Chapter 139: Laying an Ambush

Jin Zhongshan studied Zhu Xu, who stood with an imposing air of authority, utterly unmoved.

Once past the main gate, Jin Zhongshan's expression wavered, as if he could no longer hold back: "May I ask His Highness Prince Hui, when will the Great Ming court recover Liaodong?"

Zhu Xu's expression did not change, but inwardly he was surprised—this man truly understood the art of negotiation, striking with a show of force the moment he arrived.

Zhu Xu waved his hand behind his back without drawing attention, and Cao Huachun behind him quietly separated those who had been following alongside the carriage.

Zhu Xu's face was full of sincerity as he turned to Jin Zhongshan and said, "Lord Jin, setting aside the Liaodong rebels for now, how long do you plan to stay in the capital this time?"

Jin Zhongshan blinked as he looked at Zhu Xu, and only after a moment replied, "To answer Your Highness, I shall pay respects to the Emperor today, visit the imperial tombs tomorrow, and return the day after."

Zhu Xu nodded, exuding the full bearing of a feudal prince, always looking down on him from a spiritual height, and said in a deep voice, "Good, then tomorrow I shall take you to see something of the world!"

"See something of the world?" Jin Zhongshan's Chinese was quite good, though it carried an accent. He mused for a moment and said, "Prince Hui, His Majesty the King sent me to the capital to seek aid. I wonder whether the court can dispatch a hundred thousand troops to shield our country from the barbarians."

The "barbarians" the Joseon man spoke of referred to the Jin people.

Zhu Xu nodded without hesitation, saying, "A hundred thousand—that's not much, truly. But a hundred thousand troops require enormous expenditure, and their families must also be settled. A rough estimate puts the cost at no less than three million taels of silver and one million shi of grain per year. The court can cover part of it for Joseon, but the rest must be borne locally by Joseon itself."

Jin Zhongshan's brows furrowed at this, and he pondered, saying, "Then, for thirty thousand troops, our country is willing to bear half the cost. What does Your Highness think?"

Zhu Xu knew that if Jin Zhongshan said such a thing to Zhu Youxiao, Zhu Youxiao would certainly refuse—and even if he hesitated, the ministers at court would decisively reject it. However, Xiong Tingbi could not go to Liaodong empty-handed; recruiting a batch of refugees should be no problem.

As for the expenses, Joseon would have to foot the bill.

He pretended to think it over for a while, then said, "Thirty thousand should be no problem. But Joseon must set aside sufficient territory, as well as provide the initial grain—and the pay for the troops must also be prepared. The court's tax silver has not yet been fully collected."

Jin Zhongshan's expression changed abruptly, his gaze burning as he stared at Zhu Xu.

He had sought aid before, but had always been refused by the central court. Yet the Ming army in his memory was still that of the Three Great Campaigns, so he desperately hoped the Great Ming court would dispatch troops to support Joseon once again.

Jin Zhongshan was very tense, his voice trembling as he said, "Your Highness, are these words true?"

Zhu Xu smiled with an innocent look and said, "Naturally. But Lord Jin must memorialize the Emperor exactly as I have stated."

Jin Zhongshan immediately stood up, went down on one knee with the utmost solemnity, and declared loudly, "Everything shall be as Prince Hui commands!"

The whole group was startled—especially the three men from the Court of State Ceremonial, who broke out in cold sweat and turned to look back, only to see Prince Hui already reaching out to help Lord Jin Zhongshan to his feet.

Zhu Xu completely ignored the ceremonial procedures arranged by the Court of State Ceremonial and directly brought Jin Zhongshan back to the palace.

Along the way, Zhu Xu and Jin Zhongshan conversed pleasantly, and he accompanied him into Jingyang Palace.

Zhu Youxiao welcomed Jin Zhongshan's arrival and cordially inquired about Joseon's current situation, sending his regards to the King of Joseon.

Jin Zhongshan conveyed the King of Joseon's respects to His Majesty the Great Ming Emperor, presented the gift list, and offered good wishes for Great Ming and its Emperor.

