Chapter 13 Idealism is not easy

The Lord's voice was not loud, but it sounded to me like a thunderbolt. I looked up, apprehensive tunnel: "You marquis, the end will be in."

The Lord did not say much. Looked at me for a while, Marquis Wu said: "General Chu, you have any words, say to the court of heaven."

This made me jump, as if it meant to kill me. That court day is ancient, Marquis let me finish with him, not to turn me into a dead man? But it soon became clear that it was only to stand in front of the portrait like everyone else.

Ghosts and deities are very popular in the upper echelons of the empire, but I don't believe in them. Since I was a kid, I've only believed what I saw. Two guards came to help me, so I got up and walked over.

I don't know why, but I'm cool with it now. Lord Wu may find it unforgivable that I was clearly promoted by him, yet I was disloyal to him. But I did not think much of it, and seemed to leave everything to chance.

When I stood in front of the portrait, Lu Jingyu said softly, "Look into the eyes of the Ting."

The picture was not high, and when I stood there it was a little higher than my head, and I could see it by lifting my face a little.

This portrait shows him in his twilight years. I never understood why, instead of a picture of him in high spirits commanding an army of two hundred thousand against the world, he looked old and decaying. This is also the portrait of Natian painted by a royal painter in the imperial Court when he was seventy-three years old. It is said that in order to paint this painting, Hu Daozhen, the first painter in the world at that time, lived under the house of heaven for two months. Only after two days without sleep did he complete the painting in one go. It is said that at the last stroke of the painting, Hu Daozhen was already dead and burning. Therefore, the statue of heaven was not complete, and the lower left corner was still a blur. Less than two months after the painting was finished, the court of Heaven also died of a disease. Superstitious people said that Hu Daozhen's painting had captured the divine light of the Court of Heaven. Although the Court of Heaven was old and still proud, the king of hell dared not come near it. After Hu Daozhen took the heavenly light of the court, the King of Hell dared to send the imp to hook the soul of the court of heaven.

Of course I don't believe in these superstitions, and I've seen this picture of old age many times in the military academy. In the past, it seemed that the court's age was not diminished, but after all, a little hero's age. When Lu Jingyu asked me to look at the eyes in the portrait, I looked at them carefully.

As soon as my eyes touched the picture, I felt a jolt through me, as if some kind of suction had caught me.

The woman in the picture was an old man who was not very old, but his eyes were bright and sharp as a knife, as if they were looking straight at me, into the depths of my heart. I could not help shivering like a man in a hole of ice, unbearably cold. All of a sudden, all sorts of things from my childhood came to my mind. When I was very young, my father sent me to military school, experienced the death of my parents, fought with people in the military school, after graduation into the forward camp, all the way charge into battle, kill for service, for the woman and Pu Anli duel, the first time to see her in the banquet, captured Lu Jingyu, in the house and the snake man's first encounter, Wu Hou's rebuking, in order to steal Shen Xiping's head rushed into the snake man camp, Shandu's overly formal imperial language, and Wu Keqing's words during the short few days that night when Marquis Wu and her ensemble were together with Bai Wei and Purple Polygonum. All these miscellaneous things flashed through my mind for a while, and I couldn't understand how I could think of so many things in such a short moment.

Is there anything supernatural about that heavenly portrait?

I felt a pang of fear. It seemed to me that I could conceal nothing in front of the picture of heaven. The disgust of war, the weariness of killing, which I had hitherto kept hidden, and which I had not dared to think about myself, came to me mercilessly. If I now think of the marquis also know, he will despair of me. Have that kind of idea, I'm afraid than desertion is worse than it -- probably more dangerous than want to remonstrate with Luan Peng.

I stood frozen, staring at the heavenly figure. The picture was a little higher than my head, and I had to lift my head a little to meet the gaze of the painted sky. But the sky in the picture looks down, so that when I look at the picture, the sky seems to look at me in the picture. I do not know how long I watched before I heard the voice of Lu Jingyu: "General Chu! General Chu!"

I was startled and turned my head. I saw the Marquis standing up in front of the case and looking at me.

He cares about me, too. I was relieved. No matter how Wu Hou to me in the end, but I was promoted by him, after all, Wu Hou to me, perhaps also a little bit of father-son general feelings.

I went to the marquis case, knelt down, way: "the end will be Chu Xiu red Wan dead, please handle the marquis."

The Lord sat down. After a long time, I did not hear his voice. After a while, he let out a deep sigh and said, "General Chu, you go home. You must do your best to lead the dragon and the army."

The Lord has given me a pass! I was surprised and delighted, said: "Xie Junhou."

I also saved Luan Peng's life when Chai Shengxiang attacked him. Although Chai Shengxiang's attack was of little use at that time, Luan Peng was already cornered, but I did so after all a bit like conspiring with Luan Peng. If I were a former general, I would have been sentenced to death if I violated military law in every detail.

Marquis Wu said, "You should have been condemned to death, but since you had the intention to fight against Luan Peng, not to say that the rebel who shot the arrow was also shot by the soldiers in your tent. This is not a small contribution.

His last words chilled my heart, but immediately I was relieved. That is the Marquis, if too generous, that is not like the Marquis. I said, "I will never know the sin."

As soon as we walked out into the sun, we heard a cheer. Qilie rushed to me, followed by Jin Qianshi, Wu Wanling and Yu Dai, the officers of the Dragon Scale Army. Jiang Zaixuan, a master archer who is now highly appreciated by me, also came to me with a dozen archers who had just been selected. Qi Lie gave a shout of joy, said: "Great, general, you are OK!"

