by Xiongnu cavalry and surrounded on the hillside.
"Resist! Resist! Resi..." A Yan general, brandishing his weapon, roared loudly. But he was met by a fierce Xiongnu cavalryman who slashed his saber into his waist and abdomen. The Xiongnu cavalryman then used the momentum of his warhorse to swing his saber upwards. The Yan general's chest and abdomen were torn open, his chest armor shattered, his internal organs spilled out, and blood splattered. He flew out more than ten feet and was already dead before he hit the ground.
A group of Xiongnu cavalrymen slashed their sabers, felling many Yan soldiers. Amidst the whistling of the Xiongnu cavalry, arrows rained down, and many Yan soldiers and civilians fell, dead or wounded, their blood flowing like a stream, dyeing the gray earth red.
Among the Yan army and civilians were many women and children, who let out screams of terror, scrambling to escape. But in this autumn rain, on these muddy roads, amidst these fierce Xiongnu cavalry, where could they escape to?
The remnants of the Yan army and the men who could wield weapons fought desperately, clashing with the Xiongnu cavalry. But they were already tired and hungry, utterly exhausted, almost unable to stand. How could they be a match for these fierce Xiongnu cavalry? Apart from provoking the Xiongnu cavalry to kill more ferociously, their resistance was of no avail.
"The Great Chanyu and the Princess Consort have ordered that those who lay down their arms and surrender will be spared!" a Xiongnu general shouted loudly after felling a Yan soldier.
"If we surrender, can you spare them?" asked Dan Mu, the old village chief of Mawei Fortress, pointing to the women and children.
Dan Mu, leading the remnants of the Yan army and a group of old, weak, women, and children to this place, was already exhausted. Even the hand holding the saber trembled slightly.
"Old fool, whether to let them go or not is not up to you right now," the Xiongnu general replied coldly.
"How can you spit out the mutton you've already put in your mouth?" another Xiongnu general chimed in loudly.
"Hahahaha!" The Xiongnu cavalrymen burst into wild laughter, all looking at the old, weak, women, and children with greedy and lecherous eyes.
There were not a few young and beautiful maidens among the Yan army.
"Quickly throw down your weapons and kneel to surrender, or none of you will survive." The Xiongnu general then pointed his blood-stained saber at Dan Mu and roared.
"Clang!" With a sound, Dan Mu smiled sadly, loosened his grip, and his long saber fell to the ground.
The Xiongnu general was right. If they resisted further, there was no other path but to all die in battle. Along with the women and children, if they surrendered, perhaps they could save their lives, but they would suffer endless humiliation.
.........
"Kneel down, all of you! Kneel down and kowtow to us grandpa a few times, and maybe we'll spare your lives."
"Just kneeling is not enough. You must also curse your dog emperor, curse your court, and curse that old thief Hu Yan Sheng a few times. Whoever curses the loudest and best will live, and maybe grandpa will even give you some food."
"Hahahaha..."
On a small hillside fifty li from Xue Lin City, hundreds of Xiongnu soldiers surrounded the remnants of the Yan army and the women from the fortress. They were constantly humiliating them. The Yan remnants and the women from the fortress looked at these fierce Xiongnu soldiers with fear. The Yan soldiers' armor was tattered, many clearly injured, supported by their companions to stand.
"Puff..." A fierce Xiongnu soldier decapitated a Song soldier who refused to kneel and kicked his head far away. Then, pointing his blood-dripping blade at the other Yan soldiers, he cursed, "We asked you to kneel, to give you a chance to live. You don't know what's good for you? Then don't blame our swift blades."
The decapitated Yan soldier was barely ten years old. His headless body twitched a few times and then lay still. Blood gushed from his neck, flowing onto the ground.
Seeing this, the Yan soldiers had no choice but to kneel. Some kowtowed frantically, begging for mercy, while others glared angrily but were forced to submit to the Xiongnu soldiers' might.
"Xiao Wu, Xiao Wu..." At this moment, an old Yan soldier, disregarding the Xiongnu soldiers' spears and sabers, rushed over and held the still enraged head, weeping, "He was only seventeen years old... Why are you so heartless?"
"Puff! Puff! Puff!" Three Xiongnu soldiers thrust their spears, stabbing the old Yan soldier to death on the ground, where he lay beside the dead Song soldier.
The remaining Yan soldiers and civilians glared angrily but dared not speak.
"Dog barbarians, why are you breaking your promise?" Dan Mu, the old village chief of Mawei Fortress, covered in wounds and completely devoid of strength, sat on the ground, straightening his body with all his might, and cursed at the Xiongnu soldiers.
The Xiongnu had promised that if they surrendered, they would be spared. But now, the Xiongnu were not only killing people indiscriminately but also continuously humiliating them, especially the women. The women were dragged into tents, and even in broad daylight, they were subjected to humiliation by the Xiongnu. How could Dan Mu not be angry? How could he not regret it immensely?
