scourge the qing dynasty

Chapter 154 Finally Exposed
Because of the distance of the road and the communication technology, the old traitor Wu Sangui finally decided to change his mind and atone for his crimes. It has been more than a month since Xiao Mazi in the capital watched the movement of Yungui day and night, but he was always ignorant of it. The current real situation in Yunnan and Guizhou, on the contrary, is that Fatty Lu's impeachment of Oboi's extortionate taxation, arbitrary taxation, and the urgent memorial to put Yunnan and Guizhou farmers in dire straits were sent to the capital first, and directly sent to the capital through the channel of Suo'etu In front of Xiao Mazi.

"It's bad, why did you forget to consider Lu Yifeng's position as a slave?" After reading Fatty Lu's fierce words, Xiao Mazi couldn't help but patted his head and cried out, "If you don't want to pay tribute seeds, every two Eight Banners will be taxed. Eight money, the old thief Wu Sangui can afford it, but the people of Qujing under the rule of Lu Yifeng, a dog slave, can't afford such a high tax! This is troublesome, once the decree is announced, Qujing will have to make trouble. ? This time, I finally made a big mistake."

"It's not the master's fault, the emperor must not feel guilty about it." Mingzhu hurriedly repaired the steps for Xiao Mazi and said, "It was Oboi who raised the tax on the Eight Banners' medicine so high, and it was Oboi who forced the emperor to implement this. As for the tax amount, as long as Lu Yifeng is reasonable, he will definitely understand your difficulties, master."

Mingzhu repaired the steps for Xiao Mazi, and Suo'etu was not stupid, and quickly echoed: "Ming Zhongtang is right, this is indeed not the master's fault. Besides, Lu Yifeng himself is also responsible. Before this, he did not You didn’t report the real income of Qujing Gaonong to you, master, and you didn’t say a word for Qujing Gaonong on the issue of taxation, otherwise, with the kindness of master, you will definitely worry about this.”

Xiao Mazi naturally didn't care about the life and death of the people in Qujing Mansion under Wu Sangui's rule. Now that he heard Mingzhu and Suo'etu's defense for him, Xiao Mazi would not feel guilty at all. He nodded and said, "That's right, Lu Yifeng was also confused this time. After so much tossing about the decision on the tax amount of the Eight Banners drug and longevity cream, he did not report the truth to me with a memorial, let alone express his opinion. He objected only afterwards. He deserves to suffer on his own."

"Of course, we can't completely blame Lu Aiqing." Xiao Mazi continued to excuse, "He returned to Qujing to take over as the magistrate only in July. At that time, the issue of the taxation of the Eight Banners drug tax was also at the last juncture. Encountered so many things, he made occasional mistakes, which can be forgiven.”

"It's just that..." Xiao Mazi frowned, and said, "If the old thief Wu Sangui raises his troops, it will be difficult for him to choose a position. The soldiers and civilians of Qujing continue to dominate the Eight Banners Fushou in order to pay less taxes. If the planting rights are anointed, it is likely to be bewitched by the old thief Wu Sangui and follow the old thief Wu Sangui to commit chaos. In this way, we want Lu Aiqing to lead the army and people in Qujing to unite as we hope, to guard Qujing, the throat of Yunnan and Guizhou, and to serve the imperial court. It is probably not realistic to adjust the deployment of the army to buy time."

Mingzhu and Suo'etu couldn't find anything to say this time. Without the popular support of the common people, the army and the people, it would be extremely difficult for Fatty Lu to hold Qujing's throat and wait for reinforcements.Although Xiong Cilu and Kong Sizhen next to him didn't speak, and their faces were calm, their eyes already revealed an unconcealable smug light of joy—even if Fatty Lu didn't die this time, the fox's tail would die anyway. exposed.

"Wait, if Fatty Lu is really Wu Sangui's hard-core running dog, why is there a purpose in presenting such a memorial at this time?" After the joy, Xiong Cilu suddenly calmed down again, and began to reverse his thinking and analyze Fatty Lu's countermeasures .

