Chapter 475: The Greater Good Comes First

Since its founding, the Ming Dynasty had implemented military farming in border towns. From the Juyongguan section of the Great Wall to the Xuanfu area around Longmenwei, hundreds of miles across were mostly occupied by military settlements. Since the Kaizhong system for purchasing salt required transporting large amounts of grain to the border regions, merchants also gathered many displaced people to farm those previously uncultivated lands. Whenever the grain was ready for harvest, caravans of grain carts would line the official roads for miles, and merchants coming to collect grain vouchers also streamed in endlessly. As a result, despite being in a border area, Xuanfu did not have a grim atmosphere.

Yet that night, the sudden sound of bronze bells in the city woke many who had gone to bed early—whether they were ordinary citizens, wealthy merchants, or women engaged in the sex trade. They all sat up from their warm beds, blinking in confusion, and only realized the severity of the situation when they understood what was happening.

Had the Tartars attacked?

Some were panicked, some disbelieving, while others hurriedly tried to compose themselves in the face of this sudden military emergency. Although it was only a short distance from Meng Jun’s courtyard to the commander’s residence, Zhang Yue and Meng Jun found the path difficult to navigate, as many officers who heard the bells rushed there at full speed, turning what was usually a smooth route into a chaotic mess. Fortunately, Meng Jun was no ordinary officer, and he helped Zhang Yue push their way through the crowd. Upon entering the main hall, they saw Xu Heng, the Marquis of Xing’an, standing on the steps, his face filled with anger.

“Kaiping and Xinghe send out scouts every day, and the commander’s office even funds hundreds of spies. Yet at the critical moment, not a single piece of information has been gathered. What on earth are all these people doing? The harvest season has long passed; it should be time for military drills. If they continue to be so negligent, it won’t be surprising if one day the Tartar army crosses the border and reaches the gates of Xuanfu! They also claimed that Arutai has fled—so what about those who attacked Xinghe before? And who is attacking Kaiping now?”

The officers below were too scared to speak in response to Xu Heng’s outburst. Although Zhang Yue had no authority to interfere in Xuanfu’s military affairs, the names of Xinghe and Kaiping caught his attention. He stepped forward and, seeing Lu Feng frowning, asked quietly, “Eunuch Lu, what’s going on?”

“What’s going on? Something happened in Kaiping. Due to the news of the emperor’s northern campaign, that Arutai must have been provoked in some way and sent his cavalry to harass Kaiping. The forest that used to block the Mongol cavalry in front of Kaiping Fort was completely burned down, and those bastards don’t even know how many enemies are coming!”
At the thought of having to stay in this damned place where war could break out at any moment for who knows how long, Lu Feng felt furious. After cursing a few times, he turned to Zhang Yue and said, “The emperor specifically sent you to inspect Xinghe and Kaiping so that supplies can be stored along the way for use when the army advances. You should either go tomorrow and return as soon as possible, or delay it until after this matter is resolved, so as to help our family. That bastard Haishou clearly intends to make fun of us. If we don’t expose the true nature of those so-called Mongol spies, I’ll write my name backwards!”
Even a three-year-old child knows that Mongol cavalry are fearsome, but Mongol cavalry dismounted are not so threatening. So when Zhang Yue heard that the large forest in front of Kaiping Fort had been burned down, he immediately began calculating quickly in his mind. He only caught a rough idea of what Lu Feng said afterward and then turned his attention to Xu Heng.
“Huang Xiguang, Deputy Commander of the Left Guard, you are ordered to lead 800 troops along the Dushi River in Longmen Valley to search Kaiping. Inform all forts along the way to raise beacons immediately if anything happens—no mistakes allowed.”
“Wang Shanshui, Deputy Commander of the Left Guard, immediately lead 1,000 troops to reinforce Zhangjiakou Fort.”
“Cheng Xi, Deputy Commander of the Right Guard, immediately lead your elite troops to ensure strict vigilance at Huihe Fort, Shacao Fort, Xinhekou Fort, and other places.”
Although Xu Heng wasn’t a veteran general from the Jingnan Campaign, he had frequently been sent to guard the borders, so he was well-versed in these necessary measures. In no time, he issued a series of orders, quickly sending away all the senior generals from the Xuanfu Three Guards who had gathered in the courtyard. The once crowded place was soon left with only a few people. At that moment, a military officer in his fifties stepped forward a few steps. Without any grand gesture, his voice, as deep as a bell, resounded throughout the hall.
“Sir, people have been sent to strengthen defenses in other places, but Xinghe Fort shouldn’t be overlooked. If you feel short of troops, I volunteer to go to Xinghe to guard the border. Since the enemies burned down the forest in front of Kaiping, they certainly won’t let Xinghe go unharmed. Xinghe and Kaiping support each other—neither can be lost.”

“That’s Wang Huan, who holds the rank of Commander of the Shanxi Military Command. He used to be a hundredth-in-command in the Yanshan Left Guard.” Meng Jun was indeed from a prominent family, and having spent time in Xuanfu, he naturally remembered these famous figures clearly. “Back then, most of the thousandth- and hundredth-in-command officers in the three Yanshan guards were granted titles for their bravery or strategic acumen, while the rest rose through merit. Wang Huan is old now, and he’s not part of this northern expedition. I’ve heard he was extremely brave in battle—truly a fierce warrior.”

