The Xinshi Army and Pinglin Army were defeated by the county army. The county army headed by Zhen Fu entered the new city with great fanfare. Liu Yan, Liu Xiu and others went out of the city to greet them.
Seeing them, Zhen Fu stepped down from the carriage and arrived at Liu Yan. Liu Xiu approached and looked at the two men who were covered in blood and in a state of embarrassment. He patted Liu Yan and Liu Xiu's arms respectively and said with a smile: "Uncle Thank you Sheng and Uncle Wen for your hard work! This time, the imperial court was able to regain the new city in one fell swoop, and you two are indispensable!"
Liu Yan bowed and said, "Thank you, sir."
Zhen Fu raised his eyes and looked behind them. After searching around, he didn't find Deng Feng. He pretended to be puzzled and asked, "Why don't you see Yuan Zhi?"
Liu Yan said seriously: "Replying to your lord, I didn't see Yuan Zhi in the city just now, but don't worry, sir, I will arrange for my men to search every corner of the new city and be sure to find Yuan Zhi!"
"Yes!" Zhen Fu said seriously: "They are all men of merit. They want to see people when they are alive, and they want to see their bodies when they die!" As he spoke, he looked behind Liu Yan again.
There were originally six or seven hundred people under Liu Yan, but now, there are only about two hundred people left. Many of them are covered in blood, and it is hard to tell how many injuries they have suffered. They are shaking just standing there. .
Seeing this, Zhen Fu felt secretly happy. Didn't Liu Yan have a lot of followers? Couldn't he have become a hidden danger in Nanyang? Now that it's fine, after a counter-insurgency battle, he only has this few people left under his command. What else is there to fear?
If he continues to recruit disciples, hum! Zhen Fu secretly sneered.
He held Liu Yan's shoulders and said meaningfully: "Bosheng, now the rebels in Xinshi and Pinglin have been almost wiped out, and the remaining fish that slipped through the net have all escaped Nanyang. I believe they will not If you dare to come back easily, you can live a good life peacefully in Chongling from now on, and don't form any more Xiangyong, it's not necessary, Bo Sheng, what do you think?"
Ah Xiu's guess was indeed correct. Zhen Fu was indeed suspicious and wary of his actions. Liu Yan bowed and said, "Bo Sheng, please remember your teachings."
"Haha! Don't take the teaching seriously. Okay, Bo Sheng, let's go into the city!" Zhen Fu waved his hand and led a group of people into the new city.
Fires broke out in several places in the city, especially the county government office, with flames reaching into the sky and thick smoke billowing.
There were many corpses in the county government office. With the fire, they were all burned to charcoal, making it impossible to identify them, let alone distinguish who were the rebels, who were the county soldiers, and who were Liu Yan's subordinates.
Zhen Fu only took a brief look, then waved his hand and said, "Bury them all together!"
They stationed in Xinshi City for a day but failed to find Deng Feng. They speculated that either Deng Feng had been buried in the fire or he had escaped secretly. Zhen Fu was too lazy to conduct a detailed investigation. The next day, he ordered that all The army returns.
After the county army arrived in Xinye, they stationed themselves there and rested temporarily.
The next day, Zhen Fu sent a letter to the Yin family, hoping to hold a banquet at the Yin family to entertain the local Xinye nobles, and to express his gratitude to the Xinye nobles for donating money and materials.
Zhen Fu spoke in person, and since it was not a difficult task, the Yin family could not postpone it and could only agree.
On the day of the banquet, all the nobles of Xinye came to participate, including the two brothers Liu Yan and Liu Xiu.
In the Yin family, although Yinshi and Yinxing are the masters, it is Zhen Fu who sits in the middle. The two brothers Yinshi and Yinxing sit on his right, and Cen Peng and Lu Zhi sit on his left.
It can be seen that Zhen Fu is in a good mood. Of course, this is understandable. This time he successfully quelled the rebellion in Nanyang. He is undoubtedly a big face to the court. It is estimated that it will not be long before the court's commendation comes. Of course he is in a good mood. Pleasure.
Zhen Fu looked around happily at the crowd, then picked up the wine glass, suppressed his smile, and said with a sad face: "This first glass of wine, we should pay tribute to those heroes who sacrificed their lives for the country and were buried in horse leather! This time to suppress the rebellion, I, Zhenfu, have not made any merit, and all the credit is earned with the blood and sweat of the soldiers!"
His words can be said to be righteous and magnanimous, but they have no practical meaning. They are just being good-natured. No matter how humble he is, the reward from the court will eventually fall on his head.
Everyone raised their glasses and said in unison: "Here's to the heroes!" As they spoke, everyone poured the wine in their glasses horizontally on the ground.
Deng finally looked at Deng Zhu beside him and saw that he was also about to spill the wine. He stretched out his hand without leaving any trace and gave his father's leg a hard squeeze.
He used quite a lot of force, and Deng Zhu groaned in pain. When he saw everyone present looking at him, a layer of mist quickly formed in Deng Zhu's eyes, and he burst into tears, embarrassment on his face.
In fact, Deng Feng secretly returned home before the county army arrived in Xinye, and told his father Deng Zhu, his brother Deng Zhong, and his younger sister Deng Zijun the whole story of the incident.
Originally, Deng Zhong was opposed to his eldest brother joining Liu Yan. He thought that his eldest brother's ability and family background were not inferior to Liu Yan's, so why should he assist Liu Yan? Become Liu Yan's subordinate?
But the current situation no longer allowed him to object. The eldest brother joined Liu Yan and temporarily hid in Baishan to avoid Zhenfu. Wang Jing's sharp edge was indeed the best choice.
The Deng family knew very well that Deng Feng was fine, but they couldn't show it. To them, Deng Feng's whereabouts were unknown, and the odds were against him.
