On the first day of February, Li Zhen and the troops of the Shandong governor met in Fei County.
At this time, Shi Dakai had already retreated and was approaching Anhui. Li Zhen was not surprised by this result. He got the news and did not chase after him. He still led his soldiers on the road without arrogance or impatience, and went with Shandong When the governors met, Li Zhen had already fulfilled the request of the Shandong governor, and he felt that there was no pressure at all.
County government office, in the hall.
Li Zhen sat in the main seat on the left side of the hall, and the governor of Shandong sat on the right.
On the left side of the hall are the generals under Li Zhen, and on the right side are the generals and officials under the governor of Shandong. The generals on both sides have serious faces, and Huang Shihai, Yang Banhou, Long Ao, Dong Haichuan and others are even more serious. A fierce aura completely suppressed the generals under the Shandong Governor in terms of momentum. It even made the generals under the Shandong Governor faintly dare not look into the eyes of several people. They were like mice meeting cats, with fear in their eyes. color.
In fact, it’s no wonder they are.
Whether it is Huang Shihai, Long Ao, or Yang Banhou, they are all top-notch masters, especially the two great martial arts masters Dong Haichuan and Yang Luchan. It is normal for the generals under the governor of Shandong not to resist. .
The governor of Shandong was surprised when he saw this.
It is said that seeing is believing and hearing is believing. Now that he saw the situation of Li Zhen's army soldiers and generals, he was convinced. The Shandong governor looked at Li Zhen with a kind face, and there was a hint of flattery on his face, respectfully Said: "Admiral Li led his army and the long-haired bandit immediately left in despair. Admiral Li is indeed a famous general in the world. He directly scared away the long-haired bandit. This time the danger in Shandong has been eliminated. Thank you to Admiral Li for your help."
Li Zhen said with a smile: "It doesn't matter, you and I are colleagues, this is our duty."
Having said that, Li Zhen kept staring at the Shandong governor.
Obviously, Li Zhen was waiting for the other party to fulfill his promise. Li Zhen was not a face-saving person. He was practical and the things he got were the most real. It was impossible for him to just listen to a few words of praise from the governor of Shandong and become confused.
The governor of Shandong saw this and slapped him three times in succession.
Applause rang out, and soldiers walked into the hall carrying boxes one after another. The boxes were densely packed in the hall, occupying most of the space. The Shandong governor asked the soldiers to step back, stood up, walked to the front of the boxes, and opened one of the boxes. , in an instant, a brilliant silver light flashed out, and the other boxes were opened. Each box was filled with brilliant silver, shining with a dazzling light.
The generals under the governor of Shandong knew the situation, so their expressions did not change, but Huang Shihai and others swallowed.
This much money is not a small sum of money.
The governor of Shandong raised his hand and said: "To thank Admiral Li for his kindness, and to assist Admiral Li in suppressing the bandits, Xiagou specially raised 500,000 taels of silver to assist Admiral Li in suppressing the bandits. Not only that, but also ten thousand guns and three rifles. One hundred thousand catties of grain were given to Admiral Li, hoping to help Admiral Li eliminate the bandits."
Li Zhen took a look and was extremely surprised.
The letter from the governor of Shandong clearly stated that 200,000 taels of silver, 10,000 guns and 100,000 jins of grain were given. Now it was 500,000 taels of silver, almost doubled. How could Li Zhen not be surprised? , Li Zhen looked at the slightly flattering expression of the Shandong Governor, and his heart became brighter, and he understood the Shandong Governor's thoughts. Obviously, this money was not only a thank you, but also an intention to curry favor. After all, Li Zhen had a strong influence. .
Li Zhen smiled and reciprocated: "I have accepted the money, food and firearms. Thank you very much. If there is anything you need, just say it. As long as I can help, I will not refuse."
The governor of Shandong was very happy when he heard this.
Hundreds of thousands of taels of silver are indeed not in vain.
Li Zhen chatted with the governor of Shandong again, then got up and left, taking money, food and firearms with him. After leaving the county, Huang Shihai followed Li Zhen and said excitedly: "Commander, I made a lot of money this time." , we just came to Shandong with soldiers, and without even using a single soldier, we harvested 500,000 taels of silver, as well as food and firearms, which is really great."
Lu Shaochuan also said: "There is so much white money that it dazzles my eyes."
Yang Banhou said: "It would be great if such good things happen more often."
Li Zhen laughed and said, "Why are you anxious? There are many good things like this. Let's continue to make money." As he spoke, Li Zhen took out a letter from his arms and handed it to Huang Shihai.
Huang Shihai read it quickly with a surprised look on his face.
Lu Shaochuan seized it, glanced at it quickly, and exclaimed: "Commander, the governor of Anhui asked you to lead troops to suppress the bandits again, and also gave you money and food... This, this, this kind of money is too much It’s so cheap. If Shi Dakai rushes back and forth between Shandong and Anhui, and we keep catching up, wouldn’t we make a lot of money? It would be so cool.”
The letter Li Zhen took out was a letter asking for help from the governor of Anhui.
When Li Zhen and the governor of Shandong met, Shi Dakai had already led his soldiers into Anhui.
The number of Shi Dakai's soldiers has always been around 60,000. After the battle, some elites were recruited to supplement them, but they definitely did not continue to increase. Along the way, Shi Dakai's soldiers have been baptized by the fire of war and become more and more powerful, especially Shi Dakai also grabbed money and food, so he became more and more courageous as he fought. Shi Dakai's army was like locusts, which frightened the governor of Anhui, so he followed the example of the governor of Shandong and asked for help.
Li Zhen said: "Now, let's catch up with Shi Dakai and go to Anhui."
Huang Shihai received the order and conveyed it happily.
Li Zhen and Long Ao looked at each other, with a hint of pride flashing in their eyes. After the army left Shandong, it entered Anhui. At this time, Shi Dakai had already swept around the border between Anhui and Shandong and continued southward.
On February 22, Li Zhen met with the governor of Anhui.
This time, Li Zhen received 300,000 taels of silver, 5,000 guns, and 100,000 jins of grain from the governor of Anhui. Except for the grain and guns, which were in kind, the 300,000 taels of silver given by the governor of Anhui became silver notes, and he carried Even more convenient, Li Zhen got the money from the governor of Anhui, so he naturally wanted to collect money from others to help others eliminate disasters, so he started to go south to chase Shi Dakai.
At this moment, Shi Dakai had led his army into Jiangxi.
This place is the area of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, and it is also the place where Shi Dakai once often stayed. Many generals are Shi Dakai's old troops. Shi Dakai left Anhui and entered Jiangxi. It was like a dragon entering the sea. However, Shi Dakai had doubts in his heart. Because Li Zhen had been following behind him, slowly, without any real pursuit.
He believed that if Li Zhen chased after him, he could definitely catch up.
However, Li Zhen did not do this. What was the reason?
