Chapter 454: A Ten-Year-Old Bride (Daily Update, Begging for Rewards!)

Wang Dengku looked at Agutai with disbelief in his eyes and asked directly, "Is what you said true? Are you sure you want to do this? If you do this, you really might not come back alive."

"I never expected to come back alive." Agutai shook his head and said, his attitude extremely resolute.

In fact, the reason Agutai's attitude was so resolute was not what he claimed it to be. Agutai knew very well in his heart that even if he killed these people now, it would no longer hold much significance.

The business in Zhangjiakou had already been exposed. From the moment the Khorchin people and Irgen Gioro were captured, there was nothing else that could be done.

Once the business was exposed, Zhangjiakou would be tightly guarded. Trying to reopen a trade route would be harder than reaching the heavens — the Great Ming Emperor would absolutely never allow it.

Since they were already prepared to uproot Zhangjiakou, what meaning was there in killing or not killing people?

Even if they killed people, could that prevent the leak of information?

Absolutely impossible. The only one who needed to be silenced to prevent information from leaking was this Wang Dengku before him. If these people leaked the secret, they would have only one path — death.

Agutai, on the other hand, didn't need to worry about that. What he needed to worry about was escaping — leaving Zhangjiakou alive was more important than anything.

The reason Agutai was willing to take the risk of killing people to silence them was not to protect people like Wang Dengku. These people would certainly be purged, and no one knew what their fate would be.

If he wanted to preserve the spark of the trade business, perhaps these people could be protected to some extent, but Agutai would absolutely not stake his own life on it.

Besides, reopening a trade route would require new business partners — the people before him were no longer suitable.

If he could kill Fan Yongdou after charging in, Agutai would do it, but he would absolutely not force it.

What Agutai needed to do was go see Irgen Gioro and find a way to rescue him; even if he couldn't rescue him, he would kill him. In addition, there were also the Khorchin people.

Although he didn't know what the Great Ming Emperor intended to do, nor what he would do with the captured Khorchin people, for Agutai, killing them was the best course of action.

If Wukeshan and Bumbutai died here, then this matter would be the Great Ming people's responsibility. Taking the news back and spreading it would be extremely advantageous to the Great Khan.

Their deaths would be more useful than their lives. In any case, they must not be allowed to live in the hands of the Great Ming people, or there would be great trouble.

As for telling Wang Dengku this, it was to get Wang Dengku to help.

Although Agutai still had over a dozen men under him, all of them fearless of death, in this place called Zhangjiakou, under the current circumstances, these dozen or so men were of little use. If they fought head-on, going out meant death; if they acted covertly, they lacked the capability — it was very inconvenient.

But with Wang Dengku, it was different. These people were local snakes who knew the terrain — many things Agutai couldn't do, they could.

As long as Wang Dengku could get Agutai in, that was enough. He didn't need to worry about anything else.

At this moment, Wang Dengku was also pondering — was what this Agutai said true or false?

But whether true or false, Wang Dengku didn't seem to have much choice. He should take a gamble — after all, it was just sending them in. If these people died, they died. If they were captured, they probably wouldn't give him up.

If they wanted to expose the Wang family, with so many people already captured, they would have spoken long ago. Whether it was Irgen Gioro or Fan Yongdou, they would both hand over the Wang family.

A cold glint flashed through Wang Dengku's eyes. He had made his decision.

Looking at Agutai before him, Wang Dengku said, "I can send you in. But you don't need to die in there — you can try to rescue the people."

"You can rest assured, I will arrange for you to leave the city and get out of Zhangjiakou. As long as you can escape from that inn, I'll have a way to get you out. If you can't get out for the time being, I can also arrange a place for you to hide. Zhangjiakou may not be big, but hiding a few people is no problem."

Giving Wang Dengku a deep look, Agutai said, "Good, no problem. You are our good friend. After this matter is over, I will definitely find a way to help you make your business even bigger."

"That's a matter for later — let's talk about it after this is past." Wang Dengku shook his head and said.

In fact, these words were also Wang Dengku's deception.

If these people really could escape, he would definitely have them all killed. Send them out of the city?

