After several days of traveling west, a message came back from the front.
Heavy snow fell for several days and the Dushan Pass was blocked by snow. The team transporting military supplies could not pass and was stuck in front of the pass.
It’s not far from Jincheng, only a few hundred miles away.
She was about to reach her destination, but was stopped by a snowstorm. You can imagine how anxious she was.
Xie Changgeng quickened his pace and chased him all the way. After ten days or so, he caught up with him at Dudeng Mountain.
The blizzard continued, and it only stopped a few days ago. The grain transport team is still waiting here.
Mu Fulan is no longer here.
The garrison commander who was ordered to guard the place reported to him that when the princess arrived here ten days ago, the road to the pass was blocked and she was very anxious. She learned that in addition to this military road, there was another small road dozens of miles west that came out of the valley. Although it was much farther and the road was dangerous and the army could not pass, it could bypass the pass and continue westward, so she asked to lead the way.
In response to her request, the guard sent a guide who was familiar with the road and a team of guards to lead her away.
"How long will it take to clear the customs here?" Xie Changgeng asked.
"It snowed so heavily a few days ago that it has only stopped snowing for two days. Although I have led my men to open the passage with all my strength, I estimate that it will take at least seven or eight days to open it up completely..."
Xie Changgeng turned around, walked to his mount, and patted a large leather bag hanging on the side of the saddle.
The big leather bag was bulging, and as he flapped it, a child's head suddenly popped out of the opening.
The child had disheveled hair and a dirty face. He hadn't washed or combed his hair for several days. However, his eyes were round, with clear black and white. When he looked around, they were like two sparkling gems.
On the way west, except for the necessary rest time, the rest of the time, regardless of day or night, the group was almost on the road. It was fine for adults, but the child was a problem. Xie Changgeng came up with a solution and put Xier in this bag made of old lamb skin, which was used as a sleeping bag and hung on the horse, which was both warm and safe. The only downside was the bumpy ride. Fortunately, the child adapted very well in a few days. No matter how the horse bumped, sometimes after walking for a long time, Xie Changgeng stopped the horse to rest. When he opened the sleeping bag, he found that the child inside was still sleeping soundly and could not be woken up even by calling.
Xier thought he would be able to see his mother here today. When the guard was talking just now, he hid inside and listened with his ears perked up.
"Thank you, sir. I'm not tired at all!"
Without waiting for Xie Changgeng to ask himself, he popped his head out and immediately spoke loudly.
Xie Changgeng was startled, then smiled, and patted his little head as usual, then lowered it, put it back in his pocket, and turned around to order: "I have something urgent to do, send someone who is familiar with the road to lead the way, and I will also take a detour to go to Jincheng!"
At first, the guard and others thought that the leather bag carried by the governor's mount contained some important personal belongings. Suddenly, they saw a child crawling out from under the bag. They were very close to the governor, like a father and son. The child called him "Master Xie". They were all surprised, but did not know how to ask. They stared at the two of them. When they heard the order, they immediately went to call the guide.
That day, after a short rest and some food, Xie Changgeng ordered the guards to step up vigilance to prevent the northerners from taking advantage of the bad weather to launch a surprise attack. Then he continued on his journey with Liang Tuan and thirty other followers.
The terrain of that valley was extremely rugged and covered with snow. The thickest part was up to the waist, so the horses could not be ridden. The group had no choice but to dismount and trek on the horses. After three days of hard walking, they finally bypassed the pass, returned to the right path, and continued on their way.
If everything goes well, they can reach Jincheng in another three or two days, which is not far from Tianshan Mountain.
At noon, when passing through a snowy forest, Xie Changgeng saw that the people and horses were tired, so he ordered them to rest on the spot for a while.
The thirty followers were all experienced warriors who could fight ten enemies at once, but after three days of walking, they all looked exhausted. They sat down on the ground, built a fire to heat up their food, and took a rest to recover their strength.
The child no longer needed Xie Changgeng to carry him up and down. He got out of the leather bag by himself, climbed up the horse's belly and landed on the ground with ease. He grabbed a handful of snow and wiped his face with it without feeling cold, just as if washing his face. Then he ran to Xie Changgeng's side, took a piece of freshly baked naan, ate a few bites, turned his head and looked ahead, saying, "Master Xie, are we almost there?"
