Chapter 37 In a blink of an eye, the Unrivaled Kung Fu came
In the autumn of the third year of Guanghe, after half a year of disputes and coordination in court games, the imperial court once again appointed Xia Yu and Zang Min, and at the same time appointed Lu Zhi as Beizhonglang General, responsible for controlling Dong Zhuo, the governor of Bingzhou, Liu Yuzhong, the governor of Youzhou, and Youbing.
The prefects dispatched the garrison soldiers of the Hebei Military Region to assemble in Youzhou, Bingzhou, and Jizhou, and supervised the horses and war horses in each horse garden. At the same time, they recruited local horses and civilians as reserves to transport grain, grass and baggage, recruit Youzhou, and recruit young people from each township!
After the failure of the invasion three years ago, the Han Dynasty once again launched a powerful counterattack against Xianbei.
This expedition involved more people than Xia Yu, Tian Yan, and Zang Min did three years ago, attracted more criticism from the court, and covered a wider area.
When the army came out of the fortress, the entire Youhu area immediately fell into a state of anxiety.
After all, the big defeat three years ago is still fresh in our memory.
…
…
Time flies, and more than four months have passed. In the blink of an eye, it has been the fourth year of Guanghe, and there is still no news of You Bing's army going out for an expedition.
This is a disaster for the women and children who are waiting in Youzhou. Many of the men who have left the country are the main labor force in the family. Now the mainstay of the family has gone to fight for the country. All family affairs, big and small, have undoubtedly fallen to the women.
on the body.
Those fathers of Guizhou and the daughters of Li Shu had to look north at home every day, think about it, and even wash their faces with tears.
Among them, there was also Liu Jian’s mother, Mrs. Hu.
Since Liu Jian went on an expedition, Hu would go to the official road to the north of Zhuoxian County every two days and look north, thinking about it day and night, hoping that her son would come back soon.
It is now the end of the year, snowflakes are flying, and the mountains, rivers and land are all white.
Holding a bamboo basket in her hand and wrapped in a blouse, Mrs. Hu stood by the roadside and looked at it dreamily.
Inside the bamboo basket was her son Liu Jian's favorite biscuits. Every day when he came to wait for Liu Jian, he would prepare five biscuits in the basket. When his son came back from the war, he would stuff the three biscuits with his son.
After eating it, it will be bitter and cold outside the Great Wall, and the child will definitely not be able to eat well.
The other two biscuits are for Liu Bei.
Normally, he would make things difficult, and he would not like it, but when A Bei's child went to the battlefield like Liu Jian, Mrs. Hu couldn't help but miss him.
But it is a pity that after waiting for several months, Mrs. Hu did not get her son back.
When she stands by the official road every day, she can't help but think of the scene a few months ago.
That day, when Liu Jian and Liu Bei came home and told the news that they had been recruited by Youzhou locals and would go north with the army, Hu and Liu Zhou almost fainted on the spot.
It had been almost seventeen years, and that was the first time Mr. Hu had scolded his son so harshly that he was hoarse and hysterical.
And Liu Zhou even took out the cane and greeted Liu Bei and Liu Jian's two children again and again!
That night, Liu Zhou beat them so hard that there were scars all over their bodies, and there was almost no visible spot on their backs.
But no matter how much they were beaten and scolded, in the end, the two children still followed the army.
It is said that during this expedition, the imperial court dispatched many people, among whom the newly appointed Beizhong Lang was their fellow countryman and the child's teacher Lu Zhi. In addition, Gongsun Zan was also recruited out of the fortress by the county.
On the day when Liu Jian and Liu Bei set off for the expedition, neither Liu Zhou nor the Hu family sent them off, and they were angry and let the children go on their own.
However, when they left home for a long journey, the two old people walked out of their rooms at home and stood at the door silently looking at the backs of the children in a daze...
"Ah sneeze!"
Standing in the ice and snow, Mrs. Hu couldn't help sneezing heavily and her body was shaking unconsciously.
"Madam, the weather is too cold. It's already this hour. I'm afraid the two young masters won't be back today. You should go back and rest early."
The attendant behind Mr. Hu was also very cold. He was stomping his feet back and forth and always reaching out to cover his ears.
Hu made no move, but turned around and asked him: "Where has my father-in-law been these past few days?"
The attendant Leng exhaled hot air in his mouth and said: "My father-in-law went to the flag tower in the city for three consecutive days, waiting there for news from the Han army's front line."
"What news can there be about that place?" Hu said coldly.
"Madam, I don't know that the messengers from the post house will bring back the new battle situation of the month from the front line every month. The top gentry of Zhuo County will gather in the pavilion to wait outside the wall on these three or two days of every month.
news."
