Chapter 276: Wei Zhongxian's Death by a Thousand Cuts

Sun Chengzong paused for a moment, then said: "This old minister had the fortune of several encounters with Lin Qian during the Battle of Fuzhou..."

"At the time, this man served as the Naval Commodore of Nan'ao. He earned repeated distinction in the battles of Fudu River and Changsheng Island with his warships, and later presented us with cement mortar and red barbarian cannons..."

"The cities of Ningyuan, Jinzhou, and Songshan were all built with his gifts — strong walls and sharp cannons. Since their completion, the Jianzhou barbarians have not dared to invade."

When Lin Qian gave Sun Chengzong the cement and cannons, he had urged him not to report the matter to the court, lest the secret be leaked.

But now that Lin Qian had rebelled in the southeast, and the Emperor himself was asking, if Sun did not speak, he would be deceiving his sovereign.

Moreover, Yan Mingtai of the eunuch faction had already been stationed in Liaodong for many years — if the secret were to leak, it would have leaked long ago. Keeping it now served no purpose.

Better to take advantage of the Emperor's inquiry and have Sun Chengzong confess voluntarily, lest a rift form between sovereign and minister.

The Emperor said nothing, so Sun Chengzong recounted the entire story of his acquaintance with Lin Qian, from their first meeting to their parting, striving to restore every detail without the slightest error. After a long silence, the Emperor slowly spoke: "In your view, how should the rebel Lin be dealt with now?"

Deep in his bones, Sun Chengzong greatly admired Lin Qian, and he was keenly aware of Nan'ao's strength and the Great Ming's weakness, so he said: "In this old minister's view, we should pacify him — and pacify him generously."

"Pacify him generously?" the Emperor repeated softly, his tone revealing neither pleasure nor displeasure.

Sun Chengzong was a man who spoke his mind, and having concluded that the new Emperor was a wise ruler who could tolerate and recognize talent and accept good counsel, he spoke frankly: "Yes. The world all says that Nan'ao's navy is invincible at sea, and Jiangnan is crisscrossed with waterways. If we send a heavy force to suppress them, I fear it will achieve little and instead drag down the war efforts in Liaodong, the northwest, and the southwest. In this old minister's view, this man is not of a treacherous or evil nature. During the Battle of Fuzhou, Lin Qian fought the Jianzhou barbarians in bloody combat, devoted to serving the country, regardless of gain or loss. Since raising his army, he has not presumptuously proclaimed a state title, nor styled himself king, nor sent troops to disrupt the key revenue-producing regions of Zhejiang, Jiangxi, and Chu. He shows considerable understanding of the greater good — all his actions are those of protecting his territory and reassuring the people. Surely he still holds the Great Ming in his heart and was driven to raise arms only by the tyranny of the powerful eunuchs.

If the court grants him generous pacification, the southeast will be pacified without battle, and the court will not only regain its key revenue regions but also gain enormous assistance in recovering Liaodong!" The Emperor seemed somewhat tempted and asked: "This so-called generous pacification — how generous?"

"Rank no lower than the first grade, enfeoffment no lower than duke or marquis, and territory no less than Fujian and Guangdong."

At these words, to say nothing of the Emperor's reaction, even Yuan Chonghuan broke out in a cold sweat.

"Rank no lower than the first grade" meant the highest official ranks, such as Left and Right Pillars of State or the Grand Master of the Brilliant Prospect.

"Enfeoffment no lower than duke or marquis" meant granting high noble titles, even kingship. The Great Ming had no precedent for ennobling a non-imperial surname as king, and when it came to pacifying rebel leaders, it had never even granted a countship.

"Territory no less than Fujian and Guangdong" meant ceding Fujian and Guangdong to Lin Qian, with the Great Ming retaining only Guangxi and recognizing Lin Qian's de facto independence.

Such generous terms were even harsher than what Wei Zhongxian had offered, and Yuan Chonghuan could not help but feel worried for Sun Chengzong.

Boom!

