Chapter 393

Even if their strength is superior, they dare not.

Once surrounded by more Great Ming soldiers, they would be ground to death.

So the Japanese pirates have always been in a state of Mobile Corps Commander warfare.

They burn, kill, and plunder in one wave, then withdraw without stopping!

This time, the Japanese pirates intend to attack Suzhou Prefecture, gathering many Japanese pirate members.

In total, there are more than three thousand!

It can be said to be an absolute large-scale operation!

The reason so many people could gather is twofold.

First, because Suzhou Prefecture has many wealthy people, and many leaders plan to get a share of the spoils.

Second, the younger brother of the organizer, Fujita Goichiro, was previously beheaded by Lu Xiangsheng and others in Jiangzhe.

This is considered revenge, aiming to intimidate the Great Ming.

To be honest, the Great Ming's coastal defenses have been neglected for so many years, making it seem as if these Japanese pirates come and go as they please.

They feel the Great Ming army is just that!

They have swollen with arrogance!

They have become arrogant!

The officials present considered Lin Fu's proposal for a moment and all agreed.

"In that case, let us quickly send someone to the guest house to invite Master Su; this matter is a great affair!"

"Good!"

Su Qiao was still sleeping soundly in bed, with Liu Rushi in his arms, warm and soft, simply too comfortable.

Bang bang bang!

Suddenly, knocking sounds came from outside, along with shouting that woke Su Qiao.

"Mr. Su, Mr. Su, wake up, there is an emergency!"

Su Qiao opened his sleepy eyes, frowned slightly, and asked outside, "What is it?"

"Urgent military intelligence, a message sent overnight by Zhang Xueceng, the Prefect of Suzhou Prefecture!"

A great affair!

Liu Rushi also woke up, "Master, official matters are paramount."

Su Qiao nodded, and with Liu Rushi's help, quickly put on his clothes.

He opened the door and let Ma Kui in.

"Speak, what exactly is happening? Why is there fighting at such a late hour?"

Su Qiao did not think there would be warfare anywhere, as the Jurchen Tatars were almost wiped out.

The remainder had fled into the cold Siberia, and it was unclear if they could survive.

As for others, such as the Franks, Spaniards, Dutch, and so on, they did not yet have the courage to provoke the Great Ming.

At most, they only roamed around Ryukyu and Taiwan.

So what other warfare remains?

Su Qiao's sleepiness had just faded, his mind had not yet started turning, so he simply did not think about it and directly asked Ma Kui.

Ma Kui dared not conceal anything and quickly said, "Mr. Su, it is the Japanese pirates. Suzhou Prefecture received news that the Japanese pirates have gathered more than three thousand people and plan to attack Suzhou Prefecture, Ningbo Prefecture, and other places the day after tomorrow. Now the officials in Nanjingcheng have all been woken up and are discussing what to do."

Ma Kui is an Embroidered Uniform Guard and also the personal bodyguard of Su Qiao, this Imperial Envoy.

In itself, this matter was not a secret among the officials in Nanjingcheng.

Naturally, they very readily told Ma Kui the full story first.

This was also to let Su Qiao know the severity of the situation.

As expected, upon hearing that the Japanese pirates intended to attack Suzhou Prefecture, Su Qiao frowned.

"This group of little Japanese have quite a lot of nerve; Grand Secretary Sun did not hurt them before, and now they dare come again. Do they think I am a soft persimmon?"

Su Qiao murmured to himself in a low voice, while Ma Kui stood aside, not daring to disturb Su Qiao's thinking.

At this moment, Su Qiao had already changed his clothes.

After washing his hands and face, Su Qiao turned his head and asked Ma Kui, "Is the carriage ready?"

"It was ready long ago!"

"Hmm!" Su Qiao nodded, then turned his head again to say to Liu Rushi, "We probably cannot leave today; you rest at the guest house. I will be back soon."

"Good, you have important matters to attend to; I will not disturb you."

"Let us go!"

In the carriage, Su Qiao had more or less figured out what was happening.

Previously, apart from Lin Fu and others who had provoked Su Qiao, the other officials had no real connection with Su Qiao.

He came here not to command the small Southern Court of Nanjing.

Yet they called him out.

Besides finding someone to take the blame, there could be nothing else!

This time the Japanese pirates' planned attack left everyone somewhat at a loss.

They were all civil officials, and lacking the ability, they all hoped that no incidents would occur under their watch, allowing them to pass the final stage peacefully and then retire.

They dared not touch such a major responsibility.

Just as Su Qiao counts as an Imperial Envoy, so they invited him here.

Since he now knew the thoughts of the Nanjing officials, Su Qiao began to entertain other ideas.

First and foremost, allowing Japanese pirates to successfully raid Great Ming garrisons and slaughter Great Ming commoners is absolutely unacceptable!

Second, taking the blame for the Nanjingcheng officials on his own behalf.

That is not Su Qiao's character.

If they want Su Qiao to act, fine!

But trying to get something for nothing is definitely out of the question.

Last time, with only Lin Fu and a few other officials, Su Qiao squeezed out four hundred thousand taels of silver; today there will be even more officials, so wouldn't that make him rich?

"Mr. Su, we have arrived!"

The carriage stopped at the palace gate, interrupting Su Qiao's thoughts.

Coming to his senses, he jumped down from the carriage and, without looking back, instructed Ma Kui:

"You wait here for now. Also, notify the Embroidered Uniform Guard to keep a close watch on any households engaged in smuggling or frequent activities; the Suzhou Prefecture and Ningbo Prefecture should be monitored as well."

"Yes!"

Su Qiao arrived at the palace entrance, was asked a question, and had his identity token and official credentials inspected.

The guards at the gate promptly granted him passage and led Su Qiao to the Hall of Deliberation.

"... His Excellency the Imperial Envoy, Lord Su, has arrived!"

The officials inside the Hall of Deliberation were all closing their eyes to rest; not a single one was speaking, all waiting for Su Qiao to arrive.

At that moment, the announcement startled everyone.

Opening their bloodshot eyes, their gazes converged on Su Qiao, who had just pushed open the door and walked in.

"Greetings, my lords!"

Seeing their drowsy appearance, Su Qiao found it somewhat amusing.

After all, most of the officials standing here were in their forties or fifties, well past middle age.

They simply did not have the energy of young men.

248, Debating the Scholars!

Hearing Su Qiao's words, these people snapped out of their daze and reacted.

They hurriedly wiped the drool from the corners of their mouths, rose to their feet, and bowed to Su Qiao in return.

"We greet your Excellency, the Imperial Envoy!"

"It is mainly because we are old and our spirits are somewhat weak; we have been somewhat negligent toward Lord Su, please forgive us!"

"Yes, yes, Lord Su, we are just lacking a backbone; we have been waiting for you."

"It is truly good that you have arrived; the matter is urgent, so Lord Su should make the decision?"