Facing these horses, Xu Shu seemed a little absent-minded. He just walked back and forth between the fences over and over again, feeling very curious.
Finally, he noticed that there was something strange about the sign hanging on the fence of a horse-selling house. On that sign, a drop of light ink was lightly dotted diagonally above the word "horse", as if it was accidentally sprinkled on when writing.
Can't see it.
Xu Shu went around a few more circles, and asked about the price from the fourth house from the right next to the donkey-selling fence. They asked each house one after another, and finally came to the fence of this house and asked: "Does this horse have an owner?"
The owner of the horse seller came over in a hurry, nodded and bowed, and said yes repeatedly. He was a thin, dry man from the Central Plains. He was young but had wrinkles on his face, and his hair was stained with straw residue.
"Uncle, my horse is sold for five husks of corn, or two pieces of silk."
"This is too expensive. Can it be cheaper?"
The owner of the horse quickly put on a grimace and spread his hands: "Sir, please do me a favor. This is the Central Plains. It is rare for a young horse from the Central Plains to see such a high-class horse as me. This is a small horse."
I brought them from Longxi with my own hands. They are high-quality Xiliang horses with excellent endurance. Look at these limbs, they are thick and powerful..."
Hearing the owner of the horse actively introducing the benefits of the horse, a sharp light flashed in Xu Shu's eyes, and he slowly asked: "Xiliang horse? If you want to bring it to the Central Plains, I'm afraid
Isn’t it extremely difficult?”
"It's not difficult to say it's easy, it's not easy to say it's easy either. Master, do you want this horse or not?"
"Well... yes! But you only have one, I want more..." Xu Shu thought for a moment and then replied.
As soon as the horse's owner heard Xu Shu's words, he immediately asked: "Master, how much do you want?"
“The more the merrier!”
When the horse's owner heard this, he looked at Xu Shu warily and asked, "Looking at the gentleman's elegant appearance, is he from an official family?"
"Well, you have good eyesight. I am the chief clerk of Yingchuan. I came to the horse market to purchase military horses for the army on the order of the prefect."
After hearing this, the owner of the horse hurriedly said: "This little man has eyesight but cannot see Mount Tai. I want to pay my respects to Master Zhuji. I wonder how many horses Master Zhuji wants? Let me see if I can get them..."
"I heard that the Liang Kingdom has very strict control over war horses and does not allow private sales of war horses at all, let alone such purebred Xiliang horses. Tell me the truth, do you have any connections?" Xu Shuxuan
asked slowly.
The horse's owner smiled and said: "Sir, you are the only one here. In short, the little man can get as much as the adults need."
"I heard that the state of Liang had severe penalties for selling war horses. Aren't you afraid of being punished?" Xu Shu asked again.
"Sir, are you buying a horse or asking questions? I'm not afraid of horse sellers. What are you afraid of when buying horses? Besides, this is the Kingdom of Wei. No matter how powerful King Liang is, he can't reach out to the Kingdom of Wei.
Right? Sir, if you want it, just give me the exact number, and I will naturally get the horses to you."
"Two thousand... I want two thousand war horses. When can you get them?" Xu Shu held out two fingers.
"What's your price, sir?"
"Don't worry, even if there are horses from the Central Plains, they are definitely not as good as Xiliang horses. If you can get the horses here, the price will naturally not be low, and I can also give you some benefits."
"My lord, two thousand horses is not a small amount. To sell the horses from Xiliang at the risk of beheading cannot be accomplished overnight. Sir, have you seen those Qiang people? After they came to the Central Plains,
They will never go back again, and the reason is very simple, that is, they can’t go back even if they want to, because they have violated the laws of Liang Kingdom.”
Xu Shu was naturally very aware of what was going on under his nose. He knew that these Qiang people were prisoners of Liang who had fled to Wei. However, he was also a little worried about this because many Qiang people had recently come to Yangdi City.
, the ever-increasing number of Qiang people made him feel that something was fishy, and the horse market that had become increasingly active in recent times made him even more sensitive.
"How long will it take?" Xu Shu asked.
"Well... I have to ask my eldest brother. Do you really want to buy a Xiliang horse?"
"Of course, the endurance of Xiliang horses is well known... Don't worry, as long as you can bring me two thousand war horses, the price will be very reasonable. I think you are also an errand boy and can't make the decision at all. How about this,
How about you let me meet your elder brother and let me talk to him?"
The owner of the horse seller thought: "See, this man really wants to buy a horse. If I take him back to see my elder brother, my elder brother will definitely praise me..."
When he thought of this, the horse vendor nodded and said, "Okay, then come with me."
As soon as he finished speaking, the hawker found someone to replace him for a while, and then he took Xu Shu out of the horse market, walked through several alleys, and entered a private house.
There was nothing special about the house. The hawker brought Xu Shulia here, raised his hand and knocked rhythmically a few times.
"The King of Heaven and the Tiger of Earth..." came a rough voice from the door.
After hearing this, the vendor said to him, "The pagoda suppresses the river demon."
