Chapter 590: Zhu Youjian’s Decision |
Publish Time: 2026-06-21 17:26:39
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The Forbidden City, Imperial Study.
Emperor Chongzhen Zhu Youjian stared at the memorial in front of him with an extremely grim expression, his face contorted with worry.
The bandits in Shanxi were growing increasingly rampant.
Other than the line connecting Puzhou, Hejin County, and Pingyang Prefecture, fiercely defended by the appeasement bandit Xing Honglang, everywhere else was virtually in utter chaos.
Song Tongyin, Provincial Governor of Shanxi, had retreated to defend Taiyuan City. Yet, outside Taiyuan, nearly half of Shanxi was being wantonly ravaged by bandits, conflict raging everywhere.
The high-ranking eunuch Cao Huachun stepped forward, “Cao Wenzhao is currently suppressing bandits in northern Shaanxi. The bandit Bu Zhan Ni has led tens of thousands of his Seventh Team bandits across the river back into Shaanxi and is skirmishing with Cao Wenzhao’s forces.”
Zhu Youjian fumed, “And the White Standards Troops?”
Cao Huachun replied, “Their numbers are too few, and rations can’t keep up. They are currently only able to mount a defense along the line from Daicheng City, Puxian, to Pingyang Prefecture, running themselves ragged.”
Zhu Youjian raged again, “And Wang Guoliang, the Commander-in-Chief of Shanxi? General Wang Guoliang of Shanxi?”
Cao Huachun answered, “He is stubbornly defending Taiyuan.”
Zhu Youjian: “…”
He felt completely overwhelmed!
For a moment, he truly didn’t know what to do.
Zhu Youjian said, “So you’re saying, the imperial military of my Great Ming Dynasty doesn’t have a single competent commander? None can compare to that surrendering bandit, Xing Honglang?”
Cao Huachun coughed lightly, “Well… Xing Honglang has many troops. She seems to have built quite a reserve while she was a bandit. The elite soldiers she now keeps at her side number five thousand strong. Naturally, that makes her far more formidable than the other generals. Consider, Your Majesty, Cao Wenzhao only has three thousand men, the White Standards Troops also only have three thousand, and Wang Guoliang a mere two thousand five hundred… Xing Honglang commands a full five thousand.”
Zhu Youjian’s expression instantly became remarkably complex, morphing into a look that seemed to say, “Ah, what the hell?” Though, being the emperor, he couldn’t swear out loud.
After a long pause, he said morosely, “That is true enough. Bandits somehow always manage to gather massive numbers of troops. It’s bafflingly easy for them.”
Seeking to console him, Cao Huachun hastily added, “Your Majesty need not worry. There are capable fighters among our officers. Under General Wang Chengen of Shaanxi, two captains have performed exceptionally well. One named Shi Jian, the other Wang Xiaohua. Currently, one is garrisoned at Pingyang Prefecture, the other guarding the fortress at the head of the Longmen Yellow River Bridge. They have repelled bandit attacks numerous times, earning great merit.”
“The Longmen Yellow River Bridge?” The name puzzled Zhu Youjian as it entered his ears. “There’s a bridge over the Yellow River?”
Cao Huachun explained, “According to reports from subordinates, an immortal erected an enormous bridge across the Yellow River, spanning hundreds of zhang, towering and magnificent…”
Zhu Youjian snapped, “Utter nonsense! What kind of absurd tale is this?”
Cao Huachun coughed twice. “Well… you know, Your Majesty, lower officials often tend to embellish outrageously in their memorials. Look at the one Shi Jian submitted—he claimed he charged alone into the enemy ranks, fighting his way in and out thrice, extracting arrowheads weighing over two pounds from his body… Incidentally, he’s the one defending Longmen Bridge too.” (Chinese “斤” is ~1.1lb, so “over two pounds” is reasonable for the hyperbolic claim)
Zhu Youjian snorted dismissively. “Then We know! This so-called Longmen Bridge is likely just an iron chain stretched across the river from Hedong to the western bank, maybe with a raft-ferry attached for passage. Shi Jian’s reported battle achievements are undoubtedly half fabricated too.”
Cao Huachun readily agreed. “That must indeed be the case.”
