Chapter 193: Three-surnamed Slave (6k)

The three generals rode their horses forward at a gallop, but dismounted in front of the carriage.

Seeing Tong Guan lifting the side curtain, Song Jiang took the lead in prostrating himself. His movements were so fast and his hips were so high that Ren Yuan was caught off guard.

"Song Jiang."

"Lu Junyi."

"Ren Yuan."

"Greetings to the Prime Minister."

Tong Guan looked down at the three people on the ground, waved his hand expressionlessly, and said, "We are in a remote place, no need to be polite, stand up and talk."

"Thank you, Ms. En."

Maybe because Song Jiang was short, he was the first to get up and then greeted Xin Xingzong, Yang Chang and others.

"General Xin, Yang observes"

"Song Defense."

"Lu Tuanlian."

"Let him take charge."

Because Lu Zhishen had "betrayed" him and did not yet hold an official position, Song Jiang only bowed slightly to him and did not even call him by his name. Instead, Lu Junyi greeted everyone one by one.

The monk had already seen through Song Jiang's hypocrisy. He glanced at him lightly while sitting on his horse with his brows raised, and could not help but hum a contemptuous sound. This behavior was heard by Yang Chang in front.

At this time, Yang Chang was looking down from above and saw Song Jiang patting the dust off his robe, so he deliberately reminded him and teased him: "Song Fangyu, you just shouted wrong."

"what?"

"Your Majesty has conferred upon the Privy Councilor the title of Prince of Guangyang. You should now address him as Your Majesty."

"what?"

Song Jiang's knees weakened after hearing this, and he bowed to the carriage again: "I really didn't know, please forgive me, Your Majesty."

"Please forgive me, Your Majesty."

Lu Junyi and Ren Yuan followed in a hurry, thinking, "Can you kneel slower? We are taller than you and can't kneel as fast as you."

"No need to be polite, just mount your horse and lead the way, my king is in a hurry."

"Yes Yes Yes."

Song Jiang then happily got up and led the convoy forward.

Tong Guan came to Hebei to visit the troops, and the Xuanfu Division, who was in charge of communicating the itinerary, informed Zhending in advance.

The military and political division of labor in Zhending was that the military was responsible for the front reception, and after Tong Guan had inspected the Liangshan Army and the Yisheng Army, the state government would be responsible for the banquet and accommodation.

Tong Guan was old and had traveled all day. He simply walked around the two army camps and quickly invited all the generals into the city for a banquet, where he would arrange some work.

Yang Chang was originally from Liangshan. At this time, he followed Tong Guan to inspect the troops, just like a superior leader who came to inspect. He unnaturally distanced himself from his old brothers. On the contrary, Lu Zhishen, who was wearing monk's clothes, frequently waved to acquaintances such as Shi Jin and Zhu Wu.

Only generals and important officials were qualified to attend the welcome banquet held in the provincial government at night, so Lu Zhishen proposed a small gathering with Shi Jin.

Tong Guan praised Lu Zhishen so much, how could Song Jiang dare to refuse him in front of him? So he tactfully asked Yang Chang for his opinion, implying that Yang Chang should stop him, but Yang Chang pretended not to understand.

Song Jiang and Lu Junyi also wanted to attend the banquet, so they could only arrange their trusted aides Wu Yong, Hua Rong and other people to closely monitor Lu Zhishen's movements and prevent the big monk from misleading the people.

That night, in the front hall of the Zhending government office.

The banquet is ready and the guests are seated.

Different from the "farmers' banquet" before Liangshan, banquets of this level were all for single seats. Tong Guan, Prince of Guangyang, sat in the main seat facing south, with others on the left and right arranged in order of position and closeness. The center position was often used for singing and dancing performances.

As a general accompanying Tong Guan, Yang Chang was located on the right side, below Ma Kuo and adjacent to Xin Xingzong. Opposite him were the prefect of Zhending, Song Jiang, Lu Junyi and others.

Having just drank the opening wine, Tong Guan solemnly got to the point.

He announced the military adjustment of the Hebei defense zone, immediately appointing Xin Xingzong as the chief general of Dingzhou, Song Jiang as the chief general of Zhending Prefecture, Yang Weizhong as the chief general of Hejian Prefecture, and Wang Yu as the chief general of Daming Prefecture.

