Three Kingdoms

In the sixth year of Taixing, it was midsummer.

Near Xuanwu Pond, a moderate epidemic suddenly broke out.

The original construction site near Xuanwu Pond was suspended, and all laborers and craftsmen were arranged to go to the epidemic prevention station in a mountain depression in the Qinling Mountains for inspection and observation.

The epidemic came so suddenly and even violently that many people in Chang'an heard about it and started talking about it. Fortunately, the epidemic only occurs near Xuanwu Pond for the time being. As for the cause of the epidemic, one theory is that the new warships angered He Bo; another theory is that food is not easy to put away in early summer, and they are afraid of eating too much; another theory is that someone was in Xuanwu Pond. Bad ingredients were mixed into the kitchen...

Anyway, everyone has their own opinions, and the people often just listen and enjoy it. As long as the disease does not spread to other parts of Chang'an, it is not a big deal.

But some people know that this is indeed caused by bugs.

The epidemic prevention station is located at the foot of the Qinling Mountains, some distance from the labor camps in the Qinling Mountains. It is built in a valley similar to a basin.

Because when Feiqian took in Jingzhou refugees before, even though he did some epidemic prevention work near Wuguan and carried out part of the cleaning and treatment, he still could not avoid the incubation period of the virus, or he could be infected again during the transfer process. Because of the epidemic, an epidemic prevention station was built here to accommodate, diagnose and treat some patients who may be infected with the epidemic, and to isolate them against the epidemic.

There are a total of 175 craftsmen in Xuanwu Pond, 500 soldiers on duty, and more than 200 long-term laborers who are responsible for various heavy work in Xuanwu Pond. This is the number of nearly a thousand people. Fortunately, the epidemic prevention station was built to treat the refugees, so it was built larger. Otherwise, it might not be able to accommodate so many people.

In the past two days, the first people to go to the epidemic prevention station were of course the craftsmen, big and small. After it was determined that only a small number of craftsmen were suffering from a certain degree of diarrhea and vomiting, and that most of the other craftsmen were relatively healthy, the rest of the laborers and soldiers took their turn one after another.

Because there are some soldiers at the epidemic prevention station itself, and there are also some soldiers on duty in Xuanwu Pond, and the important craftsmen have already settled in the epidemic prevention station, the next ones are all labor, and naturally there is no need to deploy additional soldiers. Guard.

For most of the laborers and craftsmen in Xuanwu Pond, although they felt that this incident was a bit sudden, they did not think of it elsewhere. In addition, the tasks of developing and manufacturing warships in Xuanwu Pond had basically been completed before, and many People think it's not too bad to have this opportunity to take a break.

Today is the last group to go to the epidemic prevention station, and it is also the largest group. They are mainly laborers, and there are also a small number of sick soldiers. After these people have left, Xuanwu Pond will be temporarily closed for a period of time. According to the previous Hussars According to the standards issued by the general to prevent the plague, thorough cleaning and disinfection will be carried out until the Xuanwuchi accommodation and living area is safe before it can be restored.

Because of the large number of people, the queue was very long.

After the queue entered the Qinling Mountains, the view suddenly became a little depressing. The continuous mountains seemed to be photographed directly on the face, and the undulating mountains were like giants, laughing at the human race. The little one wriggled slowly along the mountain path.

In front of nature, human beings are like bugs, but some choose to live under the sun, while others just want to hide in the shadows.

Because the road leading to the epidemic prevention station is not as easy to walk as the official road, and the winding mountain is quite steep, so the guard soldiers who were originally riding horses had to dismount and lead the horses on foot after they reached the foot of the mountain.

More than two hundred laborers and a small number of sick soldiers formed a regular queue, while a small number of soldiers who were still in good health were on both sides of the queue.

The queue has to go around a medium-sized mountain ridge, then walk across a short section of a suspension bridge, and finally enter a mountain col with a stream, where the epidemic prevention station is located.

