Fearing being killed for his overwhelming merits, the empress decided to marry him.

"Eat slowly, don't choke. There's plenty of food. Once you're full, come with us and drive these sons of bitches out of Luoyang."

Inside the port camp, the captured slave soldiers wolfed down the food prepared by the Imperial Guard.

Holding a bowl of fine white rice and a side dish, and drinking fresh fish soup (caught from the sea), many slave soldiers were surprised and couldn't help but shed tears.

I never expected that prisoners of war could eat so well. If I had known this earlier, I would have surrendered at the beginning and not suffered so much.

The daily meals of the Western Xia slave soldiers mainly consisted of a thick porridge made of wheat bran and millet, with a little salt added. Occasionally, a dozen or so people would share a dish of pickled vegetables.

The food was dry and astringent, and it felt hard and bitter in my throat.

Even so, slave soldiers typically ate only one meal a day.

In times of war, it's common to go two or three days without a single bite of food, often feeling so hungry that you're dizzy, yet still having to do very heavy work.

After all, in the Western Xia military hierarchy, slaves were the lowest-ranking livestock, and they were given just a meal.

As for fine grains, they had only ever seen them on the tables of Western Xia officers.

It's like a dream to be able to eat such finely cooked white rice.

Many people remarked, "White rice is indeed different from the coarse grains we eat; it's smooth and easy to swallow."

And the salt in these side dishes must be fine salt, right? It's not bitter at all. And this fish soup, oh my, it's so fragrant!

Soon, the rice in the makeshift ten-person pots was gone in no time.

About half an hour later, the slaves were all lying on the ground, satisfied.

They patted their bellies, experiencing for the first time in their lives what it felt like to be full.

"If only I could eat like this every day."

"Even if I were to die right now after eating this meal, I wouldn't bat an eye."

Hundreds of slaves once again expressed their heartfelt sentiments.

Just then, Ye Hui and Wu Jie arrived in front of the crowd.

"Hey guys, how's the food?"

"Row!"

All the slaves echoed in unison.

"It's even better than what you eat when you're with the Western Xia people, isn't it?"

"right!!!"

"Now that you've eaten our food, shouldn't you do something to help us out?"

Upon hearing this, all the slaves fell silent.

The so-called "exerting effort" is nothing more than using oneself as cannon fodder, isn't it?

Ye Hui seemed to have anticipated this, and replied directly, "There's no need for everyone to be nervous. I didn't expect you to engage in a real battle with the Western Xia people."

After all, my Royal Guard doesn't expect you to achieve any great feats, but helping to modify the shield carts and advance with the army shouldn't be a problem, right?

Moreover, our general said that anyone willing to modify the shield cart will receive a bag of flour, and anyone willing to push the cart will receive two bags of flour plus a pound of refined salt.

If you're unwilling, we won't force you. Since you've already eaten, it's time to head home.

Upon hearing this, everyone was instantly wide awake.

"What? Wheat flour! And refined salt?"

"real or fake?"

In an instant, all the slaves stood up, looking at Ye Hui and Wu Jie with disbelief.

Wu Jie frowned: "What are you looking at? The Imperial Guard always keeps its word. A mere bit of flour and salt, and you're all so shocked. You have no backbone at all!"

Ye Hui: "Alright, I've said my piece. Are you in or not?"

"Do it! I'll do it, why wouldn't I!"

Count me in too!

"I am coming too……"

Soon, the hundreds of slaves rushed to volunteer, one after another, afraid that if they were too late, they would be rejected.

Ye Hui and Wu Jie exchanged a glance and immediately began to communicate with each other through their eyes.

"If this mission is accomplished, and I add up my previous military achievements, I should be able to become an officer eventually, right?"

"Stay calm, especially in situations like this, you need to stay composed."

Just as the Imperial Guard was preparing for a counterattack, the scene at the Western Xia wounded soldiers' camp on the other side was one of utter devastation...

Inside the camp, there were scenes of painful cries everywhere.

"Oh no--"

A wounded Western Xia soldier, whose thigh was pierced by a rifle bullet, struggled in agony, but was held down on a straw mat by his four comrades.

The two doctors gave him some basic treatment for his wounds and then began to amputate his limb.

Immediately, due to the lack of anesthetic in the army, the Western Xia soldiers let out heart-wrenching groans and roars.

On the other side, a bloodied and mangled Western Xia soldier suddenly grabbed a passing doctor, sobbing, "Save me, I don't want to die."

The doctor stopped, examined his injuries carefully, then sighed and waved his hand.

