The Ming Dynasty: The most ruthless imperial grandson, Old Zhu begged me not to kill him.

Chapter 269 Lure the snake out of its hole
Upon realizing this place, the Japanese pirates at sea were extremely shocked, and none of them dared to get too close, fearing that something might go wrong.

At this time, some prominent families in Southern Zhili Province were displeased upon hearing this news.

"What do these Japanese pirates mean? We spent so much money to send them to attack the Ming Dynasty, and they couldn't even hold out for long. They're a bunch of useless trash!"

At this moment, another person spoke.

"It's not entirely their fault. The imperial court has really gone all out this time, sending so many people to this place. It won't be easy for them to cause trouble here now!"

After hearing this, everyone sighed repeatedly, since they were all involved in causing this mess.

Just then, the patriarch of a family suddenly walked over, his face extremely grim, and he was holding a letter in his hand.

"Gentlemen, these are letters from those Japanese pirates. You should take a look!"

Upon reading the contents of the letter, everyone's faces turned extremely grim. The letter stated that the Japanese pirates had suffered heavy losses and now had no extra money left.

So they hope they can give them more money, otherwise they will expose their affair.

The patriarchs of these families were furious upon hearing this.

"These greedy Japanese pirates, I told you long ago that we shouldn't have any contact with them. These guys are just too greedy. We can't give them to them, otherwise they'll want even more in the future!"

At this moment, another person said in a sarcastic tone.

"Things have come to this point, do you think you can just refuse to give it to us?"

"Don't forget, these people still have our correspondence with them. What kind of guy is Zhu Xiong Ying? If he finds out that we're colluding with these people, every single one of our families will be doomed!"

Upon hearing this, everyone's faces turned extremely grim. They all knew that this was not just talk; given Zhu Xiong Ying's personality, he would definitely do it.

"We have quite a few people in the military, so why don't we find a way to inform them of these military actions? If we can find an opportunity, it would be great if they could do something big again!"

"The previous events had many positive effects, and many people even believed that the reason why the Japanese pirates came ashore was because Zhu Xiong Ying recklessly changed the ancestral system, which brought about these disasters!"

"The fact that Zhu Xiong Ying has sent such a large army this time also suggests that he intends to change this mindset!"

"If we inflict another crushing defeat on the imperial army, our plan will surely succeed!"

He nodded after hearing that.

Thanks to the reports from these families, the losses suffered by the Japanese pirates were not particularly great for a period of time afterward.

At this moment, Xu Yungong, Chen Heng, and others gathered together.

"It seems we're all facing the same problem. These Japanese pirates are getting increasingly adept at smelling things. Our troops haven't even reached their destination yet, and these guys have already sneaked off!"

"Although they didn't gain any advantage, we also failed to eliminate them, which is different from the mission His Highness the Crown Prince gave us!"

At this moment, Li Jinglong, who was standing to the side, spoke up.

"I don't think these Japanese pirates have become smarter; rather, someone is pulling strings behind the scenes for them. I've seen some families acting suspiciously and getting involved with these people before, and I think they're definitely involved in this matter!"

Ping An thought about it carefully and said.

"Now that these Japanese pirates dare not come ashore, we cannot target them, and thus cannot completely eliminate them. After our troops withdraw from this area, they may come back again!" "I think it's better to take the initiative and lure them out than to wait for them to tire themselves out!"

Just as the group was discussing how to deal with the Japanese pirates, someone suddenly arrived at the place.

"General, I am from the Western Depot, and I have been ordered to deliver a letter from His Highness the Crown Prince to you all!"

When everyone received the letter and saw that the markings on it were correct, they were extremely surprised when they read its contents.

It turns out that Tyson's decision to produce the Eagles also took this into account, which gave them direction for their next move.

Zhu Xiong Ying's idea was very similar to what General Ping An had just mentioned, which was to set a trap to lure the snake out of its hole.

However, Zhu Xiong Ying's plan was already very comprehensive.

Ping An was extremely shocked to see this, and he sighed.

"I had heard before that His Highness the Crown Prince was very bright and capable, but I didn't believe it at the time. Now it seems that it is indeed true!"

"His Highness the Crown Prince's abilities are in no way inferior to His Majesty's or the Crown Prince's!"

The group quickly began to act according to Zhu Xiong Ying's plan.

At this time, several families in the Southern Zhili region gathered together once again.

"Great news! Fantastic news! I heard that another batch of money and grain has arrived from the Ministry of Revenue in the capital, and it's all being stored in Wuzhen!"

"Although this place is heavily guarded, I know that there is an upcoming military operation that will draw away most of the troops, and that will be when its defenses are at their weakest!"

"If these Japanese pirates work together and storm Wuzhen, they can plunder all the grain and gold and silver treasures. This will not only keep them active for a long time, but it will also severely damage the imperial court. They might even withdraw their soldiers and not dare to implement the land tax reform in the future!"

Upon hearing this, everyone was very excited; this was great news for them.

He was the head of a family, but he said with some doubt.

"Isn't this news a bit too sudden? Do you think it might be a trap set by the imperial court?"

The family members shook their heads after hearing this.

"I don't think that's possible. This grandson of the Crown Prince, Zhu Xiong Ying, has offended almost all the scholars. So apart from this group of warriors, there isn't a single scholar around him who can offer him advice!"

"These warriors are useless. They can be of some use on the battlefield, but asking them to offer advice and strategies is asking too much of them!"

After listening, the people nodded, finding it very reasonable; it was a perfect opportunity for them.

However, the news soon reached the islands occupied by the Japanese pirates.

During this period, it was impossible to plunder supplies from the Ming Dynasty, and even the merchant ships coming and going had enough guards.

They tried to rob twice, but apart from losing dozens of corpses, they didn't gain much, which made them very frustrated.

(End of this chapter)