Forty miles east of Baoan County, Yan'an Prefecture, there is Shijing Spring, and there is Artemisia Peak (that is, the name of the Meridian Peak) at sixty miles, and the origin of the name is "Yiling Duo Artemisia also". The top of mugwort is actually Qiaoshan, which stretches for hundreds of miles between Yan'an Mansion and Qingyang Mansion, and is also called the Meridian Peak in Qingyang Mansion, and the Qiaoshan across the two prefectures can have different names in various places, which shows the insignificance of human beings in front of nature.

Compared with the masterpieces of nature, it is not the grand walls that make human beings feel small, but the history of mankind. The top of the security guard's mugwort, the rotten Ke rock, is called the dragon's nest. According to legend, Lu Bu was born here at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, so there is a saying about Lu Bu kiln here.

The forces of Cai Dwarf, who are entrenched in farming and grazing here, do not occupy the entire top of Artemisia. They had only set up a few strongholds in the ravines on the top of the mugwort, and there were thousands of people on Cai Xiaozi's plate. In terms of numbers alone, Cai Xiaozi is definitely the head of the security guards, and the population of the Zhang family in Jindingshan is less than one-third of Cai Xiaozi.

However, Jin Dingshan and his gang were able to talk to Cai Xiaozi on an equal footing, and there were three reasons for this. First, because the brothers of the Zhang family are brave and resolute, they are quite powerful, and at the same time, they are not lacking in business acumen. The second is that there are too many bandits here to eat, and under the balance of strength, Cai Short is quite constrained and unable to concentrate his strength. The third is that Cai Xiaozi's assembly place is mostly a rabble, and he can't get on the stage. There are more than 1,000 mouths, and there are only about 150 cavalry, and the rest of the old, weak, sick and disabled are really not to be feared.

Therefore, when Cai Xiaozi used to clash with Sha Liluo and several leaders in the south, he was still deflated from time to time. Fortunately, the brothers of the Zhang family have had many friendships with Cai Xiaozi since the beginning of selling smuggled salt, and after the Zhang family laid a foundation in Jinding Mountain, they often cooperated with Cai Xiaozi's actions. Therefore, in this year of increasingly weak blood and strong food, Cai Xiaozi can still maintain the title of the largest volume of Tukou in Baoan County.

Following the guidance of the minions in the village, Yu Baocheng met the master of Artemisia Peak in a still magnificent tiled house. "Cai Da is in charge, I haven't come to visit you for a while, and the rudeness is still looking at Haihan. A while ago, Yu followed the second leader of our family to visit relatives in Ansai because he was in a hurry, but he couldn't come to see him in person because he was in a hurry. When I came back, I wanted to make up for the ceremony, but I learned that you had gone out to collect food with the new arrivals in the village. To this day, I can finally see you in old age. Yu Baocheng was ordered to come to visit, and first said politely.

"Brother Baocheng looks more and more energetic, and he can't see the ruffian appearance in Baocheng back then, and the Meng Jin brothers' family seems to be doing well." Cai Xiaozi, who was holding a teacup in his hand and said with a slight smile, was not tall in his first place, but with his increasingly fat body, he was wearing a full body of satin and two corrected mustaches. It's like a rich man in the countryside.

"With the praise of Cai Da's family, our brothers also avoided the pursuit of the government and begged for food around Jinding Mountain. How can it be compared to Cai Da's good management. On my way up the mountain, I saw that a lot of fields had been opened around the village of Cai Da's family, and several salt wells had been drilled. Even the chickens raised in your chicken coop are fatter than those found in the county town Fule Building. The cottage is well organized, and the entire security guard doesn't know Cai Da's ability. It is said that if the county magistrate has half of Cai's ability, it will be a disaster and famine. It can also be dug out of the soil for food. ”

Yu Baocheng has known Cai Xiaozi since he followed the Zhang family to start selling smuggled salt. After so many years of communication, I have already felt seven or eight points about what compliments Cai Xiaozi likes to hear.

"Hehe, that's all for the polite words, let's be serious. A while ago, you bosses said that they would deal with Shali Roll together, and now the iron helmet in the south is dead, and the other two bosses are fighting, and they don't have time to care about us. Roll this rabbit cub in the sand, I've wanted to do him for a long time. Now that Sha Liluo has raised the banner again in Jiuwu Mountain, I agree to take action with your big bosses. Our stockade can pull out one hundred and twenty horsemen, plus two hundred foot soldiers. What do you guys say? ”

"Our family is not as small as Cai Da's big hand, except for those who stay to guard the village, we can only pull out 70 cavalry and 100 foot soldiers."

"Brother Meng Jin shouldn't count on it, just rely on these people to conquer Jiuwu Mountain. My brethren may tell me that at the present time Sha Lilu has collected some fugitives from the fort on the north side, and now there are about 300 men who have taken a lot of things from place to place. Coupled with the weapons and horses that were snatched from Hui Hui before, the momentum was almost comparable to that of the pacesetters under the Governor's men. ”

"So our big boss plans to set up a few sets first, and see if the sand is drilling. If the sand rolls dead or alive, we will consume it with him, and after this toss, I am afraid that there is not much food left. I will definitely come out to fetch food in this month. The surrounding villages have almost been plagued by him, and Shali Roll will take action on the territory of our two families. The two of us endured for a while not to fetch food, and waited for the sand to roll out, so we joined forces to clean him up. ”

Regarding Yu Baocheng's relays, Cai Xiaozi felt a little painful. His family has a big business, and he can last a long time just by eating the grain stored in the village. But if the future is so bad, when the people around him who have stored grain have eaten all the food, the Zhang brothers can still think of ideas to turn around, but where can he go to find a way to feed a large group of people in his village. The more food the better, and eating what the people have in their hands first, and then eating their own is what they should live.

