Chapter 75 Setting a Trap to Lure the Snake Out
The laughter by Mirror Lake continued, but Chu Chongjin and Mu Fang's hearts had sunk to the bottom.
"Keep the news under wraps and don't alert anyone," Chu Chongjin calmly ordered the scouts.
"yes!"
"Twice the manpower to patrol all the dikes day and night, especially the newly built and repaired sections. Not a single fly can be missed!" Mu Fang added.
The scouts accepted the order and quickly disappeared into the night.
The joyful atmosphere just now seemed like a distant dream.
Yan Ziche and Xiao Beichen also noticed something was wrong and came over.
Their expressions changed simultaneously when they saw the cut plank of wood.
"It's Sikong Ming again!" Xiao Beichen gritted his teeth and punched the willow tree next to him.
"He wants to ruin everything we've done!"
“No, not only that.” Yan Ziche adjusted his glasses, his eyes sharp. “He’s declaring war on us.”
“He deliberately left traces because he was certain that we wouldn’t dare to make a fuss. Because once the people knew that the dike might breach again, it would inevitably cause panic, and then Jiayu County would be in chaos without him having to lift a finger.”
Chu Chongjin nodded, Yan Ziche had hit the nail on the head.
This is a dilemma.
An investigation might alert the suspects and could even trigger a civil unrest.
Failure to investigate is tantamount to hanging a sword over the heads of hundreds of thousands of people in Jiayu County.
"He wants to trap us in Jiayu County, forcing us to defend ourselves at all costs." Mu Fang sneered, "What a clever scheme."
The four fell silent, the atmosphere heavy with tension.
Just then, a childish voice broke the silence.
"Father, Ninth Brother, why are you unhappy?"
Mu Yu was pulled over by Su Wan'er, and she ran over with a string of unfinished candied hawthorns stuffed up her little nose.
Although she couldn't see, she could keenly sense the sudden, heavy, and cold aura emanating from them.
Especially Chu Chongjin, whose warm purple-gold light was now surging with a dark and brooding anger.
Chu Chongjin immediately composed himself and forced a smile.
"It's nothing, I was just thinking about what to do tomorrow now that the lantern festival is over."
Mu Yucai didn't believe it.
She wrinkled her little nose as she smelled a familiar, unpleasant odor in the air.
It was the kind of stagnant, muddy pond that smelled of rust and dead fish.
It smells exactly the same as that scoundrel, the Second Prince Sikong Ming.
“A bad guy is coming,” she said confidently.
She took the candied hawthorn and pointed her little finger towards the upstream direction of Mirror Lake.
"It smelled terrible there."
"It was dark and looked like a big earthworm, secretly gnawing at our newly renovated house."
She used the simplest metaphors to describe the scene she "saw".
In her vision of destiny, the peaceful and serene golden aura above Jiayu County was being quietly eroded by a thin, black aura extending from upstream.
The "giant earthworm" opened its mouth, facing the newly stabilized dam's dragon vein.
Chu Chongjin and Mu Fang exchanged a glance, and their doubts vanished.
Mu Yu's warning is the most direct evidence.
“Since he has already made his move, how can we not accept it?” A cold glint flashed in Chu Chongjin’s eyes.
Passive defense has never been his style.
“He wants to instill panic in us, but we’re going to do the opposite.”
A bold plan quickly took shape in his mind.
"Zi Che."
"exist."
"Tomorrow's Jiangnan Times will carry a news item on its front page."
Chu Chongjin's voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable power.
"It is said that, in order to celebrate the end of the floods in Jiangnan and the prospect of spring planting, this Imperial Envoy and the Duke of Huguo will hold a 'Blessing Ceremony' on Mirror Lake in three days."
"At that time, we will invite all the prominent families, gentry and merchants in Jiangnan to board the boat together, sail on the lake, worship the river god, and pray for good weather and a bountiful harvest in the coming year."
Yan Ziche was stunned.
"Your Highness, holding a grand ceremony at this time? Doesn't that put everyone in danger?"