Ren Yuan's 20,000 Yisheng troops stationed in Zhending were incorporated into Hejian Prefecture and led by Xin Xingzong.

The first three states of these four military towns are distributed parallel to the south of Yanjing, while Daming Prefecture, as a backup support, is located in the middle of Yanjing and Tokyo.

It was not appropriate to talk about guarding against Guo Yaoshi and dealing with the Ever-Victorious Army. So after Tong Guan announced the new appointment, he immediately added:

"Yanshan Prefecture was established not long ago, and Hebei has been in chaos. Your Majesty has set up four armies in four states, with the intention of protecting the safety of Hebei. If we encounter foreign enemies, we can fight together. If we encounter bandit riots, we can fight separately. All generals must work together to report to Your Majesty and protect the people."

"Yes."

"I will obey your orders."

All the generals stood up and clasped their fists. Among them, Song Jiang had a frown on his face, and his heart was beating fast.

Lu Junyi was the commander of the Dingzhou militia, and Tong Guan appointed Xin Xingzong as the chief general of Dingzhou. Now he had taken away Ren Yuan's Yisheng Army. Song Jiang was very worried that half of his Liangshan Army might also be taken away.

Previously, Yang Chang had "cut off his own flesh", and now Lu Junyi wanted to "divide the family business". Song Jiang felt that his capital was getting less and less, and he couldn't calm down for a long time.

As a superior, Tong Guan naturally would not notice the change in Song Jiang's expression, but continued to arrange tasks.

"Although the four armies are relatively independent, they must have a temporary commander in wartime. The Xuanfu Division is stationed in Taiyuan, which is far away, so you usually have Xin Xingzong as the commander. Yang Weizhong and Wang Yu are not here today. I will send someone to notify them later. Do you understand the defense of Song?"

"Ah? I understand."

Song Jiang hurriedly stood up when he heard the call, and saluted Xin Xingzong at the same time: "I will cooperate with General Xin."

"As long as you know."

Tong Guan nodded with satisfaction, waved his hand and said to everyone: "The serious business has been explained. Now you can enjoy yourself freely without restraint."

"Your Majesty, please wait!"

"Hmm? Is there anything else for Song Fangyu?"

"I am asking on behalf of Lu Tuanlian. He is currently serving as the commander of Dingzhou Tuanlian. I wonder if he will stay in Zhending or go to Dingzhou for garrison after the adjustment? Ren Tongzhi will be under the command of General Xin. There are not many defenders left in Zhending, so I have to send troops to Feihujing."

As soon as Song Jiang finished speaking, Tong Guan's mouth twitched slightly, and he thought, is this what you want?
Seeing how nervous you are, you seem stingy just because you were born as a minor official. I didn't even mention Lu Junyi.

"Since Zhending needs you, Lu Junyi will stay and defend Zhending with you."

"Thank you for your consideration, Your Majesty."

After taking the reassurance pill, Song Jiang finally relaxed his frown, clasped his fists and bowed to express his gratitude.

Tong Guan smiled inwardly with contempt, turned his head and raised his wine glass, saying in a sonorous voice: "In leisure time, please enjoy yourself to your heart's content. In war time, please serve the country with all your strength. Let's drink one more glass together, and then you can do whatever you want."

"Yes."

All the generals stood up and raised their glasses in agreement, then they started fighting on their own. The music and dance prepared by the state government also took place on stage.

At this time and place, Yang Chang had no close friends. Apart from passively responding to toasts, he spent the rest of the time sitting there eating, occasionally watching a dancer twisting her waist, like a lone ranger who didn't fit in.

His behavior is usually unpopular in the workplace because of his aloofness, but Tong Guan is fond of him.

Tong Guan saw him sitting alone at the table, and took the initiative to raise his glass and ask: "Yang Guancha, is the wine not to your taste? Everyone present today has had contact with you, and some are even your old friends, so why don't you walk around and toast?"

"Your Majesty, I have a low alcohol tolerance and I get drunk easily. I will be accompanying you to Yanjing later, so I intend to drink less."

"Oh? You observe and perform your duties conscientiously. You are truly a role model for a general."

