Chapter 1396: Three Strategies — Upper, Middle, and Lower

After another sigh, Wei Guangwei gave a slight bow toward Wei Zhongxian.

"This student pays his respects to Eunuch Wei... Not having seen you these days, seeing your complexion still fair puts this student's heart at ease."

"Xianbo, things have come to such a pass — why stand on ceremony? You've handled affairs for me here for many years, so why still act like a stranger? Sit, sit as you please." Wei Zhongxian waved his hand directly, gesturing for him to dispense with formalities. "What, now that you see my power has crumbled, you intend to draw a clear line?"

"Eunuch, what words are these! How could this student harbor any intent to abandon you? Besides, this student's enmity with the Donglin faction runs far too deep — even if I wished to abandon you, could I possibly escape their retaliation?" Wei Guangwei gave a slight start, then hurriedly defended himself. "Had I intended to abandon you, Eunuch, this student would never have gone to such lengths to discover your whereabouts and come to pay his respects."

"What you say is true enough. You are a man I placed in the Grand Secretariat; they will hardly let you off easily." Wei Zhongxian smiled. "So, how have you been lately?"

"Naturally, not well at all." Wei Guangwei smiled bitterly again. "The moment the Son of Heaven ascended the throne, he dismissed this student from office, and this student had no choice but to leave the capital and return to his native place. Judging by the current court situation, I fear even retiring to my hometown in seclusion will prove impossible. Now I can only wait for the day I am dragged into prison and cast into chains."

Hearing Wei Guangwei speak thus, Wei Zhongxian's expression grew even more wretched.

"Forgive me, Xianbo. I have ruined you. My fall from power has dragged you down into suffering as well."

"Eunuch, why speak of dragging down? Since this student followed you in advancing together, there is nothing to say now that we have lost — I can but resign myself to Heaven's will." Wei Guangwei shook his head. "Besides, the Donglin men have bullied me so grievously that I can only hate myself for failing to exterminate every last one of them. How could I possibly lay blame on you, Eunuch?"

"Xianbo, there is no need to be anxious. You need only wait patiently; a day will come when you rise again." Wei Zhongxian's face darkened further. "Now I am gone, but with them running so rampant, will the Son of Heaven not seek out another like me?"

"I can only hope it will be as you say, Eunuch." Wei Guangwei nodded gently. "Only, this student may not live to see that day..."

"Why do you say such a thing?" Wei Zhongxian was startled. "Xianbo, do not abandon yourself to despair! I am already at this age, so naturally there is no hope of turning things around. Even if the Son of Heaven wished to deal with the Donglin again, he would not turn to me. But you... you are different, you are still young! You are a civil official; the winds are unfavorable for a time, but you have only been dismissed — in the end you can still withdraw with your life intact. So long as you preserve your useful self and wait for the day the Son of Heaven has a change of heart, you will have your chance to recover. And in my view, that day is not far off! That Donglin crowd knows only how to spout high-flown rhetoric — what real work can they accomplish? In the end, the Son of Heaven will still need men to help him get things done!"

Wei Zhongxian's stirring exhortation, however, stirred little passion in Wei Guangwei's heart; his face remained utterly despondent.

"Eunuch, what you say is reasonable. The Son of Heaven will indeed have a change of heart in the end. Only... this student's body is already failing, and I fear I shall not live to see the day the Son of Heaven changes his mind! Ever since returning to my native place, this student has felt his health greatly decline. There have even been several nights when I coughed up blood..."

A chill ran through Wei Zhongxian's heart.

He then studied Wei Guangwei carefully and saw that he had indeed grown much thinner than a few months ago, his complexion sallow and withered — clearly, grave illness had already taken deep root.

"This... this..." Wei Zhongxian opened his mouth but did not know what to say. In the end, he could only sigh in dejection. "Xianbo, take good care of yourself!"

"This student is already in such a state. Whether I take care or not, in the end there is little difference." Wei Guangwei still smiled bitterly. "Truth be told, this student does not feel it matters much. Since ancient times, who among men has not died? In this lifetime, this student passed the Presented Scholar examination, became a high minister, and even, by your gracious patronage, Eunuch, entered the Grand Secretariat. This life has left me with no regrets!"

Then, he lowered his gaze slightly. "Only... seeing the Donglin men running wild and rampant after our defeat always leaves some resentment in my heart."

"These Donglin whelps are arrogant, insolent, and bent on perverse, retrograde actions. Though their bluster may be fierce for a time, I am certain the day of their ruin will come. You and the others need only carefully endure this present stretch." Wei Zhongxian spoke with absolute conviction.

Then his expression tightened. "However, with court deliberations now in such furious uproar, I fear many are denouncing us. It will likely not be easy for you and the others to weather this period."

"Not easy? Far from it! Right now the Donglin faction is settling scores everywhere, crushing their political enemies. We ministers who once attached ourselves to you, Eunuch, are the thorns in their eyes and the spikes in their flesh — not a day passes that they do not attack and slander us! The Son of Heaven now favors and trusts them; who knows when these calumnies will reach his ears? I fear a fatal calamity will soon be upon us!"

Though his words spoke of "us," his gaze remained fixed on Wei Zhongxian — clearly, he was not speaking of himself alone.

"Xianbo, I suspect you have more to say? Do not hold it back. This is not how you used to speak with me." Wei Zhongxian's heart gradually sank. "What? Do you mean to tell me that my own life now hangs by a thread?"