"What are all the wealthy gentry waiting there for? Their sons have also gone off to fight in the war?"
"That's not true. Madam, I don't know. The victory or defeat of this front line is related to Youzhou's food shortage for the next year and even the year after that, the budget, the price of food, the price of horses, or the transfer and appointment of officials at all levels.
, are all matters closely related to the gentry, so they pay special attention..."
"Okay, okay, let my father-in-law inquire about these things. As a woman, I don't want to get involved... I'm just here waiting for my son..."
Speaking of this, Mrs. Hu's mouth went numb and she shed tears of grievance.
When the attendant saw this, he sighed helplessly.
It seems that I won't be able to go home for a while, and I can only continue to freeze here.
…………
At the same time, more than twenty local tycoons have gathered at the flag tower in the Zhuoxian market. They are all big families in Zhuoxian. They are second to none in the county in terms of financial resources, households, and land.
Liu Zhou, who was hiding in the corner, was not on the same level as these people. He just squatted in the corner silently and listened.
For him, nothing else matters. He only needs to know the fighting situation on the front line and the life and death of his two sons.
Compared with Liu Zhou, the other powerful clan leaders were obviously in a good mood. They gathered together and chatted with each other, discussing the most important issues in the counties of Youzhou at the moment.
Liu Zhou did not participate, and he was not qualified to participate. To put it bluntly, he was not qualified to sit here because of his status. He just walked through the back door of the acquaintance Hao You's house and followed someone else's father-in-law here to join in the fun.
.
"Uncle Wang Shi, you have to take care of Su Shuang's matter anyway!"
A broad-bodied head of the Haoyou family said to an elder: "That Zaoji united Zhang Shiping from Zhongshan, Feng Lan from Juyang, Tian Wu from Fox Nu, and Ping Xi from Julu, and took advantage of the low price of horses.
At that time, all horse breeds and private horse farms in Hebei were collected. Now these few people have formed a force and monopolized most of the horse markets in You, Hebei and other places. It will be difficult for others to get involved. If this continues
, I’m afraid that within a few years, the good horse channels in Hebei will be swallowed up by them!”
Next to him, another head of the Haoyou family said: "That's right! What does Su Shuang mean? He's just a mediocre person, but he dares to dream of taking over the entire Youbingma Market? Uncle Shi, you really need to talk to him!"
Everyone present nodded.
The old man named Wang had a calm demeanor and did not become angry because of these people's fanning the flames. On the contrary, he was surprisingly calm at the moment.
When I was young, I saw the old man surnamed Wang slowly stood up, glanced back and forth at everyone present, and said tremblingly: "Since you all feel that Su Shuang and others are suspected of monopolizing the Youzhou horse market by collecting horse breeds and racecourses at low prices,
Then why were you all rushing to sell it to him in the first place?"
After saying this sentence, everyone present was silent.
Seeing that everyone was silent, the old man continued: "I'm afraid you all got wind of it at first, saying that the imperial court was short of horses for the Northern Expedition, and Taicang and the local area did not have the extra money to collect horses, so they could only collect horses by force on a per-household basis. You were afraid of losses and were anxious to deal with them.
Su Shuang, Zhang Shiping and others got a big advantage out of the extra horses, right?"
"Yes, so what, this is human nature! What's wrong?" A noble family member shouted unconvinced.
"Since it is human nature, if Su Shuang dares to bet on this game, if he loses, he will lose everything. If he wins, he will be among the first-class wealthy people in Youzhou, ranking above us. You don't care when he loses.
, now that he has won, you asked me to interview him... Haha, I can't open my mouth like this."
The broad-bodied head of the Haoyou family said: "Uncle Wang Shi, what you said is wrong. We are all in the same spirit after all. We have lived here for generations, and we are very distinct from each other. We rarely cross the line. That Su Shuang is just the same person."
Why did you break the rules of Zhuo County? If you don't care, from now on, no matter what kind of cow, dog, horse or donkey in this land, they will dare to step on our faces!"
Someone else fanned the flames: "Yes, Uncle Shi, you are the oldest one here. Doesn't your family have a share in Youzhou's horse market business?"
The old man named Wang sneered and pointed at them with a trembling hand.
"You guys, something will happen and you are making noise here. What did you think at the beginning? Although Su Shuang was born as a monk, he had a good time. After he collected the horse this time, he turned around and sold it to the imperial court for military use.
