Since early in the morning, ten military ships have driven up one after another, and they are lined up one or two miles away from the head of the ferry, almost cutting the surface of the river.

There were dozens of merchant ships of all sizes at the ferry, and there were many business travelers and porters and pedestrians who came and went.

"What happened today that all the military ships of the military government were assembled?"

"Could it be that the water ghosts of the West River are going to be killed again?"

"What a magnificent fleet! In half my life on the water, I have never seen such a huge ship! The old men all said that 'water does not carry 10,000 stones', and the big warship in the middle is afraid that it can carry more than 10,000 stones! ”

……

To say that Datang's shipbuilding technology is now the best in the world. Various shipbuilding technologies have long been prevalent in the watery land of the south, the most common of which is the "flat-bottomed sand prevention ship", which is generally popular among the people. And these large military ships in front of them are extremely rare "lucky ships" of the Jingxiang generation, also known as "Wuyue sea ships". The biggest feature of this ship is that it has a large displacement, is sturdy and solid, and is conducive to breaking waves, and is mostly used in the southeast coastal area to walk on the deep-water route of the South Seas.

The big warships in front of him are the "Divine Fish Spaceships" that Zhao Chong said, which took a lot of money and the experienced old boat masters invited from the southeast Wuyue land to build them with a long period of effort. The shipbuilding materials alone are all good pine, cedar, camphor and nanmu specially transported from the land of Wuyue, and the shipbuilding technology used is also the advanced technology such as "living water tank", "multi-mast" and "tenon joint nailing" that are extremely rare in the small water in the Jingxiang area.

It's like a small car shop full of BYD and Chery QQ, and suddenly a few limited edition Ferraris come in, and it is extremely difficult not to cause a sensation and attract attention.

On one of the largest Divine Fish spaceships, Zhao Chong's face was handsome, and he pursed his lips without saying a word. Standing next to him were all the generals of the Xiangzhou Military Government, all of whom were also standing quietly. But a number of people are clearly getting impatient.

"Zhao Chong, did General Qin make an appointment with you yesterday?" Du Chengyuan, the captain of Guoyi, stepped forward and asked.

"Back to the general's words, exactly." Zhao Chong raised his head and put his hand on his hand to look at the sky, sighed and said, "The hour is almost here, and I don't know why I haven't come yet." ”

"This General Qin may not be too weird to do things, how can a new official take office without first going to the post to meet with the bureaucrats?" Du Chengyuan wrinkled his brows, and said with a little displeasure, "It's good that he came to Weifu for a private visit first, and ended up in prison; After that, he did a military parade with great fanfare, but he only paraded sailors, and he didn't know what medicine he was selling in his gourd. ”

"He is the future son-in-law of the emperor's old man, the master of the Tang Dynasty, what does he want to do is not a matter of words? Maybe it was a whim and wanted to show off his majesty, but a casual sentence caused our brothers to work hard. Zhao Chong pursed his lips and said with some disdain, "Jingguan'er, it's all like this, the shelf is big, and it's difficult to serve." ”

Du Chengyuan smiled slightly and said, "Zhao Chong, don't underestimate this Qin Mubai. I know a little bit about him. Whether it is the emperor's future son-in-law or not, it doesn't matter. This person is not simple. ”

"Isn't it easy?" Everyone was intrigued and asked.

"Have you heard of it? It is a new pro-honor guard formed by the emperor in recent years. It is said that all the hundred cavalry soldiers are one to block the hundred, have the unpredictable ability of ghosts and gods, and are known as the king of soldiers. Du Chengyuan said, "I went back to Chang'an Province a few years ago, and I heard that the streets and alleys were rumoring about this Qin Mubai. He was the first Hundred Cavalry Envoy, and the Hundred Cavalry Guards were formed and trained by him. In addition, this person's wisdom and martial arts are extraordinary, and he has close contacts with the royal nobles of Chang'an, and it is said that he also worshiped Wei Gong Li Jing as a teacher to learn the art of war, which is enough to see how important the emperor is to him. If time goes on, if he becomes a rising star in my Tang Army, it is unknown. But don't forget, he was originally born in Jiangmen, and he was the queen of Qin Shubao, the Duke of Yiguo......"

