Thirty li outside of Liangzhou's capital, there was a pavilion called Turning Back Pavilion, meaning to turn back after sending someone off. Since early in the morning, old people had arrived one after another. By noon, the pavilion was already covered in frost. As dusk approached, there were at least five to six hundred people inside and outside the pavilion. They came from all walks of life. Not all of them were citizens of the city, but there were also old people who had come from hundreds of li away. Some of them were familiar with each other and traveled together. Then, they would occasionally see old brothers they hadn't seen for many years at Turning Back Pavilion. They had mixed feelings and couldn't help but confide in each other about worldly affairs. There were even more people who didn't know each other at first, but when they got closer, they couldn't help but chat with each other and found out that they were all from different camps. Gradually, the scene at Turning Back Pavilion became very strange. There were old people in brocade clothes kneeling and worshipping poor and simple old farmers. There were old people who brought good wine but still drank cheap Green Ant Wine. There were two sides arguing until their faces turned red, and there were also old people sitting alone with crutches.
There were many people coming and going on the posthouse road. There was no lack of fancy clothes, fine horses, and luxurious carriages. When the young people who didn't know about the past saw this group of old fellows, they all wondered if this group of old fellows had taken the wrong medicine or something. In the afternoon, a one-armed old man who came by an ox cart was about to get off the cart to lead the ox down the posthouse road. Unfortunately, he still blocked the path of a carriage. The coachman was a strong man who was probably a fox masquerading as a tiger. He was used to having a bad temper and a rough voice, but the old ox had a bad temper. The coachman from a tyrannical family jumped off the carriage, disdaining the old man for not having eyes. He scolded him that a good dog wouldn't block the way and was about to whip the lonely old man's head. As for whether the old man was dead or alive, he didn't care. However, when the coachman swung his whip, the shabby old man who was leading the ox easily caught it. The old man then apologized a few times and let go of the whip. After that, he continued to "reason" with the old ox. This made the coachman, who was in the prime of his life, feel that he had lost all face. He was furious and wanted to kick the old bastard to the ground, so that the master in the carriage wouldn't see this scene and dislike him for not doing things well. However, he didn't expect that his fierce kick would cause the old man to stagger and dodge as if he was drunk. His only arm lightly pushed the coachman's chest, and his whole body floated back three to four zhang away, but he didn't fall to the ground. The coachman stood where he was, and was shocked... did he think that he had met a master? When the elders at the pavilion and the two sides of the posthouse saw this scene, they loudly applauded and cheered. With the coachman being thwarted, the five or six retainers at the back of the carriage could not bear to watch any longer. Just as they were about to charge, an old man dressed in luxurious Sichuan brocade roared out from outside the pavilion. Almost at the same time, no less than ten voices sounded out to stop them. These relatively well-dressed elders walked through the crowd and smiled at each other. Afterwards, they cupped their fists and gave a simple greeting. The Sichuan brocade elder faced the cavalry and angrily said, "Which one of you dares to charge?"
A fat, big-eared rich merchant walked down from the luxurious carriage. Seeing the Sichuan brocade elder, he was so scared that his liver and guts were about to burst. He ordered the lackeys to retreat and gave the coachman a heavy slap. Only then did he kneel and say with a trembling voice, "Subordinate Song Long greets Youzhou General."
The Sichuan brocade elder said expressionlessly, "You know laozi, but laozi doesn't know you. Who do you think you are? Scram!"
Song Long was a sixth-rank civil official in Liangzhou. He had once seen this General Zhou at a banquet at the end of the table. Although Elder Zhou had just retired from the prestigious position of Youzhou General, he still had countless disciples. Even great generals like Zhong Hongwu and Yan Wenluan had to be courteous when they saw this person. How could a mere sixth-rank civil official like him go against him? The Beiliang Circuit only governed three provinces. Other than the first-rank generals in the border army that guarded the border, the generals of Liangzhou, Youzhou, and Lingzhou held great authority. Liangzhou was adjacent to Beimang and was far from being comparable to the Lingzhou General. The title of General of the Three Provinces was not just a general without a tiger tally. Even if Song Long was given ten times the courage of a bear, he would not dare to provoke Elder Zhou.
A tall old man walked out at the same time as the former Youzhou General Zhou Kang. Compared to Zhou Kang, he was slightly younger and more robust. Looking at the one-armed old man who came on the ox cart, his eyes filled with tears. He immediately knelt on the road and sobbed, "Lotus Seed Camp's old soldier, Yuan Nanting, greets General Lin!"
Song Long, who was just thinking about how to appease Elder General Zhou, felt his heart tremble when he heard this. Yuan Nanting, the White Feather Cavalry, the number one archer in the Beiliang Army, had been split into three. After one of the Beiliang's Four Fangs, Wei Fucheng, rushed to Western Shu, General Yuan Nanting monopolized two of them. He truly held great power in his hands. But that was not all. Who was this General Lin that could make a fourth-rank general, Yuan Nanting, kneel? Song Long, who had been struck by this unexpected disaster, even had the thought of dying! At this moment, he couldn't care less about Elder General Zhou's "military order" to get lost. He also knelt down and kowtowed with all his might. He didn't care which great Bodhisattva in the Beiliang Army General Lin was. He only cared about burning incense and kowtowing.
Zhou Kang had held the position of Youzhou General for more than ten years. Naturally, he recognized Yuan Nanting, who held the number one archer in the Beiliang Army, the number one archer in the White Feather Cavalry, but they weren't very close. The Beiliang Army's invincible Iron Cavalry was formed in the two Liao Provinces. Later, when they went south, they became braver and braver as they fought in the war of spring and autumn. They continued to grow stronger and stronger, which made their composition extremely complicated. Zhou Kang and Yuan Nanting came from different factions. However, when Yuan Nanting knelt down and called him General Lin, Zhou Kang immediately knew who the one-armed old man who was more than ten years older than him was. He was the first leader of the Lotus Seed Camp, the eighteenth headquarters, Lin Doufang! In order to save the Great General, one of his arms was chopped off. The Great General once personally said that if Brother Doufang had a daughter or granddaughter, they would be Xu Xiao's daughter-in-law in the future! However, after the Great General was bestowed the title of King, there was no longer any news about Old General Lin. Fortunately, Zhou Kang was able to meet this person. Even the arrogant and conceited Zhou Kang was completely convinced. He cupped his fists and respectfully said, "Zhou Kang pays his respects to Old General Lin!"
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