A muffled clap of thunder rolled in from outside, followed by the patter of rain against the house. An autumn rain that had been building for some time had finally arrived. The rain fell hard and fast, carried by the northwest wind, filling the room with damp, humid air.

The sound of raindrops striking the ground was dense and rapid, like the hoofbeats of ten thousand warhorses galloping.

Then the Emperor spoke through the sound of the rain: "And what if... I were to annihilate Nan'ao?"

Sun Chengzong said: "In this old minister's view, the odds of victory in such a campaign are slim. If war must be opened, none but His Excellency Zhu, the former Governor-General of the Five Southwestern Provinces, could lead the army." Fu Zonglong clasped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, although Nan'ao's navy is strong, its infantry is weak. This humble minister believes that to suppress the rebellion, we should advance from Huguang into Guangxi, forcing them to fight on land in the mountains and negating their naval advantage.

Launch feint attacks from Guizhou, southern Zhejiang, and Jiangxi, keeping the rebels off balance.

Our main army can descend the Pearl River to take Guangzhou, then besiege Fujian from three sides — Guangdong, Jiangxi, and Zhejiang — uprooting their land-based foundation, and their navy will collapse on its own." Sun Chengzong stroked his beard and said: "Hmm. The rebels have only just taken Guangxi; the people's hearts are not yet with them. Moreover, many of their officials are originally Ming scholars and ministers who only came to Fujian and Guangdong to take temporary refuge because of their dissatisfaction with Wei's clique.

Now that Your Majesty has ascended the throne, reforming the old and establishing the new, with clean governance, we can supplement this with a strategy to attack their hearts — recruiting the mid- and lower-ranking officials of the rebel Lin could also sow internal discord among the rebels." Fu Zonglong's eyes lit up: "Well said! With His Excellency Zhu's talent and this strategy, there is hope of pacifying the southeast!"

"His Excellency Zhu recently lost his father. Would it not be too disregardful of human bonds of filial piety to issue an edict recalling him from mourning?" The Emperor's words were like a bucket of cold water. Sun Chengzong and Fu Zonglong both felt surprised — recalling an official from mourning would indeed invite criticism, but with matters of state and military urgency at hand, was this the time to worry about reputation? Just as the two were about to urge him, they heard the Emperor say: "Could Minister Fu take on the post of Governor-General of the Five Southwestern Provinces?"

Fu Zonglong's whole body trembled. He was Zhu Xieyuan's deputy, had military achievements to his name, and knew the southwestern situation like the back of his hand. Presumably the Emperor had summoned him for consultation with the intention of appointing him Governor-General of the Southwest already in mind. To decline now would be to fail to appreciate a kindness.

So Fu Zonglong clasped his hands and said: "The state is in difficulty. I dare not excuse myself on the grounds of meager talent. I shall exert my utmost, however dull, to repay Your Majesty."

When sovereign and minister conferred in the Great Ming, there were strict protocols — ministers were not permitted to look directly upon the imperial countenance. Thus all three men kept their eyes fixed on the space before the throne as they spoke.

In a place the ministers could not see, Zhu Youjian revealed a smile. So far, everything was proceeding according to his design.

The Great Ming's resources were limited — to wage war in the southeast, the offensive against the Jianzhou barbarians would have to slow. Therefore he had chosen the seasoned and prudent Sun Chengzong as Supreme Commander of Ji-Liao. Although Zhu Xieyuan was highly capable, he was after all in mourning. Zhu Youjian, having just ascended the throne, did not want to bear the infamy of recalling someone from mourning, nor did he want to appear to have no one available, so he promoted Fu Zonglong to govern the Southwest.

As for Yuan Chonghuan — he had participated in the great victory at Fuzhou and was familiar with Lin Qian's tactics.

At the Battle of Yongding Gate, he had fought the elite Eight Banner cavalry to a draw with strong walls and cannons — a rare bright spot in the Jisi Incident, and he was one of the few Ming generals skilled in the use of artillery.

Furthermore, Yuan Chonghuan had once served as County Magistrate of Shaowu in Fujian and was familiar with Fujian's terrain.

Having him stationed in Jiangxi to feint, coordinate, and blockade the waterways was the most suitable arrangement.

