The corners of Qu Manbao's eyes gleamed and his lips opened, but no words came out.
"My eldest son, the general has left the northwest, and you have the final say over the entire northwest now." Daosheng said solemnly: "I dare to ask the eldest son, do the hundreds of soldiers and horses currently stationed in Tongguan obey the eldest son's orders on weekdays? "
Qu Manbao frowned and said: "You know better than me that Tongguan is my barrier to the northwest. My father said that as long as Tongguan is in our hands, the northwest is also in our hands. If one day Tongguan is not under our control, then the northwest will be in danger. . Because of this, the soldiers and horses stationed at Tongguan are my father's confidants. Xue Ren, who was guarding the pass, was once adopted by my father as his adopted son. No one except my father can mobilize the soldiers at Tongguan."
"So if the eldest son wants that letter to be effective, he must hold Tongguan in his hands." Daosheng whispered: "The eldest son has three hundred warriors under his command. These people are devoted to the eldest son. For the eldest son, then, then They are willing to go through fire and water, and what they have to do to raise an army for a thousand days is to use it for a while. It is time for these brave soldiers to serve the eldest son."
Qu Manbao said: "You mean to use these three hundred warriors to replace the guards at Tongguan?"
"Exactly." Daosheng said: "As long as Tongguan is in Xue Ren's hands, the general and the young master can freely enter and exit the pass. Only by replacing the guards at Tongguan with his own people can the eldest master completely control the northwest."
Qu Manbao was a little uneasy and said: "Daosheng, is this... too much? For more than ten years, my father has always had the final say on the guards at Tongguan. Now... now that I suddenly want to change the guards, my father... my father will definitely be dissatisfied with me." , at that time it was counterproductive.”
"The eldest son, in fact, in the eyes of his subordinates, the general is a man of great foresight." Daosheng said: "The successor he wants to choose must be a peerless hero who can stand alone. Although the eldest son is both civil and military, there has been no one in the northwest in recent years. In a big war, there are not many opportunities for the eldest son to show off his talents. Therefore, in the eyes of the general, the eldest son may not be able to take charge of his own affairs. But this time, if the eldest son acts resolutely, mobilizes Tongguan, and provides several concubines in the mansion, In the eyes of the general, it may not be a bad thing for my aunt to make the decision."
Qu Manbao walked over and sat down on the chair, reached for the wine bottle, raised his head and took another sip.
"If the eldest son feels that his subordinates are talking too much, I will apologize to the eldest son." Daosheng sighed: "I have been unable to sleep these two nights, just for the sake of the eldest son's future. In the final analysis, it is also for myself. If the eldest master Being able to rise to prominence, my subordinates will naturally be able to take advantage of the eldest master, otherwise... I bluntly said that these words harmed the brotherhood between the eldest master and the younger master, and they should not be confessed to the eldest master."
Qu Manbao also sighed and said: "Daosheng, I don't understand what you said. The storyteller told so many stories. For the sake of power and position, not to mention brothers, there is no mercy between father and son." After a pause, he said: "Now that I think about it, Manying seems to have been really close to his father in the past few years. The last time my father celebrated his birthday, that boy actually tried his best to get a piece of sky stone as a birthday gift, which took all the limelight out of me. In the past, this guy seemed to have really bad intentions."
Daosheng walked over, picked up the iron tongs, and stirred the fire to make it burn brighter. Then he said: "The eldest son controls the northwest, so that the general will have to hand over the inheritance rights to you. This will make him take the initiative." , much safer than waiting for the general to make a decision."
"Tell me, besides Tongguan, what else should we do?"
"Call the surrounding officials as soon as possible." Daosheng whispered: "Look at the tone of these people and see if they are willing to be loyal to you. If they show their loyalty to you, the eldest son can naturally entrust him with important tasks, otherwise... !”
"I understand." Qu Manbao's eyes became stern: "Control the northwest, and then force my father to banish Man Ying, and then send assassins to attack. As long as Man Ying is gone, the only heir to the Qu family will be me."
Daosheng raised his hand and said: "The eldest son has a bright future and will surely become a hero of his generation!"
"Daosheng, please prepare a notice for me now." Qu Manbao said: "Stock up all the food in Xianyang's grain store and tell those people that the war ahead is tight. Now all the food and grass are at the disposal of the public. When the army attacks Luoyang, they will pay back double. In addition, I sent a letter to the surrounding officials, asking them to leave for Xianyang immediately. I have important matters to discuss with them."
Daosheng said seriously: "I'll do it now." He then asked: "Master, what about Tongguan...?"
"My three hundred warriors set off immediately to change the defense." Qu Manbao said: "Let Du Yandao be the general...!"
"My eldest son, just let Du Yandao go, Xue Ren may not hand over Tongguan to him." Daosheng shook his head and said: "That Xue Ren has an arrogant nature. In the entire northwest army, he doesn't care about many people."
"How dare he disobey my orders?"
"Of course he doesn't dare to disobey the eldest son's orders." Daosheng said with a smile: "As long as Du Yandao goes there, Xue Ren may not give Du Yandao face."
Qu Manbao frowned and said, "Do you want me to go to Tongguan in person?"
