across the Quartet

Chapter Nine

Backlash.

Gai Nie felt it the moment he was surrounded by the water of the moat.He had jumped into the water from high cliffs many times, and the impact and freezing cold of the running water were familiar to him; but this time the feeling was completely different.It's not cold, but intense heat; true energy rushes and tore in the tendons without knowing what to do, and the skin hurts like burning.He felt like a burning coal being thrown into a pot of soup, almost worried that the river around him would boil.

He bent his body, his teeth chattering uncontrollably.The right arm where the needle was first pulled out was the most paralyzed, and I could barely feel my fingers.His legs were as heavy as lead, dragging him uncontrollably to the bottom of the water.It seems that what Mr. Changping said is true - Yin-Yang Art is powerful, but it is not without its drawbacks; only people born with special physiques can control this mysterious art, so there have always been very few real disciples of the Yin-Yang School.Although Ge Nie mastered the knack of getting started because of an adventure and the talent of a warrior, he paid a heavy price; the backlash made him completely unable to mobilize his true energy, his body was not in control, and only his left arm was barely usable among his limbs.In this state, even if he avoids the eyes and ears of quicksand and hides in the forest in time, how far can he escape?

Now there is only one person near Chendi who knows that Yin Yang technique will cause a strong backlash, and that is Mr. Changping.He has always been Ge Nie's enemy.If he reveals this secret to Wei Zhuang, the younger brother can easily guess what Gai Nie can do next. It is enough to search around Chencheng—or even search inside the city.

But maybe Changping-kun will not reveal this secret.Now that it has become a fact for him to carry Qin back to Chu, he is no longer afraid of Gai Nie reciprocating in front of the King of Qin.What is more important to him is that he holds a bargaining chip that is enough to save his life.To cooperate with Wei Zhuang, he must make Wei Zhuang unpredictable - it is never wise for Wei Zhuang to know the weakness of Yin Yang.

What kind of strategy to adopt now depends on the judgment of the younger brother about his situation—assuming that Wei Zhuang knows the price he will pay for rashly using Yin Yang, it is easy to deduce that he cannot escape from this place quickly; assuming that Wei Zhuang does not know this, then The mountains and forests in the outskirts of Chencheng are the most suitable hiding places.Trying to find a person from the rolling wilderness is like looking for a needle in a haystack; but if there are hunting dogs—or better than that, a pack of wolves that obey people's orders, it may not be difficult.

He has heard some voices... the howling of wolves from time to time, distant and not-so-distant memories—in the Jingxing camp, in the Yingchen Palace.It is not surprising that there are wolves in the high mountains, but deep in the inner city, the sound of wolves is driving the mad cows...how could it be a coincidence?If that meant the same person, he must not risk it.

But shouldn't that person be dead long ago?

Ge Nie felt that his headache was getting worse and worse.More vivid shadows seemed to come to my mind one by one: the shadows of a large school of swimming fish, the running deer and hounds, the appearance of the dead... It seemed to my ears that the soldiers screamed when the boiling oil poured down from the city. howling.

...is a native of Qin.It is Handan.

He witnessed the fall of that city with his own eyes.People are shouting, dying -- inside and outside the walls.

When I was studying in Guigu, a group of people once planned to attack Guigu; that was probably the first time that Gai Nie planned a "battle" in his life.With some excitement, he and his younger brother almost turned the thatched hut they lived in into a fortress: traps, traps, crossbow arrows, horse repelling, everything.Later, he stood alone on the yellow sand road, watching the group of world-renowned swordsmen slowly walking towards him; what he thought of was Xiaozhuang who was imprisoned in the forbidden area by himself.That's why he must stick to this "city".

Ge Nie was surprised to find how conceited and frivolous he was when he was young: holding a bronze sword with a gap in his hand, no one or anything was enough to scare him, make him flinch, and make him feel powerless.

If only everything were that simple.

After leaving the valley, he has never encountered such an easy-to-see battle situation again.The city is too big.There are too many people to protect.Life is so light, like pieces of feathers tumbling on the torrent; and like sand slipping away through the fingers.He hoped that Qin State would win this battle and end the war as soon as possible; but he didn't want to see the soldiers and people of Chu State slaughtered in groups, and the city was burned to ashes in the sea of ​​fire.

If only he could be given some easy tasks, Gaine thought as he soaked in the murky water.For example, to protect someone—at least he has rich experience in this matter: General Li, General Sima, King Qin, Lord Changping... Generally speaking, one of every four important people he protects is safe and sound. , Survive with all four limbs.Considering his exaggerated title of "No. [-] Sword in the World", Gai Nie felt that King Qin was really a big-hearted person.

He shook his neck slowly, then popped his head out of the water and took a deep breath.Those illusions are finally gone.

