Chapter 25 Chapter 25.fire

When the fire dies down, the war in Yanshi is over! From the beginning of protecting the salt and protecting the dam, this tiny place has been trapped in violent wind and rain. Those nameless warriors who fought for their survival wrote this heroic story in this period of time with their blood. Folk history, although in the consciousness of historians of the traditional Eastern nation, folk history is always excluded from the official history, let it be obliterated, let it be scattered into wild legends, but those involved never Didn't think about it.They do not pursue the aroma of history, they only want to survive rationally; while struggle and death, this tragedy is just another form of survival, the initial form.All its unspeakable truths are contained in this tragic form; it is left for future generations to think, discover, or forget.

Their love and hatred are very clear. From the ancient wind of this nation, thousands of rumors have blown, violent, bloody, power-holding, domineering, lustful, and blind, from Xia Jie to Shang Zhou, from Huangchao to Huangchao. Li Chuang, no matter how ignorant people are, they also know fear, hate, boredom and abandonment.But despite the fear, hatred, boredom and abandonment of thousands of people, they are still involved in this endless storm from generation to generation.Whether it's war, defense, or revenge, they never want it, but they have to go through this great desolation of the tragic mixture of time and space

Who is going to remember it? !The Yanshi after the fire is already a part of that form of existence; the morning light shines on the Shilishi Street in Gangji, where there used to be prosperity like brocade and singing like a dream; , Sea salt eaten by millions of people on both sides of the Great Lakes has been piled up, and thousands of ships have been moored at various docks that are connected for ten miles.But those are all gone!Today, the burned Yanshi has turned into a bloody cave, naked in the rainy red glow of dawn. The city runs along the east-west avenue of the pile ridge. All the street houses and shop houses have been burned by fire, exposing the bony bones, the beams that have been burned into charred black fish scales, stretched obliquely like ribs, and still spitting out. Remnants of smoke; in the middle of the street and side alleys, there are bulletproof walls made of dilapidated sandbags and salt bags everywhere, and a large number of broken tiles and bricks are piled up, each piece has traces of fire and smoke. Dead bodies dotted the streets after the fire.

Nowhere is the ground flat, it is always clogged with blood, charcoal, corpses, broken and miserable things.In more remote places, fierce street battles have been going on continuously. It was after the fire broke out, when the soldiers who poured into the city streets ran back to avoid the fire, the militia raids caused hand-to-hand fighting to prevent them from running away from the fire. Most of the Jiangfang army, those who were trapped in the fire, few survived, no matter whether they were injured with ribbons or had good legs and feet, they were all buried there in disorder.In front of the Dawang Temple on the cross street, and outside the ruined walls of the former brothels such as Fengyue Hall and Ruyi Hall, there is a four or five foot high corpse wall made of human corpses. It can be seen that before the fire started, Jiang Fangjun had a presence. Serious casualties.

When the sun rises, the fog formed by the warm and humid air rises up on the ground, twists into the blue-black smog after the fire, and permeates everywhere, turning into a fog curtain that does not disperse even the sunlight, as if deliberately covering the city streets Total horror. And these strange and miserable scenes scattered in every corner can't be covered up at all. When the Beiyang army was showing off their might, no one would have thought that they would end up like this. At the alley on the side of Dawang Temple, behind a ruined wall covered with charcoal ash, stood the corpse of a Jiangfang Army officer. The beam happened to support his back, making him stand like that, with a slightly backward posture.

Although his clothes were ashes, they still stuck to his body, and only a round hole the size of a basin was exposed on his back, showing a scorched back; his hard hat rolled off his head and fell on the ground. On the pile of rubble in the middle of the street, a command knife with a copper sheath fell together. There were at least 20 brave corpses lying under the sundries behind him, and another five or six corpses that were not burned by the fire, but were killed by stray bullets. They barely kept the original color, lying at the exit of the alley. gray brick long wall. Near that regiment, the ground was dirty and dry, with cake-like ashes falling from some thatched eaves, pillars lying across the street that had not yet been painted; unattended marching stoves; Dishes, armors; bloody stabs, leather, shoes from fleeing feet; wood split by fallen wall bricks; rags for wounds, leggings; some burnt and deformed iron sheets; The burnt-out signboards that fell from the front of some house were scattered and scattered like a backdrop.

Those corpses are naturally displayed there in different styles, as if they rushed from the legends of history, redisplaying those legends, revitalizing those legends, under the desolate sky of autumn, among the burning ruins, This generation is similarly relegated to the grave of history.Their tragic deaths are no different from those ghosts by the Wuding River or outside the ancient Great Wall a thousand or hundreds of years ago. No one knows why they died here?This was originally a war that did not belong to every soldier! When they are displayed like this, they are no longer pawns in the hands of the Beiyang warlords.Countless wild flies buzzed and flapped their wings, dancing all over the sky in the smoke, greedily sucking the naked parts of the corpse.

There were a few corpses that had struggled desperately before they died. They must have been eager to rush out of the burning house, but when they rushed, they were crushed by the fallen beams and broken tiles, and everyone threw their arms towards them. Stretching forward, fingers curled up, shaped like eagle claws, as if trying to grab something in front of them, but in the end they didn't catch anything; the same startled expression was engraved on their faces. The other regiment stood outside the backyard wall of Wishful Hall, near the lotus-filled water.These warriors were the first to climb over the wall from the edge of the burning city street, and wanted to retreat along the river and pond. Unexpectedly, as soon as they got out of the courtyard wall, they were intercepted by the militia; In the shallow water, many pools of blood converged on the concave ground, and some scattered and blood-stained footprints were even scattered.

A head protruding from the water surface of the pond, the forehead is already moldy, and the skin is covered with yellow and black spots like rust; Another corpse with a large upturned body, the man had been shot before he was shot, his clothes were covered in holes, his face was covered with strands of black charcoal, his lips were swollen and protruding outwards Many rash-like pustules were formed on the arms and chest by the flames, and the blister heads had already festered, and sticky yellow water condensed. The storehouses of the salt storehouses that had been burned by the fire no longer looked like storerooms at all, only a few sticks of sticks of sticky wood stood on the ground like some rusty awls of uneven length, which could barely be distinguished; The stone tablet in front of the altar was still standing there perfectly, like a stunned man looking around in astonishment.

The wind was originally brisk, but once it passed here, it became slow, as if it was being held by some kind of sticky thing.Now it is no longer a city, no longer a densely populated street, but a barren, dirty and disorderly ruin.Not only the ground is like this, even the air is filled with an unpleasant smell like garbage. The disgusting air is swayed by the wind, slowly floating among the corpses, bloody clothes, remnants of walls, and broken tiles.The smell of blood, of burnt wood, of rotting flesh, of rotting or hardened rags, of gunpowder smoke still lingering, poured into the stagnant wind.

