As soon as Cao Gan said these words, Gao Mo and Gao Jue immediately understood: Even though Anda has been in Monan for decades and invaded the Ming Dynasty countless times, in fact he has not been able to really capture any important town in the Ming Dynasty. , for some prefectures and counties that were unable to resist, they would only plunder them and then retreat quickly.
If we talk about the reason, it is actually very simple: Anda's subordinates are all cavalry. They are not good at attacking cities, and they are also incompetent at defending cities. Only galloping in the field is the method of warfare that they are proficient in.
Therefore, even if Anda accepted the surrender of the remnants of Bailian with his excellent political vision, and under their persuasion agreed to take in the Han who fled from the north, and even allowed them to build cities and open up farmland, etc., his subordinates would never allow it. These Han'er built Dabansheng City as strong as the Ming Dynasty city in the south. Otherwise, once these people rebelled and became internal agents of the Ming Dynasty and defended Dabansheng City, Anda's cavalry might not be able to capture it immediately. , In that case, wouldn’t the Ming Dynasty immediately have a strategic support point in Monan?
No matter how talented I was, I couldn't guarantee that this situation would not happen, so he had to agree with this point of view, and Daban Shengcheng became a toothless tiger - or to be more precise, it was a toothless tiger. A spineless hedgehog.
While he was talking, on the not very high tower of Dabansheng City, the "yamen" who were working part-time as city gate guards had noticed the arrival of Gaomo's caravan. Perhaps they couldn't see the flag clearly from a distance. So there was a whimpering horn sound and a rush of drums from Daban Shengcheng, and the city gate was quickly closed.
It wasn't until the Blood Wolf Howling Moon Flag came into their sight clearly that the government officials who were part-time city guards on the city tower breathed a sigh of relief. They all shouted "Open the city gate!" and "It's a caravan, the Ming Dynasty's caravan!" , "That's the Blood Wolf Roaring Moon Flag, don't be nervous!"...
The wooden city gate, which was not even riveted with a few copper nails, creaked open again, and a group of knights rushed out of the city gate, about seventy or eighty people, all dressed in Mongolian costumes. This group of knights did not immediately rush to the caravan, but formed a counter-crescent formation not far from the city gate.
Although their number is much smaller than that of the caravan, their momentum is not inferior at all. This is a formation that seems to have the meaning of "semi-outflanking".
However, this was just a show after all, and soon a horse ran out from the formation. The rider on the horse was about forty years old, wearing Mongolian clothes, but he spoke in a serious Shanxi accent in Chinese: "You are Baili. Xia caravan, I am the deputy city lord of Daban Sheng City and write the deed with Chinese pen! Which shopkeeper is leading your team this time? Please come out and answer!"
Deputy City Lord? Write the deed in Chinese pen?
Gao Mo and Gao Jue looked at each other. Gao Jue frowned and said, "This man doesn't look like a Mongolian with a round face."
Gao Mo on the other side did not speak, but looked towards Cao Gan. He saw a smile on Cao Gan's face and whispered: "This person is Li Zixin, the second person in the White Lotus Sect and the leader of the Shanxi Hall. The person who wrote the deed in Hanbi is His Mongolian name, I will go and answer him."
After he said that, he had already left the caravan with his horse under his belly. He clasped his fists on the horse from a distance and said in a loud voice: "Hall Master Li is well and well. He is in Caogan, Xiabailixia. I have admired the name of Hall Master Li for a long time!"
When Li Zixin heard that the person calling himself Cao Gan, she couldn't help but subconsciously squinted her eyes, looked carefully through the slits of her eyes, then clasped her fists and returned the salute, saying: "It turns out to be King Cao Tian. I have admired you for a long time, and I have heard your name for a long time." Yes, I just saw you today, so it's a bit late... However, looking at the posture of King Cao Tian, those who know know that you are here to do business, and those who don't know, I am afraid that you are coming to attack our Da Ban Sheng City! "
These words were soft but hard at the same time. Of course Cao Gan knew the threats and confidence contained in them, but after all, he was also an old Jianghu, so there was no reason for stage fright. He looked up to the sky and laughed loudly, saying loudly: "Hall Master Li is joking, I'm going to I came on this trip in person, so naturally there were more goods than usual, and I felt a little uneasy if I didn’t look at them myself. As for Daban Shengcheng, it has a population of tens of thousands at least. I only have a few hundred people here, so how can I dare to make any ideas? ?”
Li Zixin also smiled and said lukewarmly: "Dabanshengcheng is just a place for homeless Kuhaha people to settle on this grassland. If King Cao Tian really has other ideas, we can't stop him. You have hundreds of fine knights." But he paused for a moment, and then continued: "It's just that the wise king of the grasslands, Ada Khan, has troops all over the southeast, northwest, and northwest of Daban Sheng City. If there is really someone in Daban, If there is trouble in Shengcheng, the cavalry will arrive in an instant. This is what we can rely on. I guess King Cao Tian must know about your relationship with the Great Khan, right?"
Cao Gan laughed and said: "Hall Master Li, this is the first time we have met, why do I always feel that you have some misunderstandings about me? I, Bailixia, will never attack anyone without any reason. In terms of discipline, I, Bailixia, can be compared to The border troops of the Ming Dynasty are much better. When did you hear that I, Bailixia, had done this to hunt rabbits?"
After hearing this, Li Zixin seemed to believe it. She nodded slightly and said, "King Cao Tian, it's not that I can't trust you. I just want to remind you that Dacheng Taiji is currently entertaining distinguished guests in Dabansheng City. Although he I have always had a good attitude towards you Mingren, but your line is full of powerful knights... I took a quick look, and I'm afraid there are no less than five or six hundred people who can control the string and swing the sword. King Cao Tian, although you have With the Great Khan's order, you can lead your troops to and from all parts of Monan, but I still want to remind you: Since all the tribes in Monan have received the Great Khan's order, naturally no one will dare to challenge you, so why should you? It’s so labor intensive? It’s better to bring fewer people next time to avoid misunderstandings.”
Cao Gan smiled and said: "Hall Master Li is overly worried. I am not bringing these troops to guard against my Mongolian friends."
Li Zixin's expression changed slightly, and she said suddenly: "Oh? So that's it. What, is there any movement in the south? But I heard that King Cao Tian is now hugging the thick legs of the imperial officials, including Xuanfu and Datong. The commander-in-chief is very polite to you, how could there be some ignorant junior who dares to take advantage of you?"
But Cao Gan began to lie half-truthfully, saying: "Well, doing business is just like that. There is no one with thick legs. Even if there is, I, Cao, can really hold it firmly." That’s good.”
Li Zixin frowned slightly when he heard this. His answer was so slippery that he couldn't hear anything at all. He also wanted to inquire about the situation in the south. When he was about to ask again, Cao Gan continued: "Palace Master Li just said Dacheng Tai Ji is also in the city? That's a good thing. Among the goods we brought this time, there are a lot of good things transported all the way from Yangzhou. Since Dacheng Tai Ji is also here, presumably with his identity, he will definitely be interested in it. If you are interested in these things, can Hall Master Li show you the location of Dachengtai Ji Zunjia?"
