Heirs of the Seven Swords of the Qin Dynasty

"That was a collaboration between the Nong Family and the Mohist Family. It originated from the Nong Family's previous chivalrous leader and the Mohist Family's former leader, and was implemented by the current leaders of the two Nong Family families." Zhu Jia corrected with a wry smile, "It's not a collaboration between Shennong Hall and the Mohist Family."

"This... can it still be calculated this way!?" Liu Ji's eyes widened in shock, and the dice he was fiddling with almost fell.

"But the Azure Dragon Project is clearly ours..."

Zhu Jia interrupted Liu Ji and said, "It's the bridge we built with the Mohist School."

"But this matter was ultimately a collaboration between the entire Nong Clan and the Mo Clan, and the one who finally came forward was Tian Yan, the chivalrous leader."

"Then we can also put aside 'Tian Yan' and discuss cooperation with the Mohist School alone." Liu Ji disagreed.

Zhu Jia switched back to the 'happy' side and replied with a smile, "Why would the Mo family cooperate with a branch of the Nong family?"

"The Nong Family is the largest gang in the underworld, but Shennong Hall is not the Nong Family, and the head of Shennong Hall cannot represent the Nong Family."

The Nong family has 100,000 disciples, but the Shennong Hall only has one-sixth of them.

More than 10,000 people may sound like a lot, but only 10,000 or even less are actually available.

For Mohism, which was once one of the two most prominent schools of thought, 100,000 people was a large number, but tens of thousands of people were just a number.

Still not a small amount, but not unattainable.

It is rare for the Mohists to act in groups of several hundred people, but that is only because they are not used to it and rarely need to act in groups.

Before the fall of the Mechanical City, there were thousands of Mohist disciples residing inside.

The Zhu family did not have enough bargaining chips to impress the Mohists to cooperate with him.

In terms of friendship, the relationship between the two parties is actually not that close.

The relationship between the two parties was all based on their cooperation during the previous battle for the title of Leader of Heroes, and the subsequent cooperation on the Qinglong Project was brokered by the Zhu family.

But whether it was the Battle of Daze Mountain or the subsequent Qinglong Plan, Tian Yan was the most important figure in the Nong family, and the Zhu family was just familiar with the Mo family and had a say.

To say that our friendship is deep is nonsense.

This level of relationship was not enough to make the Mohists go against their principles and cooperate with him - the so-called principle was to bypass the chivalrous leader 'Tian Yan' and hook up with one of the six halls under the Nong family.

Although in terms of public opinion, 'Tian Yan' who is suspected to have an unclear relationship with Luowang seems to be unpopular with the Mohist School, which is mortal enemies with the Empire.

However, there was nothing wrong with Tian Yan's performance in the battle of Daze Mountain and the Qinglong Plan, and Gai Nie and Zhang Liang had special trust in the Mohist school. Basically, the Mohist school did not have much prejudice against Tian Yan.

It can even be said that there is a certain level of trust, but there is a slight reservation just in case something unexpected happens.

As for what 'Tian Yan' did within the Nong family, that was the Nong family's business and was not within the scope of consideration for the Mohists.

Under such circumstances, it is impossible for the Mohists to bypass Tian Yan and cooperate with Shennong Hall to rebel.

As for other matters, it would be fine to cooperate. After all, the six halls of the farming family are all independent, and logically speaking, the leader of the knights has no right to directly interfere in the affairs of a hall.

It was perfectly reasonable for the Zhu family to want to do something and need help from others, and no one could find fault with it.

But the rebellion would not only involve Shennongtang itself, but also the empire.

The empire doesn't care about the independence of the six halls of the Nong family. If Shennong Hall rebels, the entire Nong family is rebelling!

When the empire suppressed rebels, it did not distinguish between Shennong Hall and the other five halls.

In this kind of operation where one hall does the work and six halls take the responsibility, Mo Jia, an outsider, certainly cannot interfere without going through Tian Yan.

Of course, if the Zhu family could offer enough chips to impress the Mo family, that would be another matter... but unfortunately he couldn't.

In the matter of resisting the empire, the Mohists certainly need allies, but Shennong Hall is not a priority choice, let alone the best or indispensable one.

The Zhu family saw everything clearly, so they never thought that they could do this alone without Tian Yan - either cooperate or don't do it, there is no third option.

Liu Ji couldn't think so clearly at once, but he could roughly understand some of the Zhu family's intentions. He touched his mouth several times, not knowing what to say.

After a moment's silence, he muttered, "So we are blocked from both ends by that girl?"

Zhu Jia chuckled, "So let's give it a try. We have to take risks, and so does Tian Yan. The only difference is the size and source of the risk."