After hearing Yang Chang's answer, Tong Guan stood up happily, pointed at Yang Chang with a kind face, and said with emotion: "Everyone, if it weren't for Yang Guan's divine power to intimidate the Jin people and make the Yunzhong Jin army dare not despise the Central Plains, we probably wouldn't have the opportunity to gather like this. Everyone, please follow me in toasting him."

"Respect Yang's observation."

"Yang, please."

"Yang observes the power."

Yang Chang had no choice but to stand up and respond. The moment his eyes met Song Jiang's, he could sense how unwilling the other party was.

Originally thought it was just a small episode, but unexpectedly, Ren Yuan's subsequent "taking credit" action once again dragged Yang Chang into the whirlpool of topics.

"Your Majesty, can I ask for credit for shocking the Jin people?"

"You? That's right, that's right."

When Tong Guan saw Ren Yuan showing his goodwill, he immediately stopped Yang Chang and joked, "There are many good horses, but few good horse trainers. Commander Ren has some truth in what he said. If he hadn't reported that you killed Wanyan Jiemu, there wouldn't have been any confrontation between the Jin envoys. You should have a few more drinks."

"It's him."

Yang Chang had already gotten the information out of Ren Yuan, but now he pretended to be ignorant and naive, looking at Ren Yuan and muttering to himself: "Commander Ren was not in Daizhou or Xinzhou before, how could he know about this? It should be relatively secretive."

"Hehe." Ren Yuan scratched his head and laughed, "It was my fellow countryman who spoke out of turn after drinking. By the way, you must know him."

"who is it?"

"Golden Spearman Xu Ning."

"what?"

Yang Chang immediately looked at Song Jiang angrily, and asked with empty eyes: "Song Fangyu, shouldn't you explain yourself?"

"no."

Song Jiang had just been toasting frequently, until Ren Yuan mentioned Xu Ning's name, and the alcohol in his body immediately turned into cold sweat.

Ren Yuan, you bastard, are you stupid?

How can an informer confess to the victim? Do you understand the rules of the underworld? Just say that it is deadly to hear from the market? Just sell out your fellow villagers like this?
Song Jiang was a man of good words after all, so he immediately explained with a smile: "Didn't Commander Ren tell you? Xu Ning was drunk at the time, and he might not even know it. Besides, there is no grudge between you two, and things turned out well in the end, so just be generous and don't bear it to heart."

"Do you often mention me? Coach Xu used me as a topic of conversation after drinking?"

"Haha, who made you the best? Your Majesty should have heard that among the 108 Liangshan generals, it was Yang Guancha who achieved success and fame. It's normal for everyone to envy him."

"That's it"

Yang Chang wanted to take the opportunity to make trouble, but Song Jiang's answer was very cunning and he covered it up with a light touch.

Just when everyone thought the matter would end in nothing, the "stupid teammate" Lu Junyi suddenly stood up and "finished the job", clasping his fist towards Yang Chang and adding.

"Observer Yang, don't be suspicious. Last year, when we followed the army to Zhending, I actually forgot about this matter. It was Song Fangyu who reminded me not to talk nonsense to avoid causing you trouble. Who would have thought that Xu Ning would speak out of turn after drinking?"

"Lu Tuanlian!"

Song Jiang wanted to beat him up, but unfortunately he couldn't beat him, so he frowned and reminded him in a deep voice: "Didn't you arrange this? Why didn't Xu Ning keep his mouth shut? Hurry up and bring some wine to Observer Yang to apologize."

"Huh? Oh"

Lu Junyi didn't understand what was going on, so he immediately came to Yang Chang with his cup in hand and said sincerely, "Yang Guancha, this is indeed my fault. Song Fangyu has given detailed instructions, but I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to communicate well with the brothers, so I asked Yan Xiaoyi to do it for me. I will definitely talk to him nicely when I get back, please..."

"it's okay no problem."

Yang Chang drank the toast from Lu Junyi, glanced at Song Jiang, and replied with a smile: "Don't punish Brother Yanqing. We all have good intentions. Anyway, in the end, it was all due to some mistakes. We helped the king to share his worries. It's over now."

"I knew it."

Lu Junyi nodded happily.

The government hall was relatively quiet at the time, and everyone could hear this conversation, except for a few "stupid" people like Lu Junyi. People like Tong Guan, Xin Xingzong and others could hear the hidden meaning.

