Deng Ming just said the truth, although it was not for a long time, but relying on the monopoly of the jade business and the connections in the officialdom of Sichuan and Shaanxi, he is now the leading tycoon in the jewelry industry, and he is also opening up new markets in the Yangtze River valley. Even on the birthday of the Empress Dowager of the Manchu Dynasty, Deng Ming was one of the providers of congratulatory gifts, and he really didn't look down on the few taels of silver of these rich people in Weixian.

"As long as my reputation for invincibility is not damaged, I don't care who defeated Weixian or other county seats, or even the capital of Laizhou Prefecture. Anyway, I don't plan to draw taxes from here for the time being, and I don't plan to invest military spending, so it doesn't matter to me who occupies the capital city, as long as it's not under the banner of the Qing court. Deng Ming showed his bottom line to Xia Jie and the others, and the gentry in these places were shocked and fell silent.

Deng Ming openly stated that he would never go to the trouble of controlling the rebels and helping the gentry to purge the bandits and purge the army, but out of good intentions, he was willing to point out a path for these gentry, that is, the gentry would be responsible for the army's salary, food and grass, so as to gain control and say in the army.

There was nothing difficult for the gentry to feed the rebel army, and Deng Ming also agreed to screen according to the gentry's requirements, and screen out those who the gentry looked down on, or who were unwilling to obey the rules of the funders, from the army - to be precise, this matter had to be done by the gentry themselves, Deng Ming would not come forward to sing white face, he would only maintain goodwill and neutrality - but this was enough, the strength of the gentry and the heroes of the rivers and lakes were not at the same level, without Deng Ming's partiality, the heroes of the green forest could not be the opponent of the big landlord group, Not to mention that Deng Ming will also lean to the side of the gentry.

The problem was that the gentry did not dare to raise an army blatantly. Usually intervene in the local army to help them smuggle, or make some convenience, this is what the gentry have been doing. However, openly spending money to support the army obviously exceeds the bottom line that the government can tolerate. Once he helped Deng Ming raise soldiers, it was equivalent to completely standing on the side of the Ming army, and he was an accomplice who would be investigated by the Qing court.

"Actually, it's not that scary, even běijīng is good for scholars. After the king of Yanping County attacked the Yangtze River last time, more than ten counties in the four prefectures were held accountable anyway, and no one was held accountable afterwards. But it's not my problem, it's your problem. Deng Ming saw that everyone was very hesitant, and he didn't force it: "I have done my best and given you the opportunity to protect Weixian, but you look forward and backward and refuse to help your father." ”

"Guogong, you can't say that." Immediately, some people couldn't help but protest.

At this time, Xia Juren, the gentry leader of Weixian County, stood up again, stopped a few people who were busy complaining, and asked ruthlessly: "I don't know how many troops the National Guild sent to Shandong?" ”

The meaning of Xia Juren's sentence is very clear, as long as Deng Ming is determined to compete with the Qing court for Shandong and fully support the battle of the Shandong rebel army, then it is extremely risky to organize regimental training to support the Ming army, but it is also a gamble with high returns. If the Ming army defeated the Qing army and occupied Shandong, the people who helped Deng Ming to form a regiment today would be meritorious men.

Xia Jie's words made many people put away their protests, and the gentlemen present realized that this was indeed a good opportunity to serve the Duke of Baoguo and bet on both sides of the Ming and Qing dynasties. In front of him, the Baoguo Duke was already powerful at a young age, who dared to say that he would not come back with the Ming army and become the master of China?

"For the time being, I won't send too many troops to Shandong." Deng Ming's words dispelled their hopes. It's not impossible to lie and deceive these gentlemen, but after all, there will be a day when it will be exposed, and it will have a very bad impact on Deng Ming's credit at that time; And the previous effect is also questionable. Deng Ming plans to promote a system in the whole Jiaodong and organize more gentry, and there will be many people who will inquire every day when the reinforcements of the Ming army will arrive, and if there is no Ming army coming, some people will guess that Deng Ming is writing empty checks.

"Now my strategic focus is on the south of the Yangtze River, and the sole purpose of opening up the Shandong battlefield is to attract the Qing court's forces on the canal, so that I can be more sure of the victory of the canal battle." For Xia Jie and these people, Deng Ming didn't need to hide his true purpose, they had no way to let the Yamen, the governor of Shandong, know his intentions immediately; Even if they went to report the news, Zu Zepu might not believe it; Even if Jinan is convinced, he may not dare to report to Běijīng to show his incompetence: "So I won't send reinforcements, if the main force of the Qing army comes, I will retreat from the sea." ”

The few faces that had just shown enthusiasm suddenly dimmed. Deng Ming promised to meet the requirements of his collaborators, and if they asked to leave with the Ming army, Deng Ming would arrange cabins for them. However, the gentry are not heroes of the green forest, they have a local industry, a family, and a large number of real estate, if they leave this qiē, it is no different from death.

"After the Qing army comes, I have no objection to you accepting Zhao'an." Deng Ming turned a blind eye to those disappointed faces, and said his final arrangement unhurriedly: "I repeat, because I don't provide money and food to the rebels, so I don't interfere with whether they wash the city or not; If they ransack your manor, I'll honestly just say 'that's not good, you shouldn't embarrass people with heads and faces', and I'm not going to do more than this!" In the same way, because I don't give you money and food, and I don't provide you with protection, I don't ask you to resist Běijīng's army, and I don't mind if you accept Běijīng's recruitment. ”

This isn't the first time there has been a collective silence today, but it's definitely the longest. Xia Jie and the others were finally convinced that they would not be able to keep up with Bao Guogong's train of thought no matter what.

