Chapter 193 New Hunter
Captain Pei had the eyes of an eagle and the back of a wolf, waiting in front of the other troops for Captain Zhou Chao of Huai'an Guard to come and see him.

After a while, as expected, not long after Cui Bohou passed by, the cavalry over there started to move.

However, it was not only Zhou Chao who came, but also the two hundred cavalrymen.

Captain Pei had good eyesight and could see the majestic galloping horse from afar, which made him a little surprised.

When they got closer, they saw that the cavalrymen on horseback were all brave and in great spirits, and the eagle-like looks on their faces turned into astonishment.

If Huai'an Guard had such elite troops, even if there were only 200 of them, when they attacked the Bazhou rebels halfway across the river, they would not have been able to show off their power like that.

Did Huai'an Wei and Dahe Wei just sell out the Huai'an prefect like that?

This matter was a bit too harsh.

When Pei Yuan realized that the actual situation of Huai'an Wei was slightly different from what he thought, his expression changed slightly.

With these two hundred cavalrymen, let alone himself, the deputy captain of the Jinyiwei.

Even the commanders-in-chief of the Five Military Commanderies had to look up to the commander of the Huai'an Guard.

So Captain Pei, who had the eagle-eyed and wolf-like look, once again showed a sunny and cheerful smile. If it weren't for the fact that he was too young and handsome, he would even have asked Song Chunniang to pretend to be a maid and come up to help him.

Pei Yuan looked back and saw Hou Qing and Ji Xin standing by, so he ordered, "Pull my falconet over here and remove the gun cover."

The two men looked at the Huai'an Guard cavalry coming from afar and left with understanding.

Perhaps it was because a violent organization like the military was born with a competitive spirit, and when they saw Pei Yuan's hint, they were like being injected with chicken blood.

From Cui Bohou's elite cavalry, to Ji Xin's musketeers, to the remnants of the Jinyiwei who survived hundreds of battles led by Tan Tai Fangtu and Si Kong Sui, they all became energetic and showed excellent spirit in the blink of an eye.

Hou Qingze directed the artillerymen to quickly wipe the dust off the falconets and arrange the rows of muskets.

Those underworld figures looked at the Jinyiwei suddenly mobilizing and were a little panicked at first, wondering if the two hundred cavalry were going to launch an attack.

When they found that the Jinyiwei were just straightening up their military uniforms and preparing to meet the incoming troops, they became even more panicked.

What about them?

What should I do now?

No one said anything?
The group of people exchanged glances frantically, but all they got in return was confusion.

Some people even secretly thought that they might as well do horse stance.

Pei Yuan was very pleased to see that his men were so capable.

These hundreds of people have really seen blood!
These people have killed the elites of the Northern Pacification Division! They have killed the gangsters who came to assassinate them! They have also killed all of the Tiger Guards!

Others may not know about this matter, but the garrisons along the way should understand its importance.

And not to mention all these empty things, he has infantry, muskets, cannons, and wizards, so he may not be at a disadvantage against a lineup of pure knights.

When Zhou Chao came over, there was indeed a smile on his face.

When he saw the Portuguese cannon flashing inadvertently not far from Captain Pei, Captain Zhou Chao of Huai'an Guard smiled even more brightly.

He looked to be in his thirties, with a strong build. Although he was not wearing armor, he seemed to be the most dangerous one among the group of fully armed cavalrymen.

Pei Yuan knew that he had been a little too arrogant just now, so he took the initiative to say with a smile, "I, Pei Yuan, originally wanted to visit him in person, so I asked Cui Bohou to ask Brother Zhou what he thought. I didn't expect that Brother Zhou would come in person."

Then he glared at Cui Bohou and asked, "How do you do things?"

Cui Bohou hesitated, lowered his head and said nothing.

Zhou Chao smiled and waved his hands, "It has nothing to do with the subordinates. It's mainly because I have heard of Captain Pei's reputation for a long time and have always wanted to meet him. That's why I couldn't help it and came here on my own."

Pei Yuan saw that Zhou Chao spoke politely and knew that everyone was a sensible person.

The Jinyiwei is also a garrison. In the military, where strength is important, since everyone has strength, any issues should be discussed properly.

Pei Yuan thought about it, and simply went straight to the point and asked bluntly, "This time, the Jinyiwei escorted the commercial taxes to the north. Although there was an order from the superiors to borrow soldiers from the guards along the way, I have always been conscientious in doing my duty and only recruited people from various government offices. I don't remember asking the Huai'an Guard for escort, right?"

The Huai'an Guards followed the tax escort team along the way with cavalry, which seemed to be an active display of courtesy, but such an action was actually a highly sensitive matter.

It would be fine if Huai'an Wei was still the loser as before, but the power that Huai'an Wei could demonstrate at this moment was enough to make Pei Yuansheng alert.

