Daming: At the start of the showdown, Lao Zhu was stunned

Chapter 836 Occupying Srivijaya

Since the fall of the Tianwan Kingdom, the White Lotus Sect has long lost its former prestige. Being a submissive citizen and lingering on is already their best fate. The local leaders have no power and money. With only their former power, how can they teach their followers to abandon their own lives and obey their orders to do this business that will cost them their lives? Therefore, in fact, Fu Puxin's excuse to go to sea was also a helpless move... After all, if he still stayed in Hangzhou, his branch of the White Lotus would soon fall apart and disappear among the people.

Perhaps some people really believed in the nonsense that "the Ming King has come to the world and will rule the world", but it is impossible for a teacher like Geng Datou, who used tricks and illusions to deceive others into joining the White Lotus Sect, to have a devout belief in things like the Ming King Maitreya and the Mother of No Birth.

They obeyed Fu Puxin only out of blind obedience to the former headmaster and their desire for possible wealth and status. But when their lives were threatened, their minds naturally began to waver...

After having the two heads sent by Geng Datou identified and confirmed that they were indeed the heads of Fu Puxin and Chen Zuyi, Li Jinglong breathed a sigh of relief. At least these two pieces could slightly wash away his previous misconduct, and he had already obtained them.

He felt relieved and regained his usual composure and cunningness. He then continued to test Geng Datou and said, "Geng Er, you have taken the heads of the two thieves. This will be a way of returning to the right path and redeeming your sins."

"Since you are willing to surrender to the Ming Dynasty, I will report your merits to the court impartially so that the court can weigh your reward...How about you temporarily keep the ships, personnel, and property under your command that were originally from the religious bandits and pirates at your disposal?"

Geng Datou was not a fool. Hearing this, he immediately said, "The criminals are guilty and the court has not yet made it clear that they will forgive them. How dare the criminals lead an army?"

"The manpower of these ships is naturally at your disposal, sir."

As he spoke, he lowered his voice and whispered, "Let the master know that when Fu Puxin evacuated Dadu Port, he took away several boxes of gold ore, gold sand and other items looted from the Western Barbarians."

"Those things are also on the ship. I dare not deal with them privately. It is up to you, General, to handle and arrange them!"

This is what Li Jinglong is worried about. They have already found out about the gold, but these religious bandits may not know that he knows it. If Geng Er is unwilling to tell the whole story about the gold, it means that he must have two minds in his heart. But now that he has taken the initiative to tell it, it can at least prove that he is really sincere in his allegiance.

Li Jinglong laughed heartily and had Geng Datou lifted up. He then said, "Since you are so submissive, I will not let you suffer a bad end."

"Don't worry, I will personally send someone to report your achievements, and report your experience to the commander of the Ming army, His Royal Highness Prince Zhou, and Duke Dingguo."

"Thank you, General, thank you, General!" Geng Datou thanked him profusely. He knew the difference between surrendering without any effort and surrendering with the help of others.

It's not that he hadn't thought about keeping the gold for himself, but at this point, he could only use the gold to pave a way for himself to survive...

……

Dawan Island, Dadu Port.

The express ship sent by Li Jinglong to report the results of the battle soon arrived here. Zhu Su and Tang He, who were stationed here, learned the news that Chen Zuyi and Fu Puxin, two thieves, surrendered because of internal strife.

"Well, now that the two thieves have surrendered, it will be even easier to take Srivijaya." Tang He was very pleased, and his white beard trembled with laughter. A new great achievement of opening up new territory was about to fall into his hands, and he couldn't help but feel happy.

"But Geng Er is from the White Lotus Sect after all. Keeping him here may cause troubles... Your Highness, what do you think should be done with him?"

This was a deliberate test of Zhu Su. Zhu Su thought for a moment and said with a smile, "The White Lotus Sect is a centipede that will not die without stiffening its legs. Today, Geng Er may have sincerely joined the sect in order to save his life. However, since he has the ability to incite believers, perhaps in the future when things are stable, he will follow the example of Fu Puxin and raise the banner of rebellion again, causing trouble for the people."

"Although it is difficult for such insects to achieve great things, if they keep coming from the east and the west, they will be very annoying... In my opinion, Geng Er cannot be killed. Since he has made great contributions, the court of the Ming Dynasty must clearly distinguish between rewards and punishments, so as not to discourage others from surrendering to the Ming Dynasty in the future."

"However, we must also stop him from thinking about returning to the White Lotus in the future... How about letting him stay under the Duke's command and help him eliminate the White Lotus forces in the southeast?"

The southeast coast is densely populated. In addition, at the end of the Yuan Dynasty, many White Lotus rebels started uprisings in the south, and even today, many White Lotus remnants are still lurking. These are also important tasks for Tang He to guard the southeast.

Geng Er was a well-known leader in the White Lotus Sect. As the saying goes, "All waters in the world have the same source, and red flowers and green waters are one family." The various branches of the White Lotus Sect hiding in the dark actually have certain secret methods of communication. If Geng Er could use his "teacher" method and the various secret words and phrases in the White Lotus Sect to help Tang He eliminate the remaining poison of the White Lotus, it would be a great thing for the court and Tang He.

This will make Geng Er cut himself off from the White Lotus. In the future, he will have no place to stand among the remnants of the White Lotus and will no longer cause harm.

"Hahahaha, Your Highness is indeed wiser than Zhuge Liang... You really gave birth to a good son, good, good..." Tang He laughed and praised. After eliminating Fu Puxin and Chen Zuyi, there were no more thieves in the East China Sea and the South China Sea. As the Duke of Dingguo who guarded the southeast coast, he naturally had to find something to do. Eliminating Bai Lian for the court was another good way to accumulate military merits for the Duke of Dingguo's Mansion.

However, this arrangement was only a temporary move. The most important task now was to seize Chen Zuyi's old nest, Srivijaya, in the hands of the Ming Dynasty. Under the command of Zhu Su and Tang He, the Ming navy quickly spread all over the Strait of Malacca and surrounded the remaining forces of Chen Zuyi. Although Chen Zuyi's confidants who remained in his old nest still wanted to resist, they were bombarded by Chang Mao and Li Jinglong who joined forces. Because there was no leader, the Nanyang pirates were scattered on the mountains and the command was chaotic. They were quickly defeated by the artillery fire of the Ming army.

According to court practice, soldiers were allowed to take 40% of the spoils captured during an expedition... After finding the gold left behind by the Western barbarians, Li Jinglong, with his pockets bulging, naturally became more unscrupulous in using artillery shells.

Once bitten by a snake, one will be afraid of ropes for ten years. Now he can solve the problem with cannonballs, and he will never let the enemy ships get within a few feet of his fleet.

The Ming army successfully attacked Srivijaya, and after a search, they seized countless treasures hidden by Chen Zuyi. Under the instruction of Tang He and Zhu Su, Li Jinglong found the "descendants of the royal family of Srivijaya" who were exiled by Chen Zuyi, and re-established them as the king to show the righteousness of the Ming Dynasty. Of course, Srivijaya had been ravaged by Chen Zuyi for a long time, and there were still many remnants of Chen's thieves in the country. The new king submitted a letter to the Ming Dynasty to pledge his loyalty, and strived to station the Ming soldiers in Srivijaya to ensure public security, and designated many coastal ports in the country as Ming concessions, so that the heavenly soldiers could block the pirates in the sea for Srivijaya, which was also a matter of course.

(End of this chapter)