Chapter 31 end

Zhang He didn't seem to believe the scene in front of him. He struggled to half-stand up and saw a delicate crossbow firmly nailed to his right knee.The arrowhead of the crossbow bolt had sunk deeply into the knee, leaving only the light black tail stick outside.Crimson blood was gurgling out from the four sunken bloodletting grooves on the arrow body.He knew that the arrow had a barb and that it was impossible to remove it with bare hands. "This is the power of the Yuanrong Crossbow..." Zhang Yun thought, feeling a little soft all over his body, and his vision became blurred due to the rapid loss of blood.During the wars in Longxi in the past few years, he has seen the power of this crossbow countless times. He has seen soldiers of the Wei army being pierced through countless times and screaming pitifully. The list of dead even included his colleague Wang Shuang; Now, at last, it was his turn to experience the horror for himself.

Zhang He let out a breath slowly, and was surprised to find that he didn't feel any fear at all.Perhaps it was because of the long time on the battlefield that this sixty-year-old man had even become numb to his own death.Around him lay dozens of corpses of Wei soldiers and war horses, each with at least three crossbow arrows stuck in their bodies; the flag of Wei was folded in the dust, and one corner was already wet with the blood of the soldiers in charge of the flag. "If our army can have such a weapon... I remember it seems..." A doubt popped up in Zhang Yun's mind, but the thought didn't last long before being overwhelmed by more thoughts.Before a person dies, all the past will flood in in an instant, even veterans who have lived their lives in the army are no exception.He raised his head, and on the high slope in the distance, the heads of crossbowmen from the Shu army could be seen shaking. This was the last time they faced the enemy face to face.

There seemed to be a slight smile on Zhang Yun's lips, a puff of smoke rose in front of his eyes, and his vision became even more blurred, the wind in Longxi is so cold... In the ninth year of Jianxing in the Shu Han Dynasty and the fifth year of Wei Taihe, Zhuge Liang, the prime minister of the Han Dynasty, took the initiative to end the confrontation because of the exhaustion of food and grass, and completely withdrew from the battlefield.Wei Zuo General Zhang He chased to the wooden gate, was ambushed by Yuan Rong crossbow arrows, and died in battle.The Han army immediately withdrew from Qishan to Hanzhong.

Thus ended the Fourth Northern Expedition. On May 10th, Xun Xu and his party escorted Li Ping and Hu Zhong back to Nanzheng City.Along the way, Hu Zhong remained bound and was guarded all the time.Among the companions, Li Ping regarded him as a sympathetic friend, Zhong Ze regarded him as an official who had tried to defect, and Xun Xu, the only one who knew the truth, kept silent and followed far behind the team, trying to stay away from the two prisoners. When they arrived at Nanzheng City, they found that the city had become a mess.The few orders Li Ping issued before leaving caused great confusion. Due to the long-term blockade, Nanzheng was completely cut off from the outside world, the administrative system was basically paralyzed, and all departments fell into panic and anxiety.Many officials strongly demanded that the martial law be lifted, but the garrison still insisted on the original order. In fact, they were also confused by the delay in the prime minister's office.There are incidents of violent breakthroughs occurring almost every day.

The Prime Minister's Mansion remained silent under the watchful eye of the immediate guards, no one could enter or come out.The guard captain who didn't know that he was actually guarding the empty city was as puzzled as everyone else, but orders always came first.During this period, countless officials requested to meet with Li Duhu, and many messengers requested to deliver official documents to the prime minister's residence, but he refused them all mercilessly. As for the Jing'an Division, the siege against it has existed in name only.The Prime Minister's Mansion did not issue follow-up instructions, so the encircling troops had to stand by and their morale dropped rapidly, and they turned a blind eye to the absconding of the Jing'an Division personnel—they couldn't leave the city anyway.The only people still in custody were Du Bi and Asheer, who were arrested after Xun Xu's escape and put in prison for close surveillance.However, as the number of people arrested on charges of breaking through the border increased, this kind of surveillance was not enough.