Leaving the fire scene in the center of Yancheng, corpses and bloodstains are still lingering; whether it is the high piles in the south of Yanshi, or near the two giant castles at Yangqiaokou, on the plain south of Dadukou, along the two sides of Dagouhong, In the horseshoe-shaped formation in the middle of the cemetery, in the valley road in front of the small ferry, inside and outside the several iron fences of Xiaoyanzhuang, there is nowhere that is not covered with human corpses, nowhere is not stained with blood, and nowhere is it not sticky. with broken pieces of meat. Especially around the cemetery defended by the big bear and the crowd, a high wall of overlapping corpses has been built, and the militia group of the big bear and the little scorpion, after the fierce battle to wipe out the enemy, led Following the rest of the people, they took advantage of the darkness to cross the small ferry to the north, and pulled them towards Shawozi. The struggle did not end, and a bigger battle cloud rolled over the sand plain north of Yanshi.After Yanshi was blocked and encircled by fire, the Jiangfang army lost more than half of their men and guns. The rest of the people still bypassed the fire and tried to build a pontoon bridge on the Yanhe River, scrambling to cross it first. They paid such a heavy price to capture Yanshi. Through this narrow bottleneck, so once the pontoon bridge was erected, they flew away like a nest of frightened birds. The rising sun shines on this land that has been repeatedly ravaged. On the pontoon bridges built on the east and west sides of the small ferry, the river defense troops crossing the river are rushing towards the north without a break, and the gray-blue crowd is rolling; Armed with two or three rifles, some with everything lost, and empty hands, some empty saddle horses ran with the team, and most of the militiamen brought from the county town had fled; the remaining team had long since lost their origin. Some establishments are not teams, but dense groups of people. You don’t know he is Zhang San, and he doesn’t know you are Li Si. Everyone only vaguely feels that there are more people to strengthen their courage. With the rest of the living Jiangfang army only caring about their lives, no one dared to clean up the hundreds of corpses in Yanshi after Huohou; the leaders who led the crowd to guard Yanshi were like iron fans Tang Liubaa , Fang Sheng with a heart-warming leg, Mr. Dai Wangguan Dai, and Master Wan Shizhen from Shahekou all got mixed up in the nameless pile of corpses, and this is still not the end. It is another more primitive and more brutal one; The encirclement and annihilation operation is being carried out around Shawozi The gongs of the gongs are walking in the wind, resounding from village to village. It may be the gongs used by the gongs and drums teams in the past, or it may be the gongs used by the performers in the rivers and lakes. It may be the dry season. , beating in the middle of the night, telling people to be careful of the gong of the candle.In the ear-shattering sound of metal, there was already some kind of excitement, some kind of paging and shouting, but now, countless large and small, new and old gongs, on the same day, paging the same call. a message. The Beiyang Army is fleeing northward!Copy the guy to Shawozi to block and kill him! Take revenge for the militia in Yanshi! The sound of the gong diffused in the autumn wind and reverberated in the wilderness; the shabby huts and the small villages flattened by the high sky were all awakened by the rapid sound of the gong. In the blink of an eye, groups of people will gather in groups.These people who hold the plow and stand the rake all the year round have always been humble and obedient people in the eyes of the government, so they gathered together in a simple cry, no one said anything to anyone, no one explained anything to anyone, clarified anything . Let's go, buddies! Walk!Go to Shawozi! The truth is not in the discussion, not in the words. Those who never talk about the truth only bury the truth in their intuition and imprint it deep in their hearts.Everyone doesn't need to speak a word, they can all see the pain bursting out from the inner intuition in each other's eyes, the flame of anger turned into the memory of hatred. Let's go, dude! Copy the guy to kill those turtle grandsons! Relying on such simple and direct words, people are connected like tendons in the vast desolation, forming countless ragged clouds rolling on the horizon.It doesn't matter if you are Lijiazhuang, I am Wuliji, and he is Sanchahe, all I know is that everyone has the same fate.In the past, even those who would tremble when they heard bandits and thieves, and even killed a chicken, were all involved. There are no majestic drums, no galloping horses, no weapons, and no banners, because they are never warriors, but the most primitive hunters. They don't go to the line of fire to fight, but to hunt a The tigers and wolves who once devoured people without counting, they don't have any battle songs, only the boiling cries that go straight to history. The tyrants of every dynasty have cried out in fear, from far away in all directions, straight to the sand nest The child rolled and rushed. where are they? They are crossing the river!The militiamen are standing in front, and neither