At that time, Shan Chao came to Liangzhou with countless rumors. Some people said that he was a hot new star among the Beiya imperial guards. Because of his meritorious service in rescuing him when he was enshrining Zen in Mount Tai, he might even be promoted to deputy commander in an exceptional way; He was an abandoned son of the Imperial Guard, and he stabbed Xie Yun, the commander of the Imperial Army at the Martial Arts Conference, and almost killed Xie Yun, so he was expelled from the Beiya.
The rumors are mixed, but one thing is for sure.
On the day he left the capital, Xie Yun made a special trip to go outside the city gate, and whipped him off his horse in front of everyone.
This whip not only angered the Imperial Army of the Beiya, but also drew a clear line between Shan Chao and the Beiya. Invisibly, it made his first year in Liangzhou much easier, at least he was not too embarrassed by Su Dingfang's old department.
But the commander-in-chief of Liangzhou at that time, Dugu Qingyun, still didn't like him.
In the first four years of Shan Chao's stay in the Northwest, he had been in the back of the palace, supporting, taking care of the food and grass, and guarding the luggage. There was no trace in the credit book, and even if he had it, he was taken away in a hurry.
What made Shan Chao stand out overnight was the Battle of Dafeichuan on the Qinghai battlefield in the first year of Xianheng.
After the death of Lu Dongzan in the second year of Qianfeng, his eldest son Zan Xiruo was in charge of the government, and his second son Lun Qinling led the army. In the first year of Xianheng, he led an army of 400,000 to occupy the four towns of Anxi. Go far to Xizhou. The news spread back to the capital, and the holy majesty was furious. However, the old generals of Zhenguan had already withered in the past few years, so the holy majesty ignored the dissuasion of empress Wu and appointed Xue Rengui as the general manager of the Luosuo road march, and named Ashina Daozhen and Guo Daifeng as the deputy commanders. , 50,000 troops were sent to the northwest.
Shan Chao, who had been stationed in Liangzhou for four years, was placed under Guo Daifeng's command at that time.
Xiao Siye later found out that this was the only time in the palace that he fought for Shan Chao. Some people were extremely opposed to Guo Daifeng, and asked Shan Chao to follow Ashina's teachings on the Western Regions, or follow coach Xue Rengui to the front line in Qinghai.
At the time, it seemed that this was no different from deliberately killing Shan Chao. There were two reasons: First, the Qinghai battlefield was located at a high altitude. Wuhai is a dangerous place. Let’s say that the enemy’s 400,000 troops from Tubo, if attacked head-on, the corpses can only be used to fill the Yellow River; Although there are only 20,000 horses, the safety is beyond doubt.
In other words, anyone would think that the person who made the suggestion was trying to kill someone with a knife. I don't know if Shan Chao knew it, but Xiao Siye suspected that he knew it.
However, things soon changed.
After Guo Daifeng became a loyal and famous general, he was not convinced by the coach Xue Rengui, so after occupying Wuhai on the front line, he disobeyed the military order and pulled out the stronghold without authorization, trying to take his supplies and supplies to the front line to fight for military exploits.
Shan Chao, who was the deputy general, strongly opposed this, but he was very soft-spoken at the time, and he tried hard to stop him for several days, but it was of no avail.
Everything that follows is tragic.
As soon as Guo Daifeng broke out of the camp, he was ambushed by Zan Xiruo, who had been prepared for a long time. The 200,000 Tubo army surrounded the 20,000 Tang troops to death. This battle can only be described as massacre. The mountains and plains are full of burned food and grass and the corpses of dead soldiers.
When the news was sent back to the front line, Xue Rengui spat out a mouthful of blood on the spot.
The strong man Xue Rengui broke his wrist and immediately ordered to abandon Wuhai and return to Dafeichuan—the decision was correct, but it was too late to make up for it. On the way back to Dafeichuan, Xue Rengui's 30,000 Qingqi were surrounded by Tubo's 400,000 heavy troops.
At that time, it was Shan Chao who rushed over with blood all over his body and snatched the knife from his hand.
When Guo waited for the anti-resistance order to pull out the camp, only Shan Chao sensed the crisis and forced all his sergeants to reload and set off. Therefore, only his troops survived the first round of arrow rain when encountering encirclement and suppression. Immediately after the encirclement and suppression began, when Guo Daifeng ordered the whole army to guard the supplies, only Shan Chao asked his men to give up all the supplies, food and grass to break through, and he really ran out of the encirclement of the 200,000 Tubo army.
Then Shan Chao adjusted his head, rushed back to the battlefield single-handedly, and rescued Guo Daifeng in the sea of corpses and blood.
From Dafeichuan to Wuhai, the mountain road is rugged, the weather is extremely cold, the high pressure makes the oxygen extremely thin, and there are countless Tubo troops chasing after him. The road of death for hundreds of miles was made by Shan Chao. Because he stabbed too much with the halberd in his hand, the tip of the steel halberd was stuck in the human bone many times, so he had to give up and snatch it from the Tubo soldiers; there were also several times when his armor was smashed and his flesh and blood were stabbed. , the blood and minced flesh all over his body can't tell whether it's his own or the enemy's, like a lion rushing out of a sea of blood in hell.
