The next morning, Gao Yigong and Hao Yaoqi came to welcome Zhang Xianzhong, Ge Zuo and others to attend the banquet on Li Laiheng's order. However, Zhang Xianzhong claimed that Xiying had not yet rested and he was busy with affairs and it was inconvenient to go to Qishui City for the banquet, so he declined.
After receiving the invitation, Gezuo and others all agreed.
Gao Yigong and Hao Yaoqi were both veterans of the army, and they were old acquaintances with Ge Zuo and others. We recalled many past events along the way and talked very cordially.
Zhang Xianzhong refused to attend the banquet, giving Li Laiheng a show of strength, which he expected. After all, Qishui was the home ground of the Chuang Army. Zhang Xianzhong had 20,000 troops, and his strength was not inferior to Li Laiheng's. How could he easily go to the meeting and give the initiative to him?
How about giving it to Li Laiheng?
The five Ge Zuo people had different attitudes and opinions. Ma Shouying was a double-dealing man with yin and yang. He Jin, Liu Xiyao, and Lin Chengcheng were all sincerely committed to the cause. Only He Yilong could not make any trouble.
Lin Chengcheng had already revealed the inside story of the Fifth Battalion to Li Laiheng through his old friend Hao Yaoqi. Although Hao Yaoqi was a rough man, upright and unintentional, he also knew that the matter was important and did not leave any information behind.
He was brought back to Anlu, so Li Laiheng had the confidence and confidence to form an alliance with the Revolutionary Left at Qishui.
Li Laiheng chose a confiscated gentry's mansion in Qishui County as a reception place. He first went to the mansion to wait. After hearing Gao Yigong say that he had brought the five great generals of Gezuo to the city, he used Fang Yiren's advice.
He didn't go out to greet him, but just stood in the atrium waiting.
He also asked Li Polu to carefully select a group of tall, strong soldiers with clear facial features from the camp school, and lined up on both sides with bright clothes and armor. Several cannons were also placed outside the house for firing cannons.
Show the power of the invading army with strong soldiers and horses.
Under the introduction of Gao Yigong and Hao Yaoqi, the five commanders of Gezuo entered the city from the east gate of Qishui. What they saw along the way were all the troops with well-organized weapons and powerful troops. They rode horses to the outside of the mansion, then dismounted and walked to the mansion.
We just saw Li Laiheng in the atrium. The five handsome men had different expressions on their faces. He Yilong's anger was already evident in his face. Ma Shouying's face was completely calm, with no trace of any emotion.
Seeing that the atmosphere was a bit tense, He Jin quickly approached Li Laiheng, greeted him with a smile, and said, "We have heard of Mr. Li's reputation for benevolence and righteousness in Jiangbei, and we have admired him for a long time!"
Before Li Laiheng could reply, Ma Shouying continued: "The young tiger is handsome and handsome. When I conquered the world with King Gui Chuang, even a tiger was still a young man. I never thought that a tiger's adopted son would be so handsome now."
With such style.”
In Ma Shouying's words, he emphasized his seniority as being equal to Li Zicheng, and secretly belittled Li Laiheng as just Li Guo's adopted son. His qualifications were far from those of their five commanders from the left, showing a sense of complacency.
He Yilong listened happily and emphasized: "Yes, I saved the life of a tiger several times back then. Your adoptive father and I are old friends. According to scholars, I should take care of you, little tiger."
What is it called? How do you say that word...? What... what is this world?"
Li Laiheng snorted coldly in his heart, and said with a smile on his face: "My nephew. Marshal Ge is a senior member of the rebel army. He is the same seniority as our general. Calling me your nephew is already a great compliment. What are the names and titles of all the heroes?"
, I have always been like thunder. I just feel ashamed that I didn’t know that there is a title for which I have not yet found its explanation. The title of Geshuai is called Ge Liyan. I don’t know what the meaning of the three words Ge Liyan is?"
He Jin, who was standing aside, smiled and immediately replied: "Young Master, please let me answer this question. In our northern Shaanxi dialect, mice are called Geli. The eyes of little mice can't see very far. Geli eyes
It means..."
Lin Chengcheng saw that He Jin was a little hesitant when he said this, and immediately said: "Geliyan means that the eyes of a mouse are short-sighted. Our Uncle Ge also has poor eyesight. He cannot tell the difference between humans and animals three feet away!"
"Give him a sow, and he will treat it like a beautiful woman and hug her and kiss her fiercely."
As soon as Lin Chengcheng said this, everyone laughed. Li Laiheng added amidst the laughter: "Recently, the army has raised a lot of livestock in the area under its jurisdiction for the soldiers to eat. So it seems that I have to be more careful.
Uncle Lao Ge, lest he go to the wrong bed, kiss the wrong person, get into the animal pen, and make some jokes!"
Everyone laughed more and more heartily. Most of the rebel commanders were rough people, and most of them didn't mind such vulgar jokes. So even if He Yilong was dissatisfied with Li Laiheng's opportunity to make fun of him, he had no choice but to laugh along and do something like this.
He looked like he didn't care.
At this time, Ma Shouying narrowed his eyes again and said: "Although brother Ge's eyes are not good, his ears and eyes are very good. Even in the darkness, ordinary people are blind, but he relies on his ears, nose, and many years of experience
, I can still beat you up! In this world, it’s best if no one does anything in front of brother Ge, otherwise he will definitely be unable to eat and walk around.”
"Brother Ma is right, but Lao Ge is proficient in all kinds of martial arts, but he is not good at archery." Liu Xiyao saw that there was something wrong in Ma Shou's answer, so he also joked, "As soon as he arrives at the shooting range, we must get out of the way.
