Southern Ming Rebel Army

Chapter 588: The Annan Incident (Part )

When Wu Wenxian heard Yan Keyi say this, he laughed dryly, then lowered his voice and said, "Old Yan, it's just the two of us now, don't talk nonsense, the north has contacted me."

Upon hearing this, Yan Keyi looked at Wu Wenxian deeply. He seemed to want to see from Wu Wenxian's face whether what he said was true or false.

After a long while, Yan Keyi shook his head and said, "The Marshal has been very kind to me, how could I have any contact with the North? You are not allowed to say this again!"

Wu Wenxian was stunned. How could this be different from what the north said? The Qingluan Guard clearly said that General Yan Keyi had accepted the court's conditions, so Wu Wenxian agreed to surrender to the Qian Dynasty.

Wu Wenxian thought about it and realized that it was impossible for him to admit such a big thing so easily. So, Wu Wenxian said to him, "Old Yan, Qingluan Guards have told me that you have agreed to their conditions. They also showed me your letters and the border defense map. Most people can't imitate your few words."

Hearing this, Yan Keyi's face turned a little ugly. The Qingluan Guards were indeed not a good bunch. They were even worse than the Jinyi Guards of the former Ming Dynasty. They actually leaked the matter. In their eyes, was his life so insignificant?

Yan Keyi was both a pioneer and a hero in Li Chengdong's conquest of Annan. Yan Keyi followed Li Chengdong all the way from Jiangnan to Zhejiang, then to Fujian, Guangdong, and finally to Annan.

But as the situation changed, the Qian Dynasty became increasingly powerful. Not only was Li Chengdong worried that Meng Jun would send a large army south, but Li Chengdong's subordinates all had concerns in their hearts.

But even so, Yan Keyi still had no intention of rebelling until the attack on the Mo family, when Yan Keyi was whipped several times in public by Li Chengdong. This was merely an inducement for Yan Keyi to accept the conditions of the North.

Although Li Chengdong's whipping was not too painful and he only whipped Yan Keyi a few times, for Yan Keyi, this action caused his prestige in the army to drop sharply. Then he deliberately weakened his military power, which made Yan Keyi extremely alert.

Yan Keyi was willing to accept the conditions of Qingluan Guard. On the one hand, Li Chengdong showed signs of suppressing him. On the other hand, the conditions offered to him by the Qian Dynasty were too tempting. Qingluan Guard stated that as long as Li Chengdong died, he could carve out a kingdom in Annan, following the example of Burma.

As for imitating the Korean example, Yan Keyi did not dare to hope for it, and the Qingluan Guard also explicitly rejected Yan Keyi's idea. However, for Yan Keyi, such conditions were not bad.

Seeing Yan Keyi's grim expression, Wu Wenxian comforted him, "Old Yan, don't worry, we are all family. The North asked me to keep it a secret, but what is our relationship? We are all brothers."

Yan Keyi said sullenly: "Just tell me, what do you want to do?"

Wu Wenxian chuckled and said, "Nothing. I just want to know what conditions the north has for you. Of course, I also know that you, Old Yan, are our top general. If the conditions of the north are not high, I will be the first to be dissatisfied."

Upon hearing this, Yan Keyi suddenly laughed, then restrained his smile and said, "Whatever conditions the north offers are secondary. The main thing is that the Marshal is now suspicious of us!"

Li Chengdong reprimanded Yan Keyi in the army. Although he accused Yan Keyi of being unsuccessful in attacking the mountain, the generals in the army could see that Yan Keyi's prestige was a little high, which made the commander-in-chief a little uneasy.

If it was just a few whippings, that would have been fine. When the army retreated from Cao Bang, Yan Keyi's military power was gradually weakened, especially now that in the name of promotion, Yan Keyi, who was defending the Qian Dynasty in the north, was recalled to Thang Long Prefecture, and then Yang Dafu was ordered to replace Yan Keyi as the defense envoy of the north.

Perhaps, from Li Chengdong's perspective, he did not intend to kill or depose Yan Keyi. It's just that although Li Chengdong now does not have the title of a king, he has the power of a king. This is completely different from when he was the commander-in-chief of an army. The prestige of his subordinates is too high, which makes him unconsciously suppress them.

Wu Wenxian was also silent after hearing this. Yan Keyi didn't want to talk, and there was no way to force him to talk. Then, Wu Wenxian turned the topic to business. Wu Wenxian's expression became serious and he said, "Old Yan, the north is getting more and more urgent. And you see, Fujian is mobilizing troops and warships on a large scale. There is an endless stream of people transporting supplies in Huguang and Jiangnan. This move is 99% likely aimed at Annan!"

Yan Keyi nodded, hummed, and said, "That's right. Now that the Qian Dynasty is in the south, there is no other opponent. Apart from Annan, where else would it be necessary to mobilize such a large-scale land and sea army?"

At this time, Wu Wenxian looked around inconspicuously and whispered: "The north has been urging me to either control the Marshal, or..."

Having said this, Wu Wenxian waved his hand downward, the meaning of which was self-evident.

Yan Keyi said coldly: "Come to Shenglong Mansion, I'm already prepared, just don't get involved!"

Wu Wenxian became anxious when he heard this. What did they mean by "don't let him get involved"? How could he negotiate terms with Qingluan Guard when he didn't contribute anything at all?

So he shook his head again and again and said, "No, no, I don't agree!"

Yan Keyi said impatiently: "Then tell me about your plan?"

Wu Wenxian whispered, "This time, when we go to report for duty and meet the Marshal, we will take the opportunity to..."

Wu Wenxian made another gesture, but Yan Keyi was stunned when he heard this. After a while, he pointed at Wu Wenxian and cursed, "Bullshit idea!"

Wu Wenxian was not angry, and asked, "Then what do you think you want to do?"

Yan Keyi glanced around and then laid out his plan. As the strongest among Li Chengdong's subordinates, Yan Keyi also had secret confidants in Thang Long City.

There are more than 16,000 soldiers in Thang Long City. In addition to those guarding the four gates, there are also some garrisons in the armory, granary, and silver vault. Most of the remaining troops are in the camp outside the city.

Yan Keyi's confidants are spread throughout the four gates. As long as they take advantage of the opportunity, block the four gates and then control Li Chengdong, the army outside the city will be caught off guard and will definitely not have time to rescue Li Chengdong.

And with Li Chengdong's death, the army was leaderless. Yan Keyi opened the treasury again and rewarded the three armies generously. As long as Thang Long City was captured and the proclamation was spread to all directions, with his prestige, he could at least have a 90% chance of success, although not a foolproof one.

As for Wu Wenxian's bad idea, to kill this man directly in Li Chengdong's house, it is not certain whether he can be killed. Even if he can be killed, even if the two of them are possessed by Lu Fengxian, they may not be able to get out of the house.

After listening to Yan Keyi's plan, Wu Wenxian first nodded, but then shook his head.

This action made Yan Keyi stunned for a moment, and then he asked: "Is there something wrong with my plan?"