It's almost Qingming, and it's been raining all day. The rain in the capital washed the ground and underground cleanly, and there was lush life everywhere.
It has been more than a month since the Great Wei soldiers sent troops to leave the capital.
Near Jiuchuan, there is an endless desert.
"Master He," the young lieutenant walked into the tent and said to the female officer who was sitting on the ground drawing a picture, "Your order to reduce the number of military stoves in the camp has already been explained."
He Yan smiled and said, "Thank you."
The lieutenant looked at the woman in front of him with a little emotion in his heart. The Fuyue Army, who originally followed General Feihong, felt reluctant when they learned that the leader was a young woman. Don't blame them for being picky, after really following General Feihong of the Great Wei, and looking at other generals, he can't help but compare. As a woman, He Yan dared to go to the battlefield, which was admirable. But in fact, she has never led an army alone, and she doesn't know the depth of her skills. Even though they had fought victoriously in Rundu and Jiyang before, at that time there was also the Governor of the Right Army.
Now, she is alone.
There is a difference between fighting and pure martial arts. Emperor Zhaokang did this, perhaps because of the sake of the right army governor. But within the Fuyue Army, they were not really convinced.
In the past month, they have only arrived near Jiuchuan not long ago. Jiuchuan was originally a city in the desert, but now it has been occupied by the Uto people. When He Yan arrived in Jiuchuan, he was not in a hurry to launch an attack, but instead camped near Jiuchuan. For several days, the soldiers have complained.
But the lieutenant knew that it wasn't what people saw.
He used to be in the Fuyue Army, and although he couldn't get in close contact with the former General Feihong, he also knew that General Feihong dared to be brave. The woman in front of her, who has not yet shown her brave side, is more rational and calm.
The location of the camp is just right. This position can be attacked and defended. At the tuyere again, if there is any movement, it is convenient to adjust the retreat. The lieutenant was a little strange. He had inquired about it. He Yan was also in Jiuchuan for the first time, but he seemed to be very familiar with the terrain here and had a lot of experience in how to survive in the desert.
Of course he had no way of knowing that He Yan was the "General Feihong" in the past, and General Feihong first followed the Fuyue Army to deal with the Xiqiang people in Moxian County. Moxian is not far from Jiuchuan, and the terrain is similar.
"Sir," the deputy general's gaze fell on the long scroll in front of He Yan, "Are you drawing a map?"
"These Uto people have a lot of strength and have been planning for a long time. Although the Fuyue Army is training every day, it has not been on the battlefield for several years. In addition, the Huayuan World War I suffered heavy damage and the strength is not as good as that of the opponent. I can't rashly attack and put these The lives of the soldiers are put aside, before that, knowing yourself and knowing your enemy, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles.”
Every day, she asks Shi Wangba several people to explore the road outside Jiuchuan City from a distance. She doesn't have to go too close. She can feel the terrain nearby. Finally a complete map was drawn. With this picture, the Fuyue Army, which is not as large as the Uto people, can exert its greatest strength.
It's just... He Yan sighed in her heart. She had known that the Uto people had been recuperating for many years, and their armaments must be rich. If it's just Jiuchuan, it's fine, and if the other three places are the same, this battle of Dawei is really not easy to fight.
For so many years, Emperor Wenxuan paid more attention to literature than martial arts, and the army of the Great Wei was stagnant, but he taught the Utuo people to take the lead. It seems that Huayuan, Rundu, and even Jiyang were all just a pretense before. What those Uto people showed was not the real military strength, the purpose was to let them relax their vigilance.
Also, if not so, how could these four cities fall so quickly
"Your Excellency is rushing to make maps, and you should also pay attention to your body." The lieutenant thought for a while, and finally reminded: "Your Excellency has slept very little these past few days..."
"It's okay, I know what I know." He Yan continued without raising his head.
Seeing her like this, the lieutenant couldn't say anything else and bowed back.
After he left, someone called out, "Master He."
He Yan: "Come in."
It was Jiang Jiao and Shi Shi who came in.
Outside, they call He Yan "Master He" like other soldiers. After all, He Yan has not yet been appointed a general, but in private, he still likes to call He Yan "Brother He."
The two of them are careful and prudent in their work. In today's Fuyue Army, the original elites were killed by He Rufei, and there are not many people available. For some important matters, He Yan handed them over to Shitou.
She raised her head, looked at the two who approached, and asked, "But what is the action of the Uto people?"
Jiang Jiao replied: "There was a group of Uto people out of the city to visit at night, but they didn't get close to our camp. They just checked around and left. We did not chase after Brother He's request. But these two days , there is no movement again." He asked, "Brother He, do you want to wait any longer?"
"Wait." He Yan said solemnly, "We don't take the initiative to attack the city, let them chase us."
