In the seventh year of Yuansui, it was April, the grass was growing and the orioles were flying, and everything was green.
The sky has been clear for several days in a row. It is not yet noon, but the warm spring sun is quite scorching. Ning Yue, who has fair skin, does not care about being sunburned, just like a seedling emerging from the ground, enjoying herself Let the warm sunshine shine on yourself.
She deliberately walked in front of Jiang Yan, euphemistically calling it exploring the road, but actually it was just for fun. Whenever her companions caught up with her, the girl who was picking willows and picking flowers along the way would quickly run forward a long way, clucking. He smiled and said:
"Can't catch up, can't catch up."
Although Jiang Yan didn't walk fast, he probably hadn't walked so comfortably for a long time. Now his mood was like a feather flying into the sky, but he still didn't forget to tell the girl who couldn't stop for a moment:
"Yue'er, please take it easy. We haven't reached the official road yet. Be careful if you run too far and run into bandits. I won't be able to save you in time."
"You are such a boring person. In such a good weather, the bandits are hiding at home to bask in the sun, so they don't bother to come out to rob people. Besides, if someone really encounters a bandit, won't you risk death and not save him? ?”
Faced with the naughtiness of his companion, Jiang Yan didn't want to say much, but secretly controlled the pace of his feet to keep the opponent within his sight. Half an hour later, Ning Yue, with her head covered with wild flowers, finally ran away Tired, he gradually slowed down his pace, but deliberately walked backwards, walking face to face with the boy, one behind the other.
The day before yesterday, the girl had dyed her red hair into maroon with black oil fumed from birch bark. At this moment, the sun was warming her body, which made her feel very good. She softly hummed a song that seemed to have no beginning or end. The melodious songs:
"The Gujiang River is cold and deep, and the cliff banks are covered with snow.
The boat is in the middle of the current, and it is suitable for that paradise.
The sun and the moon have their usual course, and the stars have their course.
In all seasons, stick to the old, and everyone will listen to it.
The clouds are clear and the Milky Way is brilliant.
The essence is not exhausted, and all spirits are here to bless you.
The harp and harp cannot sing, and the feathers and clothes cannot dance.
Promised Land, Promised Land, Rest in Peace?”
"Yueer, when we first met, you seemed to be singing this song, right? The tune is melodious and melodious, and it sounds very nice."
Jiang Yan looked at the strands of golden light falling on the girl from the leaves above, narrowed his eyes and said.
"Hehe, little stutter, I didn't expect you have a pretty good memory."
Ning Yue responded absently and continued humming to herself.
"What does that word say?"
"This song is a long poem that everyone in our tribe can sing, and it was later composed into a tune by a singer. The full words are too long, and I can't remember them all. It probably means a lot. It’s a story about our ancestors who left their homes many years ago to find a paradise. Can’t you understand even a sentence, little stammerer?”
Ning Yue finally stopped humming and looked at her companion strangely. However, as soon as the words came out of her mouth, she realized that she had said it wrong.
"Actually, I'm actually illiterate, and I can't understand the clumsy words sung in the song. And I'm afraid that if I let you know, you will look down on me..." Jiang Yan lowered his head in embarrassment.
Ning Yue looked at the embarrassed boy in front of her and realized that her willful lies had hurt the other person's self-esteem. She hurriedly wanted to make up for the mistake and comforted him instead:
"How can I look down on you? You don't know many things that I don't know at all - if you want to learn, how about I teach you how to read in person from today on?"
"Are you really willing to teach me?"
"Of course it is true, how can it be false to teach people how to read?" Ning Yue rarely put on a serious expression.
"Then can you teach me how to sing this song first? Then I can sing it to you later."
"Okay, okay."
Ning Yue clapped her hands and agreed. However, as soon as she heard the other party sing the first two lines, she had to stop hastily.
But Jiang Yan, who is tone-deaf, obviously has no self-awareness about music: "Yue'er, I just sang well, didn't I?"
"You sing very well, but I suddenly feel that this piece of music is not in tune with the current artistic conception. It feels very desolate. I'd better teach you later to avoid spoiling your interest." Ning Yue was embarrassed to tell the truth, so she had to He smiled wryly and smoothed things over.
Although the boy didn't understand the profound meaning of the artistic conception mentioned by the other party, since Ning Yue said it was inappropriate, it really wasn't appropriate and he didn't ask any more questions.