It’s definitely not good for Master Xiong to engage in military affairs, but in terms of power struggles and political struggles, Master Xiong is extremely talented, so after a little calculation, Bachelor Xiong naturally came to his senses very quickly, "Understood, this Fatty Lu is indeed incomparable!" Cunning and vicious, such a memorial at this time is obviously paving the way for his next step to follow the old thief Wu Sangui to rebel. At this time, he explained to the emperor that the people of Qujing will never accept the tax amount of the Eight Banners. If he started a rebellion, the emperor would think that he was forced to raise troops and his conscience was still alive. He had a glimmer of hope for him, and he would not kill him. Naturally, he could fish in troubled waters, seek profit in chaos and continue to harm our Qing court. The army is here. Damn, when others take one step and watch one step, this Fatty Lu takes one step and watches three steps, it's sinister and cruel!"

Thinking up to this point, Master Xiong rolled his eyes and hurried forward and said, "Your Majesty, in my opinion, the Emperor must not worry about the safety of Mr. Lu. I can affirm that Mr. Lu is extremely smart, even if he loses With the support of the people of Qujing, he will definitely be able to return to the capital safely and return to serve before the emperor."

"How do you know?" Xiao Mazi asked suspiciously.

"The emperor forgot? Qujing is not only the throat of Yunnan and Guizhou, but also the throat of the three provinces of Yunnan, Guizhou and Guangxi." Xiong Cilu replied with a smile: "Master Lu's decision is smart, and when he finds that the situation is wrong, he will naturally flee east to Guangxi. It is the Dingfan of Sigege, and it is also an important bridgehead for the emperor to encircle and suppress the old thief Wu Sangui, if Mr. Lu has entered Guangxi, does the emperor still need to worry about his safety?"

"Indeed, I almost forgot that he could go to Guangxi." Xiao Mazi smiled, and said, "As long as Lu Aiqing can return to my side, and he is responsible for losing Qu Jing, I can not pursue it and continue to use it. After all, this time There is a special reason for not being able to defend Qujing, and he really cannot be blamed."

"I'm afraid that Mr. Lu won't think about it for a while, and if he insists on guarding the lonely city to serve the king, then he will be in big trouble." Xiong Cilu said hypocritically: "Of course, the only thing the emperor doesn't have to worry about is that Mr. Lu was killed by Wu Sangui. The old thief buys or wins over, betrays the country for glory, and betrays the old thief Wu Sangui."

Speaking of this, Xiong Cilu turned to Kong Sizhen again, and asked with a smile: "Si Gege, you and Mr. Lu are half confidants. Such a possibility will never happen, don't you think so?"

Kong Sizhen was not stupid, and soon understood Xiong Cilu's plan to block Fatty Lu's retreat. After hesitating for a while, Kong Sizhen still gritted his teeth and said: "Of course, based on Master Lu's loyalty to the emperor, and the emperor's loyalty to Lu." Your lord's kindness is immense, such a situation is absolutely impossible! ——Unless, we all misunderstood Lord Lu before!"

Although Kong Sizhen didn't say that they misunderstood Fatty Lu's point, Xiao Mazi still immediately understood the implication of this sentence. At that moment, Xiao Mazi snorted coldly, and said with a pockmarked face: "Why? At this point, I still want to be with you. It was said before that Lu Aiqing was a national traitor, a running dog of the old thief Wu Sangui? Since you insist so much, I will give you a chance. If Lu Aiqing dies for the country this time, or leaves Yunnan and returns to my side, you will take your head to apologize to Lu Aiqing. how?"

Kong Sizhen closed his mouth obediently, while Xiong Cilu gritted his teeth, knelt down on both knees, kowtowed and said solemnly: "Your Majesty, I am willing to make this bet with the Emperor! If Master Lu did not cooperate with the old thief Wu Sangui this time If you commit treason, die for your country or flee back to the capital, then I am willing to kill myself and apologize to Lord Lu. If what I say is that Lu Yifeng really betrayed the emperor and the Qing court, then I will not ask the emperor for rewards I just ask the emperor not to believe any of Lu Yifeng's sophistry, don't give this rare and cunning traitor another half a chance!"

