The rise of the poor

Chapter 2176 Let's start with Xu 3

After listening to Mao Haifeng's introduction of the three Japanese pirate strongholds, Zhu Ping'an nodded slightly to Mao Haifeng in approval, and then asked, "In General Mao's opinion, who should we attack first?"

Without a second thought, Mao Haifeng said, "The first one to make a move is naturally Xu San from Moon Island."

"Why?" Zhu Pingan asked.

“Xu San is the strongest. If we attack the other two Japanese pirate strongholds first, and word gets out, they'll be prepared and it will be difficult to deal with them. Moon Island has steep cliffs on three sides, with only one coastline accessible to the island. Xu San has also built many fortifications on this side, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack. Once they find out and prepare in advance, it will be difficult to take the island again; we'll have to pay with our lives. Therefore, this opportunity to strike unexpectedly must be used on the toughest nut to crack.”

Mao Haifeng explained.

"General Mao is right. How should we take Xu San by surprise?" Zhu Pingan then asked.

"Haha, Lord Zhu, you've come to the right person. Tomorrow is a golden opportunity to wipe out Xu San."

Mao Haifeng patted his chest confidently.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Ping'an's eyes lit up, but he also bowed respectfully and asked, "General Mao, where should we put this plan? Please do not hesitate to give me your advice."

Seeing Zhu Ping'an, the high-ranking official of the Ming Dynasty, the governor of Zhejiang, and the man who had defeated him twice, bowing and asking for advice, Mao Haifeng felt his vanity greatly satisfied. He coughed twice, trying hard to suppress the smile on his face, before slowly saying, "Lord Zhu, I have an inside man on Moon Island, a minor leader. Ten days ago, he sent me a message that tomorrow is Xu San's wedding day, the day he takes his thirteenth concubine. Xu San, that man..."

Next, Mao Haifeng introduced Xu San to Zhu Pingan. Xu San was a very lecherous man who often said that the more women he slept with in his life, the more capable he would be. His favorite thing was to play with women.

Xu San was a man who played with women almost every day, even during battles, he would play with women at night.

He doesn't discriminate between beautiful and ugly women. During wartime, regardless of the circumstances, as long as it's a woman, even if she's in her fifties or sixties, weighs over 200 pounds, or is so ugly that it's unbearable to look at, he'll have his way with her.

He would take any woman who was even slightly attractive or had a certain background, such as the daughter of a merchant or the sister of a trusted subordinate, and so on, as a concubine.

The thirteenth concubine he was to take tomorrow was the younger sister of a down-on-his-luck scholar from Taizhou. It was said that this young lady was well-educated, polite, and literate.

Xu San was very pleased with his educated thirteenth concubine and specially chose tomorrow as the day to take her into the bridal chamber. Ten days before the joyous occasion, he promoted the scholar to the position of strategist and rewarded him with ten taels of gold.

"Lord Zhu, tomorrow is the wedding day of Xu San's thirteenth concubine. We should send men disguised to sneak in and, while they are drunk and disorderly, launch a coordinated attack from the inside and wipe them out!"

Mao Haifeng said with a confident expression.

"Brilliant plan! No wonder you're General Mao!" Zhu Ping'an exclaimed sincerely.

To be honest, we didn't have any information about Xu San taking a concubine. With Mao Haifeng, who was an expert on Japanese pirates, the task of eliminating the coastal pirate strongholds, which originally seemed difficult, could be completed with ease.

After giving a compliment, Zhu Pingan continued, "We still need to figure out how to disguise ourselves this time."

"Lord Zhu, there's no need to worry about it. I already have a solution," Mao Haifeng said smugly.

"Oh, General Mao, please speak." Zhu Ping'an was very accommodating.

"Isn't Xu San closely connected with the Red-haired Barbarians? I have over a dozen Red-haired Barbarians under my command. I'll send two ships over, and we can send over a hundred men aboard. These Red-haired Barbarians will pretend to be from Guangdong and Guangxi, plundering along the coast of Taizhou. They've heard Xu San is celebrating his new concubine and have come to offer their congratulations and some supplies. I doubt Xu San will suspect anything on his joyous occasion. As for any questioning, my dozen or so Red-haired Barbarians know the ins and outs of the Red-haired Barbarians well; they'll handle it. After we've succeeded, we'll give them a hundred taels of silver. For the Red-haired Barbarians, making money is the most important thing in their lives. In their words, the more money they make, the easier it is to go to heaven. It's ridiculous! Their gods are so greedy; they're clearly not respectable deities." Mao Haifeng confidently laid out his plan, also taking the opportunity to criticize the Red-haired Barbarians' beliefs.

After listening, Zhu Pingan squinted and pondered for a moment, then nodded and praised, "General Mao's plan is excellent!"

Mao Haifeng's plan was indeed quite good, using a non-existent small group of Japanese pirates as a vehicle.

In this way, as long as the red-haired barbarians under Mao Haifeng's command do not turn against him, the risk of being exposed is very low.

Because nobody knows him.

If you falsely claim to be a member of a local Japanese pirate gang, the risk of being exposed is quite high. If members of that gang actually show up at the banquet, it would be dangerous. Can you imagine what that pirate would think if he heard that members of his own gang were there?

What? About a hundred of our gang members have come? What's going on? Didn't our leader only send us to offer congratulations?! Why did he send another hundred or so? I need to find out what's going on.

Or, what? Our group has brought over a hundred more people. Shouldn't we have a few drinks together? Wait, what's going on? I don't recognize any of these hundred-plus people. No, these aren't our people.

Therefore, compared to other methods, Mao Haifeng's infiltration method was very suitable, with a low risk factor and a high success rate.

Mao Haifeng was also very careful in choosing the number of people to infiltrate—just over a hundred, not too many, so as not to arouse suspicion.

If a thousand people suddenly arrived, it would definitely alert Xu San. However, a group of about a hundred Japanese pirates is insignificant compared to Xu San's more than three thousand men, and would not arouse any particular vigilance.

It's easy to blend in.

More than a hundred people, which is not a small number, is enough to act as an inside agent when everyone is drunk and disorderly.

A hundred-odd people could easily handle the task of storming the gate and providing support. Once our main force was brought in, it would be a massacre.

"Lord Zhu, then let's take action against Xu San tomorrow. I'll send someone to arrange for ships right away. Lord Zhu, your men look like government troops, not like Japanese pirates. Tomorrow, select over a hundred men from my ranks. They are all genuine Japanese pirates. I guarantee Xu San's side will happily welcome our men in."

Mao Haifeng said this before he left.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Pingan nodded and cupped his hands in greeting, "Then I'll trouble General Mao. We'll meet up tomorrow morning." (End of Chapter)