Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

Chapter 1035: Su Yuanjing
In Bianliang, the midday sun made the bluestone slabs of Panlou Street hot.

Outside the Suzaku Gate, the foot shops on both sides of the Rainbow Bridge were setting up colorful silk shades for sunshades. Amid the waving of wine flags, the aroma of fried crispy lotus roots mixed with the greasy musk of Panlou South Lane tangled in the cracks between the stone slabs of the Imperial Street.

A young man wearing a flowered cap rode past Grandma Cao's meat pie shop. The horse's hooves startled the tea on the storyteller's desk, splashing the tea on the books on the table, leaving yellow spots, which caused a burst of laughter in the brothels.

Pleasure boats shuttled along the Jinshui River, the boatman's calls could not overpower the sound of the pipes and flutes from Fanlou. A girl in a green silk skirt leaned against the carved railing, pinched a piece of crystal minced meat with her slender fingers, and glanced at the sour scholar on the bank who was selling "Zhao Wenxiu's pens and Pan Gu's ink".

There was singing and dancing.

When more than thirty riders passed through the Imperial Street, they scared away an old man who was selling quail bone cakes.

"We're finally here. The Prime Minister's residence is in front of us." A smile appeared on Zhai Liang's face.

Where the whip pointed, the Wutou Gate of Tong Mansion was in sight - the animal-head door nails of the five-room, three-opening gate reflected the bloody sun, and the stone lion held a stone ball in its mouth and stared at every passerby.

The warhorse stopped in front of the gate. Zhai Liang jumped off the horse and tilted his neck. With a "click" sound, the young general stepped forward and said, "Excuse me, please report the military situation 800 miles west of Beijing."

The doorman of the Tong residence was leaning against a lazy chair, slowly scratching the bronze toad on the gilded water clock with his fingernails, while his other hand reached out and rubbed the ground.

"Hey? What do you mean?" Zhai Liang was stunned, frowned and repeated: "I have military information from 800 miles away, please report it."

The doorman finally turned his gaze to Zhai Liang, looked him up and down, frowned and muttered, "So you're a rookie." He tilted his head and looked at him lazily, "First time here? Let me teach you a rule. When you bother others, you have to pay a price."

"……cost?"

Zhai Liang didn't understand and looked at him with blinking eyes: "What's the price?"

The doorman tilted his head back and said, "Tsk——" but didn't reply. He just played with the bronze toad slowly.

A personal soldier of Zhai Jin stepped forward and whispered in Zhai Liang's ear: "Major General, give me the money!"

Zhai Liang looked at the doorman, his face obviously reddened: "How can you take responsibility for delaying things by rushing eight hundred miles?"

"Eight hundred miles?" The doorman sneered, patted his chest, and grinned: "Even if he came one thousand six hundred miles to work here, we men will pay him."

Before Zhai Liang could say more, the guard behind him quickly pulled his robe and said in a low voice, "Young General, stop talking. This is how it is in the capital."

"I..." Zhai Liang's face flushed. He stood there for a long while, then reluctantly took out a brocade purse and threw it over, then looked at him with a long face.

The doorman took it in his hand, touched it, weighed it twice, looked up at Zhai Liang and smiled: "That's nice, we men also keep our words. Wait here, I will go and inform you."

Turn around and leave.

Zhai Liang watched them go in, stood there for a long time, and spat: "What kind of people are they! We are fighting on the front line, but these rats want to embarrass us, they really deserve..."

"Young General, be quiet." The guards at the back grabbed his arm fiercely and turned around to look around: "The capital is not like other places. You must be careful with your words and actions."

“……” Zhai Liang looked uncomfortable. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, refusing to look.

After a while, the doorman came out and called out, "Come in, the Master is waiting for you in the study."

Zhai Liang walked forward angrily, while the personal guard behind him bowed to the doorman, but the man didn't care. He just went back and slowly opened his purse, took out a few pieces of silver, grinned, and shook the coins inside, making a clanging sound, revealing an expression of enjoyment.

The dusty cavalry walked in, and a nine-foot-high Jun kiln screen wall came into view - a blue-porcelain body was engraved with a picture of Tong Guan's expedition to the west, and the snow-white horse mane was inlaid with Persian glass chips. When the sun shone on it, it looked like the Milky Way pouring down to the ground.

Going around the screen wall, the gilded pillars in the five-entry hall are all wrapped in Shu brocade, but the embroidery on the brocade is not ordinary flowers and birds, but maps of Shanzhou, Huangzhou and other recovered territories.

The eunuch in the picture is wearing golden armor and pointing his whip forward. The generals guarding him all have heroic looks. This is a picture of an expedition. From here onwards, each picture is different.

tsk...

Zhai Liang made a sound in his heart. Although he was young and energetic, he had received his father's instructions before coming here. He did not dare to show the slightest emotion in the residence of the Grand Tutor, who was the chief eunuch of the dynasty, held military power and was in the emperor's favor.

"You guys brought the military intelligence from western Beijing?"

