With a bang, Shang Zhixin smashed a tea cup. As if he still wasn't relieved, he picked up a pen and flicked it, causing it to shatter again. The few Goshiha and Da Baoyi who were following him stood aside with their hands down and their shoulders down, not daring to express their anger.
Because the trip to Zhaoqing went smoothly, Wang Fuchen and Kong Sizhen were deceived by him. This is natural. He, Wang Fuchen and Kong Sizhen were all friends who played with the late emperor back then, and they couldn't be more familiar with each other.
It can be said that in order to help his family regain the three counties of Xiangshan, Xinning, and Xinhui and control the Guangdong Customs Road, he really sacrificed his twenty-year friendship and stopped being a villain. He thought that he would be given the opportunity to lead his troops to regain the three counties and take over Hao'ao as the prince. Unexpectedly, that old man Shang Kexi gave Shang Zhixiao the task of conquering Hao'ao and taking over three counties without even telling him, and also gave Shang Zhixiao an army of 10,000!
Ten thousand troops!
The fifteen subordinates directly under Shang Fan only have 3,000 soldiers on hand. It would be great if they can pull out 6,000 if they are fully mobilized! Even if we add the troops of the general soldiers on the left and right wings who have always been under the control of Shang Fan, the number is only a little more than 10,000.
Although Zhu Guozhi, the governor of Guangdong, Li Lan, the admiral of Guangdong, and Chen Shikai, who did not become the commander-in-chief of Zhaoqing but was instead appointed the commander-in-chief of the newly established Humen Town (expanded from the Humen Association of the Guangdong Navy), also participated in this troop dispatch, But Shang Fan still has a big head!
It can be said that this battle is a bit of a coup for Shang Fan - whether Shang Fan can dominate Guangdong in the future depends on whether he can win the money bag of Haao Commercial City this time!
If Shang Zhixiao leads the elite of Shang Fan to accomplish this great thing, then Shang Zhixiao, who already has a high reputation in Guangdong Fan, will definitely overwhelm Shang Zhixin, the real prince. If it were still the time when the Qing Dynasty ruled the world, then Shang Zhixin would have nothing to fear. Shang Kexi, that old coward, was as fearful as a tiger. There was no one in Shang Fan who was not afraid of the Eight Banners Heavenly Soldiers.
Therefore, Shang Kexi did not dare to replace the father-in-law who was personally granted the title of Lord Shunzhi. With such a slave, how could Shang Kexi dare to have any dissatisfaction with his son?
But now the Qing Dynasty is in turmoil. Not only Wu Sangui wants to compete with the Qing Dynasty for the world, but there is also news of Li Zicheng's resurrection in Huguang. Li Zicheng is alive, can Kangxi still control Guangdong?
As long as the Shang and Wang families don't openly surrender to Wu Sangui or simply become emperor themselves, they can probably be regarded as good ministers of the Qing Dynasty, right?
Under such circumstances, it is not just a matter of words for Shang Kexi, an unfaithful and unfilial old man, to remove the eldest son who answered the letter of Gong Shang and replace him with the second son Shang Zhixiao? Of course, the premise is that Shang Zhixiao has enough prestige.
Thinking of this, he slammed the table furiously. After Shang Zhixiao returned from the successful surprise attack on Haoao, his crown prince would probably have finished his work. The current crown prince of Prince Pingnan is not a governor, he is a position that can be taken up or down. Without the prince, the next step is to be imprisoned. When Shang Zhixiao becomes the prince, then he should go down and accompany Shang Kexi, his unfaithful and unfilial father!
The more he thought about Shang Zhixin, the more his body trembled. All kinds of thoughts intertwined together, and he finally jumped up with a roar: "I'll pack it all up and get ready! I won't serve you anymore, I'm going back to the capital!"
Several big bosses who followed him south from Beijing immediately agreed, turned around and went out to pack up, preparing to "make room" for Shang Zhixiao. Several officials who were originally staying at the Prince's Mansion in Guangzhou did not move. These people glanced at each other, and a military attaché in his forties or fifties wearing a red hat walked up to Shang Zhixin and reminded him in a low voice: "The prince, those in the Guangdong domain who are not very satisfied with the prince and the second prince, are actually Quite a few!”
