Chapter 209: A sudden victory without bloodshed

Chapter 209: A sudden victory without bloodshed

Chapter 209 It suddenly became clear that the enemy would win without losing any blood.

Seeing the men dressed as servants behind Pei Xingjian saying yes and going to carry the rice, Su Nanjin hurriedly raised her breath and shouted "Wait a minute". Before she could speak, a strong force suddenly came from her arm, but it was Pei Xingjian who held him back. He asked him, "Ziyu, think about it, all the quarrels before were all about this rice dendrobium. Now with the testimony of the eminent monk, we are about to let these merchants see that the dendrobium used in the military warehouse of the Tang Dynasty is absolutely nothing." There will be mistakes, so that they can be convinced. They need to know that the army is coming, and they cannot let the military warehouse carry the reputation of Dahukeng for merchants..."

Pei Xingjian usually spoke in a leisurely manner, but at this time, he stopped talking with a series of words. When Su Nanjin came back to her senses and wanted to argue, the servants were extremely quick, and the sergeants were still eagerly waiting for Su Nanjin to say something. They poured aside the corn that was already in the dendrobium, opened a bag of grain and poured it into the empty dendrobium. I saw only the edge, no more, no less, with more than an inch of wooden board still exposed.

Pei Xingjian suddenly had a look of astonishment on his face. He looked at Guan Hu and then at Su Nanjin, and his voice dropped three points lower, "Ziyu, this is..."

There was sudden silence in front of the granary, and everyone's eyes turned to the Guan Dendrobium, which was obviously still 20% empty, and Su Nanjin, who was standing next to the Guan Dendrobium. Even Master Juexuan came over, looked at Guan Hu, sighed and recited the Buddha's name.

Su Nanjin's face felt as hot as a slap, and her eyebrows were about to explode. Pei Xingjian suddenly let go of his arm, turned around and shouted in a deep voice to the sergeants who were also stunned beside the dendrobium, "You are so brave, how dare you use this big dendrobium to deceive you into joining the army!"

There was obvious anger in Pei Xingjian's voice, and every word was cold and clear, "Pei has been working as a commander in the army for ten years. What kind of weird tricks have you not seen before? You guys clearly brought special dendrobium here today." , just to make things difficult for businessmen in order to profit from it! If the mages hadn't arrived in time, and if Su Shenjun hadn't put the people's hearts first, you would have succeeded at this moment! "

"The war is about to begin. Preparing food and fodder is such a big deal. You have a heavy responsibility, but you don't take the food as a priority. For your own selfish desires, you ruin the reputation of the army. To put it mildly, it is greedy, and to put it seriously, you have ulterior motives!"

The dozen or so sergeants were originally in high spirits and were waiting for orders. However, due to the unexpected meal of the monks, their momentum had been reduced by more than half. Now they looked at Pei Xingjian's sharp eyes with real substance and felt even more guilty. , couldn't help but turn their heads to look at Su Nanjin.

Su Nanjin’s expression was not much better at this time. Pei Xingjian's heart-wrenching words fell on his ears, and his rising anger was immediately extinguished in half, but he became increasingly clear in his heart that Pei Xingjian must not be allowed to be convicted. He turned his eyes and fell on the monks. On top of the half-old dendrobium, he said in a cold voice, "Pei Changshi, please be careful what you say, this may not be the case!"

Master Juexuan looked up at Su Nanjin in astonishment, "What do you mean, Mr. Su? Could it be that our Great Buddhist Temple donated these tens of thousands of merits in order to deliberately use dendrobium to collect grain, so that there would be a shortage of military rations and harm the Heavenly Army of the Tang Dynasty?" If this is the case, please ask Mr. Su to take these dendrobiums and transport Lao Na and others to Chang'an. Lao Na must be cleared of his crimes!"

Su Nanjin's face became darker. Today's matter was revealed in this way, and it must be bad. But if these monks are taken, I'm afraid...

Pei Xingjian turned to look at Juexuan and softened his voice, "Master, please be at ease. Master is so respected in Xizhou. Now the Holy Master respects Buddhism. Who dares to risk the disdain of the world and rely on the small power in his hands to slander If an eminent Buddhist monk like Master was so virtuous and dedicated to serving the Tang Dynasty, who would be willing to contribute money and supplies for the army in the future? As a result, Xizhou would be shaken, the border areas would be uneasy, and people would lose their hearts before the army arrived. , Not to mention that it is not allowed by military law, it is even more punishable by national law! Master, please don't say anything about sending me to Chang'an. If you dare to do this, your Majesty will not be able to get around me. Master, please don't worry, it's just a few words. This little sergeant is taking bribes and bending the law, why is this so?"

