Chapter 153: Crisis

Liang Qi straightened his clothes, left the inner room, and sat down properly on a chair in the reception hall. With a dignified air, he ordered: "Bring the man in!"

Though he was also greedy for wealth and lustful, he never dared to delay official business. The moment he heard it concerned the Huai salt matter, Liang Qi, who had been feeling the effects of wine, instantly sobered up.

As the door opened, Hu Tinglu stepped into the hall. Seeing Liang Qi, he clasped his hands in salute and asked: "Are you Centurion Liang of the Northern Bastille?"

He had already sent people to make inquiries and knew Liang Qi's identity.

Although Liang Qi had led his men to Huai'an in secret, after arresting the officials of the Huai'an Salt Bureau he had revealed his identity, so it was easy for outsiders to learn of his background.

Liang Qi looked the old man before him up and down. Though dressed in an ordinary robe, his bearing carried an air of elegance and refinement. Having judged countless men in his career, Liang Qi concluded that this person before him appeared to be a man of officialdom—the aura of one long accustomed to high position was not something an ordinary person could fake.

He did not rise to return the salute, but instead asked in reply: "Who might you be, sir? Visiting in the dead of night—is it a matter of urgency? You should know I am no ordinary government man. If you have business, speak quickly. If you've come to toy with me, know that this door lets you in, but it may not let you out!"

Hu Tinglu did not hesitate in the slightest upon hearing this. With a thud, he knelt to the ground and performed a grand kowtow. Raising himself to look directly at Liang Qi, he said in a mournful voice: "Centurion Liang, save my life!"

Liang Qi sat in his chair utterly unmoved. He had witnessed such scenes several times before, so it was nothing new to him.

He spoke without changing his expression: "Who are you? Why should I save your life? I only know how to kill, not how to save!"

Hu Tinglu clasped his hands and said: "I am Hu Tinglu, Salt Transport Commissioner of the Lianghuai Salt Transport Commissioner's Office! I have just learned that someone plots against the court! Therefore I risked great danger to come and inform you! And I also have a favor to ask of Centurion Liang—I earnestly hope Centurion Liang will lend his aid!"

Liang Qi was greatly astonished inwardly.

He knew the Huai'an Salt Bureau was merely an appetizer—once the capital's mounted agents arrived, the Salt Transport Commissioner's Office would be the next target.

He never imagined the man before him was the very target he would soon move against—and even less did he expect that a dignified court official of the third rank would come seeking him at night, begging him to save his life.

After his astonishment, Liang Qi felt a mixture of amusement and disbelief. The very man he was supposed to arrest was begging him for help—what sort of play was this?

But after all, the man had not yet been convicted and was still a high court official. He couldn't very well leave the man kneeling, could he? If word spread, people would think him arrogant and uncontrollable, which would be quite disadvantageous. Competition within the Embroidered Uniform Guard was fierce—countless eyes were fixed on his position, and one careless misstep would let his rivals seize a handle against him.

As for greed for wealth and lust—these did not harm one's reputation. On the contrary, being too incorruptible and self-restrained would make superiors suspect one harbored ulterior ambitions.

Only subordinates with obvious flaws were worthy of trust, because superiors believed they could be controlled. The reason Liang Qi had purchased two women to cavort with was also a form of self-defilement.

He grinned, remaining firmly seated, and laughed: "I wondered who it might be—so it's Lord Hu after all! What sort of game are you playing? Come, come, please have a seat!"

Hu Tinglu was long accustomed to the double-faced ways of officialdom. He rose to his feet and forced a smile: "Centurion Liang is being too distant. We both serve His Majesty—by that reckoning we are colleagues, hehe!"

Liang Qi gestured for Hu Tinglu to take the guest's seat, then asked with a smile that did not reach his eyes: "Lord Hu, with an honored guest at my door, what business do you have to instruct me in?"

Hu Tinglu steadied his mind, sighed, and spoke tentatively: "This old man dares to ask Centurion Liang—where are Yang and the others of the Huai'an Salt Bureau now? How does the court intend to handle this matter?"

Liang Qi glanced at him sidelong and said gravely: "Yang and the others are imperial criminals who should have been taken to the Imperial Prison for confinement and interrogation. But I received orders that the road from Huai'an to the capital is long and not entirely safe. By His Majesty's decree, all offending officials are to be executed on the spot! To serve as a warning to other wrongdoers! Their families are to be exiled three thousand li! Lord Hu is no outsider, so I will speak frankly!"

