bookrandom Chapter 234 Entrapment
Chapter 234 Entrapment
"General Shen is right. After successfully taking over the military defense fortress, everyone has become a bit complacent. We will go back and inform the brothers below."
“The soldiers below have indeed become a bit arrogant and complacent lately, and it’s time to give them a good talking-to.”
"Ah~" Lu Yuan belatedly realized, "Then I will decline all the banquets recently."
Lu Zhen rarely makes public appearances due to his health condition. The people of Anguo assume that he is arrogant and self-important. As the personal guard of the current supreme military commander of the Anxuan Army, Lu Yuan has naturally become the target of various parties to cultivate relationships. He has been living a very comfortable life lately.
"There's no need to be overly nervous or act suspiciously. How could the lurking demons and monsters dare to make a move so easily?"
Qi Shang understood, "General, are you trying to lure the snake out of its hole?"
"You can't guard against thieves for a thousand days if you're a thief for a thousand days. It's always better to eliminate hidden dangers as soon as possible."
Although Anguo is small and has only been established for a few decades, one should not underestimate the die-hard supporters of any regime. Even after the fall of the Great Yan for hundreds of years, Murong Fu still dreamed of restoring the dynasty. Moreover, Anguo still has a solid foundation, so naturally some people will want to take a gamble, especially families that have been marginalized and slipped out of the center of power after the last Anguo coup.
From the perspective of the overall situation, the world will eventually unite after a long period of division, and there will be a day of unification sooner or later. Submitting to Xuan State seems to have a better future than hiding in the small territory of An State. However, people's demands are not the same, and some people would rather be the head of a chicken than the tail of a phoenix.
“But…” Guo Yu hesitated, “Now that the situation has stabilized, would they really take this risk?”
Shen Qing looked at her outstretched palm, her fingers tightening one by one. "Power can be addictive. Once you've had it, it's hard to let go. Like moths to a flame, you rush headlong into it until you die!"
Upon hearing this, Guo Yu glanced at Shen Qing's eyes and quickly looked away, feeling inexplicably startled. He hurriedly lowered his eyelids to hide his surging emotions.
Lu Yuan was straightforward and asked questions when he didn't understand. "But we didn't touch their official positions when we took over Andu, and we submitted the list. His Majesty has always treated the gentry well, so he certainly won't treat them unfairly."
Shen Qing smiled without saying a word. Some things are better left unsaid. After Anzhou was officially incorporated into the territory of Xuanguo, Emperor Yongxi would definitely have to appoint trusted people to some positions. One person for one position, so they could only dig out radishes to make room for others. The radishes that were dug out would naturally receive some honorary privileges. But a man cannot be without power for a day. Many people would rather be a petty official in charge of the life and death of a county than have a prestigious but empty title and stay at home basking in the sun.
Those who realize they are likely to be the ones to be removed will naturally not sit idly by and wait for their doom. Perhaps to onlookers it is a foolish act of throwing an egg against a rock, but as mentioned earlier, throughout history, those who pursue power and profit have followed one after another, taking a gamble to turn a bicycle into a motorcycle!
Shen Qing's main concern is these radishes... oh no, these people. What he needs to do now is to use entrapment to legitimately eliminate a group of parasites. Otherwise, if he is so well-prepared that he scares people into not daring to move, he will have to waste a lot of resources to support them. This is something that Shen Qing, who has been going bald lately due to excessive spending on raising troops, absolutely cannot tolerate!
Guo Yu tugged at Lu Yuan's robe and gestured with his eyes, "Silly Lu Yuan, stop asking!"
Shen Qing seemed oblivious to their subtle actions and continued, "We just received intelligence that the imperial envoy dispatched from Xuandu will arrive in Andu the day after tomorrow. We are well aware of the details of the campaign against An, and we certainly cannot allow the former officials of An to come into contact with the imperial envoy in advance."
Guo Yu understood, "Understood, this subordinate will immediately send someone... no, this subordinate will personally go ahead to make contact with the Imperial Envoy!"
Shen Qing nodded in agreement; Guo Yu's intelligence was reliable.
Lu Yuan saw that everyone seemed to understand. Although he still didn't quite understand, it didn't matter. His mother had taught him since he was a child that he should just follow smart people!
"General Cai originally hosted a banquet today and invited the Commander-in-Chief, who ordered me to attend in his place. It seems I won't be able to go," Lu Yuan said with a hint of regret.
"Go ahead, you have to give people the illusion that there's an opportunity to take advantage of you."
"Huh?" Lu Yuan asked in confusion, "But General Shen just said that banquets are prone to trouble, and how many heroes throughout history have died at banquets?"
"Killing you would be of little use; in fact, it would only alert the enemy and be a greater loss."
"..." It's not very harmful, but it's very insulting!
Shen Qing glanced at him, feeling a little jealous. Why didn't anyone try to sweet-talk him?
A military officer surnamed Shen expressed his deep disgust for this patriarchal bribery practice and often lamented to himself, "Why doesn't anyone try to corrupt me?"
This cadre can withstand the test!