Section Twenty-Five

Dawn.

The morning star still hung in the western sky, and Beijing was shrouded in deep shadows. Yet, the streets near Zhongnanhai blazed with light; torches were inverted in their door-curtains, crackling as they burned. Squads of guards patrolled back and forth incessantly, their bayonets gleaming coldly, adding a chilling aura of martial severity to the lonely, freezing night.

Disregarding the ingratiating smiles of the imperial guards, Zhou Peigong insisted on refusing the small side room offered for rest. With a gloomy face, he paced back and forth outside the Prince of Han's Mansion in Zhongnanhai. Not far from him stood the large sedan chair of Grand Secretary Li Guangdi.

The Battle of Dezhou had already dragged on for a full seventeen days with no clear outcome, and he was furious.

Ever since Lin Feng personally led the expedition to Liaoning the year before last, the Great Han had established an ironclad rule: all matters concerning the Vanguard Army were to be decided solely by the Prince of Han, and the General Staff Office was strictly forbidden from interfering. Consequently, in this current campaign to attack Dezhou, Zhou Peigong's General Staff Office had essentially been relegated to standing by as mere assistants. Before the battle commenced, Zhou Peigong had been kept entirely in the dark regarding troop movements and military deployments. If that were all, it would not have mattered much; the General Staff could simply have stood aside as cold observers. However, as the war prolonged, the front line's demand for supplies grew ever larger, long exceeding the limits of the Vanguard Army's logistics system. Thus, they were inevitably roped in midway to take over, under the fine-sounding pretext of "assisting." In reality, anyone with a discerning eye knew this was simply cleaning up a mess: if Dezhou were captured, everyone would attribute it to the brilliant and divine martial prowess of the Prince of Han and the fierce bravery of Lord Ma Jinliang. Conversely, should they suffer a setback, Zhou Peigong would be the very first among the "scapegoats" sent to the execution ground.

After waiting for what felt like a good hour or more, the heavy palace gates finally creaked as a side door cracked open. A eunuch cried out in a shrill, drawn-out voice, "His Highness invites the two Lords to enter the palace!"

Zhou Peigong immediately stopped in his tracks and glanced into the distance toward Li Guangdi's sedan chair. He saw the chair tilt slightly as Li Guangdi leisurely stepped out, cupping his hands toward Zhou Peigong with a smile, "Brother Peigong, after you—"

Zhou Peigong's relationship with Li Guangdi had never been particularly close, though there was no animosity between them either. In truth, this was hardly surprising. Although both were right- and left-hand men to the Prince of Han, their backgrounds, personalities, interests, and social circles differed vastly. Thus, despite several years of working as colleagues, they had virtually no personal friendship. When they met on ordinary days, a simple nod usually sufficed. Just as today, both waited outside the mansion, separated by mere yards, yet upon meeting they merely exchanged a formal "good morning" and went their separate ways, showing no interest in prolonged conversation or deep discussion. Guided by the duty eunuch, the two walked straight through the palace portals. Sentries stood thick as trees along the way, and patrolling guards bowed in salute from afar at the sight of them.

Upon receiving the report from the guards, Lin Feng hastily threw on his robes, quickly wiped his face, and hurried to the front courtyard. By then, Zhou Peigong and Li Guangdi had already arrived at the entrance, so he received them directly in the study.

When Li Guangdi laid eyes on Lin Feng, he could not help but freeze for a moment. Lin Feng was far from presentable at the moment; his long hair was tied up haphazardly at the back of his head, his eyelids were swollen with traces of sleep crust in the corners, and his face was full of lingering drowsiness as he yawned continuously. Catching sight of the two men, he raised a hand casually and said, "No need for formalities—have a seat over here, gentlemen!"

Once they had taken their seats, Lin Feng rubbed his eyes and asked, "Coming to see me this early, it must be something important?!" He glanced sideways at Zhou Peigong and said, "Old rules, military affairs come first. Peigong, you speak first."

"Yes," Zhou Peigong replied, treating Lin Feng's disheveled state as if he saw nothing. He stood up immediately and said, "Reporting to Your Highness, the General Staff has just received a military dispatch from Dezhou. Ma Jinliang has advanced to the city walls of Dezhou, but he seems to harbor reservations regarding the assault on the city. This subject did not dare to make a arbitrary decision on his own, and therefore entered the palace by night to submit this for Your Highness's final judgment." In truth, he was still somewhat unconvinced in his heart. From his perspective, the overall situation should take precedence above all else at present; as long as military success was achieved, there would be plenty of ways afterward to reform the official atmosphere and uphold the authority of the central government. However, since both the Prince of Han and the Grand Secretary shared the same opinion, this thought could only remain buried within him. Brushing past the topic, he turned, bowed deeply to Lin Feng, and said, "Reporting to Your Highness, this subject has several other military matters to present!"

"Peigong, please speak!"

