Yongli Ming Dynasty

Chapter 344 Arrest
Yao Jing and Su Zhao sitting in the back hall of Yao's mansion in Haifeng, Huizhou
Yao Jing looked at Su Zhao beside him and asked

"Is Dingnan ready?"

"We are ready. The imperial army has been deployed to Longnan City. Dingnan City is in the rear and the defense is quite lax."

"Brother Lu and his men have already arranged personnel in several counties in Dingnan. Once the Qing army arrives, Dingnan, Heping, and Longchuan counties can open their gates directly, and all parts of Huibei will be in chaos."

When Su Zhao said this, a trace of worry flashed across his face, and he asked

"Brother Lu and others are all very nervous now, and they keep writing to ask if there is any news from Gan Province."

Yao Jing nodded and said softly

"Governor Zhang has replied. Gan Province has agreed to this matter. However, it will take some time for them to mobilize the troops. Please write to Brother Lu and ask him to stay calm."

"We are all in the dark now. If people from Gan Province come, we will act according to the plan. If they don't come, we will pretend nothing happened."

"As long as we don't take any action, no one can catch us, so why worry?"

Su Zhao was relieved when he heard that Gan Province had agreed. Although Yao Jing looked calm at this time, a trace of worry flashed in his eyes.

Zhang Yutian had indeed replied and agreed to send troops to launch a surprise attack on Huizhou, but what really disturbed Yao Jing was that the messenger he sent to Gan Province disappeared without a trace.

In order to prevent any accidents, Yao Jing sent two messengers to Gan Province, one to Ganzhou and the other to Changning. The messenger from Ganzhou returned smoothly, but the messenger from Changning never heard from them again after leaving Huizhou.

Yao Jing also wanted to send people to investigate, but he found that there was no way to investigate. At this time, the border between Jiangxi and Guangdong was in chaos. If someone was released, not to mention the ordinary servants sent by Yao Jing, even the specially sent scouts in the army might be killed on the way.
It would not be surprising if the messenger on the way to Changning encountered an accident.

Yao Jing didn't care whether the servants lived or died. The Yao family kept these strong servants for free every year just to use them. What he was really worried about was the secret letter in the servant's hand. That was the real life-threatening thing.

Yao Jing was just thinking about the whereabouts of the messenger from Changning, when suddenly there was a loud shout outside the hall.

At the gate of Yao Mansion, nearly a hundred soldiers in armor surrounded the Mansion on all sides. The manager of Yao Mansion stood at the gate, looking at the soldiers at the gate and shouted sternly:
"My master is a successful candidate in the imperial court. Where on earth did you come from? How dare you be so rude?"

Chen Shangchuan, wearing a blue official robe, walked to the door under the protection of several soldiers. He was about to speak, but before he could say anything, a burly general in armor walked in and knocked the steward to the ground.

Jin Tongwu waved his hand, and dozens of Loyalty Camp imperial guards armed with bows and swords rushed into the gate. Jin Tongwu walked into the mansion and shouted
"The court is arresting the rebels. Everyone in the palace kneels down to await investigation."

The changes outside the mansion had obviously alarmed the people inside. The servants of the Yao family were originally gathered at the door to see what was going on. When they saw the soldiers walking in with knives, they immediately started to panic.

Among the crowd, a servant in gray linen clothes saw the soldiers breaking into the mansion, and his expression suddenly changed.
The boy's eyes flashed, and then he turned around and ran towards the backyard, shouting as he ran.

"These are all rebel soldiers from outside the city. They are looting the countryside. Everyone, flee quickly..."

The gray-clothed servant shouted, but before he could finish his words, an iron arrow suddenly flew through the air and pierced directly into the back of the servant. The sound in the field also stopped abruptly.
The gray-clothed servant fell to the ground, and bright red blood continued to flow from his body, staining the stone floor in the courtyard red.

The servant fell to the ground, his eyes wide open, his face blank. Until he died, he had never expected that the intruders would dare to kill people in Yao's house.

Jin Tongwu held up his bow and looked at the panicked servants in the field. His face was cold and he shouted loudly.
"I will say it again, everyone kneel down and wait for investigation. Anyone who moves will be killed without mercy!"

