It seemed as if Zhai Muzhi had calculated the time well. He arrived on time just as the camp was set up.
The soldiers started to make a fire and cook. Zhai Muzhi, wearing a scholar's robe, sat in the general's tent and drank. There was a bonfire in the tent, and the guards were grilling meat. Two maids stood by and poured wine for Zhai Muzhi. The generals around him laughed and enjoyed themselves.
His chief secretary, Xie Ruhai, was accompanying him, and there was also an unknown scholar who occupied a high position as host and guest.
Zhao Changhe stepped into the commander's tent, looked around with an expressionless face.
We are at war, are you guys treating it like a bonfire party
"I was wondering if it was the Jade Token Secret Envoy of the Demon Suppression Division, it turns out to be Zhao Changhe." Zhai Muzhi laughed, "Sit down, sit down, you haven't eaten yet, right? Let's eat together?"
Zhao Changhe sat in the lower guest seat without any expression: "Grandmaster Zhai knows Zhao?"
"Well, the Blood Shura Zhao Changhe is famous all over the world, who doesn't know him? It's no secret that Young Master Zhao has a close relationship with Master Tang, so it's normal that the secret envoy is Young Master Zhao!" Zhai Muzhi enthusiastically pulled the scholar on the guest seat and said, "Introduce Young Master Zhao, this is the imperial envoy Lu Shouyi, who was born in Fanyang!"
Lu Shouyi knew that this guy's identity was a bit sensitive, so he stood up with a smile on his face and bowed: "Mr. Zhao's name is well-known, it's a pleasure to meet you."
"Nice to meet you." Zhao Changhe perfunctorily bowed to Lu Shouyi, thinking to himself that it would be fine as long as he didn't recognize me as the Wang Daozhong from before...
As a result, Zhai Muzhi actually said: "Young Master Zhao, do you know that Wang Daozhong came to my place a few days ago..."
Zhao Changhe was stunned: "A few days ago?"
Wasn't it more than a month ago? And you mentioned Wang Daozhong for no apparent reason...
But then I heard Zhai Muzhi say: "Wang Daozhong was injured in some way and was being hunted by the Blood God Sect's leader Xue and his followers. He entered Bashu to seek help from me. I heard that in the Battle of Xiangyang, the Blood God Sect had been recruited and stood on the side of the court, right? This must be the bridge built by Young Master Zhao?"
Zhao Changhe was even more surprised. Damn, Old Xue could actually chase after the Earth Ranking one day. He has made it big... By the way, how did Wang Daozhong get injured
"The Blood God Cult has indeed been recruited, but what happened next?"
Zhai Muzhi said: "Since the Blood God Cult has been recruited, and the Wang family has revealed their rebellious intentions, and Wang Daozhong has even just escaped from prison, then this is the court arresting the rebels... How could Zhai help Wang Daozhong? Of course, don't blame me, Young Master Zhao, Zhai will not offend the Wang family directly, but just avoid them. Wang Daozhong had no choice, Xue Canghai was chasing him from behind, so he had to flee south, and he might have to hide in Miaojiang... Didn't you meet him when you went north, Young Master Zhao?"
"There are so many roads, how can we just meet each other?" Zhao Changhe replied casually, feeling quite strange.
I wonder if Zhai Muzhi guessed that he was the one who was in the royal way last time... But it doesn't seem to matter anymore.
Considering Shi Wuding's previous move to capture Wang Daozhong, it was most likely at the behest of Zhai Mu. It can be seen that Zhai Mu's attitude was consistent, and he seemed to really stand on the side of the court to deal with Wang Daozhong... From this point of view, this guy is actually the one who stands most on the side of the court among the princes who have their own thoughts in the past two years. Cui Wenjing and Yang Jingxiu are probably not as "loyal" as him.
Perhaps the bad thing is that those who really think of themselves as officials of Daxia are people like this.
As they were talking, a maid came over to add more wine. Zhao Changhe lowered his eyes and watched the maid add more wine, and said lightly: "Don't blame Zhao for speaking frankly, the governor's behavior... is quite against military regulations."
"When a general is away from home, he is not subject to orders from his master. I am the commander-in-chief, and I am the one who decides the military discipline and regulations." Zhai Muzhi smiled generously, "Lord Lu has no objection."
Lu Shouyi stroked his beard and smiled, "The soldiers have worked hard on the expedition, and it's time to relax."
Zhao Changhe twitched his cheeks. The soldiers outside, who looked pale and skinny and were eating stale rations, would want to spit back at you after hearing what you said. He asked expressionlessly, "Strict military discipline is not for the sake of appearance... Have you ever thought about what would happen if you can't win?"
Zhai Muzhi and Lu Shouyi looked at each other and asked, "Young Master Zhao, you came here with the jade token, do you have any information about the Miao border army to share?"
Zhao Changhe said: "Lei Zhentang has completed the alliance of all ethnic groups. Just around Erhai Lake, the total number of troops of all ethnic groups is 50,000 to 60,000. The entire Miao area is too numerous to count. Moreover, the terrain is complex, poisonous miasma is everywhere, and the witchcraft is strange. This deep into the enemy territory, even the supply can't keep up... Zhao believes that if I were to lead the troops, I would not be able to fight. I don't know where the governor Zhai got the confidence from."
Zhai Muzhi lowered his voice and said, "According to what Young Master Zhao saw, will they fight?"
Zhao Changhe shook his head: "The possibility of getting out is not high. It's difficult for us to get in, and it's also difficult for them to get out. Besides, they will lose their geographical advantage after getting out."