Du Chengyuan spoke at length, and Zhao Chong and the others were stunned.

"I didn't think that this Qin Mubai has such a great background and ability!" Everyone exclaimed, "We only think that he is a gentleman who climbs the dragon and attaches the phoenix, and because of nepotism, he has won the title of captain!" ”

Du Chengyuan gently picked the corners of his mouth, and said with a somewhat solemn expression: "Let's tell you this...... I'd rather underestimate King Wu than this Qin Mubai! Maybe when, this person surnamed Qin will be in Xiangzhou and make a big move! - just like when he assisted King Wu in Jiangzhou! ”

……

At this moment, Qin Mubai took Pang Fei and a group of thirty hundred cavalry soldiers, all dressed in military uniforms, and rode on a horse jogging on the river bank heading to the Eight Ghost Crossing.

"General, listen to Zhao Chong's bragging, how amazing the Shenyu spaceship and the Bailang Navy are in Xiangzhou Mansion, you can see it once today." Pang Fei grinned, as if he was a little disdainful.

Qin Mubai smiled: "Zhao Chong said this, but there was a hidden irony. Historically, the northerners rode horses and the southerners fought boats, and he deceived us people who came from Guanzhong, and he didn't know the water and didn't know the boat! ”

"Haha! If the hundred horsemen don't know how to understand the water and can't drive a boat, won't they laugh at their big teeth? Pang Fei laughed and said, "Our hard training in Weishui every year is not in vain, if you want to talk about water wars, what white waves and black waves of water army, we really don't take them seriously!" ”

Qin Mubai lightly picked the corner of his mouth and smiled: "In fact, sometimes being despised by others is not necessarily a bad thing. ”

The group of people and horses advanced for several miles, and from a distance, they saw a group of people on the black pressure of the Eight Ghosts, which was noisy and lively. In the distance, there is a row of boats moored in the center of the river, closely connected and lined up, like a city built in the river, solid as a golden soup and extraordinary. The rumbling snare drums and horns sounded in the sky, annoyed that the water of the Han River crashed on the shore.

"Yes, it's spectacular." Qin Mubai smiled and said, "Among the lakes in the south, it is rare to see such a giant ship, I think it must have cost a lot of money. This ship was enough for navigation, and it was only in the military ports around Deng, Ying, and Pengrai that such warships were abundant, and they were enough to easily cross the sea to Baekje and Silla and other countries. I can't imagine that a small Xiangzhou would use such a huge ship to deal with water ghosts...... Haha, it's really a knife to kill chickens! ”

"The general is really well-informed, and I have only seen such a big ship in my life!" The soldiers were surprised.

Qin Mubai smiled: "It's the first time I've seen it. It's just that when I was in the imperial study before, I accompanied His Majesty the Emperor to see the drawings of the sea ships sent by the Eastern Navy Town, so I had a slight impression. Building such a ship is better than building thousands of iron horses, and it's worth a lot of money! ”

As he was talking, a group of cavalry in front of him rushed over, and the first colonel dismounted and bowed: "Dare to ask Your Excellency, but General Qin?" ”

"Exactly." Qin Mubai raised his horsewhip, "Are you from the Xiangzhou Military Mansion?" ”

"It's Biaoxia!" The military academy stood up and stood aside, "General, please board the boat and parade, everything is ready!" ”

"Okay." Qin Mubai and his entourage got off their horses and walked towards the river, and the onlookers were in an uproar, and they all looked forward to it.

Walking to the river, a flat-bottomed sand defense boat was waiting here, Qin Mubai and others got on the boat, and there were sergeants on the boat waving flags, and sounding war drums and horns. At the same time, on the ship's mid-mast flagpole, a huge flag was raised, with the word "Qin" written on it!

At the same time, the ten Divine Fish spaceships lined up in the center of the river also sounded the war drums and horns neatly, waving the same flags.

"Heh, these sailors are indeed well trained, and they are more professional in a uniform manner." Qin Mubai smiled and praised.

