The Protectorate of the Western Regions of the Han Dynasty.
Haixi.
Haixi has now been renamed Dingxi.
That night.
Lu Bu had a long, long dream.
Although I can't remember the specific content of the dream, the vague remaining memory seems to be full of sadness and helplessness...
It's like facing the passage of time, the feeling that you want to catch it but can't.
To be honest, during this period of time, Lu Bu felt that he was not as brave as before, at least he was starting to find it difficult to be comfortable on the bed.
Does this have anything to do with dreams?
Lu Bu didn't know.
Lu Bu muttered, then sat up from the bed, glanced at the golden-haired girl sleeping soundly beside him, rubbed his temples, and felt slightly dazed.
Ever since the Western Region was conquered, there seemed to be no direction.
The Western Region is very big, but it is actually very small. Although the area is large, the population is not very large. These cities in the Western Region are concentrated in places with water sources and pastures, and there is a large area in the middle that is said to be the tomb of evil spirits.
There is no human habitation at all.
What's even more interesting is that these countries in the Western Regions, despite how loud they clamored before, actually waited for Lu Bu and his troops to arrive, and lowered their flags and surrendered without saying a word!
Once, as soon as Lu Bu's army arrived, two countries surrendered.
There are two small countries on the left and right. They don't know which side Lu Bu is going to fight, so they don't dare to bet, right?
Many countries in the Western Region have only one city.
Anyway, it's not like he had never surrendered to the Han before, so surrendering again now is not a big deal.
As for face, can that be used as food?
Among the countries in the Western Region, many even have semi-slavery systems. Kings, or city lords, are passed down from generation to generation, and the people around the cities are the eternal exploiters. The lives and wealth of these people
, as small as a piece of cloth or a piece of soil, all belong to the city lord.
The city lord is supreme, and then there are the various officials who work for the city lord, layer by layer, suppressing the people at the bottom who don't know a word and don't even know what to do if they want to resist. For these city lords
In other words, they just changed the object of tribute. In their city, they are still the "kings".
At the beginning, Lu Bu felt that this kind of life was very satisfying.
But after a long time, Lu Bu suddenly felt a little bored. At first, he thought that golden, red, and brown hairs were all good, but as time went by, he felt that they were not much different from other cuts of meat.
He only had a skin. He couldn't understand what Lu Bu said, let alone communicate. Later, he didn't know whether he was playing or being played...
"such a pity……"
Lu Bu suddenly regretted that when Li Ru wanted to go to the West, he did not go with him.
If we continue westward with Li Ru, maybe there will be more fun things?
Lu Bu pinched his beard and recalled Li Ru's smile when he left...
Lu Bu seemed to feel that he also dreamed of Li Ru's smile. What did it mean?
……(O_o)??……
Western Outpost.
This is a warning outpost in Dingxi. Generally speaking, it has a military strength and is led by a commander.
The checkpoint is actually very simple, it is just a watchtower, and there are a few houses under the watchtower, and a piece of land enclosed by a low wall. In places like the Western Regions, dry earth walls do not even use bricks and stones, and the tamped earth can withstand ordinary
Rain and snow, as for heavy rain, it is basically unlikely to occur.
Several soldiers were practicing, shooting at a fixed target thirty steps away.
The soldiers on guard on the sentry tower stretched their heads and looked down, "Hey, three rings... tsk, tsk, too weak..."
"Stop talking nonsense! That was blown by the wind!"
"What the hell! Why don't I feel the wind at all when I'm up there?"
"Get off your ass!"
The checkpoint located at the edge of the Western Region seems to be repeating a peaceful day amidst the noise.
Shi Chang walked out of the earthen hut, holding his sword in his arms and yawning loudly.
In the latter half of yesterday night, Shi Chang was on guard duty with someone.
Standing guard from the second half of the night to the morning is also the most tiring. Not only do you feel sleepy, but more importantly, you feel hungry. Especially since you only have two meals a day, and here at the checkpoint, you can't eat with an open stomach. You always have to leave a little.
Otherwise, if the next wave of supplies is delayed by a few days, it will be difficult to find even a root of grass in the fields. How about eating the soil and drinking from the northwest wind?
"Sir, when will the next supply come?"
