The rich man shook his head and still did not answer.
The Confucian scholar sat on the stool and began to meditate.
Seeing that he was puzzled for a long time, the rich man couldn't help but said:
"Brother Gandu didn't participate, so why are you more afraid than me?"
Upon hearing this, the Confucian scholar sighed and said:
"Although I'm not involved, I know that my father who looks down on me is definitely involved. I'm afraid he's still the main person, Brother Shou, right?"
The wealthy man laughed loudly when he heard this, patted his shoulder and said:
"Brother Qiandu is truly worthy of the name of a talented man. He is indeed extremely intelligent. My father is a famous scholar in Taicang and the leader of the Taicang gentry. Your father is also an official in the court. You and I are a big family in Taicang. We will advance and retreat together in times of trouble. Important events will definitely not be missed."
After listening to what Zhang Cai said, Zhang Pu's face showed pain, and he drank alone.
Zhang Cai did not persuade him, but let him go. He knew the pain and ambition in his friend's heart.
Although Zhang Pu was a descendant of a noble family, his life was not as good as that of ordinary people, even poor people.
Because he was born by a maid and was the lowest-ranking concubine, he had not been treated favorably by his father and others since he was a child. Even the domestic slaves dared to ride on their mother and son's heads and humiliate him.
He still remembered what Zhang Pu said to him when he first met Zhang Pu.
I must take the Jinshi exam and become a high official in the future, so that all those people who look down on others will regret it.
"Brother Qiandu, don't worry, you have become strangers to your family. Even if it fails, you will not be implicated!"
Zhang Pu did not respond, but looked at the wine glass in a daze.
He already knew that since this matter had been agreed upon, there must be quite a few participating nobles, and they had all weighed the pros and cons.
Those old guys are so clever, how could they dare to do such an extremely risky thing so recklessly?
And Zhang Cai now dares to speak out and reveal that they must be very confident.
This is also true. In recent years, disasters and famines have often broken out in northern provinces. Without the support of food supplements from Jiangnan, people's livelihood would have been in chaos.
And those who control the most resources and food are the noble families like them. It can be said that they have a firm grip on the neck of the imperial court. It is precisely because they have grasped this that they dare to be so confident.
It is impossible for the emperor to completely offend the nobles like them regardless of the people in the north. As long as the emperor has some scruples, they will be quite invincible.
It is no exaggeration to say that in recent years, without the taxes, money and food from the Jiangnan provinces, the imperial court would have been on the verge of collapse.
Some time ago, a group of officials from the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Affairs suddenly arrived from several provinces in the south of the Yangtze River and purchased a large amount of grain at market prices for transport to the north. Naturally, this kind of thing could not be done quietly, because his family had a share of the grain.
Some people guessed that the court was out of food, and immediately convened various families for discussion, and finally unanimously decided to block water transportation to counter the emperor's suppression of them.
The purpose of Zhang Cai's trip north to Beijing this time was not only to investigate Wei Zhongxian, but also to understand the situation in the north.
If the time comes, the gentry and powerful families will immediately launch an attack.
He passed through Shandong not long ago, and he felt pitiful when he saw the fields and crops in Shandong. He knew that there would be a famine in Shandong this year, so he decisively wrote a letter home.
Zhang Pu filled two glasses of wine, stood up in front of Zhang Cai and said:
"Although I don't want to ask more about this matter, my late brother has always taken care of me like an elder brother, so I wish you success with this wine!"
Zhang Caile happily took the wine glass and said with a smile on his face:
"Borrow me with my brother's good wishes!"
…
…
After Zhu Youxiao returned to the palace, he counted the days. It was already approaching August, and he had to prepare for the upcoming Southwest Rebellion.
This turmoil must be suppressed with thunderous force. If the fight lasts for more than ten years like in history, there is no need to wait for Zhu Youjian, he will find a crooked neck tree first.
Once he has completely wiped out the two great chieftains, Yongning and Shuixi, he will take advantage of the situation to reform the local chieftains. The abnormal hereditary chieftain system must be completely abolished.
Although Zhu Youxiao's set goals during this period have been basically completed, the matter between the Shanxi merchants and the Liaodong generals has not yet been resolved, which makes him quite worried.
The Shanxi incident was okay, they were just selling some supplies and intelligence to the enemy, and it wouldn't have much impact.
But the generals in Liaodong are different. Once a flaw is revealed and they seize the opportunity, they will face a fatal blow.
If you continue to delay, it will be extremely detrimental to yourself and Daming. She Chongming and others will not wait for you to be ready to rebel.
Most of these toasts in the southwest have been passed down for thousands of years, and their heritage is extremely profound. If you compare the generals in Liaodong with them, they are like a three-year-old child.
Even the so-called wealthy families in Jiangnan have a long history, and these chieftains are far superior to them.
The most important thing is that they have their own ethnic group, with solid basic support in the local area, and ethnic groups with large populations can have tens of thousands of soldiers.
But they also have a fatal weakness, they do not have weapons and equipment that keep up with the times, and even armor is very rare.
Qin Liangyu gathered the manpower and material resources of the two major families and managed to create an elite white-armed army of less than 5,000 people. No matter how rich their chieftains were, they would never be able to exceed this critical point.
The most troublesome thing is that they are extremely widely distributed. Once you want to operate the land-returning operation, you have to use the four provinces of Sichuan, Guizhou, Yunnan, and Guangxi at the same time, and you can't make any mistakes.
Because the Duke of Guizhou has been guarding it for generations, Yunnan is relatively stable and there has never been a large-scale rebellion.
The people in Guangxi are poor and poor, and the chieftains there do not have the confidence and strength to support their ambitions.
Those heavyweight chieftains who are ready to rebel are basically concentrated in Sichuan and Guizhou provinces.
Moreover, these two provinces are mostly plateau and mountainous areas, which are not conducive to the combat of cavalry regiments and large corps. The results cannot be accomplished in one battle, and it is destined to be a time-consuming and labor-intensive war.
During the Wanli period, in order to quell the rebellion of Yang Yinglong in Bozhou, the Ming army spent nearly 4 million taels of silver on military expenditures, food and equipment, etc. It was a huge expense, and it took a full year to put it down.
.
Zhu Youxiao could only hope that Qin Liangyu and Zhu Xieyuan could successfully complete the tasks assigned to him this time. If he wanted to quickly pacify the southwest, he would have to rely on them.
Zhu Youxiao planned to take 20,000 people there this time. The combat effectiveness of these chieftains was several grades lower than that of the Mongols and Jiannu, and was only at the level of the local guard army.
As long as he controls it properly, with his 20,000 elite Yulin army, he can completely defeat these chieftains with a crushing force.
What's more, there is no shortage of troops in the southwest. Qin Liangyu and Zhu Xieyuan still have 20,000 to 30,000 capable soldiers. If necessary, the Duke of Guizhou, who is guarding Yunnan, can also lead troops to quell the rebellion.