The Great Lake is a city of rain. When Gu Mang finished counting the provisions, the sky was already dark. There were thick clouds in the distant mountains, approaching the outskirts of the city. Gu Mang arranged for the cultivators who were escorting the provisions to rest in the barracks. He also ordered people to cover the haystacks in the granary with tarpaulins. The wind was blowing outside the frontier fortress. The Xiao Xiu soldiers clamored as they pressed the four corners of the tarpaulin together before the heavy rain fell. Gu Mang heard someone shouting, "Hurry up, hurry up, it's raining. If you can block it, hurry up and eat your food. If you can't block it, eat your porridge slowly. We are snatching food from God!"
These words were often shouted by him when he was in the Army of Tortoises. Therefore, Gu Mang immediately looked up and saw one of his former subordinates with his trousers rolled up. He was standing on the haystack and giving orders.
The former subordinate saw Gu Mang looking at him and walked over from the golden haystack, "You are Commander Mo's personal guard?"
"… Yes."
"You must be new. Don't be silly. We, the Northern Frontier Army, also need to do something. Hurry up and help!"
"Oh, of course." Gu Mang rolled up his sleeves and supported himself with one hand. He jumped up the haystack in a few steps and pressed the bricks on the corners of the tarpaulin with him.
The former subordinate looked at him with satisfaction, "You are quite agile. No wonder you can work beside Commander Mo."
Gu Mang stepped on the soft haystack and chatted with him while pressing the tarpaulin. The former subordinate was a chatterbox. He kept talking to Gu Mang, "Hey, hey, hey, you need to press another one next to this one."
"The brick in your hand is not heavy enough. You don't know how strong the storm is at the frontier fortress. When the small brick is blown, it will fly up like a leaf."
"What? Exaggerating? I'm not exaggerating at all. Although I'm young, I'm a veteran of the Northern Frontier Army. I was in the barracks when the Northern Frontier Army was still called the Bastard Army. I fought alongside Gu — ahem, Gu Mang. This rule of mine was taught by Gu Mang to his brothers. "
Gu Mang found it amusing. He held back his laughter and teased him, "Gu Mang personally taught you how to press bricks back then?"
"Of course! I learned it quickly and he even praised me for being smart. What are you laughing at? You don't believe me? " Xiao Xiu's eyes widened. "I'm really not lying to you. Although Gu Mang turned out to be a good-for-nothing in the end, when he was in the army, he was quite human."
"Is that so?"
"Yes, Marshal Mo is cold and aloof, while Gu Mang is amiable. Their military management styles are too different. When we were reorganized into the Northern Frontier Army, we were not used to it."
Gu Mang smiled and said, "Marshal Mo is not cold and aloof. He's just not good with words. In fact, he treats you very well."
Xiao Xiu moved a brick that was placed crookedly and said, "Sigh, anyway, Marshal Mo is like that. He's so serious when he speaks and does things. He's also cold and doesn't like to talk to people. But it's fine once you get used to it. It's better than giving it to the Lord Wangshu. "
Gu Mang was startled. "Giving it to the Lord Wangshu?"
"Yes. There are rumors that when the Emperor reorganized the Bastard Army, he wanted to give it to the Lord Wangshu, or simply break it up and distribute it to the various barracks. But later, I don't know what happened. I heard that Marshal Mo said something to him, and the army was transferred to Marshal Mo. "
"…"
The smile on Gu Mang's face faded. He fell into deep thought. So the Emperor's original plan was to deal with the remaining 30,000 troops he left behind.
But he knew what kind of person the Emperor was. If there was no exchange of benefits, the Emperor would not casually change his original plan. What did Mo Xi do to make the Emperor change his mind?
"Aiya, it's raining." Xiao Xiu poked him. "There's one last thing. After you're done pressing the bricks, go back to the barracks to avoid the rain. There are oil-paper umbrellas in the granary. I'll take you to get them later. "
Gu Mang came back to his senses and nodded. "Okay."
