Chapter 56 Cultivation

"My lord, Wu Sinan has arrived at Xuanfu, and this morning, he went to Zhangjiakou to inspect. )”

In the evening, Cao Yu hurried to Yue Su's house and reported the news to Yue Su.

"Wu Sinan should have been in Xuanfu for two days, what have you done in the past two days?" Yue Su asked flatly.

On the day I first arrived, the civil and military officials, wealthy businessmen and gentry of Xuanfu all went to greet them, and set up a banquet in Xuanyage, the largest restaurant in Xuanfu, and drank until late at night before leaving. The next day, from early in the morning, the officials, businessmen and gentry of the Xuanfu came to the door one after another, and sent a large number of gifts to Wu Sinan. Cao Yu said.

After hearing this, Yue Su just nodded slightly, picked up the teacup on the coffee table, put it to his lips and took a sip, pondered for a long time before saying, "What useful news can you find in Xuanfu and Zhangjiakou?" ”

"I haven't found too much useful information recently, but the Wang Ji Goods Store that you have asked to pay close attention to, my lord, is a little moving. In the past few days, a large number of trucks have been brought from outside the city to Wang Kee Cargo Company, and the goods carried in the cars have not been ascertained, but it can be seen from the rut marks that the goods are very heavy. And at that time, Wang Ji Cargo Store transported a large number of goods, and there was also a cargo store named Jin Ji, which also transported a large number of goods these days, and these goods were also quite heavy, I don't know if it was a coincidence. Cao Yu said.

"They are doing trade outside the Seychelles, and it seems that these goods are going to be shipped out of Zhangjiakou. I'm very curious about what these goods are, so you want to check them out and see what they are. Yue Su said.

"Subordinates obey." Cao Yu responded.

"Anything else?"

"My lord, no."

"You've been running around for a day, so let's go down and rest first."

"Master Xie."

Cao Yu retreated, he had just left Yue Su's study, and the porter outside ran over, and said outside the study: "Lord Qiyu, someone outside the mansion claims to be a messenger sent by the governor of Xuanfu, and there is an urgent letter to be sent to the lord for his attention. ”

"Let people in." Yue Su said.

"Yes, sir." The porter quickly retreated, and soon took a young man outside the study. As soon as the word was heard, Yue Su asked people to come in and speak.

The person who came was none other than Wu Sinan's scholar Wu Tong, Wu Tong entered the study and knelt on the ground to salute, "Little Wu Tong, who is a scholar in Lord Wu's house, knock to see the adult, and greet the adult on behalf of my lord." ”

"Get up. The porter said, "You have been ordered to deliver a letter to this officer, where is the letter?" Yue Su said.

"Here is the letter." Wu Tong stood up, took out a letter from his bosom, and presented it to his chest.

Next to Yue Su, Jiang Jie sat on the lower left hand, and Jin Cicada stood on the right side, only to hear Yue Su say "Present", Jin Cicada took two steps forward, took the letter from Wu Tong's hand, and presented it to Yue Su.

Yue Su took the letter and looked at it slightly, the letter was sealed with wax, and there was no trace of it being opened. The envelope is torn open, and the letter inside is taken out and unfolded to take a look.

On the letter, Wu Sinan first greeted Yue Su, and the next content was that he had been ordered to come to Xuanfu to take office, and in the past two days, the first day was a banquet for the local eunuch and businessman, and he was not good at shirking, so he went. On the second day, local officials and merchants rushed to send gifts, but the lower officials did not dare to accept them, and the list of gifts was as follows. When to ask the subordinate to hand over the things, the adult only needs to give an order, and the subordinate will deliver it immediately. Although the adults can rest assured, the lower officials will definitely fulfill their duties and live up to the expectations of the adults when they are in the Xuanfu.

Reading the content of the letter, Yue Su smiled slightly, put the letter back, and said, "Wu Tong, you go back and tell your family, just say the letter, the official has read it, and he is very satisfied with his performance." Since he said that he would live up to the expectations of his own official, the official will wait and see here. ”

"Yes, sir. The little one must bring the words to my family word for word. Wu Tong said cautiously.

