In an inn near Bensi Hutong on Dongsi Pailou Street, Liu Zeqing and Liu Liangzuo were drinking wine in the room, with two beauties waiting on them. They looked very happy, but in fact they were worried inside.
After Li Chengdong was inexplicably implicated in a riot, he went to the Dongchang Yamen to find the eunuch but was refused. And because it was dark and the inner city was closed, he could not return to the Great World. So Dongchang's Fanzi arranged for them to stay in this inn.
They were served with wine, good food, beautiful women, and everything was done well. However, more than a dozen people outside were looking around, which suddenly made them realize that they were under house arrest.
Er Liu felt that the disaster was unreasonable, but he did not dare to complain openly about Gao Jie. After all, this guy had a bad temper and was still in a group. He couldn't mess up the situation first and could only wait for Dongchang's investigation results.
At noon, Gao Jie was called away by Dongchang's police. Er Liu finally breathed a sigh of relief. Li Chengdong was Gao Jie's confidant and the person in charge this time. At this time, he was called away alone to look at Dongchang's investigation.
Something came up.
"Will Gao Jie just collapse?" Huama Liu threw a peanut into his mouth, and the corner of his mouth seemed to be smiling. Liu Zeqing glanced at the door and sneered: "A dead Taoist friend is not a poor Taoist. We are all happy that he is fine."
, His crime has little to do with us, and... it may have untold benefits."
Liu Yin, the flower horse, couldn't stop laughing. He knew what Liu Zeqing's benefits were. Gao Jie's tens of thousands of soldiers and horses, as well as his belongings, must be divided up by the court on the spot in order to win over the two of them.
Gao Jie came back before the smile faded from his face. He was humming a ditty with a drunken face and a proud look on his face. This made Er Liu look puzzled: "General Gao is so proud, could it be that Li Chengdong's case is closed?"
"It's done, it's done." Gao Jie laughed loudly and reached out to pick up a bottle of wine on the table and drank a few sips. He hugged the woman next to him and grabbed a handful on the chest: "Solid!"
Ended? Er Liu was stunned and ignored Gao Jie's madness: "Why did Li Chengdong cause trouble? How did the emperor settle the case?"
"I don't know why they started the rebellion when Gou Ri is dead, and I don't want to know. As for how the case was settled, hehe, you have to thank those thieves in the south, otherwise you don't know how the court would handle it?" Gao Jie said.
He cursed impurely.
Liu and Liu, both experienced men, were startled when they heard this: "Do you want us to go south to suppress the bandits and make meritorious service? This is also called closing the case? This is an attempt to impose a crime. You are stupid to take advantage of us," Huama Liu scolded.
Gao Jie spread his hands: "What else? I won't listen to orders and rebel?"
"It's a fact that Li Chengdong caused trouble, and it's not that he wanted to incriminate himself. It's just that my brothers were a little unjust for suffering such an unreasonable disaster. Not to mention the long journey south to suppress the bandits, the battle there is not easy to fight. Zuo Liangyu's men have hundreds of thousands.
Everyone is stuck in the quagmire, Gao Jie... Huama Liu and I have to be kind to you, otherwise it won't make sense." Liu Zeqing looked sideways at Gao Jie.
Damn it, these two idiots who didn't know they were about to die still wanted to plot against me. Gao Jie cursed in his heart and laughed on the outside: "Without me cooperating, you two don't have to go south to suppress the bandits."
?Huama Liu, you were originally working with Huang Degong to suppress bandits in Luzhou Prefecture. Why don’t you go back and call me a fool? As for Boss Liu, although you are in Jinan, the little eunuch went south to suppress bandits without any troops. How can you be there?
Are you free in Shandong?"
"That's not necessarily the case. The young eunuch has a lot of troops at hand now. The two generals Zhou and Huang plus you, Huama Liu and Li Yan are enough. Shandong just suffered a military disaster. I can make up a casual one.
There is no reason to stay. I haven’t thought about the days when I will go south to suppress bandits and travel through mountains and rivers." Liu Zeqing snorted.
Moreover, Gao Jie rolled his eyes: "Let me give you some perspective. What the little eunuch wants is a large army to press down on the border. A large army to press on the border. Do you understand what it means! The war in the north has been calmed down. He has no worries. He wants to mobilize a large army to go south to push back the mountains and reclaim the sea.
Go and kill the bandits, you, Old Liu, can’t hide even if you want!"
"Although the north has no worries, it is impossible to draw out all the troops at once. Especially in the Gyeonggi area, regular troops and horses must be reserved. If you and I are all taken away, there will be no troops north of the Huaihe River. In this disaster year, there will be no troops.
If you are careful, there will be a refugee rebellion, who will you ask to put out the fire then?" Liu Zeqing sneered.
"Hey, you're right," Gao Jie said with a smile: "Even if there is no war, troops will still be stationed at the border, and regular troops will be deployed in key areas in the capital, so Tang Tong from Ji Town and Ma Ke from Changping will stay.
