Chapter 177: Eight Kings Deliberate Government, the Zheng-Ruan Dispute

What Lin Qian gifted were cannons seized from the Dutch and from Li Dan's Fire-Sail Camp — all cast-iron pieces of varying calibers, which had otherwise been gathering dust in the warehouse.

Being able to use them against the Tartars counts as putting them to good use.

Moreover, since the Xialajiao cannon foundry was now in Lin Qian's hands, and he strictly restricted the external sale of cannons, what if the city walls of Ningyuan had no red barbarian cannons when the battle came?

So he simply gifted them to Sun Chengzong, doing his part for the fight against the Tartars.

Lin Qian cautioned: "Supreme Commander, these cannons are not extremely valuable, but their technical sophistication is hard to come by. They must never fall into Tartar hands — remember that."

Sun Chengzong stood tall and bowed all the way to the ground: "This old man, on behalf of the countless soldiers and civilians of Liaodong, thanks General He!"

Lin Qian hurried forward to support him: "Supreme Commander, what are you doing——"

This scene was witnessed by the Liaodong generals by the bonfire, who all assumed Lin Qian was receiving Sun Chengzong's bow for his military exploits. Though it was overly solemn, they guessed the Supreme Commander had taken a liking to his talent, and thought nothing more of it.

Yuan Chonghuan, sitting alone to one side, saw this scene, his eyes seeming to spit fire. He gave a cold snort and turned his head away.

In the latter half of the night, the camp's atmosphere reached its peak.

The already-drunk military officers gave themselves over to hearty singing — Liaodong melodies were rough and bold, like shouting and bellowing at the top of one's lungs.

Man Gui had his men bring out a horse-head fiddle for accompaniment, blending with the sound of flutes and pipes, rising to the heavens — desolate and mournful.

The next day, the generals took their leave of Sun Chengzong and returned to their respective defense zones.

Man Gui and Liu Xingzuo, mindful of their agreement with Lin Qian, only departed after drilling Lin Qian's personal guards.

When Lin Qian set sail, Sun Chengzong, Liu Xingzuo, Ma Shilong and other Shanhai Pass commanders personally came to the harbor to see him off, only turning back after the fleet vanished beyond the horizon.

Aboard the Tianyuan, Bailangzai asked Lin Qian about the next leg of the voyage. Lin Qian said: "First stop at Zhoushan for a brief anchorage, send an eagle ship to Hirado to scout the situation. If Li Dan behaves himself, we'll head south."

At the very moment the grand bonfire victory feast was underway beneath the walls of Shanhai Pass.

News of the great victory at Fuzhou also reached the Ming court.

The whole nation rejoiced, needless to say, yet beneath the celebration, undercurrents stirred.

Upon learning of the great victory, Wei Zhongxian first sealed off the news, then personally reported it to Tianqi.

The battle's results were already astonishing, but Wei Zhongxian, out of selfish motives, embellished the account with added flourishes — describing it so extravagantly that even the Liaodong generals would have been dumbfounded to hear it, and storytellers would have yielded their seats in deference.

He got the Tianqi Emperor so fired up with excitement that the emperor cheered endlessly, wishing he could go fight on the Liaodong front lines himself.

After Wei Zhongxian finished his lengthy tale, he showed Tianqi the battle report.

This battle report was written by Sun Chengzong, in which the account of the Battle of Changsheng Island was essentially drawn from Shen Yourong's merit-report memorial.

Wei Zhongxian said: "Your Majesty, this slave often hears commanding generals say, 'When men reach ten thousand, they stretch beyond the horizon.' The battle report says this battle left Tartar corpses filling the sea, beyond counting — doesn't that mean at least ten thousand-plus were killed or wounded?"

When Shen Yourong said "beyond counting," his original meaning was that there were so many Tartar corpses that many had become dismembered limbs, all soaked in the sea, impossible to tally.

To claim ten thousand killed or wounded was simply absurd — after all, the Plain Blue Banner's total battle troops didn't even number ten thousand.

But Tianqi, dwelling deep in the palace, had no concept of army sizes, and believed it to be true, declaring he would shower the Nan'ao naval force with rewards and honors.

Promoting Ma Chenglie in rank and title was not Wei Zhongxian's intention, but he was happy enough to use the court's offices to curry his own favors, and did not obstruct it.

The conversation then turned back to the Donglin Faction's impeachment of Wei Zhongxian.

