Chapter 186: Everyone Must Know That the Exalted Ancestor Has Been Reincarnated (Seeking Subscriptions)

"So you are Shi Kecheng! We have heard Master Su and Master Gong speak of you more than once. They say you are brimming with learning, able to write splendid essays — a great talent indeed. Do not keep kneeling. Rise, and be seated!"

Inside the Marshal's Office of the Army-Pacifying Grand Marshal, Zhu Cilang was receiving the great talent Shi Kecheng in the company of his two lecturers, Su Ziwen and Gong Dingzi.

The warmth of it! Anyone who did not know Zhu Cilang would truly have thought His Highness the Crown Prince held Shi Kecheng's talent in the highest regard!

Shi Kecheng happened to be one of those who did not know what kind of man Zhu Cilang was. He had passed the jinshi examination in the sixteenth year of Chongzhen and had been buried in his books ever since, with little experience of the world. And Zhu Cilang looked so fresh and youthful — his two lifetimes added together made him well past fifty, yet he still had the appearance of an innocent young man — how could Shi Kecheng have imagined that the other party had already worked out seven or eight schemes for making use of him?

To tell the truth, although Zhu Cilang had always acted as if he did not take Shi Kefa seriously, in fact he did find this Donglin heavyweight something of a headache.

If the man now marching troops toward him were that "the water's too cold" and "my scalp itches" Qian Qianyi, Zhu Cilang would not have a single headache. But Shi Kefa was different — the fellow's backbone was somewhat stiff. And he had an army in his hands. If he really raised the banner of rallying to the throne and fought Zhu Cilang, the trouble would be no small matter.

It was not that he could not win — it was that the Southern Metropolitan Region must not be thrown into chaos!

The Southern Metropolitan Region, together with Zhejiang and Jiangxi, would be the core of Zhu Cilang's future rule. As long as he held this territory, Zheng Zhilong, the richest man in the Great Ming, would have to pledge loyalty — and Zhu Cilang could then demand money, guns, cannon, and gunpowder from him!

With Zheng Zhilong's loyalty, Guangdong and Fujian could be firmly controlled. And Zhu Cilang could also ask Vietnam for grain, obtain "teppo" from Japan, get Hongyi cannon from Macao, and even invite foreign officers from Europe to help train his army.

The whole great chessboard would come alive!

So Shi Kefa could make a fuss, but matters must not actually reach the point of open war between the two sides.

The reason the Crown Prince was now lingering in Dengzhou sorting out land and population was, in fact, half to buy time — so as to settle Shi Kefa and the throne-rallying army he had gathered.

And this Shi Kecheng had come offering himself at just this moment! Truly Heaven was aiding Zhu Cilang!

Shi Kecheng sat on a porcelain garden stool with only half his backside, both hands on his knees, not daring to raise his eyes and look directly at the Crown Prince — looking rather like a schoolboy who had done something wrong.

And indeed he had done wrong — he had betrayed his country and gone over to the enemy!

"Kecheng," Zhu Cilang said with a smile, "who among men is without fault? To err and be able to reform — no good is greater than this. Do you know what your greatest fault is?"

At these words Shi Kecheng hastily rose and was about to kneel again.

"Do not kneel. Sit, sit and speak." Zhu Cilang smiled. "Knowing where the fault lies is better than kneeling and kowtowing."

"This subject became a turncoat official, and failed the grace of His Majesty and of Thousand Years."

Zhu Cilang smiled slightly. "That is not the right answer. Becoming a turncoat official is a fault of yours, but it is not the greatest one."

Not even that was the greatest? Shi Kecheng's heart pounded. Going over to the enemy and joining the rebels was a capital offense! And that was not great?

Zhu Cilang said, "Your greatest fault is that you did not believe We could reverse the decline of the Great Ming, did not believe that We are the reincarnation of the Exalted Ancestor, the High Emperor. That is why you became a turncoat official!"

"Thousand Years is wise! This subject knows his error!" Shi Kecheng put on an expression of deep contrition. "This subject was too muddled — he actually did not believe Thousand Years was the reincarnation of the Exalted Ancestor Emperor."

"And do you believe it now?" Zhu Cilang asked with a smile.

"I believe it, this subject believes it!" Shi Kecheng nodded repeatedly. "Thousand Years is surely the reincarnation of the Exalted Ancestor Emperor! With Thousand Years in the Great Ming, the realm can surely be turned around and a golden age created anew!"

"Good that you believe!" Zhu Cilang laughed. "You are indeed a rare talent! You are a man worth shaping!"

He paused, then asked, "But your elder brother Shi Kefa still does not believe, nor does your nephew Shi Dewei. Gao Jie, Huang Degong, Liu Liangzuo, and Liu Zeqing — I fear they do not believe either. What is to be done? You are a great talent; you must know what to do."

"I know, I know!" Shi Kecheng nodded repeatedly. "This subject will certainly go and tell them."

He had placed tenth in the second class of the jinshi examination in the sixteenth year of Chongzhen — his intelligence was beyond question, so how could he fail to understand Zhu Cilang's meaning?

