Dodo withdrew his hand and said, "If you cannot produce it, then you are acting under the pretext of the Regent's orders, I will certainly report this to the Regent."
Jirgalang's expression darkened: "You dare defy the Regent's orders?"
Dodo spoke unhurriedly, "I haven't seen any orders from the Regent. The Regent is my elder brother; if there were any orders, they would certainly be issued to me. If you insist, then I shall write a letter to ask my brother."
Jirgalang pursed his lips and said nothing, while at that moment, his confidant stood outside facing him and shook his head slightly.
Jirgalang sighed in his heart; he had missed another good opportunity.
He had originally intended to kill Alna directly to ensure there would be no evidence, so that he could claim Dodo had ordered Alna to carry out the assassination.
Whether this matter is true or false, the Imperial Court will punish Dodo severely when the time comes.
Unfortunately, Dodo was no fool; upon his arrival, he immediately arranged for men to go and search for Alna.
One side wanted to kill, while the other side wanted to protect.
To make matters worse, both sides were evenly matched, making it impossible for a major conflict to erupt, so in the end, they could only remain in a stalemate.
At this moment, even Alna was somewhat confused.
He didn't know why Jirgalang would suddenly target him; he had been keeping a low profile lately.
Of course, he had no choice but to keep a low profile; although the previous attack by the Dutch did not take his life, it still left him seriously injured.
One must realize that back in Dingyuan, that injury had already cost him half his life; he had paid the price of disfigurement just to escape.
In fact, it wasn't just his face that was ruined back then; his body suffered even more severe injuries, which left him with some lingering ailments.
Having suffered severe injuries once again, if Alna had not possessed such a resilient nature, he might not have even survived.
He had been so low-profile and always acted kindly toward others. Although he was currently working under Dodo, he had never offended Jirgalang. Why had Jirgalang suddenly sent men to arrest him and even try to take his life?
Something must have happened here that he was unaware of; unfortunately, neither side of the confrontation would reveal the truth, so he could only wait in the cell for the time being.
It was quite a coincidence; after he was imprisoned, Zheng Zhilong was right next to him.
Zheng Zhilong had been tortured by him to the point that he was terrified of him upon seeing him, however, when he saw Alna being thrown into the cell as well, he was stunned for a moment before bursting into laughter. After being scolded a few times by the jailer, he gasped for breath and said, "Alna, you have your day too!"
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Author's Note: Zhu Ci: Since I don't have any scenes today, I'll just pass by the side of the field. A little kitty running while kicking a ball. jpg
The update time was set incorrectly.. Updating two chapters at once..
Chapter 219
Alna looked at him coldly and said, "Don't get ahead of yourself. I still have a chance to get out, but you might not."
Zheng Zhilong chuckled and said, "You said back then that this is a death prison, that you would die too!"
Alna's heart sank, now he could only place his hopes in Dodo.
As long as Dodo still has a use for him, he will not die.
At this point, he didn't care much about why he had been thrown in here; he wanted to know more about whether he could get out.
As for the reason.. as long as he can get out, he will find out sooner or later.
Dodo still needed him to go to Japan; theoretically, he wouldn't let him die.
Wait.. Alna turned her head to look at Zheng Zhilong.
Dodo had more than just himself to arrange; even if he died, he could still arrange for others to question Zheng Zhilong about the whereabouts of the wealth.
However, in reality, Zheng Zhilong had never said a word to him about any treasure or wealth.
Zheng Zhilong had been a maritime overlord after all, possessing a bandit-like air in his very bones. He knew he didn't have much time left, so even if there truly were wealth left in Japan, he would never tell Alna.
In the past, he had full authority over this matter, he conducted every interrogation alone, which allowed him to deceive his superiors and hide the truth.
But if Dodo felt he was not worth saving and arranged for someone else to take over the interrogation, this lie would inevitably be exposed.
At this stage, only the dead can keep secrets.
Alna turned her gaze back.
For the time being, he could not let Zheng Zhilong notice, nor could he let anyone else find anything out, otherwise Dodo would certainly realize he was lying.
Alna pinched the corner of her clothes.
Hidden here was a colorless and odorless poison that would cause a person to die in their sleep after ingestion.
Unlike others, the poison he carried on his person was not for himself, but to feed to his enemies in order to save his own life.
Zheng Zhilong had been tormented by him for a long time, he was not conscious for much of the day. Alna would also disturb his sleep from time to time, intentionally causing him to fall into a stupor before the jailer brought food, then taking the opportunity to poison him.
Only after Zheng Zhilong's heavy breathing completely stopped did Alna feel at ease.
He gave Zheng Zhilong a cold look, feeling a hint of regret in his heart; it was a pity that Zheng Zhilong's sons were not imprisoned with him, otherwise, it would have been safer to kill them all.
But it didn't matter; several of Zheng Zhilong's sons had already succumbed to torture, committed suicide, or died in prison. Now, only two remained, they were the two youngest. Even if they claimed they had left no assets in Japan, Prince of Yu might not necessarily believe them.
