The decrepit old man in front of me, who is walking hobblingly, is actually Zhou Tong, who was famous back then?
It really surprised Chen Qing, and didn't Xu Ning say that Zhou Tong was dead?
"The Jingkang period was too chaotic, too many people died, and it was difficult to tell whether the news was true or false. It is not credible to say that I am dead."
Zhou Tong sighed and continued: "I spent too much energy when I was young, and now my body is completely broken. I am just a living old man who comes to the Zhou family's old house in Chengji County to take care of my old age. General Chen, don't expect too much."
Zhou Tong's implicit message was to tell Chen Qing not to regard himself as a hostage. The affairs of the Zhou family have nothing to do with him.
"Who should I go to about Zhoujiapu's matter?"
Zhou Tong pointed to the middle-aged man not far away, "That Manager Jia is Zhou Xin's confidant. He came here on Zhou Xin's order. The general is looking for him!"
Chen Qing did not embarrass Zhou Tong. After all, he had indirectly learned some of Zhou Tong's riding and archery skills through Xu Ning. He arranged a carriage and asked the soldiers to take Zhou Tong into the city.
At this time, the soldiers brought the middle-aged man up. This middle-aged man was a steward named Jia Quan. He was indeed Zhou Xin's confidant and was responsible for managing the Zhou family's property. This man was smart, had eyes and was eloquent.
, Zhou Xin sent him to negotiate with Chen Qing.
In fact, what Jia Quan wanted to see now was not Chen Qing, but Li Dujian. He did not expect to encounter Song soldiers and brought them directly to Chen Qing.
At this time, Jia Quan was very nervous. His usual cleverness and eloquence were gone. He was so frightened that he knelt down and kowtowed: "Jia Quan, the little man, pays homage to General Chen!"
Chen Qing glanced at him coldly, "Are you the person sent by Zhoujiabao?"
"The villain is just... responsible for delivering the message!"
Zhou Xin asked him to negotiate with Chen Qing on his behalf, but he realized when he saw Chen Qing's cold eyes. What qualifications did he have to negotiate with the Qinzhou envoy?
"what do you want to say?"
"Fortmaster Zhou heard that the imperial army was in need of food and was willing to provide one thousand dan of food to support the army."
"Then what?"
"Then... Lord Zhou promised to pay taxes to the government on time every year, in accordance with the twenty-one tax stipulated by the imperial court."
"Is there anything else to explain?"
"The other thing is to let Mr. Zhou Tong, the most virtuous and respected man in Zhoujia Fort, live in Chengji County as a hostage. The fort master promises that he will never break his promise."
Chen Qing nodded, "I see the sincerity of your castle master. Let me think about it and give you a reply tomorrow morning."
Chen Qing waved his hand, "Take him down!"
"Thank you General!"
Jia Quan breathed a long sigh of relief, stood up, bowed, and went down quickly.
Zheng Ping, who was standing next to him, said angrily: "Is this what you call sincerity? They sent us away with a thousand shi of grain, and they also said they would pay taxes. They would pay a shitty amount of taxes at the end of the year. They were just delaying time to fool us."
"What are you in a hurry for?"
Chen Qing glared at Zheng Ping, "What kind of bullshit fortress is he? A commoner can pay taxes on behalf of two thousand families? What kind of bullshit conditions is this? Am I that easy to fool?"
Zheng Ping was speechless for a long time, scratched his head and said: "I thought you really thought he had compromised!"
"You've been following me for several years, but you haven't made any progress at all. You can't keep calm when big things happen. You can only yell nonsense, and you insist on me scolding you every time."
"This time it was my fault, and yesterday was my fault too."
Zheng Ping was so scolded that he didn't dare to say any more.
Chen Qing then said slowly: "I went to see Zhoujia Fort yesterday. It is indeed difficult to fight. It's not that it can't be defeated. It's just that if we attack by force, we will suffer heavy casualties. We lose more than we gain, so we must use tricks. You can do this in this matter
When you don’t know anything, it is your duty to organize the people to farm the land and guard the camp in the city."
Zheng Ping said a little unwillingly: "Actually, I am very good at all kinds of conspiracies!"
Chen Qing smiled and patted his shoulder, "I'm better at it than you!"
...........
At night, the county people who had worked hard all day went to bed early, exhausted. At the fourth watch, everything in Chengji County was completely silent. At this time, a burst of rapid horse hooves sounded from a distance, and they quickly rushed to the city gate.
The cavalryman shouted loudly: "Xining County urgent military report, open the city gate quickly!"