From the perspective of future generations, such a place is simply a natural oxygen bar. There must be many high-ranking officials and nobles who are tired of staying in the city and want to build a house of medium or small size to live in in order to prolong their life and facilitate their lives. I can be healthier and stay in office longer so that I can better serve the people by digging into their hearts.

But now, this small suspension bridge seems to separate life and death, illness and health, making everyone who arrives here feel uneasy.

Because it is said that they will be quarantined and reviewed in the epidemic prevention station...

The team marched halfway up the mountain for more than an hour. When they arrived near the suspension bridge, they gradually slowed down.

The suspension bridge is built on a natural cliff. Although the distance between the two sides of the cliff is not large, it is very steep. Controlling the suspension bridge is equivalent to controlling the entrance and exit.

The soldier guard leader who led the way cautiously ordered the entire team to stop advancing, and then sent two soldiers over to negotiate. After the two soldiers returned, they began to slowly let the team pass through the suspension bridge.

The suspension bridge itself is not wide, and there are no protective measures like those of later generations. If you accidentally fall off the cliff, you will definitely die...

The queue moved forward slowly and passed in an orderly manner. After walking for about half an hour, when most of the people in the queue had reached the opposite side, and only a few soldiers and laborers were left at one end of the suspension bridge, suddenly some soldiers found themselves in the ravine behind, and suddenly they Some strange figures appeared!

Immediately, these figures attacked the only few soldiers in the queue!

Several people howled and rushed forward. Regardless of whether the people in front were soldiers or laborers, they would cut down and kill anyone they saw. A few others followed behind and opened fire on the soldiers who remained on the suspension bridge. Just shoot with the bow!

"Enemy attack!" 』

The soldiers responsible for guarding or escorting only carried ordinary swords and spears. They were not covered in weapons like the elites in the field. Therefore, when they were attacked, there was no way to attack the long-range archers. Suppression or counterattack, plus the laborers who were still on this side of the suspension bridge instinctively began to run away after encountering the surprise attack. Some laborers even pushed each other while rushing to cross the suspension bridge, and fell straight from the bridge to the cliff. , which made the scene extremely chaotic...

By the time the soldiers in the epidemic prevention station arrived and firmly controlled the suspension bridge, the attackers and the remaining laborers at the other end of the suspension bridge had disappeared. When the soldiers cautiously lined up across the suspension bridge to shrink on the other side, There are only some corpses left on the other side...

Except for some of the laborers who were originally at the back and died on the spot, many others escaped. Although most of the laborers in Xuanwu Pond were paid, and only a small part were pure slaves, when one of the laborers escaped first, in the mood of death and panic, they did not think much about the subsequent laborers. , and fled without thinking.

The news quickly spread to Chang'an. Such an inexplicable attack immediately put the entire situation in Chang'an into tension.

There were more patrols and soldiers, and many pedestrians and caravans were questioned. Some people who escaped from the place on weekdays were arrested. At the same time, Kanze sent out the hounds that had smelled the scent, following the traces. Keep searching...

……(⊙??⊙)……

Tongguan.

Fan Cong touched his chest and felt the beating of his heart.

He's been feeling very uncomfortable lately, as if something is about to happen, and it's something bad.

In the past two or three years, Fan Cong has become accustomed to living in this area of ​​​​Guanzhong. This habit is peaceful, comfortable, and even happy. He originally thought that he only needed to carefully hide in the pass, like the gravel on the bricks, inconspicuous and unnoticed, or that after a certain period of time, he would quietly leave the pass. , returned to his hometown, or led an important military operation, bid farewell to his spy career, and embarked on another level of life.

For this reason, he quietly played the role of an ordinary and ordinary middle- and low-level official in Tongguan New City. He has been living a stable life like this, and it seems that he has forgotten his original responsibilities.

But recently, he found that the surrounding environment seemed to have some changes that were different from the past.

Fan Cong couldn't tell what the change was, just like he seemed to see someone in a dream, but couldn't see his face clearly. It was also like the bloody smell that was smelled in the wind below the city head after the General Hussars came to Tongguan in person.

