Chapter 337: Sudden Turn of Events

"Minister Sun, do you know these two? Let me introduce them to you. This is my Companion, Wang Cheng'en, the eunuch Director of the Eastern Depot, who is also like family to me; this is Guard Commander Luo, the Regional Military Commissioner of the Imperial Guard, who has accomplished much in his years commanding the Imperial Guard!"

After the host and guests took their seats, Zhu Youjian on the main seat smiled and introduced the two parties. Sun Chuanting rose and exchanged formal greetings anew with Wang Cheng'en and Luo Yangxing, trading pleasantries after mutual expressions of admiration.

Zhu Youjian casually picked up a piece of pastry from the table and was just about to bring it to his mouth when Wang Cheng'en beside him hurriedly spoke up to dissuade him: "Your Majesty, this is food from outside the palace, you..."

"Hmm, this is Minister Sun's residence—what reason have I to be uneasy? What others may eat, I too may eat. Companion, do not worry! Companion, Minister Luo, you two should also try some—Minister Sun's pastries are not bad!"

Zhu Youjian chewed the pastry with an air of complete unconcern, smiling as he spoke.

Wang Cheng'en quickly stepped forward, picked up a piece of pastry, and stuffed it into his mouth in one go. After chewing a few times, he swallowed it half-whole. Luo Yangxing bowed to the Emperor, then took a pastry from the small table and began to eat.

Sun Chuanting found the Emperor's manner of treating him as one of his own both amusing and exasperating. He hastily picked up a piece of pastry, put it in his mouth, and chewed vigorously with his lips closed.

"Minister Sun, this bearing of yours is hardly that of a civil official—you seem more like a great general fighting for his life on the battlefield, hehehe! These past years, Minister Sun, you have toiled and labored in the northwestern borderlands, exhausting yourself for the sake of state affairs. I and all the court ministers have witnessed your deeds. The reason I did not hasten to summon you for an audience was precisely to let Minister Sun rest well and enjoy the pleasures of family before discussing anything else!"

Zhu Youjian smiled after swallowing the food in his mouth.

"In answer to Your Majesty, your minister developed the habit of eating quickly during two years in the army. Though I have now returned home, I find myself unable to correct it for the time being. Your minister first thanks Your Majesty for the gracious gift of a residence. As for enjoying family pleasures—your minister is accustomed to being busy, and now that I am suddenly idle, I feel somewhat at a loss. Your minister would not presume to beg Your Majesty for an official post; I only wish to request Your Majesty's gracious permission that, once the Qin army returns to the capital in a few days, I may be allowed to go to the camp to inspect and review them. Your minister speaks from public motives, with nothing hidden, and hopes Your Majesty will understand!"

Sun Chuanting swallowed the pastry in an instant, then rose and bowed to Zhu Youjian with clasped hands as he spoke.

"When the Qin army arrives in the capital, you shall naturally go to inspect their billeting arrangements. Minister Sun, since we parted as sovereign and minister in the capital in the eighth year of Chongzhen, more than two years have passed in the blink of an eye. At that time, beacon fires of war rose on all sides of our Great Ming's northern borders, and countless common folk fled wailing in despair. I too was consumed with anxiety, yet sadly there were few capable ministers who could ease my worries. I once placed great hopes in you, Minister, hoping only that you could stabilize the perilous situation and bide your time—and not only did you not disappoint my hopes, you achieved merits of heaven-shaking magnitude! Your accomplishments may be said to have held up the sky with a single hand! In a mere two years, you completely reversed a situation on the verge of collapse! Capturing the bandit chiefs, annihilating the remaining rebels, devising plans to pacify the people, carrying out defense of the borders—deeds of every such kind are too numerous to count. The Great Ming's debt to your service is immense indeed! My debt to your service is great indeed! I have always remembered a conversation we had at parting: I know your talents are not limited to suppressing bandits—you have great ideals and great ambitions. In the future, when the roving bandits are destroyed, I want to create with you and others a brand-new Great Ming, a Great Ming prosperous in its people and strong in its state!"

Zhu Youjian's words were not only an affirmation of Sun Chuanting's achievements but also meant to set Sun Chuanting at ease—to let him know he need not hold back for fear of the suspicion of overshadowing his sovereign. The two of them, sovereign and minister, should set their sights further ahead, and Sun Chuanting still had greater prospects before him.

Zhu Youjian's heartfelt words filled Sun Chuanting with admiration and gratitude, and also dispelled the doubts and unease that had accumulated in his heart.

The Emperor was still the same Emperor. From certain details in his current speech and bearing, Sun Chuanting could strongly sense that no estrangement or unfamiliarity had arisen between the Emperor and himself—this was reflected in the warm and kind gaze in the Emperor's eyes.

