Chapter 4

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  Father Ma Bao retired due to illness, and according to the rules of the Ma family army, the position of camp commander was taken over by his son Ma Bu Ying. Ma Bu Ying bid farewell to Da Ake, rode on a big grey horse, and walked into the Ninghai Army's large camp.

  His elder cousin Ma Bufang had already become a division commander.

  The battalion commander ordered him to wait for arrangements. This battalion commander is almost the same as the soldiers, feeding and exercising horses every day, very hardworking, not like an officer at all. But the horse battalion commander's military uniform is neat and his boots are very shiny.

  Winter has arrived, and before the snow falls, his father sent a message asking him to return. He rode alone, without even a single guard, and wandered in the wilderness until nightfall before entering the village.

  His father told him: "According to the rules of Ninghai Army, after snowfall, you have to go hunting empty-handed. You took advantage of Bi Daozi, and hunting is a collective activity, be careful not to suffer losses."

  "Who still remembers things from three or four years ago?"

  "You're young and don't understand the ways of the world. Your uncle is paving the way for you, treating this cool nephew like a black tiger star. In a few days, they'll be hunting you down, so be careful. Or else, just stay home and rest for a few days."

  Cool: means stupid.

  "Ah, I raised a son, not a daughter! A good man can conquer the world with empty hands. Are you not even expecting anything from yourself?" Ah-niang said as she turned and walked away.

  Your father suddenly stood up and said, "You haven't left any family business for your child in this life. You can't do anything earth-shaking. As long as you still have a breath, be a stepping stone for your child, don't be a hindrance."

  Ma Bao, a retired military officer, was quite ordinary in the big camp in Xining, but still had prestige among the common people. He invited several dozen sturdy young men from neighboring villages to ride horses and go hunting in the wilderness. This was an ancient tradition of the Hexi people, regardless of whether they were Han or Hui, everyone loved to take this risk. According to the old rules, after snowfall, wild chickens and rabbits are easy to catch, since Ma Bao wanted to take a bigger risk, everyone was a hot-blooded man, shouting in unison, riding horses, and rushing into the wilderness in groups.

  First, they ride their horses at full gallop, chasing out the wild chickens and rabbits from their nests. The terrain in Hezhou is rugged with deep gorges and steep cliffs, and the riders on their fierce horses charge straight down the precipice, then up again from the foot of the cliff, going straight up and down, getting more and more frenzied as they run, like a drumbeat. The horse hooves pound the earth with a loud thud, and the heart pounds in the chest with a loud thud, the wild chickens and rabbits are frightened out of their wits, desperately burrowing into the underbrush, into the crotch of the earth. These are extremely treacherous places. For thousands of years, the wild animals living in Hezhou have been trained to be highly alert, reacting instantly to any movement, cleverly finding footholds that even iron hooks can't dig out. The riders, galloping at full speed, must lean down in an instant to catch the animals, almost recklessly, regardless of whether it's a gorge or a cliff, a mountain of knives or a sea of fire, they just charge forward. Many brave warriors have caught their prey but become disabled. More people collide with each other, horses die or men perish, blood splatters everywhere, revealing the heroic spirit of men! Every winter, the people of Hezhou must play with their lives once.

  The prey that is still fleeing with strength cannot be caught, and the hunter must let the prey exhaust itself before hiding in a secure location to ambush it.

  Ma Bu's saddle was full of game, and everyone crowded around him on his way home.

  The father returned empty-handed, but he was not alone. There were many people, all with their heads hung low in dejection, following behind the victor.

  Back home, neighbors and relatives, family members all gathered in Ma Bu Ying's house, laughing loudly. Father hid in the cold room, sighing and groaning.

  The next day, Ma Bu Ying sat in front of a small table on the upper floor, Ah Niang served tea and rice, from now on, he was the master of the family.

  He is going back to his unit, he walks into the courtyard and shouts: "Dad, I'm leaving."

  He left. He knew the rules of the people in Hexi, he couldn't look up at his father, and as soon as he walked out the door, tears came streaming down.

