“Not worth it?! He says I’m not worth it!!! You all heard that, right?! Zhu Ping’an, Lord Zhu’s words are so arrogant, he scolds me like I’m some lowly grandson, can’t you all see how he views us martial men?!”
“To put it without exaggeration, in his eyes, we martial men are no better than pigs and dogs! We bleed and sweat, risk our lives and spill our blood chasing pirates, return triumphant, but what do we get?! We get a single ‘not worth it’ from Zhu Ping’an, Lord Zhu! Haha, brothers, it’s us who aren’t worth it!”
Hearing Zhu Ping’an say he wasn’t worth it, General Wang couldn’t help but secretly thank him, grateful for Zhu Ping’an’s perfect assist. Immediately, his face twisted into an expression of profound humiliation, jabbing his chest armor hard with his finger, shouting furiously at the crowd, even his eyes welling up with perfectly timed tears.
General Wang was indeed a seasoned schemer, using Zhu Ping’an’s words to escalate their personal clash into a broader conflict between Zhu Ping’an and all martial men, dragging every soldier present onto his side.
Under General Wang’s verbal manipulation and prodding, the soldiers on the wall began looking at Zhu Ping’an with some displeasure.
“Don’t drag everyone into this, I’m talking about you, cowardly, surrendering to the pirates, leading them into the city, offering up all of Suzhou to the pirates, dooming all our soldiers, all our comrades, and hundreds of thousands of citizens to death. A traitor who surrenders to pirates and invites them in, you say I’m jealous of your pirate-slaying feats? Are you worth it?!”
Zhu Ping’an shook his head with a cold laugh, looking at General Wang with contempt, his lips curling as he spoke calmly.
“Zhu Ping’an! You, surnamed Zhu! You keep saying I surrendered to the pirates, where’s your proof?! You’ve been a county magistrate, you know cases need evidence! The last guy who slandered a loyal man with baseless charges is still kneeling before Lord Yue’s temple! Want to be the next Qin Hui?!”
General Wang pointed at Zhu Ping’an with righteous fury, bringing up the example of Qin Hui framing Yue Fei, spittle flying as he cursed.
Having spoken, he didn’t give Zhu Ping’an a chance to reply, clasping his fists and bowing to the wall, “Lord Prefect, esteemed officials, my brothers-in-arms, please stand up for me and these blood-soaked, wronged soldiers behind me! Don’t let Yue Fei’s tragedy repeat itself, I beg you all!”
“Today, it’s me facing this injustice, tomorrow, the day after, it could be you!”
“It’s time to stand up and say no to the Qin Huis! Show them we’re not dough to be kneaded, that framing people comes at a cost! Make them dare not harm the righteous again!”
General Wang’s performance was deeply stirring, many soldiers on the wall couldn’t help but feel a resonance, sympathizing with General Wang and growing hostile toward Zhu Ping’an.
Seeing the soldiers’ expressions, General Wang couldn’t help but smile inwardly with satisfaction. Kid, you’re too green to take me on.
“Surnamed Zhu, you say I surrendered to the pirates, do you have documentary or physical evidence, like a letter of loyalty to the pirates?! A signed and sealed surrender document?!”
General Wang still didn’t give Zhu Ping’an a chance to speak, firing off another question the moment his last word fell.
Zhu Ping’an shook his head.
“Did you see that, Lord Prefect? Did you see that, esteemed officials? Did you see that, my brothers-in-arms?! He shook his head!”
General Wang suddenly acted as if he’d downed half a jug of strong wine, pointing at Zhu Ping’an and shouting excitedly.
At that moment, General Wang felt he had the situation under control.
Prefect Shang looked at Zhu Ping’an with a complicated expression, shaking his head slightly, letting out a soft sigh.
“Surnamed Zhu, I’ll ask you again, you say I surrendered to the pirates, do you have witnesses to prove I surrendered to the pirates?”
General Wang once again loudly questioned Zhu Ping’an, even more emboldened than before.
Facing General Wang’s questioning, Zhu Ping’an still shook his head.
General Wang got even more excited, as if he’d downed a full jug of wine, pointing at Zhu Ping’an and shouting to Prefect Shang and the others, “Lord Prefect, officials, brothers-in-arms, you saw it, he shook his head again!”
Prefect Shang, looking at Zhu Ping’an below, couldn’t help but shake his head again, letting out a heavy sigh.
The soldiers on the wall grew increasingly sympathetic to General Wang, their hostility toward Zhu Ping’an and the Zhejiang troops below deepening.
At this moment, General Wang felt he wielded thunder itself.
“Surnamed Zhu, no documentary evidence, no physical evidence, no witnesses, just your empty mouth claiming I surrendered to the pirates! How is this any different from Qin Hui framing Lord Yue with baseless charges?!”
General Wang pointed at Zhu Ping’an with indignation, cursing loudly.
Then, using the same tactic, not giving Zhu Ping’an a chance to speak, he quickly turned and bowed deeply to Prefect Shang and the crowd on the wall, a ninety-degree bow, his face full of grievance and fury, pleading, “Lord Prefect, esteemed officials, brothers-in-arms, you’ve all witnessed this with your own eyes. I asked him, you say I surrendered to the pirates, do you have documentary or physical proof of my surrender to the pirates? He shook his head, indicating no! I asked him again, you say I surrendered to the pirates, do you have witnesses to prove I surrendered to the pirates? He shook his head again, indicating no! No documentary or physical evidence, no witnesses, just a mouth claiming I surrendered to the pirates! In broad daylight, another Storm Pavilion tragedy is unfolding before your eyes, no, this is worse than the Storm Pavilion tragedy! Back then, the Storm Pavilion tragedy only wronged Lord Yue, his son Yue Yun, and his general Zhang Xian, but today’s Storm Pavilion tragedy wrongs me and over a thousand loyal, patriotic soldiers who followed me out of the city, that’s over a thousand lives! I beg you, Lord Prefect, esteemed officials, and brothers-in-arms, to stand up for us!”
“Lord Prefect, you said it yourself, you said you definitely wouldn’t, absolutely wouldn’t, believe Zhu Ping’an and the Zhejiang troops’ one-sided words. If Zhu Ping’an can’t produce detailed, concrete, and sufficient evidence proving I surrendered to the pirates, you’d definitely stand up for me and my soldiers, not only proving and clearing my name and my soldiers’ names, but also insisting that Lord Zhu apologize to me and that the Zhejiang troops apologize to my soldiers under my command.”
“Lord Prefect, do your words still count?! Now is the time for you to honor your promise.”
“Zhu Ping’an can avoid apologizing to me, but he must apologize to my soldiers, they’re owed an apology!”
Standing below, General Wang angrily pointed at Zhu Ping’an over a hundred meters away, his face full of grievance and fury, pleading for justice from Prefect Shang and the others on the wall.
At that moment, General Wang felt he had the situation under control, wielded lightning, and dominated the entire scene, this confrontation, he had already won!
Zhu Ping’an, trying to fight me, you’re still too green.
