Zhang Liao sat beside the bonfire, the light and shadow on his face looming.
What is different from later generations of animation, or movies and TV shows, is that big men do not wear cosmetics. Wind and frost will leave marks on people's faces and hands, and will also settle under light and shadow.
No one has spoken for a long time.
The bonfire was crackling.
There seemed to be wild wolves howling in the wilderness in the distance.
Ever since the forward scouts reported back the situation of Lu Bu's troops in Qiuci, no one has spoken.
Zhang Liao didn't want to say anything, and others didn't know what to say. He marched silently, silently set up camp, silently cooked dinner, and silently listened to the howling night wind and the howling of wolves around him.
Everything was really beyond their expectation!
Lu Bu actually attacked Qiuci? Lu Bu not only attacked Qiuci, but also massacred the royal city of Qiuci! Not only that, Lu Bu also killed the monks in Qiuci, pushed down the Buddha statues, and chopped off the Buddha's head...
Such behavior brought a strong backlash. Not only the people of Kucha were resisting, but even the states in other areas, such as the Yarkand area, seemed to be gathering secretly to prepare against Lu Bu.
This is a very terrible thing.
What's even more frightening is that Lu Bu doesn't seem to care at all about all this.
Lu Bu just kills people, kills more people, kills everyone who stands in front of him...
These unimaginable pieces of news jumped out of the mouths of the forward scouts one after another. The entire group, including Zhang Liao, almost seemed to have lost their words when faced with so much shocking news at once.
Ability.
Especially Zhang Liao.
Lu Bu is no longer what Zhang Liao thought he was.
kill.
Before Lu Bu was in the North and in Jiuyuan, he often killed barbarians. However, at that time, Lu Bu only killed those barbarians who came to Han to burn, kill and plunder. On weekdays, if he met ordinary barbarians in the grasslands and deserts,
, Lu Bu didn't know how to do anything, and even ate, herded sheep, raced horses, and competed with them...
But now, it's just killing people.
Kill the Kucha people and say that the Kucha people are rebelling.
Kill the monks and say that the monks are deceiving the people.
Even the Buddha statue was pushed to the ground and his head was cut off to kill. What can the Buddha statue do? It is made of clay or stone. It can neither bite nor scream...
Lu Bu seemed to be completely confused.
Lu Bu seemed to have no idea what such behavior meant.
Lu Bu seemed to have lost the kind of judgment that a general in charge of an army should have.
Killing people will stabilize the place?
Killing people will lead to eternal achievements?
If this were the case, it would not have been the Yan-Huang Alliance in ancient times, but Chi You would have dominated.
The surrounding area is very quiet.
It was so quiet that you could hear everyone's heavy breathing and rapid heartbeat.
In such an extremely depressing silence, with every crack of the bonfire burning and the occasional snort of the war horses, Zhang Liao looked at the guards around him and whispered, "The Protector of the Western Regions is no longer what it used to be."
Than...it's someone who made a mistake, trying to dissuade him here may not be effective..."
The guard beside Zhang Liao nodded and then looked at Zhang Liao.
Most of them don't have any special ideas, they just know to follow Zhang Liao, listen to Zhang Liao's orders, and protect Zhang Liao. There are also a few people who have some ideas, but most of the time, their ideas are not important, except for things like
At this moment, even Zhang Liao himself was a little confused.
"I want to hear your thoughts..." Zhang Liao said.
Zhang Liao hesitated.
Behind all the fearlessness in history, there is a fear of death. Fear of death, fear of failure, fear of the unknown, this is human nature. Analyzing the pros and cons and weighing the pros and cons, this is the basis of most people's behavior except for the reckless ghost.
Before Zhang Liao came to the Western Regions, he thought that Lu Bu's problem was not too big. It might be due to poor communication, being deceived by Wei Xu in the Western Regions, or some other carelessness. After all, Lu Bu's character was like this.
From being a chief registrar to becoming the current Protector-General, he was impulsive, irritable, soft-eared, and lack of opinion, which almost accounted for most aspects of Lu Bu's personality. Therefore, at first, Zhang Liao felt that he still had a chance to persuade Lu Bu to come back.
