In a pasture on the outskirts of Quzhi City, horses were galloping, their hooves were rising and falling, grass was flying and mud was splashing. Accompanied by the sharp sound of breaking through the air from time to time, arrows hit the straw man's target one after another, and at the same time, the soldiers watching from the outside cheered and shouted.
At this moment, Cheng Sanwu was riding on a maroon horse. The waist and hips were rising and falling with the horse's back, but his upper body was almost stable, showing his superb equestrian skills.
They saw Cheng Sanwu holding a strong bow with an arrow on the string. He held his breath and loosened his fingers. The arrow was like a shooting star heading straight towards the target. The straw man standing on the ground shook slightly. The melon used as a human head was penetrated by an arrow. Half of the arrow came from the melon.
Pass out on the other side.
Qi Zhiyi, who was following Cheng Sanwu, drew a treasured eagle bow and shot the arrow through the air. Not only did it hit the melon, but it also directly caused the melon to shatter and fall, which showed its power.
After riding and shooting for most of the circle around the pasture, Cheng Sanwu reined in the horse and slowed down the pace. Qi Zhiyi stepped forward and laughed: "I didn't expect that in addition to foot combat, your riding and shooting skills are also very good!"
"Walking in the Western Regions, I often encounter horse thieves. When we fight, they often disperse in a rush. We can't accomplish anything with swords and guns alone. We still need to rely on riding and shooting skills."
After Qi Daduhu returned to Quzhi City, Cheng Sanwu had some free time, and Lao Su didn't have to be busy there. He just hung out with Qi Zhiyi every day.
This young general was a brave and brave general on the battlefield, but in ordinary days, he was just a dandy. He was not as serious as the Great Protector of Qi. As for the collection of classics and history, the knowledge and lessons of military books and tactics were even ignored.
He has been dragging Cheng Sanwu around these days, and he is accompanied by more than a dozen capable personal guards. He is domineering inside and outside Quzhi City, and no one dares to stop him.
Cheng Sanwu was too lazy to think too much. During the day, he would either follow Qi Zhiyi to watch the soldiers train, practice martial arts with him, or go hunting in the jungle at the foot of Tianshan Mountain to relax. In the evening, when he returned to the city, he would either bathe and chat in the soup pool, or go to a wine shop.
When enjoying Orchid's fine wine in a brothel, it would usually be three hours a day the next day before the two of them woke up from a pile of warm-smelling nephrite, and then continued to fool around.
Compared to someone who is scheming and insidious, Cheng Sanwu is still more willing to get along with a frank man like Qi Zhiyi.
During these days, Cheng Sanwu felt even more irritated because of Xing Xu's incident. He couldn't explain why, so he had no choice but to follow Qi Zhiyi around and have fun, just to vent and relax.
"Your horse is really extraordinary. My Jueyi almost couldn't keep up." Qi Zhiyi turned over and dismounted, and touched his horse, which had a white coat with gold. It has a strong body and a slender neck. Anyone can do it.
It can be seen that this is a rare and precious horse.
The big maroon horse snorted, and Cheng Sanwu just smiled slightly. He was embarrassed to say that his horse had not galloped at full strength just now, otherwise it would have easily thrown Qi Zhiyi away.
He is soft-spoken when it comes to eating people, but short-handed when taking advantage of others. Qi Zhiyi paid for Cheng Sanwu's mischief these days, and he didn't want to spoil their good intentions.
"What's its name?" Qi Zhiyi asked, gesturing to the big bay-red horse.
"Name?" Cheng Sanwu was slightly startled and replied: "It has no name."
The big maroon horse shook its head and neck as if in displeasure, and the reins shook off Cheng Sanwu's hands. Qi Zhiyi saw this and smiled and said: "Look, horses are all humane. If you say this, it will definitely not be happy. And it doesn't."
Name, how do you usually call it?"
"Anyway, I whistled and it came over." Cheng Sanwu shrugged.
"How can this work?" Even Qi Zhiyi felt that Cheng Sanwu was too careless and casual: "Where did you buy this horse?"
"I didn't buy it." Cheng Sanwu replied: "When I first came to the Western Regions, I happened to see it in an oasis in the wilderness, so I took it away and rode on it."
Qi Zhiyi laughed loudly and said, "You are a horse thief!"
"How does this count as stealing? I walked around for a while and found no one else. I saw it alone, so I had to reluctantly take it away." Cheng Sanwu quickly explained: "It's troublesome to take care of this guy.
On weekdays, if the fodder, beans and wheat are a little poor, it will lose its temper and refuse to be ridden."
Qi Zhiyi smiled and nodded, not sure if he believed it, and then asked: "No, I heard that you have been in the Western Regions for many years. Isn't this horse also old?"
"It's been almost ten years," Cheng Sanwu said.
"This skin and mouth don't look like an old horse." Qi Zhiyi looked at the big maroon horse carefully: "Although the old horse is well maintained and can ride for a long time, it can't bear to run wildly. After all, it is sweating like a fever.
Blood."
"I think it can still run." Cheng Sanwu patted the horse's neck: "If it can't run anymore, it will naturally not be able to move its hooves."
