Xue Feihu and Song Jia ultimately did not have a good temper to stay and drink wine, leading the men to withdraw from the river mouth.

  Those riches can buy meat to feed a dog, and it knows how to wag its tail at me. This guy is so hateful, one day I will chop him into pieces! Xie Fei Hu rode on his horse, fiercely whipping the saddle, and pulling tight on the reins to prevent the horse from running.

  “……” Song Jia rode on horseback, letting out a long sigh, as if wanting to vent the depression in her heart. It was already late, and the city gate had closed, so they couldn't return to the city and could only temporarily stay at the villa in Longcangpu, south of the city. Seeing Xiang Fei Hu's indignation, she advised him with kind words, "Lin Kou is a self-interested person, thick-skinned and black-hearted, with means to achieve his goals. If small favors can win him over, he's not worth paying much attention to... Li Zhuo will soon arrive in Jiangning, and the intention to guard against my Xiang family is clear as day. Lin Kou follows Gu Wu Chen in Jiangning like a rising star, although it's difficult for him to advance due to limited opportunities, but there's still Dong Yuan as an example. At this time, the world has not yet fallen into chaos, and my Xiang family is still safely located in the southeastern corner, so we really don't have many resources to win him over."

  "Xiang Yuan is really detestable!" Xi Fei Hu said with hatred. At the beginning, the road for the Xi family's army to march north was blocked by this small county clerk Xiang Yuan of Xianxia County. Over the years, the Xi family didn't know how many men had died under Xiang Yuan's calculations. Li Zhuo was forced by the situation to suggest that the imperial court accept the Xi family's proposal for peace talks. However, Xiang Yuan wouldn't tolerate the Xi family and even turned against Li Zhuo, but Li Zhuo could tolerate Xiang Yuan. Despite expelling Xiang Yuan from the military camp, he later recommended Xiang Yuan for important positions such as Jiangning Army Department Lang and Weiyang Prefecture Governor.

  Song Jia's eyebrows slightly furrowed, and it's likely that Dong Yuan and Li Zhuo's relationship isn't as simple as the outside world has made it out to be.

  After the luxurious family's reconciliation, the court would use Li Zhuo to guard the southeast, but also prevent Li Zhuo from gaining power. For nearly half a year, the elite soldiers and generals who were forged on the southeastern battlefield have been dispersed and transferred to the north one after another. The 20,000 elite troops left in Dongming also returned to the command of the Dongming Governor's Mansion. It is estimated that the court will also send new envoys to Dongming to take up the post of governor-general, which would further weaken Li Zhuo's influence on the Dongming army. In fact, after Li Zhuo took office as the Minister of War and the Defender General of Jiangning, he had no major generals at his disposal. At this time, looking back at Dong Yuan, who was serving as the Prefect of Weiyang Prefecture, it can be seen that he could become a strong assistant for Li Zhuo to grasp the situation in Jiangdong Province.

  Dong Yuan and Li Zhuo's falling out may well be a clever move made by Li Zhuo beforehand.

  Although the Great Viet Dynasty was in a state of decline, with many troubles arising at the same time, there were still ministers who could revive it. If the court could make good use of these people, they might be able to reverse the trend. Lin Xie was indeed a talented general, and his ability to observe the situation would not be inferior. How could he be easily won over by the She family with just some wealth? The key is that at this time, he was following Gu Wu Chen in Jiangning, making waves and stirring up trouble. If they really wanted to win him over and make him betray Gu Wu Chen for the She family's use, they would have to make a big move!

  "I have an idea, I don't know if it's right or wrong," Song Jia said to her husband, Huo Fei.

  "When did you become so timid in front of me and dare not speak up?" Xie Fei Hu asked strangely.

  "Li Zhuo is coming to Jiangning, and our vigilance will be greatly increased. It's a thousand times difficult for us to make any small moves in Jiangning now. The river mouth and prison island are strategically located, too important for our actions in Jiangning. Lin Kou may be a hateful person, but he's also a valuable one to rope in. However, to get him to serve the Xiao family, we'll have to use heavy-handed tactics. A little silver and money won't impress him..." Song Jia said.

  "I also know this principle, who knows that the river mouth gave him a step ahead and took it away?" Xue Feihu said, "If he can surrender to my Xue family, past grievances will not be counted, and his wealth and glory will not be less. But what do we have to lure him now? You'd better not say half of the story."

  "Lin Xuan is still unmarried, and Mingyue has not yet promised to marry anyone..." Song Jia said.