His words also a little choked up, look at him, want to hug me. I patted him on the shoulder and smiled. "You're a centurion now, Lil. Don't be so childish."

Jin Qianshi with a dozen dragon scale army came over. Although he was not as exaggerated as Qi Liye, he seemed almost to cry with emotion.

Looking at him, I can't help feeling a little guilty. If Marquis Wu had not ordered me to lead the Dragon Scale Army, then Jin Qianshi to succeed the Dragon Scale Army commander as a sentry officer, it is a natural thing. However, since I came to the Longscale Army, he has never shown any defiance. The soldiers who had been under Shen Xiping's command for a long time were a little xenopic to me in the first two days, but he explained it for me.

They surrounded me, Qilie seemed to cheer a few times, the side of a soldier shouted: "Marquis Wu tent, do not make noise, hurry back to the team."

The soldier had probably been in front of the marquis's tent for a long time, and his speech was a little stiff. Qi Lie spit out his tongue, small voice: "General, you are OK that is good."

We jumped on our horses, and Qillie wanted to go with me to the Dragonscale. I advised him that, now that he was commander of the Fifth Vanguard Battalion, he could no longer be so relaxed, so he reluctantly returned.

And Qi Lie break up, gold Qianshi looked at Qi Lie's back, way: "General, you this old part is very nostalgic."

I smiled. Qi Lie to me, probably can not use "nostalgic" to summarize. If I am not too arrogant, I treated him almost like Marquis Wu treated Lu Jingyu. I was a few years older than him. I was his brother, and when he came to the Vanguard, he didn't know his weapon very well. I taught him every move. But there is no need to talk to Kim about these things. I said, "How is the right army now? Is it messy?"

Gold Qianshi way: "Mo general is not what brave will, but he really have a set of rectification military discipline, now the army will be replaced by the army Wanfu long Yue Guohua, no big noise, that is, Luan Peng head was ordered, his troops cried a cry."

"It's Yue Guohua."

Yue Guohua is a commander of the Chinese army, and the left army deputy general Bu Wu, famous for his old age. When the Lord asked him to take the place of the general, he did not ask for merit, but for no fault.

"What about the Snake Man?"

Upon hearing my question, Jin Qianshi was worried and said, "I was about to tell the governor that the Serpents are gathering outside the city, and they are not attacking it, but pushing their tents forward for half a mile. They're probably setting up camp there now."

I was surprised: "The snake man set up a tent? Is it the Snake man himself?" I was more surprised that the Snake man had set up his own camp than that he had broken camp. If snake people can erect a tent, then how different are they from people?

Kim Chishi: "Mostly by myself, but I've seen it through binoculars."

Here he stopped short. I was a little anxious. "General King," I said, "just say what you say. Don't hesitate."

"In the Serpents, there are some."

Someone? My immediate thought was to open up the bones I had seen inside the corpse of the snake man. A member of the Serpentine team, presumably that's the kind of food you carry with you. But are those people really that spineless? Perhaps, the snake people are just like when Lord Wu slaughtered the city, except for the artisan women. Women are of little use to the snake man, who left only craftsmen, I'm afraid.

We had spent the night in the Marquis's tent, and now it was morning. The sun was warm overhead, but I shivered.

There seems to be a lot of ourselves in the Snake Man. Back to the west of the city, the right army station, Jin Qianshi will be his first day when the city hidden under the two altar of good wine opened, entertaining the whole dragon Scale Army. At the beginning of the ruin of the city, it was said that liquor was everywhere in the west of the city. Nineteen of the largest liquor shops were in the west of the city, and all the rightists were drunk. Later, after Zhang Longyou was recruited into the shogunate of the central army, Marquis Wu sent thunder drums to order people to send wine up, probably used to make the thunder fire bomb, the city has rarely seen wine. As soon as Kim took out the two bottles of wine, everyone cheered. Jin Qianshi cut the seal of the wine altar, a bouquet of wine, people want to be drunk. He poured out a bowl for me first, and for each of the soldiers. When the three hundred bowls fell down, there was not much left of the two jars of wine. Jin Qianshi picked up the wine bowl: "Brothers, the leader of the scare, we drink for the leader."

The Longscale soldiers all stood up and said in one voice, "Commander." They all looked at me, waiting for me to pick up the bowl.

I picked up the bowl, my eyes a little wet.

However, I was not moved. I just felt that these fine men had been sent here for some reason. Perhaps, tomorrow, the Snake People would launch a massive attack and most of these soldiers would not be able to return home.

I took a sharp drink. Jin Qianshi hid these two jars of wine is very good, but the taste of wine is not very strong, even people who have little capacity to drink a bowl of it does not matter, I drink it is like drinking water.

When I started drinking, everyone was holding bowls and gulping. As if to forget everything with this action, to forget the fear.

The wine was finished, but there was no food. Today, the distribution of dry food is less, and the mid-ranking officers have been deducted more. In the whole right army, there are only ten thousand or more high-ranking generals, and all the others have only four cakes a day. The plan of saving ten cakes, which was discussed yesterday, is just empty talk. However, the Lord ordered Zhang Longyou to send two hundred fire thunder bomb equipment Dragon Scale Army. I remember Zhang Longyou said that the city could still make 1,500 trumpet lightning bombs, and Lord Wu sent us 200. That shows that Lord Wu has not lost his trust in me.

Jin Qianshi and Wu Wanling began to drill with two soldiers. After all, the Longscale Army was different from other soldiers. It was also a right army. When Chai Shengxiang's soldiers heard that they were only given four cakes a day, they began to swear.