That was absolutely something he would never do — too dangerous. Not to mention he had no connections for it; even if he did, he wouldn't do such a thing. These people should die in Zhangjiakou and never go back.

The reason he told them to rescue people rather than kill was to give them a bit of hope, to prevent them from doing something reckless.

The two of them, each harboring their own thoughts, briefly reached an agreement. After discussing the details of the operation, they parted ways.

Wang Dengku left cautiously, going back to arrange his people to prepare for the operation.

Agutai went back to prepare his men, ready to make his move at any moment.

Meanwhile, in the inn, things had already become lively.

Wei Chao brought his men and began preparations. Supplies were continuously brought in, and even large red double-happiness characters were prepared. Clearly, they had already built up the festive atmosphere.

In a room not far away, Wukeshan sat before a table, the mood heavy.

Wine and dishes were laid out in the room. Wukeshan downed his cup in one gulp, turned his head to look at Bumbutai sitting before the dressing table, and said gloomily, "Bumbutai, I've put you through hardship."

Hearing these words, Bumbutai's body trembled slightly, her voice a little choked, but she suppressed it with great effort and said, "Brother, don't take it to heart. For me, marrying the Great Ming Emperor or marrying Hong Taiji makes no real difference. But it's better that I'm marrying the Great Ming Emperor — otherwise, meeting Aunt would still be somewhat awkward."

Bumbutai's aunt, Jeche, was Hong Taiji's principal wife. After Hong Taiji proclaimed himself emperor, he established Jeche as Empress.

If Bumbutai had also married Hong Taiji, they would have been an aunt and niece serving the same husband.

But now, such a thing would never happen again.

"We were forced into this." Wukeshan slammed his wine cup hard onto the table and said, "But he actually wants you to serve him in bed tonight. If you're unwilling, then we'll fight our way out!"

"Fighting our way out of here would just mean death, nothing more." Bumbutai looked at her brother, smiled, and shook her head, her face slightly flushed as she said, "Brother, I've already explained — he told me this is all for show, for others to see. He won't actually do anything to me."

"He is the Great Ming Emperor. Even if he truly did something to me, no one could do anything about it. He had no need to make such a promise. So I believe him — he won't break his word to me."

"Brother, you should also prepare yourself well. Tomorrow, two imperial edicts will be delivered into your hands, and then you can take them back with you."

In fact, Bumbutai could also see that her brother had truly been tempted.

Bumbutai could easily sense from his words that her brother's resistance was growing weaker and weaker.

Clearly, the benefits the Great Ming Emperor had offered were enough to move him — even the scenes he had painted for him had given him the confidence to realize them.

Under such circumstances, whatever she said wouldn't have much effect. Even if she truly wanted to fight her way out together with her brother, her brother would probably persuade her otherwise — the situation was very different now.

But for Bumbutai, it didn't really matter. She actually felt that cooperating with Great Ming was more suitable, after all, Great Ming had no way to occupy the grasslands.

Compared to Great Ming, Hong Taiji was truly more dangerous.

Perhaps this time really was an opportunity for Khorchin.

What the entirety of Khorchin was thinking — who didn't know?

That her father wanted to dominate the grasslands was no secret; several generations had harbored this ambition. It was just that there had never been a good opportunity, and the family's strength had never been able to grow.

If this truly succeeded, then perhaps they could really accomplish many great things. From now on, the Great Ming imperial palace would be Bumbutai's battlefield, and her situation would certainly not be easy.

But Bumbutai believed she could handle it, and she was also very confident in her appearance. In a few more years, she might even be able to captivate the Great Ming Emperor.

Bumbutai said to Wukeshan, "Brother, let's each do our part well. I will do my best to fight for some benefits for you on the Ming side, so that you can live a better life."

"At the same time, you must work hard within the tribe and strive to strengthen the Khorchin. When the time comes, the stronger the Khorchin is, the better your sister's days will be."

After hearing this, Wukeshan stood up and nodded vigorously, saying: "Sister, rest assured, your brother will definitely not let you down, will definitely not let your sacrifices be in vain, and will definitely make the Khorchin the most powerful tribe on the grasslands!"

