Chapter 44 Section 17

In the third year of Emperor Yincheng, on October 19th, Shangyang Pass. At the main entrance of the North Camp, under the light blue flag of snow chrysanthemums, Gu Yueyi led the horses and led a group of Izumo cavalry archers, saying goodbye to Gang Wuwei.The banner in northern Shanxi has just been washed, and there are still faint blood spots on it. Gang Wuwei pointed at the blood spots and sighed: "The blood shed by the nations this time may have dyed every inch of the ground in Shangyang Pass red." Gu Yueyi also sighed in a low voice. "Is it true that General Gu won't go to the imperial capital to have an audience?" Gang Wuwei asked.

Gu Yueyi shook her head: "Actually, the lord of the country didn't ask me to come to Beijing to have an audience. I'm a general, and I follow orders. Besides, northern Shanxi is such a remote place. The emperor knows that in northern Shanxi, probably, except for the forest, there is only snow. In our place, people who are not used to the cold can’t live there. We have never had any grievances with the princes, and we have little relationship with the royal family. This time, our country does not have great ambitions. In fact, no matter how great the emperor’s grace, it may not be able to Ze and our snow country."

Gang Wuwei smiled miserably: "I still want to set off for Beijing, but when the five thousand elites of the Xiu Kingdom came here, I can only bring one hundred and sixty-five living people into Beijing. The Xiu Kingdom is not big, and this tragic victory, Our country is no longer able to compete with the princes. It is just to show meritorious service in front of the emperor, get a few titular titles, and get a few fluffy imperial edicts." "Old General Gang also said such things, Yueyi was a little surprised." Gu Yueyi whispered, "However, it is the truth." "Hahahaha." Gang Wuwei laughed loudly and boldly.Gu Yueyi was a little uneasy, these days when he and Gang Wuwei met, he had never heard this dignified and majestic old-generation famous general laugh so loudly, so he felt a little apprehensive.

"Young man! You are different from me. I am already old. You are young, talented, and famous. You should assist a master with great ambitions. Jinbei Hou Lei Qianye is one. Your master, he is not without ambition , he is the white tiger of the snow mountain, he has accumulated strength for many years, I know he is one of the people who have the strength to win the world." Gang Wuwei said with a smile, at this time he removed the heavy shell, like an unscrupulous "If one day we meet on the battlefield, I will not show mercy, and you don't have to pity me when I am old."

Gu Yueyi looked up at the old man, and finally nodded: "Gu Yueyi remembers General Gang's teachings." Gang Wuwei turned around and rode away.Gu Yueyi also got on the horse, but still stared at Gang Wuwei's back as he went away. "General Gang is a piece of spicy ginger." Someone said with a smile behind his back, "Watching him swing a knife to kill the enemy makes people's hands warm up." Gu Yueyi turned her head in surprise, she didn't expect someone to appear behind her without a sound.What he saw was Xi Yan, who came on foot, dressed in loose black clothes, with a cigarette stick in his mouth.

"General Xi!" Gu Yueyi hurriedly saluted. Xi Yan waved his hand: "I'm here to find General Bai. I heard that General Gu is leaving, and there is no chance to send him off, but there will be a day when we will meet again, so it is not worth regretting. What I want to say happens to be The old spicy Jiang has already said that if we meet on the battlefield in the future, whether it is a comrade in arms or an enemy, Xi Yan will be happy to see the figure of General Gu." "We..." Gu Yueyi was stunned. "You got the fingertips, but you are still far from the real sky drive."

He smiled, turned around and walked towards the gate of the North Camp. Behind Xi Yan were Lu Guichen and Xiyuan. Lu Guichen was holding a little princess in white in his arms. The little princess was covered with a white scarf. It was because she didn't want the child to see the corpses all over the ground, and she didn't want people to see her face.Gu Yueyi nodded slightly to Lu Guichen and Xiyuan, which was regarded as farewell. When he looked in the direction where Gang Wuwei left again, the old man's back had already disappeared. This was the last time Gu Yueyi saw Gang Wuwei in his life.Several years later, on the day when the country was destroyed, Gu Yueyi immediately stood behind the black-clothed warrior with a black-gold spear, watching the city gate open, watching the gray-haired old general leap to die for his country, and seeing His body was stabbed on the point of a spear by the sergeants and held above his head in a sign of victory.

