Chapter 115: The Storm Begins

Xu Wenzu returned to the relay station with troops.

The soldiers he brought were not Yin City’s garrison troops.

They were commandery troops from the Yin City southern-suburbs camp.

Yan’s local bureaucratic system was somewhat chaotic.

There were substantive posts and honorary posts, plus a great heap of symbolic titles used to reward and placate local aristocratic clans.

Taken as a whole, it gave people the feeling of one enormous stew.

Yan’s military system, however, was far simpler.

There were three major armies.

First, the Zhenbei Army under the Marquis of Zhenbei’s estate.

Second, the Imperial Guards stationed in the capital.

Third, the Jingnan Army that had long been stationed in Yinlang Commandery.

These three forces could be regarded as Yan’s premier field armies.

They were pillars of the state.

The Zhenbei Army answered to the Marquis of Zhenbei’s estate.

To a certain degree, it could even ignore imperial orders from the Yan Emperor.

The Imperial Guards and the Jingnan Army, on the other hand, had always been forces firmly held in the hands of successive Yan emperors.

Below these three stood the commandery troops.

Their strength and equipment differed enormously from one commandery to another.

Tiancheng Commandery, as the imperial capital region, was commanded by the Eldest Prince.

Naturally, its commandery troops ranked among the best in loyalty, equipment, and quality.

The commandery troops of other regions, however, suffered from varying degrees of infiltration by powerful local clans.

Their exact quality was difficult to judge.

Below even the commandery troops came purely local garrison forces.

The garrison soldiers of Tiger Head City and the troops Zheng Fan now commanded at Willow Fort in Yinlang Commandery belonged to this category.

To put it plainly, more than seventy percent of such forces were meat sitting directly in the bowls of powerful local clans.

Zuo Jiqian’s Jitui Fort, for example, survived entirely because of backing from the Zuo Clan.

Logically, when Xu Wenzu left the relay station ahead of everyone else, he had obviously gone to summon soldiers.

The closest troops should have been Yin City’s own garrison.

Yet Yin City’s garrison never arrived.

Instead, commandery troops from the Yinlang Commandery camp outside the city came.

There was a great deal worth pondering in that.

Like the Hong Kong police in later crime films by the time they arrived, everything was already over.

Only the Blind Man and Xue San remained, both gravely injured and lying on the ground.

Xu Wenzu had originally intended to send Xue San and the Blind Man to a nearby military physician.

The Blind Man refused.

He insisted on returning to Willow Fort.

Xu Wenzu agreed.

He personally joined two Lieutenant Commanders from the commandery camp and led eight hundred commandery soldiers ahead toward Willow Fort.

The Blind Man and Xue San were placed in carriages behind them and transported toward Willow Fort as well.

By the time their carriage reached Willow Fort, daylight had long since broken.

As the carriage entered the fortress, they happened to encounter a grim-faced Xu Wenzu leading troops away.

Judging by his direction, he was heading straight for Nanwang City.

A’Ming and Liang Cheng each carried one of the wounded men from the carriage into a room.

After dismissing everyone else, Feng Siniang used scissors to cut apart all the clothes covering the Blind Man’s upper body.

Then she took out needle and thread and began stitching the horrifying wound across his chest.

Liang Cheng helped reset and immobilize Xue San’s bones.

At the same time, he ordered Fan Li to go outside and make some splints.

A’Ming did not remain idle either.

He recounted everything that had happened.

The Blind Man listened and thought.

Feng Siniang, who was stitching his wound, said with concern, “Stop thinking.

“Once I finish stitching you up, get some rest.”

The Blind Man shook his head.

“I can’t rest.

“At least, not yet.

“That Hero Chen was brought back into the fortress too, correct?”

“Mm.

“Following Master’s instructions, we gave him some medicine.

“But we haven’t done anything else.

“Master has already fallen asleep.

“He was probably drained by the Demon Child’s possession.

“He’s exhausted.”

The Blind Man nodded.

