Meng Jiu's heart was in extreme pain, he coughed violently, and for a while he couldn't stop it. Yu er, after reading those cloths I really understood what was in your heart, after understanding it, I only realized how deeply I had hurt you.
Tianchao immediately asked Hong Gu, “What message did he leave you? Where did he say he went?"
“In the letter he gave me, he only said he would return to Xiyu. He also left a letter for General Huo, actually he told me to take it to Huo's Mansion after ten to fifteen days, but because I was annoyed I took it this morning. I don't know if he mentioned where he was going home in the letter."
After he finished listening to him, Tianchao waved his hand, telling Hong Gu to step down.
Meng Jiu wanted to speak, but as soon as he opened his mouth, he immediately coughed.
Tianchao understood what was in his heart, he quickly said, "Xiao Yu can't ride a horse, if he goes back to Xiyu he will definitely rent a horse-drawn carriage, I will immediately have someone check the horse-drawn carriages leaving Chang'an, and send carrier pigeons to 'Blue Wolf Brand' bandits to help look for him, Uncle Shi can also order the murderers who previously wanted to kill him to help us look for him. Jiu Ye, if Xiao Yu has returned to Xiyu, we can't
looking for it? Now the most important thing is to restore your health, otherwise Xiao Yu will be sad to see you like this.”
Looking down Meng Jiu pondered for a while, then insipidly said, “Notify all the palaces in Xiyu, have every kingdom in Xiyu send troops to look for him.”
Tianchao's heart gasped, although Jiu Ye had helped many Xiyu Country, but he always tried not to get too involved, if they wanted to befriend him, he always refused their helping hand. Every country in Xiyu really wanted to establish relations with Jiu Ye, let alone Jiu Ye's spy network which covered the entire Great Han and its huge power in Xiyu, every country in Xiyu also really wanted Jiu Ye's powerful weapons. If Jiu Ye asked them to do something, every country in Xiyu would definitely not refuse. It seemed that this time Jiu Ye really wanted to win Xiao Yu, however, what did he have to pay to get it?
It was still dark, but Huo Qubing had already put on his uniform, ready to leave.
"Have you told him that today I will be leaving for the battlefield?"
“Servant has personally gone to Luoyu Fang to inform Miss Yu.”
Huo Qubing stood at the mouth of the guesthouse gate, standing without saying anything for some time. As dawn broke on the eastern horizon, he secretly sighed, it seemed that Xiao Yu would rather stay in Chang'an.
He harbored various feelings in his heart and jumped onto the horse's back, immediately the sound of the horse's hooves resounded loudly through the streets of Chang'an city.
For a moment the matter of romance was put aside, now the most important task was to complete the military operation which was viewed cynically by the whole country well.
Before this he used eight hundred selected cavalry troops to break through the Xiongnu defenses and achieve total victory. But people still didn't believe him, thinking he won by chance, even the emperor still doubted him and didn't dare to actually put him in charge of the entire army.
Li Guang had been wallowing in the desert all his life but had never been able to establish great merit, so he could not be given the title of duke, but he was so advanced in fighting that he immediately became famous under the heavens, and was appointed duke at the age of eighteen, so that many people don't believe it and feel jealous of him.
This time the emperor gave him ten thousand cavalry, he wanted to test his strength and his ability to lead
a large army later on. Only if he could achieve victory would he be able to silence the mouths of the civil and military officials in the palace who opposed him. Even the emperor couldn't help but listen to their opinions.
Huo Qubing believed in his heart that he would succeed, or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that the word 'lose' never appeared in his mind at all.
As long as he is determined to do something, he will definitely succeed in doing it, unless...
Thinking of that slippery, intelligent and stubborn woman, Huo Qubing couldn't help but frown, his eyes drifting towards Luoyu Fang, a smile appeared on her cold face.
No, there are no exceptions. In Huo Qubing's life nothing is impossible, let alone him?
After traveling quickly for a day, when he was about to rest at night, a letter that had been sent more than eight hundred li arrived.
Not a military order, but a letter sent by housekeeper Chen, Huo Qubing's heart gasped, he quickly opened the bamboo tube.
His eyes were misty, anger and sadness mixed in his heart. Yu er, you once again deceived me.
Without moving, he looked at the cloth, slowly a thin, cold smile appeared at the corner of his lips.
This was the first letter he had given her, but it certainly wouldn't be the last.
Suddenly he got up, then gave orders to the servant who was standing outside the tent, "Let the two fastest running horses in the barracks rest well tonight, and be ready to leave at any time."
Yu er, are you harder to catch than the Xiongnu who are slippery and fast running?
*********
The dark sky covered the earth silently, and on the ancient road the only sound was the echo of hoofbeats.
