The Soldier of the Red Mansion

Chapter 218 Transformation
"Lord Zhai."

When Wang Xin arrived in Datong, he did not go to see Zhang Wenjin first, but instead went to Zhai Wen's house.

"General Wang."

Zhai Wen looked surprised. After seeing Wang Xin clearly, he exclaimed incredulously. Realizing what had happened, he quickly invited Wang Xin to sit in his home. Shi Ping and the other guards were sent to a side room to rest, and their horses were sent to the stables to be cared for.

Although Zhai Wen's official rank was not high, his home in Datong was quite large, with a full complement of servants, grooms, maids, and servants—a small but complete household.

Shi Ping, who was eating fruit in the side room, was worried, so he ran to the Zhai family's stable halfway there. When he saw that the groom was feeding the stable with fine feed, he couldn't help but smile. They had saved themselves another meal.

Zhai Wen invited Wang Xin to his study to show his closeness, and looked at Wang Xin with a face full of emotion.

Wang Xin chuckled and asked, "What's on my face?"

"I want to see clearly whether you look different from others."

"Can you see it clearly now?"

“I see clearly, two eyes and one mouth, nothing special,” Zhai Wen replied with a smile, then changed the subject, saying, “What is special is that the governor couldn’t subdue your people.”

Upon hearing the words "Governor," Wang Xin asked curiously, "So you've sided with Zhang Wenjin?"

Zhai Wen admitted the truth without rebuttal, explaining, "The governor has a great reputation and now controls Datong. How could I dare to disobey him?"

If it were a military officer, such as a military governor, Zhai Wen wouldn't be too afraid. But if it were Zhang Wenjin, he could not only dismiss him from his post, but also ruin his reputation among scholars with a single sentence. Zhai Wen dared not offend him and had already obediently gone to seek refuge with him.

Wang Xin could understand Zhai Wen's feelings. This man was indeed powerless to resist. Zhang Wenjin was an imperial censor and his superior, who had him cornered. Although the imperial examinations were based on tests, the rankings were like aristocratic bloodlines, with those ranked higher seemingly exerting an innate pressure on those ranked lower.

"What's the situation in Datong now?" Wang Xin stared at Zhai Wen and said jokingly, "You don't need to keep this from me, do you?"

Zhai Wen did not answer directly, but instead raised his teacup and took a sip of tea.

Wang Xin did not urge him, but waited silently for Zhai Wen.

Zhang Wenjin will eventually leave Datong; he can't be the local tyrant of Datong and can't replace Feng Yong. Wang Xin's return now means he intends to stay at Yanmen Pass. Thinking of Wang Xin's strength, Zhai Wen's heart stirred.

"We will definitely launch an attack," Zhai Wen stated definitively.

"How should we launch the attack?"

“The Yongxing Army is currently in serious trouble with its pay, and the governor is worried about it,” Zhai Wenyi said. “In addition, there are you and Hu Liyong. Your Hexi Battalion and Hu Liyong’s Tiancheng Army are both elite troops from Datong. Adding the Yongxing Army, we can gather about 20,000 men. If we recruit another 20,000 to 30,000 men from various places, plus tens of thousands of militia, it shouldn’t be a problem to gather an army of nearly 100,000.”

It seems this was Zhang Wenjin's plan.

The Shanyu tribe was crippled by their own attack. Including the old and weak, they could only field three or four thousand cavalry at most, which wasn't a big threat. The biggest threat was Ou Yanhu, who could field five or six thousand cavalry. The key was how much influence he had in Dabansheng.

If all the tribes of Dabansheng obeyed his orders, and the entire population was mobilized for war, it wouldn't be surprising to gather 50,000, 60,000, 70,000, or 80,000 cavalry.

As for Zhang Wenjin's so-called 100,000-strong army, probably less than 10,000 of them were truly capable fighters. But don't laugh at me, brother. The Hu people probably also have a significant proportion of the old and weak, but they are born on horseback, which makes them far superior to the Zhou army.

Zhai Wen couldn't help but ask, "What do you think?"

"not so good."

"what?"

