Zhao Tinglei was not the legitimate heir of the Marquis's mansion, so he did not need to stay in the Marquis's mansion in the capital. He went to the northwest border with his father when he was thirteen years old.
It's no exaggeration to say that he watched his third brother grow up, and his affection for him is no less than that for his father.
As brothers, they know even more.
Although my father loved my third brother dearly, he was, after all, a general of the Wu Dynasty, and he did not want a powerful Di tribe to emerge on the border.
To prevent the Wuda tribe from posing a threat to the Wu Dynasty, the father always spoiled his handsome son and never taught him about court affairs.
They even hoped that after he took over the tribe, he would marry a woman from the Wu Dynasty and remain loyal to the Wu Dynasty for the rest of his life.
But I don't think that way.
Although there is an ancient saying, "When brothers are of one mind, their strength can break even metal."
However, there is also a saying: "Don't hang yourself on the same tree twice."
In my opinion, it's not a good thing for the whole family to be on the same path.
The third brother also has Zhao family blood in his veins, and his aunt and cousin are also in the Wu Dynasty palace.
But he was also a member of the Di tribe, a child the Marquis's family would never dare to acknowledge.
Moreover, if the enemy seizes this opportunity, the Zhenbei Army will once again find itself in a dilemma.
Fortunately, the third brother was clearly unwilling to live an ordinary life. He asked me for a military order and secretly ran away to study at the garrison under the jurisdiction of the Zhenbei Army. Now he has proposed to move to the Mida River Valley.
The Zhenbei Army had long been tied to the Crown Prince, and their situation was not as impregnable as a fortress.
As the future leader of the Di tribe, the third brother should find another way out.
Many times I couldn't openly argue with my father, and I couldn't offer much help to my third brother.
Now, secretly sending them armor and swords is like letting the eagle fly back to the blue sky.
I hope my third brother will achieve great things on the grasslands, and that the two brothers can join hands to crush the Di royal court, expand the territory, and jointly rule the northwest.
Zhao Tinglei flipped open the map again, his finger stopping at the town of Suijin.
Since Loren reported that no gold mine had been found last time, he had given up on this place.
Third Brother is right. Although the Mida River Valley is deep in the heart of the grassland, there is a Yellow Sand River that connects to Suijin Town. As long as we don't get surrounded, there is still a glimmer of hope.
However... there are also drawbacks to using Broken Gold Town as a fallback option.
Located deep in the mountains, it can only house a hundred soldiers.
The riverbed is rugged and difficult to navigate, and once heavy rains occur in the summer, the river swells, and this escape route is lost.
The town of Suijin was abandoned by the local government and was far from the border, so logistical and military supplies could not keep up.
Thinking of this, Zhao Tinglei rang the bell to summon the messenger.
"Order the quartermaster to upgrade the defense of the three garrisons of Suijin, Guangbao and Qinggang to level three, and replenish the military pay and provisions as soon as possible."
"Yes, Commander!"
…………………………………………
The dispute over unpaid wages at Suijinwei Station was temporarily resolved after Luo Baihu promised to pay the wages one day later.
Back at Baolin Residence, Song Zhenping was filled with worry, feeling that he would never get his two hundred-plus coins back.
Song Dekui reassured him casually, "Daping, you're in Suijin Town, the garrison won't run away, you can go get it anytime, what's the rush?"
Song Zhenping forced a smile. He had never seen money before and was only thinking about how much grain and oil two hundred coins could buy.
When Song Liyun returned, she was still shelling acorns, but she was thinking about how Luo Baihu could raise funds.
In front of everyone, Luo Baihu didn't say much, but Song Liyun could see his barely suppressed rage.
What if the garrison still can't come up with the money tomorrow?
If the garrison reneges on its debt, the military household member will also be scolded.
Suddenly, Song Dekui and Song Zhenping's voices came over: "Daping, I don't want the wages anymore, I'll keep them for you. You can take them whenever the garrison pays you. Anyway, the garrison is in debt, so it'll be easier for you and Xiaoyun to talk things out in the camp."
Song Liyun's heart stirred. The people here valued face and considered it shameful to borrow money. They didn't have the bad habit of "being the boss when you owe money."
This is also an opportunity to build closer ties with the garrison.
Song Liyun has now amassed a total of thirty taels of silver from Song Lao Er's family, plus three gold beans, bringing the total to over fifty taels.
However, this money shouldn't be taken out casually.
After thinking for a moment, Song Liyun found an opportunity to speak with Song Dekui alone.
Song Dekui's eyes widened: "Xiaoyun, did you really find a money jar in the house?"
Song Liyun nodded emphatically: "Yes, Uncle Kui can't tell anyone. Even my brother doesn't know about this."
Song Dekui pouted: "Hmph, what do you take your Uncle Kui for? I'm not a three-year-old who doesn't know what's important."
He had also heard of stories of silver being dug up from abandoned houses; those old houses often contained silver urns.
Da Ping doesn't know either. Should he tell him?
He thought about Song Zhenping's impulsive nature and shook his head: Xiaoyun has been better than Daping all along, she won't harm the two brothers, so we should listen to her.
"Hey! Xiaoyun, you said you'd have the garrison issue an IOU..."
“Yes, Uncle Kui, we need to let the garrison think of this themselves. We can secretly buy up the IOUs, and when we go to collect the money later, the laborers will have already left, and the garrison won’t say anything.”
Song Liyun recounted the incident once more, explaining that she planned to wait for the garrison to issue IOUs and then secretly collect them from the migrant workers.
Song Dekui blinked and muttered, "This is really troublesome! Why don't you just lend the money to the garrison?"
Song Liyun rolled her eyes at him: "Uncle Kui, we said we were poor and willing to join the army, and then we took out dozens of taels of silver. Do you think the garrison will suspect that we have ulterior motives?"
Besides, this house was a gift from the garrison. If the garrison says they'll confiscate any valuables they find, and even demand the silver back, we'll be at a loss; a sure thing will slip away.
Song Dekui understood that Song Liyun had lent the silver to the garrison. He said that since Xiaoyun and Daping had just arrived in Suijin Town, it would be best for them to find a powerful backer if they wanted to establish themselves there.
But it's too much trouble to go through these IOUs. Since I'm leaving anyway, I'll just help them out one last time!
"Xiaoyun, I'll go find Commander Luo right now and tell him directly that the silver is mine and I'm lending it to the garrison. The IOU will be transferred to you as a payment agent. That way, the garrison will know that you are not alone and destitute."
I'll also give a heads-up to Brother Zhou and Brother Lin, and ask them to look after you. You can also contact them if you need anything.
Brother Zhou and Brother Lin were also garrison captains. The Suijin Garrison was a centurion unit with ten captains, each with ten men. Xue Zhuang was once a captain.
These two men were from a large transportation company, and within twenty days they had become like brothers with this outgoing Uncle Kui.
Song Liyun was instantly moved.
This uncle is really nice; having two more acquaintances at the garrison makes it easier to ask around for news.
The next second, Song Dekui's request made her instantly break down:
"Xiaoyun, do you still have any of those leftover rice sticks? Give me some so my family can try them when I get home. Also, pack some acorn cake in a jar to eat on the way. And..."
Song Dekui rattled off a bunch of things without any politeness, and Song Liyun, not knowing whether to laugh or cry, naturally agreed to them all.
Song Dekui was a restless man; once he made up his mind, he went to the garrison that very day.
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