Gu Yueyi's tears rolled down his face uncontrollably, it was hot and painful, as if he had applied ginger juice to the wound. The black-clothed warrior whom he enshrined as his lord turned around and asked him, "Is it because of our friendship back then?" "No," Gu Yueyi replied, "I'm just glad that I gave it my all." Xi Yan stood in front of the main tent of the Chinese army in the Chuwei camp, took a deep breath of cigarettes, and then let it out long. Xiyuan followed behind, seeing his uncle like this, he was also a little nervous.Xi Yan is rarely so cautious, even a little hesitant. Xi Yan is usually a lazy person with nothing to worry about.Xiyuan knew that he was going to meet Bai Yi, but he didn't know why seeing Bai Yi this time made Xi Yan look a little strange.Lu Guichen patted the little princess wrapped in a ball of plain brocade, and met Xiyuan's eyes.

Xi Yan stroked the thin short beard on his chin, looking a little embarrassed: "After all, I want to take away the princess of other people's family as a hostage, which makes people feel like a robber." He turned to Xiyuan and Lu Guichen: "You two take Princess Xiaozhou and go in to meet Bai Yi and say goodbye. I'll wait for you here." "Yes." Xiyuan agreed, but was a little strange, "Won't Uncle go with me?" "No, I have been friends with him for many years, so we don't need to see each other more." Xi Yan replied lightly.

Lu Guichen was puzzled, turned to look at Xi Yan: "What does the general mean?" "There is a person who used to be your friend. Now I don't know whether it is a friend or an enemy, but they stand on different positions after all. Seeing each other is worse than seeing each other, and it is such an embarrassing situation." Xi Yan's words were erratic, and finally he was unwilling He said, "In short, you still don't understand it yet." He was silent for a while: "I kind of miss being on the battlefield, when we were always friends..." "Let him talk to the little princess," Xi Yan added later, "but don't waste too much time."