Pang Fei and the others were stunned for a while, and someone asked, "General, what do these flags mean?" ”

"The flag of the Tang Navy." Qin Mubai said, "It's my negligence, I haven't taught these things in Baiqi before." In fact, if I hadn't learned it in Li Jing's military book, I wouldn't have understood the meaning of these flag words. ”

"And what do they say about these flags?"

"It's nothing, just welcome and respectful to me."

Pang Fei and the others sighed: "It's really interlaced like a mountain......

While speaking, the flat-bottomed sand defense military ship that Qin Mubai and the others were riding headed towards the rivers and mountains. In fact, this ship is not small, and among the merchant ships and passenger ships moored at the pier of Hachikidu, the largest is like this. But when it sailed to the center of the river and was placed with those divine fish spaceships, it simply became a dwarf ship.

One of the largest Flying Fish ships had a cabin on its side, allowing Qin Mubai and the others to easily walk in directly. This made Qin Mubai a little surprised, he didn't expect this ship to be advanced to such an extent!

When they walked to the bow deck, all the soldiers came to meet in unison.

With a relaxed smile on his face, Qin Mubai replied with a slight fist: "Brothers, no courtesy!" Qin is a newcomer, and I will thank you for your support in the future! ”

"General Qin is polite!"

Qin Mubai walked among the soldiers with his hands cut on his back, saw the familiar Zhao Chong at a glance, and smiled at him: "Captain Zhao's sailor army has indeed practiced well, and he is a captain." Especially this boat, it really opened the eyes of me, a landlubber from the north! ”

Zhao Chong hugged his fists and replied: "General, in fact, this ship is not a commonly used ship in the Jingxiang area of Jiangnan, but a famous boat master who spent a lot of money to invite from the Wuyue area, and spent years to build it. In the area of Deng and Ying, such warships are mostly used in naval battles, and they are unique in the interior. ”

"Not bad." Qin Mubai nodded and smiled, "When I was in the capital, I heard that the more ingenious Wu is, the more unique his shipbuilding skills are in the world. There is a saying that prevails among the boatmen in the south, called 'water does not carry ten thousand', which means that there are no boats on the river that can carry ten thousand stones. However, there is a kind of giant ship in the Wuyue area, the alley is a nursery, the boat can grow vegetables and raise chickens and sheep, and there are more than hundreds of people who operate and drive, and many people have been on the ship all their lives, and the marriage of men and women is carried out on the ship, as if the ship is their home. Look at these ten Divine Fish Ships in front of you, they are simply moving fortresses! ”

After hearing this, everyone looked suspicious, and Zhao Chong suddenly stood in awe: "The general is really well-informed!" In fact, this ship is Wu Yue's unique 'lucky boat', also known as 'Wu Yue sea boat', the so-called divine fish...... It's just another name for the general! ”

Qin Mubai smiled: "I'm just talking on paper." When it comes to water warfare, I don't know anything about it, and I have to rely on you a lot! Look at these soldiers I brought, all of them have big butts, and they have been riding horses like this all year round. Look at the sailors on this Shenyu spaceship, all barefoot, each with a big footboard, standing much more stable than us, enough to see that you are usually very diligent! ”

All the officials and generals laughed, and Zhao Chong said: "In fact, the Shenyu spacecraft uses a living water tank to drain water, and it is extremely stable on the sea surface and is like walking on the ground, not to mention walking in the river." Later, the general would probably think that he was still on land. ”

"Okay, let's move forward!" Qin Mubai waved his hand, "Let's go to the West River Groove and take a look!" ”

"Yes!" Zhao Chong promised loudly, walked to the platform and waved the flag, and all the ships beat the drums together, and the momentum shook like a hurricane and drove forward. During this period, the ten giant ships under the command of Zhao Chong constantly changed their formations, and they were indeed well-trained.

Qin Mubai shook his head secretly: These guys are more engaged in 'formalism', such a big formation, if they go across the sea to pacify Japan? It's just a matter of fighting a few water ghosts, and you don't need such a huge ship at all. Hearing you beating drums, people would have jumped into the water and scattered as birds and beasts. Is such a big ship used to suppress bandits, or is it used to put on a façade for political achievements?

