Near noon, Huang He commanded a few servants and maids to arrange the banquet, and Huang Chao led Shang Rang, Zhu Wen and several other generals in military uniforms to rush back from outside. Everyone saw that the generals' robes were stained with blood, and they all looked at Huang Chao in surprise.

Huang Chao saw that everyone had questions on their faces, and hurriedly explained: "Let the heroes wait for a long time, the court doesn't know where to get the news, knowing that Huang is going to hold the World Heroes Conference in Caizhou, he actually mobilized several towns to come to surround it, fortunately, the generals are brave and defeated the official army in one fell swoop on the outskirts of Caizhou, although the heroes are at ease in Caizhou, the defeated troops of the imperial court have already been frightened by Huang, and they will not dare to harass them again for at least a year!", After speaking, he laughed out loud and hurriedly beckoned everyone to the table.

When all the guests heard this, they all praised: "The Yellow King's righteous army is dedicated to the people, and it is really invincible and invincible! Sooner or later, the world will still be the Yellow King's!"

Huang Chao hurriedly waved his hand and said: "You have praised it, how can Huang have such lofty ambitions, but he is not used to seeing the people suffering, and he wants to seek justice from the court for them! Besides, my righteous army is invincible, and the attack is also from the same heart, and the soldiers use their lives, what credit does Huang have?", after speaking, he asked Shang Rang, Zhu Wen and others to remove their battle robes, change into civilian clothes, and sit on their sides.

Xu Zhi, Hui Feng and a few young guests humbled each other before they sat down in turn according to their age. Huang He and several literati aides stood aside. A few maids and maids served a cup of tea and a few fresh pastries and fruits to the guests, and then retreated to the background.

Huang Chao saw that the guests attending the banquet had arrived, he looked around at the young heroes present, and saw that they were dressed in simple clothes, elegant manners, and had the demeanor of ancient sages, and said with great joy: "Thank you heroes for coming to our house to attend the meeting, everyone here is the bright generation of young people, and they are also the pillars of Huang's thoughts day and night." I hope that you can put aside the dispute between regional sects, and work with Huang to raise righteousness, display your talents, and gallop the world. ”

Jiang Chao, the young gang leader of the Jiang Temple, regarded himself as Huang Wang's son-in-law, and he stood up first, and on behalf of the guests, he replied: "Huang Wang praised it! The little nephew first thanked Huang Wang for his kind invitation and his ardent expectations for the heroes of the world. The younger generations are only shallow in learning, and I also ask Huang Wang for more guidance and support!"

Huang Chao saw that Jiang Chao was dignified, gorgeously dressed, and spoke humbly, right in his own heart, and praised: "Jiang Xian's nephew is too modest, your performance in the ring, Huang has seen it with his own eyes, you are worthy of the title of 'the first sword in the world'!"

It turned out that Jiang Chao defeated the challenge of dozens of swordsmen in the east, west, south, north and middle schools in the first round of the ring competition, with a sword in his hand, in three days, and Jiang Chao fought with each swordsman, and it didn't take three moves to cut off or pick off the opponent's sword. Therefore, Jiang Chao's outstanding performance in the ring also won the reputation of the world's first sword for Jiang Wangmiao's "Plum Blossom Sword".

Jiang Chao listened to Huang Chao's praise, and said: "The little nephew really doesn't dare to be! Huang Wang is too famous!", but his heart was full of pride.

Huang Chao said tentatively: "Jiang Xian's nephew is not only excellent in martial arts, but also the young gang leader of the largest gang in the world, with no less than 100,000 disciples, is Jiang Xian interested in competing with the old man in the Central Plains?"

Jiang Chao remembered: Before coming to Caizhou, Jiang Wangshen instructed him to listen more and talk less, and pay attention to the intentions and movements of Huangchao and the gangs in the rivers and lakes, so he bowed down and replied: "Thank you Huang Wang for your support, our Jiang Shenmiao is just a small gang on the rivers and lakes, how to know how to lead troops to fight, and please listen to the opinions of other heroes first!"

