Chapter 31: Eunuch Faction Assembly Call
Chapter 31: Eunuch Faction Assembly Call
“It’s him, it’s him, he’s the one!”
Young Master Wang pointed at Yang Xin and said excitedly.
“Company Commander Xu, this traitor is Yang Xin. I also came here to arrest him after receiving the report, but I didn’t expect this traitor to have accomplices, and they were extremely fierce. I was momentarily careless and they injured many of my soldiers. Fortunately, Company Commander Xu arrived just in time!”
The civil official said, cupping his hands.
Company Commander Xu ignored him. Instead, he sat on his horse and looked at Yang Xin.
Yang Xin looked back at him.
Beside them, Cao Wenzhao was already poised for action. While Yang Xin didn’t recognize Company Commander Xu’s uniform, Cao Wenzhao certainly did.
The Company Commander Xu suddenly smiled.
“Do you plan to see the Emperor dressed like that?”
He said.
The civil official and Young Master Wang, and even Cao Wenzhao, were all instantly dumbfounded. Their incredulous gazes shifted back and forth between him and Yang Xin.
“Esteemed Company Commander, could you explain a bit more clearly? I’m a timid person. I was frightened again tonight and am still dazed, completely unaware of what’s happening. You just said ‘see the Emperor.’ That ‘see the Emperor’ means meeting the Emperor, right? Are you saying you’re taking me to see the Emperor? But this official here wants to arrest me and chop off my head!”
Yang Xin said cautiously.
“Glib talker! I am Xu Xianchun, a Thousand-Household Officer of the Imperial Guard, here by Imperial order to summon Yang Xin, the treasure presenter, to enter the palace!”
Company Commander Xu shouted.
“Um, Official Sir, then I’ll go with him. You don’t have any objections, right?”
Yang Xin pointed at him, then turned to consult the civil official.
The latter stared at him in shock, already petrified. Young Master Wang was even more dumbstruck.
Clearly, this outcome was a bit too impactful for them.
However, Yang Xin didn’t bother teasing them any further. He motioned to Cao Wenzhao, and the two quickly mounted their horses.
Xu Xianchun also stopped wasting words. He didn’t even acknowledge the civil official. Leading his Imperial Guard subordinates, he withdrew from the alley onto the main street. Immediately, Yang Xin urged his horse to catch up beside him. Then, under Xu Xianchun’s puzzled gaze, Yang Xin slipped his money pouch into Xu Xianchun’s sleeve. Feeling the weight of the silver, Xu Xianchun’s face immediately broke into a smile, and his look at Yang Xin carried a bit of appreciation. Clearly, even as one of the “Five Tigers” of the Nine Thousand Years Old, he wasn’t very well-off at this time. A few dozen taels of silver were enough to earn a beaming smile from him.
He was actually considered part of the hereditary nobility.
His grandmother was the Wanli Emperor’s aunt, the Jiajing Emperor’s youngest daughter, Princess Jiashan.
However, the consorts of princesses in the Great Ming Dynasty held little power, let alone him being just a grandson. Even his entry into the Imperial Guard relied on first passing the military Jinshi examination.
“Company Commander Xu, could you tell me what exactly is going on?”
Yang Xin asked.
“Grand Secretary Fang brought a ‘Great Ming Unification of the Eight Directions Instrument’ into the palace. This afternoon, while His Majesty was receiving him, he took it to the Qianqing Palace and presented it to His Majesty. His Majesty was quite pleased after seeing it, so he summoned you to the palace. What’s this? You’re actually a fugitive? Then your ancestral grave must really be smoking with good fortune!”
Xu Xianchun said with a half-smile.
“Um, I dare not deceive you. I actually accidentally killed someone. I got scared and ran. As a result, a minor matter that could have been settled with twelve taels of silver turned into a crime with two degrees increased punishment.”
Yang Xin said.
“In that case, it’s not a major issue. So what was all that about just now?”
Xu Xianchun said with a smile.