Xie Changgeng looked ahead, took him to a nearby high ground, lifted him up, pointed to the towering snow-capped peak that looked like a white dragon covered in silver at the end of the sight, and said, "See? That snow-capped peak is the top of Tianshan Mountain. At the foot of the snow-capped peak is the Golden City."
Xier followed the direction he pointed, staring intently, and urged excitedly: "Sir, let's go quickly!"
Xie Changgeng smiled and nodded, retracted his gaze from the distance, and was about to turn around, when suddenly, his eyes moved slightly and fell on an old pine tree about ten feet ahead, and he concentrated for a moment.
He quickly retracted his gaze, calmly carried Xier down, put him back in the sleeping bag, then took out a bow and arrow, returned to the high ground, drew the bow and arrow, aimed at the old pine tree, and shot an arrow.
The arrow flew off the string, breaking through the air. With a "puff" sound, it pierced deeply into the tree trunk.
The branches trembled slightly, and some snow fell from the treetops like fine dust.
The man hiding behind the tree was startled, knowing that he had been discovered, and turned around and ran away, but how could he escape? As soon as he was out of the protection of the tree trunk, before he could run a few steps in the snow, a second arrow came after him.
A powerful and sharp arrow instantly came from behind, pierced into the knee socket and shattered the kneecap.
The arrow pierced through the leg, piercing through flesh and blood.
The man screamed and fell into the snow, but he was very strong and quickly climbed up from the snow, dragging his injured leg and limping as he continued to struggle to escape.
Liang Tuan and others were startled by the shouting, grabbed their weapons and jumped up from the ground.
"It should be a northerner. Catch him and interrogate him on the spot!"
Xie Changgeng put down his bow and gave a faint instruction.
Everyone rushed forward and quickly caught the northerner who was still fleeing in the snow. Knowing that the governor did not want the young master to witness the bloody scene, they followed his instructions and interrogated him on the spot.
The distance was quite far, so she couldn't see the interrogation scene, but the man's screams still reached Xier's ears.
Xier clung to the horse's back with her little hands, looking over there constantly.
Another burst of shrill screams was heard.
He seemed a little uneasy. He turned his head and silently looked at Xie Changgeng who was feeding the horse, seeming to want to say something but stopping himself.
Xie Changgeng raised his head, glanced at the child, walked to his side, straightened his wrinkled collar, and said softly: "Xi'er, don't be afraid, and don't feel sorry for him. That person is our enemy and wants to harm us."
Xier turned her head and glanced in the direction of the scream, and asked in a low voice: "Master Xie, you haven't even seen that man, how do you know he is our enemy?"
Xie Changgeng said, "That man was hiding behind a tree just now and spying on us. I fired the first arrow as a warning. If he had no ill intentions, he would have come out to explain. But he turned and ran away, which shows that he was guilty and naturally had bad intentions towards us. If he has bad intentions, he is an enemy."
He paused and emphasized his tone.
"Xi'er, remember, if you are soft-hearted towards your enemies, the ones who will be harmed may be you and the people you want to protect."
"Do you want that?"
Xier immediately shook her head. "The person I want to protect is my mother. I will remember what you said!"
"What should we do if we encounter an enemy?"
"kill!"
Xier thought for a moment, raised her still somewhat childish voice, and spoke loudly.
Xie Changgeng nodded in approval.
Over there, Liang Tuan had finished the interrogation and rushed back, reporting: "Sir, it turned out to be a northerner spy, and he confessed! Something has happened! A northerner army of several thousand cavalry should be attacking Dudeng Garrison now!"
This spy came from a cavalry regiment that had been roaming along the border line from Hexi to Tianshan for many years.
They had been active in the Tianshan area before, eyeing Jincheng, but knew they had no chance of capturing it. In addition, heavy snow blocked the land and they were running out of food and grass, so they planned to return to the royal court first. Some time ago, when they were passing through this area, they learned that a batch of military rations from Hexi was to be sent to Jincheng. Coincidentally, a heavy snowstorm occurred, and the food corps was blocked at the pass of Dudeng Mountain, and the east-west traffic was cut off. They regarded this as a God-given opportunity, and made a temporary plan, deciding to seize the opportunity, and do their best to raid Dudeng Garrison and seize the military rations.
