National color raw owl

Xiao Huanzhang thought for a while, and said thoughtfully: "I have heard of Yan Pingshi's name, but I heard that he is a doctor who travels all over the world. It is said among the people that he is very skilled in medicine, but I have never seen it in person. " Qi said: "Brother Chu, are you looking for Yan Pingshi in Qingtang County? Could it be that Yan Pingshi appeared in Qingtang?"

Chu Huan hesitated for a while, and finally told what happened to him. Xiao Huanzhang's expression changed drastically, and he said sharply, "You mean, Zhou Renkang lured you into a trap with the intention of assassinating you?"

Chu Huan nodded and said: "From the captured population, this matter is related to a man named Gourd Village."

"Gourd Village?" Xiao Huanzhang sneered, "Brother Chu, you don't know, this Gourd Village is now a cancer on your Xiguan Road. There are many bandits in Xiguan Road, and this Gourd Village is the first among them."

Chu Huan sat up straight and asked, "Master Xiao, is the Gourd Village strong?"

"The Huluzhai is located on the Hulu Mountain, at the junction of Xiguan Yuezhou and Tianshan Shazhou. At that time, it was divided into two roads, with Hulushan as the boundary." Xiao Huanzhang explained: "Hulushan is the largest mountain range in Xiguan Road, stretching for nearly a hundred miles. The mountains are surrounded by arches, the terrain is very complicated, the ravines are vertical and horizontal, there are rivers in the mountains, and holes in the slopes. As far as I know, thousands of people have gathered in Huluzhai. When people were in war, they threw themselves into Calabash Village...!"

Chu Huan stroked his chin and said, "I see."

"The people in the Pioneer Battalion have all received military training." Xiao Huanzhang sighed: "These people have arrived in Gourd Village. Do you think Gourd Village is just a group of mobs?"

"Could it be that no one wiped out these gangsters?"

"It's not like that." Xiao Huanzhang said: "Actually, I came here this time to meet Brother Chu and to tell Brother Chu about the situation in Xiguan. The bandits in Xiguan are probably worse than what Brother Chu thought. Seriously, before General Yu Buqu left, he transferred 36 troops from the Northwest to Yanmen Pass and built 3 Fortresses. That was to guard against Xiliang people. There were nearly [-] people in Ningshan, and there were old Yu among them. General Yu brought the [-] Guards Army from within the pass, and nearly [-] officers and soldiers who were formerly affiliated with the Northwest Army, and General Yu organized them into the Pingxi Army, which was mainly used to put down the rebellious bandits in the Northwest."

"Pingxi Army?"

Xiao Huanzhang nodded and said, "Exactly, the Pingxi Army was divided into eight battalions. After General Yu passed away, Zhu Lingyue will be in charge temporarily."

"Governor Zhu is still at Ningshan?"

"We've already returned to Tianshan." Xiao Huanzhang said, "Most of the Pingxi army in Ningshan has also been transferred away to fight bandits everywhere. Brother Chu should also know that when the people from Xiliang invaded, the state troops in each prefecture had long since ceased to exist. Therefore, in the four states of Xiguan, one battalion was transferred from Jinzhou, one battalion was transferred from Hezhou, four battalions were transferred from Yuezhou, and two battalions were left in Jiazhou and Ningshan... These Pingxi Army, before the reorganization of the state army, can only rely on them The situation in Xiguan has been stabilized!"

"Who is in charge of the Pingxi Army now?"

"Dongfangxin." Xiao Huanzhang said with a smile that was not a smile: "In the past, Zhu Lingyue was in charge of the guards. After that, Zhu Lingyue handed over the command of the Pingxi Army to Dongfangxin."

Chu Huan did remember this person, he had seen this person at a banquet when he returned from Xiliang, and this person was still drunk and crazy during the banquet.

"Since Dongfangxin is in charge of the military power of the Pingxi Army, didn't he ever think of going to destroy the Gourd Village?"

"Two months ago, thousands of troops were sent to attack Huluzhai, but they returned in complete defeat." Xiao Huanzhang said, "Dongfangxin transferred four battalions from the Pingxi Army, and they are now stationed in Shuoquan City, Yuezhou. Outside...there are many bandits in Yuezhou, but the most powerful one is the Calabash Village, but even though thousands of soldiers were sent to attack the Calabash Village, it is said that even the Calabash Mountain was not even able to enter the Calabash Mountain...!" , stroked his beard and said: "I don't know if the Pingxi Army is useless or the bandits in Huluzhai are too powerful, but the terrain of Huludao is really complicated. The camp is in the most precipitous part of Calabash Mountain, if you want to enter Calabash Village, you have to enter from the two suspension bridges, even the gods can't do anything if the suspension bridges are together."

Chu Huan stroked his chin and said, "In this way, they didn't have any scruples about assassinating this official, but they just felt that the officers and soldiers could do nothing to them?"

"From the perspective of the bandits in the Gourd Village, it may not be the case." Xiao Huanzhang said: "They harmed Yuezhou, burned, killed and looted, and they were more vicious than Xiliang soldiers. The people in Xiguan had no food and clothing, but it is said that the Gourd Village passed They plundered and stored a lot of food... Brother Chu, if Xiguan wants to recover and the people want to live and work in peace and contentment, this gourd village must be eliminated."

Chu Huan nodded slightly, cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, Master Xiao, for your enlightenment."

"But having said that, why is Huluzhai planning to assassinate your lord here?" Xiao Huanzhang stroked his beard thoughtfully and said, "After all, Zhou Renkang is an official of the imperial court. He is in armor. Huluzhai is in Yuezhou. The two places are far apart. How could the village use Zhou Renkang to lead Brother Chu into a trap? Why did Zhou Renkang collude with the people in Huluzhai again this time?"

