The next day, Qin Mubai returned to the military camp.
Today is the scheduled day to review military orders and regulations, and Qin Mubai has not forgotten this important event. However, Zhao Chong and Pang Fei disappeared together for several days. There were some rumors and speculations in the military camp, but they have not spread or amplified yet. It was easy to fool Pang Fei, so Qin Mubai said that he had been sent out to deal with other matters. It's just that the Zuoying navy has been without its captain for several days, and everyone can't help but speculate.
The assessment of military orders and regulations went smoothly. Perhaps everyone was frightened by Feng Daobao's head. After Qin Mubai gave the order, few dared to neglect it. The passing rate for the exam was quite high, and the few who failed were also due to nervousness. Only when you are relaxed can you control others. This time, Qin Mubai thought of his favor and did not retaliate. Instead, it gave those people a chance to make up for it and then take the make-up exam in a few days.
In the evening, Qin Mubai called Du Chengyuan and other deputy generals and officials to discuss with them and recommend another Zuoying captain to temporarily replace Zhao Chong.
Everyone was surprised and asked, where did Zhao Chong go after he had been missing for several days
Qin Mubai had no choice but to say: "To be honest with everyone, he is missing."
"What?!" Everyone was really shocked, even Du Chengyuan performed extremely well.
"I will investigate this matter personally. What you all have to do is to conceal the information and prevent the sergeants from knowing it, so as to breed speculation and cause trouble." Qin Mubai said, "Well, the Zuoying navy cannot be without a commander. Please nominate someone, or self-recommend, to temporarily take charge of the navy in place of Zhao Chong."
After a pause, Qin Mubai said again: "General Du, you are a veteran of the military government and are familiar with everyone. It is up to you to propose candidates first, and let us all work together!"
Qin Mubai's actions were just for Du Chengyuan to see. He wanted to show his "cooperative" attitude to the water ghosts. Because grain transactions must be carried out on waterways, Zuoying Xiaowei, who patrols the water, must play a crucial role. The person chosen by Du Chengyuan must be his confidant. In this way, the water-protecting ghost will definitely be satisfied.
Du Chengyuan understood this and casually mentioned a few names, including the brigade commander and others from Zuoying. Everyone just discussed it for a while and decided on the candidate.
Qin Mubai said: "General Du, I have been busy with official duties recently, so I may spend a lot of time in the military camp. You will be in charge of military affairs. In addition, Zuoying Navy has always been here It’s important, but I have to take a lot of trouble from you.”
Du Chengyuan cupped his hands and said, "The general has an order, and I must obey it."
"That's good." Qin Mubai nodded and smiled meaningfully, and sighed, "Although I came to Xiangzhou to serve as an official, I still can't take off the skin of a Beijing official. In a few days, The newly appointed Governor of Dengzhou, King Qi Li You, is about to take office. As you know, Dengzhou is the Linzhou of Xiangzhou, and the King of Qi is my general... Therefore, I have to go to congratulate him in person. "
Du Chengyuan smiled knowingly and said: "King Qi Li You, isn't that the brother of Princess Gaoyang and the brother-in-law of General Qin? Go, go, it's human nature. This season is busy with farming, and most of the soldiers are busy with farming. There is no winter training or promotion, and there is nothing important in the army. General, please feel free to go and leave all matters big and small to the subordinates."
"Then I'll help you all." Qin Mubai stood up and cupped his hands.
"General Qin is too polite!"
When he walked out of the military tent, Du Chengyuan deliberately turned back and looked at Qin Mubai deeply, his eyes extremely warm, ambiguous and complicated. Obviously, he knew what had happened in the past few days. After all, Qin Mubai and he were "people in the same boat", but before that, Qin Mubai beheaded his brother-in-law. Public grudges and private grievances are probably quite tangled in his heart.
After explaining these things, everyone dispersed. Qin Mubai sat there alone and wondered: Who is the Lord of Song Cao
After so many twists and turns, this "Song Cao Lord" never officially appeared. I heard from Hua Niangzi that not many of Water Ghost's own people really know him. It can be seen that this person hides very deeply. Now a dark net has been cast, the purpose is to catch all the water ghosts and their accomplices. However, until now, we still don’t know who Song Caozhu is, so where can we start to arrest him
Qin Mubai repeatedly deliberated and thought, taking everyone into consideration. Duan Rongji of Zhengchang Lianghao, Ouyang Jun of Yongye Salt Factory, Wei Xiaochen, Du Chengyuan, and others may all be Song Cao Lords, but there is no evidence to prove it.
