Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 624 Xu Jingqiu's Surprise
In the evening, just as Xu Jingqiu was preparing dinner and was about to call the children to eat, the group arrived at the Yangtoushan base.

The leader was a burly man with brisk steps, and behind him, several men were protecting a woman holding a child. There was also a baby about three or four years old being held in the hands. The baby had a chubby face, with two round eyes looking around, showing great curiosity about everything here.

When he arrived at the base, Wang Jinwu did not go to find Li Hu first. He just asked his men to report it, and he took his wife and children and went straight to Xu Jingqiu's courtyard.

The door of the courtyard was closed. Wang Jinwu walked forward and knocked twice, and soon Xu Jingqiu's voice came from inside.

"Sister-in-law! It's me! Jin Wu!"

"Jinwu, why are you here at this time?" Xu Jingqiu hurriedly opened the door. As soon as the door opened, she was surprised to see Wang Jinwu's younger brother, sister-in-law and children behind him. However, she did not ask immediately, but invited them into the house.

"Cousin!"

"Uncle, cousin!"

The noise of Wang Jinwu's arrival attracted the two boys to run out of the house. They were extremely excited to see Wang Jinwu.

When they lived in Luzhou Wei, Wang Jinwu took good care of the brothers. When Zhu Shencui was away, Wang Jinwu came almost every day. He not only took the children to play, but also taught them martial arts, and they had a deep relationship.

After moving to Yangtou Mountain, Wang Jinwu has only come twice in the past three months. Each time he came and left in a hurry, which made the two children miss him very much. How could they not be happy to see Wang Jinwu coming today? They ran over and hugged Wang Jinwu on both sides and had fun.

"Good boy, how come you've become like this after such a short time?" Wang Jinwu asked with a smile as he looked down. The two nephews had not only grown taller, but also become darker. Their original pretty faces had turned into charcoal-black hair. They were wearing ordinary short clothes and looked no different from the military children here. If he hadn't been familiar with the children, he would have almost failed to recognize them.

The two brothers were grinning and very happy. If they were to ask who was closest to them in the world, besides their parents and aunt, it would be their cousin. Their cousin came today and they were so happy. They decided to let their cousin stay for a few more days and play with them for a while.

Lifting one in each hand, Wang Jinwu effortlessly threw the two boys up high and caught them, making them scream with joy. This move made Wang Jinwu's eldest son jealous, and he quickly ran his legs and shouted, "Dad! I want one too! I want one too!"

Wang Jinwu happily put the two children down, picked up his eldest son and tossed him around a few times. The little guy giggled and danced with joy.

After playing for a while and putting his son down, Xu Jingqiu walked forward to touch the little guy's head, and told Zhu Minlan and his brother to take care of his cousin for a while. Then he called Wang Jinwu and his wife to come into the house for dinner. They said they had worked hard on the way here so late, and they could talk about other things later and fill their stomachs first.

Wang Jinwu agreed with a smile. He took his wife and children into the house. At this time, Zhang had already prepared the dishes and chopsticks. Wang Jinwu and his wife bowed to Zhang and then sat down.

The food was ordinary. Fortunately, Xu Jingqiu specially made some more today, otherwise it would not be enough for Wang Jinwu to eat. As for the people Wang Jinwu brought, they naturally had their own arrangements. Xu Jingqiu did not need to arrange them. After the meal, Li Hu, who heard the news, happened to rush over. He was also very happy to see Wang Jinwu. After the two exchanged a few words, Wang Jinwu turned to Xu Jingqiu and asked Xu Jingqiu to take care of his wife and children. His wife and children would stay in Yangtou Mountain for a while, and he would leave tomorrow. This time he came to send his wife and children.

"Don't worry about your sister-in-law and the children, and there's no need to make any other arrangements. I have a place to live here, so let them stay here. And your two nephews can also take care of your brother, so you can rest assured." Xu Jingqiu agreed without hesitation.

"I am really sorry to trouble you, sister-in-law..."

"We are one family, so we don't have to talk about different things." Xu Jingqiu waved his hand, glanced at Li Hu, and said, "Jin Wu, since we are one family, I won't beat around the bush. What do you want to discuss with Captain Li later?"

"That's right. I'm leaving tomorrow, and I still have a few things to say about this place."

"So...can I listen to it?"

Wang Jinwu and Li Hu were stunned. Wang Jinwu, in particular, had never expected Xu Jingqiu to make such a request, and didn't know how to respond for a moment. "Why? No way?" Xu Jingqiu asked with a smile.

"This... is not impossible, but what we are talking about..." Wang Jinwu scratched his head, thinking about how to answer.

Xu Jingqiu said, "My family moved from Pingyang to Luzhouwei, and then from Luzhouwei to Yangtoushan. Although it was arranged by the head of the family, as a wife, I have never asked why. But it's different now. Even my brother's wife is here. Is there anything you want to hide from me? Don't forget that I am your brother's legal wife, and Minlan is his legitimate son. At this point, what else do you need to hide from me? You should let me know something, right?"

"Sister-in-law, Sixth Brother never wanted to hide it from you, he was just afraid that you would worry." Wang Jinwu explained hurriedly.

Xu Jingqiu smiled and said, "Of course I know what my husband thinks of me. Besides, if he didn't value his wife and children, he wouldn't have made such arrangements for us. But then again, since we are a family, it's wrong to keep it a secret from me. As the mistress of the family, I have the right to know this. What do you think?"