Su Nanjin clenched her fists tightly, wishing she could pull out the knife and cut down all those who were in the way, or drag them down and give them a hundred pain sticks. However, the Pei Xingjian in front of him was a sixth-rank official in Xizhou, and his mentor Su Dingfang was about to arrive. This matter had become a big deal, and I was afraid that his father would not be able to cover it up, not to mention that this old monk was an old acquaintance of Master Xuanzang. If he What happened was related to the reputation of Buddhism, so the mage probably wouldn't stand by and watch... He only felt his heart getting heavier and heavier, and his chest felt like a huge stone was blocked.

Pei Xingjian had turned around again and walked to Su Nanjin's side. He said earnestly, "Ziyu, I have seen many of these scum in the army in Chang'an. I ask Ziyu to punish them severely and enforce military discipline!" He looked at Su Nanjin sincerely and said, "If we don't punish them severely today, the ignorant people will inevitably suspect that they were ordered by you. If something comes out... Ziyu, don't you harm General Su's reputation because of small things? Ziyuruo really can't erase it. To save face, how about I be the villain?"

Su Nanjin's eyes almost burst out with fire, but she didn't dare to look at Pei Xingjian. She could only look at Guan Hu and the other sergeants who looked increasingly uneasy. She gritted her teeth and said sternly, "Come here. Drag these people who use Dendrobium for private use and give them fifty sticks! Whoever dares to do this illegal thing again in the future will be punished even more severely!"

Those sergeants almost couldn't believe their ears - what happened today was clearly under his orders. Even if the agency was leaked, it was not their fault. They could pull it off or shut it down and just show it to outsiders. Why? Do you really want to drag him down and be tortured? Hundreds of them have followed General Su for many years. How have they ever been controlled and humiliated like this by outsiders? Not only did Mr. Su not think of any way to smooth things over, he actually wanted to attack them so that he could clear himself!

The soldiers behind Su Nanjin were also startled. In the army, it is common to enforce military laws, but it is taboo to act like this. It's just that orders and prohibitions were engraved in their bones. After a slight hesitation, they turned around and walked up to the sergeants responsible for weighing. Two of them pushed them away. Someone looked at Su Nanjin's face as they walked away, hoping to receive a look that suggested execution. They saw Pei Changshi smiling and saying something to him, but Su Nanjin didn't even look over.

What Pei Xingjian said at this time were all good things, "Ziyu really understands the righteousness. In this way, the reputation of our Heavenly Army of the Tang Dynasty will not be damaged, Ziyu will also be able to establish authority in the army, and the harvesting of grain will be smooth and worry-free. When the military grain is delivered to the warehouse , the battle was won, and Ziyu's achievements will be reported to the court as promised."

Su Nanjin clenched her fist even more, showing off her authority? Being forced by an outsider to hit his confidant like this, if his father knew about it... the burning feeling on his face suddenly came up again. Just hearing the last sentence, his heart sank again. Was Pei Xingjian threatening him? He calmed down and put a smile on his face, "It was my laxness in keeping the promise that made keeping the promise a joke. Don't mention the above matter again. I just want to finish the job safely. "

Pei Xingjian nodded and smiled, "Ziyu must not be too modest. As long as this errand goes smoothly, everyone will be successful. If something goes wrong, who can escape?"

Su Nanjin was stunned for a moment and was speechless.

Pei Xingjian turned to face the school field and said in a loud voice, "Everyone has seen what happened today. It is said that before the army arrives, food and grass go first. This food grassland is the most important thing in the army. Once the food and grass are not available, the front army will How to defeat the enemy? Aren't all the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty who will be killed and injured? If you forget the righteousness of your family and country for the sake of small gain, how can you be different from the beasts if you abandon your father and the court? Today is my warning, don’t make a mistake and bring disaster to the family and regret for life!”

