Guo Shao wanted to send Wushan Bailao to Tokyo to see Wang Pu immediately, so that she could try to see if she could be cured; but Wang Pu had been ill for several months, so there was no need to continue to force Wushan Bailao just for a short period of time. Guo Shao thought it would be more appropriate to wait until there was a way to convince her and let her volunteer.
A more troublesome thing happened. The two women of Bai Lao followed him all the time, as if they were afraid that he would escape. Guo Shao felt that Bai Lao was hurt by love and her mind was not normal. He was also wondering if such a woman could cure Wang Pu or if the young woman next to Bai Lao was really a great doctor.
The two were locals from Wushan, and there were many village elders who knew them well, so they were not problematic. Guo Shao treated them well and did not deliberately drive them away.
He suddenly decided to go out of the city for a walk, and Wushan Bailao also came with him. Guo Shao had no choice but to ask someone to find a carriage for them. Soon after leaving the north city, they got on the mountain road, and the carriage and horses were unusable. Guo Shao dismounted and climbed the mountain with the group.
This road is the one you see on the city wall, and it leads to Kuizhou. Guo Shao followed the mountain road, and the guards led the horses and walked slowly. It took more than half an hour to climb to the top of the mountain. Guo Shao himself was exhausted and out of breath. Climbing a mountain is indeed very physically demanding.
When he turned around, he saw that Wushan Bai Lao and the young lady looked calm and nothing happened. He immediately praised: I think I am in good health, but you are even better. You are not tired when climbing such a high mountain.
The young lady said: We often go up the mountain to look for rare medicinal herbs. What kind of mountain is this
I should exercise more. Guo Shao took a long breath and looked up ahead.
What he saw disappointed Guo Shao. After climbing the mountain for so long, there were still mountains ahead, blocking his view and making it impossible to see further. There were also advantages to having two people who were not very close to him around. Guo Shao complained to them: I don't like being in this kind of place. There are still mountains after mountains, and I can't see the end. It's like being imprisoned in one place. The difficulty of Shu Kingdom was not the Shu army, but the road.
The young lady said unhappily: The road to Shu is harder than climbing to heaven. I have already said it. You still want to come. Isn't it just because you want other people's territory? You want too many things. Who can you blame
Hey, Guo Shao suddenly felt that this girl was quite knowledgeable. Maybe it was just an illusion. Medical students need to read medical books. It is normal to read and write and know a few poems. He said: You are right. I want too much.
In his heart, he had to admit that fighting Shu was not entirely for the sake of justice and public spirit. He could also gain personal prestige and a higher status; he could also expand his country's strength and make his position more secure.
But it is also a responsibility. Guo Shao pondered, then came to his senses and smiled, "You, a young lady, don't understand. By the way, I heard Bai Shengshou call you Lan'er, your name is Bai Lan."
The young woman said unhappily: "My third aunt's surname is Bai, and I want to have the same surname as her, so I should call her aunt."
Grandma Bai took over the conversation and said: Lan'er's surname is Lu, and her name is Lu Lan.
Lu Guo Shaodao, I remember meeting a young lady in Zhuozhou, Hebei. Her father was Dr. Lu. I forgot her name, but it was also Lu, haha.
Lu Lan asked softly: Marshal Guo still remembers a person he met by chance
Her father cured my cold. Guo Shao looked at the green hills in the distance and recalled, "Of course it's not just that reason. I remember that the place where I lived at that time felt very good, with a small courtyard and a quiet house. In the morning, there was a simple but delicious meal on the table. It was very warm. When I went back at night, I would occasionally run into that beautiful girl. Whenever it got dark, I would walk to that street with a little expectation."
Lu Lan's voice became smaller and smaller, and her tone seemed gentler: I thought that a big shot like Marshal Guo wouldn't care about such poor places and people at all.
Guo Shao was recalling those little past events, not paying much attention to Lu Lan's words, but was lost in his own emotions: I just think that people like hers are full of human touch, and I don't want to affect their lives. He was a little sad. Later, there was chaos and no one knew where they went. Will they encounter any disasters on the road? It's really pitiful.
Guo Shao took a deep breath and said: With a strong national strength, kind-hearted people like Dr. Lu's family will not be bullied and trampled by foreign invaders, nor will they have to flee from their homes on their own land. Since I live in this world and am in this position, there are people I care about here, so I should do what I can. This is justice, and under justice are thousands of living people.
So I have to conquer Shu. With a larger territory and more people, we can strengthen our national strength. You said in the restaurant this morning that I was using justice to pressure others. Women have women's ideas, and men have men's responsibilities. You don't have to sneer at me. As professional warriors, we use war to practice and understand the meaning of our lives, and defend beautiful things with iron and blood, instead of ignoring the decline of the country and understanding human nature through the suffering of women and children.
