With a muffled sound, black smoke rose, and the smell of gunpowder was on the entire hillside. All kinds of birds and beasts were frightened by the sound of gunfire and fled in all directions.

Du Zhongxiao said to Cheng Wenli beside him: "This kind of platoon gun is already very powerful, no matter what it is, it is all powder." The village soldiers who camp the fields will use muskets to keep the peace in this area. Although the border people are good at martial arts, where can they find so many good bows and crossbows at one time? There may be as many as 1,000 households in the field in the coming year, how can there be so many good bows? It's better to use a musket, it's nothing more than to recruit more blacksmiths to make it. The state armies in this area all produce sulfur and nitrate, and there is no shortage of gunpowder. ”

Cheng Wenli said: "This matter is self-dictatory, and the subordinate officials dare not say much. However, although the musket is sharp, it has never been used, and I don't know what happened to the battle array. If it's just for the villagers, it's nothing. ”

Du Zhongxiao nodded: "What the pusher said is when to fight a battle and give it a try." ”

Cheng Wenli was taken aback: "The imperial court has made peace with the party, and it has been repaired with the Khitan for decades, so don't mess with the army!" ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "I know in my heart that the court has all the laws, and wherever I dare to go to war with a big country." ”

After speaking, let Tao Seventeen lead people to clean up the wild boars they had hunted and prepare wine and meat.

Full of wine and food, Du Zhongxiao asked the soldiers to cut dozens of catties of pork, and Cheng Wenli and several other officials shared it. Their official position is low, and their income is meager, although Du Zhongxiao takes care of them from time to time, and their lives are passable, but they can't save any money. Give them some wine and meat from time to time, so that their lives will not be embarrassed.

Instructed Tao Seventeen and Thirteen Lang to still take people on patrol, Du Zhongxiao said: "It's still early to see the day, let's go to the ranch over there to have a look, rest for the night, and return to the camp tomorrow." Now that the autumn is high and cool, the pasture has to prepare grain and grass for the winter. In addition, there are more horses in Dongjiazhai there, and if there are good horses, the yamen will also buy them. One is to supplement the forbidden army, and the other is for the use of the township soldiers. ”

Tao Seventeen sang a promise and said to Du Zhongxiao: "Official, this place is close to the mountains, and when we patrol, we often see hunters of the Fan tribe. They said that they were of their own nationality, and there was no one to confront them, so they didn't know the details. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Anyone who meets someone who doesn't know the details, no matter what their identity is, you just write it down and don't ask more." In a few days, the terrain has been surveyed, and we will set up some patrol forts and send people to guard them. ”

Everyone agreed together. Entering the mountains from here, it is theoretically under the jurisdiction of the Partial Head Village under the Volcano Army. However, the war with the party in the past few years has been abandoned, and there are no soldiers stationed in this area, and the Tibetan department in this area is chaotic. Du Zhongxiao's time to the Volcano Army was still short, and he did not have the energy to rebuild the Yitou Village, so the matter was shelved. The Fan households in the area of Yaotou Village now belong to the Great Song Dynasty and the Khitan, and they are somewhat sensitive.

To the east and north of Dongjiazhai and to the north of Ningbian Prefecture are the nails that the Khitan stretched into, competing with the Great Song Dynasty for territory in this area. First gathered the Tibetan Department to create a fait accompli, and then used this as a basis to ask the Great Song Dynasty to cede land, and then Jianzhou County, which is the old way for the Khitan to expand its territory in this area. In the past, the strength of the Song army here was insufficient, and the Khitan repeatedly succeeded, and this is how Yongbyon Prefecture was built. After the defeat of the party, the Khitan intensified its operation in this area, and Du Zhongxiao did not know how many Tibetan troops in the mountains were bought, so he did not act rashly for a while.

Without the partial head village, I don't know how much territory the volcano army in that area is in charge and how many Tibetan departments are in charge, which is also the reason why Du Zhongxiao is cautious. The ambiguity between this area and the Khitan is, in principle, under the jurisdiction of the border inspection envoys, with local assistance. The border inspection envoy in this area is Zhang Qi, stationed in the southeast, and Du Zhongxiao doesn't know his attitude.

