"See General!"

Lin Xuan waved his hand and said, "Sit down!"

"General, the weather is too hot. Give us some ice water." Cheng Chu said with a silent look on his face.

Lin Xuan said angrily: "There isn't much saltpeter left."

Even so, Lin Xuan still had someone bring him ice water.

Before he came to Gaochang, he had considered the heat in Gaochang in summer and brought some saltpeter with him.

Gaochang in July was as hot as a furnace. If he hadn't had the foresight, he would have been unable to hold on.

At that time, Cheng Chumo and the others were astonished when they saw him condensing water into ice.

It's not that they haven't seen ice in the summer.

The ancients were very smart. They collected ice cubes in winter, stored them in ice cellars, and took them out of the ice cellars for use the following summer.

Although summer ice is as valuable as gold, it is nothing to them.

The problem is that this is the first time they have seen someone like Lin Xuan, who can turn water into ice.

After Lin Xuan's explanation, they were no longer as fussy as they were at first.

"Have you collected all the Bai Diazi?" Lin Xuan asked.

Cheng Chumo drank a bowl of ice water and said refreshed: "We have collected it, and I will make sure nothing is left out. A total of more than 13,000 kilograms of seeds were obtained."

When more and more cotton was collected, Lin Xuan ordered them to remove the seeds.

The cotton was so soft that he couldn't take it all back, so he had to take all the seeds back.

As for cotton, I can only take some back depending on the situation.

Lin Xuan nodded. It was more than 13,000 kilograms. When converted into kilograms in later generations, it was a little over 20,000 kilograms.

It seems like a lot, but for Datang, which has a population of more than 10 million, it is still a drop in the bucket.

But with so many seeds, it can be spread throughout the country within two or three years of planting.

"I asked you to find someone who can make wine, have you found one?" Lin Xuan asked.

Zhang Qian of the Han Dynasty brought grapes to the Central Plains from the Western Regions, and grapes began to be grown in various parts of the Central Plains.

After Hou Junji destroyed Gaochang, he obtained the wine making method and started the history of wine making in the Central Plains.

Cheng Chumo said: "We have found more than a dozen people, but I don't know if they are enough."

Lin Xuan smiled and said: "That's enough."

It doesn’t matter if there are few people, just go back and find others to learn from.

"Master Marquis, the Chief Steward sent someone to inform him that someone is coming from Chang'an. The Chief Steward asked the Marquis to attend a banquet in the royal city of Gaochang." Liu Da walked in and said.

"I understand, tell the person who comes, I will be there later." Lin Xuan smiled.

"yes!"

Cheng Chumo said hurriedly: "General, we can't go."

"Yes, I think this is the Hongmen Banquet. Hou Junji must have no good intentions." Yuchi Baolin said.

They used to respect Hou Junji quite a bit, as he was an elder after all.

But ever since Hou Junji tripped up Lin Xuan so that they had no chance to make meritorious deeds, they had scolded Hou Junji's ancestors for eighteen generations in their hearts.

Lin Xuan looked at Xue Rengui and asked, "Rengui, what do you think?"

"General, after calculating the time, the people sent by the imperial court should have arrived. I think there should be nothing wrong." Xue Rengui thought for a while and said.

Lin Xuan nodded. Xue Rengui's thoughts coincided with his.

"When something happens to you, use your brains." Lin Xuan glared at Cheng Chumo and the other two.

Cheng Chumo murmured: "Aren't we worried about you?"

Lin Xuan was too lazy to pay attention to him and said, "Rengui will accompany me to the banquet."

…

Although more than a month has passed since the Battle of Gaochang Royal City.

But traces of the war in the streets of the city still exist.

Hou Junji knew that the Tang Dynasty could not occupy Gaochang for a long time, and had no plans to operate it.

The war has been over for so long, and some people in the royal city of Gaochang have dared to go out.

When Lin Xuan and Xue Rengui entered the royal city of Gaochang, the eyes of the people looking at them were full of hatred.