  "No way," Xue Fei Hu said resolutely. "No matter how capable the dog slave is, he's still a dog slave. How can he be worthy of Ming Yue? He insists on opposing my Xue family, and I have ways to make him break his stubborn bones. What made you come up with this idea? If Ming Yue finds out, what will she think of you?"

  Song Jia let out a light sigh, she just told Fei Hu about it, even if Fei Hu agreed, Master Hou's side probably wouldn't be willing to use his beloved daughter Ming Yue's marriage to entice a small ninth-grade prison official, although Song Jia believed in her heart that her proposal was correct.

  They saw dozens of horsemen carrying torches approaching from the front near the Sanshui Kou area of Longzangpu in Chengnan.

  "Brother, sister-in-law, have you caught the assassin?" Xue Mingyue, although young, was also skilled in horse riding. She saw the flames and knew that her brother and sister-in-law were returning with their troops, so she rode out to meet them first. Du Rong and a young scholar, as well as Qingfeng's Wuwei, followed on horseback behind them.

  Qingfeng Hang had a large mansion on the east side of the mouth of Sanjiao River in Longcangpu, south of the city. The walls were like fortifications, and the west wing was directly connected to a hidden harbor. Xie Feihu secretly hid many people and boats here.

  The upper reaches of Longcangpu are southwest of Maoshan, with no important tributaries flowing in. It has to flow downstream for dozens of miles and bypass Jiangning City to the west before entering Chaotian Tang. The Zangbing Bridge in the west of the city spans the outer river of Longcangpu. Over the years, Longcangpu has silted up without dredging, making it impossible for medium-sized sailboats with a draft of over 5 zhang and a depth of over 12 feet to enter. Sea ships have to rely on wind power to move forward. If they were to row or paddle in the vast ocean, they would probably exhaust the sailors and boatmen to death. Under these conditions, the pirate ships from Donghai cannot mix into Longcangpu.

  Xue Fei Hu's face was gloomy, partly because he was angry about his wife's bold proposal earlier. Looking at his sister riding a horse under the reflection of the torches, with a heroic spirit and a hint of girlish beauty, he felt even more resentful towards Lin Xie, thinking that such a lowly person didn't deserve to be with his own sister.

  Du Rong and young scholars came over to pay their respects to She Fei Hu and Song Jia. They saw the expression of She Fei Hu's couple, and they also knew that chasing after the river mouth would not have any results.

  "Lin Tie didn't deny that someone had helped them escape, but instead hinted that the three people who had escaped had already been silenced and thrown into the river...". Xie Feihu angrily told the intelligence to Du Rong and the young scholar.

  "This Lin Xian is indeed a figure in Jiangning who needs to be taken seriously. The vassal house and the prefect of Jiangning probably both want to get rid of him as soon as possible. If he could be easily subdued, he wouldn't have caused so much trouble for the vassal house and Wang Xueshan...” The young scholar furrowed his brow slightly, having expected such a result.

  "The attitude of the Yongchang Marquis behind the scenes is ambiguous, and it's also because each family wants to sit on the fence and watch the fight between Gu Wu Chen and Wang Xue Shan, that they let them take the upper hand," Du Rong said, not willing to give Lin Xuan too much credit. "If any of these families really want to get rid of Lin Xuan, I don't believe he can keep his life?"

  "It's true what you say," the young scholar sighed, "but which family would dare to take action without any scruples? Lin Xuan is not a simple person, he knows that his arrogance will offend many people, but the situation in Jiangning is complex, with various families restraining each other. The more he relies on Gu Wu's backing to assert himself, the more cautious other families become towards him. He takes advantage of this intricate situation to seize the initiative and build momentum. Don't look down on his youth, I think his strategic thinking may even surpass that of Gu Wu. If it were someone else, having passed the imperial examination at a young age, they would naturally go to the capital to participate in the spring examination to compete for the title of advanced scholar, but such honors are beneath him. It's unlikely that he thinks a mere ninth-rank official position can satisfy his ambition? It seems he has a unique understanding of the situation in the world, and if given time, who knows, maybe he'll become a powerful warlord!"

  "You rarely praise people like this, to say nothing of imperial examination honors, you can easily get them if you want." Song Jia was also secretly worried that her husband was not willing to spend money to win over Lin, but now hearing someone echoing her own views, her worries were alleviated a lot.

  "As for seeking wealth and honor, it's better to wait until the great Tang Dynasty is prosperous again. For now, going after wealth and honor would be foolish." The young scholar laughed and said.