In Sun Chengzong's battle report, not a single word mentioned Wei Zhongxian.

But the Nan'ao naval force had only gone to Liaodong with Wei Zhongxian's approval, and the silver for the Denglai naval force and the Liaoxi wall construction had all been extorted by Wei Zhongxian's tax inspectors.

Whether others mentioned Wei Zhongxian's contributions or not didn't matter — Tianqi saw them with his own eyes.

So when Wei Zhongxian brought the matter up again, tearfully complaining about the grievances he suffered toiling for state affairs and how cunning the southern merchants were in resisting taxes, Tianqi waved his hand and said: "Enough. As long as Liaodong's expenses are guaranteed, handle everything else as you see fit."

Wei Zhongxian was overjoyed, exclaiming that the Emperor was wise.

After withdrawing from the warm chamber, Wei Zhongxian summoned his trusted henchmen and said with a cold laugh: "Send word to Chief Dang. We can make our move tonight. Those who should be arrested, those who should be dealt with — don't let a single one escape."

While the Ming capital was filled with festive cheer.

In Liaoyang, capital of the Jianzhou barbarians, it was a different scene entirely.

Nurhaci and a host of banner masters, Beiles, and generals were deliberating Manggultai's punishment.

"In this campaign, the Plain Blue Banner lost nearly three thousand battle troops, and the Bayara personal guards were almost entirely wiped out — all of this is Manggultai's fault!"

Nurhaci said in a cold voice.

"Today all Five Ministers are present, and of the Three Beiles, all but Manggultai have arrived. Let us all deliberate together on what crime he should be charged with."

In the hall, opinions flew in all directions — some said he should be executed, others said stripping him of his Beile title would suffice.

Nurhaci listened to these words in silence, his face utterly expressionless.

After a long while, the discussion ceased, and Nurhaci spoke: "Hong Taiji, you say — what crime should Manggultai be charged with?"

Hong Taiji rose and said: "The ministers have just discussed it thoroughly. Your son will follow whatever the ministers and Father Khan decide."

At these words, the banner masters and ministers kept their faces still, but inwardly they felt considerable goodwill toward him.

Nurhaci was advanced in years, and establishing a successor felt especially urgent — yet his previously designated eldest son Cuyen and second son Daishan had both suffered repeated attacks and come to no good end.

Nurhaci keenly realized that the Jurchen couldn't manage the system of eldest-son inheritance — forcibly centralizing power would only throw the Eight Banners into internal chaos.

To avoid the tragic infighting of the Mongol "Khuriltai assembly," Nurhaci had devised this system of Eight Kings Deliberating Government last year — in simple terms, "aristocratic co-rule," where everything was decided through consultation.

The most important provision was that after Nurhaci's death, the new Great Khan would be elected by the Eight Kings' deliberation.

Hong Taiji privately thought this idea was staggeringly stupid, but his father the Khan was obstinate and self-willed, and there was no persuading him.

During the discussion just now, the Beiles and ministers had roughly split into two factions — one demanding severe punishment, the other demanding even severer punishment, namely beheading.

Whichever faction's view Hong Taiji supported, he would earn the other faction's displeasure and lose their support, which was why he kept his mouth shut, and when asked his position, gave an ambiguous answer.

Even setting that aside, when the time came to elect a new Great Khan in the future, Hong Taiji putting on the appearance of being agreeable and easy to manipulate would help him win the nomination.

Nurhaci angrily said: "What do you mean, 'follow whatever the ministers and Father Khan decide'? You are one of the Three Great Beiles — do you have no opinion of your own?"

Hong Taiji said: "Your son believes that fining him two niru should be sufficient."

"What?"

"That's far too lenient!"

Some ministers were already voicing their displeasure.

Hong Taiji explained, "In the Battle of Changsheng Island, sixty thousand Han Chinese from Fuzhou gathered on the island. If Manggūltai did not attack the island, he would return branded a coward."

"Yet when he did attack, he fell into the pincer of the Ming naval forces—truly a dilemma. Therefore, your son believes he should not be punished too harshly, and that our efforts should instead be focused on dealing with the Ming navy."

At these words, everyone felt there was some reason to them; had they been in his position, they too could not have conceived of a better tactic.

Someone said, "The Ming cannon ships are truly formidable. Who knows—perhaps it's the very same ship that bombarded Zhenjiang."

