Chapter 852: The Emperor’s Grace and Severity—Suddenly Manifesting

Danning Garrison City.
Towards the end of the Yongle era, repairs began on the old city of Danning. After several years, the once dilapidated fortress now stood once again in the northeast of the Great Ming. With the emperor personally leading a large army on a border inspection, the small forces of the Doyan Three Garrisons, which had been harassing the region from the south, naturally retreated. Meanwhile, after a series of battles between the Oirat and Tatar tribes, the victors were busy consolidating their gains, while the losers were forced to retreat further north in search of a place to heal their wounds. As a result, the three major competitions and generous rewards offered in Danning Garrison City not only motivated the soldiers but also prompted the Wulangha people to send their bravest warriors to participate.

Zhu Zhanji had been personally taught by Zhu Di since childhood, learning both literature and martial arts. He himself harbored ambitions to expand the empire’s territory. Sitting on the open platform of the training ground, watching the brave soldiers compete in archery, horsemanship, and various weapons, he tightened his thick sable coat despite the biting cold wind causing pain on his face, yet his eyes remained filled with excitement. Wang Jin, standing beside him, saw a eunuch bringing a hand warmer and quickly waved him away.

The emperor’s border inspection was meant to showcase his military strength to the Mongols. He had just personally shot three arrows—how could he now appear timid? Such behavior would only invite ridicule.

Indeed, seeing the elite soldiers of the Danning Three Garrisons and the Wulangha warriors compete in archery without falling behind, Zhu Zhanji became extremely excited. When those who ranked at the top came forward to thank him for his rewards, he stood up, lifting his coat. After praising their skills, he declared loudly, “I am delighted that so many valiant warriors have come to showcase their talents at this year’s Danning festival. From now on, I will inspect the borders every three years, hoping to see further improvements in your martial arts! To the two top performers today, I grant them hereditary positions as thousand-household officers in the Jinyiwei!”

At these words, everyone was stunned. After all, only silver coins and imperial wine had been mentioned earlier. But in an instant, they understood what he meant. The soldiers from the Danning Central Garrison, in their early thirties, turned red with excitement, as did the Mongol man from the Doyan Garrison.

One was an ordinary soldier who never even reached the rank of minor officer, constantly suppressed by his superiors and barred from promotion. If it weren’t for this competition personally supervised by Duke Zhang Fu of Britain, where truly anyone could compete, he wouldn’t have even had the qualification to participate. The other was a slave of Haraha Sun, the leader of the Duyan Guard, who entered the competition merely to bring honor to his master, only to suddenly rise to great heights. When the two went forward to express their gratitude again, they could hardly hold back their tears.

“From now on, every top-ranked soldier and Wulangha warrior in these competitions shall follow this example!”

The emperor’s words once again sparked even louder cheers. Instantly, cries of “Long live! Long live forever!” swept through the city of Danning Guard like a tidal wave, triggering a wave of fervor in the bitterly cold winter. Even the old and weak who might never get such an opportunity due to their lack of martial skills trembled with excitement under the influence of others, let alone the able-bodied soldiers who believed they were skilled but just unlucky.

The princes and lords of the three Wulangha guards, who were invited—or rather forced—to attend—were not so happy. However, with weak forces, they had always had to struggle to survive. With Altai Taishi holding great power, they could only ally with him, passing information for him, even joining forces with the Tatar army to fight against the Ming Dynasty. Now that the Ming army was strong and the emperor was ambitious, this was an outright act of favor—how could they refuse?

Since their last defeat by the Ming Dynasty, the Duyan Guard had suffered the most. Its leader, Harugudai, became gravely ill from anger and frustration. He died just a few days after the Ming army withdrew. Amid internal strife, his son Haraha Sun quietly gathered a few key figures, launched a coup, drove away his two uncles, and seized control of the tribe. Later, because he submitted tributes and showed obedience, he became the first to receive the gold seal bestowed by the Ming court. With the backing of the Ming court, although the Duyan Guard was now the weakest among the three tribes, Anchu of the Fuyu Guard and Tuohechi of the Taining Guard did not dare to overstep against them.