If he had known this would happen, he would have rather fought to the death with the Xiongnu. Even if they all died, it would have been a quick end, unlike now, where they would face endless humiliation.
"Old fool..." The Xiongnu general, with a full beard, patted Dan Mu with his saber and said, "Want to live? If you want to live, I'll give you a chance. That is to sneak into Xue Lin City and be our inside man. Once the army breaks through Xue Lin City, it will be a great merit! The Great Chanyu and the Princess Consort will surely not mistreat you."
At this time, Princess Consort Lin Yue had become the second-in-command of the Xiongnu Duo Yong Jian tribe.
Dan Mu gave a cold laugh and then remained silent.
*With these few scumbags, you think you can break through Xue Lin City, personally guarded by the border Marshal Hu Yan Sheng? What a pipe dream,* Dan Mu secretly sneered in his heart.
"Drag her over!" The Xiongnu general, seeing Dan Mu's silence and that he was ignoring him, ordered his subordinates to drag over a scantily clad woman.
"Speak, do you agree or not?" the Xiongnu general asked, holding the blood-dripping long saber to the woman.
Dan Mu glared furiously at the Xiongnu general, but remained silent.
"Puff!" The Xiongnu general killed the woman with one saber stroke and then looked coldly at Dan Mu.
Dan Mu's eyes split with rage, but he remained silent.
Dan Mu would rather die than be a spy for the Xiongnu.
Seeing this, the Xiongnu general was not in a hurry. He killed a few more people. Seeing that Dan Mu was still unmoved, he said coldly to Dan Mu, "Old man, you're quite tough, and your heart is hard. I'll see how long you can be tough and how long you can be hard. Someone, bury them in the ground and perform the 'Cuan' punishment."
The so-called Cuan punishment was to bury a person in the ground, leaving only their head exposed. Then, the scalp would be peeled back, and honey poured in, attracting ants and insects to bite. The person would itch and suffocate, desperately struggling to escape, hence the name Cuan punishment. It was a particularly cruel torture for amusement.
"Come here, I have something to say," Dan Mu said in a low voice, closing his eyes in pain, then opening them wide at the Xiongnu general.
Dan Mu was extremely weak, and his voice was barely audible.
The Xiongnu general was overjoyed. He quickly leaned closer, wanting to hear what he had to say, thinking he had agreed.
Duo Yong Jian and Lin Yue had given them orders to find more people to infiltrate Xue Lin City and act as inside informants. Even if they could not coordinate from the inside and outside to break through Xue Lin City, it would cause chaos within the city, allowing the Duo Yong Jian tribe to take advantage of the weakness.
"You dog!"
As the Xiongnu general leaned his head over, Dan Mu suddenly roared, leaped up with all his might, and bit into the Xiongnu general's cheek.
The Xiongnu general cried out in pain, trying to break free from Dan Mu's bite, but for a moment, he could not. Dan Mu's teeth had already sunk deeply into the flesh of his cheek.
Other Xiongnu soldiers rushed to help. They forcibly pulled Dan Mu away, tearing off a large piece of flesh from the Xiongnu general's face.
"Damn old dog!"
The Xiongnu general, furious, ignored his bleeding face and brandished his saber, slashing down at Dan Mu, intending to chop him into a pulp to vent his hatred.
"Puff!"
Just then, an arrow flew out and struck the Xiongnu general's throat. The arrow's force was so great that it pierced through the Xiongnu general's neck, and the bloody arrowhead emerged from the back of his neck.
The Xiongnu general clutched his throat and fell backward. He did not die immediately but struggled on the ground like a fish out of water, trying to say something, but only blood gurgled from his mouth.
"Neigh, neigh..." At this moment, everyone heard the neigh of a warhorse from below the slope. Then, a strong horse appeared before their eyes. On the back of the horse sat a warrior in black armor, with a heroic face and a black beard of medium length. He held a strong bow in his hand.
The black-armored warrior coldly observed everything. While the Xiongnu soldiers were still stunned, the sound of horse hooves echoed, and a second warhorse charged up the slope. On its back was another black-armored warrior. Then came a third, a fourth, a fifth... until countless fierce cavalrymen in black armor appeared before the eyes of the Yan captives.
"Kill!" The leader of the black-armored warriors urged his horse forward and, with lightning speed, wielded an incredibly heavy greatsword with one hand, cleaving a Xiongnu soldier off his horse. His greatsword was long, heavy, and sharp, splitting the Xiongnu soldier's upper body from his horse, while his legs still tightly gripped the horse's belly.
"The army is here!"
"The Grand Commander sent people to save us!"
Seeing this, the Yan captives were overjoyed. Many shed tears of excitement.