Chapter 41: Deliberately Difficult
Zhang Ruo and his party have truly experienced the high prices in Zhenwu City.
A most ordinary inn, with three rooms that can barely accommodate each other. They charge not by room, but by head. One or two silver per person per day. Food is said to be included, but there are only two meals a day. The quality can only be said to make people full, so don’t expect anything else. Every day is basically millet porridge, steamed buns, noodles, and pickles. In the evening, there will be a bowl of broth with a little oil star floating on it.
If you want big fish and meat, it’s not impossible, just add money.
The people in Zhenwu City slaughtered the foreigners because they were united in one heart and the same hatred.
Moreover, Zhenwu City is the headquarters of Linghu Ye, and it is an existence that all outsiders cannot avoid
So outsiders will not settle here unless they have to, even if there is a reason why they have to come. That is to finish things quickly and then leave quickly.
Brothers Zhang Ruo, Yuan Rong and Yuan Tong, plus Wu De and his three remaining men, there are seven people in total. Even if they only maintain the most basic survival, they will need seven taels of silver every day.
Although it is not a sky-high room rate, it is indeed extremely expensive.
Even in Chang'an City, if you stay in an inn and have food included, you won't need more than a tael of silver.
The key is that days like this, I don’t know when they will end.
On the first day after entering Zhenwu City, Wu De immediately took Zhang Ruo to the prison to submit a letter. He thought that as long as the other party accepted the document and accepted Zhang Ruo, the prisoner he was escorting, then Give him a reply and he can go home. If he runs fast, he can reunite with his family in time for the Chinese New Year.
It’s just that the other party did collect the documents, but after looking Zhang Ruo up and down, he did not take away the criminal in this name, but asked them to go back and wait for news. As for Wu De Naturally, there is no trace of the document I want.
Without a reply, Wu De's errand was not completed, and he could only wait.
As for reasoning with the other party, Wu De really didn't dare.
Even though the other party was being polite, this was the headquarters of the marshal, and the military attache who came out to see him was a serious fifth-grade officer, much higher than Wu De.
When we arrived outside the Pass, we had some dealings with the soldiers outside the Pass, but none of them were reasonable. One moment, he is smiling and calling you brothers, but the next moment, he is holding a knife on your neck and yelling at you.
It’s just that this stay lasted more than ten days. If it weren’t for the two powerful men in the world, Yuan Rong and Yuan Tong, Wu De and Zhang Ruo would have been kicked out and left to wander the streets.
Zhenwu City is a military city. Almost everything here is inextricably linked to the army.
For example, in the inn where they stayed, there was a human-shaped wooden shelf in the lobby. There was actually a pair of iron armor hanging on the shelf, and a saber standing next to it.
According to the waiter, he was very proud to say that this belongs to their shopkeeper.
This surprised Zhang Ruo and others. Did the old guy who was sleeping behind the counter on crutches all day actually make great contributions on the battlefield?
It is not unusual to be able to take away swords and guns after retiring from the army, but to be able to take away a set of full-body armor, one must have made great achievements.
Looking at the style of the armor, it should be at the rank of Colonel Xuejie in the military, a mere eighth rank, and can only be regarded as a low-level officer.
It is indeed worthy of pride that such a low-level officer can achieve such great achievements.
In Zhenwu City, you have to coil up even if it’s a dragon, and you have to curl up even if it’s a tiger. An ordinary old man selling vegetables outside may have the power to control everything. If you dare to bully him, he will Just shout and everyone on the street will come to chase you.
So here, the correct way for foreigners to survive is to be low-key and honest.
Now Wu De is frowning. It's obvious that Xingyuan is deliberately trying to make things difficult for others.
"From tomorrow on, I will stand outside the camp every day and wait!" Zhang Ruo also has a stubborn temper. "Ling Huye has the ability, but he never sees me."
"How can you stand standing outside in such weather?" Wu De said.
“That’s exactly what it is!” Zhang Ruo sneered: “Ling Huye doesn’t want to watch me freeze to death outside the cabin, so he must give me an explanation instead of leaving me alone like this. Don’t worry. Well, Wu Tixing, it won’t take long before you can go home.”
Wu De was speechless. There was really no other way to think of, so he had no choice but to go out. Last resort.
Zhang Ruo turned to look at Brother Yuan Rong: "You two, do you really want to join the army? Even if you want to serve the country, it will be the same when you return to the pass. General Yangguan is my friend, and I With a letter, you can go there, why bother to go through the muddy water outside the pass? "
Brothers Yuan Rong are both martial arts masters. Zhang Ruo really doesn't want them to work for Linghuye in the future. This is to be a harbinger of evil!