Except for the soldiers on duty last night, the other boys were very energetic. Of course, the side effect was that they were more likely to get hungry and eat more...
"Three days, um, maybe five days. Who knows?"
"Sir, do you want me to take my two brothers to look around the area? Maybe we can catch a hare or something?"
"Shit! Do you want to go out and run wild? In this weather, there are no rabbits, not even mice!"
"How long, when will this grass grow again?"
"Waiting for God to let it rain and thaw, it won't be until February..."
"The grass will grow sooner... When the grass grows, there will be more rabbits and so on..."
"Hey, that's when the time comes..."
The two looked at each other and smiled in unison.
Winter is just hard work, but in spring, when grass grows all around, herbivorous and carnivorous animals will gradually come out of every nook and cranny, and then they can naturally go hunting in the surrounding areas, make tooth sacrifices, etc., without having to count the days right now.
, and then lived eagerly counting the grains.
"Practice hard! If your bow and arrow are not accurate, you won't be able to hit a rabbit or a roe deer when the time comes!"
"Hey!"
Just as they were talking, some smoke and dust suddenly rose in the distance...
"That's... there's a situation!" Er Mazi yelled on the sentry tower, pointing in the direction of the smoke, "What a long time! Someone is coming over there!"
Shi Chang changed his color and hurried up to the sentry tower. He held his hands and looked into the distance. After a while, he exhaled, "It doesn't look like a thief... There seems to be our recognition flag behind him..."
Not long after, the rushing cavalry approached the checkpoint.
"Stop! Stop over there and don't move!"
"Who are you?!"
The horses that came were held back by the horses, covered in mud and dust. There were streaks of sweat on their faces from the mud ditches.
The man at the front of the team raised his head and shouted at the sentry post, "We are under Chang Shi! We are going to Dingxi to report!"
A person with a long history?
In the Western Regions, there is only one person who can be called a long history.
Li Ru.
The chief at the checkpoint suddenly saw the linen tied on the heads and arms of these cavalrymen. He was stunned for a moment and blurted out: "Chang Shi... What's wrong with Chang Shi?"
……(⊙＿⊙；)……
"Which of you is the team leader?"
"The Great Protector summons you!"
One of the cavalrymen who came to report the news stood up and said, "This is me. Take me there."
Guard Lu Bu took a look and nodded, "Please follow me."
Pass through the courtyard gate, walk through the cloister, and arrive in front of the main hall.
On both sides of the main hall of Dingxi Mansion, there are braziers, and a tiger skin is spread in the middle.
Lu Bu was sitting on the tiger skin, frowning and staring at the man walking in from the door.
"Are you a member of Chang Shi's command?" Lu Bu did not recognize all the soldiers, especially some of Li Ru's men who did not have much contact with people like Lu Bu.
The visitor took out a seal, ribbon and token representing his identity from his arms.
Lu Bu checked it out and said, "Meng Ti Meng Qu Chang..."
"That's right..." Meng Ti lowered his head slightly.
Lu Bu looked at the linen tied to Meng Ti's helmet and arms. Because of the long journey, the linen had lost its original color and turned a little gray...
"Li Changshi..." Lu Bu took a breath, with a slightly thoughtful expression on his face.
Meng Ti showed some sadness and said, "To the great protector...he has been a long-term historian...and he has lost his fortune..."
Even though he was somewhat prepared, when he actually heard the news, Lu Bu's eyes widened and he was speechless for a while...
After a long time, Lu Bu let out a long sigh, "When did it happen?"
Meng Ti lowered his head and began to tell.
Birth, old age, illness and death are a kind of helplessness in life.
Every year when winter comes, especially when the weather changes drastically, it is a threat to some elderly people or people with some unhealthy health.
Li Ru, on the other hand, has mastered both aspects.
Perhaps it was a judgment about his body or a perception of life. When Li Ru felt that his life was about to end, he did not choose to go to the Western Regions or return to Chang'an. Instead, he chose to go west, along the
Kongque River and Beihe all the way to the west.
Pass through Qiuci, walk through Shule, pass through Dawan, and enter Guishang...
Li Ru even wanted to reach the West Sea where Gan Ying had been, and wanted to go further...