Huang Chao looked around at the other guests, and seeing that they were all unwilling to show their attitudes too early, he deliberately paused for a while and continued: "Huang is by no means narrow-minded, if there is a hero who is unwilling to help Huang, he will not be reluctant. Today's gathering power should be a meeting between literati and scholars, and poetry and wine. You can rest assured, although you can speak freely, whether you help or not, Huang will not be strong!"

As soon as Huang Chao finished speaking, Pang Xun of the spear gate chimed in: "The Yellow King is so confident, if I keep silent repeatedly, it will be too ignorant." Today's court is corrupt, local corrupt officials and corrupt officials are rampant, in order to save the people of the world from fire and water, my spear door is the liver and brain, and I am willing to follow the Yellow King. ”

It turned out that this spear gate was located in Xuzhou, Huang Chao rebelled in Shandong, and the spear gate also responded in Xuzhou, the Huang Chao rebel army controlled the Central Plains to the west, and the spear gate also went south to take Hongze Lake and Chaohu Lake, so the spear gate can be said to be an important ally of Huang Chao in the Huaisi region.

Entrenched in the East China Sea, the Shenlong Sect is the largest sect in the coastal areas of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, due to the developed economy of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, the local people hold the idea of "small wealth is safe", although the world is constantly disputed, but Jiangnan has always been spared, the salt, iron and rice grain of the land of fish and rice is still the main source of taxes for the imperial court. Therefore, the Tang Dynasty reused the Wang style of Zhejiang as the history of shipping to support the shipping of the degree, and the Wang style was in the land of the four evils, and only by relying on the power of the Shenlong Sect could he safely transport the tax materials to Chang'an Jingzhong. Therefore, the Shenlong Sect is an independent gang on the surface, but in essence it is an important helper of the imperial court on the southeast coast.

Therefore, Zhu Fu of the Shenlong Sect continued: "The Yellow King initiated the uprising, and Zhu deeply admired, but since the founding of the Emperor and Tang Dynasty, there has been a foundation of nearly three hundred years, deep-rooted, and intertwined, I am afraid that it will be difficult to shake for a while. Therefore, with all due respect, the contemptuous brothers only want to do some business on sea shipping, and they are not too interested in the world's major affairs. ”

The Jiang Temple in Jiangzhou and the Vermilion Bird Gate in Ganzhou had both taken refuge in the local warlord forces, and the two factions were of course unwilling to offend either the imperial court or the Huang Chao, so Jiang Chao of the Jiang Temple and He Jin of the Zhu Que Gate both declined Huang Chao's invitation to them on the grounds that "the journey is far away, the preparation is not sufficient, and they still need to wait for the opportunity".

The Black Eagle Sect in Hebei originated in Changbai Mountain outside the Guan, and the land of Baishan and Heishui outside the Guanguan at the end of the Tang Dynasty was included in the territory of China for the first time, and the Han people in the Guanwai had frequent exchanges with the Khitans, especially the grain seeds and iron tools of the Han people continued to flow into the Khitan, making the Black Eagle Sect of the Khitan continue to grow, and gradually penetrated into the Hebei region of the Tang Dynasty, and had private contacts with various feudal towns in Hebei, so the Black Eagle Sect not only hoped that the Huangchao Uprising could weaken the power of the Tang Dynasty in the Lianghe region, but also worried that the Huangchao Rebellion would cross the Yellow River north and threaten its own sphere of influence.

Yeluchun of the Black Eagle Sect was very hesitant in his heart, but remembering the secret covenant with the man in black that night, both parties hoped to direct Huang Chao's attention to the Jiangnan region, thus cutting off his ambition to cross the Yellow River north, so he deliberately suggested: "I have heard that the Yellow King is loyal and brave, and now the Yellow King's army is a million people, as long as the Yellow King raises his arms, he can sweep the Central Plains, enter Guanzhong, seize Li Tang's world, ascend to his great treasure, and reign over the world." ”

Huang Chao was very happy in his heart, but Huang Chao still deliberately said modestly: "Yelu Shaoxia has an overreputation, and he is weak in virtue, and he does not dare to take on this important responsibility. ”

Ye Luchun continued: "Now that the imperial court is rotten but not rotten, decayed but not falling, what do you think is the reason?"

