Chapter 187: Divergence

While Zheng Zhilong and Yama were locked in scheming against each other in Macau, at the same time in the Fushe Academy in Nanjing, a group of scholars were likewise up to no good—they had been gathering together for many days in a row, discussing matters that outsiders would deem treasonous.

The normally tranquil region of Jiangnan had ceased to be tranquil ever since the Chongzhen Emperor appointed the eunuch faction's Ma Shiying as Heaven Official of the Ministry of Personnel.

Some time ago, Hou Fangyu, one of the so-called Four Young Masters, saw his public image collapse with remarkable speed—within barely a month, he went from a flawless pretty boy in the eyes of the world to the very archetype of a villain under heaven.

So what exactly did Hou Fangyu do?

In truth, he hadn't done much of anything—it was simply that Ma Shiying had proven the better chess player. Ma Shiying and the Chongzhen Emperor were cut from the same cloth: neither cared much for face, yet their methods could rightly be called ruthless and venomous. With just a little effort, Ma Shiying had Hou Fangyu thoroughly spooked.

That fellow Hou Fangyu was something else too—he went and sold out all his former friends with whom he used to compose poetry and prose. After that betrayal, he naturally couldn't show his face in the Fushe anymore. After much deliberation, he swallowed his pride and went to beg for help from Ma Shiying of the eunuch faction, the very man he had spent his days loudly slandering.

But this played right into Ma Shiying's hands. The man put on a grand show of magnanimity and accepted Hou Fangyu, which sent Hou Fangyu's heart aflutter—he felt he had found his true love—and he began to spare no effort in helping Ma Shiying attack his own former friends.

However, just a few days earlier, Zhou Jingwu, Commissioner-in-Chief of the Divine Martial Army, and Li Youcheng, the Chiliarch of Punishments of the Eastern Depot, had arrived together in Nanjing, bringing with them a stunning piece of good news: the Chongzhen Emperor had issued an edict formally designating a certain book as heretical. With that, something like the Fushe naturally became a heretical cult that needed to be eradicated.

It must be said—this was precisely the news Ma Shiying had been waiting for.

The moment he learned of Zhou Jingwu and Li Youcheng's arrival, Ma Shiying did a complete about-face. He shoved Hou Fangyu out and had him beheaded, then used his head to curry favor and claim merit before Zhou Jingwu and Li Youcheng.

"Look how capable I am—this is Hou Fangyu, an important figure in the Fushe!"

Poor Hou Fangyu—first beaten by his own friends, he had thought that once he spilled everything he knew, he could smoothly join the Emperor's faction. But Ma Shiying was a petty man who repaid every grievance. All along, the reason he had played house with Hou Fangyu was simply to wait for word from the capital so he could claim merit and rewards.

Zhang Cai sat at the innermost seat, a wisp of goatee clinging to his chin, looking to be somewhere between forty and fifty years of age. He first picked up the teacup from the table and took a small sip before speaking:

"Today's welcome banquet that Ma Shiying has laid on for Li Youcheng and the others should be drawing to a close. I expect that by this time tomorrow, he will begin making moves against us all. Whether we succeed or fail, we must settle on a course of action today."

In earlier years, the Two Zhangs of Taicang were famed throughout the realm, regarded as paragons for the literati of the world. Even in this present age when the secret police ran rampant, their reputations remained untarnished, unshaken.

Among the many scholars of the Fushe were no shortage of men versed in both letters and arms, their talents already showing—yet everyone, including Chen Zilong, held deep respect for Zhang Cai, one of the Fushe's founders.

Seated below Zhang Cai was Song Zhengyu, the great talent known as one of the Three Societies of Yunjian. Compared to Zhang Cai's somewhat sinister countenance, Song Zhengyu appeared almost too delicate—his face fair and clean, his body clad in a spotless white long robe.

On Song Zhengyu's table lay a folding fan he never parted with on ordinary days, inscribed with poetry he had composed himself. From the look of it, he was rather proud of his own exceptional learning. After a moment's thought, he said:

"Master Nanguo, I only just managed to extricate myself from Hou Fangyu's vicious biting not long ago. On this matter, you should be the one to make the call—if you were gone, the Fushe would be just about frozen through."

