Late at night, from the countryside of Zhuangting, more than ten fast horses galloped.
Although it was getting late and the road could not be seen clearly, the mountain fire in the distance dyed half of the sky red and could be seen even from more than ten miles away.
Under the illumination of the moonlight and fire, Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and Zhao Yun rushed there like lightning.
Halfway through, the sound of horse hooves suddenly approached. Liu Bei and Zhang Fei were both from Youzhou. They were so familiar with the sound of galloping horses that they almost immediately reined in their horses and stopped to watch.
From a distance, I could see a horse galloping ahead, and there seemed to be pursuers behind, but even with the light of the fire, I couldn't see clearly.
In particular, Guan Yu liked to light candles at night to watch the Spring and Autumn Period. He was somewhat short-sighted and could only vaguely see a blurry figure getting closer and closer.
"My lord, it seems to be that young gentleman."
Zhao Yun had the best eyesight. About half a mile away, he could see Shen Chen's figure on the horse through the light of the mountain fire in the distance.
At this moment, Shen Chen kept slapping the horse's buttocks. It was extremely difficult for an eight-year-old child to ride a horse without stirrups without falling off the horse's back.
But there are also certain psychological factors involved. In fact, as long as you overcome fear, fear and other emotions and firmly fix yourself on the horse, you can run on the horse.
I don’t know if the video of a later generation of primary school students riding a horse to school is a joke or a real thing, but the person did ride the horse and gallop, and the little girl was riding backwards.
Shen Chen was far from having the same equestrian skills as others, but he cleverly held on to the saddle, clamped his legs tightly on the horse's belly, and used the metal buckle on the saddle as a support point to prevent him from falling even if it was bumpy.
Although it felt like my brains were about to be shaken out, once my condition improved, I rode more and more steadily. Taking advantage of the advantage of being the first mover, I initially left Cao Ren's pursuers behind.
However, he never dared to urge the horses to gallop with all his strength. He basically just trotted all the way, and the speed was far from as fast as he imagined.
By the time he ran out of Zhuoyangju and entered the territory of Zhuanting, the pursuers behind him were slowly catching up. He let go of five horses and rode one himself, leaving eight horses. Now they are all Following behind.
Seeing that the pursuers were getting closer and closer, the sound of horse hooves suddenly came from the front. However, Shen Chen became calmer and calmer. He raised his head and looked around. He knew that Cao Jun could not appear in the direction from Shan County.
Because Cao Cao wanted to return to Yanzhou in a hurry to fight Lu Bu, he would never stay behind in Yanzhou. That would undoubtedly be the stupidest decision.
Therefore, the people coming from the direction of Shan County are very likely to be Tao Qian's troops, or even Liu Bei.
"Little sir!"
Liu Bei's voice came from far away, and Shen Chen's hanging heart suddenly relaxed.
The two sides rushed in both directions and soon gathered together.
However, in order to get rid of the pursuers, Shen Chen kept speeding up the horse while lying on the saddle. Once he let go and tightened the reins, he would probably be thrown off by the horse, so he never dared to rein in the horse and stop.
Fortunately, Zhao Yun noticed the clues after getting close. He made a beautiful turning and dismounting motion, then turned sideways and made a mounting motion. He hugged Shen Chen and quickly pulled the rope.
"Hush!"
Zhao Yun reined in the horse and at the same time bent down and stretched out his hand to put Shen Chen on the ground.
"Thank you!"
Shen Chen's face was covered with blood, and his eyes were full of calm.
But precisely because it was so calm, anger was brewing just like before a storm.
The pursuers behind him had come over. From a distance, they heard the sound of galloping horses and saw the torches here.
Cao Ren immediately ordered the soldiers to stop, because Shen Chen had let go of six horses before, and he had ridden one more, so there were only eight horses left.
There seemed to be many enemies in the distance. More than ten horses could be vaguely seen through the light of the fire. It was not known whether there were others behind them.
At present, Cao Ren's army in Xuzhou only has Cao Ren's troops. Cao Cao, as the Mudu of Yanzhou, does not have many war horses. The presence of horses on the other side means that they must not be ordinary villagers, or at least Tao Qian's regular army.
Therefore, after seeing the cavalry that suddenly appeared, Cao Ren did not dare to continue the pursuit, but shouted: "Let's go!"
The eight knights turned their horses and left.
At this time, the distance between the two sides was about half a mile, which is about more than 200 meters. The sky was too dark to see clearly the specific situation. Only under the reflection of the Zhuang Yang Ju Mountain Fire, could one vaguely see the flickering figures in the distance.
Seeing the other party leaving, Liu Bei quickly asked: "Sir, I saw a big fire in Zhongyangju. What happened?"
Shen Chen replied with some frustration: "Cao Cao sent people to attack our village. Everyone in the village was massacred. I escaped by chance."
His voice was a little low and a little sad, but everyone could hear that there was some suppressed anger in the sadness.
"What?"
Liu Bei was shocked and said: "How could Cao Cao do this? As a shepherd of Yanzhou and a high official of the imperial court, he actually sent people to attack the village in the dark?"
Shen Chen solemnly raised his hands and said, "Please also ask Mr. Xuande to save my parents. This kindness will be remembered forever in my heart!"
Liu Bei said in a deep voice: "Don't worry, little sir. Since I was invited by Tao Gong to help Xuzhou, I will save the people of Xuzhou from fire and water. Yun Changyide, you go with me, Zilong stays behind to protect the little sir."
