Then, the three children began to sue each other. Ma Chao didn't feel bored when he heard it, and he felt a sense of belonging to his family.

After a short period of contact, Ma Teng took the lead and led the victorious army to Jincheng in a mighty way, with great fanfare and military music along the way, and the people also helped the old and the young to follow, for fear of being pulled down by the Xiliang Iron Cavalry. As the procession marched towards Jincheng, more and more people appeared on both sides of the official road. As soon as they saw Ma Chao with a white horse and a silver spear behind Ma Teng, people shouted long live and knelt down respectfully on both sides of the official road.

Ma Chao was very proud, and at this time he could understand the poem: the spring breeze is proud, but this kind of pride is really difficult to express in a poem, Ma Chao feels that he is about to float.

Ma Chao also saw Jincheng. At this time, Jincheng is the most majestic city in the whole Liangzhou. Because of the continuous wars, the successive assassins have expanded and strengthened the golden city, so that the golden city has a city wall as high as five zhang and two zhang thick, and there is a towering double que in front of the city gate, which is simple and majestic; Behind the city gate there is an urn city; On the city gate is the imposing city gate tower; Under the city gates were rows of dense rejection horses; On the city walls, there are banners with the word "horse", and under each banner stands a sergeant holding a horse lance...... Everything makes Jincheng look like it is not inferior to Chang'an and Luoyang.

In addition, unlike the urban area of Lanzhou in later generations, which also extends to the south of the Yellow River, Jincheng at this time is in the north of the Yellow River, and the surging Yellow River has become the natural moat of Jincheng; Jincheng is located in the so-called Lanzhou Basin in later generations, only the east and west sides of the terrain are flat, the south is Gaolan Mountain, the north is Baita Mountain: it can be described as the surface of the mountains and rivers, easy to defend and difficult to attack.

Walking to the edge of the Yellow River, Ma Chao saw that the Yellow River was already yellow at this time, and the water flow was greater. A pontoon bridge was built over the river, five feet wide enough to allow a large army to pass through.

After crossing the river, the procession entered the city. As soon as Ma Chao saw that he entered the city, there were also people kneeling down on both sides of the main road in the city. Most of the buildings in the city are rammed earth buildings with wooden roofs, and a brick wall is attached to the rammed earth wall, and the roof is gray-black tiles, which is the most common style of the Han Dynasty.

When Ma Teng took Ma Chao to the outside of the Assassin's Mansion, the ceremony of entering the city was over. The people gradually dispersed, and Pang De, Ma Dai, Zhang Xiu and others also led the cavalry to the barracks in the west of the city.

That night, Ma Teng held a celebration banquet for Ma Chao, and the guests and hosts were not happy.

The next morning, when it was almost noon, Ma Chao, who had drunk too much wine last night, got up. After a brief breakfast, Ma Teng sent someone to urge him to the hall to discuss matters.

The hall has gathered Ma Teng, Yan Zhong, Jia Xu, Ma Dai, Pang De, Zhang Ji, Zhang Xiu, Duan Xuan, Ju Yi and others, and many people wearing official uniforms, Ma Chao does not recognize. Ever since those people appeared in Ma Chao, their eyes never took their eyes off him for half a moment. Ma Chao knew that most of these people were surprised by his youth, but he was still very uncomfortable being stared at by a group of men when he became the target of public criticism.

Ma Chao came in and saluted, "Father." ”

"Well, there's no need to be polite", Ma Teng pointed to those unfamiliar faces that Ma Chao didn't recognize, "Chao'er can come and get acquainted, these are the wise men that my father has recruited these days." After the assessment of Mr. Yan for his father and Beijia, he appointed them as the Taishou and county commanders of the eight counties of Liangzhou. ”

Ma Chao understood, gave those scribes a shallow look, and said: "In the future, the governance of Liangzhou will have to ask you gentlemen to worry more." Ma Chao understands that Taishou and the county order are the key to controlling Liangzhou.

