"Win more with less, win nine out of ten, win more with less, win one out of ten." Duan Cheng gently put down the military book in his hand and said lightly: "Winning more with less requires a lot of opportunities, and it is not always possible to meet it." If you pin your hopes on winning more with less when you are counting in the temple, it is a very fatal mistake, and even if you win, it is not enough. ”

"When Duan Gong was recruiting Qiang, why did he only need to ride 5,000 and step 10,000 people?"

Duan Cheng's eyes rolled, and he was arrogant in an instant: "That's because my Han army's combat power is outstanding, and fighting against those Qiang people, not to mention one as five, at least one can be used as three." After a while, he reverted to his only look: "Of course, when I talk about the Han Army, I don't mean the rich soldiers of the Fifth School of the Northern Army, I'm talking about the border army." ”

Liu Xiu has a headache, the Son of Heaven intends to march north to Xianbei, he can't pin all his hopes on the border army, if the border army is used as the main force to win this battle, then what will the court do to deter in the future? But if you want to use the five schools of the Northern Army as the main force to go on the expedition, these people are the same as Duan Cheng said, they are rich soldiers, scum, and they can't go to the battlefield at all.

"Actually, it's not that the Northern Army can't go into battle." Duan Cheng said lightly: "Maybe this is an opportunity to rebuild a powerful Northern Army. ”

Liu Xiu looked at him inquiringly.

"The first is to draw elite troops from the border army to enrich the northern army, and the second is to reorganize the army for war, strengthen training, and eliminate all those who are not useful." Duan Cheng thought about it for a while: "If there is more than half a year, at least the mental state of these people can have a big change, and then they will be sent to the frontier to fight in actual combat, and they may not be able to practice." Just ......"

"It's just that those people have some backgrounds, whether they are sand or die on the battlefield, it's hard to explain." Liu Xiu continued Duan Cheng's words and said: "These people are either the children of powerful people, and the reason why they came to the Northern Army is because the Northern Army basically doesn't have to go on the battlefield, and they are safe and comfortable, or they are scribes and can't go to the battlefield at all. ”

Duan Cheng nodded and didn't say anything more.

"It's okay, you can take your time, it's not like you're going to the battlefield right now anyway." Liu Xiu was not too worried, he believed that the Son of Heaven would want to see a strong northern army, not these soft-footed crabs now. "By the way, Duke Duan, can you make a list and see how many people can be transferred to the Northern Army."

Duan Cheng's eyes lit up, and he exchanged a look with Tian Yan, and Tian Yan immediately said vigilantly: "My lord, this method is a good way, but it can't be too much, if you take out those elites, the combat power of the border army will be greatly damaged." ”

Duan Cheng pondered for a moment: "Indeed, now that the frontier is tight, it is true that you can't transfer too much, it seems that you have to choose another choice in Luoyang." ”

Liu Xiu smiled, pointed at Tian Yan with the pen in his hand, and deliberately said in a long voice: "I said that Lord Tian ......" Tian Yan had just been summoned by the Son of Heaven, and after the Son of Heaven heard his plan for the Northern Expedition, he appointed him as the general of the Xiongnu Zhonglang, and he was about to take up his post. At this time, of course, he did not want to draw too many elites from the border army to enrich the northern army, obviously, he would not have the opportunity to command the northern army, and the northern army won the battle, and it had nothing to do with him. "Your selfishness is very heavy."

Tian Yan smiled awkwardly, and defended again: "It's not my selfishness alone, you don't believe in sending an official document to ask Xia Yu and your senior brother Lu Min to see if they are willing." ”

"Okay, okay, don't worry, I didn't plan to ask for many people from you, with Mr. here, I don't believe that Dahan still lacks generals." Liu Xiudao, "I have already re-mentioned to Your Majesty the matter of military construction, and I may have to restore the old system of transferring elite cavalry from the six counties, but the resistance is not small, and it will take some time." ”

"Reinstate the old military system?" Duan Cheng shook his head: "That's not easy, most of the current families and Qi people can be in the hands of those families and heroes." ”

"It's not easy, but because of this, we have to restore the old military system, otherwise, these people not only have money, but also soldiers, and it will be even more unbelievable." Liu Xiu sighed and said worriedly: "We plan to rebuild the Northern Army first and stabilize the safety of the Beijing Division first." ”

"Peiben Guyuan, slowly advancing, is also a way." Duan Cheng agreed, and said to Tian Yan: "After you arrive in Meiji, don't stimulate the Huns, focus on defense, take advantage of the gap to attack, and don't rush to fight a decisive battle with the Xianbei people." ”

Tian Yan hesitated for a moment and nodded yes.