His voice was not too high, but each word fell clearly on the ears of the hundreds of sergeants surrounding the school grounds. Together with the crackling of military sticks and the muffled hum, it fell like a heavy hammer. In everyone's mind. Everyone's eyes couldn't help but fall on the tall figure standing with his hands behind his hands. For a moment, no one saw that Su Nanjin's face had turned from red to blue, and his teeth were clenched so hard that there was almost no blood.

　　…………

 “Those sergeants collecting grain were really beaten?” In the main hall of the Duhu Mansion, Qu Chongyu raised his eyebrows in surprise.

The officer who reported the report was originally very articulate and nodded hurriedly, "The young one also paid attention and slipped over there. He could see clearly that as soon as the ten or so people left the school grounds, they were pushed to the ground and opened their back robes. They were beaten, and their clothes were thin in the summer, and they were covered in blood during the beating. By the time the beating was over, no one could move. They were all dragged down, but those men were very tough, and they were beaten like that. No one seemed to be shouting. At most, there were a few muffled hums, which sounded more intrusive than shouting. The little one was sweating all over as he watched! "

Qu Chongyu shook his head and sighed, "This Su Nanjin is really stupid! How dare you provoke Pei Shouyue, who cares about your head and body?" He had been waiting in the main hall of the Protector's Mansion early this morning, waiting to watch the show. , but when the play was told vividly, he didn't feel much joy in his heart. After waving for the officer to go down, he turned to look at his father, "Father is really good at predicting things."

　　Qu Zhizhan, who always had a smile on his face, didn't have much smile on his face at this time. He just shook his head slightly and said, "Pei Shouyue's methods are higher than I expected. What's even more frightening is that his sense of proportion is just right!"

Qu Chongyu couldn't help but smile sarcastically, "My son feels that he was very careful today. If Su Nanjin had taken Master Juexuan out of anger, made things worse and then stopped, and could endure it for a few days, then The one who was beaten in the dust was not a few soldiers, but Su Nanjin! Even Su Haizheng couldn't escape the blame!"

Qu Zhizhan glanced at him indifferently, "Then what? Let the military rations turn into a mess? Make Su Haizheng hate him to the bone? Let Master Juexuan secretly resent him? Let everyone in Xizhou know that the soldiers of the Tang Army are such bastards?" He said After a pause, he let out a long sigh, "Yulang, you are too impulsive in doing things! You must know that killing a thousand enemies and injuring eight hundred yourself is a taboo for military strategists. You must not make such a move unless it is absolutely necessary. After this incident, you You should also know that Pei Shouyue had left a lot of room before, but even though Mr. Su was not thrown into the dust today, his future in the army was completely ruined. "

Qu Chongyu couldn't help but be silent. It was not like he had never been in the army, so he naturally knew that his father's words were true. The army had its own way of looking at people. As a general, one could be greedy, cruel, unreasonable, but not He has no ability to protect his own people, let alone being so openly humiliated and unable to do anything about it. After such a turn of events, those soldiers, even if they are Su Haizheng's most trusted soldiers, will no longer have the slightest respect for Mr. Su in the future. Heart, if the soldiers are like this, let alone others? With such a greedy person who also insulted one of his own people, it was almost a fantasy for Su Nanjin to want to stand out in the army.

I just want him to admit that Pei Xingjian was merciful to him before... After thinking for a long time, Qu Chongyu still said, "Even so, it's the lesser of two evils. If we can't take the opportunity to bring down Su Haizheng, this time the West Route Army heard that With him as the leader, he can use a few tricks on the battlefield to make their master and disciple stand up!"

Qu Zhizhan shook his head, "If I were Su Haizheng, even if I had this idea before, I would definitely not dare to act like this once this incident came out. Otherwise, no matter how great my achievements are, if someone takes part in them, I will die without a burial place. It's not a life-and-death feud, is it worth taking such a risk? No matter how much hatred you have in your heart, the most you can do is to find a way to keep Su Dingfang away and not teach him to make any achievements."

Qu Chongyu was speechless. He thought of what Pei Xingjian had done before. Could it be that he had really left some room for it on purpose? For a moment, he thought of the bet he owed Pei Shou. For a man as deep-minded as him, I don’t know what he might be planning during this drink...