side has fired their guns yet. Along the ground for dozens of miles along the outer edge of Shawozi, behind the civilian army, there are these ragged clouds, three long forks, toothed iron forks, single knives that were once covered with yellow rust and newly wiped, long-handled big knives, single-sided Great axes, rods of wrought brass and iron, sharp spears with terrible red tassels, sledgehammers, hatchets, chain hammers and even bolts for barring doors, square wooden bars for barring doors, butchers' ox-eared knives, They all appeared in the crowd. However, the remnants of the Jiangfang army who rushed to cross the river did not know this at all. They did not know that the sand nest tens of miles wide and shining with dazzling golden light was their burial place; in their minds, they always regarded Yanshi as a A fatal pass, as long as you can pass through this pass alive, you should have an unhindered future and have been withdrawing into Shandong. There are at most a thousand guns in the Yan market. After several days and nights of fighting, it has already made people's hearts palpitate. In addition, the fire made people's guts even colder; , Walking out of the smoky ruins, I was deeply impressed by the struggle of such tragic and heroic people, but after crossing the Salt River, they wished to leave everything behind them in memory Besides, I will never go back to think about it forever. God, don't let this happen to us again!Who said: Let us walk alive! I can't walk, it must be the ghosts that are entangled in my legs! I don't know which market town I can go to camp tonight? Don't know how to open the meal? !The buddy is turned up, and the marching pots and stoves are all gone! Those gray-blue dotted lines are drawn in the wind, one, two, countless, but when they reach the edge of the sand nest, they all stop and gather there hesitantly. Many footprints were found in the sand, as well as traces of trampling by horseshoes. The militia from Yanshi withdrew here first, maybe they will take the opportunity to attack us!Someone said: You see, this quicksand land in front of you can't be seen at a glance. It is easy to get in but difficult to get out without first finding out the details. Let's wait for the teacher. What are you waiting for the teacher to do?You still expect it to pay?Anyway, there are people blocking the front line, whatever, let's just follow along with our eyes closed! A snake without a head can't do it! Discussion is discussion, hesitating and still hesitating, soldiers and warriors gathered separately along the long pile on the north bank of the Yanhe River, behind the bushes, under the scattered tree shade, and by some wild reed ponds next to the shallow marsh, lying , lying down, unconsciously stabbing the mud with a knife, or staring at the cloud in despair with wide-eyed eyes; A man washes his feet by the shallow marsh, carefully wraps old cotton around the straps of his straw sandals, and prepares to walk a long way. An elderly soldier holds a cigarette in his mouth, holds his knees in his hands, and stares blankly at the sand plain. . No bet, I know that too.He said to the people around him: Although we were lucky enough not to encounter a gun when we were fighting the salt market, if we followed the flat nose, we would never survive in Shandong. No one answered, the person's words pushed them into deeper thinking; the speaker didn't wait for anyone's answer, he still frowned like that, smoking a cigarette, looking through the smoke in front of his eyes at the area shining in the sun. Maybe we are sloppy in the brilliant sands, and he said to himself again that he has done too many sins. Others sat around the tree, opened their dry food bags, squeezed some dried fruit (small hard cakes), and put them in their mouths to bite hard, to fill their hungry intestines. Between the knees and the upper part of the wooden support, through the clothes, there is still a cold feeling of iron; suddenly they feel that these military weapons, which they once regarded as the only reliance, have become extremely disgusting. If it were not like that at the beginning, pointing the tip of a knife at those bent backs, slapping those begging smiling faces with a waist belt, not killing pigs and cows, not forcing those village girls to throw themselves into wells, and not relying on relying If the barrel of a gun is going to run amok, I won't be so lonely and helpless today! Almost everyone has heard the stories of the revolutionary army in the South, their fearlessness in suppressing the chaos, their bravery in the Eastern Expedition, and the high hopes of the old people from all over the world. With all kinds of teams, can there be two styles of soldiers and food? !The ancient ballads and songs that have been circulated all over the world must not be newly compiled: good iron does not make nails, good men do not serve as soldiers, and iron battalions are soldiers. Who can grasp these words? In Beiyang, starting from training at the small station, who is not a desperado attracted by the recruitment post?Either hooligans, local ruffians, green-skinned bums, poor bachelors who sway their arms to eat, or those robbers who set up mountains and villages to block roads and rob money, old men who have thought about being addicted to officials, of course, there are also very few of them. Due