Chapter 515 Who to rely on
Cao Gang Headquarters
Lin Shan waved his hand and all his subordinates retreated.
In the conference room, only he and his adoptive father Wang Juntao were left.
Wang Juntao is the old leader of the Cao Gang, and Lin Shan is his adopted son.
He has gotten older in the past two years and basically doesn't take care of things anymore.
At this point, he said worriedly, "The imperial court has issued an order prohibiting Dali merchants from trading with Pingzhou and the South. Violators will be killed without mercy. Shan'er, don't we have two hundred Pingzhou sailors in our fleet? Will everything be alright?"
In the past two days, Bi Xie sent back news that the two hundred navy soldiers from Pingzhou were of great help to our Cao Gang.
Lin Shan thought about this and said, "Transactions are based on fairness and equality. Is this exchange between our Cao Gang and Pingzhou fair and equal? No, it's not. How can it be called a transaction when we are taking absolute advantage?"
"We, the Cao Gang, are taking advantage of Pingzhou and consuming its resources." They haven't given Pingzhou any material rewards, right?
At this point, Lin Shan touched his chin and said, "Come to think of it, we also helped the court." Yes, that's right.
The old gang leader was amused by his specious words, "When did you become so sharp-tongued?"
Lin Shan also felt that his mouth seemed to have become more fluent. He touched his nose. Could it be because he was too close to Pingzhou?
Forget it, this is not important. Lin Shan said, "Boss, we should think about the future."
Now that Dali is divided, it is unclear who will rule the world in the future. But they must choose one side to rely on.
"Let me think about it, let me think about it." The old gang leader's brows were twisted into a ball with worry.
Lin Shan did not urge him. He really needed to think about it slowly, as their Cao Gang had such a huge fortune.
He himself was also thinking about which of the current forces had a greater chance of winning.
Now the imperial court and the southern lands were about to go to war. Who knew what the final outcome would be? While the imperial court seemed to be the most powerful, Lin Shan knew that Xie Zhan, the governor of Lingnan, was not someone who would be easily bullied.
"Godfather, just keep this matter in mind. We don't need to make a decision in a hurry." It's still too early.
Wang Juntao nodded and suddenly said, "Shan'er, Pingzhou is rebelling, Lingnan is rebelling, have you ever thought about this?"
After realizing what his adoptive father had said, Lin Shan was shocked. "Adoptive father, Dali is already in chaos, and we still have to start a new one?"
"Just tell me whether you want to or not?"
Lin Shan muttered in his heart, "Father, I'm afraid you are just thinking about it yourself. You really dare to think about it."
To be honest, he is a man, how could he not have the dream of conquering the world?
But when the night was quiet, he asked himself, if he really wanted to join the competition, could he beat Lu Songli and Xie Zhan?
During the past two years, due to the frequent cooperation with Pingzhou, Lu Songli and Xie Zhan had secretly fought several times. He was considered an insider and understood the two of them better than others.
Both of these people are men of great talent and ambition. He is not belittling himself, but the fact is that he cannot compare with them, he really cannot.
Now his godfather came to ask him this kind of question.
Is it that he doesn't want to?
Is it that he doesn't want to?
Neither, but compared to these two people, I am just a younger brother!
He didn't dare to think about it. Now his adoptive father had some ideas? Lin Shan simply told his adoptive father the details of the fight between Lu Songli and Xie Zhan in the past two years.
After saying this, he continued, "Godfather, with the current strength and wealth of our Cao Gang, it's not impossible to form a small force."
"To compete for supremacy, we need a territory first, right? Look at the entire territory of Dali. Lü Songli occupies Pingyou and Youzhou, the King of Jin occupies Donghai, and Xie Zhan occupies Lingnan. Their territories all have coastal ports and docks. There aren't many territories left along the entire coastal area. Which one do you think we can seize?"
The old gang leader's thoughts that had just surfaced had completely dissipated. Upon hearing this, he cursed, "You prodigal son, what's the point of territory? You're only thinking about your adoptive father's meager savings!"
Wang Juntao had just figured it out: if they wanted to join the fight for supremacy, the first step was to secure a piece of territory. This territory had to be seized, either from Dali or from these few people.
But none of these people are easy to deal with.
After robbing them, we still have to be neighbors with them...
After they seize the territory, they have to manage it, right? It costs a lot of money, and the key is that this territory may be swallowed up by them at any time.
Hearing this, Lin Shan knew he had persuaded the enemy. Conquering the world is very expensive. If you are destined to be destroyed or incorporated, why waste the money?
"Godfather, some things just require some thought. Don't be impulsive, as impulsiveness costs money. Think about how hard you've worked to save up this much wealth. It's not easy."
"Let's not bother ourselves with that. We are not that lucky. We might as well take advantage of this period of time to open our eyes and have a good look around, and find a reliable place to invest." Without saying anything, they took their huge belongings with them to seek refuge. If they really found a wise leader, they would surely be granted the position of marquis in the future.
"What you said makes sense. So who should we choose?" Wang Juntao asked Lin Shan.
Recently, both Prince Jin and Xie Zhan sent people to contact them, but they only said that they needed to consider it and did not give any definite answer.
Lin Shan was also worried. He didn't know the answer to such a big question. "There's no rush. Let's think about it first. We can think about it for a while, but not too long."
In such a chaotic situation, it is impossible for them to remain immune.
The most taboo thing in dealing with things is to please both sides. The result of not offending either side is that you offend both sides.
If they don't join them, they will be their enemy. So after the outcome of the Lingnan War, they will have to make a choice.
Southwest, Dong Mansion
Under Jiang Boya's lobbying, King Cheng finally agreed to form an alliance with Xie Zhan to fight against the Dali court.
Fortunately, Jiang Boya had fulfilled his mission. After getting the consent of King Cheng, he planned to rest for a night and return to Lingnan tomorrow.
After taking a short rest in the villa arranged by the other party, Jiang Boya went to Dong's house for a banquet in the evening.
Jiang Boya and Dong Jichuan were of similar age. Both were talented young men in their youth. They had heard of each other at first, then met by chance in Chang'an and traveled together. They maintained a gentlemen's friendship for the rest of their lives.
Because they had a casual acquaintance, they were not strangers when they met again this time.
The banquet began, and amid the sound of stringed instruments, the two of them couldn't help but talk about the current six forces.
However, the two of them only had a brief chat. After all, the chaotic times had just begun and it was too early to say anything.
After three rounds of drinking, the two were slightly tipsy. Jiang Boya took advantage of his drunkenness to hint to Dong Jichuan to switch to another camp.
The world is divided into five parts, and King Cheng and Jinjiang are the least expected by the people.
The Dali Dynasty has been around for two hundred years, and the Song family has been the emperor. The people feel that enough is enough.
When life becomes stagnant and numb, people's urgent hope is change.
In addition, Prince Cheng is arrogant and doesn't seem like someone who can accomplish anything.
Dong Jichuan simply said, "There's no need to say more. Prince Cheng has done me a favor."
Jiang Boya smiled. "That's right. Now, the world is in turmoil. Since ancient times, there has been no first in literature, and no second in martial arts. They are all counselors. Who wouldn't want their lord to achieve great success through their assistance, and for them to be crowned a marquis and prime minister, and have their name recorded in history?"
He took a sip of wine and changed the subject, "I wonder which faction Guo Chong and Fan Yang will join?"
Guo Chong and Fan Yang were geniuses and wise men of their time, but they have been silent in recent years.
Dong Jichuan paused holding the wine glass when he heard this. He shook his head. It was difficult to guess what these two people were thinking.
But he had a hunch that these two would definitely join the game, it was just that the time was not right yet.
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