Dream of the Red Chamber: Start by gaining Zhao Yun's martial prowess, and be ennobled in a sin

Zhao Zhihu's expression tightened, and he hurriedly said:

"My lord, none of us want to leave! But the Emperor is so cruel and ungrateful, appointing that man as Governor-General of Five Provinces, responsible for military reorganization, new policies, and acting as the Emperor's representative on imperial tours!"

"This guy is clearly coming at our Jiangnan officials and gentry with a knife. He's not someone like Gong Dingzi who's easy to deal with; he's always been ruthless."

"The Marquis of Linchuan, the Marquis of Zhongqin, the Duke of Zhao, the Duke of Cheng, the Marquis of Ji'an, the Prince of Nan'an, the Prince of Dongping, the Duke of Qi, the Duke of Zhiguo... so many hereditary nobles died at his hands."

"He's leading a large army south again this time; we can't afford to have any illusions!"

Wang Zhi did not refute this, even though the Duke of Zhao had only been dismissed from his post and was not dead!

He recalled the news that had come from the capital a few days ago:

The Prince of Nan'an was escorted to the West Market and beheaded in public; the entire family of the Prince of Dongping was executed; the two princely mansions, as well as the mansions of the Duke of Qi and the Duke of Zhiguo, were raided and confiscated by the military law department overnight.

Which of these people wasn't a nobleman who shared the fate of the nation? Which of them wasn't a figure who could shake the court with a stomp of his foot?

But what has become of them now?

That man has almost wiped out all the Wu Xun from the Jingnan lineage and the founding lineage. How can people not be afraid?

Now that most of the nobles in the capital have been gone, and he has come to Jiangnan, just thinking about it makes me feel a chill run down my spine!

Unlike many gentry in Jiangnan who were still thinking about openly and covertly competing with Jia Jing and negotiating terms, Wu Xun, including Wang Zhi, didn't even want to see Jia Jing's face. Running as far away as possible was the wise thing to do!

Wang Zhi couldn't help but let out a long sigh, his tone tinged with regret and anger, and said:

"It's also those bastards' fault for secretly supporting the White Lotus Sect to this extent; they ended up losing more than they gained."

Zhao Zhihu did not respond.

He knew who Wang Zhi meant by "bastards"—those powerful families in Jiangnan who, in order to obstruct the new policies and resist the investigation, secretly sent money, delivered messages, and made favors to the White Lotus Sect.

His original intention was to nurture bandits to enhance his own power and force the court to make concessions.

But who knew that the White Lotus Sect was too ambitious? They broke through Xuzhou in one fell swoop, killed the Prince of Fu, the Prince of Chu, and Gong Dingzi, and things got out of control. That's why that person came!

They really shot themselves in the foot.

Wang Zhi remained silent for a moment, then pondered and asked:

"What time did you and Liu Zhixie agree on?"

"Liu Zhixie and I have tentatively agreed that tonight, we'll use a fire as a signal to open the east gate and let them into the city," Zhao Zhihu said in a low voice.

"Our men are stationed at the east gate, making it difficult for that eunuch Han Zanzhou to detect us. He's been keeping a close watch on the city walls day and night these days!"

As the secondary capital, Southern Zhili did not have a provincial administration commissioner, provincial judge, and military commander like other provinces. Instead, the entire province was directly governed by the Six Ministries of Nanjing, with high-ranking officials such as the Governor of Yingtian, the Governor of Huaiyang, and the Censor-in-Chief of the Yangtze River under his command.

In the entire city of Jinling, or rather, in Southern Zhili, the three most powerful positions were the Jinling Garrison Eunuch, the Jinling Garrison Commander, and the Jinling Minister of War.

Among them, the garrison eunuchs were palace personnel, equivalent to officials from the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs on external missions, and were known as "the emperor's close ministers three thousand miles away."

His authority was above that of the Jinling Military Commander and the Jinling Minister of War, and his core responsibilities covered four major areas: military affairs, imperial tombs, the inner palace system, and financial supervision.

The garrison commander Wu Xun controlled the five military governorates of Jinling, directly commanding the Jinling garrison troops and being responsible for the daily dispatch of city and river defenses.

The Minister of War was in charge of military registers, armaments, and defense documents in Nanjing. He was responsible for the assessment of military officers and the scheduling of horse administration and grain transport in Jiangnan, thus intervening in military decision-making as a civil official.

The idea is to create a system of checks and balances among the three parties, preventing any single party from directly controlling military power.

The meritorious officials had the daily command of the army, but not the power to appoint or dismiss personnel or to coordinate logistics; the civil officials controlled the military register, performance evaluation, and finances, but could not directly mobilize the army.

Although the garrison eunuchs did not have direct command of troops, they could represent the emperor in vetoing any decision made by either side.

Of the three, the eunuch in charge of defense, Han Zanzhou, was undoubtedly the one least willing to see Nanjing fall.

During the White Lotus Sect's siege, he guarded the city walls day and night, personally overseeing the battle and never leaving their side.

If it weren't for his close monitoring, given the corrupt soldiers and the diverse sentiments in Jinling City, it would probably have collapsed long ago without a fight!

After pondering for a long time, Wang Zhi finally made up his mind and slowly nodded.

He stood up, walked to the window, and pushed open the green gauze window.

Outside the window, the fragrance of osmanthus blossoms filled the air, and in the distance, the shouts and cries of soldiers fighting on the city walls could be faintly heard.

He stared at the gray-black city wall in the distance, remaining silent for a long time before turning around, his gaze now cold and hard as iron.

"Alright. Let's not delay, let's do it tonight!" Wang Zhi said, enunciating each word clearly.

"Give Nanjing to the White Lotus Sect! When the secondary capital falls, it will be an unprecedented chaos since the founding of the nation, and both the court and that person will lose face."

"It would be best if the White Lotus Sect could use the fortified city to hold that person back for a year or two, until the world is in chaos. Then we might have a chance to make a comeback."

That's what he said, but Wang Zhi didn't really think highly of the White Lotus Sect. Otherwise, he wouldn't have preferred to go into exile rather than join the White Lotus Rebellion!

Zhao Zhihu stood up, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said solemnly, "Alright! Then I will reply to the White Lotus Sect!"

The two then huddled together at the table and discussed the details of tonight's operation in detail.

From what time the city gates opened, to which route to take out of the city, from who knew the inside story to how to keep it from Han Zanzhou's spies.

After discussing the matter for nearly an hour, Zhao Zhihu finally took his leave.

After seeing Zhao Zhihu off, Wang Zhi stood alone in front of the study, gazing absently at the osmanthus trees that filled the courtyard.

He had enjoyed most of his life, but from this day forward, he would have to flee to a foreign land and live a life on the run!

He suddenly recalled the days when he rode his horse across the city walls of Nanjing in his youth, the extravagant and decadent nights on the Qinhuai River, and the jewelry and calligraphy he had collected for half his life. He found it hard to part with them...