Chapter 282: The road is long and Shen Qing finally returns. The tragic and heroic journey is revealed.

After walking for two more days, Qin Xu had already traveled 150 or 60 miles, but there was still no trace of Jingshan Camp. Only then did he realize that the instructors had tampered with the marching route, probably leading everyone around Jingshandou.

But he did not tell this guess because it would be useless. Those who really couldn't walk these days and fell to the ground would be raised by the accompanying cavalry and transported to the place where they set off. After rest and recover, they would walk over again. It was obvious that this was not the instructors deliberately slandering people, but a kind of tempering everyone's will. Since that's the case, let's do it.

His number is '9527'. There are ten people in the second team of the fifth squadron of the Ninth Brigade. Three of them left Beijing in the early years to serve in other places. They had just turned around and were seven newcomers like them. The three veterans were the squad leader of one chief and two deputy commanders, and took them to camp with seven of them, teaching them how to distribute their physical strength and overcome fatigue. Without these three people, they would probably not be able to hold on for a day.

This is true for every team. Under the leadership of three veterans, seven new recruits stumbled forward. Although they were exhausted, they actually persevered.

Among them, Qin Qi's role should not be ignored. Whenever everyone sees the meat mountain moving forward slowly and firmly, they will think that their fatigue is an illusion: even that guy doesn't stop, why are we so embarrassed to stop?

Occasionally, there were guys who wanted to take advantage of the night, but without exception, they were caught by the Rangers hiding in the dark. After being beaten up, they put on shackles and continued to march.

The worst case of escaping happened on the first night... The main culprit was Qin Qishui, code-named "2525", and instigated the entire team to escape at night. He even left the camp two miles away in the night before being caught and sent back by the rangers on the periphery.

This collective escape made Shi Yong very angry. He wanted to interrogate these seven people in person, but when he saw Qin Qishui was also among them, he immediately understood what was going on. He threw the other six beatings back into the camp, and Qin Qishui disappeared from then on.

The most direct consequence of this incident was: the next day, three thousand veterans joined the team and served as the captain and deputy captain of each team. Since then, the collective number scattering incidents have disappeared, and some number scattering incidents have become sporadic.

In these matters, the big lord did not show up, and all the Shi Devils came to deal with it. On the one hand, it was to establish Shi Yong's authority in the army. On the other hand, Qin Lei had a more important thing to do...

News came from the Longyou Spy Bureau that Shen Qing Gouji and others who had been traveling west for a year were about to lead their troops back soon, and several huge Western Regions caravans were accompanied. It seemed that Qin Lei's proposal to restore the Silk Road had received a positive response.

After receiving this news, Qin Lei quietly left the team with Xu Tian and Huangfu and rushed to the northwest. Finally, two days later, he met the scout sent by the West March. The scout in rags was almost attacked by the Rangers. If the scout had not shouted the word "refrigerator" in desperation, he would have been accidentally injured by his companions.

The Rangers stopped suspiciously, questioned a few questions, then put away their weapons and sent him to Qin Lei.

When the scout saw Qin Lei, he turned off his horse, knelt in the dust, and said with red eyes, "The King of Hou Bing, the Spy Team of the Husband and Secret Spy Team, kowtowed to the prince..." After saying that, he kowtowed his head.

Qin Lei jumped off his horse with a 'oh', helped the ragged Hou Bing up with his own hands, and said excitedly: "But I'm looking forward to you back." Holding Hou Bing's hands tightly, Qin Lei asked strangely: "Have you met a robber? Why are you so depressed?"

Seeing that Old Hou Bing's face turned red, Qin Lei said softly, "It's good to come back, it's better than anything else when you come back." But he shook his head and whispered: "We haven't encountered robbers," and said proudly, "Whoever dares to attack us is always the only one who bullies others."

Qin Lei laughed and patted his shoulder and asked, "Why are you dressing like this? Those Western Regions caravans are too stingy, why don't you change your clothes?"

Hou Bing smiled and said, "They treat us like ancestors. I don't know how many times they have said they want to give us clothes." He respectfully forgot Qin Lei's eyes and said seriously: "But our battle robe is given by the prince, how can we let other robes be replaced?"

Qin Lei said this sincerely and felt comfortable when he heard it. He patted his shoulder hard and asked in a warm voice: "Where is the big army?"

"Twenty miles away!"

Half an hour later, Shen Qing, Gou Ji and Yu Qian, who received the news, rode on their horses and met Qin Lei's team head-on in the vast wilderness.

"Prince! See you!!" The three of them jumped off the horse's back and ran towards Qin Lei's mount.

Qin Lei held the horse's reins, looked at the three of them with a smile, and said loudly: "But I'm looking forward to you back." After that, he jumped off the horse and helped the three people kneeling in the dust up one by one.

The first person to help him up was Shen Qing, who was Qin Lei's second guard commander, but given that the first Iron Eagle had always been a bare commander, he was the original commander of Qin Lei's personal guards and the most trusted general Qin Lei relied on. He commanded all the guards when he was in the Beishan Ranch.

