Faced with Ma Hong's roar, Xie Ying was startled, and when she raised the knife again, her trembling hands began to steady.
With a single swift slash, she killed three enemy soldiers. Then, Li Li stabbed another soldier to death, the blade piercing through him, turning him into a corpse as he fell to the ground.
She could no longer control her murderous intent and charged out like a mad dog.
Tear Li Li apart!!!
Xie Ying was in a bloodthirsty frenzy, relentlessly swinging her knife, oblivious to the fact that the blade was dulling. Li Li remained calm as she fought back, until Xie Ying slashed her face, leaving a cut.
Li Li finally abandoned his contempt for Xie Ying and directly slashed Xie Ying's knife in half.
Xie Ying picked up two stones and smashed them at his head. Li Li retreated, but the stones hit him directly on the head.
Five soldiers suddenly surrounded Xie Ying, but unexpectedly, Ma Hong attacked again and threw a wooden spear to Xie Ying.
Xie Ying, wielding a wooden spear, swept through the enemy soldiers surrounding her.
A blow to the head of a barbarian soldier exploded, its sweeping force directly threatening Li Li.
Li Li charged at her with a knife in hand. At that moment, they saw no one else but each other, their eyes fixed on each other with a murderous intent that saw them as prey.
"Xie Ying!" Li Li finally called her name.
Without hesitation, Xie Ying used her spear to knock away the knife that had been in his hand, and then used the stick to pierce Li Li's chest.
*Pfft!* Li Li immediately grabbed the wooden gun to his chest and spat out a mouthful of blood. He was somewhat incredulous, yet it seemed to be expected.
He raised his fist and, with his last bit of strength, gently pounded her shoulder.
The two remained in the same position, Xie Ying almost completely obscuring Li Li's figure and even her expression. Li Li, with only a voice and expression that the two could hear and see, trembling lips uttered her last words: "I...my sister, I entrust to...you."
Finally, as if he had completed a test and obtained the desired result, he smiled with satisfaction, then bent his knees to the ground, and Xie Ying followed suit and knelt down with him.
Li Li fell onto Xie Ying, his head resting on her shoulder, his face sliding over her shoulder and arm, before collapsing at Xie Ying's feet.
"Your Highness the Crown Prince!!!" The barbarian soldiers' eyes turned red, and they charged towards the Imperial Guards with even greater hysteria.
This time, with Li Li's death, they were all drained of their life force and instantly killed on the hillside, under the trees, and behind the rocks.
Ma Hong knelt on the ground, clutching his shoulder, looking at Xie Ying who was kneeling there, stunned. He smiled with relief, but it was quickly replaced by pity and sorrow.
"You have become a qualified general."
Only by abandoning personal feelings for one's children... can one...
He eventually collapsed to the ground, fainting from excessive blood loss.
"General!" The imperial guards rushed over in a panic to save the man.
Everyone stared at Ma Hong, who was then carried away from the border in a blur of figures. Only Xie Ying remained kneeling on the ground, turning her head to look at Li Li lying at her feet.
The last tear rolled down her cheek, leaving only endless desolation and sorrow.
Lanzhang Palace, Zidian.
Yelü Qiqi was still knitting gloves for her brother and her dog Ying when she accidentally pricked her index finger. A drop of bright red blood fell onto the glove, staining the fabric.
"Oh no, it's all dirty."
Qianqian, who was next to her, put down her homework and went to get the gunpowder and bandages to bandage her up.
"Sister, stop making things up," Qianqian said. "Let's go out and play."
Qianqian shook her head: "No, my brother told me that he will come to Tianjing to be conferred a title after he surrenders, and I will give him the gloves then."
She smiled sweetly as she spoke: "His birthday is coming up soon, and I want to give him this as a thank you for all he has taken care of me."
"Take care of my immature and willful younger sister."
Qianqian said, "But my sister is already very sensible."
Yes, since she secretly slipped away to the Southern Central Plains, she has indeed matured a bit after experiencing those things.
“This is exactly what I want my brother to see. I want to tell him that I am no longer that ignorant and troublesome little sister!”
Qianqian couldn't help but envy her. If only her father could come to Tianjing too. Thinking of how the Northern Xiongnu had been pacified and her father's whereabouts were unknown, her eyes immediately dimmed.
Qiqi comforted her, "The Grand Master is so smart, he will definitely come to Tianjing safely to reunite with you."
"Don't worry, we'll all have a nice meal together. It'll be on me!"
"Thank you, sister!" Qianqian suddenly felt a longing. She longed for all her familiar faces to gather together around the table for a reunion dinner.
A note from the author:
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 20:58:27 on March 2, 2022 and 19:57:05 on March 3, 2022!
Thank you to the little angel who threw the landmine: 1 for "slacking off";
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Jiu Yan (5 bottles); Xin Xin (2 bottles); Qi Zong (1 bottle);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 232 The Policy of Integration Between the Two
News of the pacification reached the palace, and Xie Lanzhi received the number of casualties and the death of Li Li.
The Northern Xiongnu army suffered 5,000 casualties and over 20,000 casualties, but suffered heavy losses in the Battle of Yi, with 3,000 killed.
Her heart was heavy. Not only because of Yifan, but also because of Qiqi and Xie Ying, those two unfortunate people.
War is cruel, and both justice and injustice come at a heavy price.