to famine, floods, droughts, and wars, farmers who are forced to live in other places and have nowhere to go, in their general consciousness, they always regard them as pitiful and stupid birds. From the perspective of Beiyang's deputy master (another name for being a soldier during the period of the Beiyang warlords.) to imagine the Northern Expeditionary Army in the south, no one can figure out what kind of team they are? !I only heard that they were short and small, and most of them were small barbarians from the south. In my imagination, they should not be the opponents of the Allied Forces of the Five Provinces.The trump cards in Sun Dashuai's hands are all tall and tall. Typical northern men, not only are they good at swordsmanship, they are also first-class when it comes to capturing and jumping. Why are the two sides getting angry? Not the price? ! In any case, the Northern Expeditionary Army was about to cross the river in pursuit, and the feeling of being pursued would be enough; if there was no obstacle ahead, there might still be a chance to survive, but judging from the current situation, who dares to say that the road ahead is smooth? ! Look, here comes the mustache! Even our Lord Brigadier was injured! The arm of Brigadier Mustache was wrapped in a bandage, and the end of the belt was hung around his neck. Surrounded by a group of guards, he stepped up to Hedui in an inspection posture. Although he couldn't get rid of his majestic and rigid posture, everyone could see that he had lost his usual composure. Commander, he was shot and killed when he was withdrawing from the county seat!The chief of staff was assassinated before leaving the city, and his body lay in the square north of Yangqiao.He said to the soldiers who gathered here: This is really a bad star. I heard that the Northern Expeditionary Army has already crossed from Pukou to the north. Maybe they will take a shortcut and take North Xuzhou first, take Xuzhou City, and then seal the gate for our northward retreat. .Look at the situation, we have to retreat quickly, what a fucking idiot, one salt market lost half of our soldiers, retreat north, retreat north, to put it nicely, I really don't know how to retreat?I alone cannot bear this crushing burden. It's okay if the regiments break up and withdraw!A school-level officer said: To avoid being conspicuous, let's try our luck. Stop making sarcastic remarks, bro!An officer with a pockmarked face said: We are now a platter with overturned chopsticks, messing up its father-in-law!Who has the heart to reorganize the team in this kind of time and place? !In my opinion, the only way is to ask the traveler to take the lead, and point an awl to the north, wherever you go, otherwise, everyone should break up as soon as possible. It was impossible to break up the gang, another yelled: Once the gang is broken up, where will the scattered guns go?If you encounter a civilian gun, you will be eaten, and you will be beaten. Instead of being caught alive and skinned, it is better to close your eyes and rush forward. right!The mustache brigade commander secretly calculated the money he brought, and thought that he could keep it if the gang was not disbanded, but it would be a disaster if the gang was disbanded, so he suggested: "One chopstick can't be broken. Fortunately, we still have so many guns. Will there be another salt market? ! There are indeed a lot of human guns, and the red pockmarked face said with a wry smile: But the traveler, you must know that the foreign guns that lack bullets are not as flexible to use as the fire sticks!Our soldiers are used to firing their guns indiscriminately. This time when we hit Yanshi, each gun was less than two rows. After so many days and nights, every gun is probably empty. It's just empty shelf. I know.The mustache brigade commander said: As long as we don't encounter such a hard fire in Yanshi, empty guns can scare people like empty guns.The trumpeter, sound the horn for me, ready to cross this sandy nest before noon. Before noon, the sun suppressed the dark clouds, and the wind intensified at the same time, causing the trees to drop their leaves. The wild reeds sighed like a witch predicting some kind of ominous time. The dazzling golden light also dimmed, and the thick fog-like sand smoke covered half of the sky in front of me. At this moment, the sobbing trumpet sounded. The trumpet sound was blowing in the wind in the vast wilderness, with a hollow and tragic charm, strong and weak, high and low, it made groups of gray shadows squirm forward and gradually buried in the sand smoke.Although those fearful soldiers and warriors did not find any signs of doubt when they first entered Shawozi, they always felt gloomy in their hearts; Even he himself did not keep the Mud Bodhisattva crossing the river, and the chief of staff who could turn his tongue around also lost his life in vain. Once the news spread, everyone felt that Ye Luozhi knew the autumn in private, who would have known that a gust of wind would Where to blow this group of people? ! Once a person lands on the flat and wide sandy field where not a single blade of grass grows, he will appear extraordinarily insignificant.One step at a time, one deep footprint, one step at a time, wisps of light sand smoke, there is no difficulty, but there are difficulties; if you count