When Yang Zhen heard Xu Changyong speak, he hurriedly walked out and greeted him. He just caught up with Xu Changyong, who was short and stocky, entering the yard.

When Xu Changyong saw Yang Zhen coming out and knew that he treated him as always, he felt even happier. He immediately hugged Yang Zhen as a greeting, and then said with a smile:

"Good guy! There are more than 3,000 Manchu heads with pigtails! Brother, how did you do it! I just saw it, and it really makes me jealous!

"Don't tell me that the people in Ningyuan City have never seen such a harvest, even if it is delivered to the emperor's feet, those civil servants may not even dare to think about it!"

After saying this, Xu Changyong followed Yang Zhen and sat down on the stone steps at the entrance of the second hall. He looked at Yang Zhen and said, "Brother! It's a good thing to be in the limelight. It's also called a civil servant in Ningyuan City, at the feet of the emperor."

Those gentlemen, look at what you are capable of, brother! But you have to hold on to the limelight. If you continue to do so, you may overshadow Marshal Zu in Jinzhou City!"

Xu Changyong still said the last words with a smile, but his words seemed meaningful both inside and outside.

But since Xu Changyong didn't say it clearly, Yang Zhen didn't want to break it. He nodded at him and said with a wry smile: "There is really no way! Brother, I also want to keep a low profile, but my strength does not allow it! It's all the fault of those full-hearted people.

The slave doesn’t deserve a beating!”

As Yang Zhen spoke, he laughed first.

Deng En, Ma Keqing, who were standing next to Yang Zhen, and Xu Changyong who was sitting, as well as two men, one tall and one short, who were following behind Xu Changyong. After hearing what Yang Zhen said, they were all stunned at first.

I understand what it means to be low-key, but when I saw Yang Zhen laughing, I instantly understood the joke and everyone started laughing too.

Taking advantage of this moment, Yang Zhen looked at the two men standing behind Xu Changyong. The shorter and stockier one was ugly, but he looked quite familiar. He must have seen him somewhere.

As for the tall but thin man, he had a skinny face full of big and small pits, and two long mustaches at the corners of his mouth. At this time, he lowered his eyebrows and lowered his head.

Standing quietly, when others laugh, the corners of this person's mouth are just slightly raised.

Yang Zhen had no impression of this tall, pockmarked man with a sharp face, and concluded in his heart that he was a stranger.

Thinking of this, Yang Zhen saw everyone laughing, and then said to Xu Changyong: "Brother Xu! I just returned to Songshan, and before I had time to tell you to meet you, you came to the city by yourself. You can't just come here to welcome me.

Please flatter me in front of me again!"

After Yang Zhen said this to Xu Changyong with a smile, he went to look at the two men standing behind Xu Changyong. At this time, he heard Xu Changyong laugh, extend his thumb at Yang Zhen and say:

"Haha, brother, you are really good at predicting things!"

After saying this, the smile on Xu Changyong's face dropped. He looked inside the yard and saw that there seemed to be no outsiders. Then he looked solemnly and said to Yang Zhen:

"Brother, before you led your team to the sea, you asked me to arrange for Meng He to go west to the border to recruit heroes from the grasslands. No, Meng He is back. He has brought back not only a team of men, but also many people.

Little useful news!

"Actually, I heard yesterday that you returned safely, brother, but I expected that you would be so overwhelmed when you entered Songshan City that you would not be able to take care of this matter. So, after waiting for a day, I brought them over here early this morning for an interview!"

Hearing what Xu Changyong said, Yang Zhen suddenly remembered who the familiar ugly man standing behind Xu Changyong was. That man was none other than the Mongolian general Meng He who had been personally appointed by him.

At that moment, Yang Zhen smiled and said to the ugly man: "I have been really busy these past two days! Brother Meng, when did you get back to Rufenggang?! Did your trip to the border go smoothly this time?

!”

Meng He originally stood behind Xu Changyong with a low eyebrow, but when he heard Yang Zhen calling him and talking to him, he quickly turned around from behind Xu Changyong, walked quickly to Yang Zhen, knelt on one knee, and touched him with his right hand.

Chest, lowered his head to see the ceremony, and then replied:

"Young Meng He pays homage to the Commander-in-Chief! When I return to the Commander-in-Chief, I was previously ordered to go to the border to recruit rangers. To say it went well, it went well, but I brought back No. 100 troops!"

Meng He's speaking voice was hoarse and low, as if polished by gold and stone, but his Chinese was fluent, and it was clear to Yang Zhen's ears.

But Yang Zhen seemed to have something in his words. This trip seemed to have both a smooth and unsatisfactory side. He stared at him, ready to hear him continue.

