Chapter 129: Never Speak Without Shocking

Wang Shouren stared deeply at Fang Jifan, his eyes full of anticipation, waiting for Fang Jifan’s answer.

“I won’t tell you!” Fang Jifan curled his lips, looking completely unconcerned.

Ha, just because you want to know, I should tell you? If you have another question next time, won’t you tear down my Fang Family?

Heaven have pity, even though I, Fang Jifan, make hundreds of copper coins every minute, I can’t handle your constant pestering.

“…” Wang Shouren was speechless.

Speaking of the Wang Family Residence from Yuyao, after all, they were a prominent family. His father, Wang Hua, was a Great Scholar, a Zhuangyuan from the Chenghua era. The Wang family’s future was widely regarded as promising. Even Li Dongyang admired Wang Shouren greatly, believing his potential was limitless.

The Wang family lived not far from the hometown of Grand Secretary of the Grand Secretariat Xie Qian, and they had a long-standing friendship. Wang Shouren had been invited to the Xie family’s residence several times.

But now… in front of Fang Jifan, it seemed that this Young Lord Fang was rather…

Wang Shouren could not help but smile bitterly, his face full of disappointment.

However, he was stubborn by nature and seemed intent on persisting.

Just then, a voice from outside was heard: “Young Lord, Young Lord… someone from the Imperial Palace has come, summoning you to an audience.”

The Imperial Palace must have already received the news.

Fang Jifan seized the chance to leave: “Remember to compensate for the damages. Since you’re here, make yourself comfortable. Bohu, Boren, Zichuan, Yuanyou, you all make sure to entertain him properly. I’ll be going now.”

After fastening his Golden Belt, Fang Jifan had already left Wang Shouren behind and hurried to the Imperial Palace.

In the Imperial Palace, it seemed they had already anticipated the unfavorable outcome of the battle.

Since it was a campaign to suppress rebels, the imperial court was accustomed to military setbacks. This Wang Shi, after all, was still responsible—at least he hadn’t tried to cover things up but had sincerely submitted a memorial asking for punishment.

The only shocking thing was that when Emperor Hongzhi and the Grand Secretariat Ministers were discussing the matter, the Crown Prince rushed into the palace in a frenzy, mentioning that Fang Jifan had actually predicted this.

At that moment, Emperor Hongzhi’s face fell.

A trap, a real trap!

This guy just couldn’t keep his mouth shut. Whatever he said came true—a huge trap indeed.

Nevertheless, the emperor and his ministers were stunned by Fang Jifan’s predictive ability. Especially Zhu Houzhao, who still couldn’t snap out of it. Standing to the side, he felt as if he were going mad.

Clearly… Wang Shi’s strategy was correct. This Palace had studied military strategy for so many years, yet I still couldn’t compare to Old Fang…

It was truly… embarrassing.

Now, everyone was full of questions, waiting only for Fang Jifan to unravel the mystery.

The wait brought anxiety. When Fang Jifan finally arrived, he had barely stepped into the Warm Pavilion and not yet spoken when a eunuch shoved a memorial into his hands.

Fang Jifan opened it and scanned through quickly. It was Wang Shi’s report on the setback, which was no different from what was recorded in history. Hmm, nothing new.

When Fang Jifan looked up, he saw pairs of intense eyes all fixed on him.

Fang Jifan coughed and said, “Your servant greets His Majesty. His Majesty’s complexion looks excellent…”

Emperor Hongzhi impatiently tapped the Imperial Desk. Who wanted to hear this nonsense? He said habitually, “Get to the point!”

“This is the point. Your Majesty is the ruler of thousands, the foundation of millions of subjects’ well-being. Your Majesty…”

“…”

Emperor Hongzhi widened his eyes, a spark of anger in them. This guy was best at playing with words, but Emperor Hongzhi was clearly used to it and said bluntly, “What We are asking about is the situation in Guizhou. Why did you think Commander Wang Shi, in charge of Guizhou military affairs, would return without success?”

As his words fell, everyone seemed to hold their breath.

For military affairs in Guizhou, someone like Crown Prince Zhu Houzhao might make a dogmatic error and reach the wrong conclusion. After all, although everyone present was extremely sharp, they were far away in the Capital and couldn’t fully grasp the situation in Guizhou.

But Fang Jifan’s prediction was so accurate that it seemed almost supernatural.

Fang Jifan knew that sooner or later someone would ask this question, so he had actually come prepared.

First, he gave a bitter smile.

It was absolutely not the time to show smugness. Bad news had come from Guizhou. If Fang Jifan acted proud about this misfortune, it would be like asking for trouble.

After the bitter smile, Fang Jifan said with a mix of amusement and exasperation, “Actually, I didn’t want it to be like this.”

This was to make his stance clear.

He absolutely did not wish for losses in troops and generals in Guizhou. He, His Majesty, the Crown Prince, and all the ministers felt the same—deeply regretful about it.

Next, Fang Jifan said, “The reason I believed there would be losses was that I saw the biggest flaw in our Great Ming’s Horse Administration!”

It’s coming…

This guy never spoke without shocking everyone.

In truth, everyone thought Fang Jifan was a show-off, a scoundrel, or someone without a clue.

But in fact, at the very beginning, Fang Jifan did want to shed the image left by the former spendthrift. But now, he had started to enjoy the feeling.

Scoundrel, degenerate, spendthrift, playboy, villain! Each of these identities was actually pretty good.