.What I’m afraid of is that he’ll identify the wrong target and shoot an arrow, leaving everyone in mourning.”
"Is this true?" Li Laiheng stared at He Yilong with interest and asked.
"Listen to his nonsense! I never shoot arrows!"
He Yilong cursed a few words, and the crowd burst into laughter again. The atmosphere was harmonious, and it looked very harmonious on the surface, but Gao Yigong was in a state of uneasiness, and had some grudge against these people's aggressive behavior.
.
Amidst laughter, Li Laiheng invited everyone to sit down and have a drink in peace. In order to receive these five handsome men, Li Laiheng specially invited a theater troupe from Anlu to sing for them at the banquet.
At the banquet, Li Laiheng deliberately didn't speak much, and let Fang Yiren and Gao Yigongduo guide the fifth commander of Gezuo to speak. He Jin, Liu Xiyao, and Lin Chengcheng were very satisfied with the attitudes of the three men. It seemed that the internal situation of the fifth commander of Gezuo was
The situation is indeed consistent with the previous information about Lin's secret communication.
As for He Yilong and Ma Shouying, He Yilong was arrogant and conceited, while Ma Shouying was arrogant. Both of them had the intention of resisting and taking advantage of the Chu army, but their opinions and positions were not completely consistent. This made Li Laiheng feel that he was not interested in the two of them.
Individuals can also take measures to try to differentiate themselves.
After everyone had finished drinking and eating, Li Laiheng smiled and said: "There is a study in the backyard of this mansion, which is very quiet. I have asked the soldiers to light a charcoal fire and make good tea. We might as well follow suit.
Learn from those literati and have a chat around the fire!"
The five people from Gezuo didn't know what kind of medicine Li Laiheng was selling, but they came to join the Chuang army. After all, they wanted to ask someone for something, and they also wanted to find a quiet place. They explained the army's garrison and the distribution of food and salary, so they all agreed.
Come down.
Everyone followed Li Laiheng and walked to the back garden study room. The back garden was decorated by Fang Yiren, a young gardening expert. Since the death of his uncle Fang Kong, Fang Yiren had a rare opportunity to decorate the garden. He was very excited and put in a lot of effort.
In the garden, there are only a few old plum trees, leaning against each other to reflect the red color; a clump of green bamboos swaying in the wind. Under the eaves of the study, a plaque hangs with the words "Hanxiang Pavilion" written on it, which obviously refers to plum blossoms.
The five commanders from Gezuo didn't even raise their heads to look at the plaque, and stepped directly through the door. The charcoal basins had been put away, and everyone sat down as they pleased.
He Yilong picked up the cup, took a sip of tea, and asked first: "Little tiger, we have come to join forces this time, and we have thought carefully beforehand. You see, the Eight Kings are still outside the city and refuse to come to join forces.
You must go to Xiying to meet him in person before he will give you half face."
Li Laiheng smiled and said nothing, and Ma Shouying said: "If I and Lao Ge's old friend Hao Yaoqi hadn't persuaded you, saying that you had prepared tens of thousands of stones of food and soldiers to welcome us, it would have been a final word in the hearts of the five of us.
Maybe I am too nervous to come to Qishui for alliance just like that."
"So that's it, hahaha, you two old uncles are worrying too much." Li Laiheng said with a smile, "The fifth battalion of Gezuo also has nearly 20,000 troops. The soldiers and horses are strong. How can Ding Qirui, a scholar, be your opponent? Old man?
When my uncles attack cities and build strongholds, all their troops and supplies can be taken from the imperial court. I am just a junior, how can I dare to restrain you?"
Seeing Li Laiheng's dissatisfaction, He Jin persuaded him to make peace: "What brothers are worried about is that we have never worked with the young tiger commander. What if things go wrong or something goes wrong?"
Liu Xiyao also said: "What we want is to enjoy the shade under the big trees, and we should listen more to Chuang Jun's opinion. You know the situation in Henan and Huguang better than we do. As long as we listen to Chuang Jun's opinion, I don't think anything can go wrong."
Even if something goes wrong, there will always be troops to protect us."
Lin Chengcheng was the weakest, the most junior, and the one with the least worries about defecting. He didn't even consider whether there would be any mistakes, and made up his mind to hug Li Laiheng's thigh first, and said directly: "Anyway, everything is still the same.
Rely on the arrangement of the young tiger commander."
Their thoughts and attitudes were within Li Laiheng's expectation. After Lin Chengcheng actively reported the inside story of Gezuo's Fifth Battalion, Li Laiheng made up his mind to divide the relationship between He Yilong, Ma Shouying, He Jin, and Liu Xiyao.
He Yilong and Ma Shouying were figures that Li Zicheng could not handle. Although He Jin was inclined to break into the army, his qualifications were too high, and Li Laiheng felt that even if he swallowed up He Jin's troops, he would not be able to digest them.
The best way is to send the three strongest commanders, He Yilong, Ma Shouying, and He Jin, to Henan and leave them to Li Zicheng. Needless to say, Lin Chengcheng's attitude of surrender made Li Laiheng particularly satisfied, and Huguang
Local people can definitely use it.
As for Liu Xiyao, his strength and attitude are between He Jin and Lin Chengcheng. Li Laiheng has not yet decided whether to send Liu Xiyao to Henan or stay and digest it himself.
But the more important question now is how to deal with Zuo Liangyu, Ding Qirui and Zhang Xianzhong. The fifth battalion of Gezuo still has great use value at this stage. At least, we have to wait until we borrow the troops of Gezuo to consolidate Huguang before taking the next step.