Three Kingdoms

Generally speaking, people who are stuck are more rigorous and have a strong sense of self-control.

This kind of person is generally regarded as the German in the legends of later generations.

Well, the Germans in the legend are not only punctual and trustworthy, but extremely rigorous, and can even have black technology that can be wrapped in oil paper for thirty meters, but in reality, the Germans are not only late, but the train is also delayed, and their class is completely After all, even working hard to make money is illegal.

What I heard is just what I heard. The specifics still depend on the actual situation.

The people from Chengdu Li's Trading Company arrived in Jiangzhou, of course, not because there were any problems on the road, but because there were a large number of soldiers guarding Jiangzhou. Just like a thief passing by a blue and white wall, even if he does nothing, he is always a little frightened, even if he pretends to be nonchalant.

The best plan is to reduce the time in Jiangzhou as much as possible, go straight to the dock after entering the city, and then board the ship to set off. However, there is always a gap between ideal and reality. This time, the people from Li's Trading Company I encountered this "gap".

"Official document?" ! Why wasn't it done? ! "The people at Li's Trading Company were very angry.

Zhuo Liang sighed and said: "I submitted the official document a long time ago, but it failed to be approved... I even went there yesterday. People in the official residence said that there have been many things recently, so there was a delay..."

The people from Li's Trading Company stared wide-eyed, "Delayed?" 』

Zhuo Liang nodded, "It's been delayed." It is said that General Xu has more important things to do in recent days... So, we... can't be ranked ahead of General Xu's things no matter what? 』

"How long will it take for the official document to be processed?" "The people from Li's Trading Company asked.

Zhuo Liang sighed helplessly, "I don't know, it could be three to five days at the earliest, or...sigh..."

Businessmen or not, this is the case. Of course, Zhuo Liang couldn't just say three days. What if Zhuge Liang said there would be a few more days, so it was always right to say a wider range.

"..." The people from Li's Trading Company exchanged looks.

Normally, when a commercial bank encounters such a thing, there is a small chance that it will wait, but most of them will try to pass the losses on. Anyway, the main purpose of the commercial bank is to make money.

Under such circumstances, if the trading company knew a little bit, it would try to sell the spices to Zhuo Liang, and then get back the capital, or make a small profit, and then transfer the risk. Anyway, it was Zhuo Liang who failed to handle it. With the official document coming, it makes sense that Zhuo Liang would have to bear the subsequent risks.

Zhuo Liang would not say that he would immediately receive the spices at a high price. He would definitely bargain for a while and then reach a deal at a price that both parties agree on...

But if it were another situation...

People from Li's Trading Company did not make an immediate decision.

The leader of Li's Trading Company came aboard, and two guards stayed with him. This is not a big problem. For example, if you carry a lot of money with you, you need close protection from guards.

But after the trading company leader and guards entered the room and closed the door, one of the guards whispered: "I must leave immediately... I can't delay here..."

The leader of Li's Trading Company was stunned, "But this ship..."

"You guys are waiting here for the official document..." the guard whispered, "I'll find another way..."

Hearing his words, the other guard was surprised.

These two guards are actually from Jiangdong, and they are not ordinary soldiers. In the Jiangdong army, these two people serve as tent commanders, which is basically the same as the military police of the personal guard, although they are not too high. Position, but as the important deputy of the military judge, he must know some words and regulations, and be responsible for correcting discipline and executing punishments for ordinary soldiers.

The position of governor in front of the tent cannot be held by non-experienced soldiers, so they have the marks of soldiers on their bodies, but as guards, they can cover it up. Anyway, there are so many caravans coming and going, so most people focus on the caravan goods and the leader of the caravan. As for the guards, it is very common for them to come this month and leave next month, so personnel changes are not easy to attract attention.

Just because it's not easy to attract attention, doesn't mean it won't attract attention...

"I suspect..." the more experienced guard said in a deep voice, "Is it exposed..."

"No, maybe it's because the official document hasn't come down yet..." the team leader said uncertainly. The team leader is naturally familiar with business matters, but for the current matter, he cannot make a very accurate and appropriate judgment for a while.

"It shouldn't be that big..." the young guard said, "How about we wait and see?" 』

The older guard frowned and said, "I'm worried that as soon as the city gate is closed...someone will come to the door..."

"What? ! ” The other two people were surprised.

"Mr. Zhuo, is this the first time that this issue of official documents has arisen?" ’ asked the older guard.

The leader nodded, "Yes, yes, it's never happened before, never..."

“So why does it happen this time? "The elder guard said, "This is not the first time for Mr. Zhuo. Isn't he anxious? It doesn’t look like he’s in a hurry...so there must be something going on here...Although I’m sure what it is,...it’s better to be careful...』

Sichuan and Shu have undergone many military changes since Xu Huang came, so the latest information must be sent back. This is naturally a very important matter.

"Then let's..." The young guard squinted his eyes, "How about we just..."

