While Ming Zhenglong and the other were discussing their plans, Liu Tiezhu quietly slipped into Jiang He's barracks.
As soon as they sat down, Liu Tiezhu got straight to the point. "Brother Jiang, I've investigated everything thoroughly."
"Among the men Old Liu brought that night, two were Ming Jiacheng's spies."
"In fact, your operation that night was exposed long ago."
"And the ambush by Ming Zhenglong's men was deliberately leaked by Ming Jiacheng."
Hearing Liu Tiezhu's words, Jiang He and the other two exchanged glances.
If what Liu Tiezhu said was true, it all made perfect sense.
Because the biggest beneficiary that night was Ming Jiacheng.
Still, they didn't fully trust Liu Tiezhu's words.
Jiang He asked, "Brother Liu, did Ming Zhenglong tell you all this?"
"That's right, I just came back from his place," Liu Tiezhu replied.
"Did he tell you the names of the two men who leaked the information?" Jiang He pressed on.
The men that night were all secretly deployed by him.
If Liu Tiezhu couldn't name them, it meant he was lying.
Liu Tiezhu said, "The spies are called Lin Shan and Zhang Rong."
"As for whether that's accurate, I only heard it secondhand."
He had already gotten Guo Qixing to figure out the roster from that night, all for this moment.
Since those men were dead anyway—dead men tell no tales—Jiang He and his crew had no way to verify it.
Hearing those two names, Jiang He finally believed Liu Tiezhu.
There were indeed two men among the deployed personnel that night, and Zhang Rong was even the action team leader.
It was understandable that their plan had been exposed.
Connecting it to Ming Jiacheng's subsequent ambush, everything fell into place.
Seeing the expressions on the three men's faces, Liu Tiezhu knew he had bluffed his way through.
But coming to Jiang He wasn't just about getting away with it.
The commotion last night was huge, and Jiang He and his men must have heard about it.
He needed to use last night's incident as a hook to set another trap for them.
Only by continuously weakening these people's strength could he reap greater benefits later.
"Brother Liu, thank you so much for the information."
"About my earlier misunderstanding of you, please don't take it to heart."
Snapping back to reality, Liu Zhigao apologized again.
Liu Tiezhu waved his hand and said, "Brother Liu, we're on the same team."
"Why would I hold a grudge over something so trivial?"
"The reason I came this time is that I have important news."
Hearing this, the three couldn't help but get excited.
"What important news?" Zhang Zhiliang asked.
"Do you know about what happened last night?"
Instead of rushing to reveal his plan, Liu Tiezhu countered with a question to Zhang Zhiliang.
Zhang Zhiliang nodded. "I've heard a bit about last night. Does it relate to your important news?"
Liu Tiezhu nodded. "That's right, last night's events are indeed connected to the news I'm about to share."
"Last night, Ming Zhenglong and Ming Jiacheng struck together, wiping out Ming Tianfeng's visible forces."
"Ming Zhenglong's idea is to press the advantage and keep targeting Ming Tianfeng."
Jiang He was taken aback. "Is this the important news you're talking about?"
They had already guessed Ming Zhenglong would continue his attack.
After all, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
"Isn't this news important?" Liu Tiezhu shot back.
At that, Jiang He and the other two were collectively baffled.
Zhang Zhiliang said, "Brother Liu, stop beating around the bush. Just tell us what you mean."
"Brother Zhang, if Ming Zhenglong wants to suppress Ming Tianfeng again, won't he need to mobilize a large number of troops?"
"And Ming Tianfeng isn't stupid—he won't just stand there and take it, right?"
"With this golden opportunity, shouldn't we slip in, grab some spoils, and get our revenge while we're at it?"
After Liu Tiezhu finished speaking, the eyes of all three lit up in unison.
Liu Tiezhu's analysis was spot-on. Once the two sides clashed, they'd definitely move a lot of troops.
By then, those assets would likely be lightly guarded.
If they seized that chance to launch a surprise attack,
they could not only snatch a hefty bounty but also avenge the ambush Ming Zhenglong had set on them that night.
Jiang He said, "Brother Liu, your reasoning makes sense."
"But we have no idea which of Ming Zhenglong's assets are the most lucrative."
Liu Tiezhu paused at this, thought it over, and silently cursed Jiang He for being a sly old fox.
These men had been in the Ming family long enough to definitely know some of Ming Zhenglong's holdings.
Saying that now was clearly another test for him.
Damn it, talking to these foxes required keeping twelve eyes open, or you'd fall into a trap at any moment.
Faced with Jiang He's words, Liu Tiezhu had a countermeasure ready. He casually named two of Ming Zhenglong's assets from the intel Guo Qixing had gathered.
Since Jiang He claimed he didn't know, now that he'd named them, he'd see how the fox reacted.
"Brother Jiang, I went through a lot of trouble to get info on these two assets."
"When you guys rake in the benefits, don't forget to leave me a little taste."
Hearing Liu Tiezhu's words, Jiang He and the other two exchanged glances, smiles spreading across their faces.
Through this test, they were now convinced that Liu Tiezhu hadn't sided with Ming Zhenglong.
In truth, Liu Tiezhu wasn't aligned with either side—Jiang He and his men just hadn't realized it.
Jiang He said, "Don't worry, Brother Liu. We're all in the same boat."
"If there's meat, we share it together. Saying you'd only get a taste would be slapping us old brothers in the face."
Zhang Zhiliang added, "Brother Jiang's right. But when the time comes, Brother Liu, you'll need to do your part."
They still weren't fully at ease with Liu Tiezhu, so they had to drag him into the action.
That way, even if something went wrong, Liu Tiezhu couldn't escape either.
"Brother Zhang, what do you need me to do?"
"As long as it's within my ability, I won't back down."
Liu Tiezhu hadn't expected them to be so cunning, trying to pull him into the mess.
But he didn't refuse outright, deciding to hear Zhang Zhiliang out first before making a decision.
Zhang Zhiliang thought for a moment and said, "It's nothing major. Just keep us updated on Ming Zhenglong's troop movements in a timely manner."
Hearing this, Liu Tiezhu breathed a quiet sigh of relief and nodded without hesitation.
It seemed these men were still spooked by Ming Zhenglong's last ambush and hadn't let their guard down around him.
If something went wrong this time, the blame would definitely fall on him.
"Brother Liu, do you know how many men are guarding those two assets?" Jiang He continued probing.
Liu Tiezhu replied, "I'm not sure about that."
"But given how important those assets are, I'd guess the guard numbers are pretty substantial."
As he spoke, Liu Tiezhu was silently cursing Jiang He's ancestors eighteen generations back.
What seemed like a simple question was actually another trap.
If he casually gave Jiang He a number, he'd fall into a cycle of trying to prove his innocence, contradicting his earlier words.
Earlier, he'd said he went through great trouble to get info on just two assets.
If he then gave an exact headcount, it would prove his previous statement was false.
Jiang He would then use that to suspect whether Liu Tiezhu was setting a trap.
These foxes were truly insidious and cunning.