Chapter 372: A Wife Five Years Older Brings a Brick of Gold

"Your son knows what to do!"

Zhu Cilang knew the Chongzhen Emperor meant no good — he was trying to sow discord between the Wu and Zheng families. Zhu Cilang's marriage alliance with the warlord magnates naturally had both advantages and drawbacks. The advantage was that he could borrow their strength; the drawback, of course, was that the harem struggles would intensify.

And Zhu Cilang's harem strategy was to make the Wu family primary and the Zheng family auxiliary. That required Wu Sanmei to bear the eldest son. Otherwise, even if Zheng Chagu had no objections, Zheng Zhilong and Zheng Sen would not accept it! Although their Zheng family had joined later, the effort they had put in was by no means small.

They had supplied more than ten thousand firelocks alone, and when Zheng Zhilong left Nanjing he had promised to keep providing more. He had also expressed willingness to cooperate with the court in recruiting Foshan blacksmiths to go north and "start a business," promised to build centipede war-boats for the Yangtze River Navy, and promised to put Zhu Cilang in touch with the governor-general of the Dutch East India Company in Batavia — compared with Japan and Portugal, the Dutch were the true super-suppliers capable of delivering goods to Zhu Cilang's army in bulk!

If Zhu Cilang hoped to build a European-style army capable of sweeping the north within a few years, he could only rely on the Dutch, those sea-coachmen, for supplies. Building was of course better than buying, but for now, making guns and casting cannon was a craft — three or five years might not even produce a master, and one old master could only take on a few apprentices at a time! Even if Zhu Cilang paid them to pass on their skills (teach the apprentice and the master starves — if His Highness the Crown Prince did not pay extra, they would not teach at all), the improvement would not be very obvious. After all, these old masters were not professional teachers, and most of the apprentices had never received the necessary basic education.

To build up large-scale production capacity would take at least eight or ten years, and quite possibly longer!

Besides, firelocks and cannon were actually consumables and could not be used without limit. Bronze cannon had a fairly long service life and could be used for a very long time if battle losses were not counted. Firelocks, however — especially light firelocks — were easily damaged because the manufacturing quality was simply not up to standard.

Therefore, to support a huge European-style army and still carry out high-intensity training and combat, it was necessary to purchase firelocks in large quantities.

Thinking of the Han people in the north living worse than death under the iron hooves of the Tartar caitiffs, spending a little of the silver earned from porcelain and silk was perhaps still worth it.

Seeing that Zhu Cilang remained impassive, the Chongzhen Emperor shifted his tone and said with a smile, "Dachun, my boy — the fourth boy's happy day is close now, isn't it?"

"Very soon — the twenty-seventh of the third month," Zhu Cilang answered.

The twenty-seventh of the third month was the happy day of Zhu Cizhao, Prince of Chu of the Great Ming — he was to be joined in wedlock to Zuo Mengmei, the adopted daughter of Zuo Liangyu, Marquis of Wuchang.

For the Chongzhen Emperor, this was yet another happy event. It meant that Zhu Cizhao now had the firm backing of the loyal minister Zuo Liangyu. Even if he could not sail downriver and purge the Crown Prince — that treacherous son who wrought evil at the sovereign's side — he could still serve as a check on Zhu Cilang.

Chongzhen had first gained a fine son, and now a filial daughter-in-law — truly a double blessing at his door!

Yet when Zhu Cilang thought of Zuo Mengmei becoming his sister-in-law, his mood actually improved a little as well.

Because this marriage was, from the start, a dirty trick played by Zhu Cilang. Its single purpose was to foster yet another faction within Zuo Liangyu's group — a faction headed by Zuo Mengmei's biological father, Qiu Lei, the Garrison Regional Commander of Jingzhou.

While Zuo Liangyu lived, Qiu Lei could not make much of a show of power, but once Zuo Liangyu died, Qiu Lei might well become a figure capable of contending with Zuo Menggeng.

Jingzhou Prefecture, Jiangling City.

This rectangular city, set on the riverbank along the northern shore of the Yangtze, was like most other cities garrisoned by a prince — solid and imposing, built of three layers, inner and outer. And Jiangling's position was especially critical: above it lay the perilous passes of Ba and Shu, below it the confluence of rivers and lakes, and it held the natural moat of the Yangtze. Since ancient times it had been ground contested by every strategist, and in the present chaos it was likewise a treasure that the Shun, the Ming (Zhu Cilang), and the Xi (Zhang Xianzhong) all wished to possess.

Before the Great Ming and the Shun negotiated peace, the city had for a time been occupied by Li Zicheng. Later, in order to concentrate forces against the Qing, it was yielded to Zuo Liangyu. Zuo Liangyu in turn allotted it to his good brother Qiu Lei, recommending Qiu Lei — who had originally led troops in Henan — for the post of Garrison Regional Commander of Jingzhou Prefecture, giving him, so to speak, a prosperous piece of territory.