"Even if this student does not say it, you can still perceive it, can you not, Eunuch? In the eyes of the Donglin gentlemen, if they cannot tolerate the likes of us, then they must be all the more eager to eliminate you, Eunuch, and be done with it. Though this student has already been driven from the capital, I still have a few old acquaintances in the court, and they have already sent word to me." Wei Guangwei smiled bitterly once more. "Regarding your present disposition, Eunuch, many in the court are still dissatisfied and have been continuously submitting memorials demanding the Son of Heaven punish you severely. I fear... I fear the Son of Heaven may indeed change his mind! And if the Son of Heaven changes his mind, then would your life not hang by a thread, Eunuch?"

Without realizing it, this man had voiced the same argument as Wei Guangwei, and thus it likewise stirred wariness in Wei Zhongxian's heart.

Could he, like that Li Zhao, be harboring ulterior motives?

"You are right. I, too, know my life hangs by a thread." Because his guard was up once more, his tone grew much flatter. "I presume you have some stratagem to teach me, Xianbo?"

"As for a plan that guarantees complete safety, this student cannot devise one." Wei Guangwei shook his head, clearly holding a very dim view of the current situation. "But if we speak of staking everything on a desperate gamble, seeking life within death, this student has three strategies — upper, middle, and lower..."

Still can't escape that tiresome habit of scholar-advisors, always fond of keeping people in suspense and showing off their cleverness... Wei Zhongxian shook his head inwardly.

"Very well, what is the upper strategy?"

"The upper strategy..." Wei Guangwei paused, observing Wei Zhongxian's expression until he was certain the eunuch was listening intently, then continued. "Is to find a way to slip free of your guards and flee to Zhao Jin!"

Flee to Zhao Jin!

These earth-shattering words made Wei Zhongxian's whole body tremble.

"You..." He raised a hand and pointed at Wei Guangwei. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Eunuch, do not be alarmed!" Wei Guangwei hurriedly seized his hand to calm him. "Were it not out of genuine concern for you, Eunuch, how could this student utter such words? Now both the Son of Heaven and the court ministers seek to do you harm. In all the vast world, apart from Zhao Jin's domain, where else could possibly serve as a place of refuge for you?"

"I... My enmity with that villain Zhao Jin is deeper than the sea. If I fled to him, wouldn't that be... wouldn't that be a sheep walking into a tiger's jaws!" Wei Zhongxian found the proposal absurd.

"True, there is indeed great danger. But did this student not say so already? Right now, either way lies death — what we need is to seek life within death!" Wei Guangwei raised his voice. "Eunuch, you have read the Three Kingdoms; do you not recall how Cao Cao treated Zhang Xiu?"

In this age, the Romance of the Three Kingdoms and Water Margin, written in the early years of the dynasty, had long since spread everywhere through printed editions and storytellers, becoming tales passed from mouth to mouth and ear to ear. Wei Zhongxian had naturally heard many of the stories within them.

The tale of Zhang Xiu, who surrendered to Cao Cao twice — and even rebelled in between, killing Cao Cao's son Cao Ang — yet was still treated generously by Cao Cao afterward, he had certainly heard.

"You recall it now, Eunuch?" Wei Guangwei smiled faintly, but his expression quickly turned solemn again. "Is your enmity, Eunuch, greater than the enmity of a slain son? Is your standing and authority not far greater than that grass-roots general Zhang Xiu of those days? That being so, what have you to worry about? Now the Son of Heaven and the court ministers want your life; the Great Ming can no longer tolerate you. Why not simply defect to Zhao Jin? From what I observe of Zhao Jin's conduct, he too seems to be a man who aspires to be a Cao Cao. So long as he harbors such ambition, even if he is utterly displeased with you, he will still take you in — this is precisely what is meant by 'buying a horse's bones with a thousand gold pieces.' And once you are there, even if you can no longer be second only to one and above all others as before, what difficulty would there be in preserving your life and wealth?"

Wei Zhongxian stared blankly at the impassioned Wei Guangwei, the trembling in his hands growing more violent.

It was not that he thought Wei Guangwei was wrong. On the contrary, he knew in his heart that Wei Guangwei's argument was all too sound.

He was now a man in utter ruin, liable to be put to death by the Son of Heaven at any moment. The path before him was already a dead end; indeed, his best course was to flee to Zhao Jin. And for the sake of his own reputation, and to win men's hearts by 'buying a horse's bones with a thousand gold pieces,' Zhao Jin might very well treat him generously — after all, he posed no threat whatsoever anymore.

In any case, Wei Zhongxian had already reached this age and did not know how many years he had left to live; he need not worry about Zhao Jin suddenly turning ruthless and hostile years down the line.

But... but... are these words that should be coming from your mouth? You are a minister of the Great Ming! What's more, a former Grand Secretary! Do you still hold even a shred of the court's grace and favor toward you in your heart?

Forget it. Saying that is utterly pointless. Truth be told, if he truly cared nothing at all for fame, fortune, and wealth, he would never have attached himself to my faction in the first place.

When all was said and done, what difference was there between these outer-court ministers under his command and those Donglin whelps?

Wei Zhongxian's silence was taken by Wei Guangwei as hesitation, and so he continued his persuasion. "Eunuch, at this juncture, what more is there to ponder? Were it not for you, Eunuch, why would this student ever have spoken such words? And it is not only you, Eunuch — this student intends to take this path as well!"

Tonight's update came late, and some have asked whether I intend to stop updating or abandon the novel. No, that is not what I want to say. What do I want to say? This: going forward, Old Bai will strive to write a bit more, but I also want to ask you to allow me to write a little more freely.

There is so very much worth writing about both conquering the realm and ruling it — even allow me to speak more of my own thoughts within the book. That is all. These past few days I have been utterly exhausted; I had wanted to say more, but tomorrow I must go to a certain ministry office for a meeting, so I will speak further another day. Thank you, everyone. Every reader who subscribes, votes with monthly tickets, or gives tips — I remember you all, I truly see you all.