This person is really a dragon who sees the beginning but never the end, hiding very deeply.
After having dinner in the army, Qin Mubai was ready to leave the military mansion alone. He and Du Chengyuan had just made it clear that he would "leave the military mansion" for a long time. The implication is that you should take advantage of this period to complete the transaction quickly. You can do whatever you like. I am out of sight and out of mind. I will neither embarrass you nor join in your misdeeds.
In this way, in Du Chengyuan's view, Qin Mubai's attitude changed not too quickly, and he did so with a bit of helplessness, still maintaining his last "nobility". Considering Qin Mubai's identity and personality characteristics, this is obviously more "credible".
Just as Qin Mubai was riding away, there was a noise at the entrance of the camp, and a group of sergeants hurriedly ran that way. Qin Mubai walked over to take a look curiously, and several sergeants hurriedly came forward to report: "General Qin, Colonel Zhao, who has been missing for several days, is back!"
"What?" Qin Mubai was startled and strode forward.
I saw Zhao Chong lying on a door panel of a house, his eyes closed tightly as if he had passed out. There were rope marks on the left and right wrists, and the whole person looked haggard and weak, as if he was out of breath.
"Where was it found?" Qin Mubai asked.
A sergeant pointed forward: "Those fellow fishermen found it in a ditch by the river when they collected their nets and returned home."
Qin Mubai bent down, took a breath and pressed the main artery in his neck, and said: "It's just a coma, but fortunately he is alive. Please call a military doctor for treatment immediately."
"yes!"
Several sergeants hurriedly carried Zhao Chong away. Qin Mubai came to the fishermen and interrogated them personally. The fishermen were naturally a little scared when they saw the official, so they told the whole story clearly. Qin Mubai carefully observed their expressions, and it didn't look like they were lying.
It turns out that Zhao Chong is also a local. He knows many people in Xiangyang City, and everyone who fishes nearby also knows him. The fishermen accidentally found Zhao Chong unconscious in the ditch and carried him to the military mansion nearby. It was that simple.
Qin Mubai murmured in his heart: It's strange, why did Zhao Chong suddenly come back again? Did he escape on his own? Or... do the water ghosts intend to let him back
After thinking for a long time, although Qin Mubai did not come to a clear conclusion, his ideas gradually became clearer. He called Du Chengyuan and said to him: "Zhao Chong was sent back just now. Unfortunately, he was in a coma. No reason can be found in the interrogation now. I am in a hurry to leave, so I will leave the rest to you first. If Zhao Chong Once Chong recovers, he will return and continue to lead the navy."
"I humbly obey my orders." Du Chengyuan responded calmly.
Qin Mubai nodded: "I am going to make an appointment with King Wu and go to Dengzhou together. It will take at least ten to twenty days and I will definitely be back. I will leave the matters in the military mansion to you first. Reasonable. Okay, I’m leaving, you go back!”
"Congratulations to General Qin!"
Qin Mubai left the military camp on horseback alone. Not far away, he bumped into an acquaintance.
"Yuwen Hongtai, why is it you again? Are you coming to break into my military camp again?" Qin Mubai said with a deliberately cold face.
"Brother Qin, why do you look like a different person?" Yuwen Hongtai jumped off the horse to stop Qin Mubai, pulled his bridle and said with a grimace, "You were not like this before! Why did you fall out with His Highness? Where’s your face?”
"I can't explain these things to you." Qin Mubai said, "You are now an official in Prince Wu's Mansion. You and I are our own masters. It's better not to talk about these things. Tell me, what's the matter with you?"
"I have nothing to do. I'm just worried and want to come and talk to you." Yuwen Hongtai said, "You said that you two have been mysterious and secretive in recent days, and suddenly fell out with each other, one after another. There is nothing I can understand. After you had an argument with His Highness yesterday, His Highness got angry for a while in the house, scolding everyone and smashing things. Early this morning, he took it with him. Xue Rengui and a group of soldiers left the house without saying a word to anyone in the yamen or the house. I was left alone to look after the house. I felt depressed, panicked and frustrated that you smart people were doing the job. Why do you like to put honest people like us in the middle?"