"Luring the enemy?" Jiang Jiao was startled, "But if they really attacked us, wouldn't we be in a weak position? After all, the Uto people now have more troops than us."
"Don't worry," He Yan smiled, "Those Uto people are cunning and suspicious, they will never let all the soldiers and horses leave the city, otherwise we won't be camped here for many days and still be safe. They sent spies out at night to investigate. Depending on the situation, it is nothing more than wanting to explore our bottom."
He Yan stood up and walked to the wooden tray in the tent. There were many small hills piled up with sand on the wooden tray. There were marks made of rice grains next to the hills. She picked up the branches on the side and pointed them to the two of them: " Moreover, where we are stationed, we will pass through the gorge when we retreat back, and the Uto people are afraid that we will have an ambush on the back road, so of course they dare not act rashly."
"Before, I fought with the Uto people in Jiyang and Rundu. If the people of Maqa and Huyat pass the word back to the Uto country, the Uto leader of Jiuchuan should have heard my name. But he He is not sure if I will really lead the army, he despised me in his heart, but because of Rundu and Jiyang, he dared not despise me, what do you think he would do?"
"What?" Jiang Jiao was puzzled.
"He will find a way to prove that I can't do it. After finding the evidence, he will despise me with reason." He Yan smiled, "Although I don't quite understand why General Uto is always like this, since they want to see an empty space Its name is actually a woman who can't lead soldiers, so I'll show them what they want to see."
"So," Stone's eyes lit up, who had been silent, "Those military stoves..."
"We have been camping here for a few days, but we haven't made any moves. The Uto people will suspect that we are cheating, so they will send troops out to visit at night. If I were a Uto person and watched the reduction of military stoves every day, I would definitely think about it. , it must be because the other party is leading the army by a woman, the soldiers and horses are not willing to obey, and they are afraid of the Wu Tuoxiong soldiers in Jiuchuan, and many soldiers deserted. This gave birth to the heart of underestimating the enemy."
"When they relax their vigilance and lead their troops deeper, they can set up an ambush."
Jiang Jiao was excited at first, but then he thought of something, and said hesitantly, "Brother He, didn't you say that Utuo people are cunning and suspicious, and they will never let all troops and horses leave the city..."
"Yeah," He Yan looked at him, "so the soldiers and horses they sent should only be part of it, and what we want to destroy is only this part. If they really dare to attack the whole army, we are in a weak position."
"Haven't you thought about killing them all?" Shishi was a little puzzled.
He Yan patted him on the shoulder: "You have never been on a real battlefield, and you don't know that a real war will not end overnight. The Utuo people have far surpassed us in terms of troops and horses, so don't judge yourself. It's short to attack the other's long. I didn't plan to confront them head-on, lure them in and annihilate part of the enemy army, which is enough to damage the morale of these utopians.
"If you want to win a war, you must be patient and calm, so that you can go to the end." He Yan smiled slightly, "This is just the beginning."
Jiang Jiao and Shitou looked at the woman in the armor in front of them. When they were in Liangzhou Guard, they already knew that she was very skilled and unparalleled, but now she is standing here, leading a party of troops and horses without rushing or slowing down. When the net is rolled out, people slowly and truly understand her ability.
"Brother He," Jiang Jiao joked, "You only have one more battle of Jiyang than us, how come you seem to be very familiar."
"That's different." The corner of the woman's mouth raised slightly, "As for me, I was born to fight."
There was a wind blowing outside, blowing into the desert, yellow sand flying everywhere, and the flags and flags were rolling, and the depression became more and more depressing.
Shitou murmured: "Jijun is not far from here, I don't know what happened to General Yan?"
"Jijun..." He Yan's eyes became heavy.
I heard that the plague has spread there.
…
The fields outside the city, by the river, were piled with piles of corpses.
A group of soldiers are digging a pit, the pit is very deep, and when I look inside, there are corpses wrapped in white cloth, and there are bursts of rotten smell. At first glance, it looks like hell on earth.
There were shacks made of thatch, with coarse cloth on the ground. Dozens of people were lying on their backs. All of them were dying, and there were some festering marks on their bodies. The young man was boiling medicine on the side, stirring the giant jar from time to time with a large iron spoon. of herbs.
His body is not very strong, and it is already very difficult to stir the medicinal materials in this giant vat. After a while, beads of sweat have oozing out on his forehead, but from the beginning to the end, he did not mean to be lazy. His snow-white robe has long been stained with mud and blood, and he has always only held the hand of the folding fan. These days, he is either holding a silver needle for healing or a medicine bowl for saving life.
The plague in Ji County was worse than expected.
