red cliff top

Shen Si had a dream. He dreamed that he was riding a horse on a mountain path with dense bamboo shadows. The ground is mottled with broken gold.Not far ahead, there was a man riding a horse, wearing a black shirt, with straight shoulders, and a dark golden dragon pattern faintly visible on the cuffs. That was King Jin!Even if he only saw a figure from the back, Shen Si could recognize it as the guard at a glance.

He lightly kicked the horse's belly, pulled the reins, and planned to walk a few quick steps to catch up with King Jin.But it's strange, no matter how he pushes the horse forward, there is always a distance between him and the king of Jin, which seems to be close at hand, but is far away, let him change from a fast walk to a trot, from a trot to a gallop, There is just no way to catch up with King Jin.

"Keep it! Keep it!" Shen Si wanted to call King Jin back, but his throat seemed to be stuffed with wet cotton, and his mouth was so big that he couldn't make a sound.This made him feel inexplicably anxious and irritable, as if there was an evil fire simmering in his body, and there was nowhere to vent it.His chest heaved violently, and he swung his arm vigorously, "Boom", he hit something hard, and finally woke up from the nightmare.

Opening his eyes suddenly, all he could see was the low and simple ceiling and the wall panels inlaid with thick cotton cloth, the bed was shaking regularly, creaking, creaking, and the wooden wheels were rolling over the stones. Sound... No, he wasn't sleeping on the bed, but was in a moving carriage!

Pensive turned over and sat up, probably due to sleeping for too long, half of the body was paralyzed, and the brain was also groggy and chaotic due to the hangover, it took a lot of effort to barely sit still, and then looked around stand up.

The light in the carriage was a bit dim, and there was a man dressed as a farmer sitting by the door, wearing a half-worn coat and a big bamboo hat on his head. In late autumn, he was still holding a broken fan in his hand. with.Hearing the movement, the fan holder turned his head and looked at Shen Si: "Master, are you awake? Did you sleep well all the way?"

The voice was very familiar, and when he thought about it carefully, it turned out to be Gu Zhuozi, and he breathed a sigh of relief: "What happened? Where are you going? Where are you guarding?"

Gu Zhuozi graciously handed the water bag to Shen Si: "Under the order of the prince, I will lead my personal guards to escort you back to Lanyue Mountain." After speaking, he took a pack of dry food and sent it to Shen Si, "Young master must be hungry, first Let’s get hungry, the journey is long, and there are still villages and towns to be traveled for more than ten miles.”

"At the order of the lord?" Shen Si's expression that had just eased up suddenly shuddered, and then his brows were frowned, "How long have I been asleep?"

Gu Zhuozi told the truth: "Young Master has been in a coma for a day and two nights."

One day and two nights... Shen Si squinted his eyes and thought about it carefully. That night the King of Jin poured wine for him, and the two confided in each other. Lie and the relationship between traveling and sleeping for many days are particularly easy to get drunk, but now that I think about it, it is clear that King Jin has tampered with the wine in advance!It seems that King Jin planned to send him out of the city during the chaotic moment of the last breakout.

On the fifteenth day of that day, the city of Tongzhou was broken, and when he fell into a coma, fierce battles were raging in the city.Now that a day and two nights have passed, I think everything has settled down... Yes, King Jin must have thought twice about the amount of drugs, so how could he give himself a chance to go back and die in vain? Woolen cloth?

Meditating, he felt bitter, painful, stagnant, his chest felt like he had been hit hard by a huge boulder, he bent down and choked out blood, his eyes were dark.

In the darkness, he seemed to hear the deafening sound of war drums and shouts of killing, seemed to see countless banners and swords surging in the city of Tongzhou, and seemed to smell the smell of death mixed with fishy smell and stench.He wanted to rush to King Jin immediately and punch him hard, and wanted to ask loudly why the other party underestimated him so far, but more, there was a faint sense of despair.

Guards, guards, why do you even want to plot against me!Even though you did this to save my life, and to exchange my life with a last stand, you should know that I don't want to give you up to live alone!You said no regrets for honor and disgrace, no regrets about life and death, you actually...

Gu Zhuozi was taken aback, and hurried forward to support Shen Si, lifted his cuffs and tried his pulse carefully: "Please also protect yourself, my lord, and don't get hurt again, otherwise it will be a waste of the prince's painstaking efforts. Son of a daughter , Don’t die from thieves, this is what the prince ordered to leave to the young master.”