As his power had grown these past years, Sun Chuanting had come to doubt whether Zhu Youjian still trusted him unconditionally as he once had.

After all, the merits he had established were somewhat too great, and without realizing it, he had become the most powerful provincial governor in the entire Great Ming.

Although Hong Chengchou and Lu Xiangsheng had both held the titles of Governor-General of the Five Provinces and Commander-General of the Five Provinces, even at the height of their fame, they were far inferior to the strength he now possessed.

Hong Chengchou had never had a personal army created by his own hands; the bandit-suppression forces he commanded were cobbled together from various sources, and at their largest numbered only a little over twenty thousand men.

Although Lu Xiangsheng's Tianxiong Army was personally created by him, it numbered only slightly over six thousand men and had long suffered from shortages of military pay and provisions. Though its fighting strength was formidable, it was constrained by too many factors and would never arouse the Emperor's suspicion. Moreover, the Tianxiong Army had already been merged into the Capital Camps—it was no longer Lu Xiangsheng's private army.

But look at himself now: although the roving bandits that posed the greatest threat to the Great Ming had been destroyed, he still commanded tens of thousands of Qin soldiers he had personally created, and governed the largest province in the Great Ming. Due to the needs of special circumstances, the amount of money and grain he could control was astonishingly large. When all these powerful forces converged, it would be all too easy for a sovereign to harbor suspicion.

If someone else took the opportunity to sow discord, though it might not drive the Emperor to thoughts of killing, suspicion would be difficult to avoid.

It was precisely because of the doubts in his heart that Sun Chuanting had spoken probing words earlier, seeking to gauge the Emperor's true thoughts through his request to inspect the Qin army.

After all, with a powerful army of tens of thousands appearing near the capital—at a time when the bulk of the Capital Camps and the Yongwei Camp had gone beyond the passes—if someone with ill intentions seized the opportunity to fan the flames and plant seeds of distrust between the Emperor and himself, those seeds might well grow into towering trees in the future.

Sun Chuanting's thinking followed the traditional logic of officialdom since ancient times. Had history followed its original course, his concerns would not have been excessive. The historical Zhu Youjian, in his state of extreme insecurity, would indeed have harbored such suspicions, and unpredictable consequences would have followed.

But what he could never have imagined was that the current Emperor came from a later age and held the notion of "merits overshadowing the sovereign" in complete contempt. Especially since his name—Sun Chuanting—had already proven his loyalty and reliability through his actions in history. How could Zhu Youjian possibly harbor any suspicion of him?

"Everything your minister has done is merely the duty of a subject—I am unworthy of such praise from Your Majesty! Your Majesty's breadth of mind is unprecedented since ancient times! Even Emperor Taizong of Tang and Emperor Taizu of Song cannot compare! Your minister is filled with admiration! To serve at Your Majesty's side is your minister's supreme honor!"

Sun Chuanting straightened his robes, knelt to the ground, and performed the great ritual with a solemn expression. Sun Kedui, standing behind him, also hurriedly knelt behind his father.

"Both ministers, please rise. In matters of personnel, I have always adhered to the principle: one whom I suspect I do not employ; one whom I employ I do not suspect. Whoever it may be, whatever post they hold, so long as they devote themselves wholly to the public good, no matter how great their power, I will not harbor the slightest suspicion! I also have complete confidence in my ability to command and control the overall situation! I believe that so long as my heart is open and turned toward the light, any demonic scheming will ultimately be exposed!"

Father and son Sun bowed again before rising and returning to their seats. The sovereign and his ministers casually exchanged a few amusing anecdotes about the capital, and the sky gradually darkened.

Zhu Youjian had no intention of receiving Sun's mother—he was unwilling to have an old lady in her sixties kneel and kowtow to him in formal audience.

As for the birthday gifts bestowed upon Sun's mother, they were not particularly valuable: two jade ruyi scepters, a Song-dynasty statue of Buddha carved from red sandalwood, and some silks and fabrics presented as tribute from Jiangnan.

Though the items were not costly, those with discerning eyes would understand the meaning behind the two jade ruyi scepters.

Just as Sun Chuanting was about to invite Zhu Youjian and the others to take their seats in the banquet hall, Sun Yongsheng, the Chiliarch of the Western City Chiliarchy, rushed hurriedly into the hall and knelt to report in a loud voice: "Reporting to His Majesty, urgent military intelligence has arrived from beyond the passes! There appears to be a clash between government troops within Jinzhou city. Hong Chengchou, the Supreme Commander of Ji-Liao, has gone into the city to suppress it upon receiving the news. The specific situation within the city is currently unknown!"