"Your idea is so weird. Am I that old?" I wanted to laugh in my heart. It was the first time I heard this sentence.
"You are not old. You are twenty-fourteen and she is fourteen or fifteen. The father and daughter are a perfect match. Only your sister has the secret to keeping her youthful appearance." That's right, I stroked my beard and my sister's hand was also on it, but that action cannot be downplayed with the word "mo".
"Son, shave it off for me after the war, otherwise no one will marry you in the future." But my sister was very happy. I guess it was because Deng praised her for her youth.
But when Deng found out my age, he was surprised, but I sensed that he wanted to call me brother, and I immediately put an end to this idea, because I felt that he wanted to take advantage of me.
After explaining the new things to Deng and showing him how to do it on the map, he let him go back and rest with his troops.
"War is a matter of great importance to a country. It is a matter of life and death, a matter of survival or destruction. It must be carefully considered. Only when you are on the battlefield will you realize the truth of this saying." As soon as he left, I put aside my confident and heroic spirit, and said to my sister with a little frustration.
"I know." My sister sat next to me and put her hand on my shoulder. "You are only seventeen years old. It's too early for you to do this. I don't know why the teacher asked you to come. Don't you think Chen Liang is enough?" I nodded.
"Ah, sister, are you okay?" My sister was also new to the battlefield. Didn't the blood and flesh flying in front of her have any effect on her? I suddenly felt guilty because I asked my sister to help me.
"It's okay. Let me tell you a story. It was when I was very young. I saw a murder... We ran into robbers that time... You were still a baby who couldn't speak and kept crying. We hid in a cave and there were people outside chasing us... I was vaguely aware that I couldn't let you make a sound, so I covered your mouth. The bad guys outside finally left, and I let go of your hand, but you couldn't cry anymore, and you even lost your breath. I was so scared that I cried."
"I'm dead? No, I'm still alive?"
"Later, my teacher and a doctor passed by and heard me crying. It was the doctor who saved you, but you never cried again. You just sat there motionless every day, and only cried when you ate or went to the bathroom. You don't blame your sister for killing you with time difference, do you?"
"How could I? I was just blaming myself for being so ignorant. I almost hurt my sister and you, and myself. But I really should get to know that doctor. He saved my life, and I must repay him for it."
"Were you still alive then? You were probably this big. Who would have thought that you would grow so big later." My sister gestured with her hand. If I were to put my old self in my hands now, my two hands would be enough to make a cradle for you. "Ah, the doctor was called Hua Tuo. He was very young at the time. He was a student of an old friend of the teacher. He happened to be with the teacher at the time and happened to save you. Doctors are there to save people. This is nothing. But we should thank them when we see them in the future. But at the time, we were too young."
"Hua Tuo?" Something popped into my mind, but I couldn't remember what it was.
"Yes, it was Hua Tuo. Later, they sent us back to our hometown in Jingzhou, and it has been like this until now. How did they treat you? When I saw the fighting, I thought of the cave before. I started to feel worried and uncomfortable, but then it was nothing. When I saw you rushing out, I was very worried about you. I remembered the armor and quickly put it on. But when I put it on and came out, you were already walking towards the city, and Dong Zhuo's army began to retreat."
"What's the point of putting on armor? Can you still fight?" I asked my sister with a smile, and the image of my sister holding the Sirius in front of the battle line was in my mind.
"You are talking nonsense again, looking down on me, let me teach you a lesson." My sister picked up the sword on the shelf next to her and stabbed me. I knew she was joking because she didn't take off the scabbard. I took advantage of the momentum and grabbed the hilt of her sword.
"Let go, let go quickly." My sister said to me. Seeing that I was smiling and not moving, "You hurt my hand." This scared me, and I quickly let go. I looked at my sister who was holding my hand with an apologetic look.
"You've grown up, taller than me, stronger, and much more robust than before. I still remember when you were six years old, we..."
"You encountered a vicious dog blocking your way on the road, didn't you? I remember that, too. I remembered it even on the battlefield."
"When I saw the enemy army rushing towards you, I really wanted to help you drive them away, just like I used a bamboo pole to drive away that dog. But it seems that you no longer need your sister to protect you. You have really grown up."
"Let me protect my sister from now on, so that she won't be bullied by those wild dogs again. I understand that being afraid and running away are not the same. I will be afraid, but I won't run away, for the sake of my sister." I tensed up, but I couldn't say anything righteous, so I could only speak in a joking tone.
"I hope that's all right. Seriously, you just told me about Spartacus..." My sister is still not very comfortable with this tongue-twisting name, "Do you want to squeeze Dong Zhuo again?"