"Anyway, if the dice cup is not opened, it is still unknown whether it is big or small!"

Liu Ji nodded. He was also a veteran gambler, so he naturally knew this truth.

"Then...what about Old Qu?" he asked cautiously.

As soon as this topic was mentioned, the Zhu family mask suddenly switched to "anger" and said in a cold tone, "Situ Wanli is dead!"

"This is my bottom line. If Tian Yan doesn't hand me over, I'd rather die with her!"

When people in the underworld talk about the Zhu family, they all say that he is good at dancing with the sleeves, and is slick and versatile, and is a shrewd person who can say different things to different people.

But at the same time, he is also a recognized hero in the world, with a very chivalrous spirit and a sense of loyalty first!
These two seem incompatible, but they are not actually contradictory.

A person who is purely eloquent and good at sweet talk will actually find it difficult to be liked by most people.

Zhu's good words and sophisticated principles are important for the good reputation the family has today, but his loyalty and righteousness are equally important.

If he was just a profit-seeking person, he would not be able to become friends with someone like Chen Sheng, even if they were naturally on the same side.

Of course, the Zhu family values ​​loyalty, but it is not unconditional and without bottom line, and not just anyone is worthy of their loyalty.

He is not a sophisticated egoist, but he is not a saintly person who helps everyone he catches.

And Qu Shang is precisely the brother that the Zhu family values ​​the most, one could even say the only one.

Reason allowed Zhu Jia to barely suppress the thought of revenge when he was at a disadvantage, but he had to take revenge no matter what.

Liu Ji also knew what kind of people the Zhu family was, so he was not surprised by this. He just asked with some concern, "Will the girl 'Tian Yan' be willing?"

He had this worry as early as when the Zhu family first mentioned using this incident to force Tian Yan to give up Situ Wanli.

Situ Wanli, regardless of his character, is impeccable in terms of ability, otherwise he would not have been able to join forces with the Zhu family to fight against the four branches of the Tian family for so many years.

The Farmer's Family, which had experienced the battle for the title of Chief Hero, had lost a large number of men, but it was relatively easy to replenish them with ordinary disciples - even if they could not be replenished for the time being, it did not matter, because the last thing the Farmer's Family lacked was manpower.

But the elite at the top cannot be replaced in a short period of time, and they are extremely important.

Tian Yan ruled the five halls on his own, and what he lacked most was this kind of talent.

If she sacrificed Situ Wanli, she would not only lose an important management talent, but also damage her own prestige.

After all, the fact that Situ Wanli was the first person to seek refuge with her was no longer a secret within the farming family.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Jia switched back to his happy face and said with a chuckle, "In fact, Tian Yan has already given in."

"That girl is a ruthless person. Not to mention Situ Wanli, I'm afraid she can also give up Tian Hu, her uncle... as long as the benefits are enough!"

"She is now bent on letting me and Brother Chen Sheng be her monkeys to get chestnuts out of the fire. What does it matter if we sacrifice Situ Wanli?"

Liu Ji pouted and shuddered, "Ah... I said she can't be the leader of the heroes!"

"Although Situ Wanli is a villain who deserves to be cut into pieces, to her, he is an important contributor to her becoming the leader of the chivalrous. She is willing to sacrifice him... When she needs him someday, she will definitely betray anyone in the Nong family!" Zhu Jia pinched his beard, but he was not angry about this. "Brother, it's a pity that such people are often more capable of accomplishing things!"

The Zhu family did not think that it was despicable for Tian Yan to give up Situ Wanli, because Situ Wanli helped her not out of loyalty, but only for profit.

It's normal for anyone to sell to someone else since there are profits to be made.

Liu Ji has been with the Zhu family for many years, and his chivalrous spirit is even stronger than that of the Zhu family, so he can't stand it.

Liu Ji rolled his eyes, not wanting to comment further, and asked, "So, we can get revenge soon?"

"Don't rush, don't rush." ​​Zhu Jia waved his hand in a good mood, "'Tian Yan' can't help us deal with Situ Wanli directly. At most, he will deliberately create some subtle opportunities for us to take action."

"But Situ Wanli, that old fox, is not a fool. He has always been on guard against me, and at the same time, he will not completely trust Tian Yan."

"Although my recent meetings with Tian Yan have been conducted in private, he will definitely be able to detect some clues and strengthen his defenses accordingly."

"Even with Tian Yan's help, it's not easy to wait for the right time."

"Fortunately, we two brothers can afford to wait!"

The Zhu family is not the kind of person who is so eager for revenge that they can't wait even a day.

