Chapter 223: The Emperor's Will

After a few simple pleasantries, Zhao Yong and Han San took their seats on the left and right respectively.

Looking at Zhao Yong, who now stood tall with eyebrows raised like swords, Zhang Yunxiu could not help but sigh at how time flew. When he first met this lad, he was nothing but a hot-headed youth who dared to go looking for trouble with Feng Bangning while holding only a short blade.

Now, he had actually grown into a refined and gentle young gentleman.

In a daze, he felt as if a bottle of fine wine he had cherished for a long time could finally be uncorked today.

"Young Master, this fellow was lucky enough to place in the Third Rank, and he is about to be sent out as a magistrate. He came here today specifically to bid you farewell," Han San, who was to the side, spoke up first to warm the atmosphere upon seeing that it had become somewhat stifling.

"Oh, where are you being sent?" Zhang Yunxiu asked.

"Panyu, Guangdong," Zhao Yong replied respectfully.

"Too far, too far." Zhang Yunxiu tilted his head and shook it, then suddenly looked up and suggested, "How about this: don't go out for your posting yet. Go to the Ministry of Revenue as a Government Observer first, and we shall talk after you have gained two years of experience."

A magistrate is a seventh-rank official, while a Government Observer at the Ministry of Revenue only holds a ninth-rank title.

However, one is a capital official and the other a local official; in terms of future prospects, they cannot be spoken of in the same breath.

Upon hearing this, both Han San and Zhao Yong revealed expressions of joy.

Suddenly, Zhao Yong feigned a look of difficulty: "The official document has already been issued; is it not a bit too late to change it now?"

Zhang Yunxiu glared at the two of them, his expression one of deep insight, and he wagged his finger as he scolded: "If I recall correctly, the document only just came out today, didn't it? You two rushed over in such a hurry precisely because you wanted me to handle this for you, right?"

The two looked at each other, knowing they could not hedge, and stood there foolishly grinning.

Zhang Yunxiu waved his hand, walked over to them, and led them to the dining hall. Zhang Fu sensibly ordered people to prepare good wine and food, placed them on a round table, and then obediently withdrew from the dining hall, leaving only the three of them.

At the head of the table, Zhang Yunxiu was the first to rise, holding his wine cup high.

The two did not dare to be negligent; they both stood up straight, bowed their waists, and clinked their cups with Zhang Yunxiu.

After saying a few auspicious words, they tilted their heads back and drank it down.

With a cup of wine in his belly, Zhang Yunxiu looked at Zhao Yong and asked: "How is it? Looking at the capital now compared to seven or eight years ago, is there any difference in the scenery?"

"The capital is full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers; I did not know the depth of it before," Zhao Yong replied in a low, serious voice. "Now that I think about it, if it were not for your help and Brother Han's, I fear I would have died countless times over by now."

"It is good that you know fear."

Zhang Yunxiu smiled as he added a piece of fish to his plate, then sat back in his seat and taught him with earnest advice: "A person must have some sense of awe. However, I also hope you can maintain the hot-bloodedness of a youth and have more of a spirit of Practical Learning."

"Yes," Zhao Yong nodded in agreement.

Han San, who had not spoken until now, reminded them with a nervous expression: "Young Master, news has come from Ai Neng's side. Toyotomi Hideyoshi is restless, and there are signs that he intends to spread the flames of war across Shikoku Island."

Two years ago, Qi Jiguang used Kyushu Island as a springboard.

In one fell swoop, he annexed Shikoku Island, the base of the Mori Clan.

Qi Jiguang thought that this island was too far forward and could not be held by the Ming Army alone, so he simply divided the island with Toyotomi Hideyoshi.

Now, two years later, Toyotomi Hideyoshi is restless, seemingly intending to cross Shikoku Island and unify Kyushu.

Hearing this, Zhang Yunxiu immediately furrowed his brows. The silver production of Iwami Ginzan had already become a significant source of income for the Great Ming treasury, so it absolutely could not be lost.

If Toyotomi Hideyoshi wants to fight, then let him fight.

