After the autumn harvest, there will be white dew and frost soon, which means that winter is not far away. Farmers began to clear away the scattered crops in the fields, and animals also worked hard to eat in preparation for the long bitter cold days. Liangzhou and Guanzhong
With great harvest, Hebei has also ushered in another bumper harvest year.
The people in Hebei have also received three to five dou more this year, but the government's tax revenue has also increased accordingly. Anyway, as long as the people below do not starve to death on a large scale, the landlords, powerful people, and aristocratic families will always want more.
Sometimes the government will consider the population issue, but the people below will not care so much.
Even if there is a huge flood tomorrow, the amount of money that should be collected cannot be less. However, Hebei is extremely wealthy, and even though many people still have no food to eat, there are also many rich people. In Yecheng, Yuan Shao's base camp, there are
There are a lot of powerful people, and if you have power, you will naturally have money. This has been true throughout the ages.
Therefore, there are many rich people in Yecheng. When there are more rich and powerful families, they often need help in handling some shady matters. There are more rangers in and outside Yecheng. The most famous ranger today is
A swordsman named Shi'a. This man's swordsmanship is unparalleled in Hebei, and few can survive three rounds in his hands.
On this day, Cao Ang held a banquet at home to entertain this famous swordsman and hero. Cao Ang was the eldest son of Cao Cao. He followed Xiahou Dun, Xun Yu and others to flee and stay behind. Yuan Shao treated them quite well and kept giving them great gifts.
He received the mansion and the land, and also gave him some leisurely official positions, so he was able to live in leisurely life.
Not to mention the close relationship between Cao Cao and Yuan Shao, Xun Yu's younger brother Xun Chen is still a counselor under Yuan Shao's account. Yuan Shao will never treat them badly. Of course, they are just raised and will not be reused. Yuan Benchu's subordinates
The pit has long been filled by scholars from Hebei and other places, and there is no extra space left.
Even talented people like Dong Zhao, who was willing to be civilized and military, would run away because Yuan Shao refused to reuse him. No matter how good Xiahou Dun was in fighting, no matter how talented Xun Yu was, they could only live in Yecheng. Cao Ang was only in his early twenties.
, not much older than Sun Ce who swept Jiangdong, he naturally couldn't accept doing nothing and waiting to die. When he couldn't realize his ambition, he thought of learning swordsmanship.
To learn swordsmanship, of course you have to find the best swordsman. In today's Yecheng, besides Shi A, who else dares to say that his swordsmanship is unparalleled? Today's banquet was specially set up by Cao Ang to learn from Shi A.
Shi'a was seven and a half feet tall. He didn't look too stout, and his hands and feet were a bit slender, but he had an air of grace. Everyone at the banquet respected him. Cao Ang toasted Shi'a with a glass of wine and asked, "I
How long does it take to learn swordsmanship to reach the master's current level?"
"have no idea."
"I don't know?" Cao Ang was stunned for a moment, frowned, and asked, "Did Master think I was unbearable for a long time?"
Shi A said calmly: "I know the level of my own swordsmanship, but I don't know the level of the young master's swordsmanship. How do I know how long it will take for the young master to reach my level?"
"I see!"
Cao Ang stood up and said with a smile: "Then I will practice for Master first."
He took off the side blade, unsheathed the sword, and his eyes suddenly became sharp. The long sword stabbed, diagonally, and chopped in his hand, producing many changes with his footsteps. The blade stirred in the air, making a "whoosh"
There was a sound of "hoo". When the guests nearby saw it, they all praised him loudly and said that Mr. Cao was very good at swordsmanship.
Even Xiahou Dun believed that Cao Ang's swordsmanship was no worse than that of ordinary military generals.
After dancing all the way with his swordsmanship, Cao Ang stood up with his sword put away and asked with a smile: "Master, what do you think of my swordsmanship?"
Shi'a's expression was still cold. He nodded and said, "It's acceptable."
Cao Ang came from a famous family. Although Cao Cao was ridiculed by many scholars as "the eunuch queen", Cao's family was rich and wealthy. He had been practicing riding, swordsmanship, archery and other martial arts since he was a child. His level was naturally much better than that of the army sergeants.
Young Master Cao Ang was young and vigorous. Hearing Shi A say that his swordsmanship was quite good, he felt a little unconvinced and said, "I have already demonstrated my swordsmanship, but I still don't know how good my master's swordsmanship is!"
Cao Pi, Cao Zhang, Cao Zhi and others also started making noises, wanting to see Shi A perform sword skills.
"Yes, we know Mr. Cao's swordsmanship, but we don't know Master Shi's swordsmanship yet."
"Why don't you show us your skills first? And also open your eyes?"
Shi A said calmly: "It's okay."
He stood up and looked to the left and right, and everyone followed his gaze and looked to both sides. Then Shi A jumped out of the sky, the light of the sword in his hand flashed like a sword, and with the sound of silk cracking, he returned the sword to its sheath.
Everyone was surprised that he could suddenly jump so far away without making much movement, but they also found it a bit strange that he had jumped so far away and fired such a sword?
