red cliff top

Like the setting sun of blood, it hangs on the blue-gray arrow tower, crumbling.The ground was wet under the feet, filled with a strong smell of blood and horse urine, which made people feel nauseous.

As if just experienced a manic storm, the whole world is surprisingly quiet.After a long silence, the city gate of Runing slowly opened, and those soldiers full of grief and indignation lined up, obeying the last instruction of the coach, handing over their weapons and raising their hands to surrender.The days of being imprisoned were finally over, but the long-lost freedom did not bring them the joy they deserved.

Witnessing the tragic death of the Shen family's father and son, everyone felt sad and burst into tears.They are all soldiers. Even if a soldier dies, he should die on the battlefield.But each of them couldn't help but have a question in their hearts: Loyalty and being punished, what can be done to be loyal?

Throughout the ages, history books have never lacked people who have been wronged and wronged, Meng Tian who committed suicide by taking poison, Zhou Yafu who died on a hunger strike, Peng Yue who was chopped into meat, Yue Fei who died with his head...Old General Shen died abiding by righteousness and did not disgrace his ancestors The teachings are worthy of the kindness of the former master, and they are powerful enough to rebel, but they have no intention of rebelling.The cunning rabbit is still there, and the good dog is cooked first. How can it be a perfect match to death? It's a pity that loyalty and treachery are not clear!

The third son of the Shen family, Shen Zhi, did not appear in the surrendered team. Gu Mingzhang was afraid that he would disguise himself as a commoner and take the opportunity to escape, so he immediately re-blocked the gates on all sides of the city, and ordered people to rush in and search from house to house. Resist and kill.

This is Meng Chun in the sixth year of Xuanzheng. This spring has no early plums, smoked willows, colorful flowers, newborn baby swallows, and small-tailed wasps. There are only painful cold and despair, heart-piercing slaughter and death.The new ghosts worry about the old ghosts and cry, and they can't stop crying.

It is said that death is like a lamp going out. In the short ten years since Shen Si came to the world, those lamps that shone on him and warmed him all the way were extinguished at the same time. This was the coldest spring in his life, and his expression was in a trance. , eyes confused, shivering from the cold, staggering forward.

The ground under his feet seemed to have turned into a muddy swamp, and every step he took was extremely difficult.The raging anger burned his internal organs and shot straight to the top of his head. There was only one thought left in his mind to kill Gu Mingzhang!

Looking around, everything was dyed a ferocious bright red, and the man riding on a tall horse bossing around was Gu Mingzhang!It was Gu Mingzhang who shouted and embraced the triumphant executioner!kill him!kill him!kill him!

Surrounded by armored soldiers, the slightest movement would cause random arrows to pierce the heart and decapitate the body.But Shen Si couldn't see it at all, and didn't look at it at all.He couldn't think like a normal person anymore, even though the "Chinese face" was dragging behind him, he still ran forward without turning his head.

"Where is my knife... Where is my knife..." Shen Si muttered to himself, and it took him a long time to realize that the knife was actually in his hand from the very beginning.

The "national character face" was forced to be helpless, and he flew up and slammed on the side of Shen Si's neck.Shensi fell softly, and in a trance, he only felt that the dark sky was tilted, the sun, moon and stars were falling apart, and the hurricane rolled up dust and sand, followed by a boundless darkness.

When he woke up, Shen Si was lying on the undulating and bumpy horseback.This is a bay red stallion, tall and strong, with the slow pace, the nostrils "wheeze" and breathe out hot air.As the dusk fell and the deep forest was silent, "National Character Face" led two horses along the wild country road.Shen Si couldn't see his face, only his dark back.

Looking out from the horseback, you can see a few small villages scattered in the valley, and among the houses where the cooking smoke is curling up, there are a few fires shining sporadically, like fireflies floating on the dark water.

For a moment, Shen Si couldn't help recalling the old house in his hometown.It was a small green brick courtyard with three entrances. There was a strong and old elm tree growing at the door. The trunk was mottled like scorched scales. The strong aroma of food evaporates, and the contemplative who has just reached the age of penis will stagger to sit on the steps outside the door, resting his chin on his hands and waiting patiently.Not long after, the father and brothers appeared at the end of the street on time on horseback.

