Ming Dynasty 1627

Chapter 90 Crab Fight
Inside Tian Ergeng's residence.

In the back hall, a large gilded bronze basin with sea creature patterns holds shallow, clear water.

Two large, green-shelled hairy crabs, a gift from His Majesty, were leisurely blowing bubbles inside.

To them, this gleaming bronze basin was the entire world.

The ferocious sea beasts on the basin walls are the majestic mountains in their world.

Suddenly, a few grains of soybean meal fell from "heaven" and sank to the bottom of the water, emitting an enticing aroma.

The brief peace was broken.

The two large crabs moved almost simultaneously, brandishing their huge claws, and collided violently.

Water splashed everywhere in the copper basin, and a silent but brutal battle began.

They entangle and tumble, using all their strength, just to kill each other and monopolize the reward that falls from the sky.

Finally, with a soft cracking sound, one of the crab's giant claws was ripped off at the root.

The victor, swaggering with his spoils, tossed them aside and then, oblivious to everyone else, crawled toward the soybean meal and devoured it.

The defeated creature, its pincers severed, dragged its mangled body and hastily retreated to a corner of the basin, hiding in the shadow of the ferocious sea beast, motionless as if it were already dead.

The camera zooms out.

This gilded bronze basin was merely an insignificant decoration in a corner of the hall.

The entire hall was covered with thick Persian carpets, which made no sound when you stepped on them.

In the corner stood a half-person-high bronze incense burner with a crane design, burning with the finest ambergris, its smoke curling upwards and its aroma calming.

Hanging on the wall is an authentic work by the master Tang Yin, depicting a landscape in a freehand style.

Every item here exudes a profound cultural heritage, far beyond what ordinary nouveau riche can match.

Tian Ergeng, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, stood before the golden basin.

He stood upright, dressed in plain blue silk, holding a few grains of soybean meal in his hand, looking indifferently at everything in the basin.

The fight just now was started by him.

He had been standing there for half an hour, motionless, like a stone statue.

Then a calm voice came from behind him.

"Father, the list has been compiled."

Tian Ergeng then slowly turned around.

His son, Tian Yuanyin, the Vice Commander of the Left Office of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, stood a few steps away, bowing respectfully.

He was also dressed in a flying fish robe, but he lacked the imposing aura that Tian Ergeng possessed.

"Ah."

Tian Ergeng merely responded through his nose, but his gaze returned to the golden basin.

The victorious crab continued its greedy feast, oblivious to its surroundings. Meanwhile, the crab in the corner with its broken claw remained silent.

The room fell silent again, the oppressive atmosphere making it hard to breathe.

Tian Yuanyin was still young, and couldn't help but speak again, his voice filled with a hint of confusion and anxiety.

"Father, do we really have to go this far?"

He stepped forward and lowered his voice: "Once this list is submitted, it will almost certainly destroy half of our family's power!"

“From now on, the guards will no longer be able to suppress the other factions.”

"Yesterday, that scoundrel Zheng Shiyi even went to the Luo residence in person to pay his respects. Who knows what they said behind his back!"

Tian Ergeng seemed not to hear him, still staring at the golden basin, and asked calmly, "How's the intelligence plan I asked you to prepare coming along?"

Tian Yuanyin opened his mouth, wanting to persuade him again, but meeting his father's cold gaze and the weight of years of accumulated authority, he ultimately dared not say another word. He lowered his head, cupped his hands, and said, "It's finished. I've reviewed the military books left by my grandfather and interviewed some of the old servants from back then. It's all organized."

This time, Tian Ergeng simply didn't bother to make a sound.

The hall was unbearably quiet, with only the occasional soft sound of soybean meal falling from his fingers into the water.

The injured crab remained curled up in the corner, motionless.

After an unknown amount of time, a servant hurried in from outside, bowed, and whispered in Tian Ergeng's ear:

"My lord, the men below saw...saw Wang Tiqian leave the Eastern Depot and go into the palace."

Tian Ergeng's cold gaze suddenly narrowed!
He turned abruptly, staring intently at the servant, his voice low yet carrying an undeniable authority: "Did he enter the palace voluntarily, or was he summoned by His Majesty?"

The servant trembled under his gaze and hurriedly replied, "Master, it was...it was the imperial decree that first came before Eunuch Wang left the Eastern Depot."

Upon hearing this, Tian Ergeng's tense body involuntarily relaxed, and the thick cloud of worry between his brows seemed to dissipate slightly.

He waved his hand to dismiss the servants, then added, "Send more men; report back immediately once he leaves the palace!"

"Yes!"

The servant felt as if he had been granted a pardon and bowed as he withdrew.

Tian Ergeng turned around again and looked at the golden basin.

The winner was still enjoying his meal, completely unaware of the impending danger.

In the shadows of the corner, the crab with the broken claw, seemingly resigned to its fate, was supporting its body with its remaining limbs.

Silently and inchingly, it slowly approached its unsuspecting kin from its blind spot.

……

Qianqing Palace.

Zhu Youjian took the hot towel handed to him by a palace maid, casually wiped the sweat from his forehead, and then picked up the warm tea offered by another palace maid and drank it all in one gulp.

Just moments before, he had returned from the Yongwei Camp drill ground at Di'anmen.

Covered in dust, yet feeling utterly carefree.

There was nothing special happening today; it was just a routine inspection.

Sun Yingyuan was indeed remarkable, having once again won first place in the drills. He personally summoned him and offered a few words of encouragement, then inquired in detail about the arrangements for his family in the capital, and whether they were settling in well for their studies in the palace.

Besides that, there's the team led by Wu Fangrui, who came in last place in the last competition.

I don't know what method he used, but just last time, due to internal strife, the squad leader and several of his sergeants fought each other on the spot, causing a huge commotion, today he has suddenly jumped to twenty-seventh place.

Zhu Youjian found it amusing and simply created an additional "Best Improvement Award" on the spot, with the same reward as the tenth place team. This made Wu Fangrui and his teammates so excited that their faces turned red, and they shouted "Long live the leader!" which made the other teams very resentful.

As for his own archery skills, they remained unchanged; at a distance of sixty paces, he could only hit the target three or four times out of ten, showing no improvement whatsoever.

But Zhu Youjian was not discouraged.

Just like the Yongwei Battalion, although there were occasional flaws in the drills of each battalion, they were eventually on the right track.

The seeds he sowed have already sprouted; now, all he needs to do is wait for them to take root, blossom, and bear fruit.

Zhu Youjian sat back down at his desk, looking at the four stacks of memorials neatly arranged on the table, full of energy.

“Comrade Gao,” he pointed to the stacks of memorials and asked, “have today’s memorials been classified as previously agreed?”

“Your Majesty,” Gao Shiming said, bowing. “Today there were a total of 198 memorials. The Cabinet and the Directorate of Ceremonial have already classified them.”

"Among them, according to the cabinet's classification, there is one item of the Class A category, ten items of the Class B category, eighty-five items of the Class C category, and one hundred and two items of the Class D category."

"According to the classification of the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs, there are two items of the 'A' category, nine items of the 'B' category, seventy-nine items of the 'C' category, and one hundred and eight items of the 'D' category."

……

(End of this chapter)