Qi Zhiyi smiled bitterly and shook his head. He took Cheng Sanwu to the pasture outside the city today, just to win him over by giving him a good horse. But he didn't expect that Cheng Sanwu's own mount was already a rare good horse, and he
Even though I wanted to give it away, I was too embarrassed to ask.
"Come on, let's talk about the results of the cavalry shooting just now!" Qi Zhiyi greeted from a distance.
A military official came on horseback and reported: "The young general shot twenty hits with twenty hits, and Cheng Sanwu hit eighteen hits with twenty hits!"
"It seems that I am slightly better!" Qi Zhiyi couldn't hide his joy. He and Cheng Sanwu competed in martial arts for many days, and finally beat each other in one category.
Cheng Sanwu crossed his arms and said: "The young general has the ability to shoot through a tree with a hundred steps. How can I, a reckless person like me, dare to compare with the young general?"
"Your ability to flatter people is not as good as that of your boss Su." Qi Zhiyi said with a smile, and at the same time led Cheng Sanwu to a nearby tent. There were already soldiers making a fire and roasting sheep, and the aroma was wafting.
Qi Zhiyi and Cheng Sanwu each shared a leg of lamb. At the same time, several Hu Ji maidservants came out of the camp, holding wine pots and utensils to serve them.
Since the founding of the Xia Dynasty, it has conquered all directions and conquered the barbarians. In addition to expanding its territory, another benefit has been the acquisition of a large number of foreign slaves.
In every battle, part of the captives obtained from the extermination of tribes and states would be used for Huairou's rehabilitation and then released, while the rest would be used as official slaves.
These official slaves are usually placed in the royal industry to cultivate and work, or are used to reward princes and nobles, meritorious soldiers, Taoist temples and Buddhist temples. A very small number of good-looking ones will be selected and sent to the Jiaofang Department to study singing and dancing, female beauty and service.
matter, there may be a chance of being sent to the palace.
Compared with the desperate people in the Central Plains and Han Dynasty who sold themselves into slavery, the sale of men and women in the Western Regions was particularly common. After all, most of the Hu people in the Western Regions were not included in the official household registration, and they did not belong to the ranks of good people whose buying and selling was strictly prohibited by law.
And the pawn sale of slaves is the main business of the Western Regions trading companies. If they can open up the connection between the DPRK and China and obtain the legal documents issued by the government, they can sell the Western Regions slaves to the Central Plains.
Baochang Society was naturally involved. In the past, Cheng Sanwu had a dispute with another caravan over a group of slaves whose ownership was unclear. It took several rounds of duels to snatch the slaves.
The customs in the Western Regions are like this. As the son of the governor of the four towns, it is normal for Qi Zhiyi to keep Hu Ji slaves.
Cheng Sanwu once heard Su Wangting say that in order to show off their wealth, the princes and nobles in the court often held banquets where hundreds of maidens and maidens danced and played music. Each one was dressed in gauze and decorated with necklaces. Some nobles who believed deeply in Buddhism also asked The maidservant Hu Ji imitated the Gandharvas and Kinnara in the picture book Buddhist scriptures, and performed the flying dance to add to the fun.
Compared with such extravagant behavior, Qi Zhiyi just accompanied Hu Ji to drink and have fun, which was quite simple.
"I know you don't like wine, so I brought this pot to cook spring wine. It was brewed by a baker from Shu in my family." Qi Zhiyi ordered Hu Ji to pour the wine. The wine poured into the cup was almost white water, without any turbidity. However, the strong aroma proves that this is a fine wine.
Cheng Sanwu didn't talk nonsense, he raised his head and drank. The wine was sweet and sweet when it entered his throat, and then there was a burning heat that spread all over his body, as if he was immersed in a spring.
Unexpectedly, when Qi Zhiyi saw this, he laughed and said: "You actually drank such a fine wine as plain water in one gulp!"
Cheng Sanwu didn't mind either: "I've always been like this. Lao Su often laughed at me for being ignorant and being able to stuff anything into my stomach."
"What Mr. Su said is true." Qi Zhiyi took a sip of wine and then changed the subject: "It's just that I don't understand why Mr. Su, a smart person, left the embroidered cloth messenger behind. Around you?"
Cheng Sanwu paused for a moment. When he saw Hu Ji on the left and right, he stopped talking.
Qi Zhiyi smiled and said: "Don't worry, they can't understand Chinese and won't spread it everywhere."
"Actually, Lao Su has also suspected Afu's origins. He has long guessed that she came to the Western Regions on the order of a noble person in the court." Cheng Sanwu said.
"A mere Hu woman, even if she has good martial arts skills, won't be so valued by Manager Su, right?" Qi Zhiyi asked tentatively: "What's more, she didn't reveal her identity before this."
"She doesn't mean 'excellent martial arts'." Cheng Sanwu was a little frightened and lowered his voice and said: "She is not a human, she is a dominatrix!"
"Mother Yaksha?" Qi Zhiyi looked surprised: "She is Feitian Yaksha?"
"I've seen her turn into mist with my own eyes, more than once!" When Cheng Sanwu said this, he looked around, fearing that Afu was nearby: "I have fought against her before, but I can't beat her anyway."