"Very well, I promise you!" Xiao Mazi snorted coldly, "Xiong Aiqing, by the way, let me remind you that it is best to let your family prepare the coffin for you in advance."

The Hall of Mental Cultivation was silent, Mingzhu, Suo'etu, Kong Sizhen and others bowed their heads together, they were all afraid to take a breath because of Xiao Mazi's murderous words, but Xiong Cilu showed no fear and kowtowed again, He replied: "Thank you for the emperor's grace, but I feel that I will never lose, so I don't think it is necessary to prepare this coffin in advance."

This time, Xiao Mazi's pockmarked face was changed, and there was nothing to say, and the atmosphere in the Hall of Mental Cultivation was even more tense and dignified. Fortunately, when the atmosphere fell into a stalemate, a little eunuch suddenly poked his head outside the Hall of Mental Cultivation, as if to report something Seeing that the atmosphere was not right, Zhang Wanqiang, the chief eunuch of the Hall of Mental Cultivation, was afraid that it might be an important matter for the military, so he hurried to the gate of the hall, had a low-pitched conversation with the little eunuch, then turned around quickly, and ran to Xiao Mazi , Joyfully played: "Master, great joy, great joy, Wang Xu, Shangshu of the Ministry of Industry (Kang Mazi was transferred from Zuodu Yushi in September of the seventh year), reported that the son-mother artillery that the Red Hair Kingdom paid tribute to, Longtan Artillery Factory finally The imitation succeeded!"

"Successful?" Xiao Mazi finally showed some joy, and said with a smile: "These dog slaves of Longtan Cannon Factory have been tossing for almost two years, and they finally figured it out."

"Master, the son-mother cannon was not imitated by the craftsmen of the Longtan Cannon Factory." Zhang Wanqiang shook his head and explained: "Didn't the master order Fan Chengmo, governor of Zhejiang, to send a father and son from Qiantang to Beijing for use a while ago? After Tianna’s visit to Beijing, the father and son caught up with the busy state affairs and had no time to summon them, so they were asked to report to Wang Shangshu first. Later, Wang Shangshu found that the father and son were really proficient in casting firearms, so he asked them to go to Longtan Cannon Factory to instruct craftsmen Casting cannons. No one expected that the son of the father and son, a young man named Dai Zi, could make the mother-child cannon in only eight days."

"What?" Xiao Mazi turned pale with shock, stood up and shouted: "You dog slave, do you remember correctly? The Longtan Artillery Factory spent two years without making a mother-in-law cannon, that young man named Dai Zi, who just It took eight days to make it?"

"Master Mingjian, I dare not remember wrongly." Zhang Wanqiang smiled all over his face, and said: "According to the report from Wang Tangguan, the mother-child cannon that Dai Zi imitated for us in the Qing Dynasty is better than the mother-child cannon from the Western tribute. The shells fired were heavier, more accurate and more powerful than the shells of the Western Cannonball. As a result, Wang Tangguan was also frightened by the young man's talent, and personally led the young man to the Forbidden City, requesting The emperor summoned the reward."

"There is such a genius in the world?!" Xiao Mazi was overjoyed, and hurriedly ordered: "Hurry up, hurry up and declare Wang Xu and Dai Zi to meet, I will reward this slave!"

"Slave obeys the order." Zhang Wanqiang respectfully agreed, and when he was about to turn around and go down, Xiao Mazi shouted again: "Wait a minute, such a genius, I will go out to meet him in person! Let's go, follow me to meet Dai Caizi, and take a look with your own eyes. Wearing a gifted weapon forged for me and for the Qing Dynasty!"

………………

With Wang Xu's upright temper, naturally he would not deliberately brag about Dai Zi in order to please Xiao Mazi, and the new type of mother and child cannon that Dai Zi made for Xiao Mazi is really amazing. The 300-jin blooming cannonball was shot nearly three miles away, and the shell exploded in the air, covering an area of ​​nearly ten feet with shrapnel, and its power was astonishing.At the same time, Dai Zi, like Fatty Lu, gave up the iron cannon that was easy to explode, and chose the safer bronze cannon, which not only greatly reduced the weight of the cannon body, but also greatly increased the safety factor.

