At dusk, the Jiaozhou city gates had long closed, so Fan Xian's later order was actually a bit unnecessary. However, since such a big thing had happened in the city and such a serious conflict, Wu Gefei knew that he had to handle it carefully. Otherwise, if the 10,000 navy soldiers on the harbor outside the city attacked into the city, it would be difficult for him to keep his life. Thus, he strictly ordered his trusted subordinates to go up the city walls to guard and watch the movements on the harbor.
At the same time, the bailiffs and provincial soldiers of the Jiaozhou government were also conducting investigations and searches in the city. Although the court had come to investigate the problem of the Jiaozhou Navy, the admiral had been assassinated … they had to find the assassin. Perhaps they could dig out some deeper secrets.
Of course, Wu Gefei hoped that he would never come into contact with those terrifying secrets. He rubbed his somewhat dry eyes and reported the situation in the city as well as the movements outside the city to Fan Xian in a raspy voice.
Fan Xian nodded and expressed satisfaction at the speed of this Zhizhou's reaction. If he didn't have this Zhizhou's cooperation, it would be impossible for him to control the admiral's manor and put the navy generals under house arrest.
He said a few warm words of encouragement and then had the Zhizhou go rest for the time being. Wu Gefei repeatedly said he didn't dare. He thought to himself, if even a prince like you is staying up late, how could I dare to go sleep? Furthermore, the situation in the admiral's manor was still warm and unclear. Who knew what unexpected changes would happen during this long night?
Seeing that Wu Gefei insisted on staying by his side, the corners of Fan Xian's lips twitched into a smile. In a quiet voice, he asked, "Are you worried about the matter outside the city?"
Wu Gefei was startled and immediately smiled bitterly. "Admiral Chang Kun has been in charge of the navy for more than a decade. His subordinates are all trusted aides and his prestige among the lower ranked soldiers is also very high. Today, he has died mysteriously and Sir has also placed the upper ranking officers of the navy under house arrest. If this matter were to be spread to the harbor … as long as there are a few people who have the heart to pick a fight, those men will probably all cry out."
Fan Xian sighed. "I had wanted to take down Chang Kun and have him come out to pacify the navy. Who knew that he would be assassinated …" He smiled coldly and said, "The other party is truly skilled. With this, they have created such a large crack between the court and the navy. It makes things very difficult for me."
This was naturally a lie. He had killed Chang Kun. If Chang Kun had not died, it would have been impossible for him to subdue the navy. But since he was framing them, he naturally had to keep doing so.
"What's next?" Wu Gefei hunched his body slightly and tiredly asked for instructions, "We can't hide the news forever. Moreover, the imperial court is handling a case, so the edict must be transmitted to the army."
Fan Xian sank into silence. He didn't know if his plan would proceed smoothly. In his original plan, he would first kill Chang Kun, then capture Chang Kun's trusted aides, use the Overwatch Council's methods to obtain firsthand confessions, and then use the navy generals still loyal to the court to regain control of the situation. Then, he would find evidence of the East Sea matter among the navy and make this case an ironclad one. He would use iron-blooded methods to intimidate the navy soldiers who had other thoughts.
But the problem now was, who should he trust among the navy generals? Many times, the Overwatch Council's intelligence reports could not be completely trusted. At least, it was not as reliable as face-to-face psychological confrontation.
In that instant, Fan Xian very much missed Sir Yan junior far away in Jingdou. If Bingyun was by his side, he would certainly lay out a more perfect plan and not be like him, standing in the darkness of the admiral's manor and not knowing what to say to a group of navy generals.
Fan Xian sat by the stone table and furrowed his brows slightly. Making up his mind, he waved his hand and made a signal to Qing Wa beside him.
Qing Wa paused and immediately accepted the order and left. In a short while, waves of wretched and wretched cries rang out from the woodshed at the back of the admiral's manor. If one had astonishing hearing, perhaps they could even hear the sizzling sound of branding iron landing on human flesh and the sound of bones breaking.
Wu Gefei's face was ashen. He knew the Overwatch Council had begun to use torture. Thinking of the rumors of the Overwatch Council's frightening methods, the Zhizhou's hand began to tremble. Forcefully suppressing his nervousness and fear, he bravely suggested, "Sir, I'm afraid this action is not appropriate."
Fan Xian understood his meaning. At this moment, there were still many navy people in the admiral's manor. If he used torture so openly, it would probably incite public anger. However, Fan Xian had always had this thought.
Under the dual effects of violence and humiliation, the navy generals either let out their last roars of anger or were so frightened their hearts were beating wildly that they revealed their deepest thoughts to him.
