The 19th Wu refugee commanders gathered together for three days at Tianshi Wubao. Although these refugee commanders were from common people, they were by no means vulgar people. They had all been influenced by Confucianism since childhood, and several of them were quite involved in Lao Zhuang metaphysics.
The Wei and Jin Dynasties were an era that valued learning and thinking. Few people dared to despise the scribes who were well-read in poetry and books. Even military generals were particular about never letting go of their scrolls. This is why the generals in Yuzhou were angry because Xie Wan compared them to powerful soldiers. Chen
As the Sima of Sizhou who was in charge of the military, Cao Zhi was well-versed in Confucianism and Mystery, and was proficient in the art of war, geography, and state affairs, which greatly admired the civilian commanders. Moreover, Chen Cao's analysis of the situation of the Three Kingdoms was also profound and detailed. At present, the Xianbei and Yan Kingdoms
Although powerful, the royal family disputes will inevitably lead to civil strife once Murong Ke dies. Wouldn't that be a good opportunity for the Northern Expedition? As for Fu Qin, the national power was consumed by the Four Fu Rebellion and they fought with the Yan army for several months. They did not dare to conquer the country in the short term.
With his own strength, he will attack Yan, and Huanhuo's Jingxiang army will also contain the Di and Qin army in the Hanzhong area. The Beifu army will definitely make achievements that will shine in the annals of history next year——
On April 28th, Chen Caozhi left Xiapi for Runan. There were also the Cai family of Xincai and the Wei family of Wuyang in Wudawubao who needed to visit, and the 19th-rate civilian commanders who had formed an alliance in Tianshi Wubao had already contacted Chen Cao.
It was agreed that they would first go back to Wubao to recruit refugees into the army. At the end of June, they would lead their headquarters to Guangling on the north bank of the Yangtze River to collect food, grass and weapons. The leader of Wubao would go to Beijing to accept appointments and rewards, and then return to Guangling to train troops——
Dai Xun, Guo Quan and Chen Caozhi traveled west together. Liu Jian did not accompany them anymore, and only asked his son Liu Laozhi to follow Chen Caozhi. On April 30, the group rested at Guo's Wubao in Xiang County, Peijun.
One day and early the next morning, Chen Caozhi, Su Qi, and Liu Laozhi continued to head west. After Dai Xun said goodbye to Chen Cao, he returned to Xiao County.
Southeast of Yu, it is only a hundred miles away from Sujiabao. Chen Cao and his party are planning to go to Sujiabao first, make some arrangements, and then go to Xincai——
As he was about to return home, Su Qi was extremely happy and said to Chen Cao: "Mr. Chen, our Sujiapu began to recruit refugees from Henan years ago. They are all strong men under the age of thirty-five and can dance with guns.
Wow, we have gathered six or seven hundred people now, plus our 800 private soldiers from Sujiapu, we can get 1,500 sergeants."
Chen Cao said: "More than half of the eight hundred private soldiers in Sujiabao were half-farmers and half-soldiers. Before the Northern Expedition, the Yan Kingdom was not destroyed, and Wubao still needed private soldiers to defend and work hard. Soldiers are more valuable than more soldiers, so Su
The sergeant can select 400 people from your private army and add 600 refugees to form a thousand-man team."
Su Qilian claimed that he believed in Chen Caozhi's ability. Huan Xi was nominally the governor of Sizhou and the commander-in-chief of the Beifu Army, but with Huan Xi's magnanimity and ability, he was obviously not qualified for the job. General Chen Caozhi was the actual commander of the Beifu Army.
Those in power, as can be seen from the praise of Chen Caozhi by Tian Luo, Dai Xun and others, Xuzhou and Huaishang Jiuwu can gather about 30,000 soldiers. These 30,000 soldiers are definitely the main force of the Beifu Army, because they
Due to the good relationship between the patriarch and Chen Caozhi and Chen Caozhi's personal ability, Chen Caozhi can profoundly influence this army. After the Northern Expedition is completed, it is entirely possible for Chen Caozhi to be promoted to the governor of Xiongzhen. He Su Qi
He is Chen Caozhi's confidant, and he can fully expect to become the head of a county by virtue of his military merits. The Su family in Shiping is a commoner, and their influence in the Huaihe River is mediocre. Without the support of a superior, it will be difficult for him to achieve success in his official career.