After the Uto people occupied Ji County, they slaughtered civilians in the city and kidnapped women. A large number of dead bodies were thrown randomly by the river, and it was spring again, and a plague broke out soon. The Uto people directly drove out all the Dawei people who were still alive in the city, leaving them to fend for themselves. When Lin Shuanghe and Yan He came to Ji County, the fields outside the city were full of corpses piled up like mountains.
Lin Shuanghe believed that as a doctor, he was used to life and death, but when he first arrived here, he couldn't help but be shocked by the tragic situation here.
Yan He's soldiers and horses are to be used to deal with the Uto people. There are not many military doctors here. He is Lin Qingtan's grandson. Everyone advised him not to contact these patients in person. If he is infected with the plague... But Lin Shuanghe does not Without listening to these kind opinions, if he was afraid of death, he would not have chosen to come here in the first place.
The dead civilians can't be buried on the spot. They can only be burned. After they are turned into bones, they are buried in a deep pit. This is the best way. Even so, the cries of family members who are still alive can be heard every day.
He scooped the boiled medicinal soup into broken bowls, and hung the bowls in the air. After they had cooled down a little, he took them up and sent them to the grass hut to feed the patients.
He used to be a very particular son, and he was always arrogant. Even when he was treating female patients in Shuojing, he would smile more brightly when he saw those who were cute and well-dressed. But now, the patients here are smelly and dirty, but he doesn't dislike it at all.
The patient who was helped up by Lin Shuanghe was a woman. She should be very young, but she was born with a flat appearance and even a little too plump. Lin Shuanghe scooped up a spoonful of the medicinal soup and brought it to her lips. She drank it carefully, looking at the gentle and handsome young man in front of her, her face blushed slightly, as if even the pain on her body had eased a bit.
"Doctor Lin, I'll just do it myself." She whispered.
"That won't work," Lin Shuanghe said sternly: "How can I let the beautiful girl drink the medicine by herself? I am also a gentleman who loves fragrance and jade."
The patients in the grass hut laughed kindly when they heard the words.
This Doctor Lin, with good looks and a good temperament, is different from the general who always has a stern face and is always smiling. He was also in the mood to joke with everyone. He talked about everything in the world. Obviously, everyone would not be able to see tomorrow morning. Obviously, it was such a tense and sad time, but his attitude never changed, so with him, the atmosphere was relaxed. Many, it seems that it is no different from the past. It seems that when you wake up, Ji County is still the same Ji County before, and everything can be solved easily.
After feeding all the medicines in the grass hut to the patients to drink, Lin Shuanghe told them to rest well before picking up all the bowls.
He rinsed the bowl from which he just drank the medicine with boiling hot water, then stopped, rubbed his shoulders, and finally had a chance to examine himself. However, seeing the smudges on his body, he was stunned for a while, and then he simply gave up.
It was because all the white robes he brought were made of cloth towels for dressing wounds of patients. Now, this is the last piece of clothing, and there is no other white robe to replace.
Lin Shuanghe walked to the other end.
The soldiers and horses brought by Yan He have fought against the Utuo people several times, winning and losing. Fortunately, Yan He himself was not affected by this incident. He looked in good spirits and his morale was strong. Moreover, now that the plague has been somewhat contained, the panic has not continued to spread. Although this battle is not easy to fight for a while, things are moving in a positive direction.
In a surprise attack last night, Da Wei won a small victory. Many new wounded were added, and some soldiers were killed. The dead soldiers were buried on the spot, Lin Shuanghe asked other military doctors to treat the wounded first, and he took over the most dangerous plague patients himself.
At this moment, I saw the river in front of the tent. Some slightly injured soldiers were sitting and talking. Yan He was sitting on the ground without any image, pouring water into his mouth.
Lin Shuanghe walked over with a tired pace and spread his hands in front of Yan He.
Yan He was inexplicable, and waved his hand away with a palm: "What are you doing?"
"General Yan," Lin Shuanghe licked his lips, "I've been busy treating patients until now, and you haven't even left me a bowl of wild vegetable soup. I'm dying of starvation, and you're giving me food anyway."
Yan He gave him a white look, took out a dry biscuit from his bosom, and threw it into his hand, "Eat it, it won't kill you."
As usual, Lin Shuanghe would definitely have to fight him, but today he really had no strength and was hungry again, so he sat down with his butt and took a big bite.
The dry biscuits were astringent, they made their throats hard to swallow, and the taste was not really delicious. Lin Shuanghe was really choked. Yan He looked at him with disgust and handed him the water bottle in his hand, "You are the reincarnation of a starving ghost. Is it?"
Lin Shuanghe hurriedly took the kettle and took a big gulp. After swallowing the dry biscuits in his mouth, he said: "Brother, I haven't eaten all day today, and being a prisoner is more than that. Not only do you have no sympathy, but you also curse. I, are you human?"