At present, Zhu Youjian had already appointed Sun Chengzong and Fu Zonglong and was just about to arrange Yuan Chonghuan's posting when he heard Yuan Chonghuan take the initiative to clasp his hands and speak.

"Your Majesty, this humble minister believes that Minister Fu's strategy is unsound. The better approach is to make Jiangxi the main front, with the Southwest in support."

At these words, Fu Zonglong and Sun Chengzong both glanced at him sideways.

Fu Zonglong's plan for a main attack on Guangxi had been agreed to even by Sun Chengzong.

Yuan Chonghuan was merely a fifth-rank official in a blue robe, of no particular renown — yet he dared to openly refute two superior officers before the Son of Heaven. It was truly audacious. "Oh?" Zhu Youjian's smile faded, his expression turning displeased.

The main attack on Guangxi from the southwest had been decided by Zhu Youjian himself before he summoned the three men. Yuan Chonghuan's words were in effect a refutation of him as well, and Zhu Youjian was naturally displeased.

But having just ascended the throne, he still had to maintain the bearing of a sage ruler. He had even swallowed Sun Chengzong's outrageous suggestion of enfeoffing Lin Qian as a king — being subtly refuted was nothing by comparison.

So Zhu Youjian said: "Why?"

Boom!

Another muffled clap of thunder sounded outside, and the rain grew heavier. The eunuchs hurried to close the doors and windows.

Seizing this moment, Yuan Chonghuan took a deep breath to steady his nerves, then slowly said: "May I ask Minister Fu — if, while our main army is attacking in the southwest, the rebel Lin sends his fleet up the Yangtze to invade Jiangxi, Zhejiang, and the Southern Metropolitan Province, what then?"

"Naturally, we would use the navy..." Fu Zonglong began, then fell silent mid-sentence.

The Great Ming's navy was limited. If heavy forces were deployed along the Yangtze, there would be no navy available in the southwest, and the West River shipping route could not be controlled — the strategy of descending the river to take Guangdong would come to nothing.

If heavy forces were deployed in Guangxi instead, then Lin Qian might burn his boats and turn toward Jiangnan — a loss the Great Ming could not afford.

If the forces were split between the two, they would be defeated one by one.

Yuan Chonghuan continued: "The She-An Rebellion is not yet pacified. If we also send troops into Guangxi, how many soldiers and horses will that require — can the Southwest support it?"

Historically, taking the Lingnan region required passing through Guangxi. Fu Zonglong had failed to consider this and had made the same assumption, forgetting the risks of fighting on two fronts. Only now that it was pointed out did he feel a wave of fear, and he thought to himself that Commissioner Yuan truly had some ability.

Yuan Chonghuan continued: "Jiangxi has always been called 'the head of Wu, the tail of Chu; the household of Yue, the courtyard of Min.'

This humble minister believes we should deploy forces in Jiangxi. To the east, we can attack Tingzhou in Fujian; to the south, we can take Shaozhou in Guangdong. Using one province to pin down two, we can prevent them from supporting each other, and their weaknesses will reveal themselves.

Moreover, Jiangxi has long been a major grain-producing province with dense waterways, making grain transport convenient and allowing the accumulation of heavy forces.

And Jiangxi has no water route connecting it to Fujian and Guangdong, so there is no fear of enemy warships sailing upstream to raid.

As long as we build beacon towers and river-blocking chains at the strategic points along the Yangtze, and station small boats on patrol, we can prevent their fleet from penetrating deep.

Our own navy can then be concentrated along the line from the Yangtze to Poyang Lake — retreating to defend the Yangtze, or advancing to transport troops into southern Jiangxi to attack Fujian and Guangdong." When he finished, Fu Zonglong said: "Controlling the water with the land — this strategy is excellent."

The Emperor said: "In your view, how long would it take to pacify the southeast?"