Seeing that everyone didn't answer, Huang Chao hurriedly asked, "Please also ask Mr. Yelu to teach me?"

Ye Luchun continued: "The reason why the imperial court can stand tall is because it also controls the resources and taxes in the south of the Yangtze River, as long as the Yellow King leads his troops south to cut off its financial resources, then the imperial court will not push itself down, and the world will soon belong to the Yellow King." ”

When all the guests heard Ye Luchun's high argument, they all applauded, only Zhu Fu of the Shenlong Sect secretly complained, thinking that it was not to cut off their financial route for trading with the imperial court. He wanted to say something, but seeing that Huang Chao and the staff behind him nodded frequently after hearing Ye Lu Chun's words, he also knew that even if he stood up and debated with Ye Lu Chun, it would probably be useless.

Huang Chao saw that the guests were all eloquent, and said their opinions on the situation in the world, only Xu and Hui sat in the corner, without saying a word, and asked deliberately: "Xu Shaoxia, the old man likes you very much since he saw you, and the story of you killing bullies and fighting corrupt officials in Jiangnan makes this king very admired, you are just like Huang when he was young, he wanted Huang to kill corrupt officials and help victims in Yanzhou, Shandong, and initiate an uprising. ”

Xu Zhi hurriedly stood up and said humbly: "How can you be compared with King Huang when he was young. ”

Huang Chao seemed to be very satisfied with Xu Zhi's modesty, and continued to ask: "I don't know if Xu Shaoxia thinks that Huang should also lead his troops to Jiangnan, breaking the foundation and lifeblood of the imperial court. After speaking, he looked at Xu Zhi and Huifeng, like an elder asking for the opinions of the juniors, and his eyes were very sincere and kind.

Xu Zhi said loudly: "I heard the prestige of the Yellow King of Shandong in the south of the Yangtze River, and when I saw it today, it was indeed worthy of the name, the Yellow King has crossed the control of Shandong and Henan, with millions of soldiers, loving the people like a son, being humble as a valley, raising his arms and shouting, and the world responded. And Tang Ting's prestige is only as good as Guan Shaanxi, and he is not allowed to go abroad, and this is the best opportunity for the Yellow King to compete in the Central Plains and win the world!"

After Xu Zhi finished speaking, seeing Huang Chao and everyone nodding their heads non-stop, he continued to analyze: "But when the day is since Xianzong, it is falling apart, Hebei Domain is lined up, Xichuan and Jiangnan seem to be calm, but they are also turbulent, the Yellow King is in the middle of the world, and the neighbors are all strong enemies.

Huang Chao was taken aback at first, feeling that Xu Zhi was too pessimistic, and felt a little unhappy in his heart, but slowly reminisced about it, and felt that his analysis did make some sense, so he hurriedly asked, "Xu Zhi, in your opinion, so what?"

"King Huang, in my humble opinion: the first thing to do is to establish a stable base area, not to have a stable supply of grain, grass and soldiers like the Liukou in the past dynasties; second, we should recruit heroes from all over the world and continue to grow our momentum; third, we should form an alliance with our neighbors; and finally, we should lead troops directly into Guanzhong, overthrow the tyranny, and return the people to a blue sky. ”

As soon as Xu Zhi finished speaking, he only heard a low cheer from behind the curtain of the Zhaoxian Hall, but this voice was quickly drowned out in the cheers of the guests.

Huang Chao still hesitated when he heard this, and asked again: "Then what Brother Yelu said just now, is it feasible to lead troops to the south of the Yangtze River and break the foundation of the imperial court?"

Xu Zhi replied: "This is absolutely impossible, the Yellow King raised troops to save the people of the world, not to be the king of Jiangnan independently." Since ancient times, the small imperial court in the south of the Yangtze River has not ended well. Please also ask Huang Wang to think twice. ”

Xu Zhi continued to analyze: "Besides, the warlords in Jiangnan are also intertwined, and if one side is divided, the Yellow King will offend more local forces when he goes south, and this kind of short-term petty profit will ruin the hegemony of the general!"