"After a day of running, you are also tired, Jin Cicada, take him down to rest, and order someone to say hello." Yue Su commanded.

"Yes, sir." Jin Chan received the order, took Wu Tong and left, ate first, and then went to the wing room to rest.

After the two of them left, at this moment, only Yue Su and Jiang Jie were left in the study. Jiang Jie looked at Yue Su and said with a smile: "My lord, it seems that you value this Wu Sinan very much?" ”

"How can you see it, sir?" Yue Su also said with a smile.

"According to the normal situation, whether it is Wang Ji Goods Company or Jin Ji Goods Company, the goods they brought in must be intended to be shipped out of Zhangjiakou and sold to Tartars. Cao Yu has just said that these two batches of goods are quite large, and they are relatively heavy, and they are strategic materials. It is okay to sell ordinary goods at the border, and at that time it was a sin to resell strategic materials to collaborate with the enemy, and then follow the vine and touch the melons, and there will definitely be a great harvest. But the adults knew this, but they didn't do it themselves, but did it on the wall and made Wu Sinan's contributions, which shows that the adults are quite appreciative of Wu Sinan. Also, although the adults got some information, they didn't leak it to Wu Sinan at all, which is obviously a test for Wu Sinan, I want to see what Wu Sinan's ability is and whether he can catch the context. Jiang Jie analyzed quietly.

"Mr. is really a roundworm in Yue's stomach, and any of Su's plans can't be hidden from Mr. According to Mr., can Wu Sinan do it? Yue Su said with a smile.

"The vision of an adult will naturally not be wrong, and this Wu Sinan will definitely not live up to the expectations of adults." Jiang Jie also laughed.

"Since it is said that it will live up to the expectations of the official, then the official will wait and see here."

This is Yue Su's original words, Wu Tong rushed to Zhangjiakou, and then he relayed to Wu Sinan word for word when he saw Yue Su and Yue Su's instructions.

Wu Sinan arrived in Zhangjiakou yesterday afternoon. As soon as I arrived here, I first inspected the city defenses, but I didn't find anything wrong. Wu Sinan has two long-term followers, both of whom have a certain amount of kung fu, and have always been in charge of his personal guards, these two boys are named Wu Ping and Wu An, and they also accompanied Jin Chan to recapture the firearms in Fujian. After looking at the city defense, he also asked Wu Ping and Wu An for their opinions, but the two of them only knew kung fu, and they didn't know anything about such things, and they couldn't say why.

This morning, Wu Sinan asked Tian Xiu to lead him to inspect Zhangjiakou's armament. Zhangjiakou still has 5,000 soldiers and horses, as a border army, it is not a waste, 5,000 people and horses are uneven, after some inspection, in Wu Ping's words, this army is already good, compared with our previous army in Fujian, I don't know how much stronger, even stronger than your guards.

The city defense and armament seem to be good. Then what did Lord Yue do when I asked me to come here? It's not to punish corrupt officials and corrupt officials, this kind of thing, his old man coughed casually, and the corrupt officials here are probably so scared that they invite themselves, do you still need me to come.

After thinking about it for an afternoon, Wu Sinan didn't come up with a reason, and in the evening, Wu Tong rushed back and conveyed Yue Su's instructions. After hearing this, Wu Sinan even decided that Yue Su let him come, which must have a deep meaning. He sent it out, leaned back in his chair alone, and began to meditate.

"What the hell is going on? Lord Yue, Lord Yue, you obviously know that I don't like to spend my brains, but you still don't tell the answer to the riddle, let me guess it myself. That's not kind, isn't it? You took a turn in Zhangjiakou, and you saw the problem, how can I have your eyesight, there is no problem with this city defense, it can be described as solid, this soldier is also quite strong, I don't know how many times stronger than our soldiers in Fujian, so what's the problem......"

As soon as he thought of this, Wu Sinan's eyes suddenly lit up, and he suddenly stood up, "No......"