The Crown Prince wanted him to go and spread the word — to let Shi Kefa, Gao Jie, Huang Degong, Liu Liangzuo, Liu Zeqing, and all the rest know the glad tidings that the Exalted Ancestor, the High Emperor, had been reincarnated as Zhu Cilang!

"Good, good!" Zhu Cilang nodded repeatedly. "You are indeed a man worth shaping. We did not misjudge you!"

"Master Gong, please step forward."

After Shi Kecheng and the others had left, Zhu Cilang summoned his nominal lecturer Gong Dingzi to him.

Gong Dingzi was also a member of the Donglin Faction, though not much of a major figure, but his literary talent was outstanding — he was known as one of the Three of Jiangzuo.

"Thousand Years, what does Your Highness require of this subject?" Gong Dingzi stepped forward with great deference. He did not dare put on the airs of a teacher before Zhu Cilang — Zhu Cilang had personally killed a lecturer, namely Junior Supervisor Xiang Yi.

"You are one of the Three of Jiangzuo, is that right?" Zhu Cilang asked. "The other two are Qian Qianyi and Master Wu, correct?"

Master Wu was Wu Meicun, who had also served as a lecturer, which was why Zhu Cilang called him Master.

"There is indeed such a saying," Gong Dingzi said, "but Qian Qianyi and this subject are not really of the same generation. He is more than thirty years my senior — an elder to me."

Zhu Cilang nodded. "Then you and Qian Qianyi must be well acquainted?"

"We have some friendship."

Zhu Cilang smiled and nodded. "Qian Qianyi is the leader of the Donglin. We hold the Donglin gentlemen in the highest regard! Among Our lecturers, Master Hou, Master Wu, and you, Master Gong, are all Donglin gentlemen. If one were to speak seriously, We Ourselves might also be counted a successor of the Donglin, might We not?"

"That would be the Donglin's honor!" Gong Dingzi nodded emphatically. "If Qian Qianyi knew Your Highness's intentions, he would certainly support Your Highness."

Zhu Cilang said with perfect seriousness, "We have long admired Master Qian's learning. We wish to study the Confucian way of the sages under Master Qian!

Furthermore, there are currently only five Grand Secretaries in the court, one short. So We hope Master Qian can take that post."

Qian Qianyi was of course someone to be won over — even if he lacked the backbone to die for his sovereign in a crisis. But Zhu Cilang did not care about that; he had no intention of making his ministers die for the dynasty. Dying for the dynasty was something the men on Dorgon's side should give serious thought to. Hong Chengchou had already done it, and the others would not escape either!

But here on the Ming side, with Zhu Cilang as the reincarnation of the Exalted Ancestor Emperor, all that needed to be considered was how to achieve the restoration.

"This subject will go south at once and speak with Qian Qianyi!" Gong Dingzi was also a clever man. "I will certainly bring him."

"Bring him to Yanzhou!" Zhu Cilang said. "Not only Qian Qianyi — also bring along a disciple of his, one named Zheng Sen. He is the eldest son of Zheng Zhilong, Regional Commander of Fujian, a student at the Imperial Academy in Nanjing, and a disciple of Qian Qianyi. Find a way to make Qian Qianyi bring him along!"

"This humble official will not fail in his mission!"

Zheng Sen was that Zheng Chenggong, son of the richest man Zheng Zhilong, currently gilding himself at the Imperial Academy in Nanjing, and he had also taken Qian Qianyi as his teacher — who knew how much tuition he had paid? It must have been an astronomical sum!

And earlier, when Zhu Cilang was still at Dagukou, he had sent an edict to Zheng Zhilong ordering him to provide arquebuses, cannon, and gunpowder — and to this day there had not been so much as a reply!

So Zhu Cilang was now scheming to get Zheng Chenggong here to serve as an obliging senior apprentice.

The sixth day of the sixth month of the seventeenth year of Chongzhen, at Weihai Guard City.

An hour earlier, Zhang Shize, Duke of Ying and Assistant Regional Commander of the Coastal Defense Regional Command, had galloped into the city with a troop of cavalry, bearing the Crown Prince's edict and four imperial proclamations. The edict was addressed to all military officers under the Weihai Guard Command, while the proclamations were posted at the four gates of Weihai Guard City. That one edict and four proclamations at once stirred up enormous waves inside and outside the city.

"The Crown Prince is calling a great muster! Ten taels of silver settling-in pay per man, and monthly wages of one tael and five mace!"

"They'd really pay that much? They're not fooling us, are they?"

"Right — since when has the court been so generous?"

"I hear even the Guanning Army only gets that much."

The able-bodied men of Weihai flocked over at the news, gathering outside the four city gates to read the proclamations. Most of them could not read, but the staff officers who had come with the Duke of Ying could, two standing at each gate, taking turns reading aloud and explaining the policies.

Now, hearing people raise doubts, the staff officers brought out the talking points they had long prepared.

(End of Chapter)