The leader's body couldn't help but tremble.

In front of outsiders, he is the team leader, and people like Li's Trading Company listen to him, but in fact he has to listen to these two guards...

The elderly guard glanced at the leader, thought for a moment, shook his head and said, "No need." I will take the goods alone and you all will stay here... If anything else happens, nothing will be found out..."

The waterway is still more convenient than the land route, and for the people of Jiangdong, it seems that they prefer the waterway. If this time is really just an accident, then you can continue to use this route next time.

The discussion was finalized, and before the city gate was closed, the elderly guard held a special spice box in his arms, hurriedly disembarked from the boat, walked through the market, and headed out of the city.

At this time, because it was approaching the time for the city gate to close, except for the more people coming in and out near the city gate, other places were relatively quiet, and there were no signs of mobilization of troops.

The elderly guard walked in a hurry. When he approached the east gate of Jiangzhou, he looked back and saw that there was still no movement in the city. He walked into the queue waiting to leave the city, and then took out a pass from the leather bag at his waist. This is a blank transfer that has been done before. It is secretly stamped with a seal in advance, and then stored. Fill in the text when necessary, so that you can have a "real" transfer.

What is written is so-and-so, so-and-so, and then the date is fixed, which is all fixed. The paper is real, and so is the large seal. The only flaw is that the ink is newer.

When they reached the city gate, the elderly guard handed over the passage to the city gate guard.

At this time, the sky was getting dark. These city gate guards had been on duty for a day, and they were not in good spirits. In addition, there was insufficient light, so after taking over the check-in, they took a general glance and returned it casually. He met the elderly guard and waved for him to pass.

The elderly guard took over the transfer station silently, and then walked out of Jiangzhou City unhurriedly.

Because Jiangzhou itself is located in Bazhong and is an internal city, not a border pass, so the verification of people's entry and exit is not as strict as the checkpoints at the pass.

After the elderly guard left the city, he went straight out of the city suburbs. He seemed to be very familiar with the road. From time to time, he would stop for a moment and look left and right before moving forward.

There are also some farmers outside Jiangzhou City.

Because the terrain of Jiangzhou is undulating and there are many mountains and fields, these farmers are located in one place in the east and one in the west.

The place where the elderly guard was going was a farmhouse.

This is an emergency shelter in Koto.

In the early days, people from Jiangdong replaced the old farmers here and farmed here. In the Han Dynasty, when there was no photography technology, even local officials might not be able to remember clearly the scattered farmers who were far away from towns and only existed in their household registrations. After all, they only met once or twice a year...

When arriving at this hidden spot, the elderly guard deliberately squatted in the bushes for a while. Seeing that there was no tail behind him, he took several small and medium-sized mosquito bags to the farmer's house.

This place was chosen because there is a small mountain col behind the farmer's house. This small mountain col is not big, but it is surrounded by mountains and is not easy to be found. It is very suitable for hiding people or horses.

Yes, there is a horse hidden here now.

The elderly guard knew about this, so he came, but what he didn't know was that this horse was not a tall Xiliang horse, let alone a war horse, but a Sichuan horse...

"..." The elderly guard looked at the Sichuan horse in front of him and was speechless for a long time.

Sichuan horses also have big horses and Hequ horses, but those are in Beichuan, while in the Nanchuan and Dongchuan areas, they are basically short-footed horses similar to Yunnan horses.

"This is a donkey!" "The elderly guard couldn't laugh or cry. He pointed at the pony and said, "You are obviously a donkey! Donkeys are bigger than you! 』

"nonsense! The old farmer was unhappy, "This is a horse!" Don't look too small, this horse has great legs! I know what you want, but think about it, how many Xiliang war horses are waiting for you in a farmer's house? Is it possible? If there really is a war horse, I will be captured before you can come! 』

The elder guard knew that the old farmer was telling the truth.

A farmer's family may be able to support one or two horses, but it is basically an impossible task to support the feeding of war horses and maintain the activity of war horses. The daily consumption of a war horse is basically equivalent to that of three adult men. After all, a war horse has to keep fat all the time. Once the feed cannot keep up with the fat loss, it will be difficult to go to the battlefield.

Relatively speaking, the Sichuan and Yunnan horses are much better in terms of feeding. Like the Mongolian horses, they are hardworking and cannot run fast, but they have good endurance.

The situation was somewhat unexpected.

After all, it is very troublesome to transmit information. It is already very good to provide a general situation here. How can it be possible to describe in detail what kind of horse is hidden here?

"Forget it..." the elderly guard sighed, "That's it!" 』

If he had known it was this kind of horse, he would have weighed it carefully. The result is now...

You’re here, what else can you do?

The elderly guard got on his horse and sighed softly. He is relatively tall among the Jiangdong people, at 7 feet 5, but this war horse is only over 6 feet, certainly not even 7 feet, so riding on it is really hard to describe...

But no matter what, four legs are better than two legs. He was preparing to travel at night along the mountain road.

