The man with a fierce face grabbed the girl's thin body with both hands. If he let go, the girl's head might fall into the pot. If she was scalded by the boiling water, the tragic scene would be unimaginable.
The guy seemed to have some brains. Guo Shao couldn't fool him with a few words, so he said: I have a suggestion, two horses in exchange for the young lady's life. We brothers will take two of your men away from here first, leaving two war horses behind; you let the young lady go, and then ride away. If we come back and see that the young lady is unharmed, we will let your men go. How about
One of the men who was held at knifepoint hurriedly said: Cousin, please don't abandon your brothers!
Shut up! The vicious man cursed immediately.
When Guo Shao heard someone calling him cousin, he knew what was going on. Without waiting for the guy to answer, he called Luo Yang and said, "Let's go first."
After saying this, he led the two thieves and refugees out and took away a fat horse.
After walking along the road behind the house for a while, Yang Biao said angrily: "Why are we still keeping these two burdens? Let's chop them up first."
The two thieves looked frightened, and Guo Shao stopped them, saying: Be careful of that guy's cheating, these two are your trump cards, no matter if they are useful or not, save them for the necessary opportunity to strike.
Just then, the sound of horse hooves was heard from behind.
Guo Shao made a prompt decision and said: "Third brother, watch these two people leave last. If you move, I will kill you. Go to the house to check the situation and guard the door." After saying that, he jumped on the horse, picked up the bow and arrow and galloped back.
Rushing back to the hut, I saw a horseman jogging on the road; another horseman was lying on his back not far away, as if he had fallen off his horse and was half dead. The horseman in front was running very slowly, because it was difficult to ride a horse on a downhill road, and if he was not careful, he would fall off the horse.
Before the guy had run a hundred steps, Guo Shao jumped off his horse, drew his bow and arrow, aimed at the guy's back, and the man screamed and fell off his horse.
Seeing that he had hit the target with one strike, Guo Shao walked up to the man who was half dead, grabbed his arm and dragged him back.
At this time, the old man and the young lady had already arrived at the gate of the courtyard. The young lady followed behind him and seemed to be fine. Guo Shao breathed a sigh of relief. Otherwise, it would be a bit unbearable to see such a young girl being boiled in boiling water.
The old man pulled the young girl to kneel in front of Guo Shao and said: "I and your daughter would like to thank you for your great kindness, General." Then he pressed the back of the girl's head and kowtowed.
Guo Shao went up to help them up. Hearing the old man talking about his little girl, Guo Shao was a little puzzled. This girl looked like she was only twelve or thirteen years old at most, and this old man was her father. After a closer look, he found that the old man didn't seem to be very old, maybe around forty, but it seemed that his life was too hard, so he looked very old.
At this time, the old man used his sleeve to wipe the face of the little girl next to him. This action immediately attracted Guo Shao's attention, because he suddenly had a very strange feeling, as if the old man was wiping an object. Guo Shao took a look at the little girl, and couldn't help but take a second look, because she was very thin, with a melon-seed face, sallow skin, dry and flaky lips, eyelashes wet from tears, red eye circles, and a pair of big eyes that looked very innocent. Mainly, Guo Shao felt that the little girl was very familiar, and immediately thought of Yu Lian, especially the eyes that gave people a very similar feeling.
At this time, Luo Mengzi came over with two thieves with their heads down. Yang Biao was furious when he saw them. He picked up his knife and strode forward. Yang Biao looked ferocious to begin with, and even more frightening when he was angry. The two men were so scared that they were shaking: "No, no!"
Guo Shao hurriedly stepped forward and covered the little girl's eyes with his hands. A moment later, two screams were heard. Yang Biao's face was splattered with blood, which was even more terrifying. He turned around and stared at the remaining thief. The thief suddenly became weak and fell to his knees.
The little girl reached out to pull Guo Shao's big hand, but Guo Shao held her shoulders and said: You are too young, it is not suitable for you to watch. After hearing this, her grip on Guo Shao's hand weakened, but she held his hand without moving.
Ah, another scream, and Yang Biao chopped with his knife.
The old man next to him was so scared that his face turned pale.
At this time, Guo Shao let go and turned to lead the horse. The horse that was ridden away also came back by itself. Luo Mengzi said: Hey, do you have water at home? Fill our water bag and leave.
The old man nodded hurriedly, took the water bag with both hands and ran into the house.
As the three of them waited, Guo Shao couldn't help but look at the little girl a few more times. The little girl also looked up at him. The two of them, one tall and one short, looked at each other silently. Guo Shao asked: What's your last name
The last name is Dong. The little girl answered in a low voice.
Guo Shao said, "Oh!" and took the bag of dry food from the horse's back and threw it to her. The girl didn't catch it, but picked it up from the ground, opened it and saw that it was a pancake. She took one out immediately, turned her back, and her thin shoulders trembled slightly, making a rustling sound, like a rabbit eating food.
