The decoction made by a woman from the Ming Dynasty really worked.
The cramping feeling in the stomach and intestines gradually subsided.
The warm animal scent of the wolf fur mattress and the soft and regular breathing of the woman beside him were intertwined, like the best hypnotic agent.
The awkward stiffness in Dege's body didn't last long before overwhelming sleepiness surged over him, causing him to fall into a deep sleep.
Dreams keep changing.
At first, I was still a child who needed to look up to see the faces of adults. Amanurhachi was putting jewelry on his mother, and his brother Mang Gurtai looked like a heroic young man, talking happily about shooting bows and arrows.
Later, Amma's figure disappeared. E Niang was crying, Abahai, a girl from the Ula tribe who was conferred the title of Great Fortune, was laughing, and her brother Mang Gurtai kept using the step bow that the Jianzhou Jurchens were best at.
Finally, Eniang Fucha's tearful face overlapped with Concubine Abahai's smiling face. From Mang Gurtel's full bow, a heavy arrow whizzed away, hitting the face of the superimposed human figure.
Degerei saw himself rushing towards his brother, arguing with him in Jianzhou dialect, speaking very fast and in an angry tone.
But soon the young woman's accent was added to the argument.
While Degerei was trying to figure out who she was, he gradually felt that the female voice became clearer.
No, it's not a dream, it's a confrontation close at hand.
Degerei woke up, opened his eyes suddenly, and saw several torches lighting up one after another, reflecting the back of Mu Zaohua who had stood up straight, and the shortened Qi family knife in her hand.
Almost at the same time, the familiar Jurchen words with Jianzhou accent reached Derge's ears, causing him to lift up the wolf-hair mattress and jump up.
Two torches approached quickly.
"Master Dege, it's really you!" Someone called out in surprise.
"Do you have a plain blue flag or a white flag?" Derge asked the soldier who couldn't tell the flag.
"Go back to the master, this slave is Zhenglan Banner," the bannerman pointed to the outside of the forest. "Sanbeile and his slaves have not arrived yet. The slave is the sentry rider. Because he saw the string with horse hoof prints coming from the south, he was afraid that the Ming army would set up an ambush, so he brought him with him. People are looking for you."
Before Qiding finished speaking, Mu Zaohua threw away the knife, stepped over in a few steps, and started rolling up the mattress.
As if aware of the sudden silence around her, the woman stopped, raised her head and asked Degerei: "Well, should we go to Sanbeile's place now?"
The sense of exploration in her voice was even tinged with a bit of hesitation and cowardice. It was completely different from the ruthless her when she shot her old master, or the tough her when she scolded Derger in the evening.
This change in Dege's attitude towards women is not surprising.
When you want to see your sweetheart, it is naturally different from when you face your enemy or someone you don't like.
He did not answer Mu Zaohua immediately.
After reconnecting with his own people, the strings in Dege's mind were full again.
"Have Sanbeile ever fought with the Ming people?" Degelei asked the leading flagman coldly.
Those who work as sentinels are naturally as meticulous as a needle, and they are also good at collecting information on weekdays. This bannerman had long heard that Mang Gurtai and his younger brother seemed to be at odds with each other, and the news that several Niulu were killed in Dege by the Ming army had reached the main force of the Zhenglan Banner yesterday.
The flagman tried to figure out the thoughts of his little master Degelei. It was obvious that if Mang Gurtai did not grab anything and suffered losses in the battle with the Ming army, Degelei was afraid that if he returned to the team at this moment, he would bump into his brother. On the fire.
The bannerman then bowed and reported: "Returning to the master, the Xuan army of the Ming Dynasty was stationed in the Yehuling area. Our banner did not go too far to the west or close to Zhangjiakou. We swept several Tumut settlements east of Xuan Town. They also grabbed people, livestock and food, and then returned to the east."
Degelei got the answer that made him relieved, and said with false joy: "Three Belles are brave and resourceful."
Mu Zaohua stood up, glanced at Qiding, who was bowing his head, and tugged on Dege Lei's sleeves.
Degerei followed the woman a few steps and heard the woman say softly: "Your brother has a temper like a firecracker. Will he punish you? Do you want these people to escort you to Horqin first?"
Dege was moved in his heart.
The woman from the Ming Dynasty actually had some thoughts about his situation.
But the phrase "temper like firecrackers" is clear and intimate, just like a woman talking about her man.
Perhaps, she can finally meet her heroic sweetheart. This woman is full of joy, so she is not stingy and considerate to outsiders.
