Chen Shaoyou, the assassin of Shu County, is nearly sixty years old, in the decades of official career, he is capable, good at political flexibility, and likes to make friends with powerful people, so he has been repeatedly promoted, but he is rich in wealth, and has a bad reputation among the people, so although he is a member of the Cui Party, he is not liked by Cui Yuan, and has not been able to become the backbone of the Cui Party.

In the past two days, Chen Shaoyou heard that Zhang Huan had returned to Longyou, he was quite frightened, the reason was of course the twist and turn of the invitation, he had been an official for decades, how could he not understand the truth of being an official under the roof of people, according to his original intention, he would never do this kind of stupid thing that destroyed his future, but he didn't dare to disobey Cui Xiaofu's will, and he finally knew what Cui Xiaofu's real intention was to regard him as a confidant? actually took a fancy to his identity as the assassin of Shu County, and used him to light a fire in Zhang Huan's backyard.

If he knew that Zhang Huan would come back before the end of the year, he would rather offend Cui Xiaofu than take this setback, of course he understood what those borderless lands in Shu meant to Zhang Huan, and he also understood what it meant to him by digging Zhang Huan's corner, but the thing had been done, he could only deal with it to the end, and it depended on whether Cui Xiaofu had a way to protect him.

At this moment, Chen Shaoyou is on his way back to Beijing, on the one hand, he received Cui Xiaofu's edict, he entered the capital to explain to the court in detail the situation of the borderless land in Shuzhong, on the other hand, he also had to find his previous connections and prepare a few more back roads for himself.

"In front of the master is Fengxiang City." His musings were interrupted by the sound of a retinue. Chen Shaoyou pulled the curtain and looked into the distance, the towering walls of Fengxiang City were faintly visible in the morning fog. At this time, it was the beginning of December, it was the most severe day of the year, the trees were withering, the river was frozen, and the field was bleak, although the weather was cold, but Chen Shaoyou's heart still swelled with warmth, and when he arrived at Fengxiang, it meant that he was about to enter the feet of the Son of Heaven, which meant that he had left the core area controlled by Zhang Huan. On the mountain road in Hanzhong, he used to be unable to sleep all night long, lest he be killed by the people sent by Zhang Huan, although Fengxiang is also the place controlled by Zhang Huan, when Chen Shaoyou knew that if Zhang Huan wanted to kill him, he would do it as early as Hanzhong, and there were just people staring at him along the way, but now, all the nightmares have passed.

"Hurry into town!" Chen Shaoyou's withered face finally showed a hint of excitement. He wants to eat a good meal and get a good night's sleep.

Suddenly, one of the attendants pointed to the back and exclaimed, "Envoy, look at the back." ”

Chen Shaoyou saw his frightened expression, and couldn't help but look back, but his heart sank suddenly, as if he stepped on the air, only to see that the official road behind him was full of dust, and a few miles away, a large army was driving towards this side.

"Envoy. What can I do? More than a dozen of his attendants were terrified.

"Don't panic! Don't panic! Chen Shaoyou comforted everyone again and again: "If he wants to kill me, he doesn't need to be so excited." As soon as the words fell, a group of cavalry rushed forward and blocked Chen Shaoyou's way. The first officer stepped forward and saluted: "May I ask if this is the car driving of the Chen Thorn Historical Land of Shu County?" ”

Chen Shaoyou was uneasy in his heart, and he smiled reluctantly: "Next, what is the general looking for me?" ”

The officer bowed politely and said, "The governor of my family heard that Chen Tingshi is here, so please see him." ”

"Is it Zhang Shangshu?" Chen Shaoyou's scalp was numb for a while, it was really a narrow road, and he actually met Zhang Huan here.

"It's the governor of my family."

Although Chen Shaoyou complained bitterly in his heart, his face was happy, and he put on a posture of an old official and said with a smile: "I didn't expect to meet Zhang Shangshu here." It is a small world. Lead me to it quickly. ”

The officer smiled slightly and waved his hand. "Chen Thorn History, please!"

Of course, Zhang Huan didn't come to Fengxiang to block Chen Shaoyou, it was just a coincidence, he received an urgent letter from Pei Jun, urging a cabinet meeting for the war between Cui Qinggong and Wei Deqing, Zhang Huan had not participated in a meeting since he entered this cabinet, and he was also a little interested, so he took his family to Chang'an together.

