Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 560 Metamorphosis
Lu Wenzhao was stunned by Ding Baiying's slap. He thought for a long time before he could barely guess the whole story.

"Haha, that's true," Lu Wenzhao chuckled self-deprecatingly. "Like Marshal Hou said earlier, you're one of his soldiers after all. He'd be proud to have you included in the list of merits reported to the court. Sorry, I'm wrong, brother. I was too self-righteous and misunderstood you."

Lu Wenzhao's usual gentleness left Ding Baiying somewhat bewildered. "Brother, I, I..." Ding Baiying wanted to tell Lu Wenzhao what had happened, but the words were on the tip of her tongue, and she found it difficult to speak. After hesitating for a while, Ding Baiying lowered her head and silently wiped away the tears with her sleeve.

"Did you kill the young general who stayed behind?" Lu Wenzhao asked.

"Yes." Ding Baiying nodded. "When he rushed over and collided with Cui Laoliu, I took advantage of the opportunity and pierced his lower back."

"What about the other head used to report the credit? Did you kill that person too?" Lu Wenzhao asked again.

"Probably not. In that battle, I only killed two people, and the other one was a woman." Ding Baiying said.

Lu Wenzhao pondered for a moment, then asked, "What about the man who beheaded the head that was reported as meritorious? What did he say?"

"No one knows which head the General's Office used to stage this substitution. We handed in the remaining head and left, and the General's Office didn't send anyone to explain." Ding Baiying's emotions, which had calmed down a bit, began to flutter again. "But no matter who obtained this head, this act itself is wrong! Using a substitute is not only unethical and disrespectful to the opponent, but also deceiving the court."

"So, you just found out about the substitution today?" Lu Wenzhao's eyes moved and his brows furrowed slightly.

"No, no, no! I know! I just thanked General Hou for his kindness in front of everyone! I wanted this credit, and I couldn't refuse until the end. I have failed my master's teachings!" Ding Baiying's body began to tremble slightly. "These past few days, I have been thinking about whether I should have persisted a little longer, or simply given up this credit."

"Give up?" Lu Wenzhao interrupted Ding Baiying. "If you give up, the credit will definitely go to someone else. Like that Cui Laoliu you just mentioned. Ultimately, this is about Marshal Hou wanting the Weining Camp to have some credit. That credit could be yours or someone else's. Marshal Hou is already a very good person. If it were anyone else, they wouldn't even give credit to a woman like you and would simply give it to someone else. What would you do then?"

Lu Wenzhao initially thought Ding Baiying had simply promoted himself to seek favor from Hou Shilu. Now, it seemed Hou Shilu, unaware of Ding Baiying's status as a member of the Imperial Guard, had proactively reported Ding Baiying for a "decapitation of a general." Such a superior was practically impossible to find, and if he hadn't understood Ding Baiying's personality, he would have suspected Hou Shilu had offered some special conditions.

As he was thinking about it, Lu Wenzhao's favorable impression of Hou Shilu actually increased significantly.

"I really can't do anything about it," Ding Baiying said, clenching his fists. "But even if I give this credit to someone else, I can earn other real credits later, so I don't have to go against my conscience."

"Earn another?" Lu Wenzhao's tone suddenly became stern. "Ding Baiying, I'm telling you, if you reject Hou Zhenshuai, you can forget about continuing to survive in Weining!"

"I can go somewhere else." Ding Baiying actually retorted.

"Where are you going?" Lu Wenzhao asked, "Which general do you think would be willing to take the risk of offending Marshal Hou and take in a nobody like you who doesn't know what's good for you?"

Ding Baiying was choked by this question and was speechless. She could only sulk with grievance.

Lu Wenzhao wasn't about to stop there. He'd already decided to take this opportunity to teach Ding Baiying a lesson about officialdom. "And this is only because Marshal Hou is willing to let you go. If he gets angry, or if he's worried about you leaking secrets, he could send a team of his personal soldiers to kill you on your way out of Weining. I'm afraid you wouldn't even know how you died."

"Brother?" Ding Baiying looked up at Lu Wenzhao, as if realizing something. "Could it be that you have done something like this?"

"Hmph!" Lu Wenzhao sneered and lifted the corner of his clothes. The words "Jinyiwei Qianhu" on his waist badge were so glaring. "Do you think it's so easy to get promoted?"

