Just after the New Year, Bianjing City, which is thousands of miles away from Saibei, is peaceful, and the more south you go all the way back to Beijing, the warmer it is, the spring flowers are blooming, and many trees are beginning to sprout, Zhang Mingyue has to feel that although Saibei and the south belong to the same territory of Western Chu, they are like two worlds at all.

The wind in Saibei, the snow in Saibei, the veterans who died on the battlefield in Saibei have gradually drifted away, retreating to Guanzhong, many soldiers are nostalgic but finally understand the reason, understand that they have to do this, but they have lived in the Tiger Wolf Pass for too long, and they have begun to be incompatible with Guanzhong, as big as being in the world, as small as a needle, a thread, a bowl and a chopstick, have developed a unique style in Saibei, Zhang Mingyue does not know when this habit can be changed, when these veterans who dedicate their youth to the border can really return to their original life.

"You don't plan to go back to Bianjing, maybe you should go back and see your childhood sweetheart and the girl who married the sissy. ”

The night before staying in Guanzhong, Zhang Mingyue met with the scholar again, even if all the veterans who are familiar with Zhang Mingyue know that this seemingly fierce and delicate young man actually has a great background, and they are fundamentally different, but the years of fighting together on the border are not a difference in status is an insurmountable moat, most of the soldiers go straight to the front, they don't care who is behind you, and no matter if you have a big background, as long as they have killed the enemy on the battlefield together, as long as they are drunk and lying on the battlefield together, and the iron clothes are buried in dry bones, that is a brother, since the day they left Saibei, the brothers of Xue Zijun cried bitterly for the first time that night, because the emperor issued a new decreeThe emperor said that he was old, but he did not say how to count the age, whether it was a soldier who was still stationed at the border in the age of Lao Xu or a soldier who survived for one or two decades, but it has to be said that most of the Xue Zijun are actually forty or fifty years old veterans, forty or fifty years old is not old, but they have become veterans in the army, most of the veterans have dedicated their youth to the land that threw their heads and spilled blood, saying that they like it or not, no one likes to be born with a horse leather shroud, It's not a hate to say that you hate Tiger Wolf Pass, but it's just that it's too easy to treat that place as your second home after living in one place for a long time.

Now that the emperor has ordered it, the soldiers don't know whether to cry or laugh. Crying is about to leave this lovely army, laughing is about to return to his hometown.

Where are men out who don't want to be home, and those who say that they don't want their fathers and mothers and their wives and sons are, but even if the emperor doesn't say it explicitly, most soldiers are clear in their hearts like Spiegel, Xue Zijun needs to change blood and need to re-form a regular army that can really fight tough battles, not these stragglers.

When Zhang Mingyue first received the news, she was happy for the soldiers, happy that there was finally no need for another mass grave in this pass, and happy that these soldiers who had almost forgotten their names in the past could finally sleep peacefully, without worrying about Saibei Mingjin in the middle of the night, not worrying about sleeping until the middle of the night when the wind lifted the tent, and no longer worrying about the brothers who were still talking and laughing together today will close their eyes forever tomorrow.

When she learned that the scholar did not plan to return to Bianjing, Zhang Mingyue was also surprised, and finally found the drunk scholar in the longing of the shadow, but he was still persistently playing hooligan fist with the veterans.

"The girls are all married, I still have a fart to use when I go back, is it possible to be a godfather to someone else's son?"

When the scholar came to Xue Zijun, Wen Crepe didn't look like a soldier at all, and after living with the veterans for a long time, he was gradually affected and began to swear a lot, even if the spit stars were splashed into the wine jar, they were still distributed to the red-faced and heart-beating veterans who also drank.

"Godfather doesn't have to do it. ”

Zhang Mingyue helped up a veteran who had fallen to the ground and couldn't afford to speak, and was still yelling at him not to get drunk and not return.

"It's just that even if someone else gets married, you should go and see each other again, you can tell her that you like her for a long time. ”

"And then I was found by the sissy of the dog day to beat me, isn't it? Lao Tzu is not so cheap, and he can't beat those strong ones like oxen, and when the time comes, he will end up in an embarrassing end, men, you know, even if a man is embarrassed, he must not be embarrassed in front of the people he likes, I will go back to Bianjing, but not now, Lao Tzu wants to make contributions in the army, and Lao Tzu wants to be a hero. ”

The scholar slapped the table violently, spilled the wine on the table, and was arrogant.