After looking at it for a while, I turned and walked to the head of the city, picked up a clean pheasant dish and sat down. From above, you can also see the Dragon Scale Army in action. I took the gauze off my left arm, and Ye Tai said that my arm would be fine in seven days. If so, today is the seventh day.

As soon as I pulled back the gauze, I was shocked. The wound was large. The Snake-man's stab had pierced my arm, and it was now closed with two scars at each end, the larger one on the top and the smaller one on the bottom.

I poured some water from the kettle to wash the blood from the wound. The wound was covered with a dark brown scab that was hard against it, almost like the scales of the snake man. I couldn't help laughing. I was now in command of the Dragon Scale Army, and if these two fancies didn't stop, I might as well have been entitled to claim that I was "gifted with dragon scale".

I was concentrating on cleaning the wound when suddenly I heard someone behind me say, "General Chu."

It was a strange accent, and a little strange, and somehow I got it in my head that it was a snake man's voice.

Did the snake man attack?

I jumped to my feet and pulled out a Babie knife, my left arm still exposed. This turn, I have been a cold sweat, the wound and a little dull pain. But when I turned around, I realized that it was not a snake man at all. It was an unknown soldier, wearing an ordinary military uniform.

I couldn't help laughing, pushed the Bibb knife back into its sheath, said: "Good." He was probably one of the right soldiers, and maybe I was starting to make a name for myself in the right. When I first entered the city, I heard Lu Jingyu say that my name was being sung all over the city. Although I was happy to hear it, I also knew that it was just a polite word. But after these ten days of offensive and defensive battles, plus I recapture Shen Xiping's head, maybe my name has really been known by many people.

The man sat down beside me and said, "General Chu, my name is Zheng Zhao. I am the former Republican Army marching staff."

He said these words calmly, but I was taken aback. But at once he remembered that he must be one of the five or six thousand men that the Lord of the Moon had brought with him. It's just what's he doing here in Imperial uniform? Is it true that the Lord of the Moon is still wooing people everywhere?

Zheng Zhao elephant is to know my mind, the way: "I am now a general Lu Jing Yu under the guest general, not the grand duke management."

I was surprised again. Zheng Zhao's observation is really strong, as if I think what he knows. I said, "What does Mr. Zheng want to see me about?"

Maybe Lu Jingyu sent him here. Could it be that although Wu Hou agreed to the proposal of Lu Jingyu and the Republican Army, Lu Jingyu actually wanted to woo the main generals of the army? As I was dreaming, I heard Zheng Zhaosaid, "You're wrong. I'm only here as a private person."

I casually said, "Isn't it General Lu?"

As soon as this came out, I started again. He seemed to have guessed again what I had thought, and guessed so well. Who is this Zheng Zhao and what does he want?

He looked down at the city. I was facing the west, looked over, about a mile away, dust billowing, there is the snake people dispatch. But the city was empty with thousands of troops and horses, but they had to defend it. They were defeated outside. No one dared to go out and fight with the Serpents anymore. Zheng Zhaoxiang is murmuring tunnel: "My parents originally in the high eagle city, just a pair of ordinary old people. You besieged the city for three months, and the grain in the city was gone. I was in the army, and I was able to send some grain home occasionally, while my neighbors starved to death one by one, and their bodies were eaten. Until one day, I managed to get some half-mouldy rice cakes to take home, only to see a group of hungry people burst into my parents' house."

There was a break in his voice. I don't know why he was telling me this, but it certainly wasn't going to end well for his parents. When the city was finally destroyed, it was full of starving bodies of the starved, and Qillie told us that when we killed the city, we had seen some Republicans living in cellars and eating dead people.

He sighed. "I have hated war ever since. When the people are overthrown and all power is returned to the people, the emperor will succeed and the people will suffer. I hate killing. I hate killing as much as being killed."

I was speechless. His words, in fact, I deeply feel the same. But, as a soldier, there is no other way to go on the battlefield but to kill and be killed? Sometimes I also think that we fight and fight like this, is it just to protect a monarch who has no moral rule, no name? But, of course, I dare not openly say these words, otherwise it will be regarded as rebellious.

Zheng Zhao wiped the tears from his eyes and said, "General Chu, I have lost my temper."

I don't know what to say. He eventually became a terrestrial fisherman, and probably had many twists and turns along the way. At the beginning, when the Republic Army was strong, it destroyed the imperial cities. Although it did not kill the city, when it attacked Shihu City, which was also among the twelve famous cities south of the Dajiang River, in order to threaten the defenders who did not occupy the city, it buried the captured 20,000 Imperial troops under the city. Cang Yue Gong, who claimed to love his people like a son, declared that "everyone is equal and everyone has the right to live" in contrast to such measures, which seemed ironic. But to the prince, it was to die ten thousand, or to live well for one hundred thousand. Anyway, there's always a reason. But is the life of ten thousand not life for the sake of one hundred thousand?

My hand was still on the handle of the knife. The wrong eight-character inscription on the scabbard could not be felt, but I knew it by heart. "It is not easy to be idealistic." These eight words, now think about it, feel more sad. Knife everything, indestructible, even if the heart is not easy, also want to shed tears. The man who cast the sword does not know which dynasty is the general, these eight words, maybe also after killing many people to comfort themselves.