"This time when we dispatched troops to Dezhou, Yang Qilong of Henan was struck with immense fear. At present, over a dozen prefectures including Zhangde, Weihui, and even Kaifeng have massed large armies—numbering nearly one hundred thousand!" Zhou Peigong smiled. "Aside from that, Yang Qilong's main force remains in Xinyang. For the past few years, he has constantly sought to push into Hubei, intending to seize Jingzhou and Xiangyang to eye the regions east of the Yangtze River!"

"I am aware of this." Lin Feng nodded. Wang Shirong had already reported this intelligence long ago, but he was not overly concerned. The strength of Yang Qilong's faction was mediocre, and as the period of division prolonged, his subordinate generals harbored differing agendas, causing their cohesion to deteriorate day by day. For instance, many gang leaders in southern Shanxi and northern Henan no longer readily heeded his commands. The areas he could truly control were limited to places like Guide, Kaifeng, and Chenzhou in central and southern Henan, along with a few border regions in Hubei. The troops under his command were also a mixed bag of miscellaneous elements, with uneven combat effectiveness, severe shortages of equipment, poor training, and inadequate provisions and pay. Ever since occupying the strategic stronghold of Xinyang, they had repeatedly launched attacks on Hubei over the past few years, only to be repeatedly repulsed by the remnant Qing forces left behind by the late Prince An, Yolo, leaving them with negligible results.

Lin Feng observed the expressions of the two men, waved his hand, and said, "This is a massive issue. If we were to tackle it right now, our Great Han would inevitably suffer severe wounds and trauma." He glanced at Li Guangdi and said in a deep voice, "Military affairs take precedence—let us first eliminate Wu Sangui, Zheng Jing, Galdan, and Buyalgama!"

Li Guangdi nodded in agreement. Seeing that Lin Feng's expression had softened, he said cautiously, "Reporting to Your Highness, this subject believes this matter can also be approached gradually—" Noticing Lin Feng's surprise, he added, "Why not begin now by establishing our own imperial workshops and manufacturing yards? From this day forward, all military supplies for our Great Han shall be self-produced. In this way, the merchant guilds and financial consortia will have nothing to leverage. The imperial court can maneuver freely between them—we can execute them, suppress them, or demote them, retaining complete flexibility in our advance and retreat. Would that not be wonderful?!"

State-owned enterprises?! Lin Feng was stunned for a moment, then burst into hearty laughter. He waved a hand and said, "Is not our Minister of Works, Dai Zi, stationed at the mines year-round? With so many workshops in the Ministry of Works, does Jingshen really wish to make a massive overhaul?"

"The workshops and smelting yards under the Ministry of Works are indeed numerous," Zhou Peigong frowned, "yet for some reason, their output has been steadily declining. In the beginning, the firearms and artillery required for military supplies could still be self-sufficient; but now, with our military growing so large, they simply cannot keep up. Consequently, all manner of military weaponry must rely on the 'Hu Family Iron Firm'..." He glanced at Lin Feng. It was no secret that the Prince of Han had investments in this enterprise; everyone throughout the court and the countryside knew of it. If not for this, how could such a small firm have developed so rapidly in just a few short years that it now held significant weight in the affairs of the state? "Strange to say, this subject is utterly baffled. Using the exact same workshops and artisans, and even with the Ministry of Works providing more generous silver compensation, the firearms and artillery produced by the Ministry simply cannot match those manufactured by the merchants. There is much discussion in the army, and they all say that Minister Dai Zi is afraid of his wife, and therefore gives way to his brother-in-law by a wide margin."

Lin Feng chuckled dryly. Given Dai Zi's character, using public office for personal gain was utterly impossible. The problems within the imperial workshops were likely still faults of the management system, but he had no intention of explaining this to the two ministers. Such flaws were endemic to the entire bureaucratic apparatus; even if one explained the logic clearly, there was simply no way to resolve it.

"You two gentlemen must understand that merchants are currently a major pillar of support for us. Without them, I fear our Great Han could not even assemble firearms—and without firearms, how can our soldiers go to war?!" Lin Feng frowned. "As for this matter, this sovereign believes we must still rely on appeasement. Therefore, during next spring's metropolitan examinations, aside from the Classics and Mathematics subjects, our Great Han shall also open a Commerce and Industry branch. We must make all merchants across the realm understand that the prosperity of the Great Han means the prosperity of the merchants, and the fall of the Great Han means the ruin of the merchants, binding them to the same boat as us..." He turned his head, looked at the two ministers, and said earnestly, "Can my two beloved ministers understand my intent?"

Li Guangdi was greatly shocked. He raised his head, looked up in astonishment, and stammered, "Commerce and Industry branch..." Wiping away his sweat, he said at a loss, "This subject is dull-witted. Such a subject has never existed from ancient times to the present, and this subject has never heard of it. I dare ask Your Highness, even if this Commerce and Industry branch is opened, what... what subjects will be tested?"

