Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 535 Coincidentally
Wuergudai quickly gathered his thoughts and prepared to face Nurhaci with full vigilance. He had already obtained the information he needed most. The key now was to escape from the Khan's palace unscathed. "The Second Prince told me. Earlier today."

"Why did Amin suddenly tell you this?" Nurhaci asked.

"I, I don't know either," Wuergudai said, looking apprehensive and questioning Nurhaci, "Didn't the Khan send the Second Prince to ask about this?"

Nurhaci was stunned by Wuergudai. He frowned and asked again, "Amin said I sent him to ask about this matter?"

"The Second Prince didn't say so explicitly," Wu Ergudai shook his head, "The Second Prince only said that he came to remind me. But, but the Second Prince's questioning tone was very much like an interrogation. He asked me right from the start if I knew the name 'Wang Shizhong'. I said I didn't know, and then," he swallowed involuntarily, his voice and body trembling.

"Then the Second Prince immediately said with a stern face that 'Wang Shizhong' was Kebaku, and Kebaku was 'Wang Shizhong'. I was terrified and trembling all over. After I returned home, the more I thought about it, the more frightened I became. I thought the Khan had sent the Second Prince to question me. I was so disturbed that I told the princess what had happened. The princess told me to come quickly and kowtow to the Khan and confess my guilt!"

"Ridiculous!" Nurhaci shouted, and Wuergudai fell to his knees. "Get up! What are you confessing to? I just told you that the incident is over! Why did they send Amin to question you?" Nurhaci said the words of reproach, but his tone softened. Wuergudai was really nervous, so nervous that Nurhaci could not see any trace of pretense.

"Great Khan." Wuergudai smiled in response, then immediately put on a confused and puzzled look. "Could it be that the Great Khan doesn't know about this?"

"Of course I know. I've heard about this for a while, but I never gave it much thought," Nurhaci patted Wuergudai's shoulder, "and I wouldn't send anyone to ask you."

Wuergudai breathed a sigh of relief and offered a timid and fawning compliment. "That's right, that's right! There's no way in the Jin Dynasty that we can hide anything from the Khan of Heaven's Mandate! The Khan of Heaven's Mandate is so benevolent, Wuergudai really doesn't know how to repay him!"

"Alright, alright." Nurhaci really liked Wuergudai's servile demeanor. He nodded with satisfaction, supported Wuergudai's shoulders, and helped him stand up. "Amin called you over just to tell you this?"

"Now that I think about it, the Second Prince probably just mentioned this casually. I made a big deal out of it and misunderstood him." Wu Ergudai wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve. He didn't really relax, his heart still beating fast.

"Just saying it?" Nurhaci raised his eyebrows.

"Does the Khan still remember Zhuona?" Wuergudai asked carefully.

"Zhona?" Nurhaci's eyes squinted, and he quickly remembered the name of this man he had only met a few times. "Is he the poor fellow under the Blue Banner who had half his village slaughtered?"

"It was him. I was the one who sent someone to report his family affairs to the Khan. The Second Prince asked me to go over because of his affairs." Wuergudai said.

"Hmm," Nurhaci said with a look of realization. "Is Zhuona okay?"

"The village suffered a devastating disaster that wiped out humans and livestock. Even if we wanted to, it wouldn't heal. Alas! His son is almost an adult," Wuergudai shook his head, feigning both sorrow and emotion. "However, with the generous compensation provided by the Great Khan and the Second Prince, I'm sure he and his village will recover quickly."

"When the people of my tribe suffer, I should provide them with relief. This is what a ruler should do," Nurhaci nodded slightly, a look of sadness fitting in. "It's a pity that the Great Jin has lost another warrior who was about to mature."

"The Ming court is truly utterly devoid of conscience! They actually exploited the fleeing remnants of the Yehe faction to commit such vicious and brutal acts!" Disgust and hatred quickly crossed Wuergudai's face. "How dare they do this to the former Hada people, and at the same time, have Kebaku make liaisons and campaigns under the guise of appeasement? Shameless, shameless!" Wuergudai hunched over, looking even older than his father, Nurhaci. "It was terrifying! I still dream about that horrific scene from time to time."

