Chapter 509

The swift and clean annihilation battle outside Binzhou City.

Its impact was like a beacon fire on the wilderness, suddenly igniting in the fallen northern lands and quickly spreading in all directions.

The first to feel the change was the vanguard army of Northward Aspiration led by Lin Chong.

Their originally low-profile marching route began to be continually blocked by crowds pouring in from various side paths and villages.

These were no longer panicked refugees fleeing south, but many vigorous youths with fiery eyes, carrying simple bundles and even farm tools.

They gathered from the burned-out villages and fallen prefectures, clearly seeking the rumored banner.

"General! Please take us in!"

A man with a fresh knife scar on his face, leading dozens of similarly sallow, thin but stubborn companions, blocked the unit's front and fell to his knees with a thud in the dust.

"We're from Yanshan, Cangzhou; our manor is gone, only these lives remain!"

"I heard there's a unit called 'Northward Aspiration' that really dares to kill the Jin dogs and even won!"

"We're not afraid of death, just afraid of dying ignominiously! General, give us a chance to follow you and fight back!"

His voice was hoarse, yet it carried the resolve to sacrifice himself.

Similar scenes repeatedly appeared during the ensuing march.

Some were low-ranking officers who had broken away from the False Song's defeated army, their armor askew yet unwilling to flee south;

some were farmers whose homes were destroyed, kin lost, their chests burning with blood feud;

even some young scholars who had cast aside their brush and ink, faces covered in dust.

What they brought was perhaps only a fervent passion and a few insignificant lives, but the name they repeatedly shouted was only one—'Northward Aspiration army'.

"Instructor Lin, at this rate, our few thousand will soon double!"

Ruan Xiao VII looked at the dark mass of people outside the camp begging to enlist, feeling both excited and anxious.

"We have more people, but our provisions, spare weapons and armor are about to run out!"

Lin Chong stood on the makeshift high platform, gazing at the eager and resolute faces below, his chest rising and falling.

He saw where people's hearts lay, and saw the sparks igniting in the darkness.

"No problem!"

He shouted in a deep voice, his words clearly carrying across the camp.

"Mr. Chen has already made arrangements; the follow-up supplies will arrive shortly!"

"As for weapons and armor, we'll first use the captured Jin bandits' equipment; if not enough, we'll whittle wood into sticks and at least drill with them!"

His gaze swept over the crowd.

"Fellow villagers, if you trust my Northward Aspiration army, my Northward Aspiration army will surely not let you down!"

"Starting today, we will raise the recruitment banner and set examination standards!"

"Anyone who sincerely resists the Jin, whose background is clean, and passes the examination, regardless of origin, may join my Northward Aspiration army!"

With the order given, the camp grew busier, yet a vigorous spirit dispelled the fatigue of days of travel.

At the same time, the scale of the hidden mountain valley base in Shandong's interior was rapidly expanding.

New wooden huts and tents were erected layer upon layer;

On the newly cleared drill field, the shouts of battle shook the ears.

Chao Gai was like an indefatigable iron man, his whole body steaming with heat, personally supervising the training of new soldiers.

He lacked Lin Chong's systematic training method, but he had the bearing of a heroic warrior and the courage to lead from the front, and could better hammer the notion of 'Northward Aspiration' into everyone's hearts with the plainest words.

"Brothers! Do you know why we're called 'Northward Aspiration'?"

Chao Gai's voice rang like a great bell, his bare upper body muscles knotted, sweat streaming down his bronze-colored skin.

"It's not to have you stare blankly at the north every day!"

"It's to make you remember that our roots lie in the north, our national and familial grudges lie in the north!"

"The Jin dogs occupy our land, slaughter our kin—this hatred is irreconcilable!"

He suddenly drew his waist saber, its cold light pointing straight north.

"Sweating here is to make the Jin dogs bleed on the future battlefield!"

"Follow me, Chao Gai, follow the Northward Aspiration army, and we will surely fight our way back!"

