No matter how sensible Mu Hongshang is, she is only twelve years old after all, and she is still naïve. There were some things she didn't know, but she couldn't understand. For example, she knew early on that her brother and younger brother would put on military uniforms and set foot on the battlefield in the future, and there was no other choice. For example, she also knew early that she would marry away from home like her two aunts in the future, and there was no other choice.

Mu Hongshang understood it, and forced herself to accept all this early, but she just accepted it, but she couldn't understand it. She really wanted to ask why, why her brothers had to go to the north and not stay at home, why, why she had to marry away from home and see her family again.

But her innocent question made it difficult to answer. How to explain everything so complicated to a twelve-year-old child, Mrs. Mu was silent, and An Guogong and his wife were also silent.

Mu Tieyi sighed, stretched out his hand and touched his sister's little brain, but he couldn't say a word.

Mu Hongsheng understood the silence of the elders, she knew that she was making trouble unreasonably. She knew that her brothers had to go to war, and she knew that one day in the future, she would have to marry away from the family.

"But Daddy," Mu Hongshang couldn't help but ask, "Why."

"Because," An Guogong raised his head, looked at his daughter's pure big eyes, smiled reluctantly, and gave a seemingly perfunctory but all-powerful answer: "Because our surname is Mu." Guarding the northern border of the Great Zhou is the responsibility of my General Muhammad. ”

"Is it because of the Holy Ancestor's edict hanging in the main hall?" Mu Hongshang seemed to vent her dissatisfaction, and simply took out all the depression and confusion accumulated in her heart: "The emperor asked our Mu family to guard the northern border, and we have to go." Why!"

"Child," An Guogong stood up and stared at his daughter's eyes tightly, his eyes were very serious: "You are wrong."

Mu Chengyi stood up, the rocker was straight, not only at Mu Hongsheng, but also at Mu Tieyi, and said in a very solemn tone: "My Mu clan has been guarding the northern border for generations, but it is not for any one person or one family. General Mu guarded the northern border, going forward one after another from generation to generation, sparing his own life, and doing his best to keep the Rong Di Iron Cavalry out of the thirteen states in the north, and protect the stability of one side, who do you think it is for? Could it be for the royal family above the high hall? The word loyalty, is it worth my Mu family, generations of Mu generals who have sacrificed their lives and forgotten their deaths, and paid such a big price? ”

"Father......" Mu Hongshang and Mu Tieyi both stood up, and the brother and sister both looked at Mu Chengyi with a serious face in a daze.

"My Mu family has guarded the northern border for generations, and what is really worthy of our lives to protect is the vast Great Zhou rivers and mountains behind us, as well as the lives of the Li people in this territory." Mu Chengyi's voice was heavy but powerful: "Guarding the northern border, keeping the Rong Di Iron Cavalry out of the pass, and using blood and bones to support a stable world for the people behind them, so that they can live and work in peace and contentment under the protection of our Mu generals." What we are guarding with our lives is not the imperial power, but the people. ”

"Daddy," Mu Hongsheng's tears fell: "I was wrong."

"Child," An Guogong reached out and patted his daughter's head, and his tone softened: "You are not wrong. You're still young, you're a girl, it's your dad who forced you to accept too many things you shouldn't have accepted, and we're dragging you down. Our Mu clan is in charge of the military, and the Great Zhou Tiger Fu is passed down from generation to generation in our Anguo Mansion, so the relationship between our family and the royal family is quite delicate. You are still young, and you can't understand it, as long as you know, your father and mother are not willing to marry you far away, but if you marry farther, you can live better, much better than staying in Beijing. ”

"No!" Mu Hongsheng's big eyes were full of tears, and her nose was red: "It's true that I'm ignorant." My father often said that it was my duty to defend the land as a general, and I listened to it, but I didn't take it to heart like my brothers. My brothers will go to war as soon as they turn eighteen, and the same will be true in the future, and they have never complained, so why should I. Although I am a girl, I have the same surname as my brother and brother. ”

"My little sister is much better than me," Mu Tieyi bent down, pulled up his sleeves and gently rubbed his sister's face, wiping Mu Hongsheng's tears away: "When my brother was as old as you, I also had grievances in my heart. At that time, I always thought that the generals of the Great Zhou were not only our family, so why did our Mu family, generation after generation, fill their lives in the north. What we are and why can't it be someone else. ”

"Brother......" Mu Hongsheng's crying eyes were full of steam, and she looked at Mu Tieyi in a daze, as if she didn't expect that her brother, who was as firm as a rock, would also have grievances and hesitations like her.

"But think about it the other way around, why can't it be us?" Mu Tieyi lowered his head and looked at Mu Hongshang with a smile in his eyes: "Rong Di has always been restless, since the founding of the Great Zhou Dynasty, there have been frequent wars in the north, no matter who it is, no matter which family, it takes a huge price to defend the northern border." It's the same for anyone else, it's all generations of generals who take their lives to fill in, if you want to guard the territory and protect the safety of the people, someone has to pay this price. If that's the case, why can't it be us? Think about it, our General Mu is brave, others can't compare to us, and it may be more expensive to change others, right? ”

"Hmm." Mu Hongsheng's voice was small, and with a promise, tears fell out again: "I understand, but I still want you all to be well."

"Brother knows." Mu Tieyi reached out and touched his sister's little brain: "So my little sister is much stronger than my brother, so I figured it out quickly." It took my brother a lot of time to figure this out. ”

"Then I can't go to the battlefield too," about too sad, Mu Hongshang looked at his brother's eyes, and began to be stubborn again: "You go to the battlefield to protect the people of the Great Zhou, and I will protect you." I can, I can practice martial arts and cavalry and archery, and I can protect you on the battlefield. ”

"As soon as I praised you for being sensible, I started talking childlike again." Mu Tieyi's eyes turned red all of a sudden, and he quickly squinted his eyes and laughed, wanting to cover the moisture in his eyes: "Brothers go to the battlefield not only to protect Da Zhou Limin, but also to protect you, you want your brothers to be safe, and my brother also wants you to be safe and stable for the rest of your life." Hongshang said, is your wish important, or is the wish of your brothers important? ”

Mu Hongsheng stared at Mu Tieyi's face, stubbornly refusing to answer his question, she couldn't answer it, and she didn't want to answer. At this time, Duchess Anguo, who had not spoken for a long time, couldn't hold back any longer, tears fell out of her eyes and slid down her cheeks. She slammed up from her chair and hurried out, not even caring that her mother-in-law was still there.

"Alas!" Old Madam Mu sighed, and glanced at An Guogong with a dejected face: "Go and see your daughter-in-law."