five 1
Adaler has been lost, so the only option is to go to Alebu.
More than 40 members of the Lantern Festival were covered in blood and exhausted - there were only about 20 horses in total, which could only be ridden by the injured. Liu Qingye's black general carried Wu Shuiqing on his back, and he walked with the horse, feeling lucky that the Qing soldiers did not catch up with him, and looking forward to returning to Ale tribe as soon as possible - Ale tribe, when Mang Keshan lit the cannon, he almost thought he would say goodbye to the red headscarf forever, but he didn't expect that there would be a day to go back.
But what if he went back? He felt a little frustrated - if this went well, maybe the master would agree to his relationship with Dan Ying. But now that Fu Chakang failed to kill him and had to rely on the traitor Li to escape, everyone was furious. At this moment, let alone bringing up his relationship with Dan Ying, even talking about something insignificant would inevitably result in a scolding - oh, great cause, this great cause that almost cost him his life, other than this, Liu Qingye would have nothing!
He shook his head vigorously, drove the image of Dan Ying out of his mind, and listened attentively to the conversation between the people in the Lantern Society and Cao Mengsheng. It seemed that the people in the Lantern Society forced Cao Mengsheng to take the place of the deceased Fifth Master. Cao Mengsheng just declined, saying that he was incompetent and could not do the job. Later, Wu Shuiqing came out to persuade him, saying: "Junior brother, everyone is here to drive away the Tartars. It's good to have the intention. What's the point of talking about whether you are competent or not?" Cao Mengsheng reluctantly agreed, but he was still polite to everyone. He refused to take the lead no matter what, and would never distinguish the order of everyone. For example, he called him "brother", and everyone praised his chivalry even more... Liu Qingye was so confused that how could he hear clearly? He was just talking in a daze. After listening for a while, everyone stopped talking about this topic and Wu Shuiqing and Cao Mengsheng started talking. Liu Qingye heard that Wu Shuiqing had been separated from her husband Li Yunsheng after the battle at Songqiao Academy, and she had fought her way out of the siege with her daughter Mingxin and her apprentice sister Ye Bailian, and came to the desert. Later, she met Wang Chunshan and joined the Lantern Society... and so on. More than a decade was long enough, and Liu Qingye couldn't remember exactly how much they had to say, but there was one thing he heard clearly -
"Junior sister was unwilling to marry the leader of the Tashan tribe." Wu Shuiqing said, "She had already been betrothed to you, so how could she be willing to marry someone else? However, in order to unite with the Uyghurs to fight against the Manchu Tartars, the hero Wang persuaded her to agree... so she..."
Having said this, Wu Shuiqing sighed and stopped talking. Cao Mengsheng was stunned, as if he was holding on to his last breath. As soon as he let out his breath, tears would flow down.
Liu Qingye was shocked: Ah, no wonder Master was so sad at the beginning, it turned out that Junior Master's uncle was his fiancée! Although Master never mentioned it, he must have missed her from time to time in his heart, but he didn't expect Junior Master's uncle to marry someone else for the great cause. She is now dead and she didn't even see Master for the last time... The man that Tashan mentioned must be Master without a doubt - Junior Master's uncle is willing to sacrifice his personal feelings for the great cause, which is really admirable, and Master knew that Tashan had stolen his love, but he actually discussed important matters with him. If it were me, how could I do it... He thought about it, and his face was hot - Dan Ying, if he was asked to give up Dan Ying for the great cause, could he do it?
I definitely can't do it! He answered himself like this. He knew he shouldn't, but he also knew that in his heart, nothing was more important than Dan Ying...
"Qingye!"
Suddenly, Liu Qingye woke up from his dream when he heard Cao Mengsheng shouting: "Master..." He saw that everyone had reached a small oasis and dismounted to rest.
Cao Mengsheng glared at him and said, "You're daydreaming again!"
Wu Shuiqing smiled amiably and said, "Little kid, why are you so strict with me, Junior Brother?" As he spoke, he handed Liu Qingye a water bag and said, "Qingye, have a drink of water." He then walked to his daughter in front.
Liu Qingye blushed, holding the water bag, waiting for Cao Mengsheng to scold him. But Cao Mengsheng seemed to be hesitant to speak, sighed and said: "You... go and have a rest, I will go and heal your uncle and Mr. Wang..." After that, he left.
Liu Qingye was stunned for a while, and felt that the sun was scorching, and every ray of light was as sharp as the sting of a wasp, piercing every pore on his body. He had to find a place that was cool and shady, so that he could carefully hide his thoughts.
He looked around and saw that the people of the Lantern Festival were sitting or lying down, occupying the entire green area, except for a poplar tree with strange branches standing abruptly on the Gobi Desert not far away. He walked over and sat down in the pitiful shade under the tree.
The cracked desert around him seemed to be emitting smoke and fire. The solidified air, without a trace of wind, was secretly agitated, sometimes creeping, sometimes rising, distorting the scenery near and far - this was a little like him now, Liu Qingye thought, saying nothing, not daring to say anything, but his heart was about to explode with sadness! Sweat was dripping, stinging his eyes - cold and painful, his vision was blurred, not crying, but an illusion.
