"It's miserable!" Zhuge Xuan looked at the desolate misery in front of him, and his heart couldn't help but be gloomy. Pen ~ fun ~ pavilion www.biquge.info

This is the suburb of Xuzhou, which was originally a prosperous place. I think that when Zhuge Xuan returned to Yangdu from the lower billet half a year ago, there were still many homeless people living here. At that time, Zhuge Xuan also stayed in one of the families for a night, and also chatted with the owner of that family. Although the family lived in a makeshift cabin that could not block the wind and cold, and wore the kind of gray cotton robes, it was clear from their words and the smiles on their faces that they were still full of hope for the future. At that time, winter had come to an end, and the arrival of spring was not so far away. After surviving a harsh winter, they were already thinking about next year's harvest at this time.

"Last year's snow was heavy, and this year's harvest will be very good." They don't know much more about the plain and simple, and the life of facing the loess with their backs to the sky makes them always only care about the land they are cultivating in front of them, and only think about how this year's harvest will be, and whether they can make their lives better. Their requirements are very low, as long as they can get enough food and clothing, they are very satisfied.

However, such a humble request was interrupted by Cao Cao's violent revenge war. Murder, arson, robbery, rape are all crimes that have been committed in war. It is also here without exception. Even because Cao Cao had been fighting in Xuzhou for a long time and the grain and grass in his hands were insufficient, there were cases of eating human flesh cakes everywhere in the army.

At this point in the war, Cao Cao, who had not conquered Tancheng, still had no intention of withdrawing his troops. It is said that his subordinates also advised him to think carefully, "Do you want to fight again next year?" But he smiled gloomily and spit out a sentence coldly: "Before we send Tao Qian's head to me, even if our whole army eats all the people in Xuzhou, we can't withdraw our troops." ”

Maybe revenge in Cao Cao's heart, taking Xuzhou is the first important thing. As long as such a goal can be achieved, it is only natural that all the people will be killed and eaten. He once said, "I'd rather bear the people of the world than let the people of the world bear me", and he is indeed using his own practical actions to practice his words.

It's just that it's just right, but in the eyes of those victims, it looks very terrible. The killer never knows the fear of the slain. When they annotate their tyrannical actions with one "righteous and awe-inspiring" statement after another, they never imagined that behind their smiles, there was another group of people crying. In the eyes of ordinary people, the superior is always accustomed to using the interests of the weak to fatten the interests of the strong. Because those who are in high positions need the support of the strong, not the tears of the weak.

The lower billet was originally the seat of Xuzhou and the residence of Xuzhou Mu. Because Tao Qian was afraid of Cao Cao, he escaped from the lower billet, hid in Tancheng, guarded the city gate, and received the support of Tian Kai, Liu Bei, and Kong Rong. Cao Cao's army could not attack Tancheng, and finally had to divide his troops and plunder because of the exhaustion of food, plundering, killing and setting fire to the area of Xiabillet, even chickens and dogs, and of course not sparing the living, or killing women after being insulted, or making young children into meat cakes. Most of them had abandoned their bodies on the spot, and now, a few months later, they had been reduced to bones.

The fields that had been planted with crops had apparently been burned more than once, and the entire ground had become a black-brown patch. Under the influence of the burnt ash and the rotting corpses of the people, the grass here grew strongly, gradually reaching the height of half a man. Dots of white can be seen faintly in the gaps between the weeds. It was clearly the bones of the weak.

It's scary. In the face of the grass full of remains, even Zhuge Liang's second sister, Zhuge Ling, who has always been bold, did not dare to open her eyes. She and her delicate eldest sister could only hold on to her brother's sleeve tightly, tugging gently and tremblingly, motioning for him to hurry away from such a terrible place. They didn't know that they had their eyes closed, but Zhuge Liang in front of them stopped next to the remains of the corpse and couldn't take their eyes off it.

"Why is this happening?" Zhuge Liang looked at this piece of land with corpses and bones, and turned back to ask his uncle. At this moment, instead of feeling scared, he showed some interest. Although he had heard about Cao Cao's massacre in Xuzhou when he was in Langya's hometown, he had only heard about it from other people, and he definitely didn't see the excitement of seeing the reality in front of him with his own eyes.

"I said that Cao Cao was a poet who was calm on the outside and arrogant on the inside. He has very strong feelings. However, this is not a good thing - you must know that even in the face of good things, you should not be too aggressive, let alone take revenge on your father. Zhuge Xuan was silent at first, and after a while, he said gloomily. Although he and Cao Cao did not have a deep friendship, they knew each other well. For such a person he knew at the beginning, but now he has become as terrible as the devil, Zhuge Xuan always has some pity in his heart.