"The Ming Dynasty has been indifferent to us for a long time. They forced me to let you go out independently before, but in the end, didn't they just watch your Hada tribe being bullied by Yehe and Tatar? They only think about themselves. If you believe them, you will be sold out again sooner or later." Nurhaci said words to win him over, but there was still a habitual scrutiny in his eyes when he looked at Wuergudai.

Wuergudai was startled when Nurhaci mentioned independence, but he quickly calmed down. Wuergudai looked at Nurhaci, tears of gratitude gleaming in his eyes. "That's right! Following the Ming Dynasty, we couldn't even get enough to eat. If I hadn't been lucky enough to be the Khan's son-in-law, I would have taken the initiative to submit and have a way out. I'm afraid that my old subordinates and I would have become bondservants of the Yehe or Tatar tribes, or simply starved to death! How could we have the good life we ​​have today?"

Seeing Wuergudai's attitude remained the same, Nurhaci's slight suspicions completely dissipated. "You just said that Amin also gave Zhuona compensation. What did he give Zhuona?"

"If I heard correctly, it seemed to be ten taels of gold, ten taels of gold packed in a small linen bag." Wu Ergudai answered honestly.

"Hmph," Nurhaci snorted. "I clearly told Amin, that brat, that he doesn't need any extra rewards."

"Zhona's village is, after all, under the Second Prince's blue banner," Wuergudai said. "The Ming Kingdom has committed such evil deeds. If the Second Prince doesn't show any reaction, it will be difficult for him to win over the people in the future."

"That's true," Nurhaci nodded slightly and asked with a smile. "Then what did you say?"

Although Wuergudai had been prepared for this question, he was still shocked when he heard Nurhaci ask it. Wuergudai forced himself to remain calm and sighed, "How can my family afford to compensate others? Last winter, Manguji wanted to make a mink coat, but it was not completed because we were short of two pieces of high-quality mink fur. I only hope that I can get it this year."

"Hahaha," Nurhaci was extremely satisfied. He smiled and did not continue to delve into the issue. "Wu Ergudai, are you crying poor to me?"

"No, no. How dare I complain to the Khan about my poverty?" Wuergudai shook his head repeatedly, looking like someone eager for battle and achievement, yet breathless and regretful. "I simply hate that I've fallen ill and can't accompany the Khan on his campaign against the Ming, serving him and earning his rewards. I can only feel sorry for myself."

"There are plenty of opportunities for you to achieve great things. When you feel better, I will take you to war." Nurhaci gently stroked Wuergudai's head, like a loving brother encouraging his respectful younger brother. "Go to the fur warehouse later and get those two sable skins yourself. Just say they're my reward."

"Thank you, thank you, Great Khan." Wu Ergudai choked up again.

--------

Half an hour later, Second Prince Amin was summoned to the Khan's Palace to meet with the Great Khan Nurhaci. "Amin pays homage to the Khan of Heavenly Mandate." Amin did not stand at the door like Wuergudai did, but walked all the way to Nurhaci before kneeling and bowing.

"Amin, please sit up." Nurhaci patted the empty seat next to him.

"Thank you." Amin stood up and was about to sit down, but when he saw where Nurhaci was pointing, he immediately knelt back down. "How dare a prince sit shoulder to shoulder with the Khan? I hope the Khan will forgive Amin for not obeying your order!"

"Amin, why are you imitating the Ming Dynasty's way of retreating?" Nurhaci smiled at the rat-tail braid on Amin's head. "We in the Great Jin don't talk about such things. Hurry up and sit up."

"The sun and the moon have their own divisions, and there are differences between the upper and the lower. This is not something that the Ming Dynasty has, but the eternal law of nature. If I do not respect the hierarchy and sit side by side with the Khan, the Eternal Heaven will surely punish me!" Amin kowtowed and said.

"The sun and the moon have their parts, and the upper and the lower are differentiated. This is the law of nature. A father should be loving and a son should be filial, and there should be no gap between them. This is also the law of nature. Amin, can it be that since we are a monarch and a subject, we can no longer be father and son?" Nurhaci patted the seat beside him again.

When Amin heard Nurhaci calling himself his father again, a nameless evil fire immediately surged into his heart.

But when he looked up, Amin's face was once again filled with the expression of being moved and tearful. "I am truly ashamed to hear my father say that."