After the Tubo Prime Minister Zan Xiruo learned about it, he ordered to tell the whole army that those who captured Shan Chao alive would be rewarded heavily, even if they took the head of the top one, they could also be rewarded with a thousand gold.
Guo Daifeng was finally inspired with the last generosity, and asked Shan Chao to let go of himself and escape alone. Unexpectedly, Shan Chao shook his head and refused: "No."
Before Guo Daifeng could be moved, he heard him say: "Twenty thousand soldiers died because you violated the military order. The law of the country and the military are above the law, how can you let you die so lightly?"
Guo Daifeng's mouthful of blood finally spurted out.
Shan Chao fought from dawn to dusk, and then ran for his life all night to survive. He killed more than a thousand enemies on horseback, and the 200,000 army was unstoppable.
At dawn the next day, they finally arrived at Wuhai to join the main force and took the knife from Xue Rengui's hand.
——It was also at this time that Guo Daifeng realized that the God of War, who was said to have thousands of troops and horses entering and exiting seven times, was not fabricated.
After the entire army of Dafeichuan was exhausted, Tang Ting was forced to make peace with Tubo and return. Before leaving, the Prime Minister of Tubo, Zan Xiruo, came here on purpose and asked to see the young general with the black horse and silver armored Longyuan sword who rode alone for hundreds of miles, but Shan Chao had already been ordered to go back to Liangzhou. To leave merit and fame, the Tubo people didn't even rush to the shadows.
After this battle, the Holy One was furious, Xue Rengui was deposed as a commoner, Guo Daifeng was reduced to death and dismissed, and the rest were promoted and demoted, but Shan Chaoyuan was promoted to three ranks in a row by imperial decree in Liangzhou.
This was also one of the questions that Xiao Siye couldn't figure out later.
Over the years, the struggle between the empress and the East Palace has become more and more intense. The promotion or relegation of all officials, either the empress or the prince, has almost never passed smoothly; however, the extraordinary promotion of Shan Chao quickly reached the border. One objected.
Reminiscent of the fact that before the start of the war, some people in the palace strongly opposed Shan Chao's return to Guo Daifeng's command, and the meaning is even more thought-provoking—
Shan Chao had been stationed at the border for four years, and that man didn't care about him. He only made such a fierce fight before the outbreak of the First World War in Dafeichuan.
Do you want Shan Chao to die on the battlefield, or have you seen the hidden danger in the battle situation
Who is that person, and what kind of thoughts are hidden in his heart
·
The afterglow of thousands of miles above the sky was gradually covered by deep and light twilight. On the border between the wilderness and the sky in the distance, large pieces of black blue, dark blue, and gray blue are like splashed ink, faintly flashing the cold light of the rising stars.
The evening wind carried the moisture of the river across the rocky beach, Xiao Siye turned his head to look at it, and the profile of Shan Chao's deep profile showed an extreme coldness and hardness in the light and shadow.
"I've heard that when you asked yourself to leave Beijing, Xie Yun, the commander of the Beiya Imperial Army, whipped you in public..." Xiao Siye considered his tone, and said slowly, "But Xie Yun is high-profile and cruel, and he treats everyone with a lash. If so, it would be too unnecessary to avoid seeing him for the rest of his life because of this.”
Shan Chao didn't answer.
"Besides, you have accumulated a lot of military merits, and the Holy Majesty always has an opportunity to commend and reward you. This time, it is a chance for you to escort the King and Princess of Khotan to the court. It may be that the Holy Majesty specially arranged for you..."
"Xiao Shuai really thinks my military skills are enough?" Shan Chao interrupted him suddenly.
Xiao Siye was taken aback for a moment: "Why, isn't it enough?"
Shan Chao smiled.
Although the thin lips on that handsome face were only raised slightly, and the arc was so small that it was almost hard to see clearly, Xiao Siye knew that it was really a very rare smile on Shan Chao.
"No," he said, "not enough."
Shan Chao got up and walked to the shore, took off his shoes, walked into the icy river, bent down to clean the sawdust on his hands when he was carving just now.
Xiao Siye got up in surprise and followed, and after a long period of suspicion, he couldn't help but ask: "You...there have been dozens of battles, if not hundreds, over the years, not to mention Xue Rengui's old troops in Qinghai, just say our Anxi four towns, Isn't it you who are under me? Why, where do you think you are not enough?"
Shan Chao shook his head.
"Eight years in the army, don't you want a wife?" Xiao Siye scolded, "Even if you are eager to make contributions, you should go back to visit your family from time to time, otherwise what is the difference between you and a widow after being married?"
General Shan probably has a daughter-in-law, which is known to many people.
The frontier troops are miserable, and they may die at any time if they start a war. If there is today, there will be no tomorrow. Many people would go to brothels during holidays, if not for venting, at least for psychological comfort, but Shan Chao never went.