This time he brought 3,000 people into Beijing, but not long after he returned from Anxi, his 30,000 elites have quietly stationed in various important cities east of Fengxiang and west of Chang'an, which is actually a confirmation process of unspoken rules, Pei Jun's Qianniuwei is stationed in the east of Chang'an, and the Cui family has faded out of the core politics, so as the second strongest of the three-legged stand, it is reasonable for his army to replace Jin Wuwei, so the 30,000 Longyou army stationed in Guanzhong is naturally undisturbed, just like the spring rain sneaking into the night.

Zhang Huan did not ride in a carriage, but in the long wagon of horses sat women and children, and he rode on his horse, enjoying the cold morning breeze and sunshine and the warm and humid air of the Guanzhong region, and his face was, in the private words of the ladies, like a cowhide burned in the desert.

"Governor Qi, Chen Tingshi brings." The soldiers reported loudly, brought an old and simple carriage, and Chen Shaoyou got out of the carriage and saluted Zhang Huan respectfully.

"Chen Shaoyou, the assassin of Xiaguan Shu County, see Zhang Shangshu!"

If you only say from the position, Chen Shaoyou is the history of Shangzhou Thorn, from the third grade, and Zhang Huan is the third grade of the military department, the difference between the two is only half a level, but Zhang Huan's title is from the first rank of Zhangye County King, and the loose official is also from the first rank of the hussar general, and Chen Shaoyou once served as an observer in eastern Zhejiang and was named the prince and young master, from the second grade, the two are still only one level apart, not to mention that Chen Shaoyou has been an official for decades, but in the face of strength, any title identity has become an ethereal thing.

Although the magistrates in Shuzhong are still appointed by the imperial court, most of them are recommended by the envoy of Longyou Jiedu in the name of Zhang Huan, but it is just a genuine label in the way of the appointment of the ministry, and this Chen Shaoyou is one of the few special cases that are missed in most of them, and it is a symbol and a memorial arch in Shuzhong that is still under the jurisdiction of the central court. There are 30,000 permanent troops in Shu County, what can he Chen Shaoyou do?

Zhang Huan glanced at this bold assassin who wanted to dedicate hundreds of thousands of acres of borderless land in Shu County to the imperial court as an official field, and he smiled faintly and said: "Chen Assassin Shi has entered Beijing for thousands of miles. But riding in such a simple carriage, he deserves to be an honest official, and the governor of Pontus is disrespectful. ”

Chen Shaoyou's old face turned red, he took this car to cover up his identity, he was famous in the past, no one knows, Zhang Huan is sarcastic about him!

"Don't dare to come from Hanzhong. There are a lot of thieves along the way, and they dare not be careless. ”

Zhang Huan sneered, "I don't think there are any thieves in Hanzhong, but Chen Tingshi has thieves in his heart." ”

Chen Shaoyou's heart was pounding, but he still stubbornly said: "I don't understand what the governor means. ”

Zhang Huan looked up to the sky and laughed, laughing so that Chen Shaoyou's heart trembled, and suddenly, Zhang Huan's laughter fell, and his tone became gentle, "I also went to Beijing to report on work." It's better for us to go together, on the one hand, we can protect the safety of Chen Tingshi, and on the other hand, I can also casually ask the people's livelihood in Shu County. ”

"Don't dare, Shangshu has an order, how dare you disobey your humble position."

Zhang Huan waved his hand, and the army continued to move eastward, without stopping at Fengxiang City, and went directly to Chang'an, along the way. Zhang Huan asked many people about the livelihood of Shu County, such as the population of Shu County? How much does a family pay taxes? asked the garrison if there was any disturbance in the place, etc., etc., etc., but he never mentioned the word land, which made Chen Shaoyou uneasy. Suspicious all the way, he couldn't sleep or eat, and when he arrived in Chang'an two days later, he seemed to have recovered from a serious illness.