"I understand what Brother Meng Jin means, but there are too many mouths for food in my village, and I can't bear not to go out to fetch food for a whole month. If it doesn't work out after ten days, let's put this matter on hold. ”

"Then I'll go back and talk back to our master......"

"Don't rush to leave, this time is different. Our two families have gathered almost 500 strong men, and if there is a mistake in the crowd, it will not be good for either of them. I wonder if both families should send a brother who can speak to each other as a guest at each other's house. By the way, I also helped the other party to plan the house, so that the work of the two families could be done more smoothly. Directly interrupting Yu Baocheng's words, Cai Xiaozi suddenly said a speech that surprised Yu Baocheng quite unexpectedly.

Yu Baocheng pursed his lips and said with a little complaint: "Isn't this a little uninteresting, our brothers in Jindingshan spit a nail, who has broken his word." After so many years of friendship, Cai Da still can't trust our big boss. ”

"Brother Meng Jin's character, I am naturally relieved. It's just that the sand is rolling this time is very fierce, and the brothers of our two families will have some scruples, and this brother still settles the account, for the friendship between our two families for many years. Today I will pull down my face and be a bad person, and I will say these words clearly. ”

Ignoring Yu Baocheng's complaints, Cai Xiaozi still insisted on his thoughts. At the same time, he added: "To show my sincerity, I plan to let my fifth brother go back with you to visit your boss." Hehe, that's my own brother, and I will take care of your brothers in Jindingshan. Presumably, Brother Meng Jin can understand what I mean. ”

Yu Baocheng was still unwilling to give up after hearing this, and continued to persuade for a while, but Cai Xiaozi refused to let go. In the end, Yu Baocheng could only lead Cai Xiaozi's fifth brother back to Jinding Mountain. After Cai Xiaozi's brother arrived at the cottage, he personally relayed Cai Xiaozi's original words to Zhang Mengjin and other brothers.

Zhang Mengjin politely received Cai Xiaozi's fifth brother for a while, and arranged for someone to take him down to rest. I grabbed my cigarette pouch, took out some tobacco leaves, and smoked it.

As the second master, Guan Zhiqing first broke the silence and said: "Cai Shorty has become more and more hypocritical over the years. I actually sent my brother over first, and now we don't send someone over, but we don't. Otherwise, I'll go, and by the way, I can also smoke Cai Shorty, so that he won't be more like an aunt. ”

"Let's go, let me go as a third master is enough to look up to Cai Shorty, why bother the second brother to go over." Zhao Wankui, who had been silent all the time, spoke now.

"It's because of his hypocrisy that he won't be happy if either of you go. I understand what he means, he wants me to choose one of the two people, Meng Guang and Meng Cheng. Zhang Mengjin took another puff of cigarette, put down the cigarette stick and said.

"Meng Guang and Wan Kui have been busy training the cavalry and foot soldiers in the village for a while, where can they go. And now is the time to do a big job, and it is even more necessary for the line gun in Meng Guang's hand to fight in the front. Xiucai is a scholar, although he can do it twice, but he has never run alone. And the baby in the village has only been able to read for a few days, how can he send the only teacher in the village to Cai Xiaozi's territory, and in the days to come, it will depend on Xiucai's planning, and neither Xiucai nor Meng Guang can go. Guan Zhiqing objected to this matter.

"I haven't run alone, so I'll let him run alone this time. Teach and read, and teach again when Meng Cheng comes back. Meng Cheng, I will personally say that although Cai Xiaozi is hypocritical, he will never dare to treat Meng Cheng badly. At present, it is still the most important thing to deal with the sand roll, and we will try to smooth the sand roll within ten days. Zhang Mengjin replied while extinguishing the fireworks, and made up his mind that Zhang Mengcheng would go to Cai Xiaozi as an exchange hostage between the two sides.

Zhang Mengcheng, who had been a teacher and physical education teacher for another day, learned about his upcoming business trip in the evening. Although I was a little caught off guard, I was also nervous. Zhang Mengcheng still accepted the job. Once something goes wrong, one or two of the two families will be hit hard, which will seriously affect the future cooperative relationship between the two sides, which is what everyone in the two families does not want to see.

Even if Shariro is eliminated in the future, the two sides will still have to face the two masters in the south, as well as the enemies that may appear outside the border. In the short term, the relationship between the two sides will not break down. Cai Xiaozi offered to exchange his brother as a hostage, which just proves that Cai Xiaozi is also unwilling to cooperate and there is a rift.

In the evening, after receiving Cai Xiaozi's fifth brother with a group of brothers in the cottage, Zhang Mengcheng and his second brother Zhang Mengguang came to Zhang Mengjin's room together, and had a brief exchange again on the plan to encircle and suppress Shaliluo.

After chatting again, Zhang Mengcheng hugged his eldest brother's little daughter and laughed. However, the little niece was very faceless, first urinated on Zhang Mengcheng's body, and then cried again. Zhang Mengcheng could only shake his head with a wry smile, handed over his little niece to the eldest brother who was smiling on the side, and took the clothes handed over by his sister-in-law to change.

The second sister-in-law sitting next to the second brother hugged the eldest daughter, and the four-year-old niece was much quieter than the younger niece. She snuggled in the arms of her second sister-in-law, her face was obviously sleepy, and her eyelids became heavier. In the end, I didn't survive and fell into a deep sleep.

The two nieces are very healthy in this famine year, and for the three Zhang brothers who are used to licking blood from the knife, the innocent words and deeds of the two young children have washed the hearts of the Zhang brothers. With the arrival of late night, the three brothers ended this short but warm time.