Zhao Dangshi spent the day in Chen Hongfan's Zhuangzi and left for Zaoyang early the next morning. Chen Hongfan was full of sincerity and said goodbye to five miles away. In the pavilion, the two children served the wine pot and wine glass, Zhao Dangshi and Chen Hongfan held hands to drink, a glass of wine in the stomach, Chen Hongfan looked at the twenty guards on the road, strong and lean, and said: "The general knows the soldiers, and the soldiers know the generals." There is courage and bravery, and the dragon and leopard leap in the virtuous brother camp can be seen to be extraordinary. The stability of this Chubei will all depend on the trouble of the virtuous brother in the future. ”

Zhao Dangshi replied: "Brother said there. The younger brother still has to rely on the blessing of his brother and Lord Xiong. If there is no elder brother and Lord Xiong to take care of him, the younger brother can only be a castle in the air, and it is difficult to become an atmosphere. ”

Chen Hongfan said with a smile: "Brother Xian is too humble. My brother is old, he can't achieve anything, and most of his heart is dead, so he doesn't expect anything to soar. But you are loyal and talented, and you have a bright future, even if you are an elder brother, you will help you get ahead. He added, "When you come back next time, you should know that what your brother said is true." ”

"Thanks to my brother's auspicious words, I will drive in the future, just say hello, and I will not hesitate to go to the soup to be the younger brother!"

The two of them left the luncheon and went to the peach forest in the back garden of Chenzhuang to marry Jinlan. Chen Hongfan Changzhao has a lot of life and is a brother. After the worship, the relationship between the two went to the next level, they slept on the same bed at night, slept on their feet, and chatted all night. Back at this time, Zhao Dangshi thanked him a few words, and without any other words, he didn't postpone anymore, stepped on the horse, and led the crowd to say goodbye after repeatedly arching his hands.

The road back to the camp, without the two carriages of Huaqing and Zhu Changfa, more than 20 horsemen galloped, and arrived at Lutoudian before evening.

When he arrived in the camp, the first thing Zhao Dangshi did was to send a message about He Kewei, asking him to immediately prepare a generous gift and send a sharp man to Chen Hongfan and Xiong Wencan. Although a batch of gifts have been sent before, Zhao Dangshi still feels that it is not enough, what Zhao Ying needs most at present is the medium of officialdom, and now since Chen Hongfan and even Xiong Wencan have taken the initiative to solicit it, it is impossible for him Zhao Dangshi to bind himself. Zhao Ying's money and food are tight, but Zhao Dangshi believes that as long as he makes the best use of things, he will be able to achieve twice the result with half the effort.

The second thing is the disposal of Guo Ruke. This matter has been settled earlier, that is, the so-called "open reward and hidden punishment". Guo Ruke knew it in his heart, and in the face of Zhao Dangshi, he took the initiative to admit his mistake and asked for punishment. Zhao Dangshi was not angry, and talked with him for a long afternoon on the matter, and finally left him a task and a chance to redeem his merits. This task originated from Chen Hongfan's proposal, and Zhao Dangshi thought that it would be foolproof to hand it over to Guo Ruke.

The third thing is related to Zuo Liangyu, and the specific current situation lies in Zuo Mengeng. A few days ago, Zuo Sili wrote that Zuo Mengeng obeyed his father's orders and followed the army that went south to chase Kou, and passed through Zaoyang halfway, and would go around to Lutoudian to visit Zhao Dangshi. The latest news is that Zuo Mengeng is already in Piyang County, and greeted Zhao Ying and said that he would be able to arrive at Lutou Store at noon tomorrow at the latest.

If Chen Hongfan is the key role that Zhao Dangshi must befriend, Zuo Liangyu's importance is not far behind. Especially when Chen Hongfan also revealed the intention of suppressing Zhang Xianzhong, the advantages of being able to get along with Zhang Xianzhong's mortal enemy Zuo Liangyu outweigh the disadvantages.

According to the comprehensive information from the Secret Service Department, Zuo Liangyu's son is only 16 years old this year, but Kong Wu is powerful and has a shrewd personality, and he is very famous, and many people feel that he will be able to inherit his father's "inheritance" in the future. However, Zuo Mengeng is more famous for his favorite flying eagle lackeys and lingering in fireworks. Although he is young, he has long been a frequent visitor to the flowers, and there are countless romantic debts. Only this point is very different from Zuo Liangyu - although Zuo Liangyu is greedy for money and power, he is not lustful, and there are very few heirs.

However, Zuo Mengeng's penchant for women attracted Zhao Dangshi's attention.

Even if Zhao Dangshi and Zhao Ying are not what they used to be, they are also a powerful force in northern Chu, but they are still far inferior to Zuo Liangyu in terms of prestige and strength. Zuo Liangyu has the heart to make friends with Zhao Dangshi, which is a good thing, but he does not forget the danger, in the face of the powerful Zuo Liangyu, just like the worries when he was under Li Zicheng, Zhao Dangshi is really worried that because of the serious asymmetry of the strength of the two sides, Zhao Ying will eventually become a lackey led by Zuo Liangyu's nose.