Yuan Chonghuan took a deep breath and said through gritted teeth, "To answer Your Majesty, your humble servant believes that within five years at most, the three provinces of Fujian, Guangdong, and Guangxi will be pacified!" "Excellent!" Zhu Youjian was overjoyed—this was exactly the kind of official willing to take responsibility that he wanted. "What does Minister Yuan need? Speak freely." "To answer Your Majesty, your servant requests command over the four provinces of Huguang, Jiangxi, Zhejiang, and South Zhili."

Fu Zonglong was taken aback, thinking to himself, "Governor-General of four provinces—and the four wealthiest provinces in the Ming at that! What bold words!"

Sun Chengzong also mused privately: "When he was in Liaodong, Yuansu was hot-tempered and often acted beyond the pale. Now, having yet to achieve a single merit, he asks for such vast authority and even sets a deadline—this is far too reckless. Surely His Majesty will not agree."

On the dragon throne, Zhu Youjian frowned in thought. He appreciated Yuan Chonghuan's frankness and willingness to take responsibility. Pacifying the southeast within five years also matched his own expectations—but the four southern provinces were simply too important. He hesitated for a moment, and at the same time regretted having spoken so grandly just now.

After a moment, Zhu Youjian devised a response and spoke: "In that case, Minister Yuan, I appoint you Minister of War and concurrently Right Vice Censor-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of Jiangxi, with supervisory authority over military affairs in Huguang, Zhejiang, and South Zhili."

Though "command" and "supervisory authority" differ by only a single character, the actual power they confer is as different as heaven and earth.

Put simply, command means holding both military and civil authority in one hand, while supervisory authority grants only temporary military command.

Take Hu Zongxian's position, for example—everyone knew he was Governor-General of Zhejiang and South Zhili, but few knew he also held supervisory authority over Jiangxi.

With that single character changed, Yuan Chonghuan's position went from Governor-General of four provinces to Governor-General of Jiangxi. Though it was a grand-scale Jiangxi governorship, there was no risk of regional separatism.

Yuan Chonghuan also knew that with his military record and seniority, he could not become Governor-General of four provinces. Asking for command of four provinces was merely giving the Emperor room to bargain downward. He immediately knelt and thanked His Majesty: "Since Your Majesty trusts your servant, your servant will repay that trust with his very life!"

In the western side hall of the audience chamber, eunuchs were specially assigned to record the memorials and replies between ruler and minister. The moment the Emperor issued his decree in the main hall, the imperial edict was already written in the side hall. The day after the audience concluded, the direct palace edict was issued, registered and copied by the Six Offices of Scrutiny, then dispatched to the Ministries of War, Personnel, and Revenue.

Two days later, after the bureaucratic procedures were completed, members of the Embroidered Uniform Guard went to Yuan Chonghuan's residence to proclaim the edict.

At this point, Yuan Chonghuan had been released from prison for only four days. From a prisoner awaiting judgment to Governor-General of a province—a meteoric rise overnight. The speed of his change in status was enough to make one sigh.

By regulation, a Governor-General had half a month to prepare for departure after receiving the edict. Yuan Chonghuan could see that the current Son of Heaven was of an impatient temperament eager to achieve merit, so he had his family prepare in only three days. Three days later, he set out for Nanchang.

After passing through Yongding Gate, Yuan Chonghuan halted the carriage, lifted the curtain, and looked back. He saw the towering gate tower and the surging sea of clouds.

At the Battle of Yongding Gate, the marks of arrows, muskets, and cannons still remained on the brick and stone. And the powerful eunuch Wei Zhongxian, who had framed him and thrown him into prison, had already fallen from power and been demoted. Yuan Chonghuan also recalled that night beneath Shanhai Pass when they celebrated victory around the bonfire—he, having achieved no merit, drinking alone in the shadows.

Meanwhile, Lin Qian, under the alias He Ping, was showered with praise from all the generals, and even Commander Sun bowed to him—which only stoked the flames of jealousy in Yuan Chonghuan's heart.

Now things had changed, and he and Lin Qian were about to meet on the battlefield. National enmity and personal grudges, all the grievances and debts between them—after this war, everything could be settled! "Master, let us hurry. There is still a long road ahead." The steward walked up beside the carriage and spoke.

