Chapter 92: Section Twenty

After Sun Chengzong inspected Shanhai Pass in the sixth month, Fang Zhenru immediately summoned Huang Shi, looking extremely smug, and his tone toward the Liaodong Grand Coordinator lost all respect: "Wang Zaijin is finished."

Sun Chengzong and Wang Zaijin argued fiercely for seven days and seven nights, yet still could not persuade Wang Zaijin to abandon his view of holding fast to the Great Wall. In the end, Sun Chengzong asked him: what if the soldiers in the forts before Shanhai Pass routed and fled — would they not be hunted down by the Jianzhou slaves? Wang Zaijin naturally replied that they could pre-establish large stockades at strategic choke points, so those soldiers would have a place to fall back and defend.

Sun Chengzong immediately rebuked Wang Zaijin harshly: if you pre-establish large stockades to take in routed troops, does that not encourage soldiers to flee? He then took this matter and wrote to Tianqi, saying Wang Zaijin was utterly ignorant of reason, spoke in contradictions, and absolutely could not be entrusted with heavy responsibility. Wang Zaijin collapsed from power on this.

In Huang Shi's personal opinion alone, Sun Chengzong's argument had a whiff of sophistry, but he was no longer of Wang Zaijin's faction, and he also remembered that Sun Chengzong was indeed far more capable than Wang Zaijin. Huang Shi echoed praise with his lips, but in his heart he felt a slight disapproval.

"My lord Fang, has the building of Ningyuan become a settled matter?"

"Indeed. Since Wang Zaijin's plan was rejected by Grand Secretary Sun, then all this time he has been squandering state funds. At the least he goes to Nanjing; at worst he loses his post." In this kind of political struggle, which included factional strife, once you lose, you lose completely. Wang Zaijin's official career was now certainly doomed beyond doubt. And with the Wang Zaijin faction removed, those remaining all advocated building Ningyuan and Juehua.

Wang Zaijin, his prospects utterly ruined, was soon transferred to Nanjing. Sun Chengzong set the policy to build Ningyuan, and Yuan Chonghuan was dispatched to carry out this task. The Liaoxi military clique immediately sobered up. The fastest to react was Zu Dashou. The Zu clan, which had persisted in passive foot-dragging, now organized manpower; their retainers and bondservants all took to the field, working overtime to rush the construction of Ningyuan.

The Ningyuan fortification plan had not been one-tenth completed in the past half year, but this time Zu Dashou caught up to the schedule in only half a month and even exceeded the task. This attitude of bearing hardship without complaint and working with sincere diligence won him Yuan Chonghuan's trust in one stroke.

Amid this scene of universal satisfaction, Huang Shi finally received his reward as well — a full ten thousand shi of rice and beans, which Fang Zhenru personally went to secure for him.

Fang Zhenru, being a true enough friend, asked one more question: "Is there anything else you need?"

"Your subordinate still needs cloth, armor, bows and arrows, raw iron..." Huang Shi rattled off a long list in one breath. In a word, he needed everything.

"Liaodong is so harsh and bitter — Huang Shi, will you truly not reconsider?" As Fang Zhenru spoke, he kept carefully observing Huang Shi's expression.

Huang Shi only smiled. His strategic resolve would never waver — neither profit nor hardship could make it do so.

"I have seen countless people in my life, but sometimes I truly cannot read you. Your loyalty... is exceedingly precious." Fang Zhenru felt that Huang Shi's loyalty was so intense it almost seemed unreal — or perhaps so real it seemed like a false legend. Fang Zhenru had thought he understood Huang Shi very well, but after this period of contact, a sense of strangeness and distance had emerged. He dared not say he could certainly obtain the supplies — after all, Fang was only a disciplinary officer: "As for the things you need... this official will do his utmost."

During this period, Huang Shi also had the honor of being summoned once by Sun Chengzong. Gao Bangzuo had deeply moved Huang Shi, so when he paid his respects to Sun Chengzong, Huang Shi finally spoke his comprehensive view.

"You think building Juehua is better." Sun Chengzong raised an eyebrow in surprise. The letter Fang Zhenru had submitted on his behalf said he supported defending Ningyuan.

"Yes. Your subordinate is bold enough to venture: build a city on Juehua Island, construct warships. Then seize Yaozhou, build a port, then seize Haizhou..." Huang Shi, a believer in command of the sea, had no desire at all to contend with the Later Jin on land. His comprehensive plan was to establish a chain of solid strongholds encircling the Bohai Sea along Juehua, Yaozhou, Niangniang Palace, Fuzhou, Jinzhou, and Lushun. Since the Later Jin had no navy and could not cut the supply lines of grain and fodder to these strongholds, they would be forced to assault Ming's strong cities — and in a war of attrition, Ming could never come out the loser.

"Stop," Sun Chengzong interrupted Huang Shi with a genial smile. "Did Minister Yan teach you to say these words?"

