Chapter 378: Let It End Here

Wang Zhaojing heard what his own father was saying and wanted to speak, but after a moment's hesitation he still held his tongue. Zhao Jin's gaze sharpened; he had thought Wang Youshan had come merely to see something new and then chat idly with him — he hadn't expected another purpose.

"... The situation now is different from back then. Whether by luck or whatever else, Xiaojing will have his own prospects here. As for you..."

"Father..." Wang Zhaojing couldn't help but speak up. Zhao Jin cleared his throat, about to say something as well, but Wang Youshan waved his hand with a smile and said, "Did you think I was going to say that civil and martial paths diverge, and from now on you should have less to do with each other? I'm not that aloof, pedantic, or mercenary."

Zhao Jin gave a dry laugh. Wang Youshan continued, "The laws and institutions the Hongwu Emperor established for the Great Ming mean the court and the gentry govern the realm together. A whole prefecture like Xuzhou — one prefectural office, four county offices, that handful of officials and runners — what can they accomplish? In the end, they must rely on the local gentry and powerful families."

This didn't seem to match what he'd guessed. Zhao Jin straightened his posture slightly, and Wang Zhaojing, standing behind his father Wang Youshan, listened with rapt attention.

"... What you've done isn't really wrong. The places the authorities can reach are within the city walls and five li beyond them. Within those bounds, killing is naturally a serious crime. But outside that, there is no king's law. Powerful families keep private soldiers, fight over roads, over fields, over water — conflicts everywhere. Who knows how many have died? No one talks about it, no one asks..."

"... Some say you act tyrannically, with no regard for the law. You needn't pay them any mind. It's only because you've newly risen — some harbor jealousy, some feel they've lost out and want to talk you into pulling back so they can take advantage. Who hasn't done the same before? Whose rise to power didn't involve blood on their hands? Who among them ever cared about the law..."

Zhao Jin let out a breath. Wang Youshan's words had clarified several of his speculations completely. It wasn't that his own conduct was uniquely ruthless or lawless — everyone was the same.

"... Rumor has it that Cloud Mountain Temple was originally a band of roving bandits in disguise. They first murdered the original monks, then slaughtered the surrounding villages in blood before building that vast estate. And yet the place is still regarded as a Buddhist sanctuary, with officials and gentry going there to offer incense and worship. And that Kong Jiuying — if he hadn't run into you, in a few more years he might well have become a local notable himself, an established house for generations..."

Zhao Jin and Wang Zhaojing exchanged a glance, both puzzled. Zhao Jin had two questions. Had Wang Youshan come specifically to help him untie the knot in his heart?

He had indeed been somewhat uneasy, because he didn't know whether the pace of his actions was appropriate or not. The Zhao Character Camp had risen by force and dominance, compelling all parties in Xuzhou to bow their heads, redistributing the interests of Xuzhou, crushing and swallowing the biggest local tyrants. Was this approach too fast, too fierce? Would it draw the enmity of all sides? Would it force them into a united front against him? Zhao Jin had been worrying all along. Even though there were no signs of it around him, he still dared not let his guard down.

Hearing Wang Youshan speak like this, Zhao Jin understood. What he was doing was no different from what his predecessors had done. The authorities were long accustomed to it; everyone saw it as a normal turnover. When powerful families fought, bloody slaughter was unavoidable. The officials simply looked the other way, and in the end, they cooperated with whoever was left standing.

The second question was: how could even Wang Zhaojing not know why his father had come? A metropolitan graduate and capital official, so lofty and esteemed, had come specially to ease his mind. It seemed rather excessive. But by now, Zhao Jin had learned to keep his composure. He would hear the man out.

"... All these years you brothers have been together, I've watched. You conduct yourself with an understanding of rules and measure, and in accord with the greater good. It's better that Xuzhou be held by you than fall into someone else's hands. At the very least, you won't make things too difficult for the authorities, nor let the common people suffer too much..."

A smile appeared on Zhao Jin's face. Everything the Zhao Character Camp did was governed by rules — these words were tantamount to praise.

"... But let it end here. In all things there is a proper measure and limit. One degree less is insufficient; one degree more is excessive. As you are now is just right. If you harbor any further ambition to expand, the authorities will grow wary. In fact, just looking around this time, I can already see some things amiss. All you've built around you is excellent, your rules are ingenious — but you are merely a village head, and your men are nothing more than local militia. What do you need all this for..."

Zhao Jin drew a deep breath. Here was the real point. And what Wang Youshan was saying was something he truly hadn't considered.

"... But as things are, it's still manageable. You've managed Xuzhou well, top to bottom, and with me and the fathers of your other brothers covering for you, no one will target you — no one would dare target you. But if you expand outward, then there will be risks. Will the outside gentry you've encroached upon collude with the authorities? Will the authorities grow suspicious and wary of you? Might it even draw the agents of the Depot and the Guard? When that time comes, no matter how peerless your valor, you will vanish like smoke..."

The authorities could tolerate a powerful magnate within a single county, a single department, a single prefecture — but they would not tolerate a great magnate spanning several prefectures. The emergence of such a figure would be tantamount to carving out a separatist domain. Not only would the gentry rise up as one to oppose him, but even the authorities and the court would treat the matter with grave seriousness.

Zhao Jin's brow furrowed. Wang Zhaojing, standing behind Wang Youshan, also wore a solemn expression. Wang Youshan took a sip of tea and continued speaking with eloquence: "I am in the capital, and it's likely Xiaojing will be in the capital in the future as well. We, father and son, are men of Xuzhou, and we will naturally look after our native place. So long as you commit no grave error, everything can be covered. We are men of Xuzhou — Xuzhou is our root. With you presiding here, we, father and son, can advance or retreat with greater ease."

