It was Zhu Zhanhe who imitated Zhu Zhanji.
At that moment, Ji Gang vaguely guessed something. He subconsciously observed the terrain and formation with the corner of his eye. The number and combat effectiveness of the Jinyiwei far exceeded that of the young army guards who had only been trained for a year.
At worst, we can fight to the death.
Ji Gang said, "I heard that the Crown Prince is looking for me. Where is His Highness?"
"If I don't go to see Lord Ji in the name of the Crown Prince, can Lord Ji find time to come to me in his busy schedule? The Crown Prince has become a frightened bird after the successive assassinations. He can't stay at home now, sitting in the central military camp to command. Once Pingjiang Earl arrives with the Ming navy, he will immediately set off to return to Yunjian County on the mainland."
Zhu Zhanhe's expression was serious. "Master Ji, why did you hide the matter you discussed with my father from me? If you had told me earlier, I would not have mistakenly entered the port this morning and wasted a great opportunity to assassinate the Crown Prince. Now it is difficult for me to act again."
The position of the artillery position is high, so please speak quietly up there so the guards below cannot hear you.
Ji Gang was very suspicious, but he didn't show it on his face. He pretended to be shocked and said, "What did your Highness mean? I don't understand."
Zhu Zhanhe sneered, "You all treat me like a fool. Even my father doesn't believe me. I am from the Han Palace and a hostage in the capital. In order to survive, I have to play the role of brother to the Crown Prince all day long to please the emperor. I contributed the most to this young army, but all the credit belongs to the Crown Prince. The young army only regards him as their leader."
"Why? Because he is the grandson of the emperor, and I am the prince of Han."
Zhu Zhanhe approached Ji Gang step by step, "So, just as my father hates the Eastern Palace, I hate the Crown Prince just as much. Lord Ji, if you had told me your plan earlier, the Crown Prince's body would be cold by now, but you kept it from me and messed things up. Now that things have come to this, I have no choice but to come out and clean up the mess for you and get rid of the Crown Prince before the Earl of Pingjiang arrives."
Ji Gang half believed and half doubted, "Your Highness, you must not be instigated and deceived by others. A momentary misstep will lead to eternal regret. Killing the Crown Prince is a crime of regicide. Even a humble official cannot protect Your Highness."
"You still refuse to admit it." Zhu Zhanhe whispered, "Now the Crown Prince has become suspicious of you and has sent you and the Royal Guards away. You have no chance. The only chance is for me to do it myself."
Ji Gang slowly stepped back, "Your Highness, it's never too late to turn back. I am the emperor's man, and I am only loyal to the emperor. Today, the prince spoke nonsense, and I will report the truth to the emperor. Your Highness, please don't make the same mistake again."
Zhu Zhanhe ignored him and kept approaching: "But I alone cannot kill the Crown Prince and get away with it without bringing trouble to the Han Palace, so I need your help."
Ji Gang looked at the 14-year-old Zhu Zhanhe as if he were a stranger. The boy, who once had clear eyes, was now filled with desire, like a bloodthirsty lone wolf, eager to kill his prey in one fell swoop.
Ji Gang had always been accustomed to the ruthless scenes of the royal family, and had always felt that Zhu Zhanhe was an outlier in the royal family. How could an ambitious man like the King of Han give birth to such a son
Now it seems that he was wrong. Zhu Zhanhe was not unwilling to fight, but he hid his desires very deeply and put on a disguise in order to get close to the Crown Prince.
Could it be that the Crown Prince really wanted to kill the Crown Prince
Seeing that Ji Gang was still unwilling to give in, Zhu Zhanhe said, "You were the ones who planted the mines, but unfortunately the gunpowder factory's technology was unstable and they exploded prematurely.
The Crown Prince was suspicious of you at the time. He had interrogated the Japanese pirates in advance and found that no one knew about the theft at the gunpowder factory warehouse, and no one knew about the purchase of stolen goods. The theft at the gunpowder factory was investigated by Lord Ji, and it became an unsolved case. The Crown Prince suspected that you were the thief, and you tortured the pirates to death, killed them to silence them, and leaked the navy's street code. The Crown Prince was sure that you were the traitor. "
"Once Pingjiang Bo comes here, the Crown Prince will immediately tear his face off, capture you in one fell swoop, and escort you to the capital. Will the Emperor trust the Crown Prince or you?"
