In the first month of the tenth year of Wu Jianshuo, the entire Wu dynasty was on the brink of collapse.
As the Jin Emperor, Wu Qimai, suffered a stroke, the Jurchens Wanyan Zongfu and Wanyan Zonghan led the Eastern and Western armies south. More than ten years after the Jin Kingdom's first expedition to the south, they began the process of completely wiping out the Wu Dynasty's regime and conquering the world.
In the face of the Jurchens' might, the remaining anti-Jin forces in the Central Plains mobilized under the most difficult circumstances. Under the leadership of Tian Shi, Jin began to resist. After a bitter and difficult winter, the western front of the Central Plains finally saw the first glimmer of hope.
On the twenty-first day of the first month, the leaders of the various anti-Jin forces met at Fen Yang. They recognized Prince Jin's contribution and determination in this war and discussed many matters for the next year. There were many mountains in Jin, but it was also a crucial location for the Jurchens' western army to advance south. If they retreated, they could defend the mountains and if they advanced, they could deter the Jurchens from advancing south. Once they joined forces and helped each other, it would be enough to drive a heavy nail into Zonghan's southern path. It was even possible that the Jurchens could wear out the Jurchens' supply line for a long time.
On the Jurchens' side, they did not take the resistance lightly. As the Fen Yang Conference unfolded, the previously silent troops on the northern front began to move, attempting to disrupt the conference with a sudden attack. However, although most of the leaders of the anti-Jin forces were gathered at Fen Yang, the arrangement of the troops on the frontlines was relaxed on the outside but tight on the inside. Since they had already made arrangements, there was no chaos.
While the alliance meeting was going on, another assassination planned by a female Daoist broke out in the Fenyang Main Camp. Several female Daoist death warriors were captured in this incident. After the Alliance Meeting on the 21st of the first lunar month ended smoothly, the leaders of the various factions embarked on their return journey. On the twenty-second day, Prince Jin, Tian Shi, set off on his journey back to Wei Sheng after leading his troops for nearly half a year.
Even though he had lost several times on the battlefield, Prince Jin's faction was still divided due to his determination to resist the Jin. However, after this fierce operation, Prince Jin's anti-Jin forces were finally relieved of their depression. Even though they were still weak after the operation, they now had more possibilities to move forward. He had sacrificed his life for the expedition last year, and now, he had finally reaped the benefits.
Whether it was a feudal lord or a mere commoner, life and death experiences would always give people great insights. War and resistance against the Jin Dynasty would be a long and arduous journey. Tian Shi had only participated in the beginning of this journey, but he could already feel how thrilling it would be. On the way back, Tian Shi looked at the pure white snow on both sides of the carriage. He knew that the more difficult situation was yet to come.
There were a lot of thoughts in his mind.
On the night of the 22nd day of the first month of the tenth year of Jianshuo, near the borders of Weisheng, Gu Song Inn. After four months of resisting the Jin Dynasty, Prince Tian Zhen reached the last moment of his life.
Died of an assassination.
*****
The Lone Pine Rest Station to the east of Fen Yang, although named after the Lone Pine Rest Station, was actually not desolate. It was located on the road connecting Fen Yang and Wei Sheng. With the increase in population and the prosperity of commerce, it had become a large rest station with all kinds of supporting facilities. Tian Shi's carriage traveled all the way to the east and stopped here in the evening.
The alliance meeting in Fen Yang was a major event. The Enlightened Lady would never want to see it go smoothly. Even though it had ended smoothly, Yu Yulin still led his bodyguards along for safety reasons. That night, Tian Shi and Yu Yulin met and had a lot of conversations. They talked about how the Lone Pine Rest Station looked like ten years ago and were quite emotional. Speaking of the expedition that had ended, Tian Shi said,
"Now I know that the decision to lead the troops personally last year was a lucky one. The only path that could be taken was also a path that I almost died for. Last year … if I was a little less determined and unlucky, our corpses would have turned cold. "
Yu Yulin replied, "And the one in Wei Sheng, I'm afraid she would be raped and then killed … several times."