As a result, Chen Caozhi was the person Su Qi wanted to follow. In early February, when he left Sujiapu and went to Jingkou, he told his father Su Daozhi that he wanted to marry his sister Su Hui to Chen Caozhi as his concubine, because Chen Caozhi
The marriage with Lu and Xie's two daughters has been completed, and concubinage is the most normal thing. The legitimate sons of aristocratic families always keep concubines in order to have prosperous heirs. Xun Fengqian's infatuation is unique, and even Xun Fengqian is
He was obsessed with the beauty of his wife Cao and did not want to marry anyone else. Xun Fengqian had a famous saying: "A woman's virtue is not worthy of praise, and her beauty should be the main thing." Su Hui was beautiful and talented. Su Qi did not believe that there was any reason why Chen Caozhi could
Rejection, of course, requires the consent of his mother Zou and his sister Su Hui. His father Su Daozhi must have convinced his mother and sister by now, right?
This year's Dragon Boat Festival was spent traveling. On May 12th, Chen Cao and his party of more than 40 people arrived in Pingyu County. The day before, Su Qi sent a private soldier to rush back to Sujiapu with his letter.
Explain that Chen Caozhi is about to arrive, and ask his father Su Daozhi if he has convinced his mother and sister?
…
Su Hui, the beloved daughter of Su Daozhi, the master of Sujiapu, is fifteen years old this year and has reached the age of marriage. Su Hui is famous in Huaihe and Huaihe for her talent and beauty. She is a master of palindrome poems and weaving cotton. She extends from Jingzhou to Xiangyang in the west and from Xiangyang to the east.
In Hefei and Huaibei, all the children of the Wu family admired the name of Su's daughter. Suitors came to her every month, but Su Daozhi declined them one by one. In early May, Cai Feng, the head of the Cai family in Xincai County, sent someone to be a matchmaker for his son.
He is the largest Wubao clan leader in Runan, and his strength is far superior to that of Sujiapu. Moreover, the Cai family was originally a member of the Chenliu clan, and his ancestor was the famous Cai Yong. When Cai Feng's grandfather Cai Bao's generation came, due to the war in the Central Plains, the clan was reorganized.
Chen Liu moved 500 miles south to build a fort in Xincai. At that time, it was one of the few major tribes in Huaihe. The Jin court appointed Cai Bao as the governor of Xuzhou and General Jianwei.
In the middle, Cai Bao missed the opportunity to fight and was defeated. He was sent to Jiankang and was executed for his crime. His body was left in the market for three days. The Cai family fell into despair and no one in the family became an official. Cai Bao cared for the soldiers at home on the Huaihe River and had a good reputation.
, everyone heard of his death and mourned him greatly. The Cai clan resented the Jin court for being ungrateful. Although they did not rebel against Later Zhao and Xianbei, they did not obey the Jin court's orders from then on, and they also kept a distance from the chief officials of Runan County and had no contact with them.
Today, Cai Feng proposes to the Su family for his son, which can be regarded as condescension. The Cai family's marriage is now high or low. He heard that Su Daozhi's daughter is beautiful, talented, and virtuous, so he invited someone to propose to him.
——
Su Daozhi never mentioned to his old wife Zou that he would give Ruolan to Chen Caozhi as his concubine. His old wife regarded Ruolan as a treasure and was afraid that she would not let her beloved daughter become a concubine. Su Daozhi wanted to find her.
It was a good time to discuss the matter with my old wife. Unexpectedly, the Cai family from a wealthy family came to propose marriage. When Zou heard that it was the Chenliu Cai family, she was very moved. Seeing her husband frowning and seeming dissatisfied, she said, "The Cai family is from a wealthy family.
My ancestor was once a minister and a prefect. Although it has declined in recent years, compared with my Su family, the family status is not lower than mine. If Ruolan can marry into such a family, it is not bad. What worries do you have, husband?"
Su Daozhi hesitated for a moment and finally said: "A'e, I have something to discuss with you. You met Mr. Chen last year. What do you think of this person's appearance?"
Zou said: "Of course Chen Shijun is a dragon and a phoenix among men, the most beautiful man in Jiangzuo. Didn't Qi'er say that all the girls of Lu and Xie will marry him? The Queen Mother has granted marriage to him - well, husband
Speaking of what Chen Shijun is doing, what does his marriage with me, Ruo Laner, have to do with it?"
