Qin Official

"Have the wild geese in Hengshan County started flying south by now?"

It was still hot in Lingnan in mid-July. Standing on the Yulin Tulou, Zhao Tuo was looking up.

Zhao Tuo's hometown is in Zhending County, Hengshan County, which was originally the territory of the Zhao Kingdom. Judging from the fact that his family is also named Zhao, he was probably still a member of the Zhao Kingdom a few generations ago, but he has been estranged for a long time. The clan is not big or small, and at least there are ancestral graves. .

When he was young, Zhao State still ruled Hengshan County, but when he was fourteen years old, Zhao died.

His family was quite aware of current affairs. In the year when Qin Shihuang sent Wang Jian to conquer Yan, he gave Zhao Tuo grain early, got a title, and asked him to join the army. Later, he participated in the battle to destroy Chu. By mistake, he followed Tuo Tuo. Sui, a man of building and boating, came to the south...

Needless to say what happened next, Zhao Tuo is already over thirty this year. In the blink of an eye, he has been in the south for more than ten years, right?

He really wanted to return home in fine clothes, but he was forced to stay on the front line for a long time due to the king's orders.

But he also thought to himself: "However, I heard that the Central Plains is also unstable. There are more and more thieves and the government situation is unclear. Staying in the south for the time being and holding military power is not a bad thing..."

Even so, Zhao Tuo still misses his hometown from time to time. Both his parents have passed away. The graves of his elders and Kundi are all in Zhending. I wonder if the clan members clean them on time?

He once heard someone say that the geese in Jizhou start flying south in July and August. When they fly to Hengshan County, it is already the spring of the second year. They can only stay for a few days and have to turn around and fly to the north again...

"Even the geese from my hometown won't visit this place."

Zhao Tuo looked for a long time, but didn't see a single goose. He sighed and turned around and went down the earth building.

When he came down, he found that Lu Jia was already waiting for him. When he saw Zhao Tuo, he came over quickly.

"General Zhao Bi, the banquet has been prepared. Your Majesty has asked his subordinates to invite you to the banquet."

"How dare you ask Mr. Lu to greet me." Although Zhao Tuo was not too fond of Confucian scholars, he was still polite to Lu Jia. Who made him the most popular aide around Changnan Hou?

Zhao Tuo is a smart man. He knows very well that his "brother" relationship with Changnan Hou is his greatest political capital. If not for Changnanhou's recommendation, how could Zhao Tuo, who was only in his early thirties, defeat many competitors and become General Bi of the Western Route Army?

Therefore, this relationship must be maintained close.

After entering the first floor of the earth building, Zhao Tuo discovered that besides the soldiers guarding this so-called banquet, it was just him and Hei Fu...

"It's a pity that Wu Rui is not here, otherwise the three of us brothers would have a chance to get together."

Hei Fu was very enthusiastic and asked Zhao Tuo not to be formal, but to come and sit nearby.

Zhao Tuo and Hei Fu sat opposite each other, only three steps apart, and said with a smile: "To be honest with you, brother, although the three of us are brothers, I really don't get along with Wu Rui, so I am still close to my brother."

"Don't say such things. Wu Rui helped me defeat the Mei clan and Minyue, and you also played a great role in conquering Xiou. You are all my right-hand men."

Heifu raised his hand. Everyone close to him knew that he was left-handed. He smiled and whispered: "Of course, you are left-handed. Wu Rui is the commander-in-chief of Qianyue after all, and we are still separated by a few steps." Layer."

Zhao Tuo understood: "Thank you, brother!"

The tableware on the table was a bit rudimentary. Heifu said, "There is no cauldron, no gui, no beans, no beans here. We can only use banana leaves as plates and wooden pottery as bowls. My dear brother, please don't dislike it."

"It's the same in Guilin. How can I dislike it?"

"The food is also made from local ingredients. I wonder if you dare to eat it."

Hei Fu smiled mysteriously and clapped his hands, and the chef brought the dishes. Zhao Tuo saw that in addition to the common fish and shrimp, there were also snake soup and eel sliced ​​and fried in hot oil.

As for the grilled items, there were actually a few skewers of grass sparrows with their heads and claws removed!

