From a son-in-law to a favorite of the empress

Chapter 653

The sunset has passed.

The sky above the west was still red, and the light of the sunset shone on the ancient city wall, and the blood stains were even more scarlet.

The soldiers leaned on the corpses, holding their weapons, with dull faces, and rested quietly.

This battle was undoubtedly an unimaginable torture for them. They killed countless people, and almost all of them were their compatriots.

Their physical strength was exhausted, and their spirits were greatly traumatized.

Song Shan'ao still straightened his back, wearing the armor covered with wounds, walking on the city wall, patrolling the last natural barrier of the capital.

He didn't dare to rest.

Because this battle was too special.

For these soldiers who were not strong in combat effectiveness and immature in quality, this battle almost destroyed their morale. Song Shan'ao had to stay here, walk, and tell everyone that this battle could still be fought.

He was the soul of the army, and he had to shine at this moment to give everyone the courage to stand up again.

But Song Shanao knew that this was just the beginning of the challenge to the morale of the army.

The situation tomorrow might be even worse, because the people in the city would have to face the next day.

"Marshal... let me out of the city..."

A soldier suddenly ran over, knelt on the ground, kowtowed and said: "Let me go out, I want to go home to see my mother."

"What nonsense!"

Song Shanao's personal soldiers hurriedly blocked him, pulled him up, and growled: "Whose soldier are you? Get down and rest!"

The soldier cried: "Let me go home, Marshal, I beg you, I... woo woo..."

Before he finished speaking, he was covered by the soldiers who ran from a distance and forcibly dragged back.

The man laughed dryly: "Marshal, he, he didn't mean to offend, he just went crazy, he saw his father and two brothers among the corpses."

"Stop!"

Song Shanao's voice was very heavy.

So the personal guards around and the two soldiers in front were all frozen in place.

Song Shan'ao strode over, holding the collapsed soldier, and said in a deep voice: "Your father is dead, your brother is dead, but they were not killed by you, nor by your comrades."

"They were killed by the Donglu people!"

"As a soldier, you lost your family, you should seek revenge on the Donglu people, and protect more fathers and brothers in the city behind you."

"Don't think I'm talking nonsense, my family has long been dead."

At some point, the soldiers on the tower were slowly gathering here, and the embarrassed soldiers were holding a string in their heads, but they were almost unable to hold on.

They were originally a temporary ragtag army, and they were facing this kind of hell-level challenge at the beginning, which was really a bit too much.

"Torches!"

Song Shan'ao asked the torches around to get closer.

Then he looked at the countless soldiers and shouted: "What is the mission of a soldier! To protect! To protect our country and our people."

"For the current Jin Dynasty, protecting this city is to protect the world and the people."

"You killed people, your compatriots, but this is the method of the Donglu people, they are the real murderers."

"The only way for us to atone for our sins is to kill all the Donglu people!"

"I, Song Shan'ao, have fought on the battlefield for more than 60 years. All my sons have died, and even my only grandson has been buried in the grassland. How can my heart not hurt?"

"But the more painful it is, the more heroic we must be! Because only by completely destroying the enemy! Can we live a stable life!"

The raging fire burned, illuminating his old face, and every ravine on his face seemed to be a legendary story of his.

"Defend this city, I promise you that you will definitely have a chance to take revenge."

Song Shan'ao's voice echoed around. At this moment, only he could inject energy and confidence into this army.

Just at this moment, shouts came from the tower behind.

Everyone looked back and saw hundreds of people helping in the dim light. The leader shouted: "Duke! Duke! It is said that all the people killed on the tower today are from our Jin Dynasty!"

He wore a long robe and a goatee. He looked to be in his forties and dressed like a scholar.

"How can the generals of Jin Dynasty kill the people of Jin Dynasty!"

"We should let our people in, arm them, and fight the enemy with them. You killed your compatriots like this, which is against the way of saints and sages, and is no different from the Jurchen Tartars!"

"As scholars, we must stop you from making mistakes!"

In every era, there will always be people who want to stand out in various ways.

For scholars, there are only two ways to stand out: to pass the imperial examination and become an official, or to become a famousFlow.

Those with ability will naturally pass the exam, while those who fail can only find ways to make themselves famous through various speeches.

With a reputation, you can naturally stand out.

In Lin'an Prefecture, there are a large number of scholars who criticize current ills, criticize current politics, or complain about border wars, and become famous and sought after.

Unfortunately, these scholars can't see the situation of the war clearly. They don't know how serious the war is this time. They don't know that at this moment, they can no longer play those little tricks of fame.

Song Shanao looked down expressionlessly and said lightly: "Proper guards, go down and chop off the head of this old thing."

"Yes!"

A team of people quickly went down the tower and forcibly captured this man in the crowd.

"Stop! Stop! I'm a juren! I have a reputation! Are you going to rebel!"

The man was a little flustered, but not very scared.

He shouted loudly: "The law of the Great Jin Dynasty stipulates that beating scholars is illegal."

As soon as he finished speaking, a big knife chopped off his head.

The captain of the guard carried the head and strode onto the tower.

Hundreds of people below were stunned.

Song Shan'ao looked down and said in a deep voice: "Our duty is to prevent any enemy from attacking the capital. The soldiers fought for their lives. How brave, how can you scholars make trouble here!"

"Your cleverness is used in the wrong place. I, Song Shan'ao, am not a stepping stone for you to become famous."

"Whoever dares to mess up my army here will end up like this!"

Killing his compatriots, even if this is a Jurchen conspiracy, will inevitably be criticized. Song Shan'ao is not surprised.

He just thinks that this thing is too fast. These scholars seem to have been eager to become famous for a long time. At this moment, they have seized the opportunity, just like beggars seeing money, and they can't help it.

But he would not give these old guys a chance. Whoever dares to affect the defense of the city is looking for death.

"It's them! It's them!"

The students of the Imperial Academy came from afar. There were hundreds of them, but most of them were young people.

"These old guys have not read many books and do not know much about the teachings of sages, but they are seeking fame every day and dare to affect the old master's defense of the city. They are really looking for death."

"Beat them! Beat these old bastards to death!"

The young people of the Imperial Academy also had a bad temper. They rolled up their sleeves and hit them, punching these old dogs so hard that they jumped up and down.

"Stop! A gentleman should talk, not fight! You are young, but you are also scholars. Don't you understand the way of sages?"

The leading 14-year-old prodigy took out a short stick from his arms and gritted his teeth and said, "You know your mother! You old things are simply ruining the reputation of scholars!"

"You old thieves talk about the way of saints, but don't you know that Confucius was knowledgeable and also full of martial virtues!"

Hundreds of young people called out directly, and for a while, there was chaos below.

The 14-year-old prodigy shouted, "Beat these old dogs so hard that they can't get out of bed! Damn it! They keep talking about putting themselves at the highest level. If the city is broken, they will run faster than anyone else!"

The students of the Imperial Academy are all young people with blood and vigor, and they can enter the Imperial Academy. Their families are more or less powerful, and they are not afraid of causing trouble. They hit hard one by one.

In just half a quarter of an hour, these old dogs were beaten to a pulp and fled in panic.

Night has fallen.

The torches around illuminated every face.

The 14-year-old prodigy shouted: "Seniors, let us salute the soldiers who fought bravely!"

Hundreds of students from the Imperial Academy raised their hands and bowed solemnly.

On the tower, countless soldiers almost burst into tears when they saw this scene.

This battle was a mission, a test of humanity, and a test of body and soul. They had endured too much.

Song Shanao looked around, feeling a lot of emotion in his heart.

It was dark.

He seemed to see the bright future of Dajin.