The sun is blazing, and the sea is glowing with blue waves. A steam freighter laden with cargo was parked at the port of Ann Nam Phong, and after the ship dropped anchor, the porters waiting at the dock swarmed up, apparently to unload the cargo. Pei Gejin exchanged a few words with the captain, and then took one of his subordinates off the ship. The wharf is very lively, and many cargo ships from the south of Annam dock. Most of the Vietnamese cargo ships brought in souvenirs and white rice, while all that was carried away were daily necessities, silk, tea, cloth, etc. It is obvious that the commodities of the Great Qing Kingdom have occupied half of the rivers and mountains of Annam.

In the past two years, Haiphong Port has become prosperous, and the key is that the number of Han people here has been more than half, and a large number of Han people have migrated from the coastal areas of Guangxi to become the masters here. Pei Gejin stood on the dock, almost no strange feeling, as comfortable as being in a port city inland. His subordinates got in touch with Leng Yifei's men, and soon they were on the road in a covered carriage, with their destination being Thai Nguyen in northern Hanoi.

A few days later, Taiyuan was in sight, and Pei Gejin was a little excited. The last time Leng Yi flew to Guangzhou, he was not there and missed the opportunity to meet. The brothers haven't seen each other for almost ten years, and it's hard to express that kind of longing. Leng Yifei led his subordinates to stand at the gate of the city tower, also looking forward to it, and his excitement was also overflowing. At this time, Leng Yifei and his subordinates were also dressed in black clothes and black pants, but there was an extra purple bandana on their heads. The headscarf is the symbol of the Black Flag Army, after all, Leng Yifei stayed in Annan and nominally had to accept the "moderation" of the Black Flag Army.

Pei Gejin jumped out of the carriage and pounced on Leng Yifei. "Brother Pei!" "Dude!" The two sides hugged each other warmly. The two talked unpassionately, and the others were clearly left out in the cold. "Come on! Let me introduce to you, this is Commander-in-Chief Pei. "Report to Commander-in-Chief Pei, below is He Meng, deputy commander of the 2nd Security Brigade of Annan! Commander-in-Chief Pei's daimyo subordinates have long been thunderous. "Report to Commander-in-Chief Pei, below is the commander of the 2nd Regiment of the 4th Provisional Security Brigade Khalid! Please Commander Pei for instructions! "Report to Commander-in-Chief Pei, below is Lin Xiong, the commander of the 5th Regiment."

“haha！ He Meng and Khalid, the first phase of the Shanghai Military Academy, they are worthy of being two tiger generals, and they have heard of you for a long time! "Thank you Commander Pei for your love!" Pei Gejin continued: "Captain Lin was originally a subordinate of Yang Guangcai, and now he has joined our team, and I have heard of your name. "The subordinates swear allegiance to the lord to the death, and never change their hearts!" Lin Xiong was a little scared. Pei Ge cordially shook hands with several officials to show his closeness. Entering the city, everyone dispersed and had a drink in Leng Yifei's mansion.

"Brother Leng, the lord didn't misunderstand you, you did a good job in Annan." Pei Gejin smiled. "This is all the result of the master's plan, brother, I dare not praise myself." Leng Yifei said modestly. "The last time the lord came to Guangzhou, he praised you a lot, and you and Bai Shengcheng will become generals in the future, this is the lord's hope for you." "Brother Pei, I will always remember the teachings of my lord, and I dare not slack off."

Pei Gejin changed the topic and said, "How is the situation of the troops?" "The troops have been in force for a month, Khalid's 4th Regiment is stationed in Taiyuan with the brigade headquarters, He Meng leads the 6th Regiment in Haiyang, and Lin Xiong leads the 5th Regiment in Xuanhua, with a total strength of 3,500 people. The staff officers and logistical personnel sent at the beginning of the year were temporarily assigned to the various units. Now we lack artillery, when will we send artillery? Leng Yifei asked.

"The letter from the lord said that at present, we must first build coastal artillery, and in addition, we must equip the Shanghai side, and our base must be safe. Once we engage the foreigners, their warships will definitely go into battle. At present, the 1st Brigade will first form an artillery brigade, and your brigade will not hunt first. Pei Ge said solemnly. Leng Yifei nodded and said, "At present, I have a good relationship with Liu Yongfu, and I won't see him this time." Pei Gejin sighed and said, "It's better not to see it, we can't expose our intentions now." Is there any movement of the French? ”