After more than a year of hardship and frost outside the border, Shen Qing's eyes were firm and calm at this moment, and standing there gave a mountain feeling. He had the deepest relationship with Qin Lei. He met again after a long time, so he was naturally excited. He saw his tiger's eyes red and said in a trembling voice: "Prince, I have seen you. My subordinates miss you all the time."

Qin Lei's eyes were also slightly wet, hugged him, tightly embraced his arm, and said in a deep voice: "I miss you too, brother!" After saying that, he patted his shoulder hard and laughed: "I often say to Guantao: 'You are my left arm, Shen Qing is my right arm. When this guy goes, Gu will become a one-armed man.'" As he said that, he pushed him out slightly, looked carefully, and smiled: "Now, Gu Wang's right arm is back!"

Shen Qing said excitedly: "Shen Qing started from a small matter. He received so much love from the prince. He could not repay him. He could only crush him to pieces and break his bones to death."

Qin Lei laughed and said, "You are my general. If you are broken into pieces, then the Lone King will become a lonely man, not far from death? So you have to live well. Let's live together for a hundred or eighty years to be able to achieve success." Shen Qing nodded excitedly and stood aside.

Qin Lei helped Gou Ji on the left again. This handsome and upright young general was originally an ordinary cavalryman in the Prince's Guard. He was full of talent and could not appreciate his abilities. It was Qin Lei who knew talents with wise eyes and promoted him to the end of Qingping. Before the Western Expedition, he was already the captain of the most powerful armored cavalry team in the Qin Lei Guard. Therefore, he was grateful to Qin Lei and loyal to him.

Qin Lei laughed and said, "The Gu champion Hou is back." He patted Gou Ji's shoulder hard, gave him a bear hug, and pushed him away and looked carefully for a long time. Suddenly, he was so stern that he scared Gou Ji's heartbeat, and he said, "Why did you mess with the prince before you even speak?" But Qin Lei laughed and scolded, "You guy, you're getting more and more handsome. It seems that Gu Wang is right to protect your cavalry, so that he won't steal my limelight."

Gou Ji then felt relieved and said with a smile: "Being too handsome is the only shortcoming of my subordinates. I believe that as I grow older, this shortcoming will expand infinitely." After saying that, he kowtowed to Qin Lei again and said: "I miss the prince less than Lord Shen."

Qin Lei laughed and said, "Single, just slap your own war horse." He said in a clear voice: "It's almost winter training, Shi Yong can't be busy alone. Just come back, and the Lone King can also free up his hands to do something else."

Gou Ji bowed his hands and said in a solemn voice: "I will definitely live up to the prince's trust." After that, he stood aside.

Qin Lei helped up the last kneeling general. The guy stood up and saw that he was half a head taller than Qin Lei. He quickly hunched his body slightly and said respectfully: "Subor Yu Qian meets the prince." This young man from a hunter was also from the former Prince Guard, and he was promoted by Qin Lei. Before he went west, he was the captain of Qin Lei's archery team, and his loyalty to Qin Lei can be seen.

Qin Lei patted his shoulder, and hugged him with a bear, and said intimately: "Why are you growing again? It won't affect ejaculation, right?"

Yu Qianhan smiled and scratched his head, and said seriously: "You can see far and wide, and your ejaculation skills are better."

At this time, a group of geese flew over the sky. The sound of geese alarmed Qin Lei. He laughed and said, "Then I need to check," and pointed to the sky and said, "Did you see those geese? I want to eat roasted geese tonight."

Yu Qian looked at the sky intently and said loudly: "Add a roasted eagle to the prince!" Before he finished speaking, he took off the iron-tied hard bow from his back and pulled out the wolf-tooth arrow with his backhand. He made a misstep, bent his bow and pointed it into the sky, aiming slightly. He heard his whisper, and then exerted his right hand with the only force, and the arrow was pulled like a full moon. In just a moment, the stringed right hand quietly released, and the arrow flew out like a meteor.

Accompanied by the shrill sound of breaking through the air, the long arrow passed through the headed goose's body in a blink of an eye, and shot an eagle hovering above the goose without stopping.

The goose and eagle fell from the air in a blast. The two hunting dogs rushed out excitedly and took the prey back.

Qin Lei gave a thumbs up and exclaimed: "Magic skill!"

Yu Qian had no proud expression on his face, but just said respectfully: "The prince has been too rewarded."

Qin Lei knew that the archer was most taboo about emotional fluctuations, so he didn't care. He smiled and patted his shoulder, and asked in a warm voice: "Now, let you compete with Xu You, how likely will you win?"

Yu Qian frowned and thought for a moment, and said in a deep voice: "A draw within a hundred steps, if you exceed a hundred steps, your subordinates will definitely lose." After saying that, he explained softly: "If you cannot pull the strong bow of four stones, you cannot guarantee the accuracy beyond a hundred steps."

