Guo Ning drew his sword and made two false strikes in the air, and asked: "Ni Yi, what do you think of my martial arts?"
"Excellent courage." Ni Yi said from the bottom of his heart.
"So, how are the martial arts of the generals I appointed, such as Master Huifeng, Li Erlang, Wang Shixian, Han Xuan, Qiu Huiluo and others?"
"Kudu is brave and admirable."
"These few people are all from the defeated soldiers who were scattered to the states in Hebei. We have now gathered 2,500 people from the defeated soldiers of Hebei. Most of them have seen mountains of corpses and seas of blood and dared to fight for their lives. So. , what was the situation like when these people fled from the back of Monan Mountain, all the way from Xijing Road to Hebei?"
Guo Ning leaned down and stared at Ni Yi: "Do you still remember what happened at that time? How did we come to Hebei? Did we defeat the Mongols along the way?"
The tragic scene at that time still often lingers in Ni Yi's nightmares, waking him up time and time again and making him covered in cold sweat! Ni Yi had too many words, but he didn't know how to answer. He only raised his head and looked at Guo Ning, showing a smile that was uglier than crying.
And Guo Ning continued: "The defeated troops who were able to flee to the Hebei states were only a few tenths of the troops stationed on the northern border trench defense line. In the third year of Da'an, from Chang, Huan, and Fuzhou to Xuandezhou later , Dexing Prefecture, a land of five states, the elites of the three military divisions gathered together, numbering hundreds of thousands. In the first year of Chongqing, the troops that rescued Datong Prefecture in Xijing were even said to have gathered millions of heroes from all over the world. "
Guo Ning squatted beside Ni Yi and sighed: "Among the hundreds of thousands of people, there will only be more brave men like me, Master Huifeng, Li Erlang and others! On that day, the army was so grand that the banners covered the sun. I believe you have seen the situation! So, did we defeat the Mongols? Did we win at Wushabao? Or did we win at Wuyue Camp? Or, did we win at Yehuling or Migukou? "
Ni Yi fell to the ground, almost trembling.
"We didn't win, we lost the battle..." He lowered his head and muttered slowly: "Everyone was running away, and then they all died."
Guo Ning grabbed his collar and asked him to raise his head. Then I saw his bloodshot eyes, as well as the grief and hatred in them that had nowhere to vent.
"Why did we lose?" Guo Ning asked in a low voice: "Is it because we don't have swords and guns in our hands? Is it you, or are we fighting men not trying our best? Is it because we are afraid that our legs will weaken when we see the Mongolian army?"
"Of course not!" Ni Yi argued with tears all over his face: "I also killed the Black Tartars! I killed them before! By the way, it was because of Hu Shahu! It was because he ran away from the battle and harmed everyone!"
"What if Hu Shahu doesn't run away? We people will fight the Mongolian army year after year on the boundary trench, and keep fighting? Can we win in this way?" Guo Ning continued to ask.
Ni Yi wanted to say he could win, but he couldn't say such ridiculous words. He thought of the unavailable food and wages when his father and brother were guarding the boundary trench, the increasingly harsh exploitation, the pieces of armor that would break when his hands were broken, the fewer and weaker horses, and even the growing number of horses. The lower the morale.
Those who cannot win, not to mention the ferocity of the Mongolian army, such an army cannot win the war in the first place.
Ni Yiyi felt cold all over, but there was a poisonous fire burning in his heart.
The fire grew stronger and stronger, almost bursting his chest, and finally he broke out: "We can't win! No one can win! Because the Dajin court is rotten, the Dajin country is rotten! Those Jurchens The high-ranking officials and nobles are all rotten! They never take our lives seriously, they are the ones who harmed all of us!"
After shouting a few words, Ni Yi suddenly felt happy. He thought about it angrily, and then said: "That Hu Shahu is really not a good guy. We are under Fanyang City. It would be great if we could kill him!"
"Don't you understand now?" Guo Ning smiled and patted Ni Yi's head.
"You see, if we gather together and hold the swords and guns in our hands, no one can bully us. But this is not enough, things are not that simple. On the battlefield, we must fight smarter and command more accurately; and Outside the battlefield, we need food, supplies, better weapons, more horses, more companions and even the support of the people. These cannot come from swords, but from books."
"What you said, Liu Lang..." Ni Yi raised his face and blew his nose: "If we can recognize the words, can we have it?"
"Of course!" Guo Ning said resolutely: "After a person can read and write, he will have knowledge and the ability to do many things. From this, we can have more companions and more sophisticated weapons."
"Can we defeat the Mongolian army then?" Ni Yi asked again.
Guo Ning knows better than anyone how unstoppable the rise of Mongolia is. Therefore, this issue is actually a bit complicated, Guo Ning thought about it.
While he was thinking about what to say, the noise of many teenagers came from the direction of the backyard. Several people shouted happily: "It's flying! It's really flying!"
Those who were shouting were the young followers who were with Ni.
In the past few days, they have been using their free time to tinker with some new things. But Ni Yi, the leader, was so groggy that he was so confused that he didn't even bother to ask.
"Flying?" He asked in shock, "What is flying?"
Guo Ning grabbed his arm and asked him to stand up. He laughed and said, "Of course it's a new thing!"
Before he finished speaking, a dark, round, strange thing, as big as two people hugging each other, burst out from the courtyard wall.
There seemed to be a stove hanging under the strange thing, and rocks fell under the stove. The stones were tied up with thick ropes and swayed against the wood at the top of the chamber. There was a muffled "thud" sound, and several pieces of bark and sawdust fell off, clattering down in the backyard.
Ni suddenly shrank his head, and the strange thing flew higher and higher with the stove and stones, turning along with the wind, and kept rising towards the setting sun.
"Catch up! Catch up!" Another young man shouted: "The fire won't last long, it will fall down soon!"
Ni Yi stared at the strange thing blankly and asked: "Is this a Kongming Lantern? Can a Kongming Lantern be so big?"
"This thing is called a hot air balloon." Guo Ning said with a smile: "Remember what I said half a month ago, when Pangu opened the sky, the clear air rose and the turbid air fell. But what we usually see is that the hot air rises and the cold air falls. The power of hot steam is enough to push heavy objects. So, everyone took the time to make this hot air balloon to test it."
“It’s so fun!”
The hot air balloon flew farther and farther, and its black outline gradually merged with the dusk. Ni Yi's eyes were almost attracted by the hot air balloon. He subconsciously moved two steps outside the side hall, trying to catch up and take a closer look. Then he thought that he was in front of Guo Ning and he couldn't be rude.
He quickly turned back, but Guo Ning passed by him and stood in the hall with great interest, staring at the hot air balloon as it disappeared. A few reckless teenagers ran straight from the backyard, wanting to chase the hot air balloon directly through the meeting hall. Suddenly seeing Guo Ning standing in the courtyard, they quickly saluted and then moved forward close to the edge of the courtyard.
"Once people study and understand, and have knowledge and insight, they can create. Ni Yi, this is the result of creation." Guo Ning looked back at Ni Yi and said with a smile.
"Can this thing be beneficial to fighting?" Ni Yi's temper was a bit stubborn.
"It's not possible now, but it will be soon." Guo Ning is confident.