"My reconnaissance unit has penetrated deep into the south, and the French are still entrenched in the south. There was no change in sight, but the French had added a few more warships in the harbor. "The lord has a letter of concern, and he must pay close attention to whether the French are increasing their troops in the south, and report immediately if they find it." "Okay, I'll send a few more reconnaissance troops in the next step, and I won't let go of any clues." Pei Gejin took a sip of wine and said: "In terms of new weapons, the 1st Brigade will hunt standard rifles by the end of the year. Your department estimates that the hunting will be completed by the middle of next year. ”

"I've been looking forward to this day for a long time, and I heard that our new rifle can be loaded with 5 rounds, and it's an all-metal bullet?" Leng Yifei said excitedly. "Yes, I haven't seen it either. The people sent by the lord are debugging the machinery and equipment of the arsenal, and it will soon be put into production. Oh, good news for you! "What's the good news?" "The main announcement informed that a new weapon was studied, what is it called a grenade. Soldiers can use the throwing method, which is mainly used by the two armies in hand-to-hand combat, especially for defensive operations. The men sent by the lord quickly put themselves into the manufacture of grenades, which were as easy as making fireworks. You'll be able to see Zhang in three months. ”

"Brother Pei, what you said is itching in my heart, I can't wait to see it soon!" Leng Yifei couldn't help but rub his hands. "The main reason for this visit is to understand the situation, so I will not inspect the troops. What is the situation of Feng Zicai's officers and soldiers? "After Feng Zicai returned to his hometown, his subordinates are currently in charge of the troops. The Qing army still retained 3,000 people and was stationed in Zhennanguan and Liangshan. Feng Zicai led the troops well, and this Qing army had a certain combat effectiveness. ”

"The main announcement informed that once the French launched an offensive, Feng Zicai would definitely come out of the mountain. There is no one in this Qing army who can effectively command, so you must pay close attention to the changes in the official army and know yourself and the enemy. "At present, our people have been installed in the Qing army, and this piece is handled by Wang Xiaoer, and he is now fighting with Feng Zicai." Just on the way back, I want to go to Dingming County and assign a new task to Wang Xiaoer. "What task?" "I can't tell you this just yet!"

Pei Gejin stayed in Taiyuan for half a month, during which time he summoned all the officers. After saying goodbye to Leng Yifei and others, Pei Gejin entered Dingming County through Liangshan and Zhennanguan. On this day, the county commander Li Tong was sitting in the study and was reading, and his subordinates hurriedly entered and said: "My lord, there is a person outside who claims to be Pei Gejin and asks to see him!" Li Tong hurriedly stood up and said, "It's Pei Da shopkeeper, hurry up and greet him!" Li Tong didn't care about getting dressed, and ran out quickly.

Pei Gejin and his subordinates entered the county seat, and the strong business atmosphere along the way made him refreshed. The fact that the small city of Biansai is so prosperous shows that Li Tong has managed well. When I came to the county yamen, I carefully observed that the face of the county yamen was only freshly painted, and it looked clean and solemn, and there was no trace of large-scale construction, which showed that Li Tong had been very frugal in the past few years.

“haha！ It's Pei Da's shopkeeper, Guangzhou has been separated for several years, Li is worried, ashamed! Ashamed," Li Tong clasped his fists with both hands and saluted. Pei Gejin also clasped his hands into fists and said, "Master Li, it's always been good. I heard that Master Li took care of Dingming County very well and became the most prosperous town on the side, Pei admired! "Pei Da shopkeeper has a reputation, if there is no Pei Da shopkeeper and Qin shopkeeper to help, Li can do nothing even if he has three heads and six arms. You two are like my food and clothing parents! ”

During the tea tasting, Li Tong carefully introduced the economic development of Dingming County in recent years, which has not only eliminated banditry, but also has become a commodity distribution center on the side. Li Tong proudly informed that in Dingming County, agricultural tax revenue has been reduced by half, and commercial tax revenue has increased dozens of times. Seeing Li Tong's elated appearance, Pei Gejin was not interested in his political achievements, but he couldn't spoil his interest, so he had to listen patiently.

Shawei Village, Qinzhou, Feng Zicai's Mansion. In front of the door, Wang Xiaoer was saying goodbye, and Feng Zicai was standing in front of the door in a cloth suit to see him off. At nearly 70 years old, the old man is still strong, but his hair and beard are gray. "Shopkeeper Wang, the old man is now a grass farmer, I didn't expect you to still think about the old man, which moved the old man. The shopkeeper of the king, in the future, the house is not allowed to bring so many gifts, and the old man can't afford it. ”

"Old General Feng, to tell you the truth, I came to visit you on behalf of the main family, and these things were given to you by the main family." "Lord, who is your master?" Feng Zicai was confused. "Old General Feng, the master's orders are not to be informed. The master just told me that General Feng, who had been a horse all his life, was loyal, commendable, and respectable for the country. In particular, he has made many military exploits in order to defend the border passes and stabilize the people on one side. The main family admired General Feng very much, so he instructed his subordinates to come and visit General Feng to show their respect. ”

In fact, Wang Xiaoer didn't understand that the lord of Weishenme must let Feng Zicai tie up. Wang Xiaoer's base camp is located in the Happy Valley Manor in the northwest of Dingming County, which is about 5 kilometers away from Dingming County. As soon as Wang Xiaoer arrived at the gate of the manor, the housekeeper informed a relative that he had been living in the manor for two days. Wang Xiaoer was a little confused: Relatives? , what kind of relatives do you have!