Seeing that he was just lost in thought, Qu Zhizhan had no choice but to say, "You go down and rest first. We won't be able to collect all the army rations in three or two days. You can take care of the labor arrangements for the army to cross the border. It's better for us to come forward in this matter." Qu Chongyu came to his senses and said "yes", cheered up and retreated. He called several officials from Xizhou to his room and made arrangements respectively. However, he saw that those few people had excited expressions on their faces. Knowing that what happened in the school field in the south may have been spread in the Protector's Mansion, he solemnly said, "You will pretend that you have never heard about what happened in the school field today. After seeing that Mr. Su, you still have to be respectful. You must know that although he caused a joke, his father is in charge of the West Army. If he is resented by someone as big-hearted as Mr. Su, it is definitely not a joke! General Su may not be in a good mood regarding this matter, so you should be even more cautious when waiting for Lao Jun to receive him. "

Several Xizhou officials stopped smiling, and someone couldn't help but muttered, "Then Chang Shi is not in danger?"

Hearing the concern that could not be concealed in this tone, Qu Chongyu felt a little depressed. In the end, he just pretended not to hear, and after a few more instructions, he sent the person away.

Another officer from the school field came to report. Su Nanjin had already withdrawn all the three hundred elite soldiers, and he also left. Only a few people were left there to register the number and hand over the keys. As soon as they withdrew, the school ground was filled with cheers. , many people from Xizhou also ran to watch the excitement, and it was a little faster to collect grain and put it into the warehouse...

Qu Chongyu listened indifferently, feeling that his mood was three points more complicated than before. It had been a long time since the officer had retired, and he was still standing in a daze.

Suddenly, someone outside the door reported, "Your Majesty, Manager Hao from the workshop wants to see you."

 Hao Guanshi? Qu Chongyu raised his head unexpectedly. Guanshi Hao was in charge of the Baidu Weaving Workshop. He had not been to the weaving workshop for some days. As the saying goes, practice makes perfect. This coarse white cloth was already better than it was a month or two ago. It was made much faster, and the texture was better, but the fine thread used to weave the fine white folds was still only one-tenth of the original, which was labor-intensive and time-consuming. That was the Cudi who had figured out other things. All these methods are useless for this case. He looked upset and was too lazy to go if he had nothing to do.

Today, Manager Hao has found the Protectorate. Could it be that he has a new method? Qu Chongyu hurriedly said, "Let him in quickly!"

　　…………

The two thin white piles that had just been off the loom were lying quietly on the table. Liuli glanced at them for a few times, but didn't see anything out of the ordinary. When he touched them with his hand, he immediately felt a strange feeling. Soft and smooth. She quickly unfolded a corner and looked at the light carefully. Her eyes couldn't help but get brighter and brighter. "This thread was spun very well, even and thin, and it didn't break during weaving!" She turned to look at Master Li, " You actually tried it, how did you do it?”

Master Li rubbed his hands, with an expression on his face that was both happy and uneasy, "I don't dare to hide it from you, madam. We don't know how to do it."

Liuli couldn't help but be startled, what is this?

Master Li smiled bitterly and said, "If I had known about it, I would have announced the good news a long time ago. How dare I bother my wife to upset her? After summer, sometimes spinning becomes more difficult, and sometimes it is easier than before. Yesterday afternoon, it was even more difficult. It was extremely easy to spin, and it could be spun into almost any fine thread. Everyone was very happy, and it was still like this until early this morning. The weaving was not as easy to break as usual, so they spun two pieces like this. It's just..." He spread his hands, "It wasn't more than an hour after sunrise, but it suddenly became the same as before. I didn't know why after thinking about it for a long time, so I had to bother my wife to come here."

 Is there such a thing? Liuli was a little confused for a moment. After thinking about it, she could only ask, "Are the white stacks you used in the past? Are there any changes to the weft car?"

Master Li just shook his head, "I've thought of this, and checked it again. Is there any difference from usual?"

Liuli frowned and looked at the piece of white cloth that she had knitted this morning. It was indeed a problem with the thread, but what could be the reason for the sudden change in quality?

She was about to ask a few more questions when she heard Master Li call "Prince". She turned around and saw that the person who was walking over quickly was not Qu Chongyu? It seems that the stewards felt that something was fishy and rewarded him.

Qu Chongyu had known that the steward had invited Liuli, so he was not surprised to see her here. But when he saw her calm face, for some reason he seemed to feel a little more uncomfortable than before, and Too lazy to say more to her, he just nodded lightly and said, "There is Mrs. Laokudi."