He seemed to see the changes of the world. How come the Gobi Desert suddenly became an oasis, with such lush grasslands? The green waves were surging one after another.
Liu Qingye was a little surprised and suspected that he was dreaming. He stood up and rubbed his eyes, but the green grassland was still smiling at him.
Oh, my God! He groaned softly and quickly climbed up the poplar tree to get a better look.
It really was a grassland, vast and boundless, just like the grassland where he had raced horses with Dan Ying that day. Even the bright sunshine on the grass tips had not changed. The only thing missing was the red headscarf that he was infatuated with!
As he was thinking this, a bright red figure suddenly appeared in his field of vision—a rouge horse, with a rouge back, bright red, galloping from the end of the pasture. It was a red eagle! Liu Qingye almost fell off the tree.
It was Dan Ying, her face was red with excitement, her eyes were as green as lake water - the water was tears. She pulled the reins and waved the whip, and her red headscarf and the rouge horse's bright red mane flew up.
She rushed towards Liu Qingye, faster and faster, closer and closer, so close that the faint flames in her green eyes could be clearly seen. Then, suddenly, it was as if the person in the painting walked out, leaving only the green background behind.
Liu Qingye was startled and couldn't help calling out, "Junior Sister—" But the red eagle was indeed gone, and then the grassland also disappeared. He stood on the treetop for a long time in disappointment, and then he suddenly realized: what grassland, what red eagle, it was clearly a mirage! In this kind of weather, isn't it the easiest to see a mirage!
He smiled self-deprecatingly and was about to jump off the treetop.
That day, Moller jumped down from the treetop and fought with him for a tree.
"On your eighteenth birthday, climb up the tallest poplar tree on the grassland. The person you see in the mirage is your destined lover."
Liu Qingye couldn't help but exclaimed "Oh!" This day was his eighteenth birthday! He couldn't help but stand there in a daze.
"Qingye..." Suddenly, Cao Mengsheng's low voice came from behind.
“Master…”
Cao Mengsheng shook his hand gently, patted Liu Qingye's shoulder and said, "Alas... I also know what you are thinking... As for your relationship with your junior sister, since things have come to this point, I can't stop you."
Liu Qingye was shocked when he heard this: "Master, you..."
Cao Mengsheng didn't look at him, but murmured to himself: "Sometimes, if you don't do something, you will regret it for the rest of your life... What Chief Tashan said is right... Alas, your junior uncle is the same. If I had known this, I wouldn't have done it in the first place... I thought she... I thought the person in her heart was... Alas..." He sighed several times before realizing that he was talking nonsense, so he stopped talking and returned to his usual tone, saying: "But, your master also wants to remind you that the country is in crisis now, you must not be obsessed with boudoir affairs, otherwise..."
Liu Qingye was a little confused at first, but just hearing the words "not stopping" made him extremely happy, so he didn't think about anything else. He just thought: Yes, it seems that I am not the material to become a great hero like Master. In my heart, Dan Ying is far more important than the anti-Qing cause. However, now that Dan Ying and I can be together for a long time, no matter how difficult the anti-Qing cause is, what should I be afraid of?
As he thought about this, he couldn't help but smile slightly.
Cao Mengsheng shook his head and said, "Alas, you kid..."
Liu Qingye knew he had lost his composure, and he blushed and put away his smile. But in his heart he couldn't help singing: "On the vast grassland, on the horse, the rouge on the horse's back is more beautiful than the flowers; the flowers reflect the moon, the moon shines on the sand, and the song in the sand reminds me of my home..."
He really wanted to sing out loud—he wanted to sing as loudly as Moler, and it would be best if the song could float back to Alebu with the wind, and float to Dan Ying’s ears—Hey, Dan Ying, I, Liu Qingye… I, Liu Qingye, will also be by your side for the rest of my life… and treat you well for the rest of my life… I swore to Moler…
That night, they rested in this small oasis. Liu Qingye looked up at the stars in the sky and soon fell asleep. It was the first time in many days that he slept so peacefully. In his dream, he vaguely saw Dan Ying, riding side by side with him, and went to the tall poplar tree. He saw Dan Ying smiling like a flower, and couldn't help but hold her hand and said, "Junior sister... Dan Ying... I... I actually..."
"What?" someone asked, but it was not Dan Ying's voice.
Liu Qingye was startled and woke up. Seeing that the person next to him was Li Mingxin, he blushed and said, "Senior Sister..."
Li Ming thought to himself, "Brother, what kind of sweet dream are you having? I called you several times but you didn't get up. We have to hurry on our way."
Liu Qingye looked around and saw that everyone at the Lantern Festival had already stood up. He asked curiously, "What's going on?"
Li Ming thought to himself, "Uncle Meng was guarding the west just now and saw the Tartar troops heading north. I wonder if they are chasing us. Uncle Wang said that we might have exposed our Uighur friends this time, and the Tartars will do them harm. We have to chase them and kill them."
Ah? Liu Qingye's heart tightened: Yes, I must kill these bandits, otherwise they will go to Alebu, Danying... Danying... Thinking of this, he jumped up and ran towards the place where everyone gathered.