With the great battle over, the leaders of the three guard units gathered together on the last night before leaving Danning Guard City. Outside, their personal guards were roasting sheep, while the three leaders inside each had a bowl of mare’s milk wine, their expressions varying. Anchu, the leader of Fuyu Guard, who had risen to the top of the three guard units by accepting the allegiance of the Horqin tribe in the previous two years, took a sip of the mare’s milk wine, glanced at Khalahasan, and said with a forced smile, “The slave of the Doyan Guard has suddenly become a thousand-household commander under the Great Ming emperor. If your father, who’s already in heaven, knew about this, I wonder if he’d be happy or angry.”

Anchu and Tuohuochi were both from their father’s generation and had been in constant conflict. Had it not been for Khalahasan’s quick action, the Doyan Guard would have almost become a vassal of Fuyu Guard. Thus, despite being angered by these harsh words, Khalahasan did not show it on his face. He simply lowered his head and said, “If my father were still alive, he would only regret listening to the temptation of Grand Tutor Arutai.”

Tuohuochi tilted his head back and gulped down all the mare’s milk wine in his mouth. Thinking of that small tribe that had recklessly rushed into the path of the Great Ming emperor’s troops, only to end up allowing the Doyan Guard to take advantage of the situation, he was extremely angry. The reconstruction of Danning Guard City was undoubtedly like driving another nail into their doorstep. Unfortunately, the Ming army was too powerful, and the three guard units alone could never resist them. He had sent people to contact Tuohan of the Oirats, but Tuohan demanded their complete submission!

Both the Great Ming and the Oirats were wolves!

“Stop talking such depressing stuff; it’s annoying!” Tuohuochi slammed his wine bowl on the table and then asked, “Let’s get to business. Finally, the Great Ming emperor has agreed to continue trade. Our horses and furs will finally have a market, and we can get good goods from the Central Plains. But once the Tatars and Oirats hear this news, they’ll surely come to claim their share. We need to make a decision quickly.”

Although Khalahasan was young and facing two men his age, he showed no signs of trying to hide his abilities. “We don’t need to worry about the Tatars. Grand Tutor Arutai has lost Khulun Khishun and now even several areas further east. In such cold weather, he even has to flee further north. How much of his livestock, people, and territory will he lose? As for the Oirats… we can’t just deal with Tuohan superficially. We also need to take care of the King of Virtue and the King of Righteousness. As long as those two hold them back, we can advance westward…”

After a pause, Khalahasan said slowly, “Take Arutai’s territory!”

Although they had already known that the Doyan tribe had previously brought this matter to the Ming court, seeing Khalaha Sun mention it openly now, An Chu and Tuohuo Chi exchanged a glance and felt somewhat satisfied. The Doyan tribe’s strength had been greatly diminished; at least they no longer had the ability to act alone. As for Arutai and their three guards being related by marriage… With life and death at stake, who cared about such things!
“Very well, let’s meet at Doyan Mountain once we return!”
While the Doyan three guards discussed annexing Arutai’s territory, Zhu Zhanji returned from the icy wilderness to a room with a heated kang. He let out a long sigh before taking the hand warmer handed to him by Wang Jin. He had experienced the cold in the north during his campaigns with Zhu Di, but back then he was still young and full of energy; having forced himself through earlier, he now felt exhausted. Sitting down on the kang, he lacked the strength to remove his heavy coat. Wang Jin personally helped untie its straps and then bent down to take off his thick leather boots, ordering someone to bring water.
After warming his feet with warm water and then scalding them twice with hot water, and after drinking a bowl of ginseng soup, Zhu Zhanji finally regained his strength. He sighed and said, “It’s true—staying in the palace for too long makes one lazy and weak. When I trained the army’s vanguard, I ate and slept in the military camp, even in the bitter cold, getting up early and going to bed late, with no complaints at all.”
“Your Majesty compares yourself to those days again. Why did you have to worry about the affairs of the realm back then?”
Wang Jin replied with a smile, then stepped forward to massage Zhu Zhanji’s shoulders and back. Seeing him pick up the stack of memorials on the kang table, he stopped any further flattery or comfort and focused on his task. After a while, he noticed that Zhu Zhanji, who had seemed annoyed by the memorials sent from the imperial court these days, now seemed quite pleased.
“Your Majesty, is there good news?”
“Princess Wu is pregnant.” Zhu Zhanji smiled slightly and pushed the memorials aside so Wang Jin could see them. “Now, those who speak ill of us behind our backs will be quiet for a while. I’ve never believed in fate. I’m young and in good health—how could I have trouble having descendants? Zhang Yue is even weaker than me, yet his family already has many children!”
“Your Majesty, don’t be too happy. There will still be troubles. In a few years, the palace will be filled with princes and princesses. By the time you’re a hundred years old, with so many grandsons and great-grandsons, you might not even recognize them!”