Zhai Muzhi clapped his hands and said, "That's right. According to the news reported by the Miaojiang Demon Suppression Division, they are not even united. They have formed a five-tribe alliance, which is likely to contain the hidden danger of competing for hegemony... In this way, the possibility of a fight is even lower."
Zhao Changhe thought to himself that this should be the situation reported by Li Si'an. No matter how much this guy helps Taoyuan Town, he is the general of the Demon Suppression Department in his job, so there is nothing wrong with that. At least he didn't say that it was Zhao Changhe who made it happen...
Zhai Muzhi leaned forward a little and lowered his voice even more: "Since they can't get out, why do we have to fight in? This is not something that our Shu County's military can accomplish alone. We only need to defend the territory and it will be a great achievement. If we want to quell the Miao rebellion in the future, the imperial generals will come..." Zhao Changhe's heart skipped a beat, and he finally understood this guy's logic.
It was obvious that the Miao people were exploited and forced to rebel by him, but Lan Tiankuo and other envoys had long been dead and there was no evidence to prove it. What was the use of the slogans of the rebels Lei Zhentang and others? It could be regarded as just an excuse for rebellion, which could not shake Zhai Muzhi at all. Even if Li Si'an mentioned it in his report, there would be arguments in the court. After all, the so-called exploitation, Lei Zhentang and other leaders themselves did not exploit less than Zhai Muzhi, so it was difficult to define the factors.
It's not like he has no one in the court. Isn't Fan Yanglu sitting next to him drinking? He's also an imperial envoy. Most likely he has the mission of investigating the whole thing, but this investigation of Jiba is clearly in collusion.
If Xia Longyuan was in charge, he would definitely not be able to fool people, but Xia Longyuan really didn't care. It was almost foreseeable that Zhai Muzhi would not face much criticism in the court, and it would be easy to deal with it. Even if Tang Wanzhuang impeached him, it would be useless. The power of the Demon Suppression Department to monitor was not easy to sue, and the Demon Suppression Department did not have this power on the surface.
In other words, all the troubles that could be clearly attributed to Zhai Muzhi were covered up, and since the other side was unable to respond, he was credited with "the merit of defending the territory" and was promoted to a higher position.
The Miao people were not defeated, so where did the credit come from? Just put a few Miao hairstyles on the heads of the Xia villagers who were killed outside... Isn't this proof that the Miao people were defeated and repelled
Zhai Muzhi really had no intention of rebelling, he was truly a "loyal" bureaucrat of Daxia.
It's just that this kind of bureaucracy... can create countless traitors.
When Zhao Changhe ran over to see Zhai Muzhi, the mystery he wanted to solve was solved in just a few words. There was really no conspiracy, nor was it any collaboration with Lei Zhentang... Zhai Muzhi was even quite open-minded, as if he felt that this was something that everyone understood and took for granted.
I have helped you deal with Wang Daozhong. I am a loyal minister and I hold my position firmly.
But Zhao Changhe's rage became even worse, and veins appeared on his hand that was holding the wine glass.
I have done all the scheming in Miao territory, facilitated the union of the five tribes, and accommodated countless Xia people. Was it just for you to do something like this
What if I wasn't there? Do you care if the Miao people in Xiajiang are slaughtered
Zhai Muzhi observed his expression and saw that he looked unhappy, so he whispered, "This achievement should naturally be attributed to Young Master Zhao... In addition, I heard that Young Master Zhao has been troubled by meridian problems. We have some supplements here that may be helpful..."
We can't fall out at this moment, there is still one last problem to be solved.
Zhao Changhe suppressed his anger and spoke slowly: "Thank you very much for taking me with you, Governor. But I still have something to ask you."
Zhai Muzhi seemed to be relieved and said with a smile: "Young Master Zhao, please speak."
"How much does Governor Zhai know about the Bashan Sword House?"
Zhai Muzhi shook his head: "Jianlu has always been a famous family in Bashu, and has had many exchanges with other families. I don't know why they had to move to Miaojiang. Speaking of this, I am a little curious, how did the leader Shi offend the young hero and was killed by the young hero and Miss Yue? Logically, Jianlu should be a righteous family..."
Zhao Changhe observed his eyes and said slowly: "In fact, we didn't kill Shi Wuding, or we just killed the seriously injured Shi Wuding. Otherwise, how could Hong Ling and I kill the sixth on the Earth Ranking?"
Zhai Muzhi smiled and said, "That's already pretty impressive... I wonder who seriously injured Sect Master Shi first?"
Zhao Changhe said word by word, "No. 6 on the Heavenly Ranking, Xue Xiao, the master of Tingxue Tower. Does the governor know anything about him?"
Zhai Muzhi was stunned for a moment, as if a little unbelievable, then waved his hand and smiled: "Who in the world doesn't know the owner of Tingxue Tower, who is sixth on the Heavenly Ranking? But Zhai has no chance to meet such a person..."
Zhao Changhe suddenly realized that Zhai Muzhi must have seen Xue Xiao, and even knew that Xue Xiao could not kill Shi Wuding!
He was about to say something when he suddenly felt an illusion like an earthquake coming from a distance.
Zhai Muzhi also obviously noticed it and stood up suddenly, showing his cultivation level comparable to Zhao Changhe, even slightly stronger.
It turned out to be the second level secret treasure.
Someone immediately reported to the camp: "Governor, it's bad! Thousands of soldiers are rushing towards our camp!"
"Thousands? We have more than 40,000 people. Are they looking for death?" Zhai Muzhi was surprised and asked, "Could it be that the Miao people are attacking? Why are they coming from the east?"
"They are not Miao people!" Another soldier rushed in and said, "I saw their flag with the word 'Li' written on it in large letters."
Zhai Muzhi's expression changed drastically: "Li Shentong!"
(End of this chapter)