When the father who returned from military training saw Shensi, he would always pick up his youngest son, throw his hands high, and then scrape back and forth with his thick beard after falling. He likes to use this clumsy and rough way to express continuous A deep paternal love that I didn't even realize.

It's a pity that Shen Si didn't buy it. He always struggled to dodge while grabbing his father's helmet.The helmet was made of iron, with the Six Armored God of War engraved on it, and a cluster of majestic red tassels stood on the top.The father yelled: "Nonsense! This is not a child's play." But he couldn't resist the softness of the youngest son, so he had to gently put him back on the ground, put the helmet on his head again, and turned to drink. Tea washed down.

The helmet was several circles larger than Pensive's head, dangling, covering the eyes and nose, only revealing a panting mouth.The inside of the helmet is full of dust and hair oil, filled with a strong smell of sweat, it feels cold and greasy to the touch, but for a child to meditate, it is more magnificent than the crown on the emperor's head.He fantasized that he would become a great general, command thousands of troops, ride a bamboo pole, and charge forward in the yard, "Clash! Kill!"

Every time at this time, the brothers always like to play tricks on him to tease him, they either shot him in the ass with a stone, or grabbed the little bird under his open crotch pants. But laughing and laughing, no one would pay attention to him.He ran to grab the third brother, and the third brother would smile slyly like a fox, and secretly pointed his finger at the eldest brother.He turned his head and glared at his eldest brother, who would give a serious dry cough and sneak a peek at his second brother deliberately out of the corner of his eye.The second brother never defended himself, the second brother would just silently wipe off the dirt on the tip of Shen Si's nose, and pick off a leaf stuck to his shoulder...

Scenes in memory are like scrolls thrown into a raging fire, slowly burning to ashes, until they disappear completely.Shen Si wiped the moist eye sockets, and the water vapor soon filled them again, blurring his vision.How much he wished that the disaster that happened during the day was just a nightmare, rubbing his eyes, stretching his waist, turning over, everything can return to the happy past... At that time, his father admonished him severely, his elder brother taught him patiently, and The second brother cared for him in every possible way, and the third brother always helped him come up with all kinds of ghost ideas after he got into a catastrophe... Now there is nothing...

The cruel reality weighed on his shoulders like a mountain, making him breathless.Thinking back, just a few days ago, he was still so happy, successful, and full of ambitions, but in just a few days, he fell from the blue sky straight into the abyss.What little general Shen, what kind of heroic boy, he can do whatever he wants proudly and willfully, precisely because of the selfless tolerance and doting of his father and brothers behind him, that is his greatest confidence to survive in the world.

However, the world is like a tide, and people are just a drop in the ocean in the face of fate.No matter how brave and unyielding an individual is, it is difficult to get rid of the miserable end of being dragged away.

"Are you awake?" Hearing the movement, "National Character Face" turned his head and stopped his footsteps.

Shen Si hurriedly wiped away the tears from his eyes with his sleeve, and at the same time turned his face away, unwilling to let others see his weak appearance.

"National character face" waited quietly on the spot, and when the mood of contemplation calmed down a little, he persuaded carefully: "Mr. Shen, people cannot be resurrected after death, so please express your condolences. There is a spring on the other side of the hillside, go and wash your face first."

Shen Si went to wash his face according to his words, and after being stimulated by the cold water, his mind really cleared up a lot.With guilt, he forced a smile: "Thanks to the elder brother who has rescued me many times, I haven't asked you for your name, it's really rude."

"National character face" clasped his fists in his chest: "I mistakenly voted for Gu Mingzhang's family. I have repeatedly committed crimes against Zhongliang and helped the emperor to abuse. I am really ashamed of my ancestor's family. Forgive me for being ashamed to say my name. My parents are six. Just call me Sixth Brother."