"But isn't poetry written by a leisurely man? How so? Zhuge Liang was puzzled.

"Maybe." Zhuge Xuan nodded absentmindedly, blinking his eyes constantly, as if the calamity fire of half a year ago that was still foggy here stung his eyes. He couldn't explain the hell in front of him in words. Even if I have seen many people in the market, I am deeply shocked by what is in front of him.

He looked at his nephew, who was only fourteen years old but almost as tall as himself, and shook his head gently. At this moment, he found that he couldn't understand him: "Isn't he afraid of looking at what he sees?" Ah Liang's courage seems to be a little too big. ”

He was thinking about it when suddenly a voice sounded in his ears. In the distance, there seemed to be a cavalry galloping towards him, and the sound of the hooves of the horses under them breaking the dead silence.

"Is it Cao Cao's slaughter troops?" Zhuge Xuan was unnaturally scared in the face of the sudden cavalry, and he was not yet ignorant and fearless about death. I thought that I would choose to risk returning south at this time, in fact, I inferred that there would not be too many troops in the place after Cao Cao's breakthrough, and it was easy to dodge, but now this inference seems to be broken - they actually encountered a cavalry, and it was the kind with a murderous aura. "Oh my God, what kind of **** luck did I take!" Zhuge Xuan complained in his heart.

Gradually, the cavalry approached, so that the people who were nervous in their hearts saw the cyan banners held high in the ranks: "Pingyuan Guoxiang" and "Liu".

"It's the team of Liu Bei, the prime minister of the plains." Zhuge Xuan breathed a sigh of relief, and his face, which had just been slightly pale, regained some of his blood slightly. In his opinion, as long as it wasn't Cao Cao's team, he wouldn't have suffered the fate of being slaughtered. And I heard that Liu Bei, who was born as a straw shoe seller, still has a reputation for benevolence and righteousness in the plains. The people of the states under his rule, not only in the plains, but also in other counties and countries, loved him. It is said that in this battle to rescue Tao Qian, Qing was not only the people of Qingzhou, not only the Han people, but also the Wuhuan people and "Zahu" of Youzhou, who were willing to go to the end of the world with him, "Liu Zhijun", to join the ranks of thousands of hungry people, and rushed to Xuzhou to rescue Tao Qian and resist Cao Cao.

"Well, he's a good guy. In this troubled world, there are not many good people! Zhuge Xuan muttered quietly.

"What?" Zhuge Liang didn't hear this very clearly, he hurriedly asked his uncle and motioned him to make it clearer.

"Hmm......" Zhuge Xuan was about to explain, but was interrupted by a horse coming over there.

I saw that the man was tall and majestic, with a gray and green robe on his body, a fine iron armor inside, and a Zhanger Yanyue knife in his hand, and a green dragon faintly engraved on the knife. His face was vaguely blurry, and under the sun, he couldn't tell whether his face was black or red, and he couldn't see whether his eyes were big or small, but he remembered that his long hair, which flowed on his chest and abdomen, had already been stained with dust. Looking at his appearance, he seems to be a military general, and he is a brave and unusual general. On his body, Zhuge Xuan seemed to smell the smell of blood.

"Where are you going?" The man asked in a hoarse accent.

"Go back to Jingzhou!" Zhuge Xuan's answer was very clear and simple.

"Jingzhou? I've heard it's a pretty safe place. The man smiled slightly, and said with a slight mockery: "It's also very suitable for scholars like you to go." ”

"This ......" Zhuge Xuan choked up suddenly, and he clearly heard his disdain for himself from the man's words: "What is that for?" He was puzzled.

The military general seemed to be quite willing to see the scholar's deflated appearance, and he laughed heartily at that time. He smiled, reached out and gently stroked the long beard under his chin, naturally exuding an aura of not being angry and arrogant.

"Be careful, Cao Cao's scattered army is still quite a few around here." After laughing, he warned Zhuge Xuan with a focused expression.

"Thank you!" Zhuge Xuan still had a lot of gratitude in his heart for such a kind advice, and he bowed and thanked the man.

"You're welcome!" The man nodded slightly, turned his horse and ran away, catching up with the leading caravan.

Looking at the military general in the distance, Zhuge Xuan was speechless, and he didn't know what he was thinking in his heart. He was standing and suddenly felt someone tugging at his sleeve. When he looked up, it was his nephew Zhuge . "What's wrong, Ah Liang?" He asked in a whisper.

"Uncle, don't you think these people are walking in a strange way?" Zhuge Liang whispered his inner questions.

