"With the strength and foundation of the Shui Xi'an clan, it is no exaggeration to say that it can be compared to three or five Yongning She clans!"
"She Chongming has grown so big that he dares to rebel directly. Do you think the more powerful An Bangyan has less ambition than She Chongming?"
"Furthermore, the relationship between their two families has been repaired for generations. Even if An Bangyan doesn't dare to be like She Ni, he will help each other secretly. In this way, whether I put down the rebellion or She Ni successfully separatized the southwest, it will be a good thing for him.
It’s of great benefit.”
Qin Liangyu was speechless by the emperor's words. In fact, she had not thought about it herself, but she still had a glimmer of hope. This had a lot to do with the idea of loyalty to the emperor in her heart.
"What your Majesty said is absolutely true. It is indeed the case. I thought too much about these people and ignored all these details."
"Since An Bangyan is also likely to rebel, how will His Majesty prepare to deal with it? Shouldn't he quickly put down She Ni before the war expands, and then concentrate his strength to deal with the An family?"
Facing Qin Liangyu's question, Zhu Youxiao said slowly with a smile:
"This is exactly what I am going to tell you next, and it is also the reason why I ordered the withdrawal of the troops when I defeated the Shetei rebels."
Not only Qin Liangyu and others, but also Ma Xianglin, Cao Wenzhao and others who had been following the emperor were listening with rapt attention at this time, especially Zhang Fengyi, who wanted to know why His Majesty ordered the withdrawal of troops.
Zhu Youxiao said:
"She Ni is my bait, I will use him to catch the big fish An Bangyan!"
"As I said just now, the Shuixi'an clan has long harbored alien intentions and wants to separate the southwest and establish itself as king, but they have never found the opportunity."
"When Yang Yinglong rebelled in Bozhou, the An family was the closest to Bozhou. Did they send troops to suppress the rebellion as soon as possible?"
"If Yang Yinglong hadn't been too aggressive and attacked his An family's territory, would An family have fought back before the imperial army arrived? Would he have helped the imperial court put down the Bozhou Rebellion?"
"They have missed an opportunity and can only continue to wait patiently for the next good opportunity. Maybe they did not expect that they would have to wait for more than 20 years."
"This time She Ni takes the lead in the rebellion. For them, it is another God-given opportunity. Those in the An family are closely watching the court's response and how far She Ni can grow."
"As I said before, once they see hope that something can be done, they will not hesitate to get involved."
"But if She Ni fails to gain momentum and is quickly suppressed by the court, then they will immediately become loyal ministers and good generals, just like Yang Yinglong was wiped out, She Chongming was wiped out."
"Therefore, I can't reveal my true strength, and I can't let them notice it. The most important thing is to let She Ni achieve certain results and let Anshi see it with his own eyes."
Qin Liangyu suddenly understood, and finally understood the emperor's plan, and then said flatteringly:
"I understand your Majesty's intention. Your Majesty's real target has always been the An clan in Shuixi. All military deployments and arrangements are made for the An clan."
"The power of the An family is very strong. As long as they declare rebellion, I am sure that 70% to 80% of the chieftains in the entire Xuanwei Division of Guizhou will support and respond. The momentum will definitely be huge, and they will form a rivalry with the extravagant rebellion in southern Sichuan."
"After they rebel, I will send troops to annihilate them, kill the arrogance of these chieftains, and take this opportunity to reform and abolish the chieftain system, and implement the strategy of reforming the natives and returning them to their hometowns."
"As the saying goes, there are no two days in the sky and no two masters in the country. The chieftain seems to be under the jurisdiction of the imperial court, but in reality, anyone with a discerning eye can see what is going on."
"The local authority of the chieftains is much greater than the imperial power. What I say is far less effective than theirs."
"How can I, the people of the Ming Dynasty, distinguish each other? How can I kneel down to worship the emperor and the chieftain at the same time? The most hateful thing is that the people actually have to pay two taxes and grains. This is simply unprecedented and I will never tolerate it."
"What do they think of themselves? Do they still have the laws of the Ming Dynasty in their eyes? Is there still a court? Do you still remember which dynasty it is now? Whose world does it belong to?"
The emperor's words sent chills down the backs of Qin Liangyu and other chieftains. It could be seen from his words that His Majesty had been dissatisfied with the chieftain for a long time, even to the point of hating him to the bone.
After Zhu Youxiao finished speaking, he looked up at the sky, and then glanced around with a sharp look. Qin Liangyu and others who bowed their heads in front of him said in a firm tone:
"Reforming the system of chieftains and returning locals to local people was also an unfinished task during Taizu's lifetime. Now, in my reign, it must be completed."
Considering their feelings, Zhu Youxiao said gently:
"Of course, my eyes are not blind yet, and I can still see clearly what is good and what is bad. My targets are just those fanatics who work in disguise and do not take the court and me seriously."
"I will never forget the contributions that General Qin's family and the Tujia people have made to the Ming Dynasty over the years. In fact, in my heart, there is no difference between the Tujia people and the Han people. They are all my closest relatives!"
"Therefore, I hope that General Qin will give me his full support for this century-old plan to reform the land and return it to the local people. It will succeed as soon as possible, and the people in the southwest will be able to escape from the sea of suffering as soon as possible."
Qin Liangyu immediately expressed his stance, knelt on the ground with a bang, kowtowed heavily and said:
"Your Majesty, don't worry. Although I am a woman and a chieftain, I have a clear distinction in the face of national justice. Even if I risk my life, I will support your Majesty in completing such a great undertaking!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Qin Bangping, Ma Xianglin, Zhang Fengyi and others all knelt down and shouted loudly, obeying His Majesty's orders.
Zhu Youxiao took an imperial edict from the guard, handed it to Qin Liangyu himself, and said with sincerity:
"The death of Ma Qiancheng was due to the negligence of the emperor. Even though I am heartbroken, it has happened. Today, I will take the place of the emperor, restore his name for the rest of his life, and clear his grievances."
Qin Liangyu opened the imperial edict carefully. After reading it, he could no longer suppress the emotions in his heart and replied with a choked sob:
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Zhu Youxiao helped her up, held her hand, patted the back of her hand and said:
"People cannot be resurrected after death, so this is all I can do!"
After Ma Xianglin and others read the content of this imperial edict, they learned why his mother was so rude in front of His Majesty, because even he himself had the urge to cry.
Although this imperial edict was not an imperial edict and did not bring any substantial benefits to them, it was enough to make the Ma family feel grateful to the emperor.