There can't be anyone watching over there, so Zhou Yuji probably wants to go back to Taiyuan." He spread his hands and said, "I've left them all. The little eunuch has no one, so who will go? It's our brothers!"
Liu Zeqing was speechless and snorted coldly. Gao Jie walked over with a wine bottle and filled it for him: "Old Liu, don't always talk about such unreasonable disasters. You have to follow Li Chengdong this time whether or not it happens.
Go south, and don't make any crooked plans to stay in Jinan. It's not the past. In the past, you dared to resist the decree and the court didn't dare to do anything to you. Now, why don't you try to resist the decree?"
Liu Zeqing was startled and asked hurriedly: "Did Brother Gao hear something?"
"Hey, you don't have to listen to this. Your brother's brain is so smart. He wouldn't have thought of this. When the court is employing people now, it won't count our previous debts. By the way, among our brothers, who is clean and who is not?
The handle is in the hands of the imperial court. Before, the imperial court was helpless and spoiled us. Now the little eunuch is holding a steel knife in his hand. Who is going to try it under the sword?" Gao Jie curled his lips and said: "While they don't care about their past grievances, let's learn more."
.
"What Brother Gao said makes sense." Liu Yi, the flower horse next to him, patted the table and said, "We also know some things and take the opportunity to gain some military exploits. Look at others, Li Yan, a thief general, has just surrendered and can become the general of Zhuguo in just a few months.
, Zhou Yuji and Huang Degong, two men, have become Earls. Look at our three brothers, running back and forth for thousands of miles. They have suffered a lot and have achieved success, but they are all worth it. They are just living there until they die.
"Commander rank"
After saying this, Gao Jie and Liu Zeqing nodded repeatedly: "It doesn't matter if we arrive. If we arrive, it means that the court will not care about the past grievances. It would be terrible if we don't arrive. We must settle the accounts later in the year. Anyway, since we can't escape, we three brothers will go south to suppress the bandits."
The future is coming." Liu Zeqing said and raised his glass: "Remember, we must stick together, brothers work together to make a difference!"
"Yes, brothers working together can be as powerful as gold." Gao Jie and Liu Liangzuo quickly raised their glasses and drank it all.
You're so big, Gao Jie sneered and glanced at the two of them secretly.
"Three generals, the factory will hold a banquet tonight at the Xianju Building in Chaoyangmen to celebrate the achievements of the generals. Please be sure to come then." A voice came from outside the door. Gao Jie and the other three looked at each other and said, "I understand."
At almost the same time, in the Wu Mansion in Dongjiang Mi Hutong, Wu Sangui was sitting in the lobby looking at Erlang's legs, with his left hand on the table and looking at it gently. The young eunuch sent someone to deliver a message, inviting the military, civil and military officials to hold a banquet tonight.
Is it as simple as just celebrating a victory? If so, there is no need to invite civil servants from the Ministry of War and the yamen of the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion.
"If the prediction is good, we will go south to defeat the thieves and use the celebration banquet to mobilize." Wu Xiang is an experienced man: "Go as you go, talk less and listen more. You must know that countless people are jealous of the 30,000 cavalry in your hands. After tonight
You will pay it back tomorrow. As long as you are outside the customs, the Tatars will not dare to take any chances with our Ming Dynasty, and no one in Beijing will dare to take advantage of our Wu family."
Wu Sangui nodded and chuckled: "No matter how jealous, no one dares to touch one of my soldiers. Those 30,000 soldiers and horses only listen to my orders. I am the only one who can control the weight of Ningyuan City. Even if the emperor wants to touch my soldiers and horses,
You have to think carefully, without me, who can command those 30,000 cavalry, and without me, who can guard the gate for him!"
"These words are as heroic as your father and I were back then." Wu Xiang laughed: "But these words can only be said at home. When you go out, you have to keep your tail between your legs. Remember to keep a low profile. There is no reason to get into trouble."
"Kids, remember this." Wu Sangui sighed slightly: "It's rare to have such a complete gathering tonight. It's okay to go and see each other. Who knows where we will be when we meet again in these troubled times."
Wu Xiang nodded: "It doesn't matter if we see each other or not. Tang Tong and Ma Ke have been close to you for a long time. Now the situation in the court and the army has been reshuffled. You are alone and alone.
Don’t live outside because there are many people, so we must stick together!”
Wu Sangui hummed: "Needless to say, Ma Ke and Tang Tong just met for a photo the day before yesterday. My son is guarding the border city and they are guarding the border. They are dependent on each other and take care of each other. Plus Gao Di, the child is worry-free."
"And the little eunuch, even if you don't like it, don't show it. He is so powerful and favored by the emperor and you must not offend him..." Wu Xiang was interrupted by Wu Sangui before he could finish his words: "My child doesn't like him very much.
It’s not that I’m unhappy, and I quite admire him in terms of marching and fighting. This is actually the main reason why the emperor favors him, but this person is too scheming and I have to be careful.”