Fame but take it right away, how can the big husband have no wife.

Zhang Mingyue smiled dumbly, and said in her heart that this guy is not a soldier in vain, he saw the national pillar, and saw the world's famous general Zhao Jiansoul, people, that's it, in the past, he only sat in the well at the bottom of his well and watched the sky, but one day when he got out of the well that trapped him, he would find that the problem at the bottom of the well that had trapped him was actually not a problem at all.

This world is so big that everyone's troubles seem so insignificant to the world's major events.

A good man should be like that.

Farewell to the scholar, Zhang Mingyue didn't sleep all night, and he was in no mood to practice knives, but Sima Yun found him.

"A strange thing happened some time ago, I obviously haven't been to Western Xia, but I seem to know the traditions of the Western Xia Army. ”

"Really?

Sima Yun didn't seem to question his neurotic words.

"Maybe you've been there in your previous life, or not. ”

"In the last life? ”

Zhang Mingyue stood up and patted her buttocks.

"Do you guess that these veterans, who will be leaving tomorrow, will be reunited in the future. ”

"Yes, there will be, in the future, the world will be in chaos, everyone will be soldiers, and sooner or later they will return to the battlefield with Chu knives. ”

As soon as the second day dawned, a few people went on the road to return to Bianjing, because at this time, the drunk soldiers who drank last night were almost still asleep, the scholars did not go home, although the battalion commander went home but did not go along the way, Xue Pingchuan also drank a lot of wine last night, but the next day was in good spirits, just because that little wine strength is really nothing for a master who borrowed the luck of Xichu to enter the realm of heaven and man, if he doesn't want to get drunk, even if you pour him a thousand jars of wine, he may not necessarily be drunk.

Xue Pingchuan wanted to stay in Guanzhong on the grounds that the army was about to be reformed, and he didn't see him ask the princess to bring any letters back, but just watched a few people leave.

The carriage is on the official road is a horse Pingchuan, Bianjing City is the sunny day in the world, the population is as bustling as ever, obviously it has only passed a cold winter, many people have already worn thin cloth clothes.

The border pass can not be hidden from the people in the city, and even has become a topic that the people talk about, the tiger and wolf pass let out of the hundred miles of land, the original people have been relocated to other counties, even those who can't walk the old and weak women and children have the army escort, although for the Xixia hundred miles of many people are dissatisfied, but as the saying goes, one side of the world and one person, these people who eat and drink in Bianjing all the year round do not know that the tiger and wolf pass are full of white bones.

Dissatisfied and dissatisfied, after all, no one dared to say it in front of the princess, Sima Yun was already a member of the second rank of the dynasty, and originally had his own mansion, but he still lived in Ning Zhiyuan's villa with the old man Ranger as always, saying that the environment here was quiet.

"The martial arts conference is about to be held, old man, I'm afraid you won't be able to rest for long, first rest in the other garden for a day or two, and two days later, you will enter the West Chu River and Lake with Zhaoyang. ”

This is what Chu Zhaoyang meant, and a few people were already prepared, but they didn't say much, but the ranger Er Guyue was a little eager to say something.

"Do you want to go too much or don't want to go?"

Princess Zhaoyang asked with a smile.

"This ......"

Ranger scratched his head.

"Can you bring the Ruby Girl with you? ”

"No, this trip is to visit the major families in the rivers and lakes of Xichu, not to enjoy the mountains and rivers. ”

"Alright then, then I'm not going either. ”

Far from being unhappy, the ranger seemed to be getting happier and happier, which couldn't help but make Zhang Mingyue a little puzzled.

"Why do you look so happy? Don't you want to meet these top people?"

"I don't want to, I'm not interested, it's enough for Lao Tzu to have an old man teach you one or two swords, just protect the red jade. ”

"What did the old man teach you? Could it be that the sword is too slight, the sword shakes Kunlun, or is it the sword that opens the gate of heaven?"