"Sixth brother, don't blame yourself, you are also following orders, and you can't help yourself." Shen Si replied, took a deep breath and asked quietly, "I don't know my third brother..."

"National character face" frowned slightly, pondered for a long time, opened and closed his mouth several times, but finally couldn't say anything, only shook his head with regret and sympathy on his face.

Tears filled Shen Si's eyes, and he smiled wryly, "Yeah...it should have been thought of..." He suppressed his grief and indignation, "Sixth brother saved me this time, it's already a big crime to lose my head , not only can’t go back in the army, I’m afraid I can’t go back even if I have a family, I wonder what your plans are in the future?”

The "national character face" smiled heartily, his teeth glowing white in the dimness: "To be honest, my parents died early, and my family was poor. It's because I haven't found a wife since I was young, and I have nothing to worry about. Think about it. Gu Mingzhang will not go to war for me, an unknown pawn, I just need to find a secret place to avoid the limelight for a while, and then I can live in peace as before."

Shen Si lowered his head, stroking the fine hair of the horse's belly, appearing to be preoccupied: "Sixth brother came from a humble background, he was promoted by virtue of his real swords and guns, and he is loyal and profound, so he will definitely do something in the future. To save me, I have to live in the wilderness, and I am really sorry to meditate." He thought for a while, and cautiously suggested, "Wei Lu, king of Jin, is my adoptive father, why don't Brother Chen come back to Jinyuan with me, and with his help, you should be able to protect me I am fine. I believe that my father’s grievances will be cleared up one day, and then ask him to find a suitable official position for Brother Chen, and you can also show your ambitions.”

"My son's kindness is appreciated, but I have no attachment to official career and economics." The "national character face" looked frankly, "I used to be young and vigorous, and I wanted to use all my skills in exchange for fame and fame, but the more I endure The more I read, the more disheartened I become. The emperor is fatuous and the officialdom is corrupt, so who in this world can really fulfill his long-cherished ambitions? Those who come from a noble family like you can't, and neither can those who keep their own place like me. If you want to get ahead, you have to If you succumb to Gu Mingzhang's idiot's opportunistic pursuit and flattery, if you disdain this, you will end up feeling like old General Shen."

Shen Si heard the words and scolded angrily: "I don't believe that Gu Mingzhang can really cover the sky with one hand! As a high-ranking member of the imperial court, he can't control the country with literature and military power, and he can confuse the emperor with a picture of a monster who is neither male nor female. He has killed all the loyal ministers and good generals, and if there are powerful enemies coming, who will go to defend the frontier?"

"National character face" sneered again and again: "My lord, still can't see through it? This emperor is not right and wrong! His elder brother who was the prince fell off his horse and died when he was hunting, and when his elder brother died , and he was the only one present. If the first emperor hadn't been terminally ill and his heirs withered, he would have been taken to the clan mansion for punishment. Because of this, he would be even more afraid of those upright and knowledgeable ministers. He is not afraid of losing battles Anyway, he has a large area of ​​land that can be ceded for peace, and a large number of people are willing to be loyal to the country. Now he only thinks about how to secure the throne in the Golden Temple, and he doesn't care about the future generations, and plans for the people's livelihood."

Shen Si gritted his teeth: "Water can carry a boat and capsize it. He has done many unrighteous actions, and he will suffer the consequences sooner or later. He is not the only one who is qualified to be on the Ninth Five-Year Plan in the Great Zhou Dynasty!"

"National character face" slowly shook his head: "Whoever sits on the throne is not the same. Who is the emperor? He said that whoever lives will live, and whoever dies will die. Even if there is no Gu Mingzhang, there will still be Wang Mingzhang and Xie Mingzhang. Come to control the government and harm the country and the people." Seeing that Shen Si wanted to persuade him, he patted Shen Si on the shoulder, "Mr. Shen, I know you have good intentions, but I have made up my mind." He took the rein and looked at the distant mountains, "Born to be a human being!" , I should enjoy the joy of others, otherwise I will go through the world in vain. From now on, I will return to the countryside, put my love on mulberry and hemp, work at sunrise and rest at sunset, plant in spring and harvest in autumn. , die of old age... Wouldn't it be nice to think about it this way?"

