(a)

At this moment, there are 81 hours left until your death.

Outside the tent resounded the muffled thunder of summer. The strong winds before the thunderstorm howled through the camp.

You sit alone in front of your desk, listening to the tent cloth crackling in the wind.

You gaze at something in your hand.

That is the brass arrow that you gave to me after the audience in the city, and when I returned to the door after marriage, I threw back the brass arrow to you. That didn't matter if I fired it twice, I killed Wen Gao, and I almost killed Jing Yun's brass sleeve arrow.

You are alone and quietly watching it.

This is the first time since I got married that you have held it in your hand and looked at it carefully.

When you look at it, it's like you've seen me when I was a girl.

You're reminded of the first time I hit a target with it.

You remember the way I suddenly turned around at Jingyun and shot at him with my Hidden Arrow. You remember how you jumped over the table and grabbed my hand.

You think about it.

You realize that everything, the sweet, the bitter, the joyful, the sad, is now a dream.

You pick up the oilcloth that wipes your weapon and start wiping the Hidden Arrow, which you haven't used for a long time, and you polish it from the inside out.

After polishing the quiver and arrows, oiling the trigger and firing machine, and maintaining it to make sure that it is functional and easy to use, you check the sharpness of the little arrow against the light.

You snap two small arrows into the barrel, one left and one right.

You test firing at a small target a few meters away. The Hidden Arrow is well-made, and although it has been left unused for a long time, it is still smooth and dexterous. Every time you fire, you hit the very center of the heart without any problems.

You get up and walk over, pull the little arrow off the target, and reload it into the quiver. Carefully pack it in a rainproof cloth bag and place it on the table in front of you.

You look at it.

You say in your heart, "Qin'er, I have gone to avenge your father and fulfill your mother's wish." You have to live well, guard the peace behind me for me, and pass on the family generation for our parents. So that the parents of both of us can be proud of you. ”

You say in your heart, "Qin'er, I'm about to wake up from a dream in this life, and I can't see you anymore, and I can't be with you anymore." We'll see you in the next life. ”

(b)

At this moment, there are 80 hours left before your death.

The summer rainstorms on the steppes have finally arrived.

In the pouring rain, the sky was dark. From time to time, the electric light tore through the thick blackness of the clouds. The thunder of the ear boom was incessant.

You spread out a roll of rice paper by candlelight, and write your last letter to Liu Shen.

In your letter, you said your final goodbyes to Liu Shen.

You said that since Yantang Pass met His Majesty, His Majesty has treated his ministers like brothers and sisters. Treat each other as confidants, treat each other with all sincerity, and share life and death. Chen Ming felt heartfelt and beyond words.

You have reviewed the countless good cooperation between your monarchs and ministers over the years, and expressed your deep satisfaction that almost all of the ideas of the monarchs and ministers in the Yantangguan General Military Mansion have been realized one by one.

How do you feel the deadline on the northern front this time. How to decide to temporarily change the battle plan, and how to jointly decide with Yang Biao to carry out the final battle on the northern front in advance. How to decide to take the risk himself, to set up an encirclement by surprise, to ambush the king of Ulindenmu Khan, and how to predict that this trip would have no return, all reported to Liu Shen in detail one by one.

You also truthfully reported to him about the summons you had with Yang Biao before the expedition, and had a private conversation with him.

At the end of this cantata. You wrote: "The minister cannot personally see the unification of His Majesty's country, and cannot personally congratulate His Majesty on the founding of the country and his accession to the throne, and I regret it very much. In this inch of silk, in this eternal night, Chen Yao wishes His Majesty the emperor eternal prosperity. Longevity knows no bounds. ”

You are the first person in this world to call Liu Shen "Your Majesty".

After writing the letter, you unfolded it and checked it, and the words were correct and the handwriting was neat and clear, so you asked the document to come in, sealed it, and sent it to the Yunjing Imperial Court by post for three hundred miles.

Eight days later, Liu Shen saw the last letter from your life in the palace.

He looked at your handwriting, and realized with great sadness that he had been separated from you, and that he would never see you again.

He read your last letter several times.

He sat there and couldn't hold back his tears.

With tears in his eyes, he sighed sadly to the left and right: "In the future, I will never have such a friend as the general." Never again. ”

(c)

At this moment, there are still 70 hours left until your death.

In the interval of the rainstorm, black clouds were overwhelming, and the air was filled with the smell of muddy water.

In front of you stand 500 hand-picked Han cavalry. All of them were the best fighters: young and strong, physically strong, courageous, experienced, skilled in martial arts, skilled in horsemanship, and almost identical in stature and height.

You look at them one by one, and then look down at the list.

