Guzhen, the ancient riverbed winding in the valley looks like the traces of a giant python crawling. There are also many mountains here, and the view is not very wide; but compared with the big mountains in Qinling Mountains, the mountains are relatively gentle and low, and there are many terraces on the vast slopes.
There were a few horsemen wandering around the stronghold and on the terraced slopes. Inside the stronghold's earthen walls, lines of infantry passed by from time to time. Guzhen was still relatively quiet at this time.
The weather is clear, but there are often dark clouds in the south, which makes people feel that it may rain at any time, but it has never rained for many days. According to local people, it rains in Qingniling in the south, but not in Guzhen. This weather is really strange.
At this moment, a middle-aged woman with a bag on her back and a cloth wrapped around her head came walking hurriedly from the slope in the middle of the terrace. The scout not far away was holding a bow and squinting at her, but seeing that there was only one woman, he ignored her for the time being and just stared at her. The woman stumbled on the road and walked outside the earth wall, trying to enter the military base, and soon a quarrel broke out.
Aren't you from the Hujie Army? The commander is Guo Shao, and there is a formation commander named Luo Yanhuan. Let me in, I can see any of them. The woman said confidently.
The guard whispered to another officer: "There is a tall woman beside Envoy Guo, who is specially sent out as a spy. This woman may really be one of ours. The formation commander is inside, so why not ask someone to ask the formation commander Luo Yanhuan?"
After a while, Luo Yanhuan came out. It happened that he had seen this woman when he stayed in Chencang at the end of last year. She was a female Taoist priest who was with Jingniang. He immediately asked someone to let her in.
But the woman ignored Luo Yanhuan and asked where the Saint was, going straight to see Jingniang. Deep inside the earthen wall, there was another circle of wooden fences, and in the middle there was a peeling archway. Luo Yanhuan pointed to an old house with loess walls and green tiles on the right side of the north and asked the woman to pass. The wooden door was closed, and two soldiers in armor and sharp weapons were pacing outside. It seemed that walking around was more comfortable than standing.
The sergeant saw that it was Luo Yanhuan who brought in the person, and ignored the woman. She walked to the door and knocked. Jingniang's voice inside asked: Who is it
The woman spoke. After a long while, the door was finally unlocked. It was only slightly opened. Jingniang stuck her head out, her hair wet, and said, "Close the door."
There were only a few simple things inside, including a wooden basin filled with hot water. Jingniang seemed to be washing her hair. People say that it is better to stay at home for a thousand days than to go out for a single step. It was not so bad in Guzhen. It would be even more uncomfortable to camp in the wild. Fortunately, Jingniang had been in the rivers and lakes many times and knew how to take care of herself. The most difficult thing was washing. She had to seize every opportunity, otherwise she might not be able to take a bath for ten days or half a month. She was not a man, otherwise she could go directly to the river to wash.
The middle-aged woman said: I know that the Hujie Army has arrived in Guzhen, and the Saint Lady should be in the army; so I did not go to Chencang to look for Bai Xiangu, as it was too far to go back and forth, and came straight to Guzhen.
"Yes," Jingniang responded. She was wearing a loose cotton gown and wooden clogs on her bare feet. She sat comfortably on a pear wood chair and wiped her wet hair carefully with a clean towel.
At this moment, someone suddenly knocked on the door again, and Guo Shao's voice said: I heard someone is back, can I come in
Without waiting for Jingniang's response, the middle-aged woman said, "The Saint Lady's clothes are disheveled, so only one person can come in." Then she opened the bolt. A young warrior wearing chain mail came in, holding his helmet at his waist. It was Guo Shao.
When he came in, he wanted to see how disheveled Jingniang was, but unexpectedly, she was dressed tightly and sat on a chair. Her chest pushed up the loose cotton robe. The cotton cloth easily absorbed water, and her wet long hair made the clothes a little wet. She was leaning back, and the soft cloth drooped and stuck to her body, revealing her beautiful outline.
Jingniang sat there without moving. Although she didn't say anything polite, she let Guo Shao's eyes be on her.
Guo Shao asked: She ran to the gate of the military camp to call for help. What important news is there
The woman said: I don’t know whether it is serious or not. Many Shu troops have come from the south of Qingniling.
How many Guo Shao calmed down and asked.
Women:
Seeing this, Jingniang said: We should send someone to call Bai Xiangu from Chencang and ask her to go to Qingniling Temple.
Guo Shao pondered and said, "It doesn't matter. Qingni Ridge is difficult to pass. It will be too late for the Shu army to send more reinforcements. We have already occupied Guzhen. If the Shu army dares to cross the mountain to attack Qinfeng, it is a foregone conclusion. I think it is unlikely. Even if they really come, we can send troops from Guzhen and attack them halfway across the river in one day.
