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However, no matter where the Red Flag Gang hid, the enemy in front of them was the most dangerous. When hundreds of ships sailed towards the estuary, the entire Panyu was shocked.
Kong Mutian couldn't resist standing still any longer, so he sent someone to ask the newly appointed coastal defense guerrilla commander what the meaning of sending a large army to attack Panyu was. As a result, the "General Xu" replied directly that he had heard that there were big bandits hiding in Panyu City, and he was just suppressing the bandits, and asked the commander-in-chief to bear with him.
What the hell! Kong Mutian was so angry at the arrogant attitude that he vomited blood. He immediately sent out a fleet, but there were not many people, so he didn't dare to step forward to stop them, and just followed from a distance.
He still had to wait for news from his superiors. How could he send troops without a transfer order? As for whether he could get a transfer order, Kong Mutian was really unsure. Whether to fight or not, he would have a hard time explaining it! Alas, if only the Wang family hadn't rashly sent troops and destroyed the navy's foundation, things wouldn't have ended up like this. He really wanted to throw this mess away, quit his job and go home to farm.
Of course, the commander-in-chief could still hide safely in his camp, protected by a large army, but the officials in Panyu were in for a tough time. Who could have foreseen this? The conflict between the two gangs was already disturbing, so how could Panyu City suddenly be the first to suffer?
Prefect Liu has been anxious and angry recently, and a string of blisters has appeared on his mouth. It hurts so much that he doesn't want to see people, but there are some people he has to see.
"My dear nephew, this is different from what you said before!" Even though he knew that the Long Whale Gang had come to Panyu because of the Red Flag Gang, he didn't dare to do anything to the Red Flag Gang leader beside him. But even with his caution, the words he said still made Liu Zhifu's face turn pale with horror and he cried out.
Lu Jian smiled faintly: "What difference does it make? The long whale bandits are unscrupulous and bring disaster to the village. They must be punished. If Panyu is lost, others will only lose some property, but you, my lord, will lose your life."
Prefect Liu's face turned green: "Xu Hei is a general appointed by the court, so he certainly wouldn't be so rampant..."
Lu Jian interrupted his fantasy directly: "This title should not have been given in the first place, and they didn't take it seriously. Besides, even if they are court officials, they are from a neighboring province. Now they are suddenly attacking the capital of Guangdong Province. It is reasonable to regard them as rebels. How can we allow them to act so arrogantly?"
This was actually true. After all, these were not his own troops, and they hadn't even issued an imperial decree to cross the border and start a war. They were even attacking a city as big as Panyu. This could be considered treason. It was unacceptable for him to remain in hiding when the enemy had already rebelled.
However, despite this, Prefect Liu couldn't help but say, "My dear nephew, whether or not to send troops is not my business. If the Governor's Office doesn't give the order, who can mobilize the troops? The twists and turns here are by no means simple. If the court wants to avoid fighting, I'm afraid I won't be able to protect you..."
These words could be said to be spoken from the heart. The prefect was only a local official and did not hold military power, let alone control military generals.
If the higher-ups feel they cannot defeat the Chiqi Gang, they might just go along with it and accept the Changjing Gang's reasons, and use this as a condition to get Xu Hei to restrain his actions. They might even join forces to deal with the Chiqi Gang.
When the time comes and both sides work together, Lu Jian, the Red Flag Gang's accomplice who stayed in Panyu, will probably be the first one to fail to escape. Even the Jiangdong Lu family's reputation will be of no use.
Lu Jian shook his head and said, "If it were any other day, I might be able to get those people to be patient for a while, but what kind of situation is this now? Everywhere is in chaos, and the Changjing Gang even dares to attack Panyu under the banner of the imperial court. Is this their own will, or the will of the officials from the neighboring provinces? If we do nothing, will this province also bow down to others and become their slaves and running dogs in the future?"
These words were quite hurtful, and Prefect Liu broke out in a cold sweat: "This, this shouldn't be possible..."
"The central government has no time to take care of it, and it's a remote coastal area, so it's not surprising that something happened. Besides, if you guys are half-hearted, others won't, right?" Lu Jian asked back.
This involves military power, and there is probably nothing more important in the world. Moreover, the chaos has lasted for a long time, and who knows what the future will be like. If someone takes control of us, how can we protect ourselves in the future?
Seeing that Prefect Liu was becoming increasingly uneasy, Lu Jian sighed again, "It would be fine for others, but for someone like you, Uncle, you're the one being roasted on the charcoal. Think about it, the thieves dared to send people to blow up the government office. Now that the Long Whale Gang is at the gates of the city, who knows what kind of chaos they'll cause?"
"My dear nephew!" Prefect Liu couldn't help but reach out and grab Lu Jian. "I will do my best to handle the official affairs, but you can't just sit back and do nothing. We still have to fight the Long Whale Bandits. We can't let them get in straight away!"
All the other messes were less important than my own life, so I could only ask for help. The Red Flag Gang had to send troops, how could they just let the bandits invade?