It didn't take much trouble for Xun Xu and others to enter the city, and they carried Li Ping out.Li Ping, who was in a daze, did not make any extraordinary moves. He obediently followed Xun Xu's instructions and ordered the guards to open the gate as the guardian of the central government.The soldiers who had been battered by the martial law were all overjoyed when Li Duhu finally appeared, and they didn't think too much about how Li Ping, who was supposed to stay in the prime minister's mansion, would appear outside the city, and hurriedly opened the gate. After entering the city, the group went directly to the Prime Minister's Mansion. Li Ping briefly instructed the guards directly under him to lift the martial law, and then went straight into the Prime Minister's Mansion without any explanation.It wasn't until this time that Xun Xu breathed a sigh of relief. Originally, he was worried that Li Ping would make a sudden attack and let the guards arrest them. Now it seems that Li Ping is not that stupid.

Under Zhong Ze's strict monitoring, Li Ping temporarily resumed his leadership position in Nanzheng City. This was for the sake of promoting order in the city.He explained to the outside world that he had gone to Jiangyang for inspection a few days ago. Although this was not convincing, it was finally the first official statement from the Prime Minister's Mansion these days.Hu Zhong claimed that he was under house arrest under house arrest and supervised day and night by several soldiers from the Pushing Battalion. After Xun Xu settled everything, he immediately went to Nanzheng's prison, where Du Bi and Asher had been staying for four full days.As soon as it was released, Du Bi was eager to hear how things were going with Xun Xu.Xun Xu couldn't tell them the truth, so he could only vaguely say that he happened to meet a group of patrolling soldiers and successfully intercepted Li Ping with their assistance.

"Who is the candle dragon?" Du Bi asked. Hearing this question, Xun Xu was stunned.It was a daunting question to which he already knew the answer, and he really didn't know how to answer it.Not to mention Zhulong's true identity, even the news that Xu Yong is still alive cannot be leaked to Du Bi.After being silent for a long time, he chose the most clumsy answer, and said with guilt: "At present, this is still a secret, Fuguo, I'm sorry." Hearing this answer, Du Bi raised his eyebrows slightly, then he smiled understandingly, patted Xun Xu on the shoulder and said, "Don't be embarrassed, everyone is in this line of work, and I understand your difficulties."

Xun Xu glanced at him gratefully, but he couldn't feel happy at all.In fact, no matter from which point of view, the ending this time is very satisfactory: his friend did not really betray the Shu Han, and the Shu Han also had an advantage in the intelligence war with Cao Wei, both public and private are worthy of joy, but There was always a dark cloud in Xun Xu's heart, which made him unable to relax.It's not about friendship anymore, it's something that involves loyalty... "Xiaohe? What are you thinking?" Du Bi watched Xun Xu staring blankly into the distance, and shook his finger in front of him, "Are you too tired? No wonder, since Xu Yong came back, you You’ve been busy, and you should take a break.”

"Well, maybe it's time to rest for a while." Xun Xu forced a smile and let his shoulders droop at the same time.He does feel tired now, very tired. That night, Xun Xu went to visit Cheng Fan.Cheng Fan was pleasantly surprised by the sudden visit of this friend he hadn't seen for a long time, and took him out for a drink together.During the banquet, Cheng Fan was surprised to find that Xun Xu's drinking capacity had skyrocketed. He didn't say anything, but just pulled Cheng Fan to drink bowl after bowl until he was very drunk... On May 15th, Prime Minister Zhuge returned to Nanzheng.As after the Second Northern Expedition, people were dismayed by the strategic futility of the Shu Han, but rejoiced by the success of killing a general during the retreat.Most of the people watched the prime minister's chariot drive slowly into the city with such a mood.

