The night is getting darker, but there are waves hidden under the quietness of Dingbo Camp.
Wu Zhikui was restless in his handsome tent, looking at the sky from time to time.
A subordinate walked in and whispered in his ear.
"Boss, brothers are all ready."
Wu Zhikui looked at his subordinates and asked for the last time: "Doing this is tantamount to rebellion. If we lose, the nine tribes will be implicated. Aren't you afraid?"
The subordinate smiled happily.
"Boss, if you're not afraid, what do you have to be afraid of, brothers? We've had enough of the bird-like behavior over the years. Now the damned court wants us to massacre our fellow villagers, who can do it? Not to mention, brothers. Everyone in the family makes some living by spinning and weaving. Since the construction of this textile factory, life has become a little easier for the brothers. Since the dog official won't let everyone live, why are you being polite to him? "
Wu Zhikui patted his men's shoulders heavily.
"That's the truth. If the imperial court doesn't take our people into consideration, why should we sacrifice our lives for him?"
The two were talking passionately when someone suddenly broke in.
"Boss, Baihu, General Hou is here."
The two of them were shocked, and Baihu's hand even touched the handle of the knife.
"Why did Hou Chengzu come here?"
Wu Zhikui's face was full of worry.
"I don't know either. Tell the brothers to use their tactics and follow my orders."
Wu Zhikui and Jiang Guan originally discussed that after the night attack began, Wu Zhikui would coordinate his troops and defeat the Jinshan Guards through external cooperation.
But now that something unexpected happened, Wu Zhikui could only adapt to circumstances.
After a while, a young general, about twenty years old, walked in from outside.
But no one in Jinshan Guard dared to neglect this person.
Because this person's name is Hou Chengzu.
According to the rules of the imperial court, the generals of Jinshan Guard should be from his family.
Just because Hou Chengzu was still too young when his father died, the senior general of Jinshan Guard was appointed to someone else.
If nothing unexpected happens, Hou Chengzu will take over from his father Enmeng and become the chief general of Jinshan Guard in a few years.
Wu Zhikui and Hou Chengzu didn't have much contact, so I really didn't know what the latter's purpose was for coming here at such a critical moment.
Hou Chengzu walked into the tent and searched everywhere.
"Brother Wu, I have something to ask of you. Please give me a chance and let's discuss it in detail."
Wu Zhikui's eyes were cautious, and he thought for a moment and wanted everyone below to retreat.
He did not approach Hou Chengzu, but took two steps back. While sitting down, his left hand seemed to be unintentionally placed on the handle of the knife.
Outsiders will never see anything fishy in this action.
But if Hou Chengzu wants to get violent, Wu Zhikui can draw his knife immediately.
It only takes two or three times of support, and the men from outside rush in to ensure that Hou Chengzu can be chopped into meat paste.
There was no one else in the tent, and Hou Chengzu's face immediately became angry.
"Brother Wu, this Lu Quan is rebellious. He only cares about amassing money and deducting military pay. He doesn't regard our Jinshan Guard as his own. If he continues to torture us, our Jinshan Guard will collapse."
Um?
Wu Zhikui was a little stunned.
"Haha, General Lu Shen is appointed by the imperial court after all. He has great power, what can we do?"
Seeing Wu Zhikui's ambiguity, Hou Chengzu became anxious.
"Brother Wu, although we brothers don't have much friendship, after all, you and I are both locals of our Songjiang Prefecture, and our roots are here. He, Lu Quan, was transferred from Zhejiang and stayed in Jinshanwei for two years before leaving. He Who cares about our life and death? Besides, this time Lu Quan takes us out to Bingfu City, does he really want us brothers to attack our fellow villagers? "
Wu Zhikui felt something about it.
"Brother Hou, to be honest, I can't bear it on my conscience if I want to kill my elders in my hometown. Besides, what's wrong with me thinking about cotton spinning?"
"That's exactly what it means!"
Hou Chengzu slapped his thigh, as if he had found a soulmate.
"To be honest with Brother Wu, my Hou family has also invested in cotton spinning. Over the years, Lin Lin has made some money, which has eased the situation of my Hou family a lot."
He took two steps forward and lowered his voice.
"I have read the article by Commander Zuo of Shandong, and I think it makes sense. There have been many rumors in the market recently that what the government did this time was that the landlords and scholars wanted to counterattack us. At this time, I will do it no matter what. I stand with the elders in my hometown. I wonder if Brother Wu would be willing to lend a helping hand to my younger brother?"
Wu Zhikui is very cautious.
"You came here to persuade me alone. Aren't you afraid that Wu will inform you? Now everyone inside and outside is my people. As long as I give the order, it will be easy to capture you."
Hou Chengzu showed no fear.
"Haha, Brother Wu, although our Hou family is not as good as before, this Jinshan Guard has been under the control of my Hou family since the Hongwu Year. I am not bragging, this Jinshan Guard is up and down, inside and outside, all it takes is a little brother's word The greetings are all people who are willing to risk their lives for the younger brother. Brother Wu's Dingbo Battalion is well-trained, and the younger brother still admires it. But Brother Wu feels that your battalion alone can block the entire Jinshan. Wei?"
Bang... Bang... Bang...
Amid slow applause, Jiang Guan walked in from behind. Hou Chengzu was shocked by his unfamiliar appearance.
"It's gratifying that General Hou has abandoned the dark side and turned to the bright side. With General Hou's help, there is no reason why today's matter cannot be impossible."
Hou Chengzu didn't know why.
"Who are you?"
Jiang Guan smiled slightly.
"I'm from Fucheng."
Hou Chengzu was shocked and realized something.
"You... you..."
Although this Hou Chengzu was a hereditary general of Jinshan Guard, he was not as corrupted as other generals of the Ming Dynasty.
The Hou family has always abided by their ancestral precepts, been kind to others, and managed Jinshanwei in an orderly manner, so that everyone from top to bottom could live and work in peace and contentment.
Therefore, the people of Jinshanwei all support the Hou family and obey their advice.
However, since Hou Chengzu's father passed away, Lu Quan, a general sent by the imperial court, became greedy, causing many families in Jinshanwei to become increasingly poor.
Fortunately, with the rise of the cotton spinning industry, the people of Jinshanwei followed Hou Chengzu to find another way out, and finally subsidized their family income and were able to survive.
This time the government wanted to take action against the cotton spinning industry and sent the Jinshan Guards to massacre Sangzi. This immediately made everyone in the Jinshan Guards unable to accept it.
Hou Chengzu keenly grasped this point and immediately connected with everyone, planning to kill Lu Quan and join his fellow villagers.
Wu Zhikui was the last person he wanted to persuade.
But he didn't expect that Wu Zhikui had already contacted Fucheng Nei.
This time the two sides hit it off immediately, causing the entire Jinshan Guard to become restless.
In the original history, when the Qing soldiers attacked Jinshan Guard, Hou Chengzu and his son resisted desperately.
After the fall of Jinshan Guard, the father and son preferred death to surrender and regarded death as home. Even his daughter-in-law chose to commit suicide to accompany him.
Such an upright person decisively chose to stand on the side of justice at an important moment.