The border between Xia Song and Qiling has been quite uneasy recently. Among them, the horse gangs and thieves are all facing a formidable enemy. They have put aside their hatred for many days and gathered most of their people together, running back and forth in the desolate desert. However, there is no trace of them. Everyone knows what exactly this group of thieves, who have been outside the customs all year round and are so vicious and capable of eating human bones, are looking for something or who they are looking for.
The old people among the summer pine trees often say that thieves outside the customs have long since washed away the vitality of human nature in the hot and cold sand in summer, and because they are always thirsty and have little water to drink, they have learned the horror of using human blood to relieve coughs. Depending on people's abilities, merchants and pedestrians might be able to save their lives if they encounter a heavy sandstorm, but if they encounter big thieves and bandits outside the customs, they will have no chance of survival.
Xia Songzhong, the senior border guard, also had thoughts of conquest, but in this area outside the pass, no matter who takes action with weapons first, it may not be justified, and he may be at odds with Qi Ling. Therefore, although he has sent out military armor many years ago, he has been The horse thieves in the desert simply knew the landforms outside the pass, so they left hundreds of corpses behind. No trace of them could be found, so they had no choice but to leave the matter alone.
In just a few years, the number of bandits outside the pass has increased several times for some reason. Even the old man who has been at the border of Xia Song Qiling all year round has no idea why, and he can't help but think about it with his gray-haired head. It hurt, and in the end I could only sigh, helpless.
Now that winter has come, it is said that the bandits outside the customs should have rested for a while, avoided the cold and lonely sand, and rested for the winter. They will wait until the spring of next year before going out to rob and rob the road. This has been the case in the past years, but now it is uncharacteristic, and there are always a lot of horse thieves. Walking back and forth outside the customs. There were often merchants and cavalry teams that had to cross the border, risking their lives to go out, but luckily they never encountered a group of bandits like the crucian carp crossing the river. Afterwards, they were still frightened, so they told friends about it. It is said that the border bandits have been rampant recently, and they don't know what they are looking for. They have been like this for many days in a row. Fortunately, with their shrewd thinking, they hid in the sand dunes for several days and reluctantly found a way for this band of thieves to patrol. Only then were they able to Save your life.
There is snow flying in the sky, and the yellow sand in the desert is also like snow.
The wet and waxy warm wind from the south has never come here, but the cool and cold wind from the north often comes to visit. Like a bad visitor, he breaks into the courtyard without saying anything, bringing with him the fresh snow and the bleak north wind, stirring up the yellow sand here. , slowly cutting into the skin of the human face, it is not painful, but it is like a soft knife cutting flesh, accompanied by flakes of flying snow, which is extremely difficult to bear.
A man and horse were sent out at the border gate, slowly approaching. At first glance, they could not be considered to be running very fast, but as black clouds were pressing over the city, their momentum was unstoppable.
"I said Mr. Lu Er is in charge. We brothers are running around here and there day after day. What do we want in the end? In the past few days, there have been many pedestrians and merchants passing by in front of us. They clearly saw the traces, but they did not rush forward to grab them. Once this happens, if it continues like this, in the season when the mountains are blocked by heavy snow and the roads are blocked, not to mention the supply of wine and water, the brothers above and below will have to tighten their waists to live. Who and what are you looking for, can you give me a happy word?"
A man with a knife in his back urged his horse and rushed to the leader's side. He wrapped his face in black cloth and asked in a deep voice, quite resentful.
I can't blame this person for such arrogant words. Outside the two passes of Xia, Song and Qiling, it is not vast at all, but there are so many rogues among them. They can name more than twenty or thirty bandits just by name. , not to mention that there are still a small group of people wandering around, living in no fixed place, but their skills are not necessarily inferior to others, and they are also ruthless in their attacks, which really means that there are too many monks and too little food.
After all, this place is outside the customs and has a great reputation. Except for the merchant convoys that have to go here to avoid detouring on the official road, from the beginning of spring to the end of the year, there are only a few dozen people passing by here. Even if they are lucky enough to track down the caravan, If they collide with bandits who are not part of the same family outside the customs, they will inevitably have to fight with each other with swords. They often fight for money, food and property, and many lives are lost.
Now this group of thieves has wandered back and forth in the yellow sand at the border three or five times. In the past few days, they have clearly seen traces of several caravans, but the second master did not take action. Instead, he ordered everyone to continue going back and forth. Searching naturally makes many people feel resentful.
When you first enter this business, most of you will make a living by robbing homes and houses. Compared with such businesses as escorts, you can make money much faster. Moreover, if you hold a team of wealthy merchants hostage, it will be enough to eat up several months of savings. years, saving a lot of hard work. But if you really get into this kind of business, within a few years, the thought of making money and sharing profits will not be as deep as before, and the murderous intention will rise like a river tide, hijacking the caravan merchants, regardless of whether the latter is willing to move the caravan up and down. After all the valuables were handed over, a few people had to be beheaded before they could feel comfortable.
Because of this, the second master did not allow his men to come forward to rob him, which made many people feel upset.
