Harue Kagetsu

Sunset setting.

In the wasteland outside the city walls of Yicheng, at the end of the heavy twilight, a small black spot appeared.

The little black dot was moving, slowly but constantly, towards the city wall in the distance, which was half-red by the setting sun.

Getting closer, getting closer.

The guards on the pier at the head of the city finally saw it clearly.

It was a seven or eight-year-old girl, dressed in rags, covered in mud, bare feet, and bloody.

Every step she took seemed to be depleting the last remaining strength in her body.

However, she continued to move forward, staggering towards the city gate with difficulty, gradually approaching.

The setting sun drowned out its last rays.

The girl finally came to the closed city gate, stopped, raised her head hard, and in a hoarse voice, shouted "Help—" at the soldiers on the pier, and then fell to the ground.

…

"Li Langjun, Jiang Changshi asks to see you—"

Outside the door, the voice of the servant girl suddenly came.

Li Mu's palm, which was gently stroking Luoshen's hair, stopped.

Luoshen slowly opened his eyes and wanted to straighten up, but he felt his back lightly pressed against his arm.

He stopped her from trying to leave.

"Can you say what happened?"

He still closed his eyes and asked a question.

"It is said that a girl came from outside the city gate. The Taoists were going to defect, but they were kidnapped by the people of Jinguo..."

Li Mu opened his eyes suddenly, sat up, and said in a low voice, "Ami, I'll take a look. You rest first."

After he finished speaking, he rolled over from the table, picked up Luoshen, put it down beside the bed, and then quickly walked out.

After Li Mu left, Luoshen also knew the details within a moment.

Not long after he arrived in Yicheng, rumors began to circulate among the surrounding Han people that, after abandoning the place for many years, the imperial court finally sent a new governor back to guard it.

In the beginning, no one was tempted by the Han people.

In the past few decades, the current situation has been turbulent. Before Yicheng became a ghost town, it is unknown how many times the city was occupied, and the city owner did not know how many times. There are Han people and Hu people.

But no one could hold on to it.

Years later, suddenly another governor of the Southern Dynasty came. Fearing that Inspector Shi was incompetent, unable to hold the ground, or just regarded Yicheng as a temporary station and could not provide long-term shelter for himself, who would dare to return to the city easily?

Gradually, news spread that the newly arrived prefect, Li Mu, not only had the name of the **** of war, but was invincible. He defeated Yuan Jie in the battle of Ba County. After arriving here, he built city walls, reclaimed wasteland, and posted notices. When recruiting soldiers and people, Li Mu swore to the sky in his own name that as long as others were there, he would never abandon the land.

As a result, from about half a month ago, one after another, sporadic people began to come to defect and ask for submission.

Today, the girl Ah Yu is one of these people.

Naturally, she couldn't act alone.

Her parents, brother, and neighbors from dozens of other households, a total of more than 100 people, were originally with her.

These people used to be residents of Yicheng for generations.

In the past few years, Yicheng has suffered many wars and calamities, the population has dropped sharply, the fields are barren, and it is not known what new military chaos will be attracted, and the residents are scattered everywhere.

Some became refugees and fled to the south across the river. Some went elsewhere. There are also some people who hide in the nearby mountains and forests together.

Ah Yu's parents, together with dozens of other households who went into the mountains with them, after spending many years in the mountains, they finally heard a few days ago that a governor of Dayu named Li Mu had reorganized himself and recruited returnees.

After waiting and watching for a while, and after some heated arguments, they finally made a decision to move back to Yicheng.

The mountains are barren, wild animals are infested, and life is extremely difficult.

Moreover, how can people who have not experienced war and wandering understand their eagerness to return to their hometown, just like the urgency of a deer in love with Muxi and their strong yearning for their old home?

Even if the old place has been buried by the grass, as long as the new city lord can bring them a glimmer of hope, they are willing to believe it and refuse to give up.

Just like that, more than a hundred people in this group, supporting the old and the young, bravely went out of the mountains and returned to Yicheng half a month ago.

In this chaotic world, God has also cut off mercy.

Halfway through the journey, they encountered a group of 100 Xijin soldiers.

They were unarmed, so how could they beat this group of Xijing soldiers who used murder and loot as their daily routine?

Xijin soldiers killed the elderly and young children on the spot, and robbed all the remaining men and women.