If the adventure succeeds, the soldiers in Jincheng, an isolated city in the hinterland, will be left without food and grass for the winter and will have no way out. What's more important is that if the military road built by the Hexi Jiedushi Mansion in recent years is cut off, the area west of Dushan Mountain, the entire Tianshan Mountains, and the road to the Western Regions will all fall into the hands of the northerners.
"This spy sneaked in here during the heavy snow to find out the exact location of the beacon tower. In addition to raiding Dudeng Fort, they also sent out troops to cut off the nearby beacon towers to prevent the message from being transmitted and attracting reinforcements. There was more than one spy sent out to find the beacon tower!"
After Liang Tuan finished his report, thirty guards gathered around him, with dozens of eyes fixed on Xie Changgeng, waiting for his instructions.
Xie Changgeng looked in the direction of Dudengshu.
After the snow, the sky there was clear and bright, without any trace of smoke.
There are two possibilities. Either Dudeng Fort had not been attacked yet and the defenders were unaware. Or, there is another possibility.
That is, not long after they left, Dudeng Fort was attacked by northerners and the beacon tower was controlled by them.
"The next beacon tower to the west should be the Moli Beacon. Do you know the way?"
Xie Changgeng knew all the beacon towers on the westward march route like the back of his hand, so he turned around and asked the guide.
"I know! It's thirty miles from here!"
"Go to Molifeng immediately and start the smoke before the northerners arrive and occupy it!"
When the Moli beacon raised the signal, the next beacon would receive the message, and thus, within three hours, the news of the battle would be transmitted to Jincheng in sequence. Within three days, the soldiers would surely arrive to support Dudeng garrison.
With his ability to capture the garrison alone, even if he does not have an advantage in terms of military strength, if he can hold out for three days, there should not be any problem.
The situation was urgent, so the group immediately set off and rushed towards Mo Lifeng. However, when they finally arrived, Liang Tuan and others were shocked by what they saw.
Beacon towers are usually built on high ground in order to convey their message far. The Moli Beacon is no exception, being built on a mountain ridge.
A few days ago, it seemed like an avalanche had occurred here.
A large amount of snow slid down the steep slope above the beacon tower, almost burying the entire towering base of the beacon tower.
The few beacon soldiers who were originally guarding here have disappeared, and most likely they have been buried under the snow.
Liang Tuan immediately led his men to dig in the snow, trying to dig a hole leading to the base so that they could enter and light the beacon fire. After a while, they dug out two bodies of beacon soldiers that had been frozen stiff. However, the entrance to the base of the beacon tower was far away.
With such a pile of snow, even if we work non-stop tonight and until tomorrow, we may not be able to dig through it.
With a "ding" sound, a knife used by a guard to dig snow was inserted into the crevice of a huge rock that rolled down with the snow. When the force was applied, it broke into two pieces.
"Sir! I'm afraid we are running out of time. I'm afraid the northerners will find this place before we dig through. We might as well hurry to the next beacon tower, which may be faster!"
Liang Tuan was sweating all over, he stopped and advised.
Xie Changgeng looked towards the next beacon tower. While he was pondering, he suddenly heard a child's voice behind him saying, "Master Xie, I can crawl in and help you light a fire."
Xie Changgeng turned around and saw Xier pointing at the top of the beacon tower and speaking to him.
Liang Tuan also turned his head and stared at the chimneys on the top of the beacon tower that had not yet been buried by the snow and the air vents on both sides. He was enlightened and jumped up in ecstasy.
"Young Master is right! We can't get through those openings, but you are small, so you can try to crawl in. All we need to do is pile up firewood and wolf dung, pour kerosene on it, and light a fire..."
Before he finished speaking, he suddenly felt that something was wrong.
Even if the child could really crawl in through the chimney and start a fire, it would be like being in a furnace at that time. No one could guarantee whether he could get out safely the same way.
He quickly shut up and glanced at the governor.
Xie Changgeng looked solemn.
He was silent for a moment, then slowly squatted down, staring at the child in front of him who was panting and digging the snow with a dagger just a moment ago, and gently touched his head and said, "No!"
After he finished speaking, he stood up, gave the order to leave, and immediately set off for the next beacon tower.
"My lord! I can do it! I really can! Please believe me!"
But the child was very stubborn. He looked up at him and clutched his sleeve tightly, refusing to let go.
The author has something to say: Thank you little angels for voting for me~
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