Ren Qian lowered his head and after a while said, "Commander Li, to be honest, I came here with ulterior motives. My original intention was to keep the Peace Army and the Japanese pirates locked in a stalemate, so as to buy some breathing room for our Great Su..."
"Hahaha, is that all?" Li Jun laughed. "Let's not talk about this anymore, I already know. By the way, I have an envelope here, which Mr. Feng sealed back then, please wait for me."
After a moment, Li Jun took out the letter from Feng Jiutian that said Ren Qian had ulterior motives and handed it to Ren Qian.
Ren Qian paused when he saw that the seal on the letter was untouched. Li Jun smiled and said, "It's fine to open it."
After reading it, Ren Qian smiled bitterly and said, "I thought I had played my part perfectly, but I didn't expect there to be so many flaws. If that's the case, why did the commander still appoint me as an advisor to fight the Japanese pirates?"
"Mr. Feng and I both believe in you. As long as we treat you with sincerity, you will surely repay us with sincerity. The ruler of Su is a tyrannical and incompetent ruler, yet you still dared to risk your life to come to the Peace Army. How could you possibly betray us?"
Ren Qian looked ashamed. Although he hadn't wronged Li Jun, it was out of personal motives to seek revenge against the Japanese pirates. He bowed deeply: "I submit, but it's a pity I'm now a cripple..."
“Brother Ren, you’ve gone too far.” Li Jun grasped Ren Qian’s hand and shook his head. “Brother Ren, your strength lies in your mind, not your eyes. Losing an eye is merely a minor flaw in a brilliant gem. If you lose your ambition, you will truly become a useless person.”
Ren Qian was at a loss for words. In recent days, he had watched as the peaceful and prosperous region under the jurisdiction of the Peace Army was well-governed and thriving. He had long harbored the thought of surrendering, but when he thought that he had come here with ulterior motives, he felt that he should leave.
Seeing his expression, Li Jun shook his hand vigorously and said, "Brother Ren, I am interested in the corrupt and treacherous ruler of Su. With your help, I will surely achieve twice the result with half the effort. Ren Xian, you should stay here with peace of mind!"
Ren Qian was startled, his expression changing several times. Recalling all his knowledge and his lifelong ambition, he finally sighed and left without a word.
Chapter Seven: Shocking Assassination
one,
In the eighth month of the fourth year of the Wude era of the Chen Kingdom, and the third year of the Tianyou era of the Su Kingdom, in Liuzhou, the capital of the Su Kingdom, the sky was clear and blue.
This was an extremely turbulent year for the Su Kingdom. Two years of continuous floods and droughts, the loss of the prosperous Qinggui, and the constant peasant uprisings cast an uneasy atmosphere over the entire Su Kingdom. Every discerning person sensed the danger, and the once-prosperous Su Dynasty, which was unparalleled in the land, was inevitably heading towards its demise.
Damn it!
Wu Shu couldn't help but burst into a tirade, surrounded by the Su ministers who held their breath.
"Zuo Huaisu, tell me, why is it that despite the favorable weather this year, the grain harvest is still insufficient?" His sallow eyes flashed with anger, making Zuo Huaisu, the Minister of Revenue and one of the Three Commissioners of the State of Su, tremble with fear as he wiped the sweat from his brow and said, "At the beginning of spring this year, Qinggui Dong Cheng submitted a memorial requesting the transport of 500,000 bushels of rice to the capital to alleviate the crisis caused by two consecutive years of natural disasters. I observed that the rice grains were large and plump, far superior to ordinary rice. It is said that Qinggui can harvest this rice twice a year, doubling the yield. Therefore... therefore, I requested Your Excellency the Prime Minister to distribute these 500,000 bushels of rice to various prefectures as seed, but..."
"Foolish! How could that brat Li Jun have such good intentions!" Wu Shu slammed his fist on the table in anger. "This rice must have been steamed until it was half-cooked beforehand. How can we not have a complete harvest if we use it as seed?"
"Your Excellency, I never expected this back then, and Your Excellency did not explain it clearly..." Zuo Huaisu said in a trembling voice. If this matter were attributed to him alone, even killing him would not be enough to atone for his crime.
"Hmph, you came to see me on the fifteenth of the first lunar month, congratulating me on auspicious omens, and then presented me with rice, claiming that you bought it from elsewhere..." Although Wu Shu was old, his memory was far superior to that of a young man. He coldly laughed, "If you had told me that you came from Qinggui, how could I have fallen for such a big trick? Now that the matter has come to light, how can I not punish you?"
Zuo Huaisu knelt down with a thud and kowtowed repeatedly, saying, "Your Excellency, please spare my life. I only wanted to share your burdens, which is why I made this mistake. Please remember that I have followed you for many years and punish me leniently."
Wu Shu snorted, leaned back in his armchair, and looked up at the ceiling, remaining silent for a long time. Zuo Huaisu was extremely loyal to him; otherwise, he would not have been able to sit in such an important position as the Minister of Finance in charge of local finances. He was also quite capable in collecting revenue and managing expenditures, so he could not be dismissed for the time being.
"Get up." He lowered his eyes, looked at Zuo Huaisu who was covered in tears and sweat, and sighed slightly: "At this point, it will be of no use to pursue the matter further. I am only worried about one thing: the little thief Li Jun will definitely launch a major attack before October."
All the officials stared at him in astonishment. Wu Shu wore a bitter smile. For the officials of Su, who were used to him never showing his emotions, it was rare to see Wu Shu so worried and fearful.
"Does Your Excellency the Prime Minister believe that this brat Li Jun intends to attack before October?"
