Chapter 1136: The Academy Gathers a Crowd

After Ma Chonghao asked this question, the awkward scene everyone expected did not materialize. Prefect Huang, his face pale, walked out from the study.

Prefect Huang was in his forties. In the official circles of the Great Ming, passing the imperial examination as a Presented Scholar was paramount, but once one became a local official of middling rank like a Prefect, there was no future to speak of; one could only think more of one's own family and fortune.

Jining was one of the few wealthy places under heaven, and the post of Prefect here was a lucrative appointment. Moreover, everyone in the realm knew this was a peaceful region—the chaos of the Incense-Smelling Sect had not caused much damage to Jining, and there certainly would be no military disasters to follow. Prefect Huang had pulled strings to get appointed here, and had certainly put in great effort. Before he set off, many had envied him.

Who could have imagined that beneath the surface of peace, the reality was otherwise? In every region of the Great Ming, local officials and the powerful local gentry would negotiate and divide the spoils. But here, everything was held in the grip of the Xuzhou strongmen. Although the benefits for himself were considerable, seeing so many fat pieces of meat he could not touch, and being constrained in everything he did with no freedom to act as he pleased, was truly uncomfortable.

Yet what was even more unexpected was that the Xuzhou men would act with such reckless impunity, coming directly to the government office to search and seize people, and even seizing the highest local official, the Prefect himself.

Prefect Huang's fury and frustration need not be mentioned, but he knew what the Zhao Character Battalion had done here, and had also heard the locals speak in hushed, mysterious tones about the bloody extermination of the Lu Prince's household. Whatever displeasure he felt, he had to swallow it.

"Prefect Huang, were you the one who directed these recent actions against our Zhao Character Battalion?" Ma Chonghao's tone was as if he were interrogating a case in the main hall.

At this moment, Prefect Huang did not dare stand on ceremony. He merely smiled bitterly and said, "Sent by higher officials, this official was merely following orders. Those below were also just following orders."

For Prefect Huang to say such a thing could be considered taking responsibility. Ma Chonghao simply continued to ask, "You say you were sent by higher officials—are there official documents or letters? Bring them out for us to see."

"You... this is the Grand Coordinator... they are kept in the study. This official will have someone bring them out to show you." This directness first made Prefect Huang furious, but then his anger deflated. He spoke helplessly; in the current situation, there truly was no other choice.

Prefect Huang stood there dejectedly, telling his trembling household servants to go fetch the letters. After coming to this post, countless people had warned him to hold the Xuzhou Zhao Character Battalion in awe, and Prefect Huang had indeed done so. However, he felt there was no conflict with them; these Xuzhou men acted with rules and knew their limits, not really interfering with the government office.

But only now did Prefect Huang understand: the reason he felt no interference was that the government office was only the government office with the Zhao Character Battalion's permission. If the Zhao Character Battalion did not permit it, it was nothing at all.

How had he lost his mind and come here back then? This place was not the royal domain of the Great Ming; it was clearly enemy territory. All these places with 'zhou' in their names were great calamities—there was a Jianzhou in the northeast, and here there was a Xuzhou.

As Prefect Huang muttered to himself, the household servant had already found that letter. He had intended to hand it to his master first, but a patrolman beside him snatched it away and delivered it into Ma Chonghao's hands.

Unfolding the letter and skimming through it, Ma Chonghao tucked the letter into his own bosom. Staring at Prefect Huang, he said, "These past few days, you have been courting death. You have seen and received the consequences. From now on, any further instructions from above must be reported to me immediately. Otherwise, it will not be as lightly handled as today."

After speaking, Ma Chonghao waved his hand, and all the patrolmen who had been intimidating the crowd turned and left. They had not gone many steps when Prefect Huang seemed to remember something. Hesitantly, he raised his voice and said, "This brother, this official feels he may have seen you before in the capital."

"If you had seen me, would you still dare call yourself 'this official' before me?" Ma Chonghao sneered in reply and strode away.

Just after Ma Chonghao led his men on a circuit through the Prefect's yamen, the restless, uneasy atmosphere in Jining city immediately settled. Shops that had already closed and ceased business, waiting to see which way the wind blew, all reopened.

"It was a letter written by a Grand Coordinator's advisor. The letter told him to provide convenience for the matters of these past days, and even to offer protection and cover-up when necessary. He dared not disobey the Grand Coordinator's orders and could only comply." After bringing the letter back, Ma Chonghao needed to explain it to the others.

But at this point, Ma Chonghao himself furrowed his brow. Li Can immediately took notice. He Zheng had already gone to handle affairs at the farmstead in Juye. Ma Chonghao shook the letter in his hand and mused, "The government office, those scholars—all were driven by letters. Where exactly did these letters come from? Were they truly from the capital and Jinan?"

That night, Ma Chonghao was busy until very late. He had not slept long when the sky began to lighten. During his time serving in the Embroidered Uniform Guard in the capital, Ma Chonghao had formed the habit of waking the moment dawn broke.

Although he had subdued the government office yesterday and calmed the unrest throughout Jining city, Ma Chonghao dared not relax in the slightest. The men of the Internal Guard patrol always had to consider the worst-case scenario. Many signs were already amiss; the opponent had quietly laid out many schemes. Now, even less could he afford to slack off.

Compared to all the high-ranking members of the Zhao Character Battalion, Ma Chonghao was the most particular about food, clothing, and daily necessities. When breakfast time came, the cook delivered meticulously prepared dishes. Ma Chonghao's breakfast was extremely sumptuous. According to him, if one ate well and fully in the morning, one would have sufficient energy and spirit to handle affairs for the entire day.

