Zhu Nao

Two days later, Zhu Nao and Xie Wuji arrived in Xuzhou and stayed in Xuzhou.

Except for the most distant Changle Mansion, almost all the princes who came to King Qin from all walks of life have arrived.People from all walks of life set up their camps, and at the same time they started to prepare for the battle—it’s been a while, the training and so on are secondary, and the most important thing is to inquire about the news.Especially the princes from the border areas who traveled long distances, they only heard about the news of the Central Plains before. Now that they are here, of course they must inquire about the actual situation in the Central Plains. Right what kind of enemy.

In addition to understanding the situation in the Central Plains, the investigation of other princes is also very important.Some people sent envoys to communicate openly, while others secretly sent spies to inquire about the news.More people are active on the surface and secretly at the same time

As for Zhu Nao and Xie Wuji, they each have their own channels and manpower to inquire about news.But when the news comes, they will also generously share it with each other.After all, the two of them are allies right now, and there is no conflict of interest, and there is no need to conceal information from each other.

After spending a few days, they had a general understanding of the current situation.

When Guo Jinli's rebel army entered Beijing, there were about 3 people. After entering Beijing for more than a year, they took in a lot of people, and now there are probably 5 to [-] people.This number sounds scary, but to Xie Wuji, it is just a number.In war, the number of people is not an important condition that affects the outcome.As far as he knew, the rebel army had never fought a real battle so far. Presumably there were no strong generals in the army, and the soldiers didn't know how to fight.

Moreover, Zhu Nao also found out that although the capital is full of food and the treasury has a lot of jewelry and jade, there are not many soldiers and armaments.The defenders of the capital also took a lot of weapons with them when they fled.A large number of soldiers in the rebel army should be unarmed.

In addition to the rebels, they are more concerned about the armies of other provinces.

Zhu Nao and Xie Wuji sat in the military tent, sharing the news they each inquired about.

Xie Wuji said: "Besides you, there are three other prefects who personally lead the army, namely Liu Song from Guangjin Mansion, Lu Guang from Henan Mansion, and Chu Long from Changsha Mansion." Fu Fu Yin did not go out of the mountain, but sent out his civil servants and generals to lead troops to participate in Qin Wang.

Zhu Nao nodded, expressing that the information Xie Wuji inquired about was the same as what he had inquired about.He said with a smile: "There are probably four families who are interested in King Qin—those three governors, and you, General Xie."These are also the ones with the largest number of soldiers.

Xie Wuji said, "There is another family, Jiangling Mansion."

Junao said, "Oh?"

Xie Wuji said: "Although the Jiangling Mansion only sent three thousand troops, these three thousand are elite soldiers. And Huang Dongxuan who brought the troops here should not be underestimated."

Jiangling Mansion is just to the east of Shu, and Zhu Nao has heard about Huang Dongxuan's deeds.It is said that Huang Dongxuan was originally a water thief in Jiangling.He gathered a group of teenagers, took a few light boats, and wandered along the river all year round, plundering the people on the river bank and the merchant ships crossing the river.Ever since the military power was devolved, the Jiangling Mansion also recruited soldiers, Huang Dongxuan took the initiative to defect to the government with hundreds of his men, and the Governor of Jiangling Mansion ignored the previous suspicions and appointed him as a military officer.

I heard that Huang Dongxuan is young, but he is very capable.Due to the well-developed water system in Jiangling Prefecture, water thieves are also very rampant.The government ordered Huang Dongxuan to eradicate the water thieves. It only took him one year to clean up the water thieves that the government had no clue about for many years, making the Jiangling waters peaceful.

Juno nodded.

Xie Wuji introduced the situation of the armies and the generals he knew, and asked Zhu Nao, "What else did you find out?"

Zhu Nao chuckled, took out an account book from his pocket, and handed it to Xie Wuji.

Xie Wuji stared at the account book in a daze, reached out to take it, and opened it to look through it.

No specific entry and exit items have been recorded in this account book, because Zhu Nao's business has not yet started.However, every prince who participated in King Qin is listed above, and beside their serial numbers, various types of goods are recorded.

Henan Mansion: Bingjia, food, medicinal herbs.

Guangjin Mansion: Bingjia, food, herbs, livestock.

Changle Mansion: Shu Brocade.

Lin'an Prefecture: Tea, Shu Brocade, Jade, Porcelain.

Jiangning Mansion: Shu Brocade, Tea, Bingjia...

……

Zhu Nao explained unhurriedly: "In the past few days, I have sent people to communicate with the various prefectures to sell them the goods I brought. This records the things that the various prefectures are interested in."

Xie Wuji: "..."

I didn't expect that Zhu Nao's business would go smoothly...

It can be seen from this account book that he and Jun Nao have completely different ideas of doing things.He ordered people to investigate the number of opponents, the generals leading the troops, and the appearance of the army.But Zhu Nao's focus is on the goods that the other party may buy.

However, this account book is not useless to Xie Wuji, on the contrary, it is very useful.

It is necessary to know that half of the success or failure of a war depends on whether the news is well-informed, and the other half is determined by the generals, the army, and the soldiers.For Xie Wuji, he is interested in any news, and sometimes some small things may decide the outcome of a big battle.But the more detailed and in-depth news, the harder it is for him to find out.He can quickly find out the number of the other party, but it is difficult for him to figure out what the other party is thinking.