The two children who had been chattering away rarely became quiet. This change also caused an unusual and subtle sound above their heads to float into Jiang Yan's ears. The young man cast his eyes on his companions who had never left them before. He stared at the sky, and then looked towards the path under the shade of trees in the distance. Then his expression changed, and he immediately held the face of the girl facing him with both hands, forcing her not to turn her head away.
"Oh, little stutterer, if you insist on learning, someone else can teach you. What kind of madness is this!" Ning Yue was startled by this sudden strange behavior, and used her hands to push the other person away from her. Pushed away and got angry.
"I'm not crazy! Yue'er, don't move, and don't look back!"
It was only then that Ning Yue noticed that for some reason, there were many unusual large birds gathering above her head. The young man told her that those big birds were called corpse vultures, and the place that attracted the birds seemed to be just a few steps away. Somewhere hundreds of steps away from the two of them.
The more Jiang Yan refused to let him see, the more the girl couldn't help but break free from the other's hands and turned around to look behind her. However, at the first glance, her whole body was immediately pockmarked.
The winding path along the river suddenly opened up not far away, and the hazy shadow of a small town also came into view. The young man had mentioned last night that today they would arrive at a place called Pheasant River Ferry. From there, you can take a boat across the Pheasant River, and then go north along the official road to Mulu, the capital of Ye State.
However, a small-leaved banyan tree just outside the town entrance was actually densely covered with dozens of white bones that had been almost eaten by corpse vultures!
"Ah——! Were these people killed by bandits?"
The girl was timid after all and couldn't help but scream.
"Yue'er, don't panic. If there is really a bandit attack, there will be no smoke rising in the town. Let's not get too confused. We should first go to the place where there are many people and ask questions."
The young man gently squeezed his companion's hand and comforted him. Then the two children boldly walked out of the town. After passing the fig tree that made people afraid to look directly, they saw several wide roads across the entrance of the town. The horse came into their sight. Behind the roadblock, there was also a Ye State army stationed in black heavy armor, which made people avoid it.
Jiang Yan couldn't help but panic. He grabbed a woman who happened to be passing by and asked politely: "Auntie, what's going on in front of you? Are you not allowed to cross the river?"
"No one is allowed to cross the river, but everyone coming and going needs to be checked."
"Why did Ye Guojun suddenly set up a checkpoint at the entrance of the town? Who are the people hanging on that banyan tree?"
"I heard that a group of cavalry was attacked in the mountains a few days ago. The leader of the cavalry was so angry that he captured and hanged all the fellow pirates hiding in Leiyin Mountain. After that, he led others
After searching for many days in the mountains, I finally found the remains of the missing soldiers. Alas, those corpses brought back were so miserable..."
Jiang Yan only listened to half of the woman's next words before he stopped listening. It was hard for him to imagine that the people hanging on the fig tree he passed by were actually Brother Cui's wife and children, the witch woman, and other people in the hunting village.
Neighbors' bones. Although he didn't have much affection for these villagers, he never thought that one day, all of them would lose their lives because of himself.
The young man suddenly hesitated and did not dare to move forward rashly. Instead, he took the hand of the girl beside him and whispered while retreating:
"Yue'er, we may have to turn around and go back and find another way."
However, in the not-so-dense crowd, this extremely unnatural behavior was immediately noticed by a man with a beard and the appearance of a general standing behind the horse, and shouted loudly on the spot:
"Those two brats on the road, stop right there!"
He thought that the other party was the owl-riding captain who the woman said ordered the killing of all the mountain people. There was a buzz in Jiang Yan's head, and he was a little confused. He vaguely felt that the other party's voice seemed familiar, but for a moment he thought
I didn't know where I had heard it before, so I could only say to the girl beside me who was also standing blankly:
"Yue'er, run! No matter what happens, don't look back, otherwise neither of us will be able to escape!"
The young man didn't have time to explain, so he pushed his companion towards the road. But Luo Jianli, who was behind the horse, was not willing to give the two a chance to escape? He was riding a strong red lion horse with long mane.
, at this moment, with only a slight squeeze of his legs, he rushed straight to the two children in a menacing manner.
Jiang Yan turned around and reached out to touch Baipi on the back of his waist to resist for a while. Unexpectedly, the person who came hit the horse and jumped up in the air, passing high over the young man's head. In a moment, the escape route was completely blocked.
