Snowflakes were falling outside, the wind was biting, and the charcoal fire was blazing in the house, which was as warm as spring. Gao Bufan and Cui Hu sat opposite each other, with rice wine warming on the small red clay stove, and the mutton soup in the pot was boiling, and the aroma was fragrant.

The two were chatting while eating hot pot. Oh, by the way, hot pot at this time was not called hot pot, but called antique soup. It was named after the sound of "gudong, gudong" made after the water was boiled.

Let's say that Gao Bufan recently returned to his home in Gan County for two days. Today he came to visit Cui Hu. Unexpectedly, it snowed after entering the city. The two of them had just come out of the house of the patriarch Cui Wang, and then Cui Hu insisted.

Take him to your house to eat antique soup.

Cui Hu poured a glass of warm rice wine for Gao Bufan and said with a smile: "This kind of snowy day is the most suitable for eating antique soup."

Gao Bufan picked up the wine glass and had a drink with Cui Hu. The latter took a long breath and said with a clear conscience: "Thanks to Chang Qing for what happened last time. Otherwise, our Qinghe Cui clan would have suffered. What a disaster."

It’s hard to guard against house thieves when it comes to night defense. For a big family like ours, the biggest fear is the appearance of a black sheep.”

Gao Bufan expressed his deep sympathy. Indeed, a pig teammate like Cui Shiyao was so deceptive. He not only deceived his father, but also defrauded the entire clan. He reminded in a low voice: "As far as I know, Feiyuwei is still investigating the matter of the building ship. Cui

Brother, be careful and don’t be careless.”

Cui Hudan said calmly: "It doesn't matter, just let them investigate. Our Qinghe Cui family's three-story boat was burned down by thieves in full view of the public. The parents and officials of this county saw it with their own eyes. Even if Feiyuwei had doubts,

I can’t produce any evidence.”

Gao Bufan nodded. It has been several months since the incident happened, and there has been no movement so far. It can be seen that Feiyuwei has indeed not found anything.

Cui Hu gave Gao Bufan a piece of mutton and whispered with deep feeling: "Thanks to Miss Dou for helping me, otherwise it would be really difficult."

Gao Bufan smiled and said: "Brother Cui, this is all a good relationship you made yourself. One drink and one peck, could it be destiny!"

Cui Hu nodded, who said otherwise? After learning about Dou Xianniang's true identity, he kept it a secret. He even took the risk to accept Dou Xianniang into his team when he went north to congratulate Gao Bufan on the opening of his new racecourse earlier this year.

, covering her along the way across the state and county. If it hadn't been for this good relationship, there would be no way Miss Dou would help this time.

"By the way, Gao Shida and Dou Jiande recently captured Pingyuan County, and their momentum has become more and more powerful. Miss Dou is probably also in Pingyuan County at the moment." Cui Hu said in a low voice.

"When did it happen?" Gao Bufan asked unexpectedly.

"It was only seven or eight days ago," Cui Hu replied.

Gao Bufan couldn't help but suddenly realized that he had made an appointment with Dou Xianniang to place a token at the agreed location in Gaojibo as soon as he returned to Gan County. When Xianniang saw it, she would go to the racecourse to look for him, but it turned out that the token had been released for three days.

Well, this girl, Xian Niang, hasn't appeared yet. It turns out she went to Pingyuan County. It seems that the business between Lao Dou and Gao Shida is getting bigger and bigger, and they are starting to grab the territory.

Cui Hu sighed and said: "The situation in the Sui Dynasty is becoming more and more corrupt now. There are several forces around Qinghe County. Wang Xuba and Li Shanfei are wreaking havoc in Zhao County and Hejian County in the north, with tens of thousands of troops.

; To the south are Gao Shida and Dou Jiande,

There is also Sun Anzu, who also has more than 10,000 troops; Qijun in the southeast has Wang Bo and Zuo Xiangcai, and Wagang Zhairang in the west. Liu Yuanjin in the Jiangnan area is even more powerful, with 100,000 troops. In Wu Jun

He claims to be the emperor, but his attitude is about to change."

Gao Bufan nodded and said: "Next year the emperor will conquer Goguryeo, so the change will only happen in the past few years. Brother Cui should make plans early to avoid being too passive."

Gao Bufan and Cui Hu had a close friendship, so they had no scruples in chatting with each other and spoke freely.

Cui Hu's eyes flashed and he said: "The iron mines in Anle County have been opened. Now the imperial court is in urgent need of various weapons and armors. The official weapons factory under the name of the Shaofu Supervisor cannot keep up. Now part of the quota has been distributed to

Private blacksmith shops, our blacksmith shop under Cui's name also received some of them."

"Congratulations to Brother Cui, this is a big deal." Gao Bufan said calmly.

Cui Hu stroked his beard and smiled and said: "It is indeed a big business, but the profit is not high. It is just a few hard-earned money, and you have to pay taxes. By the way, when will Chang Qing be leaving back to Zhuojun?"

On the issue of weapons and armor, both of them had a tacit understanding and only dabbled in it, as it was against the rules.

"In five days, I have to take office before the twelfth lunar month." Gao Bufan replied.

Cui Hu smiled when he heard this and said, "It's still not too late."

Gao Bufan asked curiously: "What can happen in time?"

Cui Hu reminded: "Chang Qing has forgotten that this year's war horses have to be handed over to the court again. The emperor will conquer Goguryeo three times next year, so Taipu Temple has already issued an official document. This year's war horses will still be driven to Zhuojun by each racecourse.

deliver."