Zheng Zhao suddenly said, "That was the sabre of Li Sijin, one of the twelve great generals of the Emperor's reign. Twelve generals were ordered to build the city, and Li Sijin guarded the West Jingcheng. After Lao came to the school of the Qing Xu Tuna, he ordered the sword to be cast into a scabbard with eight treasures combined with fine iron, and the inscriptions with eight characters were embedded on it."

"It's Li Si Jin," I murmured. All of a sudden, I was shocked. I had never told him about the knife. If Zheng Zhao could even perceive it, it would be amazing. I turned around, looked at him, and said, "Who the hell are you?"

He was a little alarmed by my scolding, and fixed his mind: "General Chu, you guessed it?"

I was a little puzzled, said: "Guess what?"

He pressed his finger twice in front of his ear and said, "So you only guessed. General Chu, I was able to follow General Lu because of my ability to read minds."

"Mind reading?

I was shocked again. The so-called mind-reading, is the legend of a school of clear empty spit Na ability, said to be able to know what others can think. Such feats are legendary, and I never believed them before. I can't imagine one person knowing what the other is thinking. But Zheng Zhao was right in front of me. He knew everything I thought, and I had to believe him. But wouldn't that make him aware of my rebellious thoughts?

I felt the Bibb knife. Perhaps Marquis Wu finally agreed to Lu Jing Yu's proposal because of Zheng Zhao's presence. I'm afraid that when Zheng Zhao stood behind the portrait across the tent cloth, Chai Shengxiang would have such strange behavior. And I could hardly control what I was thinking at that time. It seemed that everything hidden in my heart was turned out in that moment.

If he has reported all our ideas to the Lord, then

Cold sweat ran down my back. Suddenly I stood up. Holding the handle of the Bibi knife in my hand, I looked at Zheng Zhao and felt a rush of murder in my heart.

I'm gonna kill him before he reports!

Zheng Zhao must have known what I was thinking. He stood up, his face turned white, and he was a little alarmed. He said, "General Chu, you want to kill me, but I dare not resist.

His words were also a little incoherent, but I was relieved, suddenly lost the desire to kill. Even if he killed him, did he use "idealism is not easy" as Li Sijin did when he was old and remorseful? How, then, am I any different from those I deeply dislike who kill for pleasure?

I sat down and said, "Mr. Zheng, you know what I'm really thinking. I want to report it to your majesty. Go ahead and report it."

Zheng Zhao also sat down and said, "General Chu, the king ordered me to spy on the ideas of the generals of the right army, just to see who is with Luan Peng's party, and did not ask me to report every detail. When I read the hearts of a dozen of your generals, the others were full of grievances. Most of them thought that once the matter was over, they would kill more people to clear their names. You were the only one who hated war."

I said: "Yes and how, even if I do not want to, you have the mandate, still have to obey."

Zheng Zhao also sighed and said, "I have already thought that if I can retreat safely at this time, I will find a place where there is no one to live alone. I don't want to see the dirt in the world. But I dare not say these words in front of General Lu. I only want to share them with you because I feel very uncomfortable."

I couldn't help but sigh. Zheng Zhao such ideas, I have not? But just think about it. If I had to live alone, I could not. I'm afraid he's not exactly soldier material for trusting me so much. But I must have been a little mean of him to treat me like that. I looked at him. He was looking out of town now, and certainly not reading my mind. I said, "Mr. Zheng, you won't be able to read my mind again."

He nodded and said, "Of course."

I did not speak, but looked back at the Dragon Scale Army as they were advancing beneath the city walls. The Dragon scale army lined up three groups of squades, neat, it seems that Jin Qianshi and Wu Wanling to rectify military discipline has begun to show results, now the Dragon scale army and forward camp compared to not much. But no matter how strong the Dragon Scale is, what good will it do?

I don't want to think about it. At any rate, there was still work to be done and morale to be maintained in the whole army. At least I was in command of an army, and I could not be discouraged. I said, "Mr. Zheng, have you ever read what Cang Yue Gong thinks?"

Zheng Zhao Road: "Cang Yue Gong determined, I can not read."

"Is there anything you can't pronounce?" I'm feeling a little unhappy. My mind was read out by Zheng Zhao, but someone he could not read. Is my will not strong enough?

Jeong So-jun, knowing my idea, said with a smile, You can say that. But General Chu does not have to be too uneven, so far I have only three people's thoughts can not read. To be exact, I can't read a person's mind, in fact, I can't read only two people. And some of the weak-willed, after the reading of the mind will be temporarily confused, the Chaisheng phase is such."

Chai Shengxiang easy to kill, actually is to cover up the heart of cowardice. I felt a little sorry for him now. I said: "You can not read, one is Cang Yue Gong, the other but the land by the general?"

"No," he said with a faint smile. General Lu's mind is very easy to read, open and honest, there is no intention to hide people. You could do it if you didn't want me to know."

I'm very interested. If I could be as good as him, I would be all right, at least if the hitherto undiscovered mole came into contact with me, I would know immediately. I said: "You have this ability to practice? Can you teach me?"

He looked at me and said hesitantly, "This."

My face was a little unhappy, he did not need to read the mind also immediately know, busy said: "General Chu, I am not not not to teach you, this ability is more than half born, I also do not know how to teach people, just from the urine found that when they meet others can know what others are thinking, later became more and more strong, separated by three feet can also know. It is only with mind reading that I must concentrate. Yesterday I used it dozens of times, and I was almost exhausted. Just now I have used it two or three times on you, and I am tired."

I couldn't listen and was a little disappointed. I said, "By the way, Mr. Zheng, what did you say about a person you couldn't read?"