Shen Si was silent for a moment, then sighed self-deprecatingly: "Sixth Brother is so open-minded, and Shen Si admires it, so I won't repeat it. This farewell is far away, and I don't know when we will meet again. Please cherish Sixth Brother." .”

"National character face" jumped on the back of the horse, cupped his hands and said goodbye: "Mr. Shen cherishes it." Then he tightened his feet on the stirrup, turned over the opposite hill without looking back, and disappeared into the vast night after a while.

The sound of the hooves of the "national character face" quickly disappeared, leaving only Shensi trekking on the mountain path alone.In the chilly spring, the young man was frozen to death, and an indescribable loneliness and desolation wrapped him up heavily.

He really wanted to rush to join his sister and brother-in-law, but he was afraid to face it. He didn't know how to tell his family members the news of the death.He will never forget the scene under the city of Runing. He doesn't want his sister and brother-in-law to experience the same pain and grief.

Just like this, walking and stopping under the moonlight, even the horseshoes seemed extremely heavy.Shen Si was not familiar with this area at all, and the location agreed with Feng Zhuosheng was a remote mountain temple, so he strayed off the road if he didn't pay attention, and it was only at the end of the ugly time that he was able to turn back on the right track.After traveling more than ten miles on the mountain road, he finally found the shadowy place.

Shen Si walked towards the ruined temple full of complicated emotions, and saw the carriage they fled in brazenly parked by the side of the road from a long distance away.This can't help but make him a little bit afraid, secretly thinking that Feng Zhuosheng is too careless, even if this place is far away from Runing, it is difficult to guarantee that there will be officers and soldiers coming and going, what if people see the clues?

When he got closer, he pondered and wondered, why is it so quiet?Surprisingly quiet!Just escaped from the tiger's mouth, the danger has not yet passed, it is right to leave someone on duty at night, even if the person temporarily fell asleep due to fatigue, the horse should be aware of the abnormal noise from the outside world, right?

A gust of wind hit him, and he couldn't help twitching his nose a few times. There was a strange smell in the wind, like stale soil, or like boiling water washing away stains of rust... It was the smell of blood!It is the unique smell of blood.

With a "swish", the hairs all over Shen Si's body stood up. He didn't care about reining in the horse, so he leaped down the air holding the dagger tightly, and sneaked behind the carriage with the help of the grass on the side of the road.The wheels were sunk in the mud, and the horse had long since disappeared. He held his breath, and opened the hanging felt curtain, and the inside was empty.

He turned his head and turned his gaze to a dead and dilapidated building. The temple door was ajar, and the two door panels were "squeaking" in the wind. Looking in from the damaged window, the nameless statue became more and more obvious under the pale moonlight. ferocious.

Shen Si gently opened the door, and the wind immediately rolled in from his side, rolling up incense ash and paper money all over the floor, and also stirred up a thicker smell of blood.

"Brother Feng? Sister? Brother-in-law?" Shen Si walked slowly, looking around vigilantly, while trying to call in a low voice, but unfortunately there was no response in the dark.

Faintly, he found a figure standing by the wall by the window. From the outline, the man was wearing a long gown and tied with a net scarf. It should be Feng Zhuosheng. Are you asleep?"

Finally, Shen Si saw Feng Zhuosheng's face clearly. His eyes were wide open, unblinking, distorted and unwilling.His body was straight against the wall, but his head was limply drooping to one side. There was a long knife stuck in his chest. The blade pierced through his body, nailing him firmly to the wall. Feng Zhuo was dead!

Shen Si backed away a few steps in amazement, almost tripped over the futon and fell, dazed for a moment, he came back to his senses, and shouted like crazy: "Sister? Are you there? I'm Xiao Wuer, I'm back Where are you? Elder Sister?" He ran around in a disorderly manner, but the temple was too dark to see anything.

Fortunately, there were still unburned incense candles under the Buddha statue. He touched the scythe and lit the candles. He raised his hands up and searched around. A large amount of blood seeped into the cracks of the bricks under his feet. It could be seen that there had been a fierce fight here.