"If the eldest son goes there, this matter will definitely happen." Daosheng said seriously: "No matter how courageous Du Yandao is, he will not dare to disobey the eldest son in front of him."
Qu Manbao said reluctantly: "It takes several days to go from here to Tongguan, and the weather is cold. I...!"
"Only when you have endured hardship can you become a master." Daosheng said: "As long as Tongguan is controlled, the eldest son will have peace of mind."
Qu Manbao thought for a while and then said: "Let me think about it." He picked up the wine bottle and took a sip, and then said after thinking for a moment: "Forget it, I know Xue Ren's temper, and Du Yandao may not be able to handle it. After getting him, I will lead three hundred warriors to go tomorrow and replace the guards at Tongguan. Du Yandao is loyal to me. With him guarding Tongguan, everything will be safe." Some worried said: "I left Xianyang, here should be Nothing will go wrong, right?"
"Don't worry, the eldest son. There is no one in the entire northwest who doesn't know that the world belongs to the Qu family." Daosheng said with a smile: "Those forces that were against the imperial court have been uprooted long ago, and it only takes a few days for the eldest son to go back and forth. No one can Make big waves.”
Qu Manbao nodded slightly and said, "That's right. Who dares to run wild in the northwest?" He picked up the wine bottle, which was already empty. He smiled and said, "Daosheng, go get some wine and drink with me."
Early the next morning, notices were posted in the streets and alleys of Xianyang City, ordering all grain stores to hand over all the grain in stock within two days. If they failed to pay by the due date, and were discovered by the government, all grain stores would be confiscated. Family wealth, no mercy.
A notice immediately caused chaos in Xianyang City.
People in Xianyang naturally knew that the Northwest Army was out, and many people also knew that the Qu family and his son had collected a lot of taxes in the northwest over the years. Before the Qinhuai War, the Qu family and his son claimed to relieve the court's worries and collected taxes all over the northwest. Naturally, the people in the northwest were miserable, and even the gentry and powerful people were complaining. However, the Qu family was under the banner of the imperial court, and no one dared to disobey it. However, the taxes actually paid to the imperial court were less than 30%, and almost nothing was left. All fell into the Qu family's pocket.
The Qu family specially set aside a large area in Xianyang City and built a granary. Now the granary is almost full. In Qu Yuangu's words, if Xianyang City is besieged one day, it will take three to five years. , there is no shortage of food in Xianyang City.
People know that the Qu family has a lot of money and food. This time the Northwest Army entered the pass, Qu Yuangu did not go to war to raise food. Many people felt confident that Qu Yuangu had done a good thing, but this was only a short time. As time passed, the notice came down. This time, it was no longer just asking people to pay the food. Look, it actually meant that all the food had to be handed over. People were aggrieved. On the first day, few people took the initiative to pay. food.
When the notice was issued, Qu Manbao had already gone to Tongguan with the 300 warriors he had trained for many years. However, Qu Manbao did not need to do this himself, as the officials below him collected grain from various grain stores.
As the sun sets, Qu Manbao rides on the back of a strong horse. This horse is an authentic purebred northwest horse. Under the setting sun, the brown temples are extremely supple. Qu Manbao, who is dressed in black armor, matches this horse. He is also very heroic.
Behind him were three hundred warriors, all of whom were uniformly armored, holding spears and carrying sabers at their waists.
According to Qu Manbao, the three hundred warriors under him are authentic northwest warriors. Each of them is as good as ten. Even if they encounter thousands of troops, the three hundred warriors can kill the opponent without leaving a trace.
The three hundred warriors under the setting sun are indeed fierce and murderous.
"Master, there is a hillside ahead. It's getting late. We can camp on the edge of the hillside." A gray-armored general came closer. "I remember that there is a water source near the hillside, which is suitable for camping."
Qu Manbao saw that it was already getting late. He really had no intention of traveling all night. He nodded and said, "Du Yandao, take the people to prepare the camp first. We will rest here tonight and set off again early tomorrow morning."
The gray armor will be handed over and said to be.
Du Yandao knew that the purpose of this trip was to change the guards to defend Tongguan. He was very surprised why the eldest son made such a decision. However, as a guard under the eldest son, whatever the master said, he understood one thing. If you ask fewer questions, you will live longer. The eldest son has a capricious temperament, and one of his words may offend him accidentally. In this case, it is better to ask less questions.
And going to Tongguan this time is not a bad thing for him.
After the defense change, he became the guard of Tongguan, and he had real power. Although he had been a confidant of the eldest son in these years, he had never been able to use it. Finally, he had a chance to do something, and Du Yandao was still very happy.
Du Yandao is not a mediocre person, he is also a strong general who has emerged from the dead. His marching formation is not very clever, but he is not weak either. With only 300 soldiers, it is a piece of cake to command them.
Before dark, the team set up camp on the edge of the hillside. In fact, there were only three tents set up. After all, they were traveling lightly and could not afford to neglect too many tools.
When the eldest son goes out, he not only has to stay in a tent, but also has to eat and drink. In addition, the eldest son takes a bath every day. Therefore, in addition to carrying drinking water bags, each cavalryman also needs to bring a few more, so that they can be collected and provided to the eldest son when the time comes. Bath water.