"And that Haicang ship carrying the Folangji cannons—people spotted it near Zhenjiang before as well. The Ming army lit bonfires on shore to lure our cavalry over, then used that ship to blast them to death."

Nurhaci said, "As for how to deal with the Ming navy, tell us your plan."

Hong Taiji said, "First: recruit Ming soldiers. Second: forge great cannons. Third: attack the Yi dynasty——"

These three strategies had already occurred to Hong Taiji back after the Battle of Zhenjiang.

Recruiting Ming soldiers would yield military technology.

Forging cannons would strengthen defense of cities and assaults on fortifications, and could also establish coastal defense batteries to deter the Ming navy.

And attacking the Yi dynasty would cut off Mao Wenlong's supply lines, pulling out that thorn in their back.

The discussion in the room lasted deep into the night. Hong Taiji persuaded the others, and Nurhaci, heeding the counsel of the Eight Princes Deliberative Council, established these three policies as state strategy.

In the small hours, the meeting concluded, and the Beiles and ministers filed out of the residence one by one.

Manggūltai sent someone to inquire about the situation and learned that it was Hong Taiji—whom he had always looked down upon—who had pleaded for leniency on his behalf, sparing him severe punishment. He was immediately moved to tears, went to Hong Taiji's quarters that very night, kowtowed in gratitude, and swore that when the time came to elect a new Great Khan, he would surely nominate Hong Taiji, and so on.

Come to think of it, Hong Taiji and Manggūltai were in fact blood brothers.

Thus Hong Taiji warmly raised him up with the rites of brotherhood, traded many brotherly jokes, and agreed that once the new cannons were cast, he would send the first ones to Manggūltai to take his revenge, and so forth.

After seeing the man off, Hong Taiji watched his elder brother's retreating back, and his smile gradually turned cold.

Knowing full well the navy was outmatched, yet forcing a landing on the island regardless of casualties—in Hong Taiji's view, a fool like that could be killed a thousand times and it still wouldn't be enough.

Hong Taiji had spoken up to save him, but it was for the sake of his own bid for the Khanate.

Manggūltai bore the infamy of having killed his own mother, and now the disastrous defeat at Changsheng Island—he could no longer contend for the Khanate. That being so, he might as well win over this one vote.

Now among the Three Great Beiles, to say nothing of Manggūltai, Daišan also had the scandal of an improper entanglement with his mother consort—on the surface, Hong Taiji's odds looked the best.

Yet as the Great Khan's reign lengthened, the younger princes were also growing up, and the name of the Four Lesser Beiles had already emerged: Ajige, Dorgon, Dodo, and Jirgalang.

Among them, Ajige was already twenty-four, participating in deliberative government—fully qualified to compete for the Khanate.

Then there were the brothers Dorgon and Dodo, eleven and nine years old respectively—young in appearance, yet quite favored by Nurhaci, having been enfeoffed as banner masters of the Plain White Banner and the Plain Yellow Banner respectively, and their mother Abahai was the new Grand Consort.

For Hong Taiji to seize the Khanate in such an environment, careful scheming was absolutely essential.

Just then, his personal guard stepped up behind him: "Master, word has come from Li Yongfang. This battle was commanded by Sun Chengzong on the Ming side, and among those who took part were Ma Shilong and Zu Dashou——"

Hong Taiji cut him off directly: "Who commanded the naval forces at Changsheng Island?"

"That man is He Ping, the Naval Roaming General of Nan'ao."

Hong Taiji's brows furrowed slightly. He strode quickly back into the room and pulled out a rolled map.

The guard produced a tinderbox, blew it alight, lit a candle, and moved it closer.

Hong Taiji ran his finger along the coastline, searching the map, until at last, at the border between Fujian and Guangdong, he saw the words "Nan'ao Island."

Hong Taiji revealed a smile. No wonder his seagoing ships had gone silent the moment they reached Macao—now he had found the crux of the problem.

"You may go." Hong Taiji waved the guard away and laughed at the map.

He Ping, is it? This Beile has remembered you.

After leaving Shanhai Pass, Lin Qian's fleet sailed southeast, crossing the Bohai Sea. Upon reaching the Jiaodong Peninsula, they turned southward.

One of the accompanying Eagle Ships broke off from the fleet at this point, sailing southeast across the Yellow Sea to the waters off Jeju Island, then heading east to arrive at Kyushu.

It was now the sixth month; Lü Zhou's merchant fleet should already have docked at Hirado.