"Thinking too much about you, Lao Tzu knows that he is not that material, even if the old man is willing to teach, he may not be able to learn, let me tell you, I recently worshiped a new master, as for who this master is, I will not tell you for the time being, I will definitely meet when I have the opportunity." ”

He didn't say it, and Zhang Mingyue didn't bother to ask, how many people in the realm of swordsmanship in the world could compare with the old man?

returned to the other garden, but after resting for two or three hours, Zhang Mingyue was pulled out by Sima Yun.

"Come with me to meet someone. ”

"By the way, you are also a second-class member of the court, don't you need to go to the court every day?"

Zhang Mingyue couldn't help but ask.

"You don't need to go to court, I just need to assist the princess with peace of mind, and there is one more thing that you may be interested in, Yang Youqian worshipped the old man as a teacher. ”

"Didn't she say she didn't learn swords?"

"She doesn't learn swords, but she's willing to learn swords for one person. ”

"Princess?"

Sima Yun smiled and didn't speak.

The two of them walked straight to the gate of the Yang Mansion before stopping, and it was here half a year ago that Sima Yun scolded the Xichu scholars for not being as good as dogs, that is, Sima Yun was angry with the old man of the Yang Mansion Yang Xiu in a few words.

"You're making yourself unhappy. ”

Zhang Mingyue said lightly.

"Where is there such a happy thing in life, it's just to visit the current owner of the Yang family, Yang Lili. ”

To his surprise, the two of them were not hindered from entering the mansion, but the subordinates were still a little respectful, which made Zhang Mingyue a little puzzled, until she saw the middle-aged Confucian standing with his hands in the backyard of the Yang Mansion.

Yang Shuli slowly turned his head, after half a year, his appearance had not changed much, but there were a lot of silver threads on his head, and even his beard had faintly begun to turn white, which was a sign that a person was about to grow old.

"I've been waiting for you for a long time, please take a seat. ”

Confucius made a gesture of please, the pavilion has been set up with dim sum and steaming fragrant tea, as well as a few plates of fruits and vegetables, in this cold winter season should not have such fresh fruits, I think there should be an ice cellar in this Yang Mansion.

"It seems that Mr. Yang has been very worried recently, but he is in his fifties and his temples are so gray, but he doesn't know whether he is worried about state affairs or family affairs. ”

Sima Yun asked with a smile.

"It's a state affair, it's also a family affair, after all, there is no country where to come from, I have heard about the two of them in Saibei, and I also know that the idea of retreating to Guanzhong was proposed by Sima Gongzi. ”

"Then does Mr. Yang think what Sima Yun did was right or wrong?"

"Yes. ”

The middle-aged man, who was worried about the big things of the guy because he was only a Confucian student, said slowly.

"Sima Gongzi has a sentence that is very good, my generation of Confucian students should not die reading, reading dead books, the wisdom of Confucian sages is not only a few words written can be explained clearly, later generations are more misunderstood, the ancients said that the amount is small non-gentleman, no degree is not a husband, but to the mouth of the descendants said that it is not a husband who is not poisonous, this is powerful and I don't need to say more, retreating to Guanzhong is the wisest choice for me in Western Chu at present, retreating can not be a hundred miles, if it is in, the country is not guaranteed, I don't understand the matter of marching and fighting, I only know that the current general situation in the world does not allow for a war between the two countries of Western Xia and Western Chu, Sima Gongzi did a good job。 ”

"Actually, it's not that you are doing a good job, even if you don't bring it up in the next place, Mr. Ning will bring it up. ”

"But my scholar in Western Chu only recognizes you, they say that you are an outsider who harms the reputation of Western Chu, and harms Western Chu by the people of the world, and the second largest country in the Central Plains actually retreats in the face of the barbaric Western Xia without fighting, today is okay, they still don't know that you are back, if you get the news, it will definitely be impossible to surround your mansion, and even the dog you scolded will be bloody, so that you have no place in Western Chu, you should also know that no matter how fast the knife is, it is not the scholar's mouth, they will say that your matter is widely sung by the world in countless versions, you can not bear itAnd you should also know that you can only fight with wit, not by force, otherwise my Xichu will shake the whole country. ”

As soon as the words fell, the courtyard was silent, and even the fish in the pond no longer bubbled.

Although there was no sword to face each other, Zhang Mingyue also felt that her face was full of frost.

"What does the gentleman think I should do?"

Sima Yun was neither happy nor angry, and asked in an ordinary tone.