“That Hero Chen is a bit dull, a bit foolish, and rather reckless.

“But overall, he’s still a decent honest man.

“Master made the right choice.”

“What right choice?

“Earlier Master had A’Ming support him directly in front of that man.

“He almost got dragged down as a burial companion when that man made one last move before dying.”

The Blind Man shook his head.

“If you don’t enter the tiger’s den, how can you seize the tiger cub?

“If you aren’t willing to sacrifice the child, you can’t trap the wolf.

“Master did that because he had deeper intentions.”

“Are you praising Master or comforting yourself?” A’Ming asked.

“Both, probably.”

The Blind Man paused.

His jaw tightened.

Clearly, Siniang’s stitching hurt like hell.

Yet he forced himself to remain alert and continued, “A’Ming.

“Immediately contact the Sixth Prince’s liaison operating near us.

“Have his caravan spies inside Qian investigate exactly what happened at Chahe Village.

“Tell that person this is extremely important.

“We need the answer as fast as possible.”

“Mm.

“All right.”

The Blind Man opened his mouth again.

Enduring the intense pain, he continued, “As for Hero Chen, give him the best medicine.

“Transfer two young women from the residence and have them attend him closely day and night.

“Do not let the food and drink stop.”

Treating someone who had nearly killed him with this level of care ordinary people would genuinely find that difficult.

“I understand,” Feng Siniang replied.

The little Red Whisk Girls she had trained were still too young to send out on real missions.

But tending to an injured man was something they could handle.

“Ah Cheng.

“Make sure the barbarian soldiers under us understand.

“The fact that both Shatuo Queshi and Hero Chen are inside our fortress absolutely cannot leak out.

“You already told Xu Wenzu that Hero Chen escaped after you drove him off.

“I don’t think Xu Wenzu completely believed it.

“But he won’t pursue the matter.”

“All right,” Liang Cheng replied.

“This entire incident is too strange.

“Too many powerful factions seem to be involved.

“Master may have been the stated target, but it is very possible he was merely caught up in something much larger.”

“Who would want to act against Master?” A’Ming asked.

“How would I know?

“I’m not an immortal.

“Anyone is possible.

“We’ll have to watch how events develop next.

“No.

“I’m done.

“My mental strength is severely overdrawn.

“Soon, people from the Secret Intelligence Department may come inspect the situation.

“Siniang, you handle them.

“I estimate…

“I estimate it won’t take many days before the storm around this matter truly arrives.”

“I understand.

“Rest now.

“I’ve finished stitching.”

The Blind Man lowered his head.

He looked at the wound across his chest, now sewn shut.

Somewhat dissatisfied, he said, “Didn’t I tell you to use cosmetic stitches…”

“A wound this large and deep can’t be closed with fine thread.

“It’s fine.

“Once it heals, the scar will look quite imposing.”

“San…”

Xue San lay nearby and made no sound.

“San…”

“Wha’ izzit?”

Xue San did not want to talk.

It was not merely that air leaked through his missing teeth.

At this point, a full draft blew straight through.

“Once you can get out of bed, direct Fan Li… make… make a prosthetic leg for Hero Chen.”

Xue San did not get angry.

He did not look confused either.

He simply answered very calmly, “Re-seived.”

“For two bowls of noodles someone gave him several years ago, he was willing to run all the way into Yan and avenge them.

“We… we need to treat him twice as well.

“So that once he learns the truth, he’ll feel guilty, ashamed, furious with himself.

“We cannot waste the groundwork Master laid while risking his life.”

“Understood,” Feng Siniang said with a nod.

“Got it,” A’Ming replied.

“One more thing.

“One more thing.

“The most important part.

“Once we uncover the truth and before we tell him—pay attention…”

“Pay attention to what?” Liang Cheng asked.

“Don’t let that bastard get so ashamed he kills himself on the spot!”

……

After Zheng Fan was brought back to Willow Fort, he only had time to give two brief instructions regarding Hero Chen.

Then he fell unconscious.