With a "squeak" sound, the door opened, and a very strong man emerged from the door. He glanced at the hawker and Xu Shu who was following the hawker, and asked, "What's the matter?"
The hawker said with a smile on his face: "Brother, are you here?"
"Inside. Who is this person behind you?"
The hawker said: "This is an honored guest. Get out of the way. I want to take the honored guest to see my elder brother. From now on, all our food and drinks for the next six months will be on this honored guest."
When the person who opened the door heard what the hawker said, he no longer stopped him and directly let the hawker and Xu Shu in.
Xu Shu followed the hawker and walked straight into a living room. He saw a man sitting in the living room. The man was about forty years old, with a somewhat wretched appearance and a burly figure.
The man sitting inside saw Xu Shu and the hawker coming in, and asked: "Qian San, if you don't go to sell horses, why did you bring someone back?"
The vendor named Qian San hurriedly said: "Brother, this is an important guest, and he wants two thousand war horses at once."
After the man heard this, he slowly stood up, looked at Xu Shu carefully, and then asked: "Two thousand war horses is not a small number. Objectively, what can we do with so many war horses?"
"To be honest, I am the chief clerk of this county, and I came here to replenish the horses on the order of the prefect."
"It turns out it's an official. It's really disrespectful. However, you came at the wrong time. I only have one war horse, the one on the street. I don't have two thousand at all. You'd better please take it back."
"Brother, this is an honored guest..." Qian San said in confusion.
"Shut up! See off the guests!"
When Xu Shu saw that the other party had issued an order to expel guests, he hurriedly said: "Aren't you afraid that I will bring the army to arrest you all?"
"Hmph! It's up to you. We are just ordinary people, and we haven't done anything illegal. What will happen if we are caught? I heard that Xu Shu, the prefect of this county, is a good and upright official. I believe Master Xu can return it to us.
An innocent one."
"That's good. In that case, why can't you sell the war horses to us? This is why the prefect personally ordered me to buy horses. If possible, I promise to make you a big profit."
After listening to Xu Shu's words, the man asked: "I am not a person who is moved by gold and stone. What I do is beheading. In the Liang Kingdom, selling horses privately requires beheading."
"Well, I know about this decree. If you can sell two thousand war horses, I will definitely let you settle in Wei. Judging from your accent, you should be from Xiliang, right?"
"Sir, can you let me think about it?" the man said.
"Okay, I will visit again tomorrow. I hope you can give me a good answer. Otherwise, I will have no choice but to expel you from the Wei Kingdom." Xu Shu said.
"Qian San, see the guests off!"
After Xu Shu was sent away by Qian San, he thought to himself: "Liang State has strict political orders and Hangu Pass is impenetrable. It is extremely difficult to transport war horses to Wei State. There must be something fishy here and must be closely monitored."
After Qian San sent Xu Shu away, when he returned to the living room, he immediately saw an indifferent face and said hurriedly: "Brother, what happened today..."
"You should pack your things now and go out of the city with me to meet the master."
"Brother, why are you leaving in such a hurry?"
"Stop talking nonsense, when will it be your turn to ask what I, Qian Hu, have to do? Hurry up and pack your things and leave the city with me."
"Yes, brother."
Qian Hu and Qian San hurriedly left the city. The two of them galloped out and traveled dozens of miles before stopping in front of a farmyard.
The farmyard was not big. Qian Hu got off his horse and walked to the door of the farm. He knocked on the door and shouted loudly: "Open the door, open the door, open the door quickly. I am Qian Hu, and I want to see the master."
The door opened immediately. Qian Hu left his horse and walked straight into the manor's courtyard. Seeing that the lights in the living room were still on, he walked over.
After entering the living room, Qian Hu immediately knelt on the ground and bowed to a young man in white robes who was sitting at the top: "Subordinate Qian Hu, please pay homage to the master."
The young man in white robe asked expressionlessly, "Why are you back?"
"Master, I have something very important to report to my master, so I have to rush back late at night."
"What's the emergency? Did Xu Shu, the prefect of Yingchuan, suddenly fall ill and die, or were generals Cao Hong and Xu Chu both assassinated?"
Qian Hu was silent for a moment and then said: "Master, neither of them. It was Xu Shu who disguised himself as a clerk and came to buy horses in person. His subordinates could not guess his intentions..."
"Xu Shu? How many horses did he choose to buy?"
"Two thousand horses!"
"Two thousand horses? It's not a small number, so you promised him?"
"No, I was afraid of arousing Xu Shu's suspicion, so I couldn't agree. He asked me to reply tomorrow. Master, should I agree or not?"
"Promise him. This is a good opportunity for our sect to aspire to the Central Plains. I will lead the elite cavalry to sweep across the Central Plains, and I will make the world remember my name, Ma Chao. Qian Hu, are all your men ready?"
"Master, don't worry. All of my subordinates have sneaked into Yangzhai City and are at my command at any time."
After hearing this, Ma Chao showed a smile on his face and said: "Very good! I will return to Hangu Pass tomorrow. You must first promise Xu Shu when you go back. I will contact you again then."