I was a conman in the Ming Dynasty.

Chapter 737 Battle of Hanshan

Chapter 737 Battle of Hanshan

"Holy crap!" Wang Wenzhou suddenly frowned. He had never really thought about this. He always felt that although he had traveled through time, history seemed to have remained unchanged.

Of course, Wang Wenzhou wasn't a liberal arts student, and to this day, he really doesn't know whether he actually changed history or not. But one thing he's certain of is that if he hadn't traveled through time, there wouldn't be a Hanshan like this today.

Since Hanshan has changed, it means he can change history. If that's the case, then it's really hard to say whether Fulin could have become the Shunzhi Emperor!

Thinking of this, Wang Wenzhou nodded and said solemnly, "Sister-in-law is right. This matter needs to be carefully planned. Fortunately, Dorgon is now a eunuch and he doesn't have a son yet. His only daughter is in my hands. If I join forces with him to kill Huang Taiji, and my son marries his daughter, then he should support my son to become the emperor of the Qing Dynasty."

"Pfft..." The babies were immediately dumbfounded. Wasn't this incest?

Da Yu'er said with a wry smile, "Husband, speaking of which, Fulin and Dorgon's daughters are cousins, so they cannot get married."

“Baby, don’t talk nonsense! Fulin is my son, how could he be a cousin of Dorgon’s daughter?” Wang Wenzhou said irritably.

Da Yu'er smiled bitterly to herself, thinking, "My nemesis, he only meant nominally!"

"Alright, there's no rush. After all, Fulin is still young! We can plan for it later. The most important thing now is to find all of Zhu Youjian's spies around us!" Wang Wenzhou looked at Empress Zhou and said solemnly, "Sister-in-law, you believe that Zhu Youjian won't harm you, and I admit that he probably won't! But once our son is born, do you think he won't harm our son either?"

"Hmm..." Empress Zhou was quite conflicted. To be honest, she really couldn't guarantee that Zhu Youjian would remain unmoved. After all, any man wouldn't let a bastard off the hook. Bah! How could the son of my nemesis be a bastard?

“Sister-in-law! Even if you don’t think about yourself, you have to think about our son!” Wang Wenzhou said, hugging Empress Zhou.

"Alright!" Empress Zhou nodded and said softly, "I've been in the palace for so long and I have some trusted confidants. I'll instruct them to find out who the spies are around us."

"Sister-in-law, you're so good!" Wang Wenzhou quickly hugged Empress Zhou and kissed her.

"Sigh..." Empress Zhou sighed. She regretted that she and Zhu Youjian had ended up like this, and the two of them had to be wary of each other.

……

Hanshan.

Cao Huachun, dressed in plain clothes and protected by several agents of the Western Depot, walked down the street in Hanshan.

This wasn't Cao Huachun's first visit to Hanshan. This time, Zhu Youjian sent him to investigate why the people of Hanshan obeyed the orders of Wang Wenzhou's concubine.

Zhu Youjian truly couldn't understand why, as ordinary citizens of the Ming Dynasty, Mu Yiyun's call to arms had inspired the people of Hanshan to rise up and risk their lives to attack Sun Chuanting's army. Moreover, in just three days, they had defeated Sun Chuanting's 15-strong army and captured more than 10 people alive. It was simply unbelievable!

Cao Huachun glanced at the sky; it was already noon, time for lunch. He found a restaurant nearby and went inside. It must be admitted that Hanshan was more prosperous than the capital, with taverns and shops lining the streets. And even with so many restaurants, it was difficult to find an empty table at mealtimes. This was why Cao Huachun headed to a restaurant when he saw it was almost time.

"Greetings, esteemed guests! Please have a seat. What would you like to eat?" the waiter asked hastily.

Cao Huachun, accompanied by three agents from the Western Depot, found an empty table, sat down, and casually ordered a few dishes.

While waiting for the food to be served, the restaurant quickly filled up with diners, just like always.

Cao Huachun looked around, not only to eat, but also to find a few people who could talk and sound out their opinions.

Coincidentally, at the table next to Cao Huachun, there was a man with a loud voice, speaking with a strong Beijing accent, chatting happily with the people at the table.

Cao Huachun cupped his hands in greeting to the man and said with a smile, "Judging from your accent, you are from the capital? May I ask your honorable name?"

"Haha!" The man took a sip of wine and said in a boisterous manner, "Sir, you're too kind. My name is Ma Kang Sheng. Judging from your accent, you're also from the capital, here in Hanshan to do business?"

“Brother Ma is right!” Cao Huachun said with a smile, “I am Cao Rui. Judging from Brother Ma’s attire, it is the uniform of the Hanshan Volunteer Army. How did you come to join the Volunteer Army?”

The more than 200,000 troops that Mu Yiyun gathered in Hanshan were called the Hanshan Volunteer Army.

Ma Kangsheng said with a wry smile, "Don't even mention it. We were originally soldiers of the three major camps in the capital, but we were later transferred to follow that old bastard Sun Chuanting to Hanshan. As a result, we were captured and had no choice but to join the Hanshan Volunteer Army."

"Oh?" Cao Huachun asked, "I've heard about the Battle of Hanshan a while ago, but I really can't understand how Lord Sun Chuanting's army of over 100,000 could be defeated in just a few days, especially since Hanshan didn't have many troops at the time!"

“Sigh…” One of the people sitting next to Ma Kangsheng sighed and said helplessly, “Old sir, you don’t know, the people of Hanshan are all elite soldiers!”

“Yes!” Ma Kangsheng said with a wry smile, “At first, that old bastard Sun Chuanting didn’t take the people of Hanshan seriously. After all, he had hundreds of thousands of troops. The old bastard even ordered that no civilians should be harmed unless absolutely necessary, for the sake of his reputation.”

Ma Kangsheng glanced at the other diners and realized that the people of Hanshan shouldn't hear him. So he picked up a chair, sat down in front of Cao Huachun, and whispered, "The people of Hanshan aren't ordinary people; they're all bandits! You know, when Madam Mu Yiyun gave the order, the people of Hanshan were all armed in an instant!"

"Huh?" Cao Huachun said incredulously, "How is that possible?"

“Who says otherwise!” Ma Kangsheng said with a wry smile, “We are all from the three major camps in the capital, which are the best-equipped troops in the entire Ming Dynasty. But compared with these Hanshan people, what is our equipment? We are wearing cotton armor, while the Hanshan people are all wearing the best armor. Moreover, the Hanshan people are very skilled. In less than a day, Sun Chuanting was surrounded in the Butcher Prince’s Mansion.”

Cao Huachun thought to himself, "Wang Wenzhou is truly cunning. Hiding soldiers among the people, Wang Wenzhou must have long harbored the intention to rebel."

Ma Kangsheng continued, "Sun Chuanting led his remaining five thousand elite troops in a bloody battle for two days, but ultimately failed to break through. Old Sun is still locked up in Hanshan Prison!"

Cao Huachun nodded and said, "Brother Ma, I have something to say, but I don't know if I should."

“Sir, we are both from the same hometown in Beijing. When fellow townsmen meet, tears well up in their eyes. What can’t we say to each other?” Ma Kangsheng said with a smile.

Cao Huachun said softly, "Brother Ma is a member of the imperial army, so why would he aid and abet evildoers and follow traitors in rebellion?"