Immediately after, he Nan Nan said to himself: "There is no problem with the city defense, there is no problem with the armament, the soldiers and horses are excellent, so how can you let the Tartars overcome it in one attack......"

"By the way, Tian Xiu said that the Tartars were driving the people to attack the city, he couldn't bear to do it, and he had the intention to let the people into the city, but the Tartars took the opportunity to rush up." Thinking of this, Wu Sinan scratched his head again, "No, no...... He doesn't seem to be wrong......"

The last thing Wu Sinan wants to do is to use his brain, don't look at this guy is extremely smart, but "laziness" is his biggest enemy.

"Wu Ping, Wu An...... Call Wu Ping and Wu An over to me......" Wu Sinan shouted loudly in the study.

After a while, two boys hurriedly ran in, "My lord, you are in such a hurry to call us, I don't know what to order?" ”

"Master, I have a question I want to ask you now, and you can answer it after you think it clearly." Wu Sinan said with a grin.

"Yes, the little one must think clearly before answering." Wu Ping and Wu An made the adult's words a little confusing, but the adult has always been confused, and they also know it, so they can only respond carefully. They knew in their hearts that the adults must be in trouble.

"If there is such a problem, let's just say that we are now in Zhangjiakou. The city defense here, you have also seen, in a word, it can be regarded as a one-man affair. You have also seen the soldiers and horses here, and told the lord that I am much stronger than our soldiers in Fujian. With such a city defense, and 15,000 men and horses to defend against the Tartars, even if the lord and I, a person who doesn't know how to fight, come to defend the city, it is estimated that it can be defended for a few days, but why is it that as soon as the Tartars come, they are afraid that this Zhangjiakou will be taken. Also, Tian Xiu, the guard general of Zhangjiakou, said that it was because the Tartars drove the people to attack the city, and he couldn't bear to hurt his own people, so he allowed the people to enter the city, but the Tartars took advantage of the situation. Later, Lord Yue came here to inspect a circle, and immediately found a problem, you help the master I think about it, what kind of problem will he find, what is wrong with this Zhangjiakou? Wu Sinan directly kicked the ball to two of his subordinates.

"This ......" Wu Ping and Wu An, look at me, I look at you, for them, this question seems to be a little too difficult, this should be considered by you, master."

The two boys are also clever, and in terms of fighting, they are definitely stronger than Wu Sinan. After thinking about it for a long time, Wu Ping finally said: "My lord, the little one suddenly remembered something, but I don't know how to connect it with what you said. ”

"Don't sell it in front of me, think of this, hurry up." Wu Sinan was in front of his henchmen, without the slightest solemnity when he was outside.

"Your Excellency, do you remember when we met the rebels who were escorting firearms?" Wu Ping said cautiously.

"Nonsense, can I not remember this, those eight lambs, if you don't go up to fight, it doesn't matter, they ran faster than me, and almost killed me. What's the matter, is there anything to do with this? Wu Sinan said.

"Generally speaking, if the Tartars rushed into the city, there would be chaos in the city, and the soldiers would flee as quickly as the officials did. Even if it is an elite, it depends on the situation, if the master does not flee, the soldiers will never flee. Take the city defense of Zhangjiakou to analyze, the Tartars are to drive the people to attack the city, and the first to enter the city is naturally the people, as soon as the people go up, they will scatter the fortifications there, and the defenders will also follow the chaos, and the Tartars behind will follow up, and the city will definitely be more chaotic. During today's military parade, it can be seen that the officers and men here still have some quality, but they are also uneven, and this depends on the performance of the commander-in-chief. If the Lord will hold on, the soldiers will not flee, and if the Lord will flee first, the soldiers will definitely follow for their lives......"

As soon as Wu Ping said this, he heard Wu Sinan say: "Nonsense, you still need to talk about this matter, and I know this truth, master." ”

"Master, listen to the little one and continue to talk about it."

"Okay, okay, you go on, I'll hear what else you can say."