The entire new Tianjing is now celebrating the Western Jin Dynasty's unification of the nine provinces, accomplishing what emperors of a hundred years ago could not.
She went to Jianzhang Palace to find Si Xitong. Meanwhile, Si Xitong had already received news that Si Caifeng had secretly taken Yelü Qiqi away.
Si Caifeng will report back later; she has already led her people to the old Jin Dynasty.
Si Xitong probably guessed what Si Caifeng had said to Qiqi, which was why Qiqi left the palace with her.
Xie Lanzhi has arrived.
Si Xitong said, "I didn't expect him to be so persistent."
“He did nothing wrong, and neither did we.” What’s done is done. Everyone has their own path, and Xie Lanzhi didn’t want her to be sad or upset about Li Li’s situation.
Instead, she brought up another matter: "Li Li's battle may affect the entire northern region and even the Hu people."
Si Xitong's expression suddenly darkened as he said, "I must not let any accidents happen."
"Therefore, we need to take immediate action, whether it is by using people to persuade or by using force to suppress."
"We must do what needs to be done before the Hu people realize what's happening." Xie Lanzhi decided to handle the matter personally. She respected Li Li's decision and hoped that Li Li's hard work would not be wasted by a bunch of hotheads from the Northern Region.
This is the only thing she can do for him now.
Although she was now considering things from the enemy's perspective, careful reflection on the reasons behind it gave her a wake-up call. She realized that perhaps not all ethnic groups had to be assimilated or integrated; they could also be tolerated.
The world's ethnic groups, as she once knew them, had only been able to coexist peacefully after thousands of years of great integration.
The Western Jin Dynasty was different; two hundred or a hundred years later, it would be the modern era. Two hundred years is not enough to completely assimilate a nation; rushing things would only backfire.
The fact that the Northern Luo army, which was ostracized after being assimilated into the Central Plains, is a prime example of this.
The northern army was still living in a nomadic society, so she had to bring them all into an agricultural society. As for Yifan, because Li Li had adopted Central Plains culture, Yifan's northern culture had interacted and blended with that of the Central Plains.
Although not yet outstanding, Yifan was indeed a successfully assimilated Hu person with his own unique characteristics.
After Xie Lanzhi figured it out, she said to Little Phoenix, "Now that things have come to this, we need to appease them in order to weaken the Northern Region, or completely assimilate it."
Si Xitong was somewhat surprised: "Lanzhi."
Xie Lanzhi said, "Li Li is willing to sacrifice for cultural independence, so we will acknowledge him. But the Northern Region is different; I will never let them reap without sowing!"
These people aren't qualified! And she can't possibly allow the Northern Region to accept a certain culture in order to strengthen her power.
"What we need to do now is to develop Yifan into a unique cultural center in the western northern region."
"Furthermore, have the historians name the northern region after Li Li when recording it," Xie Lanzhi said. "How about calling it the Li Li culture?"
Si Xitong agreed: "Your concerns are my concerns as well. Li Li culture can exist independently, and we can also tolerate it."
"I will persuade the ministers. The military command is in your hands."
"good!"
Xie Lanzhi gently took her hand, kissed her cheek, and then let go and left Jianzhang Palace.
No sooner had the territory been conquered than the Northern Region, led by Wu Yuejun, surrendered and voluntarily became vassals.
The northern army refused to agree and even threatened to kill Wu Yuejun, calling him a traitor.
Xie Shangguang led 5,000 men directly into Luochuan, took Wu Yuejun aboard a ship, and sent her to Tianjing. He then began to attack the Northern Desert army, causing heavy casualties among them.
After being subjected to artillery fire, the northern army surrendered willingly, while those unwilling to surrender immediately headed west to seek refuge in foreign lands.
A total of 20,000 people.
Most of the northern army surrendered. The people of the northern lands were filled with fear and stayed indoors.
Xie Shangguang hadn't slept for three days and three nights, waiting for Xie Lanzhi to arrive. When Xie Lanzhi's carriage reached the gates of Luochuan, Xie Shangguang finally collapsed, fainting from exhaustion.
Xie Lanzhi ordered Xie Bing to take Xie Shangguang for treatment, and she summoned the generals of the capital's guards to Luochuan for discussions.
He also summoned all the generals of the Northern Region to listen. There were a total of six generals in the Northern Region. The eight generals who rebelled before were all dealt with afterwards, and now only they remained.
Xie Lanzhi specially set up a table in the square, with the Northern Generals standing on both sides and the Xie family generals sitting.
The Imperial Guards, led by Ma Hong, sat on either side, with Ma Hu and other generals beside them.
Xie Lanzhi noticed that Xie Ying was not there. Instead of bringing it up, she said, "I have already received details of the casualties. General Ma, how are your injuries?"
Ma Hong touched the bandage on his arm, remembering what the doctor had said about not being able to put heavy objects on his arm anymore. He couldn't help but clench his other fist: "This humble general is fine, thank you for your concern, Marshal."
"I've heard about the battle," Xie Lanzhi suddenly said. This could be considered getting straight to the point.
Ma Hong's expression immediately changed, and his emotions became even more intense than those of the Northern Region General behind him.
The generals of the Northern Region, on the other hand, made little move.
Ma Hong said somewhat reluctantly, "Yes, Prince Li...Prince Li Li refused to obey and died in battle."
Xie Lanzhi said, "Then it's necessary for you to know beforehand what I'm about to decide."