Dege let out a "snort" in his nose: "I am also a member of the Zhenglan flag. When I see my own flag, I still run away. What have I become? Aren't you anxious to see Sanbeile? I will take you there now." "
After saying that, he picked up Mu Zaohua's knife from the snow, put it back into its scabbard, and hung it on his belt.
Seeing Mu Zaohua staring at him blankly, Degerei deliberately changed to Jurchen words and said: "I will take the knife you offered me. When I return to Hetuala, I will reward you well and thank you for saving my life." .”
Mu Zaohua said nothing, squatted down, rolled up the bedclothes, tied them tightly, and tied them to the horse.
The Jurchen sentry agents took the skin bags and asked them both to drink a few sips of wine to warm themselves up. Then they lit torches and led the way down the mountain.
According to the report from the leading banner Ding, ten Niulu under Mang Gurtai's command were camped twenty miles away.
Even without galloping, dawn would surely have arrived.
Tonight was a fine day with calm wind and snow, bright moon and few stars, but Mu Zaohua knew that after walking through these few miles of cold but clear moonlit night road, she would plunge into the world just like Mrs. Zheng did back then. The center of a storm or wave.
No, according to what Mrs. Xu San said, it will be much more difficult and dangerous than the last trip to Hetuala.
Mu Zaohua stared at the figure of Dege on the horse in front.
After more than ten hours, Mu Zaohua found with satisfaction that she had no time to feel disgusted in front of this young Tatar Beile.
In the past, Mr. Wu was still alive. When he was training them to disguise themselves to spy on intelligence, he said: "You are not living your life, you are acting. If you are in front of ordinary people, you should act like cats and birds. If you are made to feel disgusted, Those who dislike you should be taming animals.”
"Mr. Wu, Zaohua has gone to avenge you. These Tatars are the animals that Zaohua wants to tame," Mu Zaohua muttered silently in her heart, "They must not think that a man who is skilled in bow and horse and kills without blinking is really What warriors and gods, bullshit, just a bunch of robbers. The woman and A Piaomu ointment will give the robbers some color to see."
…
At dawn, the leader of the Zhenglan Banner is in his military tent.
The morning sun had just risen from the horizon east of the Luan River, and its golden rays passed through the curtains and spread all over the floor.
Mang Gurtai stared at the woman kneeling on the ground.
It was the first time for Degerei and several Bagalas who were standing aside to see Sanbeile's expression towards the figure wearing the Ming army uniform. It was not the cruelty before the killing, but as if he had received the favor. The joy of having a good knife.
The joy was mixed with memories.
"Zaohua, you are a little different from how you were at King Khan's Well." Mang Gurtai said.
Mu Zaohua said: "Sanbeile, I have suffered a lot in the past few years. Naturally, I have become uglier and more like a weed and a dead branch."
Mang Gurtai pursed his lips.
In fact, this Chinese woman has not changed, she still has the same attitude that attracted his attention that year.
Stubborn, gentle, and even more straightforward, with a bit of forbearance and pride.
She is so different from her master named Zheng. The latter is like a jackal pretending to be humble in front of tigers and wolves. The viciousness and cunning in his heart occasionally shine through in his eyes, making his otherwise shabby face look... Makes men gag.
Zheng Haizhu...Mang Gurtai suddenly gritted his teeth. He was indeed reminiscing. Not only did he recall the rippling mood with Mu Zaohua, but he also recalled that during the Battle of Fushun, his white-armored soldiers were washed away by the flood that exploded the embankment. Walking scene.
"Zaohua, over the years, I have always regretted that at the Khan King's Well, I should not have just beaten your master until she almost lost her teeth, but should have directly dug out her heart and liver and fed it to the dogs."
Mu Zaohua said: "Sanbeile, she is no longer my master. And I feel very sad that I did not have the good opportunity like yesterday to shoot her in the face with an arrow."
Mang Gurtai narrowed his eyes: "I remember that in Hetuala that year, you were very loyal to her and also very afraid of her. What happened after that?"
Mu Zaohua raised her drooped eyelids, and cast her eyes eagerly on Mang Gurtai: "I am indeed afraid of her, just like the bannermen of Sanbeile, I must also be afraid of Sanbeile, but that is the fear of soldiers towards the general. And My surname is Zheng. When she wanted to sacrifice me to those bad old men who were officials, I was no longer afraid of her. I hated her and would not follow her orders. Sanbeile, from that night at the Khan King's Well Since then, I already have a man in mind that I want to marry..."
When Mang Gurtai heard the last sentence, a strange sense of pride flashed in his eyes.
Mang Gurtai didn't mind that his younger brother and subordinates in the tent understood Mu Zaohua's complaint. He just felt happy that the self-righteous Ming Dynasty woman was also disobedient by her own slaves.