Shen Si gently pushed him away, struggled to sit up, opened the felt curtain and looked out, there were two trusted guards of King Jin sitting on the shaft of the chariot, both dressed in peasant clothes, driving intently at the moment.The horse that pulled the cart had thin limbs and sparse fur, and its tail was still covered with loose feces. It should be a well-trained war horse in the city of Tongzhou, but because of the day and night without rest, the horse also became weak and unbearable. If you want to run for a long distance, I'm afraid that the horse will fall apart in a short distance.

Gu Zhuozi immediately saw through his contemplative thoughts, and hastily stretched out his cattail fan to block him, and made a gesture to stop him: "Look at this wilderness, I can't think of finding any other horses, and besides, the medicine in your body has not dispelled the numbness of your hands and feet, just now It is really not suitable to ride a horse because of the sudden fire attack and the disorder of the heart and breath."

Shen Si raised his head and glanced at the other party with a gloomy expression: "Then tell them, turn around and go back to Tongzhou."

Gu Zhuozi unhurriedly shook his fan and fanned it a few times, unmoved: "Young master is really in a dilemma. My mission is to send young master back to Lanyue Mountain safely. Now I have gone halfway. Can turn around."

Shensi gritted his teeth and waited for no results, pulled out the dagger at his waist with a "swish", and pressed it neatly against Gu Zhuozi's neck: "I said turn around!"

Gu Zhuozi was forced to take two steps back, raised his head to dodge the sharpness of the dagger as much as possible, then raised his fan and gently dodged the pensive wrist: "Don't worry, don't worry, I know that you are not killing innocent people indiscriminately." , and please take care of yourself, my lord."

Shen Siding stared at Gu Zhuozi for a long while, but showed a wry smile. He turned his wrist and pointed the knife point at his throat: "I said turn around!"

"Young Master, don't do it!" Gu Zhuozi wanted to step forward to stop him, but before he could get close, Shen Si retracted the blade for a few minutes, and immediately his collar was stained red with blood.

"The one who cares about Tongzhou is not the only one? You know...forget it..." Gu Zhuozi was forced to turn his horse's head around and drove towards Tongzhou again.

After being silent for half a stick of incense, Gu Zhuozi changed his loose attitude of staying out of the matter before, and sighed softly: "Thank you for doing this, my lord. Although Gu is concerned about the old man, how can he be responsible for the great kindness of the prince?" Trust? Now the young master can be regarded as fulfilled..."

The carriage headed west all the way, and it took half a day to gradually become populated, but the sights seen along the way made people feel even more depressed.Those villages, towns and villages surrounded by green hills and wells and fields in the past have been devastated by the war, and there are abandoned corpses everywhere on the scorched earth roads. Fear and panic for the rest of my life.

After walking for half a day, they came to a valley. An ox cart ahead was stuck in the mud and could not move, blocking the way of Shen Si and others.An old couple with white hair on the temples and two little dolls who have just reached the age of the head are waving whips and whipping the back of the cow, while pushing the car forward desperately. The planing made mud splash, but the wheels never moved.

Shen Si was burning with impatience, wishing he could immediately grow his wings and fly to Tongzhou. Seeing this situation, he immediately took Gu Zhuozi and two guards out of the car to help.After a lot of effort, the four of them finally lifted the ox cart out of the quagmire. To express their gratitude, the old couple rushed to the stream and twisted the clean handkerchief for everyone to wipe their hands and faces.

Seeing the old man speaking the Tongzhou dialect, Gu Zhuozi pretended to be casual and asked, "Where did the old man come from? It's really not easy for the old and the young to travel."

This question made the old man open the chatter box: "To be honest, the little old man's family came from the same state and planned to go to the relatives' home in the countryside to avoid the disaster of war for the time being. Unfortunately, Jinyuan is not peaceful everywhere. My son and daughter-in-law are also separated, so we are the old couple, we just feel sorry for our little grandchildren."

Shen Si had already planned to say goodbye and leave, but when he heard the word "Tongzhou", his heartstrings were immediately pulled tightly, and he turned around and blurted out: "May I ask my father what is the situation in Tongzhou City?"