People in the Central Plains would never eat these things. Zhao Tuo looked at the hair on Hei Fu’s head that had not yet recovered due to Yangshanguan bonlock, and joked:

"Brother is dressed like this and eating this food, he looks like a Yue man."

"You, the 'barbarian elder' of South Vietnam, still have the nerve to criticize me?"

Hei Fu secretly complained, but he said: "I was not used to it when I first came. The only local food is lychees and longans that suit my taste. You also know that I have a sweet tooth. But in Panyu, the South Vietnamese people eat all kinds of things, regardless of birds, animals, insects, or snakes. If you eat it, it won't go down your throat, and you can even eat it a little bit... Why, are you really afraid that eating too much will lead to you becoming a barbarian?"

"That's not a big deal. I'm in Guilin and I eat a lot of it."

Zhao Tuo found it funny. The Hou family of Changnan were indeed sugarcane growers. When they came to Lingnan, they had just pacified South Vietnam, so they sent people to look for wild sugarcane everywhere. If they found sweet sugarcane, they sent it back to Nanjun and made plans to open a plantation in Panyu. .

"You should eat more of this grass sparrow."

Heifu enthusiastically asked the chef to give Zhao Tuo a bunch of roasted sparrows:

"Chen Wujiu said, this food should have the effect of aphrodisiac, but I can't eat too much. My wife is not around, but you are different. After all, you have just married an old daughter as a concubine in Ou. Brother, you are using Lingnan as a concubine. It’s for our family…”

When Heifu said this, Zhao Tuo was shocked and immediately stopped his chopsticks:

"I haven't reported this to my brother yet."

"No need to explain, I understand."

Hei Fu smiled, and his information was still very well-informed: "My dear brother, your considerations are the same as mine. The Qin army has been stationed here for a long time. If they want to gain a foothold, marriage is naturally indispensable. You have set an example for the captains in the army. Thank you. Your marriage with the Ou tribe above the pond has brought peace to the river for more than a hundred miles..."

It turned out that during the year when Heifu was reorganizing the rear and conquering Fujian, Yue, and South Vietnam, Zhao Tuo was not idle. He used Guilin as his base and obtained support from Changsha County through the water transport of Ling Canal, so that the Qin Dynasty who returned from a major defeat could The army regained its combat effectiveness.

Then, two more troops were sent to build ships in Guilin, reopen the water channel to Cangwu along Lishui (Lijiang River), and support the Qin army, which was in danger and was besieged by Xiou and the South Vietnamese Buffalo tribe. Immediately, Contact was established with Panyu again.

Speaking of which, when Heifu arrived in Cangwu half a month ago, he also found an old acquaintance, Chen Ying, a native of Dongyang County, Donghai County, who was forced to serve as his guide during the war to destroy Chu. Chen Ying has always looked mature, but now his hair is gray. He is a bit gloomy. It is said that he looked like this after he was defeated in the rain forest. It has been two years, and he still casts a shadow on the forest, hiding in the fortress. They are unwilling to go out on patrol even if they are beaten to death.

Zhao Tuo's other offensive route was to personally lead thousands of people through the Valley River and into Tanshui. By marrying the daughter of the local Du Lao, he successfully made the Ou people along Tanshui surrender, and in "Tanzhong" (Liuzhou) After establishing a stronghold, one can reach the Tancheng Fortress of Dongting County from the top of the pool, and there is an extra road for communication. Down from the pool, there is Yulin.

It can be said that although it was Heifu's fortress tactics that defeated the Ou people, Zhao Tuo also captured half of Western Ou on his own.

But even so, Zhao Tuo still felt that his contribution was not enough to serve as the head of a county after the war...

What he looks forward to most is to be able to serve as the county governor when Xiou is established as a county! Take charge of military and political power like Heifu did in Jiaodong!

But with my current merit and title, I can only become a county lieutenant at most, and I may be transferred out of Ou...

With no soldiers in hand, Zhao Tuo could not help but feel uneasy. Zhao Tuo immediately asked Hei Fu to fight and said:

"My brother has not done enough. Now my brother wants to attack Luo Yue, and Zhao Tuo is willing to lead the way for him!"

Going west from Yulin is the upper reaches of Yushui, and you can reach Nanning, the capital of Guangxi in later generations.

