Chapter 243: Taking Sides

The season had reached mid-May, and temperatures in the north were rising day by day, with grasses, trees, and flowers all in lush, brilliant bloom.

At the beginning of the yin hour, the flower hall in the rear courtyard of the Ji Garrison Regional Commander's residence blazed with lamplight as comely maidservants bearing cups, plates, bowls, and dishes laden with all manner of delicacies hurried back and forth, while the residence stood under tight guard, armored warriors with drawn blades visible everywhere.

In the spacious flower hall, several candles as thick as an infant's arm burned in the four corners, and in the very center stood a square rosewood table piled high with rare viands and fine dishes; directly above the wine table hung a square lantern of white silk, its outer surface embroidered with a pattern of a lady pinning flowers in her hair, while several slightly smaller candles fixed within cast their light and shadow over the several men feasting and laughing together.

Four men sat at the wine table: Hong Chengchou, Shen Shiyu—who had arrived somewhat late due to overseeing the transport of military pay and provisions—and the father-and-son pair Wu Xiang and Wu Sangui.

Hong Chengchou occupied the seat of honor, Shen Shiyu sat opposite him, while Wu Xiang and his son sat flanking them at the sides; before each of the four was set an exquisite wine bowl of white jade, filled with amber-hued aged Nü'er Hong wine.

Once the wine and dishes had all been served, Wu Xiang waved a hand, and every maidservant and attendant withdrew and moved far away from the flower hall.

"Since my son Sangui returned through the passes months ago after suppressing the bandits, he has on several occasions spoken with me of Your Excellency the Supreme Commander, and his words were filled with admiration and respect—he is also deeply grateful to Lord Shen for the guidance he spared from his leisure to offer! He is utterly in awe of Your Excellency's profound stratagems in planning far from the field and deciding victory a thousand li away! He wishes only that he could serve forever beneath Your Excellency's banner, using his courage and valor to build deeds without equal in this age! Today I am at last fortunate enough to behold the pillar that upholds our Great Ming, and my heart is truly filled with the deepest honor! I merely borrow this cup of wine to toast Your Excellency, and to express my profound thanks for the two years of favor and advancement Your Excellency has shown Sangui!"

Wu Xiang, dressed in a plain blue casual robe, rose to his feet, raised his cup with both hands above his head, and bowed his head to Hong Chengchou as he spoke.

"Commissioner-in-Chief of the Left is too courteous. Whatever Changbo has achieved today comes entirely from his own efforts and his struggles in battle; I merely reported the facts to the throne, and the court rewarded him according to his merits. As for the title of pillar upholding the Great Ming—I shall take it as the idle jest of Commissioner-in-Chief of the Left after wine, and pray you never raise it again! Come! I propose that all present raise their cups together, to toast the pacification of the roving bandits for our imperial Ming!"

Wu Xiang's somewhat excessive flattery stirred a faint displeasure in Hong Chengchou's heart. Words like "pillar upholding the Great Ming"—if outsiders learned of them, who knew how many hearts would be nettled, especially Lu Jiandou and Sun Baigu, whose merits were no less than his own; such talk was purely inviting disaster upon himself.

Yet his face betrayed nothing, and smiling, he raised his wine bowl and took a shallow sip before setting it down again; the other three hastily rose and drained their bowls to the last drop.

As a southerner, Hong Chengchou preferred light flavors; he only sampled a few plates of greens and one dish of fragrant bamboo-shoot chicken slivers, then set down his silver chopsticks and praised: "The chef of Commissioner-in-Chief of the Left's household is no mean hand! These several dishes suit my palate quite well. However, I must remind Changbo—at your young age, do not indulge overmuch in the pleasures of the palate. In your daily life, be diligent in studying the military classics and strategies, and practice the arts of war, so as to be prepared for what the future may require!"

Wu Sangui, who had been personally pouring wine for Hong Chengchou, hastily set down the flagon, clasped his hands in salute, and said: "This young one will respectfully heed Your Excellency's instruction! In the months since my return, I have daily urged my soldiers in martial training, never relaxing for a single day! Now that the roving bandits are destroyed and the Jianzhou slaves have become our inevitable foe, this young one wishes that one day he may follow Your Excellency at the head of a great army to destroy them before breakfast, so as to ease His Majesty's worries over the border!"

Hong Chengchou praised loudly: "Well said! A true man wins his fame on horseback! With such ambition, Changbo, this old heart of mine is greatly comforted! These words and deeds may serve as a model for all the officers of our Great Ming! Come, I propose a toast—to the Great Ming having a young talent like Changbo!"

With that, once Wu Sangui had filled the cups of Wu Xiang and Shen Shiyu, he raised his wine bowl and drained it in one draught, and the other three all drank their bowls dry in turn.