Even being regarded as mentally deficient—it was practically a blessing from heaven for Fang Jifan.

With this layer of identity, no matter what he did, he had a reasonable excuse. If he did something bad, he had a shield.

But if he accidentally did something good, it would immediately make people see him in a new light, much like a prostitute turning over a new leaf, earning him flowers and applause from countless people.

Now, he could only sigh inwardly. People really shouldn’t be too kind. When a bad person does one good deed after a lifetime of evil, they get praised! People say this person isn’t actually bad at heart! But if a good person does one bad deed after a lifetime of good, others will say you were pretending all along and finally showed your true colors!

Because of this, Fang Jifan now had freedom to maneuver. Even if he occasionally acted presumptuously in front of the Emperor, the Emperor usually wouldn’t bother—a privilege not easily earned by ordinary people. But if Fang Jifan did even the slightest good deed, it would be enough to pleasantly surprise His Majesty, making him think that Fang Jifan was essentially good, not bad, talented, just misunderstood, part of a disadvantaged group.

“Go on!” Emperor Hongzhi naturally didn’t know what Fang Jifan was sighing about. His mind was entirely focused on what Fang Jifan called the biggest flaw.

Fang Jifan then said, “May I ask His Majesty, what did Emperor Wu of Han rely on to strike the Xiongnu?”

Emperor Hongzhi was stunned. He glanced around, his eyes landing on Xie Qian. Xie Qian said, “Emperor Wu had foresight and grand ambitions…”

“Wrong!” It was the same old talk of overcoming heaven. Fang Jifan directly cut off Xie Qian’s answer.

This was somewhat rude.

Xie Qian could only glare at him angrily.

Fang Jifan said with passion, “The strength of the Xiongnu lay in their soldiers, who learned Equestrian Archery from childhood. They were natural warriors on horseback, so once war broke out, they were unstoppable. What Emperor Wu of Han relied on to strike the Xiongnu was breeding stronger Warhorses and training cavalry that were even more skilled in Equestrian Archery, seeking out the Xiongnu and fighting them to the death. The Xiongnu could shoot arrows from horseback, and our Han Army could do the same. The Xiongnu could travel eight hundred li in a day, and our Han men could also undertake long-distance raids across the Northern Desert, covering hundreds of li swiftly. Whether it was Grand General Wei Qing or the Champion Marquis, both excelled in cavalry. Once they passed the frontier, they rode out on fast horses, attacking everywhere, searching for the Xiongnu. Even when encountering Xiongnu cavalry, they charged with Iron Cavalry, crushing them and leaving not a single Xiongnu rider standing. Your Majesty… the strength of the Han dynasty relied on this. Even after the fall of Han and the division of The World into three, even a common warlord like Gongsun Zan or Liu Yu could use the troops of a single commandery to make the Northern Barbarians dare not face their might.”

“Up to now, the Great Ming’s Horse Administration has decayed. The key to defeating the enemy is no longer using strength against strength but relying on city walls and the power of Firearms to fight the Northern Barbarians. Such tactics are sufficient for defense, but for annihilating the enemy, they fall far short. This has allowed the Tatars beyond the frontier to become so rampant.”

“Of course…” Fang Jifan paused. “Strategies for controlling the Northern Barbarians are clearly too broad for a minor official like me to discuss. Let’s talk about the Rebel Army in Guizhou. The native people of Yunnan-Guizhou are adept at hiding in the mountains, appearing and disappearing mysteriously. Yet the troops sent to suppress the rebels are mostly guest armies transferred from various regions—some from the Southern Metropolitan Region, some from Huguang, some from Jiangzhe. They are newcomers, not yet accustomed to the climate of Yunnan-Guizhou, and they engage in battle rashly. The Crown Prince, after reviewing Commander Wang’s strategy, believed Wang Shi would surely win. The reason I believed there would be setbacks is roughly because of this. No matter how good the strategy, it still needs people to carry it out and implement it. Otherwise, it’s just a joke.”

Fang Jifan sighed and added, “Actually, for suppressing rebels, the imperial court doesn’t need to mobilize tens of thousands of troops from various regions. Mi Lu’s Rebel Army is only about ten thousand strong, and I imagine the elderly, weak, women, and children make up the majority. The real elite troops are only a few thousand. To deal with these native people, we should train specialized Mountain Brigades skilled in mountain warfare and familiar with the geography of Yunnan-Guizhou. It’s like how Emperor Wu used the Han cavalry to strike the Xiongnu—using strength against strength. As long as the imperial court is willing to put in the effort, five thousand elite Mountain Brigade soldiers would be enough to pacify Yunnan-Guizhou.”

He spoke eloquently, leaving Emperor Hongzhi and Liu Jian silent.

This guy really was extraordinary, and his insight indeed had its merits.

Zhu Houzhao listened, even a sparkle in his eyes. He finally understood that it wasn’t that his strategy was wrong; the mistake lay in not having usable troops. Thinking this, he couldn’t help but look at Fang Jifan with a bit of admiration.

Old Fang was right. Who would have thought this guy even had a deep understanding of Horse Administration?

He couldn’t resist volunteering and said to Emperor Hongzhi, “Imperial Father, Your Son and Servant wishes to share Your burden and train a cavalry force…”

“Nonsense!” Emperor Hongzhi glared at Zhu Houzhao.

Zhu Houzhao immediately lowered his head in fear and didn’t dare say more.