The Soldier of the Red Mansion

Chapter 347 Intercepting and Killing Tang Ping
The weather is getting cooler.

Although disasters were raging in various places, the capital city, being the center of the country, still saw bustling streets as people from all walks of life came and went.

Caravans from Tongzhou would form long queues outside the city gates every morning.

In this city of one million people, every expense—from food and drink to basic necessities like cooking oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and tea—requires money.

Despite such huge market demand, the economy is sluggish, and the whole city is mired in the lazy atmosphere of the year before the Lunar New Year.

The Beijing garrison was just one corner of a huge city.

Most ordinary people don't usually come into contact with it, so they don't feel anything about it.

The incident at Tongzhou Hexi Camp was, for the entire capital, a trivial matter that caused no major disturbance.

However, today is different. Because of the impeachment, some officials have gathered in the cabinet to discuss the matter.

Zhang Qi, the Left Vice Censor-in-Chief, talked at length in public.

“All departments are following orders, except for the right wing.” Zhang Qi criticized, “Wang Xin is still young and should not be promoted to a high position so easily. Young people lack a sense of the big picture and are causing trouble for the court.”

It was also he who impeached Wang Xin.

The Left Vice Censor-in-Chief is a third-rank official with no fixed number of positions. He is considered a high-ranking and powerful figure in the capital, and ordinary officials dare not offend him. It is only because of Wang Xin's special status that he is so powerful.

Zhang Jifu was not the only one present; he was the Grand Secretary and rarely expressed his opinion, especially since Wang Xin had some connection with him.

Then came the second-in-command, Liu Ru.

Liu Ru generally wouldn't oppose Zhang Jifu, even though Zhang Jifu was his junior. Liu Ru was clear about his position; he was like a seal, his main function being to stamp.

Then came Li Yuan, Vice Minister of War, and Chen Heng, Vice Minister of Personnel.

Below the Minister is the Vice Minister.

The fact that the Minister did not come meant that they would make the decision, and once a resolution was reached, the two departments would be responsible for its implementation. This showed a very serious attitude, but the fact that a Vice Minister was also sent indicated that the meeting itself was of a very high level.

The unassuming Wang Xin had unknowingly built up a powerful force.

This force has already managed to stir up trouble in the imperial court.

Liu Ru pondered.

How can we protect Wang Xin?

What will Zhang Jifu's attitude be?

Liu Ruxian glanced at Zhang Qi, who was still talking.

The main source of the disaster victims was Shandong, and the main disaster-stricken area in Shandong was Qingzhou Prefecture. Of the 159 prefectures in the Great Zhou Dynasty, Qingzhou Prefecture paid more than 200,000 shi of grain annually and was considered a superior prefecture.

Qingzhou Prefecture has a population of nearly one million, but the local authorities only reported three thousand disaster victims. Based on the local people's moral character, the actual number should be around three hundred thousand.

There are 300,000 disaster victims, and the local area needs disaster relief.

With so many disaster victims suddenly appearing, shouldn't we explain to the imperial court where the local funds went?

The Great Zhou Dynasty inherited the Ming system, with revenue split 50/50 between the imperial court and local governments, or 60/40.

When local areas provide disaster relief or when the army passes through, the local areas provide both disaster relief food and military rations in order to solve the problem as soon as possible. Otherwise, if the imperial court were to send grain, it would take several months for the round trip, and the disaster victims would have already starved to death.

The design intention was good.

Building bridges and roads, promoting education and helping farmers, preventing fires and thieves—none of these require money.

It was precisely because of the national policy of the Ming and Zhou dynasties that local governments retained at least 40% of the tax revenue that local industries flourished, and a single lecture by a scholar could attract an unprecedented number of participants, sometimes as many as 10,000.

The number of academies even exceeded the total number during the Tang, Song, and Yuan dynasties. Even ordinary people loved reading all kinds of vernacular and fantastical novels.

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The accumulated problems are getting worse.

Shandong has not been at war. Although there is a Japanese pirate defense force, it has been peaceful for a long time. Qingzhou Prefecture retains more than 100,000 taels of tax revenue every year. Where did all this money go? It alarmed the imperial court. Can it withstand an investigation?
Zhang Qi was from Qingzhou Prefecture, so it's not hard to understand.

Then came Chen Heng from the Ministry of Personnel and Li Yuan from the Ministry of War.

Chen Heng, a disciple of Zhou Daofeng, remained neutral on the matter; Li Yuan, on the other hand, opposed Wang Xin because he belonged to the Zhou family in Datong.

Having figured out the difference, Liu Ru sighed inwardly. In the end, it all depended on Zhang Jifu's attitude. If he insisted on taking down Wang Xin, he wouldn't be able to protect Wang Xin either.

