Chapter 94: Xirbaj's Plan

  "Brother, Shen Qianhu has sent word that he has informed all the checkpoints along the way and told us to prepare for the transaction."

  Ximen Qing, who had been busy for half a day, entered Xiaonü's room and casually picked up his teacup, taking a big gulp. He wiped his mouth and continued: "A hundred or so large carts, even Commander-in-Chief Shi finds it troublesome. He wants us to find a place at the entrance of the pass where we can store the goods that have been transported in, and then transport them over in batches, before sending them out by land and water. In this case, we'll have to go to Lulong Pass ourselves to find a suitable location for storage, and then set a specific date for the transaction."

  "Good." Xia Jiang jumped up from the bed: "Notify Lakshen to prepare for departure, from Harachang to Lulongkou, there is also a distance, enough for them to walk for several days."

  Ximen Qing said: "Let's go inform Lai Keshen first, then leave the city immediately."

  "Are you going to move out?"

  Ximen Qing said, "No need, let's bring some dried meat, white buns, water and wine. After the transaction, we still have to return, wait until the last cart of goods arrives safely here, then follow it back together."

  "Good." The two of them said and hastily walked out.

  ……

  "Waaaooooo..."

  The mournful sound of the horn rose, followed by the heart-shaking sound of the conch and the shrill shouting, the hoofbeats shook the snowy plain, like a dense drumbeat, gradually intensifying, becoming more urgent, four light cavalrymen were like a net, galloping on the snowy plain, driving those frightened animals to gather in the middle.

  The arrow is like a meteor, and someone starts chasing because of the four-sided enemy already in disarray, the beast hunting net begins to close in.

  At a distance, there were some scattered Mongolian yurts, several men wearing oversized sheepskin coats standing there, watching from afar as their tribesmen hunted and rounded up the animals, only sitting back down after the final kill.

  The center of the crowd was Xiribadai, who had already put his weak father, Bujidechen, under house arrest. The tribal chief was now actually a prisoner, confined to a felt tent and guarded by Xiribadai's trusted men, never allowed to come out, only receiving food to ensure he wouldn't starve to death. The ambitious Xiribadai had already taken his father's place, announcing to the outside world that Bujidechen had passed away, and according to their customs, had inherited his father's position, power, property, and all of his wives.

  Sitting on his left was an elderly old man. If you didn't look carefully, you would think he was a Mongolian woman. Although he was old, his skin was much whiter than that of ordinary old men, and there were no whiskers under his chin. The wrinkles on his face were dense, like a kind old lady. His name was Xi Rihouli Ge, who was already 72 years old this year. He used to be an eunuch in the Northern Yuan imperial palace.

  Sitting on the left side of Xi Ri Ba Ri was a young man, twenty-four or five years old, who looked slightly weaker in build and appearance compared to the several Mongolian men beside him. In fact, his horsemanship, swordsmanship, and archery were all top-notch in the entire tribe. He was Xi Ri Ba Ri's childhood playmate, strategist, and also his sworn brother.

  His name is Dai Yubin, a Han Chinese. He was a descendant of the founding merit subjects of the Yuan Dynasty. Although he was a Han Chinese, his family had served as officials in the Yuan Dynasty for generations and were loyal to the Yuan Dynasty. They always dreamed of counterattacking Bianjing (Kaifeng) and re-entering the Central Plains to restore the Yuan Dynasty.

  He made up his mind to do something earth-shaking, boost the morale of the Northern Yuan army, and join forces with Nigulasukh Tegus Khan to restore the prestige of Genghis Khan's descendants in the entire Mongolian grasslands. He planned and instigated the integration of various troops to return to the Central Plains, dreaming of becoming a great national hero like his ancestors, serving as officials for generations, and enjoying eternal glory.

  Others were some elderly and influential leaders in the tribe, generally younger, mostly loyal followers of Xizhaba.

  "My plan is this: take advantage of the opportunity to trade with the Ming people, select some elite soldiers to mix in and go through the pass. They know that after we trade, we will stay for a few days, so they will be nearby in the capital and its vicinity buying grain, cloth, salt, and iron pots to transport back."

  Most of the people in this region are Mongolians who have already surrendered to the Ming Dynasty and become their subjects. Some have even joined the Ming army as mercenaries, turning against us as enemies. The Ming people are used to seeing them around, so we don't need to disguise ourselves too much, but a guide is necessary."

  "But don't worry about this, we've already purchased dozens of blank route permits and can fill in the necessary information at any time."

  "Then, we need to sneak into Dadu. Lakshen has been living in the city as a merchant and will receive us and arrange our accommodation. What's next, Anda, tell them."

  Dai Yubin nodded and said, "My family has been officials of the Yuan Dynasty for generations. When the capital was built in the past, the drainage pipes were designed by the Dushuijian. At that time, the head of the Dushuijian was Mr. Guo Shoujing, and my ancestor was the deputy director of the Dushuijian. The drawings of the drainage pipes of the imperial city built by the Dushuijian were drawn and kept by my ancestor, who was the deputy director of the Dushuijian at that time. This part of the drawing about the drainage pipes of the imperial city is still preserved in my family."

  He drew his sword and began to draw on the ground: "After we sneak into the Imperial City, we will take advantage of the night to enter the Imperial Palace through the drainage pipes. There is one water inlet pipe and two drainage pipes in the palace, which do not interfere with each other. Of the two drainage pipes, one is a pipe for draining filth, narrow and dirty, and difficult to pass through. The other is mainly a pipe for draining rainwater, spacious, and

  "Pretty clean, this is the canal we're going to use."

