[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-stealing-ming":3,"chapter-stealing-ming-stealing-ming-chapter-271":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Stealing Ming",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1220888,1614,"Chapter 271: Section 28: Rumors","stealing-ming-chapter-271",271,"\u003Cp>Unexpectedly, after hearing Huang Shi's words, He Dingyuan acted as if he had grabbed a lifeline. He immediately raised his head and loudly retorted, \"That was not slander. I spoke with evidence. Li Yunrui said it to you himself, my lord. I heard it with my own ears.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As early as when Yang Zhiyuan first began to take an interest in Lady Xiong, He Dingyuan knew about it and roped in his wife to advise Yang Zhiyuan. It is said that both the words Yang Zhiyuan spoke and the letters he wrote owed a great deal to the efforts of the He couple.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Yang Zhiyuan faced the crisis of romantic disappointment, He Dingyuan grew so anxious he scratched his ears and cheeks. In the end, he simply sent his wife to speak ill of Li Yunrui to Lady Xiong. But He Dingyuan's help only made things worse. The more Madam He said, the more Lady Xiong formed opinions against Yang Zhiyuan, and the more resolutely she leaned toward Li Yunrui's side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, in desperation, He Dingyuan blurted out the reason Li Yunrui had been convicted back in his hometown, and also spilled the matter of Li Yunrui attempting to molest a respectable woman in Guangning. This was originally something Li Yunrui had confessed to Huang Shi when he first arrived on Zhangsheng Island. Apart from a few old brothers, no one else knew. As a result, this explosive news spread across Zhangsheng Island in an instant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the blink of an eye, the whole island was astir, and Li Yunrui's reputation was utterly destroyed. Now, wherever Li Yunrui went, people pointed and whispered behind his back. Those close to him kept teasing him, saying things like, \"Who would have thought that Commissioner Li, with such thick brows, big eyes, and a dignified bearing, would do such things behind the scenes?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Amid this overwhelming clamor, Li Yunrui naturally could no longer send betrothal gifts to Lady Xiong. Even if he did go, he would be politely refused by the woman's family. With his reputation ruined and the added hatred of losing his beloved, Li Yunrui thoroughly detested He Dingyuan. He ran to Huang Shi, shouting that he could no longer serve on Zhangsheng Island and insisted on being transferred to Fuzhou.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Huang Shi pacified Li Yunrui, he felt somewhat uneasy inside. For the moment, he had no good solution to offer. Apart from ordering He Dingyuan to apologize to Li Yunrui, Huang Shi also gave Commissioner Li a long leave, letting him travel around Shandong for a month or so in July to ease his mind first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking at He Dingyuan's unrepentant face, the fury in Huang Shi's heart suddenly died out. He Dingyuan was loyal to his superiors, righteous to his friends, and benevolent to the people of Liaodong. He acted on impulse in all things. If Huang Shi had not protected him, He Dingyuan would likely have died a hundred times over by now. But... was Huang Shi protecting He Dingyuan merely because of his valor?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Enough. With a muddle-headed man like you, I have no reason left to argue.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi waved his hand magnanimously, intending to end the discussion. But He Dingyuan instead grew stubborn and unrelenting: \"My lord, your subordinate has always been the most reasonable. Whenever I am wrong, I have never failed to admit it. For my lord to scold your subordinate as a muddle-headed man, your subordinate cannot accept it in his heart.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hmm, you are the most reasonable.\" Huang Shi burst out laughing, having no intention of tangling further with He Dingyuan, because He Dingyuan's brand of reason was simply too incompatible with the principles Huang Shi followed. \"Mobile Corps Commander He, hear my order. I punish you to go apologize to Li Yunrui. So long as he does not come to me and say he has forgiven you, do not expect to receive your salary for even a day. I will transfer it directly to Li Yunrui.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"How can that be? What if he deliberately refuses to forgive me for years? What will my wife and children eat?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Do you think everyone is like you, He Dingyuan? Alright, it is settled. Return to the training ground and work.\" After speaking, Huang Shi called in the guards and had them drive out the still-muttering and incoherent He Dingyuan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After driving He Dingyuan away, Huang Shi again began to have a headache over how to pacify Li Yunrui. Apart from the Li Yunrui incident, the day before yesterday Zhang Pan had also slashed Zhao Manxiong. Zhao Manxiong was still recuperating, and the assailant Zhang Pan was locked in the old camp's prison. Huang Shi sat alone in his tent, drumming the table for a long time yet still feeling somewhat lost. On the surface, this matter seemed easy to handle. Zhang Pan could simply be charged under military law with brawling and severely wounding a colleague. But the private pacification was truly troublesome, leaving Huang Shi unsure how to handle it best.