The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 495 House slaves with three surnames
"Wu Xiao, long time no see. I didn't expect you're still working for your master!"

"When Liu Zhaosun was in Kaiyuan, he indulged in military expansion and used despicable political tactics to fool his subordinates. His talk of following the Great Dao and transforming the barbarians into Chinese was all just deception. He constantly claimed to be a sage and to save the people of the world, deceiving scholars into giving him a chance to live. In the end, he became a tyrant who committed all manner of evil. He usurped the throne and proclaimed himself emperor, establishing a crown prince. But because the crown prince was young, and he feared a rebellion, he began to abandon you, slaughtering you without mercy, even sparing Kang Yingqian and Qiao Yiqi, and now he's trying to kill someone else with a borrowed knife."

"You are so stupid! You are willing to work for him even when you are dying. After we take care of Kang Yingqian and Qiao Yiqi, you will be next!"

Not far behind Wu Xiao, a group of soldiers dressed as bandits surrounded a civil servant. The civil servant was spitting all over the place, and Wu Xiao was afraid that he would not be able to breathe and would faint.

"Song..., Song Yingsheng, you're not dead yet?"

Wu Xiao's eyes showed such disbelief that he forgot to refute and let Song Yingsheng continue talking nonsense.

"I'm not dead. I'm alive and well."

Song Yingsheng grinned and looked around, as if showing off his tenacious vitality.

"When the Ming Dynasty was defeated, I defected to the Tang Dynasty. When the Tang Dynasty was defeated, I defected to the Western Regions. I rose higher and higher in rank. I forgot to tell you that my current position is the Minister of War of the Western Regions and the Grand Secretary of Jiange..."

"Daxi? Grand Secretary of Jiange?"

Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment. They had heard of the Ming Dynasty, the Tang Dynasty, and the Qi Dynasty, but they didn't know what the Daxi Dynasty was.

Song Yingsheng put away his smile and pointed at Wu Xiao:

"Do you know how Liu Zhaosun rose to prominence? He colluded with Kang Yingqian and Qiao Yiqi, deceived his superiors, coerced Yang Hao, the governor of Liaodong, and fooled his subordinates, using whatever means necessary to rise to power. Later, he donned the yellow robe and became emperor. He's afraid others will bring up his past and that you'll follow in his footsteps, so he's determined to silence you and get rid of you. Wu Xiao, you're working for a man like this, and I'm worried about you."

"Since you are also from Shaanxi, the Emperor of Daxi will show leniency and not pursue the matter. If you surrender to Daxi, I will guarantee you prosperity and wealth."

Song Yingsheng started talking incessantly as soon as they met. Wu Xiao felt as if he was in another world, because the last time he met Song Yingsheng was in Wendeng County, Shandong five years ago. At that time, he and Lin Yu and others were robbing the execution ground. The scene when they met again was like this.

"A slave of three surnames is what I'm talking about. How could the Jiangxi Song family produce a scum like you? Your second brother, Song Yingxing, is now a high-ranking official in Da Qi, the Minister of Works..."

Song Yingsheng interrupted Wu Xiao and said with disdain, "That treacherous and greedy bastard, let's not talk about him! He is the Shangshu, and so am I. Daxi is no worse than Daqi!"

Behind Song Yingsheng stood a dense mass of bandits, as well as some Ming soldiers wearing mandarin duck jackets, at least three to two thousand of them. Wu Xiao subconsciously reached out for the short gun on the gong belt, ready to seize the opportunity to give Song Yingsheng a fatal blow.

Song Yingsheng saw through Wu Xiao's thoughts at a glance, and waved his hand lightly. Two sword and shield soldiers stepped forward and protected Minister Song with round shields.

"Wu Xiao, stop playing tricks. You have no way to escape! The old man must die too. The Song family was murdered because of him, Kang Yingqian. If you persist in your delusion, I am not afraid of killing two more people."

Wu Xiao looked at Song Yingsheng, who was under strict protection. He estimated that it would be difficult to kill him with one blow, so he decisively gave up the idea of a sneak attack and said calmly:

"I don't think you're smart either. If I were you, I would have run away early, the farther the better. Why are you coming back to die? The Emperor Retired hates you to the core. If he catches you, he'll have you executed by slicing!"

"Liu Zhaosun's death is approaching, and I will kill him!"

The prefect of Guangping whispered, "Minister Song, stop wasting time talking to this thief and get to work."