At that time, Ah Yu happened to be taken by his mother, and he let go after a small post on the side of the road, and then he escaped.

After watching the Xijin people kill, whip, and ravage, and then tie up his father, brother and the rest of the group to leave, Ah Yu was taken by his mother and came towards Yicheng day and night.

Ah Yu remembered that they had walked many days and nights on the road. When hungry, eat weeds, and when thirsty, drink water from mud ponds by the roadside.

The soles of Ah Yu's feet were torn, and her mother continued on the road with her back.

But unfortunately, three days ago, they encountered a wild wolf in the wasteland again.

With a hatchet, my mother finally hacked the wolf to death.

But my mother was also bitten, and her leg was bleeding all the time.

Finally, just yesterday, my mother fell down and could no longer walk.

Grandma pointed Yicheng's direction to her, and told her, go in the direction of the sunset, keep moving forward, and when you reach it, it is their original home.

While crying, Ah Yu continued to move forward in the direction pointed by her mother.

She must persevere, find the person named Li Mu as soon as possible, and ask him for help.

I begged him to save his father and brother, and also begged him to save his mother who was still lying on the side of the road.

Just today, she finally reached the end of the sunset and saw the city wall.

At that moment, Ah Yu couldn't hold it any longer and fainted.

…

After Li Mu went, he never came back.

Luo Shenzhi knew that he took a group of troops out of the city and chased that group of Xijing soldiers overnight.

The girl named Ah Yu was also sent over as she ordered.

The girl was thin and frail, and after washing her face, hands and feet, she revealed her original delicate face.

Aju gave her medicine. Looking at her feet covered in blood scabs, she couldn't help sighing.

Should be very painful. The girl, however, didn't seem to feel it, and only looked at Luoshen secretly from time to time with her big eyes.

His eyes were cautious and full of expectations, making Luoshen very sad.

A moment ago, Fan Cheng came back and just reported to her that the girl's mother had been found in the wild, but she had been dead for a long time.

He dug a pit on the spot and buried the people.

And this girl is still here at the moment, waiting for her grandmother's return.

Luoshen didn't know how to tell her the news, so she could only coax her, saying that her grandmother should be able to find her soon.

It was late at night, and the girl was so tired that she finally fell asleep.

Luoshen was tossing and turning and couldn't sleep, and his heart was extremely heavy.

Before in Jiankang, she had not heard of the blood and tears tragic that the northerners were trampled by Hu Li's iron shoes.

Although I was very sympathetic when I heard it, I was also disappointed by the incompetence of the court.

But that's all, the past is gone.

She has emotions and sorrows that affect her own emotions.

These joys and sorrows are her real life.

But today, the things that had only existed in the past were suddenly staged in front of her.

A group of Han people who wanted to defect to Li Mu were slaughtered and looted by the Xijin people.

A mother narrowly escaped with her daughter and moved on.

Mother died on her way there.

The seven-year-old girl, with her bare feet covered in blood blisters, followed the direction of the setting sun step by step, and finally reached her destination.

When I came out, my family was by my side.

When she arrived, she was the only one left.

Luoshen was deeply shocked.

She remembered Li Mu. He also hoped that he could catch up with the Xijin people and bring back the girl's father and brother.

…

To the north of Qiuchi, on the road to Qincheng, the capital of the Western Jin Kingdom, in a flat waterside field, a dozen simple tents were set up at will.

This group of more than 100 Xijin soldiers left Qiuchi with their leader Gu Huiwu a few days ago. On the way back to Qincheng, they encountered a group of Han people in ragged clothes and carrying tattered clothes. They killed the useless people and left the rest. He was **** and taken away, and he walked on the road for a few days. Because the speed was slowed down, he only arrived here today.

There are still a few days to go to Qincheng, there is no place to stay before and after, the sky is getting dark, so I spend the night in the wild.

The soldiers **** the Han people who were going to be taken to Qincheng as slaves, and drove the Han women to make a fire to cook. After they were full, they brought people into the tent.

After a while, the sound of a woman crying and begging for mercy could be heard inside.

The voice reached the ears of the villagers, with angry expressions on their faces, and there was a moment of commotion.

A dozen or so Xijin soldiers heard the sound, whipped their whips, and threw their heads over their heads.

The hands and feet of the villagers were tied and they were powerless to resist. Soon, their heads and faces were beaten with blood dripping with blood.

