In the official hall of the Intermediate Court of the Chaoguan Government Office in Mianhe Town, Zhang Cheng took a sip of tea and said slowly: "Chen Zhong, you will be alone in northern Henan from now on. Although I have asked Mr. Chen, my soldier, to recommend the eldest brother of the Ji family to serve as a guard. I have prepared a way, but I haven’t seen the imperial edict come down for a day, so I can’t be completely sure.”
He looked at Chen Zhong and continued earnestly: "No matter who is responsible for military preparation, you only need to remember one thing. You will always be my subordinate. Externally, you are the guerrilla general of the imperial court. Internally, you are my subordinate." A left-behind officer in northern Henan.
Chen Zhong, you have to remember that I have three purposes for keeping you stationed in Mianhe Town.
First, sit and guard Mianhe Town, with Meng County and Wen County as the center, and develop your forces northward. In order to control these places around Huaiqing Fucheng as much as possible, you can recruit a new army locally. However, it will inevitably cause Local hostility does not need to enter various counties and cities for the time being.
I can only appease the hungry people in the surrounding area and control the land and Dingkou. I can also occupy a few important villages and towns so that I can have a certain strategic space in the future.
The second is to have a good relationship with the villages on the other side of Mang Mountain and train the local braves there. Remember the most important point. Taking this training opportunity, we must control the nearly ten thousand local braves over there. In our hands, make it a force that we can rely on and use.
Third, you must try your best to make friends with the boatmen and trackers who run boats on this river, as well as the boatmen and embankment men who protect the embankments. If possible, it is best to recruit them under your command, even if they do not want to be my subordinates. Help them from time to time.
In the future, you are destined to have frequent exchanges on both sides of the river. Wouldn't it be convenient if you could have your own fleet? Even if you can't take it into your tribe, you should at least form some connections with it so that you can borrow its power in the future. It can prevent it from being used by the enemy. "
Chen Zhong looked slightly embarrassed, but he still said firmly: "Commander, please rest assured, Chen Zhong will do his best and will live up to the trust of the commander!"
Zhang Cheng had a serious look on his face and said in a deep voice: "How can we do our best? You should work hard. Since I have ordered you to stay in Northern Henan, it means that you are capable of doing anything. You must not let me down!" "
Zhang Cheng continued: "Chen Zhong, you are the wedge that I have planted in Henan. Preserving and developing your strength is what you should do. As long as you protect this area in northern Henan, Huaiqing and Wei You can kill thieves everywhere in Hui territory at will, which not only protects the place, but also trains the soldiers in actual combat.
If there is an attack by intruders, you should lead the army to cross the river and fight. The local warriors in Mang Mountain must be unified and commanded. Do not let them fight independently and be defeated one by one by the bandits. "
Chen Zhong stood up and clasped his fists and said, "Chen Zhong understands. Please don't worry, Marshal. We will definitely protect this property for the Marshal."
Zhang Cheng said with a serious face: "It's not enough to just stay safe, you have to find ways to develop and grow. Liu Jinhai will be active in Henan in the recent period to expand our operations in southern Jinan, southern Shanxi, and northern Henan. The underground armed forces are connected.
His activities in Yu Province will also be completely controlled by you, but it is more advantageous for Liu Jinhai to hide in the dark. Unless necessary, try not to use his power to do things on the table. "
"Here. Chen Zhong has taken note of it."
"When Chaoguan is first established, all matters are bound to be complicated. I will leave Wang Yuanjing in Mianhe temporarily to help you manage all matters at Chaoguan and the internal affairs of the camp. When everything at Chaoguan is on track, he will return Xuanzhen.”
"In this case, King Lao will praise the painting!"
As he spoke, Chen Zhong twisted his body and saluted Wang Yuanjing with his fists raised. Wang Yuanjing responded with a polite smile and nodded.
Zhang Cheng continued: "Li Changsheng will return to Xuan Town with me this time. He can only leave ten cavalry as my uncle's personal bodyguards. You can select another hundred people from your side, form a separate bureau, and send them to Ji Youci." Just listen and use it.”
"Here. Commander!"
Gu Xuan and Chen Zhong agreed readily, and then said: "Commander, Jin Hai sent a message yesterday, saying that he will be coming to Mihe River in the next few days. Do you want to rest here for a few days? He has something to do with Li Jiu and wants to talk to the commander. Report.”
"No. Let's rest in Mihe tonight and set off before noon tomorrow. Chen Zhong, send a message to Liu Jinhai and ask him to wait for me in Wushe."
"Here."
…………
There is a mound in the backyard of the Chaoguan Government Office in Mihe River, surrounded by lush willow trees and flowers. Under the mound, there is a small lake formed by diverting water from the Mihe River, which is full of duckweeds and small lotus leaves.
There was a thatched shed on the mound, a small wooden table, and a few small stools. On the wooden table were teapots and teacups. Chen Zhong filled Zhang Cheng's teacup, and then turned back to fill his own teacup.
He put down the teapot and said softly to Zhang Cheng: "General, if you leave such a big stall to us, Chen Zhongshi is afraid that he will fail the general's trust and delay the general's important event."
Zhang Cheng looked at him and smiled, then said: "You brat, you have been with me for many years, right?"
Chen Zhong smiled at first when he heard this, and then replied with some pride: "We have been with the general for five years."
"hehe."
Zhang Cheng smiled again, and he said to Chen Zhong sincerely: "Your father and son served in the army of my uncle and nephew respectively, which can be said to be the friendship between father and son.
Let’s just talk about you. You have only been in the army for six years, and you have spent five of those years by my side. I have always loved you like a younger brother. Today, I want to keep you stationed in northern Henan, which shows my trust in you! "
He picked up the teapot and filled Chen Zhong's tea cup with tea, and then continued: "You are a little worried in your heart, which is human nature. It is precisely because you want to help me do things well that you are so worried. I How could you not understand?"
Zhang Cheng then picked up his tea cup and drank it all in one gulp, and then said: "Actually, you don't have to worry so much. There is a high probability that Ji Youci will serve as a guard and prepare the way. If he is there to deal with it, you can Just take care of things in the military camp.
Yuan Jing will stay and help you take care of the affairs of the banknotes for a period of time. As for the farming affairs, Yang Shibin can also handle it for you. Not to mention Liu Jinhai is lurking in the dark, and he can be your trump card if necessary. "
Seeing Chen Zhong nodding and remembering, it seemed that he had realized something. Zhang Cheng said again: "There is one more thing that you must remember."
Chen Zhong looked at Zhang Cheng resolutely and listened to him say: "Tong Shoushan's line is extremely critical. Apart from you, only Liu Jinhai can talk about this matter with Liu Jinhai. Only Liu Jinhai can have a single line of contact with Tong Shoushan, and We must also uphold the principle of 'no contact unless necessary'."
"Here!"
They then talked about recruiting hungry people for reclamation and some matters related to banknotes.