Yuan Chonghuan withdrew his gaze and instructed, "The military situation at the front is urgent. Make haste."

Early October, Nan'ao Island.

Lin Qian led the expeditionary fleet back to port. The common folk, having already received word, waited eagerly at the docks. When they saw their loved ones, they embraced and wept. In the Battle of Malacca, the Nan'ao forces had suffered very few casualties, so the docks were filled with the joy of family reunions.

After disembarking, Lin Qian first went to see Ye Zhen and his son, exchanging a few pleasantries with them. After returning to his residence to wash up, he went straight to the Nan'ao Government Affairs Hall. "How is it?" Lin Qian asked as soon as he entered.

Scholar Zhou said, "If the Skipper is asking about that eunuch dog Wei Zhongxian—that man is a spineless coward. After more than half a month of interrogation, he has confessed all his crimes. We're just waiting to set a date for his execution."

"If the Skipper is asking about the Ming court's movements, this time it's somewhat troublesome. The Ming court has found a formidable man to take charge of Jiangxi, and he has already begun assembling heavy forces."

"Who is it?"

Chen Jiao said, "Speaking of which, this man has met the Skipper once before—it's Yuan Chonghuan of the Guanning Army."

"Oh? Has he made any moves?"

"He has only recently taken office and hasn't made any major moves yet—merely gathering troops. However, according to the General Staff's assessment, this time the young Emperor is serious. I'm afraid there will be no shortage of follow-up measures."

Scholar Zhou made a joke: "Without Eunuch Wei in the court, things really don't work the same!"

Lin Qian grew interested and asked, "Where is Wei Zhongxian being held?"

"Right here on the island."

"Come, let's go see the Nine Thousand Years."

After the time it takes to eat a meal, the group arrived at the prison. Lin Qian held a stack of papers in his hand, flipping through them continuously—they were Wei Zhongxian's interrogation records. The records were extremely detailed; every single item had specific dates and names attached, so detailed they read like Wei Zhongxian's own memoirs. Scholar Zhou said, "Skipper, this is only the summary. The detailed interrogation transcripts number over a thousand pages."

In the cell, Li Chaoqin heard the commotion and opened his drowsy eyelids. Seeing many people standing before the table in the cell, he assumed they had come to interrogate him again and reflexively said, "I've told you everything I know, stop asking, I... Lin Qian? Skipper Lin?"

Li Chaoqin suddenly recognized the man seated at the table. His eyes flew wide open with excitement, and he vigorously shook the lump of stinking flesh beside him.

"Nine Thousand Years, wake up quickly—it's Lin Qian, the Skipper is here!"

Wei Zhongxian had not slept for five or six days. Having finally fallen asleep, he was nearly unconscious with exhaustion. It took much shaking before he woke. After hearing clearly, he perked up, followed Li Chaoqin's pointing finger, and confirmed: "He is Lin Qian?"

Li Chaoqin nodded hurriedly.

Wei Zhongxian immediately grabbed the prison bars, knelt down, and said, "Lin Qian, Skipper Lin, you've finally come! Skip—"

Lin Qian heard the voice and looked up. He saw, beside Li Chaoqin, a disheveled old eunuch with a filthy face, beaming obsequiously at him.

This old eunuch appeared to be in his fifties or sixties. He was tall and lean, with dignified features—his appearance did not match that of a treacherous minister at all, and his voice was not shrill either. Scholar Zhou said, "Skipper, this is Wei Zhongxian."

Wei Zhongxian nodded incessantly and said, "Skipper, Skipper, save me. I know I was wrong, Skipper. In my ship's hold there are thirty thousand taels of gold, plus countless jewels, agates, and jade—take them all, offer them all to the Skipper. I only beg the Skipper to spare my life..."

Lin Qian glanced at Scholar Zhou, who said, "The treasures in his ship's hold total approximately five hundred thousand taels of silver in value and have already been collected into the treasury." After a pause, Scholar Zhou added, "According to this powerful eunuch's confession, the tributes from various regions were all used to purchase shops and farmland in the capital. He has little ready silver, and more than half of what remained was seized by the Embroidered Uniform Guard along with his wagon convoy."