Qin Lei was slightly disappointed, but he still laughed and said, "I guess Xu You can shoot an arrow."

Seeing Yu Qian lowering his head and saying nothing, Qin Lei smiled and said, "The lonely flying general cannot be discouraged. You have to teach our Sagittarius." Yu Qian bowed and said, "I will do my best."

After Qin Lei met, Gou Ji and Yu Qian saluted Huangfu Zhanwen, who had been smiling and silently, and said respectfully: "Greetings to General."

After arguing here, the black-clothed guards also built the campsite. It was almost dusk and the cold wind in early winter was so squeaky that Qin Lei took the three of them to the campfire in the center of the camp.

The black guard brought warm horse milk wine to the four people. Qin Lei held the wine bowl with both hands, and said in a solemn voice: "Three people are going around thousands of miles away, and they have to return to Beijing today. This bowl is only used as a welcome wine. The Lone King respects you." As he said that, he raised his head and drank it down, and felt a warm current flowing through his internal organs, and his spirit was immediately revived.

The three of them drank all the time, and the four of them turned over the wine bowl together, and sure enough, there was no drop left. Then they laughed and threw the bowl on the ground and sat around the bonfire.

Qin Lei first asked about the physical condition of several people with a smile. The three of them said respectfully: "Thank you, Hong Fu, the prince, are all very healthy." Nodded, Qin Lei started the team again, and Shen Qing said in a stern voice: "There were 2,400 soldiers when they set off. Later, more than 810 people died due to combat, epidemics, and even hunger during the journey."

Qin Lei's smile suddenly stopped and he said in a stern voice: "So many people?"

All three nodded with a heavy face. Qin Lei slapped his thigh and sighed in dismay: "It's a great harm to others."

The three of them shook their heads together, and Shen Qing said loudly: "Your Majesty does not need to blame yourself. Your actions will be profitable forever. Although your brothers have gone, they are proud to be recorded in history forever!"

Qin Lei smiled miserably and said, "After that being said, it's really hard to give up my brothers." The three of them knelt down quickly and comforted him. Qin Lei was so excited that he said to Gou Ji: "You are good at speaking, tell me about the past of this silk journey."

Gou Ji bowed his order, cleared his throat, and recalled intently. The scenes of the past year rushed to his heart. After a moment of contemplation, he told Qin Lei about this pioneering journey by the crackling bonfire...

"The subordinates set out from Zhongdu, and according to the prince's request, passed Longyou Province, passed through the Hexi Corridor, passed by the Yanzhi Mountain and Qilian Mountains, and arrived at the ancient city of Dunhuang. Finally, they arrived at Yumen Pass in mid-March for a short rest, and gathered with the teams of Commander Shen and Guzheng Yu there."

"In late March, the commander took us to Yumen. At the beginning of half a month, we could still see sporadic herders tents, but after entering a vast Gobi desert, we were gone..."

"Fortunately, the prince advised us to have the hardships and dangers ahead. We brought enough water and dry food. We stood there for a full month. Just when the water was about to be cut off, we found a huge city wall. Everyone was ecstatic, but when they ran closer, they found that the huge city had no movement. Our hearts got tight..."

Shen Qing nodded and continued, "When he arrived at the city, he saw that the huge city had been weathered and looked abandoned for a long time. There were two seal characters on the city gate. According to the accompanying merchant, the two characters were..."

"Loulan." Qin Lei said in a deep voice.

Shen Qing nodded in surprise and said softly: "Those merchants said the same thing. We found a large number of ancient coins, silk, grain, pottery, bamboo slips, and even brushes in the city."

As he said that, he took out a copper coin from his arms and handed it to Qin Lei, and whispered: "This is what I picked up in the ancient city of Loulan."

Qin Lei looked through the ancient coin and saw that one of the sun had the words "Five Zhu Da Ji". He couldn't help but feel excited and said to Qin Wei on the side: "Remember the discovery of Loulan into our documents. In the future, I will write it into historical books, and I cannot leave this discovery to the Swedes."

Several people thought to themselves, "What a Swedish?" But they didn't dare to ask. Shen Qing sighed and said, "There are so many things, but there is no water source that we lacked the most at that time. After a brief excitement, the team fell into crisis again. We dared not stay or could not turn back. We could only walk forward with our teeth, hoping to get out of the Great Gobi as soon as possible."

Gou Ji whispered: "On the seventh day after leaving Loulan, the team was completely cut off. At this time, the sun on the Gobi Desert was already poisonous, but at night it could freeze people into ice lumps. We have no experience in the Gobi Desert, so we didn't know how to avoid the scorching sun and heat. So people began to fall ill and often died shortly afterwards. At that time, we threw away all our goods and killed the excess war horses to eat meat and drink blood. In the end, except for the hundred camels injured by hunchbacks, the entire team was only one war horse for each person."
Chapter completed!