"Dear Huo. Arcadio Second:

Hello!

By the time you receive this letter, it should already be New Year's time, and I wish you all the best!

Since I was separated from you, my thoughts of you have grown day and night.

I arrived at the pier a few days after leaving Fedner, and the accent here was strange, which I had never heard. But as someone who grew up in Costholma, life in this seaside town was familiar to me: the salty air, the oiled ropes, the horns of the ships entering the harbor. I'm familiar with all these things. I was staying in a small hotel on the docks, the bedding was damp and wet, and the people below were singing noisily until the second half of the night. I opened the window at night and looked outside, and the night lights on the pier were shining, and I thought to myself, "I'm leaving Rhodoc soon." ”

I thought about leaving Rhodok for a long time, and finally made up my mind to leave here. Because in this place, I can't find my own direction, and the sluggish and decadent life in the university is not for me. You may know my situation, but behind me is a down-and-out family, and this pressure prevents me from indulging myself. I am very grateful to you and General Garcia for your financial support to allow me to live a good life in Rhodoc, but I know that this kind of funding cannot be relied on all the time, and I do not want to be a burden and a vassal to anyone, you know that. I cherish the friendship between us, so I don't want me to be under your help all the time, this feeling is oppressive, and I even believe that one day this kind of thing will ruin our friendship, so I have to leave. One of my mentors taught me that true friendship can only be built between two people of equal strength.

Once again, as I listened to the navigator on the pier blowing a rusty brass horn to guide the ship out of the mooring, I suddenly felt a deep sense of loss. I sniffed softly at the dust on my father's grave, trying to get close to me, a stranger and dear. I think my father has seen all these things, and this feeling often comes flooding back.

When I look at the silver-gray rolled rye that fills the world in an endless way, I think of my father; When I walk through my family's woodland and look at the ancient love poems carved into the trunks of ancient trees, I think of my father; When I watch the young people of the town celebrate their rites of passage at a bonfire, I think of my father.

I wonder if my father, like me, was lost in the wilderness; I wonder if those loyal words were engraved with a dagger by my father in love; I would wonder what my father would do if he were still alive and how he would arrange my bar mig.

You may not know how important it is for a family like mine, no, it should be a family, a parent. But my family was left with me and my mother. My mother was a woman of high moral character, and after my father died in southern Xinjiang, she kept her promise to my father all her life and never changed herself. The main reason I came to the South was because of my poor mother, whose life was coming to an end, and her last wish was that I could bring back a little of the dirt from my father's grave and give her a permanent home. I always remember when I left the house, she stood by the door, leaning against the door frame, watching me leave with worry, I really didn't dare to look back at her, I was afraid that once I turned back, I would not have the courage to go on.

Whether it's because of my mother's desire or because of my own ambitions, I have to get out. The world here is too small, there are only endless wheat fields, only muddy and dirty coasts, and only endless pirates and shallow villains. I had to get out of here, but in Rhodoc, when I fell asleep on a snowy night, I remembered my mother: I left myself and left her alone.

I want to go back, to fulfill her wishes, to fulfill my ideals, to fulfill my father's tribute. One of my father's most trusted friends, my mentor, said that my father's grave once had its own lilies, and the fragrance lasted for a long time. Is this a miracle that my father has shown, I don't know. For those shining miracles on a grey day, I'd rather believe it to be true. My mentor told me, "This is a sign of a revival for the Wright family."

Yes, dear Arcadio, I want to revive this family.

I haven't told anyone, but I must tell you that my family's title was revoked when I was not an adult, because I had no heirs. I have the name of nobility now, but legally I am only a commoner. Fortunately, my family has a good reputation, and I can use it to get the opportunity to serve my country and use it to get back what belongs to my family. But if I stay in Rhodoc for a long time, I'm afraid I'll miss out on a lot of opportunities. I know that the future of the Wright family can only be in Svadia.

You should know my predicament, and I admit that I don't have any friends in Rhodoc. In addition to you and Cesar, there are a few more knowledgeable fellows, and I have always looked down on others. Mr. Arcadio, your kindness and bloodiness are precious qualities, and these are the reasons why I admire you, but you must know that the condition of kindness is not to harm yourself, and the premise of bloodiness is not to act impulsively.

I was trained and humiliated, scolded to my face but couldn't fight back. I saw no way out of this oppressive life, and I even began to doubt the need for such patience. But that encounter on the plains of Suno made me realize how serious the consequences of my own impulse can be, and it can easily ruin a person. That's when I learned the true meaning of patience. It is not weakness, it is by no means weakness, but being strong, strong to endure one's sorrow and hesitation until the day of success, until one's own strength can pay for any of its actions. So, Mr. Arcadio, don't do anything that is dangerous to you, it won't cost you more than you gain.

