Chapter 586 Tell it all!

Zhu Sanshan's action immediately froze the smile on Zhang Zhen's face. He leaned over to look at the debris on the ground and asked Zhu Sanshan in confusion:
"Master Zhu, what do you mean..."

In response to Zhang Zhen's question, Zhu Sanshan snorted coldly and said:
"Brother Zhang, are you really going to cry until you see the coffin, or do you really think we brothers are idiots?"

After saying this, Zhang Zhen's eyes seemed to show a trace of panic, but he still insisted:

"Master Zhu, the more I listen to you, the more confused I become. I just asked you to grab a porcelain vase!"

Seeing that Zhang Zhen still wanted to deny it, Zhu Sanshan was so angry that he laughed and ordered his brothers:

"Bring the things up to our brother Zhang!"

"Yes!"

Following Zhu Sanshan's order, several large wooden boxes were carried into the house by the bandits. Then, under the gaze of everyone, these large wooden boxes were all opened, and several muskets were placed in the wooden boxes!

Zhang Zhen's face changed obviously when he saw these muskets appear. Zhu Sanshan showed a hint of pride when he saw this scene. Then he picked up a musket and said to Zhang Zhen viciously:
"Zhang Zhen, please don't tell me that the firearms you asked us to rob at Guangyanpo were sold by the Fengwu Army to the Qi Army?

After receiving Zhang Zhen's commission, Zhu Sanshan was very confused, but the temptation of one thousand two taels of silver was too great for him who was eager to make a comeback. It could allow him to appease his subordinates and purchase some necessary medicines, food and other things, so Zhu Sanshan took his men to Guangyanpo.

However, after arriving at Guangyanpo, Zhu Sanshan discovered that something was wrong. The horse team passing through Guangyanpo was not the caravan escorted by the escort agency as he had imagined, but a horse team escorted by hundreds of Qi soldiers...
Although he realized something was wrong, Zhu Sanshan's men were all in place at that time, and everyone was ready to take down the convoy. If they returned empty-handed, the already low morale would surely decline further. So Zhu Sanshan could only curse Zhang Zhen while he had to shoot the arrow on the string.

Even though he was escorting hundreds of regular troops, Zhu Sanshan had the advantage in numbers, and it was also an ambush planned by Jing Xing, so after a fierce battle that lasted for an incense stick, Zhu Sanshan successfully won the battle.

And when he learned from the captured Qi army that the convoy he captured was carrying 300 Weiyuan guns sold to the Qi army by the Fengwu army, he was very excited as if pie in the sky fell on him. Now the whole world knows that the Fengwu army was able to rise quickly and capture Liaoyang and Youyan in three years, relying on their sharp firearms. The names of the Weiyuan gun, the Po Lu gun, the red cannon and other firearms are all well-known in the country.

It is for this reason that all the major vassal states of the Great Zhou are trying to obtain the firearms of the Fengwu Army through various channels, and want to research and replicate their production. However, up to now, the firearms of the Fengwu Army are still unique. Although these 300 Weiyuan guns are not many, they are enough to be a huge supplement to the combat power of Zhu Sanshan and the thousands of bandits under his command.

Although he got the benefits, Zhu Sanshan did not forget the trap Zhang Zhen set for him. Therefore, when Zhang Zhen came again, he directly challenged him and wanted to find out the truth...
Facing Zhu Sanshan's questioning, Zhang Zhen lowered his head and remained silent. Seeing his guilty look, Zhu Sanshan naturally would not be polite to him and directly put the knife on his neck and said coldly:
"Zhang Zhen, who are you? What is your purpose in coming to us? If you don't tell me, today next year will be your death day!"

Under Zhu Sanshan's harsh threat and the cold blade, Zhang Zhen was frightened and trembled all over. He sighed helplessly and said:

"I am a member of General Ping Kou's army."

Hearing the title of "General Ping Kou", Zhu Sanshan was stunned. In his impression, there was no such General Ping Kou in the Hebei-Henan region. Seeing Zhu Sanshan's confusion, his master Xu Shanchang whispered a reminder;
"Boss, this General Suppressing Bandits is the title given to Zhao Jianan by the imperial court during the Southern Tour!"