When Zhou Chao saw Pei Yuan talking directly about the business, his eyes flickered, as if he was judging the appropriateness of his words.

After a pause, he laughed and said, "Since the brothers of Jinyiwei want to stay with us, we, the people of Huai'anwei, must of course entertain them well. This is the tax silver of the court. If something really happens, how will the commander explain to the court?"

"Besides, we in Huai'an have a good reputation for getting things done for money."

"After the matter was settled yesterday, our Commander He asked me to come out and do this mission."

The smile on Pei Yuan's face slowly faded.

Once this cavalry moves, the daily horse fodder alone will not be enough to cover the cost of those few taels of silver.

Even though the two sides could not have a close relationship, the Zhou Dynasty was going too far by deceiving him like this.

Pei Yuan looked at Zhou Chao and saw that he was still smiling. He turned around and said, "Where is Chen Toutie? Come here!"

Chen Toutie hurried forward.

Pei Yuan asked, "Where is the official document?"

Chen Touti replied, "I have been keeping it all along."

Pei Yuan then asked Cui Bohou, "Besides Huai'an Guard and Dahe Guard, which one is the closest to here?"

Cui Bohou heard this and replied, "It is the Pizhou Guard."

Pei Yuan frowned slightly. Pizhou was located in the north of Suqian, and was a prefecture in the north of Huai'an Prefecture. Even if they had not yet faced the enemy directly, the military pressure should be considerable.

Pei Yuan then slowly asked, "Apart from these commanders, are there any other troops?"

Cui Bohou thought for a moment and replied, "There are also the Haizhou Guarding Thousand Households for coastal defense and preparing for the Japanese invasion, the Donghai Guarding Thousand Households, and the Yancheng Guarding Thousand Households for protecting the salt."

Pei Yuan stopped listening and said directly, "These are fine. Please write to these three places for me and ask them to immediately dispatch elite soldiers to protect the tax. Then send a report on the relevant arrangements to the Nanjing Military Department."

Chen Toutie responded, and Zhou Chao, who was listening, changed his expression and quickly stopped him, "Brother Pei, what are you doing? Don't you trust our Huai'an Guard?"

Pei Yuan sneered and didn't answer.

Zhou Chao thought about it and realized that he had to give Pei Yuan a tip to prevent him from becoming suspicious.

He looked back and said to the military officers who followed him, "You guys leave." Seeing that Pei Yuan was unmoved, Zhou Chao smiled innocently and said, "Let's chat in private and make friends."

Pei Yuan's pretentious behavior just now was originally intended to force out Huai'an Wei's true purpose.

The Xihai Suo and Donghai Suo are farther away than Pizhou Wei. The Yancheng Guarding Thousand Households Suo is involved in Huai Salt, so it is impossible for you to mobilize them just by holding a chicken feather as a token of authority.

Pei Yuan also turned around and ordered, "You guys leave first. I'll make friends with Captain Zhou."

Upon hearing this, Chen Toutie and others retreated a few feet and looked at the personal soldiers brought by Zhou Chao from a distance.

After his subordinates were far away, Zhou Chao said with a smile on his face, "Brother, Commander He told me a few words before I came here. Captain Pei, please don't make things difficult for me. After I tell the higher-ups, we can have a heart-to-heart talk. How about that?"

It's not a bad thing to know more about the other party. Pei Yuan didn't care about it and said directly, "Please speak."

Zhou Chao smiled and said, "Brother Pei is very nice."

Then he asked, "Commander He wants me to ask, how long does Qian Hu plan to stay in Huai'an?"

Pei Yuan hesitated for a moment.

His original plan was to stay in Huai'an and wait and see until the situation in the north changed.

There were rebels from Bazhou lurking in the north, roaming around from time to time, so Pei Yuan's actions would not only not be blamed, but would be considered as reasonable.

But after what happened today, Pei Yuan has become wary of Huai'an's sanitation.

No matter what their purpose is, as long as the target is himself, it is enough for Pei Yuan to regard them as a potential threat.

Pei Yuan thought about it and gave a vague answer, "At least one or two days, at most three or four days."

Zhou Chao laughed and said, "Captain Pei, please don't bully me. If it's only three or four days, the post station outside the city can handle it. Why do we need to find another sturdy and safe place to live?"

Pei Yuan did not explain, and said calmly, "Or, today we can pass Huai'an without entering, go to Andong and Haizhou in the east, and take that route to Shandong."

Zhou Chao's face froze, and he said awkwardly, "Captain Pei, don't joke."

He explained first, "I am just conveying the commander's intention. I will give Captain Pei an explanation later."

He added, "Then let's count it as four days. Commander He means that if Captain Pei is willing to stay in Huai'an temporarily, then the Huai'an Guards can charge him nothing for the first four days..."