The cold voice resounded throughout the place. The frightened servants were stunned for a moment, and then all of them knelt on the ground. At this time, the imperial guards who had broken into the mansion had already rushed into the backyard.

In the back hall, Yao Jing and his companion heard the commotion in the front yard and were about to go out to check. When they walked out of the door, they saw the armored soldiers breaking into the back yard.
Yao Jing and the other man were dressed in brocade, and it was obvious at a glance that they were not ordinary people. The imperial guards blocked the two of them in the courtyard.
In the back hall, Chen Shangchuan and Jin Tongwu walked into the room under the protection of the soldiers.

Chen Shangchuan glanced at the middle-aged man in the red brocade robe in the hall, and said to Jin Tongwu beside him

"General Jin, this person is Yao Jing"

Upon hearing this, Jin Tongwu immediately looked forward. The imperial court was now sweeping across the southern provinces. In Jin Tongwu's opinion, since Yao Jing dared to rebel, he must be a brave and valiant person like a country tyrant.
But looking at the pale wealthy man in the hall, Jin Tongwu was disappointed. With such a man in front of him, Jin Tongwu could kill ten of them with one hand.

He really couldn't understand how such a person could have the courage to collude with the Qing invaders and rebel against the court.
Yao Jing's face was pale. When he saw Chen Shangchuan walking into the hall, he pretended to be calm and said

"County Magistrate Chen, what is going on? Why did these soldiers suddenly break into my Yao family?"

Chen Shangchuan was about to speak with a cold expression, but Jin Tongwu, who was standing beside him, had already lost interest in Yao Jing and spoke directly

"Quickly seal off the study room in the back hall of Yao's mansion and other places, and search for evidence in the secret rooms and compartments in the house."

"If anyone dares to resist or commit violence, or attempts to destroy evidence, just kill them on the spot, no need to report to us."

When Yao Jing heard the word "study room", his expression suddenly changed. He suddenly looked furious and stared at Chen Shangchuan and shouted:

"Mr. Chen, I am a successful candidate of the imperial court. You have brought soldiers to break into a private residence without any reason. You have even disregarded the law and looted the residence of the gentry. This is a serious crime."

"If you don't stop, I will mobilize all the gentry in the prefecture to impeach you!" Chen Shangchuan glanced at Yao Jing who was glaring at him, and shouted coldly:
"You traitor, you still don't repent even when you are facing death. You are truly a ruthless villain!"

"What traitor, Chen Shangchuan, stop talking nonsense here!"

Yao Jing finally panicked after hearing what Chen Shangchuan said, and he started to shout. However, Chen Shangchuan no longer paid attention to Yao Jing, but walked to Jin Tongwu and reported the Yao family's dealings in the county.
Not long after, a soldier from the Imperial Guard suddenly hurried into the hall and said:

"General, we have found the documents of treason in the secret compartment of the study."

Jin Tongwu glanced at the contents of the oath, looked at the bright red fingerprints below the oath, snorted coldly, and handed the oath directly to Chen Shangchuan beside him.
Chen Shangchuan read the oath and his face was also angry. He shouted coldly
"What a good way to invite the royal teacher and swear an oath in blood! You traitors deserve to die!"

"No"

Yao Jing looked at the oath in Chen Shangchuan's hand, and suddenly roared, and rushed towards Chen Shangchuan, trying to snatch the oath from Chen Shangchuan's hand.
This oath is enough to make the entire Yao family die without a burial place.
Chen Shangchuan saw Yao Jing rushing towards him, his face changed slightly, and he was about to retreat.

But at this moment, a figure suddenly stepped forward from behind. Jin Tongwu kicked Yao Jing in the abdomen, and Yao Jing flew backwards with a bang, knocking over the tea table behind him.

The sandalwood tea table shattered, and Yao Jing fell in the middle of the broken wooden table, spitting out a mouthful of blood, but Yao Jing ignored it and still struggled to grab the oath in Chen Shangchuan's hand.

"It's fake, it's all fake. Chen Shangchuan, you framed me, I will never let you go."