Ding Baiying's pupils trembled violently.

"Junior sister, do you think that the general's merit list is filled with achievements written in ink?" Lu Wenzhao stared closely at Ding Baiying's eyes. "To be honest, when I thought you were using my name to ask for favors from Marshal Hou Zhen, I was even relieved. I thought you had really grown up and had a more thorough understanding of things. But unfortunately, you still seem as naive as before!"

"Senior brother, what's wrong with you..." Ding Baiying's teeth kept trembling.

Before this, Ding Baiying had thought that his senior brother had simply become more flattering and hypocritical. But now, Ding Baiying felt that Lu Wenzhao had been possessed by a demon and had become a completely unfamiliar person.

"If you truly can't accept these things, then retire from the army and return to the interior to continue your work as a bodyguard. I can speak to Marshal Hou on your behalf," Lu Wenzhao said. "But if you still want to wade through this quagmire and achieve great things, don't even think about staying untainted. Just read the writings of the ancient sages and scholars, and don't take it to heart."

"Senior brother, how did you become like this today?" Tears welled up from the corners of Ding Baiying's eyes without warning.

"If you want to achieve great things, you must give up small details. I made this choice a long time ago. To be honest," this time, Lu Wenzhao not only did not reach out to wipe Ding Baiying's tears, but instead clasped his arms. "I quite enjoy it."

"Great? Ha! What great?" Ding Baiying didn't even bother to wipe her tears. She sarcastically said, "Are you putting on a fawning front in front of the eunuchs, or are you going to do your bit for Marshal Hou?"

"You're still as quick-witted as ever," Lu Wenzhao said, not annoyed at all. Instead, he raised his head slightly. "Shen Caiyu, the seal officer of Tianjin. We talked about him before. Do you remember him?"

"What? You're wagging your tail in front of him too?" Ding Baiying gritted her teeth, trying to hold back her unruly tear glands.

"He's dying. I'm the one who captured him. The web he and those treacherous dukes and nobles wove between Tianjin and the capital is almost ripped apart. The court has saved many from expropriation, and many people have been spared from exploitation and have earned their keep." Lu Wenzhao's tone remained calm. "To get this job done, I resorted to intimidation, deception, coercion, and inducement. But if I could just snatch this stinking loach from the mud, a disaster for the nation and its people, what would it matter if I gave up my tiny, insignificant bit of integrity?"

Ding Baiying was shocked. "Brother, you went south just to capture him?"

"And his entire family and all the corrupt officials in Tianjin," Lu Wenzhao asked, "My dear Junior Sister, do you think this is a great achievement?"

"If this continues," Ding Baiying licked her dry lips and stared at Lu Wenzhao in a daze. "Brother, aren't you afraid that one day you'll become that kind of person?" "No," Lu Wenzhao poured Ding Baiying a glass of water. "No matter how much I change, I still have a bottom line."

"Bottom line? Where is it?" Perhaps because of the setting sun, a glimmer of light appeared in Ding Baiying's eyes again.

Lu Wenzhao hesitated for a moment, then said solemnly, "Let me put it this way. If your military achievements weren't obtained through substitution, but by killing innocent people and claiming credit, then I will never let you go out of personal friendship or to protect my reputation. I will personally arrest you and bring you back for trial. If anyone uses our relationship to use this as an excuse to impeach me, I will resign. If anyone wants to use my relationship to implicate other innocent people, I am not afraid to die to prove my loyalty."

Ding Baiying opened her mouth several times to ask questions, but in the end, all the complicated emotions turned into a sigh.

"Okay, junior sister, I've said almost everything I need to say. Do you want to continue struggling in this quagmire of officialdom, or just quit?" Lu Wenzhao turned his head to glance at the sunlight that squeezed in through the window.

"Can you let me think about it again?" Ding Baiying felt that his thoughts were tangled into a mess of hemp rope.

"Okay, but not too long," Lu Wenzhao glanced at the sky. "We'll only be spending one night in Weining. We'll continue our journey south tomorrow morning."

"Tomorrow?" Ding Baiying was startled. "Is it that urgent?"

"The situation is urgent and time is of the essence," Lu Wenzhao nodded. "Yuan Bingxian and I came to Weining today just to pass through. We can't stay here for long."