However, at this time, they saw that Meng He did not continue to speak, but suddenly turned around on the spot, waved to the tall, thin, pockmarked man behind Xu Changyong and said:

"Brother Li! Come and meet General Songshan Yang!"

The tall, thin man with a pockmarked face seemed to have been waiting for Meng He's words. After hearing the words, he immediately took a few steps forward and quickly knelt down beside Meng He. He also knelt on one knee, put his right hand on his chest and paused, doing so in a relative manner.

A simple prairie barbarian ritual.

Of course, this kind of military salute is now practiced in Yang Zhen's army. This kind of etiquette not only shows superiority but also inferiority, is simple and uncomplicated, and is also suitable for use in the military.

The tall and thin man knelt down in front of Yang Zhen and saluted, and immediately said: "Young Li Mazi, I have met General Songshan General Yang! I congratulate General Yang on his triumphant return from the attack on Mannu's rear!"

Yang Zhen, who was still sitting casually on the steps in front of the door, heard this and immediately stood up, looking at Xu Changyong who also stood up next to him.

Xu Changyong immediately said with a smile: "Brother Li, it turned out that he was making a living at the foot of the Qingluan Mountains northwest of the Three Towers. This time, Meng and General Meng followed your order to recruit rangers.

As for Brother Li, ahem - I was moved by your loyalty, brother, so I followed Mr. Meng back!"

Hearing Xu Changyong's words, Yang Zhen's mind turned, he smiled on his face, and said nothing, but kept muttering in his heart: What does it mean to be moved by my loyalty? I'm afraid I'm not fooling ghosts! To be honest, I'm afraid

I just can’t survive in the Qingluan Mountains!

It's just that Yang Zhen knows the truth of not hitting the smiling person. After all, the person is here to seek refuge with him. If he sees through it but doesn't reveal it, both sides will have face.

Thinking of this, Yang Zhen looked at Li Mazi and said, "In that case, Yang welcomes you! From now on, brother Zhao will lead his brothers and follow Xu Shen, my brother Xu, to station at Rufenggang!"

When Yang Zhen said this, he turned and nodded to Ma Keqing, who was behind him. Ma Keqing immediately turned around and entered the room.

At this time, Yang Zhen looked at Li Mazi and continued: "By the way, does Brother Li have a famous name? The name Mazi Mazi is not an honorific after all!"

When Yang Zhen said this, Xu Changyong and Meng He already knew what Yang Zhen meant. They wanted to accept this Li Mazi and give him a military career on the spot.

Li Mazi seemed to be aware of this, and immediately saluted Yang Zhen and said: "When I was young, I got smallpox, and my whole family died. Only the little one was lucky enough to survive! From then on, I was called Mazi."

, I was called Xiao Mazi when I was little, and when I became an adult, my brothers all called me Xiao Mazi Li, and I don’t have any other serious names!”

Yang Zhen heard what he said and saw that Ma Keqing had not brought the official complaint for a while, so he said to this pockmarked Li: "Brother Li, I think you speak honestly and you are also an upright man! I have a few here.

I have a question for you!"

When that pockmarked Li heard what Yang Zhen said, he immediately looked up at Yang Zhen and said, "General Yang, please ask. If you have something to say, I will answer truthfully!"

"Then let me ask you, Commander-in-Chief Zu in Jinzhou City is very powerful in Liaodong. Jinzhou City has sufficient food and salary, and the city is vast. Commander-in-Chief Zu also has a Mongolian camp under his command, which specializes in recruiting soldiers from tribes outside the Great Wall!

"Sanggarsai and Wu Bashi, the generals under Marshal Zu, are both from the border areas. Brother Li, why didn't you join Jinzhou but Songshan? Why didn't you join Marshal Zu and join me, Yang?!"

Yang Zhen was somewhat distrustful of the tribesmen from outside the border who came to surrender, especially those tribesmen and grassland horse thieves, because the performance of these people in history was not very good.

For example, two people, Sanggarsai and Wu Bashi, finally surrendered to the Qing Tatars at the critical moment of the second Songjin War.

Although the coach Zu Dashou finally surrendered to the Qingta, if Sanggarsai and Wu Bash, who were defending Jinzhou's periphery and Jinzhou's outer city, had not surrendered so quickly, Zu Dashou might have been able to hold on longer.

If Zu Dashou persists, then the remaining castles such as Tashan, Xingshan, Lianshan, etc., which have been watching the wind direction of Jinzhou, will not all open the city to surrender in the end.

Of course, things in history may not be that simple, but when Yang Zhen thought that it was the Mongolian battalion stationed in the outer city of Jinzhou that surrendered first, which kicked off the surrender of other cities, he felt very uncomfortable.
Chapter completed!