Hu Tinglu's heart pounded with terror as he listened, yet inwardly he thought that coming here had been the right decision. Had he hesitated any longer, or been dragged down by Cheng Fang and the others, it would not just be his own head on the block—members of his family would be beheaded as well.

He forced a smile: "Yang and the others got what they deserved. This old man wishes to know—under what charges did the officials of the Huai'an Salt Bureau meet their end?"

Liang Qi replied expressionlessly: "Lord Hu's curiosity is truly considerable! I'll tell you plainly! Yang and the others embezzled state funds, colluded with salt merchants to sell smuggled salt, and accepted heavy bribes from salt merchants. Well? Lord Hu, are these charges sufficient for beheading?"

Hu Tinglu wiped the sweat from his brow, slapped his forehead, and put on an expression of just having remembered something: "Look at this memory of mine! I'm truly old! When this old man came to visit Centurion Liang, I specially brought along some local products—I only just remembered. I hope Centurion Liang will not take offense!"

Liang Qi naturally knew full well what sort of "local products" he meant. Upon hearing this, he immediately changed to a warm, cordial smile: "Lord Hu is far too courteous! We are colleagues—why should you bring gifts when visiting for a chat? If you do this, next time I won't dare let you come!"

Hu Tinglu wished he could slap that loathsome smiling face. Just moments ago the man had put on an air of conducting official business strictly by the book, and the moment he heard of "local products," the bastard changed his tune entirely.

He forced a smile in reply: "Centurion Liang has come all the way from the capital to Jiangnan, thousands of li away, for the court's business. As your host, this old man naturally must show his appreciation! I beg Centurion Liang to kindly accept!"

Liang Qi looked toward the door. One of his mounted agents made a gesture of three fingers, then changed it to a swimming-fish shape. He understood at once: three was the number, and the swimming fish referred to yellow croaker—what Hu Tinglu was sending was three thousand taels of gold.

This was a tremendous fortune—equivalent to thirty thousand taels of silver.

From this entire Huai'an case, he had only managed to extract ten thousand taels of silver, yet Hu Tinglu was handing over thirty thousand in one go.

This old devil had substantial family wealth—he was a fat sheep indeed.

Liang Qi's mind was calculating, but his face blossomed with smiles.

He clasped his hands and laughed: "Since it is Lord Hu's sincere gesture, I would be rude to refuse! May I ask what brings Lord Hu here tonight? Speak freely—if there is anything I can help with, I will certainly do my utmost! Someone, serve tea!"

A woman from the inner room came swaying out carrying a teapot and teacups. She set the tea set on the small table between the two men, filled the cups with water, threw a flirtatious glance at Liang Qi, then waddled back into the room like a lame duck.

Liang Qi watched her swaying hips and swallowed his saliva. He picked up his teacup and smiled: "Come, Lord Hu, please have some tea! Speak whatever business you have!"

Chen Qiyu, now nearly fifty, followed the old adage of rising early and sleeping early. He had lain down to rest just after the hour of You.

Since his family all lived in the capital, after taking up his post in Fengyang he had been busy establishing his footing and drilling new troops, then without pause had led his forces to participate in the Battle of Shouzhou. Before he could even return to his post in Fengyang, a decree from Chongzhen had sent him off to Huai'an, so he had never brought his family over. He also had no fondness for women and normally slept alone.

His two younger cousins, Chen Qizhi and Chen Qishen, had repeatedly urged him to take a concubine to look after his meals and daily needs, but Chen Qiyu had refused every time. In desperation, Chen Qizhi had hired a young servant boy from the locality to attend to him.

Because of the fact that after he had been imprisoned, his old wife at home had sold off the family property and run about everywhere on his behalf, he did not wish to take a concubine—otherwise he would feel he had wronged the wife who had been with him for over twenty years.

Chen Qizhi and Chen Qishen, however, had each taken a concubine—both respectable women of common birth.

Over the past year or more, the two had also basked greatly in Chen Qiyu's reflected glory. The mere silver they had sent back to their hometowns amounted to several thousand taels. This was only because the two were not particularly greedy—had they been the grasping sort, staying beside a powerful cousin of high rank, they could easily have raked in tens of thousands of taels in a year or more.

