"Since you don't believe that the Alina brothers and sisters are princes and princesses, when you report your war exploits, how can you report to General Meng Tian for rescuing the prince and princess of Eli?" Yao Jia asked again.

"When more than a thousand slaves of the same skin color as Alina's brother and sister recognized the two of them as princes and princesses at the same time, I believed it, and immediately arranged for the two of them properly, and immediately reported to Admiral Meng Tian." Montenegro replied.

"It's obvious that you covet the beauty of Princess Eli, and pretend to accept her as a guest, but in fact you want to occupy the princess, you dare to quibble!" Yao Jia scolded again, "In the past, the Four Princes of the Warring States Period and Lu Buwei had 3,000 doormen, but they had never heard of accepting female doormen, how could you accept female doormen as soon as you accepted them?" ”

Montenegro didn't know how to answer, but he heard an old and righteous voice say: "If you are anyone, spend 300 gold to buy a few slaves, and the slave says that she is a princess and prince of so-and-so, I don't think I will believe it, and there is no rule in the Qin Law that you can't accept female guests!" Lord Tingwei, do you say that the laws of Great Qin stipulate that ministers cannot accept female guests? ”

Yao Jia saw that it was Prime Minister Wang Juan who spoke to defend Montenegro, although he was Li Si's cronies, he didn't dare to go against the prime minister openly! I could only sit down and say no more.

Li Si let his cronie Yao Jia take Montenegro for a while, the original intention was to let him sing red face at the critical moment, so that Montenegro, a young general who seems to have a bright future and has no faction, owes him a favor, and will use it for his own use in the future, but he didn't expect that at the critical moment, not only was he preempted by his old opponent Wang Xuan, but the last sentence obviously implied that Montenegro was his ghost. Immediately, his face turned pale with anger, but he immediately regained his smile and replied: "What the prime minister said is in line with the law, and the laws of Great Qin do not stipulate that ministers cannot recruit female guests!" The afterlife is terrifying! led a hundred people to dare to go deep into the Xiongnu, not only to find out important military information, but also to capture more war horses and goods than a battle of 100,000 people! This record alone is unheard of. ”

Montenegro secretly glanced at everyone present, each with their own expressions, King Qin seemed to like this kind of political pattern very much.

"General Montenegro, what are the five carts of corn you brought back? No one knows any of the officials! Wang Juan asked.

"There is a mountain range in the southwest of Daqin, called the Himalayas, which is covered with snow all year round, and the highest vertical height is more than 3,000 zhang. There are dozens of countries thousands of miles south of the mountain, where the weather is hot and the four seasons are summer, and there are many deserts, and corn is the crop there, and the grains when they are just ripe are as beautiful as topaz, so they are called corn, and the taste is very sweet when cooked. You can pick out the larger particles and plant them in the hotter dry land in Nanjun and Bashu! At the time of the autumn harvest, I am sure there will be many surprises for everyone! Montenegro introduced.

The crowd was dumbfounded. King Qin was very interested and asked, "Can this replace grain?" Can it also be planted in arid mountainous areas? Montenegro, we don't know this kind of thing, and we haven't heard of what likes what mountains, how do you know? ”

"Tell the king, Daying City not only has merchants from all countries in the Central Plains, but also camel teams from countries in the Western Regions, as well as black people from farther away, and you can know many things when you deal with them. For example, the country of Illes is very popular to raise tiger cubs, this kind of animal is similar in appearance to tigers, but the body is only the size of a three-month-old dog, the personality is gentle, and loves to catch mice, and when we destroy the Xiongnu and open up the Western Regions, we use the country of Ile as a transit station, and use our silk to trade with them, which can be exchanged for seeds of various crops such as vegetables and fruits, as well as cotton. At that time, there will be no more people who are freezing and starving in Great Qin. Montenegro introduced.

The two things that the Qin State valued most were to come to plough and fight, and the King of Qin heard that there were so many good things in the Western countries. Immediately became interested and asked: "In the past, through Wu Shijun's trade with the Western Regions, he only thought about gems, jade, spices, rouge and gouache, and never thought that there were all kinds of crops in the Western Regions that were not available in China, this is a good thing for a rich country and a strong army, and I will beat Wu Shijun in the future and teach him how to be a qualified businessman." Montenegro, how do you cook this corn? ”

"Your Majesty, one portion of corn and three portions of glutinous rice can be boiled into a pot of porridge!" Montenegro replied.

"Little Gaozi, tell the imperial chef to boil a pot immediately! Remember to pick it first, take a small one to boil porridge, and leave all the big ones to make seeds, and send them to Teng Yue in Nanjun, and tell him that the corn harvest in autumn is abundant, and the widow will give him a credit. King Qin said to Zhao Gao beside him.