Qin Mubai laughed loudly: "It's okay, idiot. His Highness may have gone to Dengzhou."
"What are you doing in Dengzhou?"
"Qi Wangyou, the newly appointed governor of Dengzhou, went to congratulate you." Qin Mubai sighed, "No, I'm going to go too!"
"Then, then you guys will bump into each other again, and you won't have to make a big fuss?" Yuwen Hongtai said worriedly, "I really don't understand, how can you just fall out with each other? Hey...!"
Qin Mubai patted Yuwen Hongtai on the shoulder: "It's okay, get on your horse and come with me to Xiangyang!"
"Hey!" Yuwen Hongtai got on his horse and rode alongside Qin Mubai.
Seeing his worried expression, Qin Mubai felt moved and a little guilty. Yuwen Hongtai is a straightforward person, and he is also an enthusiastic and upright person. It is most inappropriate to deceive such people. However, the fewer people who know about this plan, the safer it is. In this way, I had no choice but to feel wronged to Yuwen Hongtai for a while. Furthermore, the less he knows the truth, the more realistic he behaves. The better it can help to cover up those eyeliners.
As the saying goes, a friend in need is a friend indeed. The more critical the moment, the more you can see the true nature of a person. Yuwen Hongtai's performance in front of him made Qin Mubai understand one thing: from the beginning, Yuwen Hongtai's friend was not in vain!
When they arrived at Xiangyang City, Qin Mubai and Yuwen Hongtai parted ways.
Before parting, Qin Mubai said: "Hong Tai, if one day His Highness and I turn against each other, who will you help?"
Yuwen Hongtai had a bitter look on his face, scratching his head and head anxiously, and after tinkering for a long time, he finally managed to say: "Why do you have to ask me such an embarrassing question? I haven't thought about it, and I can't understand it either."
"Let's put it this way, if His Highness orders you to chop me with a knife, what will you do?" Qin Mubai asked with a smile on his face, seriously and jokingly.
"I cut off my bird's head, so I won't be in trouble! It's okay after all!" Yuwen Hongtai almost yelled after saying this, glared at Qin Mubai angrily, and walked away. .
"Haha!" Qin Mubai shook his head and smiled, then clapped his horse and headed towards Wulifang in the south of the city, towards the small building.
Chen Yan knew that Qin Mubai was coming at this time, so she prepared some dishes for him to eat together. After the two sat down at the table, Chen Yan asked, "Have you sorted out everything in the military mansion?"
"Yes. I'm just going through the motions and handing everything over to Du Chengyuan. I'll leave Xiangzhou for a while and let them do whatever they want." Qin Mubai randomly picked up some vegetables to eat, frowned slightly and said, "But something strange happened that I didn't expect."
"What's the matter?"
"The missing Zhao Chong is back." Qin Mubai said, "The man was unconscious. He was found by the fishermen by the river and sent to the military mansion."
"Is there such a thing?" Chen Yan was also a little surprised, frowning slightly and holding the chopsticks in her mouth, thinking, "Then have you asked, did he escape on his own, or did the water ghost intentionally let him go?"
"No, we said he was in a coma at that time." Qin Mubai said, "Assuming he escaped, then the matter would be simple. Du Chengyuan would definitely know the news in advance, so he would never be allowed to serve in the army again. The government appears."
"It makes sense!" Chen Yan's eyes lit up, "If Zhao Chong escaped, it would definitely be big news to the water ghosts. There is no reason not to inform Du Chengyuan to prepare in advance to avoid letting you see Zhao Chong. I know Something I don’t want you to know. But now that Zhao Chong has returned to the military camp safely, it proves that Zhao Chong did not escape, but... the water ghost deliberately let him back! "
"Smart." Qin Mubai raised his eyebrows and said with a flash of light in his eyes, "But why did the water ghosts let Zhao Chong back?"
Their eyes lit up at the same time: "Could it be...?!"
…
That night, Qin Mubai came to Hua Niangzi's house and made an appointment with the water ghost contact person.
