In the blink of an eye, the formal training of the Junzi Army entered the tenth day, and the training on the tenth day was similar to the first nine days, in the morning it was followed by five bird plays, weight-bearing marching, riding logs and practicing standing postures, in the afternoon there were pull-ups, walking troops and sabre chopping, and finally riding logs, the process was outrageously boring, and the progress was also so slow that people collapsed.

Finally finished the training on the tenth day, Tao Ying ordered the army to disband, and the exhausted soldiers of the Nine Hundred Gentlemen's Army rushed to the room with cheers, but Tao Ying's cousin, the only deputy who could barely get his hands at present, became more and more depressed, and walked listlessly to the room with a horsewhip, without even inviting his cousin Tao Ying, who was next to him, to go to dinner. Seeing Tao Ji's appearance, Tao Ying first smiled, and then said secretly: "It's time to get over this kid, otherwise, not only will he want to leave more and more, but the morale of the gentleman's army will be affected more." ”

Thinking about this, Tao Ying walked a few steps quickly to catch up with Tao Ji, patted Tao Ji on the shoulder and said, "Third brother, don't rush to eat, go with the second brother, and take you to see some new things." ”

"What's new?" Tao Ji, who was thinking about how to leave the Junzi Army, asked rhetorically, Tao Ying didn't answer, just pulled Tao Ji up and left, Tao Ji had no choice but to let Tao Ying pull him, and rushed to the military construction site in the back camp of the Junzi Army camp side by side, which was closely guarded by Tao Qian's Danyang soldiers.

Entering the construction site, the ten carpenters that Tao Ying borrowed from Cao Hong were eating, a large number of strange semi-finished products were piled up next to the original lathe, Tao Ying was about to pick up a semi-finished product for Tao Ji to see, but unexpectedly saw that Cao Hong, the number one henchman of the cheap father Tao Qian, was also in the construction site, and was muttering something in a low voice with a few Danyang soldiers, Tao Ying couldn't help but ask in surprise: "General Cao, why are you here?" ”

"Second son? The third son? Why are you here? Cao Hong turned around and saw Tao Ying and Tao Ji brothers, and hurriedly led a few Danyang soldiers to salute, "The last general doesn't know that the two sons are coming, and they are far away, so please forgive the two sons." ”

"General Cao doesn't have to be polite, I'll also bring the third brother over to have a look." Tao Ying replied casually, and then asked, "General Cao, you are not in the city to protect your father today, what are you doing here?" ”

Cao Hong hesitated a little, looked left and right, and pointed to the warehouse next to him that was closely guarded by Danyang soldiers, and said in a low voice: "Second son, please come to the room to talk." Tao Ying knew that there must be a secret, so he nodded and agreed, pulled Tao Ji and walked to the warehouse, where Cao Hong also led a Danyang soldier to follow, and entered the warehouse with Tao Ying's brothers.

Nuoda's warehouse was full of new wood-making utensils, because it was late and there was no light, Tao Ji didn't see clearly what those wooden tools were for the time being, and Cao Hong didn't let the soldiers come in to light the lamp, but just pulled the Danyang soldiers who were brought into the room to Tao Ying, and whispered to Tao Ying: "Second son, the last general originally wanted to find out about this matter and then show it to you, since it happened to be bumped into by the son, then the last general will report it first, please prepare the son." ”

"What's the matter? General Cao, please speak quickly. Tao Ying smelled a dangerous smell.

"Someone's playing with the idea of a new harness for Childe." Cao Hong pointed to the Danyang soldier he led into the room and whispered: "This person's name is Zhang Hu, he is a distant relative of the last general, because of his cautious loyalty, the last general sent him to the Gongzi's camp to protect the carpenter's construction site that Gongzi requires strict secrecy, but he is also a good gambler, and nine out of ten gambles are lost, so it is often inconvenient to have at hand, and he was addicted to gambling when he took turns to rest, so he went to a casino in the city to play, and as a result, he was targeted, trying to borrow his hand to steal the sample of Gongzi's new horse harness." ”

"When? How does it work? Tao Ying hurriedly asked.

