Not long after Zhou Laojiu left, Zhao Chong, the captain of Zuoying School, came.
In the local military government of the Tang Dynasty, the highest military officer was Duwei Zhechong, who had between 800 and 2,000 people under his jurisdiction, depending on the size of the state. Following Captain Zhe Chong, two Captains Guo Yi serve as deputies, and Pang Fei now holds this position. Next is the captain. Generally, each military brigade has four to eight captains, each commanding the strength of a regiment.
The regiments of the Tang Dynasty were different from the "tuan" today. In the military structure of the Tang Dynasty, the fire was the smallest organization. Each fire had ten people, and there was a chief and a fire chief; five fires were a team, with a chief and deputy chief; two teams were a brigade, with a brigade commander. Generally speaking, two brigades are divided into one regiment, and the post of captain is set up. But Xiangzhou is the superior government, and each regiment has four brigades with a total of 400 people. There are four regiments in the whole government, and they are stationed in the front, rear, left and right tuns respectively, so Zhao Chong is habitually called "Zuoying Xiaowei". Qin Mubai, the highest officer of Zhechong Duwei, will lead his own officers and soldiers from the Qinxu Mansion to station in the middle camp and give orders to the three armies. In addition to Pang Fei, the thirty hundred cavalrymen who accompanied him were all officers of the Chinese army, holding official positions such as Zhonghou, Sijie, Sige, and Halberd Holder.
After all, Zhao Chong is also a senior military officer in Xiangzhou Prefecture. If the entire Xiangzhou Military Mansion is equivalent to our current regiment headquarters, he is equivalent to a full battalion commander.
Qin Mubai just raised his eyebrows with one hand and looked at Zhao Chong walking over with a serious expression without saying a word.
When he was summoned by Pang Fei, the "deputy commander", Zhao Chong was already panicked. He thought that even the errand boy was Captain Guo Yi, who might want to take advantage of me... Seeing Qin Mu again With Bai's expression like this, Zhao Chong felt an unprecedented sense of fear in his heart, and he fell down head on.
"The general pays homage to General Qin... The general deserves to die. Please punish me, general!"
Qin Mubai raised the corner of his mouth slightly and said easily: "What is your crime?"
"Uh, this..." Zhao Chong was speechless for a moment and couldn't finish the words. He choked for a long time before saying, "The general is ignorant of his dignity and has offended the general's power!"
"You have already said, 'Ignorance of dignity'. As the saying goes, those who do not know are not guilty. I don't blame you, just get up and speak." Qin Mubai wrote lightly.
"I don't dare!" Zhao Chong's forehead was covered in cold sweat. He was still recalling the severe kick he received from Yu Wen Hongtai in the cell. He thought to himself that these high-ranking officials who came from the capital's official families had bad tempers and were very arrogant, so it was better to be careful.
"If you insist on kneeling, that's up to you." Qin Mubai said, "But having said that, regardless of your crime of offending His Highness and me, tell me frankly, have you made any other mistakes?"
"This... I don't know what the general means by these words?" Zhao Chong raised his head and looked at Qin Mubai with a bit of surprise and fear.
"You really don't know?" Qin Mubai's tone became more serious.
"The general is stupid, please make it clear!"
Qin Mubai thought to himself that he originally wanted to knock the mountain to shake the tiger, but it seemed that Zhao Chong was not as easy to fool as Zhou Laojiu. That's all, I'm a newbie here, so don't let me offend you. It's hard to say whether the people in the military mansion have colluded with the water ghosts. If I act recklessly, they will be on guard.
So Qin Mubai cleverly changed the subject: "Then I will remind you. Which battalion is Yueqi a sergeant?"
