Chapter 518: Forgiving the Past and Never Letting Go
After the king’s head was cut off in public, those northern fugitives who had been imprisoned were released one by one after being screened by the Jinyiwei. Yet, even though they saw the light of day again, they could not lead peaceful lives. The imperial court had always enforced the rule of registering fugitives locally, and the border towns were in constant need of manpower, so almost all of them were conscripted into the army to strengthen border defenses. At that moment, a group of people were pushed out of the prison. Before their eyes could even adjust to the lazy sunlight, the officers assigned to select them began dividing them up as if dividing spoils. In the end, three hundredmen started arguing loudly.
“We Left Guard just returned from a mission to Xinghe, and many died in the battle against Arutai. So why should we Right Guard give way this time?”
“Give way? Uncle Xu, why don’t you say that your mission was a huge fortune—everyone got rewards, you gained great prestige in front of Marquis Wu’an, not to mention Lord Zhang is grateful to you! It’s just twenty or thirty fugitives—how can you compete with us?”
“You’re right. The three guards are one family; none of us are weaklings. We can’t let the Left Guard take all the good things! We won’t take advantage of you either. There are twenty-seven people in total—nine per guard! Those who managed to escape from the Tartars are all outstanding warriors. Who knows, the Imperial Horse Guard might even come to select guards. It would be easier for all three guards to compete together than for just the Left Guard.”
Zhang Yue arrived to find such a noisy scene. He thought the officers were reluctant to take in more people because they found them a burden. But after hearing the reason for their argument, he couldn’t help but laugh. Waving his hand at the soldiers who wanted to intervene, he jumped off his horse and walked over with his attendants. Behind the three arguing fiercely, he realized they hadn’t noticed his arrival, so he coughed loudly.
“What’s the coughing for? We must fight for what’s ours… Ah, it’s Lord Zhang?”
One of the burly hundredmen turned around impatiently, froze upon recognizing Zhang Yue, and quickly stepped back, bowing awkwardly. The other two also snapped out of their daze and immediately bowed. Zhang Yue nodded at them with a smile, then signaled Niu Gan to come over. Pointing at the group that had just been released from prison, he said, “Identify those who escaped from Hulanhuheshun with you, and bring them here.”
Seeing Niu Gan still dazed, Peng Shisan snapped angrily and slapped him on the neck: “What are you standing around for? Since the lord has given the order, go and bring them out. You’ve been with the lord for days now—do you still fear he’ll harm you?” Only then did Niu Gan realize Zhang Yue wasn’t joking, and his face immediately lit up with joy. Though all those people tied together with coarse hemp ropes and strung in a row looked identical, he quickly identified his three companions among the group of disheveled, ragged men. Zhang Yue ordered their bonds to be untied and then smiled at the three stunned hundredmen. “I know these people who fled from the north are all warriors. There aren’t enough spots for all of you in the three guards, but my bodyguard once distinguished himself in battles at Xinghe, so I promised him he could reunite with his companions. So, even if it means being bold, I’ll fight to take them back from you. The Marquis of Wu’an will arrange their household registrations, and they’ll have a place to settle down. Weren’t you afraid the Imperial Horse Guard would come to claim them? I’ve taken care of that—no one will come to snatch them from you anymore. How does that sound?” If any other civil official had said such things, none of the three hundredmen would have agreed, but since Zhang Yue came from a noble family and had fought at Xinghe, he naturally carried a different kind of authority. Moreover, his offer—compared to gold, silver, fine wine, or fine horses—was far more practical. After exchanging glances, they readily agreed. Seeing those three bewildered men pushed into the carriage by Niu Gan, they stopped arguing and quickly divided them up after whispering among themselves. The hundredman of the Left Guard of Xuanfu, known as Lord Xu, gathered his new subordinates and gave them a speech, then herded them toward the camp like cattle, still marveling at the good fortune of those three men. Whether it was the Left Guard of Xuanfu or the Imperial Horse Guard, it wasn’t easy to stand out, but following this young Lord Zhang, it would be much easier if they performed well. After all, everyone knew that in the Ming Dynasty, power was shared between the emperor and those nobles! Regardless of how shallow, narrow-minded, or absurd the hundredman’s thoughts might be, Zhang Yue indeed managed to bring these three men back without much trouble, even resolving their household registrations effortlessly. The Ming Dynasty’s tax and labor registers were indeed extremely strict, but military households were different from civilian households, stove-keeping households, artisan households, boat-keeping households, etc.—the will of their superiors was of great importance. With the Marquis of Wu’an, Zheng Heng, vouching for them and promising to use the shortage of troops in the three guards of Xuanfu to justify taking them from the Imperial Horse Guard, Zhang Yue smoothly brought them back.