When the Taishou and county commanders saw that the famous Ma Chao actually saluted them, their hearts were shocked, and they quickly stood up from their seats, bent down deeply, and said: "The young master is very loving, and he will not disgrace his life." ”

Ma Teng nodded, pointed to the nearest position below him, and said, "Chao'er, sit down, I will discuss the political affairs of Liangzhou." ”

Ma Chao also knows the etiquette of the ancients, after all, after coming from a famous family, these things are innate. After sitting down, Ma Teng said to Ma Chao: "Chao'er, when you set out to conquer Qiangzhong, the imperial court had already issued an order to grant my father and son full powers of Liangzhou. Now, my father and son can act cheaply, and everything in Liangzhou can be arbitrary. ”

Ma Chao had already expected this result, not only out of trust in Jia Xu's ability, but also because Ma Teng had already appointed county officials.

Ma Teng seemed to have thought of something, and said with some embarrassment: "However, the imperial court only allows us to have 40,000 troops......"

Ma Chao was slightly surprised, the 10,000 horses that were erased, no matter where they were placed, were a force that should not be underestimated, not to mention the number one Xiliang iron horse in the world.

"The stakes are high, and my father wants to consult with you when you return. Because the Father knows that you are the most proficient in military affairs, it is up to you to decide. If you say you don't agree, then let's insist on raising 50,000 soldiers. If the court doesn't agree, then we'll ......" Ma Teng didn't say the last words, but Ma Chao and everyone understood what Ma Teng meant.

Ma Chao thought carefully and said, "We agreed to the request of the imperial court." ”

"Why? With less than 10,000, our strength is much weaker. Maybe Han Sui's army is more than 40,000! Ma Teng said dissatisfiedly.

Ma Chao said calmly: "First, Liangzhou is safe, the soldiers and the people are determined, we can't withstand the threat of the imperial court; Second, Liangzhou is dilapidated and the grain is insufficient, so we can raise fewer soldiers; Third, the soldiers are not many but fine, although our soldiers are few, they are not necessarily inferior to the soldiers of the imperial court; Fourth, the standing regular army of 40,000 mentioned by the imperial court is on the surface, and we may not be able to arrange it in the dark. ”

When everyone heard this, they were not convinced.

Ma Teng still said sadly: "My son is right. However, the imperial court has decided to send someone to assist our Xiliang army in reducing troops, and the personnel have been decided, it is Cao Peng Yang Biao of Situ Yuan Kui. Yang Biao, who was born in a famous family in Guanzhong, once killed eunuchs with Yangqiu, and it is not easy to be with him. Chao'er, you don't know what the court means, I'm afraid it's difficult for us to arrange it secretly. ”

Ma Chao was very surprised when he heard it. Ma Chao still knows Yang Biao, this great loyal minister in history, when Li Dao and Guo Yan controlled the Chang'an court, they once shared hardships with Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty. was able to deal with Li Guo, ensure that the emperor was thoughtful, and escape east back to Luoyang with more difficulty, Yang Biao was naturally not a mediocre person. In addition, Yang Biao was from a wealthy family in Guanzhong, and the imperial court sent him to Xiliang to assist in disarmament in name of aid, but Ma Chao understood with his toes that this was a means to monitor and restrain Ma Teng and him.

This makes Ma Chao a little difficult. However, after thinking about it carefully, Ma Chao still thought of a solution and said to Ma Teng: "Father, there is still a chance for this matter to turn around." My Liangzhou is mostly a border county, the Han system, and the border county is too guarded to take charge of the army. In this way, the court will not be able to hold our handle. Besides, if the imperial court even opposes this, we can change the surplus troops to the jurisdiction of the governors of each county. The duty of the lieutenant is to arrest thieves and maintain law and order, and I am in Liangzhou Chu'an, so I naturally need county soldiers to guard the county. In this way, the imperial court could not criticize anything. ”

Everyone agreed, and Ma Teng thought so.