That year, a rather famous "Battle of Guangning" occurred between the Ming Dynasty and the Later Jin. Guangning is now Beizhen in western Liaoning, nestled against mountains and the sea, and was a crucial strategic point for the Ming's defense against the Later Jin at the time. The book meticulously documented the battle's origins, progress, and outcome. I skimmed through it, and it seemed unrelated to Jiuxian Cave. Because it was all in classical Chinese, reading it was tedious and arduous.
After searching for a long time, just as I was about to give up, I inadvertently noticed some indentation marks in the blank space of a page, as if pencil had been used and then erased.
I carefully turned to the back of the page and shone my flashlight at an angle. This made things clearer. Indeed, there were traces of text. I used a carbon pen to "trace" the indentations, filling them in word by word. Then, I took a photo with my phone and flipped the image to create a mirror effect.
A few small lines of text came into view: The "Imperial Brother" here is actually Huang Taiji, and Mu Jig is actually the fifth daughter. Mu Jig's prestige in the army was too high, yet she was particularly fond of the fourteenth brother, Dorgon. She wanted to support him to ascend to power. Huang Taiji then planned to seize the opportunity to get rid of Mu Jig, thus eliminating future trouble.
What elegant handwriting, and it looked strangely familiar!
I was certain it was Song Lei's writing!
Because in college, Song Lei's grades were always excellent in our class. I didn't study diligently and often skipped class, so I frequently asked him to copy his homework. I was very familiar with his handwriting!
It seemed that Song Lei had discovered something while reading this book and made a mark in pencil, which was later erased by Shen Xingyue with an eraser, perhaps to destroy evidence?
I never expected that I, this "great genius," could decipher it with such a simple method!
But what did this passage mean?
Huang Taiji? Dorgon? The fifth daughter?
I looked again at the corresponding parts of the book's text; neither of these famous historical figures' names was mentioned.
I did, however, see the words "Imperial Brother."
Combining it with the context, I carefully read this passage, which described a "Battle of Juhua Mountain" during the Guangning campaign.
The original text was difficult to understand. I read it while searching on Baidu, and it took me half an hour to fully grasp the recorded content.
The Battle of Juhua Mountain occurred before the decisive battle of the Guangning campaign. Both sides arrayed their forces outside Guangning city and maintained a standoff, while also searching for other opportunities to strike.
On the Ming army's side, a team of "Yebushou" scouts was dispatched to find a side path for a surprise attack on the Later Jin army's rear.
The Later Jin army, with the same tactical objective, sent out six Bayala (elite special forces of the Later Jin). As a result, both sides encountered each other at Juhua Mountain.
Compared to the Ming's "Yebushou," the Later Jin's "Bayala" were more formidable. Just six of them caused the near annihilation of over a hundred "Yebushou." It wasn't just because of their bravery; the main reason was that among the six "Bayala," the leader was a female Bayala who could use magic, summoning the power of the five elements to attack the "Yebushou," defeating the Ming army soundly.
The surviving "Yebushou" returned to report. The Ming commander, Xiong Tingbi, disregarding the outcome of the entire Guangning campaign, learned that this female "Bayala" had unfortunately suffered a fracture from a fall during the battle and was recuperating on the spot. He then redeployed all his "Yebushou" units from the main battlefield to attack Juhua Mountain, totaling over eight hundred men.
Upon receiving the news, the Later Jin also dispatched 500 reinforcements. Both sides were fighting fiercely for this female Bayala.
The battle's outcome was a pyrrhic victory for the Later Jin. However, the female Bayala, her magical powers depleted, lost control and began to attack her own men indiscriminately, killing over a hundred of her comrades and nearly killing one of her Imperial Brothers. The Imperial Brother, helpless, shot and killed her on the spot.
After reading this, I looked again at Song Lei's interpretation and gradually understood.
That incredibly fierce female Bayala was Mu Jig, who was Yaoyao!
Furthermore, in addition to her magical abilities, she held a noble status. She was Dorgon's older sister, and thus a daughter of Nurhaci, the founder of the Qing Dynasty!