This is what righteousness means. Lu Lan murmured,
At this time, Grandma Bai frowned and said: Lan'er and your father came from Zhuozhou, Hebei.
Oh, Guo Shao came back to his senses and said in surprise.
Lu Lan muttered: Marshal Guo, you are a forgetful person. I still remember what you look like, but you have forgotten.
Guo Shao was stunned for a moment, then laughed out loud: That's fate, we meet everywhere in life. He glanced at Lu Lan's covered face and laughed: Even if I remember what you look like, I can't recognize you now because your face is so swollen.
Guo Shao was very happy to encounter such a thing by chance. Even though the person he met was a casual acquaintance and had little relationship with, it was a good feeling to have such a reunion with some shallow memories.
The next day, Guo Shao witnessed with his own eyes Lu Lan's skillful and clever diagnostic skills, at least in Guo Shao's opinion they were very clever. He became more and more convinced that the famous Wushan Master might really be this young lady.
But Guo Shao soon forgot about this little joy, because a few days later, the people who went to explore the way came back and reported that the road to Beishan was indeed passable and that it was possible to reach Kuizhou by land.
He immediately ordered the entire army to end its rest and march tomorrow. Guo Shao ordered in the signing room that all military officers above the rank of commander should immediately go to the county government hall to discuss matters and drive away the idlers.
Brother, I will send a messenger right away, Luo Mengzi said.
Guo Shao looked at the two women who followed him and said, "We will leave Wushan tomorrow to fight. We will live in chaos and eat and sleep outdoors. You don't have to follow us."
Lu Xiaoniang looked at Bai Lao beside her. Bai Lao said: After taking Kuizhou, won't we go to Chengdu
Guo Shao touched his forehead and said: "If you have made up your mind, then go with the woman next to me. Her name is Jingniang. She has more experience in traveling and sleeping in the open air. She will take care of you. Go find Jingniang now. She is in the back hall. Don't follow me. I have to discuss military affairs."
The next day, Lu Xiaoniang woke up very early and tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep again.
We use war to practice and understand the meaning of our lives, and defend beautiful things with iron and blood. The more strange and incomprehensible the words are, the clearer Lu Xiaoniang remembers them. She couldn't help but ponder this sentence over and over again, but still couldn't understand it completely, but she remembered the look in Guo Shao's eyes when he said this, as if he was daydreaming.
He was a very strange person, different from anyone she had ever met, and Lu Lan was very curious.
But he already had a family, and from his letters it was clear that he had deep feelings for his wife; and there was a huge gap between his status and hers. Lu Lan had always been able to see the reality clearly, and knew that Guo Shao was not the person she wanted to entrust her life to. She wanted to find someone like her father, who was more reliable. Now that she thought about it, her former fiancé, the son of the pharmacy owner in Zhuozhou, could have been someone like her father, but he was killed by the Khitans before they got married and had no physical contact.
She was not sad about the death of the pharmacy master, because she hated him to begin with. But compared to Guo Shao, Guo Shao was even more unreliable.
He is totally unrelated to me and cannot be trusted at all. Lu Lan thought for a long time and muttered.
But in her mind, bits and pieces of things from the past long time came to her mind again. In that dim and small house in Zhuozhou, she suddenly bumped into him at the door of the bedroom, intentionally or unintentionally. His mountain-like figure made her heart beat. What was it like to have a beating heart? It was like being frightened, or like being hit by something, and her brain was numb.
And when she met him on the street in Zhuozhou, Hebei, he wanted to take her for a ride in his carriage. It was a funny thing to do. How could a pure girl like me get on his carriage alone? But Lu Lan still couldn't forget his sincere eyes, as if she could really appreciate his kindness. Gentle and sincere eyes, at least for a moment, his eyes were focused on her.
In Lu Lan's heart, Guo Shao was like someone who had walked out of a dream, floating around. But somehow, when he was around, even something as small as making breakfast became meaningful.
At this moment, heavy footsteps were heard outside. Lu Lan was very interested in the new and interesting things, so she put on her coat and ran to the wall to watch. Just like peeping in Zhuozhou, she took a stool to watch.
I saw a group of infantrymen marching in formation on the old long street towards the city gate. They were all tall and elite soldiers, silently maintaining the formation, and the worn-out chain mail on their shoulders seemed like an image in a frontier poem. Because the warriors led by Guo Shao did not do anything bad in Wushan, Lu Lan naturally had a good impression of them.
Petals from the trees on the street fluttered down one after another. In the dreamy mist, the long street of the county town was shabby but exceptionally beautiful and elegant. A team of soldiers was not out of place in it. Lu Lan suddenly remembered Guo Shao's words: We use war to practice and understand the meaning of our lives, and defend beautiful things with iron and blood.