Duan Cheng said to Liu Xiu again: "If you want to lead the troops to the expedition in the future, one thing must be remembered, there must be a strong guard battalion in your hand, these people are not very numerous, but they must be very strong, in many cases, they may decide the direction of the situation." He glanced at Xu Yu, who was standing motionless outside the door, "This person ...... is the best example. ”

Liu Xiu suddenly had an idea, why don't I go to the Huiren House to find a few such masters to form a personal guard battalion?

…… The Son of Heaven was pacing back and forth with his hands behind his back, and Duan Cheng and Liu Xiu, who had just been awarded the waiting, stood side by side, quietly waiting for the Son of Heaven's decision. The Son of Heaven consulted Duan Cheng in detail about the possible surnames of the Northern Expedition, but Duan Cheng was very cautious, he said that he did not have the strength to make a large-scale Northern Expedition at present, one was that there was no money, and the other was that there were no soldiers.

The Son of Heaven did not dare to take it lightly, although he urgently needed a victory to prove his ability, but he did not dare to take such a big risk.

"Your Majesty," Liu Xiu took a step forward, the Son of Heaven stopped, looked at him with hopeful eyes, and Liu Xiu continued: "The minister is too young to take on such a heavy responsibility, please give the minister a little time, first start with the training of the northern army." ”

The Son of Heaven blinked and smiled, Liu Xiu's words just hit his mind. He is about the same age as Liu Xiu, and he still has a lot of time, and he can afford to wait for three or five years, but in front of the ministers, he must show a positive and enterprising spirit, and he can't take the initiative to be discouraged. This is also one of the reasons why he chose Liu Xiu to preside over this war, Liu Xiu is young, he will encounter a lot of doubts, to completely dispel these doubts, there is no three or five years for Liu Xiu to prove himself, it can't be done.

"How long?"

"Mr. said that in half a year, you can have a small success."

"Half a year? I've waited. The Son of Heaven nodded happily: "It's the end of June, and by October, I want to proofread, can I be in time?" ”

Liu Xiu was a little embarrassed, he said that half a year was already a very short time, but the Son of Heaven only gave him three or four months, which was too urgent.

"Don't be afraid, I just want to see if you can make progress in the past few months, not to ask you to go to war immediately." The Son of Heaven sighed: "Even if you are in time, I will not have time to prepare food and grass for you." Today is a drought again, although it is not as serious as last year, but it should not be underestimated. ”

He smacked his lips and didn't say any more, but Liu Xiu knew that the Son of Heaven was very dissatisfied with Situ Song Feng. He gave Song Feng the original report to the Son of Heaven, and finally Song Feng adopted the middle policy, resolutely refusing to give up the position of Situ, and now is implementing the reform of the three princes' mansions from self-summoning to appointing the imperial court, which is full of difficulties and unsatisfactory progress.

"It was a natural disaster. The way of heaven is constant, not for Yao, not for death. ”

"Those Confucian scholars don't say that." The Son of Heaven said worriedly, and suddenly remembered something: "By the way, last year you proposed that the scholars of the world discuss the Tao, but then you returned to Zhuo County, this matter is over, can you do it again now?" ”

"What does Your Majesty want to talk about?" Liu Xiu didn't understand for a while.

"Let those Taiping Daoists and Confucian scholars discuss the way of heaven." The Son of Heaven suddenly became a little excited, "I have been in contact with the people of Taiping Dao once or twice, and I think what they said also has some truth. ”

Liu Xiu understood, no wonder he hadn't seen Zhang Ming in the past few months, he had already caught up with the Son of Heaven. Liu Xiu was very unhappy, but his face didn't show it at all: "Okay, the reason is not clear, it is better for everyone to discuss and discuss with each other than to talk casually." Not only the Taiping Dao, but also the Heavenly Master Dao, all the people in the world can participate. ”

"Not bad, not bad." The Son of Heaven was very interested, clapped his hands and said: "Then do it, and the Taiji Taoist Hall will discuss the Tao, and the people from the Lingtai will also participate." ”

