Captain Daliang and his party took the boat until Xingyang before landing. The fall of Qifeng seemed to have really knocked down Lieutenant Liang. Overnight, he was no longer as decisive as before. He spoke very few words, and even his stalwart body seemed to have shrunk. He allowed Lu Bo to disembark, hired a car at the nearby Guanyi Station, loaded the grain into the car, and was about to resign. Seeing that Lieutenant Daliang was confused, all the princes asked the Lu brothers to accompany them. Lieutenant Daliang also took one of them by the hand and said: "My mind is in confusion and it is difficult to deal with the matter. I only hope that Lu Bo and Zhongtai will send them to the army again. I feel deeply Kindness." The Lu brothers looked at this group of people. The old one was in despair, the young one was cowering, and they didn't look like they were going to die in front of the battle. They sighed in their hearts, and had to promise in their mouths, saying: "Just like Daliang Wei and all the young masters have decided. I want someone to accompany me, and I don’t need to change my clothes. I’m just going to transport food as a business traveler.” Everyone agreed. So the three older brothers, Daliang Wei and Lu's brothers, rode in front of them in carriages, and the young masters each held a stick and sat on the ox cart transporting grain. The owner of the car hurried along the avenue outside the Great Wall. It was already dusk when we met Lord Xinling's rear army.
Lieutenant Daliang was still not confused, and went to inspect the festival talisman according to the ritual, but unexpectedly found that Jin Bi was in the rear army. Although Jin Bi and Daliang Wei were not very close friends, they were ministers in the same dynasty and saw each other all the time. Now that they met on the battlefield, they actually cherished each other. Jin Bi quickly welcomed Lieutenant Daliang to the main tent of the rear army, and met with General Pian and others. Hearing that Lieutenant Daliang had gone out to replace Lord Xinling, Zhu Yousi did not dare to neglect and quickly sent a team of soldiers to escort Lieutenant Daliang and his party straight into the small town where Lord Xinling was. The Lu brothers and a hired car owner were asked to go to the small town.
Xingyang is nominally a Korean territory. The officials sent here by the King of Han must first be well-rounded and have good relations with all parties, otherwise they will not be able to stay for a day. There is no strong army stationed here, but that does not mean that the force is weak. The competition between the various forces here is almost all based on force. Weapons produced from all over the world are also gathered here, but it is impossible to put them on the public market, but as long as you have money, there is nothing you can't buy. Lieutenant Daliang originally planned to use the power of the Wei State here to purchase equipment for his small team after arriving in Xingyang. But the plan could not keep up with the changes. Not only were these young men unable to change their clothes in Xingyang, they were not even able to change into short brown clothes. They still went to the military camp in tatters. Everyone felt a little unhappy.
When I revisited Mang Shen’s hometown, I felt infinite emotion in my heart. He was dressed in short brown clothes and holding a wooden stick in his hand. He was sitting sideways on an ox cart transporting grain, with only the owner of the cart beside him. The owner of the car was naturally arranged by Wei Guoyang. He also knew that these people were not ordinary business travelers. Each of them had a good background, so he was very careful. What Mang Shen is most concerned about is naturally the tragic defeat a few days ago. On the way, he asked the car owner in a casual tone: "A few days ago, many people died here in my place, Da Wei. What was the reason?"
The car owner glanced at the young man who spoke freely and said, "This young man, it's better to say less about military and state affairs."
Mang Shen said: "Why is this so? Everyone in Daliang City has talked about it."
The car owner asked: "What does Daliang talk about?"
Mang Shen said: "It's just that the general is incompetent. Two thousand elites and one thousand soldiers will be wiped out in half a day."
The owner of the car said: "No one in Daliang City knows that the battlefield is dangerous."
When Mang Shen heard this, he immediately became interested and asked: "What's so dangerous about this battlefield? Let me tell you, I'm very knowledgeable."
The car owner said: "Is this your first time, young master?"
Mang Shen said: "The boy is young and has not yet encountered the battle."
The car owner said: "When it comes to going out into battle, you either stand out or your head falls to the ground. With a snap, there will be results."
Mang Shen said: "Then the day before yesterday, why was the Wei army completely defeated? Two thousand elite soldiers were slaughtered, and not even one escaped?"
The owner of the car said: "There are two thousand people. If they want to escape, they can naturally escape a few. But Wei Lu escaped in front of the battle and the whole family was sitting together. So he had to die alone in exchange for the safety of the whole family."
Mang Shen said: "It turns out that the laws of Wei are so severe, I understand. Two thousand dead soldiers fighting to the death will definitely be able to kill a lot of Qin troops!"
The owner of the car said: "Young Master is indeed out in battle for the first time. When two armies are fighting in front of the formation, is fighting with all your strength useful? When you see the enemy formation rolling in, no matter what sharp weapons you have in your hands, they are useless."
Mang Shen said: "Then the enemy's formation moves forward, what should I do?"
The owner of the car said: "The only thing we can do is to stand in the formation and keep the formation stable. When fighting, it depends on the virtue of our ancestors."
Mang Shen said: "How old is my father?"
The owner of the car said: "I went out into battle at the age of fifteen, and now I am five years old."
Mang Shen said: "My father is such a hero, why shouldn't he be a soldier?"
The owner of the car said: "You are a warrior hero, but he is actually unworthy. Young heroes like young masters are not warrior soldiers either."
Mang Shen said: "How dare you do this! The soldiers from Wu Zi raised an army and used one as ten. Why can't they be defeated?"
The owner of the chariot said: "Wu Zi and the lowest warriors, who are they now? And all countries have adopted this practice to train soldiers during the leisure time, so the soldiers have it easy."
Mang Shen said: "Old father has such knowledge, he must be in and out of the temple."
The owner of the car laughed and said, "How virtuous I am, how dare you accept your kindness!"
As the motorcade passed through a field, the owner of the car pointed from a distance: "There is a battlefield ahead. As long as you go and take a look, you will have the answer to everything."
When Mang Shen heard this, he wanted to get out of the car and go there immediately, but he could only shout in his heart and did not dare to mention it at all. Lieutenant Liang was distraught and the morale of the whole team was low. If he made any additional demands at this time, he would only become a public enemy and never mix among the princes again. He could only look at it reluctantly, without even standing high.
The owner of the car said: "Yesterday, a Wei army gathered the bones, and now there is nothing left to see."
Mang Shen was surprised: "Yesterday? Where was the Wei army?"
The owner of the car said: "Of course it's the Wei army that just lost the battle. They really don't care about face: the Xing army is fighting life and death in the front, but the rear army is motionless. It has to wait until three days to collect the corpses."
Mang Shen blushed and didn't know what to say. On the one hand, I recognized my father's cautious behavior, but on the other hand, I thought that my father's rebuke was not unreasonable, and it seemed to be well-founded.
After a moment of silence, Mang Shen said: "On the day the Wei army was defeated, my father was in Xingyang City?"
The car owner said: "Where else can it be?"
Mang Shen said: "How did the old man know the details of the defeat?"
The car owner said: "Young master, if you take a look, you will naturally see it clearly."
Mang Shen said: "Old father, do you want to take a look?"
The owner of the carriage said: "Why don't you go? You don't know, no matter whether you win or lose, stripping off clothes, armor and weapons is a very profitable business. How can we, the profiteers, just sit back and watch!"
Mang Shen felt bitter and disgusted in his heart, and said, "Father, do you also strip off the armor of the dead in battle?"
The owner of the car said: "I wanted to get some small fortune, but unexpectedly, all the clothes, armor and weapons have been taken by others, so I can only return empty-handed. - If this happens again in the future, it will be too early to start."