!
What was even more unexpected was that the ferocious-looking captain opposite him only glanced at him. He was stunned for a moment, and then burst out laughing:
"I didn't expect that you little brat is actually still alive! I, the general, was not wrong before. You are indeed colluding with the pirates! You are so courageous that you dare to show up here!"
Although the other party was conclusive and seemed to know him, Jiang Yan knew that he was definitely a big trouble. Even though the hope of escape was almost lost, he still stood in front of the horse with his chest raised, protecting Ning Yue from him.
behind:
"You got the wrong person, I don't know you at all!"
"You don't know me? Then why are you running away in such a hurry! Your life is really tough. You escaped in the Chanying Sea, and even the giant wolf on the mountain couldn't kill you. But this time, the general has those
The confessions of the mountain people confirm that you two are the pirate accomplices who killed Ye Guo's cavalry. Today I want to see whether it is your life or the sword in my general's hand that is stronger!"
Luo Jianli didn't know that the boy opposite him had already forgotten who he was. He sneered, took out the iron sword from his waist, pointed it directly at the opponent's eyebrows and shouted, "Come on, take down these two brats. Search them carefully, then push them to a tree outside the town and hang them together!"
With a sharp whistle, several more soldiers with halberds rushed out from behind the horses. Without any explanation, they tied up Jiang Yan and Ning Yue Wuhuada, and quickly found Bai Pi from his waist.
"In broad daylight, you arrest people without any evidence. Can unarmed people be convicted and humiliated at will?"
Jiang Yan's arms were tied tightly by the rope, but he still refused to give in. Even when he was pushed to the ground, he still held his neck and asked angrily.
Luo Jianli put the long knife in his hand against Jiang Yan's back. With just a little force, he could pierce the young man's body:
"Kid, it seems you don't know your situation yet? The Pheasant River Crossing is located on the border between Ye State and Fu State. Our Marine Corps Camp was ordered by the Lord to set up a checkpoint here to catch the rebels. So here, My words are Duke Ye's will. Even if I order you two brats to be killed on the spot now, no one will ever question whether they were killed by mistake!"
"Captain Luo, no matter what happens, the words you say cannot represent the wishes of the king, right? Why are you in such a hurry to kill someone?"
Just when Jiang Yan thought he was certain to die, another man's voice suddenly rang in his ears. Then a fast horse as black as ink flew through the dense crowd of horses and went straight to In front of everyone, no one dared to stop him.
The person who came here was about in his early forties, with a short beard on his face. He was dressed in blue clothes, blue trousers, and a blue cloak. His disheveled hair made him look more aloof and chic than the soldiers around him. Underneath his valiant and heroic appearance, there was also a seriousness that was not angry and self-respecting, causing the originally noisy sentry post to immediately become quiet.
As soon as he heard the other party's voice, Luo Jianli immediately put away the long knife in his hand, dismounted his horse and knelt on the ground: "I have seen General Baili, I wonder what kind of wind brought you here? Just now, my subordinate These words are not——”
"No need to say more, just don't tell lies from now on."
The visitor waved his hand, and he was none other than the military guard in front of Ye State. Even though he had given the other party a blow, he had no intention of listening to Luo Jianli's nonsense, "Tell me, why are you doing this today?" Kill these two children in the street?"
"General Qi, my subordinates judged that the two of them were the fellow pirates who were hanged a few days ago, so they stopped them personally and wanted to take them back to the camp to inquire about it. In fact, they were just scaring them, and they had no intention of actually doing it. Take action."
Luo Jianli had an eccentric personality, but at this moment, the ferocity in his body disappeared without a trace in front of the man in green, and he became as docile as a gelded stallion.
"Comrade of pirates? Oh - you mean those people hanging from the fine-leafed banyan tree at the entrance of the town, right?"
"Exactly. They described the appearance of these two children very clearly. There is absolutely no chance that my subordinates will arrest the wrong person."
"Oh? What did you say?"
"According to the confession of the bandits, the boy who escaped had a long scar in the middle of his right eyebrow, and he said that this girl -" Luo Jianli said and turned his eyes to Ning Yue, and then suddenly realized that the hair of the girl in front of him was not red. .
"Why did you suddenly become silent?" the man in green asked.
