Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 39: Locking Down the City and Arresting People
Wei Zhongxian appeared calm and composed on the surface, but every time he witnessed such a scene, a surge of emotion would rise in his heart, making it difficult for him to control himself. If it weren't for the decades of humble and forbearing life that had tempered his temperament and enabled him to cultivate an excellent qi-cultivating skill, he would definitely shout and laugh wildly.

From a pitiful wretch who cut off his own penis and could not enter the palace, to a lowly eunuch collecting scraps and carrying buckets, and now serving as the Chief Secretary of the Imperial Household Department and Superintendent of the Western Depot, his life has been nothing short of a dream. His lust for power is so great that, if possible, he would even cover the emperor's seal with a piece of cloth and call himself the "Nine Thousand Years Old."

But in front of Zhu Changluo, Wei Zhongxian only asked the emperor not to force him to look up at the emperor's face and gaze into those eyes that were more terrifying than the abyss.

After several imperceptible breaths, Wei Zhongxian regained his composure and raised his right hand, gently waving it forward. His nephew, Fu Yingxing, understood his intention and stepped forward to Wei Zhongxian's side. He unfolded the scroll and shouted, "The deployment for 'Operation Autumn Arrow' is as follows."

"The unorganized independent squads are temporarily assigned to the First Company of the Second Execution Battalion, commanded by Captain Huang Yuming. The First Company of the Second Execution Battalion, bearing the imperial seal of temporary defense for 'Operation Autumn Arrow,' will proceed to the military headquarters of the five cities of East, West, South, North, and Central, ordering them to close the city gates until 1:00 AM the day after tomorrow and assist in guarding the gates."

"Captain Ye Ye, commanding the First Execution Squadron under his command, is here to arrest the suspects according to the list, bearing the imperial decree for 'Operation Autumn Arrow' and the signature of the Criminal Division. If the suspect flees, their legitimate son will be captured; if there is no legitimate son, their entire family will be captured. If they encounter resistance, they can be executed on the spot!"

After the reading, Fu Yingxing put away the scroll and stood with his hands behind his back. After a brief pause, he emphasized again, "Don't kill unless necessary! If someone dies, everyone from the team leader to the captain will be investigated. But there's no need to be timid. Investigation is not accountability. As long as you strictly follow the action plan, you will be fine. Do you understand?!"

"Understood!" Thousands of people shouted in unison, their momentum as strong as a rainbow.

Fu Yingxing retreated to his original position. Wei Zhongxian, the governor of the Western Factory and director of the Executive Bureau, stepped forward, pointed his sword at the door, and shouted, "Action!"

At the command, the Xi'an Gate opened wide, and the Second Execution Battalion, the First Squadron, and the Special Scout Flag, numbered 21XT0, a total of 0 men, rode out of the city under the leadership of Flag General Gao Guoding. (X indicates no superior flag, T indicates a special flag, and 0 indicates a flag unit. If it is a squad unit, 1 is replaced by 2, 3, or 21. For example, 1XT represents the first squad of that flag.)
Then, at the intersection in front of Guangji Temple on Fuchengmen Street, they were dispersed and split into five groups, each heading towards the headquarters of the five military command offices in the east, west, south, north, and center. (The military command offices in each direction were independent.)
The remaining 8 infantry flags and 2 independent squads, a total of 26 teams, rushed to the city gates of Beijing to assist in defending the gates.

The West City Military Command was closest to Xi'an Gate, so it was the first command to receive the order to lock the city.

Because the flag commander Gao Guoding was wearing the green and blue embroidered uniform of a seventh-rank official, the gatekeepers of the West City Military Command Office did not stop the group of eight people, but instead led them to see the highest officer of the office, the sixth-rank military commander You Lingwen.

When Gao Dingguo led a team of seven into the lobby of the command center, You Lingwen was still sitting in the main seat drinking tea with a teacup in his hand.

After lunch, he would have a cup of tea and then personally inspect the various gates. This was his habit. After all, he had four deputy commanders of the seventh rank under him, so he didn't need to do everything himself.

