In the northwest, in the dog days of summer, there are large areas of wheat fields. In the distance of the wheat fields, there is a tree.

People in ragged clothes gathered under this tree. Zheng Huixin was one of them. She was eight years old. She was wearing tattered clothes. Her face was stained with sweat and stains. Her hair was cut short and messy. No one could see her.

It turned out that she was actually a girl. Her father, Zheng Laocheng, was sitting next to her. Like all refugees, he was weak and tired.

The Zheng family in Yanzhou City was originally a scholarly family with a good family background. Zheng Laocheng ran a private school and was well respected by the people nearby. When Yanzhou City was destroyed, the Xixia people looted the city and robbed the Zheng family.

Most of the things were not discovered at that time because the Zheng family had several private cellars. After that, the Xixia people stabilized the situation in the city, and the Zheng family was not forced to the end.

However, it was precisely because of the existence of several private cellars that the Zheng family was reluctant to leave and did not know where to go. The nearby Xixia soldiers occasionally came to the door, and the family was often bullied. Perhaps they realized that the Zheng family had surplus grain, and the Xixia people forced them to

The frequency of visits gradually increased until half a month ago, Zheng Huixin's mother died.

Zheng Laocheng did not tell her how her mother died, but soon after, her father, who was in the shape of a shell, picked up his bag and took her out of the city, starting to walk to a place she didn't know. There were many similar people on the road.

Ragged refugees, Xixia people occupied this area, some

You can still see traces of houses or cottages that were burned down in military disasters. Where there are traces of people, there are also large tracts of wheat fields. Sometimes Zheng Huixin will see her peers standing on the road like her father and looking at those wheat fields.

His expression was so empty that it reminded him of the sand on the ground.

When the Xixia people came over, they looted and massacred the city, but soon after, things calmed down and the surviving people resumed their old lives. After all, no matter what kind of rule, there must be subjects. If you cannot surrender to the Wu Dynasty, you will eventually surrender to Xixia.

It's the same life.

But Zheng Laocheng is a scholar, and he can understand that more difficult days, like hell-like scenes, are still to come. The wheat that people planted this year, and all the harvests, are no longer theirs.

No matter how well the wheat is planted in autumn, most people have already

It is difficult to obtain food. Once the previous reserves are exhausted, the northwest will experience an even more difficult winter of food shortage, and most people will starve to death. Only the truly obedient people of Xixia will survive after this.

It is also difficult to be such a submissive person.

With the arrival of the harvest season, more and more people can see this scene. In the eyes of those who look at the vast wheat fields on the road, there is a real despair. They have planted things, and now

These things are still in front of us and look so good, but they are destined not to belong to them. What awaits them may be starving to death alive. There is nothing more despairing than this.

Along the way, Xixia soldiers would occasionally be encountered, intimidating everyone with bows, arrows, swords and guns, and strictly prohibiting them from approaching the wheat fields. Sometimes hanging bodies could be seen beside the wheat fields. It was now noon, and the group

Resting under the shade of a tree on the roadside, Zheng

I was so tired in the old city. I leaned on the roadside and fell asleep after a while. Zheng Huixin sat next to her with her legs crossed. She felt her lips were thirsty and wanted to drink water. She wanted to find a convenient place. The little girl stood

I got up and looked around, then walked towards a dirt valley not far away.

She took off her pants in the dirt and squatted for a moment. At some point, her father's voice came faintly, with a hint of anxiety in his words. Zheng Huixin couldn't see what was going on over there, so she folded two pieces off the ground.

Another sound came from a branch, but it was the loud shouts of Xixia people, and the father was also shouting anxiously: "Where are you, my daughter Huixin?"

The Xixia people's voice was still ringing, but the father's voice suddenly stopped. The little girl picked up her pants and ran out. She saw two Xixia soldiers, one holding a bow and the other holding a knife, shouting on the roadside. The people under the tree were in confusion.

In one scene, my father's body was lying on the edge of a wheat field in the distance, with an arrow stuck in his chest and a pool of blood.

"Ah...ah uh..."

The world was becoming chaotic and pale. She walked towards that direction, but someone held her back...

The memory after that is confusing.

Some people feed her, some drag her around, and sometimes they carry her or hold her. She is a middle-aged man in his thirties or forties, wearing shabby clothes, carrying a bag, and his arms are strong. Sometimes he

Talk to her, but she's in a daze

, it rained again on the road. At some point, all the people traveling with them had disappeared. They passed through the desolate mountains. Of course, the little girl didn’t know where they were, but there were tall and short trees around and rugged mountain roads.

, there are loose rocks.

At noon that day, the sun was shining brightly again, and they stopped in a small forest. Zheng Huixin could already eat mechanically. She was holding a small broken bowl and eating fried rice in it. Suddenly, a voice suddenly sounded.

, screaming like a ghost.

"Ey"

Zheng Huixin only felt her body being pushed, the sound of pinging rang around her, and the rapid and ferocious voices of the Xixia people came to her ears. In her eyes, figures were intersecting, including the man who had led her all the way.

Swinging the sword, swinging the sword again,

A bright red light lit up in her field of vision. The little girl seemed to see him stabbing a Xixia man to death on the tree trunk with a knife, and then the other person's face suddenly enlarged. He rushed over and held her in his arms with one hand.

Here, running quickly among the trees.

The trees fell backwards in the field of vision, and the terrifying shouts could be heard in the ears. The Xixia people were also walking through. The man held a knife in one hand and fought with the opponent. For a moment, the little girl felt his body shake.

, but he was stabbed in the back by the person chasing him, and the fishy smell filled his nose.

