Seeing that no one dared to answer the question, Gao Qiu sneered in his heart.
"Sun Lei, Sun Lei, I will definitely kill you!"
Gao Qiu gritted his teeth in his heart.
"Your Majesty, although Sun Lei and Fang La are cruel, not all of his men are those who really want to rebel. As long as the leader of the thieves is killed, the rest will be captured without mercy. These people can be transferred north to conquer Liao!"
Taiwei Su continued to speak. He advocated recruitment. Naturally, he had thought that some people would not be willing to do so, but no anti-thief group was monolithic. In the face of fame, fortune, glory, and wealth, most thieves would succumb. After all, thieves kill people. That's all for setting fires.
"Captain Su, by speaking for the thief like this, are you getting the thief's benefit?"
Gao Qiu was furious and glared at Su Taiwei. He and Sun Lei had a blood feud. Everyone in the government and the public didn't know about it. No one dared to say a word for Sun Lei or Liang Shan. Only Su Taiwei didn't wink at all.
"What are you saying, Lieutenant Gao? I am devoted to the country and want to recruit more troops to regain Yanyun."
Lieutenant Su could tell that Gao Qiu's words contained hidden references to guns and sticks, and he said with a smile.
These words made Gao Qiu's face livid with anger. Now Zhao Ji was only thinking about regaining Yanyun. Su Taiwei obviously said this intentionally.
Zhao Ji watched Gao Qiu and Su Taiwei arguing and couldn't make up his mind. Recruitment was indeed a good idea. The total number of these four giant bandits could exceed one million. If he could recruit Yan Yun, he would be able to recover soon.
But thieves are thieves after all. If the thieves were to accomplish such an extraordinary feat, Zhao Ji would feel that his face would be disgraced.
"Your Majesty, it will take time to mobilize the army. It is better to try to recruit people first. If they are willing, they can atone for their sins. If they are not willing, everything the army has done will be wiped out!"
Li Gang spoke at the right time.
"Then what should we do! Cai Jing, please arrange the recruitment! Tong Guan, mobilize the troops and horses, and come out with a charter. If the thieves are stubborn, let them know the power of my Song Dynasty army and horses!"
Zhao Ji finally accepted Li Gang's advice. The Sixteen States of Yanyun were what he wanted most. Compared with this, thieves and bandits were not worth mentioning.
The court meeting dispersed and all officials left the palace.
Gao Qiu's Taiwei Mansion.
"You are Lehe who can play and sing?"
The gatekeeper of the Taiwei Mansion stopped Lehe who was carrying a musical instrument.
"I'll take care of you."
Lehe smiled and cupped his hands.
"Go in through the side door! There are many distinguished guests today, and you are not the one to go through the front door!"
Du Guan pointed to the side door not far away and said, where many people were coming in and out.
"Thank you for taking care of me!"
Lehe was not angry. He was an artist now, a low-level profession. Naturally, those high-minded people in the Taiwei Mansion looked down on him, but he didn't care at all.
When they came to the side door, Le He happened to see Cao Zheng who was about to enter the side door carrying a load. The load contained prepared beef and mutton.
Cao Zheng also saw Lehe carrying a musical instrument, smiled at Lehe, and entered the Taiwei's mansion pretending not to recognize him.
Not long after, Cai Jing, Tong Guan, Yang Jian and others arrived at the Taiwei Mansion in sedan chairs. The stewards opened the main door and servants lined up to greet them.
Today is a banquet held by Gao Qiu in honor of many high-ranking officials.
"Lieutenant Gao, why are you so polite today?"
Tong Guan looked at the musicians and singers in the hall. The standards of this banquet were high enough.
"Tong Xiang, please come and take a seat!"
Gao Qiu looked at Tong Guandao with a smile.
Tong Guan smiled and took his seat. Cai Jing and Yang Jian were already seated.
"Mr. Yang, I heard that you have been in poor health recently. Would you like Tong to find some famous doctors for you?"
Tong Guan looked at Yang Jian with a smile. Yang Jian has been in poor health recently and has stopped attending court meetings. He did not expect that the banquet would come today.