He remained unconscious for three full days and nights.

The previous time the Demon Child possessed him and killed that Eighth Grade Silver-Armored Guard, he had not been unconscious this long.

This time, however, Zheng Fan’s body had already been badly overdrawn before he suffered severe injuries.

Then he had traveled all night with Hero Chen back to Willow Fort.

Throughout the journey he had forced himself to remain alert, constantly matching wits with Hero Chen.

After three days of unconsciousness, Zheng Fan woke.

Thanks to Feng Siniang’s careful treatment, his body still hurt badly, but he had already entered the recovery stage.

Every day, Xu Wenzu sent someone from Nanwang City to Willow Fort to check on Zheng Fan’s condition.

When he learned Zheng Fan had awakened, he personally came to Willow Fort the very next day.

After ordering everyone else out, Xu Wenzu knelt directly before Zheng Fan.

Zheng Fan did not get out of bed to stop him.

First, movement was inconvenient.

Second, Zheng Fan understood that if Xu Wenzu was allowed to kneel properly this once, Xu Wenzu himself would finally be able to put down the discomfort he felt over having fled first that night.

After Xu Wenzu left, Feng Siniang pushed Zheng Fan outside in a wheelchair so he could bask in the sun.

The Blind Man and Xue San came out as well.

Both were also in wheelchairs.

Willow Fort could practically change its name to Cripple Fort.

Winter sunlight was always wonderfully comfortable.

Zheng Fan unconsciously narrowed his eyes.

Then he turned and looked at the Blind Man and Xue San.

Only then did Zheng Fan realize that all three wheelchairs fit their users perfectly.

Especially Xue San.

His chair was obviously a miniature model.

And both Zheng Fan’s and Xue San’s wheelchairs had handles along the wheels, allowing them to propel themselves manually.

The Blind Man’s chair did not.

Because the Blind Man could push his wheelchair with telekinesis.

“Who made these wheelchairs?” Zheng Fan asked.

This was ridiculously thoughtful.

The Blind Man smiled helplessly.

“San made them.”

Xue San, still speaking with air whistling through his teeth, immediately turned toward Zheng Fan with an expression asking for praise.

“Master, does it fit?”

“Very well.

“Did you… make these in advance?”

Xue San had returned gravely wounded himself.

Obviously, there had been no possibility of him starting wheelchair construction immediately after arriving home.

“Of course, Master.

“For the last month, all of you had things to do.

“I was the only one with too much free time.

“So I figured, since I was idle anyway, I might as well make seven wheelchairs according to the body sizes and habits of the seven of us.”

“You were thoughtful.”

“You’re too polite, Master.

“As long as you’re comfortable.”

Zheng Fan genuinely did not know how to praise Xue San for this.

What was the difference between making wheelchairs in advance and preparing burial clothes before someone died?

Wasn’t he practically cursing everyone?

But viewed from another angle, they encountered danger and fought far too often.

Preparing equipment for injury recovery in advance really was not unreasonable.

“Master.

“Over the past few days, the matter has been fermenting.

“Now the wind has finally begun to rise.”

The Blind Man had awakened on the second day.

Since then, he had begun analyzing intelligence.

Actual intelligence gathering still depended upon the Sixth Prince’s caravan network.

Constructing Willow Fort had merely been the first stage.

The Sixth Prince’s “support” had never stopped.

Even now, the fortress warehouses contained enough weapons and armor to outfit another five hundred soldiers with ease.

Zheng Fan had simply followed the Blind Man’s advice and refrained from rapidly expanding the army.

As for intelligence sharing in this era, nobody gathered news more efficiently than merchant caravans.

Every state commonly planted spies among trading groups to gather information.

“Tell me.”

Zheng Fan accepted a cup of tea from Feng Siniang.

He blew across its surface.

“The people who attacked us that day were cooperating, but they belonged to three separate elements.

“Hero Chen was acting alone.

“The first group of assassins who charged in belonged to another faction.