Having been locked up in prison for over a month, facing shortages of food and clothing while constantly fearing execution, the three gaunt men at first simply followed orders blindly. After washing up and changing clothes, they ate porridge and steamed buns. Once they had eaten their fill and regained their strength, they understood what was going on through Niu Gan’s clumsy explanations. Finally realizing they were truly free, they burst into ecstatic cheers.
Zhang Yue in the next room smiled upon hearing the noise that seemed to shake the roof. Fang Qing, who had come specially to meet him, was almost startled by the sudden cheers and frowned, wondering how Zhang Yue’s men could be so reckless. It wasn’t until Zhang Yue’s voice came from across that he quickly set aside his thoughts.
“Don’t pay attention to them. They’ve suffered greatly and are simply overjoyed to see the light of day again.” Seeing Liansheng bring over a small tea tray with two cups of tea, he asked directly, “You once said our family had trading posts in Shanxi. It’s quite fortunate that this happened now. But the price set this time is surprisingly high—you must have played a significant role in that, right?”
Having dealt with Zhang Yue many times and knowing he didn’t like beating around the bush when discussing matters of importance, Fang Qing calmed himself down and bowed honestly. “Your wisdom is keen, sir. I indeed felt that since the imperial decree specified no salt subsidies this time, the price was too low. Moreover, given your established rules, I suggested to some merchants from Lu’an Prefecture that a price of at least seven dou and five sheng would be necessary. Yet even after raising it to one shi, I was outdone by others. It was pure luck that I was able to secure a share of three thousandliang.”
“Anyway, you’ve done a great service to the court this time,” Zhang Yue said. Thinking of the memorial he and Zheng Heng submitted the previous day—and considering that the most crucial aspect of the northern campaign was the transportation of military supplies—he had no objection to Fang Qing’s tactics. He continued, “The three tribes of the Oirats have submitted and been granted titles, and Arutai has also been made King of Hening. But the Mongols are by nature raiders, so trade at the borders often stops and starts. Still, I know that even without the old kingdoms, caravans have always continued to travel across the borders.”
Although most of the Fang family had moved inland to Qingzhou in Shandong, many members still remained in Lu’an Prefecture in Shanxi. Thus, Fang Qing was naturally aware of these unspoken practices in business. Yet hearing Zhang Yue speak so bluntly made his heart skip a beat; he quickly placed the teacup back on the small table beside him. He was happy to see those competitors suffer, but too many people from the Shanxi merchants were involved in this matter. Even Zhang Yue might not be able to bring them all down at once. If he acted rashly out of greed, he might end up losing everything himself.
“Sir, after the Tartars fled north, they had no other way to enjoy the fine goods of the Central Plains except by plundering. So once those goods reach the border regions, they can be sold for ten, twenty, or even a hundred times more. It’s true that some merchants ignore prohibitions for profit, but this has been a recurring problem for decades, involving too many people. If you try to investigate this thoroughly, there will likely be a strong backlash. The Shanxi merchants may be wealthy, but they still spend a lot of silver each year in offerings, so…”
“One end of this string is tied to the Shanxi merchants, and the other end likely involves countless others. I’m not that naive as to start pulling up everyone along that string and offend them all. Doing business secretly at the border is fine if it’s just silk or other luxuries, but tea bricks are not acceptable, let alone passing messages to the Tartars! When I was in the Jiangnan region, I had a hundred people executed in one go for exactly this reason—greed is human nature, but one must never become a traitor!”
Seeing that suddenly fierce expression, Fang Qing found it hard even to swallow. He thought of the Ningbo Maritime Administration, where only twenty or thirty prisoners remained. As the saying goes, it’s better to live in misery than to die, but waiting to die like that was worse than dying outright, at least avoiding gradual suffering. With great effort, he turned his head and managed to force out a faint smile.
“Then, what do you mean, sir…”
“Every time the Tartars invade, countless people have their homes destroyed. This trend must not be allowed to continue. It’s fine to do business beyond the borders, but it must be done cleanly! The Shanxi merchants have only one choice: either be subjects of the Great Ming or go straight to the grasslands to serve as the Tartars’ lackeys. Didn’t you find the cheering in the next room strange just now? They were all captured by the Tartars and taken north, and after great hardships they managed to escape back. For them, if given the chance, they would be eager to tear off a piece of flesh from those Tartars and devour alive those who collude with them. I can overlook merchants who secretly trade beyond the borders, but I must catch a few of those Tartar spies!”