Chapter 246 Who will win the destiny? (Nine)

At noon, the fragrance of food was floating around in the Hou Mansion. Meng Shu and Du Gang had played several games of Go, but still did not see Hou Dayong return to the mansion. Just as the two of them began to protest, Feng Sha came in and said, "The Hou is back, and is in the courtyard, and will come soon." He said, "The Hou must be happy today, and he will be full of spring breeze when he comes back."

After Hou Dayong returned to Daliang, although he was the prime minister, he always felt that he was a commander who was a bare-headed commander, floating in the clouds, not being able to reach the world or go to the ground, and Kong Luoluo had no support. Now he was going to draw 5,000 Black Eagle Army to move south. Although the number was a little smaller, with his own direct troops, Hou Dayong felt that his back was much harder. He came out of the court and thought while walking: "No wonder in another world, when the New China successfully blasted the first atomic bomb, Foreign Minister Chen Yi would feel that his back was straightened. Strength was the confidence of a person."

After returning to the yard with great enthusiasm, Hou Dayong heard that Meng Shu and Du Gang had been waiting in the yard for a long time, he said to Feng Sha: "I will go to the main yard to sit for a while, and then talk to Meng Shu and Du Gang. You ask Qin Jiahe to prepare a table of good dishes and call Liu Heihe and Jiang Xiaoliu over. We will have a good drink today."

Hou Dayong is fond of food. He invited six chefs in his mansion, from Shuzhong, Shandong, Hebei and Lingzhou. The housekeeper Qin Jiahe is very clever and can always arrange suitable food according to the changes in the weather, the identity of the banquet attendees and Hou Dayong's mood.

Today, when Hou Dayong returned to his mansion, he was very happy. Qin Jiahe said to Feng Sha: "Feng Chengjun, let Jin Dalang of Lingzhou prepare some barbecue for lunch and make a table of Lingzhou meals. The barbecue with old wine must have a flavor. What do you think of joining the army?"

Jin Dalang is a famous chef in Lingzhou. His cooking style is like a Hu. Whenever Hou Dayong returns to drink, he always wants Jin Dalang to be the chef. Feng Sha admires Qin Jiahe's eyesight and smiles: "The arrangement of the Qin butler is very reasonable. By the way, when Jin Dalang bakes the meat until it is 50 years old, he will tell me."

When Hou Dayong walked into the main courtyard, Fu Ying and Qiu Ju were both timid and talking casually under the big tree in the main courtyard. Xiaolu led Zong Lin to run around the yard. Seeing his father coming back, Xiaolu opened her hands and rushed towards Hou Dayong quickly.

Hou Dayong picked up Xiao Lu, raised it high above his head, and kissed Xiao Lu fiercely on the face. Xiao Lu giggled, hugged Hou Dayong's neck with his fat little hands, and also imitated his father's cheek.

Hou Zonglin, who was following behind, was a little anxious when he saw his father holding his sister. He hugged Hou Dayong's calves and shouted, "Hug me, hug me."

Seeing this, Qiu Ju hurried over and said to Xiao Lu: "Xiao Lu, you are the sister. You must let your younger brother down quickly. Let your father hug Zonglin." Xiao Lu still hugged Hou Dayong and refused to let go. Qiu Ju quickly glanced at Fu Ying with the corner of her eyes. Seeing that Fu Ying looked as usual, she felt a little wider in her heart, so she said to Xiao Lu gently: "Come down quickly, don't be naughty."

Zong Lin had already started howling and cried.

Qiu Ju felt anxious and slapped Xiaolu's butt with a little force. Xiaolu saw Zong Lin crying and was slapped in her butt again, and she started crying. Her round face was swollen and her eyes were covered with mist.

Hou Dayong also has a daughter in another world. Xiaolu is his first child in this world. Although Hou Hu, born to Ajige in Liaodong, is older, Hou Dayong has never seen Xiaohu. So in his mind, he always thought that Xiaolu was his first daughter in this world. Therefore, Hou Dayong really loved Xiaolu. Seeing that Xiaolu was full of tears, he blamed Qiuju and said, "Children like to hug her. This is a good thing. Why are you hitting her?"

Qiu Ju was born as a maid and a concubine. With Chunlan's previous experience, she was always careful in her daily life, especially in front of her mistress Fu Ying, who was walking on thin ice. It was precisely because Qiu Ju was careful everywhere that her relationship with Fu Ying became increasingly close and became a close friend who could speak everything.