Seeing Deng Zhu crying bitterly, Zhen Fu looked deeply saddened and persuaded him with deep sympathy: "Mr. Deng, don't be too sad. I believe that good people have their own destiny. , Yuan Zhi probably did not die in the fire, but was kidnapped by the fleeing rebels. I can guarantee that the county government will continue to trace Yuan Zhi’s whereabouts and give the Deng family an explanation!"
With tears streaming down his face, Deng Zhu cupped his hands towards Zhen Fu and said in a trembling voice: "The matter of the dog is all up to you... It's all up to you!"
Wang Jing, who was sitting opposite, curled up his lips. Deng Feng's death finally let go of the bad breath in his heart.
Zhen Fu tried to persuade Deng Zhu a few more times. When Deng Zhu stopped crying, he had his second glass of wine and said in a loud voice: "Although our army suffered casualties in this counterinsurgency, we have wiped out more than 10,000 enemies. From now on, From now on, my Nanyang will no longer be disturbed by rebels and traitors. This cup is dedicated to the peace and happiness of my Nanyang! Do it!"
"Thank you for your leadership!" "This is all your credit!" "We respect you! Do it!" "Do it!"
Everyone in the meeting could not miss this opportunity to show their courtesy and toasted to Zhen Fu. Zhen Fu laughed and drank up the wine with everyone.
He put down the cup, sighed softly, and said: "Xinshi and Pinglin have been occupied by the rebels for so long. The people are in dire straits and everything is in dire straits. Especially Xinshi is in ruins and is in urgent need of a talented person to govern the area. , but I can’t think of a suitable candidate for a while, do you have any recommendations?”
Hearing that Zhen Fu was going to elect a new city magistrate, many people present were happy. Such an opportunity was once in a lifetime, so how could you miss it? Just when everyone was eager to try, Zhen Fu didn't give them a chance to speak and turned their heads.
Come, look at Yin Shi and the two Yin Xing brothers, and say with a smile: "I have often heard that, second uncle, Jun Ling all has talented people from all over the world, especially Jun Ling, who is a young man. I wonder if Jun Ling is willing to deign to go to Xinshi
, to benefit the people of the whole county?”
Until now, Zhen Fu still wants to win over the Yin family. As long as the Yin family is willing to listen to him, he is very willing to have a good relationship with the Yin family.
After hearing his words, Wang Jing's face immediately darkened, and she narrowed her eyes, but it was difficult to hide the coldness shining in them.
Others present at the meeting cast envious glances at the Yin brothers. A good family background meant that they were superior to others. Any good thing would happen to others first.
Others may be flocking to the post of Xinshi County Magistrate, but Yinshi and Yinxing don't pay attention at all. If the two brothers really want to be officials, let alone a mere county magistrate, even a prefect or a state pastor can do it.
Done.
Yin Xing smiled calmly, cupped his hands and said, "Your Excellency, this is too much of a reward. How can ordinary people be so virtuous and capable as to dare to be called the most talented people in the world? The ordinary people have little talent and little knowledge, and it is really difficult for them to be qualified for the new city order. Please choose another wise man!"
He refused too directly and did not save any face for Zhen Fu. Zhen Fu sat there, unable to recover for a moment.
Yin Shi glanced at Yin Xing and explained to Zhen Fu tactfully: "My lord, my father is seriously ill and has been bedridden for many days. At this time, it is really not appropriate for my second brother to leave home. Please help me."
"Ah? That's what happened, haha..." Zhen Fu laughed twice, covering up the embarrassment on his face, waving his hands with a smile and saying: "In this case, I didn't think carefully, since Junling wants to
I can't really force myself to take care of Mr. Yin at home, so I can just choose someone else. Come on, come on, let's continue drinking!"
On the surface, Zhen Fu was chatting and laughing, exchanging glasses of wine with everyone present, but in fact, he was so angry that his teeth were itching, and he secretly cursed at such an ignorant person!
After drinking for a while, Zhen Fu looked at the two brothers Liu Yan and Liu Xiu and praised: "Bo Sheng and Uncle Wen have played an important role in suppressing the rebellion. They can be called the pillars of the country." As he spoke, he took the picture.
Clap your hands.
Following the applause, two more soldiers came in from the outside carrying trays. The two soldiers walked up to Liu Yan and Liu Xiu, knelt down, carefully placed the trays in front of them, and put them away.
The red cloth covering the tray was removed.
Everyone around looked at it intently and couldn't help but exclaimed in amazement.
It turned out that the two trays contained ten gold ingots each. Looking at the size, each gold ingot must weigh twenty or thirty taels. Zhen Fu turned to Liu Yan, and Liu Xiu said with a smile: "This is what the county government gave you two."
Reward, Bo Sheng, Uncle Wen, accept it!"
Liu Yan and Liu Xiu were stunned for a moment, then they saluted Zhen Fu together and said seriously: "Sir, this reward is too precious!"
"Hey!" Zhen Fu waved his hands disapprovingly and said: "No matter who is willing to serve the court with all his heart, I will never treat him lightly. Bo Sheng and Uncle Wen deserve these rewards, so there is no need
If you don't put it off anymore, accept it now!"
"Thank you, Sir!" Liu Yan and Liu Xiu said in unison, and then accepted the gold ingots in the tray under the envious eyes of everyone present.
Zhen Fu's move was obviously an attempt to win over people's hearts.
Not only was he wooing Liu Yan and Liu Xiu, but he was also wooing other noble families. He was clearly telling everyone present that anyone who helps him do things and works for him can make a lot of money.
Zhen Fu may not be a master of military affairs, but he is definitely a master of playing politics and using power. He has always been good at winning over people's hearts and consolidating his position.