After thinking it over, Zhang Yunxiu slapped the table and said with a sharp tone: "Tell Ai Neng to pass word to the Shimazu Clan and the Otomo Clan: if Toyotomi Hideyoshi dares to cross the boundary line, just fight him to the death.

The Great Ming fleet can depart from Joseon at any time and arrive directly at Kyushu Island."

"Yes!" Han San cupped his hands and agreed.

Zhao Yong, who was to the side, watched as the two decided the life and death of tens of thousands of people in the midst of casual conversation. His blood boiled, and he wished he could go to Woguo himself to cut down a few Woguo people and make a name for himself.

However, he understood that Zhang Yunxiu would never agree to it.

"Come, today is a good day for this lad Zhao Yong; let us not talk of state affairs, only of personal friendship." Zhang Yunxiu glanced at the distracted Zhao Yong and, using tea in place of wine, shouted to the two of them.

The two smiled, raised their cups, clinked them with a "clatter," and swallowed the contents in one gulp.

After three rounds of wine and five courses of food.

The two were already showing signs of drunkenness. Zhang Yunxiu shouted toward the outside, and Zhang Fu burst in. Seeing the two of them looking like dead pigs, Zhang Yunxiu did not need to say more; he immediately sent servants to take them away to rest.

Because Zhang Yunxiu had been drinking tea, he was not yet drunk.

With his hands clasped behind his back, he walked out of the dining hall under Zhang Fu's gaze and headed outside the mansion.

Qianqing Palace.

East Warm Pavilion.

The floor heating in the pavilion was burning warmly, and the curling fragrance drifted out from the Xuande Incense Burner inlaid with emeralds, permeating every corner of the pavilion.

The fragrance was alluring; just one whiff made one feel comfortable throughout the body.

The incense used was top-grade Dragon Saliva Incense, and it had to be lit before the Emperor arrived.

If it were lit late, it would be a slight against the Sovereign Father.

On this day, the Wanli Emperor rose a bit late. It was not until the end of the Chen hour that he walked slowly into the pavilion, yawning and sporting dark circles under his eyes, accompanied by Wei Qing.

After he sat down at the desk, the eunuch on duty hurriedly served a cup of ginseng tea.

The Wanli Emperor did not even lift his eyelids; he took the ginseng tea, gulped it down his throat, and then tossed it to the side. Next, the eunuch on duty presented a hot towel for the Emperor to wipe his mouth.

After finishing this routine, the Wanli Emperor stretched and said to Wei Qing, who was standing to the side: "Read it."

Wei Qing understood, stepped forward, picked up a Memorial from the Emperor's desk, and read it in a shrill voice: "A report from Liu Qingshan, Supervising Secretary of the Ministry of War in Beijing: Woguo is a land of barbarians beyond the borders, separated from our Great Ming by thousands of miles of mountains and rivers. The imperial court has stationed twenty thousand troops there; each soldier receives at least three Silver Dollars in pay per month, and the annual expenditure on military pay and provisions approaches a massive ten million."

"Furthermore, the generals are isolated abroad, and the King's orders cannot reach them directly. In the long run, I fear the frontier generals may suddenly harbor heretical intentions. Your subject, Liu Qingshan, humbly hopes Your Majesty will recall the twenty thousand troops stationed in Woguo and send them back to the Nine Frontiers..."

"Stop, stop, stop."

The Wanli Emperor frowned and hurriedly turned to interrupt Wei Qing. "Who is this Liu Qingshan? Such a major matter of state was already decided three years ago; what is his intention now, daring to criticize state affairs!"

Wei Qing stooped forward and whispered carefully into the Emperor's ear: "This person is a student of Grand Secretary Wang Xijue."

Zhang Siwei had already passed away from illness.

Pan Cheng had already retired.

Now, the one in charge of the Grand Secretariat was that old slippery fellow Shen Shixing, and Wang Xijue had become the Secondary Assistant. Both were successful candidates in the forty-first year of the Jiajing reign; Shen Shixing was the top scholar of that examination, and Wang Xijue was the runner-up.

Upon hearing that this person was a student of Wang Xijue, the Wanli Emperor instantly assumed that this matter had been instigated by Wang Xijue, so he slapped the table and shouted: "Very well! I was counting on Woguo to make money, yet he dares to stab me in the back with a soft blade."

