Bohai County is across the river, but there is only a thin layer on the south side of the river. For example, the county seat of Putai County is on the opposite bank, but more than ten miles outside the city is the border between Dengzhou and Qizhou. In this obviously artificial administrative triangle District, in fact, in an area that is closely connected economically, culturally, and geographically, there is a wealthy family similar to the families of Xu Dalang, Shan Dalang, and Wang Wulang, surnamed Cheng.
The resume of the Cheng family is basically the same, except that Cheng Dalang is a little older. Therefore, his great-grandfather and grandfather were just independent military leaders in the Eastern Qi Dynasty, and his father became a feudal leader. Official...and this also forced Cheng Dalang himself to take on the dual roles of a good man and an evil boy.
Belonging to a little five generations older.
In fact, because of Qin Bao, Zhang Xing had often heard of this man's name. It was said that this man had supported Qin Er in Dengzhou in his early years. It was even because of this man that Qin Er and Xu Dalang met. And in Wang Wuzhuangzi, I heard it many times.
However, Cheng Dalang, who was older than Wang Wulang, Xu Dalang, and Qin Bao, came to the fore very late this time.
The reason is self-explanatory. His family is in Dengzhou, and the Dengzhou camp is on the other side of Dengzhou. No matter how the three expeditions against Dongyi collapsed without a fight, no matter how people's hearts dispersed, the saint's chariot and hundreds of thousands of troops Right in front of you? How dare you act like a fool?
Aren't you afraid of being trampled to death by someone?
That is to say, Shengjia hurriedly crossed the Huaihe River, and he quickly invested in his family's resources and used the local cavalry tradition to form a team of several hundred cavalry to "protect his hometown."
The cavalry came and went like a breeze, coupled with the scale and proper management of hundreds of cavalry, it quickly demonstrated Cheng Dalang's influence and personal ability.
Probably because of this, just a few days after the cavalry was established, Cheng Dalang suddenly received a bunch of inexplicable invitations.
It's really a pile... There are letters from Xu Dalang, Wang Wulang, and Shan Dalang from the upper reaches of Jishui River. Although they were sent separately, they all invited him to join some kind of deposed dragon gang and sit as a big leader... and they all To point it out, the two leaders who call the shots in the gang are Li Shu and Zhang Xing, two big shots with world-wide expectations. Whether they want to maintain a stable position or do big things, this strangely named gang is inevitable. .
At the same time, the attitudes of the three letters are slightly different.
Xu Dalang is very sincere, and he vaguely wants to win over Cheng Dalang to join him, increase the voice of the leaders in the gang, and counter the feelings of the two leaders; although Shan Dalang also has this intention, he is obviously condescending and seems to be afraid of him, Cheng Dalang He grabbed the position; but Wang Wulang was just bragging about Mr. Zhang's ability, saying that big things would definitely come true.
Boss Cheng was noncommittal about this matter. His family was in Dengzhou. How could he not know who Mr. Zhang was and what he had done? As for Li Shuhe's rebellion, there is no need to say more. In addition, he can also probably realize that the Deposed Dragon Gang, which can be recognized by the three heroes in the upper reaches of Jishui River and has two of the most famous rebels, may indeed have something to say... However, at present, They're still too far apart, so I don't have much to think about for the time being.
In addition, Wang Hou, the intellectual of Yimeng Mountain in the south, and Gao Shitong and Sun Xunzhi of Hebei also invited him to join the team. But towards these people, Boss Cheng's attitude was reversed... He really looked down on these people, especially They gained power for a moment, and after gathering tens of thousands of young men, they became arrogant, but they didn't know that they were destined to be suppressed by the imperial court first... But the problem is that these people are right in front of you, and you have to pay attention to it, just in case they really gather 100,000 or 200,000 troops The raid is coming, will you vote or not?
Therefore, you need to be as perfunctory as possible.
In addition, people from the government were also calling him.
People in Dengzhou call him, people in Qizhou call him, the county calls him, and the county calls him... This is very confusing.
After all, Boss Cheng is rough in description, but attentive and aware of the development of the situation. This is not to say that the Wei court is not worth betting on. It is not impossible for the officers and soldiers to easily sweep away these bandits when they return, but at that time, it is hard to say whether these local officials will still be the same people as before.