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the sixth month of the sixth year of the Tianqi reign, the Liaodong Provincial Governor Yuan Chonghuan began constructing the Right Garrison Post at Guangning. To coordinate with the fortification plan in Liaoxi, Mao Wenlong dispatched his main force to Liaodong to support the Right Association of Dongjiangzhen. After the main force's reinforcements arrived, the Vice Regional Commander of the Dongjiang Right Association, Chen Jisheng, slaughtered an ox at Kuandian to consecrate the banners. He then pledged the army and set out to attack Jianzhou.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the end of the sixth month of the sixth year of the Tianqi reign, the Later Jin defense line at Mount Zhangbai was breached by the Dongjiang army. A large Ming force then crossed the Mount Zhangbai region from Kuandian into the Jianzhou area. Chen Jisheng first surrounded Hetu Ala (Jianzhou Guard). Seeing that Hetu Ala would be difficult to take quickly, Chen Jisheng left Kong Youde to plan a long-term siege, while he himself led the army north along the Suzi River. Along the way, forts such as Ma'erdun all fell, and the Dongjiang army's spearhead pointed straight toward Sarhu City and Fushun Pass.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the tenth day of the seventh month of the sixth year of the Tianqi reign, on Zhangsheng Island, Huang Shi saw not only the field report of the Dongjiang army's advance from Kuandian, but also Mao Wenlong's memorial to the throne — a memorial pleading grievances for the Donglin Party. This set Huang Shi's mind completely at ease: \"Commander Mao truly lives up to his name.\" Huang Shi had previously sent Mao Wenlong a letter explaining his concerns, and the latter apparently shared his worries. Although history in this timeline had already changed, Mao Wenlong's character remained exactly the same as the Mao Wenlong Huang Shi knew. In the sixth year of Tianqi, when ten thousand horses stood mute at court, Mao Wenlong not only remained utterly untainted on the issue of the living shrines, he was also the only person to plead grievances for the Donglin Party, submitting a memorial to Tianqi stating that the eunuch faction's punishments were too severe and implicated too many.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, none of this prevented Yuan Chonghuan, who craved to grovel at Wei Zhongxian's feet but failed to gain the chance, from later fabricating charges to kill Mao Wenlong. Later, when Yuan Chonghuan killed Mao Wenlong on the charge of erecting a shrine and statue for Wei Zhongxian, the court and the public were outraged. From high officials like Xu Erjie down to Licentiates heading for the examinations, all voiced grievances for Mao Wenlong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tan Qian went further and questioned: First, if Mao Wenlong erected a living shrine for Wei Zhongxian, Tianqi did not know, Wei Zhongxian did not know, the grain officials from Dengzhou who went to Dongjiang did not know, and no one under heaven knew — then how did you, Yuan Chonghuan, come to know?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Second, those who erect living shrines seek nothing more than to flatter Wei Zhongxian. Yet Mao Wenlong did not erect it in Dengzhou, nor in Lüshun, but secretly erected it on a desolate island unknown to anyone, so that under all heaven only you, Yuan Chonghuan, alone knew of it. Then what exactly was Mao Wenlong after?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Precisely because Huang Shi knew this history, he firmly believed that Mao Wenlong was a man who understood shame and honor. And Commander Mao indeed did not betray Huang Shi's trust, once again serving as Huang Shi's shield and bearing Wei Zhongxian's displeasure on behalf of his subordinate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two days later, Wu Mu came again to pester Huang Shi, but Huang Shi now had a clear idea in his mind and lightly defused the matter of erecting the living shrine. Huang Shi adamantly insisted that he could not act independently outside Dongjiangzhen. Although it seemed somewhat pedantic, Huang Shi was unwilling to be ungrateful, and Wu Mu could not force him to do it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Wu Mu left, Huang Shi summoned Zhao Manxiong, who had just recovered from his wound, and Zhang Pan. The slash Zhao Manxiong had received was only a flesh wound and had mostly healed after a few days. Zhang Pan, on the other hand, had been beaten with eighty heavy strokes of the board and was more severely injured than Zhao Manxiong. He could only barely get out of bed the day before yesterday, and today he still walked unsteadily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the defeat at Guangning, the people of Liuhe Guard, like the other residents of Hexi, had been relocated to Liaozhong within a year. So for several years, although Huang Shi inquired through many channels, he never had news of Old Zhang's family. It was not until last month that word came from the Jianzhou slaves' side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Jianzhou slaves' authorities concocted a story, saying that when Huang Shi passed through Liuhe with a few guards, he imitated the story of Cao Cao killing Lü Boshe's family. In order to keep his movements secret, he slaughtered all the Liuhe villagers who had hosted him. The Zhang family, who protected Huang Shi, bore the villagers' fury on his behalf. Yet the utterly inhuman Huang Shi stood by and watched, then left with a clear conscience, taking his benefactor's youngest son with him, believing he had repaid the Zhang family's repeated life-saving kindness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This matter was told by the Later Jin side with vivid detail. They even found some former Liuhe villagers to serve as witnesses, wantonly publicizing Huang Shi's ingratitude. Zhangsheng Island naturally scoffed at such rumors, and the hundred officials of the Great Ming court also dismissed them with