"What?" Zhuge Xuan couldn't help but be stunned, "What's strange?" ”

"How so?" Zhuge Liang hesitated slightly, thought for a moment and then slowly spoke: "It stands to reason that they should be rushing to the battlefield, but their advance speed is not average, it is simply slow." Although the soldier's body has a strong battlefield smell, the expression on his face is plain and tight, and it even makes people see a little leisurely about going to the green. This shouldn't be the possession of a team that is about to go to war, right? They are said to be confident, but their eyes are very flashing, and they do not have the slightest look of confidence; said that they were proud, but I clearly saw the celebration of the rest of their lives from their faces. They seem to have just been released from being pressed and beaten, and there is a mixture of ease and caution in their actions. ”

"This is indeed ......" Zhuge Xuan nodded approvingly, and then taught his nephew: "Then what is your judgment on such an action?" ”

"They are not in a hurry to go to war with the enemy. It is likely that they have already won the battle, or that the enemy is already retreating, and they are pursuing the enemy. Perhaps they were facing an enemy that they had not defeated at all, and had simply retreated for some other reason. The enemy's strength was still there, so they didn't dare to chase too quickly, for fear that the enemy would counterattack when they retreated. Zhuge Liang thought for a moment and said his judgment on this matter: "This can also explain the strangeness of their current behavior - they are chasing the enemy, so they naturally have to quickly follow behind the enemy, in order to inflict greater damage on the other party if necessary." But because the enemy's main force was not lost, they did not dare to chase too quickly, and they had to worry about whether the enemy's retreat was a trap at any time and at any time. ”

"Yes, is that so?" Listening to his nephew's analysis being so reasonable, Zhuge Xuan also believed most of it, but he looked at Zhuge Liang's faintly smug look, but he didn't immediately appreciate it, but just said lightly: "Maybe there will be definite news in a few days." When you get to Xiaqiu, there will be Gan Hai waiting there. He should give me an update on the current situation. ”

Zhuge Xuan sent the housekeeper Gan Hai out a few days before leaving his hometown, firstly to search for the traces of Xiaqiu Li Sheng, and secondly, to find out the news for his return to the south and formulate a course of action. In Gan Hai's hands, most of the intelligence contacts of the Zhuge family were concentrated.

Five days later, the crowd entered the summer hill along the Suishui filled with floating corpses. Gan Hai, who was in charge of the front station of Zhuge Jia, quickly greeted everyone and took everyone to the camp. Because Xiaqiu City was burned to ruins, the people stationed in the city did not live comfortably in the wilderness. In the face of the black, burnt broken walls, how can people be calm. You see, it's a place full of sorrow.

After the encampment was completed, Zhuge Xuan opened his mouth to ask about the current situation: "What happened to Cao Cao's army?" Is it a retreat? Recently, I have only seen Liu Beijun and Danyang soldiers. ”

"Ahem...... that's because there is a serious problem in Cao Cao's rear." The housekeeper Gan Hai took a sip, revealing a look of "long talk", and slowly sat down under the second master of his own family, and began to explain - he was originally a person with a lot of words.

"Originally Cao Cao's friend and attached to Cao Cao's command Chen Liutai guarded Zhang Miao, because he was not used to Cao Cao's tyrannical behavior in Xuzhou, he rebelled under the persuasion of a strategist named Chen Gong, and accepted Lu Bu, a troubled person. This was definitely a big shock to Cao Cao. Because Cao Cao and Zhang Miao have a good relationship. Thinking that Zhang Miao offended Yuan Shao, who was the first to emerge among the crowd, Yuan Shao wanted to kill him, but was stopped by Cao Cao. It can be said that Cao Cao has a life-saving grace for Zhang Miao. Before this attack on Xuzhou, Cao Cao also told his family members seriously: 'If I have any three strengths and two weaknesses, you will entrust Mengzhuo.' It's like entrusting the future. Unexpectedly, such a Zhang Miao betrayed him, and Cao Cao, as a poet, was both angry and embarrassed.

He received the latest battle report from Yanzhou, and the brave and unparalleled general Lu Bu broke through Cao Cao's city in Yanzhou one after another, and now only Zhencheng, Dong'e, and Fanxian were designed by Xun Yu and Cheng Yu to defend and protect them. The left-behind general Cao Ren and Lü Bu's army could not win several battles, and they were now in danger.

Such a battle report made Cao Cao shocked. He knew that Yanzhou was his current base. In other words, Yanzhou is Cao Cao's home. Once lost, Cao Cao will be homeless, and there is only one way to go into exile.