"Ah... General, forgive me!" Zhao Chong immediately panicked and said hurriedly, "When there was an accident at Baguidu, and the matter was urgent, I received the order of Guoyi Captain Du Chengyuan, General Du, and hurriedly led his sergeants to rescue him. . Considering that the water ghosts are ferocious and murderous, and the situation is urgent, the general had to temporarily mobilize... The general's elite troops rode over to the Eight Ghost Crossing! "
Qin Mubai slightly raised the corner of his mouth: "According to the military regulations of the Tang Dynasty, when the military government mobilizes a group of less than fifty people to leave the camp, it must obtain permission from an officer above Captain Guoyi; if there are more than fifty people, Then Captain Zhechong must directly approve it. Moreover, no one except Captain Zhechong has the right to mobilize the troops. This time, you not only mobilized fifty cavalry, but also directly deployed Yue cavalry from our Chinese army... Zhao Chong, you too. As a general, you have been in the military camp for many years, and you don’t understand these rules? "
"The general is indeed guilty, please punish me, general!"
Qin Mubai smiled slightly to himself: "Forget it! I think you broke the military regulations just to save people in danger, so I'll spare you this time. You have to remember the military laws more firmly in the future."
"Thank you, General, for your magnanimity!" Zhao Chong agreed in a deep voice, and sighed and thought to himself: I wonder what it is, it turns out you are still worried about me catching you! ... You haven't even taken office yet, so what's the harm in mobilizing your Chinese army for emergency purposes? He was clearly looking for trouble to teach me a lesson! -Hey, what on earth did this guy want to do by calling me here? Why am I getting more and more confused
Qin Mubai looked at Yue Chong with a suspicious look on his face, and wanted to laugh in his heart. After calming down, he said: "Zhao Chong, in the military mansion, you directly govern more than 400 brothers. Your position is not low and your power is not small; you are also a figure in Xiangzhou. Come to think of it, you are right The situation in Xiangzhou should be very familiar, and I have something to ask you."
"Please tell me, General!" Zhao Chong's heart tightened and he replied seriously.
"When I first arrived, I heard that the water ghosts in Xihe Cao were causing a lot of trouble. They killed people and stole goods, despised the king's laws, and were guilty of crimes that should be punished." Qin Mubai said, "As an officer of the military government, it is your duty to maintain local peace. It's your duty, have you ever led troops to chase down water ghosts?"
"Yes." Zhao Chong replied, "There are several pursuits every year, and there are usually a lot of confrontations with water ghosts. But... we have never caused any substantial blow to them. At most, we have arrested a few people sporadically. Or just kill a few people and be done with it. In order to compete with the water ghosts, the military government also specially built the "Sacred Fish Spaceship" and trained the "White Wave Water Army". Although they could completely overwhelm the water ghosts in terms of force, they just couldn't. After killing them all, I feel very ashamed and distressed!"
"The Divine Fish Spaceship, the White Wave Navy... Well, it sounds pretty good." Qin Mubai said, "Then what's the reason why the dignified soldiers of the Celestial Dynasty can't deal with a few water ghosts and grass bandits?"
"The general doesn't know anything. The water ghosts are all very cunning. They usually hide well and don't show up at all. Occasionally, after gathering on the river to commit a crime, they can disappear quickly without a trace. Because they all move on the water. , so even if they are surrounded, the goods are usually recovered. Those people are like loaches, they disappear when they get into the water, and there is no way to catch them!" Zhao Chong shouted angrily.
"Really?" Qin Mubai grinned coldly, "Isn't your claw-scratching hook spear very powerful? Have you never caught one? If you can catch one or two alive and pry open their mouths, what's the point? If you can’t find the culprit, why are you worried that you can’t wipe it out in one fell swoop?”
"This..." Zhao Chong inadvertently raised the corner of his mouth and said, "The general is incompetent and has indeed never been caught alive."
"How many years have you not caught a single person alive?" Qin Mubai asked.
