Chapter 187: The Unofficial Imperial Envoy

Eunuchs in the Imperial Surveillance Bureau held the fourth rank, just like the prefects of cities such as Qingzhou. Although the ancestral rule that eunuchs should not interfere in politics still existed, Emperor Yongle, Zhu Di, had long broken this prohibition since ascending the throne. With Zheng He’s fleet showing off its power across the oceans and Zhang Qian himself having previously received foreign kings on several occasions, naturally no one in Qingzhou dared accuse Zhang Qian of usurping someone else’s position—especially since he was a genuine imperial envoy.

The second hall of the prefect’s office had always been a place for the prefect to rest after handling official duties. A large plaque covered in gold leaf and black lacquer hung in the hall, bearing the three bold characters “Hall of Reflection.” Two grand armchairs were placed at the center, with a rosewood table in front of them. There were four teak chairs on each side, and two people were sitting in the front seats on either side.

Yet, the imperial envoy who should have been sitting in the main seat was pacing back and forth in the spacious room, clearly agitated. Suddenly, he stopped and stared at Mu Ning, asking, “Although the Shandong Garrison of the Jinyiwei is based in Jinan Prefecture, how could they be unaware of such a major incident? If the emperor finds out that the King of Han really… under his wrath, countless heads will surely roll across Shandong!”

Mu Ning remained silent, but his gloomy expression clearly reflected his inner turmoil. He wasn’t from Shandong, nor had he been part of the Shandong Garrison before. Yuan Fang had temporarily assigned him to take charge here. Unluckily, the King of Han was assassinated not long after he arrived in Shandong. If things were investigated thoroughly, he would surely be held accountable.

Zhang Yue, sitting in the front seat on the west side, felt extremely uncomfortable. He was just a minor county magistrate and shouldn’t be sitting here by any means. Moreover, even if the King of Han had indeed been assassinated, it seemed unrelated to him. Yet, just because the emperor vented his anger, the entire inspection department had suffered greatly, and its members were now imprisoned in the Jinyiwei’s dungeons in Beijing. If news of this reached Beijing today, what kind of turmoil would arise? Could the provincial administration possibly remain unscathed?

Muttering curses under his breath at those incompetent idiots from the Shandong Garrison of the Jinyiwei, Mu Ning finally stood up abruptly and bowed deeply to Zhang Qian, saying, “Eunuch Zhang, I’ve only been here for a short time and indeed neglected this matter. Given its seriousness, I’ll immediately send someone to inform Commander Yuan and start an investigation. But to be honest, the King of Han said the assassin was already chopped into pieces, meaning all traces have been lost. If that’s the case, no amount of effort might yield any results.”

Watching Mu Ning bow deeply before turning to leave, Zhang Qian let out a long sigh and slumped back into the armchair. They were all smart people—who couldn’t understand the implication? It was now utterly impossible to find clues from the assassin, and the King of Han clearly wouldn’t allow anyone to investigate the guards from that day. Judging by this situation, even the emperor didn’t believe it was a real assassination attempt—so how could they investigate now?
“Third Young Master, the emperor gave me an instruction before I came here.”
Silence filled the room. As Zhang Yue was deep in thought, he suddenly heard these words and immediately raised his head. Rather than feeling flattered, he felt rather troubled.
He had somewhat grasped Zhu Di’s temperament—this emperor was extremely stubborn, never tolerating opposition. Once he made up his mind, nothing could change him, not even describing it as capricious would be an understatement. Thus, the closer you were to him, the faster you could rise, but if things went wrong, the fall would be just as severe. That’s why he had always been cautious about the emperor’s favor.
“Eunuch Zhang, could it be that the emperor’s instruction has something to do with me?”
“The Duke of Yingguo is the emperor’s most trusted minister. Seeing him every day, the emperor naturally keeps wondering what you’re up to.” At these words, Zhang Qian couldn’t help but show a wry smile, feeling that it was truly hard to know what to say when the emperor acted as he pleased. “The Jinyiwei’s Shandong unit has been investigating all officials in Shandong. Among the reports submitted, aside from Lord Du, the emperor also pays attention to yours. So, the emperor is well aware of everything that’s happened since you took office.”
The emperor, who was busy with countless affairs, was actually concerned about such a minor official of the seventh rank? Though he didn’t want to believe it, Zhang Yue knew Zhang Qian wouldn’t lie about such matters. For a moment, he felt as if something was blocking his throat, preventing him from speaking. All he hoped now was that Yuan Fang had covered up some details—otherwise, it would be terrible!
“Ever since the Duke of Rongguo died in battle, the emperor has treated Eunuch Zhang like a nephew. That’s why he treats him differently from other nobles. Otherwise, when granting the title of Duke of Rongguo, he wouldn’t have only given him the rank of Earl to test him. It wasn’t until Eunuch Zhang returned victorious from his campaign in Jiaozhi that the emperor, overjoyed, personally composed a poem in celebration and promoted him to Duke. Unfortunately, Eunuch Zhang still has no descendants, and his direct nephew disappointed the emperor greatly. So, with your emergence, it’s only natural that the emperor extends his favor to you as well.”

Seeing Zhang Yue sitting there as if frozen, Zhang Qian thought this made him more like a young man than his usual composed demeanor. He thought to himself, This is normal. Knowing that the emperor is so concerned about his own affairs, a young man like Zhang Yue should be extremely excited and unable to control himself—so it’s only fitting that he appears stunned. But right now, he didn’t have time to let Zhang Yue indulge in such excitement; there were still tricky matters to deal with!