It's a bit of a joke, too. I am not the kind of person whose will is as strong as iron, nor am I the kind of person who can hide his thoughts at any time like the Marquis, the Lord of the moon and so on. Probably I will never learn to read minds.

I was still thinking about it, but Zheng Zhao said, "That's one of the generals who joined the army. I was yesterday. It's funny. One army is full of women, the other is full of charcoal and saltpeter POTS, and this army is thinking about something I don't understand. Is he a stranger with a veil over his face?"

It's a high-speed train. I have never seen the face of Gao Tietchong, nor do I know if he is a foreigner, but I have seen some foreigners in the Imperial capital. They have high noses and deep eyes, and their eyes are blue, and they say a strange thing. If the High Iron Chong is a foreigner, in the Imperial army for fear of attracting attention to the veil, then he did so probably more conspicuous. I casually said, "Is Gao a foreigner when he joins the army? I don't know. He is a popular man in front of the Lord Wu, and a wise man of the Lord Wu."

"He has a strange mind," Zheng said. "I think he seems to hate everyone. When I read his mind, although I don't know what he is thinking, I also feel angry, as if I wish the whole world would die."

Does high-speed trains hate war? I can't guess. His scheme of encircling four generals could be called a poisonous one. A man like him should be eager to climb the ranks by his military service. It seems that the heart is hard to know, and it is true.

At this moment, Zheng Zhao stood up and mumbled: "General Chu, I have to go back to the east of the city."

He seemed to have something to say, but he just couldn't get it out. I said, "Mr. Zheng, do you have anything else to say?"

He suddenly became a little embarrassed and said, "General Chu, in fact, this time I want to ask you one thing. Does he know a pair of sisters named Polygonum white?"

He hesitated a little, and then it dawned on me. Zheng Zhao came to talk with me for a long time. After all, it was probably because he knew Bai Wei and the Purple Polygonum sisters. From the look of him, he might have had an affair with one of the sisters. Just for which?

At this time, I heard Zheng Zhao road: "It is Bai Wei! Where is she now? Tell me!"

I was a little annoyed. "Mr. Zheng," I said, "I told you to stop mind-reading me."

His face turned red and he said, "General Chu, I'm sorry. No, I don't. Just tell me, where is Bai Wei now? You don't think of her at all."

Don't you think of her? I was perplexed. Indeed, the White Myrtle Polygonum had been gone for three days, but since then I seemed to think of them more than of the girl playing the pipa, except when Zheng Zhao read my mind in the Marquis's tent. Perhaps, Bai Wei gave me a kiss before leaving, also just grateful.

When I was thinking about it, Zheng Zhao suddenly said, "General Chu, tell me, where did she go?"

His face was alarmed. Perhaps he was afraid that I, like the Imperial generals who had captured women, would slaughter them at will. Perhaps I did not speak for a long time to let him have such a guess, I smiled, said: "Don't worry, they went to Wuyang City three days. If it had gone well, it might have arrived by now."

The Wuyang City is more than three hundred li away from Gaohua City. If you galloped, you could reach it in a little over a day and night. They had gone by carriage, and if they had gone all right three days would have been up. Zheng Zhao then breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Have you gone to the Wuyang City?"

He looks relieved, I can't help but say: "Bai Wei is your unmarried wife?"

He smiled ruefully, blushing, and said, "I'd like to, but she hasn't said yes yet. General Chu, thank you."

He looked at me with an almost grateful expression. I sighed. "It's wartime," I said. "I'm a little worried when the two sisters leave."

Zheng Zhao Road: "You rest assured, white Wei since the intention to go, there will be no mistake. She's so good that two or three men can't get near her."

I was surprised and said, "Does she have that much power? I don't see that at all."

Zheng Zhao smiled and said, "They are the daughters of Duan Hairuo, one of the seven days under the command of Cangyue Gong. Don't you know?"

When Zheng Zhao said the name, I was even more surprised. Section of the name of Hai Ruo I have heard, in the seven days under the Lord of the moon will be ranked fifth, Hao Yong is called the first, is the republican army in general. At the beginning of last year, Cangyue sent the troops of the state to the south bank of Dajiang River, where they camped for 50 li and built ships. Seeing that the Empire was already in danger, Marquis Wu was still on his way to the king, Marquis Wen sent a contingent across the river to burn up the ships, which destroyed Cangyue's offensive and the 300,000 Republican forces gathered on the South Bank were also defeated. This turned the tide of war which had been against the Empire since the beginning of the Republican armies, and the emperor was able to mobilize a hundred thousand troops to march south. In the Cang Yue Gong lost away, it is the section of Hai Ruo. Marquis Wen and Wu Hou with soldiers to kill, if the sea to a ten thousand team block in the Pegasus ferry, to the number of outnumbered, after all, by the fire and water of Marquis Wen two will be forced to cross the success, two hundred thousand Imperial army to thunder ashore, but the sea if not retreat. At last, there were only 800 men left in his army, and they were surrounded on a hill. Marquis Wen, who cherished his abilities, sent men to surrender, but Duan Hairuo drove away the lobbyists until he died in battle. At that time, I also participated in the siege battle in the forward camp, and saw Duan Hairuo charge with 700 men until the whole army was destroyed. Although I hated him at that time for holding the whole imperial army in check with such a trivial force, so that Marquis Wen's plan already in the chest failed to achieve full success, but this heroic act also won the admiration of the Imperial army. Because of the death of Hai if, Cang month to lead the remnants back to southern Xinjiang, or early last year the Republican army will be defeated. Unexpectedly, Duan Hairuo's daughter did my maid for a few days. I thought nothing of Bai Wei's face when she told me they were the daughters of a mid-ranking Republican officer.