"That's right." Zhao Chong raised the corner of his mouth slightly and replied, "Even if he is caught, he will be released by the government inexplicably. As for the reason, the general will not know. In short, The conclusion is that these people captured by the general are not real water ghosts. "
After hearing this, Qin Mubai was thinking: Looking at Zhao Chong's expression of disdain and anger, it seems that he is somewhat dissatisfied with the Xiangzhou Governor's Office and the Xiangyang County Government? Guanse Tingyin, this Zhao Chong seems to know something, but he doesn't want to tell me directly... He should have some scruples. Forget it, I'm not in a hurry, I just need to find out what's going on first. The ground in Xiangzhou is a little more complicated than I thought. It won't be too late to investigate in detail after I figure out the situation.
"In the military mansion, who is directly in charge of the Shenyu spaceship and the Bailang navy?" Qin Mubai asked, changing the topic.
"It is the last general." Zhao Chong replied, "The last general is responsible for exterminating water ghosts all year round. The left camp of the military mansion is the water army garrison, and the warships are also under the control of the last general. The case happened on the shore that day , the general had no cavalry and lacked mobility, so he had no choice but to call on the general’s Chinese cavalry... "
"Well... at noon tomorrow, gather all your Zuoying naval forces and warships near the Eight Ghost Crossing. We will review them," Qin Mubai said.
"General, take your orders!" Zhao Chong solemnly clasped his fists and promised.
"It's okay, let's go!" Qin Mubai said.
"Uh... I am brave enough to ask you when the general will take office at the military mansion?" Zhao Chong asked, "I and other colleagues did not meet the general at the governor's mansion today, so they all returned to the military camp to rectify the officers and soldiers of the three armies. Waiting for the general to pick up the wind and wash away the dust. "
"I will meet you on the military ship tomorrow. The bandits are making such a fuss that I have no intention of having a banquet. When I go back, I will send a message saying that there is no need for such customary etiquette as receiving wind and washing the dust. Tomorrow all the army's brigade commander and above officers will come to your shrine together. Just wait for me on the fish ship," Qin Mubai said.
"General, I obey!" Zhao Chong bowed and left.
Pang Fei came in and said: "Teacher, my disciple has just listened to your conversation. The teacher's questions were irrelevant, but he answered carefully and spoke very strictly. This Zhao Chong must know a lot of inside information about water ghosts, but he doesn't want to Say it.”
"Smart and perseverant." Qin Mubai stood up and said with a smile, "He seemed to have told me a lot, but in fact he didn't say anything meaningful. It's just that I had a vague feeling that he was very interested in the state and county. The officials of the Yamen are a little dissatisfied. Now in the peaceful and prosperous period of the Tang Dynasty, the small place of Xiangzhou is actually haunted by water ghosts and green forest factions. Isn't this abnormal? If there is no Yamen or the military government to open the door for them, this phenomenon will happen. How is it possible that they have been repeatedly banned? If you say that they have no connection with the water ghosts, I absolutely don’t believe it.”
"My disciple thinks so too." Pang Fei said, "These water ghosts actually dare to openly kill people and steal goods under the bright sky, and then escape without a trace. This is too unusual and unreasonable. After all, they are in groups. People, big brown goods, even if people are good at hiding, how can this goods disappear in the air? "
"Well said, right to the point!" Qin Mubai stroked his palm and said with a smile, "It seems that you have also seen some clues. If you want to eliminate the water ghosts and directly round them up with force alone, it will definitely be a fool's errand. Stop the boiling. When we suppress the enemy, they hide and don't come out to commit crimes; when we relax, they quietly gather to commit crimes. In this way, we are always passive. To take the initiative, we must seize their vital points - that is, how did they clear out the large amount of stolen goods? "
Pang Fei blinked a few times: "Looking at the master's wisdom, it seems that he has a good idea?"
"Haha!" Qin Mubai said with a smile, "It seems that you didn't hang around in Baiqi in vain, and you have practiced your ability to detect faces. I just deliberately asked Zhao Chong to go back and send a message, saying that there will be a military parade tomorrow, just to confuse They are confusing the audience. Early tomorrow morning, you and I will dress up and walk around the city. After noon, we will come back here and prepare to go to the Eight Ghost River Parade!"
