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

Chapter 295: Blessings and Misfortunes are the Foundations, Misfortunes and Blessings are the Foundations

Captain Pei didn't realize that the pie he had painted had a negative effect, so he talked for a long time before preparing to leave with a feeling of unsatisfied desire.

Cheng Leixiang is going to the Ministry of War to go through the procedures.

After returning, we will also select some Xuzhou soldiers to take to Tianjin.

Cheng Leixiang had been with Pei Yuan for a long time and they had a very close relationship. Pei Yuan also relied on him a lot, so he sent someone back to get three thousand taels of silver to facilitate his work.

Cheng Leixiang quickly persuaded him, "Captain, there is no need to do this. The Ministry of War is run by Governor Xiao. Not to mention his face, there is also Eunuch Xiao Jing behind him. Who dares to embarrass me?"

"As for Tianjin, I have so many brothers waiting for promotion, and I had no intention of getting along with them."

Pei Yuan was very satisfied when he saw Cheng Leixiang's high spirits. "Okay, do a good job when you get there. Tianjin is close, so whether you need people or money, as long as you find me, I will definitely take care of it."

Pei Yuan then said to Tan Tai Fang Tu and Si Kong Sui, "When Cheng Lei Xiang goes to Tianjin, some vacancies will be allocated to the Xuzhou soldiers. News has come from Nanjing, and they will send a list later."

"For the more than 600 Xuzhou soldiers, I plan to give 100 to Cheng Leixiang and Ding Hong each, and let them seize their own guards as soon as possible. For the remaining more than 400 people, Han Qianhu will give 200 vacancies, and Tianjin Guard and Xuzhou Zuowei will each provide 100 vacancies."

"There's no need to mention our own 200 vacancies, we can just fill them in directly. The 200 vacancies in Tianjin Guard and Xuzhou Left Guard will be considered seconded after they are filled in. Although the number is not eye-catching, we should try not to move them lightly."

Sikong Sui calculated after hearing this and said, "The Qianhu Division in Beijing already has more than a hundred Jinyiwei serving as the Zhenji Taoist priests. Tantai Fangtu and I each brought a Baihu Division, plus the additional 200 people, so there are 500 people in total."

"These manpower are enough for us to launch a small-scale operation. The two hundred Xuzhou soldiers who filled the vacancies in Tianjin Guard and Xuzhou Left Guard can stay in Zhihua Temple. On the one hand, they can be mobilized flexibly, and on the other hand, they can also support our appearance here."

Pei Yuan was very satisfied after hearing this. He thought for a moment and added, "Don't move the more than one hundred Taoist priests. They have been operating here for many years, and it is not easy for them to maintain the existence of Qianhu Suo. I believe they have also handled their relationships with the upper and lower levels well. This is also the basic source of income for Qianhu Suo at present."

"We support so many people. Do we still need to rely on funding from Nanjing? We have to spend money anyway. Those people..."

Pei Yuan originally wanted to ask the local snake Yun Weilin to help with the integration, but thinking about that guy's history of sitting on the fence, he temporarily changed his mind, "You can tell those people to Song Zongqi later. Find someone who is familiar with the affairs and take Song Zongqi to go through it again."

This part of the affairs is not too complicated. All I have to do every day is to take a few Jinyiwei with me to collect the money in a show of force. Going to three houses a day is not too tiring.

Sikong Sui agreed after hearing this.

Pei Yuan added, "Don't disband the original 100 households of you and Tan Tai Fang Tu. Focus your efforts on the big things first. Later, we will slowly take back the supervision rights of those temples and then appoint unified people. By then, we should also calm down."

Sikong Sui nodded, "The thousand households have considered Zhou Xiang."

Pei Yuan looked at Chen Toutie and said, "I'll leave the two hundred newly recruited soldiers from Xuzhou to you for now. You have been with them all the way north, and you can be considered to have shared life and death together. They all recognize you and are willing to listen to your instructions."

Chen Toutie was overjoyed when he heard this and immediately agreed.

Upon hearing this, Sikong Sui and Tantai Fangtu both looked unhappy.

After all, they were only two centurions, each with only a hundred or so men under their command.

Chen Toutie, with only a general flag, had two hundred additional Jinyiwei soldiers under his command.

Moreover, the two hundred Jinyiwei recruited by Chen Toutie had experienced the Battle of Yanggu and had a very strong fighting will.

In addition, these people were selected from the Shipbuilding Institute, and each of them is very strong. It can be said that with just a little training, their combat effectiveness will be terrifying.

The centurions under Sikong Sui and Tantai Fangtu are mainly responsible for carrying out Jianghu missions.

If we talk about people with broad knowledge, sufficient experience in the martial arts world, and strong ability in single combat, they are naturally among the best.

But if it's one hundred against one hundred, or two hundred against two hundred, it's a completely different situation.

Chen Toutie has such an army in the capital, which is enough to behead him.