Because of your morality and banditry, just like me at that time, you ended up being kidnapped; You helped Rhine, but you almost died; You help some poor peasants, but you have a grudge against your uncle. These are not worth it, I also have a lot of shortcomings, we should change these shortcomings, otherwise we will be torn to pieces by this world one day sooner or later.

You know what happened to the Wright family, which happens again and again when the ancient noble teachings are wantonly insulted by a group of worldly people. So order must be recast.

You were born into a successful lord's family, and you may not be able to appreciate the bitterness of my family. My mother's clothes were not even as good as those of my grandfather's servants, and the little man abandoned my family, his daughter, and his grandson at the first moment of discovering that my family was losing power. Do you know what it's like to be ignored by a group of cousins? When I visit them at the festival, their conversation comes to an abrupt end as soon as I walk in the door. Later I learned that most of their conversation was about laughing at my family, and that the ridicule was just to set the mood. And when I was eating, they would deliberately prepare double portions for me, and they said, I must be very hungry.

I don't want to see them again, and I'll remember this humiliation for the rest of my life.

What I saw and heard in Rhodok made me know that the old order was crumbling. How can we doubt the wisdom of our ancestors? What the hell do the Rhodoks want to do! They left the king and the nobility aside, did they think they would be able to lead the country? The art of domination is not a skill that can be mastered in one or two generations. I have seen some nouveau riche manor owners who, no matter how hard they try to build their estates, are still unable to surpass the experience and wisdom of some of the old manor owners. This is the gap, and it takes countless generations to form an efficient and perfect order, but the Rhodok has abandoned this, which is simply foolish.

At this point, I'm very unhappy with Cesar and Goblin and Teacher Sabel. They are leading you in a dangerous direction, and they are convincing you that the wisdom of the people is enough to steer the country. Ridiculous, look at the ignorant commoners of my mother's family, who guard their own acres and threes of land, and do not want to make progress, thinking that being a rich man in the small town of Gomos is a very successful thing. They eat the earthy grain produced on their farms all year round; They drink home-grown wine and shochu and, if they have the money, import some kvass from Vicchia; They wore cloth woven by their servants and looked very satisfied.

Can such a person save the country? Can such a person make history? Is this kind of person up for the challenge?

So many great battles, so many dead heroes, so many wise laws. The significance of these things is manifested in the long river of history, and this can save my motherland! That's what makes history! This is the only way to meet all challenges, whether it comes from the trade competition of the maritime merchants or from the invasion of the grasslands, whether it comes from the harassment of the northern swamps or the sharpening of knives on the other side of the desert. The trumpet of the empire will never be extinguished, the flag of the empire will fly forever, and the heroes of the empire will carry spears and shields across the fields, over the cities, over the villages, to dedicate their youth and everything to the cause of the empire.

Please think about what I said, why is your family thriving? It is precisely because the rights of the lord are respected that this system allows Ling Zun to lead the family to prosperity within a generation with his own hands, so why abandon it?

Let's talk about my own business.

My mother died.

When I didn't see her leave, my grandfather buried her in his family cemetery, and when I went, it was covered with grass. My mother died last winter while we were frolicking in the hot spring town. I was standing in the middle of the weeds, and I asked my grandfather, "Why doesn't anyone take care of it?" He couldn't speak, this old thing didn't shed a single tear, this is his own daughter, I am his grandson!

He finally found a servant with a sickle and a hoe to reluctantly clean the grave. I drove him away, and then I cleaned the grave little by little, I did it very carefully, slowly tearing off the weeds, digging up the roots, and tidying up the mound. I've been in the cemetery. In the evening, a servant brought me a lantern and a packet of bacon. I asked for his name, and I promised him that when I succeeded, I would give him a manor. The man didn't believe it, but thanked me with a smile anyway. I stood by the edge of the cemetery until midnight.

I had long expected that my mother would not be able to wait for me, but when I really knew, I couldn't help the sadness in my heart. That night a warm wind blew from the western sea, insects chirped in the ears, and dew wet clothes. My mom is gone.

In the middle of the night, I opened the little tin can, and gently poured out the dust inside, and I said to the little grave:

"Mom, Daddy is back".

I left the next day, the grassy plains, the waves of the crossings, the low grave of my mother. Once again, I left alone and left my mother there alone.

For more than a month after that, I had a messy life. In Suno, I met your great uncle, who remembered me and wrote me a letter of introduction to Uxhall. From him, I know that your servant Jill's sweetheart has gone to the steppe, and Gil still has not returned, God bless him.

