The sun hung silently in the middle of the sky like a huge ball of fire, embracing the earth with its blazing flames. There is not a single cloud in the sky. There was no wind on the ground either. Everything on the earth is painful in the steaming heat. The old camp of the Middle Route Army of Dazhao, Mogan Dazhai, is currently experiencing the scorching exposure of the noon sun.

This is a huge military village, east and west across the foot eight miles, north and south stretch more than six miles, three people high earthen wall, enemy towers, arrow stacks, barracks, abound, huge bed crossbow looming behind the breastwork, the iron head of the crossbow arrow shines in the sun with a dazzling cold light. A crimson battle flag was tied to the leading tower on the gate of the village, and it seemed that it could not endure the torment of the summer heat, and the flag hung softly, just like several red, blue, and green flags next to it. A few soldiers in full armor, with horns in their waists and swords and guns in their hands, paced slowly up and down the leading tower, their vigilant eyes constantly scanning the grassland shining with white points of light. On the dirt road outside the gate, a few broken spears and arrows were thrown indiscriminately, and a scimitar with a missing head and tail lay in the barley on the side of the road, and there were a few blackened blood stains on the blade. A few green-headed flies hummed as they crawled excitedly on the blades.

The barracks were quiet, and the occasional neighing of horses was almost the only sound in the land. The incandescent light reflected off the roof of the tent made of thick cowhide was so bright that it was impossible to see everything around you. In the haze, there seemed to be a group of soldiers walking past, but the light and shadow of the ground were fluttering, and people were afraid to be sure. There seemed to be some movement in the far east, like the sound of drums for battle, and like the shouts of fighting, lingering and ethereal......

To the west of the camp, by a pool of water fenced off by waist-high wooden fences, a thin figure walked through a labyrinthine of dense tents.

This is a middle-aged man in his thirties, and there are few features on his black face that people can notice at a glance except for the stab wound on his right eyebrow bone. The half-finger-long scar did not look like a new injury, nor was it serious, and the only consequence was to cut his right eyebrow into two sections, which became what the physiognomist called the "broken eyebrow" of the main torture wound.

The man hurried through rows of bedding and clothes that had been taken out to dry, and into a tent that was clearly distinct from the surrounding tents.

Zhao Shijing was naked, sitting on the ground bunk and sorting out his trophies along the way, when he saw people coming in, he just rolled his eyelids, and continued to put these earrings, bracelets, and small items in categories. He's been doing this a lot lately, taking things out and checking them, then wrapping them around and putting them away closely, leaving only one or two things he likes in his hands to admire over and over again.

Bao Kan had a pair of thin pants left on his body, and he grabbed a piece of cloth in his hand that he didn't know what it was, so he shook it like a fan, rubbing the sweat flowing on his chin and asked Qian Laosan, who had just come in: "What do you want to do?" ”

Qian Laosan didn't care about talking to him, picked up the wooden bowl on the clay pot at the corner of the tent, scooped up the bowl of water and poured it into a sigh, and then scooped up the bowl of water and poured it down most of the time, before pinching the bowl and snorting comfortably, sighing and saying, "Ha! They didn't heat me to death! He drank all the water, put the bowl away, pulled off the short cloth shirt on his upper body, wiped it on his sweaty chest, sat down on the bunk of Baokan, and then replied to Baokan's words, "It's nothing, just tell me that I have been promoted, and now I am the second lieutenant of the border army of Ximazhi." The promotion was a happy thing, but his tone was not only not excited and excited, but there was an indescribable melancholy and depression, as if the promotion was actually someone else and had nothing to do with him.

Neither Bao Kan nor Zhao Shishi showed the slightest surprise, and they did not congratulate them. Zhao Shishi held a bracelet in the pillar of light that came through the tent door and carefully examined it, and Bao Kan fanned the rags for a while. There were still twenty or thirty soldiers in the tent, some of them were snoring and dozing, some were closing their eyes and pretending to sleep, and some were clasping their knees in a trance. More than a dozen Hachagen couldn't understand the Central Plains Chinese at all, and they all lowered their heads and sorted out the armor and weapons that they had just received. Suza crouched down by the tent door at the other end and showed the two khachagans how to tie leggings.

After a long time, Bao Kan asked again: "Captain and commander, is it Zhongshan?" ”

Qian Laosan nodded, and spread his half-wet shirt on his knees.

"What about others?"

"I was called away by a master of the camp magistrate's department, as if to ask him to verify the document he had written. I didn't pay much attention to whether it was or not. ”

Bao Kan was silent for a long time, and then asked, "Didn't the boss say how to deal with adults?" "On the second day of Shang Cheng's arrival in Moganzhai, he was relieved of all his duties, and then he was assigned with them to this recuperation camp specially set up for the rout of the army on the left, and now a full five days have passed, and neither what punishment nor his whereabouts have been said, as if he had been forgotten by his superiors.

