Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 562: Not a Disaster, But a Disaster
"What's money?" Hou Shilu raised his eyebrows and rolled his eyes at his son. "Have you forgotten so quickly that Ding Xiu and his men sold the head to Tong Deng for money?"

"This is where the weird thing happens!" Hou Gongji said with concentration.

"What do you mean?" Hou Shilu asked.

Hou Gongji paused for a moment, then said, "As you know, Tong Deng and his ilk always trade heads for silver. Ding Xiu sold four heads for sixty taels each. Even if the six of them split the money equally, each of them should have forty taels. But we've discovered that Ding Baiying only had a little over ten taels of cash in the barracks."

"That should be unexpectedly few, not unusually many, right?"

"She has little cash, but a lot of banknotes."

"Silver notes?" Hou Shilu frowned slightly. "The newly printed banknotes?"

Although the Sun Moon Bank branch had not been opened in Weiningying, and Hou Shilu had never met Ma Xiandian and his men, he still knew that the emperor had sent eunuchs to Liaodong to open a bank and issue silver bills.

Hou Gongji shook his head and said, "It's not a banknote from the Sun Moon Bank, but a banknote from Xuanchang Bank. Ding Baiying even had a large-denomination banknote worth one hundred taels in her bag. Xuanchang Bank doesn't have a branch in Liaodong, so this money must have been brought back from outside the Great Wall."

"But what does this mean?" Hou Shilu supported his head on the armrest.

"This means that she has money but she didn't get any money from Ding Xiu," said Hou Gongji.

"So?" Hou Shilu tilted his head and looked at Hou Gongji, with a hint of smile in his words.

"That's why I find it strange. Saving money but not wanting it—isn't that a contradiction?" Hou Gongji said. "And for a young female escort, over a hundred taels of silver is a bit too much. Unless she's been escorting and earning money since she was born, it's impossible for her to have saved so much through ordinary means. There must be something wrong with this woman."

Although Hou Gongji was the direct superior of Ding Xiu and his party, he actually did not have much contact with Ding Baiying himself.

Even after learning that Ding Baiying was a woman, Hou Gongji still had little interest in her. If it weren't for his father's recent instructions, he wouldn't even have fought Ding Baiying. However, after the formal exchange, Hou Gongji also found that this woman was indeed quite skilled, especially in boxing. Her every move was so precise that it seemed like it was printed from the boxing section of the "New Book of Performance".

"I think that's quite good," Hou Shilu said quietly, shaking his head. "She's brave and virtuous, rich but not greedy. She's really becoming more and more like Hua Mulan."

"Hua Mulan?"

"A play written by Xu Wenchang. A troupe of actors came to our house to perform it."

"I know, but what does this have to do with her?"

"At the welcoming banquet this afternoon, Captain Lu said that his apprentice sister Ding has always wanted to be Hua Mulan," Hou Shilu said. "And I've also asked around, and they both do indeed follow the Qi family. They're considered the grandchildren of Marshal Qi."

"Do you think this is true? I'm afraid it's just a trick." Hou Gongji asked.

"How is it a deception? Could it be that she anticipated you'd search through her luggage, and therefore prepared this silver note in advance? If she wanted to pretend that she valued fame over wealth, why didn't she just reveal that she didn't get any of the head money? Why would she have to be so roundabout? Unless there's evidence that this money was a reward from the court, it wouldn't be surprising. You're just making things up." Hou Shilu waved his hand. "Anything else?"

"That's all? I only found this one thing wrong, and you refuted it completely," Hou Gongji said, feeling somewhat deflated. "What about you? Did you find anything else?"

"Haha," Hou Shilu propped up his head, half-closed his eyes, and tapped his fingers irregularly on the armrest of the wooden chair. "I can see that this girl must have some secret feelings for Captain Lu."

Hou Shilu waited for a while, and when he saw his father stopped talking, he took the initiative to ask, "Is that all?"

"That's all." Hou Shilu shrugged. "I'm increasingly less convinced she's a secret agent of the Imperial Guard. The point is, even if she was, what could she possibly know about me? I haven't colluded with the bandits, nor have I killed innocent people to claim credit for my crimes. There's been no impeachment in the court. This afternoon, after I explained the substitutionary scheme, Captain Lu's reaction was one of obvious surprise and shock. He even thanked Miss Ding on her behalf and said he'd repay me."

"What happens after that?"

"I'll just leave after that," Hou Shilu said unhappily. "They're old friends meeting and flirting with each other, so how can I sit there and watch?"

"Tsk," Hou Shilu smiled awkwardly. "I mean, you didn't put your ears next door?"