"Girl, the girl doesn't have any obvious features. However, the mountain people have mentioned that they carry a short knife, which is the ironclad evidence that these two are pirates!"
"What kind of knife? Bring it and let me see it."
As the man in green said, he spread his right hand in front of Luo Jianli. Lieutenant Xiaoqi had no choice but to suppress the unhappiness in his heart and handed over the Baipi he had just found.
"Captain Luo is indeed the queen of the generals and has really good eyesight. Please don't hesitate to tell me, how did you know that this sword belongs to the pirates? Is it possible that the beluga pattern of the pirates is engraved in some secret place?
"
"Please forgive me for not having time to investigate carefully yet -" Luo Jianli responded calmly with his fists clasped, but he knew he was wrong, and heavy drops of cold sweat were shed on his head wearing a feathered jacket.
"Will there be time to investigate in the future? But you are very resolute in killing people!" The man in Tsing Yi suddenly changed the subject, and his tone revealed extreme dissatisfaction:
"This time the king ordered troops to be sent to search for suspicious persons throughout the territory, but he did not order that people can be killed at will. Even if the pirates are captured, they must be escorted back to Mulu City and handed over to the Tingwei Division for questioning before they can be released.
Fa Luo, could it be that the Governor didn't explain it to you?"
"Master Marquis, he has confessed. However, those mountain people have confessed to their crimes before, so, therefore, my subordinates -" Luo Jianli's voice no longer had the previous unruly tone, but was replaced by a
A deep fear.
"What did you confess to? Did they commit some murder and looting in the Chanying Sea, or did they set up a trap to deliberately lure you into sending troops into the mountain?"
"None of them..."
"Then why did those mountain people and these two children you strangled at the entrance of the town receive death sentences?"
"That's because...it's because..."
Facing the aggressive questions from the man in Tsing Yi, Luo Jianli could no longer answer. He never expected that this time he would actually shoot himself in the foot - all the mountain people were killed without any evidence.
Although his body was powerful and strong, his voice at this time became smaller and smaller during the repeated questioning, until finally it was a faint moan, and even the two children who were tied up next to him couldn't hear clearly.
But from beginning to end, he never mentioned anything about Jiang Yan going to sea with him.
"In troubled times, there are enough enemies waiting for Ye State, and soldiers who serve in the army must not act recklessly. The hanging of mountain people has already caused panic in the area of Zhihedu, and there are complaints and rumors.
In Mulu City, that’s why I came here in person today! Do you know that if you continue to act like this, it will not only ruin your reputation, but also my reputation as Marquis Jinghai, and it will also endanger the prestige of the king and the entire country.
The country’s society!”
The man in Tsing Yi sat firmly on the back of his horse, Mo Yun Tiao Xue. Although he looked a little decadent and lazy on the surface, he spoke with full energy, and his voice reached the ears, reprimanding subordinates who made mistakes.
It's merciless.
Luo Jianli could no longer stand steadily, and immediately knelt down and laid his whole body on the ground: "Subordinate-I know my mistake!"
"Then I will give you forty military sticks, and I won't do it again. Things at the Jade Bone Lake Camp are already quite difficult now, not to mention the two galloping wolves that suddenly appeared on Leiyin Mountain. I order you to hang the town entrance immediately.
All the mountain people who were on the tree were put down and buried alive. He is not the only one with scars on his face, and it is difficult to prove that this short knife belongs to pirates. Release these two children immediately and don't give them to me again.
Cause some other trouble for the Marine Corps camp!"
Seeing that General Tsing Yi finally showed some mercy to him, the captain quickly thanked him profusely, and then ordered someone to lift Jiang Yan and Ning Yue up from the ground, and untied them with his own hands.
The man on the black horse bent down, smiled and handed the dagger back to the still aggrieved young man:
"Kid, this is a precious sword. It must be a gift from someone important to you, right? You have to take good care of it from now on and don't lose it."
Jiang Yan, who didn't want to continue to be entangled, snorted heavily, reached out to take Baipi without hesitation, bowed briefly, and hurriedly pulled Ning Yue away. Because from the sharp eyes of the man on the horse, he clearly noticed that With a trace of curiosity about myself, I couldn't help but beat my drum in my heart, and I just wanted to hide as far away as possible.
Thank you for your tasteful attention to "Twin Moon". I hope the wheat grown by Xiaoli will suit your taste. You can search for the official account with the same name~