At noon that day, the team passed through Sanqiao Town, and finally saw the majestic Chang'an city wall, and Chen Shaoyou, who was depressed, couldn't hold back any longer, and bowed his hand to Zhang Huan: "Thank you Zhang Shangshu for taking care of you all the way." It has arrived in Chang'an. The lowly post had to rush to Zhongshu Province to report, so he took the first step. ”

Zhang Huan smiled slightly. Nodding and saying: "Along the way, Chen Tingshi has benefited me a lot, and even when I arrived in Chang'an, Chen Tingshi was at ease. ”

Hearing this, Chen Shaoyou was like Sun Wukong jumping out of the Five Elements Mountain, his body was as light as a feather, he didn't dare to be polite, he gave a salute, and hurried away, Zhang Huan looked at his back and walked away, smiled coldly, and then turned back to a soldier and said: "Go and tell the Department of Internal Affairs, be sure to keep an eye on this person's every move, and report to me at any time." ”

At this time, Li Dingfang, the tooth general, galloped from behind and saluted Zhang Huan and said, "Governor, Madame is invited!" ”

Zhang Huan immediately turned the horse's head and came to the convoy, Pei Ying pulled the curtain and smiled at Zhang Huan: "Was that Chen Tingshi finally let go by you?" ”

"It's okay if he's gone, I'm really annoyed." Zhang Huan smiled, he looked inside the car and asked, "Why haven't the children moved?" ”

Pei Ying glanced back, sighed, and said helplessly: "The two little guys have been riding horses all morning, and they are too tired to work, and they are both sleeping like pigs at this time." ”

Zhang Huan nodded, and asked, "What is the matter with Madame looking for me?" ”

Pei Ying pointed to Cui Ning behind her and said with a smile: "Yesterday we heard in Xianyang that this year's polo tournament has been postponed to February next year, are you interested in organizing a team to participate in the competition?" ”

"What, are you also horse fans?" Zhang Huan asked with interest, "How come I have never heard you talk about this?" ”

"How many people in Chang'an are not horse fans, how can we be an exception? It's just that I don't have a chance with you. ”

Pei Ying looked at Zhang Huan with a pair of wonderful eyes, and said with a smile: "How, anyway, if you have ready-made cavalry, organize one, so that we can also have a team to cheer up." ”

Zhang Huan's heart moved, the polo game was an excellent opportunity to connect and communicate, so he nodded, turned his head and asked Li Dingfang next to him with a smile: "Are you interested in this matter?" ”

Li Dingfang is also a native of Chang'an, speaking of which is still a branch of the clan, he has loved polo since he was a child, he was a polo master before joining the army, yesterday he learned about the postponement of the polo tournament in Xianyang, so he found an opportunity to tell his wife, seeing the governor nodded, his heart was so happy that he wanted to explode, and nodded again and again: "Please rest assured, we have a big food horse, and the most warlike cavalry in the Tang Dynasty, it must be no problem, and the subordinates are willing to accept this order!" ”

"Alright, I'll leave this matter to you."

After Zhang Huan said that, he looked at Chang'an City again, and said to Pei Ying: "I estimate that my father-in-law will come out of the city to greet him, so I will go to the front first, so as not to be rude." ”

"Go ahead!" Pei Ying smiled. The curtain was drawn.

As Zhang Huan expected, after Pei Jun sent a letter to Zhang Huan in an emergency, he sent people to pay attention to it every day. When Zhang Huan arrived in Xianyang yesterday, he got the news and brought more than a dozen important ministers out of the city early in the morning to greet him.

Unlike Zhang Huan's return to Longyou the month before, Zhang Huan's entry into Beijing this time was not a triumph, but a visit to Beijing to discuss state affairs, but more importantly, Cui Xiaofu did not want Zhang Huan to be too strong, so he did not agree to hold a formal welcome ceremony. It is only a personal act and has nothing to do with the imperial court.

In addition to Pei Jun, Chu Xingshui, Cui Yu, Lu Qi, Pei You and other important ministers, many members of the Zhang Party, such as Zhang Potian, Yuan Zai, Yang Yan, Zhang Yansheng and dozens of others were also invited to come outside the city to greet them, not only that, but hundreds of middle and low-level officials who were interested in joining the Zhang Party also spontaneously rushed outside the city.

"It's coming! Here it comes! "The officials saw the dust flying in the distance, and everyone rushed to the official road impatiently, and those low-level officials also dressed up their hats. Gotta make a good impression on Shangshu.