the number of people, there are at least several groups of people, shadows stretching for several miles. There are not a few of them, but for some reason, everyone feels fearful and lonely, a small cluster here, a small cluster there, separated by the yellow curtain of sand and smoke, they are just shadows that feel very far away, as if they have nothing to do with them , Even if it is a business trip, they will not go the same way! The mustache brigade commander figured this out, so he used his trusted troops to hold the ground, put the chaotic soldiers in front, and separate them from the militiamen.He knew very well that at this moment of emergency and chaos, Jiang Fangjun was like a broken barrel. If he didn't tighten it with iron hoops and let it take off a board, then all the boards of the barrel would be astigmatized! Ordinary soldiers and warriors only want to take the opportunity, and there are not many who don't want to go on missions. However, at this time, the grievances among the people are too deep, and going on missions alone is extremely risky. An experienced leader who is familiar with the local situation, terrain, roads, and a group of people follow him. At the same time, they have to get in touch with the local people and get a promise to ensure their safety. The nephew is the medium for the collapse of Jiang Fangjun. He had to be on guard against these things. After the death of Mr. Snub Nose, he became even more frightened and careful, especially these militiamen brought from the county town, within twenty miles, took advantage of the fierce attack on Yanshi, and fled one after another. He took away the ordnance and items, and also lured many soldiers to leave. The soldiers and warriors caught in the wind and sand cursed the little beard with all kinds of obscene and venomous words, saying that he would not get good retribution like a flat nose, and that retribution might come in a blink of an eye, and death was worse than a flat nose. awful.In fact, these curses have long been in my heart, but they haven't been turned into words and spread out on my lips like today. The mustache is preventing us from slipping away, and resorting to this idea of ​​cutting off children and grandchildren, thinking that his strategy will be sold?I had long planned to throw the gun when I met the militia, which was more refreshing than going on a business trip. What else can I say if I can meet the militia? !I'm afraid that if you meet those country bumpkins wielding nails and hoes, they will kill you first, and you will be miserable! This kind of discussion was going on during the trek, and not only the brave soldiers, but also some officials and leaders participated in the discussion; The remnants are used as gambling capital.Those from his brigade stayed in the rear like escorts, and those from his other brigade all drove ahead, letting them stick their heads out to test the knife in emergencies. Don't talk about the miscellaneous team, but the gang of Shanzhi Jiang Fangjun are unwilling!As soon as the team entered Shawozi, they dispersed in clusters. No one could control the chaotic situation of alienation. Although the mustache brigade commander had made arrangements first, when the time came, no one would listen to others. His own team included. The wind is so fierce, but in other places, it might not be so fierce. Once the wind blows into the sand nest and is exaggerated by the exaggerated sand grains, the wind that was originally not so strong becomes astonishing.The crowd, which could not be regarded as a team, became more and more scattered and thinner as they walked. There was no one to govern or lead them, so they had to walk forward in a general direction. When it was nearly noon, they raised their eyes again Looking around, except for some vertical and horizontal ditches, and some domed sand dunes carrying clouds and raising smoke, even the figures of people have become sparse. Just watch, if you go on like this, within three days, the people will be gone! If the Northern Expeditionary Army took a shortcut and headed northward along the Jinpu line to Xuzhou, it might be ahead of us. That's what I was looking forward to. A young soldier who had been silent all the time said bravely: I heard that the Northern Expeditionary Army was the most lenient, and there were no prisoners who would not be captured. Anyway, as soon as they were organized, those who turned their guns and beat Beiyang were good brothers. In many southern provinces, Tens of thousands of people have turned their backs on the right and been wronged, so where are we going to flee?Can you go to be a bandit with Mustache? ! Listen, listen to the gunshots ahead, isn't it fucking again? !Who was screaming like this, they had no idea how many angry crowds were besieging them around the vast sand nest? !Since noon, the two sides have been on fire, and along the Tianjiao in every direction, there are dense gunshots everywhere; it is precisely because the Jiangfang Army's organizational system is chaotic that orders cannot be given, and precisely because no one can figure out the sand nest. When the gunshots were fired, Jiang Fangjun turned into a turtle that could not crawl on the hot sand. According to the real human strength of both sides, according to the ancient battle examples, the civilian army set up an ambush