Lin Xuan smiled bitterly, this was all Hou Junji's fault, what does it have to do with him.

He couldn't explain this kind of thing, so he could only pretend that he didn't see it.

The banquet was held in a side hall of Gaochang Palace.

When Lin Xuan came to the gate of the palace, someone led him in.

Of course it was impossible for Hou Junji to come to greet him in person.

"See the Chief Manager!" Although Lin Xuan and Hou Junji were already at odds with each other, there was still work to be done to save face.

Hou Junji smiled and said: "The Marquis of Jingyang County is here. Come on, I will introduce you to you. This is Mr. Zhang who was sent by your Majesty to establish the Protectorate of the Western Regions."

"I've met Mr. Zhang!" Lin Xuan bowed his hands.

Mr. Zhang looked to be about forty years old. I don't know whether it was because of the long journey or some other reason. Although there was a smile on his face, Lin Xuan still felt that his smile was a bit far-fetched.

"The Marquis of Jingyang County is so polite." Master Zhang said with a smile.

He was originally from a poor family, but he managed to get into a position of being a fifth-rank official.

Being sent to rebuild the Western Region Protectorate this time, he was very high-spirited and ready to do a big job.

However, when he came to the royal city of Gaochang and found out that Hou Junji ordered troops to plunder, he already scolded Hou Junji in his heart.

According to Li Shimin's order, only 500 people were left for him.

Although Gaochang was destroyed by the Tang Dynasty, its population composition was very complex.

He was very confident in rebuilding the Western Region Protectorate.

But he didn't expect that Hou Junji would do such an outrageous thing in Gaochang.

Once the army withdraws, let alone rebuilding the Western Region Protectorate, he might be torn into pieces by the angry Gaochang people.

Hou Junji smiled and said: "Master Zhang, according to the imperial edict, I will return to the court in three days. If you have any problems in the past few days, please come to me."

Master Zhang quickly said: "Duke Lu, I really don't know that the situation in Gaochang is so complicated. I hope the Duke will leave me more manpower. Otherwise, I really won't be able to fulfill your Majesty's instructions."

He was hinting to Hou Junji that you were the cause of this mess.

If you don't leave me someone, I won't be able to complete the mission assigned by Your Majesty.

If something goes wrong then, you won't be able to run away.

Of course Hou Junji heard the profound meaning of Mr. Zhang's words and said with a smile: "The situation in Gaochang is indeed complicated. How about I leave you two thousand people?"

He had no intention of concealing the plundering incident, and he could not conceal it.

He didn't think it was a big deal at all.

But if Li Shimin is delayed in rebuilding the Western Region Protectorate because of this, Li Shimin will inevitably cause trouble for him.

Therefore, he doesn't mind leaving more troops and horses for Master Zhang.

After hearing this, Mr. Zhang was delighted and pleased, and asked, "How should I explain it to His Majesty when he asks?"

Li Shimin said that he would leave 500 troops for him. Now that the number of personnel exceeds the limit, will Li Shimin doubt his ability?

Hou Junji smiled and said: "I will naturally explain this matter to Your Majesty when I get back. Mr. Zhang doesn't have to worry."

"Then thank you so much, Duke." Mr. Zhang said happily.

The ensuing banquet was a feast for both the guests and the host.

Lin Xuan looked at Hou Junji's happy look and shook his head.

No matter what, Hou Junji is also a very shrewd person.

How could such a shrewd person not have imagined that Tan Mo could not hide so many treasures?

Not to mention whether there is a secret agent of Li Shimin in the army, just because the spoils are unevenly distributed, someone will report him.

Although in order to bribe the soldiers, he gave them more money than normal.

But his confidants definitely got more than others.

Can those people be willing to do so?

Perhaps Hou Junji felt that he had contributed to the destruction of the country, and even if Li Shimin knew about it, he would not pursue it.

It is also possible that Hou Junji was obsessed with money.
Chapter completed!