Chapter 042 Return the favor
There are many ferry inns, and Kong You also came from Jinan along the canal, so he just found an inn to eat and chat.
"Sir Chen," Kong Younai was a military attaché from the second rank, while Chen Cao was only a commander from the third rank. But at Chen Cao's level, rank is no longer important. What is important is his identity: "This matter must be involved. There may be some misunderstanding.”
Chen Cao usually didn't drink during the day, so he drank tea. He put down the tea cup and asked, "I wonder if Master Kong is having business or private matters with Chen when he is having dinner now?"
Kong You smiled: "Of course it's a private matter. I went south to Yanzhou to check the armament status of each guard post, and came to Yanzhou to visit relatives on the way."
"Oh?" Chen Cao raised his eyebrows: "Is Master Kong's ancestor from Qufu?"
"My father is from the third house of Yanshenggong's family," Kong You said with some pride, "Now Yanshenggong is my uncle."
Chen Cao looked like he suddenly understood, then he raised his hands and said with envy: "Master Kong comes from a famous family, Chen admires him."
"Hahaha..." Kong You raised his head and laughed: "Master Chen, please do it for your convenience."
The conversation changed a bit quickly, and Chen Cao was still a little uncomfortable with it: "Master Kong, Chen's sudden visit to Shandong is not for entertainment."
"The land in Yanzhou is easy to talk about," Kong You always said with a smile on his face, "the whole thing is just a misunderstanding."
Subdued?
Chen Cao didn't think that this group of hereditary powerful people would give in to a newcomer like him: "Master Kong, I think you must have misunderstood. Chen is here for official business. As for buying land, that's the same as Master Kong." Same, just passing by."
When Kong You heard this, his face changed immediately. That look was exactly what Chen Cao was thinking. These people were not submissive at all, they must have deceived Chen Cao.
Kong You's smiling face disappeared, replaced by a businesslike expression: "Mr. Chen, this is Shandong, not Southern Zhili, let alone Jinling. Wei Guogong's hands can't get here."
Chen Cao was not a good character for the naked threat. He also put on a bad face and said: "The people of Ren Chengwei colluded with the Japanese pirates. I have solid evidence. Mr. Kong, do you believe it?"
Seeing Chen Cao's sworn look, Kong You was also beating up in his heart, but thinking that even the Dragon Crossing the River wouldn't dare to be so tyrannical, he also started to wonder in his heart which bastard was beaten into a trap by this guy?
"Sir Chen, even if you have evidence, Ren Chengwei is under the jurisdiction of our Shandong Capital Division. If you want to try it, I have to come to the Shandong Capital Division to try it." Kong You raised his head with cold eyes, looking like he wanted to swallow Chen Cao up.
This time it was Chen Cao who acted as the laughing monk: "Hahaha, Mr. Kong, you are also a second-grade high-ranking official. Don't you know what the duties of our Nanzhen Fusi are?"
Chen Cao relied on this move to conquer the world. Kong You was stunned, and then he gasped for breath. It was clear that he was suppressing his anger: "Master Chen, please don't give me a toast or drink as a penalty."
"Hahaha..." Chen Cao looked up and laughed: "Chen generally doesn't drink..."
Bang...
Kong You stood up and said in a cold voice: "Since Mr. Chen won't give me any face, we can only deal with business matters. Mr. Chen, you Jin Yiwei have taken away my Shandong Guards officer. As the commander of the capital, I want to see Ren Chengwei. Commander."
Chen Cao also stood up, not worried about Kong You at all: "I disappoint Master Kong. It is already a serious crime for the Rencheng Guards to be suspected of colluding with the Japanese pirates. They were arrested by our Jinyi Guards. There was no imperial decree and even the commanders came. That's not the case." Can’t see you.”
"you..."
Looking at Kong You's gnashing of teeth, Chen Cao felt very comfortable: "Master Kong, I'm sorry, I have to go to interrogate the prisoner. I'll take my leave..."
...
Chen Cao is now a free man. He can leave or stay on his own if he wants to, but he doesn't want to leave yet. How can he leave at will if the things behind him are not resolved?
"Zhao Xin, send someone to Wei Gonggong's annex in the capital. In addition to delivering the letter, he also brings 10,000 taels of silver as a token of filial piety." Chen Cao said coldly.
"Sir, why don't we return to Aurous Hill first? My subordinates always feel that it is very dangerous here." Xin Zhao frowned.
