There was a faint rumble of thunder in the distance, and the sky was covered with dark haze.
The area around Guzhen stronghold is very desolate, but in recent months there has been the sound of clanging every day on the northern slope. Countless civilians and soldiers are building a castle, and the hillside is filled with dust and smoke, and it is not bustling at all.
Guo Shao looked at the gate of the military camp for a while. He didn't know why he felt uneasy today. When he looked up at the sky, it was overcast. There was no sun but it was very hot. Luo Yanhuan said slowly: It's going to rain. Before it rains, it's hot and stuffy. I keep sweating.
As soon as he finished speaking, lightning flashed between heaven and earth. Guo Shao was alert, and sure enough, after waiting for a moment, there was a loud bang. The thunder did not wake him up, but he felt an inexplicable panic, as if something was going to happen.
Dark clouds rolled in the sky, and the wind started to blow. Soon, raindrops as big as beans began to fall diagonally. The civilians and soldiers on the top of the mountain scattered to find a place to hide from the rain. Countless people were walking on the mountain, and compared with the invisible momentum between heaven and earth, they were like ants.
The wind and rain were blowing, and water mist mixed with dust that had not yet wetted the ground was splashing up, surging layer by layer in the wind.
The heavy rain seemed to be angry and whistled down in the wind, as fast as a drum. The air was soon filled with layers of rain curtains, and the noise of rain and wind was everywhere, making a commotion.
Guo Shao felt a little dazed, as if in this noisy and hazy scene, there were thousands of soldiers shouting. No, it was not the visible thousands of soldiers, but the countless souls who died in war after war, crying and wailing in the wilderness and mountains.
He took a long breath and thought calmly: After the Hujie Army succeeded in Qingni Ridge, in order to prevent the Shu Army's reinforcements from fighting for Qingni Ridge; the retreat route was too difficult, so he had already withdrawn all the main forces of the Hujie Army to Guzhen. It was unlikely that the Shu Army would catch up to Qingni Ridge, so Guzhen should be a relatively safe rear area.
If so, where does the panic come from
Guo Shao turned and left the camp gate, walking straight through the rain towards the central army. The general behind him called out, "Envoy Guo." He ignored them, letting the rain soak his armor and the fabric of his clothes, pretending to walk calmly.
After walking for a while, they entered a group of buildings with green tiles and earthen walls that served as the headquarters of the Central Army. They saw Jingniang and Qingxu watching the rain under the eaves. Qingxu stretched her hand to the edge of the eaves and played with the rain water on the tiles. She looked bored. They saw Guo Shao walking straight out of the rain, and Jingniang and she looked at him curiously.
Guo Shao walked under the eaves, where he stood, a puddle of water formed. He looked at Qingxu and said, "I have sent people to Mount Emei to look for your master. It has been a month or two. The Shu army has come twice to bring money to redeem people. Why hasn't Chen Tuan come yet?" He finally couldn't help but add, "Your master should care about your life or death, right?"
Qingxu looked at him innocently: "My master is either sleeping or traveling around to study. The people you send may not be able to find him."
Guo Shao asked again: How can I find him
Qingxu said: There is a Taoist temple in Mount Emei, where Master often stays. How about you let me go, and I will wait for him in Mount Emei. Master always found me before. When I see Master, I will tell him that you and Yuzhen saved my life, and let him come to find you.
Guo Shao did not answer, thinking to himself, "If I let you go, where can I find someone if Chen Tuan doesn't come?"
Qingxu asked again: Why are you looking for my master
Guo Shao advised kindly: Shu and China are still at war, the Shu Road is very dangerous, and you are safe now with Jingniang.
Qingxu said: You can send me to Huashan. When Master comes back from Mount Emei, he will go to Huashan and come to find me.
Guo Shao ignored him and went inside to change his clothes. He thought to himself that since I have Chen Tuan's disciples, I at least have a trump card. If I have nothing in my hand, I will not even have a connection with him if I ask him for help in the future. How can I see him
He changed into a cloth robe, thinking that there would be no war in such a rainy day, so he even took off his armor and asked the guards to hang it up on a wooden rack. He took out a letter from the package and read it again since he had nothing to do on a rainy day.
A letter written by Xiang Xun after he returned to Beijing. He mentioned that the court had already declared war on the Southern Tang Kingdom. Guo Shao was stationed in Guzhen this time and could not immediately participate in the Huainan Campaign, but now he did not have any expectations of military merits. If it was before the attack on Shu, he would definitely be anxious to make merits. But since he thought about Empress Fu last time, he didn't have much thought. Later, even when the Shu army sent money and goods to redeem people, he was not interested in asking about it, and directly asked Zuo You and the generals to divide it.
I was just worried about it before, but for some reason, I have been very absent-minded and anxious these past few days. I always feel like something is wrong.