  "Everyone look"

  He said seriously: "This drainage ditch has a wooden water window on the outermost side. When the water outside the city is higher than the drainage inside the city, the external force of the water will automatically close the water window from the outside to prevent backflow. Now it's naturally no problem, we can easily sneak in."

  The sewer tunnel is high inside and low outside, with many years of sedimentation. Although it's winter now and the water flow is not much, it must be slippery, so we need to prepare special shoes and some climbing tools. These will be arranged by Lakshen in the city, we don't need to worry about it. After entering the sewer tunnel, there will be many forks, as dense as a spider web. If we didn't have the map, we would get lost forever. The problem is, we do have the map.

  Everyone listened with bated breath as a leader named Hulugen asked: "Then what? We rush into the imperial palace and kill Zhu Di?"

  Hei Rui Ba laughed and said: "Huer Gen brothers, I certainly know your bravery is like a male lion, but relying on dozens of people to rush into the imperial palace to kill the King of Yan is impossible. Next, Xi Ri Huo Li Ge, you speak."

  "Yes, sir."

  That old eunuch from the north coughed and slowly said, "Inside the imperial palace, there is a secret passage. It has always been this way, it's an ancient rule for building palaces. In my younger years when I was in the palace, I was responsible for regularly sweeping and maintaining the secret passage."

  In the 28th year of Zhizheng, General Xu Da of the Ming State led his army to attack Dadu. Our Yuan army was still fighting each other for power and profit, who could be their opponent? Seeing this, Emperor Huizong decided to retreat beyond Shanhai Pass and move the capital to Shangdu.

  Before leaving, His Majesty the Emperor ordered a large amount of gunpowder and tung oil to be buried in the secret passage under the imperial palace. He wanted to wait for Xu Da to attack the city and enter the imperial palace, then blow up Xu Da and the entire imperial palace into ruins. I was the one who arranged this matter at the order of Emperor Huizong back then.

  However, the Crown Prince and several senior ministers strongly opposed it. Emperor Ruizong also felt that they might not have lost all opportunities to fight back, and if they blew up the palace at this time, they would be ashamed in front of their ancestors, so the matter was put on hold.

  The secret passage was re-sealed by the old slave, that place is very secretive, there were only a few people who knew where the secret passage was in the first place, and even fewer people knew that there were countless explosives and tung oil buried below, now it's just the old slave left...

  Xizhi Hook Force said up to here, thinking of those years ago, couldn't help but sigh.

  "Alright, alright, don't cry. Once this big matter is settled, you will be the first meritorious official of my great yuan. At that time, the Khan will certainly reuse you. When we return to Dadu, you will be like Pu Hua, a prominent figure in the palace, the number one eunuch, with great prestige and power, second only to the emperor."

  He wiped away his tears and said, "Such a good thing, I, an old slave, dare not think of it. I just hope that in the end, I can serve the emperor once more and complete one last task."

  Heizi Ba said to the crowd, "This plan was thought of after I learned about Xiruidege's identity and this secret. At that time, we will use the drainage ditch to sneak into the imperial palace, and then Xiruidege will lead us to open the secret passage, and then..."

  He sneered, his smile full of murderous intent.

  Several confidants looked at each other, and the sturdy and majestic Mo Yihan asked: "Sir, in the Yanwang Mansion, there must be a sentry every three steps and a watchtower every five steps. We will sneak into the palace through the drainage ditch, climb to the ground, and then go find the entrance of the secret passage. There must be a distance between them, and after finding the entrance of the secret passage, we still need to excavate it a bit. Can we not be discovered?"

  Hei Rijia couldn't help but burst out laughing and said: "Don't worry, I have another plan. When Lakshen was trying to gain a foothold in the Imperial City, he sent his sister to serve as a palace maid in the Yanwang Fu. Now she can be of great use. Haha, how do you say it in Han language... Ah yes, it's called 'using the enemy's strength against them'!"

  Dai Yubin smiled slightly and replied: "Unintentionally planted willows become shade."

  Hei Rijie said: "Right, unintentionally planted willow trees have grown into shade. Haha..."

  "Sir, why must we resort to this tactic? Can't we just cross the mountains and sneak into Ming territory like before? Why do we have to sell them these valuable materials that can be used to make fine military equipment?"

  Xiribajie said, "Originally, I thought it would be fine to just cross the mountains and go. However, Xierhuli Ge is old and can't climb mountains, but our plan can't do without him. Moreover, my Anda reminded me that once we succeed, we'll have to set off immediately to join Khan. At that time, all the heavy and cumbersome things will be a burden, how can we move? Since they are things to be abandoned, why not exchange them for some portable valuables, which will come in handy later."

  Everyone nodded in agreement, Dai Yubin stood up excitedly and exhorted: "Think about it, when our great cause is accomplished, half of the imperial capital will be destroyed by raging flames, how many people will die? At that time, the King of Yan, the Queen of Yan, the Prince of Yan, the entire line of the King of Yan will all be reduced to ashes. When the news spreads, it will be exhilarating! This matter can certainly boost the morale of our Great Yuan!"

  He clenched his fists, his flushed face twisted in a fierce expression: "At that time, we will regroup and counterattack, retaking the Central Plains and reclaiming our rivers and mountains."

  "Regroup and launch a counterattack, retake the Central Plains, and recover the rivers and mountains of Jinzhou"

  In a roar like an oath, their tribesmen had already brought back bloody prey on horseback...

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