Lin Qian nodded and flipped through the interrogation records as he said, "Usurping imperial authority, colluding with outside forces, embezzlement and bribery, abuse of power, torture and murder in the Imperial Prison, false accusations, interfering with justice, throwing the court into chaos... Crime upon crime, too numerous to record in full. Wei Zhongxian, your sins are not small."

Wei Zhongxian kept saying, "... Skipper, I helped you before, do you remember? Qiu Chengyun, and Liaodong, and the relocation, and your army's entry into Guangdong—all of it was thanks to me! Skipper, you can't just watch me die and do nothing..."

Lin Qian looked at him in this state of groveling and felt nothing but contempt. It seemed this man was merely a lucky scoundrel.

Facing death, Sultan Mudah had been far more composed.

Lin Qian asked Scholar Zhou, "Has the execution date been set?"

Scholar Zhou said, "We were just waiting for the Skipper to decide. However, the method of death has already been chosen by the Government Affairs Hall—death by a thousand cuts."

"Death by a thousand cuts?" Lin Qian confirmed.

Nan'ao had not yet established its own laws and temporarily followed the Ming legal code, which theoretically retained death by a thousand cuts.

However, since Nan'ao had risen in arms, such an excessively cruel punishment had never once been used.

Scholar Zhou explained, "This is the consensus of our colleagues in the Government Affairs Hall, and it is also the result of a joint petition from the officials, gentry, scholars, and common people of Fujian and Guangdong."

As if afraid Lin Qian could not bring himself to be ruthless, Scholar Zhou flipped to another page of the interrogation records.

It detailed what Wei Zhongxian had done to the Twelve Gentlemen of Donglin.

Yang Lian, Left Vice Censor-in-Chief, was crushed in prison by sandbags, had iron nails driven through his ears, had iron nails hammered into his skull, and suffered every rib broken.

Zuo Guangdou, Censor-in-Chief, suffered fractures all over his body until not an inch of skin remained intact. Below his left knee was already bare bone, and his face had been burned to charcoal. After enduring every torture, he was kept alive with aged ginseng, only to be starved to death.

Zhou Shunchang, Vice Bureau Director of the Selection Bureau of the Ministry of Personnel, had his teeth knocked out and his tongue cut off, was scrubbed with steel brushes until his flesh came off, and died of his wounds.

The interrogation records described the suffering of the Twelve Gentlemen in extremely graphic detail—merely reading the words was enough to cause physical revulsion. And the key point was that torturing these people for confessions was utterly meaningless. The eunuch faction had long since prepared false confessions; it was purely sadistic torment. Such inhuman methods were not only directed at high court officials—Wei Zhongxian's tentacles reached just as far toward the common people.

Whether the capital's common folk muttered in the streets, whispered in their homes, or complained after drinking, if they said even one bad word about the eunuch faction and were overheard by the secret agents of the Eastern Depot and Embroidered Uniform Guard, they were seized on the spot without judicial process, tortured to death, and afterward their families dared not even claim the corpse.

Under such an atmosphere of terror, a trend of false accusations also arose among the common people.

Lawsuits in the capital dragged on for months on end, but directly accusing an enemy of speaking ill of Nine Thousand Years required no evidence whatsoever—by afternoon, the enemy would be lying dead in the Imperial Prison. The effect was immediate.

People lived in constant fear, not daring to leave their homes on ordinary days, and when they did go out, they dared not speak—all communication was done through hand gestures.

It was the same outside the capital. Those who couldn't pay when extorted, those who refused to sing praises of Wei Zhongxian, those who didn't bribe the petty constables—all were executed by cruel torture. In the later period, when birth shrines were being built, a single shrine occupied over a thousand mu of land, and often thousands of homes were demolished for this purpose. Countless common folk were left homeless, and anyone who dared utter a single complaint was immediately thrown in prison and tortured—some families were wiped out entirely.