"Haha, with such a fierce face, who would dare to do it …"
Speaking of the one in Wei Sheng, Yu Yulin thought of Tian Shi entering Wei Sheng's territory tomorrow and warned, "The army has been screened many times. Even though Miss Lou is in Wei Sheng City, Your Majesty, you must not let your guard down when you return. In fact, along the way, the Enlightened Lady's ambition has not died yet. I'm afraid that someone will take the opportunity to make a move tomorrow. "
Actually, Tian Shi already understood these principles and nodded in agreement. While they were talking, there was a sudden commotion in the night not far from the rest station. Then, someone came to report that a few suspicious people had been discovered. They had started to surround them and had already captured two of them.
The way of an assassin had always been to scheme against the unsuspecting. Now that they had been discovered, there would not be too many problems. When the battle over there subsided, Yu Yulin ordered people to watch over Tian Shi's side while he went over to check what was going on. Then, he found out that it was another group of Liaodong men of sacrifice. From the beginning to the end of the alliance meeting, there had been six or seven such assassinations. Among them were the Enlightened Lady of Sacrifice and the Han people from Liaodong who were fighting for their lives. It was clear that the Enlightened Lady was nervous.
He ordered his deputy to drag the assassins away for interrogation and also ordered people to strengthen the defense of the Lone Pine Rest Station. Before he could finish his order, a shrill and chaotic sound suddenly came from Tian Shi's direction. Yu Yulin's mind tightened and he ran wildly.
The wind was fierce and the fire was fierce.
The swaying torches whistled in the wind, illuminating the snow-white world on both sides of the road. The chill was still the main tone of this world. Yu Yulin had already realized that something was wrong when he noticed the way the soldiers in front of him were mobilized. He rushed into the courtyard of the rest station. In front of him was a fenced ornamental rock. The snow in the courtyard had been swept away and the lanterns on the wall had been lit. The smell of blood drifted over from the other side of the rockery.
The soldiers had already gathered and so had the doctor. On the other side of the rockery, there was a corpse lying on the ground. A steel saber had cut open his throat and blood was flowing freely. Tian Shi was sitting paralyzed under the eaves not far away with his back against a pillar. A dagger had been stabbed in his heart and there was already a pool of blood under his body.
Tian Shi waved at Yu Yulin. Yu Yulin rushed over quickly. When he saw the dead man on the ground, he already knew who he was. Lei Zeyuan was originally a steward of the Celestial Pole Palace. He was outstanding and had always been highly regarded by Tian Shi. During the personal expedition, Lei Zeyuan was called into the army to help. At the end of November, when Tian Shi's army was scattered, he narrowly escaped and reunited with the army. He was considered a trusted official who had gone through many trials.
This was one of the backups arranged by the Jurchens. During the great defeat at the end of November, he did not travel with Tian Shi. When he reunited with the army, he did not attempt to assassinate Tian Shi. He did not attempt to assassinate Tian Shi before the Alliance Conference. It was only after the Alliance Conference was successfully completed that Yu Yulin sent him to the border of Wei Sheng. Yu Yulin had sent him to the border of Wei Sheng.
"Lei Zeyuan, Lei Zeyuan …" Tian Shi's face was as pale as a sheet of paper. He muttered this name softly, but there was a slight smile on his face. It was as if he did not know whether to laugh or cry at all this. Yu Yulin looked at the doctor beside him. The doctor had a troubled expression on his face. Tian Shi then said, "Don't waste time. I've also been in the army before. Y-General Yu …"
Tian Shi's hand fell down. He smiled and looked into the distance in the snowy night.
"Killing on the battlefield. I should have thought of it … Prince Jin's force has been inferior to the Jurchens for ten years. It seems to be independent, but in fact, with the talents of the Jurchens, Xi Yin, and the others, they have not only instigated a few big clans in the land of Jin. I don't know how many spies …"
"Your Highness …"
"… I didn't guard against it. I'm willing to admit defeat. General Yu, I'm very regretful … I originally thought that after today, I will … I will make a big career. I was thinking about how to fight against the Jurchens, or even defeat them, and compete with the heroes of the world … But this is competing with the heroes of the world … It's really … too regretful. I've just started … Damn the heavens …"
He raised his hand as if he wanted to grab something, but he gave up in the end. Yu Yulin half-knelt on the side and reached out his hand. Tian Shi grabbed his arm.