A shrill voice sounded nearby. Zhai Liang turned around quickly and saw a white-faced, beardless eunuch with a sachet standing quietly by his side. He immediately broke out in a cold sweat and thought to himself that it was fortunate that he had followed his father's instructions. He clasped his hands together unconsciously and said, "It is us. We are here to share the military situation of the 800-mile mile. I hope..."

"Then come over and follow our family. The others will wait here."

The eunuch ignored him, finished talking to himself, and turned away.

tsk...

Zhai Liang turned his head expressionlessly: "Wait here for a moment, I'll be out in a moment."

The guards nodded and said, "Don't worry, Major General. We can save it."

Only then did Zhai Liang quickly turn around and walk away, hurrying to catch up.

A draft blew through the hall, and a young eunuch hurried past holding a gilded spittoon. Eight maids with two maids came walking towards them carrying a rosewood food table that was more than a meter long. On the table was a white jade sunflower cup filled with jelly brought from the ice cellar.

Wherever these maids passed by, the officials waiting to see them held their breath and lowered their heads. One minor official in a green robe was unable to retreat and was kicked in the knee by the eunuch, causing him to fall to the side of the koi pond outside the corridor.

tsk...

Zhai Liang lowered his head slightly to make the disgust in his eyes less obvious, and slowed down his pace a little.

After passing the swastika-patterned window, he suddenly saw a five-room, seven-frame hip-and-gable hall, whose doors and windows were all covered with curtains made of pearls. Zhai Liang raised his eyebrows, as he could not recognize where the pearls were produced. However, each one seemed to be the size of a longan, very symmetrical, and sparkling in the sun. He thought they must be priceless.

tsk...

The eunuch in front suddenly stopped, and Zhai Liang stopped immediately and looked up. A study with the words "Zhiyuan Pavilion" written on it came into view.

"Wait here."

The eunuch who was speaking turned his head, bent his body suddenly, a flattering smile bloomed on his face, and he took a few steps forward like a cooked shrimp and knocked on the door, then raised his voice outside: "Master, the soldiers from the west of the capital are coming."

"Let him in."

The powerful male voice startled Zhai Liang. He had never seen Tong Guan, but he had heard that this eunuch did not look or speak like a eunuch. He did not expect...

and many more……

Slow!

Who knows if there are other people inside. How can he act like a man after he has his thing removed? Besides, it is normal for the old woman not to speak out herself.

With the thought of being beaten to death by Tong Guan in his mind, Zhai Liang gritted his teeth to prevent himself from showing any other expression. The eunuch in front of him nodded and bowed outside the door and said "Yes." He turned his head and straightened his back, looking at Zhai Liang expressionlessly, and said in a long voice: "Go in--"

tsk...

The son of the top general in western Beijing bowed and said, "Thank you very much."

The fragrant door opened. Zhai Liang glanced at the two eunuchs who seemed to have no presence, then walked in with big strides. He took out the bamboo tube from the deerskin bag on his waist, knelt on one knee and raised his hands: "I, Zhai Jinzi, the first general of Jingxi, Zhai Liang, greet the Grand Tutor. This is urgent military information. Please take a look at it."

A eunuch came over and took it from his hand. A strong male voice came from the other side: "Get up. You have worked hard to deliver military intelligence from afar."

"It's my job, I dare not complain."

Zhai Liang said this and stood up. Only then did he have the chance to look at Tong Guan. The corner of his eye twitched. This man looked just as the rumors said.

His face looked majestic and his temperament was resolute, with a short beard under his chin, as if he was a general. Thinking about the sound he had just heard, which came from this direction, he suddenly felt a little pain on his face.

Tong Guan frowned as he looked at the written military information. He thrust his hand forward and the letter containing the military information fell on the table: "Got it. You go down first."

“But…” Seeing this, Zhai Liang was afraid of delaying things and wanted to say more.

"The court is busy right now. I will handle this myself." Tong Guan interrupted him and waved his hand: "Go away..."

tsk...

Zhai Liang lowered his head unwillingly and clasped his fists: "I'll take my leave, kid."

Tong Guan sat in the study, watching Zhai Liang go out, then he looked down at the military intelligence that was sent to him: "...I am really going backwards as I grow older, I can't even fight a war anymore."

Now the Privy Council is selecting candidates for the northern expedition to Yanyun, and logistics, food, and military equipment are also being urgently mobilized. It also needs to decide where to recruit the young and strong people who will follow the army, and the court has to continue to argue with those old stubborn people who oppose breaking the alliance and attacking Liao.

The matter of eliminating local bandits did not seem very important to him now.

However, within just half a month, Tong Guan's indifference to the matter resulted in more urgent military intelligence reports.

First, there was an urgent report from Jinzhou that the bandits Song Jiang, Shi Jin, Zhu Tong, Lei Heng, Sun Li, Jie Zhen, and Jie Bao were leading thousands of bandits to cause chaos in Pingli and Xicheng area.

At the same time, Mu Hong, Wu Song, He Ji and Guo Gang led bandits to harass Xunyang.

There was also a report from Yongxing Army that the pirates Li Jun and Wenren Shichong plundered the Jiashui area, and the merchant caravans and merchant ships on the Shangjin to Jinzhou and Junzhou line suffered heavy losses.