"Back to Gongzi, it was yesterday afternoon." Zhang Hu, the Danyang soldier, replied: "Yesterday afternoon, the villain took turns to rest, went to the casino to play, his luck was not good, and he quickly lost all his luck, when the villain was unwilling, one of them suddenly took the initiative to lend the villain a thousand dollars to pull the capital, the villain didn't know what the plan was, so he went to the gambling table again, and never wanted to gamble and lose, and the man borrowed three thousand dollars, all lost. Then the man took the initiative to invite the villain to drink, saying that he was willing not to pay back the villain, as long as the villain stole one of the new wooden utensils secretly made by the son to him, the debt would be written off, and he was willing to give the villain another 10,000 dollars. ”

"Is there such a thing? Thirteen thousand dollars for a new piece of wood? Tao Ji was a little surprised, and picked up a new wooden object piled in the storeroom, and found that it was a semi-circular wooden circle, and then looked closely at the rafters below the half-curved wooden circle there was a flat wooden plank half the size of a palm, except that it was quite strong, there was no strangeness at all. Tao Ji couldn't help but be even more surprised, and asked again: "Just a broken wooden circle, can it be worth so much money?" And second brother, what are you doing to build this kind of broken wood circle? ”

"Third brother, don't interject, I'll tell you later." Tao Ying waved his hand, then turned to Zhang Hu and asked, "Zhang Hu, then how did you answer that person?" Is there anything like he described my harness? ”

"Back to Gongzi, although the villain has seen the two new harnesses secretly built by the second son, General Cao told him that these two new harnesses are the hard work of the second son, and he must not leak the slightest rumor, so the villain didn't tell the truth." Zhang Hu took the opportunity to show his merits: "The villain deliberately deceived the man, saying that the second son wanted to build a very big wooden tool, and he couldn't steal it, and it was still not finished, so the villain still didn't know what kind of wood the second son was making, and then the man took 3,000 yuan to the villain, and asked the villain to steal a sketch of the son's wooden ware to him, and after the matter was completed, he thanked the villain again for 10,000 yuan." ”

"Zhang Hu is a smart person." Cao Hong took over the conversation and explained: "As soon as he returned to the camp, he immediately reported the matter to the last general secretly, and the last general did not dare to slack off, and hurried over to investigate the matter. At the same time, for the sake of prudence, the last general deliberately wore civilian clothes and came to this construction site secretly, so as not to startle the snake, and did not want to meet you just time. ”

"That fine work is from there, have you found it?" Tao Ying hurriedly asked again.

"It happened suddenly, and the last general didn't have time to start an investigation." Cao Hong replied: "But the last general has asked Zhang Hu carefully, and Zhang Hu can be sure that the fine work is a native of Xuzhou, because the fine work is speaking with an authentic Xuzhou accent, which does not seem to be fake." ”

"Childe, the villain can be sure that person is from Xuzhou." Zhang Hu echoed: "Son, you also know that our Xuzhou accent is very different from Cao Thief's Yanzhou accent, and at first the villain also suspected that person was Cao Thief, so he paid close attention to his accent, and found that his Xuzhou dialect was very authentic and fluent, not like a foreigner pretending." ”

"Authentic Xuzhou accent?" Tao Ying raised his eyebrows, and the shadow of a pair of brothers immediately flashed in his heart. After thinking for a while, Tao Ying patted Zhang Hu on the shoulder and said, "Very good, you have made great contributions to Xuzhou, and I should reward you heavily." In this way, it is not convenient to promote your official position now, I will personally reward you with 10,000 yuan first, and when you help General Cao catch that fine work, I will show my father again and ask my father to promote you. ”

"Gongzi Xie." Zhang Hu was overjoyed and hurriedly saluted and thanked him. Tao Ying instructed again: "Now you go out first, I have something to say to General Cao and the third general alone." Also, by the way, ask the brothers outside to bring us a lamp in. Zhang Hu agreed, honestly exited the door, and then another Danyang soldier sent in a candle lamp, and then also bowed and retreated, leaving only Tao Ying, Cao Hong and Tao Ji to talk secretly in the room.

It was also with the candlelight that Tao Ji found that this warehouse was densely packed with that kind of semi-circular wooden circle, Tao Ji was about to ask, but Cao Hong on the side preemptively asked Tao Ying: "Second son, the last general has actually wanted to ask you again, why do you want the craftsmen in the army to build so many strange horse harnesses?" What are these harnesses used for? Also, why does Childe keep this ** so secret? This ** tool is actually very simple, it is a semi-circular wooden circle with a wooden plank, what is the need for secrecy? ”

"It's because the process is so simple that it needs to be kept strictly secret." Tao Ying sighed first, and then said: "Now, it's time for me to tell you the purpose of the new harness, so that you can have a bottom in your heart and know the importance of these new harnesses." ”

"Childe, please." Cao Hong replied. Tao Ji on the side also pricked up his ears, his eyes full of curiosity.

