After dealing with Zhao Quansheng's funeral, An Jingzhi called everyone together to discuss what to do next.
Wu held Zhao Quansheng's son, Zhao Xingzong, in her arms. "Brother An, I'm just a woman and don't know anything about these things. I just hope Xingzong can grow up safely. If you have any ideas, just tell me. I support you."
An Jingzhi touched Zhao Xingzong's head, who was hiding in Wu's arms, and said, "Okay, since my sister-in-law believes in me, I will tell you my decision."
"Sister-in-law, you must have heard that I know nothing about military affairs and have never led troops into battle. It would be better if we join forces with others and let them take the lead. Otherwise, their Daliang Prefecture will be conquered by the imperial court and Wang Ce sooner or later."
Ke Hongda said, "Brother is right. Wang Ce hates the Marshal to the core. Upon hearing the news of the Marshal's death, he will definitely regard Daliang Mansion as his own. We must be on guard."
An Jingzhi said: "I was ordered to do this in a time of crisis. No matter what, I must protect the safety of my sister-in-law, Xingzong, and all the brothers. My family knows my own business. I can't pretend to be rich and hurt our own people."
"So we have to rely on others, otherwise Daliang Prefecture will not be able to be defended."
"Since everyone agrees with my approach, let me explain. After much thought, I think it would be more appropriate to join Long Tianlu."
"Long Tianlu's territory borders our Daliang Prefecture. Instead of waiting for him to annex it, why don't we take the initiative to surrender to him? We can bring our troops and cities with us. Long Tianlu has a reputation for being righteous and will definitely not do anything too embarrassing."
"I will write a letter and send someone to spread the word. Then everyone in the world will know that in order to protect the territory left by my eldest brother, I surrendered to Long Tianlu and asked him to help fight Wang Ce and avenge my eldest brother."
Long Tianlu is a man who is better at disguise than Zhao Xingzong. As long as he can stay under this man's command for a few more years, it will be almost time for him to come out and clean up the mess.
Publicizing their defection would also help Long Tianlu to be cautious.
"By then, we will be Long Tianlu's men on the surface, but we can continue to live in Daliang Mansion. If anyone comes to attack Daliang Mansion, we can ask Long Tianlu for help."
"Of course, if Long Tianlu asks us to dispatch personnel to help, we must obey."
"But since I've surrendered to him so publicly, he'll definitely not dare to use our men as pawns for fear of his reputation. So I guess he wouldn't mobilize us unless there was something else going on."
After listening to An Jingzhi's analysis, everyone agreed.
Isn't it just recognizing an older brother? What's the big deal? Anyway, they can continue to live in Daliang Mansion, and if something goes wrong, there is still the older brother to take care of it. It's a good thing!
After making the decision, An Jingzhi sent Ke Hongda to deliver the letter to Long Tianlu in person.
At the same time, he also asked his father-in-law Chen Dan to help publicize the fact that they had surrendered to Long Tianlu.
Chen Dan is now equivalent to An Jingzhi's money bag. After doing business for so many years, he has also made many good friends. With money paving the way, the news that An Jingzhi brought his men and territory to join Long Tianlu caused a sensation.
Many people were jealous of Long Tianlu for getting a group of people and territory for free, and of course there were also people who called An Jingzhi a fool.
For example, after Wang Ce learned that Zhao Quansheng had passed away, he regarded Daliang Prefecture as his own.
In order to seek revenge, he defected to the imperial court. Now he has lost all his dignity and it seems that he cannot take Daliang Prefecture. Wang Ce is so angry that he wants to catch An Jingzhi and cut him into pieces.
Long Tianlu was very happy after receiving the letter. He praised An Jingzhi for his affection and righteousness, and repeatedly praised An Jingzhi for being a person who valued feelings, was not obsessed with power, and kept his promises.
As a messenger, Ke Hongda received a grand reception.
Long Tianlu arranged for his confidants to accompany Ke Hongda for a feast.
Before leaving, Ke Hongda was in a daze.
With the land that An Jingzhi surrendered to, the entire south belonged to Long Tianlu. Long Tianlu was in high spirits at this time, standing on a high platform and looking to the north.
"Brother, are we really going to accept An Jingzhi's surrender? I feel like this guy is a jinx. He even surrendered to two bosses, and both of them are gone."
"And I heard that it was all because of his advice. I feel like this guy is a bit evil."
Long Tianlu refused to believe in evil and said, "We are fighting for the world with our lives on the line, so what are we afraid of?"
Part of the praise for An Jingzhi was done deliberately for Ke Hongda to see, but of course the other part was sincere.
Although he is a cunning and suspicious person, it does not prevent him from having a good impression of such people who keep their promises and are loyal and affectionate.
What's more, the other party contributed such a large piece of land to him, making up for his shortcomings in the south.
Next, he only needed to stockpile food, use the south as a base and gradually advance to the north to drive the emperor off the throne.
Ke Hongda took Long Tianlu's token back with him, and Daliang Mansion was branded with Long Tianlu's mark.
Although there is always someone in charge of everything, at least there is no need to worry about a surprise attack from the imperial court.
…
Ke Hongda heard some news from outside and hurried to report to An Jingzhi.
"Brother, everyone is saying that you are the reincarnation of a jinx, and whoever you get involved with will die."
"Not only outside, but people in Long Tianlu's area are also spreading the news. They are all afraid that we will implicate them."
An Jingzhi thought that Long Tianlu would be unstoppable in the next few years, and the rumors about him that were bad for him would naturally be unstoppable.
As long as Long Tianlu doesn't believe it, he won't care what others say. On the contrary, he will think that those people are jealous of him.
An Jingzhi continued to inquire about the news.
After accepting An Jingzhi's surrender, Long Tianlu came to Daliang Mansion several times. After hearing about their rescue of Zhao Quansheng amidst thousands of troops, he asked for Shi Ziming and Ge Sanniang many times.
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