  The army's hunting was even more brutal. Once on the hunting ground, there was no distinction between officers and soldiers, whoever was fierce was king. Several of the most elite officers in the Ninghai Army stared at Ma Bu Ying. The magnificent grey horse cooperated with its owner, knocking down the strong men and fierce horses that charged forward, knocking down five in a row, two of whom died on the spot. Ma Bu Fang rushed up, his mount was kicked to the ground by Ma Bu Ying's grey horse, sending Ma Bu Fang flying tens of meters away. Ma Bu Fang rolled around, his leg slightly lame.

  Fortunately, the number of captured prey is as many as Ma Bu Ying's.

  This could hardly assuage Ma Bufang's anger; he called over his trusted aide and said, "Get rid of the big grey horse."

  At midnight, the big gray horse fell down in the stable. There was something strange in the fodder that even a fine horse could hardly recognize and it knocked him down at once.

  A group of men loaded a horse onto a cart and pulled it to the outskirts, where they said, "Throw it far, far away, throw it into Qinghai Lake to feed the fish."

  A group of people pulled the car to the outskirts of Xining, it was like pulling a mountain. The official's order topped ten thousand mountains. The confidants did not dare to slack off, they took out silver coins to buy good horses from Mongolians, several good horses were harnessed to the car. Qinghai Lake was getting closer and closer, the confidant thought of completing the task perfectly, he didn't even use a whip, but instead used a knife to stab the Mongolian horse's buttocks, he wanted to throw both the horse and its bones into the lake. The Mongolian horse sprayed blood, it let out a loud cry as it jumped in, the water splashed very high, not even strong winds could blow up such high waves, the wave crests were like mountains, one after another, swallowing the horse whole. The confidant was overjoyed, when reporting to the travel leader, he spoke in great detail, the travel leader kept patting his back.

  On the day of the autumn maneuver, the brigade commander led his troops to the shores of Qinghai Lake, where they engaged in marksmanship and spear-throwing exercises with great enthusiasm. The grand finale was yet to come, featuring a performance by the officers. The cavalry regimental commander's horse was inferior to everyone else's, and everyone was eager to see him make a scene. The brigade commander knew that he was skilled with a knife, but deliberately didn't ask him to compete in knife-fighting, instead wanting him to try his hand at horsemanship. The cavalry regimental commander asked the brigade commander if he could say a prayer, which happened to be around noon prayer time. The brigade commander couldn't very well refuse, and gave his permission for him to pray.

  The commander of the cavalry left his troops and walked to the sandy beach by the lake, where he sat cross-legged. Then a miracle appeared: a great gray horse burst out of the green sea, its light surpassing that of the sun; the sun was as thin as paper, like a kite played with by children. The officers and soldiers pushed the commander aside, rushed past him, and all knelt in the water.

  The ocean floor is all horse bones, thousands of years old, the skeleton does not disperse, still maintaining a running posture. The old soldiers said that those were the horses ridden by ancient heroes. Wei Qing, Huo Qubing, Li Guang, and Dong Xian of the Han Dynasty, Li Jing, Xue Rengui, Ge Shuhan of the Tang Dynasty, all came here, King Li Yuanyuan of Western Xia, and Li Zicheng's subordinates also came. The blood flowing in Qinghai Lake is all theirs, after thousands of years, it has fermented into a piece of pure cyan. The soldiers watched as the horse bones grew flesh, grew tendons and blood; its fur was gray, like white snow covered with dust, like the snowy peaks of Qilian Mountain, emitting desolation and sorrow from head to toe. The big gray horse neighed and ran over from the sea, lying down beside the cavalry commander, carrying the commander on his back towards the shooting range. The commander's hands were empty, everyone thought he was going to pull out those wooden stakes, but all the stakes were broken, the commander had a sharp light in his hand, fast as the wind, suddenly flashing, the stakes broke. Later, everyone discovered that the commander was holding a 1.5-inch Heshui short knife.