At this time, a fast horse galloped over, and the guards dismounted and reported to Pei Junyu: "Qiqi Xiangguo, Zhang Shangshu has arrived two miles away. ”

Pei Jun smiled, then turned back to everyone: "Gentlemen, our Anxi hero is finally back, everyone listen to me today, be sure to get him drunk." Zhang Huan's army stopped a mile away, and he slowly rode over under the escort of more than a dozen personal guards, and Zhang Huan saw Pei Jun from afar. He turned over and dismounted, greeted him with a smile, and saluted Pei Junshen, "Longyou Jiedu makes Zhang Huan see the right Xiangguo." Let the right Xiangguo wait for a long time. ”

Pei Jun looked at his son-in-law, and saw that it had been nearly a month since he came back, but the dust on his face had not completely disappeared, and he could imagine the hardships of his transfer to Anxi, and he couldn't help but feel a little emotion in his heart, so he hurriedly helped him up and said: "The virtuous nephew has made immortal contributions to the country and recovered Anxi, and it is me who should salute." Originally, the imperial court was supposed to hold a grand welcome ceremony for you. But the Queen Mother doesn't want to disturb the people, so please bear with me. ”

Zhang Huan shook his head and said, "Zhang Huan doesn't dare." Serving the country is my duty, but unfortunately I am far away in Anxi, I could not rush back to see off the first emperor, I regret it very much, tomorrow I should go to the temple to comfort the first emperor's spiritual seat. ”

Pei Jun's heart jumped suddenly, and he wanted to persuade him not to act rashly, but he couldn't find a reason for a while, but at this time, Chu Xingshui next to him sighed and said: "The first emperor is most concerned about the war situation in Anxi when he is alive, and he stops in front of the map of Anxi every day, goes to recover Anxi, and goes to comfort him in front of his spirit." ”

Pei Jun saw that the two of them were singing and harmonizing, he sighed secretly, and then reluctantly smiled and said to everyone: "Zhang Shangshu is tired all the way, we won't bother, everyone respects Shangshu with a glass of wine, even if it is to wash the dust for him." ”

"Bring the wine!"

Several attendants brought a plate full of wine cups and wine jugs, Pei Jun poured a glass of wine, handed it to Zhang Huan and said: "You and I are Weng's son-in-law, but I am also an important minister of the court in the same hall, I hope you will continue to focus on state affairs and protect the long-term peace and stability of my Tang Dynasty." ”

Zhang Huan was silent, took the wine glass and drank it all, at this time, Chu Xingshui also stepped forward with a glass of wine, and sighed slightly: "We originally joked to get you drunk, but now I think we should give you two glasses of wine, one is to honor you for the Tang Dynasty to recover Anxi, and the other is to pay tribute to those soldiers who died for the Tang Dynasty, you can drink it for them!" ”

Zhang Huan was solemn, he took the wine glass, drank two glasses in succession, and whispered to Chu Xingshui: "The Central Plains will be in chaos, I am worried that it will affect Guangling, and I have ordered tens of thousands of troops to go to Guangling to station, and my uncle must rush back as soon as possible." ”

Chu Xingshui's heart was shocked, he glanced at Pei Jun behind him, then nodded gratefully to Zhang Huan, retreated, and the next one to come up was Zuo Xiang Cui Yu, he also picked up a glass of wine and handed it to Zhang Huan and said: "Cui Lao Xiangguo has always regretted that he failed to take back Anxi and Beiting during his tenure, and he fulfilled this wish for him when he got sick, and he specially ordered me to toast you for him, and this glass of wine is a piece of his heart." ”

Zhang Huan took the wine glass and asked in a low voice, "Where is Elder Cui Ge now?" ”

Cui Yu also said in a low voice: "He just came from Shandong the day before yesterday. ”

Zhang Huan nodded, the two smiled, Zhang Huan drank the wine again, and then everyone persuaded him to drink again and again, he drank dozens of glasses in a row, and couldn't help but be proud, raised a large glass to the officials who stood far away and came to greet him, and said loudly: "Everyone came to greet the heart of the earth, Zhang Huan received it, but unfortunately I can't toast one by one, I drink this cup to thank you for your kindness!" ”

He held up a big cup of goo, goo! drank it all in one go, shouted happily, threw the wine glass, hugged his fists to everyone and said: "Zhang Huan is not strong enough to drink, he has to take the first step." ”

The officials standing in the distance burst into applause, and Yuan Zai said loudly: "We are willing to take Zhang Shangshu as a model and serve the Tang Dynasty!" ”

Zhang Huan bowed to everyone again, and staggered to leave with the support of his own soldiers, at this moment, several horses came from afar, all of them were eunuchs in the palace, and one of them shouted loudly: "Zhang Shangshu, please stay, the Queen Mother is about to arrive!" ”