Today's Datang, the family and the gate valve are in charge. Such as Shandong's five surnames and seven wangs, and then such as Hedong's "Xue Peiliu". These big surnames are either extremely successful in politics or have a high reputation among the people and society. Even if Emperor Li Tang, the Emperor of the Ninety-Five, wants to sit firmly in the country, he must closely unite these big surnames by means of marriage and the like.

For example, the first emperor Li Zhi's Empress Yuan Pei was from the Taiyuan Wang family, and the current emperor Li Xian's empress was born in Jingzhao Wei, and Xue Shao's marriage with Princess Taiping also had this intention.

Xue Shao is not only a noble son of the Xue family in Hedong, but also a relative to Princess Taiping, and he knows the truth and benefits better than anyone else.

After thinking for a moment, Xue Shao asked, "Who is the other Haoqiang?" ”

Xu Changqing looked even more nervous, looked at Xue Shao timidly, and whispered: "The other family is surnamed Liu, and he is from the Liu family in Hedong. Count...... This family also seems to have some relationship with Xue Dudu. ”

"Go on!" Xue Shao shouted impatiently.

"Yes, yes!" Xu Changqing wiped a cold sweat and said: "The head of this family is named Liu Yuan, whose ancestors were named earls in the Wude Dynasty at the beginning of the founding of the Tang Dynasty, and Liu Yuan has now inherited the title and is known as 'Earl Liu'." This person has a wide range of friends, has many contacts with celebrities and high-ranking officials, is calculating, quite skillful, and is very good at accumulating money. His family has thousands of acres of fertile land, thousands of acres of corn, thousands of stones, countless sheep and horses, thousands of doormen, and is the largest family in Suizhou. At the beginning, Bai Tieyu went around to collect grain and Latin to enlist in the army, but he did not commit any crime and worshiped him as a guest. Whoever holds the post of assassin must first pay a visit to him. ”

"Needless to say, I know this man." Xue Shao let out a long sullen breath, that's right, I have an impression of this Liu Yuan...... He has a daughter, Liu, who is a little bit small, and should be eighteen years old this year. Before I "crossed", the Liu family once went to Lantian County to find the then Lantian Gongzi to give him a hug. The two had a passionate and dewy couple.

Later, Liu Yuan, who was looking for his daughter everywhere, personally visited Xue Shao and wanted to officially "propose". At that time, how could the prince of Lantian give up the entire forest for the sake of a tree? So Liu Yuan ran into a wall and returned, and at the same time brought back the crying Liu. The two have not heard from each other since, and they don't know if the Liu family is married now.

Thinking of this, Xue Shao couldn't help but be a little annoyed, fuck, he still had to pay for the amorous debts that Lantian Gongzi had made before!

"Xue Dudu, I'm afraid you have to be cautious in this matter." Xu Changqing's face was embarrassed, and he whispered, "Yang Tong and Liu Yuan have extremely high popularity in the local area, and they have a close relationship with officialdom and aristocrats, and their relationship with each other is intertwined. In contrast, these two families are a hundred times more powerful than Wu Yizong, the minister of the Qin Mission. ”

Xue Shao nodded silently, thinking that Xu Changqing, as a local parent official, was very objective and reasonable in what he said. As a wealthy local family, the Yang Liu family not only has high social prestige, but also has strong economic strength and political influence. Xu Changqing's words vaguely revealed a layer of intention, he, the new governor of Xiazhou, should go to visit and marry them as soon as possible, so that he can be regarded as conforming to the general rules of officialdom.

But Xue Shao didn't want to do this at all!

Because Xue Shao thinks that in addition to being a feudal official on the side of the army and the people on the horse, he is also the son of a wealthy family in Tianhuang, and he is a concubine of the court. According to the prevailing values, I, Xue Shao, am not a poor man, my background is not lower than yours, and my political status is much higher than yours, so why should I take the initiative to curry favor with you?

In other words, Xue Shao has been in office for so long, and the two Yangliu families have not taken the initiative to offer their sincerity to Xue Shao, which is in itself a kind of provocation and contempt for Xue Shao!