At the same time, the public sentiment of the local people and the public opinion of heroes in the world must also be considered. Everyone is anti-Wei, but you, Cheng Dalang, are the imperial eagle?
All I can say is that the county government and the surrounding counties south of the river can barely cope without losing their dignity.
"What is this?"
The rainy season and sultry heat have passed, and in early autumn, the sky is clear and crisp. After a small group of bandits were wiped out, Cheng Dalang, who returned to his manor, spent half a day to properly handle the general affairs of his five hundred cavalry team and arrange them neatly... How to reward and punish, How to appease the casualties, how to replenish war horses and ordnance, are all troublesome... But after finally returning to the back hall, before he could take a rest, there was a letter from the old steward of the manor.
Frankly speaking, Cheng Dalang, who has a white face, a dark heart, and a thick beard, has become numb to these letters.
"It's a letter sent from Hebei. It's said to be an official letter from Bohai County. But for some reason, the person who sent the letter has both an official appearance and a heroic appearance..." Lao Duguan, who was holding the letter, looked like a hero. He is also used to the scene.
"Of course they are from Jing'antai." Cheng Dalang sighed, took the letter directly, and then tore it open on the spot. "It's hard to say here in the East. I'm afraid the Hebei side will have to listen to Dongdu's instructions more in the future, and the black ribbons in Jing'antai will start to tremble in the local area..."
Before he finished speaking, Cheng Dalang pushed the letter aside and stopped reading it.
The old man knew the importance and didn't ask too many questions.
Cheng Dalang himself, on the other hand, was working much harder outside. At this time, in front of his confidants, he finally couldn't bear it anymore: "Why is it that Bohai County is looking for me? It's just an envoy from Dushui. The envoy from Dushui asked me to guard the warehouse. Then he just promised me some weapons, but he actually asked me to kill Zhang Jinsheng with him? Zhang Jinsheng has 40 to 50 thousand people, and he is also a master of Ren channel. Who knows what it will be like now that he has become a force? I How can he destroy a family with a few hundred men and five or six thousand men? Does he think I am a famous general in the history books, or does he regard himself as a marshal in the history books? I don’t know where this nerd comes from!"
Lao Duguan could only apologize.
Cheng Dalang finished cursing angrily, but still couldn't understand his hatred, and rolled up Duanjiang Zhenqi again. With just a wave of his hand, he raised the letter on the case in the air, and then cut it into two halves. Then he collapsed in his seat and picked up a Wan Wencha sneered:
"I made it clear today that even if I jump naked from the podium, I won't be able to fight Zhang Jinsheng with Li Silang!"
The old governor could only nod.
However, as the cut letter slowly fell to the ground, a clip actually flew out of it. Cheng Dalang could ignore it, but the old man couldn't, so he leaned over to pick it up and handed it to him, becoming increasingly impatient. owner.
Cheng Dalang was holding the tea, squinting his eyes, only looking at the hands of his confidant Lao Duguan. However, after just one look, he was completely stunned, and his posture of serving the tea did not change.
After a long while, the person slowly put down the tea, carefully took the clip, and then read it twice, and then asked: "Did this letter fall out?"
"Yes." Lao Duguan said.
"Do you know what is written?" Cheng Dalang continued to ask.
The old man just shook his head.
"This is the letter from Zhang Sanlang, who killed Mr. Nanya and scared the emperor away. He asked me to rebel with him. He asked me to join his deposed dragon gang... but it was actually in this letter?" Cheng Dalang seemed a little confused. But a little cautious. "How many people delivered the letter? How many days have they been here? Where are they now?"
"A man has been here for four or five days and is still waiting for a reply in Zhuangzi." The old governor responded quickly. "Provided as usual."
"Ten taels of silver, one bucket of rice a day...make a fire to cook at home?" Cheng Dalang also panicked.
"Yes..." The old governor became more and more nervous. "But it was a mistake?"
"It's not your fault if something goes wrong." Cheng Dalang stood up immediately and held the clip. "Take me to see this person quickly."
The old governor could only follow in a hurry.
"Forget it, don't come." Cheng Dalang walked out of the back hall and suddenly turned back to warn him.
The old man understood and stopped immediately...but after a moment, he still followed.
Cheng Dalang just shook his head helplessly.