I nodded. "In today's battle, you have seen the bravery of the Deng people." I pointed to the place on the map that I had pointed out to Deng. "Because this place is too narrow, we can only ambush more than a thousand soldiers. The Xiliang soldiers are fierce and difficult to defeat, and the method of using troops is to surround them if there are ten of them, attack them if there are five of them, and divide them if there are twice as many. I didn't intend to take advantage of this, but Dong Zhuo will move in full force, and he will definitely follow closely behind with his baggage. When they chase our army here, we can cut off Dong Zhuo's army and baggage, and use the fighting power of the Deng people to intercept the baggage in one fell swoop. If necessary, we will help to kill them from behind."
"Oh, you finally care about their baggage."
"Of course, we suffered too much loss in this battle. Although the teacher agreed with my plan, if he came in person, he would definitely blame me for not sympathizing with the suffering of the people." I thought and smiled. My plan is a huge project.
"Sister, when today's battle is over, you will lead the people in the city, the wounded soldiers, and the people of the Deng clan to leave this place tonight..."
"Master Xie Zhi, the Marquis of Ping An Fengyun!" What could happen at this time? The fight is over, it can't be so soon, right? It's only the 4th hour, and when I think of this, I suddenly feel hungry. It's indeed been too long, and I just forgot the time while talking to my sister.
"What is it?"
"Dong Zhuo's army has arrived outside the entrance of Xiegu Valley and is now fighting with General Pei's ambush troops."
"So soon!" I was shocked. "Shouldn't it arrive tomorrow?"
"Calm down!" My sister's words calmed me down.
I was silent for a moment, "Sister, you and Deng should act immediately."
"And you?"
"I am the leader. I will leave, but I will be the last one to leave."
I wondered what my sister was thinking, and I thought she would understand what I said, but in the end she just nodded to me.
"Chen Ou, quickly lead your troops and follow me. Brother Zheng, I'll take care of the matters here and the defense of Hanzhong."
"Take care, Zirui. ... Your sister-in-law doesn't understand the rhythm of our army's drums, please take care of her." After that, it was the first time he gave me such a standard long bow. I was so confused that I even forgot to return the greeting.
From the arrangement of the bodies at the bottom of the slope, I knew the location of Dong Xian's rear team and where a large-scale resistance took place. Our losses so far are not very large, but Dong Zhuo's main team arrived too quickly.
There are still some sporadic resistances in the valley, but Li Zhen and Zhou Yu have already separated those Xiliang people and surrounded them with an absolutely superior force. They should be able to be dealt with within half an hour.
Our army was lining up outside the entrance of the valley. When the soldiers behind saw me, they immediately made way for me, and that road led me to Chen Liang.
"Dong Zhuo is coming so fast!" Chen Liang had been looking ahead and knew of my arrival just by feeling, and said to me when I got closer.
I didn't say anything, just quietly watching the battle in the valley ahead. The Xiliang people dismounted and took off their armor just like they did in the morning, and attacked the ridges on both sides with the help of strong bows and crossbows in the back. Pei Gang led all our archers to resist the rolling logs and stones. How could flesh and blood resist earth and stone
I was just wondering why Dong Zhuo was so unwise when he sounded the horn.
"Dong Zhuo is indeed an impatient man. When he saw the front team was trapped, he rushed forward, fell into my ambush and retreated in a hurry. He returned in a moment and attacked our ambush forcefully. After a long attack, he failed and then listened to the strategist's advice and retreated temporarily. With a person like him, Zirui's plan will surely succeed." Dong Zhuo's unexpected arrival did not disrupt Chen Liang's hands and feet. On the contrary, it made him more confident in my plan. It was this composure that made me admire him very much.
"But why did the Dong thief advance so quickly?"
"When the spy reported back, Zirui did not ask about the other side's military deployment and composition. He only asked that under normal circumstances, they could arrive today, because I had not been defeated in the court. As you can see, knowing yourself and knowing the enemy, you can fight a hundred battles without danger. Water has no constant shape, and soldiers have no constant situation. Dong Zhuo can lead the cavalry army to leave the food and supplies and various accompanying officials, and rush here day and night." He looked at my facial expression, "It's okay, just pay attention to it in the future. It is rare in the world to be a general before the age of twenty. In our dynasty, there is only Huo Qubing who went to the west at the age of 19."
"I will teach you."
Shortly after we repelled the attack of Dong Zhuo's army, while we were resting and discussing countermeasures, Li Zhen and Zhou Yu also came back to report, but Li Zhen's left arm seemed to be injured and hung there motionless.