The Eagle Ship was going to check whether Li Dan had kept his word. If any petty troublemakers were stirring, warships like the Tianyuan could make a detour to back them up.

Another accompanying Eagle Ship also broke off from the fleet here, returning to Nan'ao Island to collect the official documents that had accumulated during this period.

The rest of the fleet continued south along the Yellow Sea, having agreed to rendezvous with the other two Eagle Ships at Zhoushan.

Should the fleet truly be needed to show force, the voyage from Zhoushan to Hirado was also the shortest.

The Type-II Eagle Ship had a speed of about thirteen knots; once it broke away from the fleet, within the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, it had vanished over the horizon.

The Changfeng, the Yunfan, and the Haicang ships all cruised at around four knots—compared to the Eagle Ships, they could only be said to be crawling along.

On the sixteenth day of the sixth month, Lin Qian's main fleet arrived in the waters off Dongji Island.

The two Eagle Ships sent out earlier were already waiting in these waters. Such was the speed of the Eagle Ships—even taking a roundabout route, they could reach their destination before the Fujian junks.

In the captain's cabin of the Tianyuan, Lin Qian first summoned the crewman from the Eagle Ship that had gone to Hirado to inquire about the situation.

That crewman said, "The shipper said all is well at Hirado. Li Dan treated the fleet with great courtesy and made no trouble."

With that, he took a manifest from his bosom and placed it on the table.

"This is the cargo manifest for this voyage to Hirado. The shipper asked me to deliver it."

Lin Qian glanced over it. The cargo was the familiar assortment—raw silk, porcelain, deerskin, and such—with the total volume slightly increased from last time, roughly seven thousand three hundred shi.

Among it, the deerskin had decreased somewhat while raw silk and white sugar had increased—this was tied to the output of Dongning Island.

Additionally, besides the original eighteen merchant ships on this run, nine new Haicang ships had been added, all previously seized from Li Guozhu.

This brought the merchant fleet to twenty-seven ships, and with the escorting cannon warships, along the coast of the Great Ming it was fully worthy of being called a naval force.

Such a massive fleet was far too conspicuous, and moreover, the Haicang ships—the main force—were warships with limited cargo space to begin with; pressing them into service as merchantmen was a stretch, and once trade volumes expanded further, it would become even more unsuitable.

Therefore, upon returning to Nan'ao this time, the construction of new merchant ship types should also be put on the agenda.

Lin Qian waved his hand, dismissing the crewman.

The crewman said, "There is one more matter, concerning Guangnan."

In theory, Jiaozhi was divided at its midpoint into Guangnan in the south and Annan in the north, and Hoi An—the famous great port of the Indochinese Peninsula—was located in the southern region of Guangnan.

Because these names were too tongue-twisting, and the place was beyond civilization, the common people of the Great Ming did not distinguish between them much, mixing them up indiscriminately.

Last winter, Lin Qian had ordered Lü Zhou and José to trade at Hoi An port; they were supposed to return in the fourth or fifth month.

Because Lin Qian was in Liaodong at the time, he had not been able to hear the report.

The crew member had singled out Guangnan on his own, which suggested there was something important—perhaps related to teak procurement.

Lin Qian said, "Speak."

The crew member said, "The guild head said that Guangnan and Annan originally belonged to one country, called the Great Viet Dynasty, whose emperor bore the surname Li——"

Lin Qian had no impression of this Great Viet Dynasty, but when he heard the emperor's surname was Li, he remembered—later generations generally called this regime the Later Le Dynasty.

"The Great Viet state was founded long ago, but the king's power gradually fell into other hands, usurped by two powerful ministers in the north and south. The northern minister bore the surname Zheng, and the locals called him the Zheng Lord; the southern minister bore the surname Ruan, called the Ruan Lord."

Lin Qian now understood—this was the reason that this land of Jiaozhi had two different names, Guangnan in the south and Annan in the north.

"Though the Ruan Lord and Zheng Lord had lived separately in north and south, they still maintained surface courtesy, but since the Wanli era, their conflict had grown increasingly intense.

When the guild head and his party arrived at Hoi An, they happened to catch the Zheng Lord sending envoys to the Ruan Lord, demanding submission, demanding tribute, and demanding that a hostage prince be sent to court—all of which the Ruan Lord flatly refused.

Now both sides are recruiting soldiers and buying horses; it looks like a great war is imminent.

That's all the guild head said."