It was not yet dusk when Ge Nie crawled out of the river.Several peasant women retting hemp looked at him in surprise.Thinking of the story of Wu Zixu and Yu Zhangren, he didn't approach them, nor said a word.In fact, he wanted them to inform his pursuers of his escape into the wild.

Gai Nie walked west for several miles along the road leading to the outside of the city, then turned around and stopped in the grass near the city gate for a while.He spared several convoys of merchants and carts transporting livestock, and finally he took a fancy to a group of human traffickers who bought and sold private slaves.He wrapped Yuanhong tightly with a cloth, disguised it as a crutch, and sneaked into the slaves who were bound by straw ropes, limping and walking quietly.The "goods" around him who were about to be traded didn't notice him, they just continued on their way numbly and tiredly.However, the owner of the "cargo" soon discovered the flaw.

"Hey, you!" The trafficker rolled his eyes cunningly. Although he knew that this person had a suspicious background, he didn't want to remove him from the "cargo". "You're not branded."

Gai Nie glanced at him, "I'm going to the city."

"You can only go in after you have a seal." The trafficker raised his whip and was poking at his chest.

Ge Nie raised his hand to hold the whip.The face of the man on the opposite side was filled with anger, and his neck seemed to have a thick red circle; he grabbed the whip back with all his strength, and raised his hand to whip it towards the face of the "cargo".

Ge Nie couldn't raise his true energy, and he couldn't use one hand and two legs very well.But he could still kill a dozen or so people present, including a cargo owner, four guards, and eight "cargos" before anyone could blink.

He didn't draw his sword, but just approached the man holding the whip the moment the whip fell, and whispered two words in his ear. "quicksand."

The trafficker's body froze immediately.A drop of oily sweat slowly slid down his cheeks.Gai Nie took a step back, straightened his body, and looked aside indifferently.

Deceit, threat, bait, concealment, these are skills that he has long been unfamiliar with but not unfamiliar with.Many people have forgotten that the dignified sword master was once an excellent soldier and a skilled scout—even though he failed to protect his commander.Nor did it live and die with the city.But he still has strict training.

The whip was pointing limply at the ground, and the trafficker's face looked contorted, despite his efforts to make a flattering expression. "This—big—"

He was right again.Quicksand has become an assassination organization that people seldom mention in the land of Jingchu, but it is enough to frighten the three religions and nine rumors.Usually no one is bold enough to assume this identity.

"I have something important to do." Ge Nie said as little as possible, "Let's go."

The trafficker glanced at the "crutch" in his hand with awe, and wisely chose to keep silent as they passed through the city gate.Shortly after Gai Nie entered the city, he parted ways with the group and walked silently towards the market.There are enough people and enough chaos here to make any pursuer lose their target.

He blended in nicely with the local crowd.The bazaar was very lively, and the bloody tragedy half a month ago seemed to have been wiped from people's hearts.Vendors are everywhere, and the strong fishy smell fills Gaine's hiding place.From time to time, armored warriors can be seen galloping across the street.He happened to see a few urchins playing around, and one of them was wearing some familiar clothes—if he took a closer look, it wasn't his own coat that had been changed.

On the night of the turmoil in the city, the little girl Gai Nie had rescued followed at the end, holding a bamboo basket full of clam shells in her hand.She was also wearing the same fabric, and the hem of the dress dragged into the sewage on the ground.She slapped on puddles, nearly knocking passersby over.

A passer-by, or Gai Nie gently helped her, and then found a relatively dry place to sit down, propping up the "crutch" in his hand and closing his eyes to rest.He heard a thud, opened his eyes and saw the back of the girl, and a river clam was thrown on the mud in front of him.

It was night, Gai Nie was lying in a corner of Abalone House, looking at the inner city bathed in the moonlight.Although it was an abandoned palace, most of the places were dark, but a lamp was lit on a certain extremely high tower.The bricks and stones separating the inner and outer cities were silent, and the moonlight shone lightly on it, swaying gently like phosphorescence on the surface of the water.There was a faint sound of silk and bamboo.

He thought that his junior brother might be there right now.

The girl who closed the stall and came back late glanced at him and hummed "Yue Ren Song".

Ten days later, Gai Nie's internal strength gradually recovered, and he left Chencheng in the most secret and safe way, and then spent several days westward to Yanling County under the control of Qin State.When he entered the customs, he was stopped because of lack of seals. Fortunately, his face and Yuan Hong were too famous, so the customs guards directly brought him to the commander of the Qin army stationed here.

At this time, Qin State's generals Li Xin and Meng Wu, who were highly valued by the King of Qin, had already rushed to the border of Qin and Chu with an army of 20 miles.There have been many heated debates in Xianyang Palace about how to fight this battle, how many manpower, horses, food and grass are needed, and finally the young faction headed by Li Xin won.Although Li Xin required far fewer troops than the calm and cautious Wang Jian, 20 troops was still a very large number.When Gai Nie arrived at the big camp outside the city, he saw neat barracks deep into the jungle, soldiers advancing and retreating in an orderly manner, and banners covering the sky; It's really just like a bunch of rogues.