Just as Chen Qiyu was about to drift into deep sleep, he was startled awake by a burst of urgent knocking. Suppressing his impatience, Chen Qiyu sat up, threw on a robe, and got out of bed. The young servant sleeping in the outer room had already lit a candle and opened the door.

Chen Qizhi stepped into the room as Chen Qiyu arrived in the outer chamber. Frowning, he asked: "What has happened?"

"Elder brother, Centurion Liang Qi of the Northern Bastille requests an audience! He says there is urgent official business he needs to discuss with you!" Chen Qizhi replied.

Just as Liang Qi in the second hall was growing anxious, Chen Qiyu, dressed in an ordinary robe and led by the lantern-bearing servant boy, strode in, with Chen Qizhi following close behind.

Liang Qi hastily rose and clasped his hands in salute: "I never expected Your Excellency the Governor-General to have retired so early. I have disturbed your rest, Governor Chen—I beg your forgiveness!"

Chen Qiyu waved his hand, walked to the host's seat, sat down, and asked: "Centurion Liang, what urgent matter brings you here at this late hour?"

Liang Qi also sat down and said in a low voice: "There is indeed a matter! And it is a great matter concerning the stability of Jiangnan!"

Without waiting for Chen Qiyu to ask further, Liang Qi briefly recounted what Hu Tinglu had said that night.

As a Centurion of the Northern Bastille, Liang Qi was ordinarily only involved in arresting criminal officials and gathering intelligence through espionage—he had never experienced the prospect of thousands upon thousands of people gathering. So when he heard Hu Tinglu's words and realized that if it truly were a large-scale popular uprising, the consequences would be extremely severe—possibly plunging the prosperous Jiangnan into calamity—he immediately became panicked.

He had only ten men with him. Even if he wanted to suppress a popular uprising by force, he lacked the strength, and the only man in Huai'an commanding significant troops was Chen Qiyu. So he had lodged Hu Tinglu at an inn, ordered his men to guard him closely and prevent him from contacting outsiders, then hurried to the Grain Transport Yamen, where Chen Qiyu resided in the rear courtyard.

Chen Qiyu was a man who had commanded vast armies and witnessed great scenes. After hearing Liang Qi's account and seeing the anxious look on the other's face, he felt a hint of contempt in his heart.

A so-called popular disturbance was not rebellion. With five thousand battle-tested government troops poised in the Huai'an area, even a full rebellion would be a minor matter quelled in an instant. Aren't you usually so capable? Why are you losing your nerve over such a trifling matter?

What surprised him was that Salt Transport Commissioner Hu Tinglu had actually gone to see Liang Qi and had revealed the salt merchants' schemes.

But upon thinking it over briefly, Chen Qiyu guessed Hu Tinglu's motives with near certainty.

This Lord Hu, seeing himself about to become a turtle in a jar, had thought of this scheme to seek life amid death when all roads were blocked. Whatever the final outcome, Hu Tinglu's mind was still clear—at least he could see whose power was greater and had not gone along with the others to court death.

He spoke with a grave expression: "This matter is indeed no small thing! If handled improperly, with public sentiment running high, His Majesty's plans will suffer setbacks, and future attempts to intervene in the Huai salt matter will become even more difficult! May I ask what wise views Centurion Liang has on this? How should this matter best be handled?"

Chen Qiyu had long heard of the private salt trade in Shandong, and with the Embroidered Uniform Guard having seized the Huai'an Salt Distribution Office without ever returning to the capital, the Chongzhen Emperor's intentions were already quite clear.

As an observer, Chen Qiyu saw through the matter like a blazing torch, and could not help but admire the Emperor's bold decisiveness.

So long as the salt profits were held firmly in hand, many of the difficulties plaguing the court would resolve themselves.

For no other reason than silver and coin.

With the support of salt revenues, the seemingly precarious Great Ming would ultimately cross the ditches and ridges before it without mishap.

His Majesty is indeed a wise sovereign of grand vision and bold strategy. What successive emperors of the Great Ming never conceived, or conceived but dared not attempt, has now been accomplished before our very eyes by His Majesty. And all of it done so quietly that every beneficiary remained asleep within the game, and by the time they awoke to it, resistance was already futile.