Zhai Wen was shocked and asked in surprise, "You think it will fail?"

"I don't know." Wang Xin shook his head and said calmly, "War isn't about numbers. There's too little information right now to make a judgment easily."

"I see," Zhai Wen pressed further, "So, if it were you, what would you do?"

Wang Xin raised an eyebrow and looked at Zhai Wen with amusement, "Whose side are you asking on?"

Zhai Wen felt embarrassed and apologized, saying, "I'm sorry, I wasn't very considerate." Zhang Wenjin's suppression of the Hexi Camp and his attempt to divide them made him realize that he would have done the same.

Warfare is about fighting against external enemies. I'm not the kind of person who's good at internal strife but bad at external ones. Wang Xin has always looked down on such people, and I certainly wouldn't do that. I took the initiative and said, "We don't fight unprepared battles. If we want to win, we need to prepare more in peacetime. First, send more people to contact familiar units and gather as much intelligence as possible. Second, train the troops more and strengthen our weapons. Third, reward the entire army fairly and justly to boost morale. Fourth, stockpile provisions."

Wang Xin explained patiently.

As Zhai Wen listened, his expression grew increasingly absurd, and he interrupted, "Everyone knows what you're saying, but it all costs money."

Wang Xin did not refute, but went along with it, saying, "Yes, everyone knows the big principles, but they just can't put them into practice."

Zhai Wen was speechless.

What Wang Xin said should have been a matter of course; when did it become something that couldn't be done?

"You stay at my residence, I'll go see the Governor." Zhai Wen stopped dwelling on the matter and offered to help Wang Xin.

With Zhai Wen's help, Wang Xin was naturally happy, as it would save him a lot of trouble.

Just like the conflict between Tang Ping and Zhao Yong, which they could resolve due to their own reasons, Zhai Wen certainly couldn't play such a significant role. However, with his mediation, Zhang Wenjin would likely change his attitude to some extent.

Zhai Wen settled Wang Xin and his party in, made room for them, and then prepared to go to the yamen to find the governor and censor.
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"Can Wang Xin be trusted?"

When Zhai Wen met Zhang Wenjin, the Imperial Censor, again, Zhang Wenjin, dressed in his magnificent official robes, looked much more gloomy. He was troubled by many things lately. The generals who used to be obedient had now become repulsive.

“General Wang is a loyal and capable general. If he is not trustworthy, I really don’t know who else I can trust,” Zhai Wen said as a guarantor.

Zhang Wenjin felt a pang of regret. Had she known this would happen, she wouldn't have gone too far in dealing with this person.

He felt a pang of regret. If he hadn't taken it upon himself to increase the supplies sent to the capital, Datong wouldn't be in such dire financial straits now. It was all the fault of the barbarians.

"Although Hu Liyong agreed to send troops, I really don't trust him." Zhang Wenjin felt uncertain and worried about everything, but he didn't know what to do.

The orders to urge troops to set off for various regions have been issued long ago. According to the plan, Datong will set off in no more than two months, with a scale of nearly 100,000 people.

If I succeed, I will soar to great heights and be on the verge of joining the cabinet. If I fail, I hope that my recent performance will prompt my mentors and classmates in the capital to lend me a hand.

We really need to win over Wang Xin and get him to put in the effort.

"Please ask him to come see me tomorrow." Zhang Wenjin no longer hesitated. For the sake of his future, he didn't care about losing face. As long as Wang Xin could fight with all his might this time, everything else was negotiable.

Zhai Wen observed the changes in the censors.

Before the incident in the Hetao region, the censor was quite decisive. After the incident, he lost his former decisiveness and became hesitant, unsure whether this military expedition could quell the rebellion.

Although everyone knew that Wang Xin was a formidable commander, this time was different; the entire Hetao region was in chaos.

Not knowing what conditions Wang Xin would offer, Zhai Wen took his leave and hurriedly returned to his residence.

In the evening, after listening to Zhai Wen's introduction and learning about Zhang Wenjin's attitude, which was not unexpected, Wang Xin smiled. His opportunity had finally arrived, although it was not the opportunity he wanted.

(End of this chapter)