Without money, what is the point of being a traitor?

Chapter 240 Heading North
The more Lu Ting thought about it, the more he felt that this was the case.

With Xiao Yan, Xiao Tong and Gu Dayong as witnesses, maybe he could still explain the past.

Lu Ting said, "Well, I have the duty of supervising military affairs. Since Commander Xu has come to the front of the army, he will naturally be under my control."

"Although Gu Dayong was dismissed by the court, he did some hard work after all. For both public and private reasons, our family should send him back to Beijing safely."

Then, Lu Ting turned to Xu Feng and said, "Commander Xu, how many people did you bring?"

When Xu Feng heard that he was going to escort Gu Dayong back to Beijing, he couldn't see the seriousness of the matter for a moment.

But at least I can leave here and go to the capital, which is not a bad thing.

Xu Feng did not resist this and answered directly, "This time I came here, I only brought more than 20 personal guards."

Lu Ting thought for a moment, and then said to Xiao Yan, "Eunuch Xiao entrusted you and your son to our family, but we have never given you a suitable opportunity to exercise. This time, you will be in charge of escorting Eunuch Gu. If you need to mobilize troops, just inform the Right Censor-in-Chief. When you and your son come back, I will promote you each to a higher level."

Xiao Yan was surprised when he heard this.

In this case, doesn't it mean that I have to go to the capital with Pei Yuan?
This Pei Yuan...

Xiao Yan was just hesitating when he heard Lu Ting say to him, "There is a reason why you and your son were allowed to go."

"Although Eunuch Gu was stripped of his power, our family has not treated him badly. This time we sent someone to escort him back to the capital purely out of our family's kindness."

"It's just that some things are easier said than done, and our family has some concerns."

"It would be great if you could bear witness to it."

After hearing this, Xiao Yan thought it was normal.

In a sense, he could understand Lu Ting's current difficulties.

Ever since Gu Dayong was stripped of his power, he has been sticking around like a dog-skin plaster.

Given Lu Ting's current situation, he couldn't hit or scold Gu Dayong, and he also had to worry about Gu Dayong getting into trouble by accident.

We are now in a period of contraction in the war. The transportation of food and fodder needs to be replanned, the troops need to be relocated, and the small group of Bazhou troops that fled into Shandong also need to be hunted down.

The absence of large-scale battles also means that there will be no military benefits. If I could take the opportunity to return to the capital and meet with Eunuch Xiao, it would not be a bad thing.

Xiao Yan hesitated for a moment and looked at Pei Yuan.

"Eunuch Lu, this man is in a suspicious place. Is it appropriate for him to accompany us?"

Lu Ting frowned and scolded, "What do you mean by being in a suspicious position? Hasn't it been made clear that it was Xu Feng who made a false accusation?"

"It's just that this matter is not convenient for me to take charge, so I let Xu Feng go to the capital to defend himself. Captain Pei went with him, which also implies supervision."

Xiao Yan was speechless for a while.

The defendant supervised the plaintiff and went to the Ministry of War to report and appeal. What kind of devilish operation is this?
Pei Yuan looked at Xiao Yan with a smile and cupped his hands, "Thank you for your care along the way, Captain Xiao."

In front of Lu Ting, Xiao Yan also forced a friendly smile and said, "I dare not. Escorting Eunuch Gu is not a small matter. I hope we can work together."

Pei Yuan had basically explained everything he wanted to tell Lu Ting, and he had no intention of staying any longer.

He said to Lu Ting, "I will go back and pack my things, and then go to the City God Temple in the afternoon to escort Eunuch Gu out of the city."

Lu Ting said, "Go ahead. I'll have Xiao Yan and the others rush over to meet you in time."

He glanced at Xu Feng sharply again, "Commander Xu, please don't make the mistake."

Xu Feng already knew that going to the capital was his last resort, so he could only grit his teeth and say, "I dare not do that. I will definitely go to the Ministry of War and the Five Military Commanders' Office to argue with them about who is right and who is wrong."

Pei Yuan smiled at Xu Feng, then turned and left calmly.

Haha, colluding with thieves?

By the time Xu Feng arrived at the Ministry of War, the merit of Wang Chang's troops killing the bandit leader Qi Yanming had already been reported.

At that time, Xu Feng would not only have to explain to the court the possibility of tens of thousands of Bazhou troops running back and forth for two days for 17,000 taels of silver, but also how Wang Chang had an affair with the Bazhou army and killed Qi Yanming.

correct.

It couldn't be 17,000 taels of silver. After all, according to Xu Feng, Wang Chang was planning to make a quick buck and go home to enjoy life.

If Wang Chang took the lion's share, then even if he bribed the Bazhou army, it would only cost seven or eight thousand taels of silver.

You want the Bazhou Army to act with you for such a small amount of money?

Are you kidding me?
When the time comes, let this Hangzhou vanguard commander experience the dangers of society.

When Pei Yuan returned to his lodging, the Imperial Guards and those martial arts masters were neatly folding and drying clothes and packing their luggage.

