The voice behind him was deep and loud. Sonorous and powerful, full of power.

Li Zhen stopped and turned to look.

As far as he could see, a burly middle-aged man in his early forties walked towards him.

After a cursory glance, Li Zhen saw clearly the official uniform on the middle-aged man, and determined that the middle-aged man who came over did not have a high official position, because the person who came was wearing the court uniform of a five-grade official, and he was a five-rank official. However, the middle-aged man's face is quite majestic, and there is a kind of momentum that is not angry and self-assured. Even if you don't speak, you feel a sense of pressure.

Li Zhen is also a person in a high position, and he feels the aura of the other party.

The so-called aura is wonderful to say, but it is real, because it can reflect a person's state. The middle-aged man in front of him does not have a high official position, but he is full of momentum.

He looked at it carefully and nodded slightly in his heart.

This middle-aged man has a Chinese face, a high forehead, two curved eyebrows are very thick, as if dipped in ink, and two big beards hang on his lips, which is even more conspicuous, giving people a sense of integrity. The middle-aged man has a straight nose, bright eyes, and a firm expression when he looks at Li Zhen, and he does not look flattering because of Li Zhen's identity.

Li Zhen pondered for a while, and secretly said that there is still such a No. 1 person in the DPRK?

He doesn't know this man!

Especially the person who came was wearing court clothes, obviously going to the palace, but the emperor and Cixi were in Chuxiu Palace, this person was afraid that he ran in vain and did not see the emperor. Seeing the middle-aged man coming, Li Zhen hugged his fists and said, "Under Li Zhen, who is Your Excellency?" ”

The middle-aged man said: "Hunan Zuo Zongtang is currently serving in Langzhong of the Military Department. ”

"Zuo Zongtang?"

Li Zhen was surprised in his heart, but immediately regained his composure.

A smile appeared on his face and said, "It turned out to be Brother Ji Gao (Zuo Zongtang), long up!" Long admiration! Before I returned to Beijing, Brother Bohan once took Brother Shaoquan and the brothers of the Zeng family to visit the camp in Jiangbei. When I talked to Brother Bohan, Brother Bohan mentioned Brother Ji Gao and said that Brother Ji Gao helped each other with righteousness, was open-minded and bold, and was a rare friend. ”

When Zuo Zongtang heard this, he exclaimed: "Bohan took Shaoquan and others to the Jiangbei camp? Oh, that's not right! He is suppressing bandits, how can he still have time to visit. ”

Li Zhen explained: "Brother Bohan did come and stayed for a few days before leaving. ”

Zuo Zongtang said with a smile: "In this way, Bohan is also envious of Admiral Li's victory in every battle, thinking of going to see Admiral Li's magic weapon of winning every battle, and wanting to learn from Admiral Li!" ”

mentioned Zeng Guofan, Zuo Zongtang's eyebrows danced, obviously very familiar with Zeng Guofan.

At this time, Zuo Zongtang and Zeng Guofan did not turn against each other, and they were still good brothers.

Historically, both of them were born in Hunan, were fellow villagers, and worked together. After the death of Emperor Xianfeng, Zeng Guofan was the first to be reused, rising before Zuo Zongtang. When Zuo Zongtang was working under Zeng Guofan, Zeng Guofan spared no effort to help Zuo Zongtang, making Zuo Zongtang stand on his own and become a feudal official.

It's just that the relationship between the two didn't last long.

After Zeng Guofan's younger brother Zeng Guoquan captured Tianjing, Zeng Guofan listened to the reports of the generals under his command and learned that Hong Xiuquan's son Hong Tianguifu died in the chaos, so he thought that the matter of banditry could be over. Therefore, Zeng Guofan reported to the imperial court that he had taken Nanjing, and wiped out all the thieves, and especially pointed out the killing of Hong Tianguifu after the city was broken.

However, Zuo Zongtang also made a secret break at this time, saying that according to the information provided by the refugees who escaped from Jinling, Hong Xiuquan's son Hong Tianguifu fled from Dongba to Guangde on June 21 in Tongzhi, and was welcomed into the Huzhou capital by Huang Wenjin, the general of the Taiping Army, and began to gather the remnants of the Taiping Army.