And He Tengjiao, the Governor of Huguang, another man with iron ties to Zuo Liangyu, recommended to Qiu Lei a most capable partner — Du Yinxi, the former Prefect of Changsha, renowned for his military knowledge — to serve as Prefect of Jingzhou.

With a capable man like Du Yinxi to repair the city walls, set the countryside in order, collect rents and taxes, and raise military pay, Qiu Lei's days in Jingzhou Prefecture were both comfortable and pleasant. If only they could go on like this forever — how wonderful that would be.

But such good days never felt secure! Because Zuo Liangyu's health was declining day by day, and no one knew when he would be gone.

And the fighting strength of the Zuo family army, in the eyes of an expert like Qiu Lei, was truly not reassuring! Although it was propped up by many veterans who had long endured the trials of battle, those were troops long accustomed to defeat — they had no skill at winning battles, but no small skill at plaguing the common people. Worse still, this lot were all troublemaking soldiers who feared nothing!

Last year, stirred up by Huang Shu, who had come running from Nanjing, quite a few of them clamored to march east and purge the sovereign's side — fortunately Zuo Liangyu had not lost his wits, and knew how much his men were really worth. Purging the sovereign's side was impossible; using the opportunity to grab a fat profit was their true intent. But the Crown Prince in Nanjing looked rather formidable — if the whole lot really went, they might just be delivering their heads!

So Qiu Lei, who had come from Henan to Zuo Liangyu's side and knew a little of what Zhu Cilang had done in Shandong, had never stopped urging Zuo Liangyu not to act rashly. Zuo Liangyu, for his part, was muddled one moment and clearheaded the next. When clearheaded he was fine, but when muddled he would bellow about rooting out the treacherous villains — though no one knew who the villains were.

By the eighteenth year of Chongzhen, Zuo Liangyu's health had grown worse and worse, and his lucid moments fewer and fewer. Just when Qiu Lei did not know how he was to get by after Zuo Liangyu's death, a stroke of good fortune fell upon him out of nowhere.

The Chongzhen Emperor's fourth son — the fourth brother of the Army-Supervising Crown Prince Zhu Cilang — Zhu Cizhao, Prince of Chu, was to take his biological daughter, who was also Zuo Liangyu's adopted daughter, Zuo Mengmei, as his consort.

Moreover, Hou Xun, to whom both Zuo Liangyu and Qiu Lei owed debts of patronage, had been sent to Jingzhou Prefecture to preside over the Prince of Chu's grand wedding.

This Hou Xun was Zhu Cilang's lecturer, and moreover a Grand Secretary in the Grand Secretariat — a man stamped with the label of His Highness the Crown Prince!

Had the old gentleman traveled all this way to Huguang just to preside over a wedding?

Zuo Liangyu might be muddled, but Qiu Lei was not muddled in the least!

"Grand Secretary Hou, there are no outsiders here."

On the tower of Longshan Gate, the finest vantage point in Jiangling City, Commander Qiu was accompanying the far-traveled Hou Xun as they ascended the wall to take in the view.

"Commander Qiu," Hou Xun said, glancing at Qiu Lei, "do you know that the Marquis of Zuo once said that if His Highness the Crown Prince ever ascended the throne, he would set up the Prince of Chu as emperor?"

"That—" Qiu Lei knew of it, of course — he had been listening from behind the screen at the time.

"The Marquis of Zuo has not long to live," Hou Xun said with a sigh. "His mind is failing too, more muddled by the day. I fear he may be seized upon by petty men and driven to deeds that would leave a stench for ten thousand years. Commander, what will you do when that time comes?"

"I—" Qiu Lei's brow furrowed deeply. "I will not hide it from you, Grand Secretary: this humble official has only five hundred household retainers who can fight. The rest are a rabble."

Hou Xun smiled. "Who isn't in the same position? Except for the Kenan New Army. They are in camp in all four seasons, drill three times a day, draw generous pay, and have been granted fields and houses. The families of the army's officers and men all now live in the eastern part of Nanjing's outer wall! Commander, do you understand?"

"Those are household retainers!" Qiu Lei broke out in sweat on his forehead.

Hou Xun nodded. "Good that you understand, good that you understand. The Crown Prince has a hundred thousand household retainers! How many does the Marquis of Zuo have? Whether he even has three thousand is hard to say. Jingzhou Prefecture is a strong city, and this time I have also brought a good deal of silver, all stored in the prince's mansion. Moreover, Prefect Du Yinxi is a capable official versed in both civil and military affairs, and can be fully trusted!"

(End of Chapter)