"Thank you very much, Tong Guang, for your concern. This is an old problem that I have been having recently. I have become angry recently and this is why my old problem has relapsed."
Yang Jian said coldly.
"Who dares to anger the Taiwei?"
Tong Guan asked pretending not to know.
"Who else could be there besides Sun Lei?"
Yang Jian looked at Tong Guan and said.
"Sun Lei? That Liangshan bandit? Why did he offend Lieutenant Yang?"
Tong Guan still smiled and pretended to be confused. The moment he entered, he had already guessed that Gao Qiu's purpose of the banquet was to target Liangshan Sun Lei.
Gao Qiu and Sun Lei, who hosted the banquet, had a bloody feud. The promotion of Yang Jian's Xicheng Institute was sabotaged by Sun Lei, and Cai Jing's men even had conflicts with Sun Lei.
"Is this a gathering of Sun Lei's enemies?"
Tong Guan sneered in his heart. Except for the four of them, the others present were not worth mentioning whether they were third or fourth grade officials.
"Tong Xiang, I won't beat around the bush. We all want to get rid of Liangshan Sun Lei and we need Tong Xiang's help."
Gao Qiu saw that Tong Guan was pretending to be confused, so he simply made the matter clear.
"Didn't His Majesty make a decree today? Recruitment first. If the thieves are stubborn, then attack them again!"
Tong Guan said.
"Tong Xiang, we are not prepared to recruit Sun Lei! As long as we are here, he can't even if he wants to recruit him!"
Yang Jian said coldly, "The people present are all powerful, and the emperor can't do anything they don't want to do."
"You three, how can you help Tong?"
Tong Guan looked at Cai Jing, Yang Jian, and Gao Qiu and asked. His thoughts were all on Yanyun, and he couldn't do it alone. There were many objections in the court. If these three people helped, then what would happen? It's much simpler.
"Soldiers and horses!"
Yang Jian looked at Tong Guan and said.
"Taifu Yang, the troops should look for Captain Gao!"
Tong Guan looked at Gao Qiu and said.
"Tong Xiang, of course I can mobilize the imperial army, but the imperial army alone cannot destroy Liangshanbo. Where there are lakes around, it is impossible without the naval army!"
"I heard that there is a naval force in Jiankang Prefecture in Jinling. The head commander is called Liu Menglong. He is good at water properties. He once fought against thieves in Xichuan Xiajiang River and made meritorious service. He was promoted to an officer and commander of the capital. Now there are 15,000 navy troops and five boats. Hundreds of them, I wonder if Tong Xiang is willing to transfer him to Liangshan!"
Gao Qiu looked at Tong Guan and asked. Although he was the captain of Sanya, his prestige in the army was still low and he could not compare with Tong Guan. Nowadays, almost all the elite soldiers and horses in the world are under Tong Guan.
"So it's this person, no problem, but I heard that the Liangshanbo warships are extremely powerful. I'm afraid those warships in Jiankang Mansion are no match!"
Tong Guan said with a smile.
"Don't worry, Mr. Tong, I have summoned a group of shipwrights and the warship will start building soon."
Gao Qiu looked at Tong Guan and said.
After finalizing the matter, everyone started to enjoy the banquet while talking and laughing. Cai Jing smiled and said nothing.
"Master Cai, why don't you speak?"
Tong Guan looked at Cai Jing and asked. Compared to Yang Jian and Gao Qiu who were gnashing their teeth and impatient, Cai Jing was a little too calm.
"Tong Xiang, I heard that Cai You also wants to get involved in Yanyun?"
Cai Jing narrowed his eyes and asked Tong Guandao in a low voice.
"Master Cai's good son!"
Tong Guanpi said with a smile, Cai You's ambition is not small, he was the one who took the lead in regaining Yanyun, Cai You didn't even bother to call him and just wanted to take the credit.
"If possible, Tong Xiang can take him with him during this bandit suppression campaign."
Cai Jing was whispered as he picked it up. Cai You now has murderous intentions towards him, and the rest of the Cai family is no longer safe. For the safety of the Cai family, he can only be ruthless.
"He is now a close minister of His Majesty, how dare I!"
Tong Guan shook his head, he did not want to get involved in this kind of dispute.
(End of chapter)