While in Shenyang, Sun Chuanting informed Yuan Keli that the Nurhaci rebels had begun to make moves. Shenyang spies had discovered that Nurhaci had not only strengthened the defenses around Fushun but also deployed additional troops to Tieling. This defensive military deployment could only indicate one possibility: Nurhaci was planning to attack the Chaohua tribe.

Although Shenyang did not detect any signs that the majority of the bandits were moving south, based on the current enemy and friendly situation, Nurhaci was capable of using troops on two fronts at the same time.

"So," Ding Baiying slowly turned his head to the side, no longer meeting Lu Wenzhao's gaze. "Brother, are you really only here to see me because it's on your way?"

Lu Wenzhao was completely oblivious to Ding Baiying's subtle emotions and simply said bluntly, "If it's not convenient for you, we can catch up somewhere else."

"Somewhere else to reminisce about the past?" Ding Baiying asked, "I'm afraid you've asked the Governor's Office to send a letter to me to visit your captain Lu's wharf, haven't you?"

"I don't need to bother the Governor's Office anymore. The reason I bothered the Governor's Office at that time was because I didn't know where you were." Lu Wenzhao shook his head. "If I had known you were here, I would have written to Marshal Hou myself."

"Heh," Ding Baiying smiled, "Brother, what important matter are you going to Liao for this time? You're in such a hurry."

"Of course it's to escort Yuan Bingxian to take office." Lu Wenzhao said calmly. If you just look at his expression, it is almost impossible to guess that he is lying.

"This should be just a side trip or a disguise, right?" Ding Baiying smiled again.

"Why do you think so?" Lu Wenzhao asked back.

"Master Yuan isn't from the palace, so why would you, Captain Lu, bother to leave the capital to accompany the emperor?" Ding Baiying said, "It would be better to capture him and bring him back to the capital."

"Don't talk nonsense. I do have other things on my mind, but they have nothing to do with you or Weining." In a blink of an eye, Lu Wenzhao took the initiative to change the subject. "By the way, why are you in Weining? Didn't you say you were going to join General Qin?"

"This is all your fault, Senior Brother," Ding Baiying said, leaning against the table, his whole body radiating an unconcealable fatigue. "He clearly agreed to introduce me to General Qin, but in the end, he just left without a word. I had no choice but to follow another escort team out of the border. I made it all the way to Liaoyang, and did find General Qin's troops. But just as I was trying to figure out how to join, Fengji suddenly lit five beacons and five cannons. Xiong Jinglue led the army north, and General Qin and his men followed. When the situation eased and martial law was lifted, I set off for Fengji."

"But when I arrived in Fengji, I heard that the Tusi soldiers from the southwest had gone south to Weining. So I followed the caravan to Weining. But when I got to Weining, I found out that not all the Tusi soldiers from the southwest had come to Weining. Instead, they had split into two groups, heading north and south."

"General Qin led the troops of the Shiqu Division north to the Shenyang area, while those who remained in Weining were led by General Ran from Youyang. I was really tired and didn't want to go any further, so I went to the recruitment office to ask. Coincidentally, Marshal Hou Zhen was also organizing a hunting camp, so I signed up."

"I'm sorry to trouble you," Lu Wenzhao asked apologetically, "Do you still want to go to General Qin? If so, I can help you arrange it."

"Brother, you really have great powers now," Ding Baiying propped up his head. "I can retire from the army, or I can change my job. Otherwise, why don't you just recruit me to be a Jinyiwei?"

"I'm afraid that's not going to work," Lu Wenzhao smiled and shook his head. "If you were a man, I could still think of a way. But for a woman, there's no such precedent."

"Hmph, I really thought you, senior brother, could do anything." Ding Baiying curled his lips.

"I never said I was omnipotent." Lu Wenzhao glanced at the sky again. "I'm just taking advantage of the fact that the generals are still willing to give me, an 'imperial envoy', a little face, and shamelessly asking for a favor for you. As I said earlier, if you really want to get into the officialdom, just use my shoulders as a ladder. Senior brother doesn't mind helping you take a few steps."

"No need to ask for it," Ding Baiying also glanced at the sky. "Just keep your reputation as the Marquis of Lu. I'm not changing my family, nor am I leaving the army. I'll stay in Weining."

"Have you thought about it?" Lu Wenzhao asked.

"I haven't thought about it yet," Ding Baiying smiled sadly, "but you're in a hurry to leave, aren't you?"

(End of this chapter)