He didn’t care whether Yang Xin was a fugitive. The Imperial Guard didn’t handle common criminal cases.
“Don’t mention it. It was all this wine causing trouble. Today I met some brothers from Xuanzhen. We drank all day at a tavern and just returned. In the pitch black, these officers suddenly rushed out to arrest people. My friend Cao and I couldn’t see clearly. Fueled by the alcohol, we fought back. After the chaotic fight was over, we found out it was the Five City Military Inspectorate! Even if it wasn’t crap, it became crap. If caught, there’d be nothing but beheading. But we couldn’t just surrender, could we? We still wanted our heads. We were just thinking about fleeing! Fortunately, you arrived. Otherwise, I’d have had to flee to the mountains and forests. I just implicated Brother Cao.”
Yang Xin wiped his face and said sorrowfully.
“Two people, beating over twenty archers until they couldn’t fight back?”
Xu Xianchun said in astonishment.
“To be precise, one person. I just pulled down an archer.”
Yang Xin pointed at Cao Wenzhao following behind and said, “See this Brother Cao? He’s an absolute Peerless Warrior. All those officers on the ground were taken down by him alone. He just grabbed a short spear and used it backwards. If he had really gone all out, probably none of those officers would be left alive.”
Xu Xianchun took a sharp breath.
He was a military Jinshi and knew what this meant.
One person, not even daring to kill freely, took down over twenty who were truly willing to kill, without a single scratch. On the battlefield, that would be the valor of Guan Yu or Zhang Fei.
“But you still resisted arrest with weapons after all. We don’t even know if anyone from the Five City Military Inspectorate died. If there are deaths, it’s even more troublesome. Whether you can keep your lives depends on your performance when you see His Majesty. If you can’t please His Majesty, not even Grand Secretary Fang can protect you. What’s a Peerless Warrior? In the eyes of the civil officials, aren’t you all just soldiers? The censors can’t tolerate any flaws. The Five City Military Inspectorate answers to the City Patrol Censors. You beat their people, you slapped the face of the City Patrol Censors. I’m afraid no one but His Majesty can make them let this go.”
He then added.
“Then I need Company Commander Xu’s guidance. I don’t have much on me. If you trust me, let’s make a gentleman’s agreement. If I can get out of this, I’ll present five hundred taels to you with both hands.”
Yang Xin said.
“Nothing else really. To put it simply, His Majesty is somewhat interested in your so-called instrument. But what His Majesty really wants to hear about are matters concerning immortals. His Majesty is getting older and is increasingly fond of this. The reason for summoning you to the palace so late at night is because Grand Secretary Fang said you were taught by immortals, that you were originally a mountain villager who suddenly received instruction from an immortal. You forgot everything before, yet instantly knew everything about astronomy and geography. According to Grand Secretary Fang, this is because His Majesty governs the country well. Heaven is using you to present treasure, to show that the entire world admires His Majesty’s grace, and all under heaven submit to the Great Ming.”
Xu Xianchun said.
“I see, now I have an idea!”
Yang Xin said with a satisfied nod.
Making up mythical stories to amuse the Wanli Emperor was something he believed he could do. As long as Wanli didn’t ask him how to cultivate immortality. Fortunately, from the sound of it, Fang Congzhe hadn’t said he knew how to cultivate immortality. One had to admit, Grand Secretary Fang was quite good at boasting, knowing what to exaggerate and what not to.
“His Majesty is mostly with the Imperial Noble Consort. When you see the Imperial Noble Consort, say more nice things. As long as the Imperial Noble Consort is happy, His Majesty will be happy.”
Xu Xianchun said.
