The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 490 Kang Yingqian Returns Home

When the retired emperor was on his northern tour to Luoyang, Kang Yingqian, the former prime minister of the Great Qi Dynasty, set out from Shenyang with his wife and children and headed for Handan, Hebei, embarking on a long journey home.

Thanks to the special pardon granted to General Kang by Emperor Wuding, Kang Yingqian and his entourage were able to travel unimpeded all the way to Shanhaiguan.

After the establishment of the Qi State, to strengthen the management of post stations and prevent officials from abusing and using them for personal gain, which could lead to tragedies like those of Li Xianzhong, the Qi State adopted the five characters "gold, wood, water, fire, and earth" as official certificates. Only holders of this certificate could use the post station's horses, carriages, and other transportation equipment free of charge. Without this certificate, even paying a fee would disqualify them.

The five lines of the "Gold" character were used for the travel of the various Guards (later the ten major corps) and the Suoyi Guard during combat and reconnaissance; the twenty-nine lines of the "Wood" character were used for civil and military officials to travel on official business to local areas; the nine lines of the "Water" character were used for civil and military officials to travel from local areas to the capital; the two lines of the "Fire" character were used to take care of soldiers who died or were injured in the war and their families, and to pay a certain amount of pensions; the six lines of the "Earth" character were used to support chambers of commerce and expeditions.

There are special Leipai and special Kanhe for transmitting military intelligence, which are used exclusively for transmitting intelligence between the Ministry of War and various corps.

Apart from these, no one else can use it without permission, otherwise it will be a capital crime.

~~~~
Shanhaiguan, North Gate City Wall.

General Kang's convoy slowly stopped in front of Weiyuan Gate. A team of soldiers, accompanied by the battalion commander of the 10th Corps, came down from the arrow tower and walked straight to the front of the convoy, blocking their way. They shouted orders and checked the visitor's permit numbers.

Kang Yingqian heard the commotion outside, leaned out from behind the carriage curtain, and said tremblingly to his servant Chen Sheng:

"Old Chen, let them check it out. Let them finish it as soon as possible so we can enter the country."

After Kang Yingqian finished speaking, he retreated into the carriage. His eyes swept across the double-roofed beasts on the hip roof of the Shanhaiguan Mountain. For the first time, he felt that these stone-carved beasts in front of him were ferocious and murderous.

Lao Kang can no longer remember how many times he has come to Shanhaiguan. Maybe this time is the last time.

In December of last year, around this time, Kang Yinggan, still the Prime Minister of the Great Qi, brought Qiao Yiqi, Wang Huazhen and others to Liaoxi for inspection. When officials along the way saw Prime Minister Kang, they were all respectful and regarded him as the Emperor of the Great Qi.

Now that the monkeys have scattered when the tree falls, the only ones who follow him home are a few personal servants.

Chen Sheng agreed, dismounted, and pulled out a wooden sign from his waist. He waved it twice at the group of ferocious soldiers in front of him and shouted:
"Golden Plate, please let us pass. The packhorses need water and the people need to rest."

After passing Shanhaiguan, there are still two or three hundred miles to the next post station. The caravan moves slowly, so it is necessary to replenish supplies and rest here.

The soldiers in the city were indifferent and silently looked at the fallen official in front of them. After a while, a chief officer came over. Chen Sheng recognized him at a glance as a subordinate of Zheng Yishi, who seemed to be a captain.

"The army is about to reinforce Korea. There's chaos and turmoil here, and troops are being transported everywhere. General Zheng has ordered that all merchants and travelers are only allowed to stay for half an hour."

After hearing this, Chen Sheng became furious and said:

"Nonsense! The other day we met some traveling merchants on the road, coming out of Shanhaiguan. We stopped by if we wanted to, and stayed in a hotel if we wanted. Master Kang is an official appointed by the imperial court, and he will be enshrined in the Imperial Ancestral Temple in the future. How dare you be so rude and deliberately make things difficult for us!"

"This is a military order, you must not disobey it!"

Chen Sheng raised his head and said angrily:
"Fuck you, damn military order! Bring out the document from the Ministry of War! Do you have it?" The captain knew he was in the wrong and his face was blue and white after being scolded. He wanted to hit the servant, but finally didn't dare to. He raised his hand and slowly let it fall.

"you……"

Chen Sheng continued, "Don't even mention a captain like you. When our master was in Shenyang, he killed a lieutenant general like a chicken! If it weren't for the greed of this villain, it would have been his turn..."

"Go find your General Zheng. It was my master who brought him to Zhangjiawan, Tianjin..."

Kang Yingqian coughed in the carriage.

"Old Chen, stop talking!"

Chen Sheng quickly stopped talking and stepped aside angrily.

Kang Yinggan lifted the curtain of the carriage and was about to get out of the carriage with a shaky step. Seeing this, Chen Sheng hurriedly stepped forward and half-knelt, letting Master Kang step on his back to walk to the ground.

Kang Yingqian slowly walked up to the leader, forced a smile on his wrinkled face, and subconsciously reached into his arms.

Old Chen knew what he was looking for, and quickly stood up and said:
"Master, the medicine is gone, have you forgotten?"

Kang Yingqian thought for a while, touched his gray hair, and said to the general in front of him:

"This brother looks unfamiliar. You must have been recently transferred from outside, right? I've been ordered to return home to enjoy my old age. My home is in Handan, and Shanhaiguan is the only way to go. The next post station is about a hundred miles away. I'd better go to your commander and ask for some flexibility. Let me rest in Shanhaiguan for two days before leaving."

The troops guarding Shanhaiguan were from the 10th Corps led by Zheng Yishi.

Back then at Zhangjiawan Wharf, without Kang Yingqian's assistance, this honest man who came from a boatman's family would not have risen step by step and would not have been able to command thousands of troops in battle one day.

After ten years of military service and hardship, some people have become indifferent to fame and gain and returned to nature, while others have forgotten their original aspirations and turned into monkey spirits.

Zheng Yishi knew that the retired emperor was suspicious of Kang Yinggan. Even a fool would know at this time that he should not get too close to someone with the surname Kang. He knew that Kang Yinggan was coming early, so he hid in the city early to avoid seeing this old friend, who could even be said to be his benefactor.

He only let his deputy general speak out and say some harsh words in order to avoid the eyes and ears of the Suoyi Guards. When Kang Yinggan is settled in the future, it has nothing to do with him, Zheng Yishi.

"A bunch of snobs."

The servant Chen Sheng was still dissatisfied and wanted to argue with the captain, but he heard Master Kang say:
"Never mind. Half an hour is fine, let's get into the city."

(End of this chapter)