On the second day, which was also the fourteenth day of the twelfth lunar month in the tenth year of Kang Mazi in the Qing Dynasty, Xiao Mazi deliberately called all civil and military officials to demonstrate his cannons in public outside the icy and snowy Zuoanmen to demonstrate his might and boost morale for the upcoming war against rebellion.And Dai Zi didn't embarrass Xiao Mazi. Firstly, the mother and child cannons that were cast were first fired with solid shells, ten shots in a row, seven shots hit the target, and the third shot was slightly off. It exploded in the air, layer upon layer, like a celestial maiden scattering flowers, shooting dozens of grass figurines where the target is located with thousands of holes, almost like a honeycomb.After the sound of the cannon, the ghostly cries and wolf howls of "Long live the Mazi Emperor" also resounded inside and outside Zuo'an Gate.

"Long live the emperor, long live, long live!" Amid thunderous cheers, Xiao Mazi was extremely proud, and when he turned to look at Oboi's face, he saw that although Oboi's expression was still calm, on his old face covered with rough beard, But he was full of joy and excitement, and his hands were still clenched into fists, clenched extremely tightly.

"Old man, now you know how powerful I am?" Xiao Mazi smiled slightly, and when he went to look at Wu Yingxiong on the other side of his back, Wu Yingxiong, who was deliberately sent by Xiao Mazi to watch the test of the cannon, had a livid face and clenched fists. Even tighter, the knuckles were all pale.Xiao Mazi was even more proud, and turned to Ao Bai and asked, "Ao Zhongtang, how powerful are these mother and child cannons? Can they be regarded as the best in the world? I decided to name this cannon Weiyuan General Cannon. I don't know what Ao Zhongtang thinks ?”

"It doesn't matter what it's called, the emperor can do as he sees." Aobai replied calmly, "The power is so-so, and it should be more useful than the Hongyi cannon on the battlefield. As for the power of General Weiyuan's cannon Is it number one in the world? Your Majesty is really asking the wrong person—you should ask Wu Yingxiong, Prince Pingxi’s heir, which cannon is more powerful than General Weiyuan’s Cannon from Yunnan and Guizhou?”

"What do you mean by Ao Zhongtang?" Xiao Mazi and Wu Yingxiong changed their faces together.After looking at Wu Yingxiong with a pale face in surprise, Xiao Mazi turned to Oboi again and asked, "Ao Zhongtang, what do you mean by that? Why can't I understand the three good artillery?"

"Your majesty forgot that among your beloved ministers, there is a man named Sanhao." Obai sneered and said, "The cannon he made for Prince Pingxi, isn't it called Sanhao Cannon? And as far as I know, this Lu Sanhao not only cast a new type of artillery for Prince Pingxi, but also manufactured countless new firearms for Prince Pingxi, among which the one currently being mass-produced and equipped by Prince Pingxi seems to be called Sanhao rocket."

"Lu Yifeng?!" Xiao Mazi finally came to his senses, and his pockmarked face suddenly turned snow-white.Kong Sizhen and Xiong Cilu were both surprised and delighted, they never dreamed that Oboi had already mastered so many secrets, and exposed Fatty Lu's evil face in public!

"Your Majesty, I am also very interested in the question of who is more powerful between the Weiyuan Cannon and the Sanhao Cannon." Aobai showed some smiles, and asked Wu Yingxiong with a smile: "I wonder if my Majesty can teach me a thing or two so that I can also know." Now, how powerful is your niece and son-in-law Lu Yifeng? Compared with Dai Zi, who cast Weiyuan general cannon for the emperor, who is better?"

Now that the matter has come to this point, Wu Yingxiong still can't understand that everything can't be concealed anymore, and Aobai is determined to tear himself apart from Pingxi Palace completely?After thinking quickly for a while, Wu Yingxiong gritted his teeth and replied, "Zhongtang was joking, my niece-in-law is well-versed in both Chinese and Western cultures, and his talent is unparalleled. This mere Dai Zi, how can he compare with him?"