Cixi, who was in charge at the time, was very dissatisfied with Zeng Guofan after seeing Zuo Zongtang's report.

Tsang was a man of integrity and trusted his own judgment. He thought that according to Zuo Zongtang's recital, he was bullying the king, and such a crime was not what Zeng Guofan wanted to see. As a result, Zeng Guofan refuted Zuo Zongtang, saying that Hong Tianguifu was dead, and Huang Wenjin pretended to call Hong Tianguifu in order to gather the remnants of the Taiping army, and said that such a practice was a very common thing throughout the ages. Zeng Guofan's implication is that Zuo Zongtang is bluffing and wants to ask for merit and reward.

After Zuo Zongtang saw this performance, he was also unconvinced.

In addition, Zuo Zongtang defended himself in the last performance, saying thousands of words, and his tone was angry, accusing Zeng Guofan of being a bully. As a result, things are getting bigger, and the two are going back and forth, fighting a war of words. Such a situation was what Cixi was willing to see, and she continued to tease, so that the relationship between Zeng and Zuo was completely broken, and the friendship was in vain.

Li Zhen looked at Zuo Zongtang in front of him, and thought of Zeng Guofan, and laughed in his heart.

Among these two people, Zeng Guofan has a calm temperament and does not hurry or slow down. Zuo Zongtang is a fiery character, and it is normal for the two to have conflicts when they are together.

Li Zhen asked, "Brother Ji Gao, is there anything wrong with entering the palace?" ”

Zuo Zongtang shook his head lightly and said casually: "It's not a big deal, just some trivial things." Admiral Li, it's time not to leave, I still have something to do at home, take my leave. ”

Zuo Zongtang and Li Zhen are not closely related, and they don't plan to talk for a long time.

It's good to be able to mix a familiar face.

After saying hello, he immediately excused himself and left.

Li Zhen said: "Brother Ji is slow! ”

Zuo Zongtang stopped and asked, "Does Admiral Li have any orders?" ”

Li Zhen said: "Brother Ji Gao, I returned to Beijing from Jiangbei camp to wait for my wife to give birth, and I will stay in Beijing for a while. I heard Brother Bohan say that Brother Ji Gao is a good fighter and has rich experience, and I admire him very much. If Brother Ji Gao has time, you can come to the house to talk, and I will have a good chat with Brother Ji. ”

"Good! Deal! ”

Zuo Zongtang's eyes were full of excitement.

It is a good opportunity for him to get in touch with Li Zhen.

Zuo Zongtang is a five-grade Beijing official, which sounds quite majestic, but a five-grade soldier has no power and no power, and there are countless high-ranking officials and nobles in Beijing, and he, a five-grade official, is almost not ranked, and he has to be cautious when he sees people. Li Zhen is different, Li Zhen is not only a celebrity in front of the emperor, but also a well-known feudal official, plus Li Zhen is the son-in-law of Guiliang, the secretary of the Ministry of War, and his identity is extraordinary.

If Li Zhenruo said a few kind words for him in front of Gui Liang, he Zuo Zongtang would have a chance to turn over. Zuo Zongtang said goodbye excitedly and left, and his walking steps were much brisker.

Li Zhen got into the carriage and returned, and soon returned to the house. After returning to the backyard, Li Zhen's mental state was very poor and he couldn't lift his spirits, so he said a few words to Zhilan and went to the room to rest. He was in a constant hurry, mentally exhausted, and his body was already overloaded. When I saw Xianfeng before, I was strong and cheered up, and I couldn't hold on anymore when I returned home.

He lay down to sleep, slept straight for nearly a day, and slept from the afternoon until noon the next day. When Li Zhen woke up, Zhilan was sitting next to him.

Li Zhen sat up, feeling refreshed and his body full of strength.

"I'll have someone prepare food for you."

Zhilan smiled slightly, got up and walked out of the house. However, when she reached the door, she suddenly leaned against the door, reached out to cover her stomach, and her face showed pain.

Li Zhen was in a hurry, jumped up and ran towards Zhilan.

ps: the second shift;