Therefore, Zuo Liangyu wanted to use the Dafushan silver mine to tie Zhao Ying to his chariot, and Zhao Dangshi also had to try his best to find a way to seize the initiative and help him maintain this delicate relationship full of temptation and danger more easily.

However, simply wanting to tie up the famous Zuo Liangyu with money, Zhao Dangshi would never be naïve to that point. He, Chang Zeyu, and Mu Gongchun finally decided to find a breakthrough from Zuo Mengeng's body. Zuo Mengeng is Zuo Liangyu's beloved son, and controlling him in the palm of his hand is equivalent to controlling Zuo Liangyu, and it is not an exaggeration to say that he can attack and retreat and defend. Hitting the snake and hitting seven inches, Zhao Dangshi's old skills were repeated, intending to use women to subdue the young and vigorous Zuo Mengeng.

But planning is easy to implement and difficult to implement, and the first and most important difficulty is, what kind of woman is suitable?

If you want to impress Zuo Menggeng, who is accustomed to brocade clothes and jade food, and is drunk with gold, it is difficult for ordinary village rough women to think about it, so they can only choose from the existing military ladies in Zhao Ying. It's just that although there are many military personnel in Zhao Ying's army now, the proportion of female dependents of appropriate age is very low, and Zhao Dangshi can report their names one by one with his fingers, nothing more than Lou Niang, Meng Liu, Qin Shilu, Ru Pingyang, and Xiaozhu, and it is impossible for Zhao Dangshi to use these people's brains.

"Don't forget, Lord Hou and Yang Zhongjun are accompanied by beautiful jade." Therefore, the target this time was Zuo Mengeng rather than the army, so at night, Zhao Dangshi only summoned the two army divisions of Chang and Mu and Wang Laixing, who was familiar with the affairs of the army, to discuss countermeasures. Thinking about it, he couldn't figure out the protagonist of this "beauty plan", Mu Gongchun suddenly snapped his fingers and said.

Zhao Dangshi asked, "It seems that there is such a thing." ”

Wang Laixing continued: "What Mr. Mu said is the Rao family and the Ko family. Then he explained, "The lord may have forgotten that after defeating Wu Dading in Hanzhong, Hou Tongzhi once plundered a beauty. At that time, the lord talked about it, but he still didn't ask, and he went. As for Koo, I heard Yang Zhongjun say that it was his wife, I asked Koe, and she didn't refute it, which can be regarded as a tacit acquiescence. ”

Speaking of this, Chang Zeyu coughed lightly and said, "Rao's real name is Rao Liubo, and she was originally Wu Dading's concubine, and her appearance is extraordinary. It's a good candidate. "Really speaking, Rao Liubo can be attributed to Hou Dagui or thanks to him, Zhao Dangshi and others don't know about bribing Hou Dagui with a beauty, but Chang Zeyu is very sensitive, afraid of some unnecessary incidents, so try to guide the topic to the limit of what he can control.

Wang Laixing nodded and said: "Yes, the Hou Command has taken the Rao family for himself, and he has always been placed in the back camp, and now he has moved to the barracks built in the north. As for the Ko clan, he followed Yang Zhongjun from Sichuan. ”

Zhao Dangshi pondered for a while and said, "Since the Ko family is Yang Zhongjun's wife, it's enough. Are Rao and Hou Tong husband and wife? ”

Wang Laixing said with a smile: "I'm afraid that there is a husband and wife but no husband and wife." "For Hou Dagui, whether it is before or after, he never gives face, he has to arrange it when he finds an opportunity.

Zhao Dangshi nodded and said: "Since they are not husband and wife, then in comparison, the Rao family seems to be feasible." ”

Wang Laixing said with a smile: "There is a way to be the champion. On scratching her head and making gestures, foxes and flattering people, I look at the huge Zhao Ying, she said second, no one dares to call it first. The lord didn't know that there were a lot of rumors about her in the back camp. As soon as she comes out of the horse, I guarantee that Zuo Mengeng will be beheaded under the horse if she doesn't fight Sanhe. ”

Zhao Dangshi's imperial majesty is strict and lenient, such as a general of Hou Dagui's level, he will never ask about how many women he keeps in private. But Wang Laixing was different, he couldn't rub the sand in his eyes, and when he thought that he was in charge of the rear camp at the same time, he seemed to be helping Hou Dagui raise a concubine for Huan Li, he was disgusted and disgusted. If it weren't for Zhao Dangshi's face, he would have beaten a cheap woman like Rao Liubo out of the camp a long time ago.