"What's wrong with your left arm?" Li Zhen didn't want to think about it in frustration, but he was not worried that he would not know these things.
"He got mad when he saw that Niu Rougan, and he chased after him alone." As expected, I could immediately hear the exaggerated version of the whole story. "When Niu Rougan saw Li Zhen rushing over, he was so scared that he immediately rode away. Li Zhen knew that he was good at archery, so he was on guard. When he turned over and shot again, Li Zhen rushed forward and shot him off his horse." Li Zhen's way of using a gun was really strange. I wonder how the mice he killed when he was with the teacher died. A picture of the mouse immediately appeared in my mind. "Then he also got off his horse, picked up the gun and beat the guy. Later, he just took action directly. Rougan was running away, and he chased him with kicks and punches until he chased him into the woods, and then... Then you ask him, when he punched Rougan, he didn't pay attention and his left arm hit a tree, the tree broke, and his arm..." She told us all the process even though she asked us to ask him.
"Go back to the city quickly and ask your master's wife to help you." Li Zhen nodded.
"Dong Zhuo has started a fire in the valley!" Li Zhen had just walked away for a while when smoke rose in the valley ahead. The scouts came to report that Dong Zhuo wanted to attack the ambush troops on the mountain with fire. However, I had thought about my plan so many times, but I didn't expect him to come so early.
"Oh, am I so stupid? It's a good thing that Dong Zhuo came early. I don't have to think about how to delay him for another day. His brother died in my hands, so he would be furious and would chase and kill me as soon as possible." I suddenly thought of this and felt relieved.
"It doesn't have to be that serious. This beef jerky belongs to Dong Zhuo's son-in-law. Next time, you must ask carefully about the information obtained by the spies." Most people who have been with their teachers for a long time tend to develop the bad habit of imitating their teachers' tone of voice, and Brother Chen Liang is no exception.
"Oh, then it seems I'm dead." I said seriously.
Everyone laughed, even my sister-in-law understood what I meant and laughed too.
"Let Pei Gang evacuate everyone. Find someone to chop firewood and help them burn it. We must make this valley burn like a furnace. It's a pity that he forgot to make paper money for his brother and son-in-law."
Seeing the fire in the valley, the soldiers in the front row could not bear the heat and retreated. Pei Gang came to me with a scorched look as if his butt was burned and said, "Brother, why are you setting such a big fire?"
"Play!" I said expressionlessly. "Let's retreat."
I turned my horse around, leaving behind the dumbfounded Pei Gang, the confused Hu Yujun, the smiling Chen Liang, the grinning Chen Ou, and the expressionless Master.
“Oh, I forgot. Put up a sign at the entrance of the valley, and place his brother’s head and his son-in-law’s body next to it. Write on the sign, if you want to end up like this, please move forward. … When everyone retreats, um … there’s no need to go back to the city.” I don’t want to make a false rout and arouse suspicion.
The evacuation was at its last stage in the evening. Through the wide-open city gates, we could still see the fire in the valley from afar. It was still not extinguished, but it was much hotter than when it started. I looked at the sky. It shouldn't rain. We were waiting for the last batch of evacuees at the master's wife's place. There were several wounded soldiers, the master's wife and her disciples, and a wounded general - Li Zhen. He wanted to follow the example of his ancestors and be treated last. I thought this was a good idea, but Chen Ou didn't give him face, thinking that he was doing it because Zhou Yu was beside him.
I also witnessed the master's wife's healing method, which was amazing. Li Zhen sat there, she looked at him, pointed her finger, and shook her head. Li Zhen didn't understand what was going on, and the master's wife's hand suddenly rested on Li Zhen's shoulder. Everyone in the tent could clearly hear the crisp sound between the bones. Li Zhen was about to shout, but he shook his arm and was surprised, "It's connected!"
"Be careful in the future." Master's wife said to Li Zhen while packing her luggage, "Why did you come so late? Your left shoulder is injured and it may be easily injured in the future. If my senior brother was here, he would cut your shoulder and remove the membrane on the bone. Now I can only do this. You have let it be injured for too long."
Li Zhen was busy and listened to the instruction. However, when he heard about La Yidao, he did look a little scared.
"Are you Master's Wife or Master Brother Doctor Hua Tuo?" Suddenly an idea flashed through my mind, and I hurried forward to ask.
"That's right." The master's wife didn't stop working, and asked other disciples to do something else. She smiled and said to me, "Do you know him?"
"Your life was saved by a Chinese doctor."
"It's nothing. He hasn't let any of his patients die since he turned 20." The master's wife said with ease. The master also looked relaxed, but the others had some changes on their faces, most of them were surprised.