"Good." Bumbutai nodded, a brilliant smile spreading across her face.

Sure enough, her thoughts were correct—her brother had changed; he had been blinded by certain things.

At this moment, no matter what she said, he would no longer believe it. But she had to stay calm; this situation wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

After Wukeshan left, Bumbutai looked into the mirror, her eyes somewhat vacant.

So she was just getting married like this?

Although she knew she would soon marry Hong Taiji, this was far too sudden!

She simply wasn't prepared, and it shouldn't have been like this.

But thinking of that man, Bumbutai still felt her heart racing—she wondered what he would do to her.

In another room, Zhu Youxiao was not thinking about this matter at all.

He looked at Chen Hong before him with a grave expression and asked: "Is this the list submitted by the Embroidered Uniform Guard?"

"Yes, Your Majesty." Chen Hong quickly replied: "This was confessed by Fan Yongdou."

"According to what Fan Yongdou said, anyone doing business in Zhangjiakou who has any connection with beyond the pass basically smuggles some goods out."

"The gentry families around Zhangjiakou are also mostly involved, with the Shanxi merchants being the worst. Shanxi is rich in iron ore, so they basically smuggle iron ore and weapons. In addition to that, there are also grain and salt. Whatever is in the highest demand, the more they smuggle it."

"This list enumerates twenty-four merchants, large and small, all of whom are in this line of business."

Zhu Youxiao nodded.

This list was not beyond his expectations. The smuggling in Zhangjiakou had not yet grown that powerful. It would only reach its peak after Hong Taiji destroyed Ligdan Khan and unified the Mongol tribes.

But even now, this harvest was already considerable—Zhu Youxiao was quite satisfied.

Putting the list down, Zhu Youxiao said: "Have the Embroidered Uniform Guard keep watch on them—they absolutely must not be allowed to escape. Map out all their assets completely, not leaving a single bit behind, understand?"

"Rest assured, Your Majesty, this servant understands." Chen Hong quickly agreed.

As for the purpose of His Majesty's trip to Zhangjiakou, Chen Hong could more or less guess. This wasn't the first time he had seen matters concerning raising money.

His Majesty had many ideas for spending money, and he spent it very quickly. By the time they left the capital this time, the inner treasury was nearly empty. If he didn't scrape up some money upon arriving here, that wouldn't be His Majesty's style at all.

In this matter, Chen Hong knew what to do—he would certainly arrange it well without any mistakes.

Nodding with satisfaction, Zhu Youxiao asked: "How is the progress on the other matter?"

"The message has been delivered to him, and the effect is very good." Chen Hong said with a smile on his face: "In the past few days, he wouldn't eat properly, and he wouldn't cooperate when the Bureau Director treated his wounds."

"But these past few days have been different. He eats more now, conserves his strength, and cooperates well with his treatment. Although he does it cautiously, such things can't be hidden from us after all."

"The yamen runners have also confirmed that he heard the news. He's probably thinking of ways to send the message out right now."

"Excellent, that's just right!" Zhu Youxiao nodded and said: "Don't let anything go wrong. Remember—seal the information tight for now, and let him stay put for a while."

"The longer the time passes, the more anxious he'll become. And when the time comes to send the message out, he'll be all the more certain that the intelligence he received is genuine. This matter cannot be rushed."

"Yes, Your Majesty. This servant understands." Chen Hong bowed in agreement.

"On the Liaodong front, men have already been sent to deliver the message. I believe Xiong Tingbi will make his move soon. The news here must not leak out too quickly—it must come later than theirs. Then there will be a good show to watch." Zhu Youxiao said with a smile.

Chen Hong hurriedly smiled and said: "Your Majesty strategizes from afar—how could these barbarians ever compare?"

Zhu Youxiao glanced at Chen Hong without saying a word. This flattery was utterly devoid of skill.

After stretching his body, Zhu Youxiao said with some emotion: "Come, let's go see my bride. Who would have thought that tonight I'd be a groom again—and to a ten-year-old girl at that."