Afterwards, Shangzhou and Lantian both reported that there were big thieves appearing, and Duan Sanniang, Lei Yingchun, Zhang Yue'e, Liu Tang and Dai Zong were on the list.

As for some small leaders below, only the Black Whirlwind Li Kui was reported because he killed too many people, and the rest were not taken seriously by the government.

From Jinzhou to Yongxingjun Road, there are exactly eighteen leaders with names and surnames. Now these bandits are roaming around everywhere, and there are signs that they are getting more and more serious. The various military states have pleaded with the court to send troops to wipe out these bandits.

"It happened at this critical moment."

Tong Guan clenched the document in his hand, and the sound of the paper crumpling could be heard by everyone in the study.

"Hey--"

With a wave of his hand, the balled-up document was thrown out. The strong eunuch stood up and walked around the table in two quick steps: "They are all a bunch of useless people. They can't even suppress small bandits. The generals of Yongxing Army Road should be sent to the border to serve as death warriors!"

Dong Yun, the staff member beside him, stroked his beard and glanced at the furious Tong Guan. He knew what he was thinking and rolled his eyes: "Boss, speaking of daredevil warriors, I have an idea..."

As soon as the sound of the wind stopped, Tong Guan turned to look at him and said, "Say, stop being so fussy."

"Yes." Dong Yun did not care and said respectfully, "What you are worried about is that the bandits will cause trouble and the court will dispatch the Western Army to the south to suppress the bandits, which will then affect your plan to take over Yanyun in the north."

Tong Guan nodded, and the anger on his face subsided.

Dong Yun smiled slightly: "But in my opinion, these thieves came at the right time."

"How to say?"

"Going north to Yanyun, a major battle is inevitable. If the army loses a lot, it will be bad for the reputation of Dongweng and the court." Dong Yun narrowed his eyes and pointed at the military emergency on the desk: "There are always more than 10,000 of these bandits. If we start a war, we can use these bandits as the vanguard to test the strength of the Liao army. Then Dongweng can arrange the troops accordingly. How can we not win?"

"Oh? You mean..." Tong Guan's face relaxed, and he fiddled with his short beard with his fingers: "Recruitment?"

"That's right." Dong Yun smiled, his eyes smiling: "As the saying goes, killing people and setting fires brings gold belts. Since these thieves are fighting under the banner of justice, they are naturally looking forward to such a day."

He stroked his beard and said, "Why don't you give it a try, Mr. Dong? If it works, you'll have an extra group of death-defying soldiers to fill in the gap. If it doesn't work, you're not well prepared yet. It would be easy for you to dispatch a group of Western troops to suppress the rebellion. No matter how you look at it, these people are not enough to be a problem for you."

"...That's true." Tong Guan's face was thoughtful, and the corners of his mouth slowly curled up: "I am just impatient." Pointing at Dong Yun: "You still have a way."

"Taifu has many affairs to deal with. He has to think about going north to Yanyun and deal with the ignorant people in the court. It's too much work." Dong Yun said modestly: "I don't need to think about the affairs of the world. I just need to focus on the things in front of me, so I can come up with some not-so-brilliant tricks."

Tong Guan waved his hand and said, "No matter what, you have helped me. I will give you the coral in the front hall as a reward. Take it back and enjoy it."

Dong Yun was overjoyed: "Thank you, Mr. Dong, for the reward."

Since he had made the decision, Tong Guan did not delay and immediately went to the palace to meet Zhao Ji and told him about the idea. Zhao Ji was painting in the hall today and was overjoyed when he saw Tong Guan coming in: "Come quickly, Daofu, and take a look at my new painting."

Tong Guan stepped forward and looked it up and down: "Wonderful! The splashes of ink and color are like thunder, and the Wu Dai Dang Feng is soul-stirring. Your Majesty, this painting is not the work of a human craftsman. The brushstrokes are like a spear splitting the yellow sand, and the dragon scales against the armor reflect the setting sun."

Zhao Ji smiled and put down his pen: "You are good in everything except one thing."

Tong Guan quickly lowered his head.

"It has too much of a military atmosphere. Listen to what you said. It has too much of a military atmosphere. It lacks elegance." Zhao Ji sighed and shook his head. Then he waved his hand to let the eunuch beside him put away the painting. He looked at Tong Guan and said, "What is the matter with you coming here today, Mr. Dao?"

"Your Majesty." Tong Guan bowed, "Today I received military intelligence from the west of Beijing that bandits are roaming around and causing considerable losses."

Zhao Ji frowned, not caring at all: "This kind of thing happens every year, just mobilize the troops and horses to suppress it."

Tong Guan's eyes moved and said, "Sir, I see that this group of thieves has quite a number of people, and they are also roving bandits. It will inevitably take some time to wipe them out, and it will affect the attack on Liao."

Zhao Ji was in a good mood today and looked at him: "Oh? What does Daofu want to do?"

"Please issue an order to recruit them. Then we can use these bandits as the vanguard to attack Liao as a test. We should be able to know the strength of Liao people without wasting the imperial court's troops."

Zhao Ji looked at him and said, "Good, pass it on to Su Yuanjing."

(End of this chapter)