"Then just run away, why go back and kill her?"
"I ran away. I wanted to go to Hetuala to find you Sanbeile. But when I arrived at the border, I calmed down and thought about it. The Great Khan and several Bailes all knew that I was Zheng's original maid. This would definitely cause trouble to Sanbeile. I didn’t want to cause trouble. Instead of running away to the east, I went to the north to do some business with the Mongols and get some food first. Unexpectedly, when I went to Shandong to harvest cotton in the fall, I learned that my sworn sister was also the Zheng family. Another maidservant died. Because she hanged herself, she was not allowed to be buried in the clan’s cemetery and was buried alone in the wild."
Mang Gurtai was one of the first sons to follow Nurhaci in dealing with the Han people. He spoke Chinese very well and could smoothly understand Mu Zaohua's narrative.
"You, a sworn sister, were forced to death by the Zheng family?"
Mu Zaohua nodded and said bitterly: "Mr. Zheng is no different from those civil servants in the imperial court who are full of benevolence and morality but have bad intentions. Sanbeile, before Jianzhou, he also made contributions to the Ming Dynasty's border settlement. How did the Ming Dynasty treat you? My sisters and I are the same. We are loyal to our master, but our master looks at us like mules and animals. Why? God has eyes. When I was running goods in Xunzhen, When I saw Zheng following the Mongols out of the border, I followed her to see how I could kill her. Unexpectedly, I encountered Zhenglan Banner and the Ming Army fighting."
Mu Zaohua stopped again and did not continue, trying to leave some dignity to Dege.
There was silence in the tent for a moment before Mang Gurtai's voice rang out.
"Take her down, let her eat something, and don't tie her up." Mang Gurtai ordered a baga beside him.
Then he pointed at the other guards and said, "You guys all get out too."
After everyone retreated, Mang Gurtai stood up, walked in front of Degerei, suddenly took action, and slapped his brother hard in the face.
Dege was mentally prepared for this and shook slightly without making a sound.
"A whole four of Niulu's soldiers are gone, gone!" Mang Gurtai gritted his teeth and said, "The first time you came with me to rob Xuanda, you ended up like this. When you return to Hetuala, how can you fight with us? A sweaty confession? Huh? Not to mention Huang Taiji, even that silly roe deer Amin could laugh at us for a while!"
After Mang Gurtai finished speaking, he took a breath, slapped him again, and added a curse: "You just have a wrong idea. When you heard that the annual reward given to Chahar by the Ming Dynasty increased tenfold, you thought of something." Everyone devours it. Otherwise, if you had come to inform me, you wouldn’t have ended up like this!”
Dege received two solid slaps. Although he knew that he was indeed negligent and underestimated the enemy, another anger surged in his heart.
If Mang Gurtai hadn't deliberately abandoned him and prevented him, his half-brother, from grabbing Xuanzang together, how could he have gone to rob Lin Dan Khan's mission in a hot-headed manner because he was afraid of returning empty-handed and making the Khan look down upon him?
But Dege held back forcefully.
He is now a bare man, not even as good as a Niu Lu forehead. If he doesn't beg for mercy from his brother Mang Gurtai, how can he expect Daishan, Amin, Huang Taiji and other banner leaders who have their own agendas to come and help him? Did the Khan come to ask for mercy?
"Mang Gurtai, you are right, I am so useless. If Miss Zaohua hadn't helped me, I would have been taken to the Meridian Gate of the capital of the Ming Dynasty and suffered all kinds of humiliation, which would have disgraced our Jianzhou state. .”
Dege said tremblingly, shaking his head in shame and pain.
His intention of transition was achieved, and the veins on Mang Gurtai's temple slowly deflated.
The irritable leader of the Zhenglan Banner, when he spoke again, his anger had faded a bit.
"Did my woman indeed shoot her original master?"
Degerei nodded: "However, it only hit the shoulder, so Zheng probably won't die. The Ming army came well prepared, and the doctors and medicine are all in the camp."
Little Belle has noticed that his brother's word is "my woman".
He then added: "Miss Zaohua said that she would not save me if she had not known that I was your brother. But I think that she saved me, in fact, to give herself a reason to come to you. She So different from those cunning Ming people."
Mang Gurtai stared at him coldly: "If the Great Khan asks, you have to say the same thing. Why, Huang Taiji can get close to so many Ming people and use them as hunting dogs, so I can't marry a rescuer." I am the leader of the small banner of the Lan Banner, a woman from the Ming Dynasty who almost killed our great enemy of the Later Jin Dynasty, how about I be the side Fujin?"