"Send their heads to Xijing (Xi'an) as a token of our loyalty to the Great Western Emperor. He will also praise us for our ability to get things done!"

Wu Xiao's scalp went numb. The situation was worse than he had imagined. He was terrified, but he appeared strong and calm.

"You want to kill me? Let's see if you are qualified!" Song Yingsheng raised his arm and prepared to order a siege.

Wu Xiao suddenly shouted, "So, you were the one who ordered the plundering of the Kang family? You keep saying that it's time to kill the donkey, but when did the emperor ever order the confiscation of the family's property? You're just trying to frame them."

Zhang Yingkui snatched the command flag and ordered the bandits to attack immediately.

"and many more,"

Song Yingsheng waved his hand to interrupt Magistrate Zhang and looked at Wu Xiao who was still dissatisfied.

Of course Song Yingsheng didn't know that Wu Xiao was deliberately delaying time. Deng Changxiong was on the way with his troops. As long as they arrived in time, everything would be settled.

"I am merely following public opinion. Not only is Heaven's will to destroy the tyrant Qi, but the people are also hoping for the swift and violent demise of the thief Liu. Wu Xiao, are you still stubborn and unrepentant?"

Wu Xiao glanced at the crowd of servants opposite him. He was originally from Shaanxi, and he knew at a glance that those were bandits from Shanxi and Shaanxi.

"The people you are talking about, are they these dead bandits?"

"Li Xianzhong is dead. Now the Daxi Emperor has the final say. He has appointed me to recruit all the righteous men who resist Qi and the tyranny of Qi. He has said that anyone who is willing to fight Liu Zhaosun wholeheartedly will be at his service. By the way, the Daxi Emperor has prepared a table and chair in Xijing for Liu Zhaosun."

A group of people looked at each other in confusion. They had indeed never heard of who the Great Western Emperor was.
However, they soon regained their composure, because they had witnessed the rise and fall of imperial power over the years, and the emperor was no longer a scary title.

After the death of Tang Emperor Li Xianzhong, Zhang Zicheng, the Dashi Emperor, headed north from Sichuan. After a brief confrontation with Deng Changxiong, he took advantage of the Shaanxi Corps' return to the east and expanded his power rapidly. When Emperor Wuding was conquering cities and plundering land in Huguang, Zhang Zicheng and his Dashi Army had already occupied the entire Shaanxi and most of Shanxi. The territory began to border Henan and Hebei. The territory ruled by the Dashi regime included all of Sichuan, all of Shaanxi, and most of Shanxi. Compared with the Tang Dynasty that was blown to pieces in the Wanggongchang explosion, Zhang Zicheng and his kingdom were more powerful.

"Liu Zhaosun's reckless behavior won't last long. Don't worry, as long as you surrender to Daxi, you will enjoy endless wealth and glory."

"Song Yingsheng, do you know how much injustice and suffering your brother Song Yingxing has endured because of you over the years? Now, the retired emperor has entrusted him with an important task and has appointed him as the Minister of Works of the Great Qi Dynasty. Do you want you two brothers to kill each other?"

Li Zicheng stepped forward, pointed at Song Yingsheng and cursed, "Mr. Song, the Suoyi Guards are in the imperial prison, and there's a place reserved for you, waiting for you to die."

Since both sides have left room for each other, it depends on which side is more powerful and can keep the other side.

Song Yingsheng was furious and said viciously, "I originally wanted to keep you as hostages. Since that's the case, I'll leave you with an intact body."

He waved his hand, and a row of musketeers immediately rushed up behind him, raised their muskets with lit fuses, and fired at Wu Xiao and others who were thirty steps away.

At the same time, the gate in front was suddenly lowered, and a Qi soldier who tried to rush out of the city was hit by the rapidly descending gate and turned into meat paste.

"Disperse and get into the trenches!"

Amid the crackling sound of muskets, Wu Xiao jumped into the moat in front of the moat with his ten surviving men. At this time, dense figures of the Dashi Army appeared on the top of the city wall. They held bows in their hands, stood on the battlements of the city wall, overlooking the moat more than 30 steps away, and fired calmly.

In a moment, the situation changed suddenly, and Wu Xiao and the imperial guards were caught in a pincer attack.

Lead bullets and arrow feathers were flying overhead, and the weeds in the trenches were blown into flying pieces. Wu Xiao bent down and lowered his head, being forced into a desperate situation.

(End of this chapter)