A day later, from the ravine of Dabie Mountain, three bald-headed and dirty teenagers, with tattered clothes and emaciated faces, looked like orphans whose parents had died in the war, and they cowered and embarked on the official road from Wuchang to Xiangyang.

Wuchang Road north by Dabie Mountain, Tongbai Mountain, south of Dahong Mountain, since ancient times for the east and west main road, the road is spacious, the road surface is flat, many road sections are even paved with bluestone slabs, rain or shine is unhindered, can accommodate two cars in parallel, there is an endless stream of merchants coming and going, ten miles a post, fifty miles an episode, on the number of pedestrians, vehicles and horses, not much less than the official roads around the city of Beijing.

Even in today's war-torn era, there are still people coming and going on this road, but there are fewer merchant and mule teams, more marching soldiers, and there are many ordinary people with tired faces who drag their families and mouths, and they staggered from the direction of Wuchang.

Wang Huan and the other three were in the Dabie Mountain, carefully avoiding the soldiers of Sule Soushan, and went around a big circle in the mountains before they got out of the mountain and came to Wuchang Road.

The three of them were tired and hungry, and all the money on their bodies was lost in the fall and flight, and they were now penniless, and they had nothing else to do, not even a copper plate to buy a bowl of gruel.

Xu Goudan relied on people to be small and bold, pretending to be pitiful, and when he passed by a market, he asked the owner of a tea shed for a bowl of tea to relieve the heat, and came back with a baby, and drank it equally with Wang Huan and Chen Ergou.

There were passers-by resting in the tea shed, and a middle-aged man who looked like a businessman was sitting at the table talking about the current situation to a few other companions, only to hear him say: "After this transaction, let's take a rest, the situation is too chaotic, our Xiangyang traders are too dangerous to walk on the road, and the little concubine in my house has just passed the door, so I can't let him be a widow." ”

Another said: "The shopkeeper is so blessed, the family is big, and we can also get some benefits from following you, but I heard that Li Zicheng has escaped into Liangguang, and this Wuchang Road is about to be peaceful, why should the shopkeeper be closed?" ”

The middle-aged shopkeeper waved his hand and said, "Who did you listen to?" Li Zicheng's Dashun army has conquered the capital, they are all fierce generals, you look at the official road, those refugees from Wuchang, ask them, you will know. ”

He drank saliva and continued: "The emaciated camel is bigger than the horse, and the rotten boat also has three catties of nails, Li Zicheng lost Wuchang so easily, and the fight over there was fierce, Bai Wang, the general of the Dashun army, and the British prince who guarded Wuchang and the Qing Dynasty are coming and going every day, I heard that the dead people on the river have blocked the river, and the river has turned red, I see that the battle of Tongguan in the past few months has not been so tragic. In this transaction, we will turn back when we get to the front, and don't go to be cannon fodder. ”

The people in the tea shed sighed for a while, and Wang Huan and the others outside also understood that it would be a matter of time before this Huguang Province fell into the hands of the Manchu Qing Dynasty.

The three of them shrank together in the corner, holding a tea bowl and drinking water, Chen Ergou licked his chapped mouth and said worriedly: "Wang Huan, in such a situation, even if we go to Xiangyang, how can we get to Yichang?" The road is chaotic, and the three of us are weak, and I am afraid that it will be extremely difficult. ”

Xu Goudan also said: "Yes, we have been looking for so long under the stone mountain, and we have not found the body of Lord Li, and there is no news of Li Yan, Zubian and others, and we don't even have a token on us. ”

Wang Huan was wrapped in rags, looking at the official road of pedestrians hurrying, but said indifferently: "Of course there are difficulties, but we have no other way out except to go to Sichuan, and when we go to Kuimen, I can still find a way to get a career under the account of General Qin, and there are eight teams of people under Master Li, there will always be someone who can return to Sichuan alive, and then we will definitely be able to testify for me in front of General Qin, that is our way of survival." ”

Xu Goudan looked at Wang Huan, stopped talking, hesitated for a long time, and then whispered: "It's just that from here to Sichuan, thousands of miles, countless dangers, can we three teenagers survive?" ”

Chen Ergou said angrily: "What? Dog, don't you have confidence in Wang Huan? If you don't have confidence, I won't be able to see you cowering! ”

Xu Goudan hurriedly argued: "Where are you talking!" I'm just talking about the current situation, where I don't have confidence in Wang Huan anymore. ”

Chen Ergou said loudly: "When Wang Huan rescued us from the dangerous place in Yangzhou, we swore that we would listen to him in everything, and we were manly husbands, so we had to keep our promises, and we couldn't be treacherous. ”

Xu Goudan responded: "Of course, I am the most righteous. ”

Wang Huan waited for the two to talk for a long time, closed his eyes and thought about it, and said slowly: "Now that we have nothing, we should be united as one, don't quarrel with the two of you, Lord Li doesn't even want his life in order to take us back to Sichuan, what else do we have to give up, even if the road ahead is a sea of swords, mountains and fires, we have to break through." ”

The two hurriedly said: "Of course, of course, we will break through together, and everyone will share weal and woe." ”

Li Tingyu's death was very exciting for Wang Huan, and it was smooth sailing at first, which made him a little careless, feeling that the ancients were just like this, with their own hundreds of years of wisdom, it was easy to make meritorious contributions to the evil and auspicious, until he was in such a big trap in Pingjing Pass, he came back to his senses, this era is not so easy to be called a king and a marquis, to achieve a career, turn things around, blood and pay, is the necessary price.

He asked himself, as a scholar, if he wants to take charge of the army and carry out civil affairs in this era, he is afraid that he will not even be able to touch the door, and some of the book experience of later generations will not be able to be converted into practical operation, and without a down-to-earth style, it will not work here at all.

There is still a long way to go, and you must be more cautious and work harder, otherwise the shadow of death will continue to hang over your head. Wang Huan sighed.

A man's maturity is obtained by learning from this failure and growing continuously.

"Let's go to Xiangyang first, and then we will make plans." Wang Huan said categorically, he already had a decision in his heart, no matter what, even if he begged all the way, he had to go to the stone pillar, as long as he was there, there was the only army in this era that could compete with the Manchurian soldiers and horses, and only by mastering that army could he look at the world.

After drinking the tea in the bowl, Xu Goudan returned the tea bowl with a smiling face, he also wanted to ask for two steamed buns, but was impatiently driven out, and reprimanded: "Little Huazi, get out of the way!" ”

The three of them endured hunger and set foot on the official road to Xiangyang, fortunately, there are many fairs in the prefectures and counties along the way, there are always some well-wishers, and occasionally they can ask for some leftovers, although the wild fruits on the roadside are bitter, they can always be satisfied, Wang Huan and the three of them are hungry and full, and they meet some temples on the road, and they can also take advantage of the hair on their heads that only come out a little, and pretend to be a little novice with a bad face, to mix a meal.

After walking for nearly ten days, the three of them almost regarded themselves as beggars, followed countless refugees, walked hundreds of miles of long roads, and with exhaustion and dust on their faces, they saw the huge city located on the south side of the Xiangyang Basin.