When the candle hit the bottom of the altar, there was a golden light flashing there, Shen Si hurriedly squatted down to take a closer look, it turned out to be a small, inch-long brass token.The sign is exquisitely carved, with unique patterns drawn, but without any words. This is not the property of my sister, brother-in-law and Feng Zhuosheng, it is probably left by the murderer.

Shen Si put the sign in his arms, and was about to stand up, when a terrible thought suddenly popped up in his mind. His fingertips trembled and he reached forward to the cloth covering the altar. Under the table was his only In the corner that has never been checked, the cloth is red, the same color as blood...

Having experienced the death of several close relatives in one day, the meditation at this moment no longer dares to take chances.He slowly opened a corner of the cloth, the first thing that came into view was the feathers on the armor, then the crimson skirt, a shoe was thrown off the ground, and the blue soles were exposed beside it... Sister and brother-in-law Huddled there, dead still hugging each other tightly.Just like every time he was in danger, the brother-in-law held his sister tightly in his arms to protect him.

There were countless wounds on the brother-in-law's back, and the blood had already solidified, forming thick lumps.He is a scholar, just to win the reputation of his sister in front of his father, he resolutely cast his pen and joined the army, and has since stayed away from rituals and music articles. This omission is even deeper and he can't sleep. He has been looking forward to the comfortable life with his wife and children under the lamp countless times in the future... Now he can't have it anymore.Their children don't even have the chance to take a look at this vast world of red flowers, willows and greenery.

My sister's eyes were tightly closed, her brows were knit together, and she must have been terrified at the moment of death.There is only one girl in the family, and the older brothers are humble to her. Even though Shen Si is young and mischievous, she will never play tricks on her sister.My elder sister has a bright personality, loves to play and laugh, but she is a little bit delicate. She will shed tears for a long time if she is stung by a bee, pricked by a wooden thorn, falls and breaks her skin.Now how can she bear the pain of being stabbed into the body by a knife!

Suddenly, his pensive eyes fixed on the corner of sister's mouth, which was covered with blood, swollen unnaturally, and surprisingly big.Shen Si leaned in front of her sister, and carefully pried her cold lips open, it turned out that there was half of a little finger in her mouth, the finger was thick and black, the nails were short, and the pulp of the finger was extremely rough, like the hand of a martial artist.

It should be during the entanglement, the sister bit off the murderer, and the murderer was so out of breath that he knew that his sister and brother-in-law were dead, and he kept stabbing down with a knife in a rage, so that the brother-in-law's back was not intact at all .

Who is the murderer?Is it from Gu Mingzhang?If it was his people who chased him down, why didn't he take the body back to verify his identity?Besides Gu Mingzhang, who else wanted to kill his sister and brother-in-law, even Feng Zhuosheng?Could it be bandits?But the money and jewelry on several people's bodies have not been touched, and the carriage at the door has not been dragged away.Apart from Feng Zhuosheng, Sun Rushang also knew this location, but he had no enmity with his sister or brother-in-law, so he absolutely had no reason to kill people indiscriminately.

Shen Si couldn't figure out the identity of the murderer no matter what, he only knew that the man had broken half of his little finger and had once held a mysterious token.

Staring at the corpse and standing there for a long time, Shen Si punched himself on the head, making a "bang bang" sound.He couldn't cry anymore, but his heart throbbed sharply.If he hadn't insisted on rushing back to Runing City, he could have protected them by his sister and brother-in-law, maybe they wouldn't have died!Contemplating, contemplating, it is useless!You can't save what you need to save, you can't protect what you need to protect, what face do you have to survive in this world!

But he can't just die so easily, not only can't die, but he has to live more tenaciously than before!Now he bears the hatred of killing his father and brother on his shoulders, as well as the unjust injustice suffered by the entire Shen family army. He wants to live, and he wants to live until the day when his revenge will be avenged and his injustice will be rewarded!

