Even though he had expected it, when it actually happened, it still made him a little nervous.
Of course, after all, at this age, he can always keep his composure.
He gently put down the teacup and pretended to be relaxed:
"But it doesn't matter."
"This afternoon, a court official came to the fort, accompanied by more than a dozen tough guards. He said he was ordered to go to the villages and towns to inspect the people's situation. I don't know if he was a plainclothes member of the Jin Yiwei who came to track down the Jianwen Party."
"It is also possible that it came from the promotion of the new policy of 'divide a small portion into an acre'."
"???"
Zhou Shixiu listened carefully, frowning and thinking.
"If the Jinyiwei were plainclothes, they wouldn't be so formal. They would have made the whole fort jump into chaos."
"And this earthen castle has never been discovered by anyone before, not even the Jin Yiwei has been here, right?"
"No, but if we promote the New Deal, I'm afraid Liu Laoqi and his gang will turn their backs on us. He and some people have gone to the mountains."
After hearing what Young Master Wang said, Zhou Shixiu's face darkened, and he gritted his teeth and said:
"Then try to kill Liu Laoqi and his gang."
"But the problem is that these dozen officers and soldiers are in the fort, and my people can't take action."
"Besides, even if we get rid of people like Liu Laoqi, the key is the future. What's the next step?"
Young Master Wang lowered his face and said in a huff.
"What do you mean what to do next?"
"Master Zhou, do you still want to pretend to be stupid and coax us, father and son?"
Seeing Zhou Shixiu's muddled expression, Young Master Wang became angry.
"At the end of last year, Mr. Zhou did not come to us with this lazy look, but with great ambition."
"You said that you yourself were ordered to recruit the rebel army King Qin to rescue him. The Yan army took risks regardless of the consequences and bypassed Huai'an before leading the main force to attack Yangzhou, asking everyone to provide money and men to build the castle."
"But within a few days, guard Wang Li killed the imperial envoy Wang Bin, Kaicheng surrendered to the Yan army, and the Yan army reached Pukou in the north of the Yangtze River."
"You also deceived and said that the Yan army landlubbers will never be able to cross the Yangtze River. As long as we recruit brave soldiers and King Qin rescues them to Nanjing, we can get a third-grade court official and countless gold and silver."
"But what happened next?"
Young Master Wang was so angry that his mouth was filled with smoke.
He walked back and forth in the bridal chamber with his hands behind his back, pointed at Zhou Shixiu, and continued to accuse angrily:
"We, father and son, finally believed in you. We spent all the gold and silver in our family to help you recruit soldiers, and asked my uncle Zhang Dalang to help you."
"As a result, the city of Nanjing was destroyed as soon as the rebel army was formed."
"You also said that Emperor Jianwen escaped. All we need is Huai'an Prefecture's Prince Consort and General Mei to send troops to intercept the Yan army's retreat. In a few days, Yan Ni can be surrounded in Nanjing."
"Then we and other Qinwang troops from all over the country will swarm in, and Nanjing City will repeat the story of Chen Baxian and Hou Jing's rebellion, and Yan Ni will be wiped out."
"But what is the reality?"
Young Master Wang was so angry that he grabbed the tea cup on the table, smashed it to the ground, and roared:
"And the General Mei you boasted about did not reproduce the glory of Chen Baxian. King Yan ascended the throne, and the proclamation of the world's prefectures and counties was decided. Mei's consort finally abandoned the city and surrendered."
"Now, the so-called big thing that we, father and son, are doing with your heads, is to wait for the powerful Yan army to sweep all the prefectures, counties and towns in the south of the Yangtze River, and the Yang and Huai prefectures are the first to bear the brunt."
Young Master Wang finally let out the anger he had held in his chest for the past six months.
Judging from the current situation, Zhou Shixiu has caused great harm to the Wang family.
"My dear nephew, what's the use of talking about this now? I don't understand that things will change so fast that people won't have time to react. I have no intention of deceiving you, father and son."
"After Nanjing was occupied by Yan Ni, I went to Huai'an Mansion to find Prince Consort Mei, but even he was confused and couldn't understand."
"He said that he did not receive any order from Emperor Jianwen to ask King Qin to return to the capital, but we have already been ordered to recruit soldiers from King Qin."
"I don't understand this. What is your Majesty thinking?"
Facing Young Master Wang's roar, Zhou Shixiu was also filled with grievances and couldn't figure it out.
"What's wrong with this?"
"Isn't it just that Jianwen was afraid of King Mei Yinqin, so he was too lazy to leave the capital when the time came. In the end, it was easier to invite gods than to send them away, and he ended up losing the throne."
"It is this small-mindedness that has harmed the entire court."
Mr. Wang hit the nail on the head.
Zhou Shixiu could only remain silent when he heard this.
It's not that he didn't expect Emperor Jianwen's pettiness, it's just that he couldn't comment on the emperor to whom he was loyal.
"What should we do now? Are we going to take out the more than 300 soldiers and brave men in this mountain and fight against the tens of thousands of Yan troops?"
"You ask me?" Young Master Wang looked confused.
"Yeah, that's right."
Zhou Shixiu nodded and said in a deep voice:
"I asked you what you are going to do with me now?"
"Kill me, or let me get out of here?"
Seeing Young Master Wang's stunned expression, Zhou Shixiu smiled bitterly and said:
"Even if you kill me now, thinking that you have eliminated the evidence of the crime, the fact that you secretly amassed hundreds of private soldiers is not only known to the refugee Liu Laoqi, but also to many people in this mountain."
"Zhang Dalang is still recruiting for us outside. What about these people? You can kill them all?"
"If this comes to light and you have built up a powerful local armed force to this extent, no matter how hard you try to wash away the serious crime of treason, can Zhu Di forgive the Wang family?"
"With Zhu Di's ruthless determination, he will definitely destroy the nine tribes."
Young Master Wang's face turned pale and he was sweating profusely.
He knew in his heart that Zhou Shixiu's words were by no means alarmist, but absolutely true.
"Let me leave here, but I am a scholar and an imperial prisoner. I have no way to quote the ultimatum."
Sooner or later you will be caught. "
"No one can withstand Jinyiwei's execution chamber. When the time comes, I won't be able to withstand the punishment, so I will have to surrender you."
Young Master Wang felt his scalp numb and was stunned.
"Shameless person! I, the Wang family, have devoted all their efforts to help you succeed, but you repay me in this way?"
Zhou Shixiu sneered:
"I don't want this to be the case. People who achieve great things still care about this? Fang Xiaoru was able to withstand ten clans being wiped out. Where is your integrity?"
"Die for the righteousness of the king and his ministers. If you die, you will die. You will surely leave your name in history!"
Young Master Wang was stunned and speechless after being scolded.
"Now that things have happened, let's stop complaining among ourselves. Later, you and I will lead fifty confidants down the mountain and kill all the officers and soldiers staying in the village fort, as well as Liu Laoqi and the others. .”
"Demobilize those refugees and let them go back to their places of origin. We will make plans after the storm subsides."
After hearing this, Young Master Wang could only nod his head in agreement.
Now that he had boarded the pirate ship and could not get off, he had no choice but to follow Zhou Shixiu's intention and walk all the way to the dark side.
Seeing that Young Master Wang agreed, Zhou Shixiu stood up and called a guard to inform him.
After half an hour, all fifty soldiers were gathered together, each equipped with swords, bows and arrows.
Before setting off, Zhou Shixiu made an impassioned mobilization.
