Chapter 967

Pan Yun silently watched him vanish into the palace, knowing he had returned to his quarters and shut himself away.

Zhang Zijin lived within the palace but rarely appeared within its grounds.

Emperors of past dynasties had grown accustomed to it—he was only responsible for keeping the palace safe from demons and supernatural beings.

When the former emperor was captured by enemies, the Empress Dowager had personally knelt and begged him to rescue him, yet he did not leave the palace a single step.

His duty was to protect the Zhu imperial bloodline within the palace, and only against demons and supernatural beings—he cared nothing for human power struggles.

Pan Yun meddling in state affairs had already violated the laws of cultivators, but what she did, she alone would bear the consequences of.

He had come today merely to warn her, already stepping on the line—but such talent and brilliance, if lost to worldly affairs, would truly be a pity.

The bonds between people are so strange.

Zhu Qizhen and Zhu Qiyu were born and raised within the palace; he had secretly watched them grow from infants into youths, yet felt not a shred of emotion toward them;

but with Pan Yun, the moment he first saw her, he had instinctively held back, and upon seeing her again, he could not help but intervene to protect her…

Zhang Zijin sighed, sat upon his mat, closed his eyes, and decided to enter seclusion to digest this emotion.

He summoned a Daoist acolyte and instructed: "Go ask Pan Yun when she plans to leave Jingcheng—I intend to enter seclusion."

The acolyte immediately went to the Imperial Astronomical Bureau, and only at dusk did he find Pan Yun, returning at once to report: "The State Preceptor says that, barring unforeseen events, she will remain in Jingcheng for the coming months."

After the Emperor's birthday, the regional garrisons began auditing military lands and embezzlement of military pay, and the number of artisans arriving from all provinces to present tribute goods increased—Pan Yun also wished to study the energy conversion device further, for steam, electricity, and all natural forces alike depend on energy conversion.

Thus, in the short term, she would not leave Jingcheng unless an emergency arose.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Zijin immediately relaxed and entered seclusion.

With Pan Yun in Jingcheng, she could handle most emergencies; if she could not, she had ways to wake him from seclusion.

Zhang Zijin had not entered seclusion in many years.

After all, he had to protect the palace—no one knew when or where a demon or monster might suddenly appear, so even when sleeping, he kept one eye open; how could he dare enter seclusion?

Upholding the principle of mutual aid, Pan Yun agreed to guard the palace for him, allowing him to enter seclusion in peace.

Except for certain high-risk research requiring the testing grounds outside the city, most of her research could be conducted within the Ministry of Works in the imperial city or the Imperial Astronomical Bureau inside the palace.

Thus, Pan Yun's trips outside the city had become fewer.

After the Emperor's birthday, the high-ranking officials from various regions who had come to pay tribute departed, followed by the emissary delegations from foreign states.

Naturally, when they left, they would take back gifts.

In the past, the Great Ming always returned generous gifts; beyond the official fixed list, some foreign states would additionally request special gifts.

For example, the Oirats had more than once used snowstorms, droughts, and various disasters as a pretext to demand grain, salt, tea, and even silk and weapons.

This year, only Japan and the Jurchens submitted petitions pleading for aid.

Japan—officially known as Nihon—petitioned that internal warfare raged, the people lived in hardship, and the shogunate had expended vast manpower and resources to suppress pirates and safeguard maritime trade for its suzerain; thus, they requested support from their suzerain.

Zhu Qiyu gladly agreed, declaring the Great Ming would dispatch a naval force: "Pirates plague our Great Ming's southeast, southern Korea, and western and southern Japan—they are utterly despicable. I know the shogun is young and likely unable to cope. Chen Huai."

Chen Huai immediately stepped forward: "Your servant is here!"

"I command you to personally go to Quanzhou, select eight thousand naval troops, and lead them to Japan to eradicate pirates—ensure every sea bandit is wiped out, securing peace for our Great Ming and the three neighboring kingdoms." Oh, besides Korea and Japan, Ryukyu also suffered from Japanese pirates and was greatly troubled.

Chen Huai immediately accepted.

The Japanese delegation immediately refused, claiming the sea voyage was long and Japan's miasma heavy, fearing the imperial troops would fall ill from unfamiliar climate and terrain—mere material aid from the suzerain would suffice.

Zhu Qiyu fell silent.

The Honglu Temple official Pan Hong immediately said: "Your Majesty treats all subjects of the four seas equally, loving even foreign subjects as if they were your own flesh and blood. The coastal people of Japan have suffered for years under pirate raids; Your Majesty grieves deeply. A mere strait cannot hinder Your Majesty's compassion for the people."

In short, the message was: if you cry, we send troops to quell the chaos.

The Japanese delegation seethed with resentment.

Now, Ming soldiers were stationed at Onsen Jintinggang and Zhang Weigang—though few in number, their presence still had great impact.

Last year's naval battle had been a crushing defeat for them; besides the Ming navy's strength, every land assault on the two ports had been repelled.

The ports had held fewer than a thousand soldiers, yet they had deployed nearly twenty thousand—and still failed to capture them.

Their defense was brilliantly executed, but more crucially, the local citizens within the ports had joined them in resisting the shogunate's armies.

It was said the Han people had built schools in the ports, just as in the Great Ming—school-age children need only pay a small tuition to study.

Good heavens, that was the elegant language, the books of the suzerain—once reserved only for nobility; now even the lowly, nameless commoners could learn the same elegant language and texts. If not checked, soon all the local citizens of the two ports would become subjects of the suzerain.

Japan's request was temporarily set aside.

The Jurchens pleaded that last year, the Oirats' eastern army had marched south, enslaving Jurchen people and looting their cattle and sheep, causing devastating losses to all tribes; thus, the Jurchen delegation requested imperial aid.

The Jurchen delegation was different—they were not foreign states but tributary prefectures; since Emperor Xuande, the imperial court's control over the Nuergan Regional Military Commissioner had nearly vanished, and the tribes governed themselves. Had it not been for Pan Yun's strong insistence, and the fact that the Oirats' eastern army last year had included Jurchen elements, the court would never have ordered them to form a delegation to come to Jingcheng for the birthday tribute.

Facing them, Zhu Qiyu was far gentler and more soothing; upon hearing their plea, he immediately nodded in agreement.

Yet the supplies would not be handed directly to the Jurchen delegation.

He decided to send a batch of grain, salt, and cloth, dispatching envoys to accompany them northward to personally pacify the Jurchen tribes.

The Nuergan Regional Military Commissioner differed from Japan; Japan's dependence on the Great Ming was minimal, and separated by a strait, Japan only notified the suzerain when changing rulers or shoguns…

Oh, no—since Emperor Xuande, Japan no longer reported changes in rulers or shoguns to the suzerain.

Thus, the Great Ming's control over Japan had always been slight.

The Nuergan Regional Military Commissioner was different—it was a tributary prefecture of the Great Ming; legally, it belonged to Great Ming territory; thus, when the Emperor proposed sending envoys to pacify the tribes, Fan Cha paused, then did not object.

Since Esen declared himself Khan, tensions between the Jurchens and the Oirats had grown ever greater; they truly needed the court's strength to resist the Oirats.

Fan Cha smiled warmly and enthusiastically welcomed the envoys.

Zhu Qiyu's lips curled slightly; he scanned the court and found no suitable candidate, deciding to delay selecting a envoy.

The envoy to the Jurchens must not only be brave but also cunning; the State Preceptor said the court had abandoned control over Nuergan for too long, and now needed to make up for lost time, reasserting control over that vast northern land.