Zhu Sanshan nodded slightly when he heard this. He knew Zhao Jianan's name, but he soon realized a problem and asked Zhang Zhen:

"So you are soldiers of the Yan Army? Weren't you wiped out by the Fengwu Army? How did you appear in Yingcheng? And you asked us to rob the Fengwu Army's convoy. What do you want to do?"

Facing Zhu Sanshan's series of questions, Zhang Zhen smiled bitterly and said:

“Although the Fengwu Army occupied Youyan, some of our Yan Army still fled to Hebei and Henan. The reason why we asked Master Zhu to rob the Fengwu Army is because we want to help you, Master Zhu, to seize Hebei and Henan and replace that bastard Gao Zongchang…”

After listening to Zhang Zhen's explanation, Zhu Sanshan couldn't help but feel a little confused. He had never fought with the Yan army and didn't know these people from the Yan army. Why would these people rush to help him?

Just when Zhu Sanshan was confused, the master Xu Shanchang standing beside him said with a gleam in his eyes:
"Aren't you Yan army allies with Gao Zongchang? Gao Zongchang also provided you with a batch of money and food to fight against Fengwu Army. Why do you want to repay kindness with enmity and fight against Gao Zongchang?"

Listening to Xu Shanchang's words, Zhang Zhen looked at the scholar in front of him with some surprise, hesitated for a moment and began to speak:
"Gao Zongchang did give us a batch of money and food. The banknotes I gave to Zhu Da were originally given by Gao Zongchang. But he didn't really want to help our Yan army. He was just worried that the Fengwu army would attack us, so he wanted us Yan army to be his watchdogs!"

At this point, Zhang Zhen's tone changed a little and he said angrily:

“After the old marshal died, the young marshal regrouped in Jinzhong and wanted to get some support from Gao Zongchang so that he could fight back to Yijing one day. However, he didn’t expect Gao Zongchang, a coward who was afraid of being questioned by Ye Mingsheng if he had anything to do with us. Instead of giving us money and food, he escorted the young marshal’s envoy to Yijing and publicly rebuked the young marshal for joining Shangguan Hongyuan. Such an ungrateful person should be punished by heaven and earth…” Seeing that Zhang Zhen was excited and wanted to continue speaking with an indignant look, Zhu Sanshan, who already believed what he said, interrupted and said:
"Just get to the point! Why did you come to me?"

Zhang Zhen seemed a little unhappy to be interrupted by Zhu Sanshan, but under the blade of Zhu Sanshan, he still said honestly:

"After the Fengwu Army conquered Jinzhong, we, the remnants of the Yan Army, had no place to stay and could only hide quietly in Hebei, Henan, Qi and Lu. However, we have never forgotten our mission to recover Youyan and avenge the Fengwu Army!"

"This time, seeing your heroic act of resisting Gao Zongchang's tyranny, our Yan army brothers are all very impressed by your courage and spirit, so we want to cooperate with you! We will help you take over Hebei and Henan, and after you dominate Hebei and Henan, you will help our Yan army recover Youyan!"

Hearing Zhang Zhen say this, Zhu Sanshan's eyes narrowed slightly, and he took the knife from Zhang Zhen's neck and said:

"If that's the case, how do you Yan army plan to help me?"

Looking at Zhu Sanshan's actions and listening to his words, Zhang Zhen knew very well that Zhu Sanshan was already moved, and immediately said with a smile:

“Although our Yan army has been defeated, a broken ship still has 3,000 nails. Our Yan army still has thousands of loyal soldiers. Now they are divided into small groups and lurking in Youyan, Qilu, Jiyu. Many of them have led troops for many years and are proficient in various battle formations and firearms…”

"Master Zhu, I heard that you have served in the Imperial Guards. You should know the difference between the regular army and you. Our Yan Army can help you train your soldiers so that your brothers can master firearms. We are not satisfied with you saying that there are people in our Yan Army who have infiltrated the Fengwu Army and can help us obtain the Fengwu Army's firearms!"

"Besides that, before Jinzhong City was captured, our young marshal quietly transferred a batch of wealth out in order to preserve the spark of the restoration of Youyan. If you, Mr. Zhu, agree to cooperate with us, we will naturally share this wealth with you!"