Wang Jinwu was speechless after hearing what Xu Jingqiu said, and could only smile bitterly. He thought about it and realized that it would be meaningless to continue hiding this matter. His sister-in-law was not an ordinary woman, and it was not an exaggeration to describe her as a heroine. Moreover, he had sent his wife and children to Yangtou Mountain. What did this mean? Even if he didn't say it, Xu Jingqiu would probably guess something.

In this case, it is better to tell the truth than to let Xu Jingqiu continue to guess. Wang Jinwu thought about it and made a decision. He said a few words to Li Hu, asking him to go back first and he would go find him later. After Li Hu left, Wang Jinwu gave Xu Jingqiu a look, and Xu Jingqiu understood and took Wang Jinwu to the side room, which was the study room where Zhu Minlan and his brother usually studied.

After closing the door, the two sat opposite each other. Wang Jinwu did not speak immediately, but was thinking about how to start. Xu Jingqiu did not urge him, but waited quietly. After a while, Wang Jinwu finally spoke. He started from the battle that Zhu Shenzhui had fought on the grassland, and told Xu Jingqiu in detail about the series of events that had happened after the battle that defeated the army of the Dorgon brothers and the Chahar and Khorchin coalition forces. He then talked about the rumors in the capital some time ago, and later when Emperor Chongzhen sent people to Shanxi to investigate, Zhou Anmin and Zhu Shenzhui's response, etc., and then talked about the present.

Although Xu Jingqiu knew a little about some of her husband Zhu Shenzhu's deeds, she had no idea that Zhu Shenzhu had done such a big thing outside. As Wang Jinwu told her story, Xu Jingqiu's expression only changed slightly, but her heart was filled with astonishment.

Especially when Wang Jinwu talked about the rumors in the capital and the decision of Emperor Chongzhen, Xu Jingqiu finally understood why Zhu Shenzhu was so anxious to transfer her and her son from Luzhouwei to Yangtou Mountain. Zhu Shenzhu did this to prepare for a rainy day and avoid the situation from getting out of control and affecting her and her son. Yangtou Mountain was not only one of Zhu Shenzhu's bases, but also the old nest of his garrison.

Although Yangtou Mountain only has one hundred households, in fact, Yangtou Mountain now has more than three hundred military households, and this is still on the surface. In addition, Yangtou Mountain also has an army, which includes a part of the new army and elite troops selected from the military households, with more than a thousand people and extremely strong combat effectiveness.

Yangtou Mountain is easy to defend but difficult to attack, and it has been operated for many years. Even if something happens outside, relying on the defense and manpower of Yangtou Mountain plus the stored supplies, it will be no problem to defend for a few years. Therefore, Yangtou Mountain is the best place to settle, even better than Zhaowuling.

After all, although Zhaowuling has more troops, workshops and material reserves, its terrain is not as good as Yangtoushan.

Moreover, Zhaowuling is located in the southeast of Shanxi, adjacent to Henan, Zhili and other places. Its strategic importance is greater than Yangtou Mountain, but it is not more suitable for hiding than Yangtou Mountain.

"Didn't you just say that what happened before was over? Why did you send your wife and children here this time?" After calming down, Xu Jingqiu couldn't help but ask.

Wang Jinwu shook his head and said, "How can it be so easy to get through? We were just stalling for time before. Even if we want to get through, the court won't allow us to. What's more, there are people behind this. As the saying goes, it's easy to thieves a thousand miles away, but you can't guard against thieves for a thousand days."

"A few days ago, a letter came from the capital saying that another rumor has been spread in the capital, and this time it has been pointed directly at my brother-in-law and my sixth brother. Once this rumor gets more and more intense, no one can predict what will happen next..." At this point, Wang Jinwu lowered his voice and said, "Sister-in-law, I will tell you the truth. Originally, my sixth brother wanted to wait for a few more years, but he didn't expect the situation to change faster than planned. The current situation can change at any time. The first to strike is the strongest, and the last to strike will suffer. My sixth brother has made a decision. Now that things have come to this, if we continue to wait, we may have more troubles. If we are not careful, not only will our years of hard work be destroyed, but we will also die without a burial place."

"This time when I come to Yangtou Mountain, I will first settle my wife and children to prevent future troubles. I will set off for Zhaowuling tomorrow. When I arrive at Zhaowuling, Sixth Brother will have made arrangements. When we launch the attack, the success or failure will depend on this."

Xu Jingqiu's heart was pounding wildly, she never thought that her husband would actually prepare for such a big thing, to spy on Dabao and compete for the Central Plains. This was going to turn the world upside down!
Can Zhu Shenzhu succeed? Although he has made preparations for so many years and has strong power, this is the whole world, the whole Ming Dynasty! Even though the Ming Dynasty has been on the verge of collapse due to internal and external troubles in recent years, you must know that a lean camel is bigger than a horse. Even if the Ming Dynasty is not doing well, it still has hundreds of millions of subjects and millions of troops, not to mention the vast territory.

Xu Jingqiu felt dry in the mouth and didn't know what to say for a moment. At this moment, she really wanted to ask Zhu Shenzhu if it was worth it? Even if he was forced to do so, didn't Zhu Shenzhu still have a foundation in the grassland? Couldn't he send his family to the grassland to avoid the disaster in the Central Plains?

But as soon as this thought came up, Xu Jingqiu told herself that this was impossible. As Zhu Shenzhui's wife, she knew her husband too well. Since Zhu Shenzhui had been planning for so many years, how could he give up so easily? And Xu Jingqiu was not someone who was willing to live under someone else's roof. If Xu Jingqiu and the children were asked to go to Guihua City, she would definitely not be willing, because that was Tana's home, not hers. As the legal wife, how could she let this Mongolian woman whom she had never met suppress her?

(End of this chapter)