"Can you tell me where Doctor Hua is now? I want to thank him in person."
"I don't know. He seems to be in the mountains of Nanling. He wants to study a kind of 'Ma Fei San'. If he can make that thing, then you don't have to be afraid of the pain when you cut it. Hey, why are you still here? Let's go." The master's wife pointed at Li Zhen.
My master and I were at the end of the team. The front team was led by Chen Liang and Chen Ou. Li Zhen and others were injured and were pulled by carriages in the middle of the team. Zhou Yu volunteered to drive the carriage. The one in the same carriage with Li Zhen was light, so it was a good opportunity for these two people to discuss the issues related to arm dislocation. I didn't say much along the way. I was thinking about my plan the whole time, and my master didn't come to disturb me.
The Han River is not far south of Hanzhong. It flows eastward from the mountains in the west to Hankou in Jingzhou and enters the Yangtze River. This spring, there was a lot of rain and the water level of the river was very high. The large wooden bridge over the Han River was the only way for us to go south. Our first stop was there.
I ordered all the southern gates to be opened wide and the other gates to be closed. I began to think about the next steps. The fire in the valley would definitely be extinguished before dark, and we would have half an hour to leave. Our marching speed was far behind that of Dong Zhuo's army, but with more than an hour, we would have enough time to cross the Han River. Dong Zhuo certainly didn't expect that we had eliminated his vanguard troops before he arrived. Although our losses were also great, it was a victory we could accept. When I said such contemptuous and provocative words and the corpses and heads of my own brother and son-in-law appeared in front of Dong Zhuo at the entrance of the valley, he would definitely chase us madly. His strategists probably couldn't persuade us. Even if they did, they would find that our escape was extremely ruthless. Some of the tents were taken away, some were left behind, and some were spread on the road. There were all kinds of horse hoof prints, wheel tracks, footprints, everything, and flags everywhere on the city gates on both sides. They shouldn't suspect that we were cheating, because once this cheat was discovered, the loss would be huge. The Jingzhou army in Dong Zhuo's mind was still the bunch of softies who suppressed the Yellow Turbans. Once the fire started this time, they ran away without a barrier. His brothers were defeated and annihilated because they were ambushed, and they were facing an army of 300,000. Because the number of pots and stoves was agreed upon by us, and the number of traces of tents in the city was also calculated, my sister has been busy with this matter, but I don't know if they have time to check. We carefully prepared everything, and I even think it's over. Now, what I want to do is to make up for the loss on Dong Zhuo's baggage. But if he had arrived tomorrow morning, we could have tricked his baggage outside the trap. Now, I'm afraid that if they don't take the baggage, then his baggage and various followers will stay in Hanzhong! Don't think about how to attack Hanzhong again, just solve the problem in front of you first. Teacher Men G said, my plans are always too dangerous, but I hope I can completely deceive the Xiliang people this time.
When the whole army passed the Hanshui Bridge, it was already completely dark. Fortunately, it was a sunny day and the moon was near the middle of the night. I did not allow torches tonight. Conspiracy is best carried out in the dark.
"Burn the bridge." I finally made this decision. Until the last moment, I was still struggling in my heart whether Dong Zhuo would be stopped by the Han River. However, I decided to burn the bridge, hoping that he had the talents to build roads and bridges. It was not that I was afraid that Dong Zhuo would catch up with me. I was afraid that he would not catch up tonight. It would be bad if he woke up tomorrow morning after a good sleep and felt something was wrong. I was afraid that he would listen to the advice of his counselors and advisers, but I was also afraid that he would not listen at all. In short, all my arrangements should make Dong Zhuo think that I wanted to avoid fighting, and my counselors also thought that I did not want to fight. I needed to destroy the main force of my army in one go to eliminate future troubles. I wanted to make Dong Zhuo's army always agree that they were deceived, at least when one side began to doubt, the other side would not doubt at the same time. Because I even lost our own food and supplies, we retreated very quickly, just like a rout. Now Dong Zhuo should see the dilapidated and desolate scene in Hanzhong, right? I have always been a bit frivolous, so it is just right for me to set up a big frivolous scene. Now, Dong Zhuo's definite order is that the army should bring a day's dry food, and clamors to kill Xie Zhisi with me. Maybe he will use the word "yellow hair". I pulled my hair and took a look, and it was indeed turning yellow.
The Han River has several tributaries along our way, and we had to cross several bridges along the way. In order to show fair treatment, we burned them all.