Jiao Yan'er also asked people to buy some supplies for the journey.

Pei Yuan thought about the guy Gu Dayong who was following them, so he took out some silver and asked someone to buy another one.

He also asked Chen Toutie to find some sturdy and warm carriages.

Pei Yuan saw Hou Qing who was busy and waved to him.

Hou Qing came over quickly.

Pei Yuan said to him, "Take a few people with you and go outside to find some strong workers to push the carts. Tell them clearly that this is a long-distance job to the capital, and try to choose those who have no worries. Three or five people are not too few, and thirty or fifty people are not too many. Provide meals every day, and give daily bonuses."

Pei Yuan now has limited force at his disposal and can only use it wisely.

There are now many people in Xuzhou City whose families have been ruined, and there are also the elderly, the weak, women and children who have unfortunately suffered from the war.

Those miscellaneous tasks of transporting supplies can be done by hired laborers.

When everything was settled, Hou Qing hurried back with a group of people.

Pei Yuan took a look and found that they generally met his requirements, with about forty or fifty people.

So he threw a piece of silver to Hou Qing and asked him to take people out for dinner.

The Jinyiwei had also packed their luggage.

Although they had fewer people this time, they made sufficient supplies in Huai'an before setting off.

Pei Yuan suffered enough from insufficient armor last time.

This time, not only did everyone prepare cotton armor and cover armor, but they also loaded several carts with usable long weapons and large shields.

If they really encounter bandits, these less than twenty personal soldiers, fully armed, are enough to scare away hundreds of bandits.

Chen Toutie also found three carriages with good warmth retention.

Pei Yuan compared them and felt that it was not as good as the one Jiao Yaner was riding now, so he did not change it.

One of the cars would be prepared for Gu Dayong, one would be used by Pei Yuan for his own rest, and the other could be used for the three general flag bearers who worked like slaves to take turns to rest.

After everything was arranged and everyone had their meal, Pei Yuan led the huge team to the City God Temple.

When he arrived at the place, Pei Yuan found that Xiao Yan had already arrived early.

He and his son Xiao Tong were waiting impatiently outside the City God Temple.

Pei Yuan casually bowed as a greeting.

He looked at Xiao Tong again.

Xiao Tong, who had been extremely arrogant, subconsciously dodged when he saw Pei Yuan looking at him.

Pei Yuan smiled and said, not bad.

If Pei Yuan really meets someone with a bad brain, he will also feel a headache.

Xiao Yan also noticed the interaction between the two.

Seeing Xiao Tong avoiding Pei Yuan's gaze, his face immediately turned gloomy.

When Xiao Yan saw Pei Yuan's vague smile again, he immediately judged it as a provocation.

But he also knew the seriousness of the matter and understood that he would not be able to touch Pei Yuan in the city of Xuzhou.

Even a blind person could see the tacit understanding between Lu Ting and Pei Yuan. But when they arrived in the capital, or on the way...

Xiao Yan thought about it and his expression gradually calmed down.

He looked back and saw that behind him were five hundred fully armed soldiers, and nearly five hundred auxiliary soldiers responsible for transporting supplies.

Xiao Yan requested these soldiers from Xuzhou Guard, but he did not use people from Xuzhou Guard as the commander-in-chief. Instead, he chose Xu Feng, the commander of the Hangzhou vanguard.

This Xu Feng is the commander of a guard, and he has more than 20 selected servants around him who can serve as the backbone.

With a little adjustment, Xiao Yan was confident that he could firmly grasp these soldiers of Xuzhou Guard and make them stand on their side.

Xu Feng is now trying his best to get closer to him, and when the situation becomes clear, Xiao Yan doesn't mind killing Pei Yuan directly.

Perhaps because they saw Pei Yuan and Xiao Yan greeting each other, the soldiers guarding the City God Temple did not dare to stop Pei Yuan and allowed him to enter.

After Pei Yuan entered, he saw a young eunuch looking out with a panicked look on his face.

Pei Yuan immediately remembered.

Isn’t this Wu Qing who is going to be adopted as Gu Dayong’s godson?

He hurriedly asked, "Where is the father-in-law?"

The young eunuch named Wu Qing was overjoyed to see Pei Yuan, "You are Captain Pei! The eunuch is waiting for you at the back of the palace. I will take you to see him!"

Pei Yuan nodded and followed Wu Qing back.

Deep in the hall, you can see a clay sculpture of the City God, and behind the sculpture is a small door.

Open the small door and there is a small room inside.

There were two oil lamps lit, surrounded by servants, and hiding among the crowd was the trembling Gu Dayong.

Pei Yuan quickly separated from the crowd and stepped forward, "I am Pei Yuan, and I am honored to meet you, Eunuch Gu!"

When Gu Dayong saw Pei Yuan, he came up and grabbed Pei Yuan's hand as if he had seen a savior.

"Pei Yuan, you're finally back."

Without waiting for Pei Yuan to reply, he asked again, "Have you seen those menacing soldiers outside?"

Pei Yuan thought back to the soldiers he had just seen.

