第6部分(第1/7 頁)

wn　to　the　other　side　of　the　mountain；　turning　it　into　a　basin　with　snow　from　a　depth　of　waist…　high　to　higher　than　a　flagpole。　Pretty　soon　the　wolves　will　drive　the　herd　to　the　other　side　of　the　mountain。　As　they　press　forward；　they’ll　tighten　the　circle。　What　do　you　think　it　will　look　like？”

Everything　turned　dark　for　Chen；　as　if　he’d　fallen　into　a　snowdrift　that　kept　out　all　light。　If　he’d　been　a　Han　soldier　in　ancient　times；　he　was　thinking；　he　could　not　have　seen　through　this　strategy；　this　trap。　Now　he　began　to　understand　why　the　great　Ming　general　Xu　Da；　who　had　driven　the　Mongols　back　onto　the　grasslands；　had　won　every　battle　he　fought　south　of　the　Great　Wall　but　had　seen　his　armies　annihilated　on　the　grassland。　He　also　understood　why　the　other　great　Ming　general；　Qiu　Fu；　with　his　hundred　thousand　soldiers；　had　driven　the　Mongol　hordes　to　the　Kerulen　River　in　Outer　Mongolia；　only　to　be　ambushed。　When　he　was　killed；　his　army’s　morale　plummeted；　and　all　the　Han　soldiers　were　taken　prisoner。

“In　war；”　the　old　man　said；　“wolves　are　smarter　than　men。　We　Mon—gols　learned　from　them　how　to　hunt；　how　to　encircle；　even　how　to　fight　a　war。　There　are　no　wolf　packs　where　you　Chinese　live；　so　you　haven’t　learned　how　to　fight。　You　can’t　win　a　war　just　because　you　have　lots　of　land　and　people。　No；　it　depends　on　whether　you’re　a　wolf　or　a　sheep。”

The　attack　was　launched。　The　wolf　with　the　gray　neck　and　chest　led　two　large　wolves　on　the　western　flank　in　a　lightning　assault　on　a　hilly　protuberance　near　the　gazelle　herd。　This；　obviously；　was　the　final　gap　in　the　three…　sided　encirclement。　By　occupying　this　hill；　the　wolves　pleted　the　encirclement。　This　sudden　action　was　like　sounding　the　bugle　for　all　three　sides　to　charge。　The　wolves；　which　had　patiently　la