Invite Lin Xuexue to sit down in the corridor. Wang Ruohai said to Xue Cheng: "The Chinese New Year is tomorrow. Go get a few kilograms of good mutton and give it to the owner. It is extremely inconvenient to occupy his courtyard at this time."
Xue Cheng promised. After a while he came back, followed by two soldiers. One of the soldiers carried a leg of lamb and two large carps. Another soldier took a bag of rice and a basket of eggs.
Wang Ruohai said to Lin Xuexue: "Small gifts are not disrespectful. Don't be dissatisfied with academics. Tomorrow, during the Chinese New Year, the family will have a good time together. There is wine in the army, and I will bring a jar over later."
Lin Xuexue waved his hands repeatedly: "How can I do it! If I accept it, wouldn't it mean that people would laugh at me for being greedy for money?"
Wang Ruohai smiled and said: "Study, don't be too pedantic. We occupy the place in your home, so what little property is nothing. If the scholar refuses, he will be obsessed with it. How can a man care about his external possessions when he is established in this world!"
After hearing this, Xuexue Lin couldn't help but nodded repeatedly. If he refused, he called his wife to accept the gift.
A banquet was set up under the shed, with Xue Cheng, Shao Yun, Zhang Qi, Li Songchen and Liang Xing as their companions. Wang Ruohai invited Lin Xuexue to drink.
After drinking for three rounds, Wang Ruohai said to Lin Xuexue: "Ever since the Jin army defeated Henan Prefecture a few years ago, this area has not been peaceful. Is it convenient for Xuexue to live here? Although it is a deep mountain, the Jin soldiers may not be safe. Come in."
Lin Xuexue said: "The council has overstepped its bounds. This mountainous area to the north of Mianchi is full of people forming strongholds. How dare the Jin army come? A few years ago, when Zhang Taiwei was in Mianchi, he had thousands of soldiers and horses, and the surrounding area was hundreds of miles away. Everyone knows his reputation.”
Wang Ruohai said: "It's different this time. We surrounded the fourth prince of the Jin Kingdom, and he must have a grudge afterwards. Now while we are fighting, we are organizing the people to move south. Tangzhou, Dengzhou and Xiangyang Prefecture are full of idle land, and there are still There’s room for people.”
Lin Xuexue said: "I have lived here all my life, how can I leave my hometown? The Jin people are ignorant of everything, how can they occupy the Central Plains for a long time!"
Wang Ruohai said to Liang Xing: "After this battle is over, the Jin army is likely to take revenge on the people around Luoyang. If the matter is urgent, you can take some of the people here back to the stronghold. There is no way to fight around Luoyang, even around Kaifeng Mansion." , I’m afraid it won’t work until it’s all reduced to nothing. The prosperous areas of the two capitals have experienced this disaster, and I don’t know how many years it will take to recover.”
Liang Xing said yes. Taihang Mountain is not far from the Yellow River, and it controls the main route of the East River going south and east, and supports many places around it.
A few people were drinking and chatting. Unknowingly, the night was getting late.
The next day was New Year's Eve, so there was another day of discussion. On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Wang Ruohai passed through Tuhao Town and returned to Guozhou on the third day of the Lunar New Year.
It was almost evening at this time, and a ray of setting sun was spread in the sky. The ice on the eaves was half melted, and slowly began to freeze again as the sun set. There are magpies chirping in the trees, and the dead grass on the ground is covered with broken ice, which looks like winter.
After connecting Wang Ruohai to the Yamen, Wang Xiaolie said: "It's the Chinese New Year and it's really hard work for the counselor to make a trip."
Wang Ruohai hurriedly said he didn’t dare.
Wang Xiaolie nodded slightly, looked at Wang Ruohai, and asked in a deep voice, "How is it?"
Wang Ruohai said: "Wu Shu has gone crazy these days, driving his soldiers every day and using all kinds of means to attack the city. Shao Yun and others also thought of various ways to defend Mianchi City like a copper wall. In a short period of time, Wu Shu The technique should be invincible."
Li Yanxian said: "The news came from the west that Wei Yang was furious after he occupied Jingzhao Mansion. However, he was held back by Wu Jie brothers and Yang Zheng, and could not withdraw his troops for a while, so he could only strictly order Wu Shu to enter Guanzhong immediately. If Mianchi cannot be conquered, Wushu's guilt will be considerable."
Wang Xiaolie said: "Destroying Wu Shu is not our skill. It is our skill to make his life worse than death this time! Counselor, what do you think of the Hedong Rebel Army? Can you help Xue Cheng cut off Wu Shu's food route? "
Wang Ruohai said: "This time I met Li Songchen, Li Shi, Liang Xing, Zhao Yun and other leaders, which was unexpected. Although their troops were short of food and clothing, and their soldiers were many old and weak, the fighting The will is extremely strong. Xue Cheng asked them to choose capable and capable people to cross the river with him. There were about seven or eight thousand people in total. Relatively speaking, Li Songchen had fewer soldiers, while Liang Xing and Zhao Yun had more soldiers. There was no way, Lingshi Li Taiyuan Mansion is relatively close, and Li Songchen was surrounded and suppressed by Yin Shuke many times, making his life even more difficult."
