In the middle of winter, when the sun began to deviate to the west, Cao Xun, the official of the east gate, got rid of the trivial matters and returned to the door of the Yang Mansion, seeing that the old Qin Han was half-squinting and thoughtful under the warm winter sun, he respectfully stopped behind the side and asked softly: "Uncle Shi, the little sixth of the Cao family asks you to ...... well."

Lao Qin opened his half-squinted eyes, and said in a somewhat hoarse voice: "Little Liu, you are the son of Jiangmen, you should be sharper, don't learn the sour and rotten habits of those literati...... Do you have something to ask? ”

After receiving two lessons, Cao Xun was not annoyed at all, stood up straight, and continued respectfully: "As the uncle said, Xiaoliu has something to do, why ......?"

"Why did you let the Lingzhou people go?" Lao Qin is indeed not an ordinary person, Cao Xun, a junior, just spit out a few words, he guessed through his mind, with this deeply touched afternoon, he was too lazy to care too much, and he had the heart to take the school exam, so he opened his voice and asked: "Little Liu, if you want to keep the people of Lingzhou, how many lives do you think you need to fill in?" ”

"This ......" Cao Xun really didn't know the bottom in his heart, squeaked twice, and said tentatively: "That Wei Shilang only brought more than 100 people, even if the combat power is outstanding, there are more than 20 idle ...... Uncle has a lot of elites, counting all the experts in the Imperial City Division, presumably three or five hundred people are enough? ”

"Five hundred?" Lao Qin narrowed his eyes and sighed lightly: "Most of the people who participated in the competition before, most of them know you, although you don't dare to say that each can be a hundred enemies, but it will not be wrong to say that ten enemies, even so, they were still quickly beaten by the Lingzhou people...... And in the previous competition, the people of Lingzhou were merciful, do you know? ”

Cao Xun secretly calculated in his heart that twenty ten enemies could be used by at least one hundred and fifty people, but such a good hand, all of them were defeated in an instant, or the opponent deliberately kept his hand, if the other party let go of his hand, what would happen? If those twenty people were to kill with all their might, how many of them would be able to resist? A hundred or two hundred? And there are more than twenty people in Lingzhou, it seems that a small team of at least 100 people, how strong should the ability be?

The more I think about it, the more complicated it becomes, and the more I think about it, the more I feel that there is an unbearable fear, he Cao Xun is not a child who has never seen blood, but the war of thousands of people...... He really hadn't experienced it himself.

Qin Han sat crookedly on the soft collapse, glancing at the junior in front of him, but he didn't make any mentions, just looked leisurely on the outside and carefully calculated on his inside.

After a while, Cao Xun's calculated brain swelled and said: "Uncle, there are at least 100 people in Lingzhou, if you want to keep them, if you don't have 3,000 strong soldiers, I'm afraid it won't work!" ”

Lao Qin, who was interrupted from his train of thought, stood up, rubbed his somewhat sore old waist, glanced at the street where there were no more pedestrians, and then turned around, and did not assess whether Cao Xun's answer was accurate, but said directly: "Little Liu, you haven't been through the battle formation, but as a disciple of the general, you should know that when you are about to fight, the number of people is not enough, and the tactics, people's hearts, and armaments are ...... Too much to consider! The old man dared to assert that if the war broke out, it would be inevitable from here to Yujie! ”

It is about 1,500 steps from Yangzhai to Yujie, and the scope of the area is about one-eighth of Bianjing City, and the meaning of the phrase 'all can be exempted' is very simple, that is, all can be classified as a battlefield! Of course, Cao Xun understood the meaning of these words, and he was shocked: "Uncle's heart, the people of Lingzhou are so good!?" ”

Lao Qin nodded slightly, and said: "Even so, the old man still has something to see through, the people of Lingzhou are not better than the domestic mountain bandits, but one side is strong, now just a glance, I feel superior to our army, not only the armament, the soldiers are brave, that is, the Northern Liao barbarians, it is far inferior, especially that Wei Shilang and his people are by no means idle, you see that he is younger than your family seven (1) and younger, but the old man looks at him but feels that the blood is more monstrous than the old man!" ”

Listening to Lao Qin's evaluation for a long time, and finally praising Luo Kaixian, Cao Xun could only nod again and again, if there was no jealousy in his heart, it would be false, but he had seen the fierceness of talking about the goal with his own eyes, and he really couldn't raise the slightest idea of winning.

However, he is not an incompetent person without his own ideas, and after Lao Qin stopped, he asked tentatively: "If according to what the old uncle said, the people of Lingzhou are so fierce, and then return to Your Majesty and the elders, should they transfer troops to encircle and suppress?" ”

"Encirclement?" A complicated smile appeared on Lao Qin's pale face, patted Cao Xun's shoulder, and said, "Little Liu, you must know that the people of Lingzhou are not rebels, they are not robbers who occupy the mountains, but strongmen from outside!" The people who enter the city today are not thieves who break into the city, but punish the lawless army! ”

Of course, Cao Xun knew the difference between the rogue, the mountain bandits, and the army, but he didn't know the root of Lao Qin's words, and he was a little ignorant for a while, but he knew that Lao Qin must have something to do, so he listened respectfully.