...... "Heavenly Master Dao? Zhang Ming sneered: "Zhang Heng has been seriously injured and died, where is the Heavenly Master Dao still my Taiping Dao's opponent, Liu Xiu wants to carry the Heavenly Master Dao out to fight us, is it a little too taken for granted." ”

Zhang Rang looked at him with a smile: "Is the envoy sure to win him?" ”

Zhang Ming nodded very conceitedly, not noticing that Lan Lan was glaring at him, and after praising Haikou, he remembered that his biggest reliance on Qingniujiao was still Liu Xiu's in name, and he couldn't help but be a little embarrassed for a while, but he refused to lose his prestige in front of Zhang Rang. After Liu Xiu was imprisoned, he thought that Liu Xiu would definitely die this time, so he took Zhang Rang's path. After attracting the interest of Zhang Rang and others with heavy money and the secret technique of returning yang, he successfully regained the favor of the Son of Heaven because of the secret technique in He Guiren's room this time, and became the distinguished guest of He Jin and Zhang Rang and others.

Zhang Ming is a little carried away now, he doesn't take Liu Xiu very seriously from the bottom of his heart, and with a trace of guilt hidden in his heart, he is even more reluctant to see Liu Xiu. Now that Liu Xiu wants to bring out the Heavenly Master Dao to confront him, he has no trace of guilt, only disdain.

Returning to her residence, Lan Lan asked the most critical question: "What if Liu Xiu wants to go back to Qingniujiao?" ”

"Without the green horns, I can't defeat the people of the Heavenly Master Dao? Even if I can't win, isn't there still a great sage and good teacher? ”

"The Great Sage and Good Master is naturally no problem, but if you ask the Great Sage and Good Master to help, can the master's divine envoy still do it?"

Facing Lan Lan's questioning, Zhang Ming became angry and walked away. Lan Lan and Yang Feng looked at each other, both a little worried. Since Zhang Ming became a divine envoy and made great progress in presiding over the preaching affairs in Luoyang, he was no longer as able to listen to other people's opinions as he used to. In addition to the great sages and good teachers, he didn't even pay much attention to the two protectors Zhang Bao and Zhang Liang.

...... "On the Tao? ”

Wang Yinghu looked at Liu Xiu suspiciously, he was very suspicious that Liu Xiu was here to make them happy. Because of the last discussion, although the Heavenly Master Dao went all out, and in the end, Zhang Heng and his wife shot together, but in the end they were defeated by Zhang Jiao's men, Zhang Jiao was injured, but Zhang Heng was more seriously injured, and Zhang Heng was already dead. The results of the competition were self-evident, the Heavenly Master Dao was completely defeated, and it was not the opponent of the Taiping Dao at all, otherwise they would not have watched Zhang Ming preach in Luoyang and were indifferent.

"What, you're scared?" Liu Xiu's mouth was crooked, and he said contemptuously: "In the past, you said very bullishly, what Taiping Dao came out of the Heavenly Master's Dao, but now why does it mean that the tiger has changed color?" ”

Wang Ying's face was a little red, Liu Xiu's words were very unpleasant, but Heavenly Master Dao is indeed not the opponent of Taiping Dao now, and he has no dignity for strength. He pondered for a long time, "I'm going to report to the governor." ”

"Your heir has passed away, who is in charge of the general rule now?"

"Department teacher. However, the department teacher is young, and the specific affairs should be presided over by the wife and the senior brothers. ”

Zhang ...... Zhang Lu? ”

"Exactly." Wang Ying was a little puzzled by Liu Xiu's accident, and then explained: "The department master is the eldest son of the heir, and my wife is currently the most profound one in my Heavenly Master's Dao. ”

Liu Xiu didn't think so, Zhang Lu was later defeated by Cao Ying, obviously Taoism didn't help him, this person didn't seem to have much achievement, and Liu Chan and others were almost the same, they were all mediocre. But the surname is good, in the troubled times of the Three Kingdoms, it is a rare few people who are unwilling to fight.

"How old is he?"

"Seven years old." Wang Ying was a little sneering.

"Three-year-old, seven-year-old, old, what is the qualification of your department teacher, what clues can you see now?"