in Shawozi. Although it is in an absolutely favorable situation, it is possible for the Jiangfang Army to suffer another heavy blow, but it is not yet encircled and wiped out.If the mustaches were flexible in dispatching and concentrating their forces on one point, the militia army would not be able to withstand the pressure of this kind of attack, and a gap would inevitably be created, allowing most of them to break through the siege. But the remnants of the Jiangfang Army that sprang out from Yanshi, everyone has already become frightened psychologically, so how can they have the will to take risks and break through?Hearing the sound of the gunshot, the ones in front ran back in the opposite direction, and the ones behind hid on the spot, retracting the glans into the carapace.Along the edge of Shawozi, I don't know how many isolated battle groups formed, and they were engaged in gun battles separately. The wind and sand formed a natural yellow smoke screen, covering the true face of the militia. It was as if he had fallen into a mysterious and terrifying trap. From the experience of attacking Yanshi alone, the brave soldiers have already learned a lesson. At that time, relying on the large number of people, they still had some reliance and some vigor. Now, the reliance is gone, the vigor has eroded, and the fear of being besieged The feeling was passed on through whispers like the wind, which invisibly increased the opponent's momentum. Even before the two sides fought, the militia had not yet shown up, and the remnants of the Jiang Fang Army had already collapsed mentally. Although the militiamen cast a huge net around Shawozi, they just cut off the remnants of the Jiangfang army softly, and did not immediately raise the corners of the net to collect the fish.Because Commander Peng did not want to use radical actions to stimulate those soldiers to take risks to counterattack, he was willing to use a more gentle method to disintegrate the remnants of the army. We don't understand what you mean, Commander Peng?The angry crowd rose up and questioned: The Beiyang Army has occupied the territory for many years, which of our accounts does not contain blood?Now, it is the time when they are full of crimes and deserve to be punished. Do you really want to let them go north to ruin Shandong? ! Old man Peng was leading a team in the woods on the side of a small village in the woods on the north side of the Dadukou to prevent the river from fleeing westward. The fierce fighting at the Dadukou in the past few days had left him haggard and bearded under his ears. I don't want to let any of them go, he said, his eyes were a little red and wet: why should I let them go?He pointed to the far away Salt River; the ruins on the other side of the Salt River, and said slowly: I saw the fire in that town with my own eyes, and I have many scars on my body and heart that cannot be removed. The blood debt owed by the Beiyang Army to this side is too much!According to my own temperament, I will never spare them!The civilian army is not a government, and it is fair to repay blood debts.But as the saying goes, the grievance has its head, the debt has its owner, and it is not those brave soldiers who bully others. I think that if they can be recruited, there is no need to kill them wantonly! That's right, the militiamen scattered on the western front did send people into Shawozi to say surrender according to old man Peng's wishes, but on the eastern front, Xiao Xie'er's cavalry team that withdrew from Yanshi rushed into Shawu Going in, a ferocious fight took place, and the situation on both sides was in extreme chaos all afternoon. The men's guns led by Xiao Xie'er and Da Gou Xiong were once crushed to a corner of Yanshi by the large Jiangfang army. During the bloody battle defending the hilly land of Xiaoyanzhuang, they watched Yanshi catch fire and fall with their own eyes.But in the narrow terrain where bullets were flying everywhere, Xiao Xie'er's cavalry was useless, and the pressure from the swarm of Jiang Fang troops made him unable to rescue the dangerous position on the other side of Changdui. When they moved to the open plains on the north bank of the Yanhe River, this group of human guns with flaming anger showed unstoppable revenge against the remnants of the Jiangfang Army who massacred the Yanhe Citizens Corps. The wind and sand are so fierce, blowing like magic under a cloud of haze, and the loose, floating and fine quicksand is blown by the wind, forming flying sand waves visible to the naked eye, rolling quickly against the ground , rising from the ground to the sky, and chasing each other with another kind of yellow cloud that descended from mid-air, so that the soldiers of the Jiang Fang Army could not open their eyes. It's hard to see anything. Such damning weather! The sultry heat formed by the moisture is steaming in the sand layer after noon, especially in the bottom of the sand cut by knives and in the ditches flushed by water, even breathing is oppressed; the sand smoke is the chaotic drought. The rain whipped people's faces and sweaty clothes, and when the sand met sweat, it became sticky and wet, sticking between the hairs and the recesses of the skin, ears, eyes, nostrils and teeth, as if it was another kind of Dirty grease.The unrelenting gunshots drifted with the wind, connected