Lu Jian held the man's hand and comforted him, "Don't worry, uncle. Although we are merchants, we also know how to defend our territory. As long as the court sends troops, people will immediately rise up to respond."
Isn't this just throwing another heavy burden on him? Prefect Liu was anxious: "It will take time for the court to send troops. We can't wait any longer..."
Before he could finish his words, Lu Jian interrupted him: "Who said the imperial court wouldn't send troops? Maybe the fighting has already started now."
"Huh?" Prefect Liu was bewildered, his mouth wide open, not even paying attention to the pain of the blisters. What did this mean? Without an order from above, would the commander dare to start a war without authorization?
"There are also hot-blooded people in the army." Lu Jian said with a smile.
This would have been fine without explanation, but once he did, the hairs on Prefect Liu's back stood on end. What did they mean by "there are hot-blooded men in the army too?" Could it be that Kong Mutian was just going to start a war without waiting for the imperial court's order? How could he possibly have the guts to do that? However, he knew about the naval mutiny a few days ago, and he knew even more clearly that the Red Flag Gang had taken over an island across from Doumen Island. If they pretended to be government troops and started a war with the Long Whale Gang...
With a start, Magistrate Liu's hands began to tremble. He felt that the elegant young man holding his hand had become some kind of monster, which made him terrified.
…
"What did you say? Someone fired at the Long Whale Gang's ship?!" Kong Mutian felt dizzy after hearing the news, and he almost couldn't breathe. The people he sent out were obviously just keeping watch, so how could a fight break out? Who was so bold?
The confidant's face turned pale. "It wasn't our men who opened fire first. A fleet of official ships suddenly opened fire, attacking the Long Whale Gang from the flank. Then our men mistakenly thought a war was about to begin, so they started fighting."
"Stupid! That must be a Red Bandit in disguise!" Kong Mutian slapped his thigh and cursed, "Don't they know there are Red Bandits on Xishan Island? What should we do now?"
Xishan Island is just across from Doumen, and the Red Flag Gang has captured countless warships before, so impersonating officers and soldiers is a piece of cake. Are his men all idiots? They could be fooled!
However, no matter how much he cursed, it was too late now. The confidant whispered, "Sir, the Long Whale Gang has already sent out troops, and they look like they're heading our way. Should we send some people to explain?"
Kong Mutian opened and closed his mouth for a long while before saying, "What's there to explain? They're eager to attack us. Doesn't this give them an excuse to capture Panyu City? Send out troops, send out troops! Guard Doumen and light the beacon fire. This is treason and everyone must punish them!"
No one would listen to any explanations now. It would be better to send troops to fight. The Red Flag Gang is doing this to contain those long whale thieves. Now I just hope they can seize the opportunity to send troops as soon as possible. It must be said that Panyu was more stable when the Red Flag Gang was there.
Forced into a desperate situation, the naval officers and soldiers also took action. Not to mention going into the sea to fight immediately, the artillery batteries had to be prepared so as not to be taken down in one fell swoop.
This unexpected turn of events also caused the Long Whale Gang to be furious. Some people shouted, "We are also the imperial army. Why do the navy here dare to attack us? If we don't fight, we won't be able to attack Panyu in peace!"
"That's right, we have to teach them a lesson! What's that Doumen artillery fort? If Shen Sanda could take it down, why can't we take it down too?"
However, no matter how others urged him, Xu Hei refused to act rashly. He frowned and said to Ning Fu, "I think this matter is a little strange. Maybe someone is behind this."
Ning Fu waved his folding fan lightly and chuckled, "Of course it's the Red Flag Gang's handiwork. They have boats and men, so why would it be surprising if they were pretending to be government troops?"
"Do you still want to fight?" Xu Hei asked immediately.
"Fight, at least we have to pretend. Once the two sides fight, it's time for the Red Flag Gang to take action." Ning Fu said firmly.
Xu Hei's eyes lit up: "Really? Where will they come from?"
The biggest problem is not being able to figure out the movements of the Red Flag Gang. Ning Fu is so confident that he should have seen through their tricks.
"Of course, we'll come from behind." Ning Fu closed his paper fan and tapped it on his palm. "If we hide some on each island, wouldn't that be a large army?"
"What!" Not only Xu Hei, but everyone else was shocked. Could it be that all those people on the islands were Red Flag Gang soldiers? Why didn't they defeat them one by one?
Seeing the expressions of the crowd, Ning Fu, unaware of their thoughts, sneered, "If we had fought earlier, those scattered fleets would have already fled, leaving us with no chance of a major battle. Only by feigning deception can we lure the fish out of the water and force them to fight tooth and nail." He then instructed those around him, "Send someone to inform those barbarians that there's no need to fight on Luoling Island anymore. Return immediately to outflank the enemy!"
He never cared about the isolated island of Luoling Island. The reason he induced the Xisai people to stay was just to turn them into an unexpected rear army.
The people of Xisai must have suffered a lot on Luoling Island. Once he gave the order, those foreigners would naturally turn back and help him complete the encirclement.
Once the big net is woven, the fish caught in it will not be able to escape.
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