The rain soon became heavier. The colors between heaven and earth seemed to be washed away in an instant. Great Lake, Great Lake. That was how the name of this city came about.
Gu Mang stood under the shed of the granary. The cultivators who helped store the provisions had already opened their umbrellas and barriers. They ran away one after another, laughing and joking. The Northern Territory Army was still the same as when he was still in the army. Most of them were youths full of energy and optimism. Even if tomorrow was a big battle, it did not stop them from laughing and playing around in the Rainwater Pond.
"Come on. The rain is a bit heavy, but you can walk on the water back." Xiao Xiu invited him. "We're like this here. Gu Mang's bad habits from the past can't be changed. He's noisy and unruly. Back then, he ran the fastest in the rain."
Gu Mang stood under the dry shed and smiled. "That's because he was young back then. If it were now, he definitely wouldn't be able to move. You go back first. I'll wait for the rain to lessen before leaving. "
Xiao Xiu did not force him. He walked on the water and disappeared into the depths of the torrential rain.
There was no one left in the granary. Gu Mang stood quietly by the wooden fence, looking up at the vast land. The rain splashed up, creating a thick earthy smell. The eaves converged into streams, and the ground was a swamp.
He stood to the side and watched as the Northern Army soldiers hooked their arms around each other's shoulders and chattered noisily. He watched as their youthful figures disappeared into the distance one by one. Finally, he saw the twenty year old Gu Mang and the seventeen year old Mo Mie laughing as they plunged headlong into the torrential rain with a tarpaulin over their heads.
He blinked his azure eyes, and those shadows blurred.
When the rain gradually subsided, Gu Mang opened his oil-paper umbrella and prepared to go back. When he passed by the main tent of the central army, he saw the candlelight in the tent. The dim and warm light was reflected in the pond. When the rain hit, it became a flickering light.
Gu Mang stopped in his tracks. It's already so late, but Mo Xi still hasn't returned?
He knew that Mo Xi had the habit of deducing the strategy after he finished explaining it, but this was too long. He should have deduced it five or six times, let alone once. He found it strange, so he closed his umbrella and leaned against the side of the tent. He gently parted the curtain and walked in.
In front of the sand table, there was indeed a person deep in thought with his arms crossed. Unexpectedly, that person was not Mo Xi, but …
Gu Mang was slightly surprised.
Murong Lian?
The Murong Lian was half sitting and half leaning against the sand table. He held a smoking pipe in his hand. He squinted his peach blossom eyes and smoked lazily as he looked at the sand table map. Maybe the rain was too loud, or maybe he was too focused, but he did not hear Gu Mang coming in. He only raised his hand and picked up a few small flags and placed them in different dangerous places on the sand table.
Gu Mang looked carefully for a while and suddenly felt cold sweat. The positions under the Murong Lian's flags were treacherous and cold. Although the route of the army was different from Mo Xi's, the method was just as ruthless and strong. If he followed this strategy, although his chances of winning were not as high as Mo Xi's, as long as he could win, his speed would be even faster than Mo Xi's.
The Murong Lian was not playing. He was seriously deducing.
And he was constantly revising his ideas. He changed the flags that represented different abilities many times. Every time he adjusted them, Gu Mang could see his extremely clear intentions and thoughts.
Then what was the Murong Lian's strategy that could be easily broken by the Murong Meng Ze during the day?
"Cough, cough, cough!"
Suddenly, a heart-wrenching cough woke Gu Mang up from his thoughts. The Murong Lian put down his pipe, frowned and kept coughing. His expression was very gloomy. He pressed one hand on his chest, as if he was trying to suppress something — but in the end, he still coughed out bits of blood.
"…" The Murong Lian wiped the blood with a snow-white handkerchief with a gloomy expression.
He straightened his body and stared at the sand table for a while. Then he raised his hand that was wearing a sapphire ring and pulled out the carefully arranged flags on the sand table bit by bit. He slowly destroyed the whole battle situation that he had designed.
