Chapter 179 Saizi Noodles

The essence of saizi noodles lies in the saizi broth.

Although it is an extremely common dish, it is particular about being complete in color, aroma, and taste, and having an authentic flavor.

Zheng Fan and the blind man sat facing each other.

The two picked up their chopsticks together,

and took a bite at the same time.

Hoo,

Comfortable,

Satisfying.

He Chunlai, who was standing to the side, asked, "My lord, next time, would you like me to make it with red broth?"

He Chunlai knew Zheng Fan's taste; he liked his dishes to be a little spicy.

Zheng Fan shook his head and said, "Get me some dried chili powder, and I'll add it myself later. If too much chili is added in advance, the freshness of the soup will be covered up."

"Yes, I'll keep that in mind."

The chili powder was quickly brought over.

Zheng Fan added two spoons, and added one spoon for the blind man.

The two ate noodles while talking in between bites.

"The matter of the prophecy can be put aside for now," Zheng Fan said.

After listening to the blind man's account, Zheng Fan made a decision.

"Yes, Master."

This was also what the blind man agreed with.

There was no need to divert too much energy for something that was still a shadow. No matter who your future enemies were, burying your head and developing yourself now was the right thing to do.

Just as Liang Cheng had said earlier, who knew if the "seven plus one" in the prophecy were really all lone wolves?

"We have a lot of shamans in the Snow Plains. I think we should send Kong Yuan and his disciple Liaofan to the far north to look for them. That master and disciple look like they have good fortune.

Tell them that as long as they can find them, I will build a Buddhist temple for them outside Fengxin City when they return."

Having good fortune meant that the master and disciple looked like they were hard to kill. Using such people to scout ahead often brought unexpected surprises.

"Yes, Master."

"Our next focus is still here."

Zheng Fan reached out and knocked on the table in front of him. "Our foundation isn't stable."

It was certain that it wasn't stable.

The area of Jidong was really not that big in the entire East. Roughly speaking, it was equivalent to two-fifths of the territory of the Situ family after the division of Jin, maybe even a little smaller.

Because the Jade Plate City area did not belong to you, strictly speaking, it was not the traditional Jidong territory that was bounded by Wangjiang.

Its area was equivalent to Beifeng Commandery, right?

Of course, if you included Shanggu Commandery, which you took from the Chu Kingdom, the area would naturally be larger, but unless Zheng Fan was kicked in the head by a donkey, he wouldn't be busy developing Shanggu Commandery, which was even more of a blank slate than Jidong.

In addition, there was one more point:

Actual occupied land was actual occupied land, but according to the areas radiating from Xuehai Pass and Zhennan Pass, the range that the Marquis of Pingxi Mansion could actually influence was still considerable.

And then,

The problem now was that

The framework was large,

But there was no flesh and blood to fill it.

Ke Yan and Dong Ge could guard Xuehai Pass, and Jin Shu Ke also led his troops to Zhennan Pass yesterday.

In addition,

Fengxin City had to be guarded. It was where the Marquis's Mansion was located, the foundation.

Gong Wang, Gongsun Zhi, Gou Moli, Ding Hao, and Liang Cheng's directly subordinate field army were now just using those few troops to forcibly put on a show.

The training of new recruits and the replacement of armor could not be completed in a day or two. There was no way to speed it up unless you wanted to swallow it whole, but it was easy to suffer from indigestion, which would eventually lead to a decline in the army's combat effectiveness.

Training troops was something that you really couldn't rush.

For example, the Qian Kingdom,

It didn't lack people, food, or silver,

But after being defeated all the way south to the capital by the Yan army that year, in recent years, the reorganization of the various troops, including the three borders, had also been carried out rapidly.

There were obviously fewer empty names on the military roster, and the main forces such as the Western Army were also there, but when the Yan and Chu Kingdoms were fighting fiercely, the Qian Kingdom still did not dare to launch a northern expedition.

If there were many people but their combat quality was not good, it would only increase the Yan army's workload of capturing prisoners after the war.

"According to my estimation, the filling and replacement of new recruits should be completed after the autumn harvest next year."

Zheng Fan nodded upon hearing this and said, "It's a good thing that there are enough veteran soldiers to be promoted to centurions and captains, so the officer structure is there."

The veterans, or the middle and lower-level officers, were the real soul of an army.

What an army feared most was not losing a battle, but being completely annihilated, losing those experienced veterans, losing that group of experienced middle and lower-level officer systems. Rebuilding this army was not as simple as just giving money, food, and people, and then giving it a new designation.

Fortunately, although the Marquis of Zheng's original troops were not many, even with the addition of Gong Wang and Gongsun Zhi's troops, they were not many. In addition, a large part of the elite troops that were transferred by virtue of the Jingnan King's military order were still in his hands, and they were willing not to return to their old units and stay under the command of the Marquis of Pingxi.

In this way, the veterans and the officer system above them under the Marquis of Zheng could be called "soldiers of a hundred battles" and were truly solid to the extreme.

Below,

What remained was the development that could not be skipped, which required time.

"By the way."

Zheng Fan seemed to remember something,

Took out a handful of wedding candies from his pocket, and put them in front of the blind man.

The blind man nodded, reached out and took the wedding candies,

Said:

"Congratulations, Master."

"Save the congratulations until Si Niang's belly shows."

"Isn't it true that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step?"

"Heh heh."

Zheng Fan gently put down his chopsticks, picked up the wet towel placed next to him, and wiped his hands and mouth,

"Pay more attention to the news from Yanjing. Try to speed up the reply from there as well. I'm afraid the Yan Emperor's health is not good.