Chang Zeyu interjected at this time: "If you say Rao Liubo, it is indeed a first-class good product. In the past, Wu Dading was fascinated by him. Even if Daji and Zhao Hede are resurrected, I'm afraid it's just that. Forgive Zuo Mengeng for a small child, it is absolutely difficult to hold it. Speaking of this, he paused for a moment and said worriedly, "I'm just afraid that Hou Tongzhi likes her deeply, and I don't want to give up." ”

Wang Laixing sneered: "What if he doesn't want to? Isn't the business in the camp more important than his donkey? ”

Chang Zeyu said: "Hou has a violent temperament, and if he is forced, his reaction may be unpredictable, and he must be prepared. ”

Zhao Dangshi clapped his hands and said: "The matter is urgent, Zuo Mengeng will arrive at noon tomorrow, and the Rao family will have to prepare properly." Saying that, he said to Wang Laixing, "Brother Lai, you work harder, you will disperse tonight, and then go to the barracks in the north to arrange things." At the same time, after thinking about it, I was a little worried about Wang Laixing's upright character, and added, "When you go, call Commander Pang and talk to him about the situation." "Pang Jinming is shrewd and reliable, and he has rich experience, and having him by his side can ensure that nothing goes wrong.

"Yes." Wang Laixing's face frowned, looking a little unhappy, Zhao Dangshi saw it in his eyes, and didn't ask much.

"As for the Hou Commander's side, I'll talk to him alone tonight." Zhao Dangshi clenched his fists and said.

Wang Laixing said: "He doesn't seem to be there tonight." Oh, by the way, didn't the lord forget, he has important things to do, but I'm afraid that it will be difficult to show up without ten days and half a month. ”

After he mentioned this, Zhao Dangshi suddenly remembered an extremely important task that was assigned to Hou Dagui two days ago. Hou Dagui has already left Zhao Ying, and it is almost impossible to meet him in recent days.

"Hou Tongzhi has a heavy responsibility, and he can't be summoned back halfway, even if he sends someone, it will be too late for him to come back." Zhao Dangshi said while thinking about it, "It's still the same sentence, there is a difficulty to solve and a difficulty, he is there, I will go to appease him afterwards." ”

Chang Zeyu and the others all nodded and said, "Now it seems that it can only be like this." ”

The next day, after a while, Zhao Dangshi and others, who had been waiting outside the gate for a long time, finally saw the dust flying in the distance.

Xu Hui, who was standing behind, flicked off the beads of sweat on his cheeks, and said, "What's it, let us wait for an hour." Even when his father came, he didn't take it like this. "He has recently relapsed from his old disease, and he has only recovered for a long time, as the front-line general of Zhao Ying, he supported his body and followed Zhao Dangshi to welcome Zuo Mengeng, and he was tired and annoyed at this time.

Pang Jinming didn't sleep well last night because of Rao Liubo's incident, and sneered with the dark circles under his eyes: "The news that my brothers heard said that the young master Zuo had too much of a banquet last night, so that he got up a little late this morning. Wait for a conversation and see what he has to say! ”

Zhao Dangshi's face was indifferent, he didn't say a word, took a few steps forward, and broke away from the crowd slightly. After a while, the number of horses in the distance gradually became clear, and Zhao Dangshi glanced at it, there were ten people in total, and there was no doubt that Zuo Mengeng came privately. Among the ten horsemen, Zhao Ying was greeted from a distance, and one of them went out first, and soon ran to the front.

The person on the horse turned over, and Zhao Dangshi saw his face clearly, he was a middle-aged man, with thin eyes and a wide face, and a thick lip beard. Looking at his posture again, he should be a military attaché.

The man found that Zhao Dangshi was heroic, and first arched his hand and said: "Jin Shenghuan, a temporary staff member in the camp of the lower left marshal." ”

Zhao Dangshi also bowed his hand in return: "I have long admired the prestige of Lord Jin, and Zhao Dangshi has been waiting for Zuo Gongzi here for a long time." ”

Think of three steps at a time, and the basis for each step comes from abundant intelligence. Zuo Mengeng is the protagonist, Zhao Ying listed him as a key research object, and at the same time, Zhao Dangshi did not ignore others. For example, this Jin Shenghuan is now a person who is qualified to lead an army under Zuo Liangyu, and Zhao Dangshi also knows him. Although he didn't expect Jin Shenghuan to accompany Zuo Mengeng over, Zhao Dangshi was still very calm.

He knew that this Jin Shenghuan was a native of Gucheng in Tieling, Liaodong, and the war in Liaodong was endless, and his family was all slaughtered, and he was the only one who fled into the pass. And because he was brave and resolute in fighting and not afraid of death, and his ancestral home was in Linqingzhou, Shandong, he was of the same nationality as Zuo Liangyu, so he was repeatedly promoted and trusted after joining Zuo Liangyu's command. It's always good to be a little more careful when you associate with this kind of person.

When Jin Shenghuan heard that it was Zhao Dangshi in front of him, he changed his face and said, "It turned out that Lord Zhao had arrived in person, and he was tired." After finishing speaking, two horses came over from behind, one of which was Zhao Dangshi, who was quite familiar, it was Zuo Sili. And the other one who rode on a white-faced bearded descendant, I think it is Zuo Mengeng, who has been looking forward to it for a long time.