It was still a man in black. Qin Mubai judged that the person who came this time was different from the two people he had seen before. It can be seen that the other party is really careful and cautious, just afraid that Qin Mubai will see any clues.
Qin Mubai told the man in black about his arrangements and said that he was going to Dengzhou for a while. During this period, Xiangzhou has nothing to do with him, you can do whatever you like.
"General Qin, you are not sincere enough, hehe!" the man in black said with a strange smile.
"What do you mean?" Qin Mubai said a little annoyed, "I'm like this, what else do you want?"
"As far as I know, you and Li Ke have not reached a tacit understanding." The man in black said calmly, "Although you are willing to cooperate with us, Li Ke has not nodded. It is not that we look down on General Qin. He is capable, but Li Ke is the governor and the prince after all. Do you dare not listen to him? If he interferes, it will be fatal. "
"You are worrying too much." Qin Mubai said coldly, "I understand Li Ke's character. He will never verbally allow me to compromise with you or cooperate with you."
"Why?"
"You know what you are asking!" Qin Mubai shouted angrily, "Because he is a prince. In his eyes, Xiangzhou is just a small place. He cannot risk his status as a prince and his future in a life-or-death struggle with you. He said, he I would rather lose my princess and daughter than join in with you. That's a good thing, but in his heart, he is more anxious than anyone else. If he doesn't break up with me, then he is an accomplice to such a simple truth. don't know?"
"That's it, that's it!" The man in black chuckled, "Li Ke, he is indeed a man of profound intellect, and he cannot be judged by his appearance! It seems that he deliberately fell out with you, and then left. The remaining You are allowed to do whatever you want, and he is out of sight and out of mind? As for you, you have an excuse to leave Xiangzhou and leave the rest to us, so you don’t have to be accused of being a bandit, is that right, General Qin? "
Qin Mubai glared at the man in black with an angry look on his face: "You talk a lot of nonsense! Are you very proud now?"
"No, no, no, I definitely don't mean this. There are just some things, it's better to ask clearly." The man in black waved his hands hurriedly, "Please rest assured, General Qin, after you leave Xiangzhou, we will start working in full swing. Wait. When you come back, everything will be settled. At that time, it will be as if nothing happened. Then, according to the agreement, we will return the hostages and never commit crimes in Xiangzhou, and they will disappear after a year. "
"It's best this way." Qin Mubai snorted coldly.
"To express our sincerity, we have released one person today. General Qin must have known about it." The man in black smiled and cupped his hands and said, "Slowly, we will release people one by one. The safety of the hostages, General Qin doesn’t need to worry.”
"Hmm..." Qin Mubai snorted and said, "But I think you may not treat the hostages well. Zhao Chong was unconscious when he came back."
"Don't worry, he was just numbed by some drugs and had to be comatose for a while. Didn't you see that his hands and feet are all intact and there are no serious injuries on his body?" The man in black laughed strangely, "We are also forced to have no choice. Is it possible? Why don't we just open the door and let him go? If he comes back with a group of soldiers, wouldn't it be a disaster for us?"
"That's enough, I don't want to talk nonsense to you anymore." Qin Mubai said with an angry face, like a doormat, "I'm leaving Xiangzhou now. I'll come back in half a month. By then, I don't want to see it anymore. to you!”
"It's good to go, General Qin!" The man in black stood up, waved his hand and said to the flower lady behind him, "Flower lady, why don't you see the guests off?"
"Okay!" The flower girl was still very charming. She twisted her waist and came forward, put a hand on Qin Mubai's shoulder, and said in her sticky voice, "General Qin, how can you go out for fun without a beautiful woman by your side?" Let me travel with you!"
Qin Mubai glared angrily: "Does this count as sending someone to monitor me?"
"Where, where." The man in black seemed to be a man without a trace of anger, and said with a smile, "We are just showing our kindness to let the flower lady accompany us. The journey is lonely and long, and the night is long. Doesn't General Qin need to go there alone? Will you accompany me?"
"Humph!" Qin Mubai snorted coldly, shook his front robe and walked downstairs. The flower girl gave a sweet smile and followed quickly.
The man in black sat down slowly, and a sigh came from the mask hole, as if he had taken a long breath.
"In this case, we are safe! It's not easy, I finally ate him!"