"A man with a big beard and a young age listened to the county magistrate talking on the road. It seems that they have known each other since childhood and even fought."
Listening to Bai Qiaoqiao's description, the image of the Tang Bing who forced him to come down from the roof that day appeared in Li Mu's mind. It was probably this person. Cheng Chumo, Cheng... Could it be that Li Siwen always mentioned it?
"Who are those brothers from the old Cheng family?" Cheng Yaojin's son?
Li Mu was too lazy to think about these things. It had nothing to do with him anyway. It was over now. All his thoughts were focused on what would happen after arriving in Chang'an and the little beauty in front of him. He glanced at the girl who was already sleeping like a dead pig.
Li Siwen and Li Mu took Bai Qiaoqiao's hand and said coquettishly: "Madam, why don't you give me a kiss? I didn't kiss you just now..."
"Oh, there's no time to fool around." Bai Qiaoqiao glanced at him and didn't answer. If there was no one around, Bai Qiaoqiao might just let him mess around, but Li Siwen was here, even if he was drunk,
She couldn't let go of her reserve. She broke away from Li Mu's hand and said, "I have promised to stay with sister Tian'ai. You can go to sleep now. I will come back to you tomorrow."
Li Mu pretended to be angry and said: "What kind of companion should I have with her? If she ruins my good deeds, I will seek her out tomorrow!"
"Sister Tianai is our benefactor." Bai Qiaoqiao suddenly remembered the money. She took out the money bag from her arms and handed it to Li Mu, saying, "She didn't even confiscate my money."
"Just keep it," Li Mu pushed back and said, "When we get to Chang'an, our family will no longer have to worry about money. You can keep some small money to buy rouge."
"You're talking nonsense again." Bai Qiaoqiao took the money back, rolled her eyes at him, turned around and walked out of the tent. Li Mu stood at the door of the tent and watched her enter a tent not far away, then went back in and asked Li Siwen
He pulled him to the side, threw him a coat to cover him, and lay down on his own.
But Bai Qiaoqiao returned to the tent, and Zhang Tianai had just returned. When the two met, Bai Qiaoqiao saw Zhang Tianai's sad face and asked quickly: "Sister, what's wrong with you? Why are you so haggard?"
Zhang Tianai forced out a smile and said: "It's okay, maybe I'm a little tired, I just need a night's rest. Sister, let's go to bed early."
"Oh." Bai Qiaoqiao responded, but she was full of suspicion, but since Zhang Tianai said so, it was not easy to ask again. The two made the bed, turned off the oil lamp and lay down.
There was no light, and the tent was dark. Zhang Tianai was leaning sideways, with his back to Bai Qiaoqiao, and there was no trace of sleepiness. Li Ji had just met Bai Gensheng and others, and he also met her. This was not the first time for the two of them.
When they met, as early as when Li Ji was stationed in Lingzhou, Zhang Tianai paid him a visit with heavy gifts. One was a horse bandit and the other was a general in the DPRK. Logically speaking, they should have no contact with each other. There are some reasons for this.
Zhang Tianai's father, Zhang Xun, was the leader of Zhangjiazhai at this time. During the chaos in the late Sui Dynasty, he saw that the world was in chaos and heroes were emerging. He also had great ambitions and wanted to make a career. At that time, Li Ji was still called Xu Shi
, Zhang Xun and Xu Shi quickly joined the Wagang Army. Although their circumstances were different later, the two could be regarded as friends of the common people. After the founding of the Tang Dynasty, they fought in the south and north, and wiped out various warlords. It was here that
At that time, Zhang Xun and his family escaped from Lingzhou and came to the grassland to establish Zhangjiazhai. Not to mention the ups and downs, it was considered a smooth development. However, after the Tang Dynasty destroyed the Turks, this smooth business was inevitable.
There is going to be a problem. Zhangjiazhai is engaged in smuggling business, reselling at both ends and moving through the cracks. Now that the Turks have been wiped out, only one of the two ends is left. This smuggling business is equivalent to stealing food from the taxes of the Tang Dynasty.