"Minister Yan? Your subordinate does not know. I beg my lord to clarify." Huang Shi was utterly baffled. He did not know that Yan Mingtai advocated building Juehua, and Sun Chengzong mistakenly thought he was acting as a lobbyist for that plan.

"The words you speak now do not match the memorandum you submitted. Why?"

Huang Shi had no choice but to explain that this was a new view he had arrived at in recent days, and thus differed from his earlier memorandum.

"Haha, Huang Shi, your lips are quite tightly sealed." Although he felt Huang Shi was not telling the truth, Sun Chengzong took no offense. He asked a few more casual questions, thinking to himself that rather than listen to a military man relay a message, he might as well go discuss it directly with Yan Mingtai.

In the Ming dynasty, building cities, whether for offense or defense, was always a matter civil officials discussed among themselves. The Great Ming imperial court could carefully listen to the opinions of a rank-seven Army Supervisor civil official, weigh them meticulously, and debate them repeatedly, yet it never considered any voice raised by a military officer. Although Sun Chengzong valued the views of military officers, this was only an improvement, not a complete overturning of deeply entrenched traditional thinking.

As for Huang Shi's view of using the sea as a road, Sun Chengzong merely smiled and offered some encouragement, clearly also dismissing it. The Ming subject's view of using the sea as a wall already had a history of several hundred years. Before this, there had been no wars over sea power in Chinese history, so the Ming people had no experience in this. If Sun Chengzong truly formulated court policy based solely on a single speech by Huang Shi, he would be nothing but a reckless fool.

Thus, building cities still had to be done step by step on solid ground, extending the grain route along the land surface inch by inch before one could feel secure. In this regard, there were already many lessons written in blood and tears, and also many successful precedents to look forward to. Building cities isolated deep in enemy territory, relying on sea routes for supply, was still regarded as a heretical path in this era.

"No wonder you, Huang Shi, always want to return to Mao Wenlong's side." Sun Chengzong had also heard of Huang Shi's plans. "This 'using the sea as a road' must be Mao Wenlong's idea. As expected, only under him can you fully display your talents. Haha."

Mao Wenlong had not yet thought so far ahead. His understanding contained elements of using the sea as a moat — at most, it held the embryonic seed of the "using the sea as a road" concept. Huang Shi finally understood: the thinking of people in any era must be built upon the facts they can see. It was impossible to move a renowned minister of history with empty words alone. Sun Chengzong was very amiable toward Huang Shi, but that was as far as it went.

The Battle of Guangning had already made the court begin to listen to Huang Shi's voice. The Ming scholar-officials were not fools who refused to listen; on the contrary, they were shrewd enough — they simply had to see concrete results before they would listen. After realizing where his problem lay, Huang Shi immediately requested to return to Changsheng Island in Liaodong. Sun Chengzong gave him some encouragement, and he took the opportunity to secure some more supplies.

"My lord, are you truly not going to pay a visit to Elder Zhao?" Yang Zhiyuan's concern moved Huang Shi somewhat.

Huang Shi resolved to use a personal parable to help the one hundred taels of silver untie the knot in his heart: "There is a story about two fish. After the pond dried up, they moistened each other with the water from their mouths, sharing hardship as if they were a human couple. Yang Zhiyuan, what do you think of these two fish?"

"'The friend of humble days is not forgotten; the wife of poor times is not cast aside.'" Huang Shi had not expected that even an unlettered man like Yang Zhiyuan would know two idioms.

"Quite right. But if you were one of those two fish, would you rather wait for death together with your companion on the dry ground, or would you rather both stay alive, each roaming freely in the rivers and lakes?"

"The latter, of course. Two people living is better than two people dying." Yang Zhiyuan was a practical man after all, with no petty-bourgeois sentimentality.

Huang Shi seized the chance to extend the metaphor. He could not possibly stay in Liaoxi for a woman, and the woman might not necessarily like going to Liaodong to endure hardship. Rather than two people awkwardly tangled together, it was better for each to seek their own happiness. He hoped Yang Zhiyuan could understand the deeper meaning and thereby sever the threads of affection entangled around that dear girl:

"It is precisely as the saying goes: moistening each other with spittle is not as good as forgetting each other in the rivers and lakes."

When he set out, Huang Shi wore a face full of smiles, admiring the fully loaded ship holds. He had also managed to get his hands on these three cargo ships, and was taking away ten artisan apprentices: "Returning with a full load! At least this trip was not in vain."

—

"General Huang has already returned to Liaodong... It is certain beyond doubt. Many people saw General Huang set sail." A young girl spoke with difficulty the news she had just managed to find out. "He will not be coming to pay a visit to Father."

The already somewhat haggard elder sister's face showed a heart-wrenching disappointment, and also a trace of disbelief. So many days of self-deception could finally continue no longer.

That villain who deserves a thousand cuts! The younger sister gently embraced the pitiful soul who wept in sorrow, but her mouth said: "General Huang must have his own difficulties too. Love between man and woman is long, but a hero's spirit is short. He too feared he would only hold you back, Sister."