Soon, a group of soldiers carried him directly onto a stretcher bound with straw ropes and carried him to the area in the camp where the dead bodies were placed.

"No, save me, save me, Mother, Mother—"

The wounded soldier knew what this meant and immediately let out a desperate cry.

Once abandoned, all that awaits you is death.

Inside another tent, a local Western Xia doctor glanced at the bullet holes in the body of the Western Xia officer in front of him, then took out two rusty knives and brandished them a couple of times before speaking seriously to another officer who had been brought in for treatment.

“His injuries are quite serious, and I have to use my family’s bloodletting therapy.”

Is this reliable?

"Don't worry, my ancestors have been doctors for eight generations, and there's no injury they can't cure."

"Either I don't act at all, or when I do, the cure is immediate and effective. You all go outside and wait; I'm about to begin the treatment."

"Alright, then I'll leave everything to Dr. Wu."

"Let's go."

The Western Xia officers had no choice but to place their hopes on this divine healer, Urenji.

Wu Renji approached the injured man, brandishing his knife, and said, "Don't worry, as long as I, Wu Renji, take action, all the pain will stop. Just bear with it, you'll be fine soon..."

He quickly made a cut.

"Ow—"

Inside the tent came screams like pigs being slaughtered.

"We need to bleed you out here, and we need to bleed out your head too. Oh dear, we need to bleed out your kidneys as well..."

"Just give me a quick death, will you? I'll fucking swear!"

“My ancestors for eight generations have been barefoot doctors, and their medical skills have long been unparalleled. As long as I am here, I can relieve you of all your pain and suffering. Now your root is also problematic, so I need to cut it to drain the blood.”

"Damn it, someone come and stab me!"

Before long, the injured man had several thousand milliliters of blood drained from his body and died from blood loss...

In another place, the Western Xia soldiers who had barely survived the ordeal looked at their own bodies, now riddled with broken parts, and their faces were completely numb.

The only consolation is that at least they are a hundred times better off than those who were carried to the morgue to die.

In the Death Zone, known as the zone of severe injuries, it was an even more hellish scene.

The critically injured patients, waiting to die, kept reaching out their arms to the passing medical teams, emitting soft whimpers, as if begging for another helping hand.

Not far away, there were corpses covered with straw mats.

A Western Xia soldier knelt before a straw mat and silently began to pray.

"Brother, I searched for ages but couldn't find your butt, so I just put half a horse's butt in there as a substitute. You won't be mad at me, will you?"

"Actually, there's something I've been keeping from you for a long time: you weren't born to your father; I'm your father's son."

"Also, two years ago, I happened to see your wife bathing in the river, and I couldn't help but pounce on her. I swear, your wife seduced me first."

"You always say your son doesn't look like you, but now that I think about it, he might be my son."

"But, as you know, raising children is a very troublesome thing, and it costs a lot of money."

So I didn't tell you the truth, please forgive me.

After all, I have three children, and life isn't easy for me. You should understand that.

The scene was filled with an atmosphere of deathly silence.

Many wounded soldiers, though they did not die in the hail of bullets, were left with no choice but to leave their fate to chance after being rescued due to poor medical conditions, a shortage of medicines, and a lack of experience in treating gunshot wounds.

The mortality rate among the wounded in the severely wounded battalion was a terrifying 80%. Of the 20% who survived, 15% were completely unable to return to the battlefield.

When this number was delivered to Helian Qianjun, this veteran general who had fought for Western Xia for many years was so shocked that he couldn't utter a single word.

Of the 200,000 cavalry, excluding the slave and laborer corps, only 70,000 were actual Western Xia soldiers.

But after just one day and one night of fighting, they had already lost 20,000 men. Could they really continue the war?

Most importantly, so far, no figures have been obtained regarding enemy casualties.

"Where did their army come from?"

At that moment, he was gripped by endless fear.

The biggest trouble for people is that even though their opponents are very strong, they don't know where they come from or what their purpose is.

At this moment, the Confucian scholar, with a worried expression, came before Helian Qianjun.

"General, something terrible has happened."

"What's wrong? You look so sad."

"Of the scouts sent to Xulong Mountain, only one returned. Before he died, he told me that a major incident had occurred at Xulong Mountain, and the Blood Fiend Alliance was very likely no longer existing!"

"What did you say!"

"The scouts said that the uniforms of that army were very similar to those encountered at the port of Luoyang."

"what!"

Instantly, Helian Qianjun cried out in alarm.

This news was like a bolt from the blue, shaking people to their core.

"I understand, this is the Chu army, it must be the Chu army!"