Xun Xu did not participate in the city entry ceremony. He was asked to wait in front of a secret room of the Army Zhengsi, as did Hu Zhong, and Li Ping was placed in the secret room.There was no window in that room, so Xun Xu had no way of knowing what the expression on the Central Guard's face was. "Xiaohe, how have you been these few days?" Hu Zhong suddenly turned his head and asked, he has been under house arrest for the past few days, and was only released today. Xun Xu grunted, lowered his hands, and continued to maintain a respectful waiting posture.He has no hatred for Hu Zhong, both of them are loyal to the motherland in their own way, but this does not mean that he will feel relieved.Seeing his reaction, Hu Zhong smiled slightly, knowing Xun Xu's fluctuating mood, so he also closed his mouth.The two stood on both sides of the secret room like stone figurines, as if they were strangers who had never met before. It is located underground, and the smell is a bit cold and musty. Both sides of the corridor are inlaid with copper hanging tables, and candles are lit on them.After about half an hour, there was a sudden sound of footsteps in the passage.Hu Zhong and Xun Xu raised their heads at the same time, and saw Prime Minister Zhuge and Jiang Wei approaching, their faces sinking like water.There were a few soldiers from the Army Zhengsi standing in the distance, but they had apparently received orders not to approach. Prime Minister Zhuge walked to the door, stopped in his tracks, and glanced from Xun Xu's face to Hu Zhong, and then from Hu Zhong's face to Xun Xu.The two bowed their heads and cupped their hands, calling out: "Prime Minister".At this moment, the prime minister had a slight smile on his serious face: "Xiaohe, Shouyi, you two are doing very well." "Everything is for the revival of the Han Dynasty." The prime minister nodded in satisfaction, and fixed his gaze on Xun Xu again, who found that he was a little more haggard than before he left for the expedition. "Xiaohe, if you think about it, you already know." The prime minister's voice was still low.To this sudden question, Xun Xu could only answer briefly: "Yes, Prime Minister." The prime minister narrowed his eyes and asked in a sentimental tone, "Well, do you still remember our meeting two years ago?" "Yes, Prime Minister." Xun Xu's vocabulary became very poor.Two years ago, Xun Xu was secretly summoned by Prime Minister Zhuge after accepting harsh military reviews. Xun Xu always believed that the conversation was the key to his downturn. "I remember that I once told you that as a leader, I must seek a certain degree of internal stability, and this kind of stability often requires sacrifice." The prime minister said, handing the cloth robe he took off to Jiang Wei . Xun Xu did not answer this question directly, but cleverly shifted the focus of the topic: "Every word you say, the villain will always remember it in my heart." Prime Minister Zhuge did not show any displeasure at this ambiguous answer. He stroked his beard, gave Xun Xu a little jaw, and said, "It's good that you understand, the revival of the Han Dynasty still needs your ability." Xun Xu bowed again, said a few words of humility, and then returned to the original standing posture. Prime Minister Zhuge didn't say much, he opened the door and walked into the secret room, then Jiang Wei closed the door from the outside and stood between Hu Zhong and Xun Xu.The three looked at each other, but no one spoke.Jiang Wei is much older than two years ago, and the childishness of youth has gradually been replaced by a calm and prudent temperament.He glanced at Xun Xu curiously, his demeanor neither showed superior arrogance nor overly affectionate. "You guys have done a great job. Although people outside won't remember your exploits, I will." Jiang Wei only said this sentence. Compared with the outside, the atmosphere in the room at this time is even more depressing.There was no window in this stone room, and there was only a wooden plan and a few candles laid out inside. There was also a jug of wine and two wine bowls on the plan. Li Ping, who was sitting on one side, was lifeless.Prime Minister Zhuge sat down opposite him and filled a bowl of wine for him without saying a word.Li Ping tried his best to avoid his eyes, his hands were uneasily clutching the front of his clothes, he was originally a big man but now he cowered like a frightened pheasant. "Zhengfang, come, have a drink for the late emperor." The prime minister held up the wine bowl and said solemnly. Li Ping didn't have the courage to lift the bowl, he thought Zhuge Liang was mocking him.Prime Minister Zhuge didn't take it seriously, he drank the wine in the bowl, and suddenly dropped the wine bowl on the ground, only to hear a "crash", and the stagnant air in the room was cut by the sudden cracking sound.Li Ping felt as if he had been pricked by a needle, his whole body was terrified and trembling. "Li Ping, don't you dare to toast the late emperor?!" The prime minister's anger