The old man came out carrying a water bag, stared at the young girl with wide eyes, and even swallowed hard in front of others.
Seeing this, Guo Shao gave the old man a bag of grain from another horse, which contained some rice in a cloth bag.
Luo Mengzi said: Brother, we can leave now.
Old man Dong suddenly said: "Sir, if you think our third sister is good, why don't you buy her?"
Guo Shaoyi felt his body and said: None of us brothers have any money.
Old man Dong turned around and looked at the fat and strong warhorse: I can trade it for the horse.
Guo Shaodao: This is a military horse. Aren't you afraid that the horse will be taken away and you will be framed by the government for stealing military horses
this
Guo Shao pondered for a moment: "Do you have other people in your family? Your place is so poor, there are wars and famines, and you will starve to death sooner or later. Otherwise, you and your daughter will come with me, and you will feed the horses for me in the future. I will ensure that you have enough food every day, and you can eat white flour."
Old man Dong was immediately tempted: "The military lord keeps his word when he eats white flour every day."
Guo Shao thought that once he returned to Beijing, he would at least be promoted to a commander, with at least 500 soldiers under his command, and he couldn't even afford to support two people. He smiled and said: Do you think I can't afford to eat white flour
Old Man Dong thought for a long time and said through gritted teeth: "There are only two people left in my family. There are two brothers on the other side of the mountain. But the family has been separated. Please wait, I will go and talk to my brothers first. Can you take these bodies away and send them to the government?"
Guo Shao said: "Then you go quickly." Then he turned back and said: "Third brother, go into the house and find a shovel or something. Let's dig a hole in the back mountain and help them bury it."
The young lady was still standing there eating, and Old Man Dong pulled her and took her away. Before they had gone far, Yang Biao said in front of everyone: Poor mountains and bad waters produce unruly people. This guy looks pitiful and cunning. I'm afraid that my brother will only take the young lady away.
Guo Shao said nothing. Yang Biao snorted again and said: If we were that kind of people, they would just rob and run away, and what can they do to us? A villain is a villain.
Luo Mengzi laughed and said: Big brother, are you planning to marry that girl
Yang Biao spat and cursed: "Brother, you idiot, at least get promoted to a commander when you go back. Not to mention the match, if you want to pick a young lady from a commoner family, those women in Tokyo will be eager to let you choose. Why pick this girl from the mountains? Look at how thin she is, and how small she is, just a pile of bones wrapped in skin. Is it interesting?"
The three of them were cursing and chatting at the same time. While they were looking for tools together, Guo Shao observed the house with unexpected interest. The thatched roof and earthen walls were built very roughly, and the lighting was surprisingly poor. Two of the rooms inside did not even have a window. What was even more surprising was that one of the walls was actually made of bamboo strips covered with mud.
Three strong men carried the dead body to the back of the mountain and started digging a hole, sweating all over. They just wanted to ask for a drink of water, but they made so much trouble. But no one complained. The old man came back with a few equally ragged villagers, who also helped dig the hole. It took half a day to bury the body.
In this world of war and chaos, no one seems to care too much if a few refugees and bandits die.
The old man said he wanted to pack up his things, Yang Biao was immediately furious: "Why are you hesitating? I'll burn you down with fire." The old man was so scared that he trembled all over. Yang Biao looked like a man that even ghosts would be afraid of.
Guo Shao said with a smile: Leave it to the brothers in the back mountain.
The five of them left the mountain village under the gaze of several villagers. The old man looked back several times even though the house was so shabby. Guo Shao did not shy away and directly grasped the young woman's slender waist and carried her to the horse's back. She quickly hugged the horse's neck, causing the warhorse to snort in displeasure and shake its head. Guo Shao said softly: Don't be afraid, relax a little, I'm holding the reins.
Yang Biao looked at Guo Shao curiously. Luo Mengzi smiled and said, "It takes the emperor to let me lead the horse to the commander of the imperial guards."
Guo Shao laughed and said: "The general above me dares to do that, but if I go to lead the horse for him, the soldiers will say that I am a flatterer."
Ha ha
The young lady lowered her head, and occasionally when Guo Shao turned his head, he would find that she was secretly looking at him. Guo Shao was afraid of scaring her, so he tried to ask casually: What is your name
Third sister.
Guo Shao asked again: Where are my sister and brother up there
Old man Dong rushed to answer: Her eldest sister got married and went to a distant place. Her second brother went out with others to escape famine two years ago and has not returned since then. No one knows whether he is alive or dead.
Guo Shao turned around and asked: Did you really sell me out
Old man Dong glared and said: "What are you talking about? If there hadn't been a famine and there was no food left, I wouldn't have sold my children. At first, I thought the military master was a good person. I thought that following the military master would give me a full meal, which was better than starving to death."
Guo Shao stopped nagging about this question and said: You can call me Lord from now on. You have a name, right
My lord, my name is Dong the bricklayer.
Guo Shao casually said: There is no tile on the roof of the bricklayer's head, but thatch.