Li Zhi, don't be a coward

The heads of two prominent families, the Lu family and the Yu family, were sitting in a secret room talking and laughing.

The atmosphere was very harmonious, like a reunion of old friends and confidants for many years. It started with reminiscing about the past, and then came the bumpy roads, hard work, etc. After many years of ups and downs, the two old people had a lot of material to talk about.

After chatting nonsense for a long time, the two of them had a tacit understanding and did not talk about the topic. They just observed each other's expressions and tested each other's tone from time to time on seemingly insignificant topics.

The two old foxes fought for a long time, and finally, Yu Chengzhi was defeated.

He is already in his [-]s, and there is not much left in his life. He can no longer waste his limited time on this meaningless chat.

This is not the case with the old man.

So Yu Chengzhi covered his mouth, coughed twice, and finally took the initiative to talk about the topic.

As usual, just like the previous visits, Yu Chengzhi tentatively asked what benefits Li Qinzai had promised Lu.

We are all heads of prominent families. We have known each other for decades, and we know each other's virtues well.

With Lu Songxi's cunning and cunning temperament, if Li Qinzai had not promised huge benefits, this old fox would definitely not have surrendered to him so completely. Not only was he not afraid of offending several other prominent families, but he would also lose his own face.

In the past few times, Lu Songxi had been very tight-lipped and unwilling to reveal anything. Today, Yu Chengzhi originally thought that he would get nothing again. Unexpectedly, today Lu Songxi's mouth suddenly loosened like a widow's belt.

"Mr. Yu really wants to know what benefits Duke Li granted the Lu family?" Lu Songxi said with a smile.

Yu Chengzhi's eyes lit up, there was hope!
"It is related to the rise and fall of a prominent family in the south of the Yangtze River, so please give me some advice from Brother Lu Xian." Yu Chengzhi said humbly.

Lu Songxi stroked his beard and smiled as ethereal as an immortal. Dese pretended to be reserved, which was particularly annoying.

Yu Chengzhi also stroked his beard and smiled, not impatient and letting him have his way.

For a long time, Lu Songxi became a little bored, and then slowly said: "The six prominent families in Jiangnan... After all, they didn't see the situation clearly."

Yu Chengzhi became tense and said hurriedly: "Why did Brother Lu Xian say this?"

Lu Songxi glanced at him and said calmly: "What does Mr. Yu think that Duke Li went to Jiangnan on orders?"

Yu Chengzhi frowned: "I thought he was doing it to plant sweet potatoes, but later I found out that something was wrong. He was trying to get the land under the name of our famous family."

Lu Songxi asked again: "Why does he want to take advantage of our land and property?"

"Is the court afraid of the fact that the famous family owns too much land?"

Lu Songxi shook his head, then nodded: "Yes, but also no."

"Mr. Yu, the land owned by famous families has been slowly accumulated over hundreds of years. What the court is afraid of is not that we have more land, but that after we have more land, the famous families will gain power and threaten the court."

Yu Chengzhi said displeasedly: "We didn't support troops, and we didn't rebel. We just have a little more land in our name. What should we be afraid of?"

Lu Songxi sighed: "You still don't understand... If you own too much land, there will be more farmers and tenants in the manor under your name. When nothing happens, the court and the noble family will naturally live in peace. Once there is any trouble, the noble family will rise up and shout, Thousands of people can gather in an instant, how can the court not be afraid?"

Yu Chengzhi sneered: "Is this considered a reason?"

Lu Songxi nodded and said seriously: "Forget it."

After a pause, Lu Songxi added: "There is another important point. The noble families annexed too much land. After many farmers in Jiangnan sold their fields, they had to become tenants of the noble families. More and more farmers lost their land, and the court was also worried. It's not a good thing." "Yu Gong, please recall carefully, in recent years, are there fewer and fewer soldiers from our Jiangnan farmers joining the army every year? Is the quality of the soldiers getting worse and worse?"

"Farmers who have lost their land either move their families away from their homeland and go out to make a living, or they become tenants or even serfs. The imperial court can't even recruit soldiers. How can we not be afraid of our distinguished family?"

Yu Chengzhi's eyes widened and he finally felt a little moved.

Lu Songxi said slowly: "The purpose of Duke Li's mission to Jiangnan is not only to rectify land issues, but more importantly, many local government affairs and deep-rooted personal relationships that have been in trouble for a long time are within the scope of his rectification."

"Seeing how he used thunderous means to destroy the Zhu family, dismissed and questioned dozens of officials, and ordered various prefectures and counties to re-measure the land, etc., Duke Yu will know the purpose of Duke Li's trip to the south of the Yangtze River."

"Chaos has broken out in the important land of Jiangnan. If the emperor wants to rectify it, he must take drastic measures. It's ridiculous that you six noble families are so stubborn that you still try to counter the imperial envoy and even plot against him."

"You... you are really brave and your heads are really strong. Originally, Duke Li wanted to kill people to show his authority, but you took the initiative to stick your heads out and let him chop them off, tsk!"

Yu Chengzhi's face became increasingly ugly.

After Lu Songxi's careful analysis, Yu Chengzhi increasingly felt that the conspiracy planned in Gu's secret room a few days ago was unreliable and was very wrong.

I thought it was a foolproof conspiracy at first, but now that I think about it, I feel like I'm dancing on the edge of a knife.

Seeing Yu Chengzhi's ugly face, Lu Songxi took another stab at it leisurely.

"In the past few days, there have been a lot of rumors against Duke Li in various states and counties in the south of the Yangtze River. No need to ask, they must be the work of you guys, right? It is said that there seem to be landowners and farmers gathering frequently secretly to incite public opinion?"

"Haha, what a skill!" Lu Songxi laughed sarcastically.

"I'm afraid you don't even know it, but the blade hanging on your neck is getting closer and closer. The crazier you are, the faster your death will come."

"Resisting the emperor's imperial envoys and inciting civil unrest, do you know how serious the crime is? The Zhu family was destroyed, but at least some people survived. After the judgment of the Ministry of Punishments, the Zhu family can still continue to be popular."

"And you, once this happens, it will be a serious crime that will kill the nine tribes, and none of you will survive."

Yu Chengzhi's eyelids twitched and cold sweat ran down his back.

Although he didn't want to admit it, the ominous feeling in his heart was getting stronger and stronger at this moment. The plot to deal with Li Qinzai the day before yesterday became more and more like a sharp knife against his chest, and he seemed to have smelled the smell of death.

After being silent for a long time, Yu Chengzhi said harshly: "Li Qinzai's regulation of the land of famous families clearly does not give us a way to survive. What else can we do except struggle to the death? Do we really allow him to do whatever he wants to our land and farmers?"

Lu Songxi narrowed his eyes and said with a smile: "Are the emperor and Duke Li so brainless that they want to drive us to a dead end without giving us any benefits?"

Yu Chengzhi looked at him in surprise: "Could it be..."

Lu Songxi stroked his beard and said with a smile: "The Lu family of Wu County suddenly turned to the court and Duke Li for no reason. Do you think I, Lu Songxi, have lost my mind, or am I scared out of my mind by Li Qinzai?"

"If you don't give me any benefits, maybe I will be like you, hiding in a dark place and struggling to my death."

Yu Chengzhi said in surprise: "What kind of benefits did Duke Li give to the Lu family? Brother Lu Xian, would you like to tell me?"

However, Lu Songxi looked arrogant and said calmly: "Why should I tell you the benefits that Duke Li promised to the Lu family?"