Xiyuan and Lu Guichen walked into the big tent, slightly surprised.The huge tent was originally a ceremonial place for Bai Yi to march in the field. The space inside was extremely open, and it was supposed to be lined up by guards, but these two people only saw an empty tent, with only a chair in the center, and a general in white With his hands on his knees, he sat there silently and watched them from a distance.His eyes were quiet and sharp like a sword, but he was not aggressive. He just pushed him quietly as if he could penetrate everything. Xiyuan is also someone who has seen the scene, but at this moment he had to restrain his hands and feet, and he signaled Lu Guichen to put the little princess down.Lu Guichen untied the mask that was covering the little princess's face, revealing her jade-like face, and her clear eyes began to turn gingery. When she saw Bai Yi who was sitting still, she suddenly became quiet.She was still a little scared, she lowered her head, but raised her eyes vigorously, carefully trying to figure out Bai Yi's expression, and when she felt something was wrong, she immediately lowered her eyes again.Those eyes clearly saw the closest person, but they were just afraid of being scolded. But from the beginning to the end, Bai Yi just sat quietly and didn't even move his brows. Xiyuan and Lu Guichen began to feel uncomfortable. This scene made them feel that they were outsiders who shouldn't exist at all, as annoying as a fly on a pastry. "Zhouyue met the teacher." The little princess shrugged her shoulders and looked at the ground, and said carefully. "Teacher?" Xiyuan was taken aback. "Zhouyue," Bai Yi nodded, "the teacher is very happy to see you. The lord told the teacher that you must be safe from all the armies. Fortunately, you were saved. But the city has been in turmoil. You It's okay, the teacher can rest assured." "Zhouyue remembers the teacher's teachings, and when she encountered danger a few times, she kept silently reading what the teacher taught Zhouyue, so she will not be afraid." The little princess's voice was so soft that she couldn't let go, but she clearly relied on Bai Yi extremely. Lu Guichen watched from the side as she tried to approach Bai Yi a few times, but was intimidated by Bai Yi's eyes, and stood still, like a student waiting for a teacher's reprimand.He felt that the little princess was a bit pitiful, but it was inconvenient to talk too much at such a time. "What did the teacher teach you?" Bai Yi asked. "You have no regrets, no gain or loss. In the sixty years of life and death, there are a few ink marks of honor and disgrace. You have to see through the ups and downs. In the end, it is just a matter of flowing water. I am a stone, and I have sunk into the world. What has nothing to do with me..." The little princess said clearly read aloud.This sentence probably came from some old Confucian's essay, Xiyuan didn't understand it, he just thought it was ridiculous to hear it from a little princess surrounded by beauty.But Xiao Zhou recited very seriously, and Bai Yi listened seriously, he could only suppress his laughter, making it uncomfortable. After the little princess finished reading, she bowed respectfully. Bai Yi nodded slightly: "That's right, I remember this lesson very well, so where did this "Stone Words" come from?" "From the "Xian Xin Lun" written by the Lord Wenrui of the Lower Tang Dynasty." "how to explain?" "It means that people should not pay too much attention to their own emotions and be manipulated by their own gains and losses. In fact, the world seems to be complicated and repetitive, but it is nothing more than a projection reflected in people's hearts. As long as one can stabilize one's heart and be clear of guilt, one can be free. Fear. Life and death is a short period of sixty years, and others' praise and insults are just some ink marks. Things in the world are like running water, but people can regard themselves as stones, and stones always sink at the bottom of the water. The water rises and falls, but the stone cannot be turned over." Lu Guichen nodded slightly.He had learned this passage from Master Lu, and the explanation was quite correct, but it was impossible for such a delicate girl like white jade to understand the state of mind of this old man, after all, it was just narrating the scriptures.He didn't expect that Bai Yi's lectures would be like Master Lu's, full of great truths, no matter how reasonable it was, it was a bit false when he thought about it. Bai Yi nodded approvingly: "That's right, it's good to remember all of them." He didn't look at Lu Guichen and Xiyuan, got up from his chair, and paced in the big tent with his hands behind his back, as if talking to himself: "General Xi sent you here, let's meet again because you are going to meet again today. I followed Tang Jun to Nanhuai. Then this side is the last side. Before leaving, the Lord told me to take the princess back to the country, because I missed it very much, but I thought about it again and again. Since I have promised to go to the Tang Dynasty, there is no reason to go back on the way , This time I was able to rescue the princess, and the Tang Dynasty also contributed a lot. I hope the princess understands the truth." He stopped and looked at the little princess from a distance.The little princess seemed to be in a daze, she opened her mouth, but she couldn't say anything, the expression on her little face made Xiyuan feel soft.He never imagined that he could see so much and such deep disappointment in a child's eyes, which made people feel sour unconsciously. "I hope the princess understands the truth." Bai Yi repeated softly. The little princess looked down at the ground, Xiyuan could see tears swirling in her eye sockets, crystal clear, but in the end they didn't slip.The little princess raised her head and said in a clear voice: "Zhouyue understands, and Zhouyue will remember the teacher's words in her heart." "Very good. You were born as a princess of our Chu Wei Kingdom. You have no choice of family background. You enjoy wealth and glory, but you must also assume the responsibility of a princess." Bai Yi nodded and sighed, "But I have relied on my talents all my life, but now It is ironic to have to share the scourge of war with a young princess." He stood