"Commander, I humbly ask you to accompany the army to Liaodong to serve the commander." After Tong Shouxin entered the official hall, he prostrated on the ground and began to plead hard.
Zhang Cheng looked at Tong Shouxin with a smile on his face. He said in a kind tone: "Tong Shouxin, sit down quickly."
Zhang Chengfang moved a chair for him, and after Tong Shouxin sat down, Zhang Cheng said to him: "I know Tong Shoubei's heart in boxing. It's not that he has any doubts about Tong Shoubei. It's just that this aid to Liao is unusual.
And the officers and soldiers under your command have been newly recruited, and their training has been limited. Therefore, I ordered you to stay on the east road and train your troops strictly for the time being, with a view to making achievements in front of this commander's formation in the future.
Moreover, neither the Tartars nor the rogue bandits can be eliminated in one battle. There will only be more wars in the future, so why worry about not getting the chance to fight? There is no need to fight for this one time. "
Tong Shouxin also knew that Zhang Cheng had already decided to fight in various camps and would not change it easily. He came here just because he wanted to express his loyalty, so he said nothing at the moment.
Zhang Cheng and his generals discussed some more matters regarding the reclamation of the East Road, recruitment of troops, and training, and then they dispersed.
…………
Liu Yongzhao, the governor of Xuanfu, did not see Zhang Cheng again. After marching for the army, he only returned to Yongning County Yamen to rest for a while, then led his bodyguards and soldiers back to the town in a hurry.
Before leaving, he left a handwritten letter to Zhang Cheng, and Liu Minshen, the magistrate of Yongning County, was specially appointed to deliver it to Zhang Cheng on his behalf.
On the same day, before dinner, the county magistrate Liu Minshen came to the Deputy General War Office to ask for an audience with Zhang Cheng, and handed over a handwritten letter from Governor Liu Yongzhao. After Zhang Cheng opened it and read it, he was stunned at first and saw four big words on it: Take care of yourself!
Zhang Cheng put the handwritten letter back into its envelope, put it on the desk, and then said to Liu Minshen, "I guess County Magistrate Liu had not had dinner when he came here."
"Ha ha……"
Hearing this, Liu Minshen laughed and said, "Shuai Zhang wants to keep Shen to drink."
Zhang Cheng also smiled and said: "It's a great honor for Mr. Liu County to be willing to stay and dine with a rough guy like Zhang Cheng!"
Liu Minshen stood up hurriedly after hearing the words. He clasped his fists and bowed before saying, "Shuai Zhang, don't call me that, it's really embarrassing. If it's Zhang Shuai, please call me by my official name. Don't embarrass me again!" "
Zhang Cheng stepped forward and took Liu Minshen's hand, and said enthusiastically: "Okay, from now on, we will be on cousin terms."
He then ordered Zhang Chengfang to arrange dinner, and Zhang Jintai to summon Yan Qingrong, Wu Zhizhong, Zhang Guangda, Lin Fangping, and guard Tong Shouxin to accompany Liu Minshen to dinner.
…………
Jin Xinpeng, on behalf of Zhang Cheng, accompanied Lin Dengyou and other generals from the town to spend three days and three nights in the hot springs. Although they ate, drank, had fun, and got closer to the deputy generals, generals, and guerrillas, they still felt tired.
If it were before, maybe he would have accompanied Lin Dengyou and others more enthusiastically, but now for some reason, he was always thinking about Chi Castle and the many matters on the North Road.
Fortunately, Gao Jin Gong was on hand to take care of everything. Jin Xinpeng also realized that an occasion like this really needed a few wonderful people like Gao Jin Gong to take care of everything and enhance the atmosphere of the scene.
On the second day of May, everyone bathed for three days and finally returned to the Red Castle. Since Zhang Cheng had already left for Yongning to prepare for the expedition, they did not intend to stay in the Red Castle for a long time.
Jin Xinpeng accompanied Lin Dengyou and other generals from the town to the Yang Gong Temple in the southwest corner of the fort at noon. After paying homage to the shrine of Yang Wuxiang, the Duke of Ying, they all rushed off with their own soldiers and guards.
Although each of them gave Zhang Cheng a generous gift when they came, they were all smiling when they left. Cigarettes produced in Yunzhou have become very popular in Xuan Town, ranging from the officials in the town to the small ones. Hundreds of households in the fort, even those military households, all flocked to it.
The reason why Zhang Cheng was the first to take out this cigarette when he had his hands free was that he himself was tired of smoking, and the second was that he was fully aware of the scale of tobacco taxes in later generations.
If this thing is done well, this alone may be able to cover the cost of raising an army!
However, due to limitations in raw materials and technology, cigarettes have always been in short supply, and black market transactions focusing on cigarettes have even emerged in some places.
Even in times of peace, the court would also restrict the cultivation of tobacco leaves. After all, the grain that could feed people was what the court needed. What's more, in times of war, even if tobacco leaves were transported, it would be a problem.
In addition, there are also technical limitations. The Yunzhou side works in three shifts and works day and night, but it cannot meet the market demand. Although the raw material channels have been expanded through the efforts of all parties, another cigarette workshop has been opened in Chicastle. , but demand still exceeds supply.
Those big business gangs have also been seeking to cooperate with Zhang Cheng and open new workshops in Zhencheng and Shanxi, but Zhang Cheng politely refused.
It’s not that they don’t want to imitate, but the taste of their own imitations is always a little bit worse. Although they are sold in some places, they can only be used as a supplement to Yunzhou cigarettes, and they have been suffering from being unable to enter the mainstream cigarette market.
When Lin Dengyou and the others left Chi Castle this time, they were all given authentic "Yunzhou Brand" cigarettes, which are the best among cigarettes, and each of them also had two jars of pure liquor "Shaodaozi".
…………
There used to be an office not far from the south gate of Chicheng Castle. It was originally a sub-inspection office built in the 38th year of Jiajing reign. Later, because the sub-inspection office was no longer assigned and was instead used by military personnel, the place became idle and was It was established as a public office.
Zhang Cheng originally wanted Jin Xinpeng to work and live in the unused prosecutor's office, but he refused because he couldn't use such a big place, and finally chose this place as his office.
Zhang Cheng has long wanted to move his family to Yongning. After all, after being promoted to Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Xuanzhen, his focus will be on integrating and cultivating the East Road. However, he has not yet established a firm foothold and fully controls the East Road. With the palm of his hand, he was ordered by the emperor to send troops to Henan to aid and suppress.
But now, his wife Ji Xuanzhu has just given birth, his son is still young, and the two concubines have become accustomed to living in Chicheng. Zhang Cheng has no thoughts of moving again. He plans to wait until he returns from the Liaodong expedition. .
Tonight, there was no moonlight to shine on the earth, so it seemed extremely dark, but candlelight was shining inside the house. Only the fragrance of flowers and plants floated in through the half-open window. The chirping of birds gradually subsided, but the croaking of frogs could be heard in the distance.
Jin Yong refilled the cup of tea for his uncle Jin Xinpeng and said softly: "Uncle, my nephew has no time to congratulate you on your old age!"
"Congratulations?"
Jin Xinpeng's face was full of doubts and he said, "What's my joy?"
Jin Yong leaned forward and said, "Uncle is now sitting on the North Road as the commander, and he got what he wanted."
After he retracted his body and sat down again, he said with a slight expression of contentment: "The commander-in-chief also promised that when we train a battalion of soldiers and horses, we can also be promoted to guerrilla..."
"Bang!"
The tea cup in Jin Xinpeng's hand fell heavily on the table. He snorted angrily, and then said in a deep voice: "It's so much mud that I can't hold it up against the wall."