How could the court allow it?
Zhang Xun was a smart man. Seeing that the horse bandits' business was about to come to an end, he began to think of a way out. It happened that Li Ji led his army to Lingzhou to station, so he sent his daughter there, in the name of visiting an old friend, and wanted to
Li Ji helped recommend Zhangjiazhai, and Zhangjiazhai can be regarded as a force in Longyou. Wouldn't it be wonderful if it could accept the imperial court's recruitment and transform into a military town in the Western Regions. The Zhang family's business would not be affected, so it would be the best of both worlds.
But Li Ji has always adhered to the philosophy of being wise and self-protective. Although Zhang Xun is his commoner friend, he is a horse bandit after all, and he is an established horse bandit. He is a general in the DPRK and has dealings with horse bandits on the border.
No one could say what Li Shimin would think, so he didn't want to care about it. The reception was a reception, but when Zhang Tianai brought up the topic, he changed the subject and didn't pick up the topic at all.
In terms of speaking skills, Zhang Tianai was no match for Li Ji, so he naturally returned without success. This meeting was still the same as last time, with his uncle and niece calling each other affectionately and not talking about anything serious. That’s why Zhang Tianai frowned, and the Zhang family
He has been based in the grassland for more than 20 years and has no contact with the officials in the Tang Dynasty. The only people he has friends with are officials at the county magistrate level in border towns, because they do business in the border area. The only Li Ji he knows seems to be
If you don't want to help, the future of Zhangjiazhai is really uncertain.
At dawn the next day, the camp set off and continued to march to Chang'an. Li Mu was still guarded by four of Li Ji's soldiers, walking at the back of the army together with the baggage battalion. He finally met Bai Gensheng, and after asking, he found out
The few people who stayed that day all received heavy rewards from Li Ji. Except for Li Siwen's cook, everyone else joined the army. In comparison, Bai Gensheng made the greatest contribution, so he was appointed to the rank of commander.
The Chief is in charge of ten people, and he can be considered an official. However, he has no one under him yet. He will have to wait until he returns to Chang'an to join the army according to the system. It is not yet known whether he will be assigned to the garrison or to join the government.
Even so, Bai Gensheng is already very satisfied. If he hadn't experienced this, even if he joined the army, he would have to start from a soldier. Although a senior official is not a big one, he has to survive from a junior soldier to a senior official. Unless he has meritorious service, at least
It will take three years. It will be okay if you don't fight in these three years. If you fight, you may die in the battle. If you become a commander directly and skip this process, the risk will be much smaller.
In the evening, the army arrived outside Mayi City and stationed on the spot. Zhang Tianai was also going back to Zhangjiazhai to say goodbye to Bai Qiaoqiao. Li Mu was by his side. This morning, he had already heard Bai Qiaoqiao talk about Zhang Tianai's frown yesterday.
Okay, after the two of them finished talking, Li Mu handed over a jar of wine hidden behind him and said: "This is the wine I brewed. I give it to you to try. Thank you for your help. After I settle in Chang'an, if
If you need anything, I can help, just ask, I'm obligated."
Zhang Tianai took the wine jar and looked at Li Mu. This was the first time the two met, and they didn't know much about each other. Zhang Tianai also felt that Li Mu could help Zhangjiazhai, but she didn't show the slightest contempt.
, nodded and said: "The mountains are high and the road is far, so it's not easy to see her again. Although Qiaoqiao and I have only been in contact for a short time, we are very close to each other. She is a good girl, you should treat her well."
"It's natural."
Zhang Tianai said to Bai Qiaoqiao again: "Sister, I'm leaving now. I hope we can meet again."
After saying that, she got on her horse, followed by fifty riders, and disappeared from sight in the blink of an eye. Bai Qiaoqiao burst into tears. Li Mu put his arms around her shoulders, looked at the direction in which Zhang Tianai disappeared, and thought to himself: "