Yuan Rong shook his head and said: "Bachelor, what's the point of surrendering to the army in the pass? The army in the pass spends most of their time suppressing those Kuhaha. My two brothers are from Jianghu and really don't want to swing their knives at those Kuhaha. But in the Yangguan, where is the battle? It is better to attack the barbarians and savages outside this level. Killing one more will make our Daqin border area more secure, which will give us a sense of accomplishment! If you want to join the army, you don't just want to win an immediate title or get rich or something, but you just want to kill those barbarians."
After fighting that battle, these two people's feelings for their family and country have skyrocketed, and now they are single-minded. Thinking about being a great hero and serving the country and the people, I no longer look down on the previous ties and ties in the world.
Zhang Ruo was helpless, he also knew that what brother Yuan Rong said was not the truth!
"If you really want to join the army, why not join Xiao Changche? Xiao Changche is a pure general!" Zhang Ruo thought of Li Dachui's words. Such a talent fell into Xiao Changche's hands. It's better than falling into Linghuye's hands.
“As long as you can kill the barbarians, it doesn’t matter who you surrender to!” Yuan Rong said with a smile: “I have also asked about the passers-by who come to Zhenwucheng from the sergeants I know, who have cultivation levels like our brothers. , you can get a sixth-grade Zhaowu Colonel by joining the army. Although he will not have any actual duties and will mostly serve as a personal soldier of the general, as long as you participate in more wars, you will have a great chance of becoming a front-line commander. ”
"If you really want to fight the barbarians, then go and join Xiao Changche. Didn't Li Dachui say that? The person who has fought the most with Bei Yuan outside the Pass is Xiao Changche, and this person is at odds with Bei Yuan. So you two surrendered." , there will definitely be no chance of meritorious deeds! And that person will not erase your merits, but here, it is impossible to say that you have no background in the military, so it is difficult to say that you will not be plotted."
Brother Yuan Rong nodded. No matter where you are, if you want to stand out, you must either have the ability, have some background, or both.
If you don’t have anything, you might be able to hang out inside the pass, but in a place like outside the pass, you may be eaten up in just three to five days, leaving nothing behind.
"After you, the bachelor, have settled in, our brothers will go find Xiao Changche." Yuan Rong said with a smile: "I think he won't look down on our brothers. It's just that he is not old, but we are. He's quite old, so it's a bit embarrassing to serve as a soldier for him!"
"There is no priority in learning, the master is the teacher!" Zhang Ruodao: "Xiao Changche is indeed not very old, but he can achieve what he has now! He earned this position with one sword and one shot. He led a hundred soldiers to join the army at the age of sixteen. In the past ten years, he has experienced more than a hundred battles, large and small, from the eighth rank of Xuanwu Colonel to the current third rank. Even the imperial court in Chang'an values his military exploits accumulated from bloody battles."
"Bachelor, with all due respect, Xiao Cheqi was indeed promoted based on his military exploits in the beginning, but after he rose to prominence, the court probably had other ideas, right? Otherwise, at the age of only twenty-five, he would have to do this It's really impossible to reach the chariot general!" Wu De, who was more familiar with officialdom, whispered on the side.
Zhang Ruo was silent for a moment and said: "Although there is a relationship in this aspect, in the end he still has to strive for success."
"The imperial court's strategy of differentiation is simple and straightforward, but it makes Hu Ye really doesn’t understand?” Wu De said: “You still don’t care?”
Zhang Ruo sneered: “Two peaches kill three people, and the favor order is an eternal strategy, which one is not proposed openly and honestly. , but so what? Everyone jumped into this pit. The so-called conspiracy means that you know the other party's plot, but you can't help it. What if Xiao Changche knows? What can we do? The two of them will still have bad feelings."
After a few words, everyone talked about some heavy topics, but it is difficult to avoid such topics outside the customs, especially for people like them. people.
Seeing that the room was a little dull, Yuan Rong stood up with a smile: "Bachelor, let's rest now. I'll go buy some wine and meat on the street, and let's have a few drinks together in the evening. These days, I've really lost my temper."< br>
“This will cost you money again, Brother Yuan.” Wu Dexi said: “Brother, I am very poor now, so I can only wait until I return to Chang’an before returning the invitation. But Brother Yuan has decided to develop outside the customs. We say goodbye, but we don’t know when we will meet again!”
“We are destined to meet again. The price of goods in Zhenwu City is indeed surprising, but our brothers still have a little wealth. There’s still plenty to eat,” Yuan Rong said with a smile.
(End of this chapter)