, not only sold at 80% of the purchase price, but also paid for the goods first. Did you know that the emperor made up his mind to go north to fight, but there was a problem with the horse transport at the rear? "
"Su Shuang has planned for a long time. He would rather lose money and help the emperor plug half of the holes that Youzhou is short of. Now this person's name has been transmitted to His Majesty's ears. Do you think that I can do it now?
him?"
Everyone was silent when they heard this.
When I was young, I suddenly saw the fat man saying unconvincedly: "Uncle Wang Shi, are you fooling us? How did you know about Luoyang?"
Someone on the side pushed him and whispered: "Uncle Wang Shi's family is distantly related to the Wang family in Taiyuan..."
Fat Hao Zuo was stunned when he heard this, and then let out a long sigh.
"However, Su Shuang donated horses to the court at a discounted price for military use. There is also a profit for us in this!" Someone still shouted unconvinced.
The old man surnamed Wang said calmly: "Then we can only blame ourselves for being timid and fearful, allowing others to take advantage of us. And as far as I know, Su Shuang is very good now. Except for the few people I just mentioned,
Also, the heads of the Gongsun family in Liaoxi and Zhongshan Zhen have joined the horse trading circle he established. With these two families involved, it will be even more difficult for us to crack..."
Some people wondered: "The Zhen family in Zhongshan has always been very profit-making. It is not difficult to understand that they smell money and get involved. But how did the Gongsun family in western Liaoning also get involved? Who was the matchmaker for the person named Su? Is this Hebei horse market really serious in the future?
Let’s eat together?”
The old man surnamed Wang did not speak. He just glanced at Liu Zhou in the corner not far away, hummed lightly, and then continued:
"Over in Luoyang, the emperor will install Luji stable minister this year to receive the fine horses from the county. But over in Youzhou, Su Shuang is already a person appointed by his majesty. The beauty of Zhuojun going to Luoyang to transfer horses is
Worse, within ten years, I’m afraid I won’t fall into the same trap as others.”
When Haoyou who was present heard this, his intestines turned green with regret, and he almost spurted out a mouthful of blood.
How come this Su Shuang suddenly seems like a different person, able to have shitty luck in everything?
This Lu Ji stableman is recruiting horses in the county. Anyone who wants this good deal can charge a sky-high price as long as he handles it properly. There is nothing wrong with selling a good horse worth three to four million yuan at a high price to one or two million yuan.
!
However, Su Shuang was appointed by the emperor to be in charge of this matter in Youzhou. Even if the powerful men wanted to grab this spot, they couldn't.
Now, Su Shuang has completely monopolized the Youzhou horse market and has become a wealthy man with the backing!
Just when everyone was unconvinced, they suddenly heard a "thump, thump, thump" sound from the bottom of the stairs.
It turned out that the post envoy rushed here quickly to report to the heroes on the war situation on the front line this month.
Everyone turned their heads and saw the postman coming upstairs.
The messenger's face turned red and he was breathing heavily. He was obviously very tired from traveling day and night.
The old man surnamed Wang stood up, holding a lacquer bowl in his hand, and came to the post envoy: "Let's take a drink of water before we talk!"
"More, more, thank you, Your Majesty!"
The messenger raised his head and drank the bowl of water in one gulp, and then began to look around, as if he was looking for something.
Soon, he saw Liu Zhou's figure.
The messenger's face instantly showed a look of joy!
Ignoring the other powerful people present, he quickly ran up to Liu Zhou, gave him a long salute, and said loudly:
"Congratulations to Liu Gong, congratulations to Liu Gong! Great victory in Northern Xinjiang! Great victory in Northern Xinjiang!"
After everyone heard this, everyone looked happy. This battle can be regarded as won!
But at the same time, Zhu Haoyou also began to have doubts.
The great victory in Northern Xinjiang and the defeat of Xianbei is a good thing, but why should we congratulate Liu Zhou alone?
Could it be that the mosquito clan members also receive special treatment in this regard?
Liu Zhou was also puzzled and asked: "The victory in Northern Xinjiang is a good thing, but what does it have to do with me?"
"Why doesn't it matter? This great victory is all due to your young master! This time your young master has accomplished an extraordinary feat, and his reputation has spread far and wide, and he has shocked the northern Xinjiang. Not only did he personally kill the newly appointed Xianbei Third
He also obtained the head of the Great Khan and the body of Tan Shihuai. Thirty-five Xianbei nobles from Danhan Mountain were also captured alive by him.
The name of your young master is probably not enough to demonstrate his unparalleled achievements even if he is given a title! This is a great achievement that is rare to hear in a hundred years!"
"ah?!"
All the noble family members on the flag tower exclaimed in amazement.
Liu Zhou himself also trembled: "Quick, tell me what's going on!"