“And that Puppeteer was from Jin’s Tianji Pavilion.

“Tianji Pavilion is a Jin institution specifically responsible for manufacturing equipment and constructing war machines for high officials and nobles.”

“Mm.”

Zheng Fan took a sip of tea.

He had already heard some of this from Hero Chen while riding in the carriage that night.

“Because the previous Prefect and Commander-in-Chief of Nanwang City both died under suspicious circumstances, and because the Marquis of Jingnan marched the Jingnan Army into Nanwang City on the day of the funeral, his behavior has unquestionably gone far beyond normal authority.

“Moreover, the Jingnan Army has still not withdrawn from Nanwang City.

“The Marquis of Jingnan himself continues residing there.

“So rumors outside now claim that the Marquis of Jingnan feared Xu Wenzu—transferred down from the north by the Imperial Court to become Commander-in-Chief of Nanwang City—had been sent specifically to restrain and balance him.

“And therefore, the Marquis simply decided to eliminate the problem at its root and arranged for Xu Wenzu to be assassinated at the Yin City relay station.”

“That doesn’t make sense.

“The assassins were shouting that they wanted to kill me.”

“Xu Wenzu indeed reported the matter truthfully.

“But judging by the reactions from every side, everyone believes Xu Wenzu and the Imperial Court are deliberately saying that in order to preserve the Marquis of Jingnan’s face.

“They fear that with the Imperial Court already confronting the Marquis of Zhenbei’s estate, this is the worst possible moment to also openly break with the Marquis of Jingnan.

“So even though Xu Wenzu’s memorial and reports from every other channel all state that the assassins’ target was you, Master—every outside faction has simply decided the actual target was still Xu Wenzu.”

“Oh.

“I get it.

“Basically, I don’t have enough status even to be assassinated like this?”

If you lacked status, you were not even qualified to die.

Why would anyone organize such a large-scale assassination over some tiny Garrison Commander?

“However,” Zheng Fan continued, “I’ve met the Marquis of Jingnan twice.

“How should I put it?

“I don’t really think he’s the sort of man who would use assassination if he wanted Xu Wenzu dead.”

Zheng Fan had personally experienced the Marquis of Jingnan’s arrogance and dominance.

If such a man wanted Xu Wenzu dead, the scene Zheng Fan imagined was more like this:

Xu Wenzu would arrive beneath Nanwang City’s walls.

The Marquis of Jingnan would order archers to shoot him dead right there.

Then have Xu Wenzu’s meat sliced off and cured into jerky.

“The Puppeteer from Jin’s Tianji Pavilion studied under the Chief Minister of Tianji Pavilion.

“She possessed limitless prospects.

“Yet she participated in this assassination and died in Yan.

“Then, on the exact same day as the assassination, the head of the Tian Clan celebrated his seventieth birthday.

“A Jin diplomatic delegation also attended.

“And on the formal congratulatory document they presented, his son Tian Wujing was written as ‘Prince of Jingnan of Yan’—not ‘Marquis of Jingnan.’”

“Prince of Jingnan?”

Zheng Fan smiled.

“That’s much too deliberate.”

Under Yan’s laws, no one outside the imperial clan could be enfeoffed as a Prince.

Even the overwhelmingly powerful Marquis of Zhenbei’s estate still held only the title of Marquis.

A Marquis was already the highest rank available to a non-imperial noble in the Great Yan Dynasty.

“The Jin envoys claimed the congratulatory document contained a clerical error.

“They say the man who wrote it has already been punished.”

“Heh.”

“There is one more piece.

“The first group of assassins who charged into the relay station’s first-class courtyard—they were regular soldiers.

“They came from the rear camp of the Jingnan Army.”

“Rear camp?”

“It works like this, Master.

“The Jingnan Army officially has fifty thousand troops.

“But fifty thousand men alone is somewhat thin for guarding Yan’s southern frontier.

“So the Jingnan Army maintains its own rear camp.

“Normally those soldiers are dispersed among different locations for training or used in roles similar to commandery troops.