Such evils were truly too numerous to record—literally, in the written sense of the phrase. Lin Qian read through over a hundred pages, and the crimes that followed still included the Wu Huaixian case, the capital flaying case, the Huizhou prison case, the Suzhou Five Martyrs case, and so on—he couldn't possibly finish reading them all in a short while.

Lin Qian closed the confession, shut his eyes, and rubbed his brow, asking: "Wei Zhongxian, you too came from the lowest ranks of the common people. Why did you commit such atrocities?"

Wei Zhongxian loudly protested his innocence, saying repeatedly: "This servant was merely carrying out His Majesty's orders. Those Donglin bastards—His Majesty told me to deal with them..." "Hmph." Lin Qian cut him off with a light laugh. "And the common people?"

"They were all unruly rabble, idle all day and criticizing the court. If they weren't punished with an iron hand, how could the realm remain stable?"

Lin Qian asked those around him: "Have you found the man for the slow slicing?"

Scholar Zhou replied: "There's a household in Guangzhou said to have good skill—can cut nearly three hundred slices."

"Finish this man off as soon as possible." Having said this, Lin Qian walked out.

Wei Zhongxian was heard first begging, then cursing, and finally pleading: "... This servant is merely a blade in His Majesty's hand. It was all His Majesty's orders—all His Majesty's orders for me to do it..."

Half a month later, an execution ground was set up in Zhangzhou Prefecture.

Wei Zhongxian, Li Chaoqing, and several other brush-holders of the Directorate of Ceremonial were bound to wooden stakes—some with ashen faces, others struggling desperately. The executioner summoned from Guangzhou was carefully heating his knives.

The slow slicing sounded simple, but in practice it was extremely intricate and complex. This craft was passed down within families, practiced from childhood—only then could one wield the blade with accuracy and speed, cutting the full count.

The most skilled executioners in all the Great Ming were in the capital, said to be able to cut over three thousand slices and keep the condemned alive for three days.

But the provincial executioners were far inferior—the one brought from Guangzhou could only manage three hundred slices, and the whole affair took just half a day.

At the third quarter of the noon hour, the supervising official announced the execution. The executioner walked before Wei Zhongxian, laid out his knives on the table, and began.

The first cut went to the left chest, removing only a coin-sized piece of flesh. Wei Zhongxian screamed in agony, and the watching crowd roared with approval.

After a moment, the left chest was fully cut away, then the right chest, then the shoulders and back, the four limbs, and the buttocks—never touching a vital spot throughout. Every ten cuts, Wei Zhongxian was splashed awake to keep him conscious and enduring the pain.

The crowd of onlookers was enormous, packing the execution ground for over ten li in every direction—truly a spectacle that emptied the streets. Some had even traveled from other regions specifically to watch. Every ten cuts, the crowd cheered once, and some pulled out silver, competing to buy Wei Zhongxian's flesh and blood. When told it wasn't for sale, they were all deeply dissatisfied.

With the crowd so inflamed, the Prefect had no choice but to deploy three hundred soldiers to maintain order at the scene.

The execution lasted an entire afternoon. Before dusk, the executioner delivered the final cut.

Wei Zhongxian, the mighty eunuch of an era, was utterly dead.

At the same time, at the Yandun shipyard, three fifth-rate cruising vessels were launched, with Lin Qian personally presiding over the launching ceremony.

Considering that the fleet would only grow larger in the future, Lin Qian decided to name the warships by generation characters—the fifth-rate ships would temporarily use the Cang generation.

So the three ships were ultimately named: Ling Cang, Heng Cang, and Po Cang.

After the launching ceremony was completed, the ships that had participated in the Battle of Malacca entered the dry dock for repairs.

The Zhulong had its main mast replaced, and the entire hull bottom was sheathed in copper.

Additionally, vessels were also launched at the Xiamen shipyard—five shark ships slid slowly down the ways.

These eight ships had completed their outfitting but had not yet undergone sea trials. Just then, Yuan Chonghuan was massing heavy troops in Jiangxi, and Nan'ao needed to strike first—there was a ready-made target urgently awaiting capture.

Yahei

Pink Round

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