Seeing Zong Lin's crying made Qiu Ju extremely uneasy, Fu Ying wanted to pick up Zong Lin sitting on the ground, but she was timid and bent down, and turned her head to Xiaomei standing aside. Xiaoliu said, "What are you two doing when you stand there? Why don't you pick up Shaolang quickly."

Xiao Liu stepped forward a few steps and wanted to pick up Xiao Zonglin. Suizhi Xiao Zonglin hugged Hou Dayong's legs and refused to let go. Xiao Liu was an extremely beautiful little woman. She blushed and didn't dare to use too much force. She just leaned into Zonglin's ear and said, "Shaolang, get up, I will accompany you to the garden to catch ants." Hou Zonglin usually likes small animals such as ants, crickets, butterflies the most, and always asks Xiao Liu to accompany him to the garden to find these small animals. Today, for some reason, Zonglin just pestered Hou Dayong.

Since Hou Hu, Hou Xiaolu, Hou Zonglin, Hou Xiaoqing and two unborn children, Hou Dayong has repeatedly warned himself not to be favored by one or the other. There are too many things in history when brothers are incompatible and blood and flesh are tragic. In the Three Kingdoms alone, there have been tragic incidents of Yuan, Cao, Liu and others killing each other one after another.

Seeing that the two children were not willing to give up, Qiu Ju looked uneasy, so she picked up Zong Lin with her left hand and Xiao Lu with her right hand. Both little guys were satisfied, and then she stopped crying, and Qiu Ju also breathed a sigh of relief.

The family was playing happily in the garden for a while, and the smell of barbecue floated over. Fengsha came to the main yard and said, "The barbecue is about to be ready."

Meng Shu, Du Gang, Liu Heihuan, Jiang Xiaoliu, Lin Zhonghu, and Luo Qingsong were all waiting in the courtyard. Hou Dayong walked into the courtyard and waved his hand. Meng Shu and Du Gang followed Hou Dayong into the study.

Du Gang reported on the discovery of the Tang Sect in Shu.

Hou Dayong was furious and said, "The Tang Sect in Shu is just a small sect. He overestimated his ability and dared to get involved in the political affairs of the Great Zhou. I think they are impatient."

Two disciples of the Tang Sect appeared in Daliang City. Once, Tang Shi, who had appeared in the palace, was said to have been cleared by the Tang Sect and had no contact with the Tang Sect. This person had been shot and killed by Hou Dayong's personal guards with the crossbow of the Five Tiger General. In order to kill this person, the personal guards also lost a veteran. The other person was Tang Gang, who was killed by Hou Dayong's arrow. He carried poisonous substances with him and almost killed Liu Qingye's life.

After Du Gang experienced the tragic incident of Xiao Lianzi, he seemed to be ten years old at once. His every move was as calm as a stone tiger. Although Hou Dayong was angry, he still said calmly: "According to Li Tong, this disciple of the Tang Sect is called Tang Yong, and he is the nephew of the leader of the Tang Sect and is also an extremely harmful figure among the second-generation disciples of the Tang Sect. I have sent six disciples from Feiying Hall to pretend to be various people and follow Tang Yong."

"Tang Yong was walking around the east for a long time, and finally entered the small courtyard of Xicheng, and he never came back after entering. I guess this is where he settled. There is a grocery shop opposite the small courtyard. This is the observation point we opened. Now, how to deal with Tang Yong, please decide."

"Okay. This matter was handled well."

Du Gang and Chen Meng were Hou Dayong's earliest personal guards. After six years of training, Du Gang became the deputy leader of Feiying Hall, and Chen Meng became a brave general in the Black Eagle Army. Hou Dayong was extremely satisfied with his two confidants who were trained and said patiently: "Although the methods of using poisonous land by Tang Sect disciples are so good, they cannot poison the Third Princess and the Privy Councilor without internal support. The disciples of Tang Sect are like an extremely sharp knife. It is not this knife that really threatens us. But the people who use the knife. You must continue to monitor the whereabouts of the disciples of Tang Sect and let the person behind the scenes show their true form."

Speaking of this, Hou Dayong emphasized, "However, although the disciples of the Tang sect are just a knife, this knife is too sinister. Only by investigating it clearly can it be removed. Otherwise, there will be endless troubles."

The smell of barbecue in the study was getting stronger and stronger, and everyone was getting hungry. As soon as Du Gang reported the matter, Meng Shu quickly reported: "The leader of the salt dealer in Zhongmu County died of illness. Wu Qilang was elected as the leader of the private salt dealer in Zhongmu. His private salt dealer was distributed along the Yellow River such as Daliang, Zhengzhou, Hezhongfu, Jingzhaofu, etc. There were thousands of people. Wu Qilang was already the largest private salt leader in the Great Zhou, Northern Han, Western Shu and Southern Tang. Hundreds of people gathered in Zhengzhou, Zhongmu and Xuzhou alone."