When we reached the last bridge, there was some sāoluàn ahead. I knew it was certain that the three thousand pieces of cloth that were not taken by Dong Zhuo were all brought here by my men early on and spread on the bridge and the fifteen miles below. Ziyu met me at the bridge head, and I had to have a final discussion with him.
"Have you walked on this land?" I pointed to another road that goes along the river without crossing the bridge. "Almost. Today I had 20,000 people walk on it more than ten times, and sent horse-drawn carriages back and forth several times. They all walked together, so there's no problem. Oh, that Si... is coming..."
"Spartacus," I pronounced for him.
"Yes, that Si... or something, you let him come over, do you still want to knock Dong Zhuo over?"
"Well, you watch when the time comes. If Dong Zhuo brings baggage, put his baggage outside when you close the sack. If he doesn't bring baggage, leave him with 100 or 200 men so that Spartacus's men can move around."
"knew."
"Is any entrance to Jiange blocked?"
“It’s blocked.”
"Take care!" After saying goodbye to each other, I also set foot on the special plank road which is probably the most luxurious one.
Fortunately, this bridge escaped our clutches, because Dong Zhuo would not have thought that we had crossed it. He would have sent people to look for us for fifteen miles and would not have found any footprints.
On this road, I once again saw the loveliness of our soldiers, or the loveliness of the "Yellow Turban bandits who burned, killed, looted and committed all kinds of evil". Most of them squatted down and touched the cloth on the ground, then took off their shoes and walked on it carefully. But the smell that permeated the moonlit sky in this breezy night really made people feel a little uncomfortable.
Fortunately, the fifteen miles passed in a flash, and people began to collect the trampled cloth. I thought that the cloth could be used as clothes after washing, and the scene of the teacher scolding me appeared in my mind again.
We camped on a hillside thirty miles away from the bridge. To the east was a very long valley. The Han River flowing eastward passed through this valley and passed through Chencang. If... if Dong Zhuo was smart in the end and chose this road, we would have no choice but to fight him in Chencang. We would attack him from both ends, and with the long and narrow terrain, we might still have a chance of winning, but the sacrifice would be too great. It would be great if he was our last opponent, because then I wouldn't have to do this and consider so many things.
Time is passing, just like the Han River that never stops flowing. The road was silent before, and it is even quieter here. All the soldiers were asked to go to sleep, and the horses were pulled down to rest. There was no fire, no sound, and the pitch black before my eyes was as if there was no army of 150,000 people here. We set out at the hour of You and arrived here at the hour of Yin. It took us five hours to walk more than 140 miles, but it only took Dong Zhuo's cavalry one or two hours to walk. Where are they now? Are they crossing the bridge, or were they tricked into a trap by us? This made me unable to sleep at all. I stood by the water. I could still make some jokes on the road, but now it is much more difficult for me to even smile. Standing by the water, the cold at night makes me want to exhale a long breath of white air. Standing by the water, sometimes I really want to jump in and throw away all these troubles. Standing by the water, there is still no news from the scouts. I wonder if Dong Zhuo has set up camp. Is my plan too elaborate, so that it backfires? Standing by the water, sometimes looking down at the water, sometimes looking up at the sky. The moon is about to set, and the stars will become the last flash of the night. The morning hour is approaching, and the sky will be bright! Standing by the water, to be honest, I am very nervous!
"Thank you, Lord Zhi!" It was already dawn, and scouts were galloping towards us from a distance. My heart suddenly started beating as if it was going to burst.
The horse he was riding seemed tired, and I felt helpless but had to run towards him.
"Dong Zhuo's army chased south along the river." I feel that the feeling this morning is really wonderful.
"Old thief Dong Zhuo, spend your remaining years in peace in Yizhou!" I almost shouted madly, "When Jiang Wei blocked the road to Sichuan, you entered your grave. If you are not convinced, try to climb the hundreds of miles of Shu Mountain!"
On the morning of March 13, the second year of Zhongping, when the sun appeared in the valley in the east, it was extremely brilliant and glorious. The mountains on both sides of the valley, which stretched for hundreds of miles, flashed a golden light. Under my feet, a stream of clear and lively water ran eastward with a kind of shyness of a young girl, and my warm hands could not hold her back at all.
At 3:30 am that morning, Jiang Ziyu and Zhou Cang blocked the way with huge rocks and soil after Dong Zhuo's army passed through the Liuli Chexiang Gorge in the Sichuan Gorge. So far, including the Motian Cliff north of Jiange, another key point in the northwest of Yizhou, which was blocked two days ago, all traffic from Yizhou to the north has been cut off!
As the proposer of the whole plan, I was sitting by the river, intoxicated by the mountains and rivers. That year, I was seventeen years old.