The old man looked at him in surprise: "Sir, you don't know? The city of Tongzhou has already fallen, and now there are Tatar dog thieves inside and out, killing anyone in the streets and alleys. If you see a beautiful girl with yellow flowers, Just spoil it first and then kill it. Isn’t the young master going to Tongzhou on this trip? Then please listen to the little old man’s advice, don’t go any further, the big thing is not life-threatening!”

"The guard... how is King Jin doing now? But, is he still okay?" Shen Si was so nervous that his hands trembled, and he couldn't even breathe. The worst plan, but he was really afraid, afraid of hearing the answer he didn't want to face from the other party, afraid that the only remaining hope would be broken, afraid that a farewell on the Mid-Autumn Festival would be a farewell forever, and in the end Mingyue and the world would be in a dilemma... But He couldn't control himself, he couldn't wait to inquire about it, just like a starving person who is dying of hunger sees the wild fruit on the roadside tree and doesn't care whether it is poisonous or not.

"Oh, the prince died in the city at a thousand years old, and he died in the rebellious army. Otherwise, how could those Tatar thieves be able to do evil in Tongzhou City." The old man sighed for a long time, with both sigh and awe, " Our prince is capable of writing and martial arts, and managed Jinyuan in a smooth manner. A few years ago, the Battle of Fenshui even defeated the Tatar thieves. It's a pity that good people don't live long..."

What was said later, he couldn't hear it in deep thought, his ears were buzzing, and the words kept lingering, he had already died in the chaos army, he had already died in the chaos army, he had already... died In the midst of chaos...

Shen Siding stood there, his whole body was as stiff as ice. He didn't know how long it had passed, and he didn't know when the whole family left. It wasn't until Gu Zhuozi stepped forward to hold his arm that he moved numbly. Legs, followed Gu Zhuozi slowly towards the carriage.

When he got into the car, he stepped on the ground and fell to his knees. His knee hit the sharp stone, but he didn't feel any pain at all. He just struggled for a long time and couldn't stand up. The two guards, one left and one Supporting him on the right, he awkwardly climbed into the car.

After months of hard work and hard work, the underlying disease in his knees became more and more serious. At first, he just felt a little stiff and uncomfortable when he got on and off the horse. Later, after standing and sitting for a long time, he had to try to move little by little so as not to fall.Baiyun Canggou, the world is impermanent. In the past, he was a high-spirited young general at the foot of Ningcheng. The energy and spirit were scattered, and the pains and pains accumulated over the years all came to him.

Just the tiny movement of climbing into the carriage exhausted him. During the time he lay there to catch his breath, many images, many words, many sincere and wonderful moments flashed and spun before his eyes like a revolving lantern... After this battle is over, I will go to Lanyue Mountain to find a place with an excellent view and buy a house. There should be a sunny hillside nearby, where I can put horses and grow vegetables, and the yard will be paved with polished blue bricks and stones. , an old locust tree was planted at the door...

The two guards waited outside the carriage and did not move. They only inquired Gu Zhuozi about the next step with their eyes. Gu Zhuozi was thinking about how to comfort Shensi, but Shensi took the initiative to say: "Let's go, hurry up, tomorrow will be back." I can't get to Tongzhou..."

He must go to Tongzhou, even if it has been occupied by the Tatars, he must go, even if it is true as the old man said, King Jin died in the chaos, he must go, even if he failed King Jin took so much pains to send him out of the city, so he must go!In any case, King Jin is still in the city of Tongzhou, he wants to see people when he is born, and he wants to see corpses when he dies!

Seventeen nights, Zhang Xianyue, the road was rough, the car bumped all the way, and walked crookedly.

There are rolling hills in the distance, and a new row of tombs stands at the foot of the hill. The burial men wielding iron shovels hummed in unison while lowering their heads and tamping the earth: "Xie Shanglu, He Yixi, Luxi Ming Dynasty What's more, when a person dies, when will he return... Whose land is there in Haoli? There is no virtuous and foolish people who gather souls. Why do ghosts urge you? Human life must be hesitant..."

Suddenly, the sound of rolling horseshoes came galloping from behind, and soon came to the front, a long dragon formed by countless torches surrounded the carriage, and the riders were all uniformed by officers and soldiers, each with their swords out of their sheaths and bows strummed, as if facing an enemy .The leading general urged him to go forward and clasped his hands and called out: "The one sitting in the car is Shen Nianqing, Young Master Shen?"