I was a conman in the Ming Dynasty.

Chapter 568: Only by giving up can you gain something

Chapter 568 You have to give up something to gain something.

This batch of labor camp reserves totaled more than 150 people, of whom 102 were Ajige's men. These men were all Ajige's bodyguards. In the Qing Dynasty, they were all powerful figures who could walk with their heads held high. They had never suffered such humiliation. At Ajige's command, his men disregarded their chains and rushed towards the guards on the scene.

Ajige was also a fierce general who had fought many battles. He understood the principle of capturing the leader first, so he took the lead and rushed towards Shenhe, trying to control him.

At this moment, Dog Lord Ruru was no longer a little puppy. These days, Dog Lord Ruru had undergone strict training. When he saw Ajige rushing up, Dog Lord Ruru pounced like a vicious dog, biting Ajige's calf and tearing off a piece of flesh.

Ajige had just finished his eunuch surgery and was still injured when Dog Lord Ru Ru bit him. He stumbled and fell to the ground, his face turning pale and covered in sweat from the pain.

Cui Zhe and his men hadn't gone far. Hearing the commotion in the restaurant, he immediately led his war dog squad back. The dogs joined the battle, and in no time, all of Ajige's men were obediently crouching on the ground with their hands behind their heads.

Shen He said irritably, "This is outrageous! How dare you attack me! I'll spare your lives since this is your first offense. Guards, cut off one finger from each of you."

"Yes!"

The constables obeyed the order, and in no time, Ajige and his men all had nine fingers.

Shen He cursed and said, "Since you don't want to eat, then you don't have to eat. You won't eat tomorrow either. If you don't starve yourselves for a few days, you won't know what you're worth. Send them to mine coal. If anyone fails to complete today's task, cut off another finger."

"Yes!"

Cui Zhe looked down at his hands, which were missing all ten fingers, and shook his head with a wry smile. That old bastard Shen He, no one learns the good things, but he's learned all the ways to torture people.

……

The Forbidden City, the Imperial Study.

Zhu Youjian looked at the memorial in his hand, his brows furrowed. It was truly one problem after another.

It turned out that the newly appointed Dutch governor of Taiwan, Putmans, in an attempt to force the Ming Dynasty to open trade, intended to seize the mainland coast by force. With the help of Liu Xiang, he launched a surprise attack without declaring war, sending eight warships to attack Zheng Zhilong's troops and Ming Dynasty soldiers who had just returned to Xiamen after pursuing Liu Xiang and were caught off guard. The attack sank, burned, and wrecked more than twenty Ming Dynasty warships in the harbor.

These warships were the most advanced warships in the Ming army. Zou Weilian, the governor of Fujian, apologized to Emperor Chongzhen and asked Zhu Youjian to send a fleet and troops to provide support.

Zhu Youjian did have a fleet, but it had to be kept in Dengzhou to blockade the Liaodong sea area and prevent unscrupulous merchants from smuggling. As for troops, Zhu Youjian really didn't have any extra troops.

At this time, the Netherlands was in its maritime heyday, possessing a powerful military and arguably the dominant power in Europe. It wasn't until the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War in 1784, when Britain defeated the Netherlands, that Britain became the dominant power and gradually grew into the British Empire.

Zhu Youjian thought for a moment, then picked up a secret letter from the table.

This secret letter was written by a spy planted by the Western Depot next to Wang Wenzhou. The spy was none other than Li Xiangjun and Dong Xiaowan.

These two children, ever since they started dating Mao Xiang and Hou Fangyu respectively, were recruited as spies by the Western Depot. Emperors don't trust their ministers, so they always try to plant a few spies around them, hoping they might come in handy someday.

Later, when Wang Wenzhou rose to power, Zhu Youjian was more wary of him than of the biological fathers of Mao Xiang and Hou Fangyu.

Zhu Youjian then ordered Cao Huachun and Wang Chengen, the two chief eunuchs in charge of the Western Depot and the Eastern Depot respectively, to find a way to plant spies around Wang Wenzhou. Li Xiangjun and Dong Xiaowan were thus placed by Cao Huachun in Wang Wenzhou's service.