This was the truth. The relationship between Wanli and Consort Zheng was absolutely solid. Although our Great Qing, when compiling history, said he messed around in the harem for decades, in fact, Wanli only ever favored this older woman from beginning to end. One-third of Wanli’s eighteen children were born to her, proving the frequency between them. This couldn’t be faked. Moreover, even before his death, he left an Imperial Edict to make her Empress. One could say he couldn’t let go of this old woman, who was actually only a few years younger than him, even unto death. It’s just that his Imperial Edicts while alive might not have been obeyed, let alone a posthumous edict. No one paid any attention to this old guy lying in the coffin.
“Thank you, Company Commander Xu. If I can survive this ordeal tomorrow, let’s find a place to drink together. We can also invite Superintendent Wei from the Jiazi Storage. I live in Superintendent Wei’s residence. Actually, I should call him Uncle!”
Yang Xin said.
Xu Xianchun smiled and nodded.
This meant he wouldn’t renege on the debt.
“By the way, could Company Commander Xu look after my brothers tonight? No matter how tonight’s matter concludes, it still depends on whether I can survive this hurdle. If I go into the palace and they get taken by the Five City Military Inspectorate people, it would be troublesome to get them out later.”
Yang Xin said.
“Don’t worry, leave it to me. A man who can take down over twenty archers alone is a real tough guy!”
Xu Xianchun said, looking at Cao Wenzhao.
This was a trifling matter for him. If Yang Xin, upon entering the palace, could please the Emperor, then his previous crimes would certainly be wiped clean. He would not only get five hundred taels of silver but also make a friend. If Yang Xin couldn’t survive this hurdle, then he could simply hand over Cao Wenzhao and the others to the Five City Military Inspectorate tomorrow. For now, they were considered in the custody of the Imperial Guard. In Capital City security matters, the Imperial Guard was essentially the superior of the Five City Military Inspectorate. Although there was no direct command relationship, it was the Five City Military Inspectorate cooperating with the Imperial Guard, not the other way around.
The Five City Military Inspectorate had no right to demand people from the Imperial Guard.
“Then thank you in advance!”
Yang Xin said, cupping his hands.
After speaking, he fell back a bit to ride alongside Cao Wenzhao. He told them not to act rashly and just listen to Xu Xianchun.
Cao Wenzhao had nothing to say.
Given the current situation, there were no other options. Either fight their way out of the Capital City and become fugitives, or gamble on the outcome after Yang Xin entered the palace. As a pure military man, he was decisive enough.
Their group thus entered the Xi’an Gate.
Cao Wenzhao and the others were taken away by several Imperial Guard soldiers. Yang Xin followed Xu Xianchun forward, soon entering the Lingxing Gate into the Western Park. They crossed the Jade Belt Bridge over Taiye Lake, then entered the Qianming Gate and turned south, finally reaching the Xihua Gate, which marked entry into the palace city. Along the way, soldiers from the Imperial Bodyguard Battalions were stationed everywhere, with special barracks called “red posts.” The entire Imperial City was layered with defenses. Actually, the Imperial City was double-layered, divided into inner and outer Imperial City. The guards used bell ringing as a signal. The outer Imperial City had seventy-two posts, meaning seventy-two garrison points. The inner Imperial City had forty posts. Combined, the entire Imperial City had over a hundred garrison points alone. Every night, hereditary nobles led troops taking turns on duty.
However, after entering the palace city, it wasn’t so troublesome.
Inside, it was guarded by the “Great Generals” of the Imperial Guard, each resplendent in mountain-pattern armor and phoenix-wing helmets, carrying giant axes over their shoulders…
“Very impressive!”
Yang Xin said.
“You should see them in the daytime!”
Xu Xianchun lowered his voice and said disdainfully.
He didn’t need to wait until daytime. Immediately after, Yang Xin noticed an abnormal color on a “Great General’s” mountain-pattern armor.
“Is that… rust?”
He said in astonishment.
“Rust is nothing. Torn clothes and rotten boots are plentiful. They’re just for show. They can’t wield weapons and can’t stop bandits. To put it this way: your friend Cao, who took down twenty archers alone, could probably take down two hundred of these ‘Great Generals.'”
Xu Xianchun said disdainfully.