Wu Pin was not outstanding among the concubines. Zhu Zhanji was not happy because she was pregnant; he was happy that, aside from Concubine Sun, someone else had brought good news. This way, the Empress Dowager could no longer accuse him of favoritism, and the ministers would not try to persuade him earnestly. Of course, having more children was always good.

So, when he spoke these words to Wang Jin with a frown, Zhu Zhanji couldn’t help but laugh heartily. Pointing at this most trusted eunuch, he joked, “You dare to tease me! Very well, very well—your adopted son is here now. I’ll grant you two more wives so that you can also enjoy the joy of having many descendants in the future.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty. But won’t my descendants in the future be subjects of Your Majesty?”

The master and servant laughed together for a while when someone reported that Duke Yingguo Zhang Fu wished to see the emperor. Zhu Zhanji immediately put away his smile, stopped leaning back in his chair, and sat up straight. After Zhang Fu entered and paid his respects, he ordered Wang Jin to bring over a chair for him to sit on, then said seriously, “Now that everything is settled, leave the arrangements for returning to the capital to Duke Yingguo. If there are any issues, discuss them with Scholars Jin and Du. As for Marquis Yangwu Xue Lu, who has been stationed in Danning for many years, it’s time for a replacement. If you have any candidates, feel free to suggest them, so I can discuss them with the cabinet.”

Zhang Fu had accompanied the emperor on northern expeditions and thus saw the emperor as often as those in the cabinet, but he had always been very cautious and did not offer suggestions easily. Now that the emperor asked about such a personnel appointment, he hesitated. This was not a candidate who could be easily found—since the Yongle era, commanders in charge had always been nobles with military achievements. But now, almost all of the first-generation nobles were gone, replaced by second- and third-generation ones. Although Marquis Yangwu Xue Lu had been granted his title late, he had still experienced battles firsthand. In a crucial place like Danning, those lacking military skill would not be able to handle things properly.

“In my opinion, after Marquis Anyuan returns to the capital, he should be assigned to guard Kaiping, while Marquis Wu’an should guard Danning.”

“Marquis Wu’an? He’s quite old after all.” During the rewards for the Jingnan Campaign, Zheng Heng was the youngest among the meritorious officials aside from Zhang Fu, but now he was already gray-haired. Thus, Zhu Zhanji frowned. However, after carefully reviewing all the nobles in court, he found that the most capable ones had already been sent away. In the end, he could only nod slightly and say, “Very well, let’s discuss this further. Marquis Wu’an has been stationed abroad for many years and should return to the capital to rest. Even Marquis Anyuan has just returned from fighting in Jiaozhi.”

Even the most skillful cook can’t cook without rice; at this moment, Zhang Fu could only remain silent. Once they left the imperial court, he couldn’t help but sigh deeply. He had now been relieved of his position as commander of the central military headquarters. Aside from accompanying the emperor, he couldn’t leave the capital. Besides Marquis Ningyang Chen Mao, Marquis Wu’an Zheng Heng, Marquis Anyuan Liu Sheng, and Marquis Yangwu Xue Lu, who else could he turn to? It was said that Zhang Yue had previously strongly advocated for the establishment of martial arts schools, and now it seemed this was indeed necessary—otherwise, among so many military officials, no great generals could be selected!

Upon returning to his own residence, a household servant greeted him at the door and whispered, “Master, the lady of the capital sent an urgent letter.”

Zhang Fu stopped in his tracks, took the letter, and entered the house. After glancing through it quickly, he facelessly threw the letter into the brazier. Watching the paper turn to ashes in the fire, he finally rubbed his temples with his fingers. The current emperor no longer arranged marriages with nobles, nor did he have such intentions himself. It was better for his daughter to marry into a family of equal status and become the mistress of the household than to be sent to the palace as a concubine. Yet, some marriages could be arranged, while others absolutely could not. Last time, Zhang Yue had also specifically mentioned the Guo family of Marquis Wuding—were they merely trying to ingratiate themselves, or did they have other plans?

Just as he decided to set aside this matter and summon the other nobles accompanying the emperor to discuss returning to the capital, suddenly there was a commotion outside. Soon after, a household servant rushed in in a hurry.

“Master, master! It’s bad— the flagpoles in the city have suddenly collapsed!”