Although he had inherited his grandfather’s title as Marquis of Xing’an, Xu Heng still maintained a certain degree of courtesy toward these veteran officers from the Jingnan Campaign. Though he wasn’t convinced now, he didn’t want to offend Wang Huan too much, so he spoke to him gently, offering many kind words, yet Wang Huan didn’t respond. Just then, he heard a voice coming from the side.

“Marquis of Xing’an, I’m on my way to Xinghe to inspect grain stores and replace military equipment. Since there’s military intelligence now, why not combine the two tasks? How about having Commander Wang lead troops and accompany me?”

Wang Huan, who was already feeling frustrated, quickly turned to see who was speaking in his defense. But it was an officer he didn’t recognize. After pondering those words, he guessed who the person was and promptly saluted Xu Heng: “At such a critical time, we must ensure our military equipment is complete. I’m willing to lead troops to escort Lord Zhang to Xinghe. I hope you’ll approve.”

At that moment, Guan Juan and Hai Shou arrived just in time. Upon hearing the word “Xinghe,” Hai Shou, who had been startled by the sudden sound of the gong, ignored everything else and rushed forward to ask what was going on. When he heard that an unknown number of northern invaders had attacked Kaiping and set fire to the forests outside the city, he frowned in annoyance. “It’s not as if the city has been lost—why such urgency? If the whole city is put on alert, the people will panic, and that will only be counterproductive!”

Guan Juan was surprised to learn that Zhang Yue planned to set off for Xinghe right away, but he actually hoped Zhang would leave quickly so that Lu Feng wouldn’t be able to cause any trouble alone. After all, the Jinyiwei within Xuanfu had already been bribed by him—no matter how hard they tried, they wouldn’t be able to find any clues. Seeing Xu Heng hesitating, he stepped forward and said cheerfully, “It’s better to go now since the war hasn’t started yet. Otherwise, if we delay, won’t Lord Zhang end up trapped there?”

Xu Heng had always admired Zhang Fusu, who was five years his senior, and wanted to help his cousin. But now that Zhang Yue had spoken up himself, and the imperial order was indeed as such, plus what Wang Guan had said, it would be unreasonable for him to refuse anymore. After pondering for a while, he agreed to it, but instructed Zhang Yue to bring all 500 men from the imperial camp, and asked Wang to summon 500 elite soldiers the next day.

Since no one had notified him, Yu Qian arrived a bit late. By the time he got there, the officers in the courtyard had already left. After finally learning what had happened, his brows furrowed tightly. Today, when 500 firearms were to be distributed to the Left Guard of Xuanfu, because he was not a well-known figure and dressed in plain blue among the clerks and servants, he learned several unexpected things. As an imperial censor, he wanted to report these matters, but with war looming, it would be inappropriate to expose them just to gain a reputation for integrity.

The overall situation came first!

By the time Zhang Yue and Meng Jun returned to their residence, it was already late at night. Disturbed by this sudden military development, even Lian Sheng and Lian Hu, who were originally too tired from the journey and eager to go to bed early, forced themselves to wait until Zhang Yue returned. Upon learning they would set off immediately the next day, they groaned in secret and rushed back to their rooms to get some sleep. Meng Jun had already said what he needed to say and didn’t want to dwell on trivial matters anymore. He gave Zhang Yue’s arm a firm pat and returned to his room. Peng Shisan yawned nonstop, said a quick greeting, and pulled the nearly asleep Niu Gan back to their room. Thus, only three people remained in the room.

“Young master, Leopard and I had dinner early and disguised ourselves. We sneaked out at night to find the Jinyiwei’s informant in Xuanfu, only to find that this person was evasive and untruthful. So we gave him a taste of our power. Only then did we realize that the Jinyiwei’s battalion here was essentially non-existent—everyone had been bought by that Wang Guan. Several informants also had their families under his control, so whatever information was sent up was fabricated.”

While Xiang Long was reporting, the usually quiet Liu Bao stood outside waiting. Although Zhang Yue had anticipated something like this, hearing it confirmed made him shocked. After a moment of silence, he asked, “Did that person say anything about what Wang Guan is doing in Xuanfu?”

“This guy is afraid of death, so I threatened him by saying that the Jinyiwei had noticed abnormalities in Xuanfu, and he then revealed some information. According to him, there are three major problems in Xuanfu. First, a large amount of private goods have ended up in the north, including cotton, tea, and ironware. After the Mongols retreated northward, it became difficult to smelt ironware. But the most important one is tea. Second, apart from the military settlements, many officers in the border towns privately cultivate land for profit; alone, Wang Guan owns hundreds of hectares of land. Third, when merchants pay taxes in grain to obtain warehouse vouchers as proof for exchanging salt permits in the future, officers extort a lot of bribes from them.” After hearing all this, Zhang Yue felt suffocated and only took a deep breath after a long while. It’s not difficult to investigate each of these issues thoroughly, but it’s hard to deal with them properly, especially since now is not the right time. The overall situation comes first; everything else must be put aside for now!