"What are you afraid of?" Chen Cao raised his brows: "Even if they pretend to be bandits and attack and kill me like last time, they still have to ask me whether I agree with the flintlock musket in my hand."
"Your Majesty, my lord..."
"Xu Kaixian," Chen Cao took out an official document: "Go back to Nanjing in person, tell Duke Wei about the matter, and then ask Song Che to bring a soldier from the Qianhu Division to come along the canal to meet him."
"yes..."
After everything was done, Chen Cao breathed a long sigh of relief and looked at Zhao Xin who turned back: "Go and find out for me who Weng Meixin is. Xu Kai left first and I forgot to ask him."
"yes..."
...
Kong Tianxi is being reprimanded by Kong You at this moment because Kong Tianxi, the third steward of Yanshenggong Mansion, is Kong You's biological brother.
"What do you think we should do now?"
Kong Tianxi looked at Kong You who had just sat down to catch his breath: "Brother, why don't we compete with him. Let him know who owns Yanzhou."
Kong You squinted at Kong Tianxi and asked curiously: "Does the government know about this?"
When asked this question, Kong Tianxi was stunned and didn't speak. Kong You smiled helplessly, and then sighed: "I know that your reputation in Fucheng has spread to Jinan. If it weren't for the fact that you are still reliable at home, Otherwise you won’t be able to serve as the third housekeeper for long.”
"Even if our affair is revealed, our family will still have to fight with Chen Cao for the sake of reputation. That guy doesn't know etiquette, and he secretly made me look ugly. I am also a scholar, how can I be insulted like this? "Kong Tianxi became very angry as he said this: "That guy sent someone to drug me without telling me, and he also poured excrement on me. It's really hateful."
"You'd better restrain yourself," Kong You said: "I came here this time to seek peace with Chen Cao. My family is already very dissatisfied when they learn about your affairs. Although the uncle has not yet expressed his position, if they open Well, our family has no future, so what we want to do is to settle the matter and make peace with others, and don’t want to be on the same level as Chen Cao. After all, the other party is a royal guard, not to mention that his backstage is Wei Zhongxian, the eunuch favored by the current emperor."
Kong Tianxi looked like he was at a loss: "I know, that famous sycophant, I really don't know where his knowledge came from. Why don't you think the uncle's family can write such articles?"
"Don't say it's useless. Although I suffered a loss in front of Chen Cao today, I still understand this person to a certain extent. He is not easy to deal with. Judging from his method of dealing with Li Weihan, this person does have great potential. As for the strategy, there are too many secrets between the government and the government involved in the family. If anything goes wrong, you and I will only suffer a small loss. If we embarrass my uncle's family, our family will be completely ruined."
...
At night, Xin Zhao hurriedly walked up to the second-floor cabin: "Sir, we found it."
"Tell me..." Chen Cao was eating mutton steamed buns.
"Weng Meixin is from the Caobang." Zhao Xin cupped his hands.
"Caobang?" Chen Cao never expected that she was from the Caobang. He just thought she was a family member of a powerful person: "Continue."
"The main hall of Caobang is in Huai'an Prefecture. It has three main halls, Ren, Yi, and Xin, and twelve branch halls. The three main halls are divided into three families, namely Weng, Qian, and Pan. Weng Meixin is a member of Rentang. His father, Weng Shijie, is the leader of Rentang; the Caobang's business in Yanzhou Prefecture is mainly managed by Weng Meixin."
Chen Cao asked someone to bring a bowl of mutton and a pot of steamed buns, and then asked Zhao Xin to eat: "No wonder, the inquiry went so smoothly. When Leng Yungui saw her, he nodded and bowed to show respect. He didn't expect that he was from the Caobang. What's more? ? How do you tell me the origin of the Cao Gang? I remember Pan Yourong is the gang leader, right?"
"Yes..." Zhao Xin took a sip of the soup: "The Cao Gang has emerged since Emperor Taizu. At the beginning, the Weng family was the gang leader. Somehow, it fell to the Qian family. The Qian family became the leader during the Xianzong Dynasty. After a period of time, it fell on the Pan family, and it continues to this day; but sir, I heard that there is constant strife within the Caobang, and the relationship between the Weng family and the Pan family is not very good. Although Rentang is in Huai'an, Weng Shijie has always been in charge in Jinan. "
"By the way, sir," Zhao Xin said, remembering something: "Leng Yungui can't stand the punishment, so he has already signed and signed it."
