Summary of the previous chapter: Ma Xiaoquan did not expect that Kuai Yue would agree to surrender Cao Cao so readily. However, Kuai Yue did not give the same explanation as him about the Cai family. Ma Xiaoquan asked Kuai Yue to introduce him to the Cai family, and Kuai Yue agreed.
At the same time, because Yuan disdained Ma Xiaoquan and thought that he did not believe in history, he believed that the Cai family would definitely be like the Kuai family, while Ma Xiaoquan put forward the opposite suggestion. For this reason, the two of them made a bet...
..
Kuai Yue acted quickly. On the third day, he sent someone to tell Ma Xiaoquan that the Cai family had agreed to his request for an interview.
Listening to the news from the servants of the Kuai family, Ma Yu said very dissatisfied: "Then what is Cai Mao's attitude? How come our status is so underground?"
Murong Ziyan, who was beside her, smiled softly and said, "This is Jingzhou, not Jizhou. The Cai family is very powerful in Jingzhou."
Ma Xiaoquan didn't mind either: "It's just Cai Mao, it's no big deal, as long as they agree to meet me. Ma Yu, get ready, we are going to Cai's house now."
"yes!"
...
The three of them were ready and headed to Cai's house immediately.
In this generation of the Cai family, there are three brothers. The eldest, Cai Mao, is now serving as a general under Liu Cong and commanding the navy; the second and third, Cai Zhong and Cai He, also each lead an army. It can be said that Jingzhou's
Military power is under the control of the Cai family.
On the other hand, since Liu Cong was still young, the three brothers of the Cai family asked their elder sister to take charge of the affairs. This elder sister was none other than Cai, the wife of Liu Biao who had lost his wife.
The Cai family did not leave Liu Biao an heir, so she doted on her youngest son Liu Cong. When the two brothers Liu Qi and Liu Cong fought for the throne after Liu Biao's death, the Cai family relied on the influence of Jinshui Tower and the Cai family in Jingzhou, and spread Cao Cao's influence.
The news of the killing successfully scared Liu Qi away and helped Liu Cong to become a herdsman in Jingzhou.
Liu Qi was not completely useless. Although he was frightened, he still ran to Jiangxia and led 10,000 people to guard the area in a decent manner.
...
When they arrived at the Cai family's residence, four guards stood guarding the door and glared at Ma Xiaoquan and the others menacingly.
Ma Yu felt unhappy and said loudly: "The Immortal Marquis came to see you, why didn't anyone come out to greet him?"
The four guards glanced at each other, and one of them said disdainfully: "Shenxian Hou, why haven't we heard of him?"
Ma Yu walked forward two steps angrily: "Quickly report!"
Another guard also took two steps forward, stepped in front of Ma Yu, and pushed him: "You dare to make trouble in front of General Cai's house, do you not want to live anymore?"
Ma Yugang was about to have a seizure, and a hand held him back.
Ma Yu turned around and saw that it was his owner, Ma Xiaoquan.
Ma Xiaoquan chuckled, stepped forward and bowed his hand to the guard, and said: "I am not talented, and I was conferred the title of Immortal Marquis by the emperor. Now I am in Jingzhou. I heard about the reputation of General Cai. The Cai family is the largest family in Jingzhou, so I came here to visit Cai."
General..."
Ma Xiaoquan's comfortable words were very helpful to the four guards present.
"Hmph, you could have said no earlier, but you said you wanted to visit my general. There are three generals in my family, who are they?"
Ma Xiaoquan exclaimed, "It's General Cai Mao Cai."
"Hmph, do you think we can see each other when we meet? Don't you know that General Cai is very busy?"
Ma Xiaoquan's eyes were sharp and he thought to himself: "Ma Le Gobi, don't you think I don't know who Cai Mao is?"
After thinking about it, Ma Xiaoquan still looked kind on the surface and said: "I'm busy, oh, there's nothing I can do, but I would like to inform you that the Immortal Marquis Ma Xiaoquan was sent here personally by the Emperor. Since I can't see you,
When it comes to General Cai Mao, forget it. The emperor blames me, so I have no choice but to tell the truth."
After saying that, Ma Xiaoquan waved and led Ma Yu and Murong Ziyan to turn around and leave.
"Wait a minute!" A guard stepped forward to stop Ma Xiaoquan and the others and said, "What do you mean by this? Are you using the little emperor to suppress our general?"
Ma Xiao's face darkened and he shouted: "Take your dirty hands away!"
The guard laughed and said, "If you say take it away, what if I don't?" As he said that, the guard even brushed Murong Ziyan's hair with his hand.
Ma Xiaoquan sneered, stepped forward quickly, grabbed the guard's neck, concentrated his energy, and said Ling Ran: "If you move again, I will burn you to death!" As he said, Ma Xiaoquan used his other hand.
A deep red flame suddenly ignited.
"Scared? Fire?" The remaining three guards were all startled.
"You, you dare?"
Ma Xiaoquan brought his hand burning with crimson flames in front of him and waved it twice in front of the guard: "Of course I dare, I am the Immortal Marquis of the Han Dynasty personally proclaimed by the emperor, and your Jingzhou Shepherd Liu Cong is just a
I am just a member of the Han Dynasty. In terms of rank, there is no difference between me and him. As for your General Cai Mao, he is just a subordinate of Liu Cong. I will kill you. Compared with status, I am not much higher than your Cai Mao.
Master, tell me, do I dare to kill you?"
When Ma Xiaoquan explained this, the four guards present were stunned.