When the dawn was about to break, Shen Si knelt on the steps of the temple entrance and kowtowed several times, then burned down the mountain temple, and then rode his horse and ran eastward in the blaze.

When we arrived in Xuzhou, it was past noon.Shensi fumbled in his pockets, and there were still some loose silver. He bought a few packs of dry food and two changes of clothes at the market, then sat at the simple tea stand and ate steamed buns with tea.

Xuzhouzhao is much richer than Runing, the streets are full of people coming and going, the roadsides are crowded with small vendors doing business, shouting and hawking one after another.A blind old man came slowly from the opposite side holding a banner of "Ask divination and divination". It makes sense. Yes is empty, wrong is empty, fleeting years mistakenly gave away loyalty. Conquest is empty, battle is empty, iron horse draws bow several times. Loyalty is empty, righteousness is empty, no face looks back at Jiangdong..."

After meditating for two days and one night without closing his eyes, and without water or rice, he was already hungry and thirsty at this moment, and he didn't care about many things, just filled his stomach with a few big steamed buns in two mouthfuls.Although there is only inferior tea with dry steamed buns, compared with the dirty water and bad food of the previous days, it is already considered a delicacy.

After eating enough, Shen Si didn't leave immediately.After leaving Xuzhou City, there are two roads in front of you. You can return to Jinyang if you go north, and you can rush to the capital if you go east.In Jinyang City, Wei Lu was waiting for him.Now he is lonely, and Wei Lu is the only candle left for him.In the capital, there is Gu Mingzhang, his sworn enemy. Just thinking of this name has already made him furious. He wished he could kill Gu Mingzhang immediately, eat his flesh, and drink his blood to relieve his hatred.

Shen Si sat blankly, undecided in his mind.His family feud has not been avenged, so he shouldn't have any ties to his heart, but every step to the capital is extremely difficult and dangerous, and he may die at any time. He is very afraid that after avenging his revenge, he will never have the chance to see King Jin again.

The blind old man on the other side of the table fumbled with trembling hands on the table, and when he found the musing cup, he picked it up and drank it without asking.Shen Si stunned you for a moment, but he didn't care, anyway, he was full, so he simply lifted the teapot and filled the cup with hot tea.

The old man drank a few sips of tea to moisten his throat, seemed to be satisfied, and then continued to sing: "It is empty to come, and empty to go. It is hard to stop and die in a hurry. It is empty to travel, empty to stay, and the mountains are thousands of miles away. .Fate is also empty, sin is also empty, but the bridgeheads do not meet each other. Gong is also empty, passing is also empty, leaving only the bright moon shining on the green pines..."

This time, Shensi could hear clearly and empathize with him, and he couldn't help murmuring: "My family has thousands of miles of mountains and thousands of rivers... oh..."

The blind old man chuckled: "Little brother, since my old man drank your tea, he can't drink it in vain, how about I make a fortune for you?"

Shen Si politely declined: "The trifles are nothing to worry about, I never believe in ghosts and ghosts, so don't worry about the old man."

The blind old man didn't care whether he was willing or not, so he opened his mouth and said: "Tianyi offends this star in a fleeting year, and his life should be away from his ancestors to find peace. If you run a business and travel all over the world, it will inevitably come to nothing. Bitter Lingding."

Shen Si took a deep look at the blind old man, shook his head mockingly, carried the burden on his shoulders, and led the horse out.After taking two steps, he stopped, turned around and asked curiously: "Old man, I'm going to do a big thing now, you said my trip...is life or death?"

The old man stretched out his thumb and pointed at the other four fingers in turn, counting in a manner: "There are thousands of branches on one tree, and the flowers in the two places have the same color. There is no fate on the Sansheng Stone. After the four seasons, leave the rest. Remember me Let me say a word: If you survive a catastrophe, you will have a future blessing."

Shen Si smiled lightly, and cupped his hands: "Then borrow the old man's good words!"

After Shensi rode away on a horse, the blind old man drank the remaining tea and said to himself: "The love calamity in the past life, the love calamity in the past life, how can you die so easily if the calamity is not over..."