Unfortunately, Pei Yuan made it clear that Chen Toutie had followed all the way and had many dealings with the Xuzhou guards. There was no reason to change him at this time.

Sikong Sui and Tan Tai Fangtu were unhappy and said nothing. They knew in their hearts that it was not as it seemed.

The two of them failed to follow Pei Yuan north, and as a result, they missed an important life-and-death test and the opportunity to choose sides.

Now that there are benefits, naturally people like Cheng Leixiang and Chen Toutie want to eat their fill first.

Pei Yuan seemed not to notice Sikong Sui and Tan Tai Fang Tu's reactions, and said to Hou Qing, "You also made great contributions in the battle of Yanggu. Today, I will give you a general flag."

"You are still responsible for being the leader of my personal guards."

"You will be in charge of the two hundred Xuzhou soldiers who filled the vacancies of Tianjin Guard and Xuzhou Left Guard. Their main responsibility is to guard Zhihua Temple. If other places encounter trouble, they can also provide mobile support."

Hou Qing was overjoyed when he heard this and hurried to express his gratitude.

Pei Yuan roughly finished the assignment and said to Chen Toutie, Sikong Sui and Tantai Fangtu, "You can look for a few temples in the next few days. Then, follow the model of Zhihua Temple and stay there first. We must have a foothold in Beijing."

Pei Yuan looked at Sikong Sui and said, "You can find a temple in Daxing and establish the Daxing Hundred Households Office."

Then he said to Tan Tai Fang Tu, "You can find a temple in Wanping and establish the Wanping Hundred Households Office."

Both of them looked at Chen Toutie again, wondering how Pei Yuan was going to arrange for Chen Toutie.

The city of Beijing is divided by Bei'anmen Street and Qipan Street. The west is under the jurisdiction of Wanping County and the east is under the jurisdiction of Daxing County.

Pei Yuan said to Chen Toutie, "There is a Puxian Temple not far from my home. It is a temple that has existed since the Yuan Dynasty. I think there is enough space there. You and your two hundred men can set up camp in Puxian Temple."

"Anyway, the court has no regulations that prohibit placing 200 spies in one temple. Your men are all recruited from the Imperial Guards, so they are legitimate. Don't worry."

Chen Toutie naturally agreed and said, "Then I will go and talk to Puxianyuan about this matter today."

Pei Yuan waved his hand and said, "Don't worry, wait until the list from Nanjing arrives."

After arranging all the affairs, Pei Yuan didn't want to stay any longer, so he took Yun Buxian and a few personal guards back with him.

Chen Toutie hadn't gotten the Nanjing list yet, so it was difficult to take the first step, so he followed along.

On the way back, Captain Pei, who was already rich, generously took his entourage to a restaurant to drink.

Captain Pei's generosity drew enthusiastic responses from his subordinates.

Of course, it would have been even more perfect if the two creditors hadn’t met by chance.

After paying off two old bad debts, Pei Yuan looked at the table full of wine and meat and couldn't help but think of the days when he had to eat for free when he was down and out.

Then my thoughts wandered and I thought about the “wandering half life” I had experienced outside the Da Ci’en Temple.

Thinking of this, Pei Yuan couldn't help but hesitate.

Zhang Cong is an extraordinary person. I need him right now. Is there any need to waste such a talent?

Although it was tempting to use Zhang Cong, the prime minister, as a backup, when Pei Yuan had this idea, he was still a poor guy with a lot of messy debts.

From today's perspective, if I still have to rely on Zhang Cong to guarantee a backup ten years later, wouldn't that be a complete failure?
Besides, if you really want to have a backup plan, don’t you still have your good brother-in-law Yan Song?

Yan Shifan will be born next year. With the nephew's talent, as long as he is well trained and does not take the wrong path in his life, his future will be limitless. Pei Yuan immediately had the idea of ​​mobilizing Zhang Cong in advance.

But when Pei Yuan thought of Zhang Cong's personality, he felt that the situation was a bit tricky.

According to the evaluation of the History of Ming Dynasty, although Zhang Cong was regarded as a treacherous minister who flattered the emperor, he was "strong, wise and courageous, and did not avoid suspicion and resentment. He was extremely honest and hated corrupt officials. He wanted to break up the private party of other officials, and he became the leader of the party first."

In Pei Yuan's opinion, every word he said was not a good one.

"Firm, wise and resolute" means having a strong character and the possibility of rebellion.

"Not avoiding suspicion and resentment" means that one's stance is not firm, one cannot clearly distinguish between friends and foes, and one cannot decisively form a group based on where one sits.

"Hate corrupt officials", emmm...

"In order to break up the private clique of other officials, he must first become the leader of the clique." This person also has the risk of becoming a traitor and seizing power.

Pei Yuan thought about it and sighed, ultimately he had no choice.

It seems that I can only wait until I get it and then polish it carefully.

Pei Yuan opened the map and located it, only to find that "Bansheng Piaoling" had already fled to Suzhou.