"Before I explain the purpose of this ** device, I have to ask you a question." Tao Ying sold Guan Zi and asked: "General Cao, third brother, you are all generals with excellent martial arts, and you are proficient in all eighteen kinds of martial arts, but there is one thing, I don't know if you can do it - can you ride on a war horse and draw a bow and release arrows?" ”

"It's too easy." Cao Hong and Tao Ji both laughed, and Tao Ji also said proudly: "Second brother, it's not that the younger brother is boasting, even if the younger brother is riding on a horse, he can shoot seven or eight arrows with ten arrows within a hundred steps." ”

"The virtuous brother is good at martial arts, and the foolish brother naturally knows this." Tao Ying smiled and asked again: "Then Brother Xian, and General Cao, you may be galloping on the back of a war horse, and at the same time pulling a bow and releasing arrows on the back of a war horse?" ”

"Of course you can." Tao Ji replied easily: "If you hold the war horse tightly with your legs, you can free up your hands to draw the bow and release the arrows, but this is too tiring and dangerous, and if you are a little worse in riding, you will fall off the war horse if you are not careful." ”

"The last general can do it." Cao Hong was also a little proud, and said with a smile: "The second son forgot? The reason why the lord appointed the last general as the commander in front of the tent was because when the last general was performing martial arts in the school field, he pulled his bow and released arrows on the running horse, and three arrows hit the red heart in succession, and the lord was overjoyed and rewarded the last general. ”

"Yes, the third brother and General Cao are excellent in martial arts, and when they gallop their horses, they will definitely not be able to stop you." Tao Ying smiled again, suddenly suppressed his smile and asked, "Then the third brother, General Cao, can you keep turning around and firing arrows while riding your horse and galloping?" And it's not just one or two arrows, but two or three arrows, but to shoot forty or fifty arrows while galloping on the horse? ”

"Second brother, do you want the life of your younger brother?" Tao Ji asked dissatisfiedly: "While galloping on his horse, he turned around and shot forty or fifty arrows, are you a god as a junior brother?" If you fight like this, the people on the war horses will have to fall from their horses even if they are immortals! ”

"The second son is joking, right?" Cao Hong also said suspiciously: "The last general has heard that there are strong generals who can turn around and release arrows on the back of a galloping war horse, but at most they can put one or two arrows, and shoot forty or fifty arrows in a row, I'm afraid that the world's number one general, Lu Bu Lu Wenhou, can't do it, right?" ”

"You can do it." Tao Ying raised the rough stirrup in his hand and said with a smile: "Third brother, General Cao, if you equip this ** stirrup, and then equip the Takahashi saddle stacked in the next room, you can turn around and release arrows on the galloping war horse, shoot arrows to your heart's content, and you will definitely not fall off your horse!" ”

"This kind of broken wood circle, is it so magical?" Tao Ji came interested.

"Of course!" Tao Ying nodded vigorously and said solemnly: "If you are equipped with stirrups and Takahashi saddles, don't say that you can do it, the gentlemen and soldiers I have created with one hand can also do it!" ”

"True or fake?" Tao Ji was even more interested, and hurriedly asked, "Second brother, how to use this ** tool?" Can you give it a try first? ”

"Of course you can try, but not now." Tao replied: "When all the horses of our gentleman's army are fully equipped, we will try again, and then I will teach you how to use these harnesses." ”

Tao Ji was overjoyed and hurriedly agreed, but Cao Hong next to him was still a little skeptical, and then Cao Hong asked again: "Childe, does anyone know the magic of this **stirrup, so he bribed my sergeant and wanted to steal the sample and imitate it?" ”

"Of course not, there is no second person in the world other than me who knows the magic of stirrups." Tao Ying shook his head, and said in a deep voice: "General Cao, have you paid attention, Shicai Zhang Hu said that he deceived that fine work, saying that our army was building a very large wooden tool that could not be stolen, and that fine work immediately believed it." This is enough to prove that our enemy, who is hiding in the shadows, does not know what new wood we are making, let alone what our new wood is for. ”