Things were indeed as Wu Gefei feared. The navy generals under house arrest in the admiral's manor heard the wretched cries and all walked out of their rooms, staring at Fan Xian with angry expressions.
Fan Xian didn't even glance and said, "So, none of you have slept yet. Do you have anything you want to say?"
As he spoke, he suddenly heard a commotion outside the admiral's manor. The sound gradually drifted into the garden. No one knew what had happened. Fan Xian furrowed his brows and asked, "What's going on?"
It was already so late at night, and the admiral's manor had long been heavily surrounded. The matter of the birthday banquet had also been sealed. Who were the people outside?
Wu Gefei wiped the sweat from his forehead and ordered a bailiff to go out and take a look. After the bailiff returned, he reported with a troubled expression, "It's people from the generals' families."
Although the news had been sealed, the navy, after all, operated in Jiaozhou for many years. There were still people who thought of ways to let out some rumors, particularly since it was already late at night. The wives and concubines of the generals found that their men still had not returned and were naturally worried. They also received the rumors. Although they didn't know if it was true or false, they still sent people to fetch them.
Fan Xian smiled and immediately thought of the representatives of the wealthy merchants and the Jiangnan merchants he had left in the great hall. He thought that he indeed couldn't hide it for long. He only hoped that after the city gates closed, the reaction from the port side would be slower.
Wu Gefei looked at Fan Xian with some difficulty. The generals' expressions were complicated. They had not thought that their women would be so daring. They were also confused. Who had let out the news?
…
…
"Since someone has come to fetch you, you can all return, generals."
Fan Xian's words dumbfounded everyone present. Weren't they going to be placed under house arrest? How could they be let out like this?
Fan Xian said in a quiet voice, "I am investigating a case by imperial edict. Since Dang Xiaobo has already committed his own crime and those evil spirits hidden in the navy have jumped out, the generals have only been implicated. Naturally, I will not make things difficult for you."
These generals looked at each other, not daring to believe what they had heard was true.
"Go back," Fan Xian said with a slight smile. "Although I am anxious to have a heart-to-heart talk with the generals, it would not be good to offend your wives."
There were no proper wives in Jiaozhou. They were all concubines or even mistresses sought by the navy soldiers. Fan Xian's words, on the contrary, made these generals feel a bit awkward.
At this moment, the wretched cries of Dang Xiaobo and those people rang out again from the woodshed.
The women outside seemed to have heard it and led the servants in a loud clamor.
For a moment, the inside and outside of the admiral's manor was very lively.
The generals left the admiral's manor with suspicion and unease. They knew that there were certainly countless eyes of the Overwatch Council watching them from within Jiaozhou. They shouldn't think about making contact with the navy outside the city. Even if they did, they would not be able to explain themselves to the court.
As for Fan Xian's last words, they fell deeply into the hearts of the generals.
A heart-to-heart talk … this also had to be done first and last. The Commissioner had given them a chance to return to the embrace of the court. It would depend on who was the first to be righteous and come to the Commissioner to reveal their true feelings …
Each with their own ulterior motives and thoughts, these generals left.
…
…
Wu Gefei didn't know what Fan Xian was thinking and couldn't ask too much. He only strengthened Jiaozhou's defenses. Before he left, he carefully said, "Sir, it's best not to be too extreme."
Fan Xian nodded. Looking at Wu Gefei's performance tonight, the Ministry of Revenue's evaluation of him was on the low side. Perhaps it was because Chang Kun was present, but this Zhizhou had never displayed a level of skill that matched his abilities.
Fan Xian would not kill Dang Xiaobo. This was the greatest evidence of the East Sea silencing incident. In the future, he would be escorted to Jingdou.
— — — —
Even the women in Jiaozhou knew that the Overwatch Council had taken control of the admiral's manor. They knew of Admiral Chang Kun's death, knew that the navy had suffered heavy losses, and knew that their masters could not even protect themselves.
The news that Fan Xian had forcefully covered up for a while now immediately reached the ears of many people. Although Wu Gefei's provincial soldiers were guarding the city gates, the navy had their own channels. The person that Dang Xiaobo had let out earlier finally successfully passed through the blockade. Following a small path outside the city, he quietly neared the harbor.
He looked at the dots of lights in the distant harbor and was endlessly excited. Although he didn't know that Dang Xiaobo had already been taken down by the Overwatch Council, he knew that the navy was facing its greatest danger since its birth. As long as he could enter the camp and move soldiers to take down all of Jiaozhou, he would be able to ensure the safety of the navy generals. As for how to deal with it afterward … that was a problem for the officials to consider.
Unfortunately, when he was still hundreds of feet away from the navy camp, he suddenly felt the ground begin to shake.
