Chapter 186: Could It Not Be a Feint?

After Mu Ning led a dozen Jinyiwei into Le’an, he had assumed that, given Zhu Gaoxu’s past of ordering his troops to plunder Shandong, the local people must be suffering greatly and the streets would be sparsely populated. Yet what he saw was quite the opposite.
On both sides of the main street facing the city gate stood rows of shops. On that street, there were people on horses, in carriages, on sedan chairs, walking, and riding mules—in short, it was a bustling and crowded place. The wide street was ten zhang wide, with everyone moving about in an orderly manner. Seeing this scene and recalling the notorious reputation of the Han King, he almost thought he had come to the wrong place or that all those rumors were nonsense.
The group of Jinyiwei were all loyal subordinates personally brought by Mu Ning from Henan. Seeing this scene, they exchanged puzzled looks. As the merchants and commoners passing by ignored these soldiers in blue cotton armor, Mu Ning grew furious at the men from the Shandong Jinyiwei unit. He had learned quite a bit about Le’an before coming here, but if not for visiting in person, he might have been deceived by those damned rumors.
“Let’s take a round first before heading to the prince’s mansion!”
With his superior’s orders, the subordinates naturally dared not disobey and rode forward slowly. Beyond the central Zhizheng Street was a wide side street, flanked by residential houses. Though not luxurious or magnificent, they were clean. The further they went, the more astonished they became. After half of the county was passed, they suddenly saw a grand and magnificent prince’s mansion, and only then did they realize the rumors were false.
“Who said the Han King only knows how to fight?”
Hearing someone mutter this, Mu Ning immediately rebuked them harshly, though he shared the same thought. Although they were Jinyiwei tasked with investigating officials, they still underwent strict checks when turning into the alley leading to the prince’s mansion. Soldiers in black clothes and armor from the Tiancewei unit carefully checked all the documents and glanced at the embroidered knives on Mu Ning and the others before allowing them to pass. Just as they cleared that checkpoint, they heard the sound of horse hooves and wheel rolls behind them, so they all turned around.
“Sir, it’s the carriage of the Han King’s crown prince!”

When Mu Ning was in Kaifeng, Henan, he had dealt with many princes from the Zhou royal family and knew their temperaments quite well—most of them shared a defiant and condescending attitude, almost as if they were all cut from the same mold. Yet, despite only having interacted with Zhu Zhan Tan a few times, he felt a favorable impression of this gentle and refined heir to the Han King. So, he signaled all his subordinates to step aside temporarily, even though the path was already wide enough without that.

However, after the escort passed by, an extremely luxurious carriage stopped beside him. The curtain of the golden-green patterned carriage in front was respectfully lifted by the driver, and soon a voice came through.

“Mu Zhenfu, what a coincidence—I happened to bring Eunuch Zhang and County Magistrate Xiao Zhang along.”

Mu Ning naturally knew Eunuch Zhang; this fourth-rank eunuch of the Imperial Supervision Bureau was so powerful that even Yuan Fang, the commander of the Jinyiwei, dared not provoke him. He was a top favorite at the imperial court. But the mention of County Magistrate Xiao Zhang by Zhu Zhan Tan gave Mu Ning a bad feeling. He rode his horse up to the carriage and saw Zhang Qian’s calm expression and Zhang Yue’s helpless look, which made his heart sink.

How dare this young man ride in the same carriage as the heir to the Han King?

At that moment, Zhang Yue inside the carriage noticed Mu Ning seemed dazed. It was easy to guess what he was thinking, and he couldn’t help but smile bitterly. No matter how nicely Zhu Zhan Tan spoke, he still didn’t want to come on this trip, let alone share a carriage. But to his surprise, Zhang Qian, who was going to visit King Han Zhu Gaoxu, had pulled him aside and said something with a smile, forcing him to come to this royal mansion despite himself.

“Before I came here, the Emperor mentioned that if there was a chance, you should visit the Han King’s mansion. After all, the Duke of Yingguo and the Han King share a bond as comrades. From that perspective, you are also a junior, and even as a nephew, it’s only proper to make this visit.”

So, just because of whether this was truly an order from Emperor Zhu Di, he now had to step into the Han King’s mansion. Since Zhu Zhan Tan was leading the way, the group didn’t use the main east-west gate but took a detour through a back door.

Zhu Zhan Tan was not in good health, so as soon as they entered, two strong young servants in their eighteen or nineteen years brought over a sedan chair. He greeted them with a smile and sat in it, while the others walked.

“His Majesty usually spends his time in Yaoguang Pavilion, but after the assassination, he was in a bad mood, so I suggested he rest here in the back garden. The scenery here is beautiful; it was completed just in June. It’s refreshing to the eyes and conducive to his recovery.”

Zhang Yue had visited the large gardens of several dukes and marquises before, but even he had to admit that this place truly had beautiful scenery. Shandong was not originally suitable for building gardens, yet countless amounts of silver were spent here, giving it the appearance of a Jiangnan-style garden.

