The territory of the Qi Dynasty is second only to that of the Jing Dynasty, and on the incomparably long border, there are several governors that protect the territory and the people.

If it is assessed purely by importance, Jing and Huai are tied for the first place, followed by the Chengdu Governor's Office, and then the Taiping Prefecture Governor's Office.

Chengzhou is located in the west of the Qi Dynasty, and its area ranks first among the thirteen states in the south of the Yangtze River.

It is bordered by Hengjiang River in the north, Yazhou and Luzhou in the east, and Taiping Prefecture in the southeast.

The southern boundary of hundreds of miles is adjacent to the Nanzhao Kingdom, and the west is the seven parts of Shazhou, which have lived here for generations, and the two sides are separated by Yunling.

One hundred and sixty years ago, Li Zhongjing, the Taizu of Qi, once sent troops into the southwestern border to help the Shazhou Seven Divisions repel the foreign invasion from the far west, and since then they have reaped the loyalty of the Seven Divisions of Shazhou.

Later, in the process of Li Zhongjing's conquest of the world, the native soldiers of the seven divisions of Shazhou served desperately and contributed a lot to the establishment of the Qi Dynasty.

Li Zhongjing once wanted to let the Shazhou Seven Divisions move inward and promise them glory and wealth, but in the end they were politely rejected by the leaders of the Seven Divisions, and they were willing to stay in the relatively barren homeland to live.

In the next hundred years, the seven divisions of Shazhou remained loyal, and when the Qi Dynasty needed it, they would send native soldiers who could fight well to serve them.

Nineteen years ago, that is, the first emperor of the Great Qi Dynasty Yuankang seven years, the three northern kingdoms of the iron cavalry south, breaking through the Jinghe defense line to Heluo, the first emperor summoned the Quartet army into the king of Jingqin, Shazhou seven sent 8,000 native soldiers, relying on a pair of legs to wade through mountains and rivers to rush to Heluo City.

However, in the end, in order to persuade the armies of the three northern kingdoms to retreat, the first emperor of the Qi Dynasty was forced to sign an alliance under the city, not only ceding several important towns in the north, but also introducing the native soldiers of Shazhou into the encirclement of the enemy army, in exchange for the withdrawal of the other party's troops.

On that day, in Yanziling, a northern suburb of Heluo, 8,000 native soldiers in Shazhou were surrounded by an enemy ten times their size, and the bloody battle did not fall, and the entire army was almost annihilated.

Only a few hundred people escaped and returned to the southwestern border full of grief and indignation.

Since then, the Shazhou Seventh Department has regarded the Qi Dynasty as an enemy, and often attacks the border.

This situation did not improve after Li Duan ascended the throne, but intensified, even though he sent envoys to cross Yunling to Shazhou Seven Divisions several times, but these envoys could not even see the heads of the Seven Divisions, and each time they were knocked unconscious and stripped naked and thrown back, which can be said to have made the court lose face.

For these envoys, this was more difficult to accept than killing them.

Li Duan had to give up the policy of appeasement and establish the Governor's Mansion in Chengzhou, with four infantry armies under his jurisdiction to guard against the attack of the Seven Divisions of Shazhou.

For more than a decade, there have been frequent skirmishes on the Chengdu border, and although they are not as large and intense as those in the north, they are far more frequent, and the people living on the Chengdu border have to move inward in order to find peace.

The seat of the Chengzhou Governor's Mansion is located in Qingjiang Prefecture, which is less than 70 miles away from the border and about 120 miles away from Yunling in a straight line.

With the arrival of a holy decree, Qingjiang City suddenly became noisy.

Hou Yu, the governor of Nan'an and Chengzhou, was promoted to general, and shared the 12th Army of Nanya in the capital with another general, Liu Shouguang.

Hou Yushi, Chinese New Year's Eve, first served in the Beijing Army, and later came to Chengzhou, where he stayed for thirteen years, relying on solid military merits, all the way from the deputy commander of the Qingjiang Army to the governor of Chengzhou, and was made the Marquis of Nan'an four years ago.

In the Governor's Mansion, the hall was full of friends, and officials at all levels in Chengzhou, generals and representatives of local squires gathered together to hold this grand banquet for Hou Yu.