At this, Wang Zhaojing's expression had grown somewhat awkward. He kept glancing at Zhao Jin, but Zhao Jin was listening intently.

"... We, father and son, are men of Xuzhou. When leaves fall, they return to the root — sooner or later we will come back, and then we will need to rely on your care... Our several families are now bound together like branches of the same tree. We must support one another to grow strong and endure, to..."

When Wang Youshan finished, Zhao Jin fell silent. Wang Zhaojing grew anxious, but seeing that neither of the other two spoke, he held himself back.

"Uncle Wang does not treat your nephew as an outsider, speaking so frankly from the heart. This kindness, your nephew will remember firmly." Zhao Jin spoke first, his tone very sincere.

For a metropolitan graduate serving as a capital official, a censor of the Chief Surveillance Bureau, a rising favorite about to be reappointed, to speak so candidly with a local magnate holding no official status whatsoever — it was truly no small thing. Wang Youshan had all but said it plainly: the current situation was just right. One step further and there would be suspicion of grand treason. And other matters were spoken of with equal frankness — for instance, that the Wang family, holding office, could shelter and promote Zhao Jin, while Zhao Jin, dominating the countryside as a magnate, would be a strong pillar of support for the Wang family. And when the Wang father and son returned home, they would need to rely on Zhao Jin. In such an exchange, not only was Zhao Jin not losing out — strictly speaking, he was getting the better end of the deal.

Wang Youshan was an exceedingly shrewd man. He could naturally discern the meaning in Zhao Jin's words. Not taking offense, he merely smiled and said, "Among family, no need for polite pretense. Whatever you have to say, say it freely."

"Kong Jiuying entrenched himself for years at the border of three provinces, and no one did anything about him. I'm merely protecting myself within Xuzhou — would anyone really be watching me?" Zhao Jin said in a clear voice.

"His kind — there are not just a hundred thousand such across the Great Ming, rising and falling. Who pays them any mind? But your kind — you say you're protecting the land and keeping the peace, but how can others believe that?" Wang Youshan said with a rueful laugh.

Zhao Jin fell silent again for a moment, then raised his head and said, "Uncle Wang, the world is in turmoil these days. Nearly a hundred thousand refugees have crossed the river. In broad daylight, there are cavalry troops of several hundred and over a thousand private soldiers clashing. And from the look of things now, this may not even be the worst. In the future, there may be even greater and more numerous upheavals. If we do not strengthen ourselves, how can we protect ourselves?"

"Elder Brother is right," Wang Zhaojing hurriedly chimed in. "When the refugees besieged the city, in that moment of crisis, we could only rely on the blades and spears in our own hands. Only by strengthening ourselves can we protect ourselves!"

"This is not an age of chaos!" Wang Youshan's voice suddenly rose a pitch, and his expression turned stern. Wang Zhaojing instinctively shrank back, but Zhao Jin did not move.

"There is still the Son of Heaven! There is still the court! There are still the government troops! There is still the king's law! What you speak of is merely a momentary disturbance — what does it have to do with the age? The realm is still at peace! In over two hundred years of the Ming, what do these things even count for? The Japanese pirates, the Altan Khan, the Little Prince, and the Oirats — where are they now? Yet our Great Ming endures to this day. This is the Mandate of Heaven!" Wang Youshan's tone grew more and more impassioned.

Wang Zhaojing grew increasingly embarrassed and quietly prompted, "Father..."

"Honest advice grates on the ear. I regard you as my own nephew and cannot bear to see you take a wrong step. All these years, the powerful have acted recklessly and broken the law with impunity. The authorities may not intervene, but those who go too far — which of them has met a good end? The Yang family of Bozhou passed down their line for eight hundred years, yet the moment they rebelled, were they not exterminated? The Bo clan of Ningxia had several thousand elite cavalry, yet were they not killed and their house destroyed? These are all cautionary tales right before your eyes!"

"Father!" Wang Zhaojing raised his voice, cutting off Wang Youshan's words. He hurriedly interjected, "Everything Elder Brother has done — which of it was not enforcing justice on Heaven's behalf? Which of it was not protecting the land and keeping the peace? Father, how can you compare him to those rebels and arch-traitors? That... that is..."

The word 'absurd' could be read from his lips, though in the end he held it back. Wang Youshan started, then shook his head and fell silent as well.

The Yang family of Bozhou, the Bo clan of Ningxia — these were precisely two of the so-called "Three Great Campaigns," one in the southwest, one in the northwest. Though both families held official posts in the Ming, in reality they were local magnates and tribal chieftains. Strictly speaking, there was indeed some slight resemblance to Zhao Jin's current position in Xuzhou.

But both families had been exterminated for rebellion. To use such examples to admonish Zhao Jin was somewhat akin to cursing him. Though Zhao Jin had not interacted much with Wang Youshan, he knew that with the man's cultivation and restraint, he would never intentionally wound with harsh words. And then again, the Zhao Character Camp had Wang Zhaojing's stake in it too. If there were truly any implication, no one could escape.

Wang Youshan lifted his tea bowl, took a sip, and breathed deeply. Seeing that Zhao Jin was about to speak, he first waved his hand. When he spoke again, his tone had calmed considerably.

"I..." He uttered a single word, then broke into a rueful laugh. After laughing a few times, he continued, "I've been muddled today. Walking around your place, without realizing it I started comparing you to those rebels. I must ask my worthy nephew's forgiveness for the offense."