The reason why the Runing Army wanted this area was carefully calculated. It was to establish a large number of reclamation villages in this area to protect the safety of the Runing Army's naval ports. It also had a function of facilitating the future operations of the Runing Army in the South.
Actions in Zhili and Huguang.
But the lack of Lu'an makes this well-designed base missing a link. Why doesn't this make Chang Meng angry? You know, the Reclamation Trading Company is not only a profitable trading company, he is also the vanguard of the Runing Army's territory expansion.
!
"Master Chang! Do you want me to bring some of my brothers to show the magistrate?" asked a guard leader.
"Are you brainless? Do you think this is about Runing?" Chang Meng immediately yelled, "You think the master has not caused enough troubles? Do you want to add more trouble to him?"
Seeing that the senior executives of the trading companies were silent, Chang Meng waved his hands impatiently and said: "Get out of here, everyone! Prepare some gifts for me, and I will personally pay a visit to the magistrate who has no money or salt."
"Sir! I have to boast, but it would be unwise to go against my lord!" Chang Meng said while secretly looking at Sun Zhixian's face. What surprised him was that although his tone was very serious, Sun Zhixian was still worried.
He smiled as if he didn't care. Although Chang Meng was getting more and more unsure as he spoke, he still wanted to finish his words, "I would like to advise you, sir, you should accept the gift! Otherwise...!"
"What if it's not the case?" Sun Zhixian suddenly stopped smiling, "Brother Shi Gong, how dare you do anything to this county? Why don't you tell me about it?" Sun Zhixian's tone became more and more serious.
"Brother Shi Gong!?" Chang Meng suddenly lost his composure, and immediately asked cautiously: "May I ask my lord, are you an old acquaintance of my lord?"
"We have been friends for more than ten years." Sun Zhixian made no secret. "Classmate! Friend!" Sun Zhixian said in a serious tone.
Chang Meng suddenly stood up from his seat. He was from the Wu family, so he would never dare to break the rules. So Chang Meng bowed and gave a big gift and said: "The young one is from the master's family. I send my regards to Master Sun."
May I ask what your surname is?"
"Sun Chengxiu from this county." As he spoke, Sun Chengxiu took out a letter from his sleeve, "Give this to brother Shi Gong!"
…
Not to mention how Chang Meng returned in despair. After the conversation, Sun Chengxiu returned to the inner house, and his wife came out with her young son in her arms. When she saw Sun Chengxiu, she said: "Master! My uncle is a nice person, why should you embarrass yourself?
What about him?"
"What do you know about a woman?" Sun Chengxiu immediately blew his beard and stared. But when he saw his young son, he woke up in a fright. He quickly said: "Why are you taking your son out? Take him to the house to sleep!"
Although he and Wu Shigong have not been in contact for a long time, Sun Chengxiu has never forgotten this friendship. Therefore, Sun Chengxiu has always been concerned about Wu Shigong's every move.
In the beginning, every time Wu Shigong saved his life from danger, Sun Chengxiu was happy for his friend. However, as Wu Shigong rose through the ranks, Sun Chengxiu felt that something was wrong.
Wu Shigong kept a low profile at the beginning, completely avoiding the attention of the court. But no matter how he escaped, he could not escape the eyes of interested people. For example: his enemy Yu Zilian; and for example: his friend Sun Chengxiu. Therefore, Sun Chengxiu was the first to discover Wu Shigong's ambitions.
one.
Of course, Sun Chengxiu would not report such unfounded speculation to the court, nor would he deliberately expose Wu Shigong. Anyway, the sky is high and the road is far away, and as long as the two of them live in peace, it will be fine. Therefore, Sun Chengxiu has never contacted Wu Shigong.
The reason for this is that Sun Chengxiu had a son in middle age. Now he has no career in the officialdom. He is very lucky and can only be a prefect. Therefore, Sun Chengxiu's heart is entirely placed on the safe growth of his son.
What happened next also confirmed Sun Chengxiu's judgment. The Runing army shot gentry indiscriminately in Huanggang and beat the county magistrate. Then Wu Shigong was arrested and executed by the imperial envoy. After the failure, Wu Shigong killed all the imperial guards. Although this
The matter was finally calmed down by the court, but Wu Shigong's wild ambition could not be concealed at all. Therefore, Sun Chengxiu did not want to have any more involvement with Wu Shigong.
But God did not follow his wishes, and Sun Chengxiu wanted to hide. Wu Shigong took the initiative to find him. Sun Chengxiu was well aware of the background of Jimin Reclamation Trading Company, so he flatly refused to enter Lu'an.
Chang Meng was quite depressed this time, and he could only ask Wu Shigong for an idea. But compared to Tao Xin, Chang Meng was pretty good. Now Tao Xin was so surprised that he was speechless.
Regarding Wu Shigong's order, Tao Xin was not as resentful as Xiaojie. Although it was just the beginning of their marriage and Xiaojie and she were inseparable, Tao Xin could still understand Wu Shigong's painstaking efforts, so as soon as he received the order, he led the
The newly formed legion and the personal troops assigned to him rushed to South Zhili.
"General! We can buy and sell anything here. It just depends on whether the general can afford the price." A businessman spoke eloquently in front of Tao Xin.
When passing the Huoqiu camp, a businessman came to his door. Out of curiosity, Tao Xin received him, but he did not expect that this businessman specialized in doing business with the army.
"Then what do you have here?" Tao Xin asked curiously.
"We have women, wine, everything, and the price is quite cheap. There are also a lot of fabrics and mountain goods. Of course we also collect things, including horses, weapons, armor, and even grain and grass. We pay for everything, and we are honest.
.”
"What's the price of the horse?" Tao Xin became more and more interested.
"It depends on the quality of the horse."
"I'll just ask the war horse."
"Then thirty taels of silver." The businessman replied.
So cheap? Tao Xin immediately thought that Runing's army was short of war horses, so he then asked: "Is this really what you are paying for? If it is true, sell me a hundred horses first, and pay immediately when the goods arrive."
"Ah? Isn't the general selling it? That's not the price, it's forty taels!" the businessman quickly changed his words.
"What do you mean?" A question mark suddenly appeared on Tao Xin's head, "Did all your war horses come from the army?"
"This...! General, it's better not to ask any more questions. Anyway, I guarantee that the horses are fat and strong."
"That's it!" Tao Xin thought for a moment. He led his troops to fight in southern Zhili, and he didn't have time to care about the bad things in other places, so he didn't want to cause trouble. But at only forty taels, the war horse was quite cheap.
, so he asked tentatively: "Forty taels is forty taels. Give me a hundred horses first. If you are satisfied, I will come back later."
"Then do you want harnesses? A set of twelve harnesses."
"You even have harnesses here? Do you have artillery and gunpowder?"
"They are all there. How many kinds of artillery are there..."