  The journey was long and worrisome, so he went to find the Garrison Commander. The Garrison Commander also felt that things were not right, and absolutely could not let him lead troops, for once he had an army, it would be troublesome. The Garrison Commander couldn't think of any clever ideas, so he rode his horse to find Ma Bao, Ma Step?'s father. Ma Bao was idle at home, and was a cousin of the Garrison Commander. The Garrison Commander chatted with him for half a day, beating around the bush, and Ma Bao said: "Step ? is your nephew, and also a subordinate, no need to ask me, let Stepping arrange it; a 14-year-old kid, being a battalion commander whether or not he leads troops doesn't matter." With these words, the Garrison Commander felt at ease, using his young age as an excuse to make Ma Battalion Commander a nominal commander, only receiving salary but not leading troops.

  His father told him the details, and he was not angry. "My soldiers have just changed from air to water, I will give them color, when they have blood, the whole northwest is my soldier."

  "My father said: 'From ancient times to now, soldiers are all in their barracks, what nonsense are you talking about?'"

  "My son said, 'This is what I saw in the Valley of Horses. The valley was full of horse bones. The mountain winds were so strong that they could not be blown down; in summer, the snowmelt and seawater were like oceans, but they could not drown them. They all stood in the posture of running when they were alive, and what they carried on their backs were the heroes of ancient times. Brave warriors relied on yellow sand, but their war horses all arrived at the mountain. The great Ah Ke said that the war horses did not come with empty bodies; they brought the souls of the heroes. As long as the souls do not disperse, the war horses will not fall."

  "The bones of Shenma Valley are all in a state of galloping."

  "Dad said: 'You're just a kid, it's already good enough if you can be a squad leader.'"

  Ma Bu Ying took off his military uniform and left without a word. He drove his family's sheep to the north slope, where it was desolate and the sheep couldn't find any grass. It was a place with yellow soil cracks, where the sheep would dig up the roots of the grass one by one like fishing, eating very carefully. Later, he crossed over the big ridge and walked towards the Qilian Mountains. Few people went there to herd, but the grass was very tall, and it was also a place where leopards roamed. Ma Bu Ying insisted on driving the sheep there, but they wouldn't eat even when they saw the grass. It wasn't that the grass didn't taste good, but rather because leopards were lurking in the deep grass. The leopards were like big fires, shining brightly and fiercely.

  Ma Bu Ying didn't bring a knife or a gun. He picked up two stones and wrestled with the leopard in the tall grass, just like a primitive man.

  The sheep all crouched on the ground, like avoiding bombs from an airplane. The leopard's growls were all in the sky, the valley couldn't contain its roar, so it released its majestic voice into the sky, its sound was like a sparrow hawk's, rapid and fierce.

  Later, the peregrine falcon disappeared, and the sky was a vast expanse of blue tiles. Ma Bu Ying walked out of the deep grass, his body covered in wounds, with blood that was sticky and shiny like tree resin. He had a dead leopard on his shoulders, its head gone, with a sharp stone stuck in its neck hole. The sheep began to stir, started eating grass, and indeed they were sheep, so good at eating grass, their stomachs soon became big and round, their nipples red and shiny. Ma Bu Ying carried the leopard back, and the villagers were shocked, sticking out their tongues, unable to comprehend how the stone had been stuffed inside. Ma Bu Ying said: "The stone grew wings, flapped them once, and smashed the leopard's head to pieces, then built a nest inside."

  One day, a sparrow hawk flew down from the top of the mountain to catch small chickens. Ma Bu Ying picked up a piece of broken stone and hit the sparrow hawk's wings, knocking off half of them. The sparrow hawk couldn't fly, and it tumbled and ran away like an old lady, causing all the birds of prey in the mountains to hide and not dare come out.

  Later, he used stones to hit wolves, wild chickens, and wild rabbits. Even if they were a hundred steps away, the cunning rabbit would run away with the wind, and guns couldn't catch up to it. He raised his arm, and the stone seemed to have eyes, chasing after the rabbit relentlessly until it caught up and hit it with a loud bang, shattering half of its skull.