  "Zi Tan, why don't you tell us what we should do now?" Xue Feihu handed his horse over to his attendant and led the group towards Zhuangzi's residence. Today, he had used a trick to lure out the assassin, but since Lin Kou couldn't be completely eliminated, he was not feeling very pleased in his heart. Moreover, after coming to Jiangning for such a long time, the situation in Jiangdong hadn't been very advantageous to the Xue family. On the other hand, Gu Wu Chen, who also didn't have any foundation in Jiangdong, had managed to break through and gain an advantage, which made him feel somewhat anxious.

  "If Lin Xuan can provide it to the young master, that would be great..." The young scholar sighed softly. The geographical advantage of the Jinjiang River estuary was too important. Outside was the vast waters of Cháotiān Dàng, and as long as there was a foothold on the south bank of Cháotiān Dàng, the pirate forces controlled by the Shà family in the East Sea could quietly infiltrate Jiāngníng without alarming all parties. This way, Shà Fēi Hǔ's presence in Jiāngníng would be very useful, and he could further incorporate the water bandit forces in the middle and lower reaches of the Yángzǐ River into the Shà family's fold, cutting off the grain transportation routes to the south of the Yángzǐ River, which would prevent the imperial court from using the wealth of the southeastern provinces to recover its vitality.

  Xue Feihu heard the young scholar's words and felt slightly displeased in his heart, but he couldn't say anything. After all, Li Zhuo was about to come to Jiangning, and Gu Wudian was in control of Jiangning, not only forcing Wang Xueshan to give up the right to govern the eastern city, but also forcing Wang Xueshan to agree to increase the grain supply to Yanjing, which was indeed unfavorable to the Xue family.

  "The overall situation is not decided by a single location or moment," Du Rong said, "As long as Li Zhuo's teeth are pulled out, what great role can he play in Jiangning again? Once the elite troops of the southeast are exhausted on the northern front, I don't believe he can turn the 30,000 garrison troops of Jiangning into an elite army!"

  She Fei Hu nodded and said, "The situation in the central and northern regions has not improved at all, but rather shows signs of continued deterioration. Even if the imperial court increases its efforts to suppress the bandits, there are still dozens of households that have been established in Hanzhong, Qinxi, Huai Shang, Zhongzhou, and Jin Nan. What my She family needs to do now is on the one hand to nurture our strength in Jin'an Prefecture, and on the other hand to integrate and strengthen the pirate forces in Donghai to launch a surprise attack on Mingzhou, Jiaxing, Pingjiang, Hailing, Huai'an, and Wei Yang, which are the rich coastal areas of the eastern provinces. Even during the ten years when the war was raging in the southeast, the annual grain tax provided by these six prefectures to Yanjing was still over 15 million dan, among which the three prefectures of Jiangdong, Hailing, Huai'an, and Pingjiang were particularly important. In addition to providing grain taxes, these three prefectures also provided a huge income of nearly 2 million taels of silver in salt, iron, tea, silk, and other commercial taxes to the imperial court every year. If we can destroy the economy of these three prefectures, it would be equivalent to cutting off one arm of the imperial court." His words were full of grandeur, as if he had the world in his grasp.

  Song Jia let out a soft sigh, if Xie's family can see this point, can't Li Zhuo and other knowledgeable officials in the court see it too? If Li Zhuo could easily take away all of someone's teeth, Xie's family wouldn't have been suppressed by Li Zhuo for several years. To be able to cleanly and neatly assassinate Li Zhuo would be reassuring, otherwise as long as Li Zhuo is stationed in Jiangning, he will be a thorn in Xie's heart.

  Dong Yuan's appointment as the prefect of Wei Yang might be a clever move by Li Zhuo. Among the three prefectures of Hai Ling, Ping Jiang and Wei Yang, Wei Yang is particularly important, not only because the Salt and Iron Intendancy is located there, but also because it is one of the key hubs of the grain transportation route. Although the main garrison of Ninghai Town is in Pingjiang Prefecture, not in Weiyang Prefecture, Li Zhuo sent Dong Yuan, who was in charge of both civil and military affairs and strongly advocated for the reorganization of local prefectural troops, to Weiyang. This suggests that Li Zhuo might be worried about losing control over the garrison troops, even if he could control the Jiangning Garrison Troops, he would not be able to deploy them to control the situation in eastern Jiangdong Prefecture. However, it is possible that Li Zhuo supported Dong Yuan in training a crack prefectural army outside of the garrison system.

  Even if the world is in great chaos, heroes will emerge from all over the world. The northern Xiongnu people are also eyeing us covetously. The Xia family is only based in the southeast corner, and at most, we can only have two or three tenths of control.

  **********************

  PS: Brothers, the first update is here, let's give red envelopes with generosity!