Seeing the breakfast improved Ma Chonghao's mood considerably. There were wontons in chicken soup, crispy sugar cakes, hand-torn air-dried chicken, several kinds of pickled and sour vegetables, and then a porridge of spare ribs and dried vegetables. The ingredients were good, the cooking was done by a dedicated chef, and Ma Chonghao was accustomed to drinking strong tea at breakfast—a tea with its own particular refinements.

Thus, while other household cooks were busiest at noon and evening, Ma Chonghao's cook had no leisure in the morning; conversely, lunch and dinner were very simple.

The tea had just been steeped. Ma Chonghao closed his eyes to rest a moment; having slept so late the night before, his energy was ultimately somewhat lacking in the morning. Ma Chonghao remembered that before his thirties, his vigor had been full; he could handle assignments and investigate cases for several nights without sleep and still endure. But now, he could not.

Ma Chonghao had always paid great attention to maintaining his health. He thought very clearly on the matter: he was over twenty years older than Zhao Jin and the others. Right now, Zhao Jin and his group were still lying low, far from the time to soar. Doing great things might take ten, twenty, or thirty years without necessarily seeing results. He absolutely must not become old and decrepit, unable to keep up when the time came. His own son, though his future was assured, would only be able to follow along with the next wave.

Many thoughts ran through his mind, finally settling on this: if he could dig out the root of this trouble in Jining, it would certainly be a great merit. Li Can and He Zheng were both terribly worried. Ma Chonghao said nothing on the surface, but inwardly he found it laughable. He was not afraid of trouble; he was afraid of no trouble.

Zhao Jin's methods and strategies were too outstanding. As a result, everywhere within the Zhao Character Battalion's sphere of influence was thriving and prosperous, peaceful and uneventful. In such a situation, everyone certainly had an easy time of it, but without incidents, how could one demonstrate ability? How could one earn merit? When everywhere was peaceful and uneventful, whoever showed ability in handling affairs could advance faster than others.

Ma Chonghao opened his eyes and let out a long breath. By now, the tea was fully steeped, its fragrance wafting everywhere. Ma Chonghao first smelled it, then lifted the cup, ready to begin the day.

But just as he lifted the teacup, he heard hurried footsteps outside. Ma Chonghao set the teacup down and stood up from behind the dining table. News from outside arrived, passed through layers; there would be an announcement at the door. If he could already hear the footsteps, the matter was certainly not small.

The footsteps reached the door. After a single announcement from outside, it turned out to be a patrol company commander who had been on night duty the day before. When he entered, his face showed no urgency, only bewilderment and shock.

"Regiment Commander, the scholars in the city are gathering toward the Prefectural Academy. News has also come from the city gates, saying that many scholars and students are waiting outside the city to enter. This subordinate does not know what is about to happen, only feels it is out of the ordinary, and so came to report."

The Zhao Character Battalion's eyes and ears were distributed among all trades and professions everywhere. The only blind spot was within scholarly circles. The Zhao Character Battalion was a martial group, inherently looked down upon by the literati. Moreover, the various measures the Zhao Character Battalion implemented conflicted with the scholars. Within the Zhao Character Battalion's sphere of influence, the scholars' privileges had been greatly diminished.

Under such circumstances, the literati were extremely hostile toward the Zhao Character Battalion, and it was very difficult to recruit scholars to work for the Zhao Character Battalion. Therefore, scholarly circles were relatively closed off to the Zhao Character Battalion.

However, this closed nature was not much of a hindrance to the Zhao Character Battalion. The government offices, gentry, and strongmen had all been suppressed into submission; what did the grumblings of the literati matter? But at a time like this, it became a hindrance. If any other group were doing such a thing, they would certainly have learned of it a day or several days in advance.

Hearing the company commander's report, Ma Chonghao, who had just stepped around the table, suddenly lunged forward. The movement was too large, and he knocked the teacup off the table, shattering it on the floor.

"This is... this is... the students are going to gather a crowd and cause trouble. They'll assemble at the academy first, and then gather a crowd to make a clamor..." Ma Chonghao said, somewhat flustered.

"Someone! Someone!" After muttering a few sentences to himself, Ma Chonghao shouted toward the outside. The messenger patrolmen waiting outside responded loudly and ran in one by one.

"Send word to all the Cloud Mountain Company locations in the city! Send word to all places in the city that are close to our Zhao Character Battalion! Send word to the shipping companies and carting companies outside the city! Tell them to close their doors and cease business today, to be on careful guard, and not to let anyone rush in to smash up their shops, or even kill and wound people in the chaos."

"Send word to all companies of the Patrol Regiment! All reserve rotations are canceled! All personnel are to be fully armed and on standby! The two companies closest to the regiment headquarters are to assemble immediately! Activate all hidden sentries and informants in the city! Any news out of the ordinary must be urgently reported!"

"The government office in the city, the government troops outside the city—contact the agents we have placed inside them immediately! If there is any unusual movement, even at the risk of exposure, they must send word!"

"Immediately send word to Second Master over at the First Brigade! Explain the current situation in Jining! Have Second Master's side set up a fast-horse relay with us! If our communication is cut off, Second Master's side must be informed in time!"

"Invite Mister Li Can to come to my side! Have all mounted patrolmen come to the regiment headquarters to await orders! Today, anyone who slacks off and causes a delay will face military law!"

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