"I thought you should retreat bravely, but will Sima Gongzi retreat?"

"Of course not. ”

Sima Yun stood up and faced the pond in the pavilion, just after winter, the pond was silent, even the water and grass were almost yellow.

"All changes in the world must go through the baptism of blood, and army reform needs blood, so my Chu army Tiger Wolf Pass border guards temporarily forced back Western Xia at the cost of two people for one person in a war, the empire needs to change, so we can't let these scholars come to Hu, they want Sima Yun to die, Sima Yun is not dead, not only that, Sima Yun also wants these people to see what the general trend of the world is, let them know that they just talk about how many people will be ruined and killed, and how many lonely graves will be added to Guanzhong, retreat, not defeat, retreat is the current national situation of Western Chu, not what these scholars say about retreat without fighting, change needs bloodshed, and it needs pain, Sima Yun made these scholars feel pain this time, and only when they were in pain did they know what to say and what not to say. ”

"How dare you kill?"

"Sima Yun will not kill people, but Sima Yun has his own way to let these scholars try some pain on their own, no matter what, today Mr. Yang is willing to say this heart-to-heart to Sima Yun, Sima Yun is very grateful, it seems that Xichu Confucian is not a stupid person. ”

"I just don't want to see the hundreds of years of foundation of Western Chu ruined, Yang Shuli is not a martial artist, and he can't do things to fight on the battlefield, but if one day, the country needs to ......"

Ru Chang sighed.

"Then even if I, Yang Shuli, have scattered all my family wealth, I will help my Western Chu, not let a barbarian enter the customs, and not let my Central Plains be trampled by horses' hooves, and I don't want Western Chu to be removed from the Three Kingdoms of the Central Plains. ”

......

In addition to Yang's mansion, Yang Shuli said that if the scholars of Bianjing City knew the news of Sima Yun's return, the mansion would definitely be surrounded by water, but in fact, before they reached Ning Zhiyuan's Farewell Garden, the two of them were already faintly surrounded, and there were many familiar faces among them.

"What? Could it be that you know that I'm coming back to meet me?

Sima Yun said with a smile.

This group of scholars probably also knew that the man in the green shirt in front of him was not an ordinary person, if it weren't for the fact that half a year ago, the old man Yang was angry and scolded the Xichu scholar for being a dog, and he would not have made such a fuss, and then I heard that it was such a guy who directly entered the palace and was crowned as a second-class member of the dynasty, so he felt even more uncomfortable, even if the old man of Jiulong Mountain entered the land immortal who had not been out of the world for a hundred years in a battle, but the sword opened the gate of heaven to see the gods and Buddhas of the heavens, many people still think that it is a blinding method, even if it is not a blinding method, it is not you who defeated Xue Pingchuan, the pillar of the country, and it really shouldn't be feared。

It also coincided with the retreat of the Tiger and Wolf Pass to the Guanzhong, retreating without a fight, this is a big taboo, not to mention the impact on the morale of the army, even if the world is afraid that Xichu will be regarded as a laughing stock. Everything is because of the man in green shirt in front of him.

"Sima Yun, you should be punished. ”

Baiyi, who was scolded by Sima Yun half a year ago, gritted his teeth and said.

"Should I be punished? Did your master tell you this, or did you say it yourself?"

Sima Yun said lightly.

"But I think you should say that this is what all the white clothes in Bianjing City want to say, even if Sima Yun has all the ability, it is difficult to block Youyou's mouth, fortunately, I don't plan to explain anything, I don't bother to explain what you pigs and dogs are not as good as you, rather than this, it is better for you to try it yourself." ”

"What do you want us to try?"

"I want you to try to keep the pass for decades, no matter how cold it is, no matter how rain, snow and frost it is, let you, a group of pigs and dogs who only know how to fiddle with words all day long, also try the ghost crying wolf howl at the border pass, let you see that the soldiers who have dedicated their lives to my Xichu are just a pile of dry bones after death, and there are no names left. ”

The man in the green shirt suddenly widened his eyes, and pointed at Jiutian angrily.

"Sima Yun wants you to know what it means to go thousands of miles to Rongji, Guan Shan Du Ruofei. Let you know what it means for a general to die in a hundred battles and a strong man to return in ten years, and also to teach you how to live in this peaceful and prosperous world. ”