usatvline Chapter 33 The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind!
Chapter 33 The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind!
Read Chapter 33, "The Mantis Stalks the Cicada, Unaware of the Oriole Behind," now to begin your exciting day!
The Gu family mansion is located in the most prosperous part of Suzhou City, covering an area of nearly a thousand acres. With pavilions, towers, carved beams and painted rafters, it is even more magnificent than the mansion of a prince.
In Suzhou, Gu Xiancheng was practically a local tyrant.
At this moment, in the council hall at the deepest part of the mansion, after several rounds of drinks, the atmosphere was quite intense.
"Professor Gu, your three moves of 'praise to death,' 'counter-espionage,' and 'military remonstrance' are truly strokes of genius!"
Mr. Wang, the owner from Hangzhou, was flushed from drinking. He stood up, holding his wine glass, and fawned over Gu Xiancheng, who was seated at the head of the table.
"That Zhang Juzheng is nothing but a scholar. No matter how capable he is, he'll have to behave himself in our Jiangnan region! We'll publicly praise him to the skies, but secretly make it impossible for him to move an inch. In less than three months, he'll have to slink back to the capital in disgrace!"
"That's right!" A gentryman from Songjiang Prefecture chimed in. "As for that Qi Jiguang, hmph, just a military man from the north. We've already made arrangements with the heroes of Taihu Lake. As soon as his 'supervisory army' enters the waters of Taihu Lake, we'll let them taste the might of our Jiangnan navy! We guarantee they won't return alive!"
"Ha ha ha ha!"
"Once you arrive in Suzhou, whether you're a dragon or a tiger, you'll be treated with deference."
A burst of triumphant laughter erupted in the hall.
In their view, they had already secured victory in this game.
Although the regent in the capital was ruthless, he was still too young and did not understand the meaning of "a general in the field may disobey the emperor's orders," nor did he understand how deep the stagnant waters of Jiangnan really were.
This is not the capital city.
It's Suzhou!
This is not a place where he can arbitrarily decide life and death.
Here, these powerful families who have been entrenched for centuries are the true rulers!
Gu Xiancheng stroked his gray beard, listening to the praise from the crowd, and a smug smile appeared on his face.
He enjoyed the feeling of being in control and having everything planned out.
"Gentlemen, although victory is assured, we must not be careless."
He waved his hand modestly, "Qi Jiguang was, after all, a capable and skilled warrior, and his 30,000 troops were not to be underestimated. Although those friends on Taihu Lake were fearless, they were ultimately a rabble, and they probably wouldn't gain any advantage in a head-on confrontation."
"Don't worry, Mr. Gu!" Boss Wang patted his chest and assured him, "I've already sent people and spent a fortune to buy ten of the latest 'Red Barbarian Cannons' from the Portuguese! When the time comes, we'll just put them on the ship, and no matter what kind of supervising officer they are, we'll blast them all into the lake to feed the turtles!"
"Oh? Red Barbarian cannons?" Gu Xiancheng's eyes lit up.
This is a great weapon; it is extremely powerful and has a long range, making it a true weapon of war.
The imperial court hasn't even equipped many of them yet, and I never expected that Boss Wang would be able to get his hands on some.
"Boss Wang really has connections everywhere!"
"Not at all, it's all for our common good!" Boss Wang said with a smug smile.
"Excellent!" Gu Xiancheng slammed his hand on the table. "With this powerful tool, great things can be accomplished!"
He stood up and raised his glass again.
"Once we deal with Qi Jiguang's 30,000-strong army, that Regent Prince will be crippled! Then, we can contact our colleagues in court who are dissatisfied with the new policies, and together we can submit a petition impeaching him for his perverse actions and the harm he has brought to the country and its people!"
"By then, will he still be able to hold onto his position as the retired emperor? Will his ancestor, who seems to have crawled out of his grave, still be able to control everything?"
"Perhaps we can emulate the 'Jingnan Campaign' and support another 'wise ruler' from within the imperial clan!"
Gu Xiancheng's words became increasingly bold and even more outrageous.
The people below were also filled with excitement, their eyes gleaming with greed and ambition.
They seemed to already see themselves as loyal subjects of the new dynasty, rising through the ranks and elevating their family's glory to new heights.
"For the new dynasty! For wealth and power!"
"Dry!"
The wine glasses clinked together, making a crisp sound.
at the same time,
Outside the Gu family mansion,
In a dark alley.
Zhu Di was dressed in a black night outfit.
Behind him were nearly a thousand Imperial Guards dressed in the same manner.
The scout, tasked with scouting ahead, slipped out from behind the wall, knelt on one knee before Zhu Di, and reported in a low voice: "Your Excellency, a banquet is underway inside, and the defenses are lax. There are about three hundred guards and servants in the mansion, most of whom are patrolling the front yard, while there are fewer than fifty in the back yard."
"Three hundred men?" A disdainful sneer curled at the corner of Zhu Di's mouth.
Let alone three hundred servants, even three thousand soldiers wouldn't be enough in his eyes.
"I heard you all clearly."
Zhu Di turned around and looked at the Embroidered Uniform Guards behind him.
"Take care of all the guards within the time it takes for an incense stick to burn."
"Then, surround the council hall for me."
"Remember, I want him alive."
"Especially that old bastard surnamed Gu, don't let him die. I still have something to ask him personally."
"Yes, sir!"
Nearly a thousand Imperial Guards responded in unison.
Immediately, like well-trained cheetahs, they split into dozens of groups and silently scaled the high walls of the Gu family compound from all directions.
A silent massacre unfolded quietly within the Gu family garden.
Those wicked servants and retainers who usually bullied and oppressed the people were as fragile as paper in front of these Imperial Guards who had crawled out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood.
They didn't even have time to sound the alarm; they were either asleep or on patrol. Net profit was wiped out.
Inside the council hall, Gu Xiancheng and the others were completely unaware of this.
They were still talking loudly and drinking heartily.
Gu Xiancheng had drunk a bit too much and felt the urge to urinate, so he got up and prepared to go to the back room to change his clothes.
He pushed open the door, humming a little tune, and swayed as he walked down the corridor.
The evening breeze carried a hint of coolness, and also a faint...smell of blood.
Gu Xiancheng sniffed and frowned slightly.
What does it taste like?
Just as he was wondering what was going on, a drop of warm liquid suddenly dripped from the eaves above his head and landed on his face.
He instinctively reached out and touched it, then looked at it in front of his eyes.
Red.
Thick and sticky.
is blood!
Gu Xiancheng instantly sobered up considerably!
He suddenly looked up and gazed at the eaves.
In the shadows of the eaves, a man dressed in black with his face covered by a black cloth was crouching quietly, like a night owl ready to hunt.
In his hand, he held a human head that was still dripping blood.
He was the head guard of his household.
"You...you all..."
Gu Xiancheng was so frightened that his soul almost left his body, and he was about to open his mouth to scream.
The man in black, like a ghost, floated down from the rooftop, a cold hand tightly covering his mouth.
"Mr. Gu"
"My master invites you in."