"With the Jin dogs' heads, we will sacrifice to our fallen compatriots!"

"With the swords and spears in our hands, we will display the might of Han sons!"

His rough, blood-filled words, like a torch, ignited the fervor in each recruit's chest, and the shouts on the drill field shot straight to the clouds.

A more far-reaching influence then silently spread among the countryside markets under the False Song's rule.

In Yanzhou, Jizhou and even more distant prefectures, the tea stalls and taverns filled with despondency and panic began to whisper the new tale.

Storytellers slapped the clapper, vividly recounting how the Northward Aspiration army, outside Binzhou City, on foot overcame cavalry and annihilated the Jin bandits in a glorious feat;

In rural folk songs, the lyrics also quietly began: 'Northward Aspiration banner, fluttering in the wind, brave heroes solely slay the Jin wolves.'

Although the authorities concealed it deeply and even secretly banned it, these messages bearing the scent of blood and fire were like sparks in the dark night, quietly igniting in the hearts of countless people disappointed with the Imperial Court and holding back resentment.

Near a ruined village close to the official road, a few men who had just fled from the north gathered around an old scholar who had studied a few years at the village school, listening to him haltingly read a hastily copied proclamation of the Northward Aspiration army.

"……The Jin marauders run rampant, the state lies in dust, the False Song is foolish and incapable of great responsibility…… My Northward Aspiration army, inheriting the orthodoxy of Huaxia, gathering the loyal hearts, vowing to launch a northern campaign, to recover our rivers and mountains……"

The old scholar read with his head swaying, and the surrounding men listened with their eyes lighting up.

"Inheriting the orthodoxy of Huaxia…… recovering our rivers and mountains……"

A scar-faced man muttered the words repeatedly, then suddenly spat.

"Damn! Hearing this lifts the spirit! It's ten thousand times better than those dog officials who only know to levy grain and collect taxes!"

He suddenly rose to his feet and gazed northward.

"I won't be a shrinking turtle heading south any longer! I'm going to enlist in the Northward Aspiration army right now!"

Mountain valley base, the central great tent.

Chen Wen listened to Qian Gui's report on the movements of all sides, then nodded slightly.

"Reputation has risen, people's hearts are initially drawn."

"This is a good thing, but also a test."

He had spread out the latest map of the northern lands before him, densely marked with many new symbols.

"Tell Brother Chao Gai, the training of new troops must be tightened

"I will come regularly, and to those who perform outstandingly and have firm resolve, I will bestow the 'Enlightenment' to help them grow quickly, prioritizing the forging of grassroots officer backbone."

Chen Wen emphasized.

"With expansion in scale, it is inevitable that good and bad will mix."

"Inform Wang Ru to add personnel, strictly vet the backgrounds of newly joined members, especially to guard against the Iron Crow Army's possible infiltration of lurkers."

"Subordinate understands."

Qian Gui bowed and replied.

"Moreover, the first batch of supplies supported by the Chen Dynasty—including food, iron materials, and specially prepared medicinal herbs—has safely arrived via Channel Three and is now being stored."

Old Zhao's side also sent news that the newly improved God‑Slaying Crossbow and Spirit‑Calming Bell have been completed and are about to be shipped.

"Excellent."

Chen Wen's gaze fell on the position of Zhending Prefecture on the map, where the markings were the densest.

"Send word to Instructor Lin, no need to rush for success; steady and solid, the priorities are to annihilate the Jin army's living forces, temper the troops, and expand influence

"The reactions of the False Song court and Song Jiang's side need not be overly concerned."

He raised his head, his gaze calm.

"What we want is not a fleeting false reputation, but a power that can take root in this chaotic age and ultimately be able to lift the heavens and shake the earth

"The name Northward Aspiration has already been raised; next, we must let this banner truly become the unshakable backbone of the northern lands."

Outside the tent, the wind howled, carrying the earth‑shaking training sounds from the drill ground, as if responding to his words.