You said to Wu Shun, "You don't need so many people. Three hundred people are enough. ”

Wu Shun said: "Please ask the general to choose it personally." ”

You thought about it for a while, and said, "Well, if you have parents at home and no other sons to support, please stand up." ”

The soldiers looked at each other.

Some people have stepped forward. You wave them to the other side.

Again, you say, "If you have young children in your family who are not yet adults to support, please come forward." ”

Some more people come forward, and you wave again, and get them to step aside.

Then you say, "If you have a pregnant wife or a fiancée to be married, please come forward." ”

This time, a little bit more people came out.

You look at the rest of the team and it feels like it's over 300.

Your eyes wander over each of their faces, wondering who else would be better left behind.

At this time, you saw Xie Shuangcheng mixed in the middle of the team.

You sigh inwardly.

You call him: "Xie Shuangcheng,." Stand up. ”

Xie Shuangcheng came out of the queue in response and knelt down on the ground: "The mark is here." ”

You say, "Go out, you don't have to go." ”

Xie Shuangcheng kowtowed and said: "Mark, no matter whether you live or die, you are willing to follow the general!" ”

You shake your head and say, "No." You're about to become a father. ”

When you and Liu Shen spent the New Year in Yangquan Pass, Xie Shuangcheng was reunited with his wife who stayed in Yangquan Pass. His wife had their child at that time, and now she is seriously pregnant, and she is about to give birth for some time.

Xie Shuangcheng kowtowed again: I am willing to follow the general and live and die with the general! ”

You look at him.

The firmness on his face was the same as Wu Shun's.

You didn't argue with him in public.

You motioned for him to stand up.

Xie Shuangcheng was overjoyed, and kowtowed for the third time: "General Xie is complete!" ”

(iv)

You address all the soldiers who remain.

"Now, brethren, we are about to do something that will go down in history. If we succeed, we will be able to end the war on the Northern Front in one fell swoop. We will soon have a peaceful and prosperous country. Our loved ones will have a stable life. We will be the heroes of the new nation, we will be written, we will be remembered, we will become stories and legends. ”

"However, it was also the most dangerous operation I have ever had since I started in Rong. It's unlike any other battle. This time I wasn't sure I could bring even one back. I myself have no intention of coming back alive. All I have to do is accomplish the goal of this attack. I never thought about how to get back. ”

You say, "There is a good chance that all the people who go with me will be killed in battle." None of them will come back. ”

You say, "Now, you have one last chance to choose." If you don't want to end your life here, you still have time to stand up. ”

You say, "Don't think it's a shame to stand up. It is human instinct to cherish life. I'd rather not have the number of people I needed than someone who would feel regret and timidity after leaving. Because a cowardly person can mess up the whole thing and may make everyone else die in vain. ”

You say, "Each one of you thinks it through." I'm waiting for you to decide. Those who stand up will not be punished and ridiculed. I promise. ”

When you're done, you just stand there, waiting.

The team in front of you is silent, and not a single person moves.

You wait for a while, and when you see that the whole team is not moving, you ask again: "Is there anyone?" ”

At this time, someone in the team shouted: "I am willing to follow the general to the soup!" Never give up! ”

In an instant, the entire team erupted into a thunderous voice: "I am willing to go to the soup with the general!" Never give up! ”

You look at them.

You say, "So, for the king of Han and for the country, thank you!"

You say, "Although everyone is loyal and courageous, there is no need for unnecessary sacrifices." ”

You say, "Wu Shun." ”

Wu Shun said: "Yes." ”

You hand him the list in your hand.

You say, "Pick out those under 22." For the rest, just follow me. ”

You say, "Report their names to the king of Han, and it will be enough to say that they are all people who died with me." ”

You say, "The king of Han knows how to deal with the soldiers who died bravely for the eventual arrival of peace." ”

(5)

On that day, the result of repeated selection, if you don't count Xie Shuangcheng, you got a total of 298 people, plus you and Wu Shun, exactly 300 people.

Children, this is the "Three Hundred Warriors of Xiyuan" that I am a household name in the world.

Each of you has heard of their loyalty and courage when you were still children.

No one survived that battle. They were all dead. At the last moment, before peace came, they voluntarily chose to be engulfed in war.

Later, their names were inscribed on the Martyrs' Pavilion in our royal city. Everyone was posthumously knighted. Their spiritual thrones were bestowed with the royal family's temple. Every year, the emperor and hundreds of officials can be solemnly commemorated twice in spring and autumn.

Yes, it's the Martyrs' Pavilion where we are now.

Their souls are here, watching us from heaven, watching whether we respect their sacrifices, whether we are dutiful, and whether we are guarding the peace that they have exchanged for their young lives for the people of the world.

Children, as the descendants of the former emperor, each and every one of you, male or female, has a responsibility to be worthy of these heroic souls who died for the country many years ago. (To be continued.) )