Moreover, now all the officials and gentry under the rule of Xia Zhou are all under the authority of "Xue Ren Tu", so they dare not cross the thunder pool by half a step. Only the two Yangliu families dared to commit crimes against the wind unscrupulously. If Xue Shao took the initiative to compromise with them at this time, it would only fuel their arrogance even more. In the long run, Yang Liu has become more and more domineering, will Xue Shao, the governor of Xiazhou, continue to do it?

"Xue Dudu, how is it now?" Xu Changqing asked cautiously. It can be seen that he still wants to "make meritorious contributions".

"Where do they deliver the grain and grass?" Xue Shao asked.

"In Hongyun Castle." Xu Changqing said, "Hongyun Fort was also called 'Liujia Fort' before, it was a military fort built by the ancestors of the Liu family when the north and south dynasties were in turmoil, and the original area was very wide, which could accommodate tens of thousands of people. The two families of Yangliu have many intermarriages with each other, and they are identical to each other. Later, many people of the Yang family lived in Liujiabao, so it was renamed Hongyun Fort. Most of the direct descendants of these two powerful families live in the fort, and most of the grain and grass wealth are also concentrated in it, and there are nearly 3,000 people from the clans of the two families and Hakka slaves, who have formed private soldiers to practice martial arts for self-protection. Due to the dangerous terrain of Hongyun Fort, it is easy to defend and difficult to attack, and with this group of private soldiers to defend, it is impregnable. At the beginning of the Bai Tieyu uprising, he also coveted the wealth and grain in the fort, but he never dared to do it. ”

"Imsolidated?"

Hearing this, Xue Shao was not worried, but smiled!

Hongyun Castle?

What a play!

Do you think that it is still the era of warlords in the Northern and Southern Dynasties, or the era of rebellion against the king in the late Sui Dynasty? Back then, my Fenyin Xue clan also had many army forts, and their scale and strength were famous all over the world and recorded in history, so that my Xue clan could stand tall in the turbulent times. In the final analysis, the Fenyin Xue clan used to be only a local military powerhouse, so he was strongly attracted by the major military lords, including Li Tang. At that time, the Fenyin Xue clan successfully "stood in line" to serve Li Tang, which led to today's prosperity.

But that's a practice that only happens in troubled times.

Now that Li Tang has been founded for decades, the world has unified all the people, and the whole world is not the king's land, and the shore of the land is not the king's minister. The former wall fort and powerful Fenyin Xue clan have all been successfully transformed into a "Lile Liufan Xuan Mian Xianrong" poetry and book family - where is it your turn to get the two of you local tyrants to set up a military fort and self-reliant kingdom in a place like Suizhou!

So, Xu Changqing didn't say "Hongyun Castle", and Xue Shao did feel a little embarrassed at first. But after knowing the matter of Hongyun Castle, Xue Shao's heart has already made up his mind - if you insist on being my enemy, I will not take care of your broken castle, and I will not do anything to be the governor of Xiazhou!

"You go back to Suizhou first, just do things for Wu Yizong with peace of mind, and act as if nothing happened." Xue Shao said, "If you can enter Hongyun Castle and investigate their truth and truth, it is best to find some evidence of their corruption and perversion of the law, and I will not be disadvantaged." Other than that, you don't have to worry about anything. ”

Xu Changqing shuddered, "Xue Dudu, do you want to ...... Use of force? ”

"I said, you don't have to worry about the rest!" Xue Shao was as cold as ice, "If there is a secret, the crime should be punished!" ”

"Yes, yes! …… The lower official retired, and the lower official will return to Suizhou! Xu Changqing retreated in a cold sweat.

Xue Shao sat and thought alone for nearly half an hour with a new cup of tea in his hand, and suddenly put the tea cup on the table, "Come on, call Xue Chuyu and Zhang Ren to come and see me!" ”

……

The next day, Xue Shao took Wu Ming, Yuenu, Niu Ben and Zhang Renyuan, as well as Guo An and several guard scouts, and only a dozen horsemen went to Suizhou. Wu Ming, Guo An and others often followed Xue Shao around, and it was more than a day or two. The only new face in the team is Zhang Renyuan. It is not difficult for everyone to see that Xue Shao's intentions are to give Zhang Renyuan more opportunities to refine and improve.