"Dissatisfied with the old man and the second child? Why?" Although Shang Zhixin was angry, he was not dizzy. He still knew how to ask why?
This second-grade military attache is named Li Tianzhi. He is currently the right chief historian of the vassal of Pingnan Palace. Earlier, he was the deputy capital commander under Shang Zhixin. He has been staying in the Shizi Mansion in Guangzhou and is Shang Zhixin's representative in the vassal.
"Your Majesty, isn't it obvious? The world is in such chaos today. Of course, some people want to find a founding hero! Your Majesty, haven't you ever thought about this? I heard that you were in the capital and The relationship with the Prince of the West is very good. If you can keep the Prince of the West to conquer the world, are you afraid that there will be no rich and powerful person in Guangdong in the future? On the contrary, if the Manchu court pacifies the King of the West, will the Pingnan Palace be retained? Not only many vassals know this truth, but also several young masters know it very well! But the prince and the second young master insist on being the loyal slaves of the Manchu people."
Shang Zhixin calmed down a little, and of course he understood what Li Tianzhi said. And he also knew the reason why Shang Kexi and Shang Zhi were filial and loyal to the Qing Dynasty - they killed too much when Shang Zhixin pacified Guangdong and later implemented coastal relocation, but they did not really kill the Guangdong people, so they had to cling to them. The thighs of the Qing Dynasty.
But there is actually no way out for them to do this. In other words, they themselves may have a way out, but the slaves under the domain have no way out.
If Wu Sangui defeats the Qing Dynasty and conquers the world in the future, then Shang Fan of Guangdong has committed many crimes and is still stubborn, so of course he must be eliminated!
If the Qing Dynasty wins, then Shang Fan will be the next Wu Fan, and of course he will threaten to destroy Wu!
Anyway, he was completely useless and could only survive for a while when Wu Qing faced off.
Of course, as the loyal lackeys of the Qing Dynasty, Shang Kexi and Shang Zhixiao could still go to Beijing to have a good death if the Qing Dynasty won, and maybe they could still keep a hereditary prince.
But Shang Kexi has now accumulated thirty-seven sons and thirty-two daughters, which is still the number of children who have grown up enough to continue!
If we include the grandchildren, the children and grandchildren of Shang Kexi's family alone (including grandchildren) can probably surpass the Aixinjueluo family!
So many people have gone to Beijing, let alone the palace, one person and one courtyard may not be guaranteed.
Thinking of this, Shang Zhixin asked in a low voice: "Which of my brothers is willing to follow me and join Wu?"
Hearing his words, all the subordinates smiled. Everyone knew that my father-in-law had a good relationship with Wu Yingxiong!
Taking refuge in Wu Yingxiong is the way out!
"The fourth master, the twelfth master, and the fourteenth master are all dissatisfied with the old prince and the second master!"
Although Shang Kexi had thirty-seven sons, the most respected among them were the eldest son Shang Zhixin, the second son Shang Zhixiao, the fourth son Shang Zhijie, the seventh son Shang Zhilong, the twelfth son Shang Zhihuang and the fourth son.
These six sons respectively control the eight subordinate leaders of the Han army under the Eight Banners!
After Shang Kexi surrendered to captivity, his troops were all incorporated into the Xianglan Banner Han Army. Some of them later followed Shang Kexi south to Guangdong and reorganized fifteen vassal commanders. The rest were divided into Xianglan Banner. Among the eight assistant collars of the Banner Han Army, these eight assistant collars were divided between Shang Kexi's six sons.
Among them, Shang Zhilong was especially valued because he married Princess Heshuo Heshun (Shunzhi's niece), and was the sole leader of the three subordinates of the Han Army with the Blue Flag. However, he is still in Beijing and has not come to Guangdong. The other five princes of Shang Fan who have collars with blue flags are all in Guangdong. Among them, Shang Zhilong, Shang Zhihuang, and Shang Zhiying are all close to Shang Zhixin, and only Shang Zhixiao is close to them.
"Your Majesty," Li Tianzhi said again, "This is an opportunity for the Second Master to send troops to Hao'ao! He will definitely take away all the elite soldiers in his hands and the prince's, and most of the governor of Guangdong will also be taken away. Only you, the Crown Prince, and the men of the Fourth, Twelfth, and Fourteenth Masters are left!