That crew member was merely relaying the message after all—Lu Zhou had not told him in great detail, and given the absolute gravity of the matter, he had not even written a letter.

Lin Qian took a deep breath and walked to the window. He knew what this north-south standoff in Jiaozhi meant.

The Zheng-Ruan War, in the history of Jiaozhi, lasted nearly fifty years in total, and the ceasefire was even mediated with the help of the Kangxi Emperor.

And Jiaozhi would not end its north-south division until 1774; counting from the third year of Tianqi, it would remain split for over a hundred and fifty years.

This conflict had a profound impact on the entire Indochinese Peninsula, and even on all of South China.

For instance, the Qing dynasty pirate Zheng Yi Sao, whose legendary status rivaled Zheng Zhilong's, had her fleet first take shape amid Jiaozhi's north-south standoff.

Looking at the present, war meant profit—once the Zheng Lord and Ruan Lord went to battle, European colonizers would absolutely come sniffing around.

And this land of Jiaozhi was a major teak-producing region; teak was the very foundation of Lin Qian's fleet-building, allowing not the slightest carelessness.

If he could use the opportunity of war to reach into their country, purchasing teak and grain on a large scale while selling weapons and gunpowder to both sides, occasionally stepping in to mediate—helping whichever side was at a disadvantage, stoking the flames whenever either side wanted peace—that would be perfect.

Lin Qian gazed out the window at the beautiful scenery of East Pole Island, deep in thought.

However, the wind was not right at present; the earliest he could intervene in Jiaozhi affairs would be winter.

Before that, Lin Qian needed to settle the matters at hand—the military merits in Liaodong, the entanglement with the eunuch faction, and the great matter of marriage—all of it needed to be concluded in one go.

Thinking of this, Lin Qian called for the crew member who had gone to Nan'ao Island to come and report.

That crew member said that during Lin Qian's absence, nothing major had happened on Nan'ao Island; everything had proceeded as usual.

The only matter of any note, neither great nor small, had occurred in Macao—a soldier, drunk, had mounted a Frankish woman.

The matter had been suppressed by Council President Andre, and the naval garrison at Macao had already punished the man.

Lin Qian said flatly, "How was he punished?"

"For assaulting a woman, he was given five lashes."

"Understood." Lin Qian waved his hand to dismiss him.

Then, at Lin Qian's command, the fleet continued sailing south.

The Tianyuan no longer had to look after the "old lady ships" like the Yunfan and Changfeng; it broke away from the fleet, sailing at full sail and full speed, arriving at Nan'ao Island on the twenty-first day of the sixth month.

The moment he stepped off the ship, he saw Scholar Zhou, Zheng Zhilong, and others waiting to receive him at the harbor.

"Congratulations to the helmsman on yet another great merit—the great victory has already spread throughout Chaozhou Prefecture." The two men cupped their hands with beaming faces.

Lin Qian was taken aback: "Word travels this fast?"

The Fuzhou great victory had barely concluded when Lin Qian boarded ship and returned to Nan'ao Island; by all logic, the court's Capital Gazette could not be faster than a seagoing vessel.

Scholar Zhou said, "For such an inspiring great victory, the court wishes everyone to know as soon as possible—they long ago sent fast riders to spread the news to every prefecture."

Lin Qian nodded: "Have the rewards and honors been issued?"

Scholar Zhou paused for a moment: "Not yet."

When Mao Wenlong won the Zhenjiang great victory, the court could not wait to issue rewards the very day the news arrived, yet the Fuzhou great victory had met with an unusual silence.

The Great Ming court truly was something interesting.

Lin Qian did not care about so-called high office and lavish salary; what he needed was the legitimacy to set foot in Zhangzhou and Chaozhou.

The first move of the Zhang-Chao plan, the Fuzhou great victory, had already been played by Lin Qian.

It seemed the court did not want to take the bait.

Then the next move—the marriage alliance with the Ye family—needed to be played quickly.

"Second Brother, send word to Ma Chenglie—have him come to my residence tonight."

After saying this, Lin Qian added, "Second Brother, you come as well."

Having given his instructions, Lin Qian returned to his residence, had servants heat water for a bath, and changed into clean clothes.

After dinner, a servant came to announce: "Master, Commander Ma and Inspector Zhou request an audience."

Lin Qian was amused—the rules of a grand mansion were indeed different. Back on the ship, the two could simply knock and enter the captain's cabin; no need for such troublesome announcements.