His main ways of passing the time were reading various books and carving his never-ending wood.
Shanchao's knife skills can be described as superb, but the carving is unexpectedly clumsy, and the wood broke after two cuts at the very beginning. Later, I managed to form a shape, and it could be seen that I wanted to carve a villain, but either the nose was crooked or the eyes were slanted, or the body was long and the legs were short.
The young soldiers with good deeds saw it, and then laughed and laughed, saying that General Shan was trying to carve his wife, and Shan Chao never refuted it.
Xiao Siye suspected that he was sitting alone on the river beach just now and was carving wood. Just as he was about to say something, he saw Shan Chao took off his shirt, exposed his lean back, and plunged into the river with a plop. After a while, he poked his head out again, shook the water drops, and showed a self-deprecating smile: "It's okay, my wife doesn't like me."
"..." Xiao Siye's only thought was that he was speechless, and he sighed for a long while: "You, you, you...don't be angry, who can still fall in love with a daughter-in-law who has been away for eight years?" If you still regard me as the coach, don't think about resisting the edict anymore! When the time comes, His Majesty won't be able to see anyone in the capital. If you blame me, I won't cover it up for you..."
Xiao Siye tried his best to persuade a lot, his mouth was so dry, from analyzing the pros and cons to using both soft and hard tactics, he almost wiped out all the literary talents he had accumulated over the years of marching and fighting. In the end, he spoke until his throat was smoky, and he added worriedly: "If you resist any more, don't blame me for leaving these tens of thousands of people to go to Beijing by myself, and go to the imperial court to plead guilty! Did you hear that?"
Shan Chao was ups and downs in the river, heaved a long sigh, and said, "Got it."
Only then did Xiao Siye feel relieved, and told him to get up quickly after taking a bath and be careful not to catch a cold, then turned and walked towards the camp.
"Ah, that's right," Xiao Siye suddenly turned around and said, "When you go back to Beijing this time, don't forget to bring some things back for me to give away. You don't need to send them to the Xie Mansion yourself, just hand them over to Beiya..."
Shan Chaoyi frowned: "Xie Mansion?"
"Well. Two years ago, when the imperial court was fighting Liaodong with all its strength, the military equipment in the northwest was insufficient. I asked people to go to Beijing for a round of activities. In the end, thanks to Commander Xie of the imperial army, he spoke in front of Tianhou—all the military equipment, food, grass, and warm clothes in the past two years were still enough. Youhou, I should thank you.”
The frown on Shan Chao's brows deepened, and Xiao Siye said again: "Fortunately, let's count the time and wait until the wedding has not been held when you arrive in Beijing, so there is still time."
Shan Chao was taken aback suddenly.
"... what wedding?"
Xiao Siye wondered: "Don't you know?"
They looked at each other across the river beach, Shan Chao's whole body was immersed in the bitterly cold river water outside the Great Wall in late autumn, his face was slightly stiff.
"I said it when the capital was here last time. Ah, you went back to Liangzhou." Xiao Siye clapped his hands and said with a smile, "It is said that Commander Xie is going to get married. The big gift should be at the end of the year."
"..."
Shan Chao's lips moved, and when he spoke again, his voice was imperceptibly hoarse: "... Is it a marriage?"
"No, he proposed marriage himself." Xiao Siye curled his lips slightly teasingly: "It is said that the girl does not know where she is from, and she is not a lady of a famous family. Who knows from which corner he saw the right person? — Well, it's just a word Come back, Commander Xie is coming to an end of the year, and the marriage can't be delayed."
The river was dead silent, only to hear the wind whistling across the rocky beach, and the rocks of different sizes cast shadows of different shades.
Shan Chao buried his head in the water, leaving only a string of bubbles on the river surface, which soon disappeared into the distance with the water waves.
Xiao Siye couldn't help but took two steps forward, but only heard a splash, Shan Chao finally emerged from the water, wiped his face with wetness: "Got it." He said in a low voice, "I will go."
·
King Fu Jiaxiong of Khotan, together with his princess and his sons and chieftains, set off in the late autumn of the first year of Shangyuan, and went to Beijing to meet the emperor and hand over the tribute, intending to surrender the whole country to the Tang Dynasty.
The Emperor and Empress were pleased to praise, and hand-picked General Shan Chao of Anxi Dufu to escort him with 500 soldiers.
Shan Chao received the purpose.
Thousands of miles away, Xie Mansion.
The Chang'an moonlight shines on the empty atrium, the corridors are shaded by flowers and trees, and the sound of gongs beating faintly can be heard from the long street.
Xie Yun closed the Military News of the Western Regions and let out a barely audible breath.
He stood up and walked towards the bedroom, his sleeves fell off in the moonlight, and the snow-white silk shone slightly. At this time, a delicate and delicate figure at the end of the porch turned around, holding a thick robe in his hand, and was about to move forward to meet her, but Xie Yun raised his hand to stop her.
"Go and rest," Xie Yun said wearily, then stepped into the bedroom and closed the door behind his back.