"Captain Lu is a cavalry officer from the East Office, an expert at this. If I were to use the trick of "walls have ears," wouldn't that be a case of showing off my skills in front of an expert and ultimately asking for trouble? To avoid his suspicion, I even cleared out the entire floor." Hou Shilu suddenly turned around and stared at Hou Gongji. "By the way, how are you handling the aftermath?"

"Don't worry, before leaving the barracks, we restored everything at the scene. We even tried our best to restore the wrinkles on the clothes to their original state. She will never find out. Or on the contrary, if she finds out even after this, it would be really extraordinary." The scouts brought by Hou Gongji could even find traces of prey after a drizzle.

"Alas." Hou Shilu frowned and shook his head gravely. He was in a bad mood. Even after all this trouble, he still hadn't found anything.

"Father, what should we do next?" Hou Gongji asked.

"What else can we do? We can only take it one step at a time and see if they really leave tomorrow," Hou Shilu said. "If they really leave, it means at least they are not coming for us at this moment."

"If it's not us, it must be someone else," Hou Gongji speculated. "Could it be about the Guangning case?" "No, at least not just the Guangning case." Hou Shilu shook his head slowly, thinking as he spoke, "If the Jinyiwei received the imperial envoy only to inquire about the Guangning case, then Captain Lu and his men should have gone to Liaoyang at most, met with General Xiong and Governor Yuan, and then returned. They shouldn't have gone north to Shenyang and then detoured to Weining. This is pure nonsense."

"And I even brought up Guangning. But Captain Lu didn't continue the conversation, and instead cut the subject short. This means they weren't traveling through Liaodong solely to search for evidence related to the Guangning case. They must have other plans!"

"Dad!" Hou Gongji suddenly had an idea. "Based on this idea, I think the Jinyiwei might be investigating the people behind them! If they really have all left."

"The one behind?" Hou Shilu's eyes narrowed slightly. "After Weining, only General Gao is worthy enough for the Jinyiwei to make a special trip. But he only took office last year. Why would the Jinyiwei investigate him?"

The route from Weiningying all the way south to Zhenjiang lacked even a deputy general, with only mid-level commanders like guerrillas and lieutenant generals at most. If these individuals committed any illegal acts, Xiong Tingbi could simply request the royal command to arrest them, without the need for the Imperial Guard to intervene.

"I'm not talking about General Gao," Hou Gongji said, leaning closer to his father. "Have you forgotten that?"

"What is it?" Hou Shilu blinked, unable to recall. He simply slapped Hou Gongji on the head, "If you have something to say, just say it! Don't play dumb with your father."

Hou Gongji shrank back and spoke in a subtle but firm tone. "It's about when General Xiong first arrived in Liaodong and told Lieutenant General Hu to abandon the Six Forts of Kuandian!"

"Hiss!" Hou Shilu was suddenly startled and took a breath of cold air. "You mean they are coming for General Xiong?"

In the 47th year of the Wanli reign, following the recent defeat at Sarhu, Liaodong was completely vulnerable, with only 6,000 newly recruited Liao soldiers deserting out of 10,000. Faced with this situation, Xiong Tingbi was forced to submit a memorial in July of the 47th year of the Wanli reign titled "The General Situation in Liao Territory Is Over," stating, "The forts of Kuandian, Yiyang, Qinghe, and Fushun are isolated enemy lairs, their troops scattered and weak. If the enemy unites to attack, and one of them fails, all the forts will collapse. I beg the court to swiftly discuss abandoning these forts, concentrating our forces in Liaoning and Shenyang, and defending our base."

Later, in August, Xiong Tingbi submitted another memorial, "Respectfully Presenting a General Strategy for War and Defense," stating, "The six forts of Kuandian are dangerous and short of food, with only a few thousand troops stationed there. The enemy is now gaining momentum. If we divide our forces to guard the entrances, they will surely take advantage. The best approach is to burn down the houses, relocate the army and civilians, and retreat to Yiyang and Fenghuangcheng, forming a stronghold with Liaoshen. This way, our forces will be concentrated, and the enemy will not succeed."

The two memorials arrived in Beijing. The emperor issued an edict: The Liao situation is critical, Tingbi is in charge of the strategy, and he is allowed to act at his discretion in terms of war and defense.

Therefore, Xiong Tingbi ordered the abandonment of the six forts in Kuandian, and the person who implemented this policy and implemented the policy of scorching the walls and clearing the countryside in the area was Hu Guochen, the Kuandian lieutenant general currently stationed in Phoenix City.