On the surface, the Xiangzhou military government can be described as a big move, and it has spent a lot of effort to deal with water ghosts; In fact, it's all inaction in scratching the shoe. It is conceivable that in the past, when he said that he wanted to kill the water ghosts, he was all pretentious with thunder and rain. It's like hammering an ant with a jack of a giant hammer, whether they kill it or not, what they care about is whether the hammer is cool and handsome enough, but they forget that it only takes one finger to pinch an ant to death.

To put it bluntly, this is the superficial article that the Xiangzhou Military Government uses to deal with the poor, and it is indeed very gorgeous!

During the march of the big ship, Qin Mubai also got to know the generals and colonels of the military government separately. What interested him the most was one of the Guo Yi Lieutenants who was on top of Pang Fei and his left and right hands, Du Chengyuan.

"I see General Du as extraordinary, handsome and elegant, and sure enough, he is from a famous family." Qin Mubai smiled at him and said, "Chang'an Weidu, go to the sky five feet." General Du has an extraordinary background! ”

"Where, where, let General Qin smile." Du Chengyuan smiled politely and replied, "The last general is just a side branch of the Du family, where can it compare to the general's family?" Last year, His Majesty the Emperor issued a new "Clan Chronicle", and the Qin family was already a famous family in this dynasty, ranking before the Du family! ”

Qin Mubai smiled slightly and was silent.

Because, although Du Chengyuan's words were polite, they were secretly sarcastic!

The Tang Dynasty has only been founded for more than 20 years, and in the minds of the world, it is still a family that respects the old-fashioned gate lords. Historically, whether it is a royal family or a high-ranking official eunuch, they are proud to intermarry with the old clan. The daughters of these gate lords are even more sought-after than the princesses of the royal family, and their influence among the nobles is also quite huge.

As the emperor, Li Shimin couldn't help but be annoyed, so a few years ago, he ordered someone to rewrite the clan chronicles and make a hard ranking of the surname gatekeepers. As a result, the minister who was responsible for compiling the clan chronicles at that time actually ranked the names and surnames of Chang'an Weidu, Taiyuan Wang and several other old nobles in Shandong before the imperial Li family!

This really annoyed Li Shimin, so he took matters into his own hands and issued a hard order to rank the Li family first, and the surnames and famous families of many of the remaining founding ministers were also ranked first.

The Qin family, who was originally born in poverty, is one of them.

But the fact is that the deep-rooted concept of the family in the minds of everyone is difficult to change for a while.

In the eyes of those veteran gatekeepers and scholars, the emperor's move was just forcibly putting a fig leaf on himself, talking to himself and appreciating himself, and others did not buy it. The current situation is that the old door valve families are still very famous, and there is no change compared to the past. Secretly, there are many people who ridicule those who were "forcibly" pulled into the ranks of the nobles by the emperor, saying that they pretended to be nobles, and they were smiling and generous.

It's like what happens to a man wearing "Abidas" when he walks into an Adidas store. Du Chengyuan is like a salesman in a specialty store, and he is praising Qin Mubai's clothes are really good - in front of a monk, scolding a bald donkey!

Although Qin Mubai didn't care about these things, he was openly provoked and ridiculed, and he also defiled his family...... At this moment, although he had a smile on his face, a trace of karma was already faintly ignited in his heart.

It can be seen that Du Chengyuan has a transcendent status among the generals in the military government, and everyone subconsciously respects him, and he is the only one who looks forward. He was probably used to being the boss in the military government, and suddenly a new official came to press on his head, making him uncomfortable left and right. In front of the generals, I embarrassed this new "strong dragon" a little, so as to show my majesty, and remind everyone not to forget - I am the real boss!

Qin Mubai thought in his heart, if I want to serve the people in the military mansion, if I don't clean up his local snake first, how can I get mixed up in the future?

Okay, Du Chengyuan, you'll make the first move as soon as I come...... Don't say it's your little Du clan's side branch disciple, now when the son of Chao Ma and Du Ruhui stands in front of me, then you have to obediently give me a little rest!

If it weren't for today's big scene, I wouldn't want to slap you in the face in public and embarrass everyone, you will suffer!

Let's see!