The city gate opened and the cavalry galloped into the city. The fierce sound of horse hooves resounded throughout the city. The cavalry shouted all the way: "Xining County urgent military report!"
Half of the residents in the city were awakened by the sound of horse hooves and shouts. The people were talking a lot and guessing that the Xixia army must have invaded Xining County.
The soldiers who reported the news entered the military camp. Soon, the drums of the military camp were beating, and the tense atmosphere began to spread in the city.
Soon, the lanterns of the state government office were also lit, and Wang Huai sent people to invite several important officials to discuss matters.
The lights in the state government meeting hall were brightly lit. Chen Qing, the envoy of the system, was sitting in the lobby. Next to him were Wang Huai, the general judge, Zhang Xiao, who joined the army as a recorder, Li Yong, the governor, and six other Cao Cao, including Si Hu, Judiciary, and Si Shi, who joined the army.
Chen Qing was wearing armor and carrying a long sword at his waist. He said to the crowd: "I just received a military intelligence report that a Xixia army of more than a thousand people invaded Xining County from Huizhou. The situation in Xining County is critical. I must lead the army to support immediately!"
Xining County is located in the northwest of Qinzhou. It stretches out like a long tentacle, sandwiched between Pingliang Prefecture, Deshun Prefecture and Huizhou. Xining County is located at the top of this tentacle. It was invaded by the Xixia Army and everyone had no idea at all.
It's strange that even ordinary people can guess it.
"Will the general set off overnight?" Wang Huai asked.
Chen Qing nodded, "We will set off at five o'clock. I came here to ask you all to continue organizing people's spring plowing. This is a major event and cannot be stopped. It must be completed in one go. I have asked Zheng Ping to lead the army to cooperate with you, and there is also a porridge relief
We cannot stop and continue to implement it every day. Furthermore, Zhoujiabao is willing to negotiate with the government. I think this is a good thing, but it involves many specific details. I will negotiate with Zhoujiabao after I come back."
Chen Qing arranged everything one by one, then got up and returned to the military camp. Wang Huai escorted him out of the yamen and walked to the steps. Chen Qing smiled lightly and said: "Why is Li Dujian not in good spirits? Is there something going on at home?
"
"I haven't heard of it! Maybe it's because I didn't sleep well."
Chen Qing nodded, "I don't know much about Superintendent Li's situation. Wang Tongpan should pay close attention to him these days!"
After saying that, Chen Qing got on his horse, bowed his hands in a salute, urged his horse and ran quickly with a dozen cavalrymen.
Wang Huai was confused for a while. What did Zhizhi mean by asking him to pay attention to Li Dujian?
...........
At the fifth watch, Chen Qing led two generals, Yang Zaixing and Liu Cui, and two thousand cavalry to leave the military camp, exited the north city gate, and rushed north along the official road.
Before dawn, Jia Quan, who was restless in the inn, was brought to the mansion by the housekeeper of the governor Li Yong.
As soon as he entered the study, Jia Quan asked impatiently: "What happened? Why were the troops mobilized at night?"
"Did Guanshi Jia not hear the military report at night?" Li Yong took a sip of hot tea and asked calmly.
"I seemed to hear a little bit, but I didn't hear it clearly. The horse ran over."
"It's an urgent military report from Xining County. The Xixia people invaded. I knew that the Xixia people wanted to connect Huizhou and Deshun Prefecture. The nail in Xining County will definitely be pulled out, but I didn't expect it to come so quickly."
"What Du Jian means is that Chen Qing led his army to Xining County?"
Li Yong nodded, "The situation over there is very urgent. He led his army to rush there overnight. Before leaving, he told the state government a lot of things."
Jia Quan quickly asked: "Did you mention us?"
Li Yong chuckled, "Of course I will mention you. What Chen Qing means is that you have a good attitude and deserve recognition, but the details still need to be discussed."
Jia Quan was startled by these words. He didn't understand. "What do you mean by this? What are the details that need to be discussed?"
"It means that your sincerity is not enough. One thousand shi of food is a little less. I estimate that it will be at least two thousand shi. In addition, the conditions you offered are indeed too vague. The details must be clarified. For example, if you are willing to pay taxes, then
How to pay specifically? How many acres are there? How to calculate the household tax, etc., do you understand what I mean?"
"I understand. I will go back and tell Lord Zhou immediately. What should I do next? Should I continue discussing with the state government?"
"No! Chen Qing will take care of this matter personally. You should prepare the details. When he comes back, he will definitely come to you first."
Jia Quan nodded silently. Lord Zhou had no sincerity at all. He would not pay a penny in taxes. He was just trying to delay time. He asked the Lord to prepare the details. How could he prepare?