In the past period of time, several colleagues around Fan Cong were transferred away for different reasons, and the matters he was responsible for also changed slightly during the series of mergers and dissolutions. . These changes seem very reasonable, because each personnel change is not targeted at Fan Cong alone, but a group of people, and there are sufficient reasons, and there is nothing puzzling.

But in the process, Fan Cong gradually felt that such transfers and arrangements made it increasingly inconvenient for him to do something...

Perhaps it was this inconvenience that caught Fan Cong's attention.

Gu Dao "Perhaps my end is approaching..."

Sometimes, Fan Cong can't help but feel such pessimism.

Just like that time when I watched the execution under Tongguan City, I always felt that I was the next one to be dragged to the execution platform.

No one wants to die.

But when faced with immediate death or delayed death, human beings often make some deviations in their choices, just like Fan Cong. In fact, this kind of psychology is not difficult to understand, especially for many smokers in later generations. Anyway, if you smoke one more cigarette now, you will not die immediately...

Tobacco leaves, produced in the Americas, were first used by Indians because smoking will cause various changes, which will cause a certain degree of mental excitement, increase blood flow, and promote platelet coagulation, which allows the Indians to hunt has certain advantages. After all, when the Indians discovered tobacco leaves, the overall life span of human beings was about thirty or forty years, and there was no need to consider old age at all.

When Fan Cong was young, he didn't think about what would happen to him when he was old. He even thought that if he couldn't make a career, he wouldn't be afraid of being broken into pieces. But now...

He didn't know what to do rightly.

As a junior official in Tongguan under the command of General Hussar, although he is not a high-ranking official, his life is worry-free and he still has some spare money to spend. As a spy sent by Cao Cao, Fan Cong did not feel that his spy career was It can bring him so much spiritual enjoyment and get him so much spiritual comfort.

Even though he has given convenience and assistance to some people in some matters, but...is this all his life?

When he was preparing to come to Hussar's place at the beginning, the military advisor Guo Jia summoned them and had a deep talk, telling them that as children from a poor family, their opportunities and space for advancement are limited. If they can't do it, There is no way they can revitalize Menlin unless something more remarkable happens.

This is a fact, and it is also the reason why Fan Cong is willing to put himself in dangerous situations and become a spy.

But what he didn't expect was that one year had passed, two years had passed, and then three years had passed. He had thought that he would soon usher in the army of General Cao Cao, ushering in a grand attack by Cao's army, the kind of dozens of The grand plan of a four-pronged offensive with tens of thousands of people still seemed to be a dream.

The upper road passes through Taihang Mountain and marches to Shangdang, the middle road marches to Tongguan, the lower road marches to Wuguan, and a side road marches to Hanzhong...

The military advisor offered wine and spoke eloquently, and their blood boiled with excitement.

After all, the more people in Jizhou and Yuzhou means there are more troops, so Jizhou and Yuzhou have the advantage, don't they?

After Fan Cong gets up every day, standing in the yard, he will look eastward. He was completely unaware of what psychology his habit represented. He just continued to do this day after day, day after day, and gradually became tired.

It's like smoking a cigarette or taking a pill to get you excited for a long time, but as time goes by, the effect becomes worse and worse, and no matter how much you take, it won't help.

What's more, Fan Cong felt that someone might have found him...

Every time he thinks of this matter, Fan Cong is always afraid. He is afraid that one day soldiers will suddenly rush in front of him. At that time, will he die heroically, or will he continue to struggle and get confused?

The "Qin An" who came to Tongguan last time, or the guy named "Wei An", or it doesn't matter what his name was, when he left Tongguan for Guanzhong, he briefly mentioned that if Fan Cong is willing, he can find him immediately If he has the opportunity to leave, he will arrange for personnel to take Fan Cong back to Xu County.

But Fan Cong was hesitant. I've been hesitating.