contempt. Although censors had the right to impeach based on hearsay, not a single censor used this to make an issue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the whole, only a small number of people were half-believing and half-doubting. They felt that given Huang Shi's ruthlessness in killing his wife, he might well be capable of such a thing. But when this news reached the ears of Huang Shi and Zhang Pan, the two insiders, it shocked them greatly, because part of what the Jianzhou slaves' side described was basically similar to their experience that night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi and Zhang Pan together reviewed the intelligence gathered by the Zhangsheng Island Intelligence Division. The names of every person mentioned in the Later Jin propaganda were basically correct. Even minor figures like the son of Blacksmith Chen were known with perfect clarity. The only change was turning the matter of escorting Huang Shi to claim a reward into seeing Huang Shi and his party off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Huang Shi and Zhang Pan carefully analyzed the minutiae of that time, they confirmed that the Later Jin side did not know the strength of the troops Huang Shi had brought. In the end, Huang Shi could not help but wonder what fate had befallen those villagers of Liuhe Guard after he and Zhang Pan left. Huang Shi recalled the events of that day and had several of his old guards recall them as well. They finally identified a few men who had stayed behind with Zhao Manxiong that day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under Huang Shi's severe interrogation, they admitted that after Huang Shi left, Zhao Manxiong ordered all those villagers to be killed. At the time, they were all Zhao Manxiong's direct subordinates. Zhao Manxiong forbade them from reporting to Huang Shi, so they had kept this matter concealed all along. After the Zhangsheng Island military system was reorganized, everyone had long since forgotten this matter entirely, and no one would take the initiative to mention it to Huang Shi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After hearing their account, Huang Shi immediately slumped into his chair, holding his head in despair. Because once such a thing had happened, the Old Zhang family truly had no chance of survival. He did not even dare to imagine in detail what had befallen the Zhang family after they fell into the hands of the enraged villagers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Huang Shi recovered from his daze, he discovered that Zhang Pan had disappeared from his side. At that moment, Huang Shi knew great trouble was imminent. Before he could even give the order to send people to search, the Military Police Captain Hong Antong rushed in, furious and flustered. Just as Huang Shi expected, Zhang Pan had stormed into Zhao Manxiong's quarters. At the time, Zhao Manxiong was presiding over a meeting on Huang Shi's behalf. In front of a room full of people, Zhang Pan, without a word, drew his waist saber and slashed at him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, Zhang Pan was restrained by the people around Zhao Manxiong after only one slash. The old camp's internal guards then arrived and seized Zhang Pan. After Hong Antong rushed to the scene upon hearing the news, he ordered Zhang Pan to be taken under control while sending men to immediately deliver Zhao Manxiong to Hu Qingbai for treatment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi affirmed Hong Antong's handling and added an order to the internal guards to throw Zhang Pan into prison. When he rushed to the military medical office, Hu Qingbai had already bandaged Zhao Manxiong's wound. Seeing Zhao Manxiong safe and sound a few days later let Huang Shi breathe a huge sigh of relief. Not only because Zhao Manxiong was his chief strategist, but Huang Shi was also happy for Zhang Pan — this way, he would not have to pay with his life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Pan and Zhao Manxiong sat on Huang Shi's left and right respectively. From the moment they entered, they kept their heads down in silence, and even after Huang Shi dismissed all the internal guards, they still said not a word. Huang Shi coughed, intending to begin mediation. His approach to mediation was the same as always: to take all the responsibility onto himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To Huang Shi's surprise, just as he finished coughing and before he could begin to speak, Zhang Pan suddenly stood up, cupped his hands toward Zhao Manxiong in salute, and said, \"Brother Manxiong, last time was my fault. Whether you want to punish or penalize me, Brother, just lay down the terms. I will not so much as furrow my brow.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Pan's statement clearly also caught Zhao Manxiong off guard. He hurriedly rose to return the salute, but he did not know what to say. His own actions had led to the Zhang family's tragic extermination, and now Zhang Pan was being so courteous. It left him unable to either accept or refuse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as Zhao Manxiong was slowly pondering how to respond, Huang Shi extended both hands and pressed downward, signaling the two to sit down first and listen to him. When Huang Shi first heard the news, he had also been furious at Zhao Manxiong's actions. But after he calmed down, he understood that his own handling at the time had indeed been problematic. If one set aside his personal relationship with the Zhang family, then Zhao Manxiong's action was truly the conduct of one responsible to all the soldiers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Therefore, Huang Shi believed he bore great responsibility. The order he had given at the time was not appropriate. In the final analysis, Zhao Manxiong was remedying Huang Shi's mistake. Moreover, strict military discipline had not yet been established at the time. If Huang Shi made Zhao Manxiong take the blame for him, it would be unfair to Zhao Manxiong and would also strike a blow to his subordinates' initiative.