So, he cleared his throat lightly and hurriedly continued, “The emperor says that promoting virtue, resolving lawsuits, and balancing taxes and corvée are the duties of a local magistrate. If one does these well, they are a competent county magistrate. But since you are from the Zhang family, these alone are far from enough. The emperor sent you to Shandong not just to act as a mere magistrate, but to truly assist Lord Du. With the attendants you brought and that clerk, the affairs of the yamen should be sufficient. The personnel from the Censorate and the Ministry of Personnel are being urgently deployed, but even if they arrive soon, it won’t be of much use. The emperor’s intention is for you to quietly investigate now. You can deploy personnel from the Censorate and the Jinyiwei, and in an emergency, I can even mobilize the Shandong military command!”

“Eunuch Zhang, is this your idea or the emperor’s?”

“The emperor wants to see your abilities, and I want to leverage your strength. Do you understand?”

Zhang Yue finally understood. Zhu Di and Duke Zhang Fu shared the same mindset—both believing in the idea that jade must be carved to become useful. Moreover, eunuchs in those days were far less powerful than the Eastern and Western Factories or the eunuch supervisory body that held supreme power in later times. In the current situation, Zhang Qian knew that the title of an imperial eunuch wasn’t enough, so he hoped to use the Zhang family’s military influence to investigate this matter thoroughly and give an account to the emperor. But even though this was a hot potato, could he really refuse?

Zhang Yue took a deep breath, stood up, and bowed deeply, saying, “I will follow the emperor’s wishes.”

Zhang Qian breathed a huge sigh of relief. After all, though his status as an imperial envoy was impressive, it didn’t make things easier when handling affairs. Remembering that the emperor had asked him to take Zhang Yue to the Han Prince’s mansion, he felt he understood the intention now. So, he stepped forward, helped Zhang Yue up with a smile, and took out an item from his sleeve and handed it to him.

Taking it seriously and examining it, he found it to be a half of an imperial envoy’s seal. Zhang Yue’s heart grew even more solemn—he realized that Zhang Qian was truly ready to go all out this time. Thinking back to the year when the imperial concubine passed away and Zhu Di executed thousands of people as a result, he feared that if the Prince of Han exploited this situation, the entire province of Shandong would be in chaos. His earlier concerns vanished without a trace.

“The other half is in my hands. Once we compare them, we can verify its authenticity. I’ll send someone to retrieve the official seal of the inspection commission. Go ahead and investigate freely; I’ll take full responsibility for anything that happens.”

Zhang Qian spoke with utmost sincerity, without any pretense. He then added, “This morning, you challenged the Prince of Shouguang over a trivial matter. Although it benefits your reputation, you need to be more cautious in the future. Fortunately, the Prince of Shouguang isn’t favored by the Prince of Han, so he can’t do much to you right now. But still, be wary of any schemes he might plot behind the scenes. As far as I know, the Prince of Han has many private servants and troops. You have few people with you; I’ll bring twenty guards from the imperial camp to accompany you. Return them to me when I return to the capital.”

Peng Shisan accompanied Zhang Yue early that morning. Upon arriving, he left a group of officials waiting outside the prefect’s office and went straight to the military headquarters to find Liu Zhong. Although the military headquarters in Shandong was heavily guarded, reporting Zhang Yue’s name immediately allowed him to be admitted. When he met Liu Zhong, before he could bow in greeting, someone helped him up.

“You still try this on me!” Liu Zhong had fought alongside Duke Yingguo Zhang Fu in the past and was somewhat familiar with Peng Shisan. Though they belonged to different ranks and affiliations, the bond formed on the battlefield was genuine. “It seems Duke Yingguo really protects his protégés, sending someone as trusted as you to young Zhang Yue. He’s quite lucky!”

Peng Shisan smiled bitterly. “If his luck were really that good, why would he end up in such a troublesome place as Shandong? Why would he encounter the assassination attempt on the Prince of Han?”

“It might not be that troublesome. I’ve been here for four years and have lived quite peacefully!” But at the mention of the assassination attempt on the Prince of Han, Liu Zhong’s expression darkened. After sitting down, he asked in a low voice, “After all, you’re part of Duke Yingguo’s faction. Is there any solid evidence in this matter? It seems highly suspicious. Whenever the Prince of Han comes to Qingzhou Prefecture, he’s accompanied by a hundred or eighty guards—no fly could get in! Moreover, this time he’s been demoted to Le’an. As a vassal prince, he’s not allowed to leave without permission, yet he keeps traveling to Qingzhou!”

“Anyway, the matter has already been reported to the Censorate, so it surely won’t affect you as the military commander. Young Master Yue is just a seventh-rank county magistrate, and you’re in charge only of military affairs in your province. Since an official named Zhang has been sent, and the new Censor-in-Chief will arrive soon, why worry so much? I’m here for another matter. That day, my master and I went to Wang’s family estate… In any case, I’m short of men right now.”
After Peng Shisan explained everything in detail, Liu Zhong immediately became troubled. He naturally didn’t take those sneaky guys seriously, but if anything went wrong at this critical moment, the trouble would be even greater. Although he was the military commander, he didn’t dare to deploy troops without imperial orders. His earlier mention of borrowing a few hundred men from Zhang Yue was just casual talk. After struggling with the dilemma for a while, thinking of the dozens of retainers who had fought alongside him, he suddenly came up with an idea.
“Alright, I’ll assign forty men to you. Use them however you see fit. But Old Peng, with the whole of Shandong preoccupied with the assassination of King Han, you two need to be extra careful.”