After doing all this, he tossed the scattered small flags to the side with a flick of his fair fingers, and then sat down on the chair dejectedly. He raised his head and closed his eyes in incomparable exhaustion.
In the dim light, the Murong Lian's silhouette looked so thin and lonely. He crossed his hands and kept rubbing the surface of the sapphire ring subconsciously.
After a long time, Gu Mang heard him murmur, "… How ridiculous … I … Am I really not as good as you …"
Am I really not as good as you?
This sentence lingered in Gu Mang's ears for almost the entire journey.
He couldn't understand. The Murong Lian had his own ideas and didn't want to admit defeat. Why did he do it half-heartedly during the military meeting?
Why did he wait until the night was quiet and there was no one around before he smoked a 'Floating Like A Dream' and fiddled with the soldiers in front of the battle formation alone in the misty and desolate smoke, deducing a magnificent and surging lightning battle …
When he returned to the commander-in-chief's tent, Mo Xi happened to be sending a message to the Junshang. He released the message sparrow. When he saw Gu Mang enter the tent, the expression on his face relaxed.
"Where did you go? You came back so late. "As he spoke, he touched his hair." Did you get caught in the rain? "
"… I went to count the grain and fodder in the warehouse. I didn't get caught in the rain. There's an umbrella. "Gu Mang rubbed his nose. He didn't tell him that he saw the Murong Lian in the main tent.
Mo Xi took him into his arms and warmed him up for a while. He said, "The kitchen sent food. Eat first and then rest?"
Gu Mang stuck his head out to take a look. Indeed, there were a few simple dishes on the table. Beside them was a bamboo tube filled with warm rice.
"You didn't eat either?"
"I waited for you to eat together."
Gu Mang opened his mouth. He wanted to say, "You know that your stomach is so bad. Why did you wait for me? Just leave some for me." But when he saw the gentle look in Mo Xi's black eyes, he swallowed his words. He sighed and pinched Mo Xi's jade-like face. He was probably the only person in the world who could pinch Marshal Mo's face like this.
Gu Mang said helplessly, "Oh, you."
When he sat down at the table, he realized that the dishes were the ones that the cultivators of the Turtle Army liked but couldn't eat. There was a plate of braised pork with bright sauce, white steamed buns, a plate of crispy bamboo shoots and lotus sprouts, and a bowl of egg drop soup. Although these weren't exquisite dishes, it was still a big expense for everyone in the army to eat one.
Gu Mang said, "You've really improved their diet. If I wanted to give them a meal of meat back then, I really would have had to beg my grandparents many times, or sell my body to coax the pretty widow in the village tavern."
Mo Xi poured a bowl of soup and pushed it to him. He said, "You've done enough for them. You don't have to sell your body to the beautiful widow anymore. If you really want to sell it, sell it to me. "
Gu Mang smiled while biting his chopsticks.
The egg drop soup in the barracks was cooked in a big pot and sprinkled with green onions. However, Mo Xi knew that Gu Mang didn't like to eat it, so he had already removed the green onions on top. He watched as Gu Mang gulped down the hot soup, dispelling the moisture brought by the sudden rain. His eyes gradually became very gentle.
If it were anyone else in the world, they would feel that they were possessed when they saw Mo Xi's eyes. Only Gu Mang didn't feel that way. After drinking the soup, he looked up and met Mo Xi's eyes. Naturally, he grinned again.
Mo Xi sighed. He took out a white handkerchief and wiped the corners of Gu Mang's mouth. He then said, "Why are you still the same as before? You never remember to wipe the soup clean after drinking it."
"Aiyo, young master, I'm not as particular as you. I grew up eating dirt."
"…"
The two chatted for a while. Halfway through the meal, Gu Mang thought for a while and finally decided to say, "By the way, Mo Xi, there's something I want to tell you."
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