march to victory

"Boom!"

In the drizzle, there was a flash of lightning, followed by a shocking thunder, as if it was exploding directly above the head.

The three of Zhang Qingshan were startled by the sudden explosion, which was not bad, but the six horses three or four meters in front of them were in big trouble.

The rest of the four horses were better, only slightly frightened and retreated or moved their limbs.But the two horses on the far right neighed several times, then raised their hooves high, swung their heads a few times, and pulled out the stake made of torch poles...

"Boom!"

There was another thunder.

The two frightened horses neighed immediately, turned around and ran away.

"No! The horse is frightened, go and pull the horse!" Zhang Qingshan yelled and rushed out, first grabbing the reins of the four slightly frightened and agitated horses that hadn't run away yet.

When he was going to grab the reins of the four horses, Zhou Ping almost followed closely behind. Zhang Qingshan grabbed the torches used as wooden stakes, two of the reins had been loosened, and walked forward vigorously, grabbing the torches that were used as stakes. The reins of the two horses pulled.

He handed the reins to Zhou Baoyu, who came after him, snatched the reins of the other two horses from Zhang Qingshan, and shouted at Zhang Qingshan: "Old Zhang, light the torch quickly. You chase the one on the right that ran away." Horse, I'll chase the one on the left."

"Okay!" Zhang Qingshan responded, and was about to take action, but he turned his head abruptly, grabbed Zhou Ping who was also about to rush out, and shouted: "Wait a minute, old Zhou, it's too dark, it's too much to chase in the dark like this!" It's dangerous, we need a big torch."

By the time the three torches were lit, Zhou Ping had already helped Zhou Baoyu re-build a horse-holding post.

Handing a torch to Zhou Baoyu, he said: "Baoyu, take good care of these four horses here, and you must not lose them again. Also, you must keep your torch burning, otherwise, old Zhou and I I'm afraid I won't be able to find my way back in a while."

Then he handed another torch to Zhou Ping, and told him: "Old Zhou, no matter if you catch up or not, don't chase too far... Be careful where you step."

If they were on flat ground, even if it was also in the dark, even if they didn't light a torch, they would chase out immediately. From the sound of hooves and neighing, the chances of finding the frightened and running horse were very high.But in this water grass field full of puddles and swamps, among other things, just paying attention to these dangers under their feet was enough to prevent them from speeding up.

No trace to be found, no sound to be discerned, no speed to be picked up.Under this kind of three nothings, Zhang Qingshan only chased a hundred meters before he came to his senses, gave up and returned.

Zhou Baoyu was wearing a big leather coat, holding a torch in his right hand, and firmly grasping the four reins with his left hand, waiting anxiously.Seeing that Zhang Qingshan came back with a torch so quickly, he thought that Zhang Qingshan had already recovered the horse.Before he could see the person clearly, he shouted in anticipation: "Brother, have you found it?"

Zhang Qingshan didn't answer, and when he came to Zhou Baoyu's side, he shook his head at Zhou Baoyu who was full of disappointment, and said: "Just now I blamed me for being impulsive, not thinking carefully, and rushing out without considering the surrounding environmental factors. not worth it."

Then, seeing that the torch in Zhou Ping's direction was still far away, he told Zhou Baoyu: "Baoyu, you wait here, and I will call Lao Zhou back."

It looked not far away, but Zhang Qingshan walked for seven or eight minutes before arriving at a place more than ten meters behind Zhou Ping.

Seeing Zhou Ping standing there blankly holding a torch, he was obviously looking at something.

Did you find the horse?

But when he looked carefully around Zhou Ping, he didn't see the horse.

Hurrying to Zhou Ping's side, Zhang Qingshan was also stunned when he saw it: in front of him was a big puddle, a horse was soaking in the water, most of its body was exposed above the mud.From the still slightly turbid water color and the planing traces in the black mud at the bottom, it can be guessed that the frightened horse rushed into the puddle in a panic, and was quickly drowned by the puddle... Ordinarily , Horses can swim.The reason why it was still drowned was probably due to its panic when it was frightened, and it was caused by the heavy load on its body, so it sank directly to the bottom before it had time to struggle too much.

However, now is not the time to seek that answer.

After standing for a while, seeing that Lao Zhou was still standing stupidly, silent, Zhang Qingshan asked with some doubts: "Old Zhou, why are you so fascinated by watching?"

"Nothing. I'm trying to figure out how to fish this horse up."

"Forget it. After the rain stops at dawn, just touch the water directly. Anyway, the water is not deep."

"I was wondering just now, is there something like suction under the water, otherwise, how could this horse drown?"

"Go, go back and I will talk to you again."

After returning to Zhou Baoyu's side and setting up the crude tent made of the big leather coat, Zhou Baoyu directly took off the big leather coat on his body and handed it to Zhang Qingshan: "Brother, you are completely soaked, here you are."

Zhang Qingshan was taken aback, and subconsciously looked down at his military uniform. Only then did he realize that he was really soaked through.Perhaps because he felt a little cold, Zhang Qingshan glanced at Zhou Ping and saw that he was wearing the big leather jacket he had handed him earlier, so he was not polite.

He took the big leather jacket and asked Zhou Baoyu to help him hold up the 'tent' for the time being, and hurriedly changed his clothes...