Trafficking private salt is a serious crime, but it is also a huge profit. Since the Tang Dynasty implemented the salt and iron monopoly, salt dealers have emerged one after another. The famous Huang Chao is a leader of the private salt dealers.

Wu Qilang had long been subdued by Hou Dayong and became a registered officer of the Black Diao Army. Hou Dayong specially sent him to do private salt business from Zhengzhou to the Western Regions. With the protection and participation of the Black Diao Army, Wu Qilang quickly controlled the private salt transactions along the Yellow River. His strength was far superior to ordinary private salt dealers.

Wu Qilang's business created countless rich people and also brought a lot of profits to the Black Eagle Army.

"Menglang, if you want to explain to Wu Qilang, you must restrain your subordinates. Apart from private salt, you must not do other illegal things. You must especially grasp two things: one is not to kill people indiscriminately, and the other is not to commit traitors and mischief. If you commit these two things, don't blame me for turning against you." When he said the last few words, Hou Dayong's face was already extremely serious.

Meng Shu and Du Gang were both sitting upright, with a solemn face.

When Hou Dayong saw the expressions of the two, he smiled and said, "Let me tell you the latest news. Your Majesty will issue an edict soon. Five thousand Black Eagle Army will enter Daliang City. In addition, there are also 5,000 people from Li Chongjin, An Shenqi, and Wang Yanchao's troops, and a total of 20,000 people will enter Daliang City to form a new imperial guard."

Meng Shu and Du Gang were both officers of the Black Eagle Army. After hearing the news, the two quickly exchanged glances, and Meng Shu felt a little heavy in his heart for no reason.

In the past two years, the Black Eagle Army has been attacking around with Lingzhou as its base. The Xitao and Houtao in the Hetao Plain have become the actual control area of ​​the Black Eagle Army. To the north is the territory of the Richie army; to the west is Helan Mountain, where Dangxiang Fang, who surrendered to the Black Eagle Army, lived in the remnants of the Black Eagle Army and the Dangxiang Pochao, who was the leader of the clan; although the Khitans are in the east, the Khitan general Yelu Daguang landlord was eliminated, the Khitans suffered a great loss in Youzhou and did not have the strength to advance to Houtao and Xitao.

The territory occupied by the Black Eagle Army has exceeded the jurisdiction in the traditional sense of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and has not established a formal management agency, and naturally it has not been officially included in the territory of the Great Zhou Dynasty. The map of the Privy Council still counts the north of the Yellow River as the territory of the Khitans and other Hus.

The Black Diao Army had Hetao as its base, and after more than two years of rest and recuperation, its strength was significantly improved. In addition to the original Black Diao Army battalions, 3,000 Tubo Hunmo Camp and 3,000 Richi Camp were newly built, which exceeded 3,000 camps and 10,000 Jinshan Camp. Among them, the largest place was Jinshan Camp, and its soldiers were all composed of Han people who moved back from the Western Regions. They used to mainly lived in Gan and Sha eleven Prefectures, which was the jurisdiction of the Jinshan Kingdom built by Zhang Yichao, so their camp was named Jinshan Camp.

Du Gang was in charge of the Flying Eagle Hall as the deputy hall leader. He was naturally very informed. He was quite clear about the development of the Black Eagle Army in Lingzhou in recent years. He said with emotion: "When the Black Eagle Army was founded, there were only 1,200 people, and it had become a first-class strong army in seven years."

Seeing that the matter was almost done, Hou Dayong stood up and said, "The four troops transferred to Daliang City are all elite border troops. Don't underestimate them. You must understand the details of the other three troops clearly."

By the time Hou Dayong and the other two walked out of the study, a table of Lingzhou-style banquet had been placed in the reception hall. This reception hall was located in the west room, opposite the study room. The hall was specially used to entertain a very small number of confidants, and there was a large round table. In the Great Zhou Dynasty, the aristocratic families mostly used square tables, one person or two people, and the seats were arranged strictly according to their status. This round table was the style of the Hu people. Since it was a round table, it was not easy to arrange seats. This was a completely challenge for a country of etiquette that paid great attention to the age and the height of the high and low. Therefore, most families did not use round tables, and only Hu people walking on the beam used this round table.

Hou Dayong placed a round table in the small hall, indicating that sitting on this round table is a close family. Of course, the position facing the main entrance is Hou Dayong, and no one would sit in this position in a confused manner.
Chapter completed!