Chapter 397

But the changes that followed left everyone truly bewildered.

The second to stand up and express agreement, pledging money, was Lin Fu.

Lin Fu rose directly and announced he would donate eighty thousand taels of silver.

What about the others?

One by one, they looked at each other, exchanging glances in silence.

Mainly because Lin Fu was the Minister of Personnel; he could be counted as one of the big shots, his status and position far from low.

Silence fell once more for a while.

The families that had clashed with Su Qiao the day before, the Zhao family, the Li family, and others, also stood up one after another to show support.

Instantly, the entire atmosphere shifted.

Add to that Su Qiao sitting there, silent, holding a tea cup, his eyes extremely sharp as he stared at those who had not yet spoken.

His posture was as if he intended to record every single person who did not support him, planning to deal with them specifically later.

Su Qiao was no ordinary imperial envoy.

He was an imperial envoy with the power to act on his own discretion.

Who could endure that?

If Su Qiao marked you in his little book and then dealt with you directly later, that would be truly miserable!

Thus, the fence-sitting neutral officials of the Caoqiqiang Sect also immediately defected.

Do not think Su Qiao was expressionless.

But inside, he was bursting with joy.

This move was no loss; with only this many people present so far, nearly nine hundred thousand taels of silver had already been gathered.

This was only this many people; there were still some officials in the great hall who had not yet spoken.

Once everyone had spoken, it was estimated that at least one million two hundred thousand taels would be reached.

They were all wealthy people!

Not long after the neutral faction defected, the remaining opposition could not hold out either, and they too spoke up one after another to pledge donations.

They could not donate less than before.

However, just as everyone could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Su Qiao spoke again!

Is it over?

Not at all!

This was merely an appetizer!

Su Qiao's plans would not be fully exposed all at once.

They were testing Su Qiao, and Su Qiao was also testing them.

"This official believes that all of you are pillars of the court; being able to donate money to support and defend Great Ming is truly a warm-hearted act for the nation! However, among loyal and devoted ministers, there are also treacherous villains with hidden agendas. To ensure this battle is won, this official feels we should discover the talents of the younger generation."

Hm?

The younger generation?

The brows of everyone in the great hall knitted together, a bad feeling stirring in their hearts.

They wouldn't be causing some new trouble again, would they?

Their premonition was correct; Su Qiao truly had a new idea.

"I know everyone hopes their sons will become dragons; who does not want to avoid being called a tiger father with a dog son? Therefore, this is the opportunity to cultivate your sons! Just as the Censor Yu said earlier, selecting generals is difficult to select; since that is the case, this official will personally lead the troops and take the Young Masters of all of you to see the world, which can also be considered sharing the burden of the nation!"

Hearing this, the ministers below turned pale one by one; they truly did not expect Su Qiao to make such a proposal.

What kind of outrageous move was this?

Did he want each family to send their descendants as hostages?

That is too much!

"Minister Su, you..." someone dissatisfied rose and tried to speak.

Su Qiao cut his words off decisively.

"I know everyone certainly has objections, but I want to say, I am not negotiating with you; this is a mandatory requirement. Why have the Japanese pirates repeatedly invaded the borders and always been able to bypass our Great Ming garrison defenses?"

"Is it not because there are traitors inside, Han traitors who inform the Japanese pirates, helping outsiders slaughter our own Great Ming compatriots? I tell you, I am taking your sons to gain experience at the risk of their lives; it is basically going to fight for their lives. I hope none of you will drag my legs..."

Su Qiao did not finish his words, yet everyone present understood the meaning perfectly.

A threat!

A naked threat!

Whoever dares to drag his legs, there is no guarantee Su Qiao will not directly have your son "die in battle"!

Is there anything more vicious than this?

Su Qiao possessed the imperial edict granting him the power to act on his own discretion, even though this matter was somewhat Hu Nao.

Yet no one could stop him...

They could only listen to Su Qiao's words.

If glances could kill, Su Qiao would have been killed by everyone present countless times already.

After struggling and raging for a long time, everyone could only accept this fact.

They just cursed Su Qiao countless times in their hearts!

As the saying goes, speed is precious in war; the Japanese pirates will arrive the day after tomorrow.

Since the decision to fight this battle has been made, naturally no one dares to delay time.

Additionally, the "hostages" proposed by Su Qiao must follow along tomorrow; no one wants to lose.

Compared to the previous lazy and dragging manner, the current efficiency has greatly increased!

Grain and fodder, troop movements, plans for strengthening walls and clearing the fields, and so on, were all resolved within a single two-hour period.

Su Qiao could not waste time; today he had to pack his bags and, together with the young masters from each family, head straight for Suzhou Prefecture.

Fortunately, Suzhou Prefecture is not far from Nanjingcheng.

Otherwise, he truly feared they would be too late.

……

Su Qiao bid farewell to the officials glaring at him, returned to the post station, and told Liu Rushi about his trip to Suzhou.

When Liu Rushi learned that Su Qiao would personally lead troops against the Japanese pirates, she could not help but show a look of worry.

"Rest assured, this time we are certain of victory; we have at least ten thousand soldiers while the Japanese pirates number only a little over three thousand, and besides, we have gunpowder."

Su Qiao comforted Liu Rushi with a cheerful smile.

Hearing this, Liu Rushi nodded. "I will not accompany you, to save you from worrying; I will stay here and wait for your return!"

"Good!"

Su Qiao said his goodbyes to Liu Rushi.

The various ministers who had returned from the imperial palace to their homes were also in chaos as soon as they entered Yijinjia Sect.

Each family was forcibly required to "hand over" their young master to go with Su Qiao to Suzhou.

It was mandatory!

Some had other thoughts and wanted to secretly arrange for their sons to flee.

But they did not succeed at all.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard of the Southern Surveillance Command had been watching each family closely from early on.

No one could escape!

When most of the young masters learned they were to defend the city, they turned pale, wailing and howling in an attempt to avoid it.

Avoidance was impossible; in the end, their legs trembling, they were forcibly dragged away by the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

By the time Su Qiao counted the heads, these young masters were almost all wearing mournful faces.

250, arrived at Gusu!

At noon, that group of young masters was forcibly stuffed into the ranks.

The servants and private soldiers of every household in Nanjingcheng were also gathered by Su Qiao.

The private soldiers totaled more than two thousand, and the servants totaled more than eight thousand.

Su Qiao knew this was only a portion; quite a few people were still hiding half of their forces.

But this was nearly enough, so Su Qiao did not press the matter.