"Ah? Say it again, which government office are you from?" You Lingwen jumped up from his chair as if someone had pricked his butt with a needle.

"The scout flag of the Western Investigation Factory, the flag commander is Gao Guoding." Gao Guoding, like Lu Zhongqiu, is a newly promoted officer from the Xu family's Tongzhou soldiers.

Gao Guoding, who came from a peasant family, was not arrogant at all. At the same time, he had memorized the "three pairs of mantras" that he had to recite during daily morning exercises.

The combination of these two factors made him look nothing like the arrogant and conceited Imperial Guard officer he should have been. (The "Three Truths": Be gentle to the people, patient with colleagues, and cruel to the enemy.)
"Western Investigation Factory?" You Lingwen couldn't believe it for a moment, because the Western Factory had been closed for 1510 years from the fifth year of Zhengde (1620) to now (110).

"Yes. This is my badge and the temporary seal granted by the emperor for 'Operation Autumn Arrow'." Gao Guoding took out the badge engraved with "Gao Guoding, Flag Chief of the Western Investigation Bureau" from his waist, and took out a double-seal letter with the seal of the Imperial Household Department and the seal of the Western Investigation Bureau from his arms, and handed them to You Lingwen together.

"'Operation Autumn Arrow'?" You Lingwen opened the letter, looked at the big seal on it, and believed it about 80%.

"Yes, this is the new rule set by the emperor, 'one seal for one action, one signature for one letter of authorization'. Our team does not arrest people, so we don't have signatures for the letter of authorization. We only have a one-time seal of authorization that orders you to cooperate in locking the door." When mentioning the emperor, Gao Guoding raised his hands and bowed in the direction of the Forbidden City.

"Arresting someone. The Dongchang case?" You Lingwen swallowed. He was certainly aware of the recent uproar over the "Dongchang corruption and extortion case."

"Just cooperate with me." Gao Guoding did not comment.

"If you do not cooperate, we have the right to suspend you and appoint your deputy to temporarily replace you until the operation is over," Gao Guoding continued.

"Is this a threat?" You Lingwen frowned slightly.

"No, this is the West Factory's action plan. I'm obligated to tell you. But I don't want to do so. If we use this power, both you and I will be investigated." Gao Guoding explained, shaking his head. "In a few days, the West Factory will be officially established. The specific items of the plan will be engraved on the stone tablet at the entrance. You can then visit the West Factory headquarters and see them for yourself."

"Okay, of course I'll cooperate." The West Depot hadn't even been officially established yet, but they were already locking down the city and arresting people. It looked like the East Depot was going to be in big trouble this time. You Lingwen sighed and began to mentally calculate which people from the East Depot he had interacted with and what kind of dealings he had with them. "Let's go, let's go to Fuchengmen and Xizhimen."

"I hope it can be quick. My colleagues may have already arrived and are just waiting for you to complete this procedure." Gao Guoding made a gesture of invitation.

Almost two quarters of an hour later, Lu Zhongqiu arrived at the residence of Zou Kaiyun, the Chief of the Eastern Depot, with his First Execution Squadron, Third Squadron, Second General Flag, and First Small Flag (numbered 13210), a total of thirty-seven men. With three execution teams, this was the most impressive capture team of the entire "Autumn Arrow" operation.

After arriving at the place, Lu Zhongqiu gave an order and the first and second squads (numbered 13211 and 13212) of his troops formed a battle formation at the main gate of Zou Mansion according to the positions of shields, spears, guns and crossbows, while the third squad (numbered 13213) went around to the back door of Zou Mansion and formed the same formation.

According to the arrest regulations of the Western Factory Operations Program, no one is allowed to raise troops unless the suspect resists arrest and draws a weapon first.

Therefore, the first small flag in the battle formation did not take a fighting stance, but instead had its large shield facing forward, its spear tip pointing to the sky, and its guns and crossbows facing the ground (the bird guns were not loaded with ammunition).

(End of this chapter)