"My teacher is wise, and everything has been arranged as expected!" Pang Fei said happily, "Following my teacher, you can learn good things!"
"Don't always call him your mentor." Qin Mubai patted his shoulder and smiled, "You are now the dignified Captain Guo Yi. You should have your own opinions and opinions, and you should also learn to stand alone. On the other hand, you have just seen that Zhao Chong, a mere captain, is so difficult to deal with. You need to train more in the army in the future!"
"yes!"
That night, Qin Mubai was tired and fell asleep in the inn. He had no dreams all night until early morning, when Pang Fei knocked on the door and woke him up. After having a hasty breakfast, they changed their clothes and disguised themselves as merchants and servants. Qin Mubai and Pang Fei, a group of five or six people, headed for the city.
Xiangzhou is a port city with extremely active business travel. Although it is not as grand, luxurious and wealthy as Chang'an West Market, it is no less lively. Especially in the port city of Beicheng, many goods hauled from the port are traded directly here, making it extremely prosperous. There are many shops lined with cars and horses, there is an endless stream of people coming and going, and the sound of hawking is noisy.
"Boss, the port city of Xiangzhou is really bustling!" Pang Fei said with a smile, "You are really pretending to be whatever you want. I bet this businessman's behavior and expression are all learned from Wu Dong's family, right?"
"That's a lot of nonsense." Qin Mubai scolded with a smile, "I'm taking advantage of the fact that few people in Xiangzhou know me, so that I can conduct secret inspections. Everyone should pay attention and tell me if they see a shop or official account selling salt and rice."
Pang Fei's eyes lit up, he came over and whispered: "Teacher, do you mean that... those stolen goods were probably resold through government-run grain stores or salt accounts?"
"Isn't it possible?" Qin Mubai smiled slightly and said, "With so much grain and salt, can the water ghosts eat it themselves or sink it into the river? What they want is not grain and salt, but Money. But with so much grain and salt, it is impossible for them to transfer it, let alone resell it. Therefore, the best way is to sell the stolen goods directly to the grain dealers and salt companies!"
"But... the 'grain, iron, salt and cloth' of the Tang Dynasty are all sold exclusively by the government!" Pang Fei said in surprise, "All grain shops and salt shops must be chartered firms hired by the government. Each state and county has There can only be one operator. Moreover, whether it is the supply of goods, sales, or purchase and sale prices, they are all determined by the government. The grain store and the salt store only make a very small profit. "
Qin Mubai smiled and said: "Is it meager? I don't think so. Originally, the most profitable goods in the world were food, clothing, housing and transportation, especially grain and salt. Think about it, who in the world doesn't eat grain and salt? Just think about it. In this city of Xiangzhou, if anyone can obtain the government's right to operate grain and salt, it means that everyone in the city is making money for him, even if each person only earns one penny per day, it is an astonishing sum. Therefore, generally speaking, the merchants who deal in grain and salt are probably the richest man in the area, for example, Zheng Fengchi from Chang’an!”
"Oh... I understand, disciple!" Pang Fei nodded with sudden realization, "For government-run grain stores and salt stores, the government provides the source of official grain and official salt, so the profits are low. But if it was the water ghost who gave them the stolen goods... then The profits are huge! Moreover, these stolen goods are the same as official grain and official salt, and there is no way to tell them apart - Master, after such an analysis, it is really possible!"
Qin Mubai smiled to himself: "I thought you had figured it out a long time ago!"
"Uh..." Pang Fei scratched his head in embarrassment, blushed and smiled sheepishly, "If my brain was as good as my mentor's, I should have started training long ago, hehe!"
"Stop talking nonsense, take the brothers for a walk around the port city and find the grain bank and the bank. In less than two minutes, we have to go to Baguidu for a military parade. Time is urgent!" Qin Mubai said.
"Okay! Disciple, take your brothers and go find him immediately!"