"The Tartars are fierce and famous all over the world, otherwise they can't make a mess of the Central Plains, and their combat effectiveness must be above the officers and troops defending the city. They took advantage of the chaos to enter the city, at this time, if the main general led the army to defend to the death, the result is likely to be only one, the soldiers and horses here suffered heavy casualties, and it is not uncommon for 10,000 people to die, but one thing is certain, that is, the main general Tian Xiu, will definitely die......"

As soon as he said this, Wu Sinan's eyes lit up, and he said eagerly: "Yes, yes, this is right, if you lead the army to fight to the death, the Lord will definitely die." But that's not right, Tian Xiu told me yesterday that he did lead the army to fight to the death at first, but later saw that he couldn't resist it, so he fought desperately to get out of the encirclement. ”

"My lord, you haven't practiced martial arts, and you don't know how this person's martial arts are when you see people? Xiao and Wu Ana are beaten, although I dare not say how good kung fu is, but watching a person's gestures, you can also see whether it is a practitioner. This Tian Xiu, at first glance, is half hollowed out by wine, and it doesn't look like he has practiced any martial arts, I go head-to-head with him, and I dare to let him have one hand, just with him like this, and desperately break through, it is estimated that any Tartar soldier can dismantle him to eight pieces. Wu Ping said bluntly.

"You can be sure." Wu Sinan said in a deep voice.

"Of course, if you don't believe me, call him and let me compete with him." Wu Ping said in an affirmative tone. Even Wu An, who was on the side, nodded again and again.

"Well, since you can be so sure, then I'll trust you first. What else, you continue. Wu Sinan said. Also, I can't really ask Tian Xiu and Wu Ping to compare and measure.

"Since this Tian Xiu doesn't have the ability to break through to the death, looking at his bad looks, there are ten people who lead the army to fight to the death in the city, otherwise he would not be able to stand in front of adults now. In this way, it can be explained that when the Tartars took advantage of the situation to go to the city, Tian Xiu must be the first to abandon the pass and escape. As soon as he fled, the morale of the army would be in turmoil, and the soldiers would flee in a hurry, needless to say. In this way, the puzzling things come out again. Wu Ping said.

"What else is there to wonder about?" Wu Sinan asked puzzled.

"What do you think, my lord, the last time we ran away, those soldiers ran faster than us. Fifteen thousand men and horses, they must not all be pulled to the city, or the majority of the city, the lord will flee, and the city will definitely run first, how can tens of thousands of people die. When the Tartars passed through the city, they must not have ridden horses, they chased and killed on the ground, and there were soldiers and civilians in the city, so they would definitely not be able to catch up with the officers and soldiers in the city. If you say tens of thousands of people, this is understandable, and it is incredible to say that tens of thousands of people died in battle. Wu Ping once again expressed his heart.

"That's right, I didn't expect you kid to be really exciting enough, analyze the problem thoroughly enough, and give you a credit this time. You can help me analyze and analyze it, if this is really as you said, why are there so many soldiers and horses left in this city. Wu Sinan said.

"My lord, you still have to ask me about this, it must be Tian Xiu who drank the blood of the soldiers and ate empty foreheads. The quota of 15,000 people, eating half of it, should be nothing to the border towns, our Fujian side, the matter of military generals eating empty quotas is not commonplace, or it is relatively peaceful, and there is no war. Wu Ping said with a grin.

"Well, that makes sense." Wu Sinan nodded and said, "It seems that this Tian Xiu escaped from the battle, falsely reported the number of casualties, and it is certain that he eats empty salaries and drinks the blood of soldiers on weekdays." However, since Lord Yue saw it, why didn't he have a seizure at that time and let me come over. It won't be for me to do Tian Xiu. ”

In the end, Wu Sinan was a little confused again. In his opinion, Yue Su's intention to let him come over would definitely not be so simple.

"Your Excellency...... This is something that no one with such a shrewd mind can guess, let alone the little ones. Wu Ping said very truthfully.

"Okay, it's not too early now, since you can't guess it, don't guess it for the time being. But you helped me analyze Tian Xiu's case, which can be regarded as a great achievement. Tomorrow, you will go to the city for a stroll, remember to make a private visit to Weifu, and see if you can find some useful news. "Wu Sinan does things, almost no time to do it himself, he sends others to do it, saves his own time, and goes to the land of wind and moon.