"Well, your ability to bend and turn into enemies is still good. You can keep up the good work in the future."
Xin Zhao had a black line on his face...
...
Early the next morning, Chen Cao was having breakfast. Zhao Xin ran upstairs quickly and said urgently to Chen Cao: "Sir, bad news. I just received a report from the brothers in the city. Last night, the prefect's Yamen detained Weng Mei. core."
Chen Cao frowned: "What crime?"
"Collaborating with horse thieves..."
"What a courage..." Chen Cao couldn't help but nodded: "It seems they have begun to take revenge."
"Last night, Ren Chengwei was taken over by Kong You in the name of the Dusi. It was reported that Kong You had reported to the Dusi Yamen that the thieves had threatened the canal waterway, and asked the Dusi to dispatch the surrounding guards to Yanzhou Prefecture to prepare for a rampage Manhunt.”
"A dog thief..." Chen Cao stood up and said, "You really thought I was a thief."
"Sir, withdraw?" Xin Zhao handed over his hand.
"Withdraw?" Chen Cao's eyes widened: "If we leave at this time and Song Che does not come, we will most likely be attacked on the canal, and the attackers will most likely be what they call horse thieves."
Chen Cao didn't want to die in an unknown manner, so he rejected Zhao Xin's proposal: "Miss Weng saved my life, so I have to pay it back. Besides, there is the Cao Gang in Jinan behind her. I think it is Pan Yourong who wants to punish them." Women."
"Your Majesty, that's not the case. Guo Yan and his gang don't dare to touch the Weng family yet. It must be Pan Yourong who wants to take the opportunity to undermine the Weng family's power." Zhao Xin also agreed.
"Let's go to the prefect's Yamen and inquire about the case."
Since Weng Meixin's identity was different, Guo Yan would not throw her into the magistrate's prison. He would just send people to surround Weng's house and wait for what would happen next.
He was not surprised by Chen Cao's arrival, so he joked: "Why, Mr. Chen even wants to intervene in the Weng family's case?"
"I wonder what Magistrate Guo's reason was for taking advantage of the Weng family?" Chen Cao raised his hand.
"The Weng family used the name of the Cao Gang to secretly go overseas for trade, and colluded with thieves in Shandong to steal crime. Naturally, I want to bring such a black-hearted gang to justice, not to mention that it is still in our Yanzhou Prefecture." Guo Yan Laoshen said calmly.
"Well," Chen Cao nodded: "Jin Yiwei handles affairs, and the imperial power allows me to intervene in any case, or even intervene. Why, Mr. Guo has been the prefect for more than ten years. Isn't this clear?"
"You..." Guo Yan was rendered speechless by Chen Cao's words. Not to mention, in Yanzhou Prefecture, even in his prefect's Yamen, there was a Tiqi squad from Beizhen Fusi.
"Okay, okay..." Guo Yan said repeatedly: "Since Mr. Chen is determined to wade through this muddy water, don't blame me for not reminding you, hehe..."
This time, Chen Cao walked into Weng's Mansion through the main entrance with a swagger. There were indeed many sergeants from Rencheng Guard and officials from the prefecture's Yamen standing outside the door.
When he entered the lobby, Weng Meixin was reading a storybook written by Chen Cao, a serious storybook, like a normal person.
"Miss Weng..." At this time, Chen Cao was dressed in official uniform and looked very upright: "Thank you Chen Cao for rescuing her a few days ago. Now that I know Miss Weng is in trouble, I came here to help."
Although Chen Cao lost his etiquette at first and broke into Weng Meixin's bathroom, Weng Meixin had a good impression of Chen Cao from the bottom of his heart. Not to mention his official status, he was Nalan Rong of Jinling who is now famous all over the world. If you are the object of pursuit of thousands of girls.
"It's all trivial matters. They don't dare to do anything to this girl." Weng Meixin took care of her easily.
Chen Cao was stunned for a moment, thinking that something must have happened to him: "Miss Weng, we feel like old friends at first sight. If you have anything to do, just ask. Chen Cao can't repay you for saving your life."
"What's wrong with repaying something?" Weng Meixin waved her hand and said with a smile: "We are all people in the world. We only care about loyalty and not about repayment."
After being rejected repeatedly, Chen Cao knew something about it, and then took out a jade pendant from his arms, which was given to Chen Cao by Li Xiang, with Chen Cao's name engraved on it: "Give this jade pendant to Miss Weng. If you encounter any big trouble, just take this jade pendant and go to the local Jinyi Guards or mounted detectives, whether they are people from the north or south of Fusi, as long as you tell me my name, they can help you."