As long as he gets in front of Lu Bu, talks about the past, their friendship, and communicates well between Fei Qian and Lu Bu, maybe this disaster can be eliminated.
But when he arrived in Xihai City, Zhang Liao discovered that things had actually worsened. The rotten officials were eating up the Western Regions like moths, and the greedy generals had ruined the original prestige. Lu Bu, the Protector of the Western Regions, seemed to be sitting on a
The throne of bones that could collapse at any time looks huge, but is actually rotten.
This was beyond Zhang Liao's surprise, but Zhang Liao still felt that there might be a glimmer of hope, for the Qiusi, for Lu Bu, and for himself...
But now, after Zhang Liao received the news from the forward scouts, Zhang Liao could not even see this line of hope.
Fight...
Yes, conquest is indeed important, but endless conquest will only lead to destruction.
The army is very important, but a country without construction is very fragile without any self-regeneration ability. As long as there is a small wound, it will eventually bleed to death because it cannot be healed.
Therefore, Lu Bu had no problem killing horse thieves, traitors, and enemies, but he could not point his butcher knife at ordinary people.
Even if it is sophistry, lies, or nonsense, these people are thieves if they get on the horse, so they must be killed before they get on the horse...
This is like grabbing a random person on the street and pronouncing a sentence and censure, and then saying that this person will be guilty in the future and should be executed.
Can anyone really guarantee that he will not do anything wrong in his life? If the answer is no, then of course he will be killed. If the answer is yes, then he will lie and be killed.
This kind of random killing of civilians is disgusting and outrageous no matter what era it is in, and may even trigger large-scale resistance.
This chapter is not over, please click on the next page to continue reading! Because this behavior is very absurd and naturally violates the basis of all order.
And once there is no order, where is the Great Protector of the Western Regions, which was established even as the defender of order? Where is the Protector?
The Protectorate of the Western Regions is a banner of the Han Dynasty!
Now Lu Bu is almost destroying this flag. Even if the Hussars send people to rebuild and erect the flag again in the future, it will definitely be more difficult, more troublesome, and more costly.
Zhang Liao exhaled and said in a low voice: "We have already taken action in Xihai City. Now if we catch up with the Protector... what do you think?"
Most of the guards knew what Zhang Liao meant.
Everyone's heart suddenly tightened.
However, no one was shaken by this. They were Zhang Liao's guards, Zhang Liao's swords, and Zhang Liao's shields. So they all looked at Zhang Liao and did not answer this seemingly complicated yet simple question.
"All two."
"My subordinate is here!" Quan Er straightened up and responded.
"what are you thinking?"
"Everything must be obeyed by the commander!"
Zhang Liao nodded, then turned to ask another person, "Sun Laosan, what about you?"
"I will also obey the Lord's orders in everything!"
"Han Zheng?"
"Subordinate, I don't have any ideas. I will do whatever the master says."
When the guard next to Han Zheng saw Zhang Liao's eyes turning to him, he said in a deep voice, "We all obey the general and obey the general's orders in everything!"
Zhang Liao smiled, then shook his head, "This is the biggest problem..."
"Huh?" All the guards were stunned and looked at each other, confused.
Zhang Liao lowered his eyes and watched the light and shadow of the bonfire dancing under his feet, either to himself or to the guards around him, "You are my guards, of course you listen to me, there seems to be no problem... Then
Naturally, the guards of the Imperial Guard listen to the Imperial Guard... and the guards of the Hussar also listen to the Hussar... Of course there is no problem with that. You can't have the Guard of the Imperial Guard listen to me... Haha..."
Zhang Liao laughed softly twice, and the guards around him also laughed inexplicably, but they still couldn't quite understand what Zhang Liao meant.
Zhang Liao suppressed his smile and said: "One person cannot do much. After all, one person only has twelve hours in a day... This is what Qiao Qi said, if you want to achieve great things, you must have more people.