The former leader of Liangshan actually intended to betray his brothers? So this is what the so-called brotherhood is like? That's right, I'm not afraid of my brothers suffering, I'm just afraid that my brothers are better than me.

Yang Chang also came from Liangshan, but he was the fastest to become a fifth-rank observer. On the other hand, Song Jiang and Lu Junyi, the two leaders of the Liangshan camp, fought in many battles for a long time before they were promoted to the fifth rank.

The Inspector General was in charge of the military and political affairs of a state, while the Defense General and the Training General were only in charge of the military.

Who is strong and who is weak will be judged.

Being jealous is human nature.

In fact, subordinates with shortcomings are more likely to be reused by their superiors. After all, it is easy to find something wrong with them and it is easier to control them. However, Song Jiang did not think of this at this time.

The eyes around were fierce, as if they were looking to kill Tian Hu and Wang Qing.

Everyone used their eyes as knives to cut his body.

At this moment, Song Jiang had no time to pay attention to his two stupid teammates (Ren Yuan and Lu Junyi).

After a brief struggle between his conscience and his desires, he smiled and pointed at Lu Junyi, loudly recommending him to Tong Guan: "Lu Tuanlian, nicknamed Jade Unicorn, has had his servant Yan Qing learn from him for several years. His sumo skills are rare in the world, and I am unrivaled in the world in spear and stick skills. I am recognized as the best fighter in Liangshan. If Your Majesty needs to deter villains in the future, Lu Tuanlian will surely be able to help. Of course, all the generals and officers in Liangshan have their own abilities."

"Lu Tuanlian?"

"I am willing to share your worries."

Lu Junyi was nine feet tall and stood in the hall with an extraordinary majestic appearance.

Tong Guan looked at him and nodded repeatedly, then he became interested and asked, "I have heard of the name of Lu Tuanlian. You should be able to throw the stone lion outside the Xuanfu Division, or catch it with your bare hands?"

“Throw it up?”

Lu Junyi stood there in a daze for a moment, thinking to himself that Ren Yuan came back last year to share, and Yang Chang and Wu Song moved the stone lion.

If I put all my strength into trying, I should be able to do it like them, but throwing it up and catching it are two different concepts.

Thinking of this, he looked around and asked stupidly: "How do I throw it? How do I catch it?"

"Just like this, and then again"

Xin Xingzong immediately took up the conversation, picked up the wine glass on the table, gently tossed it up and then caught it.

Lu Junyi swallowed his saliva and looked back with an incredible expression.

"Your Majesty, are you joking with me? A stone lion can be thrown and caught like this? Is this something that human power can do?"

"Haha, of course there is."

Seeing Tong Guan shaking his head and sighing, Lu Junyi suddenly reacted, staring at Yang Chang and exclaimed: "Could it be that Yang Guan..."

"A little bit of brute force, not worth mentioning."

"You really did it?"

"You still don't believe it? Is it that difficult?"

Seeing that Lu Junyi still didn't believe it, Xin Xingzong teased him again, as if he could do the same, and then said meaningfully: "There are always people who are better than you, and there are always things better than you. Yang Guancha threw it, and Lu Zhishen also took it."

Tong Guan raised the question first, and Xin Xingzong came out to testify later.

Lu Junyi looked at Yang Chang in astonishment, thinking, when did you do this? Wasn't it you and Wu Song?

Master Lu is so strong that he can pull out a willow. I believe he has this ability. When will you be so strong? Can you keep up with him?
Puzzled, Lu Junyi turned to look at Ren Yuan for confirmation, only to find that Song Jiang was also looking at him.

The two men were like judges, watching the execution of the liar.

Ren Yuan was also confused at this moment, and immediately stopped Ma Kuo and asked, "Ma Lianfang, I should be seeing things. You were in the front at that time, how could you throw a lion and catch a lion? Wasn't the person who was traveling with Yang Guancha Wu Song?"

"Yes, it was them at that time."

Ma Kuo gestured to Ren Yuan to sit down, and explained with a smile: "What the king and General Xin said happened last month. Yang Guancha threw a lion to hit the Jin soldiers, shocking the Jin envoy to the point of tears, and then threw it to Lu Zhishen who caught it. It is not an exaggeration at all."