One of the soldiers was so excited that he threw down his whip, untied his hakama, stepped on the ground and poured urine on the head of the person who resisted the most.

The man's eyes were splitting, blood and tears were all over his face, but he was trampled on the ground, unable to move, and the situation was terrible.

When the rest of the soldiers saw this, they laughed wildly, and followed suit, and wanted to follow suit.

The villagers had red eyes, cursed, and opened their mouths to bite.

Just then, there was a sharp noise from behind.

A roaring dysprosium roared, and in a blink of an eye it approached.

The sharp dysprosium head silently penetrated into the back of the soldier's head who was drenching urine, like a poisonous snake buried deep in it, bursting out of his forehead instantly.

Accompanied by a burst of splattered blood, the huge body of the Xijing soldier fell to the ground.

The unfinished urine from the lower body was still gurgling out.

The person did not move, and was already brain-blasted to death.

Everyone was shocked by this sudden scene.

The villagers looked up and saw a group of dozens of people galloping on the road not far away.

Black military uniforms, neat and sassy, ​​and faces are all Han people.

In the lead, a black man, on the horse's back, sat astride a man with a stern expression and a bow in his arms. The brain-breaking arrow just now was obviously sent by him.

The Xijing soldiers reacted, and immediately whistled to remind their companions, then drew their swords and turned to face the enemy.

Dozens of Han riders, as fast as lightning, without the slightest pause in their hooves, kicked away the fence and rushed into the camp in a blink of an eye.

A Xijing soldier who was running at the front encountered a big man with big cheeks. The big man waved his knife, and saw the blood spurt wildly, and his entire head was chopped off and rolled out.

The villagers were stunned. Slowly got up from the ground, watching this group of black-clothed Han troops who seemed to have fallen from the sky, galloping across the camp of the Xijing people who were caught off guard, seeing one, killing one, like cutting vegetables and melons, cold ruthless.

The leader of this line of Xijing people, Gu Huiwu, is a clan of the Xijin Emperor Gu Huilong.

A few months ago, Gu Huilong heard that Emperor Yu had sent Li Mu to Yicheng. Because he was preparing to attack Xijing Chang'an, he was unable to divide his troops for the time being. He also heard about Li Mu's previous battle name, so he was afraid that he would be let go. It would be a disaster in the future. , in order to use Hou Ding to deal with Li Mu.

Gu Huiwu stayed in Qiuchi for a few days, and when he saw Hou Ding respectfully, agreed to serve, and promised to send troops to attack Li Mu, he returned triumphantly. Halfway through the journey, I fished out dozens of fat sheep, just now I was full of food and drink, and the animal was violent. I was violent in the tent. Suddenly I heard something happening outside. I knew something was wrong. When he got out of the tent, he was stopped by a knife at the door.

Above the blade of the blade, it was stained with blood, dripping and dripping down.

The man with the knife had a handsome face, but his eyes were extremely gloomy, full of killing intent.

Gu Huiwu glanced behind him and saw that this group of Han troops were as ruthless as butchers, with more than 100 men under his own, and only a few of them died in such a short period of time.

Even though he has always been killing people, he can't help but feel chills at this moment, and he reluctantly said: "Who are you? This is my place of great gold! If you dare to hurt me, you are not afraid of my emperor's revenge, and you will be killed when the time comes. Dead without a burial place?"

The man said: "The land of the Han family, you can take it up, and you have committed numerous crimes."

"Hu Li's sin is unforgivable!"

"God does not judge, I will judge Li Mu!"

Gu Huiwu suddenly widened his eyes, showing disbelief: "You are Li Mu? Why are you here?"

Li Mu didn't say a word, his hand raised the knife and fell, Gu Huiwu fell to the ground, his head rolled off.

He used the tip of the knife to pick up a piece of clothing on the ground and put it on the woman who had fainted on the ground.

Above the open space, the corpses were poured all over the place, the stumps were all over the ground, and the blood was flowing.

There was a **** smell in the air.

More than 100 Xijing soldiers were all killed, and not a single life was left.

All this happened so suddenly that people couldn't believe their eyes.

Sun Fangzhi and his soldiers went up and cut the ropes on the villagers with knives.

The villagers gathered together and looked at the man who was walking towards them with fearful eyes.

