Xizhou Jiaohe City, the night has been three watches, the Chinese army's big tent, a light like a bean.

An old man with a white beard and white hair frowned, and stood silently in front of a yellowed map like a javelin, as if the sky were falling, and he could not bend over.

Behind the old man were three middle-aged generals who were undressed. The old man looked at the map, and they looked at the old man, although there was reverence or concern in their eyes, but none of them opened their mouths.

The lights outside the big tent were bright, except for the wind blowing the camp tent, the "rustling" sound, and it was also silent.

I don't know how long it took, the lamp oil burned out, and suddenly there was a "flutter", the fire went out, and the tent was dark.

One of the generals whispered, "I'm going to refuel." The old man said: "No, there is a shortage of materials at the moment, and it is a little bit that can be saved." ”

The general said again: "Shuai Ye, you haven't closed your eyes for four days, go back to the Duhu Mansion to rest first, and as soon as there is news from the rear, we will report it immediately." ”

The old man shook his head: "This marshal moved out of the marshal's mansion, in order to advance and retreat with the army and people of the whole city, and if the enemy does not retreat for a day, this account is my hometown." As he spoke, he turned out the side door.

If the three of them were in normal times, they would have followed closely behind, knowing that it was like a toilet, and they would not keep up. One of the generals sighed: "If Brother Xie is here, he will definitely be able to persuade the handsome man to take a break." ”

Another general said: "What's the use of talking about this now, I just hope that Brother Xie's trip will be successful, or Xizhou will only be in danger." ”

The third general, who had been silent, said: "If this is really the case, the two elder brothers have a small family, and they can wait for the opportunity to leave when the time comes, and the younger brother will accompany the handsome master to live and die with Xizhou." The handsome man is sympathetic to the corporal and must not blame. ”

A previous general, with a "choking" sound, pulled out the saber at his waist, and said angrily: "Fang Xiaoyue, my Lan Ting treats you as a brother, if you want to talk nonsense again, don't blame me for turning my face!"

The old man came out of the side door and said, "Lan Ting's words are exactly what Ben Shuai meant. The man named Lan Ting knew that the old man in front of him was like a mountain, and hurriedly inserted the knife back into the sheath, knelt on the ground, and kowtowed: "Please also ask the handsome master to take back his life." ”

The other knelt down and kept kowtowing. The two of them were in a hurry, and their heads "thumped", and in a moment their foreheads cracked, and both of them were bleeding for a long time.

Lan Ting hurriedly said: "It's all because the little brother is talking nonsense for a while, although the current situation is critical, it is far from the time." Even if you can't resist it, you can retreat to Yumen and Yangguan and make a comeback. ”

The old man said in a deep voice: "Once Xizhou is lost, there will be no peace in the west. It is true that the operation of the imperial court for many years has been ruined, but who will save the lives of tens of thousands of residents here? If the thieves drive straight down, and the Yumen Pass and the Yang Pass take care of one or the other, who will dare to say that they will be saved?"

In the hearts of the three of them, the old man is a god-like existence, since people say so, Yangguan and Yumen Pass are afraid that it will be difficult to hold, and then the Guanzhong will fall, and the Central Plains will be in danger, and they can't help but break out in a cold sweat.

Suddenly, there was a sound of footsteps outside the tent, and a soldier rushed in: "Shuai Sir, General Xie is back!" A short and sturdy man followed.

Although there is no palm lamp in the tent, it reflects the lights in the distance, but it is also faintly recognizable. The man unbuttoned his coat and tied a letter to his flesh, which he untied and handed to the old man: "Shuai, your letter." ”

"Thank you. The old man took the letter and said to the soldier, "It's all right here, you go down first." The soldier respectfully withdrew.

Lan Ting knew that the matter was serious, and he didn't care about the economy, so he hurriedly filled the lamp with grease and lit it with flint. The old man opened it and read it. Everyone looked at him intently, only to see his hands trembling, his Adam's apple sliding up and down, his mouth wide open as if he wanted to speak, his throat "clucked", and his body fell backwards with a bang.

The man who delivered the letter took an arrow step and grabbed the old man in front of him. The old man breathed a sigh of relief, his face turned pale, and he muttered, "If it's not my race, its heart will be different!" Everyone knew that there was no hope, and their faces were all dead.

After half a ring, the old man asked, "How is the food in the army?" The one named Fang Xiaoyue replied: "Ten days ago, the diet was reduced from three meals to two, if it really doesn't work, everyone has one meal a day, and it is expected to last for two months." It's just that I heard that many of the people in the city sneaked out of the city and went up the mountain to find tree roots to satisfy their hunger. ”

Lan Ting said: "Or the last general will go to Yumen Pass and Yangguan to ask for help." Anthy really lost, and they also died with cold lips and teeth. ”

Fang Xiaoyue sneered: "Everyone is a person from Xiangye, in the past few years, we have asked for help four times, and the reply we received was that there was no holy edict, and we didn't dare to make a presumptuous claim." If you go this time, you won't want to suffer another evil anger. ”

Lan Ting kept rubbing his hands: "What can I do then?" The old man sighed: "For today's plan, the only way to do this is to invite the court." Xiang said to the person who sent the letter: "I have to have General Lao Xie to work hard again!" General Xie bowed down and said: "The handsome man has an order, and the last general will not dare to say anything." ”

The old man held an oil lamp and walked to the Zhongjun case. Lan Ting hurried to follow, grinding the ink away. The old man dipped his pen in it, shook his arms, stamped it with the handsome seal after writing, sealed it and handed it to General Xie: "The lives of the soldiers and civilians in Xizhou Mancheng and the safety of the Jiangshan Sheji are all up to the general." He paused and said: "The so-called plan is in people, and success is in heaven." If the general's trip is fruitless, he will stay in the Central Plains, and if there is a place to go, he may as well seek his own future. He waved his hand.

General Xie said in horror: "The last ......" The old man urged again and again: "Go quickly, go quickly, don't say more." General Xie didn't dare to say more, and bowed deeply to the three generals with tears: "The safety of the handsome man, please entrust the three brothers!"

The old man took out three long incense sticks in the drawer under the desk, lit the lamp, walked to the outside of the Chinese army tent and knelt down facing south, held the incense in both hands and raised it above his head, and said silently: "Old prince, Ding'an was rescued by you when he was young, and he survived in the world. Now the enemy is pouring out, taking Xizhou, Ding'an is sincerely afraid, fortunately, the three armies are alive, the people are united, and they are united in defending against foreign insults. However, the soldiers and civilians are extremely disabled, and the shortage of food and grass is imminent, and Xizhou is in danger. I also hope that you will always have a spirit in the sky, bless Xizhou to survive this catastrophe, and let Ding'an have an explanation!"

When the old man finished speaking, he put the incense stick on the ground and bowed four times. The three generals also kowtowed four times. By that time, the fifth watch had passed, and the dawn was approaching, and the sky was dark and dreary, as if it was about to fall......