Zhu Youjian was discontented, severely discontented. However, boasting of achievements was still better than reporting nothing. Shi Jian had rendered service, after all. Zhu Youjian wouldn’t punish him merely for exaggerating; in fact, he even needed to promote him.
He needed to promote military officers capable of defeating bandits, to make an example for those others who failed. Only then would those other officers throw themselves wholeheartedly into bandit suppression.
Zhu Youjian addressed Cao Huachun, “Draft an imperial decree for Us. Xing Honglang, Shi Jian, and Wang Xiaohua are all meritorious and should be rewarded. Command the Ministry of War to make arrangements and look into suitable positions to raise their ranks for them. Additionally, the Provincial Governor of Shanxi, Song Tongyin, has failed in bandit suppression, unable to share Our burdens. Tell him to get lost, dismissed from service, and fend for himself. Reward the meritorious, punish the useless. Make rewards and punishments clear to demonstrate to the civil and military officials!”
Cao Huachun hurriedly began writing.
Just then, a young eunuch rushed in. “Your Majesty! An urgent secret report from the Imperial Guards!”
An urgent secret report from the Imperial Guards demanded immediate attention.
Zhu Youjian took the letter at once. His eyes scanned the contents, and he was instantly shocked. The letter came from Shi Kefa, a captain of the Imperial Guards who was also a genuine hereditary imperial guardsman. Though his rank wasn’t high, his family had served generation after generation as guards, staunch imperial loyalists, absolutely trustworthy.
The letter actually reported that the Qin King Mansion had organized assassins to attack an official logistics team! Moreover, Shi Kefa had captured a live prisoner who had already confessed.
Zhu Youjian’s mood plummeted like a stone.
Cao Huachun, helping write the decree, glanced surreptitiously at the letter in Zhu Youjian’s hand. After reading it, a bead of sweat trickled down his own brow, and he whispered, “Your Majesty… this… what is to be done?”
Zhu Youjian declared furiously, “Hmph! The Qin King Mansion has grown far too lawless!”
Cao Huachun asked cautiously, “Should… action be taken against Qin King Mansion?”
Zhu Youjian slowly shook his head. “No. We cannot move against them!”
The Ming emperors had always harbored a sense of guilt toward the “Qin King Mansion”.
This guilt was woven from multiple strands. Firstly, for the sake of imperial stability, they had stripped the Qin nobles of their military power, dwindling it from tens of thousands of troops to only five hundred personal guards. Therefore, successive emperors compensated the Qin nobles through other means.
Secondly, there was the delayed inheritance of the Qin noble title and Qin heirship. The Ministry of Rites had long dragged its feet on approving the Qin noble line. It started procrastinating during the Wanli era and was still unresolved in the Chongzhen reign. The civil officials did this, naturally, to prevent the Qin nobles from acquiring excessive landholdings. Yet, this constant foot-dragging infuriated the emperor, leading to several furious decrees denouncing the civil officials.
The imperial family owed the Qin King Mansion an apology!
How could he now bring himself to punish them harshly?
Zhu Youjian reasoned, “The imperial family has long felt this debt toward the Qin King Mansion. Were We to punish them severely over this, the other feudal lords would inevitably lose heart. What face would We have to meet Our ancestors under the springs then?”
Cao Huachun said, “But… the scale of their transgressions this time is immense. A live witness is even in Shi Kefa’s custody. How can this be explained away to the civil officials?”
Zhu Youjian frowned deeply, contemplating for a long moment before sighing. “Draft an edict for Us, ordering Shi Kefa to escort the prisoner to the capital. Arrange for someone to silence him permanently during the journey. We shall personally pen another edict, reprimanding the Qin King Mansion. Scold them harshly, fiercely. Demand that Qin King Zhu Cunjing behave prudently for a while, tail between his legs, and let this affair fade away.”
Cao Huachun warned, “If we do this, the civil officials will surely condemn Your Majesty as a reckless sovereign.”
Zhu Youjian retorted indifferently, “Let them condemn Us. What else besides condemnation are these civil officials good for? Are We to fear their words?”
And so, the matter was decided.
Zhu Youjian personally wrote an edict, blisteringly criticizing Zhu Cunjing, commanding him to act virtuously, not cause further trouble for the throne, and cease his feud with the civil officials… otherwise, not even the emperor could safeguard his position…
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