Speaking of it, Song Zhengyu still broke out in a cold sweat for himself.

Who could have imagined it? He had been the closest to Hou Fangyu, the two of them often citing classics and attacking corrupt governance together—yet at the moment of crisis, the first person that fellow sold out was him, and without a moment's hesitation. It was only thanks to friends in the Fushe pulling connections and searching everywhere that he had barely managed to escape from Ma Shiying's grasp.

Zhang Cai looked over upon hearing this and understood the logic. Song Zhengyu, already a bird startled by the mere twang of a bowstring, had shown considerable courage just by showing up to this gathering. To expect this man to propose any effective plan—he had clearly overestimated him.

Zhang Cai had previously worried that many would fear imperial retribution and dare not come. Now he saw that he had underestimated the Fushe scholars' righteous devotion to the state. He thought for a moment, then shook his head and said:

"But there is still some good news. Word has it that Ma Shiying once recommended Ruan the Pockmarked to the court, yet the benighted sovereign rejected it by imperial decree. It seems this emperor still has some conscience in his heart."

"Master Nanguo, you are mistaken!" At this moment, Wu Weiye suddenly spoke up in a loud voice: "Master Nanguo, choose your words carefully. A benighted sovereign is a benighted sovereign. This man came to the throne illegitimately and has repeatedly committed tyrannical and fatuous acts. Now is precisely the time for us Fushe scholars to display our learning and exert ourselves for the state."

"If not, the glorious three-hundred-year ancestral legacy of the Great Ming is certain to be destroyed in this benighted sovereign's hands!"

"What you all say is quite right—this old man was simply so angered that he grew muddled, and only thus could he utter such treasonous words." Seeing how agitated these scholars became at his single mildly favorable remark about the Chongzhen Emperor, Zhang Cai felt greatly reassured within. Shifting his tone, he continued:

"All the ministries and courts in Nanjing are staffed by our Donglin men. The benighted sovereign must have seen that Ma Shiying alone could not hold the line, which is why he sent his hawks and hounds to Nanjing to assist. As things stand, if we wish to resolve this ailment, we must strike at the root."

"Exactly!" Wu Weiye cried out, saying: "This benighted sovereign came to the throne illegitimately—we can attack from that angle!"

"How is it illegitimate? His Majesty ascended the throne by the edict of the late Tianqi Emperor and has now reigned for eighteen years. How could he be easily toppled?" At this point, Chen Zilong could bear it no longer. He rose and spoke with indignation.

Xia Yunyi also rose, crying out at the top of his voice: "What Maozhong says is absolutely right! We are scholars of the dynasty—we should remonstrate with our very lives to become famed for governing the realm like Zhang and Yu, not sit here debating whether the emperor's succession was legitimate. Are you all not satisfied that the world of our Great Ming is not yet chaotic enough?"

Zhang Cai gave a light chuckle and said: "Could the two of you be afraid?"

"Hmph, further words are pointless. Master Nanguo, I, Chen Zilong, respect you as a titan of letters, but our paths differ and we cannot work together. I take my leave!" Seeing the surrounding scholars turn to attack him, Chen Zilong said not another word and simply turned to leave.

Seeing Chen Zilong depart, Xia Yunyi flicked his sleeve and said: "I stand with Maozhong—I too take my leave!"

By this point, whether it was true patriots like Chen Zilong and Xia Yunyi who genuinely had the state's interests at heart, or the craven cowards who sought only their own gain, everyone had begun to deliberately distance themselves from the Fushe.

After Chen and Xia departed, others followed in succession—Huang Chunyao, Hou Qi, Yang Tingshu, Fang Yizhi, and more. Yet those with true discernment who left were ultimately in the minority; most still clung to the belief that the law cannot punish the many, and remained behind to solemnly discuss, with righteous indignation, how to strike back at the benighted court.