Kong Ming taught: "Your brother is stupid, you should remonstrate with him. Now that I have arrested him four times, how can you go out to see people?" After hearing this, Meng You was very ashamed and knelt on the ground and begged to be spared death. Kong Ming He said: "I want to kill you, and I can do it a long time ago. Now I will spare your life and go and persuade your brother." After saying that, he asked the warrior to untie the rope, and Meng You left in tears.
Not long after, Wei Yan arrived with Meng Huo tied up. Kong Ming's attitude was not so good this time, and he said angrily: "Why did you get caught by me again? What do you have to say this time!"
Meng Huo said: "I fell into your trick, and I will die with my eyes open!" Kong Ming asked the warriors to push him out and behead him. Meng Huo showed no fear. He turned around and said to Kong Ming: "If you let me go back again, I will definitely report being beaten four times." You caught the hate.”
Kong Ming's face softened, he smiled and asked his left and right men to untie the rope, and rewarded him with drinks. Sitting in the camp, Kong Ming asked: "I have treated you with etiquette four times, but you are always unconvinced. Why is that? "
Meng Huo said: "Although I am a foreigner, unlike the prime minister, who specializes in conspiracy, how can I be convinced?"
Kong Ming said: "If I let you go back again, will you be able to fight again?"
Meng Huo said: "If you capture me again, I will surrender wholeheartedly, reward the Shu army with the treasures in this cave, and swear not to rebel again."
Kong Ming smiled and sent Meng Huo away. Meng Huo thanked and left. Then he gathered thousands of strong men in the cave and fled to the south. Suddenly he saw a dusty place and a group of people came out to kill him. It was his brother Meng Huo. Yu, regrouped his troops and went to take revenge with his brothers. The two brothers held each other's arms and cried, recounting what happened before.
Meng You said: "Our troops always fail, and the Shu army always wins. It is really irresistible. We can stay in the cave of Shanyin and cannot retreat. The Shu army cannot stand the scorching heat and will definitely retreat."
Meng Huo asked: "Where can I hide?"
He replied: "There is a cave to the southwest from here, called Tulong Cave. The owner of the cave is called King Duosi. He has a good relationship with his younger brother, so he can go and join him."
So Meng Huo asked Meng Xian to go to Tulong Cave to find King Duosi. He quickly came out with his soldiers and horses to greet him. Meng Huo entered the cave and narrated what happened before. After hearing this, Duosi said: "Please rest assured, your Majesty, Shu." If the army comes over, I will make it impossible for them to go back and let Zhuge Liang die here!"
Meng Huo was very happy and asked King Duosi what to do. Duosi said: "There are two roads in this cave. There is one in the northeast, which is the road the king came from. The terrain is flat, the land is fertile, the water is sweet, and both men and horses can walk on it. , if the entrance of the cave is blocked with wood and stones, even if millions of people come, they will not be able to pass. There is a road in the northwest, which is very dangerous and narrow. Although there is a small road in the middle, there are many poisons hidden in it. At dusk At ten o'clock, there will be a smoky miasma, which will dissipate at noon. There are only three times of Wei, Shen and You when you can come and go. The water cannot be drunk and horses cannot cross. There are four poisonous springs here, one is called dumb spring. The water is very sweet, but after a person drinks it, he will no longer be able to speak and will die in less than three days. The second is Miequan. The water here is no different from the soup. If a person enters the bath, his skin and flesh will rot. , so rotten that only bones are left and he dies. The third one is Black Spring. The water here looks very clear. If a person accidentally touches it, his hands and feet will turn black and die. The fourth one is Rou spring. The water in the spring is like ice. If you drink it, your throat will not be warm, your body will become weaker and weaker, and you will eventually die. There are no birds or insects here. Only General Han Fubo has been here before. From now on, no one has been here. , now cut off the northeastern road, the king can have a good rest in this cave. If the Shu army sees that the road to the east is cut off, they will definitely come in from the west. There is no water on the road. After passing the four springs here, they will definitely go to drink. Even if there are millions of men and horses, they will never come back, so how can they use swords?"
Meng Huo was very happy after hearing this and praised: "Now we have a place to stay!" He pointed to the north and said: "From now on, no matter how clever Zhuge Liang is, it will be difficult for him to achieve anything. The water from the four springs is enough to repay me." The hatred has failed several times!" So Meng Huo and Duosi held a banquet in the cave all day long.
After letting Meng Huo go this time, Kong Ming did not see Meng Huo sending troops for a long time, so he ordered the army to leave the Xi'er River and continue to march south. It was June at that time, and the southern barbarian land was extremely hot, with long sunshine hours. , the temperature difference between day and night is large, and many Shu troops feel uncomfortable.
Kong Ming led his army and was walking on the road. Suddenly, a scout horse came to report: "Meng Huo retreated to the Bald Dragon Cave and could not come out. The road to the entrance of the cave was cut off. There were soldiers guarding it. The terrain was dangerous and we could not move forward."
Kong Ming invited Lu Kai to inquire. Lu Kai said: "I once heard that there is another way through this cave, but I don't know the specific situation."
Jiang Wan advised: "Now that Meng Huo has been captured by us four times, he no longer has the courage to come out. Now that the weather is so hot and the army and horses are tired, there is no need to go on another expedition. It is better to go back with the army."
Kong Ming sighed: "If you do this, you will fall into Meng Huo's plan. As soon as our army retreats, they will definitely take advantage of the opportunity to pursue us. Now that we are here, there is no reason to go back!" So Wang Ping was asked to take a hundred soldiers as a At the front, let the newly recruited barbarian soldiers lead the way towards the northwest path. When they came to a spring, the people and horses were thirsty and rushed to drink water. Wang Ping explored this road and went back to report to Kong Ming. When he was in the village, he could not speak, he could only point his mouth.
Kong Ming was very surprised when he saw it. He knew he was poisoned, so he drove a car and brought more than a dozen people to watch. They only saw a pool of clear water, which was bottomless. The soldiers did not dare to come forward and try. Kong Ming got out of the car and walked away. Looking from a high place, there were mountains everywhere, and birds occasionally passed by, but none of them made a sound. He was very puzzled. He also saw an ancient temple on the hills in the distance, so Kongming thought of a way and walked over. In the stone house, there is a sculpture of a general there, and next to it is a stone tablet. It is the temple of Ma Yuan, the general of the Han Dynasty. He came here to pacify the barbarians, and a temple was built locally to offer sacrifices.
Kong Ming bowed and said: "I have received the heavy responsibility of the late emperor Tuogu. Now I have accepted your majesty's wishes and come to this place to pacify the barbarians. After pacifying the barbarians, I plan to attack the Wei State, annex the Wu State, and rebuild the Han Dynasty. Now the soldiers cannot I recognize the geography, drank the poisonous water, and cannot make a sound. I hope that the gods will remember the kindness of our court and appear to protect the three armies."
After the prayer, he went outside the temple to ask the local natives for questioning. He vaguely saw an old man walking over. He described it as very strange. Kong Ming let the old man enter the temple, sat down on the stone, and asked, "May I ask whether the old man is alive?"
The old man glanced at Kong Ming and said: "I have heard the name of the Prime Minister of the Great Power for a long time, and I am very lucky to be able to meet him today."