Lin Qian had the servant lead the two into the main hall.

The two entered, performed their salutations, and took seats on the left and right, while a servant brought covered bowls of clear tea.

It was no different from the scenes of high officials receiving guests in television dramas.

Lin Qian could not help but smile—it seemed that as his power grew, his old sea bandit habits were gradually fading away.

Lin Qian first moistened his throat, set down his teacup, and spoke a single sentence that nearly made Zhou and Ma spray their tea across the room.

"I should take a wife as well. Grand Secretary Ye's granddaughter seems fine—is there a suitable matchmaker?"

"Cough, cough, cough——" The two coughed for a while, never having expected Lin Qian to be so direct.

Ma Chenglie said, "If we're speaking of the most suitable matchmaker, that would be Grand Secretary Sun. Though he is far away in Liaodong and cannot come in person, a letter from him would be excellent as well."

Lin Qian said, "Having just rendered great merit, to immediately ask someone for a favor—isn't that too utilitarian?"

Ma Chenglie rose and cupped his hands: "The helmsman is right. This subordinate was muddle-headed."

Lin Qian said a few words to soothe him.

In truth, Lin Qian was a pragmatic man—his bottom line was mutual benefit, and he would never do something that benefited others at his own expense.

The reason he did not seek Sun Chengzong's help was that Ye Xianggao was the sort of upright gentleman, and he did not want to leave a poor impression.

Moreover, Lin Qian had been in Liaodong for so long—he did not believe Sun Chengzong had never written a single letter to Ye Xianggao; if he had mentioned Lin Qian even in passing, that would be enough for Ye Xianggao to take him seriously.

Scholar Zhou said, "Why not invite Grand Secretary Huang?"

"That man is not suitable." Lin Qian shook his head.

Huang Ke lacked flexibility, and Lin Qian did not want too much involvement with him, lest it stir up trouble.

Ma Chenglie hesitated somewhat: "This subordinate would speak a word of unpleasant truth—I hope the helmsman will not take offense."

Lin Qian laughed: "Unpleasant words are helpful to one's conduct. If I could not bear even a single word of unpleasant truth, what kind of helmsman would I be? If you merely flattered and fawned, that is when I would take offense—speak freely!"

Ma Chenglie breathed a sigh of relief, then said gravely: "Grand Secretary Ye is, after all, a pure-stream civil official, seated among the highest ranks of the court, a paragon of the literati. The helmsman, though valiant and extraordinary, full of strategy, and harboring great ambitions—"

Lin Qian interrupted with a smile: "Enough flattery—just say it plainly."

Ma Chenglie said, "Yes, yes. In short, Grand Secretary Ye may not have the discernment to agree to this marriage alliance, and if one were rejected, it would inevitably be a loss of face."

In fact, whether the marriage negotiations succeeded or failed, it would not damage anyone's face.

After all, the matchmakers between scholar-officials were also celebrities and local gentry, not gaudily dressed go-betweens.

The woman's family and the matchmaker would deliberate behind closed doors; outsiders would only take the matchmaker's visit as a normal social call, and would never think of marriage. Even if they did, they would not know the outcome, much less who the suitor was.

What Ma Chenglie feared was that Ye Xianggao would humiliate the matchmaker and rebuke Lin Qian for being a toad lusting after swan's flesh.

After all, in the Great Ming, civil and military were separate paths—a military officer seeking to marry the granddaughter of a Grand Secretary already sounded like wishful thinking, and one with a hot temper would take the proposal as an insult and provocation.

Ma Chenglie himself was a military officer who had suffered many losses at the hands of civil officials, which was why he spoke up to warn him.

Lin Qian laughed upon hearing this: "What you have said is excellent. In the future, if you have any objections, speak plainly like this as well."

Ma Chenglie said, "Yes."

Lin Qian thought for a moment and said, "Seeking to marry Grand Secretary Ye's granddaughter—I have been planning this for a long time. I won't say it's all but certain, but at the very least, I can manage it peaceably and amicably. No need to worry."

Ma Chenglie did not know when Lin Qian had begun planning or how he planned to go about it, but the helmsman always acted in ways that were inscrutable and unfathomable, like a gazelle hanging its horns from a tree. Ma Chenglie did not press further, but after thinking for a moment, said: "If that is so, this subordinate has an excellent candidate for matchmaker—Zhou Qiyuan."

Yahei

Fenyuan

Pen