There is nothing more to repeat after that, I reported at the Uxhall Military Academy, and with your uncle's letter of introduction, I registered well, and the next time you see him, please thank him on my behalf. The man who received me was your relative, Dimitri, who had been studying there for most of the year, and who has been under his care ever since I went. I can't say much about the life in the barracks, so please forgive me, it's very hard and monotonous. Sometimes I suddenly think of those days in Djerkhara, and sometimes I suddenly think of you.

Later, Dimitri's company was subsumed into the newly formed Eastern Army, which had been exhausted by the Kujits on the steppe. The Forces nouvelles were asked to report to the station, and Dimitri asked me if I wanted to go, because I had already learned a lot of theory and techniques in Rhodoc, and I didn't want to waste any more time on it. I agreed to Dimitri's invitation and followed him on a journey to the east. We stopped at Decherim for a few days, as the New Eastern Army required some of the junior officers to also serve as law enforcement officers in the army, so we took a few days of criminal investigation courses. You know, it was Ruda who taught us, and this guy recognized me at the beginning, but he didn't say anything until the end of our class, and he whispered to me, "It's not over."

I don't know what he was referring to, maybe we were too reckless at the time. But now that I'm from the army, he doesn't dare to do anything.

Dimitri and I followed the army to Fort Lundia, which is now the easternmost fortress of the Empire. From the top of the city walls, you can see the yurt of the Kugit shepherds in the distance. Looking at the herdsmen who wandered back and forth, I was very annoyed, the former hinterland of the empire is now a border stopper!

Dimitri has now finished his course, he has been promoted to non-commissioned officer in Fort Lundia, and is now a ten-captain. I like to call him General Dimitri, which annoys him and he says I'm sarcastic about him.

In total, the army issued his troops more than twenty coats of hard cloth, four shields, nine spears, four broad-bladed knives, two axes and two hammers, a crossbow, and a bow. Dimitri complained to me privately that he was begging for food. It is ridiculous that none of the four knives given to him have a handle, and not a single arrow has been issued to his crossbow. He went to the quartermaster to ask for something. The quartermaster was arguing with a group of angry non-commissioned officers who, like Dimitri, felt that the dispensing was too shabby.

The quartermaster was furious: "When I was fighting, it was only three people who had two knives or two spears. There are no shields, crossbows, or anything, and some scythes, clubs, and mallets are still brought by themselves. After a few battles, the army was equipped with some acceptable equipment, what are you arguing about? What's wrong without a knife handle? What's wrong without a bow and arrow? Didn't I give each of your squads axes? There is a grove in the south of the city, so you can't finish it by doing it yourself. We are not a relief house here, and if you say it again, I will withhold your food, and if you have the ability, go to the general to see if he is on your side or on my side. ”

Dimitri had no choice, so he worked as a carpenter for a few days, loaded all the handles of his knives, and made more than a thousand arrows. General Dimitri now has ten men in charge, but he is much stronger than me, and I am only a reserve officer with an empty rank.

There's nothing else going on these days, it's just that it's very cold.

We're cold, and the Kugit aren't much better, but something is wrong with the fact that there seem to be more and more Kugit people around here. Our spies said that a large number of Kugit people had come from all over the steppe with cattle and sheep. Looking at the thousands of hoofed cows, sheep, and horses, the spectacle is sure to impress you. The Kugit did not come to do business, because they did not form a lively bazaar with yurts and tents, as the steppe traders used to be. The gathering of these people is unusual because some of them are herders, but there are many more who are certainly not. I had seen a small caravan of horses turn back and forth on the hill east of Fort Lundia, as if to survey the terrain. Later, when I followed the cavalry of the patrol to see what was going on, the men immediately dispersed. Our scouts reported on the situation everywhere, and it was generally similar to that of Fort Lundia, with the Kugits approaching the border.

Some say it's because the Kugit want to show off their strength, some say it's because the Kugit want to emigrate to the border, and some say it's because the Kugit are preparing to start a large-scale exchange of trades.

But I don't think so, I feel like there's something going on. Maybe I'm overthinking.

If I'm lucky, I'll be made a non-commissioned officer tomorrow spring, and I hope to get good news from you, but I have mixed feelings at the thought that you might become Captain Rhodok.

It's evening, and today Dimmit is out of town with the cavalry, and I hear them coming back, and a soldier with a Suno accent is shouting to open the city gates. The castle was full of busy servants counting food and oil, the tinkling of blacksmiths did not stop at night, and the sky was as clean as a pure blue Paravenian handkerchief.

I like it here. Okay, I'm going out to pick up Dimitri. That's it. Please write me back.

You're loyal

Sloin. Wright in Fort Lundia

”