Chapter 662: The Heartbroken Have Their Own Comforts (Part 2)

Zheng He left the capital just a few days before Zhang Yue. Before him, Wang Jinghong had already arrived in Nanjing. The two had sailed to the West together six times, always as a pair—partnering closely and complementing each other in everything they did. Yet this mission was entirely different from before. Although it was common in the past for officials to be stationed in Nanjing to defend it, they were always prepared to set sail again as soon as they returned from the West. But this time, it might be forever!

At that moment, he had already summoned Wang Jinghong and handed him the list of gifts that had just arrived. Wang Jinghong scanned it quickly and then looked up with a smile. “I never thought that while we’re here in Nanjing to retire, Zhang Qian would still think of us. That snake oil is excellent for rheumatism—both of us can use it. There are also woolen blankets from the north, leather boots from Nurgan, and ginseng from Changbai… It’s admirable that he thought of everything, though he’s still better than those ungrateful wretches who wish us to suffer.”

Hearing this, Zheng He could only laugh helplessly and shook his head irritably. “It’s been so many years, yet you still refuse to think deeply about things. Do you really need me to explain Zhang Qian’s character? He’s never been the kind to seek power at others’ expense. He remained low-key in the palace and was favored by the Emperor, which is why he was able to stay. Of course, he cares about us, but having Zhang Yue deliver these gifts implies something else.”

Wang Jinghong, who came from the coastal areas of Fujian and had learned shipmanship since childhood, entered the palace at the recommendation of a fellow eunuch out of necessity. Naturally, he couldn’t compare to Zheng He, who had spent many years in the royal family. He was puzzled. After thinking for a while, he gradually came up with an idea: “Are you saying Zhang Qian isn’t afraid of others finding out and also plans to retire?”

“After all, Zhang Qian is getting older. It must be boring to keep holding a position. Besides, since his surname is Zhang, he’s already close to the Zhang family. Just wait—within a few months, there will surely be other arrangements for him.” Zheng He sighed deeply, his expression filled with melancholy. “He hasn’t gone to the West as often as you and I. For him, it’s easier to just leave. Jinghong, over the years, it’s mostly been you, me, Li Da who went to the Western Regions, and Hou Xian who went to Tibet… Compared to Hou Xian and Li Da, we’re the ones who are most reluctant to let go.”

Originally, these thoughts were firmly suppressed deep in his heart, but now they all resurfaced. With no other choice, Wang Jinghong turned his head aside, pretending to be blinded, before reluctantly saying, “I’ve barely managed to hold them back, and you bring this up again! Now, the Ministry of Revenue and others are all blaming us for the huge expenses, and they’ve even proposed a sea ban. It seems we’ll never have a chance with the Western countries in this lifetime. Let’s not talk about the past anymore. I just want to ask you—what about the army?”
The military forces stationed in Nanjing, just like those in Beijing, included units such as the Jinwu Front Guard, Rear Guard, Yulin Front Guard, and Left Guard. Together, they were said to number over a hundred thousand. However, since the most elite soldiers had been sent north, those left were either too old or too young, and their combat strength was far inferior to that of the Beijing troops. With limited land and a large population in the Jiangnan region, it was impractical to cultivate land near Nanjing. Thus, most people relied on the prosperous areas of Jiangnan to make ends meet with meager military rations and salaries. It might be fine for others, but how could the regular troops endure it?
“Two thousand of the strongest soldiers have already been assigned to various garrisons in the Two Huai regions. There are still about a few thousand left in Nanjing city. Many of them are used to a comfortable life. Now I hear that even those with large families and high expenses can’t afford to eat during the New Year! It’s bad enough to be stationed here as it is, but if we really start building palaces in Nanjing, I’m afraid…”
“Stop talking!”
Zheng He was already feeling frustrated, and now his head was buzzing. He instinctively silenced him and fell into silence. After a long while, he weakly waved his hand at Wang Jinghong: “Send someone to see those officers and tell them to discipline their subordinates properly. Say it’s my order—anyone who causes trouble will be severely punished! I turned a blind eye before, which is why they could live lavishly. Now they come complaining about the court? That’s unreasonable! Jinghong, we can’t be lenient now. If trouble breaks out, it will cause big problems!”
Leaving the Zheng family’s residence on Ma Fu Street, Wang Jinghong looked up at the gloomy sky and tightened his cloak, feeling extremely upset. Due to Zheng He’s attitude, he now dared not say what he had wanted to say. Just a few days before the New Year, dozens of regular troops were punished under military law due to disputes over rations or money. Many were still bedridden and unable to move. After all, these people had never cared about the court’s rewards before.
Used to a comfortable life, they couldn’t bear the sudden drop in standards, let alone others.