there, staring at the princess from afar.Lu Guichen looked into Bai Yi's eyes, and felt that the short gaze seemed extremely long and long, making people feel trance-like.But he felt that Xiao Zhou could understand. He saw the little princess facing Bai Yi, trying to squeeze her petal-like lips tightly, showing a resolute expression. Bai Yi seemed to take a step forward inadvertently. The sound of "噗" was the sound of the weapon being unsheathed.Lu Guichen saw that Xiyuan pulled out his sword nervously, thrust it obliquely on the ground, and sealed it in front of the little princess.Xiyuan's expression was tense, and he unconsciously made a defense. For some reason, he felt some kind of danger from Bai Yi's approach at this moment. Bai Yi stopped and looked at the sword that stood beside him and the little princess.After a long time, he took back his steps, took a step back, and stood at the original place. "After you arrive in Nanhuai, the Lord of the Tang Kingdom will definitely arrange the best teachers for you. What they teach you, just like what the teacher teaches you, you have to memorize it carefully. I taught you before, and I know There are some things you don’t understand now, and it may take many years to truly understand, but I still want you to remember. Because the world always gathers less and leaves more, even the teacher can’t stay by your side all his life. One day the teacher will die too. I will teach you something first, and it will be useful when you think about it in the future," Bai Yi looked at the little princess and said in a low voice, "Be brave." With a slight movement in Lu Guichen's heart, he was about to say that this is the case, and everything is just for you to remember, and it will be useful in the future.He remembered his grandfather raised the knife in the depths of the grotto and shouted the names of his ancestors. The old man wanted him to remember that when he grew up to be a hero in the future, the knowledge in his memory would be useful. "Go." Bai Yi waved to Lu Guichen and Xiyuan. Xiyuan didn't want to delay any more, he felt that the time was too long, so he hurriedly put the Sujin mask on the little princess's head again, picked her up and strode out of the tent, Lu Guichen glanced at Bai Yi, this peerless general sat down with his head bowed. In the chair, he suddenly became exhausted.Lu Guichen thought that perhaps there was nothing more disappointing for a man in troubled times than this. The responsibilities that he could not bear had to be borne by a child like a flower bud. For the first time in his life, he felt that these men who were swaying in troubled times, like others, were helpless about many things. He bowed to Bai Yi and exited the big tent. Outside the big tent, Xi Yan was saying goodbye to Xie Zihou, the chief of staff under Bai Yi, both of them were polite, and the etiquette was complicated and cautious. "General Gu Yueyi's refusal to go to the imperial capital is said to be the order of Marquis Lei Qianye from the north of Jin Dynasty. General Xi is not the capital of God? The next king of the Tang Kingdom is so close to the royal family, but General Xi did not greet His Majesty in person. I am afraid he will be blamed? In the Second World War, the Xia Tang Kingdom made great contributions, Your Majesty must highly praise and reward the Xia Tang Kingdom!" Xie Zihou said with a smile. Xi Yan also smiled, and lowered his voice to come closer to Xie Zihou's ear: "I'm not your general Bai Yi. I won't be kicked in the waist and almost killed me. I still have to lower my head and lean up to be a loyal dog. People, I'm not in the mood to deal with it!" Xie Zihou was stunned by this sentence, his expression turned pale, he didn't know what to say. "Your general Bai Yi and even Mr. Xie himself are pretty much the same as I said, but it's not easy to tell outsiders. But now only you and I can hear it. Even if Mr. Xie wants to use this as evidence to sue the emperor about me There are no witnesses, so I told the truth to Mr. Xie. Please forgive me for being presumptuous." Xi Yan smiled, with a slightly secretive expression. He took a few steps back, made a long bow, and said goodbye to Xie Zihou. The Xia Tang sergeant who followed led the horse, and the three got on the horse. Lu Guichen took the boat from Xiyuan and put it on his saddle.The sergeant raised an ink flag without a family emblem behind them, almost at the same time as the northern Shanxi army, and they were about to set off. When they walked out of the gate of the camp, they suddenly heard the sound of flutes coming from afar.The sound of the flute swept away, and someone sang, the sound was like cracking feathers: 〖Picking lotuses for Qing and wading through the water, Capture the flag for Qing and fight frequently. Looking at Xici Palace for Qing, Sing slowly for Qing Baifa. 〗 The song was originally in a gentle tone, but at this time the song has a passionate and distant meaning.Breathing out in horror, he pressed the hilt of the sword at his waist. But Xi Yan waved his hand: "General Bai's song is hard to hear, so don't make mistakes." The three of them stopped their horses and looked back at the big tent of the Chinese army where there was only one person. The singing came from there. At first, it was continuous, and in the end it was almost as majestic as a crack in the rock. It was said that it was singing, but it was more like a single person. Roar.The surrounding sergeants put down what they were doing and stood there listening blankly. There was no second voice in the busy barracks for a while. "It's not as good as him." Xi Yan looked up to the sky and sighed, "We were on the same level in music attainments back then, and I was even slightly better. But these years I've been lazy, just playing vulgar tunes, not as good as he is in a flute. I have put a lot of effort into it. Listening to him singing now, I just feel that I am short again. From now on, I don't need to mention the word music in front of Bai Yi." Bai Yi's singing stopped, and there was a moment of silence, followed by a faint long chant: 〖Five years after the flowers bloom, The levy has not yet returned. Look at my tomb, The grass is desolate and cold! 