There was no sound, but there was someone behind him.
He turned his head but didn't see anyone. He only saw a dozen fully armored horses. It was not until the horses came closer that he realized that the horses were all riders in black clothing.
In the darkness, the black armor reflected the dim moonlight in the sky and seemed to carry a glimmer of death.
His pupils constricted slightly, and his body began to tremble. These were the Black Knights, the Overwatch Council's Black Knights!
…
…
His head flew into the sky and fresh blood sprayed out of his chest. It was not until the moment before this navy officer's death that he began to feel his stupidity. Since the Overwatch Council had come to deal with the navy, how could they not bring the Black Knights that the world feared?
Jing Ge's face was still covered by that silver mask. He glanced coldly at the body on the ground and nodded to the personal guard beside him.
The personal guard pulled on the reins of his horse and turned around. Standing at the bottom of the hill, he made a few hand signals. However, the night was so dark and the moonlight so dim. Who could see these orders?
After his hand signal landed, a row of densely packed objects suddenly appeared on the low beam between Jiaozhou and the port navy camp like a woodland after a rain. It looked strangely beautiful.
They were all riders. On the mountain ridge, a neat row of black riders waited quietly like ghosts for orders. The formation of the formation was facing the navy camp in the distance.
The formation did not move at all. No one knew how these riders controlled the horses on them, but they did not make a single neigh. Even their hooves did not randomly paw the ground.
However, the tens of thousands of soldiers in the navy did not seem to notice anything.
Jing Ge led the 10 personal guards behind him and looked coldly in the direction of the navy camp. Suddenly, he opened his mouth and said, "There's still half an hour."
The personal guards behind him placed one foot on the stirrup and began to nock the crossbows. They then slowly pulled out straight knives in unison. Crossbow in the left and knife in the right. This was the standard configuration of the Black Knights.
A glimmer of killing intent flashed between Jing Ge's brows. He was outside the city on Fan Xian's orders and was responsible for preventing the communication between the generals in the city and the navy soldiers. Even he had not thought that the navy generals would react so quickly. At the same time that Dang Xiaobo had the officer leave the city, there were still many navy generals who had made the same choice.
Although the Black Knights had already killed seven people in front and behind this low mountain ridge, Jing Ge could not guarantee that no one from the navy had passed through this blockade and entered the navy camp.
Gazing in the direction of the harbor in the distance, Jing Ge narrowed his eyes. The silver mask on his face carried a cold light. The navy camp had already moved. The lights were also slightly brighter than before. It looked like the soldiers there already knew of the news from inside the city. Presumably, there were a few generals skilled in inciting them and tempting the navy soldiers to attack Jiaozhou to save those people who had long died … to send these soldiers to their deaths.
Jing Ge silently waited for that moment. He knew that the navy was not made of iron. At most, the other party could only send out 2,000 people. This was something the commissioner had already calculated beforehand.
Four hundred Black Knights against 2,000 navy soldiers who were not skilled in land battles.
Jing Ge couldn't resist shaking his head. They were all people of the Qing court and soldiers of the Qing court. He actually did not want to slaughter the other party.
— — —
Fan Xian did not know of the tense situation outside the city, but he could guess that the navy should have already moved. The Black Knights' sudden attack power was unparalleled, particularly at night. No one should be able to pose a threat to Jiaozhou. However, it was already late at night. If he waited until daybreak and still could not have the navy generals come out to win over the hearts of the people, an even larger mutiny would probably be difficult to avoid.
Thus, while he was worried about the Black Knights, he sat in the admiral's manor and waited with a trace of mockery for the generals to return.
Just like the order of rank, the first general to return to the manor was the third-in-command of the navy. This general, who was over 40 years old, directly knelt before Fan Xian in the study and expressed his incomparable loyalty to the court, his incomparable hatred for Chang Kun's rebellious actions and treason, as well as his solicitous sympathy for the commissioner's hard work in investigating the case through the night.
This attitude made Fan Xian very pleased. It was not a waste of all the things he had done this night and the psychological attack he had set up for so long.
However, the conversation at the end made Fan Xian angry. Although this general had a high position in the navy, he also admitted that without Chang Kun and Dang Xiaobo, it would be a difficult matter for him to completely control the navy.
What made Fan Xian particularly angry was that General He straightforwardly expressed his unwillingness to be the first to stand out. In the current situation, whoever stood out first would certainly receive the most direct hatred of the navy soldiers. If they wanted to control the army in the future, it would probably be a big problem.
Fan Xian's problem was that when faced with this old and shameless man, he could not be too vicious.