They're really Stoic for hiding it so well. I was a little sad, but not at all dissatisfied.

Zheng Zhao suddenly said, "General Chu, I'm going to find them."

I frowned and said, "Mr. Zheng, you are now a member of the Left Army. Deserting from the war is punishable by death."

Zheng Zhao smiled and said, "When I met General Lu, I told him that once I found Bai Wei, I would quit the army, whether it was the Imperial Army or the Republican Army. I just want to be a farmer for the rest of my life. I want to plant my fields in peace and live a life where the men plow and the women weave."

It is only Lu Jing Yu can grant such a request. I thought with some emotion. I nodded at him and said, "Well, good luck."

He smiled, and was about to say something, when a sudden exclamation came from below. At first I thought it was another attack by the Serpents, but this exclamation was more of a shock than a disturbance. Outside the city, the dust was still flying in the Serpentine camp, but there was no intention of attacking. And even if the Serpents attack, it makes no sense that the city knows about it first. When I came to the wall, I saw the Dragons and the scales, who had been practicing, standing still and looking up at the sky. I looked up too.

But in the sky, a huge bird flew by. The bird was very strange, with its wings outstretched and motionless, for in the sky it was not clear how big it was, but at least as long as a man. "What is that?" said Zheng Zhao.

The great bird flew over my head toward the Snake-man camp. At this moment, two soldiers of the right Army, who were patrolling the city, ran up to me. I said, "Hey, what's going on here?"

The two soldiers have also known me, one said: "Commander Chu, that is Xue Gong is doing things, can fly!"

Did Xue Wen also do it? He was very clever with his hands. He had made the huge kite I had escaped from the Snake-man camp in. It was probably just a kite. Look at this bird-like thing flying very smoothly, but you can't see any rope attached to it.

The two soldiers had rushed to the edge of the city and watched the kite fly away. At this moment, Zheng Zhao also came over and suddenly exclaimed, "There is someone up there!"

Then I saw that there was a man sitting on it. I said, "Who is that? What to do?"

A soldier turned around and said, "Commander Chu, Xue Gong is sitting on it."

"What's he going to do?"

The soldier looked familiar with Xue Wen and said, "Xue Gong Zheng said that kites made in the past had to have ropes attached to them. Half of the failure in the fire attack on the snake man was because they had to use ropes. They could only fly when they were so close to the snake man camp, and he wanted to make a kite without ropes.

A kite without strings? I paused my feet and said, "Nonsense! He has flown into the Serpent camp. How can he get back without a rope?"

As if in answer to my question, the kite had already flown a mile, and was almost in the midst of the snakes, when it suddenly turned in a circle in the air, as if pulled by an invisible rope, and flew back again. I was dumbfounded, wondering how it could have happened.

The soldier, who was also familiar with Xue Wen, cheered: "It's done! Old Xue is done! I say he can do it, for his skill is worthy of it."

If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed that anyone could build something that could fly a man. A kite made big enough to carry a man can fly, but it must be attached to a string. If the string is broken, the kite will fall down. But Xue Wen is also doing this thing now, it seems that can be controlled by the people sitting on it. If this had been used to fire the Snakeman camp, even if the snakeman had been prepared, it would not have been a total defeat.

The Snake men must have noticed this strange thing as well. When Xue Wen flew back, a group of the Snake men also rushed out of the camp, one in the sky and the other on the ground. The Snake men's archery was very bad, and Xue Wen was also hovering in the air. It's just that they haunt and chase.

At this time, a string of footsteps sounded behind me, I turned around, but it was Jin Qianshi with the dragon scale army also on the head of the city. "General Jin," I said, "you must send someone to report to General Yue and arrange a guard as soon as possible to prevent the Snake from attacking the city."

Although not many of the Snake men came out of the camp to chase Xue Wen, Ann knew it was not a plan. If they take the city by surprise, if the serpents take the city by surprise, it will be collapse. Yue Guohua just arrived. I went to see him, too. Besides me, all the other generals in the right army are old men. Yue Guohua trusts me very much. If I go to report to him, he will probably listen to me.

Jin Qianshi agreed, turned and ran away. I propped up a battlement and watched Xue Wenyi fly slanting through the air.

In the early spring, the wind is very chaotic, a northwest wind, a wind from the northeast. Now the northwest wind is blowing, and Xue Wen is flying to me in a circle in the air. The Serpents on the ground chased him a few paces as he turned toward the head of the city, but stopped when the wind blew him back. The chase was over three hundred paces outside the city. It was now possible to see what the snake men looked like, and though they had not been seen for a day or two, they seemed to advance and advance in a new way.

There must be some among the snakes who can train soldiers. I don't know if it was a real man or a snake man, but it was a man who was capable of taking a snake man like a beast to this level. At this time, the question that had always come to mind at the sight of the snake people army, snake people, who was trained? And who is in charge?

At the beginning of the road Gongxing had guessed that the Republican Army privately trained snake people, but snake people appear too bad time, such as we broke the city before appearing. Although I used to think it was because the snake Man was not well trained, but so far in the battle, I found that the snake man seems to be not a tame beast, but can talk and make things like a human monster, more like a human. Who, then, is in command of this army of Serpents? Is there a third party, besides the Imperial Army and the Republican Army, that wants to take advantage of the loss of both forces?

At this moment, Zheng Zhao said to one side, "General Chu, I have to go now."

I turned around and said, "Mr. Zheng, there's something else I want to ask you."