He stopped in front of them and said, "I am Li Mu, the prefect of Yicheng. You came to me, but I failed to protect you well, causing you to suffer this misfortune. This is my fault, Li Mu, please accept it. I have a goodbye!"

He bowed in apology.

The villagers were stunned again.

After a while, he came to his senses and shouted "Inspector Li!" I don't know who started it. Seventy or eighty people, all with tears and tears, knelt down to Li Mu and kept kowtowing.

Li Mu stepped forward, helped them up one by one, and comforted them.

Everyone burst into tears, and gradually stopped their tears.

Although they encountered an accident and misfortune, they finally escaped from the dead. What they did not expect was that Li Mu, who was going to defect, traveled a long way, and chased after danger, just to save the dozens of them whose lives were like ants. Ordinary people, how can people not be grateful?

Thinking that in the future, if he is protected by him, in this chaotic world, if he can really gain a foothold, he will be more precarious than others, and he will not know how lucky he is.

"Inspector Li, we return to our hometown to join you, will you leave Yicheng in the future and tell me to wait for a fight?"

A daring person finally summoned up the courage and asked in a low voice.

Li Mudao: "In front of the elders and brothers, I, Li Mu, make an oath. I am here, and Yicheng is here! The day I leave, it is also to expel Hu Li and expedition to the Central Plains!"

The crowd was silent for a moment, and the man in the middle who had just been drenched in urine by the Xijin soldiers suddenly showed excitement, pulled out a young man from behind the crowd, and said loudly: "Chairman Li, both my father and son are willing to join the army. You northern expedition of the Hu people!"

"Me too!"

"Me too!"

For a while, the voices of vows and vows scrambled for each other, one after another.

Li Mu's eyes swept across the faces of the crowd, and smiled: "With the help of the elders and brothers, I am Li Mu's wish, why not pay!"

…

The girl Xiaoyu is very sensible.

In the days after she was rescued, she had not seen her mother appear for a long time. She seemed to have guessed something, and no longer kept asking as she did at the beginning.

Only one person wept quietly, very sad.

Luoshen was also infected by her emotions, her mood became heavier, and she was worried about Li Mu, and couldn't sleep well every night.

After worrying about it for several days, in the evening of this day, I suddenly got news that Li Mu came back.

Along with him were the returnees who were rescued by him.

It's hard to describe how she felt when she heard the news.

At that moment, before she could even breathe a sigh of relief, she almost ran out of the house, pretending to be blowing wind, and came to the hanging flower door leading to the front hall of the Prefect's Mansion, waiting for him to appear.

But he never showed up.

The sky gradually darkened.

In front of the Governor's Mansion, there seemed to be people coming and going, and the noise was faintly audible.

It was quiet here, only the hollow rustling sound of the evening wind passing over the dead bamboo.

Luoshen stood in front of the dilapidated stone pavilion beside the Chuihuamen, and suddenly there was a sense of loss that had been forgotten by this world.

Suppressing his unhappy mood, he turned back to the house.

Aju also returned, a smile finally appeared on her face, saying that God finally did not lose her conscience. Xiaoyu's father and brother are all right. They returned with Li Langjun today, and both of them are going to join the army. Just picked up Xiaoyu just now, and asked Aju to talk again, thanking Mrs. Chief Shi who took care of Ayu for several days.

After finally hearing the good news among misfortunes, Luoshen's depressed mood improved slightly.

Aju went out, and after a while, picked up the food box and brought in dinner.

Why did Luoshen have an appetite, he asked Li Mu casually.

Aju said that as soon as Li Langjun came back, he was stopped by Jiang Tao, and the two should still be in the council hall in front of them at the moment.

Luoshen hesitated for a moment, opened the food box, glanced at it, and waited to spread it out.

Aju guessed what she was thinking, sighed secretly, but said with a smile: "I saw that Li Langjun came back, he didn't even take a breath, and was called by Jiang Tao again, and he must not have dinner at the moment. Why don't I Prepare more, the little lady will send it and ask them if they will eat it?"

Seeing that Luo Shen was silent, he turned around and went away.

…

Qiongshu lit the lantern, Luoshen carried the food box and walked towards the front hall.

Those who entered and exited the Governor's Mansion in the evening have all gone now, and the front has become quiet.

Everything in the city was in short supply.