Guo Shao turned around and saw the inkstone thrown in the corner, so he called to the guards on duty at the door and shouted: Go and get some water and ink from the inkstone over there, I want to write a letter.
"Yes." The guard replied.
The inkstone had been used before but not washed, so it was already stained with dried ink. He just needed to mix it with some water to make ink. Guo Shao prepared paper and pen, and then thought about writing a letter to Xiang Xun, intending to mention the queen in the letter and ask about her recent situation.
He still used punctuation marks when writing letters. He was not worried that others would not be able to read and punctuate. The text was not written in classical Chinese, but in colloquial language, which had deviated from the rules of classical Chinese punctuation. He also did not use punctuation marks. When there was a pause in the tone, he would just put an ink dot and that was it. Anyway, the reader should be able to read it.
After a while, Jingniang came in. She went forward to greet him, and Guo Shao, without raising his head, pointed to the left with his brush, where he just remembered there was a round stool. Seeing that he was writing attentively, Jingniang could not help but take a glance at it calmly. After just one glance, she found that there were many scribbled words on it, and her expression was immediately stunned.
Guo Shao noticed her gaze, but he didn't care. After all, he was a military commander and could read well. He thought to himself: In fact, I have read more books and learned more knowledge than the scholars of this era, but I just didn't specialize in studying ancient texts.
Jingniang said: Qingxu has nothing to do here all day and wants to go to Huashan. I think we should send her there. Fuyaozi also often goes to Huashan.
We must not let Qingxu go. Guo Shao blurted out without any hesitation.
Jingniang fell silent immediately, and he came back to his senses: Jingniang didn't know what he was thinking, and he would definitely make her feel very strange if he said this.
But after waiting for a while, he didn't hear Jingniang ask why he couldn't let her go. Guo Shao couldn't help but look up at her, thinking that she didn't ask so he didn't have to explain, because it was difficult to explain. But he was still worried: Qingxu was a woman, and Jingniang was the only one who could take care of Qingxu all the time; and Qingxu also trusted Jingniang, so as long as Jingniang could keep her stable, a lot of trouble could be saved.
Guo Shao couldn't help asking: You don't ask me why I want to keep Qingxu
Jingniang's voice was no longer as casual as before, and her tone was very cold: You must have your reasons for wanting to do this, I just have to obey your orders.
Guo Shaodao: You are not a general in the army. Only soldiers are responsible for obeying orders.
Jing Niang did not answer.
Guo Shao looked up at her face, frowned and said: You won't release her privately just to repay Qingxu's kindness, right
Jingniang said: You don’t trust me
Trust, of course, has different degrees of severity. Guo Shao now trusts Jingniang and she is not a danger to him, but there are some things he won't tell anyone. He can't explain why Jingniang doesn't understand the importance of Qingxu. What will happen if he lets her go
Guo Shao sighed, feeling a little annoyed, and said: "In any case, you must not let Qingxu go. From now on, if you and Qingxu want to leave the central military headquarters, you must let me know. I will order the generals on duty to keep a close eye on them."
Jing Niang said coldly: "You don't need guards to watch me. I can obey your wishes better than them. As long as you give an order, I will obey it."
Guo Shao found it strange and looked up at Jing Niang carefully. She was tall and had no feminine shyness in her posture and behavior. After she stopped being a Taoist priestess, she even lost her pretentious look and had a more soldier-like temperament. Her facial features did not look feminine at first glance, but were serious and firm, with bright eyes. Guo Shao had the illusion that her eyes carried some extreme emotions.
He was stunned for a moment, and felt as if he was facing a professional strong woman. Jingniang actually looked him in the eye. In this era, it was quite rude and inappropriate for a woman to do so. Guo Shao couldn't help but wonder: Could it be that after seeing the female Taoist priest under her command and the group of nuns being slaughtered, she had a psychological problem
At this time, Jingniang said coldly: You don’t believe me because you don’t understand what kind of person I am.
Guo Shao frowned and said: Your father is a military commander.
Jingniang said: "No. My father used to be a retainer in Southern Han, and I also worked for him."
Guo Shao pondered and said: My father has passed away.
Yes. A few years ago, my father's master offended a powerful relative, who sent dozens of assassins to besiege the mansion. My father fought hard to protect him and died in battle.
Guo Shao showed respect for the deceased and praised her for her loyalty and bravery. Jing Niang said expressionlessly: You can ask me to do anything, not to mention just taking care of Qingxu. Jing Niang suddenly became quite strange. As she said, after knowing her for so long, Guo Shao felt that he did not really understand her.
Guo Shao gently placed the brush on the inkstone, and looked at Jingniang from head to toe again, pondering for a long time, as if it was difficult for him to understand her words and actions today.
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Strong westerly wind