In such a crisis situation, Cao Cao could only choose to withdraw his troops. So Liu Bei, who had been pressed and beaten by Cao Cao, finally got a chance to breathe. After Cao Cao retreated, he began to pursue. Because Cao Cao's military did not suffer losses first, and he had been victorious before, Liu Bei did not dare to chase too much. He was worried that Cao Cao would turn back and fight back, which would be unfavorable to Liu Beijun. As a result, he had no intention of pursuing it from the beginning. Gan Hai explained carefully.

"I see...... Zhuge Xuan nodded clearly when he heard this, but he glanced at his nephew beside him meaningfully. Such a thing can generally be understood if it is explained after the fact, but it is extremely difficult to make correct inferences from the operation of the army in the first place. Fourteen's nephew was able to easily say this, which made Zhuge Xuan stunned: "What a terrible observation." ”

"So, how did the matter that uncle asked you to do?" After listening to Gan Hai's finished speaking, the situation in front of him, Zhuge Liang couldn't wait to ask about the situation of "that child".

"There is no definite news, Xiaqiu City was surrounded by groups at that time, and it was difficult for anyone to escape." Gan Hai shook his head gloomily, he was frustrated that he had not successfully completed his master's entrustment.

"Is that so?" Although he didn't have any strong hopes for this from the beginning, when he heard the news that he was unwilling to accept in his heart, Zhuge Xuan was still a little disappointed: "Did he die early like this?" ”

Looking at the disappointment on the face of the second master, Gan Hai lowered his head in shame. He wanted to help his master do this, but he ....... He really didn't hear any news about that Xiaqiu Li Sheng.

"But ......" Gan Hai remembered something, and said, "I heard that Cao Cao ordered someone to take away a stone wall from here when he withdrew his troops. ”

"What stone wall?" Hearing Gan Hai speak suddenly, Zhuge Xuanden showed great interest.

"It is said that a swordsman who escaped from Xiaqiu City used his sword to carve a poem on the stone scolding Cao Cao. Here's what it said: 'Scold Mende. Xuzhou is rich over one million, and Cao Bing will rest once he arrives. White clothes and white armor cover the sky, and revenge and blood hatred are like locusts. He said that he was filial and virtuous, and he did everything he could. Dripping blood knife to the people, a hundred miles of prosperity turned into smoke. Only my father is a human being, and all my people are the same ants. The cycle of cause and effect is continuous, and it is always called Ru Cao Jiu Clan. You Cao Cao and his wife are not human! Yingchuan Zixu respectfully'" Gan Hai said in a frustrated voice.

"Huh? What a quirky poem! It's rare to be able to write poems so white! Zhuge Liang said with a smile. He glanced at his uncle beside him, only to find that his uncle's face had a strange look of excitement at some point.

"What's wrong, uncle?" The young Zhuge Liang couldn't think of the reason for it for a while, so he asked his uncle directly.

"He's alive." Zhuge Xuan said with ecstasy on his face.

"How so?" Zhuge Liang felt very strange.

"You don't know." Zhuge Xuan explained with a smile: "Li Sheng's character is Zixu. ”

"Huh? Li Sheng's word Zixu, Li Zixu? Zhuge Liang read the name repeatedly, and suddenly had a question in his heart: "Didn't my uncle say that he was as old as me?" That's supposed to be a scholar, how can there be words? ”

"This one...... I thought it was strange at first. I asked him too, but he asked me, 'Why do you have to be crowned to have words?' If the words are added to myself in front of my parents as an adult, then can't I add words to myself after losing my parents? I was dumbfounded. Zhuge Xuan said with a smile. Although it was a wry smile, his expression was pleasant.

"Huh!" Zhuge Liang smiled, but he was thinking in his heart: "Since this is okay, then do I have to choose a word for myself?" ”

Just thinking about it, he suddenly heard the uncle next to him ask the housekeeper Gan Hai: "Do you have any news about this swordsman?" ”

"About these people. I was afraid that they might threaten your owner's safety, so I asked them for more information. I heard that they were operating by the Suishui River, not far northwest of Xiaqiu, and they lived on a boat. In this regard, Gan Hai introduced in detail, "I heard that they rely on the robbery of Cao Jun's baggage to make a living!" There seems to be a team of hundreds of people under him. ”

"Is that so? Those so-called baggage must have also been plundered by Cao Cao from Xuzhou, right? Last year's harvest in Yanzhou was not good. Zhuge nodded, and asked again, "Can you get in touch with them?" ”

"There should be no problem." Gan Hai said with certainty: "They only robbed Cao Cao's baggage team, and did not do anything to the people passing here, and often helped the fleeing refugees." All we had to do was get to the ground and contact the people in their porridge shack directly. ”

"Porridge shed? In the place where Cao Cao attacked, they still dared to build a porridge shed? Zhuge Xuan's face was full of worry and surprise: "Wouldn't this be too dangerous?" ”

"Not really. Their porridge shack is mobile, and they go up and down the water by boat, and if something happens, they hide in the floods, and Cao Cao's army, who has no water army, has no way to take them. Moreover, they plundered small transport teams, which did not affect Cao Cao's overall situation, and naturally did not attract the attention of many people. Gan Hai explained with a smile.