"This... well..." Lin Feng was momentarily stumped. Pondering carefully, this problem indeed proved rather difficult. Would he test international trade? Financial management? Multi-level marketing? He honestly had no clue what skills were required to handle business administration in the seventeenth century.

Seeing Lin Feng momentarily at a loss for words, Li Guangdi wiped the cold sweat from his brow and let out a long breath of relief. "Your Highness is wise. From antiquity until now, the imperial court's selection of scholars has always taken literary composition and policy discourse as paramount. Even tracing back to the Tang and Song dynasties, it amounted to little more than poetry, rhymed prose, the *Classic of Changes*, and the study of medicine. This subject knows that the *bagong* (eight-legged essay) indeed possesses great flaws, and the people of the world harbor much dissatisfaction with it. Yet, one must realize that though the eight-legged essay is crude, it clarifies morality, purifies human hearts, and expounds the great principles of the *Spring and Autumn Annals*. Moreover, the officials of our Cathay should serve as models for the common people; selecting scholars through the eight-legged essay is precisely for the sake of morality, human hearts, and the education of the common folk. This is why successive benevolent rulers and wise ministers, fully aware of its flaws, nevertheless followed and continued its use without daring to easily replace it..."

Lin Feng waved his hand impatiently and rebuked, "What benevolent rulers of successive dynasties? Wasn't it just that old Zhu family? Could Jingshen's meaning be that I, Lin Feng, am inferior to that old scoundrel Zhu Yuanzhang?!"

"Ahem... ahem..." Startled out of his wits, Li Guangdi hurriedly dropped to his knees to plead for forgiveness. "Your Highness, forgive me! This subject did not mean that!..."

"Oh... Rise, Minister Jingshen, I lost my composure!" Seeing Li Guangdi's panic, Lin Feng felt he might have gone a bit too far. After offering a few words of comfort, he smiled and said, "Well, actually my intention is not to abolish the eight-legged essay... The eight-legged essay is actually quite good, this... I quite appreciate the eight-legged essay as well, this... what I mean is that our Great Han needs to win over the hearts of the people, so we should naturally open a few more subjects!" He thought for a moment. "Very well, Minister Jingshen, go back and consult with the Minister of Rites. Find a few textbooks such as the *Qimin Yaoshu* (Important Arts for the People's Welfare), the *Nongzheng Quanshu* (Complete Treatise on Agricultural Administration), or the *Tiangong Kaiwu* (The Exploitation of the Works of Nature), and release word to the scholars that next year's imperial examinations will feature supplementary quotas for licentiates in the provincial exams. Tell the ambitious scholars to study them diligently!..."

"Then... what about the metropolitan examinations in the capital?"

"Oh, isn't this just the beginning?" Lin Feng smiled. "Let us first test and select a batch of licentiates!—Jingshen, do not fret; everything must be tested out first, must it not? Besides, this is ultimately still heterodox learning; the Four Books and Five Classics remain the orthodox path. The founding of our Great Han is still recent and our foundations are not quite solid, so we must lower the threshold slightly for the scholarly community and open up more avenues for an official career, isn't that so?"

Li Guangdi forced a smile and said, "Your Highness... is profoundly wise!..."

"As for this matter of merchant guilds and financial consortia, I believe we should not be overly anxious for the time being. My meaning is that we must wait until the war is concluded before addressing it..." While Lin Feng was speaking, a guard suddenly knocked on the doorframe outside and respectfully reported, "Reporting to His Highness the Prince of Han, Lord Wang Shirong, Grand Secretary of the Great Han and Director of the Directorate of Military Ordnance and Grain Statistics, requests an audience outside the palace!!"

"Oh?! Jiyun has arrived?!" Lin Feng smiled at Zhou Peigong and said in a loud voice, "Tell him to enter!"

Wang Shirong's face was streaming with sweat, evidently having hurried all the way from afar. As soon as he entered the study, before he could even salute, Lin Feng smiled and said, "There's no rush, no rush, drink a cup of tea first!" As the attendants served the tea, Lin Feng asked, "Jiyun, where is Li Ergou?"

"Lord Li?!" Wang Shirong asked in astonishment, "Reporting to Your Highness, this subject has not encountered Lord Li!"

Lin Feng froze, exchanging blank stares with Li Guangdi.

Putting aside the tea, Wang Shirong pushed aside the attendants, hurriedly pulled an urgent dispatch embroidered with a fire-signal stamp from his sleeve, and presented it before Lin Feng.

What matter could possibly be so grave as to make even Wang Shirong look this tense?

Suspiciously, Lin Feng glanced at Wang Shirong and slowly broke the seal of the letter. He heard Wang Shirong speaking in a low, deeply solemn voice as he bowed: "Reporting to Your Highness, this is an urgent dispatch from Changsha..." He glanced at Li Guangdi and Zhou Peigong standing nearby, his expression incomparably grave, "...Wu Sangui is dead..."

With a loud "thud," Li Guangdi's arm trembled, and his teacup slipped from his hand, shattering into pieces upon the green brick floor.