Fierce? Is it?
Although those soldiers were tanned and looked strong, they did not have that kind of murderous aura that made people feel uncomfortable.

The Jinyiwei that Pei Yuan led were always hunting down and suppressing underworld forces, and they had seen blood from every fight.

In the past period of time, there were fierce battles one after another, and many troops from various factions were defeated.

The soldiers led by Xiao Yan looked very peaceful.

Pei Yuan had some guesses in his mind, maybe they were the shipbuilding technical soldiers from Xuzhou Guard or Xuzhou Left Guard.

This is a treasure.

If Pei Yuan wanted to make a difference on the Grand Canal, he would have to deal with these garrison soldiers who were in charge of the canal business.

Pei Yuan replied, "I have seen them. They should be soldiers from Xuzhou Guard or Xuzhou Left Guard."

Seeing that Pei Yuan still didn't understand, Gu Dayong said, "These people have been surrounding the City God Temple since a while ago. Are they targeting our family?"

Pei Yuan smiled when he heard this, "Don't worry, eunuch. These are the soldiers sent by Eunuch Lu to escort you to the capital. And those soldiers look relatively peaceful and will not harass you for no reason."

Gu Dayong, however, looked like he didn't understand and sighed, "If they were Lu Ting's men, I wouldn't worry about anything. He's a smart man and should understand the meaning of my life. But I recognize the leader. He's Xiao Jing's nephew."

Pei Yuan was stunned when he heard this.

He did not explain what happened before, but asked tentatively, "Oh? Father-in-law is very familiar with Xiao Jing? Do you even recognize his nephew?"

Gu Dayong said, "I've seen him a few times. He's always worried. Not to mention his nephew, most of these guys who rely on their family's sudden wealth do things without thinking about the consequences. I'm afraid he's not very smart."

Pei Yuan thought that it was good enough that he had met him before. He could ask some questions along the way to get to know his enemy better.

As for Xiao Yan, Pei Yuan was still confident that he could hold him down.

Pei Yuan smiled and explained, "Don't worry, Eunuch. This is someone Eunuch Lu specially assigned to escort you."

"Eunuch, think about it, Eunuch Xiao only has this nephew and this nephew, both of whom are in our team. As long as someone dares to attack us, no matter who his target is, he will definitely attract the wrath of Eunuch Xiao."

"Similarly, if you assassinate Eunuch Gu, you will be suspected of plotting against Eunuch Lu, and Eunuch Lu will not let it go."

"Add to that Eunuch Gu's favor with the Emperor, and we'll be much safer on this journey."

Gu Dayong had been a little suspicious because of Pei Yuan's torment, and only after hearing what Pei Yuan said did he reluctantly breathe a sigh of relief.

He held Pei Yuan's hand with emotion.

"Luckily you are here, otherwise I don't know how many people would miss our family."

Pei Yuan smiled and looked around, and saw that the servants were all carrying their luggage, looking like they were ready to run away at any time.

So he asked someone to come in and help carry the luggage.

Even though Gu Dayong looked down and out at the moment, he still had a lot of things with him.

Pei Yuan saw the porters grunting as they carried the boxes out and had a rough idea in his mind.

Most likely, it was the wealth accumulated by Gu Dayong during his years away from home.

Things like fighting...

If the bandits in Bazhou attacked the town, looted property, and then were seized by government troops, who would these things belong to?
If one were to be more ruthless and drive the bandits directly into the town, one might be able to gain more.

Gu Dayong has been suppressing bandits for more than a year. If his hands were clean, how could the soldiers under him feel at ease?

If the governor doesn't take it, how can the general take it?

If the general doesn't take it, how can the people under him take it?
Besides, Gu Dayong is not a good person either.

Pei Yuan ignored all this and watched the porters load Gu Dayong's luggage into the car.

In order to avoid suspicion, he specially asked the young eunuch named Wu Qing to watch and have each box sealed.

Gu Dayong was accompanied by three young eunuchs and a dozen servants.

Pei Yuan settled everyone down before inviting Gu Dayong out of the hall.

Xiao Yan obviously understood that Gu Dayong had completely lost his power, but he also knew that he had to put on an act in front of others, so he dismounted politely and met Gu Dayong.

Gu Dayong doesn't have a good impression of Xiao Jing.

In fact, those people around Zhu Houzhao did not have a very good relationship with the eunuchs in the palace.

Pei Yuan escorted Gu Dayong to the carriage behind.

Only then did he order the troops to set out.

As a guard, Xiao Yan was not particularly active. He led the troops and took care of the team in a disjointed manner.

Fortunately, Pei Yuan didn't care too much about this.

In order to make a good impression on Gu Dayong, Pei Yuan rode his horse dutifully to lead the way.

He even went over to take a look at Xu Feng.

When Xu Feng saw Pei Yuan, he glared at him fiercely. Seeing Xu Feng's reaction, Pei Yuan nodded and smiled with satisfaction.

Very good, I like your rebellious look.

keep it up.

Without this guy going to file a complaint, it would be difficult to deliver the information to the Minister of War.

(End of this chapter)