This sword was very powerful, but it was too fast, and no one could see why.
Shi A turned around and took only two steps when a tree as thick as a bowl fell down behind him. The thick trunk hit the ground and raised a cloud of dust. Everyone's expressions changed and they stepped forward to check.
I saw that the cut area was as smooth as a mirror, without any unevenness.
So everyone started to admire together, and Cao Ang looked happy and said, "Master's swordsmanship is truly unparalleled!"
He invited Shi A to sit down, toasted again, and then asked impatiently: "How long do I need to practice to reach Master's level?"
Shi A looked at Cao Ang and said: "Young master has done a good job in basic skills since childhood. If you can concentrate on practicing swordsmanship without any distractions, it will only take three years. But why bother? Even if your swordsmanship reaches my level, you can only do it."
Just defeated ten people. You are not a pawn, your swordsmanship is enough to defend yourself. If you want to practice martial arts, you should spend more time on riding and shooting."
Xiahou Dun on the side said: "Yes, in the battle formation, swordsmanship is not very useful. Bows and arrows, spears and heavy halberds are more useful!"
Cao Ang also knew that he could not devote three years to practicing swordsmanship, so he sighed and then asked: "How long did it take for Master to achieve what he is now?"
Shi Adao: "I have been practicing swordsmanship for ten years, practicing hard every day, and then I have achieved some success."
Cao Ang smiled and said: "Master's words are too modest. Such swordsmanship..."
He pointed at the trees in the courtyard that were chopped off with one blow, and said: "Such swordsmanship is unparalleled in the world."
Shi A shook his head and said: "How many strange people are there in the world? My little tricks are enough to make envoys in Yecheng."
"Oh?" Cao Ang asked: "Is there anyone in the world who has better swordsmanship than Master?"
Shi Adao: "But it's hard to tell. It's better for you to ask General Xiahou."
Cao Ang then turned around and asked: "Uncle, is there really a swordsman genius in the world who is stronger than Master?"
Xiahou Dun hesitated for a moment and said, "Although I haven't seen it, there are still some."
"who?"
Xiahou Dun said slowly: "Chen Cheng, the great general of the current imperial court, is known as the best in the world. Whether it is swordsmanship or archery, he is unparalleled in the world and far superior to others!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the temperature in the lobby suddenly dropped by ten degrees, and the atmosphere was completely different. Cao Ang knew the name of Thief Chen. If not for Thief Chen, how could they have been driven to Hebei?
"Uncle, is that man really so scary? Why does everyone change their color when he mentions his name?"
"You have never led troops or been on the battlefield, so it is normal for you not to know how scary Chen Cheng is."
Xiahou Dun's expression was a little gloomy. The Battle of Pengcheng could be said to have broken the backbone of Cao Cao's army. In order to buy Cao Cao time to escape, even Xiahou Yuan died in the battle, and countless other generals died in the battle. After the soldiers died, they could fight again.
Recruitment can be done on the battlefield after half a year of training, but those experienced officers are not so easy to train. It requires time accumulation and lessons of blood and tears on the battlefield to get them.
He said to Cao Ang: "There are many stories about the generals circulating now. From the time he was in Youzhou, he always took the lead in every battle, which was very similar to Sun Jian. From Xiliang to Guanzhong, and then to the Central Plains, Chen Cheng only
He Jin was defeated once."
Xiahou Dun said to Cao Cao's sons solemnly: "You must remember that if you want to revitalize the Cao family, you must defeat Chen Cheng!"
Cao Ang's expression also became serious, but after thinking for a while, he said: "Since Thief Chen uses troops similar to Sun Jian, he will definitely die in an ambush in the future!"
Xiahou Dun shook his head and said: "Not necessarily. He used to like to charge into battle, but now he has become a general and has many generals under his command. How can he be like Sun Jian?"
Cao Ang added: "If we can send assassins..."
As he spoke, he raised his head and looked at Shi'a beside him. Shi'a's face was expressionless, as if he had always been so indifferent, and others didn't know what he was thinking.
Xiahou Dun pondered, "Sending assassins? It is also a way. But this matter needs to be led by Jizhou Mu, we cannot do it on our own."
Cao Ang asked Shi Adao: "Master, do you know any heroes who can rid the world of thieves?"
Shi A was silent for a while and said: "I can contact some, but I can't guarantee that it will work. The general has been assassinated once or twice, but no one has ever been able to succeed."
Isn't this nonsense? Everyone nearby complained and thought: If it succeeds, wouldn't Chen Cheng be killed? Could it be that a person can be killed twice?
Cao Ang sighed and said: "It's a pity that there are no heroes like Nie Zhengzhuan in the world today."
Shi A's expression was still indifferent and he was not moved by Cao Ang's words at all. Seeing that he was out of luck, Cao Ang had no choice but to say: "Then please help me, master, to pay attention. As long as there is someone with real ability, I will
I will definitely recommend him to Jizhou Mu.”
Shi A cupped his hands and said calmly: "If there is really a swordsman with extraordinary talents, I will naturally tell the young master."