Weng Meixin was greatly moved, but there was no sign of it on the surface. Instead, she accepted it with a smile: "Then thank you, Mr. Chen."
"Hey..." Chen Cao sighed, and then handed over his hands: "After today, Chen will go back to Nanjing. When he comes to Shandong again when he has time, he will definitely come to visit Miss Weng. I say goodbye..."
Weng Meixin looked at Chen Cao with some disappointment, and then she also raised her hands in greeting: "See you tomorrow..."
After leaving Weng's house, Zhao Xin had some questions: "Sir, I can see that Miss Weng is interested in you, why don't you make it clear directly?"
"You don't understand." Chen Cao shook his head and looked at the gate of Weng's Mansion behind him: "She has something to do, but she just doesn't want to say it. This woman is different from ordinary people. Zhao Xin ordered the local Tiqi to take care of Weng's Mansion. What's wrong? The matter will be reported immediately.”
"Yes..." Xin Zhao responded: "Sir, what will we do next? Should we keep the appointment or not?"
"Go, why don't you go? Others have already bowed their heads. If we still hold on and annoy them, we will still be in big trouble. It's better to go with the flow and give them a good look." Chen Cao said: "But It’s not that simple, that boy Kong Tianxi has made it clear that he can take advantage of us. In this case, Leng Yungui is the bargaining chip. I have to see whether these heroic Shandong people are heroic or not when they do things."
The reason why Chen Cao agreed to attend the appointment was because of the face of the Lu Palace. The Lu Palace came forward and invited Kong You, Guo Yan and a group of Yanzhou officials to dinner. But it was actually a negotiation. The entire negotiation process lasted two hours. .
Chen Cao boarded the boat with satisfaction and left Yanzhou Prefecture the next day, and headed south along the canal back to Jinling. The whole aftermath felt like a big winner in life.
Chen Cao was enjoying the sunset river breeze and the late spring sun on the deck. He felt very comfortable. Zhao Xin also went on the deck and placed a large pile of documents in front of Chen Cao's coffee table.
"Sir, it's done. These are all documents for purchasing land." Zhao Xin looked at Chen Cao with admiration: "Sir, you are still awesome. You exchanged so much land for one Leng Yungui, and you also gave away our reasons. That’s a really good thing.”
"A good thing?" Chen Cao opened his eyes and looked at Zhao Xin with an unsatisfactory look: "Do you think the ten thousand taels given to the capital are free? Do you think those people in Shandong Dusi are good birds? If you don't believe it, just wait. According to the news from the capital, as soon as I buy the land, these people will definitely send people to the capital to complain. These 10,000 taels will be a roadblock to stop this group of people, which is equivalent to buying this land for 10,000 taels."
"That's better than spending more money, sir," Xin Zhao argued: "Besides, the land to the east of Yanzhou Mansion has help from Qufu, so isn't that 100,000 acres of land equivalent to giving away for free?"
"That's right," Chen Cao nodded: "It's equivalent to buying 100,000 acres of land for 1,100 taels. If you don't lose money, Yanzhou Prefecture will have 200,000 acres of land, which is valuable. You can earn back the purchase next year. The land’s money. By the way, where did it go?”
"We just left Yanzhou and entered Huai'an. Lao Song's team is waiting in Huai'an." Xin Zhao turned his head and looked at both sides of the canal: "Sir, I think there should be no problem here."
"Be careful..." Chen Cao sat up straight and looked at the afterglow of the setting sun: "Those who drown are all water-savvy..."
Xin Zhao: "..."
...
After dark, Chen Cao had just laid down when he heard a muffled sound from the bottom of the boat. He sat up and Zhao Xin quickly walked into the cabin: "Sir, the water ghost is about to board the boat..."
This is not the first time Chen Cao has met him. Hearing the word "water ghost" made him excited instead of the previous fear: "Quick, get the knife and let Zhang Fengnian prepare it."
Chen Cao's ship is an inland river ship of the Jiang Navy. It has three floors, two on the upper floor and one deck on the bottom. The water ghost boarded the ship from the rear side. It is not clear how many soldiers were on board the ship, but according to the Ming Dynasty The navy's establishment can only have a maximum of 150 people per ship, and Chen Cao's ship has in addition to 200 soldiers, there are more than 40 boatmen on the bottom.