Li Mingxin stopped him and said, "Where are you going? Uncle Meng Liu said that we should not confront the Tartars head-on now. There is a pile of rocks ten miles north of here. The terrain inside is very complicated, and the northern edge of the pile of rocks is the famous 'Man-eating Sand Beach' in the desert. We should lead the Tartars into the pile of rocks, beat them dizzy, and then force them into the Man-eating Sand Beach, leaving them dead without a burial place."
Liu Qingye had been together for many days and knew a thing or two about the Lantern Festival. He knew that the Sixth Leader Meng Hu was famous for his resourcefulness. Listening to his plan, he secretly admired him, but at the same time, he felt ashamed: he was so busy dreaming that he almost messed up things.
Seeing him in a daze, Li Mingxin said, "Junior brother, why are you still standing there? Uncle Meng Liu asked us and your master to hurry up and lure the Tartars into the trap."
"Hmm..." Liu Qingye cursed himself for his habit of daydreaming and responded vaguely. He caught a glimpse of Cao Mengsheng walking towards him. He was afraid that his master would see him and scold him again. He hurried over to take the Black General and jumped on the horse in one go - he had ridden this horse to form a bond with Dan Ying, and now he would ride this horse again to kill the Tartars and then gallop back to Dan Ying's side...
Meng Hu arranged to lure the Qing soldiers into the trap. In addition to Master Cao Mengsheng and Li Mingxin, there were four others, namely the second in command, Monk Liaoyuan, the third in command, "Judgment of Life and Death" Yan Tiebi, and the ninth in command, Chi Yunzi, all of whom were not seriously injured. The group was speeding across the dark Gobi Desert - vast and lonely, with tiny flames visible from afar. They were the torches used by the Qing troops to march at night, flickering and undulating in the sky, like stars on the sea.
Cao Mengsheng took the lead and ordered: "Everyone, this is a great opportunity to avenge our dead relatives and friends - let's rush into the Tartar army and disrupt their formation. Then listen to my orders. When I say retreat, everyone will retreat to the pile of rocks together."
Everyone nodded to show that they understood. Cao Mengsheng looked at Liu Qingye again. You must know that Liu Qingye was only thinking about protecting Dan Ying at this time. He did not dare to be distracted for a moment and kept his master's instructions in mind. His demeanor was naturally different from that of Xiangri. Seeing this, Cao Mengsheng nodded approvingly. With a wave of his hand, everyone fell on their horses and rushed towards the Qing soldiers.
Liu Qingye vaguely remembered that when he rushed over, the horse next to him was Li Mingxin, but after he broke into the Qing army, he could no longer distinguish him. He wanted to stab the soldier he saw in front of him, then snatch the man's torch and throw it at the face of the person next to him, killing two people in an instant and making a gap.
The one who rushed past him and into the Qing army was Chi Yunzi. His whisk swept out thousands of silver lights and screams were heard all around.
Liu Qingye advanced a few feet toward the center of the team, dodged a large knife that was aimed at his head, and took advantage of the man's weak moves to hit him in the back with the hilt of his sword, causing him to fall off his horse.
He took a moment to look ahead and saw that one of the generals leading the team was Kehai, who was shouting in anger in Manchuria. But Cao Mengsheng and several others rushed into the center of the team, grabbing torches with both hands as they went, grabbing and throwing them. Suddenly, the fire was like rain, and the horses in the team were startled and neighed in grief. Many soldiers fell off their horses and were trampled by the hooves, and the screams were endless.
In the chaos, Liu Qingye didn't know where he was in the team. He just grabbed the torches and stabbed the opponents. Blood spurted onto his face - I think it was the same when the Tartars massacred the Han people.
After walking a few steps, he suddenly saw Li Mingxin standing on the saddle, wielding two curved swords in his hands, fighting with someone. He rushed forward and saw clearly that the man was Fu Chatao.
Liu Qingye knew how powerful Fu Cha Tao was, and Li Mingxin was injured, so he would definitely not be able to take advantage of him. So he shouted, "Senior Sister, I'm here to help you!" Then he jumped up from the Black General and went straight for Fu Cha Tao's throat with the sword in his hand.
Fu Chatao dodged the attack with his head tilted, and used his backhand to deflect Liu Qingye's sword, saying, "Why are you here again? Father has already let you go, why are you still entangled?"
Liu Qingye took an unconventional approach and cut Fu Chatao's wrist without answering.
With the help of his fellow apprentice, Li Mingxin had a chance to catch his breath. He said, "Hmph, you killed my fifth uncle, I'll make you pay with your life!" He swung his sword twice, attacking Fu Chakang's vital points in the chest and abdomen from above and below.
Fu Cha Tao was attacked from both sides and had to jump off his horse, using Liu Qingye's sword for leverage while using both hands to reach for Li Mingxin's scimitar.
Liu Qingye was shocked and quickly drew his sword, but Fu Chatao had already grabbed Li Mingxin's wrist. Li Mingxin's hands went limp and the scimitar slipped out of his hand.