“In truth, they are the Jingnan Army’s reserve force.

“Once war begins, they are immediately reorganized and absorbed into the Jingnan Army.”

“Still too deliberate.”

“After Xu Wenzu left the relay station, he first went to knock on Yin City’s northern gate.

“But the Lieutenant Commander guarding that gate refused to open it.

“He would not even allow Xu Wenzu inside the city.

“Xu Wenzu had no choice but to divert to the commandery barracks and summon commandery troops instead.

“The Lieutenant Commander guarding Yin City’s north gate used to be one of the Marquis of Jingnan’s personal guards.

“He was transferred out two years ago.”

“What happened to him?”

“He committed suicide the following day.

“He left no final words.”

“Tsk…”

“Master.

“Yesterday, Grand Commandant Yang, commander of Qian’s three northern frontiers, sent an official letter.

“He hopes to meet personally with the Marquis of Jingnan in order to resolve the current friction along the Yan–Qian border.

“He also expressed the hope that under the Marquis of Jingnan’s governance, Yinlang Commandery and Qian can restore their former harmony.”

Zheng Fan drained the tea in his cup.

Then said, “With that added, even something false has become practically indistinguishable from the truth.”

“Yes, Master.

“Whether this is a conspiracy or an open scheme, the objective has already been achieved.

“Support from Jin.

“Recognition from Qian.

“Backing from the Jingnan Army.

“All that’s missing is a dragon robe.”

Zheng Fan nodded.

At this point, the issue had already gone far beyond whether Emperor Ji Runhao of Yan remained a broad-minded, capable sovereign.

Because matters had advanced infinitely close to the classic scene of a yellow robe being draped over a general’s shoulders.

For emperors and imperial clans, the struggle for the realm was a game where losing meant the extermination of the entire family.

Throughout history, imperial clans that ended well were almost nonexistent.

Even after abdication, even when publicly granted generous treatment, the imperial bloodline itself inevitably ended without descendants.

Ministers and aristocratic clans beneath them were different.

They still had opportunities to reshuffle the deck.

At worst, they could move to another table and keep playing.

“I wonder how the Marquis of Jingnan will respond,” Zheng Fan said.

The Blind Man nodded.

“The Tian Clan is already the foremost imperial-in-law clan of the present dynasty.

“And the Tian Clan itself is one of the great aristocratic houses.

“If they take advantage of the momentum now, especially while the Imperial Court is confronting the Marquis of Zhenbei’s estate—even if the Tian Clan itself does absolutely nothing and says nothing, the Yan Emperor may still have no choice but to swallow his anger and grant Tian Wujing a princely title.”

At that moment, Liang Cheng walked in from outside holding a letter.

“Master.

“The investigation into Chahe Village in Qian has returned.

“The caravan spies rushed the report back at top speed.”

“You read it.”

Zheng Fan pointed at the Blind Man.

Having the Blind Man read letters aloud was a unique Willow Fort tradition.

Liang Cheng handed over the envelope.

The Blind Man accepted it.

He did not open it.

He merely pinched the envelope lightly and paused in thought.

Then he turned toward Zheng Fan.

“Master.

“This matter was not difficult to investigate.

“Too many people participated.”

“Speak.”

“A Qian brigadier general was leading troops in pursuit of Master.

“On the way, he entered Chahe Village to requisition supplies.

“Conflict broke out between his soldiers and the villagers.

“His men killed someone.”

“And then?”

“Then the brigadier general decided that since blood had already been spilled, he might as well finish the job.

“He ordered Chahe Village massacred.”

“So Hero Chen really is a complete idiot?

“He sees one village wiped out and immediately assumes I did it?

“He didn’t even bother investigating himself?”

“After massacring and looting the village, that brigadier general wrote a line on the village gate.”

“What line?”

The Blind Man paused.

Then recited, “‘Zheng Fan, Garrison Commander of Willow Fort of Great Yan, was here.’”

(End of Chapter)