After the six forts of Kuandian were abandoned, criticism and impeachment quickly erupted in the court. In September of that year, Zhao Xingbang, a military official, submitted a memorial impeaching Xiong Tingbi, stating, "Tingbi has recklessly abandoned our ancestral territory. His crime is unforgivable! Kuandian has been defended for 150 years, and now it has been surrendered to the enemy. How can we maintain our country?"

Subsequently, Imperial Censor Yao Zongwen, Imperial Censor Liu Guojin, and Feng Sanyuan joined the impeachment of Xiong Tingbi and Hu Guochen, citing their abandonment of Kuandian. The situation gradually devolved into a factional struggle, with Feng Sanyuan even stating in his memorial: "Tingbi is incompetent and cowardly, abandoning the land to the enemy. The failures of Kuandian and Qinghe are the fault of the governor. Please remove him immediately to apologize to the world!"

"That's right!" Hou Gongji looked at Hou Shilu steadily. "From Guangning to Liaoyang, then from Liaoyang to Shenyang, and finally from Shenyang to Zhenjiang. The Jinyiwei traveled all over Liao under the guise of protecting the emperor! Their last stop is Phoenix City behind us!"

"No way," Hou Shilu frowned so hard that he could even pinch a mosquito to death. "The emperor is so supportive of Xiong Jinglüe. Why would he suddenly do this?"

"It's hard to predict the will of heaven. Moreover, three people can make a tiger." Hou Gongji said.

"How can three people make a tiger?" Hou Shilu retorted, "No one has impeached Xiong Jinglie recently, right?"

Judging from the situation in the past six months, the emperor's support for Xiong Tingbi was almost unconditional. Hou Shilu even felt that even if the emperor sent someone to investigate him, he would not let the Jinyiwei make things difficult for Xiong Tingbi.

"Impeachment doesn't have to be done publicly. A notice from the Imperial Academy, or even whispers from the eunuchs, could potentially attract the Imperial Guard," Hou Gongji said with increasing conviction. "And think about what happened at the beginning of this year?"

"Think of nothing!" Hou Shilu glared at Hou Gongji. "I remember all the shit that's happened recently. Just say what you want to say. If you keep beating around the bush, I'll spank you!"

"Oh," Hou Gongji sighed, "Westerners! At the beginning of the new year, Xiong Jinglie killed the Westerner recommended by Xu Dazongbo!"

"What's this got to do with that?" Hou Shilu paused, his pupils shrinking. "Yuan Bingxian was recommended by Grand Master Xu!"

"Yes," Hou Gongji nodded heavily. "That Westerner was beheaded by Yang Zhongcheng in Shenyang. That's why Captain Lu and his men, along with Yuan Bingxian, the military advisor to Zhenjiang, first went to Guangning to see Zhongcheng, and then went to Shenyang to ask Sun Shijun. Now everything is clear, right?"

Hou Shilu thought it over carefully, and was somewhat convinced. "While your explanation makes sense, it's still a little off. Don't forget, Captain Lu and Yuan Bingxian went to Liaoyang first. Even the letter seeking Ding Baiying came from the Governor's Office. If the Jinyiwei were conducting a secret investigation, why would they have to reveal their identities? Furthermore, if the Jinyiwei were investigating General Xiong, why haven't Captain Lu and Yuan Bingxian shown any interest in questioning him all day?"

"This is easy to explain. Zeng's mother fled after hearing the rumor three times, let alone the emperor. I think the emperor is just suspicious because he has heard too many slanders. The Jinyiwei's visit is confidential to other unrelated personnel, but it is not confidential to Xiong Jinglie himself. The Jinyiwei may even be carrying the emperor's oral instructions and asking Xiong Jinglie to give an answer." Hou Gongji felt that his thoughts were unusually clear. As he spoke, he actually began to point and draw here and there.

"If you think that way, then it's understandable that Captain Lu and Military Commissioner Yuan didn't ask you about the case. It was Lieutenant General Hu who abandoned the Six Forts of Kuandian, and the execution of the Westerners without prior approval had nothing to do with you. Since asking would be pointless, it's better to just laugh it off and deal with Weining. We're leaving tomorrow anyway. Otherwise, wouldn't the entire Liaodong region be in a state of panic if the Jinyiwei kept asking questions along the way?"

"So, Captain Lu really came to see Ding Baiying to reminisce about the past?" The more Hou Shilu thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed.

"That's right. 'Private friendship, please do not disturb the local area unless you have any official business.' It's clearly written there." Hou Gongji emphasized the words "do not disturb the local area." "Didn't you just say that Fengji didn't know the Jinyiwei were coming to Liao and just treated Lu Qianhu as an ordinary guard."

"If this is true, even if it is not a disaster, it is still a disaster." Hou Shilu pondered for a long time, and finally sighed.

(End of this chapter)