Wang Ying was very embarrassed, and said stiffly: "Of course, the qualifications of the department teacher are superior. ”

Liu Xiu stood up and said disapprerovingly: "Since this is the case, let's wait and see what happens." I was going to make a deal with you, but I don't think there's much of a chance. ”

Wang Ying's eyes lit up: "Deal, what deal?" ”

Liu Xiu turned around and looked at Wang Ying with a smile: "The green horn in Zhang Ming's hand is mine." ”

Wang Ying was taken aback, involuntarily held her breath, and said for a long time: "Is this true? ”

"Of course." Liu Xiu laughed: "Is it necessary for me to lie to you?" ”

"You wait." Wang Ying jumped up quickly, grabbed Liu Xiu's arm, and pressed him back to his seat: "You wait a while, I'll come when I go." ”

Liu Xiu nodded, Wang Ying hurriedly ordered Zhang Xiu to serve tea, and he hurriedly entered the inner room. Zhang Xiu brought over a cup of tea, respectfully presented it to Liu Xiu, and served tea to Xu Yu and Zhang Fei, and then stood quietly aside. Liu Xiu looked at him and saw that his eyes were clear, better than before, so he praised him: "Your recent progress is very fast." ”

Zhang Xiu nodded a little shyly: "Thanks to Miss Tang's guidance, I visited Luoyang City once, and after I came back, I felt that I had let go of a big thought, and the Taoist technique was good." ”

"You're a good seedling." Liu Xiu said half-truthfully: "My sister never said those words to people, and it was a pity for you to give advice." ”

"Miss Tang's great kindness is unforgettable."

Liu Xiu was just about to woo him a few more words, when there was a sound of footsteps in the inner room, and Wang Ying led a young woman out in a hurry. Liu Xiu was taken aback, and hurriedly got up to salute. Wang Ying introduced: "This is Mrs. Heishi. ”

Liu Xiu was very surprised, how could Mrs. Heishi be here, not in Shudi? Just now Wang Ying said that she would report to the general rule, could it be that she would travel through time and space and shrink the ground into inches? If you really want to be so powerful, you won't be defeated by Zhang Jiao. What surprised Liu Xiu even more was that Zhang Lu was seven years old, according to the habits of this era, the Lu family was at least twenty-five years old, how could he look younger than Wang Chu.

"Concubine Lu, dare to ask Liu Xiu'an how well." Lu bowed and invited Liu Xiu to take a seat, although she was a little angry at Liu Xiu's straight eyes, but now she has something to ask for others, and it is not good to be angry, on the contrary, she has to be polite and smile lightly.

This smile almost made Liu Xiu drool. If Wang Chu's beauty is a kind of purity and knowledge, then Lu's beauty is an indescribable charm, which is not only like the innocence of a girl, but also like the sweetness of a young woman, and a little bit of the stability and tolerance of a mature woman.

"Sir......" Zhang Fei stabbed Liu Xiu in the back before he came back to his senses. Liu Xiu hurriedly swallowed the saliva that was almost in his mouth, secretly scolded himself for being embarrassed, and told him what he meant.

Lu had already heard what Wang Ying had said, so she was in a hurry to come out to see Liu Xiu, she didn't believe it at first, but when she saw that Liu Xiu was a little out of shape at the beginning, she behaved very calmly later, so she believed that Liu Xiu was not making fun of her.

"Then Liu Jun is planning to retrieve the green horns?"

Liu Xiu nodded, and said with some worry: "However, I don't know if you can defeat Zhang Ming after retrieving the green horns, defeat Zhang Ming, and whether there is any other way to deal with Zhang Jiao." ”

Lu Shi waved his hand unexpectedly and said calmly: "You don't have to worry about Zhang Jiao's matter, as long as we can defeat Zhang Ming, we can at least gain a foothold in Luoyang." ”

Liu Xiu was a little skeptical.

"Zhang Jiao and I are brother and sister, we have studied art together for 20 years, and we know each other very well." Lu Shi said lightly: "Don't worry, I have a way to deal with Zhang Jiao." ”

Seeing that Lu didn't want to say more, Liu Xiu didn't want to ask too much. They discussed the matter of cooperation, in fact, it was very simple, Liu Xiu did not want to completely defeat Taiping Dao and drive Taiping Dao out of Luoyang completely, that might just hide the problem, and not solve the final problem, and it was not the same as he imagined. He needed the Heavenly Master Dao and the Taiping Dao to divide Luoyang equally, preach together, and then concentrate on competing with Confucianism, which was his original plan, but he died halfway through something happened later.