"Brother, I'm a bit regretful. If I hadn't pushed you into the water the day before yesterday, you would still have dry clothes to change. Now... hey!" Zhou Baoyu really regretted yesterday's nonsense. At that time, he didn't think much about it. But now the consequences are showing. If Zhang Qingshan catches a cold and has a fever because of this, he will absolutely blame himself.

"It's okay. After dawn, let's dry the clothes well, and then we will have dry clothes to change... However, this also reflects that we must be careful in everything in the water and grass field, otherwise, if we don't pay attention, we will die." A small, insignificant incident can have serious consequences."

It has been raining from time to time for the past few days, and the sun has not come out, so the clothes that several people put on the horses are a little wet, and everyone is wearing dry clothes, so I was careless for a while and didn't pay special attention to this point. Small things may now turn into big things that slow down the speed.It can be seen that there is no small matter on the water and grass.

"Well! I will never mess around again from now on."

Zhou Ping saw that the atmosphere was a bit cold, so he changed the topic with a smile: "Baoyu, come on, help me support, I will come as soon as I go."

"Old Zhou, do you want to relieve your big hands? If yes, go far away." Zhou Baoyu pointed to the left with a smile on his face and said, "I just peed over there."

"Fuck you. I'm going to find a pot and get a basin of water. In this way, I won't have to waste too much firewood to boil water tomorrow."

Combined with the reality, everything is considered thoroughly, and the slightest opportunity is not missed. This is the performance of experience. Zhang Qingshan admired it, and couldn't help but look at Lao Zhou more.

Soon, when Lao Zhou took the small pot and put it in front of the three of them, the three of them watched the accumulated water in the small pot increase little by little, chatted, and cursed a few words from time to time. kind.

Later, the three of them fell asleep, and finally put on the big fur coats used as "tents" on their bodies. Zhang Qingshan and Zhou Ping each grabbed a corner, and the three of them huddled together, squatting, leaning on each other, hugging each other for warmth...Zhou Pinghe Zhang Qingshan fell asleep in a daze, but Zhou Baoyu, who was protected in the middle, didn't feel the coldness at all, and slept soundly.But because he slept so soundly, he would sit on the ground from time to time and be awakened by the coolness of the water.

This ghost weather is really strange: after a few thunder explosions, there is no movement, as if it is against the three of them.However, the drizzle rained all night, and at dawn, it suddenly disappeared.

However, the small pot was already full of water.

Using the water in the pot, they washed their faces upside down—this was the first time the three of them had washed their faces in the past few days.Previously, it was because of the need to save boiling water, and the water in the puddle was afraid of being poisonous, so I didn't dare to wash it directly, so I didn't wash it all the time.

Immediately, Zhang Qingshan used the wooden poles of the seven torches consumed last night as firewood. After lighting the fire, he handed it over to Zhou Baoyu, and took Zhou Ping to the water where the drowned horse was found last night. Before the pit.

Seeing Zhou Ping undress without saying a word, Zhang Qingshan grabbed him: "Old Zhou, what are you doing?"

"Go into the water and get the stuff up."

"No, your water skills are not as good as mine, so I'll do it."

"Who said my water quality is not as good as yours?" Zhou Ping continued to take off while talking: "Besides, this depth has nothing to do with whether the water quality is good or not."

Seeing that he was so determined, Zhang Qingshan couldn't say anything more, so he had to take out the rope: "You can go, but you have to tie this rope to your body... You were right last night, in case there is something under the water Things like suction, it’s better to be on guard.”

Zhou Ping naturally said nothing.

After undressing, he tied the rope, turned his head to look at Zhang Qingshan, took a deep breath, held back, and jumped into the puddle.

Zhang Qingshan took out a dry handkerchief from his bosom and put it on his shoulder, then twisted the end of the rope around his left wrist twice, holding the box cannon in his right hand, and quietly opened the safety: under this puddle, there will be no There is no attraction, but if there are any poisonous insects and beasts under the water, you must be on guard.

The drowned horse carried only a few things: two bags of highland barley, a small bag of dried beef, a set of slightly rolled Tibetan clothes, and two small cans of wine.

The first time he went into the water, Zhou Ping successfully took out the bag of dried beef and the Tibetan suit. The second time he went into the water, he got two small jars. The third and fourth times, he just put the rope tied to him into use. , Pulled out the two bags of barley.

The temperature difference between day and night on the water grass field is too big, and it is early in the morning, when the water temperature is the lowest in the day. Zhang Qingshan was afraid that he would catch a cold, so he pulled up the last bag of highland barley, put it away, and quickly gave it to Zhou Ping. Hand over the dry handkerchief.

While wiping his body, Zhou Ping looked regretfully at the two bags of barley that had shrunk significantly and kept flowing out, frowned and said, "It's a pity that it won't last long after it's wet."

"It's okay." Zhang Qingshan was rubbing Zhou Ping's back vigorously with a small handkerchief - this is what Xiang Xueqin taught him, saying that doing so can stimulate the body's functions, resist the cold to a certain extent, and not easily catch cold: " At worst, I will eat these two bags of highland barley vigorously in the past few days."

They still comforted each other, but when they returned to Zhou Baoyu with these things, Zhou Baoyu yelled angrily like a frightened rabbit when he saw the two bags of barley dripping with water...