latelenovela Chapter 705 Warlords
Chapter 705 Warlords
Chapter 705 Warlords
"Damn it!" Wang Wenzhou cursed, "No wonder the old man wasn't angry at all when I humiliated Xiong Wencan like that. I thought he was well-mannered, but it turns out he knew he had wronged me!"
Zuo Liangyu spoke up, "Does Lord Wang have a way to deal with Xiong Wencan?"
Wang Wenzhou laughed and said, "Don't worry! This guy is doomed! When Zhang Xianzhong turns against us next spring, Zhu Youjian will definitely kill Xiong Wencan to vent his anger!"
Zuo Liangyu said with a wry smile, "You don't know this, but Xiong Wencan has long been prepared for Zhang Xianzhong to rebel again. He will station troops near the county where Zhang Xianzhong is located."
"Haha!" Wang Wenzhou laughed loudly, "That's easy! Since you're so opposed to pacifying Zhang Xianzhong, you can apply to station troops there. When Zhang Xianzhong turns against you, you can just sit back and do nothing!"
"Ah?" Zuo Liangyu said in surprise, "Lord Wang, if I really did that, Xiong Wencan could kill me without the Emperor's help."
Wang Wenzhou put his arm around Gao Guiying, took a sip of wine, and said with a smile, "Xiong Wencan can't kill you, and neither will the Emperor!"
"Don't try to fool me!" Zuo Liangyu thought bitterly. Lord Wang, you think I'm the one who's in charge? You're practically rebelling, and even the Emperor wouldn't kill you!
Wang Wenzhou explained, “Now that the Ming Dynasty is engulfed in war, who can kill you if you have troops in your hands? Think about it, why didn’t Zhu Youjian dare to kill me?”
Zuo Liangyu shook his head with a wry smile and said helplessly, "Lord Wang, how can I compare to you? You have the support of the people in Hanshan, while I am just a general. As long as the emperor's decree arrives, my brothers will be eager to cut off my head."
"Haha!" Wang Wenzhou laughed loudly, "Xiao Zuo, you've been leading troops for so many years, how come you still don't understand one thing? Why do people join the army? How many people join the army really to protect their country? Most of them just want to make a living!"
Men only like three things: money, women, and power! Of course, you might not be able to give your subordinates much power, but you can give them money and women! As long as your subordinates are well-incentivized, why worry about their loyalty?
"I'm not like you, where would I get so much money?" Zuo Liangyu knew that Wang Wenzhou was extremely wealthy.
Wang Wenzhou laughed and scolded, "Are you stupid! With so many soldiers under your command, how could you not have money? Where did the bandits get their money? They robbed it, of course!"
"Huh?" Zuo Liangyu was stunned, finding it hard to believe that Wang Wenzhou, a nobleman from the Xinjian Earl's Mansion, would say such a thing.
Wang Wenzhou continued, "Throughout history, in times of chaos, warlords who held military power generally fared quite well. As long as their troops weren't all wiped out, they could secure a decent position no matter who they allied with!"
"Lord Wang, do you really want to..." Zuo Liangyu didn't dare to say the word "rebellion".
Wang Wenzhou cursed and swore, "That pig Zhu Youjian has brought the Ming Dynasty to a state of utter misery! The people can't even survive, so what's wrong with rebelling? I'm rebelling entirely for the people of the Ming Dynasty! What I said to Xiong Wencan that day is true. Next spring, the Ming Dynasty will be engulfed in flames of war, and chaos will ensue!"
Zuo Liangyu broke out in a cold sweat. If what Wang Wenzhou said was true, then perhaps it really was a time of chaos.
Wang Wenzhou laughed and said, "Little Zuo, don't worry. As long as you do as I say, I guarantee nothing will happen! When Zhang Xianzhong rebels, I should also raise an army! Don't be fooled by the fact that Zhu Youjian has 30 troops stationed in Hanshan; they've already been divided and disintegrated by me!"