"Childe is right, if the enemy knows a little about our new harness, Zhang Hu can't fool them." Cao Hong nodded, and said happily: "This proves another point, before Zhang Hu, the enemy did not spy on the slightest news of our new harness, and Zhang Hu was just their first target." ”

"I think so too." Tao Ying also analyzed this result, and then Tao Ying smiled and asked Cao Hong: "General Cao, you are your father's henchman, in charge of intelligence and information for your father, in your opinion, who is the mastermind behind the meticulous work with a Xuzhou accent, who is most likely?" ”

Cao Hong blinked his triangular eyes, which were not much bigger than mung beans, looked at Tao Ying first, and then lowered his voice and said, "Childe, do you really want to know the answer?" Childe is not afraid of ......? ”

"It seems that General Cao and I have thought together." Tao Ying smiled and said, "Since we all want to be together, then General Cao doesn't need to say it, lest I, the third brother with a fiery temper, can't hold his breath and spoil the big things of my father and General Cao." ”

"Xie Gongzi understands." Cao Hong arched his hand and looked at Tao Ying with more and more admiration.

"Second brother, who do you say can't hold their breath? The little brother is the kind of person who can't hold his breath? Tao Ji protested dissatisfiedly, and asked in confusion: "Also, second brother, General Cao Hong, who do you suspect is the mastermind behind the scenes?" ”

"Third prince, it's better not to know now, the lord is afraid that you and the eldest prince will be loyal and honest, and he won't dare to leak it to you for the time being." Cao Hong gave Tao Ying a help, and then Cao Hong turned to Tao Ying and said: "Second son, their brothers have a huge influence in Xuzhou, and they have many eyes and ears, Gongzi, your new harness wants to hide from their eyes, I'm afraid it's not so easy." Zhang Hu's lies, I'm afraid they will soon see through it, how to deal with it next, please ask Gongzi to make it clear. ”

"Yes, it's not so easy to hide from them." Tao Ying also felt the same way, clasped his hands on his chest and muttered: "If you want to maximize the power of the stirrup and Takahashi saddle on the battlefield, you must have a matching army tactic, although that bastard definitely doesn't know this new tactic, in the future, the stirrup and Takahashi saddle will definitely be exposed, but if he is equipped with stirrups and Takahashi saddle in advance, the cavalry power in his team will be greatly strengthened, posing a huge threat to us, so we must find a way to keep the secret of the stirrup and Takahashi saddle, Hide the dog thief for the time being, at least until the gentleman's army is mature. ”

"Childe, it seems that the only way is to strengthen your guard." Cao Hong interjected and said: "After the last general returns to the city, he immediately asks the lord for an order, asking the lord to send another three hundred troops to protect the construction site." ”

"Nope." Tao Ying shook his head resolutely, "Since that bastard has already suspected our new harness, the more vigilant we are, the more vigilant he will be, and the more he will try his best to spy on the news." And the more people protect the construction site, the greater the danger of leaking secrets. ”

"Yes, I'm not afraid of thieves stealing, I'm afraid of thieves." Cao Hong frowned and said.

"Not afraid of thieves? Afraid of thieves? Hearing Cao Hong's words, Tao Ying's eyes suddenly lit up, and he patted his thigh and said, "I forgot this method like this?" Since we can't hide it from that bastard and those two ears and eyes who eat inside and out, then why should we hide it? Why can't we keep thieves from worrying? As long as they think that what we have built is useless, they will naturally not worry about this construction site, and the secret of our new harness will be kept! ”

"Childe, then how can we let the thief not worry?" Cao Hong asked.

"Don't worry, let me think." Tao Ying waved his hand to make Cao Hong quiet, and after thinking carefully for a while, Tao Ying said happily: "That Zhang Hu just now, I should really reward him with another amount of money, he told that bastard's fine work, saying that I made a very big wooden tool, which is really good!" This time, I have a way to keep the thief from worrying. ”

"What's Childe's plan? Do you need the help of the general? Cao Hong, who was in charge of intelligence for Tao Qian, asked kindly.

"Of course, I have to ask General Cao for help." Tao Ying sneered and said: "Since Zhang Hu told that Erwuzai that I was making a very big wooden weapon, then I will really make a weapon like this and let those Erwuzai steal it." ”