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Huang Shi took all the responsibility onto himself, Zhao Manxiong and Zhang Pan listened in silence. After finishing, Huang Shi first warned Zhao Manxiong not to act on his own authority in the future, or he would face severe punishment under the regulations. Then he turned to Zhang Pan and said, \"Little Brother, I already owed your family a life, and now I have brought harm upon your entire family. If you no longer wish to stay on Zhangsheng Island, I can give you a sum of money...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Elder Brother, you need not say more. Saying these things now is useless.\" Zhang Pan sighed, cutting off Huang Shi's words. Huang Shi felt that whatever he did now would be of no help, so he closed his mouth. The room was silent for a while before Zhang Pan spoke again: \"When all is said and done, our enemy is the Jianzhou slaves. If not for the Jianzhou slaves, none of this would have happened. We would surely still be good neighbors. If my mother had not betrayed Elder Brother, then the later events would not have occurred either.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Little Brother...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Pan continued speaking on his own: \"Elder Brother, I am now at least a general. After following you for so many years, I understand the cunning of the Jianzhou slaves in my heart. Since they put out these words, it is to make us fight among ourselves. These past few days while recovering from my wounds, I have been haunted by fear. If I had truly taken Brother Manxiong's life, that would have severed one of Elder Brother's arms. And I probably would not have had the chance to live and take revenge on the Jianzhou slaves. That would truly be grief for those who love us and joy for our enemies.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although Zhang Pan's words put Huang Shi much more at ease, he still felt waves of discomfort in his heart. But for such a tragic matter as the extermination of a family, Huang Shi truly had no words of comfort to offer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"A couple of days ago, I heard that the Jianzhou slaves have put out more rumors, spreading more slander about Elder Brother. I knew then that I was gravely mistaken, that I had fallen for the Jianzhou slaves' scheme.\" Zhang Pan took a deep breath and raised his head to look at Huang Shi. Though his eyes were full of sorrow, the expression on his face was resolute: \"Elder Brother, rest assured. I swear I will no longer hold this matter against Brother Manxiong, and I will absolutely not hold you back.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Faced with such a declaration, Huang Shi could only pat Zhang Pan on the shoulder, moved, and say softly, \"Thank you, Little Brother.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The new rumor Zhang Pan referred to was the Later Jin side's propaganda about Huang Shi's background.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Previously, Huang Shi had claimed to be the son of a merchant from Kaiyuan in Liaodong. Now the Later Jin side's propaganda also acknowledged that he was from Kaiyuan, but they added a story to Huang Shi. The Later Jin side said that Huang Shi originally came from a decent family, with an elder brother and a wife. However, Huang Shi's elder brother joined the Later Jin Han Army, and his father-in-law also cooperated with the Later Jin regime. During a quarrel, Huang Shi killed his elder brother and personally strangled his wife, who was unwilling to flee with him — two consecutive acts of placing righteousness above family loyalty in a single day. And what Huang Shi did to Sun Degong in Guangning was in fact already the third time he had struck against his own kin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"For a man to place righteousness above family loyalty once is already hard enough. Heh heh, now I have done it three times.\" Huang Shi gave a bitter smile to Zhao Manxiong and Zhang Pan. This issue was very difficult for Huang Shi to defend against, because his resume was fabricated to begin with, so naturally he could find no reliable witnesses. And the more Huang Shi tried to defend himself on this issue, the more people would be half-convinced and half-doubting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Shi could not even defend himself on the matter of Old Zhang's family. If he revealed that the Zhang family and the Liuhe villagers had betrayed him, then everyone would think Huang Shi had once again \"placed righteousness above family loyalty by exterminating his life-saving benefactor's entire family.\" Precisely because those people were all dead, Huang Shi had no way to make people believe that he had not wanted to kill them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If there truly were a man who placed righteousness above family loyalty three or four times, I imagine absolutely no one would ever dare befriend him again, right?\" Huang Shi sighed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The story fabricated by the Later Jin left him unable to defend himself, yet also unable to leave it unanswered. This thorny matter would have to be handed to Zhao Manxiong: \"Brother Manxiong, I leave this matter to you. Go back and think it over slowly. When you have a plan, come tell me.\"\u003C\u002Fp>",3598,"2026-06-04T07:54:54.057Z",1,"Novelzhen Translator","3485cb84816f8d7003461f81c7b2ee24db59f6338df2742cf395260bf2c2f5e1","stealing-ming-chapter-272","stealing-ming-chapter-270",323,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fstealing-ming-cover.jpg"]