Liuli had long been immune to his cold face, and she returned the gift with both salt and mildness. Standing aside, Master Li said what he had just said again, and Qu Chongyu took the newly woven white fold and stroked it gently with his fingers. , nodded, and after asking for a long time, still couldn't get the point, and couldn't help but frown and be stunned.

Seeing that he had stopped asking questions, Liuli said to Master Li, "Have you ever thought about what could be the reason? It doesn't matter even if you are just thinking wildly. One person can calculate the shortcomings, and two people can calculate the advantages. If you can't think of it again, the manager might as well put this into consideration. Ask everyone in the yard and write down any ideas you have. We can look at them one by one. Maybe we can get some inspiration."

Qu Chongyu's eyes turned outward in boredom, and he sneered in his heart: If these craftsmen could figure out the reason, how could the stewards come to invite him? It's all wasted effort! But shouldn't this woman be waiting for news at home now? Why are you in the mood to kill time here? Is she not worried about Pei Shouyue at all?

As expected, Master Li hesitated for a moment and said, "Young men have already discussed this, and there are various theories. In the early days, one day was slightly better by chance, and some people said it was because they worshiped the Bodhisattva that day, but did not worship the Bodhisattva the next day. Some people said that they were just worried about the hot weather, but if you look closely, the bigger the sun gets, the harder it seems to be to knit. If it rains, it will be easier to knit. The rain yesterday only lasted for more than a quarter of an hour. In the blink of an eye, The ground is dry, but the yarn is still woven tightly. There is no rain at all today, and the first half of the day is fine..."

Liuli's heart suddenly moved, and her eyes suddenly became clear: Yes, that's it!

Master Li was still talking about some unbelievable reasons, but Liuli couldn't help but want to slap her forehead hard. Damn it, she had learned weaving and dyeing for several years, but she actually forgot this simplest principle!

Seeing that both Liuli and Qu Chongyu were distracted, Master Li laughed sheepishly, "You guys are just thinking wildly, making the prince and lady laugh."

Liuli also smiled and was about to speak when she heard Qu Chongyu say calmly, "Mrs. Kudi is having a leisurely time today. I guess she is very worried about Chang Shi."

Liuli glanced at him in confusion, why should she be worried about Pei Xingjian? She thought twice before remembering that Pei Xingjian got money and silk from the Great Buddha Temple yesterday and said that he would use it to collect grain today and leave early in the morning. Yes, but the Buddhist temple collects grain, what is there to worry about? After thinking about it for a while, he asked, "Is it possible that the Great Buddha Temple is collecting grains, and there are other difficulties?"

Qu Chongyu was stunned for a moment. Looking at Liuli's expression, he suddenly realized that she had no idea that Su Nanjin was going to make it difficult for Pei to keep his promise today. He probably thought that it was just a Buddhist temple collecting grain. He really asked too much... He didn't He frowned patiently, "With Pei Changshi here, there will be no difficulties!" He pointed at Bai Die again and said in a stiff tone, "Madam has been asking for a long time, do you think you have an idea?"

 What kind of gunpowder did he take again? Liuli glanced at him and suddenly had an idea in her mind. She nodded and smiled slightly, "I can't even talk about the idea. There is only one thing I want to ask the prince for advice. Please give me your advice."

Looking at her smile, Qu Chongyu suddenly felt a chill in his heart and cheered up, "Excuse me, madam. If Chongyu knows anything about it, he will definitely tell you everything."

Liuli smiled and said, "It's not a big deal. The weaving method of this thick white fold is very easy now. I think the prince will let everyone in Xizhou know about it. But if this thin white fold becomes easy to weave, I don't know the prince." What are your plans?"

Qu Chongyu was alert, and after thinking for a moment, he said, "Ordinary people are of little use in weaving such fine white folds. If we can really get good at weaving, Chongyu plans to open a larger workshop to specialize in weaving fine white folds."

This guy really had this idea in mind! Liuli nodded and smiled more gracefully, "If that's the case, I have a method that can make Xibaigui spin and weave as well as yesterday. The effect is several times stronger than it is now. I wonder if the prince is interested in hearing it?"

After peeling the pumpkins, the persimmons were dried. Mr. and Mrs. Pei Jiu turned out to be gardening enthusiasts. p.s. I got 240 votes in a blink of an eye...will update more tomorrow. thank you all.

　　

　　

 (End of this chapter)