When we got there, it was almost the boundary between Xiou and Luoyue. Most of the Ou people near Yulin fled and migrated to the west. Like the first war, they regarded Luoyue as their last refuge.

War is inevitable. Attacking Luo Yue is the last chance for Hunjun to achieve military success, and it is also Zhao Tuo's best opportunity to benefit himself!

Different from the previous war, with Heifu's steady attack, Zhao Tuo was full of confidence in defeating Luo Yue and winning the war.

But Heifu doesn't plan to let Zhao Tuo go to Luo Yue. If this guy is promoted again, it will be difficult to control...

"Luo Yue, that is the place where General Tu died. How can you let your worthy brother be in danger again?"

He said to Zhao Tuo earnestly: "You have to guard Guilin. In addition, my brother has something else for you to do..."

"May I ask, brother, what's going on?"

Heifu didn't answer, but suddenly changed his words and pointed at the Yidu sauce on the table: "How does this sauce taste?"

Zhao Tuo was stunned, and quickly dipped his index finger into it to taste it. It was slightly sweet and very fresh: "It's not bad..."

"Do you know what sauce this is?"

"I don't know, brother."

Heifu revealed the answer: "It's wolfberry sauce, wolfberry sauce produced in Shu!"

He stood up and said: "The wolfberry tree is like a mulberry, its pods are two or three inches long, and it tastes juicy. It is actually thought of as sauce, which is beautiful. People in Shu regard it as a delicacy. This product sells well in Nanjun, but in Changsha, there is very little." "

"But I found this jar of wolfberry sauce in Panyu, South Vietnam!"

Zhao Tuo frowned: "Sichuan is far away in the southwest, and there are thousands of mountains and rivers in South Vietnam. How did it get here?"

Heifu said: "I also felt that this matter was suspicious, so I sent people to inquire along the Yushui River. The Sheep Department said that it was sold by the Buffalo Department, and the Buffalo Department said that it was obtained from Xiou. Xiou also said that it came from the upper reaches of Wenshui River. Zangda Jiang Youyelang was trafficked..."

"Yelang?"

Zhao Tuo was a little surprised, but he had never noticed this.

Heifu said: "Of course, it is the Bamboo tribe, one of the twelve tribes of Baiyue, that migrated into the northwest mountains along the Daozuo River. Now it has established the Yelang Kingdom. In the southwest Yili, only Dian and Yelang are the largest. , Shu County leads to Yelang, and Yelang leads to South Vietnam, relying on the Zangke River."

"Brother Xian, what I want you to do is to station in Guilin and pacify the local Yiyue people, and at the same time send a group of people to march up the Canggan River to explore the road to Yelang."

Exploring the path can get much less credit than participating in the final battle. Zhao Tuo secretly complained and asked: "Brother wants to attack Yelang?"

Hei Fu shook his head: "Of course not. Now that Luo Yue has not been destroyed, how dare he make any more enemies?"

"It's just that we are in a remote foreign land, and there is nothing wrong with having one more way to communicate with the Central Plains. By the way, we will send someone to hold the head of Lord Ou to recruit the Yue people who are above the warm water. We will say that the chief culprit has been killed. As long as they go to the Qin Dynasty Surrender, the territory, the people, and even their sacrifices and gods can be preserved for generations, and the Qin army will not commit any crimes!"

Walking to Zhao Tuo, holding his shoulders, Heifu smiled and said: "I want to concentrate on dealing with Luo Yue, and I will complete my victory in one battle. No Ou people from other places can disturb me! My dear brother, guard my right wing, I’ll leave this matter to you, brother!”

…

"The geese from Hengshan County usually stop when they reach Hengshan and Changsha. They will not easily cross the mountains to the south. Once they come, it will be difficult to go back."

The next day, while standing on the earth building and watching Zhao Tuo return to Guilin, Hei Fu suddenly said this.

Although he and Zhao Tuo are considered brothers, Hei Fu does not intend to let him make great achievements and take charge of the army independently. Instead, he will send him to explore for a period of time because of Yelang's affairs...

What's more, Hei Fu has already considered who to send to fight this battle!

At this time, Lu Jia came over and bowed to Hei Fu.

"Junhou, the beautiful article you want has been written by my subordinates!"

…

ps: In the tomb of the King of Nanyue, there were indeed more than two hundred headless grass sparrows buried with him.