"How can you feel ashamed? There will always be a place for you beside me." Nurhaci took Amin's hand and half-forced him to sit next to him.

"Thank you, father, and thank you, Khan." Amin sat down, but his butt was only slightly hanging over the edge of the bed.

"Amin, Wuergudai was here just now." Nurhaci half leaned down, his whole body showing a relatively relaxed posture.

Amin's heart skipped a beat when he heard that. But after all, he had practiced the art of suppressing emotion for over a decade. His fleeting unease didn't even register on his face. After a breath, Amin calmly formulated his response: "Khan Ama, is this Wuergudai here to complain?"

"Complain, why do you say that?" Nurhaci asked with a smile.

"Because I told him about the Kebaku incident," Amin said. "After hearing it, he knelt down and kowtowed, and almost peed himself in my room."

As soon as Amin learned that "Wang Shizhong was Kebaku", he sent people from the Bordered Blue Banner to tell Nurhaci the news. However, Nurhaci had never clearly told him that he was not allowed to tell Wuergudai this news.

"Haha," Nurhaci laughed, "He came to me like this too, and even said that I asked you to tell him this matter in order to make him confess his guilt."

"He's talking nonsense!" Amin said "angrily": "I have never lied and dare not lie in the name of the Khan! At most, I just lied to him with a stern look. This is a shameless slander. I want to confront Wuergudai face to face!" Amin's face was angry, but he was secretly happy in his heart: Wuergudai really didn't tell Nurhaci about the "family letter".

"Oh, there's no need for that. He was just scared by you. And he didn't come to me to complain. He came to apologize." Amin's performance was so good that the suspicion that Nurhaci subconsciously had quickly disappeared.

"Since Wuergudai has already pleaded guilty, why doesn't the Khan have him arrested? I've long suspected that the Morohun case is deeply connected to that bastard named Kebaku. It seems to me that Wuergudai still harbors ambitions for restoration and wants to be his lousy Hada Beile." Amin probed further. The letter, signed solely by Wuergudai, lay in his arms. If Nurhaci showed any suspicion of him, Amin would pull out the letter and file a complaint against Wuergudai.

"The Hada tribe is a thing of the past. Wuergudai, a lifelong coward, won't be able to cause any trouble." Nurhaci waved his hand and said firmly, "Even if he really gathered those tribesmen and said he wanted to become independent, I'm afraid few would listen to him."

"Great Khan. Whether he can succeed is one thing, but whether we should guard against him is another." Amin got the answer he wanted and continued, "The Ming Dynasty has already pushed Kebaku forward. There's no guarantee that the submissive Wuergudai might develop disloyalty one day. It's always a good idea to guard against him."

"Yes, that's true," Nurhaci said without hesitation, asking directly for advice. "How do you think we can defend against him?"

"The best way is of course." Amin gently stroked his chin with his thumb.

"No!" Nurhaci immediately rejected it. "At least for now, Wuergudai has committed no crime. Executing an innocent man for no reason would be extremely unpopular. Right now, our Great Jin is in trouble, and public opinion is very important."

"The Khan is very thoughtful," Amin praised him. "In that case, we can only settle for the next best thing: throw him far away and find someone else to watch over him."

"Who do you think is better to send to look after him?" Nurhaci asked again.

"That's not a big deal." Amin suppressed the urge to recommend himself. "There are many people in the Great Jin who are loyal to the Khan. The Khan can just make the arrangements according to his own wishes."

"Since you proposed this idea, you can go and watch him," said Nurhaci.

"Me?" Amin was delighted, but his face was full of surprise. "But I still have to lead the army to conquer Korea." As early as on the way back to Hetuala, Nurhaci had already said that the task of conquering Korea would be given to Amin.

"I just thought about it. We can't control that Kebaku. But as long as you take Wuergudai to Korea, Daishan and I will take Hada's old subordinates to plunder Tatars, and we can divide the old Beile and his old subordinates into two. In this way, even if that Kebaku makes any moves, it won't cause any big trouble." Nurhaci raised the corner of his mouth, quite satisfied with this strategy of dividing into two.

"The Khan is wise!" Amin bowed his head and praised.

(End of this chapter)