Tang Dynasty: Father, if you don't rebel, I will!

Armor?

The masked black market escort leader stopped in his tracks as he was about to leave.

He looked at Cui Guangshou with surprise and shock.

“Weapons and armor? These aren’t things you can just get your hands on. Besides… you should know that smuggling fine steel weapons might only cost you your head, but smuggling armor would implicate your entire clan.”

Cui Guangshou sneered: "Fortune favors the bold. I'm just asking if you have any connections. You just need to relay my words back to your leader. If he has connections, the price is negotiable."

After the people from the black market left, Cui Guangshou also led his men away into the darkness.

Pyongyang Province, Ansi City.

"Are there any problems with the items? Did you leave any clues?"

Cui Guangshou knelt on one knee, his mask removed, revealing a resolute and courageous face.

"Reporting to the young master, those black market people are all after money, and they had contact with us when Goguryeo was still around. Our undercover sentries along the way did not see anyone following us, and the weapons we obtained in the trade were all top-quality."

Upon hearing this, the young man sitting in the first seat nodded in satisfaction.

"We still need to wait for news from the black market regarding the arms and armor transactions. However, we must devise our own plan for the Tang army's firearms. If we want to accomplish great things, we can't rely solely on weapons and armor!"

Cui Guangshou looked troubled.

"This...Young Master, the Tang army has always maintained extremely strict control over firearms, and the musketeer teams and artillery battalions stationed around Pyongyang are completely controlled by that old scoundrel Li Ji. Making a move would be as difficult as climbing to the heavens!"

Cui Jun, the eldest son of the eldest branch of the Cui family in Qinghe and the legitimate son of the former head of the family, Cui Minshi, gritted his teeth in resentment.

"Li Tang villains! They've amassed tens of thousands of troops around Pyongyang, talking about giving us a way out. Only that old bastard Lu Zhaojing would believe such nonsense!"

He got up and paced back and forth in the hall. The surroundings were quiet and still, but after thinking for a long time, Cui Jun could only forcefully suppress the urge to go crazy.

"Enough. Such important matters should be dealt with slowly. The evil Li Tang traitors must be secretly watching us. Just as the black market said, we should lie low for now. As for those weapons, we should equip and train them in our Cui family's secret stronghold as soon as possible!"

"Yes!"

Almost at the same time.

Liaodong Circuit, Shengjing Prefecture.

Wang Qingyun flipped through the report in his hand, his eyes gleaming with a cold light.

"Cui Jun, I never expected that there would still be someone in the Qinghe Cui clan loyal to his lineage..."

Cui Xiaoguo, a commander of the Imperial Guard, sneered: "Quite a few people!"

"That's how aristocratic families are. Although Cui Minshi brought the entire Qinghe Cui clan to the point of near extinction, the eldest son's position in the aristocratic family is still unshakable. Call it blind loyalty or being forced to stick together for warmth, whatever you want."

"If we don't eradicate it completely, it will spread in the future."

Wang Qingyun looked up and glanced at him.

"Commander Cui's words are quite straightforward. Born into the Cui clan of Boling, yet entrusted with such an important task by the current Crown Prince, he must be as loyal as Commander Cui."

His words carried a hint of sarcasm and irony, but they did not move Cui Xiaoguo in the slightest.

"Ha, Governor Wang, there's no need to provoke me. Xiao Guo's martial arts skills were passed down from his father, who was his son-in-law. Since childhood, he has never been treated with any respect by the Cui family of Boling. When he was poor and hungry, it was His Highness the Prince of Han and His Highness the Crown Prince who gave him important positions."

"Not to mention that the entire traitorous Cui clan of Boling has been exterminated, even if any remnants remain, the Embroidered Spring Blade of Xiaoguo will surely finish them off personally!"

Cui Xiaoguo spoke indifferently, glancing sideways at Wang Qingyun, and snorted coldly.

"Governor Wang, you care so much about my past, but you should think about your two sworn brothers! As far as I know, Lu Wenhu is now completely obedient to Lu Zhaojing, the Pyongyang Daozong Cheng!"

"He still firmly believes that if the aristocratic families govern Pyongyang Road well for our Great Tang Dynasty, they can live in hiding!"

Wang Qingyun remained silent.

The coldness in his eyes deepened.

"There's no need for Commander Cui to worry about that. As the governor, I am paid by the emperor and should naturally be loyal to him. If Lu Wenhu dares to obstruct me... for the sake of the country and its people, this sworn brotherhood should be severed!"

On the Taiyuan Wang family's side, Wang Ming was extremely concerned about this matter.

While overseeing daily affairs in Taiyuan Prefecture, he also had to constantly contact his son Wang Qingyun, who was in Liaodong Province, and secretly send knives to the powerful families in Pyongyang Province.

There are many people like Cui Jun who don't believe the court and the royal family will let them go.

During Lu Zhaojing's year in power, this force grew even stronger.

Consequently, once someone like Cui Jun began to plot in secret, countless remnants of powerful families within the clan provided cover for him.

The development of Pyongyang Province continued as the court had hoped, with the new policies being implemented smoothly.

But Lu Zhaojing, the Pyongyang Daozong Cheng, had his foundation eroded without even realizing it.

"Cough cough cough..."

Lu Zhaojing's cough got worse.

He needs to take Korean ginseng every day and drink herbal decoctions constantly.

"Zongcheng, why don't you take a rest? We can talk about the rest tomorrow..." Lu Wenhu quickly helped him up.

Noticing the shocking red color on the other person's beard, he couldn't help but exclaim in alarm.

Lu Zhaojing shook her head weakly.

“No, Princess Gaoyang received a great deal of assistance from His Highness the Crown Prince and the other princes during her trip to Baikal County. This is rare in all dynasties. If my family can gain Princess Gaoyang’s favor, it may not restore our former glory, but at least it will put a good word for our family in front of the Crown Prince.”

"Even if our descendants change their names and surnames in the future, we will still uphold our family traditions..."

He struggled to pick up a list he had written and handed it to Lu Wenhu, whose eyes were red and filled with tears.

"Summon all the people on this list; I have some things to tell them."

Lu Wenhu was overwhelmed with emotions, but seeing Lu Zhaojing's eyes turn stern and solemn, he had no choice but to carefully help her lie down and then rush outside.

"Alas... Brother Cui, Brother Li, whether our five surnames and seven clans can truly survive on these few scattered pieces of tile, this old man can only do so much."

The list compiled by Lu Zhaojing not only included the three surnames Cui, Lu, and Li, but also many talented young people from small and medium-sized aristocratic families who had come to Goguryeo with them.

In total, there are nearly two hundred people.

When these people arrived at the Zongcheng residence and saw Lu Zhaojing, who was draped in a blanket but looked emaciated, their eyes gleamed.

Cui Jun stood in the crowd: "Minister Zong, what are your orders for summoning us here?"

Although he was secretly plotting his own affairs, he still publicly held the position of Pyongyang Province Land Administration Commissioner, responsible for land reform and agricultural production in Pyongyang Province.

"I'll keep this short... You should all withdraw from the family genealogy!"