"Of course, you have the final say on the army you pay for. I have always been a man who advocates fair trade, and I have helped you to obtain the right to provide food and pay for the army and to appoint officers, and you have supported me while I was still in Shandong, and you have played the banner of the Ming army; When I am unable to protect your safety, I will not force you to continue to fight the banner of the Ming army, nor will I necessarily send reinforcements for your bloody battle with the Qing court to the end—it may be sent, but it may not be sent because of the constraints on other battlefields. If you, who have paid for the army, come to a resolution calling for me to leave Shantung so that you can surrender to the Qing court, I will also meet your demands. To put it simply, as long as you make a request in the open, we will always be friends, as long as you say to me before surrendering, I will also cooperate; If I don't plan to retreat, or the next time I come back, I will understand your struggle to fight me as a Qing army. ”

However, Deng Ming also pointed out that if the Qing court asked the gentry to disband their army after they surrendered to Běijīng, it would not be for Deng Ming to interfere. Deng Ming did not ask the gentry to make a decision immediately, but left them some time to deliberate.

After Bao Guogong left the scene, many people started a heated discussion. Just now, Bao Guogong made it very clear that he would not guarantee the safety of Weixian, and he would not even prevent the rebels from going to the countryside to attack the manor of the gentry. If someone blames Bao Guogong for this, he will also claim that it was the gentry himself who gave up the opportunity to defend his father and his property.

For a small number of bandits, it is more than enough for the gentry to gather tenants to protect themselves; However, if the rebel army can even break through the county seat, the chances of the manor being spared are not very large. If you want to fight an enemy of this scale, you need the gentry to unite and form a large-scale regimental training to contend with it. However, the formation of such a group training is bound to play the banner of supporting běijīng, then Deng Ming can't sit idly by, I'm afraid that before it is formed, it will be attacked by Deng Ming's preemptive strike; Most of the gentry were not in harmony with each other, and most of them probably also adopted the mode of racing, rushing to deliver food to the rebels, hoping that they would rob their neighbors - it was precisely because they were accustomed to prostrate themselves under the imperial power that the powerful class of the gentry never showed influence commensurate with the strength they possessed.

Deng Ming's Tiyì could at least survive the immediate crisis, spend money to raise these rebels who might loot the gentry, and weed out those who were not familiar with it—since they were excluded from the ranks that cooperated with the Ming army, those Jiangyang thieves would have to raise the banner of supporting běijīng if they wanted to form a new team—and it was their turn to enjoy Deng Ming's preemptive strike.

When the immediate crisis was resolved, the Qing court army drove in, and the Ming army retreated, the gentry could use the Jiaodong territory and regimental training team in their hands as conditions, and bargain with the Qing court in exchange for leniency, and they did not have to worry about Deng Ming's anger. Deng Ming has always had a good credit, even if he has other plans this time, he will try to break his promise in the future, and the gentry can control his own destiny with a group training in his hands, at least he can force Deng Ming to send reinforcements, which is better than letting people eat meat.

At noon, Deng Ming interrupted the meeting of the gentlemen and invited them to dinner.

After the meal, Deng Ming invited the gentry to visit the rebel army commanded by Gao Yunxuan, Xing Zhisheng and Wu Yue'er. These troops are all based on Yu Qi's Hui Party as the main force, and there is no bad record of harming the people, and they are also influenced by their divisions, and they have illusions about recruiting peace of mind, so they pay more attention to the relationship with their fathers and elders.

Gao Yunxuan's team was guided by the instructors of the Ming army and received some material support, and they performed a blasting of the city wall, blasting the walls of the front and back layers similar to the dock fort into the sky. This blasting target was somewhat similar to the manor's defenses, and seeing it so vulnerable, Xia Ju and his friends' faces turned pale.

"In just a few days, we will be able to train all the Shandong rebels to this level." Deng Ming observed the reaction of the gentry with great interest, and when the time came, the Jiangyang thieves might still not be able to capture the county seat, but they probably wanted to use the gentry's dock fort to practice their skills.

"In the past, the government often broke its promise." Someone finally spat out their last concerns. At the meeting just now, some people shouted, saying that these little gentry in Weixian County lacked a channel of communication with the governor of Shandong: "Zu Ze, well, Governor Zu, no, it's still Zu Zepu, there may be people under him who are greedy for merit, and if they don't tell Zu Zepu, we want to be recruited, so that we can loot our Zhuangzi." ”

"Governor Zu, let's call it Governor Zu, I've always been a person who doesn't value the title very much." Deng Ming began to address the last of these gentry's concerns: "I have eliminated the most sharp troops of Governor Zu, and I also provide a variety of paid services, as long as you pay, I can provide more instructors, and I can also sell you armor and weapons, including military crossbows and firearms. As long as you are willing to work hard and fight all over Jiaodong's invincible opponents, the governor of Nazu will definitely recruit you, and he will also promote you as officials, reorganize your army into officers and soldiers, that is, Běijīng will pay for your army, and agree that your children will continue to be officers in it. ”

"If you don't have time and can't fight all over Jiaodong's invincible opponents, I can also help you convey the meaning of wanting to be recruited. Don't worry, the letter I wrote to Governor Zu will definitely read it, and with me, I will not let Governor Zu be deceived by his subordinates. Deng Ming felt that most of the gentry would not come to this point, as long as they could organize the gentry, and not play a race in front of the yamen of the governor of Shandong, the gentry would definitely have the strength to suppress the other party, just like the relationship between the governor of the southeast and Deng Ming: "Even if you are a Qing army, I can still provide paid services, and you can train a jīng army, so that Zu Zepu and the successive governors of Shandong in the future do not have the courage to oppose you - why was Yu Qi forced to rebel?" Why did the Qing court refuse to recruit him? It's because his knife isn't hard enough, you don't want to learn from him, do you? ”