"Really throw, really catch?"

Ren Yuan nodded his head vigorously, then clasped his fists towards Yang Chang and asked, "Yang Guancha, are you a god descended from heaven?"

"Not worth mentioning, not worth mentioning."

When Yang Chang responded modestly, Song Jiang suddenly looked at Ma Kuo and asked, "Ma Lianfang, could the Jin soldiers catch the stone lion at that time?"

"Song Fangyu, what are you asking? Being hit by a thousand-pound weight, do you think everyone is Lu Zhishen? I'm afraid they would be crushed into a pool of blood."

"Commander Ren is right."

The conversation between Ren Yuan and Ma Kuo caused huge waves in Song Jiang's heart.

How come Yang Chang is getting more powerful? If this happened during the Liangshan period, his nickname might not be Guangming Tianzun. Chao Gai was called the Tower-Bearing Heavenly King. You are more worthy of the name than him.

At this dinner party in Zhending, the protagonist was supposed to be Tong Guan, but it unexpectedly became Yang Chang.

I really want to keep a low profile, but my strength doesn't allow it.

The next morning, Tong Guan and his party continued their journey north.

Song Jiang originally wanted to escort him twenty miles away, but was stopped by Ma Kuo outside the city gate.

Ma Kuo reminded Song Jiang that Zhending was an important town in Hebei Province, and asked him to focus on its defense. The implication was that Hei Sanlang had been too flattering, and the Inspector General, who was responsible for supervising the army, could obviously not stand it anymore.

Song Jiang was scolded and turned around with his face as black as coal.

Yesterday, Lu Junyi "talked nonsense", so Song Jiang brought Wu Yong with him in the morning, hoping that he would help deal with it on the way to see him off. In the end, the wise man was not used.

Instead of feeling disappointed that he couldn't show his face in front of Tong Guan, Wu Yong quietly comforted Song Jiang.

"If you don't want to send me off, then don't send me off. This place is several hundred miles away from Yanjing. Prince Guangyang must arrive before a month, so we have to hurry on the road."

“I’m not doing this for this”

After Song Jiang finished speaking, he turned around again and looked at Yang Chang, whose armor was shining with gold, with a frown and a helpless look on his face.

"How unfair is God? I am a passionate man, generous and willing to help others, and have endured all the sufferings of the world. I have been busy for half my life, but I am not as good as a young man. I have a good appearance and infinite power, a beautiful wife and concubines, and I am respected by nobles. He makes me feel that life is meaningless."

"Don't be sad, brother. I don't think he will have a good ending."

“How come you see?”

"As the saying goes, 'A tree that stands out in the forest will be destroyed by the wind; a pile that stands out on the shore will be washed away by the current; a person who is superior to others will be criticized by the crowd.' Yang Chang is not the confidant of Prince Guangyang, but he was made to stand out last night. Ma Lianfang and General Xin also contributed to the situation. There must be a deeper meaning behind this."

Wu Yong spoke his inference slowly and calmly, which instantly cheered up the gloomy Song Jiang.

"That makes sense. Go on."

"Prince Guangyang has a bad reputation as an official, how could he treat an outsider sincerely? I heard that the Ever-Victorious Army is arrogant and difficult to discipline, and the emperor is doting on General Guo. Yang Chang has a precedent of shocking the Jin people, and he is probably going to do the same in Yanjing. Regardless of whether he can shock Pharmacist Guo in the end, he will have a grudge with Yang Chang. Do you think it will end well?"

"Military advisor, that's a good point."

Song Jiang twirled his beard and nodded slightly, then muttered to himself: "No matter how strong Yang Chang and Lu Zhishen are, they are just brave men after all. Lu Zhishen was trapped in Huazhou. If I hadn't led people to rescue him, I don't know how much torture he would have endured. The fighting power of the Ever-Victorious Army is strong. Your Majesty has to think about it even if he likes Yang Chang. What's more, he didn't recruit him as a prince consort in the end. This guy doesn't know that others use him as a knife, but he is willing to be a running dog."

"After all, he is still young and is always confused by the situation."

"Okay, let's not talk about this. How are the leaders of the various camps in the army? Have they not been influenced by Lu Zhishen?"