Yao Jing's hair was disheveled and he was screaming crazily, but the imperial guards at the side had already stepped forward, held Yao Jing down and dragged him down the hall.

After seeing Jin Tongwu and others enter the hall, Su Zhao had already collapsed on the chair and fainted.
In the back hall of the Li Mansion in Chaozhou, Li Shichang sat in the hall, feeling somewhat uneasy.
There was a sound of footsteps at the door, and then a figure rushed into the hall. Li Shichang looked at Li Shiyuan, who was sweating profusely, and immediately stood up and said

"How is it? Is there any news from Jieyang?"

"There is news. Brother Chen just sent someone back to tell us that the Ninth Army has already set out to besiege the city."

Li Shichang's face relaxed when he heard this. Although they did it secretly, if Chaozhou was in chaos, the court would definitely send people to investigate.

But now, the Ninth Army is a notorious bandit in Chaozhou. If the Ninth Army goes out, all the problems can be blamed on the bandits of the Ninth Army.

Li Shichang sat back in his chair and exhaled gently. He waved his hand to let Li Shiyuan sit down and spoke again.

"What's going on in Raoping? We've sent money and food, but when will Wu Liuqi be willing to send troops?"

"I don't know. After delivering the food last time, Wu Liuqi had already agreed to send troops. According to the date, Wu Liuqi should have arrived at Raoping City the day before yesterday, but there has been no sign of the thief in Raoping."

Li Shichang frowned upon hearing this. According to their plan, Jieyang and Raoping would launch attacks from both the north and south at the same time. Only when both places were attacked at the same time could Chaozhou be in complete chaos.

Now Jieyang has launched the movement, but Wu Liuqi has not been seen for a long time. If Raoping is missing, the whole prefecture will not be able to rebel, and the momentum will be greatly reduced.

Li Shichang thought for a moment, then said in a deep voice
"Once Jieyang is in chaos, the imperial court will soon get the news, and the imperial army will probably arrive soon. If Wu Liuqi, the bandit leader, sees the army coming, he will probably not dare to send out any more troops."

"This matter cannot be delayed. Send someone to urge him. No matter what conditions he has, you must agree to them first and trick him into sending troops first."

“But be careful not to leave any evidence behind.”

Upon hearing this, Li Shiyuan also spoke

"I've sent Li Biao to urge him. Second brother, Wu Liuqi is still taking no action. Has he heard any rumors?"

Li Shichang frowned slightly, but then waved his hand and said

"Don't worry about him. It's good for him to send troops to besiege Raoping. If he doesn't do it in the end, that's fine too. Once the Ninth Army takes action, we will be safe."

A fierce look flashed in Li Shichang's eyes. No matter whether Wu Liuqi sent out troops or not, this man was doomed.

Since the end of the Chongzhen reign, Chaozhou has been plagued by banditry. The Nine Armies, Wu Liuqi, the Red Head Army, and a group of local bandits have occupied the countryside of Chaozhou and plundered everywhere. The gentry of Chaozhou have long hated these bandits.
Li Shichang and others' plan this time was not only to drive the Nine Army and other rebels to disrupt Chaozhou, but also to take this opportunity to use the court to wipe out all the bandits in Chaozhou.
The land distribution in Chaozhou will certainly be hindered. When the imperial court knows about the chaos in Chaozhou, it will be furious. At that time, they only need to attract the imperial guards to help them wipe out these big bandits in the countryside.
Li Shi was thinking about how to use the imperial army to suppress the bandits, when the steward of the mansion suddenly walked into the hall and said

"Second Master, the Magistrate Qu from the government office sent someone to deliver a message, saying that he wants you to come to the government office at noon today to discuss matters."

Li Shichang's expression changed slightly when he heard this, and he immediately asked in a deep voice
"But what is it?"

"No, but the messenger sent the invitation and then went to another house."

"According to him, all the gentry in the city will go to the county government to discuss matters."

Li Shichang's expression relaxed after hearing this. Since all the gentry in the county were being summoned, there was nothing to be afraid of.

Li Shichang dismissed the steward, gave Li Shiyuan a few more instructions, and then put on his round-collared robe and Confucian scarf, got on the carriage and went to the county government office.
(End of this chapter)