'Bang bang bang...'
Several gunshots were fired in succession, and all the water ghosts who had just boarded the boat were beaten to death, and their blood flowed into the canal along with the canal water all over their bodies.
From time to time, there was a noisy sound of horse hooves on the left bank.
"Sir, a cavalry team is coming from the shore." Xin Zhao was on guard with a long knife in his hand.
'Whoosh whoosh whoosh...'
The whistling sound of arrows sounded, and when Chen Cao was about to direct a personal attack on this gang of bandits who knew nothing about the sky and the earth, an arrow shot straight at his feet.
"Fuck..."
This is the first time Chen Cao has cursed like this since he traveled through time. The arrows are not good, and if you are hit by bad luck, you will die.
"Sir, be careful," Xin Zhao threw Chen Cao down and blocked Chen Cao with his body.
There were only four shields on the ship, and they were being held up by the Jin Yiwei to block them. Taking advantage of this buffering moment, Chen Cao and Zhao Xin ran towards the cabin together.
"Xin Zhao, you got hit by an arrow." Chen Cao shouted.
I saw an arrow stuck in Xin Zhao's back, but no blood was seen.
With a '歘' sound, Xin Zhao pulled out the arrow and said, "Don't worry, sir, I'm wearing soft armor inside."
"Damn it," Chen Cao pulled Xin Zhao's back and took a look. Sure enough, he saw a piece of silver soft armor: "You are such a thieves."
Xin Zhao said with some embarrassment: "Hey, aren't you learning this from adults?"
"You mean, sir, I am greedy for life and afraid of death?" Chen Cao frowned.
Xin Zhao thought it was a trap and immediately refused to answer, saying, "Sir, the marks on the arrows have been smoothed out, but I am sure they are all arrows from the army."
Chen Cao took the arrow and looked at it, then smiled and said: "Otherwise, do you think they have so many people who can shoot bows and arrows? The thieves don't have these equipment."
'Bang bang bang...'
The muskets fired again, and it was fierce, thinking of the battle that had already begun outside.
"Sir, the water ghosts have withdrawn." Zhang Fengnian entered the cabin with a knife on his back: "There are many cavalry on the shore, at least two hundred."
"Sir, the boat was intercepted by a rope, and the bottom of the boat was pierced by a water ghost." A captain ran into the cabin to report.
"Zhang Fengnian, lead the team down and leave no one behind." Chen Cao said fiercely.
"yes..."
There was no suspense in the battle. The water ghosts who tried to board the ship were beaten straight away by two rounds of musketry. There were a lot of cavalry on the shore. Because it was dark, there were at least 200 people. After the cabin leaked, the right guard soldiers went ashore under the leadership of Zhang Fengnian to fight with the cavalry. In combat, the results of the right guard's usual training are clearly shown.
With only three strikes, the cavalry that wanted to rush into the battle was defeated and fled in panic, leaving dozens of corpses behind. Zhang Fengnian's men were all infantry, so Chen Cao ordered not to pursue them.
"Sir," Zhang Fengnian came personally escorting several injured horse bandits: "Sir, we have captured three alive, and several others are seriously injured. I am afraid they may not survive."
"Kneel down and do the roll call..." Xin Zhao shouted sharply.
The three horse bandits were all shot in the shoulders or thighs with muskets, and they were bleeding profusely.
"Don't tell me?" Chen Cao raised his eyebrows: "I don't know where Kong Tianxi found you dead soldiers, but I don't want to live at all."
The three of them looked up with shock on their faces.
"Drag them all down, chop off the heads of the seriously injured ones, and send people on horseback to take them to Kong Tianxi's yard in Fucheng."
"yes..."
After giving the instructions, Chen Cao turned to look at Zhao Xin and said: "You can disguise yourself and go to Qufu, bringing some gunpowder..."
Xin Zhao kept nodding his head to obey the instructions, and then looked at Chen Cao with a serious face: "My subordinates will definitely handle it, but Sir, is this all?"
Chen Cao nodded: "As long as it's appropriate, don't go too far. Let the Kong family know that I, Chen Cao, am not that easy to get along with."
Xin Zhao smiled evilly: "I understand, I will definitely handle this matter for you."
"Sir, the boat is leaking seriously, we must go ashore." Zhang Fengqian came to report.
"Go, send someone to Huai'an City and ask Song Che to send a boat to pick us up."