Zhang Yue sent Peng Shisan to deliver gifts to the Zheng family, while he visited several noble households. He soon noticed that he was being followed. Fortunately, he had nothing to hide, so he acted openly and confidently. When the wind picked up in the evening, after leaving the last household, he got into the carriage and headed back. It was already dark, and a curfew was approaching; light snow began to fall. When he lifted the carriage curtain and gave Zhang Bu a subtle signal, the burly man shook his head, indicating that the pursuers had left.

Receiving this response and seeing no one around, he got out of the carriage. One of the four guards immediately dismounted and crawled back into the carriage. He took out a plain cloak from his saddle bag, fastened it, and put on a snowproof hat, making himself look unremarkable before mounting his horse again. Once fully prepared, he gave orders to the coachman and gave Niu Gan detailed instructions. Only after the carriage and guards moved ahead did he turn around and ride away at full speed.

Since it was the first day of the new year, there were few people on the streets. Most officials and commoners were at home, warming themselves by the fire with wine. When Zhang Yue reached the street as indicated in the letter, most shops had already closed their doors, with only a small tavern still having its sign up, emitting a dim light from inside. He rode over and saw a young boy coming out to greet him. He handed him the reins and stepped through the threshold into the tavern.

There were only five tables in the tavern, and only one table in the corner was occupied. The rest of the time, it was just the elderly owner. When Zhang Yue entered, the boy led the horse to the back, and the old owner shakily went down to close the door. Soon, the boy came out from the back door, placing a small jar of huadiao wine on the table, along with a brazier, a wine pot, and a bamboo strainer. The old owner personally brought over several plates of dishes and wine, then left without saying much, along with the boy.

Only then did Zhang Yue take off his hat. On the table were five dishes: spiced pig’s head meat, fried eggs, stir-fried wood ear mushrooms with bamboo shoots, and stewed tofu. Yuan Fang was personally straining the wine. Feeling an unusually warm sense, Zhang Yue quickly wanted to help, but Yuan Fang waved him off and said with a smile, “After all these years, it’s rare to sit together in such leisure. Let me enjoy this moment for once.”

With no choice, Zhang Yue withdrew his hand. “If Uncle Yuan likes it, I’ll come visit you during the New Year next time.”

“Being so old and still so reckless—what do you think will happen if someone sees you like this? You have a family to take care of. It’s best for me to keep a low profile… But since you’re here, let’s have a drink!”
Yuan Fang poured hot wine into Zhang Yue’s cup and then filled his own as well. When Zhang Yue raised his cup in a toast, Yuan Fang smiled back and picked up a forkful of wood ear mushrooms. Eating these warm dishes made him feel warm physically, but more so emotionally. Since his wife passed away, aside from spending the Spring Festival with Mu Ning at first, he had gradually gotten used to drinking alone by the light during holidays. So when Zhang Yue messaged saying he wanted to spend the New Year’s Day with him, he initially wanted to scold him harshly, but when they finally met, the scolding turned out to be mild.
After Zhang Yue toasted him three times in a row, Yuan Fang gently covered his cup with his hand. “Did you come to see me just to spend the holiday together?”
“Just to spend the holiday together,” Zhang Yue replied. He took the wine pot and filled his cup again before smiling. “I was too busy in the capital and, even when I had time, I was afraid of too many eyes, so I never dared to be so unrestrained. Now that I’m finally in Nanjing, a place where I can relax, I can finally fulfill my wish. Back when I got married, I sent you an invitation, and Uncle Yuan sent a gift but couldn’t come; when my children had their one-month celebration, you sent a gift but didn’t show up. This New Year, I must drink with you.”
These few words touched the softest part of his heart, and a smile appeared on Yuan Fang’s face. “You little rascal! You don’t resemble your father at all, but you’ve inherited his stubborn temper! Back then, he wasn’t successful at home. He should have gone home to be with your grandmother during the Mid-Autumn Festival, but he was busy taking my wife to see a doctor… It’s been so many years, yet it feels like it was just yesterday.”
Seeing Yuan Fang drink his cup in one gulp, Zhang Yue wanted to ask something, but he swallowed his words. Still, Yuan Fang had been a Jinyiwei for over a decade—his eyes were sharp enough to notice that expression, and he couldn’t help but laugh.
“All these years, you’ve never asked about me or your father. It takes great patience to endure that. In fact, if you had just asked, neither of us would have hidden anything from you.”

Zhang Yue was chewing slowly on a piece of pork head when he heard these words and almost choked. He hurriedly downed a cup of wine but almost choked again, forcing him to struggle for a while. Once he finally calmed down, he said awkwardly, “I was just afraid of running into trouble by speaking rashly. Since that’s the case, it’s not too late for me to ask now. Please, Uncle Yuan, help me clear up my doubts.”