"Is he really that powerful?" Qi Zhiyi was half-convinced. He had competed with Cheng Sanwu in martial arts these days and knew that he was born with supernatural power. Putting this kind of person on the battlefield, he would be a first-class warrior. If the men and horses were fully equipped, Cheng Sanwu would probably It can easily knock the enemy in front of it into pieces.
"And that barrier, she was the first to notice the abnormality, and it was later confirmed by Mr. Changqing." Cheng Sanwu said hesitantly: "But I don't think she came here for the Star Marrow."
"Why do you think so?" Qi Zhiyi asked.
Cheng Sanwu shook his head: "I don't know either, it's just a guess."
"You don't seem to like this embroidered messenger very much?" Qi Zhiyi could tell.
Cheng Sanwu sighed: "Actually, she saved my life when I met the sand-lurking dragon, and I am very grateful. It's just that she turned a blind eye and watched the death of my colleagues in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which made me feel uncomfortable."
"Is that Peng Ning? You mentioned it when we were drinking that day." Qi Zhiyi asked: "Do you trust Peng Ning very much? He is from the Ministry of Internal Affairs."
"I don't care who he belongs to!" Cheng Sanwu said impatiently: "Peng Ning never forgot to ask me to send things to Chang'an until the moment he died. Besides, his death was still due to my carelessness."
Compared with admiring Peng Ning, Cheng Sanwu felt more guilty in his heart. He couldn't bear the fact that he couldn't complete the things he promised. Every time he thought about this, he felt a huge hunger, as if there was an ever-expanding thing in his body.
The hole is about to swallow Cheng Sanwu himself.
Thinking of this, Cheng Sanwu no longer wanted to drink and chat. He picked up the fragrant roast leg of lamb in front of him and started to feast on it.
…
Xie Zhihe carefully used his magic power to draw out a golden needle that was thinner than a hair and slowly left the corner of Mr. Changqing's eye.
After removing the golden needle, Xie Zhihe took a piece of ice-cold wet cloth with strong medicinal fragrance from the Taoist boy beside him and blindfolded Mr. Changqing's eyes.
"Okay, most of the eye obstruction has been removed. Let's apply a cold compress for a while to stabilize the blood." Xie Zhihe had a layer of sweat on his forehead. He also wiped his face with a cold wet cloth and said to Mr. Changqing, who was lying on the soft bed.
said:
"Fortunately, fellow Taoist, my foundation is solid. My eyes are just a conflict of qi and blood, not completely blind. I first use the golden needle obstruction technique to remove the obstruction in both pupils, and then use Ju Ming Powder to moisten the surrounding meridians. Fellow Taoist, rest for a few days first. If there is no serious problem,
Don’t try to direct the Qi and blood again.”
"Thank you very much." After some difficult treatment, Mr. Chang Qing's inner tension eased a little: "I never thought that fellow Taoist Xie is also good at knife and needle surgery. Such skills are rare in the Central Plains."
"Really?" Xie Zhihe sat down to rest: "To be honest with you Taoist friends, I came to the Western Regions to seek refuge with the Great Protector of Qi because I failed to cure the daughter of Wei Shilang of the Ministry of Revenue. Wei Shilang thought that I was a quack doctor and wanted to imprison me.
...I had no choice but to flee Chang'an overnight, not to mention how embarrassing the journey was."
"Shilang Wei? Concubine Wei's brother?" Mr. Changqing asked.
"Not bad." Xie Zhihe looked melancholy.
"Nonsense." Mr. Chang Qing said with anger: "These dignitaries in the imperial capital have a pair of eyes in vain, but they don't know how talented they are. It is inevitable to be injured in life, and doctors will do their best. If it is really difficult to save one's life, it will be sad and sad.
It is understandable that there is no reason to pursue doctors? They even use their authority rashly to make the guilty worse than the innocent. It is really ridiculous!"
"Oh, fellow Taoist, don't be angry!" Xie Zhihe quickly advised: "The liver and the eyes are connected, and getting angry and angry will not help the injury to heal!"
Mr. Chang Qing had no choice but to suppress his anger and said: "Thanks to Taoist Fellow Taoist's ability, the third-level secretaries of the Duhu Mansion have also been underestimated. When I recover from my injury, I will recommend Taoist Fellow Taoist to the Great Protector of Qi."
"No need, no need." Xie Zhihe repeatedly tried to dissuade him: "I am satisfied with the arrangement now, and there is no need for fellow Taoists to come forward."
"Fellow Daoist Xie just thinks too highly of these officials and powerful people, as if they are really immune to the law." Even though Mr. Changqing was lying in bed, he still did not change his proud character.
Xie Zhihe could only respond with a wry smile. Just as a Taoist boy came to inform him about the situation of injuries elsewhere, he hurriedly packed up his things and said: "I still have injuries here waiting for treatment, so I won't talk much. Fellow Taoist Changqing, please remember to rest peacefully.
Be less angry."
After saying this, Xie Zhihe left in a hurry, leaving Mr. Changqing alone and feeling lonely.