Upon entering, there was a flat and wide path. To the right was an exquisitely crafted rockery, with strange rocks shaped like birds, beasts, and exotic flowers and plants—unknown origins, perhaps brought from somewhere in Jiangnan. To the left was a grove of trees. Although they had lost their lush greenery by the depths of winter, they still retained their charm. Since they were there to visit the sick rather than stroll around the garden, it would have been inappropriate to take the narrow paths. Yet the winding paths leading deep into the rockery were truly admirable.

The flowing water in the garden came from the Xiaoqing River and was clear after passing through the ponds. After crossing a stone bridge and passing through a small eight-eaved pavilion in the center, they entered an aisle. Along the way, there were servants in green clothes with small hats and topknots, while the rest were maids—mostly beautiful young girls with delicate features. Upon seeing visitors, they stepped aside and knelt to pay their respects, not daring to lift their heads. Zhang Yue observed the strict etiquette and was lost in thought when a voice spoke beside him.

“These are the maids who work in the garden. His Majesty always rules his household with military discipline. Any servant who becomes arrogant due to favoritism is beaten to death. Without rules, there can be no order. Beyond that bamboo fence gate, and after crossing another sluice bridge, lies His Majesty’s bedroom. The imperial concubines are currently serving there personally. Aside from me and a few of my brothers, His Majesty has only met Eunuch Zhang once.”

While Zhang Qian blocked Zhu Zhan Tan’s view, Mu Ning wanted to find an opportunity to talk to Zhang Yue. However, only two of her subordinates had followed her in, while the rest remained outside. With six vigilant guards nearby, she was helpless for the time being. It wasn’t until they crossed the sluice bridge and arrived in front of a magnificent main hall that Zhu Zhan Tan got off his sedan chair and went in to announce their arrival. Only then did she get a chance to ask Zhang Qian a few questions, only to find that her doubts grew even stronger instead of being resolved.

What was the emperor up to? Clearly, he had been furious just moments ago, wanting to demote Prince Zhu Gaoxu to a commoner. The crown prince had to plead hard to avoid it. So why suddenly let Zhang Yue provoke this prince now?

After a short while, Zhu Zhan Tan came out, supported by a young eunuch, and nodded with a smile, saying, “Your Majesty, please invite everyone in.”

Although Zhang Qian had not fought side by side with Zhu Gaoxu on the battlefield like Zheng He had, they had seen each other frequently at the Prince of Yan’s residence. However, as Zhang Qian often traveled abroad later on, he encountered Zhu Gaoxu less and less. Coupled with the huge difference in their statuses, he adopted a respectful expression as soon as he entered.

He could use the emperor’s authority to scold Prince Shouguang Zhu Zhan Qi, but if he acted in the same way in front of the Prince of Han, it would truly be seeking death!

A eunuch of the fourth rank, a Jinyiwei commander of the fifth rank, and a county magistrate of the seventh rank—Zhang Yue, who was last to enter, couldn’t help but wonder at this strange combination as he bowed. After standing up, realizing his position was unremarkable, he glanced at the famous yet infamous Prince of Han. The prince appeared to be around thirty-three or thirty-four years old, tall and robust. His upper body was bare, with thick white bandages wrapped around his shoulders, still stained with blood, and his complexion was extremely pale.

“Zhang Qian, since you’re here again, I didn’t let you take a good look last time. This time, I’ll show you my wounds properly!”

At that moment, Zhu Gaoxu’s eyes were fixed only on Zhang Qian. After all, while a Jinyiwei commander might be a formidable figure elsewhere, in front of him he was nothing but insignificant. As for Zhang Yue, he had no time to pay attention to him now. Staring intently at Zhang Qian, he ordered a young eunuch to come and remove the bandages.

This action shocked the three people who already had their opinions, who watched intently. The eunuch nervously untied the bandages layer by layer. With each layer removed, the bloodstains became more visible. When the innermost bandage, stuck to the flesh, was gently lifted, revealing a terrifying wound the size of a fist, everyone, including Zhu Zhan Tan who had already seen the wound, gasped in shock.

This… seemed to go beyond the realm of a feigned injury…

Zhu Gaoxu glanced at the expressions of the three people below. He dipped his fist in the large wine bowl in front of him, then pressed it firmly against the wound and twisted it. Instantly, blood and yellowish fluid seeped from the slightly scabbed wound. Seeing this, Crown Prince Zhu Zhan Tan was shocked and quickly ordered someone to summon a physician. He stepped forward eagerly but didn’t know what to say.

“Stop acting like such a coward! I’m not dead yet!” Zhu Gaoxu pushed Zhu Zhantan aside and sneered at Zhang Qian, “Although those three imperial physicians are doctors, His Majesty probably won’t believe what they say. So it’s better to have you, Zhang Qian, take a look. I heard someone say this is a ruse of feigning weakness? If I catch that nonsense-spouting guy, I’ll definitely poke him in the shoulder too to show him what a ruse of feigning weakness really is! Just like that audacious assassin—I already chopped him into meat paste to feed the dogs!” After roaring in anger, Zhu Gaoxu suddenly pointed at Zhang Yue and ordered sternly, “Go back and tell Zhang Fu that he too is a famous general who has fought countless battles alongside me. He should know my character by now! I’m such a hero that I wouldn’t stoop to begging for mercy!”