Wang Xiaoer rushed into the room to take a closer look, and saw Zhuge Jin sitting at the table leisurely drinking tea. "Brother Pei? It turned out to be you. Yours is the real thing. haha！ Yes, we are relatives. The brother-in-law came, and the brother-in-law was disappointed. Wang Xiaoer made a strange move. Pei Ge said solemnly: "If I don't say that we are relatives, I'm afraid it will be difficult to enter the manor, and your subordinates are not affectionate at all." Let me ask you, what are you doing in Qinzhou? ”

Wang Xiaoer took a sip of tea and said, "Letter from the lord, let me tie up Feng Zicai!" "Bother Feng Zicai? He has already told his old man to return to his hometown, what is he doing? Pei Gejin was confused. Wang Xiaoer shrugged his shoulders and said, "I don't know, the lord must have a reason for doing this." "I understand, it seems that the lord is the idea of fighting the Qing army!" Pei Gejin remembered Deng Zixuan's letter about Feng Zicai's second trip to the mountain. "You mean to let Feng Zicai's old department be used by me, but Feng Zicai has already returned to his hometown!" Wang Xiaoer was a little confused.

Zhuge Jin said with a smile: "How can you and I know the lord's foresight, forget it, let's not bother with it, and do the things in front of us." I'm coming, what are you going to entertain me with? "By the way, our home-brewed rice wine is very good, and it is the winemaking technique of the Yi people. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have taken it out and drank it. Wang Xiaoer ordered the wine and food to be served.

Pei Gejin held the bowl in his hand, the liquid in the bowl was slightly yellow, exuding a faint aroma of wine. Seeing Pei Gejin tasting with his eyes closed, Wang Xiaoer asked, "How is it?" It tastes good! Pei Gejin smacked his lips, opened his eyes, and dried the whole bowl of wine in one gulp: "It's a little sweet and sour, it tastes good, you kid will be very happy." "Since it's delicious, let's make three bowls in a row."

After a few bowls of wine, Pei Gejin felt a little dizzy and said, "Damn, this rice wine has a lot of stamina, it's time for our brothers to get down to business." "By the way, I haven't had time to ask you, what are you doing here all of a sudden, is there a major action?" Wang Xiaoer's eyes widened. Pei Gejin swallowed a piece of bacon and said: "I went to Annan first, Leng Yifei's troops formed a security brigade, I came to understand the situation, and I will report to the lord in detail after I go back." ”

"Looks like you're really going to rebel, when?" Wang Xiaoer was overjoyed when he heard this. "I don't know, this matter is not up to you and me to decide, and it seems that the time is not ripe at this time. The lord said that once the French attacked, our chance came. The French have always been entrenched in the south of Annam, and they will provoke a war at any time. The lord seems to have a plan, and the formation of a security brigade this time is a sign. At present, we do not have the conditions for armament, and if the French make a move at this time, we will be passive. ”

"Leng Yifei told him that he sent a reconnaissance force deep into the south of Annan, the purpose of which was to keep an eye on the French, is there any sign of the French?" "Not for the time being, but I told Leng Yifei to increase the scope and intensity of the investigation, and the main announcement told me to report the news of the French at any time, it seems that the lord is worried." Pei Gejin's mind seemed to be much clearer.

"Brother Pei, it seems that we also have to strengthen our preparations, so as not to be caught off guard when the time comes." Wang Xiaoer said worriedly. "You kid is out now, let me ask you how many people are in your current protection team?" "There are about 2,000 people in the caravans and caravans, all of whom are distributed in various caravans and farms." Pei Gejin groaned and said, "There are enough personnel. Listening to Leng Yifei, you are infiltrating the official army, how is the situation? "There are 10 people who have broken into the Qing army, mainly to spy on information."

"It's not enough, from now on you will increase your efforts, and you have to supervise this matter personally. Since the lord fights the idea of the official army, we have to share the worries of the lord. The two brothers talked until late at night, still not sleepy.