On the first day of the Lunar New Year, people in Mopan City were joyful, carrying gifts and visiting relatives and friends. Every household held a banquet, and the aroma of wine and meat filled the mountain city.
Zhang Yi spent a happy day with the orphans in the courtyard, eating dumplings and playing games, and had a great time.
At about five o'clock in the afternoon, the melodious sound of trombones came from the bottom of the mountain, heralding the arrival of guests from afar.
Zhang Yi said goodbye to the children, went out and rode Jueying, and ran down the mountain.
Xiaolong and Niu ran to the foot of the mountain and looked through the telescope for a long time. When they saw a group of knights running ten miles away, they ordered the trumpeter to send a signal.
Zhang Yi waved and joked with people all the way, and when they arrived at the foot of the mountain, the three brothers met and ran on the wide road. It was freezing cold, and the heavy snow on the wilderness had not melted for many days, making it a beautiful scenery.
The two sides met and stopped.
The two leaders were Qiao Dayou and General Wang.
There were ten old Chinese cavalrymen behind them, but they were all in plain clothes and did not carry any weapons. People who entered the Mopan City area were not allowed to bring weapons. Their horses were all carrying packages full of gifts.
"Brother Xiao Zhang!" General Wang laughed in surprise. He came to this unfamiliar territory. He would be lying if he said he wasn't nervous. He naturally felt extra friendly when meeting familiar people. "Hahaha, I haven't seen you for many days. Where did you go to make a fortune?" Already?"
"Hahaha, hello General Wang, let's make a fortune together!" Zhang Yi laughed, "I never expected to see General Wang in Mopan City!"
"I didn't expect that either. I thought you were in Songjiazhai. Why, Brother Zhang took refuge with Zhang Yi?" General Wang asked strangely.
Hearing this sentence, Xiaolong and Niu Ben were both happy. It seemed that the confidentiality work was done well, but the word "take refuge" did not sit well with their ears.
"Well," Zhang Yi snorted and introduced, "Brother Zhuge Canglong is the chief executive of Mopan City. We all call him Mayor Xiaolong."
In the wasteland world, all kinds of titles are flying all over the place, and it's all confusing. A few days ago, Zhang Yigang confirmed Xiaolong's position as mayor. This title is common in both Greater China and Little China.
"Hello, Mayor Xiaolong," General Wang nodded in greeting and stared at Xiaolong carefully. "I heard that Mayor Xiaolong was born in Taoism. It turns out that he is an immortal Taoist. The five of you brothers are called For the Five Tigers of Mopan City."
This title is a bit old-fashioned, with a strong Jianghu flavor.
"General Wang, I'm glad to see you," Xiaolong greeted with a smile, "Thank you for your hard work after traveling a long way. Please come to Mopan City to have a glass of thin wine together."
"Okay, haha, I want to see your sworn brother as soon as possible. On the order of the king, I specially sent him a New Year's gift." General Wang said.
Zhang Yi knew that Liu Kai had noticed the changes in Mopan City and specially sent General Wang to investigate, otherwise General Wang would not have come on his own initiative.
After saying a few polite words, he invited General Wang to go to the city. It was only a few miles away and he soon arrived at the foot of the mountain.
General Wang suddenly became silent. He looked up at the mountain city in surprise, with an incredible expression on his face.
At the foot of the mountain, trumpeters blew the welcome trumpet, and hundreds of cavalry lined up on both sides of the road. They were neatly armored, carrying bows and arrows, wearing long knives on their waists, and holding iron spears. They looked mighty and majestic.
More than a thousand infantrymen lined up in two square formations, one on the left and one on the right guarding the entrance, each holding a large shield inlaid with iron sheets. Their military appearance was neat and meticulous.
General Wang's eyes widened in surprise. What he saw was a well-disciplined iron army, not the disorganized bandit army he imagined. Fortunately, there were not many in number. If the scale grew, it would be a force that was too powerful to fight against.
Great army.
It's not that Zhang Yi doesn't want to expand the army. Currently, there are 2,000 troops stationed in Mopan City, 1,000 troops stationed in Songjiazhai, 2,000 troops stationed in Wanchun Village, and 2,000 troops stationed in Xikou Village. The total force has reached 7,000. For the Mopan City area with a population of only more than 60,000,
It's already the limit.
Originally there were only 2,000 standing troops, but the Xinhui City incident reminded Zhang Yi that he must strengthen his armaments, so he expanded the army to 5,000. Most of them still work in peacetime and assemble during wartime.
Compared to the Three Kingdoms, the number of men and horses was less than a fraction of theirs, and they would be completely lost in just a few battles. Therefore, Zhang Yi could only follow the path of peaceful diplomacy and focus on defense in military matters.
"How many soldiers do you have?" General Wang asked seemingly unintentionally.
"Not many, just over 30,000 people if all mobilized," Zhang Yi said casually.
"But you only have tens of thousands of people in total!" General Wang shook his head in disbelief.
"There is a large population in the village. No one counted it in the past, but later we found out that there are quite a lot of young and middle-aged people," Xiaolong said with a smile. "We have too many people, so we build houses and build roads so that everyone has something to do."
The two brothers exchanged fluent answers, which made General Wang faint.
Niu Ben was enjoying himself on the sidelines, knowing that it was best for him to pretend to be mute.
A group of people rode horses and walked slowly on the mountain road. General Wang saw that the entire Mopan City was neatly and grandly constructed. The pedestrians on the road were happy and wearing brand new clothes. The affluence here was beyond his imagination.
To be honest, their capital, Chang'an City, which is full of rubbish and ruins, cannot be compared with Mopan City. It just has a large population and a decent palace.
General Wang's jaw dropped in astonishment and he murmured.
"To be honest, I came to Mopan City several times a few years ago to spy on General Cao. It was not like this back then!"
Good guy, this general has rich experience in espionage, but after becoming a general, he became pampered, unable to move his legs, and lost his brain.
"Haha, that was a few years ago." Zhang Yi said with a smile.
Suddenly someone shouted on the roadside.
"Happy New Year, brother-in-law!"
ah?
General Wang was stunned and looked around, where was Zhang Yi?
"Happy New Year! Happy New Year to my brother-in-law, and happy New Year to everyone!" Zhang Yi laughed.
General Wang figured it out, maybe the phrase "Happy New Year, my righteous brother" is similar to "Long live the king". In the local area, everything must be said with the word righteous brother. This guy seems to be very popular.
Arriving at the General's Mansion in the castle, Song Laohei and dozens of other village owners had been waiting for a long time. General Wang saw that many of them knew each other. He suddenly felt a strange feeling in his heart, thinking about you ungrateful bandit leaders, how much King Liu Kai treats you.
It's not bad. Those who gave him money and food have now come to seek refuge with Zhang Yi.
He looked around, thinking that Zhang Yi was too arrogant. He was a dignified general in old China and came to congratulate the New Year in person, but Zhang Yi didn't show up for a long time. Do you think he is great?
The more General Wang thought about it, the angrier he became, with a sullen look on his face.
Zhang Yi chuckled, and personally helped General Wang sit down on the VIP chair, then walked to the throne in the middle and sat firmly on it.
General Wang stood up in surprise. Brother Zhang must be confused. He dared to sit on Zhang Yi's throne. Wouldn't that mean he would be beheaded?
Before he could speak, the village leaders all clasped their fists and bowed to brother Xiao Zhang, shouting in unison.