I sat on the roof of the carriage looking eastward in amazement, the majestic city of Chang'an getting farther and farther away.
Who knows how long later, on the eastern horizon appeared the violet dawn, although thin, but very beautiful, because of them, in the blink of an eye the sky and the earth became colorful.
Gradually, half the sky was filled with orange violet, burning like fire. A round red sun slowly rose from the center of the sea of fire, and before long, it had dispelled the darkness that enveloped the heavens and the earth.
There may be no view under the sky more majestic than the rising sun. I gasped at the unexpectedly beautiful sight, the sadness in my heart was reduced a lot, I couldn't stop myself from raising my arms and howling, welcoming the new day.
As soon as that howl left my mouth, the carriage shook so much that I almost fell. I turned to look at the carriage driver, he pulled the reins hard and said with a smile, "Actually this is our best horse, just now for some reason his legs suddenly went weak, now it's okay."
Smiling, I shook my head, gesturing for him to continue running the train. If I heard a wolf howl, most horses would lose their legs, luckily I only howled once, otherwise I would have eaten mud by now.
It was already bright, and little by little there were more and more people walking on the street. Because I didn't want to attract people's attention, I was forced to leave the roof of the carriage. I nimbly jumped into the carriage and sat next to the driver.
It turned out that the coachman was a free-spirited person, seeing me sitting by his side, he didn't feel embarrassed at all. While swinging the whip, he smiled and said, "I see Miss can do a little kung fu, if you don't like being crowded in a carriage, why not just buy a nice horse?"
I smiled and said, "I didn't have a chance to learn, until now I can't ride a horse."
The driver pointed at Xiao Tao and Xiao Qian who were flying high in the sky, "I see that Miss is suitable for raising animals. If you want to study seriously, Miss can definitely ride a horse well."
I smiled but didn't say anything. After returning to Xiyu I still won't have the chance to study. If a horse dares to be friends with a wolf, I will learn.
Along the road to the west, the vibrant spring that should be decorated with smiling rivers and mountains, as well as lush trees and grass, looks a bit barren, sometimes you can see rickety huts that have been abandoned and fields full of bushes, I sigh quietly, "In the midst of war, it is always the common people who suffer."
The coachman's face changed slightly, he took a deep breath, "What else do you want? Last year we fought twice against the Xiongnu, more than ten thousand soldiers died, who knows how many old women lost their sons, and
how many wives lost their husbands? Three years ago we were hit by a drought, the already meager food supplies had to be used to ration the army again, to raise funds for war, the palace announced that people could buy positions and pay off punishment with money, but where did the common people have money? People who have spent so much money, if they become officials, what will they think, enriching themselves or the people? Those who died on the battlefield were always commoners, but those who were given gifts and titles were always the sons of high-ranking officials. This year we will go to war again, do they know what the consequences will be? It's not that the Xiongnu shouldn't be fought, but this war is. ay!"
It turned out that a coachman could have such deep feelings, I said in surprise, "Uncle's broad insight makes me want to ask for a lesson."
The coachman smiled and said, "I'm old, but I'm embarrassed to talk, to be honest, miss, when I was little my family was quite affluent and I went to school for a few years, now all year round I travel everywhere and meet lots of various guests, I'm just talking based on what I saw, plus what the guests told me."
I asked, "When I was in Chang'an I heard that outside the city there were incidents of people eating people, is that true?"
The driver waved his whip, “Why isn't it right? In the third year of Jianyuan, after the flash flood, there were not so few
people eat people. In the sixth year of Jianyuan, in Henan there was a great drought, father and son ate each other, that's what happened when there wasn't much war. In recent years, the palace has repeatedly sent troops to war, fortunately the natural disasters were not serious, otherwise......ai! The incident of people eating people reportedly only happened during the time when Emperor Gaozu first founded the country, during the reign of Wendi and Jingdi there was never such a disaster."
The coachman did not explain further, but it was clear that after years of fighting against the Xiongnu, the common people were no longer able to bear the burden and hoped that things would be like during the Wendi and Jingdi reigns, and not like during the time of Han Wudi who was constantly at war.
I thought for a moment, then said, "When Qin Shihuang built the Great Wall he forced five hundred thousand people to work hard, whereas at that time the entire population of this country was no more than twenty million people, in almost every house, the men had to leave the house, voice crying was heard everywhere. But if there was no Great Wall that could withstand the attacks of the Xiongnu horsemen who in one day could attack as far as a thousand li and leave corpses scattered everywhere, the suffering of the common people would be hard to imagine. The common people really hated Qin Shihuang's construction of the Great Wall, even making up stories about Meng Jiangnu crying until he tore down the Great Wall, but some literati considered that the construction of the Great Wall was a 'momentary disaster, but
the results are enjoyed by hundreds of generations', the Son of Heaven's current actions are also like that."