"I see." Zhuge Xuan had an understanding expression, and he asked Gan Hai excitedly: "Can I go today?" ”

"No, look at this day." Gan Hai shook his head and reached out to the top. The sky is already orange-red, the sun is turning west, and it will soon set. Today's time is not early.

"Looks like we'll have to wait for tomorrow." Zhuge Xuan sighed, and then instructed his servants to start preparing dinner.

Not to mention how this night spent in the ruined city outside the wilderness, Zhuge Xuan got up very quickly the next day. He asked Gan Hai to stay behind to take care of the rest of the family, while he himself followed a young man named Luo Xing under Gan Hai and Zhuge Liang, who had to follow him to find the swordsman who saved Li Sheng.

Of course, before he set off, Zhuge Xuan also persuaded his nephew: "Can't you wait any longer?" If he's still around, then I'll bring him back. "This is a matter of urgency, and Zhuge Xuan doesn't know if he will meet those people right away today. He had to move very quickly, and if he brought a nephew who usually stayed at home and didn't suffer much, it would definitely affect the speed of his actions. It was Zhuge Xuan who didn't want him to follow.

However, Zhuge Liang said: "If he is really as powerful as you say, then he is definitely an amazing person." I can't wait to see it now. And, uncle, don't you think boys should suffer more? It's also a kind of exercise. ”

"That's too!" Zhuge Xuan was finally convinced.

Zhuge Xuan's luck is very good. After riding for more than an hour along the Suishui River, which was full of floating corpses, the three of them saw a simple pergola erected on the bank of the river not far to the west, and a group of ragged homeless people were gathering there. There was a slip on the edge of the pergola, and seven building ships and warships were quietly docked there. A few wisps of white smoke could be faintly seen rising from the ship, and it was someone who brought the cooked food off the ship - but they were cooking directly on the ship.

"This is it." Zhuge Xuan rushed up with a smoke and came to the bottom of this pergola. He turned over and dismounted with his nephew in his arms, handed the reins to Luo Xing, who had a plate, and motioned for him to lead the horse and wait here, while he took his nephew's hand and went straight to the pergola.

Perhaps because Zhuge Xuan's clothes were still relatively neat and did not look dilapidated, he and his nephew were looked at with very strange eyes when they walked among the homeless people.

As soon as he entered the pergola, a person who looked very capable and had some vegetables on his face greeted him, and asked with a smile, "Is there anything wrong with you?" His eyes were very poisonous, and he was in one of Zhuge Xuan's three at once

I saw the status of the three of them - I didn't need to dress up as this Niya, and I should have come to ask for these bowls of porridge. "They're sure to have something else." That's what they thought in their hearts.

"I want to ask if you have a fourteen-year-old child named Li Sheng here. I used to have an old relationship with him, and now I want to come here to meet him. Zhuge Xuan didn't fit them, so he went around in circles, so he directly said his intentions.

"Li Sheng?" The person's eyes suddenly lit up, and his expression suddenly became respectful, "It turns out that you are familiar with our little military advisor." Then please here, the small military and the master are on that big ship. The man who greeted him said to the ship at the head of the fleet.

He said that it was a big ship, but Zhuge Xuan couldn't see how big the ship was compared to the others. But it's really that one. Zhuge Xuan hugged his fists and thanked him, and asked him to take him over.

When the group arrived at the tread on the bow of the boat, the person who greeted them asked Zhuge Xuan to wait there for a while, and he went up to report. Although they were all dressed in civilian clothes, and there was always a slight look of hunger on their faces, Zhuge Xuan could tell from their demeanor and actions that they had all received considerable training.

"That person said that Li Sheng is the little military master here, what is going on?" Zhuge Xuan was always a little surprised and curious about this news, but he was more happy, after all, the person he wanted to find was not dead.

"I'm really looking forward to it." Zhuge Xuan was thinking about it here, but a childish voice with a bit of calm came from the boat: "Is it Uncle Zhuge ?" Li Sheng, Li Zixu is polite here. I saw a person slipping out of the cabin, and one of the fair-faced children said to Zhuge Xuan with a fist in the distance.

"Sure enough, it's Zixu." Zhuge Xuan recognized him who hadn't seen him for a few months, and his eyes didn't feel a little moist.