suddenly burst out. "Kong...Prime Minister, I..." "I really can't believe that an old official who was entrusted by the late emperor would choose such a path to shame the twenty-five emperor of the Han Dynasty!" In Li Ping's impression, Prime Minister Zhuge had never lost such a big temper - even if Ma Di lost Jieting two years ago, he was never so angry.He knelt down on the ground in fear, put his hands on the ground, and lowered his head: "I am guilty, and I am willing to bear all the punishments. I only ask the prime minister to treat the bereaved family well." "Bear all the crimes?" The prime minister sneered, pointing at Li Ping with his hand, "Do you think you can bear it! Execute a Zhongduhu who tried to escape? If this news gets out, what will happen to the Dongwu Caowei people? Are you making fun of us? Do people in the world still believe that I, a great man, rule the country with benevolence?" Li Ping noticed that there was something in the prime minister's words, and he raised his head with puzzled eyes. "Zhengfang, do you know what a big problem you have given me..." The prime minister's tone slowed down again, "Yu Gong, I can't make the country a laughing stock of others; Yu private, do you think I really want to do it myself?" Ordering the beheading of an old colleague? Once is enough, I don't want to do it a second time." Li Ping knew what he was referring to happened two years ago.At that time, the first Northern Expedition had just failed, and Prime Minister Zhuge personally ordered the execution of Ma Di, a young man who was deeply appreciated by him.It seems that the shadow that that incident cast over Prime Minister Zhuge's heart has not been eliminated until now.Li Ping saw a glimmer of hope for survival. A breeze blew from the vent, and the breath in the room was slightly fresher, and the candle flames also danced accordingly, and the expressions of the two people seemed to have changed in the shadow of the candle.Prime Minister Zhuge suddenly changed the subject: "Li Ping, do you admit that you falsified the supply data, covered up the real situation of insufficient supplies, and falsely claimed that there was enough food and grass, so that our army failed the battle?" Li Ping looked at Prime Minister Zhuge in surprise, and there was something beyond reproach in the latter's eyes.So he nodded. "You were afraid that the matter would be exposed, so you escaped from Nanzheng before our army returned, trying to return to Jiangyang through Ju and Zhang, and wrote a letter to His Majesty the Emperor to quibble, trying to escape responsibility, right?" "yes……" "Fortunately, Hu Zhong, who joined the army, strongly dissuaded you. In the end, you changed your mind and returned to Nanzheng to surrender. Do you admit it?" Li Ping suddenly understood Prime Minister Zhuge's intentions. He was looking for another reasonable explanation for Li Ping's defection, a more decent explanation than defection.The corners of Li Ping's eyes were moist, and he felt that the old friendship between the two seemed to have returned. "In the next few days of trial, you will be sentenced for dereliction of duty, and the most serious sentence may be deportation. Are you mentally prepared?" "Thank you, Prime Minister..." Li Ping prostrated himself on the ground gratefully.Although the crime of dereliction of duty and the punishment of exile are not good things, for a person who originally committed the death crime of treason, he is too lucky. The prime minister helped Li Ping up with relief: "Don't worry, Zhengfang, your son Li Feng will not be affected by this judgment in his official career, I will take care of him." Li Ping just thanked him repeatedly, but he didn't know what to say. "Our country is at the time of employing people. If you hadn't made such a big mistake, Zhengfang should have been my right-hand man..." At this point, the prime minister deliberately lowered his voice, "...you should be self-aware. After a few years After that, there should be a chance to recover." "This... is this true?" Li Yan's eyes widened in disbelief. "I promise in the name of the first emperor. But you have to cooperate with me and let yourself survive. This is the most important thing." "The sinner, Li Ping, knows." Li Ping didn't say anything else, he bowed deeply again, his voice choked up.At this time, the prime minister filled the wine bowl again and pushed it in front of him: "Come on, Zhengfang, for the revival of the Han Dynasty." This time Li Ping didn't hesitate, he raised his bowl and drank it down... The meeting didn't last long, Prime Minister Zhuge opened the door and walked out in less than half an hour.Jiang Wei hastily went up to him and helped him.Xun Xu noticed that the wrinkles between the Prime Minister's eyebrows were slightly flattened, and it seemed that he was very satisfied with the outcome of this meeting. When Prime Minister Zhuge missed Hu Zhong and Xun Xu, he made a gesture of appreciation to them, turned and left, and soon the old man disappeared at the