Zhu Zhanhe chuckled, "And the ministers, and even the people, do they believe in you who froze Xie Jin to death in the snow and left countless resentful souls, or do they believe in the Crown Prince who is as pure as a white lotus?"
Ji Gang asked, "Did the Crown Prince tell you that he suspected me to be a spy?"
"No, I deduced it." Zhu Zhanhe said, "How could he tell me such a confidential matter? I am the prince of Han. He treats me as a brother on the surface, but he is actually always on guard against me. Time is running out. Once Pingjiang Bo arrives, you will be arrested, and my father will also be implicated. How can the eggs in the nest be safe? Once the Han Palace falls, I will also be demoted to a commoner. I must kill Zhu Zhanji as soon as possible, give me your people, and tell me how to contact the gang on the sea. We must prepare a retreat and frame the Japanese pirates for the death of the crown prince. We must not expose ourselves."
Ji Gang was torn between his conscience and his desires. Every word Zhu Zhanhe said made sense, and judging from his expression and eyes, he didn't seem to be lying, but he instinctively didn't trust anyone, especially at this critical juncture.
At this moment, a cloud of yellow smoke rose from the direction of the prison, and the prison break was successful!
In the end, Ji Gang chose to believe in himself. He could kill Zhu Zhanji by himself without Zhu Zhanhe’s help!
Ji Gang looked righteous and awe-inspiring. "Your Highness, you have a dark heart. You see everyone as a thief and a villain. You mistook coincidence for an assassination and regarded me as an ambitious person who brought disaster to the country and the people. I am devoted to the country and loyal. I will never betray the Ming Dynasty. Your Highness, take care of yourself. I still have a lot of things to do. Bye."
Ji Gang bowed and turned around, and suddenly felt a chill on his back. Zhu Zhanhe actually used A Lei's ring-handled sword to point at his waist.
Zhu Zhanhe: "Don't move. Lord Mu once taught me that if you stab this acupuncture point, the opponent won't die, but will be paralyzed and will have no feeling below the neck."
Ji Gang didn't expect Zhu Zhanhe to suddenly attack from behind. He tried to struggle, but the ring-handled knife moved further forward, cutting through his clothes!
Zhu Zhanhe was tall and strong. He subdued the vase-like Ji Gang with one move and whispered in his ear, "I haven't tried it yet. Sir Ji, do you want to be the first person to be killed by my sword?"
Ji Gang: "Your Highness, you tried to trick me into assassinating the Crown Prince, but now you want to kill me to silence me?"
Zhu Zhanhe: "I really admire Lord Ji. You are about to die, but you are still playing tricks on me. You wore the mask so well that I forgot to take it off. I must kill the Crown Prince as soon as possible. Lord Ji, please cooperate with me, whether it is manpower or a packet of instant death powder. I am just a vassal of the Crown Prince in the Young Army. I have no confidants and am isolated and helpless. Now I can only count on Lord Ji for help."
Zhu Zhanhe had to use hard tactics when soft tactics failed. He had to find out Ji Gang's accomplices, otherwise his eldest cousin would be in danger.
The yellow smoke had dissipated, the prisoners had divided their weapons, and were sneaking over, ready to launch a counterattack.
Ji Gang sneered: "Perhaps there is indeed a spy in the army, but it is definitely not me. I don't want to waste time here with Your Highness."
After saying that, Ji Gang walked towards the steps of the artillery platform, regardless of the danger of being paralyzed by the knife.
If we fail to lure out the accomplices, we will have to leave and kill the leader Ji Gang. We cannot let him leave and harm our eldest cousin!
Zhu Zhanhe made up his mind and stabbed forward with his knife, but the sharp blade encountered resistance and could not penetrate even a millimeter.
Ji Gang is wearing soft armor under his clothes!
Zhu Zhanhe turned and stabbed Ji Gang in the back of the neck, but Ji Gang was prepared this time. He turned around and kicked Zhu Zhanhe away!
Zhu Zhanhe's head hit the iron cannon, and suddenly golden light splashed in front of his eyes.
Zhu Zhanhe shouted, "The traitor Ji Gang wants to kill me! Protect the emperor!"
Ji Gang knew that Zhu Zhanhe had the intention to kill him, and he shouted, "He is a spy in disguise! I have found out! Kill the spy!"