Qian Laosan shook his head. His face was gloomy, and he slowly stroked the beard on his not very clean cheeks, and only after a while did he say, "I didn't say it." I asked, and the boss said that the grain and grass transfer department has not yet made up its mind on this matter. However, they asked me how I was with my lordship. He grabbed a long beard with his fingers, tugged at it violently, and pulled it off before he said again, "I don't know what they are trying to stir up when they ask this." ”

"What did you say?"

Qian Laosan's face darkened, he bit his teeth a few times, and glanced at Shang Cheng, who was still asleep on the ground next to him. Shang Cheng didn't wear a shirt either, and plasters were plastered everywhere on his neck, shoulders, waist, and two arms; A raw cloth bandage went around his shoulder, tangled with the bandage that was around his chest; A pair of coarse cloth trousers dyed black and blue, one leg dragged down to the knee, the other leg was pulled up at the base of his thigh, and his thigh was also wrapped in a thick bandage. Looking at the big and small injuries on Shang Cheng's body, Qian Laosan seemed to have returned to the time when he attacked the camp at night a few days ago...... The strategy of attacking the camp and burning grain was discovered by the enemy, and the ambush was hit in the middle of the road, and the team could only seize the road to the east. There was a melee in the morning fog at dawn, the soldiers were fighting less and less, but the enemy was more and more, rushing to wherever it was the soldiers of the Raiders, and suddenly to a place was a forest of knives and spears, and in the end there were countless leather hats in all directions, and it was impossible to tell where the way to escape was. In a moment, Shang Cheng led people to break through the enemy's formation and rescue them, but he himself was swept up by the enemy who came up like a tide, if it wasn't for Chen Pu who led people to kill back......

It seemed that thinking of something terrible, Qian Laosan shuddered, and the person also came to his senses from the loss of consciousness. He looked away, snorted, and said, "What else can I say?" I didn't even let out a single fart, so I called them to come and see the injuries on the adults! He squinted his eyes, stared at the white and swaying world outside the tent, spat for a long time, and sneered, "Fuck it!" I really don't know what those egg bastards are thinking about when they become sky-high! Isn't it just that he recruited a few Hachagen as border soldiers, and I've asked his mother three or four times about big fart! ”

Bao Kan glanced at him, and scolded in a low voice with a cold face: "Be quiet! Adults just fell asleep! ”

His words were like an unquestionable command, and the tent, which was still a little noisy, was immediately cleared, and even those who could not understand the Chinese language were tightly shut up. The tent suddenly became quiet, so quiet that you could hear Shang Cheng snoring slightly. Outside, there were a few unknown insects in the grass, chirping and singing songs that no one could understand. There seemed to be someone talking by the pond. A few low sobs came from somewhere.

Seeing that his recklessness did not wake Shang Cheng up, Qian Laosan let out a long breath lightly and asked quietly, "Has the military doctor been here today?" ”

Bao Kan nodded and said, "I've been here, just left." I changed the medicine for the adult, and let me take the medicine, saying that I would be fine after two or three days. He took a bag of dry food from the grass next to the shop, turned out a white bun wrapped in red dates, broke it in half and handed it to Qian Laosan. The general entrusted someone to bring it, and they all have a share. With that, he put the other half back into the bag of dry food.

Qian Laosan looked at the bun and said, "Keep it for adults." ”

Bao Kan glanced at his good friend warmly and said, "My lord has already eaten." Everyone is one and a half, and they can't eat enough, that is, they are hungry. ”

Qian Laosan stubbornly said: "I don't want it." ”

Bao Kan didn't persuade him anymore, and put the half of the bun back.

After a while, Sun Zhongshan also returned.

Like Qian Laosan, Sun Zhongshan, who had just been officially promoted from the "fake position" to the direct commander of West Malaysia and the captain of the border military camp, did not have a happy expression on his face. He asked about Shang Cheng's injury, ate half a bun and drank a few sips of water, then sat on the side and never spoke again. His brows have been frowning tightly, and the word "Chuan" has been twisted out of the center of his eyebrows, which seems to be preoccupied.

Zhao Shishi packed up all the bits and pieces, sat on the bunk with his legs crossed, leaned on the pile of bedding, and asked, "What's the matter?" Under the weather? Or is the wound pus-filled? He knew that Sun Zhongshan was stabbed in the shoulder blade by the enemy in the battle of attacking the grain depot, although the flesh was not deep, but the wound was very long, and the injury was not light.

Sun Zhongshan didn't answer, but just shook his head with his lips, indicating that he was fine.

Zhao Shishi stared at him, thought for a while, and then asked, "Did you write the paperwork that you handed in, and you were picked out by the top?" Originally, this document describing the back and forth should have been written by Shang Cheng, but Shang Cheng was injured first, and he had just been dismissed, so it could only be written by Sun Zhongshan, who acted as his agent.

"There is nothing wrong with the things on the paperwork, but some trivial things may not be clearly written, just explain it." Sun Zhongshan smiled. He didn't want the stone to worry about himself.

Bao Kan glanced at Sun Zhongshan's face and said, "What's going on with that?" ”

Sun Zhongshan was silent. After a long time, he said: "The Zhibing Division has been asking about the adults. Asked over and over again. ”