"Strip this Liu Qingshan of his rank and make him a commoner, and never employ him again!"

"Yes."

Wei Qing immediately drafted the Imperial Edict for the Emperor. At this moment, a Little Fire-bringer ran into the hall like a rolling melon. Seeing him drenched in sweat and looking as if his eyebrows were on fire, the Wanli Emperor couldn't help but ask: "What is the matter with you?"

"Young Master Zhang requests an audience."

"Oh, go and call him in quickly."

The Little Fire-bringer left again, his feet seemingly stepping on wind-fire wheels. Before long, Zhang Yunxiu walked into the East Warm Pavilion alone. This was not his first time coming to this place, but he felt that the East Warm Pavilion was exceptionally clean and fragrant today.

The Wanli Emperor sat in the seat of honor, wearing a bright yellow dragon robe.

Seeing Zhang Yunxiu enter, a flash of joy suddenly surged onto the Wanli Emperor's chubby cheeks: "Yunxiu, you have finally come. It has been quite some days since I last saw you. Tell me, what have you been doing all this time?!"

"Earning money for Your Majesty."

"Oh, tell me about it?" The Wanli Emperor looked curious, stretching his neck to urge Zhang Yunxiu to continue.

Zhang Yunxiu nodded and relayed the intelligence sent back by Ai Neng directly to the Wanli Emperor.

After finishing, he did not forget to add: "Your Majesty, the Woguo have not given up their heart to destroy our Great Ming. Over these three years, relying on the Silver Dollar and the Shipping Commissioner, we have accumulated a large amount of military pay; it is time to put it to use."

Upon hearing that a major war was to be fought, the joy on the Wanli Emperor's face dissipated by three parts.

Although he did not approve of withdrawing troops from Woguo, he also did not want to send more troops there. Once a war started, the frontline battle reports—

Military pay, pensions... one item after another, they could annoy him to death.

He was the type of person who feared trouble most; he had always avoided trouble, so how could he actively go looking for it?

"Yunxiu, our Great Ming has always valued harmony. To rashly resort to blades and soldiers like this is not good for either side." The Wanli Emperor sighed long, then clasped his hands behind his back, turned around, and pretended to gaze deeply at a pillar.

"Once a war starts, I do not know how many soldiers will bleed in a foreign land. I truly cannot bear it in my heart."

Zhang Yunxiu, standing to the side, secretly admired this fellow's acting talent.

However, he also had his own trump card: "Your Majesty, this battle is not one we must fight, but because Woguo has already made moves. If we do not counterattack, Woguo will occupy the Silver Mountain. By then, what will you use to renovate the palaces?"

"Ah? Can't Li Rusong's twenty-thousand-plus men hold the Silver Mountain?" The Wanli Emperor turned around abruptly.

Zhang Yunxiu shook his head, then spoke of Woguo's layout.

Kinai is held by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the Kanto Region by Tokugawa Ieyasu, plus the many daimyo of Hokkaido; added together, they are close to two hundred thousand.

"With Li Rusong's twenty thousand men, even adding the coalition forces from Kyushu Island, they barely reach sixty or seventy thousand. This battle is hard to fight." After Zhang Yunxiu finished speaking, he took advantage of the moment the Wanli Emperor was distracted to wink at Wei Qing, who had not yet spoken.

Wei Qing hesitated inwardly; he did not understand this matter either.

However, out of concern for this fellow's influence, he could only bite the bullet and say a few words: "Your Majesty, this old minister also has something to say."

"Speak."

"Just as the Bureau Director Zhang said just now, the twenty thousand border troops cannot hold the Silver Mountain. Since that is the case, we might as well send a state letter to the King of Joseon, letting them also dispatch an army of thirty thousand to station on the Woguo islands."

Hearing that the Joseon army was to be mobilized, Zhang Yunxiu frowned involuntarily.

Those Koreans were almost pushed over by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in three months. If not for Li Rusong taking action, Joseon would have been wiped off the map. Zhang Yunxiu placed a big question mark in his heart regarding their combat effectiveness.