Early the next morning, Dodo received the news. He frowned and asked, "You're saying Zheng Zhilong is dead?"
Yes, when he was found this morning, he had already breathed his last.
“How could he be dead when he was fine just a moment ago?" Dodo asked after a long silence. "Where is Alna being held?"
He is also being held in the death cell.
Dodo's expression darkened; he strongly suspected that Zheng Zhilong had died at the hands of Alna.
Otherwise, why would he have died at this exact moment, instead of at any other time?
It's likely that Alna was worried that if he didn't look after him, he would kill Zheng Zhilong, so that the whereabouts of the Zheng family's wealth would be known only to him.
Dodo asked again, "How many of Zheng Zhilong's sons are still alive?"
“There are two more.”
“Send someone to interrogate them.” Dodo immediately gave the order.
As it turned out, these two knew nothing when questioned. One was thirteen and the other twelve; they were far too young to be involved in the family business, let alone have ever gone out with the fleet. The only thing that could be confirmed was that they indeed had another younger brother in Japan.
However, that younger brother had been sent to Japan at a very young age and had changed his surname to Tagawa; they had not seen each other for a long time.
From this perspective, Alna must be protected at all costs.
Dodo was somewhat annoyed; he hadn't expected to be schemed against by a slave.
Although Alna had already escaped slave status through his merits, in Dodo's eyes, he was no different from a slave.
Dodo sat there in deep thought for a long time.
Although Jirgalang had repeatedly tried to stop him from taking Alna yesterday, it seemed that he did not intend to kill her.
According to Jirgalang's intention, Alna was to be sent to Heduoheqin to appease the anger of the Weilaite, so that they would rescind their order.
If it had been before, Dodo would certainly have scolded Jirgalang for undermining his morale, asking why they would just hand someone over simply because Heduoheqin said who the assassin was.
If the Weilaite said the assassin was he, Jirgalang, would he be willing to go there and offer his neck to be slaughtered just to appease the anger of the Weilaite?
The Weilaite are likely taking this opportunity to act; one must realize that it is not just the Weilaite declaring war, but the entire Mongol Alliance.
However, the Qing Court is indeed mired in trouble right now and is not in a position to clash with the Ordos. It would be best if the Ordos could be discouraged from such thoughts.
In any case, it was just sending off a Jala E Zhen, this Jala E Zhen was someone who had already been disfigured, was in poor health, clearly had no future.
Dodo had somewhat tacitly agreed yesterday, even if he didn't argue his case.
Alna was certainly clever, but there were plenty of people as clever as him.
Not to mention that Alna had been far too arrogant before, suffering consecutive defeats, which was why he had been demoted.
But it is too late to say anything now; Zheng Zhilong is dead, most of the Zheng family's adult sons and others are also dead. Those who didn't die do not know the whereabouts of that treasure.
In fact, with so many people denying its existence, Dodo already suspected whether this treasure actually existed.
But.. what if? Zheng Zhilong is a very cunning man; it is entirely possible that he left himself a way out without telling anyone else.
Dodo's face darkened, after a long silence, he stood up to go find Jirgalang.
“What did you say?” Jirgalang looked at him with a face full of disbelief. “You want to replace him with someone else?”
“It's not exactly impersonation. Alna Guajia is not a particularly special name, the Weilaite side hasn't described what the assassin looks like, so how can you conclude that the assassin is the Jala E Zhen Alna Guajia?”
No matter how foolish Jirgalang might be, he sensed something was wrong. A mere Jala E Zhen was hardly worth such great effort from Dodo.
Especially since Dodo had clearly compromised yesterday, why had he changed his mind again today?
This Alna is definitely not simple; since that is the case, he must be even more careful not to release the prisoner easily.
“How do you know the Weilaite wouldn't know his appearance? What if they simply didn't say anything, you end up sending an impostor, wouldn't that anger the Weilaite even more?”
Dodo gave a cold laugh. "So what if the Weilaite are angry? The Khalkha were so powerful back then, yet they were defeated too. If all else fails, I will simply request to lead a campaign myself."
Hmm?
Fine, so you've been waiting here all along.
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Author's Note: Zhu Ci: Huh? Why am I not here yet? Then I'll keep passing through. A kitten running by with a dried fish in its mouth. jpg
Next update at 6 PM~
Chapter 220
Jirgalang was also feeling somewhat irritable while staying in Xuzhou.
Liu Zhaoji and Shi Kefa were not exactly capable generals in battle, but they were indeed quite skilled at defending cities.
Especially Shi Kefa; this man was simply too cautious and never ventured forward. He had turned a mere Xiaoxian into something resembling a tortoise shell, making Jirgalang feel as though no matter which method he tried, he could never find a way to strike.
Now that he had heard Dodo's words, he immediately sensed that Dodo might not want to stay in Xuzhou any longer.
If he really succeeded in going to fight the Ordos, he might even earn some merit.
At that time, he would be the only one guarding this place. If he successfully defended it, he might not even receive credit, but if he carelessly lost it, his title as Prince might very well be stripped away.