On the main table, Hou Yu, as the protagonist of today, naturally sits on the main seat, on his left is the Chengzhou Thorn Shi Qu Gongze, who came on purpose, and on the right is Tong Shiyuan, the deputy governor who has served as his right-hand man over the years.

Between pushing the cup and changing the lamp, the flattery is endless.

Hou Yu's appearance has nothing to do with his name, his person has thick eyebrows and a broad face, large ears and a black face, and a pair of leopard eyes like torches without anger and self-authority.

Listening to the sound of the generals under his command, Hou Yu's face was calm, leisurely and complacent.

Qu Gong put down the wine cup and said with a smile: "The Metropolitan Governor has entered Beijing this time, which shows that the Holy Family is grand, which is really enviable. ”

Hou Yu raised his eyebrows slightly, and said: "Uncle Fang, don't make fun, the hidden dragon and crouching tiger in Beijing, my generation is only a border military warrior, only by offering his will can he gain a foothold, and he is not as relaxed as the adults here." ”

Qu Gong smiled unabated, but he was scolding his mother in his heart.

The thirteen states in the south of the Yangtze River, how majestic the history of the inland states is, that is the real feudal official, who can decide the life and death of others with one word.

A frontier assassin like him is basically the second official of the border military governor, although he has the power to supervise Hou Yu on the surface, he actually has to rely on others, because the other party has real military power in his hands.

Qu Gong listened to Hou Yu chewing the words and showing off his elegance, and said with a smile on his face: "Most of the governors are too modest." Xiaguan can be said to be both happy and worried today, happy that the metropolitan governor was promoted to the general of the Beijing army, and worried that after the metropolitan governor returned to Beijing, the Shazhou Seventh Department on the Yunling side must be restless, afraid of the trouble of the frontier. ”

"Uncle Fang doesn't need to worry."

Hou Yu's tone was light, he raised his hand over his left shoulder, looked at Tong Shiyuan on the other side and said, "Your Majesty's will, after I return to Beijing, you will temporarily take the position of governor." The Shazhou Seventh Department crosses the border every spring to harass me, and this year it is especially necessary to strengthen vigilance, and they will definitely know the news of my return to Beijing. You must strictly order all armies to hold the defensive line steadily, and not allow the seven native soldiers to break into the territory of Chengzhou. ”

Tong Shiyuan immediately left the table and got up and said, "Please rest assured that the Metropolitan Governor will be able to deal with it properly." ”

Hou Yu bowed slightly, then raised the wine cup, and said indifferently: "Everyone." ”

As soon as these two words came out, the bustling hall immediately fell silent.

Hou Yu continued: "Thanks to your help, this governor has lived up to the trust of His Majesty and the imperial court over the years, and has blocked those barbarians who do not know whether they are alive or dead to the west of Yunling. The Governor will go to Beijing tomorrow, this glass of water and wine to express his heart, and please rest assured that the Governor will not forget his thirteen years in Chengdu, nor will he forget his friendship with you. Please fill this cup to your heart's content! ”

"To the Grand Governor!"

Everyone congratulated in unison.

After a banquet of pleasure for the guests and hosts, many people drank in vain, but Hou Yu seemed to be fine, as if his swarthy face could block the overflow of wine.

The guests dispersed, and Hou Yu returned to the study in the back hall with an indifferent face.

"Villain Li Jinshan, meet the Marquis of Nan'an!"

A man in his thirties bowed to the shrine, he was of medium stature, with an ordinary face and a dusty appearance.

"No need to be polite."

Hou Yu changed his previous reserve and pride at the banquet, stretched out his hand to help the person up, pointed to the side and said, "Sit." ”

"Master Xie."

Li Jinshan spoke in a respectful tone, and only half of his buttocks were attached when he sat down.

Seeing this, Hou Yu smiled slightly, and secretly said that he was worthy of being the servant of the Jinlin Li family, and this kind of behavior was indeed comfortable, so he asked, "How is Lord Li lately?" ”

The Lord Li in his mouth does not refer to Li Daoyan, the left minister of the current court, but to Li Shizhi, the servant of the Criminal Department.