"No!" Zhao Gao bowed in response, and slowly retreated to the door before turning his head and leaving.

"Montenegro, what you said to Wei Yu last night, the widow knows, as the youngest general of the empire, he has such a deep insight into the battle situation, and the widow is very pleased with the captain." King Qin looked at the map of the fierce slave sent by Li Mu hanging on a screen, and said: "Tell me, how can we let the Huns and us fight quickly, we really can't afford to drag it out!" ”

Montenegro stood up, walked to King Qin's side, and said to the map: "Although our army's heavy cavalry and heavy infantry archbow army are very strong, their strength is that the army is facing head-on, but the battlefield mobility is poor. The Hun army is almost all light cavalry, all of them have good riding skills, and they are also good at archery on horses! Extremely mobile, head-to-head duel, if they can't fight, they will quickly retreat, and our army brigade will definitely not be able to catch up. After Zhao withdrew from the two counties, Daqin had to defend the border line of more than 2,000 miles alone! If the Huns take advantage of their strong mobility and attack our weak points, we will be very passive and will only be beaten. I suggest that we leave the Heavy Cavalry, Heavy Infantry and Crossbow Battalions unexposed. Set up tens of thousands of light cavalry troops, use this map sent by Li Mu, with 5,000 people as a unit, take advantage of the advantages of our cavalry that have nailed the horseshoe, and the long-distance running ability is far superior to the Huns, constantly harassing the various tribes of the Huns, fighting if they can fight, and running away if they can't, the Huns are now rich, and they have wiped out dozens of countries in the Western Regions at once, and there are countless gold and silver treasures in each tribe! Let's learn the Huns' way of playing! If you can beat it, grab it, and run if you can't beat it! In a few months, I think the Huns will be more decisive than we still want, and then send our heavy cavalry, heavy armor, and crossbow armies, and we will be able to win a great victory! ”

"Haha, you have the same opinion as Meng Tian, Wei Yi, and Wang Qian! It seems that the Huns are just around the corner. The horseshoe you offered will give you another credit after defeating the Huns! King Qin said with a smile.

"The younger generation feels that he can't bring 10,000 soldiers, how dare he be on a par with several famous generals in the world?" Montenegro said!

"You're still young, and in a few years, you can also become a general!" Wei Yu said.

"Ten years later, the world has been unified, and the sword has long been put into Kuma and Nanshan!" Montenegro said.

"Zuo Gengjue, it's time to give a mansion in Xianyang, Prime Minister, this matter, your Prime Minister's Mansion should hurry up, don't chill the hearts of the soldiers in front." King Qin said.

"Minister Montenegro, thank you for the king's reward!" Montenegro hurriedly bowed down and thanked him.

King Qin turned his head and asked Baturu again, and said, "Baturu, you are already an old soldier, Zuo Shu Chief, it is too condescending to be a deputy general." Go and become a cavalry lieutenant too! The light cavalry army still needs to recruit a large number of people, and it is precisely because of the lack of experienced generals like you that it is lacking! ”

"Your Majesty, King Baturushe! It's just that I was just a heavy rider a year ago, and I suddenly rose to 10,000 riders, and I'm afraid I can't do it! Allow me to study under General Montenegro for a while longer, and then transfer! Baturu also bowed to the King of Qin and said.

"This matter, the National Governor's Mansion will look at it!" King Qin said to Wei Yu, and asked Zhao Gao again: "Little Gaozi, is the polenta all right?" One bowl for one person! ”

"Your Majesty, it's already ready, let's put it up!" Zhao Gao should arrive and command the two little chamberlains to bring the porridge, and each of them also has a plate of pickles.

Montenegro picked up the pottery bowl and took a bite, the corn was sweet, the glutinous rice was viscous, very delicious, and a small piece of pickles was put into the mouth, it was really beautiful!

Baturu picked up the bowl and slipped away! I got down in one bowl, and said loudly: "It tastes good, but the bowl is too small, and I can't fill my stomach with more than ten bowls in one meal!" ”

Baturu's words made everyone laugh. Even a few eunuchs couldn't help but turn their backs and snicker!

King Qin also smiled and said, "The great Qin warriors should be like this, Xiao Gaozi, how many boiled people have brought it up, how can the widow give porridge so that the soldiers are not full?" ”

Zhao Gao immediately ordered several little eunuchs to carry a large vat of polenta into the middle of the main hall. Baturu walked over and looked at it, estimated that there were still a dozen bowls, and asked, "Your Majesty, will you have another bowl?" ”

King Qin had just eaten a few small bites of a bowl of porridge and replied, "Enough of the widows!" ”

Baturu asked the other ministers, and they all answered enough.