"In your opinion, which one is more important, a small profit or our lives." The second master did not make any sarcastic remarks. He still tightened the reins in his hands and had no intention of turning back. He said calmly, "This matter is a matter for the first master." Special instructions, if it is unreasonable, how can we stand here for many years, avoid the encirclement and suppression by soldiers from Xia, Song and Qiling, and fight with the surrounding wolves, and we have never been at a disadvantage."
"I think you have been here for six or seven years. You should know the reason why you and I are here. If it weren't for the instructions of those unattainable adults, I am afraid that there would be no human habitation at the border here except for the flying sand. , where are people like you and me permanently stationed here? Although the money earned by holding merchants hostage is not small, it is much harder than the counterparts in other areas who rob families. If it were those adults back then You have been instructed to patrol here to get the most important piece on this chessboard. How can we not respond, and how dare we not respond?"
The man holding the knife in his back hand pondered for a while, glanced at the Second Master next to him and said with a groan, "The Second Master clearly knows that I don't know how to read, let alone how to play chess, so why do I have to use this as an example? Could it be bullying?" When we were young, we were ignorant and ignorant."
The second master's temper was quite good. Even though this man repeatedly spoke harshly, he did not get angry. He could only respond kindly, "The big python is difficult to fight, and I want to get the magic grass in its hole, so I have to lure the young snake out of the hole." They exchanged this little snake, which had not yet developed reverse scales and showed a violent aura, with the old medicine that could live and die human flesh and blood. Those adults were very fond of this old medicine, even though they knew that the old snake would provoke trouble. I can't afford it, but I've still been here for a long time. In recent days, it seems that some bald donkeys with bright heads have come from the north. Looking at the posture, it seems that they are also for that unknown object. This is a big deal. If I can't wait, If you follow his orders, you may never have a happy life again."
The man didn't seem to understand, but he also heard some of the meaning. He vaguely realized that the old medicine mentioned by the second master was a rare treasure in the world. His eyes became clear just now, but he relaxed again and continued to urge. The horse is on its way.
This is a humble and despicable profession in the world. Even if we add hundreds of sabers, how can we fight with those adults? Money and treasures touch people's hearts, but after all, we need to have the ability to fight, and even more important. There is a life waiting for the price to be sold.
The border bandits in the border area have indeed added a lot of manpower in recent days, but even the leaders of the various bandits do not know the origins of these people who are visiting. When they look at these new men, they all feel shocked. The movements of the people are all masters that are rarely seen in ordinary times. There are countless people who can break open monuments and crack stones with just their strength. Among them, those with superb movement skills can barely see the slightest trace when walking on the sand, as if they are blown by the breeze. However, it is difficult to stir up any loose flying sand. The leaders who can manage the poor and harsh conditions in this place to the point of strong people and strong horses are naturally not that kind of people. They know very well at the moment that the situation that has been dormant for many years is bound to change, so they send out their subordinates one after another. , at least the posture must be perfected, and as for the other coping techniques, they are not known to outsiders.
But at this juncture that everyone is afraid of, a carriage took advantage of the cold night to slowly leave the Qiling border pass.
The soldiers on duty refused to let him go. They looked up and down at the slightly thin man in front of them and laughed incessantly. They said that if you were of such a stature, if you were really let out, you might teach those vicious thieves to peel off your skin and cramps and treat it as a winter holiday. The stored grain, with such a emaciated body, is probably going to be dried out in the sun like a skinny chicken, so that one can sharpen one's teeth as a bandit.
But when the people around him who were watching the excitement heard this, they really couldn't smile.
Everyone knows what the soldiers said. Although it is a bit exaggerated, it is not all a joke. A few years ago, the border area of Qiling was hit by a severe drought. The number of caravans traveling outside the pass was also reduced by 70 to 80%. There was nothing left for the wandering bandits outside the pass. Food, he wanted to rush into the border gate and plunder again and again, but he called the guards to stop him, and rain of arrows fell straight down the city. He couldn't move forward, and he lost dozens of lives in vain.
But soon there was news that no one from the scattered caravans passing through the customs was spared, from horses to people, and they were all eaten as meat. Some of the survivors escaped by chance and almost got mad. After two or three months of recuperation, he spoke in a trembling voice, saying that in the thieves' stronghold, there were men, horses, roe deer and wolves all hanging outside the stronghold gate.
It would be fine if it were a joke, but what the soldiers said now was half-truth and half-false, which frightened the people around them the most.
The man driving the car had no intention of retreating. He bowed respectfully, then put down the reins and whip, and lifted the curtain of the driving tent. "The young man is a hunter who has been fighting wolves and tigers for generations. I heard that he was outside Qiling Pass. "The thieves are so stubborn that they can defeat tigers and wolves, so they specially picked up the wolf and walked here. Even if they can't cut off two or three wolf heads, they are willing to chop off a few claws and claws so that they can be mentioned to their children and grandchildren in the future, and their faces will be more glorious."
There is nothing else in the car tent, only a hundred or so large guns densely packed with different heads and tails. The tails of the guns are forward and the tips are backward. They are now displayed in this very old car tent, covered by oilcloth. He really looked like a warrior wrapped in a yellow robe, holding a big spear upside down and hiding it in his robe, his body bowed but not fired.
The strong light of the spear and the mighty west wind.