"What is the difference between thieves stealing the city and Lingzhou people entering the city today?" Lao Qin paused for a moment, then asked himself and replied: "When thieves enter the city, they are not for hatred, but for goods, and they are often killed at every turn...... And when Lingzhou people enter the city, can they hurt the innocent? Is it life-threatening? ”

Hearing this, Cao Xun interjected, "They rode into the city, but they did not run rampant on horseback, did not disturb the order, passed through the downtown area, and did not even disturb the street vendors!" ”

"Little Liu, how would this matter be described if it were put in the mouths of literati? Autumn is not guilty! Lao Qin clapped his hands and said, "With such discipline, only an elite army can do this!" Count all the departments of my dynasty, even the old man's subordinates are covered, and there is no one who can compare with it! ”

"Ahh Cao Xun is just a military officer in Beijing, and he has never been out of Kaifeng Mansion, where is he so insightful, he was suddenly shocked by Lao Qin's words, but the little resentment in his heart made him can't help but say: "It should be that they first arrived in Kaifeng Mansion and didn't want to cause trouble, so they did it to restrain themselves?" ”

Lao Qin frowned, but he didn't reprimand, and continued: "Whether the people of Lingzhou pretend to be restrained still needs to be verified, but it is the truth that they have not harmed the innocent!" ”

"They hurt Yang Erlang......" Cao Xun had the heart to refute, and then denied: "No, Yang Erlang and the others are really not innocent!" ”

"Not only that...... Although Yang Jingzong is a national uncle, he doesn't know self-love, he really deserves it! And the people of Lingzhou not only punish the enemy, but also have a good name, which is really clever! Having said this, Lao Qin clapped his palms, it was really Luo Kaixian's beautiful job, and he couldn't help but applaud.

Cao Xun didn't quite understand, he also Yang Jingzong's identity and status belonged to the same level, but there was a difference of more than ten years, and he was born in a generation of generals, so he really looked down on Yang Jingzong, a person who relied on nepotism, so he commented casually: "Uncle, it is said that Lingzhou people are looking for revenge, how can they cut off Yang Jingzong's head, so that the grudge is eliminated, so it is not up or down, and it is evil to Your Majesty, and the gains outweigh the losses!" ”

"Otherwise, ......" Lao Qin shook his head and explained: "I cut Yang Jingzong's egg bag because this guy is the root cause of trouble, and I cut Yang Jingzong's tongue, but also to prevent him from picking right and wrong, go to these two things, what else can Yang Jingzong do?" As for the other murderers, without their fingers and toes, it is a blessing to be able to stand firm, and want to carry a knife? No matter how impossible, isn't life better than death? Killing an enemy with a single sword is certainly a relief, but isn't it better to watch the enemy suffer? ”

This old Qin himself is a eunuch, and when he talks about others being cut, he doesn't have the slightest mustard, and he has a faint excited tone.

The speaker's tone is light and fluttering, but Cao Xun's feelings as a listener are very different. The cold wind on the winter afternoon gradually rose, but Cao Xun, who was wearing a cashmere cloak behind him, felt cold between his legs, and couldn't help but say: "Uncle, the people of Lingzhou are acting in a righteous and bright manner, but is this Wei Shilang acting too much...... Too bad? ”

"Yin damage? What's the damage? Lao Qin frowned and looked at Cao Xun, "Punishing lawlessness, but not harming human lives, being able to kill but not killing, is really compassionate, how can it be called yin damage?" ”

In the face of these words, Cao Xun really had nothing to refute, so he could only listen quietly.

"Little Liu, you need to remember that punishing good and promoting evil, there is no means to distribute, and it is best to apply it! Don't be deceived by the so-called Confucianism! "Qin Han commanded the army with a crippled body, and was often attacked by civilian officials, and his views on literati can be described as a deep hatred, and he learned a lesson from this moment.

The elders teach, and they dare not disobey. Cao Xun's temperament is really not decisive, so he can only reply respectfully: "Yes, my nephew is taught!" ”

Qin Han glanced at him deeply, and said meaningfully: "That's it, it's time for the next dynasty, the old man wants to take someone back to Your Majesty, and the trivial matters here are at your disposal, don't be negligent...... Also, Xiaoliu, if you believe in Uncle Liu, you might as well interact with Lingzhou people in the future! ”

"Yes!" Cao Xun clenched his fists again and bowed.

As he spoke, the injured soldiers had been sent for treatment, and the people involved were also gathered, Lao Qin pulled off his cloak and got on the horse, and went straight to the imperial city with a group of people.

This sudden incident is really not small, since he has this errand in the imperial city, he is still busy, and, according to his expectations, I am afraid that he will not be able to rest until the evening.

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Note: (1) Xiao Qi, referring to Cao Xun's younger brother Cao Cong, the seventh son of Cao Bin, who is good at martial arts and bravery, good at governing the army, and was favored by Zhao Guangyi of Song Taizong when he was young, but he was restricted by the Song Dynasty's policy of emphasizing literature and suppressing martial arts, and did not have too many merits.

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P.S. This chapter is a transitional chapter, not only to introduce the characters, but also to explain the reasons and implications of Luo Kaixian's previous actions through the mouths of the characters in the book.