"Then you're welcome!" Baturu put down the bowl, picked up the big spoon of porridge, and ate it directly! I'm not afraid of getting hot, and slip into my stomach one by one! After a while, I will eat a fine light, and use a wooden spoon to scrape the clay jar to the brush!

King Qin and several other ministers were so stunned that they forgot to eat porridge. Montenegro really couldn't stand it, and said embarrassedly: "Baturu, can you be a little bit in front of the king!" Don't be reincarnated like a starving ghost! ”

Baturu swallowed the porridge and said, "Pull you down, you are in the army, and I haven't seen you eat less than me or slower than me!" ”

Montenegro had to apologize and say to everyone: "I'm the same as Baturu, everyone in the army is used to eating and drinking, I just read a few books, I don't dare to be rude in front of the king, I hope everyone won't be surprised!" ”

"Baturu, the crime of disgrace before the king is not small! Why don't you apologize to the king? Wang Juan scolded.

"Bird, drink a porridge and drink sin too! Please forgive the king, I have never drunk such a delicious porridge, and I have forgotten the etiquette taught by the ceremonial officials yesterday! Baturu said loudly.

"Defenseless! Baturu is a great Qin warrior, ten years ago, the widow and Meng Tian ate and drank fiercely in the Lantian camp, and the food is not inferior to Baturu, and one person is half a sheep for a meal! Xiao Gaozi, ask the imperial chef to boil another pot, look at Baturu's appearance, my appetite is also opened, and I have to eat more than ten bowls in a row! King Qin said happily, "Give Montenegro and Baturu a mouthful of the newly made sword of the Shang Workshop!" ”

After a while, there were two swords in the chamberlain! The king of Qin personally gave the sword to Montenegro and Baturu. The two hurriedly took it with both hands, thank you!

Black Mountain carefully duanxiang the long sword in his hand, this long sword, bronze wrapped cowhide for the scabbard, three minutes wide sword grid and six inches long hilt are bronze cast, the sword body with the sheath is about four inches wide, about three and a half feet long, weighs about ten catties, the whole body is simple and clean. It weighs about the same as a long sword in the army, but it grows half a foot.

Montenegro and Baturu were overjoyed, but they didn't dare to draw their swords and admire. King Qin said: "The sword given by the widow, how can you prevent it from being unsheathed and appreciating!" ”

Montenegro listened, no longer worried, lightly pressed the scabbard and pressed the button, a crisp sound, the sword popped out half an inch, and then gently pulled out, only to see that the sword body was in the shape of a willow leaf, the middle of the Seiko carved full of paper patterns, the blade of the sword is very sharp, and the cold light is cold! There are two ancient seal characters at the junction of the blade and the handle: Shang Visit. On the other side are three ancient seal characters: Qin Wangci. Montenegro can confirm that this is not an iron sword common in the Warring States period, but a bronze alloy sword.

When I left Xianyang Palace, it was past the unitary hour. Lang Wei, who was standing guard along the way, all stared enviously at the swords in the hands of Black Mountain and Baturu. Montenegro had long heard Meng Tian say that the Lang Wei around the King of Qin ranged from 2,000 to 5,000, most of them were the children of Qin officials, and a small number were young soldiers with outstanding military performance. In addition to being the guards of the King of Qin, they had different instructors to teach them courses such as marching and arranging formations and the laws of the Qin State when they were off duty. King Qin would personally preside over the assessment every winter, and those who passed the test would be sent to various places to serve as local officials or military officials for further training. There are those that impress King Qin, and they are even more prosperous! Therefore, the children of the official eunuchs of the Qin State were proud to enter the palace as Lang Wei.

Out of the palace gate, Montenegro asked the little eunuch who led the way: "They are all staring at the sword in the hands of me and Baturu, is this sword very rare?" ”

The little chamberlain had been bowing his head and leading the way silently, and when he saw Black Mountain talking to him, he replied very happily: "It must be rare, a swordsmith of Shang Gongfang only forged one in half a year, the key is that others dare not imitate the shape of this sword. I heard that in the past, only a few generals such as Meng Tian, Wang Qian, Li Xin, Yang Duanhe, Fan Yuqi, and Yan Han had obtained it, and even you would not exceed ten people. ”

"I saw that Qin Tian gave two handfuls at once, and I thought that many people had them! I didn't expect it to be so rare. Montenegro sighed.

"This time, I'm sure I'm getting your barefoot again." After listening to the introduction of the chamberlain, Baturu knew the value of this sword!