Pei Yuan couldn't help but laugh when he heard this, "We, the Evil Suppression Thousand Households Office, can afford these few taels of silver."

Zhou Chao smiled innocently again and continued, "Starting from the fourth day, if Captain Pei stays one more day, we in Huai'an will give him fifty taels of silver."

The smile on Pei Yuan's face disappeared, and his heart skipped a beat.

Pei Yuan looked at Zhou Chao's silly face and asked seriously, "What do you mean?"

Zhou Chao replied, "That's what Commander He said."

Pei Yuan's expression looked a little ugly.

He didn't come with a large army. Staying in Huai'an could give them courage. They only have so many people. Is He Huan, the commander of Huai'an Guard, crazy?

And I have to give him fifty taels for every extra day he stays?
and so.

Their purpose could only be for the 80,000 taels of silver!

Pei Yuan had seen the blatant conspiracy. He immediately turned around and shouted to Cui Bohou, "Captain Cui, turn the convoy around immediately and head east."

"Strike your bows and draw your swords. I want to see who dares to take the imperial tax money!"

Zhou Chao hurriedly stopped him and said, "Don't worry, brother, we haven't had a heart-to-heart talk yet!"

"Confession?" Pei Yuan sneered, "Commander He, you underestimated me, Pei Yuan."

Zhou Chao quickly said, "That's absolutely not the case."

Then, as if he was afraid that Pei Yuan would immediately turn hostile, he hurriedly said, "I wonder if Captain Pei has noticed the movements of the Bazhou rebels?"

"Hmm?" Pei Yuan's heart skipped a beat and he asked, "What do you mean?"

Seeing Pei Yuan's questioning, Zhou Chao finally took a breath and continued, "I don't know what the rebels in Bazhou were bewitched by, and they are determined not to go south. But how can a small arm twist a big thigh? The imperial court's army to suppress the rebellion is not a pushover."

"According to our Commander He's judgment, those bandits will eventually give up and fall into Lu Wan's trap and head south."

Pei Yuan listened and asked calmly, "What does this have to do with me?"

Zhou Chao said with a smile, "Originally it didn't matter, but the day before yesterday, when your subordinates came to our Huai'an Guard, the relationship became established. When our Commander He heard about the inside story, he immediately came up with a good plan that kills three birds with one stone."

Pei Yuan was puzzled but continued to listen to Zhou Chao without showing any expression.

Then Zhou Chao said, "The rebels in Bazhou are wreaking havoc in the north. It would be inconvenient for Qian Hu to escort such a heavy thing as the silver carriage to the north. Staying in Huai'an and avoiding the attack for a while is what a wise man would do."

"Besides..." Zhou Chao's voice lowered.

Pei Yuan knew that Zhou Chao was about to talk about something important, so he frowned, but still kicked his horse slightly and moved closer.

Zhou Chao then whispered to Pei Yuan, "Besides, what if the rebels from Bazhou reach Huai'an?"

Without waiting for Pei Yuan to answer, Zhou Chao smiled and said, "Of course, we should use our Huai'an Guard and Dahe Guard to resist the enemy."

"But last winter, the prefect of Huai'an attacked without authorization, causing serious losses to our two guards. There were also a large number of casualties that we cannot provide compensation for. Weapons and armor have been worn out and have not yet been replenished. How can you expect the soldiers to fight to the death to protect such an important town as Huai'an with empty words?"

Pei Yuan's face changed drastically.

He had already guessed what Zhou Chao would say next.

Zhou Chao said slowly, "It just so happens that the tax silver that Captain Pei escorted to the court is in Huai'an. This is the court's money. Instead of waiting for the city to be robbed by the Bazhou bandits after it is captured, why not use it to reward the Huai'an Guards and Dahe Guards nearby to boost their morale?"

"Then the city can be saved and the thieves can be driven back. Captain Pei won't have to travel thousands of miles to escort the silver to the capital. In this way, isn't it killing three birds with one stone?"

Pei Yuan was furious when he heard this, "How dare you! This is the tax money from the imperial court. The emperor has specified that it should be sent to the inner transport warehouse. How dare you covet this money? Are you, the Huai'an Guard and the Dahe Guard, planning a rebellion?"

Zhou Chao waved his hands and denied it, "Don't say that! We don't deserve it! We are soldiers of the imperial court and officials of the imperial court. Why would we rebel?"

First he denied Pei Yuan's accusation, then Zhou Chao said.

"When the time comes, the two guard commanders will naturally write to the court to ask for the money. So, our Commander He means that we hope Captain Pei can help others and stay in Huai'an for a few more days, waiting for the Bazhou rebels to move south..."

Zhou Chao did not say the rest of the words, but punched his palm and said with a smile, "Isn't that all?"

Thanks to Ranshuang Qingfeng official for the reward, thanks to Xianyun Yege for the reward, thank you for your support!

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(End of this chapter)

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