Su Daozhi had no choice but to speak bluntly: "Qi'er strongly agrees to let Ruolan be Chen Shijun's concubine. Chen Shijun will have a bright future——"
Before she could finish her words, Mrs. Zou shouted angrily: "No, no, no, no one can do Ruolan as my concubine!"
Su Daozhi advised: "I, the Su family, belong to the common people. Although Chen Shijun is only a second-class noble now, he will become a first-class family in the long run. If I, the Su family, can marry him, he will not disgrace the family."
Mrs. Zou shook her head repeatedly and said: "No, no, husband, you don't know the hardships of being a concubine. It means swallowing your anger and looking at people's eyes. Life is difficult. Even the children you give birth to will be inferior to those born from your first wife. I, Ruolan,
My son is talented and arrogant. He has been pampered like a girl from a wealthy family since he was a child. How can he endure that kind of grievance!"
Su Dao couldn't argue with his old wife, and said: "It depends on what kind of family you are. Being a wife does not necessarily mean you are happy, and being a concubine does not necessarily mean life is difficult. There are also people who love concubines."
Su Daozhi also had two concubines. When Zou heard this, she became even more annoyed and asked, "Do you want to pamper only those two old maids?"
Su Daozhi hurriedly said: "What are you talking about? You are talking in random directions. Now we are discussing your daughter's marriage."
Mrs. Zou said angrily: "If you are willing to let Ruolan be your concubine, then you can talk to Ruolan. Anyway, as a mother, I have no face to mention such a thing in front of my daughter."
Su Daozhi shook his head and said: "A woman's eyes are like beans. I'll talk to Ruolan later."
Zou said angrily: "Go ahead and say it, go now."
Su Dao asked: "If Ruo Lan'er is willing, what do you say?"
Mrs. Zou expected that her daughter would never agree, so she said: "If Lan is willing to be someone else's concubine, it is her destiny, but parents must not force her."
Su Dao asked: "How can I force her? She must be willing to do it." After saying that, he went out to the inner courtyard.
Mrs. Zou felt sulky alone for a while, and after thinking about it, she decided to follow her and keep an eye on her. Don't let her husband oppress her daughter for the sake of revitalizing the family——
Su Daozhi came to the courtyard where his daughter Su Hui lived, and smelled a mixed fragrance of orchids and mugwort leaves. Well, today is the fourth day of May, and tomorrow is the Dragon Boat Festival. This is an herb prepared to ward off evil spirits and diseases——
Su Daozhi walked into the courtyard. There was no one in the front yard. He could only hear laughter in the backyard. It was afternoon time, and Ruolan and the maids must have been weaving brocades and sachets under the wisteria shed in the backyard. Su Daozhi walked around the small wooden door.
Upstairs, he stood under a peach tree. He saw a Guan mat spread under the wisteria flower stand in the backyard, with several red baskets placed on it. His daughter Su Hui was wearing an apricot yellow shirt and a danbi gauze skirt, sitting on her knees.
On the Wanxi banquet, brocade was being woven, and three little maids beside them were chatting and laughing quietly while embroidering sachets——
Su Hui threaded the needle and thread with graceful gestures, not like weaving brocade, but like waving five strings in her hand. Sometimes she stopped and looked carefully at a piece of brocade stretched with a bamboo frame in front of her. After a while, she moved the needle like flying, with a focused and lovely expression -
Su Daozhi looked at his quiet and beautiful beloved daughter and felt that what his old wife said was right. How could such a daughter bear to be someone else's concubine? The Lu and Xie clans were so powerful. As a concubine of the Chen family, his daughter would be inferior in every way. Living like this for a lifetime would make him like this.
As parents, how can we bear it? Let's just accept Mr. Cai's proposal.
Su Daozhi made up his mind and turned around to leave the hospital, but did not hear the conversation between his daughter and his maid Qinghu——
Qing Hu said: "My little lady is weaving this palindrome poem, and no one can understand it, so why bother?"
Su Hui blurted out: "There is someone who can solve it -" It was too late to shut up, and hurriedly gibbered: "The palindrome poem is just for my own entertainment, why should others solve it? How are the three of you weaving the sachet? Let me see.
."
Qing Hu and the other two little maids were both ignorant. They didn't understand Su Hui's intention, so they all chattered and commented on their respective sachets.