Yes, although the Cai family is very powerful, it is just a big gentry family in Jingzhou. Don't forget, there are not only the Cai family in Jingzhou, but also other big gentry families such as the Kuai family.
"Hou... Lord Hou, please spare your life! Lord Hou, please spare your life!"
Ma Xiaoquan laughed loudly: "Oh, now you know how to beg for mercy. Okay, assuming you still have some brains, you three, go in and call Cai Hao out. I want him to come out to greet you in person."
The remaining three guards rushed into Cai's house as if they had received amnesty.
After a while, a deep voice sounded.
"Who dares to make a big noise in front of my Cai house?"
What appeared together with the voice was a big man eight feet tall. This big man had a pair of triangular eyes and the corners of his mouth were turned down, giving people a look of bitterness and hatred.
Ma Xiaoquan extinguished the flame in his hand, threw the guard to the ground, and said politely to the big man: "But General Cai Hao Cai?"
The big man looked Ma Xiaoquan up and down and snorted coldly: "So what if it is, what if it is not?"
Ma Xiaoquan chuckled and thought to himself: Haha, interesting, this guy is still a tough guy?
Ma Xiaoquan said: "I don't even dare to say my name, hey! I'm not a man!"
"Who are you saying is not a man?"
Ma Xiaoquan waved his hand: "Whoever you don't admit is not the right person!"
"You're looking for death!"
The big man was about to rush forward and fight Ma Xiaoquan when suddenly another voice came out: "Er Hu, stop!"
The big man was stunned for a moment, gritted his teeth and glared at Ma Xiaoquan bitterly, but still stopped.
At this time, another person walked out of Cai's residence. This person was not tall, but he was very strong, with a Chinese character face and a rather handsome appearance.
The man chuckled, stepped forward and raised his hand to Ma Xiaoquan, saying: "This...is this the Immortal Marquis, Ma Xiaoquan?"
Ma Xiaoquan nodded and responded politely: "That's right here, haha, is it General Cai Hao?"
The man hummed: "Haha, the Marquis has defeated the last general. I am the one here. Come on, please come in, the Marquis."
Cai Hao said, winked at Erhu, then turned slightly to one side, gave up his position, and made an inviting gesture.
Ma Xiaoquan nodded slightly, pulled Murong Ziyan, and led Ma Yu into Cai's house.
The Cai Family Mansion was very spacious and luxurious. Jingzhou was rich, and the gentry in Jingzhou were even richer. Ma Yu stared at the gilded roof of the Cai Family Mansion and couldn't help but be a little shocked.
"This... none of my Ma family is like this. It's... really amazing!"
Cai Hao looked at Ma Yu with a smile and said hehe: "Oh, these should be Ma Bing's twin sons. Is it Ma Yun or Ma Yu?"
Ma Yu is also a nobleman, and he understands the etiquette of noblemen very well. Cai Hao's status is much higher than that of his father. Ma Yu naturally responded to Cai Hao very respectfully: "Ma Yu has met General Cai!"
Cai Hao nodded and moved his gaze to Murong Ziyan.
Murong Ziyan was already prepared. As soon as Cai Hao's eyes came to her, she immediately bowed slightly and said respectfully: "My little girl, Murong Ziyan, has met General Cai! General Cai's majesty and majesty made this little girl's heart flutter."
Compliments from beautiful women are always the best medicine to adjust the atmosphere. As soon as Murong Ziyan spoke these words, Cai Mao burst into laughter.
"Master Hou, is Miss Murong your woman?"
Ma Xiaoquan chuckled and said: "General Cai, please forgive me for my rude language. I hope General Cai will bear with me!"
Cai Hao waved his hand and laughed and said: "Where is it? Miss Murong is so beautiful and her manners are very good. Lord Marquis is humbled. Come on, come on, please come on..."
Several people entered the main hall, and the servants of the Cai Mansion had already poured tea.
After taking his seat, Cai Mao asked in a haphazard manner: "Master Shangxian, how are we doing in Jingzhou?"
Ma Xiaoquan nodded: "Jingzhou is quite prosperous under the governance of Liu Jingsheng and Liu Biao. This can be seen from General Cai's home."
Cai Mao asked again: "What about my women in Jingzhou?"
Ma Xiaoquan pointed at Murong Ziyan: "My wife, Murong Ziyan, is a woman from Jingzhou. What does General Cai think?"
Cai Mao laughed loudly: "Master Hou is indeed so lucky. Come and try my top-quality Hongyan tea."
Ma Xiaoquan frowned slightly and thought to himself: Cai Mao must have known about my coming, but he didn't mention it. Tsk, it seems that there are some discrepancies in the evaluation of Cai Mao in history.
The two of them bowed to each other, but Ma Xiaoquan picked up the teacup first and took a sip of tea.
"Good tea!" Ma Xiaoquan put down the tea cup and gave a thumbs up. "General Cai leads his troops like a god. I didn't expect that he is also very good at drinking tea."
Cai Mao said modestly: "No, no, Master Hou has given me the award, haha..."
...
Seeing the master and Cai Mao talking to each other without getting to the point, Ma Yu was a little anxious, but he was not senior enough, so he could only endure it.
Ma Xiaoquan noticed Ma Yu's displeasure and thought: This guy is still too young.
After a while, Ma Xiaoquan said: "General Cai, I am here to visit. I guess the general also knows what I mean, right?"
Cai Mao was stunned for a moment. He did not expect that Ma Xiaoquan would suddenly change the topic and get straight to the point. However, who is Cai Mao? How could he, who can control the military power of Jingzhou, not understand Ma Xiaoquan's intention?