With surprise the coachman looked at me, "This lady's words are extraordinary!" After snickering, he stopped and said solemnly, “Miss is someone who is insightful, then I will speak frankly. I want to ask, people living today are humans, people in future generations are also humans, why is it that in order to avoid a disaster that might occur tens or hundreds of years from now, we people living today have to suffer for the rest of our lives? When Qin Shihuang built the Great Wall, the suffering that hundreds of thousands of families suffered, could it be erased by the words of a few literati? 'A momentary disaster, but the results are enjoyed by hundreds of generations' is easy to say, but if their own son was forced to build the Great Wall and after that his body was buried inside the Great Wall, could they say that? If their daughter was sad about losing her husband, what would they say? If they lost their father when they were young, and there wasn't even a grave to worship, would he still say that?"
I wanted to deny what he said but in my mind there were no words. After being silent for a while, I said, "Uncle's words make sense, those people can say that because their position is high, they are comfortable and satisfied with seeing other people's suffering from a distance, therefore they feel broad-minded, but
in fact plants only have one autumn, and humans only have a lifetime, no one has the power to decide that they should be destroyed. However, the emperor could not help but attack the Xiongnu. Does uncle know how the Shanyu Xiongnu abused Empress Lu?”
“A little, people in the market say, not long after Emperor Gaozu passed away, the Shanyu Xiongnu wrote a letter to Empress Lu, saying, since you are already a widow, and I happen to be a widower, it is better for us to just spend our days together ”.
I nodded, 'Trees have skin, humans have faces, even common people if they are insulted like that will fight, let alone an empress of a country? However, at that time the Han Dynasty was weak, there were no great generals in the palace, so the empress could only endure the insult and after that sent a princess to marry Shanyu. Since Emperor Gaozu ascended the throne until before the current emperor reigned, temporary peace for the common people had to be redeemed by the sacrifice of beautiful young women. Why do they have to suffer like that? Before the emperor ascended the throne, every year the Han Dynasty had to pay burdensome tribute, the tribute was the result of the common people's hard work, on what basis could the Xiongnu nation reap without sowing? Are our Han men weaker than them? So we have to accept being persecuted by them? In this world there are actions that cannot be avoided, even if you know
will cause casualties or pay a heavy price.”
For a while the driver didn't say anything, then sighed heavily, "I'm already old, if when I was young I had heard this lady's words, maybe I would have immediately followed General Wei and General Huo to attack the Xiongnu. The common people often grumble about the emperor, but the services of the kings of the Spring and Autumn era are praised by people today, the advantages and disadvantages of an action cannot be immediately known.”
I stuck out my tongue, then laughed and said, “Uncle, don't be persuaded by me. Actually, sometimes I feel like what I say is true, but sometimes I also think otherwise. Today I said that because uncle expressed another opinion, therefore I couldn't stop myself from arguing with him, if uncle took my position, perhaps I would take the opposite position."
The driver cracked his whip loudly, apparently choosing the best horse brought unexpected benefits. The only places I know well are the Northern and Southern Desert, Xiyu and Chang'an, if I could listen to people who have traveled everywhere like this talk about the world, along this road I wouldn't be lonely at all.
“The closest way to Dunhuang is to first pass through Longxi, then through Xiutu and Zhangye,
so we will arrive in a month's time." While whipping the horse, the driver explained.
As soon as I heard the word Longxi, I immediately made a decision, no matter whether the road was the closest, I would not take it, "Is there a road that doesn't go through Longxi?"
“Yes, go north first, then around Longxi to Liangzhou, then head to Dunhuang. This way takes two or three days longer.”
“Uncle, let's just go that way! I will increase your wages."
The coachman smiled and agreed, "Okay, we will take that road."
When I arrived in Jingzhou, it was already dark, I looked for a clean inn to spend the night, my requirements for an inn were very easy, I only asked the inn to prepare warm water and a tub for bathing.
My days in Chang'an were very comfortable. After three days on the road, I felt my body was very dirty, very uncomfortable.
After changing the water twice, I could enjoy the warmth of the water comfortably. Outside the city of Chang'an there are many hot springs, after this there will be no hot springs to soak in again, the hot springs at the Qing Mansion are a no-brainer, a no-brainer, I
had to forget everything in Chang'an.
I felt a cold wind blowing in, behind the door, the door could be seen slightly open, "Mute little brother, tell your A Da not to boil any more water, there is still one tank of water here that hasn't been used!"
The door closed again without a sound, I took the silk belt decorated with gold balls at my side, then threw it to hook the hot water pole next to the sketch, but after I threw it, why couldn't I pull it back? I was a little surprised, what was the belt caught on? I clearly remember that I had told my mute sister to put the water resistance beside the sketsel so that I could easily take it, why did my belt get caught like this? I'm sure I didn't miss the target.
