At this point, Zhou Ping understood why the Xin brothers were so friendly to him. Feelings himself has made great contributions to Tong Guan's party, and he is already a rising star of the party. In the late Northern Song Dynasty when the party struggle was so fierce, his attitude towards "our own people" was naturally unusual. "Brother Zhou, after all, we are all our own people in this pavilion, so let me just say something sincerely to you!" I have made enough achievements by going to Yanjing this time, so why risk my life again? I will put it here today. If the position of commander of the Victory Army in five years does not belong to Brother Zhou, , I, Xin Xingzong, will dig out these eyes and pay them to Brother Zhou!¡± ¡°Brother Xingzong said something serious!¡± Zhou Ping couldn¡¯t help but smile bitterly when he heard this. Of course, Xin Xingzong¡¯s words were a bit exaggerated, but if he stayed under Tong Guan, Sanwu would There is no problem in joining the Lingjia Army in the future, but the problem is that staying in the Shengjie Army means basically losing influence on the upcoming campaign against Liao (serving Tong Guan as the captain of the guard). If I had just returned from Yanjing and was full of confidence in winning the battle against Liao (Liao was full of internal conflicts, and the fragile political balance would be broken once Yelu Chun died), but after returning, this confidence gradually weakened. The reason is very simple. The Song Dynasty is also full of internal contradictions. Whether it is the main battle or the main peace, those at the top are more focused not on dealing with external enemies, but on dealing with internal enemies. "This is really a worse world!" Zhou Ping couldn't help but look up to the sky and sighed. Around the time of the year, the nightlife of Tokyo¡¯s upper class gradually came to an end. Those people who were exhausted by alcohol and women staggered out of the gorgeous gatehouse with the help of their companions. Behind them, from the fan building, there were sounds of condolences and greetings from women enjoying themselves, looking from a distance. Their gorgeous costumes and the lanterns on the gatehouse blended into a colorful display. "Brother Zhou, let's meet up another day!" The Xin brothers smiled and put Zhou Ping on a sedan. After the sedan disappeared around the corner not far away, the two of them got on their carriage. In the shaking carriage, the faces of the Xin brothers became gloomy. After about half a while, Xin Qizong's voice broke the silence: "This Zhou Juncheng is quite ambitious!" "Haha!" Xin Xingzong laughed. : "So what, let's talk about it if we can come back from Yingzhou alive. There are some things that only living people can do!" "Brother taught you a lesson!" Xin Qizong nodded, and after being silent for a while, he suddenly said: "Some things can still be done It¡¯s better to prepare first, brother, don¡¯t you think so?¡± The next afternoon, Zhou Ping came to Tong Guan¡¯s house. Apparently, Captain Shengjie, who was on duty, had already known about this upcoming boss, and he graciously allowed Zhou Ping to rest in the tea room inside the gate. When the general came in, Zhou Ping and his superior Tong Guan met with each other. Tong Guan asked in a good mood: "How was Juncheng's stay at Fanlou last night?" Zhou Ping was stunned, and then replied: "You two I dare not refuse the invitation from the superior officer. " "Haha, it's the Xin family brothers! But you still have to be careful, don't let the crows in Yushitai get caught. Cai Yuanchang has been a little angry these days. It's a bad thing for him!" "Thank you, Commander Xuan, for reminding me that I will be careful in my words and deeds!" "That's not necessary. You are a warrior, and many things can't be applied to you!" Tong Guan smiled proudly and said: "Besides, even officials will look at the face of a certain family!" "Thank you very much, Xuan Shuai, for showing me your love. In the end, it will be a mess, and it's hard to get retribution!" Tong Guan almost didn't shout out, " You'll be fine as long as I protect you!" Zhou Ping had no choice but to express his loyalty regardless of whether he was tired of it or not. After singing this clich¨¦d play for a few times, he could finally turn to the main topic of the day - Yingzhou. "Commander Xuan, I'm here today to ask for your approval for Yingzhou!" Zhou Ping was about to elaborate on the purpose of his visit. But he saw Tong Guan raising his hand and interrupting his words: "Juncheng, since you must go, you have your reasons. Let's do this. You first take up a post in our Shengjie Army and select some capable soldiers. "Thank you for your kindness, General Xuan!" "Utility?" Tong Guan frowned. The so-called utility is a special kind of soldier in the Northern Song Dynasty. Somewhat similar to modern volunteers, young people with plenty of money and outstanding martial arts skills usually prepare their own weapons and armor and are recruited to serve as soldiers, usually for special tasks such as reconnaissance and vanguard. Soldiers with utility roles were paid more generously, did not need to be tattooed, and had a higher social status than ordinary soldiers, but their numbers were small and they could only play a supplementary role. "Juncheng, our victorious army is made up of elite soldiers selected from the armies in the northwest. Although they are just ordinary soldiers, they are no less impressive."