The next morning, Montenegro and Baturu were practicing swords in the post house, and the two of them were just practicing their own slashing, but they were reluctant to practice slashing! A clerk in a black official uniform came to his side, and Shi Li asked: "Which one is Zuo Geng Heishan, I am Zhang Cang, the secretary of the Prime Minister's Mansion, and I came to take Zuo Geng's people to choose the mansion on the order of the Prime Minister." ”

"I am Montenegro, that is, the Prime Minister's Mansion, let's leave now!" Montenegro replied.

The man was a tall, white and fat young man, estimated to be twenty-six or seventeen years old. Don't talk nonsense, lead the way and go. The two of them walked one after the other to the north of Weishui. Along the way, the streets of Xianyang are very lively, but not noisy! All stores in Qin State are clear and real, and if you want to change the price, you must report to the official market, and the price cannot be changed within seven days after the price is changed. As a result, there is no shouting and bargaining on the street, and the buying and selling efficiency is extremely high! There are no idlers such as entertainers and beggars in the market, and the roads are spotlessly cleaned. According to Qin law, unemployed people who reached the age of 17 were arrested as tired people and sent to hard labor. If you are caught littering, it is a felony to cut your nose, and the store is responsible for the sanitation at the entrance of each store, and the slightest bit of garbage will be heavily fined! In later generations, Xiamen's three-guarantee responsibility system was to learn from the Qin Empire's urban sanitation management methods more than 2,000 years ago. Therefore, all stores will clean their doors cleaner than they do at home.

Zhang Cang seemed to have something on his mind, he took the wrong road twice in three or four miles, and he was still muttering something in his mouth! Because it was not far away, the two came to a street in the south of Weishui, which was slightly higher on the south side of the street, and dozens of identical Wujin mansions were built.

"This piece of mansion was given to the ministers above the left watch by the King of Qin, and now even half of them are empty, and those without a flat door have no owner, and there are only six official servants in each one who are responsible for cleaning. Pick one yourself! Zhang Cang said.

"These are all blue bricks and black tiles, exactly the same! Don't pick, if the one on the edge is empty, I'll pick that one! Montenegro said, pointing to the westernmost foot of the mountain.

"That one is empty, don't you have to ask the Yin and Yang family to take a look and decide again? I'm familiar with Lord Zhang, the Qintianjian Eunuch, do you need me to introduce you? Zhang Cang asked.

"Even if there are ghosts and ghosts, how can you prevent it, just be a neighbor, and you won't be lonely when you talk about wine and swords in the future!" Montenegro never believed in the feng shui of ghosts and gods in the world, and said with a smile, "Besides, the astronomical calendar, the laws of the sun, moon and stars, I know much better than them!" ”

"Oh! Do you still know this? Zhang Cang is not talented, and he studied under Xunzi for ten years when he was a teenager. If there is time for the left, Zhang Cang wants to come to the door to ask for advice! Zhang Cang bowed deeply and gave a Confucian salute to Montenegro.

"I'm a vulgar soldier, how dare I hold it up!" Montenegro replied casually and headed westernmost. Suddenly remembered that this Zhang Cang seemed to mention Xunzi, so he stopped and asked, "You just said that you are Xunzi's protégé?" Li Si and Han Feizi's apprentices? ”

"It is the closed disciple of Teacher Xunzi below, the junior brother of Li Si and Han Feizi!" Zhang Cang replied.

"I saw Li Si last night, who is at least thirty years older than you, and I didn't expect Master Venerable and such a young disciple as you. I don't know how long the teacher will live this year? "Montenegro is very interested in the historical figures of this era! He asked.

"My master traveled a few years ago! I was eighty-six years old when I died, and I came to Xianyang to join Senior Brother Li after sending him off! Zhang Cang replied.

"In Xia Montenegro, my teacher used to discuss learning with Xunzi more than ten years ago, but it was not easy to learn in Xia, and I was embarrassed to mention the teacher." Black Mountain said, and the two of them came to the westernmost mansion.

Zhang Cang walked up the third-level bluestone steps and patted the gate ring a few times. Montenegro looked around, in this era, the forest coverage rate is extremely high, the Qin State attaches great importance to the protection of the forest, so there are ancient trees and cypresses everywhere, the scenery is very good, the gate is opposite the south bank of Weishui, although the mountain behind is not high, but it is an ancient tree forest, like a back garden. After a while, a servant came to open the door, and the two of them walked in, and on the right was the carriage and horse farm, and another door went in and out. On the left is a row of gatehouses with more than a dozen rooms for servants to live in, and inside the two doors are the meeting room and banquet hall, all of which are very spacious, and on both sides are kitchens and warehouses. Further back is the size of the independent courtyard, there are as many as five or six, and then there is a garden, there is a pond, pavilion, although not big, but also exquisite, spring is coming, many trees begin to sprout, there are several cold plum proud snow open.