He came over. He wasn't a warrior, and he was a little rattled by how close the Serpents had gotten. I said, "Do you have any idea who is in charge of this snake man?"

He shook his head and said, "Although I cannot read the heart of Cang Yue Gong, I have done this to several officers brought by General Lu when he was negotiating with him. Although some of those officers did not want to join hands with the Empire, none of them thought of the Snake Man. It's the snake man, and it's the first I've heard of it since I got back to the city. I tried it on the way into town. Almost everyone in town was thinking about the Snake Man."

Yu Dai suddenly smiled and said, "We are thinking of the snake man, and the snake man is thinking of us."

His words made all the Dragonscale soldiers laugh. However, my brain suddenly like a flash of lightning, cried: "Right! The Snake Man is thinking of us too!"

Yu's generation was terrified, probably thinking that I was still talking and laughing. Zheng Zhao also said at a loss: "Probably."

I said, "We don't know where the snake man came from. Don't the snake man know where he came from?"

Zheng Zhao also seemed to see the light. He moved his mouth to say something, but he did not say anything. I said: "Yu general, General Wu, quickly to prepare some rope circle."

Yu Dai said, "Governor, what are you going to do?"

I snorted, said: "to catch a live snake back!"

Yu Dai was startled, and Wu Wanling stammered, "What?"

They probably thought I was crazy. There were two or three hundred snake men after Xue Wen, though not many, but there were only three hundred of us. I could not move the right army, and Yue Guohua would never agree to my idea. Though we were armed with two hundred firemines, such an attack would not win the battle, and defeat would be a great loss of morale.

"We don't want to kill all the snake people," I said. "We just want to catch one of them and bring them back alive. General Yu, you hurry to prepare your horse. We will rush out when the Snake man gets closer."

Wu Wanling hesitated and said, "Commander, without military orders, we attack without authorization. I'm afraid it will violate military orders."

At this time, a gust of wind blew, watching the soldiers suddenly issued a cry of surprise, the soldier who had been talking with me for a while shouted: "Xue!"

I looked up and saw that the cordless kite Xue Wen was also sitting on was blown by the strong wind. It suddenly tipped over, lost its balance and fell very fast. He was not more than a hundred paces from the city, and from a distance he could already see that he was straining on something and pulling himself up straight. I was surprised that Xue Wen could do a lot of strange things. If he died, it would not be a good thing. I said: "Xue Gong is in danger! The matter to the emergency, can follow the right to do things, you also have this life, hurry to prepare the horse!"

Wu Wanling also saw, he no longer talk, rushed down to the city. I followed him and turned to Zheng Zhao and said, "Mr. Zheng, wait for me here!"

Zheng Zhao was probably a little confused. I only heard him say, "General Chu, this is too dangerous, isn't it?"

Before he had finished his speech, he heard a crack outside the city. The soldiers at the top of the city also shouted out that Xue Wen must have fallen.

But I had no time to look at it. At the end of the city, Wu Bailing was fast enough to overcome the strong wind. He had already taken his horses, and many of them had a circle of ropes. I really admire him for moving so fast. I jumped on my horse and said, "Kaesong!"

The Dragon Scale camp was already at the gate of the city. Someone had already given the order to Kaesong. As I galloped out of the city, the gate was slowly opening and the drawbridge was slowly being lowered. I could not wait for the drawbridge to be lowered, so I rushed to it, and with a stroke of the whip, the horse sprang across the bridge and across the moat. The wound on my left arm hurt a little after the shock.

It's not all good after all. I thought, but I didn't care now. Behind me, Longscale soldiers came rushing out one by one.

Xue Wen also fell more than a hundred paces from the city, closer to the snake people. He had fallen sideways, with a long scrape on the ground, and it seemed that he was struggling to get out of it, not without injury, while the hundred or two hundred snake-men behind him were not more than fifty or sixty paces away from him. Fortunately, the snake-men were hurrying after him, and they did not get out in their carriages, but they were not moving very fast. I galloped forward and took off my lance with my right hand at the saddle. I had not touched this long gun for several days. I caught it by the tail with my left hand, shook, and made a flash. The wound on his left arm was a little sore, but he was fine. Even if he didn't use much force, he was fine with the gun. In the military academy, there is "the first gun in the army" said Wu Zhao had praised me, even if I exhausted, the marksmanship or let a person difficult to cope. Only at that time in the military Academy talent, a group of 300 students, although I have Wu Zhao praise, I can only rank to about 20. Just the age test does not tell the actual strength. My strength was not equal to that of Paul. When they were both full of energy, I was no match for him at once, but when they were both half tired, I felt confident that I could defeat him.

Xue Wen had also climbed out of the thing. He saw it and cried out, "General Chu!"

"Look out!" I shouted.

A snake-man threw a shot at him behind him. He heard my cry and looked back. The shot flew away. If this shot is at the beginning of Shen Xiping cast, there are ten Xue Wen also want to Pierce. Even if I did, Xue Wen would be dead.

Why are snake people always so bad at shooting? This might be a good chance to win, but there was no time to think about it. My horse rushed to Xue Wenyi's side, Yu Dai followed me closely, and two other Dragon Scalers rushed to Xue Wenyi's side. All four of us reached Xue Wenyi's side almost simultaneously.

Slow as they were, the serpents caught up, and when they were within twenty paces of us, they all stopped. Probably, they did not expect that there were still people in the city who dared to come out and fight with them. I gritted my teeth and cried, "Follow me!"