But only a quarter of an hour later, Cheng Dalang, who was famous in the East, saw the messenger, who was eating on the wall... white rice, topped with vegetables and bacon... it looked quite delicious.
Then he was peeping at his own cavalry.
Cheng Dalang watched for a while and became a little hesitant. This did not mean that he was afraid of society, but that the other party was like this. In all likelihood, he was the one, but he had wronged himself to the point of making a fire by himself in his own village. After four or five days of blending, he seemed to be looking for something to do with him...and he, Cheng Dalang, was unwilling to get entangled with the other party too early and get involved in right and wrong.
Besides, is Zhang Jinscale that easy to beat?
What good will it do to you?
But now that things have happened, it would seem ridiculous to try to cover it up... So, hesitation returned to hesitation. After a moment, Cheng Dalang still raised his hands to the person on the wall from behind:
"Cheng Zhili has seen distinguished guests. In the countryside, his family was careless and did not entertain them well, which made the distinguished guests laugh."
The man on the wall, that is, Zhang Xing, turned around and smiled after hearing this, holding a wooden bowl: "I thought your name was Cheng Zhijie... It turns out that your name is Cheng Zhili. If you are called Zhili, why are you so ignorant?"
"It's none of the master's business." The old governor hurried forward and bowed to apologize. "It's because I don't recognize the distinguished guest and has lost my etiquette... I can't apologize to the distinguished guest."
"What do you care about the poor hospitality?" Zhang Xing took a bite of his rice and just laughed. "I'm not a member of a noble family, so I don't know how hard it is to farm... It's good to have a bushel of rice per person per day, and I can spare some for the local farmers to buy some sauce, vinegar, meat and vegetables... I'm very considerate to both parties. I just said He doesn't understand. It doesn't mean that he doesn't know etiquette and complains that he has been treated harshly. It means that he doesn't know the truth. He clearly knows that Lao Duguan is doing the right thing. He also knows that some people in the world have bad tempers. They don't know who I am, but they How can you be like the well-known and all-round Cheng Dalang in the Eastern Region, if you are allowed to stand up to someone at such a young age and take advantage of him for no reason?"
"Your distinguished guest has misunderstood." The old governor quickly explained again. "Just now, my eldest son specifically asked me not to come with him. I was afraid that I would miss his official business. I am willing to come over to apologize...but I have underestimated the magnanimity of our distinguished guest."
Cheng Dalang didn't know how to interrupt.
However, he also saw that people who are kind do not come, and those who come are not kind.
"That's okay." Zhang Xing smiled. "For the sake of the old governor, this matter has been revealed...but please come back, old governor. I have a beheading deal with your eldest son."
The general knew that there was business to be done next, so he could only leave in a hurry.
As soon as the person left, Zhang Xing used his chopsticks on the wall and said, "Cheng Dalang, come up and talk."
Cheng Zhili knew that the other party was turning his back on guests and was speechless, but he still flew up and sat on the wall with the other party, and then handed over his hands again:
"Dare I ask, but Mr. Zhang Sanye of the Dragon Sword is in person? Ashamed, ashamed!"
"Good bacon." Zhang Xing didn't answer, just picked up a piece of bacon, waved it in front of the other party, and then chewed it whole.
"There are no good things in the countryside, which makes the distinguished guests laugh." Cheng Dalang was startled for a moment, and became even more uneasy knowing that the other party was acquiescing to his identity.
"Don't laugh at the farmers' cured wine, which is full of chicken and dolphins. In good years, there are enough chickens and dolphins." Zhang Xing sighed as he continued to eat. "I was born as a farmer in the North, so I don't know how hard it is for farmers... Bacon and rice are the best things... On the contrary, Cheng Dalang, who is always staring at this, behaves like the old capital officer just now It seems that you underestimate me. Or maybe you, Cheng Dalang, are a suspicious person, and you are afraid that I am cheating on such trivial matters, so you come here to test me again and again? "
Cheng Dalang could only shut up.
"Cheng Dalang actually doesn't have to be so careful, and there's no need to pretend." Zhang Xing continued to point to the manor with his bowl and chopsticks. "I've been here in your village for four or five days, and I've already seen that in terms of the system in this village, yours and Xu Dalang's are both top-notch, far superior to other powerful people. Today I saw these few Baiqi, I admire you even more... The so-called distinction between subject and object, clear responsibilities, not to mention producers and defenders have their own duties, and complete transportation channels, defense facilities, and public security methods... It shows that you have been educated since childhood. It should be a serious Eastern Qi noble education of becoming a general and an official."
