"Brother Zhao, this is your fault. Are you still hiding it in front of me?"

Xuelan narrowed her eyes slightly and said:

"Although your mother died young, don't you still have a biological uncle? He should be the general of Yangzhou East Gate now, right?

With him here, wouldn't it be easy to open the city gate?

And you seem to be unassuming over the years, but in fact you have many friends or confidants in the city and within the Zhao family~

It will be easy for you to stir up the situation in the city a little bit."

The smile on Xuelan's mouth was a bit weird, as if she could see through all Zhao Jinan's trump cards.

Zhao Jinan's eyes finally became solemn, and he looked Xuelan up and down several times before saying:

"Brother Xue knows me really well~"

"Haha, each other."

Xuelan asked, "Now can we have a straight-to-the-point chat?"

Zhao Jinan sat upright and spread his palms:

"you say."

Xuelan looked at Zhao Jinan and said slowly, put away the cynical expression just now and said:

"Brother Zhao, others don't know you, but I know you.

You are a commoner and lost your mother when you were young, so your father has never paid much attention to you, and his love is far less than that of your eldest brother Zhao Chutao.

If it hadn't been for the changes in today's world, your future would most likely have been to be a third- or fourth-grade civil servant in the land of Qingyang, or to be in charge of part of the family's industry, so that you could live a lifetime of prosperity and wealth.

For you, I’m afraid these are far from enough, right?”

Xuelan's eyes were stern. He should know Zhao Jinan best among his peers. This person seemed quiet on the surface, but in fact he was very ambitious.

"Go on."

Zhao Jinan waved his hand expressionlessly.

"Since childhood, your eldest brother has been trained as the future heir of the family, but his brain is not as good as yours. It's just that he was born better and his mother's family is more honorable.

Are you willing to watch everything in the Zhao family fall into his hands?

Zhao Chutao has been lukewarm towards you since he was a child and has not had a good impression of you. Even I can't stand this kind of self-esteem.

In the past, when we went out to play together, your eldest brother would shout around and shout at you. How could he be like a real brother? It was more like he treated you like a servant.

Brother Zhao, you are talented and intelligent, and you are a great talent. I feel sorry for you~"

Xuelan made a long sound, her tone full of provocation.

Even though he knew that Xuelan was trying to sow discord between himself and his eldest brother, Zhao Jinan's fists were clenched unconsciously, because almost everything Xuelan said was the truth.

Now the family is putting all their effort into cultivating him because there is no one available and only the clan can be relied upon. In the past, how could he have been treated like he is now.

To be honest, not only brotherly love, but also fatherly love is very far away for Zhao Jinan. Zhao Zhonghai has been working as an official in the capital. When he comes home rarely, he mostly visits his grandfather and elder brother. But what about himself?

Optional.

In a big family, family affection is an extremely rare thing.

Xuelan stood up with her hands behind her back and said calmly:

"I know that there are still 100,000 troops in the city, as well as countless money, food and military supplies. It seems to be indestructible and it will be able to hold on for several years.

But do you think you can really hold on for that long?

You have seen the combat effectiveness of the Long Army, and the talent of the fifth minister is rare in the world. Even the Liang Army cannot take advantage of him.

To put it bluntly, if the Long Army really attacked Yangzhou in an all-out manner, it would be difficult for Yangzhou to sustain itself for a month.

When the city is destroyed, the century-old Zhao family will definitely be wiped out, and Brother Zhao's lifelong aspirations and ambitions will also be buried with the Zhao family.

Are you really willing?"

Zhao Jinan's body could not help but tremble slightly, and every word Xuelan said entered his heart. He seemed to have been able to foresee the scene of the Zhao family being wiped out when the city was broken.

Zhao Jinan couldn't help but shudder at the thought of the scimitar hanging over his head.

"I am not entering the city to persuade you to surrender, nor am I going to be Fifth Xinrou's lackey."

Xuelan's tone gradually became more serious:

"I'm here to show you a clear path!

A better way to live!"

Zhao Jinan raised his head little by little:

"Want to hear the details."

"As I said before, open the city and surrender."

Xuelan said with temptation in her tone:

"The Fifth Master promises you that if you take Yangzhou and take Zhou Jiaqing's head, you will have the final say over the entire Zhao family and even the entire Cangyang Road.

You will be the new generation of Zhao family head!"

Zhao Jinan's heart beat hard, and a strange light flashed in his eyes.

After a long silence, he asked expressionlessly:

"I have become the head of the family. What should I do with my grandfather, father, and my eldest brother?"

"Haha, of course you have the final say."

Xuelan held her chin with one hand and murmured:

"But if these people don't die, will you be able to secure your position as the head of the family?"

Zhao Jinan was silent, indeed, if these people were not dead, how could he be able to secure his position as the head of the family? As long as they were still alive, the heads of the other gentry clans in Jiangnan would definitely not listen to him.

The transfer of power will definitely bring about a bloody storm.

Xuelan no longer looked at Zhao Jinan's expression, but said to herself:

"On the one hand, I risked my life, betting that the Zhao family could hold on to Yangzhou City, and eventually become a moderate official.

On the other hand, the position of the head of the Zhao family is almost guaranteed, becoming the leader of the Jiangnan family.

This choice should be easy to make, right?"

Zhao Jinan frowned while rapidly thinking about the pros and cons in his mind. If he took this step, there would be no turning back.

Xuelan stood up, walked to Zhao Jinan, and patted his shoulder gently:

"Think about it, think about what life you have lived.

Although you are the second son of the Zhao family, you are just a pawn on the chessboard. Why bother betting on an uncertain future?

From now on, you control the Zhao family and I control the Xue family. The land of Qingyang will still be decided by the two of us!"

Xuelan's eyes were also filled with ambition. His father, Xue Qilong, was a man who was extremely thirsty for power, so he naturally followed his father.

Zhao Jinan murmured:

"Grandpa and father have deep prestige among the Jiangnan nobles. No one dares to disobey their orders. If I rashly replace them, many people will be dissatisfied.

I'm afraid it's not an easy task to secure the position of head of the Zhao family."

As soon as these words were spoken, it meant that Zhao Jinan was already moved.

"Hahaha, Brother Zhao, there is no need to worry about this."

Xuelan laughed loudly:

"Don't forget, behind you are my Xue family and the fifth man who support you.

When the time comes, the Long army will sweep across the south of the Yangtze River. Those who obey me will prosper and those who disobey me will perish. Those who are disobedient will be killed."

A cold light flashed in Xuelan's eyes, and she lightly drew her palm in the void.

When the Xue family returned to the Long Dynasty, there were some opponents on the Cangqing Road, but now they were all turned into headless corpses.

He knew that most people would make the right choice when faced with death.

The room fell into a dead silence, and Zhao Jinan was thinking about his final thoughts.

After a long time, Xuelan looked into Zhao Jinan's eyes:

"how?"

"Huh~"

Zhao Jinan let out a sigh of relief:
Chapter completed!