  Old people said: This child is like Deng Ai Shi Le, able to fly stones to hit people. Even the earth clods on the mountain can be used as weapons, and in the future, all the children on the mountain will be his soldiers.

  The news reached the military camp, and the brigade commander Ma Bufang was very nervous. The officers and soldiers were discussing it in a flurry, and if things went wrong, something would happen. The garrison commander Ma Qi made a decisive decision, set up a new battalion, and ordered Ma Bingying to take office immediately. All the soldiers in that battalion were old, weak, sick and disabled, with broken guns and poor horses.

  The garrison commander deliberately let his son, Ma Bufang, announce the decision at the military officer meeting, and everyone looked at Ma Buqing with a strange expression. The garrison commander was in a good mood, talking a lot, and speaking with emotion, the old man talked about their experience of escorting Emperor Guangxu and Empress Dowager Cixi to Xi'an during the "Western Expedition" many years ago, which was the most glorious thing in his life. "When we crossed the Yellow River, I personally paddled the boat, the wind was strong and the waves were high, the boat was rocking on the waves, and the Empress Dowager was sitting in the sedan chair. When we landed, I carried one of the sedan poles by myself." The military officers of Ninghai Town discussed it as usual, showing a very envious expression and astonishment. Ma Buqing snorted, "He's still proud of carrying that old woman's sedan?" The garrison commander's face fell, "What are you muttering about, nephew?"

  Show off

  "Dear Ah Da, when you escorted the Empress Dowager to the Western Palace, weren't you just over twenty years old? A heroic young man with vigor and vitality! Why didn't you just take out that old woman and protect Emperor Guangxu?"

  Everyone's face turned pale with fright.

  He burst out laughing, "When the Empress Dowager was touring Xi'an, Yu Youren was just a bookish kid, yet he dared to submit a memorial to the Governor of Shaanxi, urging him to take advantage of the opportunity to remonstrate with the Emperor and kill the Empress Dowager to protect Guangxu Emperor. Your old Ah Da is not even as good as that bookish kid from Shaanxi!"

  Yu Youren: Shaanxi anti-Qing righteous man, General Commander of the Jingguo Army, former President of the National Government's Audit Office and Control Yuan, later died in Taiwan.

  The garrison commander was so choked with rage that he turned pale and never mentioned that glorious history again.

  Ma Ying Chang took a long leave and returned to Shen Ma Valley to see Da Ah Ke. Da Ah Ke knew he was buried in dark clouds, unable to see the light of the silver moon. Da Ah Ke said: "The prophet pointed with one hand, the dark clouds dispersed, and the moon came out. That is the best time for the tide to surge forward. The prophet sent capable people to the desert, where the dry sand was the dew of life. The prophet's descendants arrived at the drought-stricken land, settling in the most desolate place in the world; the more desolate and dry the place, the brighter the dew of life."

  Ma Yingchang didn't say a word and left. During the exercise, he led the troops into the desert, and for three days and nights, there was no sign of them. The garrison commander thought he had gone up the mountain to rebel. On the third evening, he brought the troops back to the military camp, and the brigade commander was shocked. Out of 300 people, only 20 or 30 were left. The brigade commander asked, "Where are the others?" Ma Yingchang said, "They're feeding the sand." The brigade commander asked again, and he said he was Han general Li Guang, who couldn't catch the Xiongnu and took a wrong path. Next time they went out for exercise, he still led the troops into the desert; 30 people went in, and only seven came out. The brigade commander said, "Ma Bu Ying, you'd better be a squad leader, seven people are just enough for one squad." Ma Bu Ying didn't say a word. The brigade commander asked those seven soldiers, "Aren't you afraid that Ma Yingchang will take your lives?" Those seven big men shouted in unison: "We're not afraid of losing our lives, the more we lose, the more valuable they become!"

  Those seven soldiers became the iron-clad team of Ma Yinglong. Ma Yinglong led them into the desert several times, from Qinghai to Gansu. People called them the Golden Body.