But what about Chu's preparations?Gai Nie guessed that the disadvantage of the Chu army would not lie in the number of soldiers alone, but whether the private members of the various lords and the main force of the Chu army had undergone the same rigorous training, and whether they could cooperate in a unified manner and thoroughly implement the generals' strategy. intention of?How sure are the generals of Chu State themselves about the situation between the two sides?Chu people also have their own advantages: the land of Jingchu is mostly swampy jungle, humid and hot, which is quite different from Guanzhong, Yanzhao and other places; while the crossbowmen group that Qin is most proud of is in the complex dense forest. It may not be able to play well.

Gai Nie recalled the situation when their guard team was attacked on the way to hunt.Each of them is a swordsman selected by the King of Qin, a soldier who has experienced many battles, but they seem so helpless under the surprise attack, division, and siege of the assassins of the Chu State.It was later proved that the assassin team that dealt a heavy blow to them may not be superior in number, they just made the best use of the familiar terrain and traps.This small-scale conflict seems to be a rehearsal of the struggle between Qin and Chu...

Thinking of this, Gai Nie felt heavy in his stomach even though he hadn't had any water or rice for several days.He entered the shogunate under the escort of two guards carrying halberds, and he did not miss the majestic and proud stare of the generals of the Qin army.

"Mr. Gai, it's so late." The chief general Li Xin sat in the middle of the big tent with a half-smile, holding a half-open scroll of bamboo slips in his hand. "Mr. is alone. Could it be that something went wrong when Lord Changping moved to Chen?"

Gai Nie guessed that the Qin army had already been rewarded by the net for the chaos in Chen Di - I am afraid that after these days, the news has spread to the depths of Xianyang's inner court.But wait a minute—was the news from Luo Wang already manipulated by Wei Zhuang?If this is the case, if Gai Nie's reward is somewhat different from the snare, I'm afraid that the one who suspects King Qin will be on his side instead.

He sighed, and explained to Li Xin in as much detail as possible what happened in this business, about the betrayal of Lord Changping, the death of the county magistrate, and the rebellion of Chen Cheng; —Although Gai Nie is unwilling to tell the truth, he also knows that Yao Jia's account books must never be mentioned in front of the Qin people.Although he got involved in this matter before he entered Qin Dynasty, once it was revealed that he had mastered the top secret of Luo Wang and had contacts with Quicksand, he would no longer be able to get close to the King of Qin, and he would even be arrested by Luo Wang immediately and tortured severely torture.That's why Wei Zhuang was not afraid to tell the whole plan in front of him.

Gai Nie knew very well that whether he could continue to play a role in the court in the future was entirely based on King Qin's trust in him.This time, he couldn't call his words and deeds aboveboard, but he also knew that it was necessary—he could only report to General Li Xin that after Lord Changping betrayed Qin, he might use the clues obtained by "Xin Chen" to betray him. Qin State's military situation; and among the Chu people, it seems that some people have mastered Luo Wang's intermediaries in Chu State, and may use them to pass false news to Luo Wang.He also noticed that the head of the account, Shi, was writing furiously, recording every word he said.

When Gai Nie stopped, the commander of the Qin army had restrained his smile, turned his face solemnly, and gave some instructions to the left and right.Immediately, someone sent several rolled silks.Chang Shi unfolded the silk script, carefully compared it with the words written on the bamboo slips just now, and finally nodded to the coach with his head raised.

There was still no smile on the general's face, but judging from his sitting posture and demeanor, his tense body seemed to relax a little.Gai Nie knew that what they had just compared was their own rhetoric and the information sent by the trap.So far, there appears to be no suspicious discrepancy between the two.He knew that in order to avoid suspicion, he had better stop here and keep silent; however, the crazy and chaotic scene when he left the Chen County County Office flashed before his eyes.

Gai Nie hesitated for a moment, then saluted again, and continued, "I wonder if the general has received the reward from the snare? As far as I know, the news from the Chu Kingdom may have become a bait for the Chu people."

"Oh? What Mr. Gai means is that someone in the net committed treason?"

"No, but they may have fallen under the control of the Chu people."

"Sir, can you give me some specific names or code names?"

"Master Yu...and Uncle Feng."

Li Xin glanced at the silk script in front of the long history case, slowly raised the corners of his eyes, and squinted ahead.Gai Nie was not frightened by the ominous silence in the tent, but recounted the whole story of his encounter with the sorcerers of southern Xinjiang in Chen and the insanity of the defenders in the city under the influence of witchcraft.Not surprisingly, he saw a completely unbelievable contemptuous expression on General Li Xin's face.