Who is the spy
Neither the young soldiers nor the Embroidered Uniform Guards under the artillery position dared to shoot, for fear of accidentally injuring the Crown Prince or Lord Ji.
Zhu Zhanhe rolled towards the cannon, pointed his wide sleeves at Ji Gang, pressed the trigger, and fired the sleeve arrow.
Ji Gang didn’t have time to take the stairs and fell backwards, “Catch me!”
After all, they have been leaders for many years, so they still have some tacit understanding. The Jinyiweis linked arms and used their hands to form a net. Ji Gang fell into the net of arms and was able to escape.
The sleeve arrow can only be fired once, and Zhu Zhanhe immediately threw down his waist badge, "Don't listen to the traitor's nonsense! This is my waist badge! Kill the traitor, don't let him get away!"
Ji Gang shouted, "The badge is a fake! If you don't believe me, surround this fake prince's spy first. I will ask the Crown Prince and the real Prince of Han to come and identify it!"
After saying that, Ji Gang led his thousand Jinyiwei and ran towards the base camp. At this time, the death squad and the captured Japanese pirates also attacked the north slope of the base camp, and shouts of killing suddenly arose.
Ji Gang took the opportunity to shout, "Did you see that? This spy used the excuse of luring me here as a diversionary tactic. He took advantage of the Jinyiwei's absence to launch an attack. He is a spy!"
Zhu Zhanhe was very anxious when he saw Ji Gang running away. Ji Gang was eloquent, scheming, and had great prestige. He underestimated this veteran minister who had experienced three dynasties and thought he was not someone that a fourteen-year-old boy could easily deal with.
Zhu Zhanhe said to the young soldiers surrounding him, "You have been deceived by Ji Gang. Come up and pinch my face to see if it is fake, you idiots!"
When Youjun ran up to take a look, he was stunned. Just as he was about to chase Ji Gang, he was stopped by Zhu Zhanhe, "Is the artillery shell faster or your legs faster? Come and help me push the artillery carriage and turn the muzzle!"
Previously, the artillery position was built to defend against foreign enemies landing on the island, with its muzzles facing the sea. Now Zhu Zhanhe had an idea and decided to bomb Ji Gang and his cronies.
The cannon weighed a thousand pounds, and Zhu Zhanhe couldn't push it alone. He needed at least five strong men to help him. After adjusting the direction, Zhu Zhanhe started to fire the cannon.
Boom!
The bomb exploded among the Jinyiwei, killing a large number of them.
Ji Gang fell to the ground, feeling the ground shaking. His ears suddenly rang and he could not hear anything. He instinctively shouted, "Everyone, stop crowding together and run!"
Ji Gang got up and ran. Zhu Zhanhe was blackened by the smoke from the artillery fire and shouted, "Fire!"
The second and third shots exploded one after another, causing heavy casualties among the Jinyiwei. Just when Ji Gang thought he would be crushed to pieces today, the sentry in the port's watchtower rang the bell.
Ding ding ding!
But in the morning, about ten gunboats imitating the Ming Navy turned back.
Zhu Zhanhe hurriedly commanded the various artillery batteries in the port, preparing to engage in a firefight with the enemy's gunboats.
However, the large ships at sea had no intention of entering the port to land. They stopped at the sea, far away from the range of the artillery, and lowered a number of simple wooden rafts from the ships. They hung straw mat sails commonly seen on Japanese pirate ships and sailed towards the isolated island shoal with the wind and the current.
Ten thousand "Japanese pirates" with moon-shaped haircuts landed from the shallows and climbed onto the isolated island like ants!
The shoals were far from the port and out of range for the artillery to reach.
What to do? Now the young army is under attack from both sides.
But at the moment the first Japanese pirate landed, the port watchtower struck a bronze drum, and an orderly fleet appeared on the horizon. The fleet fired at the "Japanese pirate" gunboat and sank the enemy's main ship in the blink of an eye.
Zhu Zhanhe was overjoyed: It’s the Ming navy, the Earl of Pingjiang has finally arrived!
The four-way melee officially began.
The author has something to say: Today is Chinese Valentine's Day, so I will update twice a day. The second update will be a little later. Please wait for me. Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or irrigated me with nutrient solution~
Thanks to the little angel who irrigated [nutrient solution]:
cam 20 bottles; tiger skin green pepper, cabbage pig 10 bottles; small spoon 5 bottles; dimple 3 bottles; money mm 1 bottle;
Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!