Working together to do something... is like building a house. If only one person builds a wooden house, it may take a year. If there are ten people, it may only take a month. If there are a hundred people, it may only take a day.
Even half a day... This is what Hussar calls "unity"..."
Taking building a house as an example, all the guards understood and nodded.
"But what if... the people who came to build the house were divided into two groups, and one group said they should start from the left side of the house first, and the other group said they should start from the right side?" Zhang Liao said slowly, "It will be built from the left side.
People only listen to the leader on the left, and those on the right only listen to the leader on the right. Both sides have reasons... So, how to build this house?"
The guards were stunned for a moment.
Han Zheng hesitated for a moment, "Let the owner of the house choose from the left or the right?"
"The owner of the house said that he would start building from the foundation." Zhang Liao smiled, but his smile was a little bitter.
"..." All the guards looked at each other in confusion.
Han Zheng guessed what Zhang Liao meant and said, "General, you mean... the Western Regions? Are they also building houses?"
"Yes." Zhang Liao nodded and took a breath, "I know that some of you have had some friendship with Da Duhu's men..."
Zhang Liao's bodyguard was also with the bodyguards of Lu Bu, Gao Shun and others when they were in Luoyang. Although it was said that they were lost or added later, some of them knew Lu Bu and were also with Lu Bu's bodyguards.
There is more or less friendship.
Just like the friendship between Zhang Liao and Lu Bu.
Zhang Liao looked around and said, "But friendship is friendship. Now... the Great Protector is obviously not following the orders of the Hussar... So... when I really need you to raise your swords and guns against your old friends... you will obey my orders."
What?』
The faces of the guards, including Han Zheng, suddenly turned pale. They did not expect Zhang Liao to say this.
Zhang Liao brought a scepter, not a yue.
The Scepter can behead officials below a thousand stones first and then punish them, while the official rank of the Great Protector is two thousand stones.
The Jie Yue is only available to the Hussar, so the Hussar can grant an official title of two thousand shi, which is no problem, but Zhang Liao cannot.
The guards never expected that Zhang Liao would say this. They also never imagined what they should say or do in this situation...
Friends from the past may no longer be able to sit together.
Han Zheng tightened his face and straightened his back. He swallowed several mouthfuls of saliva, but still didn't know how to answer. He secretly looked at Quan Er and the others, but he found that to his disappointment, these people didn't seem to have any answers.
What answer? Han Zheng tried to look at Zhang Liao's face to find an answer, but he found that Zhang Liao's face was like a wood carving and clay sculpture, as indifferent as the Gobi beaches in the Western Regions. Perhaps it was after six or seven days of continuous running.
Stained with a thick layer of sludge and dust, it was like a mud shell, hiding all the expressions on Zhang Liao's face.
Zhang Liao lowered his eyelids and lowered his gaze, stopping at a stone in front of him. He seemed to be suddenly very interested in the stone, watching the stone's shadow grow longer or shorter, left or right, under the swaying of the bonfire.
Sun Laosan coughed, and it seemed that he made his choice not long after, "Subordinate, naturally I will follow my lead..."
Zhang Liao raised his head, with no expression on his face. He neither nodded to confirm Sun Laosan's decision nor commented on Sun Laosan's statement. His eyes slowly but resolutely moved to Quan Er's face. Zhang Liao did not
While speaking, he just looked at Quan Er with a very calm look.
Not only the houses in the Western Regions have a group on the left and a group on the right, but even Zhang Liao's own guards are actually divided into several groups.
Zhang Liao's own relatives, such as members of the Zhang clan like Zhang Chen, who had been killed in battle, and a group of people who have defected to him one after another in recent years, are considered to be the group of people who have the closest relationship with Zhang Liao.
The Quan Er class were a group of people recruited in the Heluo area in the early days. There were people from Bingzhou and Xiliang. They were considered to be the guards of the older generation.
Sun Laosan was developed by Zhang Liao in Hanzhong. He only spent a short time with Zhang Liao and did not have much affection for Lu Bu. He is considered a new generation of Zhang Liao's guards.