But it's a pity that Li Ru's body can't support it anymore.
In fact, in the second half of the journey, Li Ru could no longer get out of the car with his own strength. He needed help getting in and out of the car, and he became thinner and thinner, just like a layer of skin covering the bones. Even those Dawan Guishuang
The sentry soldiers saw this and learned that under such circumstances, Li Ru still wanted to go west, and they were full of admiration.
The flickering candle will eventually burn out.
After a cold wave hit one day, the temperature dropped sharply, and Li Ru suddenly collapsed.
When he was in a daze, Li Ru knew that he was in trouble. When he was dying, he reluctantly confessed a few words, and never waited for the morning light of the next day.
Li Ru's men, in accordance with Li Ru's last wish, found a hillside facing the east and buried him there.
The first ray of sunshine every morning will fall on Li Ru's tombstone, allowing Li Ru to see the distant east and his hometown...
After burying Li Ru, Li Ru's men were divided into two parts. Most of them would continue to go west until they found the legendary land of Great Qin, while the other small part was led by Meng Ti.
, reported back to Chang'an.
"Be buried on a slope facing the east. There is no need to establish an heir after death. The tombstone does not have an inscription. His knowledge does not need to be passed down secretly."... Are these Li Changshi's last words? Lu Bu asked.
Meng Ti nodded.
After listening to Meng Ti's story, Lu Bu was silent for a long time. Finally, he waved his hand and asked Meng Ti to go down and rest. After all, Meng Ti's mission had not been completed until he arrived here. They still needed to continue eastward to Chang'an Sanfu.
After being silenced, there was silence in the hall.
Lu Bu frowned and broke the silence, "Li Changshi...what do these four sentences mean?"
Just explaining the aftermath?
It seems.
"Hey! Protector Dadu, aren't you just explaining some things behind your back? What's the big deal?" Wei Xu rolled his eyes, then clapped his hands and laughed, "It's better now! Isn't it better now?"
Are you done?』
Lu Bu looked over sideways, "What's good?"
"The Protector," Wei Xu chuckled, "Before, Li Changshi suppressed us like this, or took care of us like that, but now... Hehe, isn't it better now? I can't control it anymore! Now the Western Region is the Protector of the Protector."
With one person in charge, he can say the same thing, and once an order is given, who among the countries in the Western Region would dare to disobey him? Isn’t that a good thing?"
Wei Xu had been defeated by Li Ru many times before, and he didn't have much affection for Li Ru. Now that he heard that Li Ru was dead, he felt only joy in his heart. If the place where Li Ru was buried was not too far away, there is no way Wei Xu would still want to go there.
Bounce on the grave or something like that.
Lu Bu's face darkened, "Get out!"
Wei Xu was stunned, "Huh?"
"I told you to get out!" Lu Bu glared at Wei Xu.
Wei Xu winced, swallowed, and walked out of the hall in despair. After turning out of the courtyard door, he glanced sideways, made two gurgling sounds in his throat, spit out a mouthful of thick phlegm, and walked away with his lips curled.
Lu Bu was sitting in the hall, looking up, like a wooden sculpture. He didn't move for a long time, his face expressionless, and he didn't know what he was thinking...
After a long time, I heard a gentle sigh floating in the air.
……(o′?□?`o)……
When Fei Qian received the news of Li Ru's death, it was already the New Year.
In addition to asking Meng Ti to bring back some information about the route that he had handwritten before, Li Ru also emphasized that Fei Qian should not pursue him...
Because Li Ru knew that his identity was a problem, disappearing into the world in obscurity was undoubtedly the best outcome.
Fei Qian was silent for a long time, and for some reason suddenly remembered a few words.
"Those who were once rich need to be retro.
"Those who are prosperous must maintain the status quo.
"Those who have never been generous need to innovate..."
"Probably so, probably!"
An old era will pass no matter what, and a new era will follow. In the overlapping process of the old and new eras, each individual is small, but also great.
Just when Fei Qian hadn't completely gotten over the impact of the news, Cui Jun came.
Cui Jun prostrated himself in front of the hall, looking horrified.
As for the reason why Cui Jun rushed from Taiyuan in a hurry, any fool must know it.