"Cooperation?" Lu Shi pondered for a moment and agreed to Liu Xiu's request.

"I have a request, you can't have anything to do with Zhang Rang and Zhao Zhong."

"Why?"

"No why." Liu Xiu refused to reveal the reason, he just insisted on this request: "You'd better think about it carefully, agree to my request, I can guarantee that you get the development opportunities you deserve, but if you want to step on two boats, I will make you regret it for the rest of your life." ”

Lu narrowed his eyes: "You threaten me? ”

"It's not a threat, it's a warning."

"Do you have that strength?" Wang Ying also sank his face and sneered disdainfully.

"If you want to go back on it, you'll have a chance to see my strength." Liu Xiu stood up, looked at Lu Shi and Wang Ying condescendingly, and the corners of his mouth were slightly raised: "I have seen people in the Taoist technique, to be honest, it is indeed amazing." But I can tell you that I've seen something even more amazing. ”

Lu glanced at Wang Ying reproachfully, and his eyes showed disappointment. Liu Xiu saw it in his eyes, but he remained silent, pulled out a short knife from his waist, and gently rested it on the case: "Has Madame seen this knife?" ”

Lu felt that Liu Xiu was too arrogant, and he didn't have the modesty that his juniors had, probably because he felt that he had an official government behind him, so he was a little young and crazy, and he didn't have the posture of a corporal of Lixian at all when he came to negotiate with Heavenly Master Dao, and what was even more annoying was that he still slandered Taoism in front of her, she didn't want to talk to Liu Xiu anymore, and when she saw this short knife with a simple shape, she just glanced at it and didn't take it too seriously.

"Looks like an antiquity?"

"I think it's more accurate to say it's a fetish." Liu Xiu pulled out the crescent-like scabbard and displayed the plain blade in front of Lu and Wang Ying: "This knife sharpens iron like clay, destroys hair and hair, but it is neither copper nor iron, and I still don't know how it was made, let alone its origin." ”

"Your stuff, you don't know where it came from?" Lu Shi became a little interested, stretched out his fingers as white as shallots, picked up the knife and looked at the light, his eyebrows suddenly jumped, his lips opened, as if he wanted to say something, but he swallowed it back.

"I took it from the Xianbei prince Huai Zong, I don't know what inheritance there was before him." Liu Xiu lowered his head and drank tea, not noticing the slight change in Lu's expression, and said lightly: "This knife is the same as the green horn, it comes from Xianbei, I think if you want to find out the origin, you may have to ask Tanshi Huai." ”

Lu Shi handed the knife to Wang Ying, tapped the handle of the knife with his fingertips silently, and then said with a smile: "Liu Jun is brave and martial arts, and he has captured Prince Xianbei twice, so he is worthy of being a young hero." ”

Liu Xiu smiled, the purpose of taking out this knife was not to boast of his bravery, but to let the Lu clan know that although their Dao skills could not be said to be useless, the effect of fighting in battle was limited. Artifact, in fact, that's the case, Firefox has an artifact, it was taken away, Huai Zong has an artifact, and he died.

"Can Madame see where this thing came from?"

Lu Shi blinked, she may not have deliberately discharged, but the look of fascination naturally gave rise to a kind of charm.

"I can't tell for a while, but I seem to have heard the master mention it, as if there was such a divine weapon in ancient books." Lu Shi raised his head, met Wang Ying's shocked gaze, and pushed the short knife back in front of Liu Xiu: "Liu Jun, this knife is indeed an artifact, but, I dare to say, you haven't mastered the true beauty of this artifact yet." ”

Liu Xiu was stunned, pondered for a long time, and bowed: "Please advise." ”

"Do you know the spell on the hilt?"

"Charms?" Liu Xiu was really a little surprised, there were some hidden patterns on the handle of this knife, he always thought it was just for decoration, it turned out to be a charm?

Seeing Liu Xiu's expression, Lu Shi was more sure, and she nodded: "Yes, this knife handle is engraved with a very ancient charm, I haven't actually seen it, but I've seen something similar." If the spell wasn't forged—of course, I think the forgery might have been very small—the origin of the knife was long before the horns of the green bull. She paused and said very seriously, "This is a real artifact, a weapon used by the gods." ”

(To be continued)