"… General Yu, when I was young, I saw … I saw very powerful people. That time in the Green Wood Stronghold, Ning Rentu went to the throne room and killed the dog emperor of the Wu dynasty. Ah, he was really powerful … When can I be like him, the Jurchens … The Jurchens are like dark clouds, suppressing the world. No one in the Liao and Wu dynasty could stop them. Only he, in the battle of Little Canghe, was really powerful. After becoming the King of Jin, I'm still brooding over it. I want to do something … "
"… I thought, I've already … stood on the throne …"
His breath had gradually weakened. He paused for a moment, and after a while, he gathered a bit of strength.
"… Big Brother Yu, I just realized that if I die here, I'll leave … leave a mess for you guys to clean up. We've just formed an alliance, and the Jurchens are fighting. If I knew I was going to die, I'd just be a nominal King of Jin. It's really … why bother? But Brother Yu … "
He struggled for a while. "… Brother Yu, you guys … have no choice. No matter how difficult the situation is … no matter how difficult the situation is …"
He repeated this sentence twice, as if telling Yu Yulin and the rest to hold on no matter how difficult the situation was, but he couldn't find the words to say. His weak gaze flickered a few times. "No matter how difficult the situation is … Brother Yu, you and Miss Lou … Haha, today I said that Miss Lou, haha, first raped, then killed … Brother Yu, I said that Miss Lou is fierce and ugly, but it's not true. Look at the Lonely Pine Inn, it's all thanks to her, Jin Land is all thanks to her … We won't talk about her past experiences, but … what her brother did is inhumane!"
At this point, Tian Shi's gaze turned solemn again. His voice rose a few octaves as he looked at Yu Yulin. "The land of Jin is going to be in chaos. There are so many people … Big Brother Yu, as men, we can't let these things happen again. Although … Wanyan Zonghan was in front of us, we can't … we can't …"
At this point, blood gushed out of Tian Shi's mouth. He stopped talking and leaned against the pillar, his eyes wide open. At this point, he had already realized the many tragedies that would happen in Jin Land. Just a moment ago, he and Yu Yulin were still joking about Lou Shuwan. Perhaps it wasn't a joke anymore. That tragic situation, the countless tragedies that happened in the Central Plains in the past ten years since the Disgrace of Jingping. However, this tragedy couldn't be quelled by anger. He wanted to defeat Wanyan Zonghan, he wanted to defeat the Jurchen. Unfortunately, how could he do so?
His emotions were surging in such an intense manner. Life was rapidly leaving his body. Yu Yulin said, "I definitely won't let these things happen …" But he wasn't sure if Tian Shi heard him. After a while, Tian Shi closed his eyes and opened them again, but he was looking at a place in front of him.
With a weak voice, he began to speak of other matters, "… Uncle seems to be ambitious and ruthless, unwilling to submit to the Jurchen. He said that one day, he would rebel. But today, I've seen that it's like boiling a frog in warm water. How can he resist? I … I've finally done something extraordinary. Big Brother Yu, the Tian family seems powerful, but in reality … they're fierce in appearance. I … I'm doing this, isn't it a little … inappropriate? "
Tian Shi leaned against the pillar. At this moment, there was a trace of a smile on his face, but also a deep regret. His gaze seemed to be looking into the future. Whether it would be a struggle or a peaceful future, it had finally solidified.
There was great sorrow in Yu Yulin's heart. At this moment, this sorrow was not for the cruel situation that would follow, nor was it for the suffering that the world might suffer. It was only for the man in front of him who had once been promoted to the position of Prince Jin. His path of resistance had just begun, but it had already stopped. However, at this moment, in Yu Yulin's eyes, even the Tiger King Tian Hu, who had once dominated the world and occupied the land of Jin for more than ten years, could not compare to the little finger of the man in front of him.
On the night of the 22nd day of the first month of the 10th year of Jianshuo, Prince Jin Tian Shi leaned against the pillar under the eaves and quietly passed away. With hope and longing for the future, the last thing he looked forward to was still the dark night.
The next day, when Lou Shuwan rushed all the way to the Lonely Pine Inn, she was swaying and her hair was messy. When she saw Yu Yulin, she rushed over and gave him a slap.
The death of Prince Jin Tian Shi was about to bring a huge impact to the entire Central Plains.
On the night of the 23rd day, in the Jurchen camp.
Wanyan Xiyin was in the tent, writing at the desk under the warm yellow light, handling his daily work.
Suddenly, a gust of wind blew over. The spy who came in from outside the tent confirmed the death of Tian Shi.
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