"I met Shi Jin last night, so I don't think there will be any problems. Lu Zhishen is not good at speaking and has no ability to deceive people."

Before Wu Yong could finish his words, Song Jiang interrupted him.

"Don't be too sure. First of all, Shi Jin and Lu Zhishen have a deep friendship. Secondly, he is about the same age as Yang Chang, so he might leave on a whim. Finally, don't forget Chen Qiaoyi. Zhu Wu and others have been plotting with him and have had second thoughts for a long time."

"Brother, rest assured. Shi Jin and Zhu Wu and the others will advance and retreat together. Just keep an eye on these three people."

"Ah."

Wu Yong speculated that Yang Chang would offend the powerful, but he didn't know that Yang did not take the court seriously.

Tong Guan and his entourage traveled north to Dingzhou, where Xin Xingzong's subordinates Wang Yuan and others led their troops to meet them. They followed Liang Fangping to suppress the bandits and returned to work under their old leader.

Yang Chang saw Han Shizhong again in the crowd, and it seemed that he had been promoted.

As they were in a hurry to get to Yanjing, the two didn't even have time to say hello and only had a simple eye contact.

Xin Xingzong stayed in Dingzhou to command the army, while Tong Guan led the troops to continue their march north.

Perhaps because he had lost his confidants and had no one to talk to on the road, while resting in Wangxi County, Dingzhou, Tong Guan took the initiative to find Yang Chang to talk.

"It is said that people in the martial arts world are loyal to each other, but judging from the banquet at Zhending that night, Song Jiang did not seem to care about his former brothers. Did you see that?"

"Yeah, I see."

Yang Chang nodded awkwardly and responded, "But nowadays it's different from the past. Everyone is an official in the government, and loyalty is not valued by others."

"That's a good idea, but it's ultimately a shabby trick. If you want help, you can just ask for it directly. Since Song Jiang is working under me, it's easy to make him suffer."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Tong Guan spoke very sincerely, and ordinary people would definitely be moved, but Yang Chang remained vigilant.

If you are bitten by a dog, should you bite the dog back? But should you let the dog learn a lesson?

I remembered that when Lu Zhishen came back last night, he talked about drinking and chatting with Shi Jin, and said a lot about the battle against bandits, as if he still hadn't said enough.

Yang Chang then replied to Tong Guan, "If it's not too much trouble, could you ask Song Fangyu for a man? He is a good friend of Lu Zhishen, called Nine-Pattern Dragon Shi Jin. They talked by candlelight last night, reluctant to leave each other."

"It's that simple?"

"After all, we all came from Liangshan together. It would be better to repay evil with kindness. I'm afraid Song Fang will not agree to that."

"He dares!"

Tong Guan's eyes shone, and he stroked his beard and said contemptuously: "When I come back from visiting the troops, I will immediately issue a military order to him."

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your help."

"It's a small matter, but when you get to the Ever-Victorious Army, you have to help me establish my authority."

"rest assured."

Yang Chang patted his chest with confidence, thinking, isn't it just a bullying performance? Players like me who have cheats will definitely make you enjoy watching them.

On March 29th, as soon as Tong Guan's team arrived at the border of Yanjing, they saw Guo Yaoshi and several riders waiting for them.

This fellow was even more ruthless than Song Jiang who was twenty miles away. According to Yi County, it was more than a hundred miles away, and according to Yanjing, it was more than two hundred miles away.

Yang Chang was really surprised by the humble behavior of Pharmacist Guo. It was heard that the Ever-Victorious Army was arrogant and domineering, which should be a result of the influence of the superiors. Then what was I seeing in Jizhou?
Pharmacist Guo's subsequent actions surprised Director Yang even more.

As soon as Tong Guan got off the carriage, Pharmacist Guo immediately stepped forward and bowed to him.

"You are now also a general, and our positions are equal. There is no need to do this anymore."

"The Grand Master is like a father. I am just paying respect to my father."

"Haha, get up and talk"

Pharmacist Guo shook Tong Guan's hand and greeted him. The scene was really like a son talking to his father.

Yang Changxin said wow, the 'slaves of three surnames' in this era actually have the habit of worshipping their adoptive fathers.

Tong Guan, you are very dangerous, how can you still laugh?
(End of this chapter)