"How can you say something noble?" Cheng Dalang reluctantly interjected after hearing this. "Let Mr. Zhang see the joke."
"No need to belittle yourself." Zhang Xing continued with a smile. "According to me, after the fall of the Eastern Qi Dynasty, the Wei government was harsh. You people had to deal with the government carefully, and at the same time, you had to work hard in the world, so you experienced more, learned more, and knew how to farm. Even though he is facing difficulties, he also knows how a penny can stump a hero. In the end, he is much better than his ancestors without even realizing it...Cheng Dalang!"
"Why!"
"You and Xu Dalang are actually both natural tiger ministers in troubled times, no worse than the dragons and phoenixes of Dongdu and Guanlong..." Zhang Xing suddenly commented seriously. "It's just a pity, because the Wei Dynasty suppressed them so much that they had a complacent attitude. They seemed to give up on themselves and didn't dare to express their ambitions. They seemed to have no structure... This is wrong."
Cheng Dalang opened his mouth, but he didn't know how to answer it, so he could only respond perfunctorily: "Mr. Zhang seems to think highly of me, Da Cheng... How can a few small villagers get involved in so many things? On the contrary, Mr. Zhang , what happened by the Gu River shocked the world. The Xianggong of Nanya was killed when he asked to be killed, and the prefect of a county was thrown away when he was told. Moreover, Jingantai was forced to part ways with the emperor on the spot... and the emperor was so frightened that he ran away. …”
"Let's not brag. I just want to ask you something." Zhang Xing, who took the opportunity to take a few bites of rice, suddenly interrupted him. "Have Xu Dalang, Shan Dalang, and Wang Wulang written to you?"
Cheng Zhili was stunned for a moment. After all, he didn't dare to lie. He just nodded bravely.
"Did Zhi Shilang, Wang Hou, and Bohai Gao Shitong write to you?" Zhang Xing stared at each other and took another mouthful of rice.
Cheng Dalang could only nod.
"Where is the local government?"
"I also wrote it." Cheng Dalang felt aggrieved by the question and finally stabbed half of the sentence. "Everyone has taken a fancy to my mere five hundred cavalry, but they don't know that my five hundred cavalry were collected together by several villagers. They are used to defend the hometown. Should they be cut into several pieces and sent to a family with forty or fifty cavalry... …”
"Yes, yes, I know." Zhang Xing nodded repeatedly. "But in today's world and situation, do you still want to be alone?"
Cheng Dalang sighed: "But you can't be aggressive and force others to do inappropriate things, right?"
"What is inappropriate?" Zhang Xing caught the other person's words and asked. "Is it inappropriate to be a thief, or is it inappropriate to follow the government against one's will, or is it inappropriate to join the Deposed Dragon Gang and then help Li Silang, the envoy of Du Shui, to defeat Zhang Jinscale?"
Which one do you think is inappropriate? Cheng Dalang was speechless, but he could only shut up.
"Cheng Dalang, you have two difficulties now." Zhang Xing finally finished his last bite of rice, put down his wooden bowl on the roof, and analyzed it carefully. "The first one is that you probably know in your heart that in a short period of time, Gao Shitong and Wang Hou will take advantage of this big wave and sweep across the prefectures and counties, but you know with your knowledge that they will not last long. The army of the Wei Dynasty will come sooner or later, so you don't know how to maintain your position during the ebb and flow; the second is that your father is still the head of a county, and when he comes to your position, he has ambitions for fame, but he has no power. We have only a few soldiers, and even though we have talents, we can’t stretch ourselves... right or wrong?”
Cheng Dalang laughed dryly: "It will be whatever Mr. Zhang says."
But after laughing, he immediately became solemn, because what the other party said was indeed clear and clear, and it was indeed this matter.
Zhang Xing seemed to ignore the other party's jokes and just continued to persuade: "And now there is an opportunity that allows you to do more than one thing with one stone. It can not only perfuse the court on the surface, but also prevent you from being noticed by the heroes of Hebei and the East in private." Disgust can also make you arrogant and self-improving, so why can’t you do it?”