Moreover,

I reckon,

The succession, whether it's the Crown Prince or Ji Lao Liu or any other Ji bastard,

Will have to go through a process.

Perhaps,

The two Kings of the North and South, and the two Marquises of the East and West, will all have to go to Yanjing City to witness it with the civil and military officials."

The blind man sighed:

"To be honest, the Yan Emperor and I are indeed different. Maybe it's because I'm blind, so I like to hide myself in the shadows.

And that Yan Emperor always uses the upright and proper art of an emperor, creating his own momentum, building his own reputation, and controlling his own destiny."

Zheng Fan asked with interest, "Which one do you prefer?"

The blind man revealed a smile,

Said:

"So, I have always been responsible for these fragmented conspiracies, so that you, Master, can stand in the sun."

Zheng Fan closed his eyes upon hearing this.

This flattery,

Was truly skillful, not affected, not abrupt, but with a just right touch of emotion.

And then,

Zheng Fan smiled:

"I haven't advanced."

The blind man nodded,

Said:

"Wouldn't that be a waste?"

"Maybe it can be saved?"

"According to the usual practice, I'm afraid it can't be saved."

"I haven't stopped practicing recently, but I feel..."

"Has Master encountered a bottleneck?"

Zheng Fan shook his head. "I haven't even felt a bottleneck. According to the usual practice, it should still be far away."

"Above the sixth rank and the fifth rank are two different levels. The fifth rank can be called a minor grandmaster, so it will naturally be more difficult, and it also requires some opportunities."

"What minor grandmaster and major grandmaster, there are too many divisions, I'm getting confused. Now that I've learned almost enough about military tactics, I'll find a chance to see Old Tian and have him guide me in martial arts."

"Didn't you say it yourself, Master, that you have a different script?"

"Then what can I do?"

Marquis Zheng spread out his hands,

"Just go on like this in a muddle? I have to think of a way."

"I also brought a prisoner this time, named Xu Chuang, who came from Wenming Mountain. The people there practice both swords and sabers. Master, you can also try it and see if you can draw inferences from it."

"I'm worried that I'll bite off more than I can chew."

"Maybe it can be enlightening?" The blind man continued, "Wearing a sword at the waist and carrying a saber on the back, that look is also quite good."

"Add a suit of armor, and after going to battle, people who don't know will think I'm a theater troupe that went to the wrong stage."

"Heh heh."

"Haha."

Both of them laughed.

In fact, compared to his first martial arts teacher, Ding Hao, the teaching resources that Marquis Zheng now possessed could be said to be extravagantly dripping out.

If you want to practice swordsmanship, there is the Sword Saint; if you want to practice saber techniques, there is the Jingnan King.

Marquis Zheng reached out and gently patted his forehead,

Said with emotion:

"This, can't be rushed, I'll try my best."

"Master is working hard."

"You're welcome, is there anything else?"

"I also wanted to ask, does the Jingnan King still have the same attitude toward the foundation of the country as before?"

Zheng Fan nodded, "Yes, it's just that he has no attitude."

"Okay, I understand."

The blind man got up and, before taking his leave, specially looked at He Chunlai and said, "Your craftsmanship is getting better and better."

He Chunlai lowered his head slightly.

"Teach an apprentice, pass on your skills, and then come work for me."

He Chunlai was stunned for a moment,

And looked at Marquis Zheng.

Zheng Fan pointed at He Chunlai,

Said:

"You have to teach your apprentice well first."

He Chunlai immediately knelt down on one knee;

"Thank you, Marquis!"

The blind man left the room, outside, the sun was already setting in the west.

At this time,

Ke Shi came over,

And immediately gave a slight bow when she saw the blind man,

Asked;

"Mr. Bei, Miss Yuexin asked this servant to ask you, how should the three boxes of Sachima that you brought this time be divided among the various families and courtyards?"

Sachima was not complicated to make. It was originally made by Si Niang for the Master to taste as a snack. Later, she simply handed it over to the Earl's Mansion direct sales pastry shop in Xuehai Pass as a product to sell. The sales and popularity have been very high.

If she had brought less, Yuexin would not have sent someone to call Ke Shi specifically to the Marquis's Mansion to ask her husband, but it was precisely because she had brought too much, and it was not good to give gifts after dark.

Brown sugar Sachima, buckwheat Sachima, nut Sachima...

Each one was half a box.

"Oh."

The blind man looked like he suddenly realized,

And said to Ke Shi:

"Tian Tian likes to take this as a snack every day, these are all prepared for him, don't give them away. Please send those boxes of Sachima to Tian Tian's room."

"All...all of them?" Ke Shi was stunned for a moment.

That was several boxes, how could a child finish eating them?

"Yes, all of them, if he can't finish eating them, at least it's comfortable to look at, right?"

"Yes...this servant understands, this servant will go arrange it."

"Hmm."

After Ke Shi turned and left,

The blind man stood in place,

Took out an orange from his pocket,

After peeling it, he put a segment of orange pulp in his mouth,

While chewing, he muttered to himself:

"It's getting dark, are you coming or not?"

Just then,

Xiao Yibo ran in hurriedly.

The blind man continued to eat the orange,

And asked;

"What's wrong, why are you in such a hurry?"

Xiao Yibo immediately reported to the blind man:

"Mr. Bei, quickly inform the Marquis, the King's carriage has left the city to the west."

The blind man suddenly felt that the orange in his mouth was not so sweet.

"Okay, I'll go inform the Master, you go chase Ke Shi, tell him to divide the Sachima among the various families and courtyards."