"Really?" Aobai smiled and said, "Thank you for your guidance, it seems that when it comes to the battlefield, I have to be careful with the three good artillery pieces of your Pingxi Palace."

"Ao Zhongtang had better not try it." Wu Yingxiong gritted his teeth and replied, "My nephew Sanhao cast cannons and weapons for my father, although it was just for self-protection and to prevent the Pingxi Palace from being bullied casually, but if someone wants to try, Then I can assure you——he, he will definitely regret it!"

"Thank you for reminding me, my son, I will be careful." Obai turned his face away, looked at the snowflakes falling in the sky, and said lightly: "However, I am still very curious. You Han people had red barbarian cannons and three-eyed firecrackers back then. , With firearms such as Fire Dragon Going to Sea and Hundred Birds Facing Phoenix, they still can’t stop our Manchu cavalry, but now that we have three good artillery and three good rockets, can we stop my Eight Banners cavalry?”

"If Ao Zhongtang is willing, of course you can try it, and I will never dissuade you." Wu Yingxiong forced a smile and said nothing more.

"Ao Zhongtang, what happened?" Xiao Mazi asked Ao Bai dumbfounded.

"On the way to Zuo'anmen today, I just received the news that Wu Sangui has finally turned his back." Obai replied calmly: "He played the banner of the Qing emperor, and wants to kill the slaves to thank the world."

"Reverse? The old thief Wu Sangui has finally rebelled?!" Although he was mentally prepared for the news, when he actually heard the news, apart from ecstasy, Xiao Mazi was still nervous and timid for a while—then, It is the flames of a decisive battle with Wu Sangui's army, who can conquer and fight well. Can we win the final victory if we are full of people?

"What are you still doing?" After a long time, Xiao Mazi finally came back to his senses, turned to the guards behind him and shouted, "Why don't you invite Prince Pingxi into the prison, so that you can entertain him?"

"Cover." Cao Yin and Li Xu happily agreed together, and hurried forward together to surround Wu Yingxiong, pretending to extend their hands as an invitation gesture, and said, "Master, I've offended you, please."

"I regret that I should have listened to Lu Xia's words and refused to escape first. God blesses me, and I hope that Lu Xia can take Shifan back to Yunnan smoothly and leave a line of blood for us in Yunnan." Wu Yingxiong sighed secretly, raised his head with his hands behind his back Walk.When passing in front of Dai Zi, a handsome young man who was entangled by Kong Sizhen, Wu Yingxiong suddenly stopped and stared at Dai Zi who was just in his early twenties.

"Why is he staring at me like that?" Dai Zi took a step back timidly.

"Don't be afraid, I didn't mean to hurt you." Wu Yingxiong smiled and said, "I'm just sorry for you. If we don't have three good things in the Pingxi Palace, you will come out ahead in this battle and be so powerful in the world. It's doomed. It's a pity that now that we have Lu Sanhao in the Pingxi Palace, you are also destined to be a foil and a stepping stone for him, helping him to become famous and powerful in the world."

"My lord, is that Lu Sanhao you mentioned really that powerful?" Dai Zi asked curiously.

"I can't tell you now, but when you come to the battlefield in the future, you will understand how big the gap between you and Sanhao is. You are a genius, but unfortunately, you met an opponent who is even more talented than you." Wu Yingxiong smiled and shook his head. Then he left without saying a word, leaving Dai Zi wondering in place.

"That Lu Sanhao, is he really that powerful?" Dai Zi was both curious and suspicious, and couldn't help whispering, "If that's the case, then I would like to use my skills to compete with that Lu Sanhao on the battlefield. "

"Lu Yifeng, a dog thief! A traitor! A national traitor!" After hearing the conversation between Wu Yingxiong and Dai Zi, Xiao Mazi finally roared hysterically, "I won't kill you, I swear not to be human! I swear not to be human——!"

(End of this chapter)