Fei Qian was silent for a long time, then stepped forward to help him up.
"Come with me." Fei Qian said and left the Cavalry General's mansion.
After leaving Chang'an, walk west along the Weishui River for a while, and you will see a village on the bank of the Weishui River. Opposite the village, there is also a land whose foundation is being leveled. Apparently, it will start after the ground thaws in the beginning of spring.
construction.
"This place...Feixiongxuan..." Although he did not enter Zhuangzi, Cui Jun, standing on the hillside, could still see the words on the large plaque at the entrance of Zhuangzi.
There is still some residual snow on the hillside.
Fei Qian was riding on the horse, and his breath formed a faint white smoke in the air.
It is said that when the temperature is minus 20 degrees Celsius or lower, the exhaled breath will be frozen into slag before even the white smoke can form. Fei Qian doesn't know whether this statement is true or false, because he doesn't want to go there at all.
Question to try and put it into practice.
The only thing that is certain is that winter in Han Dynasty is getting colder and colder.
When Fei Qian was still in Luoyang City, sometimes he only needed to wear an extra cloak in winter. But now, in addition to the cloak, he not only has to wear leather armor to keep out the cold, but also pad the inside of the leather armor with newly produced cotton.
, and then you can move more freely in the wild.
Compared with the warm winters in Han Dynasty in those years, the difference now may be nearly ten degrees. It gets a little colder every year, and when you look back, you will feel that there is a lot of difference.
It's like the Feixiong Xuan in front of you.
There were originally two people in Feixiong Xuan, but then one left, and now only Yuan Shang is left.
But soon there will be new residents here...
Liu Zhang.
If nothing unexpected happens along the way, Liu Zhang will become a resident here in about six months.
Living in Feixiongxuan, there is no rent, a separate room, free meals, two meals a day, and free clothing. One set of winter clothes and one set of summer clothes are given every year. You can read, be in a daze, and lie down if you want.
Just lie flat, and go crazy if you want to go crazy. The only thing is that you can't leave Zhuangzi, and you have to become a "spectacular" for others from time to time.
Just like it is now.
"The Fourth Generation and the Three Young Masters..." Fei Qian raised his head slightly and looked at Feixiong Pavilion. He was too lazy to go in, and didn't want to say hello to Yuan Shang, or to show his superiority in front of Yuan Shang. Fei Qian just had some emotions.
When Fei lurked in Luoyang, let alone meeting Yuan Shao and Yuan Shang, even if he wanted to meet the stewards of the Yuan family's mansion, there was no way. When he went to Yingchuan to attend the lecture of Xun's Family Courtyard, everyone around him was there.
"Model in the world" shouted, and pushed Fei Qian aside. In Suanzao, no one had to be present, and those two thousand stones who were fighting for each other had to hold the position of alliance leader high and present it to Yuan Shao...
…
Did Yuan Shao and Yuan Benchu, who were so proud back then, ever think that his favorite child would one day become an "ornamental" sight for others, placed in the yard just for people to see?
Cui Jun seemed to understand something, or his face turned a little pale because of the cold weather in the wild.
Fei Qian raised his head slightly, "Yuan Benchu... is considered a warrior... and what's here is just a maggot..."
Cui Jun hid half a horse behind Fei with his sleeves and hands lowered, his eyes blinked twice, and he listened quietly.
"My husband, the warrior, is the same as me. He has a human body. He is not a god, a ghost, or a strange beast. He fights in the yellow sand and dies in the underworld. He is not afraid of death in life and does not turn around in death. How majestic and magnificent!"
"However, when the warrior dies, the flies will arrive first, licking his blood, leaving his marks, chewing his flesh, leaving behind his remains, and dancing around, thinking they are proud of themselves and comparing themselves to the heroes of the warriors. The warriors are dead and can no longer be driven away, so
The flies only attack their wounds more and more, clamoring and boiling, only talking about their corruption, only seeing their defeat, claiming to be immortal and noble above the warriors."
"Indeed, there are many who see marks on the body of a warrior, and there are many who see lack on the body of maggots."
"A warrior silently values his death, while maggots noisily value his life..."
Fei Qian opened his hands and said, "The most important people in this world, in this world, are bleeding warriors, not blameless flies!"