"If Sikong Ming takes this opportunity to make a move..."
“He will definitely make a move,” Chu Chongjin interrupted him.
"This is exactly the 'invitation' we sent to him."
"He lurks in the shadows, like a venomous snake, making him difficult to expose. But if we gather all the prominent figures in Jiangnan together, and use ourselves as bait, placing them on this 'blessing ship'..."
Do you think he would let go of this golden opportunity to wipe them all out and completely disrupt the situation in Jiangnan?
Yan Ziche's breath hitched.
He understood.
This is a huge gamble!
By gambling with the safety of the entire upper class in Jiangnan and the imperial envoy's own team, they lured Sikong Ming, this big fish, to surface on his own initiative!
"That's too risky!" Mu Fang was the first to object. "Little Fish is still here, I absolutely disagree!"
"Father, I want to go too!" Mu Yu suddenly said.
She didn't know what adventure was; all she knew was that there were bad guys trying to bully the people she was protecting.
“I can see where that big earthworm is.”
"I can tell as soon as it moves!"
She patted her small chest, looking very serious.
"I am the Little Water God, and I'm going to catch the giant earthworm!"
Mu Yu's words added a crucial element to Chu Chongjin's plan.
With Mu Yu as their "human radar," they are no longer blind.
They can accurately predict the enemy's actions!
"Uncle Mu, please believe me." Chu Chongjin looked at Mu Fang earnestly.
"Please also believe in Little Fish."
“We will not joke about her safety. This ‘prayer ship’ will be the strongest fortress in the world.”
"Xiao Beichen".
"Your subordinate is here!"
"From now on, you will take five hundred Xuanjia soldiers and take control of the largest warship in the city, the 'Wan'an'. Transform it into a floating fortress, inside and out!"
"Cover the bottom of the ship with iron plates, install shields on the deck, and set up all the crossbows we brought on both sides of the ship!"
"I don't care what methods you use, within three days, I will ensure that not even a mosquito can fly into this ship!"
Xiao Beichen's passion was instantly ignited.
"Mission accomplished!"
Chu Chongjin then looked at Yan Ziche.
"Ziche, your task is the most important."
"You are responsible for drafting the guest list and sending out invitations. At the same time, use the Jiangnan Times to make this grand event as big as possible."
"We need to make everyone believe that this is a grand celebration of song and dance."
"We also need to make Sikong Ming believe that we have become complacent and careless."
Yan Ziche nodded heavily.
"Your Highness, rest assured, deceiving the heavens is my specialty."
A massive, elaborate scheme targeting the greatest crisis in Jiangnan was quietly unfurled under the dazzling lights of the Qixi Festival.
Sikong Ming thought he was a hunter.
Little did he know, in the hunter's eyes, he was already prey in the net.
For the next three days, the entire Jiayu County was immersed in a frenzied atmosphere of preparation.
The Jiangnan Times used flowery language to describe the "Mirror Lake Blessing Ceremony" as a once-in-a-century event.
Countless gentry and wealthy merchants fought tooth and nail for an invitation to board the ship.
The selected "Wan'an" ship was concealed by a huge curtain, and construction was underway day and night, with the sounds of hammering coming from inside.
Everyone assumed it was a lavish decoration.
Only Chu Chongjin and his group knew that they were installing deadly fangs.
These past few days, Mu Yu has become the most leisurely person.
Her daily work consisted of eating and drinking, and then being taken by Yan Ziche to the "Wan'an" ship to "supervise the construction."
She hugged her singing bird and ran around the huge ship, pointing at places every now and then.
"This place is no good, it's dark and feels like there's a hole."
"And there, the wood is crying, saying it's not sturdy."
Yan Ziche immediately ordered the craftsmen to inspect the work. Each time, they found a seemingly insignificant flaw that could be fatal at a crucial moment.
Under the supervision of Mu Yu, the "Chief Quality Inspector," the "Wan'an" was transformed into an impregnable fortress.
The day of the grand ceremony finally arrived.
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