〗 When the singing was powerful, Xi Yuan could still remain calm. Hearing Bai Yi's faint reciting voice at this time, it was like a gust of cold wind passing through his chest. There was a void in his chest, and the slight cold sweat permeated the shirt under the armor.In the end, the sound drifted away, and no one moved for a long time. "When the sandalwood board and the gold bottle sing, the lonely boat is already thousands of miles away." Xi Yan smiled softly. "Uncle, what is General Bai singing?" Xi Yuan couldn't help asking. "The previous one is a folk song of Chu Wei. It is about a man who goes to war for a woman and also resigns for a woman. People who go to war often sing this song." Xi Yan said, "But I haven't heard the latter poem. It is an ancient song, which is connected with the meaning of the previous song. It is said that after five years of expedition, if you still can’t come back, you can go to his grave. If you can’t make meritorious deeds, you can’t return to your hometown. It’s probably a poem he wrote himself.” "General Bai can still write poems?" Xi Yuan shook his head, "But I can't understand anything." "How do you understand, I have known him for decades and I still don't understand. But I vaguely feel that his poems allude to something," Xi Yan shook his head, "But his poems have never been grand, too quiet and desolate. Often There is a feeling of ghosts and strange roads, thousands of miles away from people, lamenting that there are some things that cannot be undone even if a hero holds a sword." In this desolate soul-calling song, Xi Yan turned around and patted his horse away. "Teacher, Zhouyue remembers." Lu Guichen heard the little princess wrapped in plain brocade murmur in front of the saddle. Shangyang Guanqin King's Battle and Suoheshan Juluyuan Bloody Battle are collectively known as two decisive battles with profound significance in the history of Yinmo Xiechu.In the two wars, more than 300,000 people were used, including the mobilization of civilians.And in every war, no matter which side wins or loses, piles of dead bones are left on the battlefield. The Battle of Shangyang Guanqin King ended on October 17th in the third year of Emperor Yincheng, and ended with the withdrawal of Xie Xuan's army from the country under Shangyang Pass.The whole process of this war was less than three months, and there was only one decisive battle. However, the total number of casualties in each vassal state exceeded 70,000, which was comparable to the battle when Emperor Qiangwei stormed Shangyang Pass when the Yin Empire was founded.Unborn overlords and unborn heroes lashed out on the battlefield. Military strategists of later generations looked back to study this war, and they all praised the strategies of the two leaders, thinking that even if later generations returned to the current battle situation, it would be difficult to surpass them opportunities for predecessors.This battle is known as the classic of pass offensive and defensive warfare, but this legend is written with blood. The bones of 70,000 people were unable to clean up and bury them, so they were abandoned in the wilderness. Until the spring of the next year, Chu Weiguo continued to recruit civilians to bury the corpses on the spot.Shangyang Pass became a dead city with tens of thousands of corpses in this battle. The day after Bai Yi and other six-nation armies withdrew, heavy rains from the sky ruthlessly washed away this ancient pass. "Heaven Crying" means that the dark cloud formed by the accumulation of resentment of the deceased in the sky collapsed, and the rain of tears poured down.The water in the city was four feet deep, and the rotting corpses caused the epidemic to spread. No one dared to send troops to garrison, and the surroundings of Shangyang Pass became a dead area.The coalition forces built the earthen city "Nanjing" 60 miles away from Shangyang Pass, replacing Shangyang Pass as the gateway to the imperial capital, until the clearing of Shangyang Pass was completed in the summer of the following year.More people are not familiar with the name "Nanjing", but call it "Crying City". The impact of this war even continued for decades, and the land of Chu Wei was finally merged into Da Xie's territory. During the reign of Emperor Xie Jingde, there was a population check.The officials of Daxie were surprised to find that there were thousands of families in Chuwei area where women were married to women, and they were called husband and wife.Emperor Jingde ordered the investigation, and suspected that some of them were evading taxes, but the result was unexpected. It turned out that the military style was prevalent in Chu and Wei, and rural men often joined the army together. All the men from village to village were buried under Shangyang Pass.For a time, no one could marry a woman, and those with good looks would rather sell themselves to rich families as concubines, and even women married each other. The thick ones worked in the fields, and the slender ones weaved at home. In the countryside, they were also called couples, and they paid taxes as a family. . Emperor Jingde sighed and said: "That day at Shangyang Pass, 100,000 people were killed. If their bones stood shoulder to shoulder, the Taiqing Palace might not be able to accommodate it. Thinking about its tragedy, I am still trembling and unable to hold myself. However, my brother experienced the battle personally. , Assassinating ghost envoys among thousands of armies, he is really brave, and then he can take over the world. I once heard a saying in the market, that I am the emperor who defended success, and my brother was the hero who founded the country. Blood dripping, the man died in battle, the parents were sad, and the woman had no one to trust, so they married each other, which ruined the relationship. I can't bear it." Therefore, Emperor Jingde was merciful and ordered to exempt the family of "female marriage" from taxation for life.Hearing the news, all the women's married families cried with their heads in their arms. At this time, it has been forty-one years since the bloody battle at Shangyangguan, and it has not been less than twenty years since the end of the Yinmo Fengyun battle. Like the soldiers, they will be forever buried in the soil. I am afraid that the past ambitions and ambitions are only the souls that are gradually dissipating. battle song.