When the Wanli Emperor heard there was such a good thing—being able to mobilize people from another country to serve as cannon fodder—he immediately clapped his hands and said: "Alright then! Just mobilize thirty thousand Joseon troops into Woguo; all military pay and provisions shall be supplied by Joseon itself."

"Your Majesty..." Zhang Yunxiu was anxious, his eyes wide as he wanted to argue.

"You need not say more, my mind is made up." The Wanli Emperor waved his hand to interrupt him, then said in a resonant tone: "Although the soldiers of our Great Ming are fierce and fearless, they cannot bleed and sacrifice in a foreign land for nothing."

"Wei Qing."

"This minister is here."

"Draft an edict for me. Limit the Joseon army to enter Woguo before autumn this year, and at the same time, promote Zhang Yunxiu to Left Assistant Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate." Having drafted the outline in his mind, the Wanli Emperor said it all in one breath.

Wei Qing agreed with a smile and even cast a friendly look at Zhang Yunxiu below the dais.

Seeing that the Emperor's mind was made up and that he had given a reward, Zhang Yunxiu naturally had nothing more to say. After receiving the edict and thanking the Emperor, he talked about some recent interesting things from outside until the sky grew dark, and only then did he leave the East Warm Pavilion.

It must be said that the efficiency of the Emperor's edicts was very high; the day's matters were announced to every government office that same evening.

First, the memorializing Liu Qingshan was stripped of his rank and made a commoner; second, the Joseon army was mobilized to station in Woguo.

One edict after another, none failed to show that the Emperor would not so easily let go of the fat piece of meat that was Woguo.

In the end, Zhang Yunxiu's promotion edict seemed less important by comparison.

Wang Xijue's residence.

Having just finished his shift, Wang Xijue arrived at the living room with a dark face and full of anger.

Upon reaching the living room, he took off his black gauze cap, slammed it heavily onto the table, and cursed through gritted teeth: "The Emperor favors treacherous villains; the country will soon cease to be a country!"

The surrounding maidservants were so frightened they dared not make a sound, holding their breath and not daring to reply.

At this time, a middle-aged noblewoman wearing luxurious clothes strolled into the living room; she swept a glance at the maidservants and waved for them to leave.

Only then did Wang Xijue feel he had lost his composure; he took a deep breath, restrained his angry expression, sat on the armchair, and looked at the beautiful woman with a helpless expression: "That Zhang Family brat is recklessly militaristic, and now he is instigating the Emperor to increase troops to the Woguo islands. Isn't this gambling with the national destiny of our Great Ming?"

The beautiful woman came behind Wang Xijue, stretched out her jade hands to gently massage his shoulders, and said in a soft tone: "You are only a Secondary Assistant, why worry blindly about these things? Look at whether Shen Shixing manages them?"

"Even he, a Senior Assistant, plays deaf and dumb, yet you are the one shouting so vigorously."

"Hmph, that slippery fellow, who can compare to his ability to sit on the fence?" Wang Xijue curled his lips in disdain, "His son and Zhang Yunxiu were in the same cohort of scholars, and now they are almost so close they wear the same pair of trousers."

"The two of them are now, one an Assistant Censor-in-Chief, a Fourth-Rank Official, and the other a Bureau Director in the Ministry of Personnel's Bureau of Civil Appointments. With a stroke of a pen, they control the promotion of all officials below the fourth rank in the world; who dares to provoke them."

Hearing this, Lady Wang smiled and teased: "You are knowing there is a tiger in the mountain, yet you insist on heading toward the tiger mountain."

"If I don't do this, what else can I do!"

"Pretend not to see."

Lady Wang replied half-jokingly and half-seriously. Wang Xijue's body stiffened, and he slowly turned his head to look at his wife.

Knowing she had said the wrong thing, Lady Wang smiled faintly and steered the conversation elsewhere.

On the other side.

The night was very, very deep.

Zhang Yunxiu sat in the study, thinking repeatedly and comparing the combat strength of both sides.

He felt that a decisive battle now was indeed somewhat hasty, and at the same time, the reform of the Great Ming Guard Post and the Wei Suo Army was already like an arrow on the bowstring, forced to be launched.

Thinking this, he picked up his brush again and leaned over the table to write.

(End of this chapter)