Both girls are good girls who are loyal to the emperor and love their country. Moreover, since they live in Wang Wenzhou's house, they don't have much of a presence and are always bullied by Liu Rushi. Neither of them falls in love with Wang Wenzhou, and they are still very serious and responsible for their work.

In the letter, the two children truthfully reported what they had seen and heard in Hanshan these past few days. Wang Wenzhou's wolfish ambitions were common knowledge; not only had he forced Li Decheng, the prefect of Hanshan, to work in the toilet, but he had also used the pretext of recovering Liaodong to massively recruit soldiers. Hanshan had become a state within a state of the Ming Dynasty.

What Zhu Youjian feared most still happened.

Zhu Youjian considered the situation. Wang Wenzhou possessed a powerful fleet and a formidable army. Zhu Youjian currently had no spare troops to attack Hanshan.

Therefore, Zhu Youjian wanted Wang Wenzhou to lead his fleet and troops to Fujian to fight the Red Barbarians to the death. This would both weaken Wang Wenzhou's strength and let the Red Barbarians witness the military might of the Celestial Empire.

Although the plan was good, Zhu Youjian felt that Wang Wenzhou would definitely disobey the imperial decree. Wang Wenzhou had just been slapped in the face and his reputation was ruined. Given Wang Wenzhou's personality, it was already good that he did not directly rebel.

Zhu Youjian thought for a moment, then stood up and said, "Go to Kunning Palace."

Kunning Palace is Empress Zhou's bedroom. Wang Chengen was puzzled. It was still early today. Why would the Emperor want to rest so early?

When Zhu Youjian arrived at Kunning Palace, he gestured for his servants to leave.

Zhu Youjian looked at Empress Zhou and immediately felt his face burning, hesitating to speak.

Empress Zhou frowned and asked, "Your Majesty, what do you want to say? We are family, there is nothing we cannot say to each other."

"Hmm..." Zhu Youjian stammered, "Feng'er, I would like to ask you to leave the palace to do something."

Empress Zhou quickly replied, "Your Majesty, you tirelessly work for the country day and night, neglecting your health. I see this and am deeply concerned. Please give me any instructions that I may give you."

“Feng’er, you also know something about Boxin,” Zhu Youjian said with a smile.

Upon hearing Zhu Youjian mention Wang Wenzhou's name, Empress Zhou's face immediately turned red to her neck. She stared blankly at Zhu Youjian, filled with doubt. "Your Majesty, you don't mean for me to persuade Wang Wenzhou, do you? He's a lecher, don't you know that?"

Zhu Youjian continued, "When I dismissed Boxin from his post, it was on a whim, and now I regret it. In addition, the Red Barbarians are causing trouble in Fujian, and I have no troops to deploy. I want to appoint Boxin as the governor of Fujian."

"Alas..." Zhu Youjian sighed and said with a wry smile, "You know Boxin's temper. He has always been disrespectful to the emperor and his father. Since I cannot leave the capital, you can only go and persuade Boxin to take up his post on my behalf."

Empress Zhou felt like crying upon hearing this. "Zhu Youjian, you heartless bastard! Time and time again you've sent me to the jaws of a wolf!"

"Your Majesty, I obey!" Empress Zhou immediately knelt down.

"Rise, I still have some memorials to attend to. Pack your things, you will be setting off for Hanshan tomorrow. I will definitely see you off tomorrow." After saying this, Zhu Youjian did not dare to look at Empress Zhou, and got up to leave.

Zhu Youjian knew Wang Wenzhou's character, of course, but there's no gain without sacrifice. Wang Wenzhou wasn't stupid; he was already planning to establish his own regime with his own troops. How could he let Zhu Youjian reap the benefits? Zhu Youjian felt that only by sending Empress Zhou could he persuade (or seduce) Wang Wenzhou. As for whether it was persuasion or seduction, Zhu Youjian could only comfort himself that it was persuasion.

Empress Zhou watched Zhu Youjian depart into the distance, then slowly rose to her feet. As she stood, tears streamed down her face. In her heart, Empress Zhou sighed, "Zhu Youjian, oh Zhu Youjian, you were willing to sacrifice everything for your empire!"