The old guard's original plan was to spend the night at the farmer's house and wait until dawn before leaving, but after seeing the horse, he changed his mind.

Turns out, he was right.

At dawn, he heard the rapid sound of horse hooves coming from behind.

The elder guard was a little worried and wanted to urge the horse to go faster, but the pony still moved forward lazily, taking the devil's pace, Katcha, Katcha, even though the elder guard urged repeatedly, that is, from Katcha, Katcha just became Katcha Katcha, not much faster at all.

This is normal. Sichuan horses and Yunnan horses are basically used to hump animals and people. The important thing is stability, not speed. In addition, they have never received any training, so they don’t understand the anxiety of the elderly guard. , can’t even run...

The elderly guard seemed to be getting more and more anxious as he listened to the sound of horse hooves on the way back. In his desperation, he got wise and dismounted immediately. Then he took the reins of the horse and turned the horse's head back. He lowered his head and walked slowly.

Not long after, five war horses lined up, two in front and three in back, galloping from the official road.

The elderly guard quickly led the horse to the side of the road and gave way.

The chasing cavalry seemed to have glanced at the elderly guard for a moment, and then they didn't seem to suspect anything, and they just flew by.

The older guard exhaled. He didn't know whether the pursuers were coming for him, but he felt that things were heading towards a collapse...

Just when the elderly guard thought he had deceived the pursuers and was about to turn around to other mountain roads, the five cavalrymen from before ran back again.

"Damn it..." The elderly guard quickly pulled the war horse to the side of the road, pretending to rest, trying to get through again.

But unfortunately, the five cavalrymen seemed to have recognized him. After whistling, two cavalrymen threw nooses directly at him!

Caught off guard, the elderly guard was tied up with a noose and fell to the ground.

A hussar rushed forward and held the older guard down.

Another cavalryman dismounted, reached in front of the pony, reached out and patted the pony's neck, then bent down and grabbed the pony's front hooves.

The docile cavalry Ren of the pony raised its front hooves and tilted his head, as if he felt something strange...

"That's right, it's this mark..." the Hussars laughed, "You're pretty good at pretending..."

The elderly guard closed his eyes in pain.

He understands...

Just like a person from Jiangdong can see a ship and know how much weight it carries, how much cargo there is, or how many people there are, he should be able to think of the horse hoof prints on the road. In fact, in the eyes of an experienced scout, they are obvious. Like a lantern in the dark night.

It's a pity it's too late.

……(〒︿〒)……

Chengdu.

Those laborers who went into the mountains to open roads were gradually withdrawn for repairs.

In any case, these ordinary laborers are basically victims.

These laborers were stationed nearby on the outskirts of the city, on the one hand for treatment, and on the other hand for comfort.

The laborers who were sick were specially admitted for treatment, while the laborers who were not sick were also kept in the new camp for observation and rest.

People around Chengdu have begun to talk about this matter to some extent, but what is very interesting is that ordinary people are somewhat afraid of such strange events, or are afraid but also very interested. They talk about those mountain gods and ghosts, It's vivid, but in the army, few soldiers believe it, let alone spread the word.

If the soldiers are not in chaos, there will be no chaos in the local area.

The education promoted by the hussar general in the army is working little by little.

Because of the corresponding knowledge, these soldiers naturally have the most basic understanding of the world around them.

Knowing how to read means not only knowing how to read the text conveyed by military orders, but also knowing how to read, and then find some books to read by yourself. The more books you read, the more your horizons will naturally broaden. Therefore, the soldiers did not believe the rumors about mountain gods and ghosts at all. Instead, they thought it was a brand-new disease that they did not understand for the time being and for which there was no good solution.

As for ordinary people, many of them are illiterate, so they cannot read books. At most, they can only listen to other people's stories, or simply watch a play directly.

Can it be taken seriously as a joke?

But the problem is that some people will take it seriously.

Reading can change something on a certain level. Fei Qian has been asking the generals and subordinates to implement the rules of reading and writing. It is not that he wants to cultivate any great scholars in the army. Maybe one day there may be some, but most of the time it is just for the convenience of military orders. Uploading and issuing orders at the same time makes the soldiers somewhat sensible.

As a result, a very interesting phenomenon occurred.

In most cases, rumors and other rumors from local people would be transmitted to the army, which would lead to chaos in the army, the people's morale, and the army's morale. However, the current situation in Sichuan and Sichuan is the opposite. The soldiers have played a role in stabilizing and eliminating rumors of the plague. Many soldiers directly told the suspicious people that it was just a disease, there were no gods and ghosts, and it would be cured.

In the soldiers' perception, even the plague is not a big deal. As long as the military health regulations are followed, haven't the previous plagues in Guanzhong and even the locust plague been eliminated?

The calm soldiers gradually calmed down the people.

The chaos caused by the unknown situation has basically disappeared, but some rumors about ghosts and gods are still circulating among the people...