with the huge echoes, rattling, rattling, making it difficult to discern the direction and judge the distance. Almost all the ditches and fissures in the middle of the sand field, and behind all the sand dunes of different sizes, were filled with gray crowds, and those faces who were unfamiliar with each other were sunk in indifference and depression; Hooking his head, dragging his gun, he stayed motionless, as if he was waiting for something, an unknowable ending fate.Some whispered worriedly, talking about the strength of the militia in person and the method of treating the prisoners.Some simply tore off their caps to cover their faces, let the wind and sand fall on their bodies, and the sound of gunshots roared above their heads. In a state of half-starvation and half-numb fatigue, they endured sweat, heat, and stickiness. Those uncomfortable stimuli fell asleep. Some soldiers who were slightly injured when attacking Yanshi gritted their teeth to re-wrap their wounds. When they stretched out their trembling palms, they carefully peeled off the blood-stained red and hardened wraps after drying. When I was wounded in rags, when I faced my naked body torn by ruthless bullets, tears of grief gathered in the corners of my eyes. Is it regret?Unwilling?Is it self-pity?No one can tell that kind of reason, no one can clearly point out what this is for?Why do you want to leave your hometown that is so far away and throw it into the black cave, and follow the generals and handsome men to wander from south to north?Why do you take a life so lightly and cheaply, throwing it casually in wine jugs, dice bowls, and treasure boxes, hugging prostitutes and calling them mothers? !Standing on duty, doing big exercises and being boarded, endured hardships, but dared not complain, let my heart be dulled and numb by those restraints, and I didn't bother to think anymore! And the blood red of the wound awakened the unwillingness that had been hidden for a long time! Other soldiers who tried to fight with trapped beasts grabbed their guns in a panic, faced the oncoming sand wind, fell to the top of the sand dunes and ridges, and shot blindly into the distance; Resisting something is just a primitive, instinctive, almost semi-hypnotic behavior that arises from excessive fear and is directly promoted from the subconscious mind. chaos. Under such circumstances, Xiao Xie'er's team of horses was swept into the sand nest; thick smoke from the horses' hoofs drifted over the faces of those crouching people, one horse would be guessed as ten horses, and one person would be guessed. Ten people were guessed, and the huge killing shouts were like a magic chain, locking the silence on this side even tighter. retreat!back!I don't know who was yelling like that. dude!The militiamen are coming! 有許多兵勇伏在溝泓裏，連頭都沒伸一伸，一聽見雜亂的嘈叫，拖著槍就朝西遁，這些沒見對方像什麼樣子的傢伙，祗要遇著人，就喊說：快退！rewind!東邊殺過來了！結果就弄成一個連環叮噹響，九個連環響叮噹了。 若說是兵敗如山倒，這種迅速崩潰的情況，並非由於單純的戰鬥本身的勝負，而是這一群人內在的心理因素所造成的。一群驚惶逃竄，口口聲聲喊著民軍殺來了的傢伙，十有八九都還跟對方打過照面，經他們這麼驚呼駭叫的一渲染，就造成了一種可怕的氣氛，逼得在後面的人不得不拔腿先跑，這樣節節返奔，可說是自己追逐著自己，使一些原想挺住的人也挺不住了。 北路上，無數聞風湧彙的民眾一聽見沙窩子裏的殺聲，便發聲吶喊著，不理會民軍的勸告，直撲了過去，這些由數十個鄉村千百處村落上湧來的人群何止萬人？ !他們不是作戰，祗是圍獵，吶喊聲是瘋狂、亢奮而野蠻的，久久以來，他們就等待著這一時刻，在這一時刻，他們才吐出內心的原始憤怒襤褸的雲層捲動著，千萬喉嚨放出的已不是單純的吶喊，而是虎虎的風雷。他們的身軀裏全是熾烈的火焰，這些人形的火焰一經燃燒，便不可遏止，在這時，人人都已忘卻槍彈的危害，忘卻生死，甚至忘卻了已身的存在，屍身、鮮血、槍炮，都不會使他們略有停踟，沒有什麼力量能抑平這把火焰的了！ 這卻是連彭老漢也沒有料想得到的。 北路上的民眾這一捲殺，東路和西路上人群也都不顧民軍的阻力，跟著殺撲進去，不知是誰聽了誤傳，說是鄉野知名的關東山八爺已死在鹽市上，他們便哀聲的喊出：替關八爺報仇！趕盡殺絕那些傢伙！ah! kill! 沉重的悲哀，扭歪了那些臉孔，也嘶啞了那些喉嚨；江防軍盤據的那些丘谷，偶爾也有稀疏的槍彈劃過來，但這樣的抵抗一點兒也阻遏不了人群的蜂湧，吶喊著的人群仍然直撞過去。近晚的天色更轉沉黯了，在沙霧裏滾動的人影幢幢不絕的滾壓過來，誰知那將有多少人？世界彷彿在遠方開了個窟窿，滾不盡的人頭，聽不盡的喊聲。 在前面的人影清晰起來，頭上纏紮著青巾的，戴著寬邊竹笠的，精赤著胳膊的，豁開半邊衣袖，露出半邊胸脯和一條臂膀的，捲起褲管露出多毛的腿肚的，跣著腳粘著泥汙的，他們揮舞著單刀，緊攢著點晃的纓槍，以極端笨拙的姿態舉著他們各式原始的武器，直衝向當面的丘谷。 這裏再不是荒瀚的沙原，而是一道難渡的激流，江防軍殘部北洋孫傳芳留在淮上的殘餘，正像是一條古老破爛的賊船，它北渡的希望完全被沖碎了！ 這場戰事，在形式上完全和鹽市的幾場戰事相同，祗不過當初的黷武者，氣焰業已消盡，而民間的氣勢，較前更為威壯罷了。 在西線上，彭老漢在黃昏前就開始收容江防軍攜械來歸的散勇，不到天黑，經民軍繳械收留的就有近千人，那算是極端幸運的一群，他們由於一個人的仁懷，免除了這次巨大的劫難。其餘的數千兵勇，就沒有這樣的幸運，在暴怒中的民眾是盲目的，直感驅迫的人們從來不懂得寬恕，悲劇展現在這片流沙遍佈的曠野上，既非是起始，亦非是終結，在這一民族的歷史當中，它祗是一度輪流不息的循環中的一度循環。 殺聲整夜不歇的滾沸在沙原上，無論是哪一個方向，哪一處地方，從遠至近，由近而遠，自天至地，都憂塞著這樣單調得令人厭倦的喊殺聲，而喊殺的人正是那些一向厭倦喊殺的人。 夢魅般的循環，不可解的循環，彷彿地面的浮沙一樣，總想把人們長久的溺陷下去；在那些被擊殺成碎塊的兵勇的屍身中，有一些也是從荒圮的荒野中來的，除了那套衣裳，他們跟那些報復者的生命經歷完全相同，同樣是悲劇，祗是他們鍥入得更深些，因他們終結在無理性的枉曲中。最可悲嘆的是當另一層沙煙，覆蓋了這裏所留下的腳印和血跡時，連這點兒枉曲都將被人們從記憶中剔出，歸入遺忘。 我沒想到各地拉聚的鄉團鄉隊會像這樣橫衝直撞的胡來？ !當彭老漢接到報告時，蠻野的械鬥早已深入沙窩子的中心地帶，難以挽回了。他不得不跺著腳嘆說：這樣打是最蠢的打法，其實祗消軟困他們一兩天，要他們交出幾個禍首來，讓他們丟下槍開回縣城去，等著北伐軍來後受編，原是行得通的。 既已打起來了，民軍如何處置呢？ 彭老漢苦笑著：盡力收容散勇，免得屠殺太甚，瞧光景，也祗好這樣了。你們燃上火把，跟我到前面去，我要告訴那些鄉團，祗要對方扔槍，就不能憑一時血氣亂砍殺。 即使彭老漢到了前面，那種滾沸的殺聲仍然是止不住的，殺紅了眼的人們根本不理會來的是誰？殺戮的本身，到後來已經變得毫無意義，若有，也祗是一種原始的快意的欲望。 火把在各處閃亮著，燈籠在其中晃盪，人是血人，地是血地，觸目都是飛迸的鮮紅。那些被驚掉了魂的兵勇們雖然抗爭著，洋槍加上刀刺，全不及原始刀叉靈活，他們的舉動遲鈍笨拙，完全陷入捱打狀態。 一個挺著尖木的漢子，怪嘯如雷，端著那支尖木在灰色人群來回亂撞，至少有十幾個兵勇，被他的尖木洞穿胸腹。有一個丟了硬帽的兵勇從側面來，先射了他一槍，跟著又補了他一刀，那人彷彿沒覺著一般，橫起尖木祗一掃，便把那兵勇掃得直跪在地上，丟開槍支，雙手捂著斷折了的胸肋，嘴角和鼻孔一起朝外滴血。另一個兵勇已經乖乖的扔開槍，被三四把單刀逼得跪地求饒，哀叫說：諸位在鄉在裏的叔伯大爺們；我當兵吃糧幹北洋，全是被逼的呀！ 你哀告得晚了。one said. 鹽市那些人誰又該死在你槍口上？ !另一個說：可惜今夜你沒遇著放生大士，你認了吧！ 及至彭老漢喊叫著，搶上前去攔阻，亂刀閃動中，那人已經變成幾大塊鮮血淋漓的碎肉了。 彭老漢急了，便在混亂的蟻戰般的人團中放聲暴喊說：那各地來的鄉隊民團全聽著！我是民軍司令彭老漢！江防軍祗要丟槍受編，請甭枉殺！ 好不容易才把這一角說服了，而在沙窩子中央，至少有六七里方圓的地方，至少有百數十團兒人，都在絞鬥之中，其中尤以小蠍兒的馬隊，搏殺得最為瘋狂。 小蠍兒捉住一些扔槍的，用槍口指著他們，逼他們供出江防軍的塌鼻子師長在什麼地方？ 他他業已在半路上被人截殺了參謀長沒出縣城就遭了刺聽說是張二花鞋幹的。 你們如今由誰領著？ 小鬍子旅長。 我要斃光你們，小蠍兒說：然後再殺小鬍子，他是逃不掉的！ 正當他要舉槍潑火，把那群人坑殺在一處沙溝裏時，他的胳膊卻叫人扳住了。 看我彭老漢的份上，你就饒過他們吧。背後的聲音透著緩和：今夜在沙窩子裏，這一火可算是打完了！江防軍散勇，大都丟槍了。 Who are you?小蠍兒怔忡著，聲音裏帶著不服的火性，彷彿惱恨著對方的阻攔。 我是關八爺的朋友，如今我領著民軍。