Moreover, once the second master attacks Haao, the Western expedition of Wang Fuchen, Wang Zhongxiao, and Kong Sizhen will undoubtedly fail. At that time, you will seize Guangzhou, lead your troops to join the Western King, and Wu Fourth Master (Wu Sanwei), General Ao, and Zu Zong will Rong and Sun Junmen besieged the Wang family and his son and Kong Sizhen together. Are they still afraid that they will not be able to achieve great achievements for the new dynasty? "
"Okay!" Shang Zhixin clapped his hands fiercely, "That's it!"
As one of the important players in the chaotic current situation in Guangdong and Guangxi, Zu Zeqing, the commander-in-chief of Gao, Lei and Lian, has fallen into deep doubts these days - why is that cousin from the Wu family ignoring me?
This Zu Zeqing is the youngest son of Zu Dashou. He is in his forties this year. When he was young, he fought with his cousin Wu Sangui and Nanming. He was so "fascinated" by Wu Sangui that he became a "little fanboy".
Because he was "fascinated" by Wu Sangui, he always wanted to be an official "around" Wu Sangui. Even if he was not "personal", he would at least be an official in places like Guizhou, Sichuan, Huguang, and Guangxi.
In this way, if Wu Sangui wants to "make progress" again, he can immediately raise his troops to respond!
But he didn't have that much respect, and in the end he only found General Gao, Lei and Lian from Guangdong, who were actually quite close!
And Ma Xiong, the Admiral of Guangxi who "lived" next door to him, was also Wu Sangui's "fan brother". He was a Tianfang believer and had to pronounce Wu Sangui's name when doing "Khutubai"!
Therefore, Zu Zeqing and Ma Xiong have been working together in private, preparing to mobilize their troops to respond when Wu Sangui rebels. One will sweep Guangxi and the other will conquer Guangdong.
However, the plan could not keep up with the changes. Before Wu Sangui could rebel, Kangxi sent Wang Fuchen with 10,000 new troops to serve as the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi and the president of Guilin Camp. Ten thousand new troops!
This is no joke, so neither Zu Zeqing nor Ma Xiong dared to make a mistake. Even if they colluded with Sun Yanling and Guo Yi, they did not dare to raise their troops at the first moment when Wu Sangui launched a counter-flag until Wu Sanwei and Ao Bai led the army to Xiang Island by sea. Together with Sun Yanling and Guo Yicai, they lost the sign of the Qing Dynasty and started to revive Wu Sangui, the president of the Ming Dynasty. General Hu and General Obai killed Shang Kexi, Wang Fuchen and Kong Sizhen together.
But what happened next made Zu Zeqing unable to understand. Wu Sanwei and Ao Bai, who were entrenched in Xin'an County and had tens of thousands of people, never contacted him. The envoy he sent to Xiang Island was not received by the other party!
What does it mean? Why is this cousin from the Wu family ignoring people?
Could it be that Wu Sanwei doubted his ancestor Zeqing's determination to rebel because many of his ancestors were loyal ministers of the Qing Dynasty in Beijing?
Just when Zu Zeqing felt strange about the attitude of his Wu cousin, he sent to Xiang Island to contact Wu Sanwei's son Zu Lianggen and actually brought Wang Fuchen's eldest son Wang Jizhen.
In the city of Maoming (the capital of Gaozhou Prefecture), sitting in the General Military Office, Zu Zeqing, who was dressed as a general soldier of the Ming Dynasty, was wearing a white round-neck robe, a red hood on his head, and a folding fan in his hand. Followed by a fair and pretty young lady of sixteen or seventeen years old, Mr. Wang, frowned. Before he could speak, the fat man smiled and cupped his hands and said, "Cousin, my junior Ji Zhen is so polite!"
"Cousin?" Zu Zeqing frowned, "My surname is Wang, when did we become relatives?"
"Zong Rong, don't you know?" Wang Jizhen smiled and pointed at the woman following him, "This is Xiaorong, the second daughter of the Crown Prince of the West, and she is my concubine!"
With a "pop" sound, Zu Zeqing had already slapped the table, "How dare you! Can you desecrate the crown prince's daughter? Come on, get it for me!"
"Slow down!" The young princess of the Wu family named Wu Xiaorong actually stepped forward and stood in front of Wang Jizhen, "Who dares to touch my husband?"