Judging from the composition of Xue Shao's entourage, this is like an ordinary business trip, or a private visit to Weifu. In fact, Xue Shao did not tell too many people about the purpose of this trip, and only Zhang Renyuan knew a little about it in the team.

Two days later, Xue Shao and his entourage arrived in Suizhou. This time, there was no private visit to Weifu, but someone was sent to inform the government in advance.

The name of Suizhou Thorn History is Wu Yanzhang, who was born in a poor family and is nearly half a hundred years old. At the beginning of the Bai Tieyu Rebellion, he killed a lot of state officials and county officials, and Wu Yanzhang was newly appointed after the Bai Tieyu Rebellion was pacified, and he had been in other places for more than ten years as an adjutant to the long history and Sima Dynasty. In a sense, Wu Yanzhang, a poor man, was able to become a thorn and complete a major leap in his life, which was somewhat thanks to Xue Shao's blessing.

Therefore, Wu Yanzhang has a natural sense of gratitude to Xue Shao. Earlier, Xue Shao had a banquet for the officials of the states under his rule in the Governor's Mansion, and Wu Yanzhang had frequently expressed this meaning to Xue Shao.

It's just that Xue Shao has already inquired about it, and Wu Yanzhang, the new official, has not yet established any authority in Suizhou. The real power has always been held by Xu Changqing, who has been in office for a long time, and the local economic lifeline and greatest social influence are controlled in the hands of local heroes.

Otherwise, if Wu Yizong wanted to do something in Suizhou, he would not bypass Wu Yanzhang and find Xu Changqing.

Every family has a scripture that is difficult to read, and the smaller the place, the more complicated the personnel relationship often becomes. For this, Xue Shao has long been mentally prepared.

Knowing that Xue Shao was coming, Wu Yanzhang was overjoyed and did not dare to slack off, and hurriedly commanded people to sweep the streets and tidy up the city, and organized officials and people to welcome them at the gate of the city with great fanfare.

Immediately stopped in front of Suizhou City, and when he saw the grand welcome scene in front of him, Xue Shao smiled.

There are people above who are good officials, and Wu Yanzhang is now afraid that others will not know, he is Xue Shao's "hardcore fan".

Xue Shao thought to himself, the outside must first be safe, why should the rear use troops if it is not peaceful? On this trip, I will defeat the local tyrants who threaten the authority of the government, purge the corrupt officials who assassinate the Shifu, and correct Wu Yanzhang so that he can grasp the real power and do things for me.

Xue Shao's welcoming ceremony to the city was very grand, in addition to the officials and officials of the Assassin's Mansion and the generals of the local military government, there were many students, literati and local gentry, including a group of monks and Taoists and other religious figures.

Because of the previous achievements of pacifying Bai Tieyu, the people of Suizhou have a very good impression of Xue Shao. But more people only know Xue Shao's name, but don't know Xue Shao's person. Today, seeing Xue Shao riding a big horse and surrounded by a group of officials and generals, the people were somewhat surprised.

"I didn't expect Xue Shao to be so young?"

"Nonsense, do you think Princess Taiping will marry an old man?"

"It's really a talent, no wonder you can marry Princess Taiping!"

In the midst of the goodwill of the people, a team of white-clothed women walked opposite Xue Shao's team. Xuanyunzi walked in the front, leading a group of female crowns behind him to worship beside the road, and said: "Poor Dao Xuanyunzi, welcome Xue Dudu!" ”

Xue Shao nodded and smiled, "I have heard the name of Shengying for a long time, and today I have to comfort my life!" ”

This question and answer seems redundant and hypocritical, but it breaks through the internal relationship between Xue Shao and Xuan Yunzi. One was a feudal official appointed by the imperial court, and the other was a religious leader who was ordered to come to conduct official religious activities.

In the Tang Dynasty, a country with Taoism as the state religion, politics and religion have always been inseparable. In such an occasion, even if Xue Shao and Xuan Yunzi wanted to avoid it, it would be impossible.