As long as there is a clear hope, he can wait - Situ Wanli is indeed a cunning old fox, but there is always a thief who can steal for a thousand days, but there is no one who can guard against thieves for a thousand days.

If they start to waste time, Situ Wanli will definitely be the first one to give in.

Liu Ji nodded happily at first, but soon his expression turned bitter:

"So...it won't be long before you, big brother, 'rebel' against the farming family?"

When Liu Ji thought that the Zhu family was going to take the main force of Shennong Hall away from the Nong family, leaving him alone to face Tian Yan, he wanted to die.

Zhu Jia laughed and comforted him, "Don't worry, there's no clue about this matter for a while."

"Just looking at Brother Chen Sheng, I don't know if 'Tian Yan' has been dealt with... I have to find a way to contact them."

After the Zhu family knew that Chen Sheng and Wu Kuang were sent to Mount Li, they had been trying to contact them, but this was not easy.

Not only were the prisoners in Mount Li under strict surveillance, but their number was also too large.

It is very troublesome to accurately find Chen Sheng and Wu Kuang among a huge crowd of hundreds of thousands - it is difficult but time-consuming.

Although Chen Sheng and Wu Kuang were among the few prisoners who were more active and prominent, only a small number of people knew their names.

Hundreds of people, or thousands?

In short, compared to the hundreds of thousands of prisoners, this number is nothing.

The Zhu family had never been able to really contact them, and it was unclear to what extent Tian Yan had communicated with them.

Liu Ji did not feel relieved by this.

Since his boss is already interested in reaching a cooperation with Tian Yan, everything is just a matter of time.

If it’s fast, it will take a few months; if it’s slow, it will take at most a year or two.

The current situation in the empire is obviously not good, and the rebellion cannot be delayed for three to five years.

If not this year, then next year, there will definitely be some movement...but I don't know how big the movement will be.

No matter how chaotic the situation in the empire is, Ying Zheng is still alive. With him pressing down on people's heads, few people would not be afraid.

"Boss...how about I go with you?" Liu Ji rubbed his hands, trying to persuade Zhu Jia.

Zhu Jia paused for a moment, then asked, "Brother, you are leaving too, what will happen to Shennong Hall?"

Liu Ji smiled bitterly and replied, "No, brother, if you leave, can I still protect Shennong Hall?"

"There's no point in me staying!"

Zhu Jia sighed.

It's not that he doesn't understand this logic, but keeping Liu Ji is indeed useful.

In the whole plan, the most crucial thing was not that he led the main force of Shennong Hall to break away from the Nong family, but that he removed the Nong family from the rebellion through his betrayal - even if it was only temporarily.

If the latter cannot be achieved, the plan will be considered a failure.

Leaving Liu Ji to continue to work hard to maintain Shennong Hall would allow him to make some additional misleading operations, which would increase the probability of the empire being fooled.

If the entire Shennong Hall broke away, the empire would probably simply put the blame on the farmers - of course, the empire might also simply ignore the farmers.

But the Zhu family and 'Tian Yan' discussed it several times and both felt that the former option was more controllable and more beneficial to them.

Neither of them really likes betting on the odds.

"Brother, this is not only for Shennong Hall, but also to increase the success rate of the plan!" Zhu Jia could only try to persuade him.

Liu Ji was stunned for a moment, probably thinking about how this had to do with the success rate of the plan.

Fortunately, although he was a sentimental person, he was very smart and quickly figured out the Zhu family's general ideas.

"Ah, this..." Liu Ji had a toothache.

If it was just for his own sake, he would have just begged the Zhu family to take him with them, but now that the safety of the farmers' family was involved, he couldn't just think about himself.

After struggling for a long time, Liu Ji's eyes lit up and he smiled mischievously, "How about... let's change our thinking?"

"Oh, brother, do you have a better idea?" Zhu Jia became interested when he heard this.

Liu Ji was a smart man, otherwise he would not have chosen Liu Ji to be his right-hand man.

The Zhu family still attached great importance to Liu Ji's opinion.

Liu Ji chuckled, touched his nose and replied, "I think we can change our thinking. It doesn't mean that you have to defect and I have to stay behind."

"We can also go the other way around!"

………………

Bashu region, Shushan.

This is where the Shushan tribe has lived for generations.

Of course, it is now uninhabited and only a few dilapidated ruins remain.

Winter has just passed, and the snow on the mountains has not completely melted, covering the mountains and treetops with spots.

Shi Lan carried Bingpo on her back and walked side by side with her brother Yu Ziqi on the rugged mountain road.

This road was once very familiar to the two siblings, but now it inexplicably feels a lot of unfamiliarity, even though they have been away from here for less than a year... (End of this chapter)