Lighting candles are not enough. Therefore, there is no court Liao in the governor's mansion. After dark, it was pitch black.

Only the dim light of a lantern on the ground followed Luoshen's footsteps.

She went outside the council chamber. From a distance, I saw a dim light shining through the doors and windows, knowing that Li Mu and Jiang Tao should still be inside at the moment, suppressing the sudden surge of nervousness in their hearts, lightly walked, carried the food box, and slowly walked over.

Three days ago, Hou Ding sent someone to send a letter, saying that he had read Li Mu's handwriting and was deeply moved. He didn't give up, and released his eldest son Hou Li. He is willing to meet and discuss the plan together. Exactly a few days later, it was his 50th birthday, and he attached an invitation to the letter, saying that it would be a great honor for Li Mu to be here at that time.

Jiang Tao frowned and said, "I'm afraid this person won't believe it. According to the spy news, when the Xianbei people were in Qiuchi a few days ago, he greeted them with a smile. He should have signed a covenant and the Xianbei people left. Hou Ding is a cunning and cunning man. As soon as the Xianbei people leave, they will show their goodwill to you again and invite you to the pool of hatred. I am afraid that there will be other plans, in case it will be unfavorable."

"In my opinion, to be safe, it is better to find an excuse to decline and invite him to Yicheng to discuss."

Li Mu slowly shook his head: "Those who are good at both sides will have serious doubts. I first came to Yicheng, and I am weak and weak. Although I am not afraid of wars, it will be of great benefit if I can turn wars into friends. Hou Ding also knows that I want to make friends. As for him, if he invites him to Yicheng, how can he come? If he doesn't enter the tiger's den, he won't be able to get a tiger's son. If he invites me, I will go. Even if the mechanism changes, it will not be difficult."

Jiang Tao had been with him for many years, and he knew that he would rise to the challenge, so he stopped persuading him. He only said: "Fortunately, I see that Hou Li, because I am afraid of his younger brother, but I really want to rely on you. I secretly sent a message to him a few days ago, and he promised that if there is any change, he will help. There is another matter. …”

Jiang Tao shook his head: "Unfortunately, time is too short, and this place is so remote, I'm afraid no one will be found."

"What's the matter?" Li Mu asked.

"That Hou Li really wants us to form an alliance with his father, and even his father's private affairs in his early years, he told me the bottom line. He said that his biological mother used to be the daughter of the Qiuci country, beautiful, and musical, and was good at touching. Hu Pipa is famous. He once led Hou Ding and Gu Huilong to compete for marriage. His mother married Hou Ding and gave birth to Hou Li. I don't think that a few years later, the Qiuchi will be in chaos. Gu Huilong ordered the rebels to rebel, attacked the city, broke Cheng robbed his mother and gave it to Gu Huilong. Her mother could not bear the humiliation, and she was also a strong-willed woman, and she killed herself. Hou Ding pacified the chaos and wanted to unite with Qiuci to revenge. , Gu Huilong sent back his mother's body, saying that she died at the hands of the rebels and had nothing to do with him, and gave gold and silver jewelry to bribe Qiuci, Qiuci retreated, Hou Ding's palm was hard to cry, and he had no choice but to give up with hatred."

"It has been more than 20 years since this happened. Hou Ding still misses his wife, and every time he thinks about it, he feels even more indebted. For many years, he has treasured the Hu Pipa used by his mother during her lifetime. Unexpectedly, a few years ago, he encountered a The flood damaged the pipa. Hou Ding dreamed of his wife crying, blaming him for destroying her treasures, causing her to be restless in the underworld and becoming more and more guilty. Self-created, it is a six-phase eighteen-pin, which is very different from the ordinary four-phase fifteen-pin. Not to mention restoring it to the original sound, even if it is able to play and know the tone, I am afraid that there are not many people in the world. Hou Dingzhi Can give up, but so far, it is still a concern. Hou Li was excluded by his younger brother Hou Jian, but he still retains the position of the prince, and his father's guilt towards his mother is also one of the reasons. "

"Hou Li's meaning is that there are many skilled musicians among the Han people. If he can find one and restore the pipa, but Hou Ding has been suffering for many years, he will be grateful."

Jiang Tao shook his head. "In this time, where can I find such a person? That's all!"

"Second brother Jiang, can you let me try it!"

Luo Shen couldn't bear it any longer, he pushed the door and walked in.