Zhang Zhen's words made Zhu Sanshan overjoyed. As a former captain of the imperial guards, he fully realized the importance of discipline, battle formations, firearms and other elements after the battle in Eagle City. It is not possible to accomplish great things with just courage!
But if you want to train soldiers, you need a large number of qualified officers to lead them. He alone is far from enough. All his subordinates are brave and fierce. They are brave but they know nothing about enforcing orders and commanding battles. If what Zhang Zhen said is true, then it is exactly what he wants!
In addition, Zhang Zhen spent 1,300 taels of silver at once, which was enough to show that the wealth left by Zhao Jianan to them was definitely considerable. If he could get this wealth, he could expand his army. Thinking of this, Zhu Sanshan's heart suddenly became warm, and he wanted to agree immediately. However, in order to avoid Zhang Zhen seeing his thoughts, Zhu Sanshan still suppressed his thoughts and pretended to hesitate and said to Zhang Zhen:

"This is a serious matter. I need to think carefully before I can make a decision..."

"I understand, I understand. You can think about it carefully, but you still need to give me an answer as soon as possible. Although many of our Yanjun brothers are optimistic about you, there are also some different opinions!" Zhang Zhen said meaningfully:

Zhu Sanshan nodded slightly, then asked his men to take Zhang Zhen down to rest. Then Zhu Sanshan dismissed his attendants and left only his advisor Xu Shanchang. Zhu Sanshan still had great trust in this military advisor he found in Yingcheng, and believed that this was the talent he had been searching for. Therefore, facing the olive branch thrown by Zhang Zhen, Zhu Sanshan felt that he should listen to Xu Shanchang's ideas before making a decision!
Feeling Zhu Sanshan's gaze on him, Xu Shanchang frowned slightly. From now on, the appearance of Zhang Zhen is undoubtedly a major opportunity for the future development of Zhu Sanshan's group of bandits. If Zhang Zhen can really fulfill his words and provide money, food, firearms and even instructors, then with these resources, Zhu Sanshan's strength will undoubtedly reach a new level!
But for some reason, he always felt that something was wrong with Zhang Zhen's words, but he couldn't find any loopholes in Zhang Zhen's words. Zhang Zhen's words were still very logical. Although he still had some doubts in his heart, looking at Zhu Sanshan's bright eyes, Xu Shanchang knew that Zhu Sanshan had been moved, so he nodded and said:
"If Zhang Zhen can do what he says, then you should naturally cooperate with them, Big Boss. However, it is hard to tell whether Zhang Zhen is real or fake. You must be cautious when cooperating with them and don't believe his one-sided words!"

After hearing the affirmative answer from Xu Shanchang, Zhu Sanshan's rough face suddenly showed a smile, and he said confidently:

"Military Advisor, please rest assured. I, Old Zhu, have been in charge of the world for more than ten years. There is no way you can deceive me!"

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Yijing, Governor's Mansion

In the study, Huo San was reporting the situation to Ye Mingsheng in front of him.

"Reporting to the commander, at present, including the main culprit Zhao Sheng, their criminal gang and the umbrella behind them, a total of 281 people have been arrested, and 50,000 dan of grain, 1,200 pieces of cloth, 10,000 jin of salt, more than 300 pieces of gold, silver and jade, and 50,000 taels of silver and silver notes have been confiscated!"

Listening to the series of shocking figures above, Ye Mingsheng's eyes gradually became sharp. Zhao Sheng, a broker who was involved in both the black and white worlds, could accumulate so much gold and silver. This was enough to show that there was still room for him to continue digging into the muddy water of Youyan!

After a pause, Ye Mingsheng ordered:
"Count the prisoners and the evidence and hand them over to the prosecutor!"

Although the Coordination Office is very useful, their main task is still to be an intelligence agency responsible for security work. They do not have the power of trial, so they should still follow the rules and not let the Coordination Office grow wildly!
Listening to Ye Mingsheng's words, Huo San nodded and said:

"Yes!"

After saying this, he seemed to remember something, hesitated for a moment and introduced to Ye Mingsheng:

"Sir, one of the prisoners who conspired with Zhao Sheng is named Gu Shoude. He is the eldest son of Deputy Governor Gu Zhongshi..."

(End of this chapter)