What can I do, I can't be lazy and had to get up to pick it up. I stood in the middle of the tub and still dissatisfiedly tugged at the belt, but I still couldn't pull it back and it fell down with a thud.
Huo Qubing's entire body was wrapped in a black robe, he stood up straight, his hands clutching my golden balls, his face cold and scary.
Because I was so shocked, I was stunned, then immediately reacted, "Ah!", I screamed as I got back into the tub, earlier I felt the water was a bit cold but now I felt my body was burning hot.
Luckily I had chosen the deepest bathtub so my body wasn't submerged in water at all
seen. I watched him from inside the tub, from start to finish his facial expression didn't change at all, his eyes stared at me without blinking. Even if you were far away in space, the cold from those pair of eyes would still feel piercing. My feelings of embarrassment and anger were dispelled by his cold eyes.
This time he was really angry, oh no, really, really angry. If the enemy gets angrier, you have to be calmer, and when the enemy has the upper hand, what's more, don't make the enemy angry, otherwise I don't know where to look for my bones.
I swallowed my saliva and forced myself to remain calm, while smiling I said, "Don't look down on me too much, in a situation like this, you should react like a normal man, for example, by looking at me lustfully like a lowlife, or clearly wanting to see but pretend to be pious and peek secretly."
The expression on his face didn't change, for a moment he looked at me coldly, then suddenly lifted my golden balls and threw them at my head, I didn't dare to ward them off with my bare hands, so in a hurry I grabbed a piece of clothing that was beside me, then threw it towards those golden balls, in the air very quickly the clothes flashed to form the letter 之 and dispersed the power that Huo Qubing used to throw the balls,
If his strength was proportional to his anger, this time he was really angry.
After catching the balls, I suddenly realized that the clothes I was wearing to greet the balls were my underwear, now I couldn't pretend to be calm anymore and quickly stuffed the underwear into the tub, my own body too. get into it. The water was already sendingin ice, but my clothes were over there and I couldn't wear them. I could only rest my head on the rim of the tub, my eyes darting here and there, pleadingly looking at Huo Qubing.
He sarcastically said, "You told me to react like a normal man, but why don't you react at all like a normal woman who was caught by a man while taking a shower?"
Does he think I'm not angry or embarrassed? The anger I was holding back because I was afraid it would make him even angrier suddenly overflowed, "Do you want me to react like a normal woman? Aren't you going to stab me with a knife later?"
"Soaking in cold water isn't very comfortable, is it?" A cold smile appeared on his face.
I looked at him, then suddenly screamed, "Help......help......there's a pervert thief......there's an obscene thief!"
His face was full of surprise, and finally the light in his eyes wasn't just ice cold anymore.
"Now you should react like a normal man", I stretched out my flick and pointed at the window, "Under normal circumstances you should have jumped out of there".
In the hallway there was the sound of footsteps, noisy voices slowly getting closer.
"Where's the perverted thief?"
"The scream for help seemed to come from the corner room."
"Nonsense, that room is occupied by a forty year old lady."
"Hard to say, eh friend, if you're not a flower picking thief, how do you know the tastes of a flower picking thief?"
"Just like that, there are people who like fresh things, there are also people who like the charm of mature women. Who says I'm forty years old? I'm clearly forty years old minus five months, four days and three shichen, today speak the truth."
"You guys don't fight, the important thing is to help people, this room is never quiet, it looks like the occupant is a young lady, kick the door and look."
"My friend, if we kick the door open, what if we see a scene that we shouldn't see, aren't we no different from
obscene thief? According to Caixia, we should knock on the door first to find out what's going on."
I listened to them worriedly and couldn't help but smile bitterly, Hexi people were really very different from Chang'an people, these servants were like cute wolves in a wolf pack.
Huo Qubing's face looked strange, he immediately stepped towards me, before I could scream, I was lifted out of the tub, then after being wrapped in a towel, I was wrapped tightly in a blanket.
My anger exploded and I screamed at him, "You're shameless!
The sound of arguing outside the room immediately disappeared, but before the door was kicked open, Huo Qubing had already reacted like a normal person and jumped out of the window, but is this normal if he brought me with him?
As soon as Huo Qubing came out of the inn, a soldier greeted him, looking at his uniform, his rank was not low. He looked away, not seeing me who was being carried on Huo Qubing's shoulder while cursing, in a respectful manner he said, "General, the horse is ready. That horse is the fastest horse in Liangzhou city." Without saying anything, Huo Qubing walked quickly.
He put me who was still wrapped in a blanket in his arms, when he started to gallop, I could no longer curse at him and asked anxiously, "Where are you going?"