The woman continued: "There is a young lady living in Qingniling Nunnery, and she has been there for more than a month. More than a month ago, she and an old Taoist priest crossed Qingniling, where many Shu troops were blocking the way. The old Taoist priest left her in Qingniling Nunnery temporarily, saying that he was going to Mount Emei. Unexpectedly, a war broke out in Fengzhou not long after, and Xingzhou was also not peaceful. She could not leave, so she stayed in the nunnery.
Guo Shao asked hurriedly: "What's your background? It's probably because you are a spy from the Shu army. It would be best if the Shu army didn't know about that path."
There is a small road called Baishui Road to the west of Qingniling Temple. Guo Shao had learned from the nun before that it was the path used by fugitives and smugglers. The spy sent by Jingniang to Qingniling came back through that path.
The woman said: She called herself Qingxu. Her master was Chen Tuan, also known as Fuyaozi.
Fuyaozi Guo Shao was greatly surprised that he was rescued in Hezhong Prefecture by a Taoist priest who called himself Fuyaozi. At that time, Guo Shao knew almost nothing about this era and of course did not take Fuyaozi seriously, but later he learned that he was a very famous person.
She was also surprised that she was called Qingxu Jingniang.
Guo Shao frowned and said: "Fuyaozi is not interested in women. At the end of the Tang Dynasty, the emperor sent him beautiful palace maids, but he refused them because he was still young. Now he is old, so why would he accept female disciples? That girl who calls herself pure is probably talking nonsense."
She said that she was picked up by Fuyaozi when she was a child. She was originally just a girl, but Fuyaozi always slept every day, so she grew up accidentally. The woman said, I think she is not lying. She is very powerful at such a young age. There must be someone who is teaching her.
At this time, Jingniang said: I have seen Qingxu in Mount Emei, and he is indeed Fuyaozi's disciple. I was able to meet Lady Huarui, the imperial concubine of Shu Kingdom, thanks to Qingxu's help.
Jingniang asked her subordinates to describe Qingxu's appearance, and she was more convinced that the young lady was Qingxu. The old Taoist priest who left earlier might be Fuyaozi. This person is hard to find. You actually saw him in a nunnery. I want to go to Qingniling Nunnery, pick up Qingxu and take care of her first, and send her back to Mount Emei when there is a chance.
It's too risky for you to go there. After all, that place is also controlled by the Shu army. You just need to write a letter. Guo Shao turned his head and looked at the female Taoist priest who had just arrived. I will send a few soldiers to lead the way and then pick up Chen Tuan's apprentice. It's not a bad thing to do a favor for such a god-like figure.
Jingniang thought about it and said, "That's fine. But I have to find someone I can trust, so that Qingxu won't be wronged. She has done me a favor."
Guo Shaodao: Of course I will look for someone I can trust. There are seventeen old subordinates in the army. They are my personal soldiers when I went to Gaoping. Their families are all in Tokyo. I know them well. It shouldn't be a problem to select two or three of them.
After he said that, he left Jingniang's room and went out immediately to arrange for people.
After finishing the work here, Guo Shao had nothing to do again. The war had stopped and the scouts had not found any unusual movements. After thinking for a while, he concluded that the Shu army would not attack even if they reinforced Qingni Ridge. They might just be afraid that the Zhou army would take advantage of the victory and continue to penetrate deep into the Shu Kingdom, so they came to defend.
In an unfamiliar place, everyone felt insecure, but they were so idle that they didn't even have time to have fun. Guo Shao couldn't help but think wildly. For some reason, he always felt that something was wrong in the past few days.
After searching deep in his memory, he gradually unearthed some very vague impressions. And he quickly grasped the key point that was floating in the chaos: the queen of the great talisman would die early.
Guo Shao couldn't remember exactly how he died, but he vaguely remembered that Chai Rong married two sisters, but he was not sure. Guo Shao was most familiar with Zhao Kuangyin, but he only knew Chai Rong's name; even the Queen Zhou of Li Yu, the last emperor of the Southern Tang Dynasty, left a deeper impression on him than Chai Rong.
Where had he seen that Chai Rong married two sisters when he was emperor? Maybe he had seen it vaguely in a magazine, or maybe Guo Shao only had a vague impression. In modern times, he didn't know that Chai Rong's queen was surnamed Fu, nor had he heard of Fu Yanqing. He hadn't studied history carefully, and ordinary people rarely studied the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period.
The point is, this question is too important
What would he do if Empress Fu died? Guo Shao felt that the matter was very serious. Without Empress Fu's support behind him, he didn't think he could become the commander of Xiangdu now. If she died in the future, Guo Shao's foundation would be useless. It would be best for him to be a military general honestly, go with the flow, and follow the dragon at the critical moment.
The more he thought about it, the more flustered he became. In the past, he had been busy with other things, especially the most pressing matters at hand, and had never thought deeply about Empress Fu. Suddenly, he discovered that vague impression.
If Empress Fu was no longer alive, the most direct impact would be that Guo Shao would no longer be able to think about Second Sister Fu. This was very disappointing to Guo Shao.