Shen Chen shook his head and said: "I also want to go with Duke Xuande. Cao Jun has burned down my village gathering. I can't feel at ease without seeing my parents."
This request is actually a bit excessive. Marching and fighting are not child's play. Shen Chen is only an eight-year-old child. Zhao Yun has to protect him while fighting the enemy. If he is not careful, he may be injured or even die because of taking care of Shen Chen.
But Shen Chen had no choice. He didn't know whether his parents were alive or dead, and the situation in the village was not very optimistic either.
What's more important is that if he goes, he can also serve as a guide and lead the way for Liu Bei and others.
Otherwise, Liu Bei would at most go to Zhuoyang to gather, and they would not be able to get through gathering in other villages in Huangmenting if they didn't know the way.
"Zi Long!"
When Liu Bei heard Shen Chen's words, he did not agree immediately, but looked at Zhao Yun.
Zhao Yun smiled brightly and said, "Put it on me."
"That's good."
Liu Bei nodded, looked at Shen Chen and said, "Sir, Zilong will take care of you."
"Thank you, Uncle Zilong."
Shen Chen earnestly offered his hand to Zhao Yun again. Zhao Yun is 27 years old, so there is nothing wrong with calling him uncle.
At that moment, several people remounted their horses and galloped away in the direction of the pursuers.
After traveling for about four or five miles, the group finally arrived at Zhongyangju. At this time, the sky was filled with fire, and the sky and the earth turned red.
The sky was filled with countless ashes, burned houses and ruins were everywhere, and the fields became a wasteland.
Shen Chen looked at all this with sadness in his eyes. This was the land where he was born and raised for eight years. If the memories brought about by time travel in his previous life were discarded, this would be the hometown of the great Han Shen Chen.
But now, the people in my hometown have turned into corpses, the vegetation has turned into fly ash, the houses and fields have been burned to the ground, and even the mulberry forest that I often visited in my childhood has turned into blazing flames.
In addition to the smell of burning vegetation, there seems to be a faint smell of blood in the air. Perhaps it is the bones of some clan uncle or relatives or friends, or perhaps it is the sorrow of the hundreds of resentful spirits gathered in Zhenyang who died in vain.
At this moment, Shen Chen suddenly knelt down softly on the ground. He never cried when he learned that Cao Cao was going to bloodbath Xuzhou; the villagers didn't believe what he said, nor did he cry; even his back, which had been burned by the fire before, was still feeling severe pain. , and did not make him cry bitterly.
But now tears were falling down his cheeks like pearls. He collapsed and knelt on the ground, hiding his face and sobbing softly.
What passed away here were his former relatives, friends, and ethnic groups.
Before yesterday, when they saw him, they would greet him cordially. Some would call him uncle, some would call him Ah Chen, and some would even joke about marrying their daughter to him.
The seventh uncle's family raised some chickens, and he used to be called over every year when the chickens were killed. The fifth uncle's family once killed a cow, and all the best beef was left to him. The uncle loved it the most, and learned that Shen Chen loved reading, and the family collection Books were delivered to him one after another.
Now.
All turned into ashes.
"well."
Liu Bei sighed softly.
In such troubled times, he has seen too many such things.
Guan Yu looked away, he couldn't bear to see such sadness.
Zhao Yun gently stroked Shen Chen's back and whispered: "Little sir"
"I'm fine."
Shen Chen wiped his tears and got up unsteadily from the ground.
Although it was difficult, he finally stood up. His face was still sad, but there was more hatred in his eyes.
Liu Bei said coldly: "Sir, Cao Jun will definitely not be able to run far. We will catch up and avenge you!"
"Wait a minute!"
Shen Chen shook his head and said, "Don't be in a hurry, Mr. Xuande. Please just follow Cao Jun slowly. Don't chase him immediately now."
Liu Bei asked: "Why?"
Shen Chen said: "My clan is training rural soldiers in the area near Lanshan Ju. There is a lot of movement here. It is impossible not to notice it there. The team must be strictly organized to check. If they meet Cao Jun on the way, they can stop it. At this time Xuande If the Duke attacks from behind again and attacks from both front and rear, Cao's army will be defeated!"
Fires all over the sky dyed half the sky red. If anyone in several villages northwest of Huangmenting saw what was going on here in the middle of the night, they would immediately beat gongs and drums to wake up all the villagers.
It was just midnight, and the villagers would be very slow to organize temporarily, so they were not like Liu Bei and others who had already arrived at Zhenyangju.
But now Cao Ren has just fled to the northwest. If Liu Bei pursues him, more than ten of them will face a large number of Cao's troops.
Shen Chen didn't know exactly how many people came from the opponent, but there must be a lot of them. Even if Liu, Guan, Zhang and Zhao were able to fight, the opponent would be outnumbered and the sky was too dark, making it difficult to perform in the dark.
Therefore, to be on the safe side, it is safest to attack together with the rural soldiers organized by Huangmenting. This will not only ensure the safety of Liu Bei and others, but also ensure that no one of the invading Cao troops can escape under the attack from both front and rear.
This was a mature view, and Liu Bei immediately nodded in agreement. Everyone got on their horses again, urging the horses to chase forward. They followed the direction of Cao Cao's army and chased for about four miles, and finally caught up with the fleeing Cao Cao soldiers!