After the whole family was swept away, I lay down flat

Chapter 680 Preparation
Hai Changan had just followed Tu Rong to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion today and witnessed with his own eyes the Duke of Zhenguo personally ordering his grandson to follow Tu Rong to Beijing. Looking at Zhou Yijun's expression at the time, he was obviously very surprised and probably hadn't expected it.

Haijiao hadn't met Zhou Yijun today, so it was normal that he hadn't heard the news from him. However, even if Zhou Yijun didn't plan to go with Tu Rong, it didn't mean Haijiao couldn't do it.

Hai Changan advised his nephew, "In the past few years, because of my relationship with Tu Jinbao, you have often appeared in front of General Tu. You have shown all the skills you should have shown. He knows that you are a talent, but no matter how much he knows you, it is not as good as you staying under his nose for a period of time, so that he can see more clearly what kind of person you are. If you can withstand the forced march of more than 2,000 miles, and your performance on the road can satisfy General Tu, he will definitely not let you down when you go to Beijing to participate in the military examination."

Tu Rong was recalled to the capital this time to take over the command of the 26 guards of the emperor's personal army. There are not many good military commanders in the capital who are truly capable and trusted by the emperor, and Tu Rong will definitely need a lot of helpers when he first takes power. If Hai Jiao can satisfy him, there are so many vacancies in the 26 guards of the capital, so why can't he place a young man he likes? If Hai Jiao can get good results in the military examination, his official position may be higher, at least a hundred households, and a thousand households is not impossible. Wouldn't that be better than starting from the seventh or eighth rank military officer?
Hai Jiao was quite moved by what he heard. Since he wanted to climb up the social ladder and get close to Tu Rong, he had been planning for several years. Now that he had a chance to achieve his goal, how could he be willing to miss the opportunity?

But he still had some concerns: "My provincial examination results haven't come out yet."

Hai Changan thought this was not a problem: "The Duke of Zhenguo has already inquired about it. Zhou Yijun is the top of the list. You are the second and Tang Meng is the third. The top ten are almost all children of military families in Changan City. In addition to you, the second, there is a seventh who is an ordinary military family child from Yan'an. He has been spotted by General Zhou Liu and is going to be brought by his side for training."

Zhou Yijun missed the provincial military examination three years ago. At that time, he was arranged by the Zhenguo Mansion to go to the border town for training. He has been to several important border towns such as Ganzhou, Suzhou, and Liangzhou. He has fought against the Hu cavalry, suppressed horse bandits, planted corn, and killed jackals. He returned to Chang'an this summer, and he has been reborn. He participated in this year's provincial military examination and won the championship. Next year, he will go to Beijing to participate in the joint examination, vowing to win the top spot. The Zhenguo Duke hopes that after he completes the border training that all family members must go through, he will go to Beijing to assist his father, General Zhou Si. The father and son will take turns to sit in the capital, master part of the military power of the imperial army, and become a force for the Zhou family to guard the capital.

Although the Zhou family still regards guarding the border as their responsibility, they will never underestimate the influence of the capital. They don't want to fight bloody battles on the battlefield while also guarding against conspiracies and calculations in the court. In any case, they also want blood relatives to stay in the capital, in the center of power, to advise the family, prevent malicious slander, and eliminate the king's suspicion.

Zhou Yijun's path has been arranged. He once thought about taking his good friend Haijiao with him, but Haijiao actually has his own path to take.

He didn't want to part ways with the Zhou family, he just felt that sometimes eggs don't have to be put in one basket.

Haijiao lowered his head and thought for a while, then raised his head and said to his grandparents, "Grandpa, grandma, I want to go."

Hai Xiya sighed, then smiled: "If you want to go, go ahead. Grandpa can only protect you up to this point, and you have to walk the rest of the way on your own. You have to work hard, but if you encounter setbacks, don't be discouraged. Remember that we have our family behind you!"

Haijiao smiled and lowered his head deeply to hide the redness of his eyes: "Yes, grandson knows."

Haitang sighed secretly, thinking that when his brother was struggling alone in the world in his previous life, he probably hoped to hear these words from his family. Unfortunately, he didn't have any family at that time. Now that his brother is listening to his grandfather's words and recalling his past experiences, he must be very emotional, right? It was not until this moment that Ma realized: "Bao Shun is... going to leave early? And he has to march all the way?! Then... how do we carry the luggage? I haven't asked anyone to pack it yet!"

Hai Xiya comforted his wife and said, "Don't worry. Originally, Baoshun was going to Beijing with Master Yijun and Miss Xuejun from the fourth room of the Zhenguogong Mansion before the snow fell. Now it's only ten days or half a month earlier. There are still many days until the end of the month, which is enough time for you to help Baoshun pack his luggage. You don't have to prepare too many things. General Tu has asked us to ride lightly and with a small group. It's not convenient to bring too many things on the road. But you can bring more silver and banknotes. There are many prosperous towns to pass by on the way from Chang'an to Beijing. It's not as desolate as the northwest, where large tracts of desert are uninhabited. He can buy anything he needs temporarily, and General Tu will also take care of the food and accommodation after arriving in Beijing. If it doesn't work, his second uncle is also in the team. The uncle and nephew take care of each other. Are you still afraid that the child will be wronged?"

Ma still trusted Hai Chang'an very much. After hearing this, she calmed down immediately: "Master, what you said is true... Then I will bring more banknotes to their uncle and nephew, and the rest of the things..."

Haitang interrupted, "Grandma, you have to bring bedding and clothes. They have to be warm enough. You also have to bring raincoats, bamboo hats, and leather boots to protect them from rain and snow. You also have to bring medicine, dry food, pickles, and so on. Even if you can find a place to buy them on the way, you have to be prepared for the possibility that you can't buy them so that they won't go hungry."

Ma listened and understood: "Okay, when we were in Guazhou, there were times when family members needed to travel long distances on horseback. I know what to prepare."

She didn't want to let Hai Chang'an and Hai Jiao go alone, so she planned to let them take Cui Dazhuang and Cui Xiaodao, father and son, with them: "They are good at riding, have good physical fitness, and have learned some basic martial arts. They won't hold you back. If there is anything on the way, you can send them to work. When you arrive in the capital, they can also help run errands to rent a house and inquire about news."

This is nothing. Hai Changan knew that other colleagues would also bring entourages, and Tu Rong would not ask as long as the people they brought did not hold him back. He personally watched Cui Dazhuang and his son practice riding. He had confidence in their abilities and did not think they would hold him back. Besides, his nephew Hai Jiao would also be traveling with him this time. If someone could help, it would certainly be better than just the two of them taking care of each other. After arriving in the capital, he would be much more convenient to do things with smart and trustworthy people at his disposal.

The father, son, grandson and grandson gathered together to discuss the follow-up preparations. Ma had already taken out a pen and paper and began to think about what kind of luggage to prepare for her son and grandson. She pulled her daughter-in-law Hu together to discuss, and her granddaughter Haitang came over and whispered: "Grandma, in the capital, our family only knows Lord Tao and General Tu. These two are both high-ranking figures. Second uncle and brother can't trouble them for everything, right? Shouldn't we also use other connections?"

Other connections?

Ma was reminded by her: "Tomorrow I will go to find Sister Ma and ask her old sisters in the palace whether any of them live outside the palace in the capital... Oh, you should also write a letter to Miss Peng. Didn't she marry into the Yingchuan Marquis's Mansion?"

(End of this chapter)