Because he doesn't know what he should do. go back? Continue to be an unknown boy from a poor family, living in a remote county town until his death? And will it be suspected that it was his own negligence or betrayal that led to the previous Tongguan incident? Will he be imprisoned and interrogated, and may he be released when he is old? Or even die in prison?

No one can give Fan Cong an accurate answer or any promise. Just like the four-pronged army that the military advisor vowed to offer wine, it is still a fantasy until now, so Fan Cong finally rejected "Wei An", saying that he still Stay in Tongguan. Of course, Fan Cong's words are still very good. For example, if the general Wang Shi is approaching, he must do more for the general. For example, if he stays in Tongguan for one day, the possibility of conquering Tongguan will increase by one point...

But now Fan Cong knows better than anyone that if he wants to get to Tongguan, he must first pass through Hangu Pass. And is General Cao Cao really capable of breaking through two passes in a row and marching into Guanzhong?

"Brother Fan, what are you thinking about?" Wang Ling, a junior official sitting next to Fan Cong, asked curiously.

Fan Cong quickly collected his divergent thoughts and coughed lightly, "It's nothing, or did you accidentally catch some wind chill last night?" 』

"Brother Fan, please be careful..." Wang Ling put a document on his hand to another side, "I heard that the inspector from Zhiyin Supervisor is coming here... I can't let anything go wrong..."

"That's natural. ” Fan Cong nodded.

Direct Yin Supervisor, Inspector...

What is this going to do? Fan Cong couldn't help but fell into deep thought again.

Wang Ling glanced sideways at Fan Cong, then lowered his head, his heart tumbling. Two days ago, he received a request from Guanzhong, saying that he was preparing to escort a few people out of the customs. At this time, he heard that the inspector from Zhiyin Prison was coming. Not only did he have to be careful not to be discovered, but he also had to worry about the people next door. This guy, it’s really heartbreaking to find a way to prevent him from implicating me...

Wang Ling's original surname was not Wang, but Sun.

That grandson of Sun Quan...

Since Sun Ce's death, he changed his name to Wang Ling. Under the arrangement of Mrs. Wu, he traveled from Jiangdong to Jingzhou, and then from Jingzhou to Guanzhong.

Sun Ce did not die on the battlefield, but was injured by a spy, and unfortunately died young. This made everyone in the Sun family resentful, and also made the Sun family suddenly wake up. It turns out that there are some people like this outside the battlefield, who can After doing such things, that is, after Sun Quan ascended the throne, the Sun family began to continuously send people abroad.

Wang Ling hid very deeply, and never directly contacted those responsible for the operation. He only indirectly provided some conveniences to these people, such as arranging vehicles and ships. Apart from these, he never took the initiative to inquire about intelligence or information. Risking an assassination, so Wang Ling felt safe until he was transferred from Linjin to Tongguan, and then sat together with Fan Cong...

Wang Ling originally didn't know that Fan Cong had a problem, but by chance, he encountered someone following Fan Cong.

Because the follower's attention was focused on Fan Cong, the follower did not notice Wang Ling's gaze, nor did he see Wang Ling's face suddenly turn pale as a result.

Then Wang Ling gradually noticed that there were many things that were wrong, which made him feel on pins and needles, but he could not say that he would leave immediately. In addition, during this period, Dali Temple was thoroughly investigating those officials who resigned without reason, and The inspection of the checkpoints has been strengthened. Even if Wang Ling wants to escape now, it may not be a wise thing.

So much so that Wang Ling began to suspect that it might not be a pure coincidence that he was transferred here from Linjin.

While secretly cursing that damn Pei Yuan and this equally damned Fan Cong, Wang Ling had to start planning for his own life...

The key is those guys in Chang'an...

After a moment, Wang Ling couldn't help but sigh in a low voice, and the sound of his slight exhalation was like the short low cry of crickets in the corner of the official wooden house.

Although these bugs hiding in the gaps are invisible, they may die the day they are revealed.