"You." Zu Zeqing was stunned and said to himself: This Wang Jizhen is not the little Lu Bu Wang Zhongxiao. How can he be so charming when he is so chubby?
Thinking of this, he glanced at his son Zu Lianggen.
Zu Lianggeng, who was in his early twenties and had a strong appearance, said helplessly: "Dad, my son not only met my niece Rong Biao in Haoao, but also my cousin Tu and my niece Ji."
"What? My cousin's niece?" Zu Zeqing asked, "She is."
"She is Angkor Sango's daughter, the one known as the Eight-faced Guanyin. I met her when I went to Kunming to celebrate the birthday of King Xi!"
"What? Wu Xiaotuo marries Wang Datou?" Zu Zeqing's eyes almost fell out.
Wu Jizhen smiled and said: "That is my sister-in-law. In addition, the beloved daughter of Prince Xi Wang, Xiao Ji, has also joined my brother. When she grows up, she will also become a concubine. In addition, Prince Xi Prince's second daughter has also joined my brother. Young Master, you are also in Haao now!"
"What? The second son of the Prince of the West? Shifan?" Zu Zeqing couldn't believe his ears.
He had long heard that Wu Shifan was missing. He thought he had been killed long ago, but unexpectedly he followed Wang Zhongxiao!
Who is this Wang Zhongxiao?
"Yes, that's my second brother!" said Wu Xiaorong, who devoted herself to protecting her husband. "My husband and his brother Shi Kai took the risk of beheading to save my second brother that day. Brother Shilin didn't blame them for hanging himself. That was forced to death by the tyrant Kangxi!"
Not to mention, the old Wu family's style of "having no righteousness and observing small details" has also been passed down to Wu Xiaorong!
Zu Lianggeng said: "Sir, when I met nephew Shifan in Hao'ao, he said the same thing. Moreover, he and niece Xiaoxian have a very good relationship with Wang Shikai, and niece Xiaoxuan also said that she was Shifan's concubine. It is done willingly, and it is what Princess Jianning means. Even if she becomes a princess in the future, she will not leave Wang Shikai."
Wu Xiaorong also said: "I will not leave my husband! But my brother Shifan is leaving Haoao to be with my father."
When Zu Zeqing heard this, his eyes suddenly lit up: "Master Wang, Xiaorong said that my nephew, Shihuan, can leave Haao and go back to his father?"
Wang Jizhen said with a smile: "That's why I'm here. Now the Crown Prince of the West doesn't have a son. If the Second Young Master Wu can go back, he will be the grandson of the King of the West, right? If the old Wu family conquers the world in the future, he may become the king of the West." Your Majesty! My brother and I can’t delay his great future! Zu Zongrong, you don’t want to delay the second young master, right?”
"This" Zu Zeqing immediately realized how beneficial this matter was!
Wu Sangui is old, and Wu Yingxiong is no longer young. Maybe twenty years later, it will be this Wu Shifan sitting in the court hall of Beijing!
Although Wang Zhongxiao participated in forcing Wu Shilin to death, he could be said to have saved Wu Shifan's life and rebuilt his life. If Wu Shifan really wanted to protect him, others would not be able to do the same.
At worst, just revise history and say that Wu Shilin was not forced to death by Wang Zhongxiao, right?
And this matter is also of great benefit to Zu Zeqing!
Wang Jizhen said: "Zong Rong, you guarded the three mansions of Gao, Lei and Lian until the King of the West took control of Beijing. How much contribution can you make? Can you make a marquis? But if you protect the future emperor's return, When you arrive at the side of the Prince of the West, my father-in-law, how big a contribution is this? What a great contribution to protecting him! Besides, what's the use of your thousands of people in Guangdong? Guangdong can't decide who belongs to the world. It is the key to the belonging of the world. If the Crown Prince of the West can capture Huguang, not only the kingdom of the West King will be stable, but the future of the Crown Prince will also be stable. Zu Zongrong, if you lead thousands of elite soldiers to protect the descendants of the King of the West, in During the fierce battle between the Wu and Qing armies, they suddenly entered Hunan. This was the final word!
How about it? Zu Zongrong, how about you give us the Gao, Lei, and Lian mansions, and then protect my brother-in-law as he goes north to Hunan? "
(End of chapter)