Cheng Dalang was silent for a moment, and finally asked helplessly: "So what Mr. Zhang means is to join the Deposed Dragon Gang first, and then help the Du Shui Messenger kill Zhang Jinsheng?"
"Yes." Zhang Xing responded sincerely.
"I understand the truth." Cheng Dalang sighed. "Join the Deposed Dragon Gang, and then help the people of the imperial court to beat Zhang Jinscale. This is like cutting tofu with a knife and slipping on both sides. I can handle whoever gets up in the future...Kill Zhang Jinscale and devour his people, pointing out that Maybe the Dushui envoy can give me some weapons and supplies, so that I can become stronger and more arrogant, and then be able to survive the ebb and flow of the tide?"
"Yes." Zhang Xing nodded sincerely.
"How can we beat him?" Cheng Dalang spread his hands on the wall.
"If you don't take a look, how do you know you can't beat him?" Zhang Xing also became serious. "Just rely on your mouth here?"
Cheng Dalang was extremely speechless. Who could rely on just one mouth?
However, he knew that the opponent was at the peak of his fame at this time, and even an assassin with only one mouth could not fall out easily, so after thinking about it, he still responded seriously: "In this case, Mr. Zhang is here for this trip. Do you want me to follow Third Master across the river to take a look at the situation?"
"Not bad." Zhang Xing answered proudly.
"But if we cross the river and see the situation with our own eyes and feel that we still can't fight, so what?" Cheng Dalang asked sincerely. "Does Mr. Zhang want to criticize me in the world?"
"No." Zhang Xing replied with a sigh. "With your pragmatism and cunning, even if you think you can't fight, you will perfunctorily say that you can fight, and then take the opportunity to fake it... leaving me completely defeated and speechless... However, after we really crossed the river, with Cheng Dalang's With your intelligence and ability, you can tell at a glance that I am actually trying to support you in this battle, trying my best to give you a chance, and then I still say that I can fight, but I will not take the opportunity to fake it."
Cheng Dalang didn't know what to say, so he could only nod: "I understand, both sides are grateful to Mr. Zhang... And this battle must be fought no matter what?"
Zhang Xing didn't know that the other party didn't believe him at all, but since he asked the other party to leave, he stopped talking.
The next morning, the two of them hurriedly crossed the river. They only walked about ten miles. Before they reached the platform, after passing through various passes and patrols, Cheng Dalang suddenly reined in his horse and spoke seriously:
"Third Master, I know that whatever I say at this time will be ridiculed by you, but I feel that with the ability of this Du Shui envoy to manage the army, he can really give him a beating!"
"What are you talking about?" Zhang Xing sneered. "This is a person who is like my closest brother, the one who is best at using soldiers in the pocket, and Han Bolong's nephew. You are here, you should be a little awakened, but you still don't want to call me Fourth Master Li?"
Cheng Zhili knew that he was wrong, so he could only apologize... It was easier for people like him to act in a low profile.
In this way, after walking for several more miles, they arrived in front of the Putai camp. Zhang Xing did not take anyone to see Li Ding. Instead, he went straight to Putai and allowed this man to look down at the camp.
Cheng Zhili looked around but didn't speak.
When Xiao Zhou led Li Ding over, Zhang Xing could only call out to him: "Cheng Dalang, don't look at it, and come here to see Li Silang."
Li Ding was about to give up his hand.
When Cheng Dalang heard this, he jumped over first and faced him directly. He held Li Ding's hands in front of Zhang Xing and spoke sincerely: "Cheng Zhili has met Mr. Li Fourth, and I am as close a brother as Mr. Zhang San." They met each other, but he only kept the rules of a brave man in his pocket. Hearing that the Third Master was going to do something big, he hurriedly gathered 800 horses. The Fourth Master Li did not want to go outside. If you need anything, just give him the order... Cheng Dawan will not hesitate to die."
Li Ding looked confused, but Xiao Zhou looked at Zhang Xing with a confused expression.
At this point, Cheng Dalang came to see Zhang Xing again and said with the same sincerity: "Third Master! There are many heroes in the world that I don't know about. I saw you today. I'm a little rude. Please don't take offense to Third Master!"
Zhang Xing curled his lips but remained silent.
ps: Thank you to the new leader Dongfang Tuo... Happy May Day!
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