With snot and tears in his eyes, General He said, "Sir, I have been following the Great Prince to the West to conquer the Hu. It has only been half a year since I came to Jiaozhou. I truly do not understand the matters of the navy."
So, after all this, he was the Great Prince's man. Fan Xian sighed in his heart. Although the Overwatch Council's intelligence said this, he had already shamelessly revealed his identity. No matter what, he had to give the Great Prince some face.
Following this, there was an endless stream of generals who returned to the admiral's manor to express their loyalty to the Emperor and their condolences to Fan Xian. At the same time, they carefully took out relevant evidence to explain their faction and position.
None of these generals were Chang Kun's trusted aides or the Eldest Princess's spies in Jiaozhou. The problem was, no one was willing to stand out to help Fan Xian solve his problems because the matter was indeed too big. For their own futures and the masters behind them, they were more willing to temporarily maintain their silence.
The reason they had come to talk to Fan Xian was because they were afraid that Fan Xian would become angry and capture them like he did with Dang Xiaobo. He would also charge them with colluding with bandits and committing treason.
Each of them had factions and backers. These backers all had deep or shallow relationships with the Fan family in Jingdou, so Fan Xian had to give them some face.
Fan Xian didn't need to give the Eldest Princess and the Eastern Palace face, but he had to give these people face.
"Sir, I am Ren Shao 'an's distant uncle. “
"Sir, this lowly official is Old Master Qin's …"
"Milord …"
When a deputy controlling the navy's logistics said mysteriously and awkwardly, "Sir, my surname is Liu …" Fan Xian finally exploded. This was one of the three most powerful navies in the Qing Kingdom?
He had never imagined that the relationship between the factions of a single navy would be so complicated. Surnamed Liu? Why didn't you tell me about your relationship with my stepmother? Fan Xian was furious. He chased the bastard out but did not allow him to leave the manor. Since he was a disguised relative, he had to act as a villain even if he didn't want to!
For Fan Xian, the greatest benefit was that he learned that the military was not a piece of iron. The internal affairs were complicated. There were people from the Palace, people from the previous Prime Minister's manor, people from the old Qin family, and people from the Hall of Governmental Affairs. None of them could deal a heavy blow, but these people were all very slippery and did not want to jump out and be Fan Xian's knife.
In the end, Fan Xian picked out two people to be his knife. At the same time, he had the last person walk in.
He didn't look at that person. He was only thinking about his own thoughts. He couldn't help but feel a glimmer of anger in his heart. In the end, of the two generals he had chosen, one was from Duke Liu's manor, and the other was someone his father-in-law had once had a relationship with. In any case, they were the closest, so it was not up to them to run.
Fan Xian smiled self-mockingly. The military had become like this. It had become a place for the major figures in the court to arrange jobs. If this continued, even the military would become a patch of rot. How much of the battle power that the Qing Kingdom had always been proud of could be preserved? How could such an army protect the country and the people?
Chang Kun was indeed not a good person, but what about these generals, as well as the people behind them?
He looked mockingly at the last general. He knew that he was an old general of the navy and had some prestige in the military. However, he didn't know which family he was from. He couldn't help but mockingly say, "May I ask which person in the court this general is on good terms with? Prime Minister Lin? Scholar Shu? Or the old Qin Master? Never mind the Director and that father of mine, I wouldn't believe it. "
Fan Xian sighed in his heart. Looking at the navy, he knew that if this went on, the Qing Kingdom would truly have its generals not in the army and its generals not in the country. The military was a matter of national importance. How could these people be so shameless to let their students and old friends gain benefits from the military?
The general stood in front of Fan Xian. His expression froze slightly. Shortly after, he smiled slightly and said, "Young master, I am your man."
Fan Xian was startled and didn't say anything for a while. Narrowing his eyes slightly, he said, "Whose man are you?"
The general's expression did not change. He smiled slightly and repeated, "I am your man."
Fan Xian took a deep breath. An absurd feeling welled up in his heart. Earlier, he had been righteously and angrily criticizing the officials. How come a fist had smashed into his face?
However, he had never had a trusted aide in the military. Chen Pingping and his father were also closely watched by the Emperor. Even if they had planted someone, it was impossible for them not to tell him. Thus, Fan Xian narrowed his eyes and examined the person in front of him. He couldn't resist asking again, "Whose man are you exactly?"
The general repeated for the third time, "I am your man …" He respectfully said, "It has nothing to do with anyone else. I am only your man."
…
…
(Pulling monthly votes on the last day of the month, because all of you are talking about me, and I am also talking about you …) (To be continued, if you want to know what happens next, please log on to WWW. CMFU. COM, there are more chapters. Support the author, support the original reading!)
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