Although Zhang Yue didn’t often leave the mansion as a child, with Zhang Zhuo around, Yuan Fang had met him several times. Hearing him take advantage of the situation and showing a hint of his childhood naivety, Yuan Fang was stunned. After a long silence, he picked up the tin wine pot, found it empty, so he poured some wine and heated it until it was scalding hot before sitting down.

“In the early years of the Hongwu era, there was a teacher in the countryside of Shaanxi. Though he held no official title, he was highly learned and quite famous among the locals, who all addressed him as Master Yuan. Those years saw continuous disasters in Shaanxi. His family managed to get by with a few acres of poor land and the fees from his private school. His wife, Zhao, was a commoner who married him at the age of fourteen and was very virtuous. The couple had a three-year-old son, and though they weren’t wealthy, they managed to live decently.”

Yuan Fang paused three times during these few sentences, drinking a gulp of wine each time. Though his tone was calm and his expression serene, Zhang Yue could sense that things must not have been so peaceful. He held his wine cup tightly and listened carefully.

“It was still the early days of the Ming dynasty. To the north, there were the Tartars, and the Central Plains were also unstable. In the third year of Hongwu, there were constant uprisings among the people, most of which were rebellions under banners like the White Lotus and Yellow Turbans. Uprisings broke out in Guangxi, Shandong, Fujian—quelled here only for new ones to arise there. Some of these revolts were due to unbearable living conditions, while others stemmed from ambitious individuals taking advantage of the unstable early years of the dynasty. This originally had nothing to do with that family, but one day, the village butcher suddenly rushed into their home with a dozen men, kowtowing to the teacher’s wife and calling her a princess. The couple had never seen such a thing before and were utterly shocked, not knowing what was going on.”

If Yuan Fang had mentioned the time as the early Yongle era, Zhang Yue might have thought it was some clichéd story about a descendant of Emperor Jianwen hiding among the people. But hearing this, he was stunned and instinctively asked, “Did the butcher mistake her for someone else?”

“Misidentify someone? You underestimate human nature too much. Throughout history, the struggle for power in the imperial court has indeed been cruel and violent, but there are also many people in the common folk who aspire to become emperors. Human greed knows no bounds—that butcher was originally a wealthy family member in the village, but he was deceived by a fortune-teller who claimed he was destined to be a prime minister. The fortune-teller said that as long as he found a descendant of the Song royal family who had been lost among the people, he could seize the throne. It’s laughable that such a fool believed it. There was a Zhao family in the village; their parents had passed away, leaving only this daughter. So, he gathered some local strongmen and went straight to Master Yuan’s house.”

Yuan Fang glanced at Zhang Yue, seeing his expression of disbelief, and then drank another full cup before continuing, “Although Master Yuan wasn’t a world-famous literary leader, as a scholar, he understood the seriousness of the situation and knew full well that his wife was not a descendant of the royal family. He tried his best to dissuade her. But those ignorant people were already blinded by greed and wouldn’t listen, threatening to kill his entire family if he refused. With no other choice, he tried to buy time to appeal to the authorities, but they insisted that the Zhao family sign the documents immediately and rise in rebellion. Realizing it was inevitable and that those madmen would kill his family if he resisted, he came up with a plan in a moment of desperation.”

“Master Yuan simply agreed and negotiated terms with them. He then told his wife to prepare food, locked his son in the back room, and brought out several jars of wine he had stored for years. The butcher, however, was cautious—he insisted on tasting everything first before it was served. They kept drinking until they were drunk. By the time Master Yuan opened the last jar of wine, everyone was already out of control, but the butcher still made him drink first. Then they drank even more. No one expected that Master Yuan had poisoned the wine with rat poison and drank it first himself. The others, trusting him, were poisoned one after another, causing chaos once the effects set in. By the time the Zhao woman heard the commotion, the kitchen door was already locked from the inside. After breaking through the door, she found a scene of death everywhere. It turned out that after a fight in the front room, everyone died together.”

Although Zhang Yue had witnessed many brutal events in this life—such as Cui Mo’s father, Kang Dahai’s fate, which still made him feel sorrowful whenever he thought about it—listening to Yuan Fang’s calm narration now filled him with a chill, making it hard to breathe. He wanted to ask more, but Yuan Fang, already half-drunk, waved his hand.

“There are many strange things in this world, but only when they happen to one’s own self does one realize just how painful such strangeness can be. The deceased think they have protected their family, not realizing that to survive in this world, family members must also endure endless hardships. Through the ages, the only way out has been death… So what’s the relief in being alive?”