"Yes, sir." As Wu Sinan's personal entourage, how could Wu Ping and Wu An not understand the temperament of their own adults, and they have always been lazy to get home.

During the Ming Dynasty, the commercial trade of Zhangjiakou has always been developed, especially in the Wanli period, after the surrender of the Ministry of Altan, it became the distribution center of the Mongolian and Han trade, and the official place of mutual market. In particular, the "horse market" outside the gate of Dajing was even more prosperous, and the Ming Dynasty exchanged horses and skins with the Mongols with cloth and other daily necessities.

Don't look at some time ago, the Tartars came out of Zhangjiakou, making the bustling market a mess, and many merchants' inventories were looted, but a few days after the Tartars left, the merchants came back with goods one after another, and the market also opened, gradually restoring the prosperity of the past.

Wu Ping and Wu An were ordered to pay a private visit to the city, wandering around the city, and soon came to this noisy trouble, in the market, buying and selling abounded. The Mongols brought horses, furs, and some even gold and silver to buy the goods of the Ming Dynasty. The merchants had smiles on their faces, thinking that the income of the past few days could make up for the loss of the Tartars when they came.

The north gate is the passage in and out of the Great Wall Pass, and there are caravans entering and exiting from time to time. There are soldiers standing guard at the door, and for the incoming caravans, they will routinely inspect their goods, basically just to look; For the caravan leaving the customs, there will also be a simple inspection of the goods, usually also a formality, almost meaningful, and it will be fine.

Wu Ping and Wu An wandered around, of course, they also saw the scene in front of the city gate, but this time it was nothing. Because the merchants of the Central Plains who went out of the customs would more or less express to the soldiers guarding the door that the provincial goods would be messed up and it would be difficult to clean up.

At the end of the day, the two did not gain the slightest, and returned to the governor's line at night. After going back, I wanted to ask to see Wu Sinan, but I heard that the adult was not there, so I was invited away by General Tian.

The governor came to inspect, and as the biggest official here, Tian Xiu naturally had to do his best to be a landlord. So today, Wu Sinan was specially invited to drink, and the place they went to was called Chunfeng Ju. This is a hall, but it is not an ordinary brothel, it belongs to the more high-end kind. After all, there are countless businessmen in Zhangjiakou, and there are many rich people, but in this kind of place, opening a high-end hall will make a lot of money. When the tartar came, the old bustard of Chunfeng Ju fled with all the people in the hall, anyway, there was no goods, as long as the people left, naturally there would be no big loss. Now that it's reopened, business is just as good.

Wu Sinan often comes to this place of fireworks, and after entering the door, Tian Xiu wanted to invite Wu Sinan to sit in the private room, but was rejected by Lord Wu. Mr. Wu said that it was enough to play tea downstairs, because he saw that there was a large round platform in the hall of the hall, on which there were girls performing, playing, singing, singing and dancing. There is a show to watch, what kind of private room to enter.

Tian Xiu hurriedly greeted him, saying that the adults are really elegant, so let's play tea around. The big teapot put all kinds of dried fruits, fruits, pears, peaches, and four-color wine and vegetables on the table, and several girls with arrangements let the two choose, Wu Sinan chose two, Tian Xiu also chose two, and the two drank while watching the performance on the stage.

Now the stage is performing singing and dancing, and the four bewitching women are like butterflies wearing flowers, which makes the audience applaud. After a while, after the four women finished performing, someone immediately took out the silver and invited the dancing girl to accompany the wine. But this is the highest price gets, find an ordinary girl to accompany the wine, one or two silver is enough, but to find such a wine, at least ten taels to start, there is one of the most colorful, someone actually offered fifty taels.

In the next show, a woman in a white dress took the stage, this woman had a bewitching figure and attracted almost everyone's attention. It's just that the woman's face is covered with a veil, and she can't see the true face of Lushan. However, because of this, it gives people a sense of mystery even more. All the men have their eyes fixed on the woman's veil.

c。