?Utility. " "Xuan Shuai's bodyguards are naturally tigers and wolves! Zhou Ping first flattered Tong Guan, and then changed the topic: "But before we can go to Yingzhou from here, we first have to sneak across the Baigou. What we need is not only strong and good at fighting, but also familiar with the local customs. Being able to adapt to changes, there are many people from the northwest in the Victory Army; besides, I have just taken office, and I have not yet established a good relationship with my subordinates, so I am afraid that I may not be able to win my death! " "Um! If that's the case, then it's all up to you! Tong Guan said with a smile: "You just have to report the money and weapons needed!" " "Thank you, Xuan Shuai! " After getting Tong Guan's permission, Zhou Ping returned to his residence and immediately called Xue Liangyu. The reason why he refused to choose to directly recruit people from the Shengjie Army and wanted to raise his own utility was in addition to the two mentioned reasons. There is one unspoken thing - if he remembers correctly, Yue Fei first joined the army when he was recruited as a warrior in the first expedition to Liao. If he takes this opportunity to recruit him, as the saying goes, "It is easy to get a general from a thousand troops." "It's hard to find", that's a huge profit. "Liangyu, you go to brother-in-law's hometown immediately, and use whatever means you want to dig him over. Do you understand?" " "Yes, but where should I meet next? " "Go to Zhending Mansion! Zhou Ping happily took off his official robe and said loudly: "This time we are going to poke a hole in the sky!" ¡± The majestic Taihang Mountains start from Wangwu Mountain at the junction of Henan and Shanxi Provinces in the south. They are like a giant dragon winding all the way to the northeast until the coast of the Bohai Sea, separating the North China Plain and the Shanxi Plateau. Because the Northern Song Dynasty was unable to control The Yanshan Mountains are the natural geographical dividing line between the farming people and the nomadic peoples in Northeast Asia. Therefore, for the Han Dynasty with its capital in Bianliang, it was particularly important to control the main passes connecting the east and west sides of the Taihang Mountains. The core of the Northern Song Dynasty's defense west of the Taihang Mountains was Taiyuan, while there were three towns on the North China Plain to the east of the Taihang Mountains - Hejian, Zhending, and Zhongshan. Only by controlling the tunnel connecting the east and west foothills of the Taihang Mountains could the Song army be able to attack Shanxi The strategy of maneuvering between the plateau and the North China Plain was to implement a flexible defense. Therefore, Zhending Mansion, located on Taihang Shandong Road and controlling Jingxingkou, had a special status among the three towns in Hebei, because even if the enemy troops from the north captured Hejian. , Zhongshan, as long as Zhending and Taiyuan are still in the hands of the Song army, the enemy army will not dare to move south in a large scale - otherwise the Song army will be able to cut off the enemy's retreat and put them in a dilemma where they cannot advance or retreat. At that time, the Hebei Bow and Arrow Society was the most prosperous here. When the campaign against Liao was about to be launched, Liu Kai, who was then the staff officer of the Xuanfu Division in Hedong and Hebei Province, recruited militiamen - "Dare Warriors" in Zhending Mansion. Zhou Ping and his party arrived in Zhending. It was already the beginning of May in the fourth year of Xuanhe's reign when he arrived at Dingfu. Judging from what he saw and heard along the way, the war against Liao was already imminent. This made him feel even more urgent. After he arrived at Zhendingfu, He hurried to visit Liu Kai to prepare for recruiting heroes. "So, General Zhou wants to recruit heroes in Zhending Mansion? "Although Liu Kai is a civil servant, he is a middle-aged man with a strong physique and a resolute expression. He took the notebook presented by Zhou Ping without reading it and just put it aside. "Exactly, the current border situation is tense, Zhending Mansion There must be some clever work from the Liao people. If you recruit the utility in the name of a villain, I am afraid that the news will leak out. Why not just recruit people from among the brave warriors of your husband? Please give me your permission! " "General Zhou is thoughtful! "Liu Kai looked at Zhou Ping who was lowering his head. He felt very conflicted. He had heard about the reputation of the warrior in front of him for a long time. In his opinion, warriors like Zhou Ping only put the country in danger for their own selfish interests. "Xingjin villain", as a minister with very rich political experience, deep down he did not agree with Tong Guan's strategy of uniting Jin Dynasty to conquer Liao Dynasty. But in fact, his official career was firmly connected with the attack on Liao Dynasty. When we got together, this made him feel particularly irritated: "This is such a small thing! Liu Kai flicked his notebook with his fingers and asked, "I just don't know how many people General Zhou has recruited?" " "Eighty people are enough! We already have forty people on hand, and we won¡¯t be able to command any more! "Zhou Ping smiled: "If possible, it would be best if you have been in the mule, horse and salt tea business! " "Mules and horses, salt and tea business? Liu Kai frowned: "These are all prohibited transactions!" " "exactly! I plan to disguise myself as a smuggler. It will be easier if I thank this kind of person! " "I see, General Zhou is very thoughtful! "A smile appeared on Liu Kai's serious face. After Zhou Ping left, a young man came out of the back hall, saluted Liu Kai casually, and said with a smile: "Father, how about this General Zhou? The child heard that this person is brave and resourceful and is a rare talent! ¡± PS: It¡¯s really hard to be sick. I¡¯m not fully recovered yet. Please forgive me!