I hit the horses with the handle of my gun, and they sprang away. They rushed a dozen paces, and they would have reached the Serpent camp. I put the gun in my left hand, and with my right hand I took the loop off the horse, and, holding the end of the rope in my hand, flung it out.

This kind of rope ring is used against the enemy's horses, is the common weapon of infantry. It's been useless since the war with the Serpents. I'm not very good with the loop, but this close, it makes perfect sense. The rope looped over the head of the man closest to me and pulled hard. The serpent suddenly thrust his spear into the ring of rope, and with a sudden retraction of his head, he was already out of the ring. With this pull I caught the spear in his hand.

A pity.

Before I could say so, Yu Dai also flew out of a loop of rope and entangled himself with the snake man. The snake man did not want to give up his spear, but was trying to seize it back, and Yu Dai put the ring of rope on its head. I rejoiced: "Good! Go!"

Several snake people were about to rush up again. At this time, Wu Wanling's voice rang from behind me: "Shoot arrows!"

There was a loud noise of breaking through the air, and a dozen arrows flew in, and two or three arrows hit each of the serpents who tried to save the captured man. This must be Jiang Jae-xuan's bow team. They could shoot arrows with such accuracy even on horses, which was as good as Tan Qing's team of sharpshooters. Although the snake men had been shot, they were still trying to rush forward. Yu Dai had already brought his horses and was about to drag the snake men back. The snake man took it seriously, and when each of Yu's men tried hard, the snake man threw himself on the ground like an iron pillar, but he could not move it. At the same time, two other soldiers of the Dragon Scale Army on the side of Yu Dai also threw out their loops of rope and put them on the snake man's head. While the snake man was fighting with Yu Dai, he was suddenly hooked up to two other loops of rope. He lost his head and was pulled straight by Yu Dai and dragged across the ground.

I've got my horse, too. We've captured a snake man. We're done. I cried, "Come and tie the snake man." Then he took out a firebomb from his bosom.

Not everyone has fire mines. I only have two. Wu Wanling saw my appearance, also felt out a fire thunder bomb, I lit one, hurled at the pile of snake people. The serpentmen had never seen a firebolt before, and they didn't even flash. There was a thud, and the fiery thunder burst through the line of snakes, sending the clods of turf flying. Those snake people seemed to be shocked, even did not move, at this time Wu Wanling also threw out one, another sound.

In fact, the power of the trumpet lightning bomb is not very big, although some of the pieces of crockery, sharp rubble blasted out of the snake man's scales, but not a snake man. But the snake people were petrified. Perhaps they had no idea that we would throw something so loud.

Yu Dai had rushed back with the snake man. The snake man was still moving on the ground, and two soldiers jumped down from their horses and tried to bind him, but the snake man's body was moving like a whip, and even two horses were swept down by him. Later, the two rope rings tied around him were also broken free by him. The rope rings tied around him by Yu Dai were in the innermost part, and they were so tight that the snake man's flesh and skin could not be pulled off for a moment. But with all this commotion, chaos broke out in the Dragonscale camp.

If we go on like this, we may turn the tables on him.

I was in a hurry, but listen to Wu Wanling called: "Don't tie it, quickly drag back!"

Yes, that's a good idea. The snake man's scales were dragged back to the city along the long line, so that at most it could suffer a little pain of flesh and skin, but it could not die. The ground was level as it dragged, and the snake man could not wrap his body around the stump or anything. "Yes," I cried, "drag it back. If you have a firebolt, come and break it with me!"

Yu Dai added a whip and dragged the snake man back to the city. Although there was only one rope, the snake man was pulled straight. Several Dragon Scales followed him back. But this time the snake men were not so shocked as before. They just stood still for a moment, but saw another five or six fire thunder grenades thrown behind me. Jiang Zaixuan and his archer team did not miss any arrows. But the loud noise of the firebomb and the dust from the blast stopped them a dozen paces away.

At this time, Wu Wanling said: "Head, go quickly, the snake people will come out in large numbers!"

In the distance, indeed, there was a rush of serpents from the camp they had just set up. There are thousands of them, and now there are only a hundred of us. We are no match for them, no matter what. Even the Snake people who are chasing Xue Wenyi cannot defeat them if they do not rely on fire thunder bombs to catch them first.

I said, "OK, hurry back, don't pull the next one."

We turned our horses and walked away. One of the two Dragonscale soldiers who had been dismounted by the Snake-man had fallen a little hard and was staggering to his feet when I called, "Mount!"

He seemed a little faint, and even looked at the horse when it was so near him. Two Serpentmen, who were also covered with mud, came after me. I grabbed the Dragon Scale soldier by the hand and pulled him onto my horse. I got up on my horse and shouted, "Hit the horse!"

His horse was five paces away from me. I took a step on the horse's back, and with the end of the gun in my hand a little on the horse's stock, my horse was thrust forward by me, but I jumped from my own horse, and jumped on the helpless horse.

It's a risky move. I heard that there was once a man in the army who was very agile and could leap over five galloping horses at once. Of course I couldn't do it, but I managed to do it this time. As soon as I landed on the horse's back, I did not wait to stand still, but rushed him.

Behind me was this mass of Snake men, and I was not so arrogant as to think I could handle so many. Having saved the soldier, there is no need to dwell on the war.

All the Dragon Scale troops had returned, and Xue Wen was sitting on a Dragon Scale horse. I was the last one in the group. As soon as I mounted the drawbridge, I cried, 'Pull! Pull!"

The snake man was not running very fast. I was still twenty or thirty paces away from me, but I was afraid to face such a vicious monster again.