Sometimes in Yangzhou, sometimes in Suzhou.

Pei Yuan shook his head in hatred for his lack of resistance.

If you don't do your work every day, you might as well go home and do some math problems.

Seeing Chen Toutie sitting there, Pei Yuan waved to him.

Chen Toutie came over, and Pei Yuan said to him, "Write a letter to Suzhou prefect Zhai De'an, asking him to find a scholar named Zhang Cong who is studying in Suzhou, and then no matter what means, you must get him back to Beijing as soon as possible."

Chen Toutie nodded upon hearing this, "I will send it out through Jinyiwei's channels tomorrow."

Pei Yuan reminded him again, "Don't forget to add a sentence, asking him to come to Da Ci'en Temple to find me."

"Okay." Chen Toutie said, then returned to his side.

Pei Yuan suddenly realized something at this moment. Since he had met Zhang Cong in the Da Ci'en Temple, why not try his luck again?
Because the emperor of the time praised it highly, the Da Ci'en Temple attracted many officials and their families to worship it.

Many officials and wealthy ladies would also socialize by burning incense.

This was also the reason why when Pei Yuan went to Da Ci'en Temple to wait for Cheng Leixiang, he found that many unsuccessful scholars came to see those ladies from prominent families.

I believe everyone can understand and resonate with this kind of behavior.

same.

For those officials' families, their daughters will always get married, so who is the best marriage partner for them?

Aren’t these the future Jinshi?
Therefore, the high-end hunters and high-end prey began to bargain and pull each other under the pretext of paying homage to the Da Ci'en Temple.

After the Xinwei examination last year, the rebels from Bazhou happened to enter Shandong and blocked the way to the south.

Then the Bazhou army launched a series of fierce battles in Shandong and Huaibei areas.

After finally defeating the main force of the Bazhou rebels, the defeated soldiers of "Big Tiger" and "Starry Sky" attacked Shandong again.

It can be said that apart from Zhang Cong who escaped in time, there were many other candidates who were stuck in the capital.

Taoism has a saying, "Good fortune is where disasters lie, and disasters are where good fortunes lie."

The special examination was used to directly select Jinshi (Jinshi). Once the special examination was held, these poor candidates stranded in the capital were basically refreshed on the spot and immediately became the biggest beneficiaries.

There are a lot of other things, but without the pain of traveling all the way, I can maintain my physical condition and spirit very well.

They can also take the opportunity to make friends and inquire about the examiner's preferences to gain a head start.

Pei Yuan thought about it and couldn't help but clap his hands heavily.

Okay, okay, let’s go to Da Ci’en Temple tomorrow.

I'm going to go and see if there's any sensible talent available among those lechers who only care about looking at girls.

After eating and drinking, everyone returned to Pei Yuan's residence together.

A servant came up and took Pei Yuan, who was already about eight or nine points drunk, to the back house.

Chen Toutie, Yun Buxian and other close followers slept in the side rooms in the front yard.

Early the next morning, Pei Yuan finished packing and led his men to Da Ci'en Temple.

This time, Pei Yuan specially asked Yun Buxian to call Yun Weilin.

Firstly, it was to see Yun Weilin's reaction when he revisited his old place. Secondly, the Da Ci'en Temple was indeed too highly praised by the emperor, and the Dharma King there enjoyed the treatment of a vassal king. A guy like Yun Weilin, who had extensive connections, might come in handy.

Pei Yuan was looking for talents this time to see if there were any talented people who could be used, so everyone in the group wore casual clothes.

Seeing from afar the teahouse where he had eaten for free last time, Pei Yuan felt a bit like “Thirty years in the east, thirty years in the west”.

Pei Yuan only brought Yun Buxian and Yun Weilin into the tea shop.

He ordered several dishes in a row and reminded the Yun family father and son, "You are not allowed to pay the bill later. I'll pay!"

The father and son were puzzled, but they agreed anyway.

Pei Yuan looked around and saw that there were indeed quite a few people dressed as scholars in the shop.

However, their topic did not seem to be about which girl was more beautiful or more elegant. Some were discussing the meaning of scriptures, some were reciting novels, and some were arguing about something angrily.

Pei Yuan turned his head and asked Yun Buxian, "Are they usually like this?"

Yun Buxian said, "Yes. These candidates come from all over the world, and the communication and exchange between them broadens their horizons. At first, they were just interested in the beauty, but later they found it interesting to talk about current affairs and knowledge, so they gather here from time to time to broaden their horizons."

Pei Yuan shook his head and sighed, "These people are the candidates for the imperial examination."

The scholars wouldn't dare to do so, but the Jinshi candidates have been educated by society, and only these candidates are fearless.

Pei Yuan looked at the several adjacent teahouses filled with people and couldn't help but comment, "Just wait and see, these shops will be closed down sooner or later."

Yun Buxian was surprised, "Why does Qianhu say that?"

Pei Yuan said, "Key politics is much more dangerous than being naughty."

(End of this chapter)