Northern Prefecture Rivers and Mountains
Chapter 2 Woodcutter
Chapter 2 Woodcutter
The mountain wind was howling and a little chilly. Liu Daogui rubbed his aching forehead and looked at everything in front of him in astonishment.
The mountain is still the same mountain, the river is still the same river, the city of Jingkou is hidden among the mountains and the land is vast.
Nothing has changed, it has been the same for eighteen years, but I vaguely feel that something has changed.
The world in my dream just now was so bizarre that everything in front of me seemed out of place and detached.
It seems that the other side is the real world and this side is the dream.
Ever since I was struck by lightning, I often have this kind of dream and sleep all day long.
"Gu..."
It wasn't until his stomach growled that he was brought back to reality. "Brother, is there anything to eat?"
"You eat when you wake up, and sleep when you eat. It's been three hours, and I haven't seen you chop a single piece of firewood. You are no better than a pig in a pen." Liu Yu, who was chopping trees, cursed.
Despite the harsh words, Liu Daogui remained unmoved. "Brother, you still have the nerve to say that! If you hadn't lost all our family savings playing Chupu, would you have traveled dozens of miles to this desolate mountain to cut firewood and work as a woodcutter?"
Liu Yu put down his hatchet and chuckled dryly, "Hey, how long can we last with the little money we have at home? You were struck by lightning a few days ago. Although you weren't injured, you've been drowsy for a long time. Mother has already spent a lot of money on itinerant doctors to treat you. I wanted to give away the little money I have left, but luck hasn't been good..."
"Money thrown into water makes a sound, but I've never seen you win at Chupu."
Liu Daogui felt depressed. His brother was good in every way except gambling. His father Liu Qiao was a county official. Before he passed away, he left behind a few acres of land. With the support of the Liu clan, they could still make ends meet.
But the bad thing was the gambling. Not only did he lose all the money and food at home, but he also owed a lot of bad debts...
The two brothers had no choice but to run to this desolate mountain and wilderness and do the most tiring, hardest and most dangerous job of woodcutting.
A large number of refugees from Qing, Xu and Yan who had fled south to avoid the chaos gathered near Jingkou City. Not to mention firewood, even the grass had been dug up, leaving the ground bare everywhere.
There are also Suanshan, Beigushan, Mangshan, Xiaoqingshan and other mountains in the surrounding area, with wild grass and trees everywhere, but these days, the mountains, rivers, forests and swamps all have owners.
The bigger ones are either surnamed Diao or Xi, and the smaller hills and puddles also belong to the Chu and Yu families.
"What do you know? Chupu was created by Laozi. It seizes the fortune of heaven and earth, and contains all the profound principles of military strategy. There is no difference between a gambler and a famous general. Huan Xuanwu was fond of this art, so he was able to destroy Shu in one battle. Later, he didn't dare to gamble anymore. He was timid at Bashui and Fangtou, and lost miserably. How did he win the Battle of Feishui? Xie Cheqi dared to cross the Feishui River with 8,000 horses and fight Fu Jue! Dare to gamble, and you have at least a 50% chance of winning. Don't gamble, and you will lose all your previous winnings!"
When talking about Chupu, Liu Yu became incessant, holding a hatchet in one hand and pointing to the rivers, cities and fields below the mountain with the other.
Although these are all fallacies, they do sound somewhat reasonable...
"You're still a real man. My Liu family has two bachelors, and we can barely afford to eat..."
Liu Daogui is eighteen years old this year. Although he is not as tall and strong as his brother Liu Yu, his appearance is acceptable.
In those days, those who could afford it would marry at the age of fourteen or fifteen. Liu Yu was twenty-six this year, and he was married, but his second brother Liu Daolian and Liu Daogui, who were twenty-five, still had no one to propose marriage to, and it looked like their plans were going to fall through...
The mother, Xiao Wenshou, had her hair turned white with worry. She used her connections everywhere to find a suitable family, but the Liu family was poor and had low aspirations. Given the Liu family's current situation, no normal family would dare to push their daughter into the fire pit.
"A real man never has to worry about having a wife. As long as he is alive, he will always succeed. Instead of thinking about women, you might as well use the time to study and practice martial arts to build a bright future." Liu Yu was not discouraged at all.
Liu Daogui argued: "A well-fed man doesn't know the hunger of a hungry man. At my age, if I don't want women...it's unreasonable, isn't it?"
As soon as he finished speaking, there was a sharp whistling sound, a flash of cold light, and the hatchet suddenly chopped down a tree trunk as thick as an arm. The whole tree fell sideways, just falling towards Liu Daogui who was lying on the grass. Liu Daogui shuddered and rolled and crawled to avoid the falling tree. "Bah, I was more straightforward. There's no need to be angry, brother."
Liu Yu shook the hatchet in his hand, and said with a fierce and vigorous voice, "You come."
Even though the tree trunk is only as thick as an arm, the hatchet is not a magical weapon. After chopping trees for a whole day, the edge has become bent.
Moreover, the wild trees growing in the mountains are very hard and knotty. It would take at least a dozen cuts to cut them in, let alone one.
The key is that I'm hungry now and I don't have the energy to do anything.
Liu Daogui took the hatchet, weighed it, and looked at the tree in front of him. He chopped it down lazily. With a "click", wood chips flew everywhere, and the hatchet went into the wood less than two inches.
"Do you know why it can't be cut off?"
"Hungry."
"Can you be a little more promising?"
"No matter how promising you are, you can't stand going without food for a day." Liu Daogui was realistic.
At this time, Liu Yu's stomach growled and he laughed dryly, "I didn't eat either..."
"Brother, you have no woman in your heart, so when you draw your sword, you are naturally a god! How can I be compared with you?" Liu Daogui said as soon as he opened his mouth.
Liu Yu's eyes widened. "Who did you learn that from? It's quite interesting, and it makes some sense. You're quite strong, but you're just lazy."
"Brother, you have such courage and strength, why don't you just join the army?" Liu Daogui changed the subject.
In terms of bravery, Liu Yu was invincible in Jingkou, so even though the Liu family was not as prosperous as before, they were able to keep the few acres of land left by his father and make a living.
A few years ago, someone urged him to join the Northern Army and make a living, but his father Liu Qiao died early, Liu Daogui was often ill, and his second brother Liu Daolian was a weak scholar who buried himself in bamboo slips. He read too many books and could not do rough work.
It was already very difficult for his mother, Xiao Wenshou, to raise three brothers. She was often in poor health and had a six-year-old niece, Liu Xingdi, at home. If Liu Yu joined the army, the family would lose a pillar.
Liu Yu said, "Do you think I don't want to? It's a pity that after Master Xie left, the Northern Army has been getting worse day by day, and my family is in such a state..."
When talking about the current situation of the Liu family, Liu Daogui had nothing to say. The Liu family still cannot do without his eldest brother.
"My illness is not a problem. I am almost recovered. I am at home. Brother, go ahead and join the army. Don't miss your future."
The two brothers quarreled with each other, but they were actually very harmonious.
Liu Yu smiled cheerfully, "We'll talk about it later. The Northern Army hasn't had a good time these past two years, and it's hard to get ahead if you join the army."
Liu Daogui knew the truth. Since the Northern Expedition was stopped, the Northern Army had been idle. Even the general Liu Laozhi was held accountable for the defeat in Linzhang. The other Northern Army generals were not having an easy time.
The Northern Palace Army originated from refugee generals. Each general had his own subordinates, and the two sides had a personal dependence relationship. If the general was in trouble, his subordinates would also suffer.
If you join the army at this moment, you won't even be able to get a sip of the northwest wind.
(End of this chapter)
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