In the blink of an eye, the light in front of them expanded, and the two of them had rushed out of the woods. The Xixia villains were chasing them. This was a steep slope, with a terrifying slope on one side and loose rocks. The two sides ran and fought. Then, the wind howled, and the vision

Spin sharply.

The sound of crashing was already heard. The man held the little girl in his arms and forced the Xixia man to run down the steep slope. The two people's footsteps rushed down at a rapid speed. The earth and rocks flowed rapidly in the field of vision and rose up.

Huge dust. Zheng Huixin only felt the sky shrinking rapidly, and then, bang!

After a long time, Zheng Huixin felt her body move slightly. It was the man holding her who was trying to stand up from the ground. They were already under the hillside. Zheng Huixin tried her best to turn around and saw the man holding her up with one hand.

What lives inside is a human head with mutilated flesh and blood, and a split brain. Look at this man’s hat and braid.

He was identified as the Xixia man. Both sides rushed down the steep hillside together. The Xixia man was at the bottom with a bloody head and broken internal organs. Zheng Huixin was protected by the man in his arms.

The injury he received was the smallest. The man was injured and had the blood of Xixia enemies. At this time, half of his body was stained.

"Are you okay?"

She heard the man ask weakly.

"It's okay."

The man put her down and untied the Xixia man's clothes in front of her. After a search, he took away the Xixia man's badge and dry food. The sun was still shining brightly, and the man whose body was covered with blood was holding a knife in one hand and holding a knife in the other.

The child's hands walked unsteadily towards the other side of the mountain.

That evening, they came to a place. A few days later, Zheng Huixin learned the man's name from others. His name was Qu Qing, and the valley they came to was called Xiaocang River.

****************

During June, the daily construction and troop training in the river valley continued from beginning to end.

Everything was operating smoothly as usual. When the daily work was completed, the soldiers would listen to storytellers, perform operas, or listen to the news from outside. The current situation would be discussed with friends around them.

But at this time, the Xixia people and the Jin people blocked the outside world.

The power has begun to appear. The news coming from outside the mountain has become relatively sparse. However, from this blocked atmosphere, keen people can often feel more personal information. The imminent crisis requires urgent action.

pressure, etc.

Xiaocanghe's interactions with the outside world are not limited to the informants he released. Sometimes stray refugees accidentally enter the mountain range. Although it is not known whether they are outside spies, usually the surrounding defenders

He would not embarrass them, and sometimes he would kindly send them some dry food in the valley and send them away.

Among these interactions with the outside world, there is one thing that is the strangest and most intriguing. The first time it happened at the end of last year, there was a caravan that might have been transporting grain, with dozens of porters carrying loads.

It seems like I've lost my way in this mountain.

, when the people from Xiaocanghe showed up, they were shocked, put down all the food burdens, and ran away like that, so Xiaocanghe harvested dozens of loads of food that seemed to have been sent to them. Such things

, when spring was about to pass, it happened again.

Not many people in the valley knew about the whole thing. Ning Yi took the direct decision to seal up nearly a hundred tons of grain and rice in the warehouse. The third time it happened was at noon on June 11th, dozens of tons of grain were stored.

The grain was carried by porters and accompanied by some guards, and entered the Xiaocang River. But this time, they put down their burdens and did not leave.

An old man with white hair, elegant clothes and sharp eyes stood in the middle of the team. When the secret sentry guarding the Xiaocang River came over, someone handed him the name card.

There are only three words on the name sticker: Zuo Duanyou.

After a while, Qin Shaoqian, dressed in military uniform, came out of the valley to greet him. He was now a rebel bandit who had rebelled against the whole world, but he was the only one who dared not neglect him.

****************

When the Wu Dynasty was still prosperous, Emperor Jinghan Zhou Zhe had just come to power. There were three famous scholars in the court who were in high positions and had similar interests. They planned many things together, and the Secret Investigation Department was one of them.

Xiang, one of them, provoked civil strife among the Liao people and caused the rise of the Jin people. These three people were Qin Siyuan, Zuo Duanyou, and Wang Qisong.

During the implementation of these major events that subverted the world, many problems were encountered. Among the three, Wang Qisong had the most correct theories and methods. Qin Si was born in Confucianism and had profound attainments, but his methods were relatively utilitarian. Zuo Duanyou had an extreme temperament, but

within the family

The relationship is extremely deep. After joining forces many times, they finally parted ways due to various issues. Zuo Duanyou retired from office, and Wang Qisong took the blame and left in order to protect Qin Siyuan's position in a political dispute. After that, it was the Blackwater Alliance where the Liao people went south.

This time, Wang Qisong led his family to resist the Liao soldiers. Almost all the men in the family died, leaving only a single seedling in Wang Shanyue.

After the Blackwater Alliance, due to the tragedy of the Wang family, Qin and Zuo further broke up and had almost no contact with each other since then. Later, when the disaster relief incident in the North was involved, Zuo Houwen and Zuo Jilan of the Zuo family were involved, and Qin Siyuan wrote to Zuo Duanyou.

Letter. This is the first contact between the two in many years. In fact, it is also the last contact.

After Qin Siyuan's death, the three people who used their means to stir up the world's situation were now the last old man left.

Many years ago, the Qin and Zuo families had become friends. This was not the first time that Qin Shaoqian met him. After so many years, the serious old man now had a head full of white hair, and the once high-spirited young man was now weathered.

One eye was missing. When the two parties met, there was not much greeting. The old man looked at Qin Shao.

With a black eye patch on Qian's face and a slight frown, Qin Shaoqian led him into the valley. That afternoon, he and the old man worshiped Qin Siyuan's tomb in the valley. They didn't talk much about the situation in the valley. As for what he brought with him

The incoming grain will be placed in a warehouse and sealed separately, just like the previous two batches.
To be continued...