The last three kingdoms

Chapter 83 Levels
Going down the southern slope of the Qinling Mountains for more than ten miles, the terrain drops suddenly and you will find the valley of the Jialing River.During the Three Kingdoms period, the Jialing River was called the Xihan River, rushing down from the Qinling Mountains, scouring a narrow and dangerous valley.

On one side of the valley, a winding ancient road has been spreading towards the depths of the majestic and tall mountains. This ancient road is the famous Chencang Road.The story of Han Xinming repairing the plank road and crossing Chen Cang secretly happened here.At the same time, Zhuge Liang's northern expedition to the Central Plains also took the Chencang Road many times.Chencang Road is a very important passage connecting Hanzhong and Guanzhong.

Dujiaping is located at the south entrance of the Chencang Ancient Road. On the left is the turbulent water of the Western Han Dynasty, and on the right is the continuous undulating veins of the Qinling Mountains. The Weisuo checkpoint directly subordinate to the Hanzhong Dudufu is set up here.

Due to receiving orders from Hu Ji, the governor of Hanzhong, the Dujiaping Guards, which had been loosely armed, suddenly became heavily guarded. Two tall wooden fences were erected at the crossing of the road. The officers and soldiers of the guard in front of them were now fully armed and guarding the bayonet with serious expressions, and the tip of their guns flashed coldly, making those passing businessmen shudder.

Although Wei and Shu are in a state of hostility, the trade between the two countries has never stopped because of the existence of war. Wei State needs well salt, Shu brocade, and Shu ginger from Shu State, and Shu State needs medicinal materials, mules, horses, etc. from Wei State. Handmade products, some small-scale business trips frequently travel between Hanzhong and Guanzhong for trade. Although this behavior has not been encouraged by the government, it has existed for many years, and the border garrisons of the two countries are usually open-minded Turning a blind eye is a tacit approval of this business relationship.

But today the traders who came out of Nanzheng and were about to take Chencang Road to Guanzhong were surprised to find that the officers and soldiers of the guards who were originally easy to talk seemed to have changed their faces today. The bribes were increased several times, but these officers and soldiers remained steadfast and refused to accommodate at all.

The answer to them was only one sentence, which was an order from the Hanzhong Dudufu, prohibiting all pedestrians and business travelers from passing through the checkpoint.As for when traffic will resume, the above did not say, and the status quo will be maintained for the time being.

A businessman surnamed Yu was selling melons and fruits. If they could not arrive in Guanzhong in time, they might all be rotten on the way. awful.

The leader of the officers and soldiers guarding the checkpoint was Yi Shichang, who was easy-going and looked at the merchant surnamed Yu sympathetically, but the orders above were as big as the sky, how dare he, a small low-ranking officer, bend the law for his own favor? It was just a kind word to comfort him.

The merchant surnamed Yu cried bitterly for a while, knowing that there was no hope, he stopped crying after a while, but thinking about the loss of his money this time, he still cried secretly.

At this time, a strong man came from the south, dressed in coarse cloth, carrying a pole on his shoulder, and a burden on the pole, and a machete stuck in his waist.

With such attire, he is obviously a woodcutter in the mountains.In the mountains around Hanzhong, there are many woodcutters. They cut firewood in the mountains and carry it to Nanzheng or Seoul to sell. A load of firewood can be exchanged for one or two liters of rice. can live.

"What's going on here? Are you still letting me go home?" The woodcutter should not have been under martial law when he went down the mountain yesterday, but after such a short period of time, he was not allowed to pass through. The woodcutter spoke with a strong local accent. Asking, it can be seen that he is very anxious.

The chief had just comforted the merchant, and when he heard the question from the woodcutter, he said helplessly: "This is the military order of the governor's mansion, and we are also following orders. I heard that Nanzheng sneaked into a spy who rebelled against the Wei Dynasty. All checkpoints must Martial law enforcement investigation, as long as the spy is caught, I believe the checkpoint will be reopened soon." This Shichang also came from a poor background, he was just promoted from an ordinary soldier to Shichang, and he still sympathizes with the poor people who have the same situation .

But sympathy belongs to sympathy, if he is allowed to disobey the order and let go without authorization, he may not dare to borrow a few courage from him.

The woodcutter stomped his feet anxiously, and said, "What is the best thing to do? My mother is ill. This time, I went to the city to sell firewood. I went to the pharmacy and asked the doctor to prepare the medicine. The doctor said that my mother was suffering from an emergency. If you don't take this medicine today, I'm afraid you won't be able to survive tomorrow. Lord, please do me a favor, show me your hand, and leave a way for my mother to survive."

The woodcutter burst into tears, knelt down in front of Na Shichang, and kowtowed.

Na Shichang hurriedly said: "Brother, this can't be done. It's not that I'm not willing to accommodate, it's really hard to violate the military order."

"Officer, you can't just ignore death, I beg you, please..." The woodcutter knelt down and kowtowed like garlic.

The road was blocked, and more and more people gathered in front of the checkpoint. Seeing this situation, there was a lot of discussion.

"There is nothing greater than love. This woodcutter's mother is seriously ill and waiting for medical treatment. If it is delayed, it will be a life!"

"That's right, the spies can't be caught just because they are people. The woodcutter looks like an honest and responsible local, and he can't compete with the spies against the Wei Dynasty."

"Master Jun, this is a filial son. We big men rule the world with filial piety. You can save his mother's life with your high hand. This is an immeasurable contribution."

"..."

Everyone was chattering, so much so that he lost his mind. He pondered for a while, thinking that the order from his superiors to close the checkpoint was to capture the spies of the State of Wei. This woodcutter is also a local, no matter what, it is impossible. He is a spy of Wei State. Seeing him crying so miserably, his mother is probably dying of illness. Ren Chang thought of his mother who passed away not long ago. He had never seen it before, and thinking of this, he was also moved with compassion, and said: "Well, for the sake of your filial piety, I will let you go today, but this routine inspection is still unavoidable."

The woodcutter turned his grief into joy, kowtowed and said: "Thank you for your kindness and virtue, the lord. The villain will never dare to forget each other. I will definitely repay this kindness in the future."

Na Shichang also understood that he might be punished by military discipline for what he did, but compared with saving a life, it was worth it, so he said immediately: "You don't have to be polite, brother, it's better to go back to the treatment hall as soon as possible."

As he said that, he ordered his soldiers to search him for any prohibited items. After a rough inspection, there was nothing else on the woodcutter, so he ordered him to let him go.

At this moment, a muffled thunderous shout suddenly came from behind: "Wait a minute!"

(End of this chapter)