end of the passage.The dark corridor is dimly lit, only the candles on both sides are still burning, and the curved candlesticks on the wall are like candle dragons that bring light to the western gloom... On May 16, the Prime Minister's Office issued a notice announcing that Li Ping, the Central Capital Guard, had been detained on suspicion of dereliction of duty.On May 20, the detailed investigation report was released.According to the investigation report, Li Ping had declared in early April that there was no supply of food and grass. When the army was about to withdraw, Li Ping changed his words in mid-April and said that the front line said that there was no problem with supplies. The Shu army had to withdraw to Hanzhong.According to the audit of Liangtian Cao's account books and the testimony of a witness of Liangtian Cao, it is proved that Li Ping did tamper with the accounts.In order to escape his guilt, Li Ping left Nanzheng City on May 6th, trying to escape back to his mansion in Jiangyang; after being hunted down by Jing'an Division and persuaded by Hu Zhong, who joined the army, Li Ping had to return to Nanzheng to wait. Lost.Li Ping himself has confessed all this. The specific punishment measures were not mentioned in the announcement, and this will not be decided until Prime Minister Zhuge goes to the court.After all, Li Ping is a guardian of the central government, and he can only be punished with the approval of the emperor Liu Chan. Xun Xu was not surprised by the report. Such things as "Li Ping's defection" cannot be made public. It would make the court lose face and expose Hu Zhong's identity as a "candle dragon".According to Xun Xu's own guess, the reason why Prime Minister Zhuge worked so hard to cause Li Ping to defect was that he wanted to use this matter as a bargaining chip to force Li Ping to make concessions in other areas. But this is beyond the scope of his concern. A month later, Xun Xu received a notice to be promoted to Jing'an Division, and he officially became the highest leader of the Jing'an Division.Three years later, Xun Xu fell ill and died on the same day as Zhuge Liang who was far away in Wuzhangyuan. Du Bi declined the proposal to formally serve as the military counselor Sicheng, and was transferred back to Chengdu to take up the post of admonisher, living a low-key life; so that in the future, when Yang Xi, a famous literati in the Shu Han Dynasty, wrote "The Biography of Ji Han Fuchen", It is also specifically mentioned that "Shaofu Xiushen, Honglu Mingzhen, Admonishment and Confucianism, Confucianism and Astronomy. Xuanban Dahua, or Shou or Lin-Zan Wang Yuantai, He Yanying, Du Fuguo, Zhou Zhongzhi".No one knows that this admonisher, who lived in simplicity, once shuttled through the enemy's heart, guiding the Shu Han to victory in a silent place. Li Ping admitted all the charges against him, then his official position was taken away, and he was exiled to Zitong County as a commoner.When he heard the news that Zhuge Liang had died of illness at the front line in Longxi, his hope of reinstating himself was completely shattered, and he also died depressed. As for Hu Zhong, he only stayed in Hanzhong for three months, and then disappeared mysteriously.A few years later, in the Gaopingling coup in Wei State, a low-level official was killed in civil strife, and some top-secret information about Cao Wei was found in his home.Of course, under the chaotic situation at that time, no one noticed this, and the report on that search was quickly submerged in the pile of old papers and completely lost to oblivion... The only thing that remains constant is the cold wind from Longxi that blows on the top of Qinling Mountains. It circulates among the mountains, watching the changes of the times and the world coldly. On July 20th in the ninth year of Jianxing, more than two months have passed since the Li Ping incident. "Xun Sicheng, the judgment has come down. Li Ping was deposed as a commoner and moved to Zitong County." Pei Xu walked into the room quickly, and put the official document on Xun Xu's case with a snap, "Here is the official document submitted by the prime minister Copy, please have a look." Xun Xu unfolded the document and wrote on it: "...Ping is a minister, receives too much favor, does not think of loyalty, acts recklessly for no reason, does not deal with shame, loses his way, abandons discipline in prison, guides people into adultery, narrow-minded Crazy, if there is no heaven and earth. Since the exposure of adultery, suspicion arises. Hearing that the army is coming, Xixiang asks for illness and returns to Ju and Zhang. When the army comes to Ju, he returns to Jiangyang. Ping joins the army. The usurper is still alive, the country is in great trouble, and the only thing in the country is peace, victory can be achieved, but not budding, to endanger the great cause..." "Hehe." Xun Xu smiled, covered the scroll and looked at the setting sun outside the window, feeling a little sigh and a little emotion for some reason.