On the eastern side of the valley and the mountains, there is a large area of low hills, rich in water and grass, suitable for grazing, and the new pastures of the Volcanic Army are located here. Chen Qin once again did his old job, collected the horses under the Ya, and grazed here.

When Du Zhongxiao and the others arrived here, the sun had already set in the west. The soldiers and servants of the pasture drove horses, cattle and sheep, and gathered in the shed at sunset, and it was very spectacular to see from the top of the mountain.

Du Zhongxiao said: "Since the Yunfan Ministry is attached, the horses they offered, plus the purchase from everywhere, now there are more than 100 horses here. Chen Qin, who is in charge of here, has a lot of experience in herding livestock, and in time, he may be able to breed large herds. ”

Cheng Wenli said: "This army is located in the mountains, prolific horses, there is no shortage of horses, just money. ”

Du Zhongxiao said with a smile: "Whether there is a shortage or not, it depends on how much we use." In the past, the Volcano Army was only maintained, and the military horses were often controlled by the western prefecture, so they naturally didn't care about these things. Now that we have built a camp here, there will be no shortage of grain and grass in the future, so we should be a little angry. The Volcano Army is located between Linfu Road and Jidai Road, and the population of the area under its jurisdiction is ambiguous. We don't say anything about expanding the territory, but in this term, we should explore the territory clearly and build fortresses in necessary places to avoid being encroached upon by the Khitans, which is good governance. If it is done, I will not say it, and the officials and recorders can rely on this merit to serve in the mainland for the next term. The border land is really hard, and you can't spend your whole life here. ”

Hearing this, Cheng Wenli and Pan Zhen felt a pang in their hearts, and hope rose in their hearts. Although it is the same as the official record, the Volcano Army here is far inferior to the Inland State Army. For example, Cheng Wenli is just a military magistrate, the lowest layer of the shogunate. Not only are they of low rank, but they are also of poor background because officials are reluctant to serve in such places. Cheng Wenli is the first jinshi, Pan Zhen is not even a person, just a marginal scholar, because there is really no one, they started from the county lieutenant of the main book and achieved today's position. If there is no accident, this is the pinnacle of their career, not to mention promotion, it is a luxury to be able to be transferred to the mainland in their lifetime. If they can really make meritorious deeds as Du Zhongxiao said, and then someone can guarantee them, they can be transferred to the inland state army in a few years, which is already a great temptation for the two of them.

It is precisely because they have no future that Cheng Wenli and Pan Zhen are a little passable and have a chaotic life.

Seeing the expressions of the two, Du Zhongxiao smiled slightly and urged the horse to rush to the pasture. The most motivating thing for officials is to be promoted to a knighthood, especially for Cheng Wenli and Pan Zhen. Du Zhongxiao is a Zhengbang Jinshi, as long as nothing happens, he can be promoted step by step, the same thing is not attractive to him, but it is different for these two people.

There are many kinds of officials in the Song Dynasty, some with no background, with or without a post, and they all have their own ways of promotion. The largest number of officials are actually low-level candidates like Cheng Wenli and Pan Zhen, who have little future. These people will work hard for a chance to be promoted. The promising Zhengbang Jinshi fights for feelings and ideals, typical such as Ouyang Xiu, I don't care if he is promoted or demoted, the ideal is everything. Low-level officials with little future are either desperately trying to make money to live, or desperately fighting for political achievements, fighting for a promotion opportunity, and each has its own way of living.

Du Zhongxiao is among these people, he has a Jinshi background, and his future will not be too bad. I also have a sense of mission, always feel that I should do things that others can't do, and I value political achievements very much. For Cheng Wenli and Pan Zhen, Du Zhongxiao has a sense of closeness.

Chen Qin got the news, brought his subordinates early, greeted him, and took Du Zhongxiao and his party to his residence.

Horses and cattle and sheep eat different grass, and the pasture built by Du Zhongxiao has always grazed several kinds of livestock at the same time. In addition to horses, there are nearly 1,000 sheep in the pasture, which are subordinate to the minister's treasury for entertainment. Chen Qin ordered a sheep to be killed and prepared to entertain Du Zhongxiao and others.