Only then did Gao Bufan wake up. It was time for the annual war horses to be handed over to the court. According to the quota set by Yu Wenhuaji, Yufeng Racecourse had to hand over 1,500 war horses this year. Fortunately, at the beginning of this year, Xi Renchu ​​Li

Thousands of horses were seized from the Ministry, and even if the quota from the Flying Eagle Racecourse was added together, it would be more than enough.

Cui Hu naturally knew that Gao Bufan was not short of horses now, so he didn't ask any more questions, and said: "I will drive the horse north in person in five days, and I will be traveling with Chang Qing, but that may slow down Chang Qing's journey."

"It doesn't matter, I still have plenty of time." Gao Bufan said in a free and easy manner.

Cui Hu said happily: "That's good. In addition, we have opened several new dyeing workshops and porcelain cellars in Zhuojun, so we have to take some tools with us along the way, and the traveling speed will be slower."

Gao Bufan's heart moved. It seems that the Cui family of Qinghe is a little panicked now and is accelerating the transfer of the industrial chain. But it's no wonder that Qinghe County is surrounded by thieves now. If you don't want to be a thief, it's better to put oil on your feet quickly to avoid

After being eaten to the dregs, no one knows how many people are now staring at the extremely rich Cui family of Qinghe.

Although Zhuojun is located to the north, it is rich in resources and people, and the key is very stable. Yang Guang campaigned eastward for three consecutive years, and almost all the material and manpower in the country were concentrated in Zhuojun. Naturally, it also promoted all walks of life in Zhuojun, so

Nowadays, in the entire Sui Dynasty, the richest place may not be Zhuojun, but the easiest place to make money is definitely Zhuojun.

Of course, another reason why Cui Hu was confident in moving his business north to Zhuojun was because of Gao Bufan. Yingyang Mansion was the local armed force of Zhuojun. With Gao Bufan protecting him in the future, he could save a lot of trouble and be much safer.

"By the way, Changqing's Yingyang Mansion must replenish its troops, right?" Cui Hu suddenly asked.

Gao Bufan nodded and said: "There are only about 200 people under my command now, and I need to add about 800 people to fill the quota."

Cui Hu shook his head and said: "Eight hundred people are not enough. Chang Qing can increase the number of soldiers to 1,500 or even 2,000."

Gao Bufan was surprised and said: "I'm afraid it's against the rules. The quota of soldiers in a government is only one thousand."

Cui Hu whispered: "Rules are dead, people are alive. Ordinary people can't tell the difference between one thousand people and two thousand people. As long as the list handed over to the court is one thousand people, the rest will be fine."

They are regarded as private soldiers, and Chang Qing can keep them with his own money. Now that the army is in chaos and the situation is unstable, everyone is doing this. If there is an uprising, they can also protect themselves."

Gao Bufan was secretly sweating, it turned out that there was such a shameless operation. In the past, I had only heard of people getting paid in name, but now it was reversed, and it turned into people getting paid without a name.

Cui Hu pondered: "But it is not easy to recruit soldiers now. Chang Qing might as well recruit some soldiers from the Gao clan. After all, his own people are more loyal and reliable."

Gao Bufan nodded and said: "I also have this plan. I have discussed it with the clan leader a few days ago and recruited two hundred young men from the clan as personal soldiers."

"Is it a little less?" Cui Hu said.

Gao Bufan was moved in his heart and asked tentatively: "Is there any young man from the Cui family who would be willing to serve as a soldier in Zhuo County?"

Cui Hu was secretly happy and blurted out: "There must be some, but... Changqing, don't you mind?"

Gao Bufan smiled and said: "I am worried about the supply of soldiers now. If young people from the Cui family are willing to apply, I would be happy to ask for it!"

Cui Hu couldn't help but feel happy. He originally wanted to bring it up, but he was worried that Gao Bufan wouldn't be happy, so he didn't speak up. Now that Gao Bufan took the initiative to bring it up, he naturally wanted it.

It is said that although the Cui family of Qinghe has a big business, the shift of the focus of the industry is not a trivial matter. The key figures in the family are very cautious about this. Now Gao Bufan agrees that the disciples of the Cui family of Qinghe will join the Yingyang Mansion. This is undoubtedly a sign of the Cui family of Qinghe.

Cui Hu was naturally overjoyed as a kind of guarantee and promise. With this reassurance, he believed that those elders in the clan who opposed the transfer of industry would change their minds.

"This is a serious matter. I have to discuss it with the clan before I reply to you, Chang Qing. By the way, how many Cui descendants does Chang Qing plan to recruit?" Cui Hu asked.

Gao Bufan groaned deeply for a moment and then said: "Two hundred people, we must recruit some from Zhuo County, so as not to rely on the actual population."

Cui Hu didn't take it seriously when he heard this. Two hundred people are already pretty good, and there are also two hundred descendants of the Gao family. It can be seen that Changqing has given himself enough face, and he can't be too greedy.

Cui Hu took the initiative to pour another glass of wine for Gao Bufan and said with a smile: "Just drinking is a bit monotonous. Come, please invite the girl. Well, please bring the guqin with you." After that, he turned to Gao Bufan again.

He smiled and said: "My little girl's piano skills are quite good, let her help me out."

Gao Bufan sweated secretly and said: "Brother Cui, it's freezing here. It's not good for Miss Shirou to work. Let's forget it. We can just eat and drink by ourselves."

Cui Hu stroked his beard and smiled and said: "It doesn't matter. My daughter is idle in the back house anyway, so why not let her stretch her muscles? Besides, Chang Qing is not considered an outsider, so why should she meet outsiders."

Gao Bufan stopped talking when he heard this. He hadn't seen her for nearly half a year. In fact, he also wanted to meet this cute and cute little loli.
Chapter completed!