Han Zhengze is different again. He has nothing to do with the so-called old and new. He is a native of Xiliang who lived in Longyou. He has read books, studied scriptures, and knows some arithmetic, so he represents relative knowledge.
The group with a higher level and a relatively better background...
Han Zheng did not look at Zhang Liao. He lowered his head and said: "The Great Protector is personally appointed by Hussar. If the general does not have the order of Hussar... After all, the responsibility of the Great Protector can determine the advance and retreat of the Western Region Army... General, if he is
This is used to accuse the Protector-General. The Protector-General and his subordinates will probably not listen to the general..."
"Yes, the Great Protector does have the authority to command the soldiers of the Western Regions..." Zhang Liao nodded and said, "But this is not what I want to pursue..."
Han Zheng fell silent, and then said after a long time, "General... those officials in Xihai City... are different from the Protector after all... really different... If one day in the future... General, you will also be in the position of Protector."
...』
Zhang Liao was not angry. He nodded, "I know this... so when I killed those officials in Xihai City, I did not hesitate, but now I hesitate... This is not a good thing. It can even be said that since
For the Han Dynasty for three or four hundred years, this cannot be considered a good thing..."
Zhang Liaoxu said, but his tone gradually became heavier, like the night wind whistling on the fields, "I can really just take a trip like this, just a trip, and then meet with Dadu... No."
, it may not even be necessary to meet... In view of the past friendship, most of the guards may not embarrass me, and then I can return to Chang'an to return to my life, saying that I can't do anything, just let the Qiusi take action... From now on, I don't need to carry it.
You don't have to take too many risks if you commit the crime of "unauthorized killing"... Isn't this great? But I can't do it... I can't do it! 』
Zhang Liao's voice rose, bringing out a faint anger, rising like a flame, "I have to go there myself! I need to see whether it is the Great Protector... or this damn Wei Xu!"
"Wei Xu! Zhuzi!" Zhang Liao called Wei Xu by both his first name and last name, obviously unable to suppress his anger, "Who is this Wei Xu?! In Xihai City, he bullied the superiors and concealed himself. He was not only arrogant and domineering, but also greedy for credit.
, apart from deceiving and lying, apart from embezzling money, what did he do? What good things did he do in the Western Sea? What good things did he do in the Western Regions?"
Zhang Liao said angrily, with anger burning in his eyes, "I need to bring the charges against Wei Xu collected by Inspector Zhang to the Protector-General! Let the Protector-General know how many evil things Wei Xu has done behind his back!"
"No matter what the Protector is like..." Zhang Liao glanced at the guards, "I will deal with Wei Xu first! Even if this makes the Protector dissatisfied, I must deal with Wei Xu first!"
Zhang Liao said this, but he also knew in his heart that without Lu Bu's acquiescence, Wei Xu might not be able to do such a disgusting and hateful thing, but this is Lu Bu's only way out. The strong man cut off his wrist and put down his sword and spear from then on.
Returning to the mulberry field may not mean that you will die in old age. The blame can only be borne by Wei Xu, and it can only be attributed to Wei Xu. If it falls on Lu Bu, the trouble will be big.
Zhang Liao didn't want Lu Bu to take the wrong path again.
Lu Bu took the wrong path before, but there are other paths he can take...
After all, Lu Bu was still young back then and still had the opportunity to try and make mistakes, but now Lu Bu is no longer young and has no chance to try and make mistakes. Now, Lu Bu is not only the Protector of the Western Regions, but also involves more...
Including involving Zhang Liao himself.
Therefore, if all the problems can be controlled on Wei Xu, there may be hope.
Zhang Liao sincerely hopes that this will be the case.
Quan Er looked at Han Zheng, then at Sun Laosan, "We all listen to the general..."
Sun Laosan nodded and said: "That's right, listen to the general!"
Han Zheng was silent for a while and said, "General, we all listen to you...but if anything happens...most of them will protect him..."
Zhang Liao breathed out, fell silent, and then said with an indescribable heavy tone for a long time, "That's really a bad thing..."