Unexpectedly, through the way of doing business, Zhu Nao found out many details that he couldn't find out.

Through this list of goods that each government is interested in, he can not only see the general trend of each government, but even feel the temperament of some leading soldiers.

For example, in the several prefectures located in the Central Plains, most of the things they lack are the same, soldiers, food, medicine...all are the most important war preparations.Moreover, they have no interest in extravagant things such as tea, silk and jade. This does not mean that they don't like treasures, but that they are too poor to have money for extravagance and enjoyment.

The princes who are interested in Bingjia may not mean that they really lack Bingjia, or they may just be curious about the skill of Bingjia made by Shu people.But for those princes who are not interested in Bingjia, it can be seen that they are not only not interested in King Qin, but even they are not very interested in the general situation of the world.

And this is just an initial wish, and a lot of news can already be gleaned from it.If the business is really negotiated, in terms of the types and quantities of goods actually purchased by the various prefectures, the information they can grasp is even more difficult to buy!

Xie Wuji was in a complicated mood and fell into deep thought.For a long time, he couldn't help being a little bit brooding about the matter of being arranged by Zhu Nao in Jingzhao Mansion.Now it seems that he was not wronged.

Zhu Nao asked with a smile, "How does General Xie feel?"

Xie Wuji closed the ledger and returned it to Zhu Nao: "It is my good fortune to form an alliance with Zhu Fu Yin."

Zhu Nao's eyes lit up: "It's my great fortune to be able to form an alliance with General Xie. Since we like each other, if we agree with each other, will the Shu merchants give your army money and food every year?"

Xie Wuji: "..."

Xie Wuji: "No."

"Then... by how much?"

"Do not."

"That……"

"Do not."

Zhu Nao spread his hands and shook his head helplessly: "Okay. Even so, I am still very happy to form an alliance with General Xie."

Xie Wuji was speechless.The pledged covenant was drawn in black and white, and it was obviously Zhu Nao who wanted to break the covenant first, which made him feel like he was let down by others.

The news from both parties has been shared, and Zhu Nao was about to go back to rest, when Xie Wuji called him from behind.

"Zhu Fu Yin."

Junao stopped in his tracks: "Huh?"

Xie Wuji asked: "Are you really unwilling to be king?"

Zhu Nao laughed and said, "General Xie asked about this."

It's not unintentional, it's powerlessness.He believes that it is futile to work hard for the king.

Xie Wuji did not argue with him, and said in a low voice: "If I succeed, are you willing to help me?" He knew that he could fight but not cured, if he could go to Beijing and want to reorganize the court, he would need help from others.Junau is undoubtedly a good ally.

Zhu Nao dragged his tone: "Is this..."

Xie Wuji stared at him intently.

Zhu Nao bent his eyes, and smiled lightly: "As long as General Xie speaks, no matter what time it is, I'm always willing to help you."

……

Guangjin Mansion Barracks.

Liu Song was patrolling the camp, when a soldier chased after him: "Fu Yin, the Chengdu government army sent some soldiers here, and said to let the Fu Yin take a look first."

Liu Song stopped and said, "Let me have a look."

Not long after, the soldiers came over with a bundle of armor.Among them are knives, spears, armor, etc., all of which are commonly used in the army.

When a few things were brought up, Liu Song's eyes lit up.His army is full of rusty broken copper and rotten iron, but the armor sent by the Chengdu Mansion is brand new, the blades are sharp just by looking at the light.

He asked his subordinates: "It's been a long time since I saw new weapons? Why do I think this set of armor is more shiny than ordinary iron weapons?"

The subordinate said: "It seems... is more bright."

Liu Song picked up a knife.The blade was thick but the blade was very thin. He looked around and saw a hemp rope on the ground, so he ordered someone to pick it up.With a light wave of his knife, the hemp rope was cut off.

Liu Song couldn't help saying: "Oh, what a knife!"

And enviously said: "Then Zhu Nao's luck is really good. There are abundant products in Sichuan, let him hit such a good iron."

It should be known that Guangjin Mansion is located in the Central Plains, very close to the capital, and it used to be a good place for prosperity.As the old saying goes, those who win the Central Plains win the world.But what this said is actually not accurate.

The richness of the Central Plains lies in the vast plains and a large amount of arable land.In Taiping years, guarding these fields can indeed lead a good life.But the products in the Central Plains are not rich, and there is no danger to defend.Unless they occupy the dangerous passes and mines outside the Great Wall at the same time, they will only guard the Central Plains.

In the past, it was okay when there was an imperial court dispatching, but now each government has ceded the land for itself, and there is a lack of exchange of products.He had nothing but a plain, and he wanted to cry without tears.

Liu Song put down the knife in his hand and tried a few more weapons.In his opinion, everything is a good thing - although these things were brittle by Zhu Nao's orders, they were not so brittle that they would break when touched, and Liu Song couldn't see it for a while.

The subordinate asked: "Fu Yin, people from the Shu army are waiting outside for Fu Yin's reply. Do we really want to control them buying soldiers?"

Liu Song was quite itchy in his heart, but he also knew that there was no rush to do business.He ordered: "Go and talk to them about the price. Don't let them know that we lack these. Keep the price as low as possible. If it's cheap enough, we'll buy it."