Zuo Liangyu thought for a moment and then said, "Lord Wang, please let me go back and think it over carefully. I will give you an answer in a few days."
“What’s there to consider? You should know that you weren’t born a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations). With your status, reaching the rank of General is already the limit! It’s impossible to go any further! Although I don’t have a good reputation in officialdom, I will never treat anyone unfairly if they follow me,” Wang Wenzhou said seriously.
Zuo Liangyu smiled bitterly to himself, "Lord Wang, you also know that your reputation is not good?"
Wang Wenzhou continued, "Take He Renlong for example. Before he joined me, he was a general, just like you. And now? He's the Vice Minister of War. Of course, I know you have some connections with the Donglin Party. But you have to think of it this way: you're different from them."
In the eyes of the Donglin Party members, only those who had passed the imperial examinations were among their own; you, a mere military man, were nothing more than their tool!
"What Lord Wang says is true! From now on, I will follow your lead!" Zuo Liangyu said solemnly.
Wang Wenzhou curled his lip. "I don't believe you! You're still too green to fool me! When He Renlong joined me, I was Zhu Youjian's favorite and could help him. Now that I'm about to become a rebel, it's no wonder you're trying to distance yourself from me!"
Wang Wenzhou didn't care that Zuo Liangyu was being perfunctory, because he knew that Zuo Liangyu would eventually become a warlord. Once he, Li Zicheng, and Huang Taiji all rose up in rebellion at the same time, Zuo Liangyu would seriously consider whether or not to accept his advice.
The two chatted for a while longer before Zuo Liangyu took his leave, and Wang Wenzhou began to sleep with the girls. It must be said, the six beautiful girls Zuo Liangyu sent were indeed very beautiful.
But after Wang Wenzhou finished sleeping, he burst into tears.
The girls who had just been slept with didn't know what was wrong with Wang Wenzhou, and looked at each other aggrievedly. The girls who had been slept with hadn't even cried yet, so why was this grown man crying?
At this moment, Gao Guiying walked into the room and asked, "Boxin, what's wrong now? You cried after sleeping with a girl?"
"Sister, I feel so wronged!" Wang Wenzhou hugged Gao Guiying, rubbing his head against her chest to wipe away his tears.
"What's wrong?" Gao Guiying gently patted Wang Wenzhou's back.
"Sigh..." Wang Wenzhou sighed and said sadly, "Look how beautiful these babies are. I was so happy when they slept, but now that they're done, I'm so sad! I miss my Lanlan, Ruru, and Xiaolanlan..."
Gao Guiying was both amused and exasperated. This man was truly strange. You could say he was a lecher, and he really was; he wanted to sleep with any pretty girl he saw. Yet, he also seemed remarkably devoted to one woman.
Outside the door, Sheng Lan was moved to tears upon hearing Wang Wenzhou's words. She touched the necklace around her neck, wanting to rush in right now and tell her nemesis that she was still alive, but she couldn't do that.
Meanwhile, in the Shengjing Imperial Palace, Liu Rushi touched the necklace around her neck, cursing inwardly, "Huang Taiji, you barbarian, you want to sleep with me too? Do you think I'm someone you can just sleep with whenever you want?"
Liu Rushi didn't admit it in her heart; she only wanted to sleep with Wang Wenzhou, her nemesis, because she now wished Wang Wenzhou were dead.
"Your Majesty, please forgive me, I am menstruating and cannot serve you!" Liu Rushi said with a smile.
"Oh!" Huang Taiji nodded and said with a smile, "I will come again in a few days."
Huang Taiji left dejectedly. He didn't know why. He hadn't liked Dayuer much before, but ever since she gave birth to their son Fulin, he felt that she had changed and was much prettier than before.
"Hmph!" Liu Rushi snorted coldly, plotting how to kill Huang Taiji. She didn't want to be tainted by barbarians.