Minister of War Qin Jian asked in a trembling voice.
“Exactly. They’re using ripe rice seeds to lure me out of food.” Wu Shu’s face returned to its gloomy expression. He slowly said, “This autumn’s harvest is poor, and the army is out of food. If Li Jun doesn’t take this opportunity to attack, then he’s not Li Jun.”
The officials fell silent, heavy breathing filling the room. This time, unlike Li Jun's invasion of Qinggui four years ago, Li Jun now held a strategic advantage. He could advance down the river from Qinggui, heading directly for Liuzhou, located at the mouth of the Liu River (upstream of the Qingjiang River); or he could advance north from Xizhou, breaking through Nan'an Pass and reaching Liuzhou directly; moreover, if Li Jun had increased his investment in the navy in recent years, he could use large ships to transport a large number of Peace Army soldiers to land near Liuzhou. Conversely, although Su still possessed 200,000 troops, they were almost entirely demoralized, and the court lacked capable generals. They were barely fit to fight peasant uprisings, but against the renowned elite Peace Army, their chances of survival were slim.
"Now, there is only one way to defend against the enemy!" Wu Shu sighed in his heart. The Su Kingdom was at a critical juncture, and there was no other choice but to make this decision. "Zheng Zongsheng, go to the Lan Kingdom immediately and report this matter to His Majesty the King of Lan, and urgently request the Lan Kingdom to send troops to help defend it."
"Fan Heng, you must go to Chen immediately and make sure you meet Liu Guang. Tell him that our Great Su is willing to cede Qinggui and the three counties of southern Jiangsu to him in exchange for grain from Chen. Ask him to send troops to take them over as soon as possible."
After issuing orders to the two Hanlin Academicians, Wu Shu turned his gaze to a minister whose face showed hesitation: "Zhu Yufei, what do you have to say?"
"Your Excellency the Prime Minister's concern for the country and its people is truly admirable." Zhu Yufei, the Minister of Rites, bowed. "However, such actions seem inappropriate."
"What do you think is wrong?" Wu Shu asked calmly.
Zhu Yufei glanced at Wu Shu's face and said, "My lord, if we ask the Lan army to help defend, and they refuse to leave after their victory, wouldn't that be like inviting a wolf into the house? If we cede Qinggui and the three southern prefectures to the Chen Kingdom, wouldn't that be like cutting our own throat to benefit the enemy..." As he said this, large beads of sweat seeped from his forehead, and he felt his mouth was dry and he could not continue.
Wu Shu calmly replied, "Why don't you continue?"
Zhu Yufei felt a chill run through his body. If Wu Shu had been furious, he would have felt better, but Wu Shu only squinted and stroked his beard, which made it impossible for him to fathom Wu Shu's intentions.
"I have already presented this plan to His Majesty, and His Majesty has graciously approved its implementation." After a long while, seeing that Zhu Yufei remained silent with his head bowed, Wu Shu slowly said, "Lord Zhu's concerns are not without merit. However, Qinggui and the three southern prefectures are currently in the hands of that scoundrel Li Jun. Even if we do not cede them to Liu Guang, they will not belong to us. If we can exchange them for grain from Chen State to relieve our urgent needs, wouldn't that be ideal? Perhaps this will even provoke a great battle between Liu Guang and Li Jun, and with both sides suffering heavy losses, the fate of our Great Su State will surely turn around. As for Lan State, our Great Su State only needs to offer generous gifts and humble words, using the resources of the entire nation to win the favor of Lan State, and there will be nothing to fear."
Zhu Yufei knew in his heart that if he persisted, the coffin he had prepared for himself before going to court today would really come in handy. He stammered, "Your Excellency is wise. I did not think that far ahead. Please forgive my ignorance."
Wu Shu waved his hand: "Since no one has any objections, let's do it this way."
Zhu Yufei followed the officials out of the main hall, wiped the sweat from his brow, and let out a long sigh of relief. For the past few months, Li Gou had only met with the officials in the Taihe Hall on the first and fifteenth of each month. On the rest of the days, they had to discuss matters with Wu Shu, the prime minister, in the Jiying Hall. Almost every official had to tell their families to prepare coffins before they came. Now it seemed that they could go home safely today.
"Lord Zhu?" Just as Zhu Yufei breathed a sigh of relief, a strong hand patted his shoulder. He shuddered and slowly turned around. The grinning face of the Imperial Guard in front of the palace appeared before him.
How is the war going?
Li Jun dismounted and turned his head to look at the scout horse that had caught up behind him. The warhorse snorted impatiently, seemingly displeased that Li Jun had prevented it from galloping at full speed.
"Reporting to the commander, everything is going smoothly!" The scout panted and said, "General Dong Cheng has already gone down the river, captured Jiang'an City, and is about to head straight for Zhanyang."
Li Jun raised an eyebrow and smiled, "You've worked hard. You should rest now."
Ji Su, standing beside him, was somewhat excited. He cracked his whip and said, "So easily beaten? I thought I could give you a good beating!"
"Haha, Jiang'an City is small and has few soldiers, so it shouldn't be difficult for Dong Cheng to take it. But Zhanyang is the real problem. It controls our army's eastward route. If we can't capture it in time, Qinggui's army won't be able to reach Liuzhou on schedule. The Su Kingdom has a large army stationed in Zhanyang City and has blocked the river with iron chains. I don't think it will be easy to take it," Wei Zhan laughed.
"I wonder how Tu Longziyun and the others are doing," Li Jun said with a smile. "I hope Dong Cheng can make an even bigger splash, so that he can draw the attention of the Su Kingdom and make my advance much smoother."