Yan He looked at the embarrassed appearance of the person on the other side, and subconsciously wanted to say something harsh. When he saw his stained clothes, he swallowed the sneer.
Well, to be honest, Lin Shuanghe's trip was really beyond his expectations. Originally Yan He thought that although Lin Shuanghe had been to Liangzhou Wei before, but Liangzhou Wei had not fought a war, so he lived in the guard house and did not eat the sufferings of the world. When he really arrives in Ji County, this pampered son will definitely cry. Unexpectedly, from the beginning to the present, Lin Shuanghe did not say a word.
Although he didn't draw a knife with the Uto people in the forefront, it was not an easy task to take care of the wounded soldiers and appease the civilians who were frightened by the plague.
And it's dangerous.
Yan He snorted and didn't answer.
Lin Shuanghe took a few more bites of the dry biscuits, drank some water, and ate and drank to fill his stomach. He wasn't so uncomfortable, and regained his energy. He looked at Yan He and said, "Yan Nanguang, I have suffered a lot here. When you return to Shuojing, you must tell the emperor what I have done here. Anyway, reward me with an official and a half. Shit, when have I ever experienced such hardships when I grow up so much. What kind of pancakes are you asking me to put my dogs on before they eat them?"
This person started talking nonsense when he survived, Yan He sneered, "No one here is forcing you to eat. Besides, I haven't seen you suffer, it's time, and I'm still in the mood to laugh and laugh with women, Lin Shuanghe, you go. The habit of messing around with flowers everywhere can't be changed."
"Don't say that you are upright," Lin Shuanghe scolded him, "you have a wife and children, and I am alone, how do I know which girl is my destiny? Naturally, you have to give it a try. You hang yourself early. Die on a tree, and watch others pick flowers and sniff the grass, are you sick?"
When Yan He heard the words, he was about to refute, when a soldier passing by said in surprise, "General Yan, do you have a child?"
Yan He glared at Lin Shuanghe, Lin Shuanghe coughed lightly, Xia Chengxiu's pregnancy has not been publicized yet. It's just that people hear it now, and there's no reason to deny it. Yan He said, "I haven't been born yet, it's in my wife's womb."
The soldier looked to be in his thirties, with a dark face and a simple and honest appearance. Hearing that, he also sat down and scratched his head: "That feeling is good, when the general returns from this battle, he will be able to see the child. Just like I was back then."
"You?" Yan He asked, "Do you have a child?"
"Nonsense," Lin Shuanghe couldn't help but said, "Do you think you are the only one in the world who can be a father?"
The man scratched his head and said with a smile, "Yes, there are two. The older one is three years old, and the younger is just a month old. When I went back this time, I wanted to spend more days with my daughter-in-law, but I didn't expect the Uto people to come... Well, when I go back from the war and get the pay, I will give my younger son a silver collar and put it on. And my eldest daughter, when I left, I cried, and my heart was broken. …”
Yan He has never been an approachable person. Because of his noble birth and proud temperament, even when he gets along with his subordinates, he always brings a bit of arrogance. Today, because this man is the same "father" as him, it is much rarer. Said a few words.
He asked: "Does your daughter have a deep relationship with you? You live in the military camp, don't you have much time to go home? How can she still be close to you?"
Lin Shuanghe was puzzled: "Are you seeking the experience of your predecessors for the trouble you may encounter in the future?"
Yan He scolded him: "Shut up." Then he looked at the man in front of him eagerly, "Speak quickly."
"This... I don't know wow." The man was a little stunned, "I really don't go home very often, but every time I go home, I remember to bring her favorite maltose, buy her a nice cloth, and let my daughter-in-law make it for her. New clothes. Don't worry about General Yan, everyone said that the daughters are all fathers, and if the general's wife gave birth to a daughter, the young lady must be very close to General Yan."
Yan He was overjoyed by what he said, and then his expression became solemn, "What if it's a son?"
"Isn't that better?" The man said: "The general will take the young master by his side, and the father and son will go into battle, and there is no need to separate them."
Yan He had an epiphany and looked at the person in front of him: "I didn't expect you, a father, to be two smart."
Lin Shuanghe was speechless.
The man received the compliment from his boss, he laughed for a while, and suddenly fell silent again, after a while, he sighed: "My little girl, she was holding my leg when she left, I know, she is afraid I died on the battlefield. If," he looked at the sky in the distance, "it would be great if I could go back alive, and I would definitely buy her her favorite sugar cake."
Yan He was stunned for a while, and after a while, he followed and looked into the distance.
The sky is dyed red by the setting sun, the setting sun is like blood, and the field is gentle and silent.
"Don't worry," he said, "she will definitely be able to eat the sugar cake you bought."