"That's how it is. Mister is facing such a strange and chaotic opponent. No wonder, with Mister's ability and the twelve most trusted guards of the King, he still suffered a crushing defeat."

"The people of Chu have resorted to all means to win this battle. There are indeed people in the southern border who are proficient in different arts. General, please don't take it lightly."

Li Xin chuckled and stood up.He slowly walked to the side of the tent, and took down a long halberd from the weapon rack.This halberd is different from the style commonly used by Qin infantry. The wooden pole is already very old, and the word "Ge Da" is crookedly engraved on it.

"Xin is not a person who is arrogant and despises the opponent. When Qin and Zhao were at each other, I once ordered the eight captains under my command to lead a small group of cavalry to harass Zhao Renliangdao. Once encountered near Ping County, the owner of this halberd was killed by one person. It was extremely ferocious to kill nearly a hundred soldiers of our side. General Yang Duanhe once reminded me that although the armies of the six countries are weak, there are still some strange people and strange men hidden in them, and the enemy should not be underestimated. Therefore, Xin kept this halberd in the tent, It is used as a warning from time to time." Li Xin said as if showing nostalgia, "Mr. Gai, you were also in Zhao Guojun, do you know such a strange man?"

Gai Nie's throat rolled, "...just a pawn who ruined his country and family."

Li Xin's eyes showed sharp sharpness, "The country is ruined? The family is destroyed? The country of Zhao has already belonged to me, Great Qin, and sooner or later the Shandong countries will also be the same. According to Mr., isn't Great Qin his country?"

Gai Nie said calmly: "Since the man's weapon has been seized, it can be seen that he has probably died in the battle. The kingdom of Great Qin is for the living, not the dead. Do you think so or not?"

Li Xin frowned for a moment, then suddenly laughed, "Hahaha... Mister is worthy of being the successor of Zongheng, well said!" He put the halberd back on the stand, "Mr. must be tired after so many trips, please go back to the county for a while. Take a rest; as for whether you want to return to Xianyang or follow the army, you need to wait for the envoy of the king to return before making a decision."

This remark already meant expulsion, implying that he did not want to see Ge Nie stay in the barracks even for one night.Gai Nie didn't pay much attention to his attitude, and after another salute, he left the big tent and went to the city.

Yuan Hong held it in his hand, it fit so well, as if his palm was born for holding a sword.But he still remembered that he was holding a long halberd.

Brothers of the same Wu used to joke about Gai Nie's future children.Five recruits with their own thoughts and no idea of ​​the future, wearing armor stripped from the dead and holding rusty spears, their only dream is to have enough food for another day.And now there is only one person left alive.

Gai Nie guessed that he was unlikely to leave an heir.After all, he is different from Jing Ke; for him, if he has a child, he needs at least a safe home that can shelter him from the wind and rain, so that the child can grow up slowly under the eaves.However, in this bloody and cruel world, he couldn't escape the wind and rain alone.

I don't know if the younger brother will have family members and heirs?

Maybe there will be.With the shrewdness and ability of the younger brother, even in the bloody storm, he will definitely protect his blood relatives at all costs.

Gai Nie thought of Jusan Quicksand's group of decisive assassins telling stories around a silent doll, the corner of his mouth uncontrollably raised an extremely small arc.However, at the same time, a sense of loss and sadness suddenly appeared in my heart—for the scene in my memory, for my wild imagination.To make matters worse, he didn't know why.

But he probably lost the opportunity to announce this "reason" forever.

No matter how long it has passed, this lovesickness can only be engraved in the eyes, melted in the blood, and rotted in the bones.

Guigu disciples must be good at weighing, and the word "love" is always the lightest on the balance of interests.

Three days later, the envoy from Xianyang brought the king of Qin's edict: Gai Nie must return to the capital immediately, and go to the department to discuss his responsibility; he must not stay in the army.

After listening to Gai Nie's report, the King of Qin was extremely angry with Lord Changping, but he expected it after all.At this time, news of Wang Ben's capture of Daliang came, and his mood finally improved, and Gai Nie's punishment was not severe - he was lowered to a noble and fined, so that he continued to serve as a halberd guard in the palace.But what Ge Nie regrets most is that regarding this battle that will determine the fate of the Qin and Chu countries, he is doomed to be a spectator from the other side.

TBC

The author has something to say: Thanks to all the new and old readers who fell into the trap, I am really sorry that I am so irresponsible, no matter what excuses I use...

The three-dimensional work is gradually on the right track, and the time for filling the pits will be slightly fixed from now on. Although it is still relatively slow, please believe that the dawn of the end is still waving to us.

Once again, I would like to express my most sincere thanks to OTL for your love and perseverance, especially to all the girls who threw mines and bombs. I really can't repay you.Only by updating well, we can ensure that everyone can see the end in their lifetime (hello)