Wang Xiaolie asked again: "What do you think of their soldiers?"
Wang Ruohai said: "They have received little training, their lineup is incomplete, and their flags are incomplete. In my opinion, they may not be able to fight in formation. But fighting in mountainous areas and attacking in small groups should be fine."
Wang Xiaolie said: "That's the case with the rebel army. All civilians join the army, there is no systematic training, and the officers do not have complete study. Of course, the formal combat will be worse. Wait until spring, we will find a way."
While talking, the three people sat down at the table.
Li Yanxian said: "Shao Yun's troops are now well supplied with food and grass, and have followed me to defend Shaanzhou several times. They should be able to defend Mianchi. What I am worried about now is whether Xue Cheng and the Hedong Rebel Army can cut off the food route."
Wang Xiaolie said: "Jinglue, I'm afraid Wu Shu's thoughts are all on how to attack Mianchi. Nianliduo can't return to the army for a while, which should put a lot of pressure on him. Wu Shu was originally asked to guard Guanzhong, but in the end he let him Wei Yi was in Guozhou and led his troops to Luoyang. We killed Wei Yi in the first battle and blocked Wu Shu to the west of Mianchi. This situation made the Jin army very passive. I estimate that Wu Shu might not care about his own food in the early stage. Tao. By the time Xue Cheng and others cut off the food route and Wushu's army is short of food, I'm afraid it will be too late."
Having said this, Wang Xiaolie shook his head and said: "The key to the outcome of the Mianchi battle is whether the generals on the front line can understand our intentions. We can neither kill Wu Shu nor let him go. We have to grasp the balance between them. , we are 80% sure of this."
After finishing speaking, he looked at the sky and said: "The sun is going to set, let's not talk about these troublesome things. Today, on the third day of the lunar month, the counselor will come back and prepare some wine and food for him to spend his old age. The three of us chatted. The overall situation of the war has been decided. No more worries.”
After that, let the guard order the kitchen to cook some good dishes, and the three of them will drink tonight.
Three people sat down around a stove. Wang Xiaolie ordered his soldiers to get a bottle of wine. Said: "This jar of wine is different from the previous grape wine. It is based on white wine, soaked in selected wild grapes, and added many medicinal materials. It has been brewed for six months. It tastes sweet and delicious, and it is not like the usual wine. The liquor is strong. However, it is still strong and easy to drink, so you may get drunk if you are not careful."
Wang Ruohai waved his hand hurriedly: "I can't bear to drink. How can I dare to drink such a strong drink!"
Wang Xiaolie said: "Now is the Chinese New Year, let's indulge once. The three of us will have a good meal of meat and a drink of wine tonight!"
After saying that, he patted the mud away and poured it into three bowls.
Seriously, this is actually showing off the wine. Lujiu has a long history in China. It used to be based on rice wine, but with the advent of baijiu, it naturally changed to baijiu. The alcohol content is slightly lower than that of liquor. It has a fruity, floral or medicinal aroma and is very easy to drink.
It has only been a year or two since Wang Xiaolie started making liquor. Even the gods can't make good wine in such a short time. Nowadays, apart from the sealed liquor, the liquor is sold cheaply in pubs. In many places, liquor has become a cheap alcohol recognized by the people.
Liquor is solid distillation, and the alcohol content is not a result of blending, but the natural properties of the alcohol. The first wine produced has a high alcohol content and is called Jiutou in many places. In fact, it is not suitable for drinking. It is usually stored for many years and used for blending. The final wine has a low alcohol content and a light taste. It is usually added directly to the steamer where the wine is steamed and re-distilled. When the wine is produced stably, it is usually over 50 degrees.
Liquor cannot be directly added with water to reduce the alcohol content, otherwise the quality of the wine will be greatly affected, and a good wine will become a bad wine mixed with water. The low-alcohol wines of later generations had strict craftsmanship and were the result of scientific and technological research organized by the New China. They were not simply prepared. Some of the wines sold have very high alcohol content, and some even sell the liquor directly, which can reach more than 70 degrees. These are not wine heads in the traditional sense and have their own craftsmanship.
The Tang Dynasty was the most prosperous time for dew wine in China, with many names. Wang Xiaolie's new wine is based on the Tang Dynasty's craftsmanship and adds his own creativity. Turn cheap white wine into high-end grape wine.
Looking at the deep red color of the wine in the wine bowl, there is a faint sweetness of grapes. Li Yanxian said: "This wine looks sweet, but I don't know how strong it is. A few days ago, I heard that white wine is the strongest. I didn't believe it. After drinking less than one bottle, I became so drunk that I didn't know what was going on."
Wang Xiaolie said: "It's not as strong as ordinary white wine, but it's very strong. I'll talk while drinking, just don't drink in a hurry."