The atmosphere of the conversation was very harmonious. Jin Zhongshan subtly expressed his hope that the Great Ming court could give Joseon more support and assistance, and the Great Ming Emperor deftly changed the subject.

The sovereign and his minister conversed for about an hour, and Prince Hui remained in attendance until the exchange concluded.

After it ended, Zhu Xu saw Jin Zhongshan out. They had not walked far when Jin Zhongshan's composure faltered, and he looked at Zhu Xu with a hesitant expression, saying, "Prince Hui, will the Great Ming court truly send troops to protect Joseon again?"

Zhu Xu calculated the time—Sun Chengzong's reply would most likely arrive today—so he said with great certainty, "Lord Jin need not worry. Before you return to Joseon, I will give you a definitive answer."

On hearing this, Jin Zhongshan immediately bowed and said, "Thank you, Prince Hui. No matter what, Joseon will remember Your Highness's help to our country!"

Zhu Xu nodded with a smile and said, "I shall first escort you to the courier station to rest. Tonight the Emperor will host a banquet in your honor—do be careful not to speak too much then. Our dynasty has dispatched troops to protect Joseon three times before, sacrificing countless officers and men, and many senior officials believe Joseon has not shown sufficient respect."

Jin Zhongshan bowed once more and said, "Your Highness speaks truly. After I return to my country, I will urge the King to establish a shrine of loyalty for the fallen Ming officers and soldiers, to offer sincere sacrifices and worship, and to carve inscriptions and compile records, so that we may never forget the protection and sacrifice of the Great Ming court on our behalf!"

Zhu Xu gave an "mm" of acknowledgment, then asked as if casually, "Lord Jin, how much do you still know about Japan?"

Jin Zhongshan glanced at Zhu Xu, seeming to understand his meaning, and said, "Prince Hui, from what I know, Japan is now very weak and has neither the intention nor the capability to send troops against Joseon again."

Zhu Xu smiled without speaking and courteously escorted this Joseon nobleman from Japan into the courier station.

After returning to the palace, Zhu Xu went to the Imperial Study to see Zhu Youxiao, by way of reporting back on his mission.

Zhu Youxiao sat at the imperial desk with a grave expression. He did not greet Zhu Xu when he entered, but kept his head down reading a memorial.

"Elder Brother." In his usual fashion, Zhu Xu came straight around behind the imperial desk, to Zhu Youxiao's side.

He glanced at it—it was a Supervising Secretary of the Ministry of War impeaching Mao Wenlong, the Regional Commander of Liaodong. He thought to himself, 'Xiong Tingbi certainly moves fast. He's afraid Yuan Keli will obstruct him again, isn't he?'

Yuan Keli was also a pillar of the Donglin Faction, with enormous influence. If he threw his full weight behind Mao Wenlong, then perhaps Mao Wenlong really would, as in history, remain in Liaodong until Yuan Chonghuan killed him under a forged edict.

Zhu Youxiao finished one memorial, closed it, and picked up another, only then saying, "Has the man been delivered to the courier station?"

"Delivered." Zhu Xu craned his neck to look at the memorial—indeed, it was still an impeachment of Mao Wenlong.

Zhu Youxiao read for a few moments, then sighed and said, "The hardest job in this world must be mine as Emperor. Every one of them gives me difficult problems day after day, and they never tire of it."

Zhu Xu did not take up the thread, but he saw the draft rescript at the end of the memorial—two large characters reading 'Approved as drafted.' He did not recognize which Grand Secretary's handwriting it was, but he could vaguely guess that the outer court's opinion was largely unanimous—Mao Wenlong would not last long in Liaodong.

Seeing that Zhu Xu did not respond, Zhu Youxiao glanced at him with some surprise and said, "Is there something else?"

Zhu Xu had come precisely to lay his groundwork in advance, and said with the utmost respect, "To report to Your Majesty, your humble brother intends to take Lord Jin out of the city tomorrow, to let him witness our Great Ming's firearms—this should also strengthen Joseon's resolve to resist the Tartar slaves."

The "Tartar slaves" Zhu Xu spoke of also referred to the Jin people.

Zhu Youxiao nodded noncommittally, set the pile of memorials aside, and said, "Mm, I see. Go ahead."