彭老漢說：若是八爺他在這裏，也許今夜的局面就不同了！今夜該死的，祗該是小鬍子一個人，塌鼻子師長死後，他就該向民軍洽降的，我從收容的散勇那兒問得這些，北洋的這些兄弟，習性差，風紀亂是真的，但他們也夠可憐。 彭老漢一提到關八爺，小蠍兒的手就軟了，不自覺的垂下了欲射的槍口。但這已經夠晚了，沙窩子中央的這片土地上，經過糾纏搏殺，到處都橫倒著血淋淋的人屍。大部份的江防軍殘眾在西線投誠，一部份彈盡被俘，另一部份離開大隊，趁夜朝其他地區捲遁，但其中精銳，早在鄉團鄉隊攻撲外圍時，由小鬍子率著，撤過鹽河，仍然退守縣城去了。 沙窩子殺聲撼野的這一戰，不但震動了江淮，也震動了更遠的地方；也許史頁上不會記載著這些，這些無名勇者為擊破軍閥殘餘所灑的碧血，卻化成眾多新的傳聞，像風一般走南到北的擴散著。至少，它說明了民不可侮，黷武殘民者終必敗亡。 但這祗是理性的概念，唯有身歷的人，才會體味到實境的悲慘。沙窩子戰後，民軍進圍縣城，彭老漢把清理鹽市和沙窩子兩處戰場的差事，託請大狗熊糾合民眾去料理，凡是去料理那兩處戰場的人，都能道出它的情境。 在帶著病象的污穢的地面上，埋屍是一宗最棘手的事情。在眾多已經開始腐爛的、面貌模糊或是腫脹變形，甚至四肢殘缺的屍體中間，想辨認出一些必須辨認的死者如戴旺官老爺子、窩心腿方勝、鐵扇子湯六刮、各家鹽棧的棧主、沙河口的珍爺等人，尤其是煞費周章。離開這兩處地方老遠，無論在上風或下風處，都嗅得著一股令人胸脹的腐爛的屍臭，更走近一些，便會覺得頭暈目眩。但這些屍體必需及早料理，大夥兒祗有搖著頭，忍耐著，去做這些搬運、掩埋的事情。 祗有大狗熊，彷彿不覺著一般。 這個在六合幫裏走腿子的江湖野漢，原有著大而化之的脾性，永遠不認真把什麼當做什麼，有著愚拙樸訥的一面，也有著機智諧趣的一面，但是這一年來，繞在他身邊進行的巨變，已重複的，連續的，把這個野漢磨變了形。 尤其是沙窩子戰後，他變得沉默深沉了。人活在世上算是什麼呢？他不能不苦苦的思索這個，人走在江湖上，見過的人臉多過山根的石頭，神道嘴裏的因果循環是欺世愚人的，自己就敢這麼說，就像八爺那樣的漢子，講義氣，論仁懷，普天世下能找出幾個來？人人若肯信得他，及早拉槍援鹽市，方德先方爺他們也不會死得這樣慘了！ 八爺那樣一個鐵錚錚的豪雄，甭說仁心救世了，護住六合幫這麼一小撮兒他所深知的弟兄總能行得吧？結果怎樣了呢？那些弟兄們如同風裏的煙，說散，轉眼就散得無蹤無影了，一些生龍活虎般的人，死在路上就像死掉牲畜，你佔一個野坑，他佔一座荒墳，沒有墓碑，沒有姓氏，沒人再會念著他們，更不會翻掘那些埋下去的故事。 記憶喲，冷得像深秋夜的寒霜，哪還能覓得著一些溫熱來著？ !常在寂默中喃喃著一些空空洞洞的名字，雷一炮、石二矮子、向老三、曾常和、魏小眼、胡大侃、倪金揚再是仰臉朝天，千呼萬喚，也喚不回什麼來了，這一年抵得十年過，人也該老了十年啦！ 從不善道出心底悲哀的人，悲哀來時一陣潮，就像患胃病的人受了饑，又空空兒的，又有些兒牽心連肺的疼，說不出空在哪兒？疼在哪兒？想抓點什麼來填塞填塞，急切中卻又抓不著什麼；每當這種淒酸蝕進入骨縫，隱痛牽著人心腑的時辰，想不透的朦朧霧浮在遠處，人就楞傻得像一隻黑夜中的昏鳥，飛在毒意深濃的墨黑中，東西南北都沒有個落處，祗巴望有一天能見著關八爺，抱著他大哭一場，然而就連一個八爺，也不知弄到哪陣煙哪塊雲裏去了！ 你真的也該死了，大狗熊，大夥兒全已抱著亂世當棺材，淒淒切切的入土為安了，留你一個人，頭頂漿糊盆獨活著，有什麼意味呢？連自己最投契、最相知的石二矮子也先走了，你還能活出什麼花樣來？ ! 常這麼哭笑無常的自問著，偏偏想死比想活還難，活著算得是福麼？誰要這麼說，不摑他兩隻耳括子也得啐他兩口唾沫。 人這樣活著不是活受折磨麼？ 就拿這回料理沙窩子和鹽市的事後來說吧，方德先方爺、戴老爺子師徒幾個、珍爺，這都是自己打心眼兒裏佩服的人，一個個求仁得仁，照理講，對他們自己倒沒什麼，可是自家總覺得他們不該落得如此下場，仁人全是該死的麼？仁人若能警頑化世，為什麼這世上代代仍有奸邪？ !也許他們是對的，自己也不敢斷定他們太傻，至少，讓我大狗熊在屍堆裏尋找他們的遺骸，破了腸、爛了肚的那種慘景，可嘆總是可嘆，傷心總是傷心的吧？人雖是幽冥異路了，誰敢說生時那份情義，少有毛髮之損呢？些許屍臭，又算得了什麼？ 從鄉野趕來抬屍的人，多半是掛心鹽市的漢子，在防守鹽市的人中，有著他們的親朋戚友，鄰里相知，他們一面搬運屍體，一面留心尋找和辨認他們所熟悉的死者。 惡臭的空氣是一堵立在空間的無形的牆，透明又有幾多渾濁，那種腐爛的屍氣又彷彿摻有芥末似的，刺激著人的鼻孔和眼球，使人又打噴嚏又流眼淚。 在鹽市火後的荒墟裏，大狗熊領著百十個鄉民在分別的忙碌著；最先，他們得把那些屍體，按照他們所使用的軍械，所穿著的服色，仔細辨明他們是民團？還是北洋防軍？有些經火燒焦的屍體極難辨認，祗有根據他周圍的屍群，他身邊落散的遺物去細心判別；辨明之後，再把他們分別排列在兩處不同的地方，等待另一群人以牛車，手推車、繩床、鐵絲兜網、門板等把這些屍體運到荒郊去歸葬，如果是民團的屍體，就得經過洗刷和包紮，每屍單葬一穴，如果死者是北洋軍，那祗好草草的堆進一座座事先掘妥的大坑了。 憑著記憶，大狗熊首先在老黃河當面的長堆上，覓著了鐵扇子湯六刮的屍首，經過風吹、日曬和雨淋，那屍身已變成醬色，皮膚潰裂，正像一層叫陽光曬捲了的醬皮一樣；但遍體被槍彈和刀刺洞穿的傷痕仍在，傷口的皮膚翻捲，肌裏暴凸，垂垂累累的，像新剖開的石榴。湯六刮，這個猛虎般豪勇機智的人物，在幾次抗敵時都有著不尋常的表現，使敵方聞名喪膽，但結局也就是這樣的了！大狗熊從他身邊，撿起他那柄單刀。 彭司令關照過，戴老爺子師徒的遺體，暫時浮厝在一處，立上木牌，等日後解決掉小鬍子，再正式歸葬。他交代說：先把湯爺移開去吧。我得去找方爺的遺體去了。 若說鐵扇子湯六刮死得夠慘，窩心腿方勝可死得更為壯烈了；從江防軍猛撲洋橋口起始，方勝就沒離開過那座死扼著洋橋的巨堡，直到最後，堡後的鐵門仍然是緊緊鎖著，沒有被江防軍攻開，而堡裏的人卻都中彈死光了。大狗熊從那座巨堡的周圍，掃除了幾百具江防軍兵勇的屍體，卻仍有若干殘肢碎肉懸掛在堡外的鹿砦和鐵絲網上，任鳥雀啄食，更餵肥了那些營營作聲的野蠅子。 方勝雖然在緊要關頭，炸斷了老黃河上的洋橋，使湧上橋面的江防軍送命，但他深知洋橋口是江防軍必攻之地，洋橋口的得失，關乎鹽市的存亡太大，他雖不敢說一定能守得住鹽市，至少死守這兩座巨堡，互為呼應，可以吸住當面的防軍，減輕東西兩側的壓力，同時，正面死守不退，可使兩側安心，藉以換取時間，好在鹽市放火殲敵時，反撲進去，不讓火場中的敵兵有奪路遁逃的機會。 窩心腿方勝這種計算，大體說來是對了的，江防軍雖改從東側渡過老黃河，先攻東面的側翼陣地，並且突破珍爺扼守的那一線，湧入鹽市的市街，但他們對洋橋口兩座巨堡的攻撲，卻一時一刻也沒放鬆過。 任誰也可從那些跡象上判斷出來，江防軍對於這兩座巨堡的攻撲，最少使用一團以上的兵力，但至少也有半數被殲於陣地外圍，可見攻撲的猛烈和防守者力拚到底的決心。 不管那些野蠅子飛起來亂碰人臉，他們仍使汗巾兜著口鼻，從殘肢碎肉遍佈的鹿砦缺口處走進去，先清除江防軍陣前的屍體，再掘開磚堡，去處理民團中陣亡勇士的遺骸。最先跳進堡裏的大狗熊，發現方勝率眾據守的那座堡子裏，曾被手擲的炸彈多次轟擊過，內壁多處崩裂，上半壁全是黑色的灰化物沾染的痕跡，下半壁全是血斑血點和濃黏的血餅，上面沾著碎布、碎肉、人體的毛髮，差不多每塊的磚面上，都留有子彈和彈片摧缺的傷痕。 一些最先陣亡的弟兄們的遺骸，被拖來碼在堡角和堡門入口處，幾乎高至堡頂，殷殷的血水已經使堡中的地下沒有插腳的地方；有許多裹著數處傷的弟兄，拖著一路血印，仍然爬到射口那邊去舉槍禦敵，大狗熊查察過那些槍支，全是耗光了子彈的。不用說，每個守禦巨堡的弟兄們，當敵軍蜂湧進犯的時刻，都曾盡到最大的力量，抱定必死的心志，在夥伴們中彈死去時，一再裹創禦敵，直到堡中存彈耗光才被對方向射口中塞進無數炮彈炸死，至死仍緊握著槍支，不離射口一步。世上再沒有比這種情境再悲慘壯烈的了！ 窩心腿方勝就是這樣死去的。 從死屍的情狀推測，他在被炸死之前，腿上、臂上、額上，已經連續三次受創，腿、臂是被子彈流貫的洞穿傷，曾以數道細布緊裹，但仍血殷體外，可見傷勢之重，流血之多，額部偏右受過中度擦傷，耳根破裂，部份頭皮及角發撕脫，反垂在耳上，可能其時情況已萬分緊迫，根本沒有再行裹傷的機會，所以頭部傷痕沒經包紮，迸灑的血跡，像雨點似的落在他的前胸、肩膀和後背上，使他身上穿著的藍色長衫變成紫衫。 而致命的傷痕卻在前額正中，一塊蠶豆大小，月牙形的鐵片嵌進他的腦門，連半滴血也沒流，那傷痕使他昏迷的扭身半跪著，鬆開他手裏的匣槍，靠身在射口邊的牆上，他嘴角微微牽動的神態那樣僵化的呈顯著，彷彿要對誰交代什麼。有一個漢子死在他的背上，那人大張兩臂，用身子翼護著他，好幾塊彈片劃破他的脊背，使他衣衫破裂，背脊凝血，狀如倒掛的紅珊瑚 大狗熊在他身邊的血泊中跌跪下去，半晌，才低低的顫索著吐話說：方爺方爺你死得真像個人！我大狗熊折服了！ 同一天的黃昏，大狗熊在北面鹽河上斷橋的橋口，認出那具端坐在輪椅上的戴旺官老爺子的屍體，他率著幾個抬著繩床去時，一隻癩鷹從那老人屍體的肩上飛起，一個鄉民喊出：看，那輪椅上的，就該是戴老爺子了！ 不錯，大狗熊立即分辨出那確是老人戴旺官。那老人的頭顱仍然是完整的，微微歪仰著，後腦骨枕在椅背上，也許因為大量失血的緣故，他臉額上的血肉都已乾涸凝縮，使他的頭蓋和面骨越發凸露出來，好像被風乾一般的，縮小了很多，他下巴上的灰白鬍子仍顫掛著，鬍梢兒隨風抖動；從他高捲的短衫的袖管中，分垂下兩條枯瘦皺縮的手臂，一隻短煙桿落在他身邊的地上。屍首的上半身被寬大的藍衫蓋住，但整個肚腹，卻被貪饞的癩鷹啄空了，祗有一條泛黑塊的大腸，像一條遊竄的白色斑蛇般的從肚腹的潰爛處遊出來，一端絞纏在椅側的滾輪間。所以有這樣的情形，是因為他肚腹上全是蜂窩般的槍洞，容易引起潰爛的緣故。 不是聽人說過，戴老爺子的武術很高的麼？沉寂了一陣兒，一個鄉民說：亂兵怎會一下子就把他打死的呢？ 武術能搪得了槍彈麼？ !另一個說：老爺子的腿不方便，行步全靠輪椅，亂兵恨他炸毀洋橋，斷了他們的進路，拚命放槍蓋他，他又不能飛走。 快將老人推開吧，大狗熊說：老爺子若是畏死，他就不會守在這兒炸橋了。把這邊屍首清理了，咱們還得去找珍爺呢。 而珍爺的屍體，雖經整天的搜尋，仍然無法找到，因為珍爺率眾據守的那座亂塚堆，最先被江防軍突破，在那兒，民軍的損失最慘，死事最烈。江防軍突破那兒之後，深恨民團力抗他們，便將那座陣地上的人，不論死活，一律用亂刀砍劈成碎塊，大狗熊能找到的，祗是一些腐爛的碎肉、布塊而已。 把外緣陣地收拾之後，轉去清理火窟中的市街，那份差事可就更苦了，因為那裏面江防軍的死屍太多，抬不勝抬，祗好放牛車去拉；而滿街的木材，木段兒，磚塊，瓦礫，必先逐一清除掉，才能放進牛車；有些橫陳在地面上的屍體，清理還較為容易，有些被埋在磚瓦木石下的屍首，必得要各處搜尋、挖掘不可。 也就在他們清理鹽市上這些屍骸的時候，有成百的老人和婦孺，不管混亂的局勢如何，仍從各地跋涉而來，到排列的屍場上去認屍；跺著足，搥著胸，喊天呼地的號咷著的也有；因認得親人，伏地哀泣得眼目盡赤的也有；部份體弱的老婦，受不得一路跋涉的勞頓和那種惡臭的屍氣的熏逼，幾度暈厥的也有；認屍落了空，變成半瘋癲，一路自說自話的也有；千百種不同形色的哀痛，那樣的折磨著那些生者，使人見著了，便有著禁不住的辛酸和迷惘。 您說吧，一個鄉民忍受不了，扯著大狗熊問說：這些北洋兵，究竟是為了什麼呢？明知氣數盡了，還要逞兇攻撲鹽市，造成這場殺戮，不過轉眼功夫，他們又埋進烈火堆裏，那脫得身的，也大半死在沙窩子裏了，為的是什麼呢？ 一隊民軍開進來清理槍械，列隊行經他們的面前。 大狗熊垂頭跌坐在一塊青條石上，一雙手夾在膝間，不安的搓動著。 我祗是個渾漢子，他苦著臉說：我也弄不懂。總覺這些吃糧的死得有些冤，他們生時惹厭，死後再瞧，一個個真都夠可憐的！我想，該死的祗是塌鼻子、小鬍子等少數人。 可是小鬍子卻跑掉了！另一個怨說：該死的卻沒讓他死掉，不該死的卻死了一大片，這話可又該怎麼說呢？ 我說過我不懂的。大狗熊憂悶的說：有一天，我若再找到八爺，我必得問問他！假如小鬍子這類人，等北伐軍來了就反正投誠了，是否也會給他個番號，換湯不換藥，還讓他當旅長？ !我總覺得，天下總叫少數幾個人弄壞了的時刻居多，一泡雞屎壞一缸醬，永遠沒錯兒的，可不是？ ! 儘管這樣的憂悶著，但他還得領著那些鄉民渡過鹽河，到沙窩子裏去，收拾那座更大的戰場和更多的屍體。他一時還沒有功夫去尋找那位在他心眼裏唯一能回答他心底疑問，並能解開他心頭憂悶的人。 有更多的鄉民到沙窩子來，幫著大狗熊收拾這些死屍，他們帶來更多北地的消息，說是從沙窩子遁脫的一部份北洋兵，多則走了百里，少則走了十來里，全被各地的鄉團鄉隊解決掉了。有些鄉鎮上，業已燒掉北洋軍制定的五色旗，換掛青天白日旗，聽