Chu Huan said with a smile: "In fact, this is also a question that Chu can't figure out."

"Whenever you do something, you should have a purpose." Xiao Huanzhang said solemnly: "The gourd village has made great efforts, and it has traveled a long way from Hulu mountain in Yuezhou to Qingtang to assassinate your lord. What are they planning? It's common, but it's very rare for them to assassinate officials so deliberately, and what good is it for them to assassinate Brother Chu, is it just because they are worried that Brother Chu will encircle and suppress them after he takes office?"

Chu Huan smiled lightly, "Chu feels that this reason doesn't seem to be very convincing."

Xiao Huanzhang smiled and said, "I also feel a little strange...!" After thinking for a while, he asked, "Does Brother Chu have any enemies in the northwest? Such a vicious trick, it is only willing to put Brother Chu to death." , to be able to make Qingtang county magistrate obey, I always feel that Huluzhai should not have such ability?"

"Enemies?" Chu Huan said with a wry smile, "Chu is new here, how could he make enemies?"

Xiao Huanzhang nodded and said: "That's true." Thoughtful, his brows suddenly tightened, and he muttered to himself: "Could it be...!" Seemingly aware of something, he immediately smiled and said: "Fortunately, brother Chu turned danger into good luck." , we must be cautious in the future, the northwest is not peaceful, this is not a verbal word, we must be careful everywhere."

Chu Huan said: "Master Lao Xiao is concerned, and Chu is very grateful. By the way, Master Xiao seems to have thought of something. Is there anything I can't say?"

"No." Xiao Huanzhang waved his hands, then lowered his voice and asked, "Brother Chu, have you seen Zhu Lingyue?"

"We've met each other a few times!"

"What do you think of him?" Xiao Huanzhang picked up the teacup, the tea in it was already cold, but Xiao Huanzhang still tasted it very cultivatedly.

Chu Huan said: "It is said that Governor Zhu stepped forward when he was in danger. The Northwest Army was once defeated by the iron cavalry from Xiliang, and it was Zhu Lingyue who led the Imperial Guards from Tianshan Road to the front line. Gathered the defeated army in the northwest and built a defense line, which stopped the Xiliang army for a while, and waited until Old General Yu rushed to the northwest."

"That's the truth." Xiao Huanzhang stroked the leaves with a tea cover, "Zhu Lingyue is famous in the Northwest now, and that's why... Otherwise, he wouldn't have taken over the military and political affairs of the three Northwest provinces during the war...!"

"Master Xiao is saying that Zhu Lingyue also intervened in Beishan's military and political affairs?" Chu Huan asked.

Xiao Huanzhang put down his teacup and said, "I'm sick all over. When the Xiliang people came in, I was suffering from dysentery. This old life was almost lost. He transferred all the state troops from the three provinces of Beishan. Naturally, I would not object to the battle in the Northwest of Guanxi. It’s just that Governor Zhu didn’t think about it. The people who fought in Xiliang were naturally duty-bound, but they were all hollowed out. What should I do if there is a bandit riot? I once said this to him However, what he meant was that in the face of national crisis, we can only take care of the people of Xiliang first, and we can’t take care of the civil strife for the time being.”

"What happened next?"

"As I expected, the troops in each state took time out to fight in front, and the bandits in the back waited for the opportunity. The governor watched the bandits wreak havoc, but the troops in his hands were not enough." Xiao Huanzhang sighed: "It's not important. After Xiliang retreated, Governor Zhu immediately filed a bulletin to impeach Beishan officials. The notebook said that the corpses of Beishan officials had vegetarian meals, and the frontline soldiers fought bloody battles. However, the officials in the rear could not even calm down the local banditry, which led to instability in the Northwest Army's rear. ... According to this story, dozens of officials from top to bottom in Beishan were hit by flying disasters. Dismissal from office is light, and many of them were taken to the execution ground and beheaded in public, saying that they wanted to kill faint officials to stabilize people's hearts...Zhu Lingyue It’s kind of unreasonable to do this.”

Chu Huan didn't want such a thing to happen. Before he could speak, Xiao Huanzhang shook his head and smiled wryly, "The state army has been transferred away and has no troops. How can we suppress the thieves? The governor wrote to the imperial court to explain the matter, but nothing came to light. In fact, the governor knows very well in his heart that Zhu Lingyue has made great contributions to the country, and the court will naturally believe in his notes...!" At this point, he immediately waved his hands and laughed at himself: "That's all, how do you talk? It's like complaining in front of Brother Chu... Brother Chu, I made you laugh."

Chu Huan shook his head and said, "Master Xiao and I are talking like this, it's a heart-to-heart confession, how dare Chu laugh at me."

Xiao Huanzhang showed appreciation, and said: "That's well said. Brother Chu, the Holy One knows people with insight. If you are sent to Xiguan to support the overall situation, you will definitely do something. It's just that the situation in Xiguan is not yet clear, and everything will start again. Good luck, the Northwest Department, although you and I belong to two branches, we are all for the benefit of the people in the Northwest. If there is a problem in the West Pass, Beishan will not sit idly by. If there is a place that needs Beishan's help in the future, I, Beishan, will definitely be obliged .”

Chu Huan got up and bowed deeply, Xiao Huanzhang had already smiled and pulled Chu Huan to sit down, "Brother Chu, don't do this, between you and me, we support each other, it's not that I, Beishan, help you, maybe in the future, I will help you." You brother Chu helped me, I am from the Northwest, and I have always spoken frankly, you treat me as one of your own, and Xiao will also treat you as one of your own."

Chu Huan had a smile on his face, but he suddenly understood in his heart that Xiao Huanzhang, the majestic governor, came here to this dilapidated small county to become an ally with him.