After three rounds of wine, Shen Shiyu smiled and spoke: "Commissioner-in-Chief of the Left, before His Excellency Hong left the capital, His Majesty issued a special decree to the Ministry of War, allocating three months of military pay and provisions according to the troop numbers of the Ji Garrison—altogether one hundred twenty-eight thousand taels of silver and over thirty-four thousand shi of grain. Tomorrow, might Commissioner-in-Chief of the Left send men to receive and verify the goods and issue a receipt, so that the Ministry of War officials may return to the capital and report completion of their task!"

Wu Xiang hastily clasped his hands and declined with thanks.

In his heart he knew well that the Ministry of War had only allocated funds and grain according to the troop numbers the Ji Garrison had reported, without raising the matter of verifying the actual count of soldiers—given the current court's strict investigation of commanders who padded their payrolls with phantom soldiers, this was already an immense gesture of goodwill the court had extended to the Ji Garrison.

In truth, the Wu family had spent many years in Liaodong and had long since amassed great wealth through smuggling, padding payrolls, and mercantile ventures; after this transfer to Jizhou, Wu Xiang—already sensing the court's displeasure with the military families of Liaodong—feared losing the greater for the lesser, and so, to avoid courting needless trouble over a bit of phantom pay, the troop numbers he reported to the Ministry of War contained little inflation.

Even so, his Wu family would still owe the court a debt of gratitude.

"I, Wu, have garrisoned Liaodong for many years and am quite familiar with all the officers commanding there. Lord Shen, accompanying His Excellency on this posting beyond the passes, will after all find himself among strangers in a strange land. The officers garrisoning Liaodong have held their posts for generations, and among them there are inevitably some overbearing and insolent sorts. If Lord Shen encounters any difficulty, do not hesitate to speak—most of the Liaodong officers will still grant face to me, Wu!"

Though these words of Wu Xiang's were nominally addressed to Shen Shiyu, in truth they were meant for Hong Chengchou's ears.

From his own transfer with his troops, and the Yongwei Camp's defense of Shanhai Pass, to Hong Chengchou's replacement of the incompetent Wu Aheng as Supreme Commander of Ji and Liao—this unbroken chain of actions, as his second son Wu Sangui had said, showed that the court could no longer tolerate the military families of Liaodong, and his Wu family must now take a stand.

Though he did not know what measures Hong Chengchou would adopt upon going to Liaodong, conflict with the military families of Liaodong was unavoidable.

Wu Xiang knew the character of his brothers-in-law and the generals under their command—if Hong Chengchou's methods proved too crude and heavy-handed, where personal interests were at stake, no one could guarantee that extreme incidents would not occur.

The previous Supreme Commander of Ji and Liao, Wu Aheng, had no sooner arrived at his post in Jinzhou than the military officers of Liaodong, through a mix of intimidation and cajolery, drove him back within the passes; helpless, he could only hole up in the Ji Garrison, drowning his sorrows in wine day after day, until an imperial decree stripped him of his post and sent him home.

Though the Zu and Wu families shared common interests and had always advanced and retreated, taken and abandoned together in matters great and small, Wu Xiang had never harbored grand ambitions; he was quite content with his present wealth and honor, and had even entertained the notion of cultivating connections with powerful court ministers to obtain a sinecure back in the capital and enjoy his riches in peace.

But a man in the world cannot always do as he pleases—the Wu family had already been bound to the same boat as his brothers-in-law, and extricating himself was no easy matter.

"Heh heh! Commissioner-in-Chief of the Left's kind intentions—I gratefully accept them in my heart! I, Shen, am a man of little talent, but I have followed His Excellency Hong's side for over five years now, and in that time I have seen countless mighty generals and fierce soldiers, vicious bandits and evil rogues; having spent years amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood, I consider myself not lacking in courage or discernment. Liaodong is, after all, still land of the Great Ming, and the soldiers of Liaodong are still officers and men of the Great Ming's army. His Excellency Hong bears the imperial mandate to command Ji and Liao—this is to act on behalf of the Son of Heaven! I too have pondered this posting and reached a realization: at a time when the four seas are pacified and the imperial army is strong, who within the borders of the Great Ming would dare defy the mandate of Heaven!"

Having spoken, Shen Shiyu raised his wine bowl, tilted his head back, and drained it dry.

He understood Wu Xiang's intent to curry favor, but as a staff officer to an imperial commissioner, Shen Shiyu absolutely could not show weakness—his words in truth represented Hong Chengchou's own stance.

The banquet ended at the beginning of the you hour, and Wu Xiang and his son respectfully saw Hong and Shen back to their guest quarters to rest.

When they reached the door of his quarters, Shen Shiyu turned to Wu Sangui behind him and said: "Changbo, it has been months since we met—have you let your studies lapse? Come, come, follow me inside; I intend to examine you!"