Li Jinshan, as Li Shizhi's confidant, of course knew this, so he replied: "Everything is fine with my master, thank you for your concern." ”

Hou Yu bowed his head and said, "I don't know what instructions Lord Li sent you here?" ”

"I don't dare to give instructions, my lord just wants the villain to explain the situation in the capital to the Hou Ye."

With a humble smile on his face, Li Jinshan continued: "Master Hou should know that the garrison of the Sixth Army of the Northern Ya cannot leave the capital without permission, so the Twelfth Army of the Southern Ya is the only soldier and horse that can be used in the Beijing Army. For the past decade or so, Nanya has been at the helm of two generals, Liu Shouguang and Li Jingda, who are followed by several major clans around the capital. Now that Liu Shouguang is tending to the Son of Heaven and Li Jingda's ability is insufficient, it is the time for Hou Ye to show his ambitions. ”

Hou Yu didn't find Bei because of his words, and said indifferently: "Since Li Jingda's ability is insufficient, why did His Majesty agree to him as the governor of Dingzhou?" Want to pave the way for someone ahead of time? ”

Li Jinshan praised: "Master Hou clearly sees that my master also thinks the same way. ”

Hou Yu chuckled lightly and said leisurely: "It seems that Your Majesty really favors that Lu Shen." ”

Li Jinshan took the opportunity to say: "My lord also said that although Li Jingda is a transitional candidate, he will definitely not just go through the motions. During this time, it is very likely that Lu Shen will be recalled to the capital by His Majesty, and then arrange a temporary military position. ”

Hou Yu said slowly: "Lord Li's intention, Your Majesty wants to use Lu Shen to further pry the pattern of the Beijing army?" ”

Li Jinshan nodded and said, "Very likely." Now in the 12th Army of the Southern Ya, His Majesty has planted a nail, that is, Chen Lanyu, the commander of the Zhenwei Army. This person is a subordinate general who was hand-picked up by Xiao Wang, and he is also close to Lu Shen. After Hou Ye took office, the first thing he had to face was Chen Lanyu. Li Jingda had thought about finding trouble with Chen Lanyu before, but his crude methods never worked. ”

Chen Lanyu ...... Lu Shen ......"

Hou Yu repeated the two names expressionlessly, and then said calmly: "Go back and tell Lord Li that he pushed me to the position of the general of Nanya, and I will not disappoint his expectations." In addition, I have arrangements here in Chengzhou, which will come in handy if necessary. ”

Li Jinshan said happily: "With the words of the Hou Ye, my master will be able to sit back and relax." ”

Hou Yu smiled and said: "Please also pass it on to Master Li, since he has fulfilled his promise to me back then, Hou will not let him down." ”

Li Jinshan stood up and saluted, and said no more.

In the early morning of the next day, Hou Yu, the governor of Chengdu, leisurely embarked on the journey back to Beijing surrounded by a thousand sharp soldiers.

By the afternoon, the team had moved away from Qingjiang City and walked on the smooth official road without hurry.

Hou Yu, who was closing his eyes in the carriage, naturally didn't know that at this moment, on a green mountain beside the road, a man dressed in red was standing on a boulder halfway up the mountain, looking indifferently at the team on the official road below.

The red clothes are like fire, and the long sword hangs from the waist.

"Sister, are you really going to the capital of Qi Kingdom?"

A fourteen or fifteen-year-old boy next to him asked with concern.

"Well, Sister is going to run errands."

The woman in red turned around and raised her hand to rub his head, and said to the middle-aged clansman not far away, "Uncle Twelve, you have someone send Ah Di back." Also, is the cloudworm ready? ”

The middle-aged man nodded and said, "Ready." ”

The woman in red answered, and then said to the young man, "Go back and tell Abba and Grandma that I will be home soon." ”

"Hmmm! Sister, you have to be careful, Qi people are not good things, this is what Abba said! ”

The boy's skin was dark, and his eyes were as bright as stars.

"I know, when I find an opportunity to kill Hou Yu, a brute, and then do what Abba explained, you can see me."

The woman in red patted the young man on the shoulder, bowed slightly at the middle-aged man, and then jumped off the boulder with her knees raised and walked down the mountain.

The young man looked at her back and stood quietly in place, reluctant to leave for a long time.

(End of chapter)