1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 3828

"My lord, this is the information on Jiangxi's official connections that Yue Shizong has presented. It is more than we expected."

Shi Diwen hummed in agreement, put on his reading glasses, took the materials handed to him by Qu Shengfeng, and began to carefully look through them.

Winning over and turning Yue Shizong against his will was a long-term plan of Haihan's intelligence department. However, this time, because Shi Diwen specifically requested that the target be taken down as soon as possible, Qu Shengfeng had to temporarily use Huo Jingxing as a pawn and stage this grand drama in Hangzhou.

After the incident, Yue Shizong had probably come to a complete understanding. The document he presented to Qu Shengfeng could be seen as his pledge of allegiance to Haihan, proving his worth. Qu Shengfeng also needed such a document to demonstrate to Shi Diwen that the operation had been a complete success.

Besides Zhao Mingyu, the Left Provincial Governor of Jiangxi, whom Shi Diwen was particularly interested in, the list included a long string of officials, including many prefectural-level officials.

However, perhaps because Yue Shizong was a scholar, there wasn't a single military officer on this list; they were all civil officials.

Apart from Zhao Mingyu, who was Yue Shizong's mentor in the imperial examination, the relationships between the others and Yue Shizong were quite complicated. There were classmates who passed the imperial examination in the same year and entered the Hanlin Academy for further study, former colleagues who had worked with him in the Ministry of Rites, fellow townsmen from Huzhou, and even distant relatives who were related by several twists and turns.

These people may not have had particularly close personal relationships with Yue Shizong, but they were all individuals he could contact. If used properly, they could indeed help Haihan's grand plan to enter Jiangxi.

After reading it, Shi Diwen took off his glasses, raised his hand to rub his temples, and asked in a deep voice, "How much of Yue Shizong's network of connections did the Ministry of State Security already know about before this?"

Qu Shengfeng understood that Shi Diwen was giving him a warning, and quickly replied, "Sir, the Ministry of Security's previous investigation of Yue Shizong did indeed have many oversights. Fortunately, this time we successfully turned Yue Shizong against his cause, and these oversights have been filled in."

The intelligence department's earlier collection of information about Yue Shizong clearly failed to verify his connections, which could be considered a dereliction of duty.

However, Qu Shengfeng performed exceptionally well in this operation to win over Yue Shizong, which can be considered as making amends. As long as he admits that he made a mistake in his work, Shi Diwen does not really intend to hold him accountable.

Shi Diwen said, "Make the best use of people's talents and resources. Since Yue Shizong has so many connections in Jiangxi's officialdom, we should make full use of them. Spend more time discussing with Yue Shizong how to win over these officials."

Qu Shengfeng said, "This subordinate will handle this matter as soon as possible, please rest assured, sir! Also, should we send a copy of this document to the young master in Nanjing?"

Shi Diwen nodded and said, "That's good. It allows him to have relevant information and make more preparations in advance."

Qu Shengfeng's understanding and sensible nature pleased Shi Diwen. After all, the whole charade in Hangzhou was actually preparation for Shi Chengwu's scheme. And such a massive plan required the mobilization of resources from all aspects of the Donghai region. The more sensible people like Qu Shengfeng there were, the less trouble Shi Diwen had.

Qu Shengfeng's efficiency was actually quite good. Even with a complex plan like mobilizing Huo Jingxing to force Yue Shizong to rebel, he completed it in just a few days. Therefore, only three days had passed since the case closed when the confidential list provided by Yue Shizong was handed over to Shi Chengwu in Nanjing. After being reprimanded by his father during his last trip back to Hangzhou, Shi Chengwu reflected on his actions, especially regarding his relationship with Tao Hongfang. He decided to change his attitude as his father had suggested.

After reviewing the list, Shi Chengwu did not keep it to himself. Instead, he went to Tao Hongfang and showed him the hard-won information.

After reviewing the list, Tao Hongfang was still somewhat puzzled: "This list... is a compilation of Ambassador Yue Shizong's personal connections in Jiangxi's official circles? What special use does this have for us?"

Shi Chengwu succinctly stated the answer: "That Yue Shizong is now working for us!"

Tao Hongfang couldn't hide his disbelief: "I remember this person has been in Hangzhou for several years, right? I heard he's quite a difficult person. He was the one who negotiated several ceasefire agreements with the Ming Dynasty. How come he suddenly switched sides?"

Shi Chengwu said, "It's a long story, but in short, his family has all moved to Hangzhou and is under our protection. He has no worries about the future."

Tao Hongfang pondered and said, "This man is a diplomat of the Ming Dynasty. If the court finds out that he has moved his family to an enemy country, he may lose his position!"

Shi Chengwu said, "You're right. So, to ensure his safety, we've bribed the local government in his hometown to keep the relocation of Yue family members a secret for the time being. In addition, we've arranged opportunities for him to earn merit, so that the Ming Dynasty will trust him even more."

Tao Hongfang said, "From what you're saying, you're going to use him to make a fuss? What do you plan to do with this list?"

Shi Chengwu said, "I plan to have Yue Shizong contact each of the officials on the list to test their attitudes and find out who might be turned by us. Especially high-ranking local officials like the Left Provincial Governor of Jiangxi, once their stance softens, there will be many things we can do."

After all, the two had been partners for more than two years, and Tao Hongfang roughly understood Shi Chengwu's purpose when he heard this: "Are you planning to use Yue Shizong's connections to start taking action against Jiangxi?"

Shi Chengwu said, "Hongfang, our future will certainly not stop at Nanjing. It's only a matter of time before we replace the Ming Dynasty, but we can't rely entirely on our fathers to accomplish this. When it's our turn to make contributions, we can't let the opportunity slip away!"

Tao Hongfang said, "But apart from this list, we don't seem to have any other preparations. Do you intend to rely on this list to shake up the entire officialdom in Jiangxi?"

Shi Chengwu said, "Actually, I also have other preparations in the military aspect. It's just that you had some different opinions before, and it would take a long time to implement them. I think we can take a two-pronged approach, with military and political preparations carried out simultaneously. Besides, you have always opposed relying too much on military means. This is a good opportunity to try it out. If we handle it properly, we may be able to spare many regions from the suffering of war when they change hands."

These words did indeed sway Tao Hongfang. What he opposed was never Haihan's external expansion, but rather that Shi Chengwu, before his foundation was secure, would launch another large-scale war against the Ming Dynasty. However, if the goal could be achieved through non-military means, that was another matter entirely.