Yang Lu was startled, then immediately adjusted his expression to show that he was obliged to do so.
"How dare you talk to His Highness Xiangzhu? If His Highness has any instructions, just inform the general."
"As long as the general can do it, he can only do his best!"
Seeing him patting his chest and looking loyal, Zhu Su smiled slightly, picked up the teacup and took a sip.
"I would like to borrow some troops from you, the commander of the Suzhou Guard."
"General Yang, what do you think?"
"..."
The scene became quiet for an instant, and Yang Lu's smile froze on his face. Even the thousands of households who were smiling next to him looked at Zhu Su in shock, as if time had suddenly stopped.
After a moment, Yang Lu seemed to come to his senses and put a smile on his face again:
"General, I understand that when His Highness comes to Suzhou, I, the Suzhou Guard, will be responsible for his safety."
"But the general was negligent. He should not have waited for His Highness to speak."
"Li Yansong! A hundred of your men will go to Shen Mansion to protect His Highness..."
Before the man named Li Yansong could respond, Zhu Su raised his hand and said, "Commander Yang misunderstood."
"I, the king, am not asking you for someone to be your bodyguard."
"Rather, I want to borrow troops from you, and I want to borrow the Suzhou Guard Commander's Soldier Talisman Seal in your hand..."
"Do you understand?"
Yang Lu's smile suddenly froze on his face, and the atmosphere became stagnant again. The faces of the other thousands of households also became ugly.
This is what the Fifth Highness is planning to do...
Seize military power?
"Your Highness... Your Highness..." Yang Lu's face changed like a revolving door. The cup of tea that was supposed to be offered to Zhu Su hung in his hand for a long time, and he didn't know whether to throw it away suddenly or put it down gently.
After all, it was Zhu Su's scarlet python robe that played the role. Under Zhu Su's gaze, Yang Lu's expression finally turned into a smile again:
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty is joking."
"The transfer of military power still requires a warrant from the Governor's Office. Even if His Highness speaks for it, the last general...the last general will not dare to do it..."
Zhu Su didn't say a word, just stared at Yang Lu with a half-smile. Yang Lu forced a smile and maintained the posture of serving tea with both hands, but his hands were shaking slightly uncontrollably, and half of the tea in the cup was spilled unknowingly.
"Hahaha."
"Yang commands loyal men and has the style of Yafu."
"But the commander misunderstood. Since I am the King of Wu in the Ming Dynasty, how could I do such a thing to seize military power?"
"My intention is to use Commander Yang to mobilize some troops. This is the first time that I have been commissioned by my father, so I have to do something to facilitate the mission."
"So, I want to borrow some soldiers to build a dam."
“Whether it’s effective or not, it’s still done.”
"Oh, oh...that's it, that's it!"
Yang Lu felt relieved, and beads of sweat began to drip from his forehead. He raised his neck and drank the half-sprinkled cup, patted his chest and said, "Your Highness has a mission to do, how can you not help me?"
"Building dams is a great thing that will benefit the people of Suzhou. How can we not support it vigorously!"
"The general will allocate a thousand of the general's cronies to His Highness..."
"Ying Dayao!"
Yang Lu named a Qianhu next to him, and the Qianhu immediately agreed. Just as he was about to step forward, Zhu Su raised his hand again and interrupted him.
"There is no need for Yang to command the people around you. The commander is preparing for war, so how can you take away the generals around you?"
"I think those soldiers on the school field are good. Commander Yang on the left and right doesn't trust them."
"Why don't you leave it to me and let them build the dam and control the water. In this way, it can be regarded as waste utilization."
"This..." Yang Lu was stunned. He really didn't expect that Zhu Su would ask those soldiers who were originally under Zhang Shicheng to surrender.
"House..." Chang Mao over there was also anxious, and when he was about to speak, Zhu Su gave him a look, signaling him to calm down.
"...Since His Highness has taken a fancy to them, he has also considered so much for the general. How can the general not disobey them?"
"General Mo will hand over these thousand people to His Highness. From today on, I will not ask how to arrange them."
"I would like to thank Commander Yang." Zhu Su smiled warmly and raised his glass to toast Yang Lu.
…
"Commander Yang, there is no need to see each other off. There is no need to see each other off." After dinner and tea, Zhu Su still had a smile on his face and looked very close.
Yang Lu was also enthusiastic and sent Zhu Su and Chang Mao off again and again until they arrived at the end of Weiqian Street. He led a group of people to watch the carriage that sent Zhu Su and Chang Mao off and turned across the street before heading to the guard gate with a group of people. Go.
"My lord, is there anything wrong with letting those surrendered troops follow His Highness King Wu?" asked a thousand captain.
"These bastards who surrendered to the army may have some contact with the remnants of the rebels."
"Lend these soldiers to the prince, in case he is put in danger..."
"It's just a thousand scattered warriors, what use can they be put to?" Yang Lu said disdainfully. "How could a nobleman like him not be afraid of death? Zheng Guogong brought nearly a hundred elite soldiers from hundreds of battles! They all had experienced life and death with Chang Shiwan! Can those stragglers defeat those one hundred people? "
"Besides, these people are going to do hard labor."
"Your majesty, can you still wash the mud soup with them?"
"That's right. Before His Highness arrived in Suzhou, he had already booked a stay in a first-class luxury place like Shen Yuan in Suzhou City. How could he really mix with those mud-legged people and go to the mud soup to quell the flood? "A captain suddenly said.
"Didn't he say it himself? It's just for him to have a way to communicate. And I heard that the life of the prince in Beijing is very difficult. It is rare for him to go out on a mission, so he must stay in Shenyuan and enjoy the Jiangnan style. "
"There are no fools in the world who don't have fun but endure hardship."
As Yang Lu spoke, he sat on the seat where Zhu Su had just sat.
"The commander has given you great foresight!" The commanders and commanders below all bowed in admiration. "Grandma, when I heard him suddenly say those words, I thought he really wanted to seize the military power of our Suzhou Guard."
"It is up to us, the commander, to deal with it properly and make this Prince Wu lose his resentment..."
"It's just a matter of prevarication with a smiling face." Yang Lu snorted lightly.
"You say he's a prince, but he's actually not a boy in his teens? There's no way I, Yang, can't handle it."
"My sister is Concubine Yang in the palace. If it really comes down to it, I am still his elder..."
…
"Your Highness, what are we going to do with the more than a thousand surrendered troops?" Chang Mao, who was in the carriage on the other side, also said to Zhu Su. There was a look of confusion on his face.
"If you want soldiers, we can just rob them by force. If Yang Lu is so humble, I don't dare not give them to him."
"What are these burdens for? They have to be watched. Besides, if they contact the water bandits and look for an opportunity to make a surprise attack..."
"Wouldn't that be wonderful? We already have nowhere to look for traces of those water bandits. If the water bandits were caught by my bait, wouldn't we save a lot of trouble?" Zhu Su said.
Seeing Chang Mao's obvious startle, and then his slight annoyance, Zhu Su hurriedly smiled and said, "It's just a joke, Brother Chang, don't be upset."
"I'm also afraid of death, so I wouldn't do something like this that would put myself in danger."
"Brother Chang, think about it, if we borrow Yang Lu's soldiers, will those soldiers really listen to us?"
Speaking of Yang Lu, Zhu Su sneered.
(End of chapter)