Before Xu Zhi finished speaking, Yeluchun retorted: "Since ancient times, princes have their own mandates, and those who do great things are not informal. If the Yellow King can cross the river and go south and call the emperor Jiangnan, it cannot but be said to be the best policy, if according to what Brother Xu said, after doing three things, I don't know that I have to wait until the Year of the Monkey and the month of the horse, then the Yellow King will not be able to call the king of the world for a lifetime. ”

Ye Luchun continued to argue: "As far as I know, the strange book of the imperial court is in the south of the Yangtze River, and this book is a sharp sword for the world, just like the jade seal of the country known in the world, whoever can get the strange book is the recognized Son of Heaven and the leader of the alliance in the world, is the Yellow King not interested in this?"

Huang Chao was also taken aback when he heard Ye Luchun's discussion about the strange books of the court, he exchanged glances with Shang Rang, Zhu Wen, Huang He and others around him, and swore in public: "The heroes of the world here are proof: the lone king has made up his mind, and decided to go down to the south of the Yangtze River first, cut off Li Tang's foundation, look for the strange book of the court, end the disputes of the four parties, and benefit the people of the world." ”

Xu Zhi saw that Huang Chao's idea to go south had been decided, and he sighed in his heart: "It's really sad and lamentable, the hearts of the people in the world are not as important as a strange book." ”

Huang Chao saw that everyone expressed their views on the situation in the world, and suddenly changed the topic, saying: "Today Huang is happy, patronizing and talking about the world's major events with everyone, but he forgot the right thing to do. ”

After Huang Chao finished speaking, he hurriedly ordered his subordinates to bring paper and pens and distribute them to every guest present, saying that today's test questions are on this paper. Xu Zhi got the pen and paper, and saw that it was a remnant poem with only the first sentence, and asked everyone to continue the following part and express their opinions on the poem, only to see that it was written: "The world has been divided for thousands of years, and the strange book is fragmented with the sword ,...... the world."

Xu Zhi was taken aback when he saw it, and secretly thought to himself: Along the way, I heard that the Yellow King raised the righteousness for the people of the world, and today I saw that he was so obsessed with an absurd strange book and strange sayings, it can be seen that the rumors in the world are not credible, even if he has such an identity and status as Huang Chao, he still can't forget the word "fame and fortune".

Xu Zhi thought again: "Instead of rotting the secret in your heart, it is better to give it to the Yellow King, after all, he is better than the court to the people, so he finished the last two sentences: "The snake shoots the first to become a hegemony, and the purple qi comes to the east into the clouds?" ”

After a while, Huang Chao saw that everyone had finished writing, and instructed the maids around him to collect everyone's test questions, Huang Chao and the staff looked at them one by one, commented carefully, and praised everyone again.

Huang Chao seemed to see the doubts in everyone's hearts, and said slowly: "Chenglong Jia's son-in-law should let the little girl decide for herself." After speaking, he instructed a maid named Qiuyue next to him, hugged everyone's answer sheets, and sent them into an inner room full of beaded curtains at the back of the hall.

After another moment, Qiu Yue came out and replied: "King Huang, distinguished guests, Miss has ordered: only let Xu Gongzi and Hui Gongzi come in for a while." Other customers don't have to meet each other. ”

When everyone heard this, they all shook their heads in disappointment, and although Xu Zhi was handsome in appearance, he was not elegant enough; Xu Zhi was not the best choice in terms of martial arts; even in terms of talking and talking, Xu Zhi's views could not be fully supported by the Yellow King! In particular, Ye Luchun came to Caizhou to recruit relatives this time, and when he came, he boasted to all the sect members that he was bound to win the beauty and returned, and when he saw that Xu Zhi had won the first place and won the favor of the princess, he was immediately depressed and sighed.

Even Xu Zhi himself didn't know about this change, and he didn't even think that such a great event would suddenly fall on his head.