But is it necessary for Zhang Jifu to break ties with himself for the sake of Wang Xin?
I've always followed the rules all these years.

Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, Zhang Jifu will not insist on protecting Wang Xin if he speaks up for him. As long as Zhang Jifu does not insist on taking down Wang Xin, then the matter is in the bag.

What saddened Liu Ru was that the favors he had made by following the rules over the years were becoming increasingly rare, and each use would be one less opportunity to use them.

Is Wang Xin worth it?
Thinking of Lin Ruhai and Jia Zheng, Liu Ru no longer hesitated.

Zhang Jifu left the cabinet, accompanied by Chen Heng, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.

The two arrived at the Zhou residence one after the other in sedan chairs.

The matter of Guang Wangxin alone was not enough to make Zhang Jifu come to Zhou Daofeng's residence. The main reason was that Liu Ru spoke up today, so the implications were worth considering and could not be taken lightly.

"It seems that the emperor has approved of Wang Xin."

Chen Heng, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, asserted with murderous intent, "Wang Xin is already a dangerous person, and it is necessary to remove him."

Zhang Jifu hesitated instead.

Chen Heng understood Zhang Jifu's predicament and advised, "Although this will escalate the conflict, things have come to this point, and we cannot afford to make any mistakes."

Over the years, Liu Ru followed the rules, saving Zhang Jifu a lot of trouble.

If Liu Ru were to overturn the table, Zhang Jifu wouldn't have the opportunity now.

"It's better to wait."

"What are you waiting for?"

Chen Heng knew what Zhang Jifu was planning and explicitly supported it.

The more this is the case, the less room there is for error.

Zhang Jifu dared not make a mistake and patiently said, "The Emperor Emeritus is currently maintaining the stability of the court. Although there have been many setbacks, everything is generally in line with our plan. Although the progress is slow, it is still moving forward."

Chen Heng hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.

Zhang Jifu said earnestly, "Overall, it's still good. We can't let one thing ruin the whole situation."

Upon hearing this, Chen Heng had no way to object.

Both of them looked at Zhou Daofeng.

As Zhou Daofeng retired for a longer period of time, he did not age; on the contrary, he became more energetic, fiddling with a set of expensive tea utensils that had been sent from the south.

After the two disciples finished arguing, Zhou Daofeng calmly spoke up.

How's it going in Datong?

Zhang Jifu and Chen Heng exchanged a glance. The matter was being overseen by Chen Yan of the Ministry of War, but Chen Yan was not present this time, so Zhang Jifu took the initiative to answer.

“When Zhou Wen wrote last time, he had already arranged to meet with several prominent families over there, and those families were also dissatisfied with Wang Xin.”

"What are you dissatisfied with?"

Zhou Daofeng was quite concerned.

Knowing his mentor's temperament, Zhang Jifu understood the situation and immediately explained it to him.

This was the first time Chen Heng had heard such a detailed account of the Datong model outside the Great Wall.

Such as agreements between merchants and herders.

A sense of crisis arose in my heart, and I subconsciously felt disgusted and repulsed.

Zhang Jifu already knew, and he knew even better what the wealthy households were opposing. Because of Wang Xin, the wealthy households had given up a lot of benefits to the herdsmen, even though Wang Xin had given many explanations.

The idea is that with money, herders can buy more goods, and merchants can ultimately reap greater and more beneficial profits.

These kinds of grand principles are usually spoken by wealthy people to ordinary people, so how could the common people possibly listen to them? This sowed the seeds of resentment.

Blocking someone's path to wealth.

That would be the biggest mistake.

Zhou Daofeng asked Zhang Jifu for confirmation: "So that warrior named Tang Ping, will he really side with Zhou Wen?"

Zhang Jifu hesitated for a moment.

Seeing this, Zhou Daofeng understood that Zhang Jifu was not entirely confident either.

Right.

Who can say for sure that something is 100% certain?

Even a biological son might betray his father.

"Then let's wait for Zhou Wen's letter."

Neither of Zhou Daofeng's disciples objected to his suggestion. Wang Xin had only been in the Beijing garrison for a little over half a year; could he really have taken control of the entire Right Route Army?

On the contrary, it was the Western Army of Datong.

Zhou Wen has received strong support from the imperial court, with manpower and money readily available. It has been more than half a year now. While he may not claim to have completely controlled the Western Army of Datong, he has at least managed to divide and win over a portion of it.

The situation in the imperial court has reached this point.

Neither side dared to make any rash moves, so it was better to cut the flesh slowly with a dull knife, and neither side should cause any disturbance.

Everyone's afraid.

Zhang Jifu's face was filled with worry.

"Three parts destiny, seven parts hard work. That's enough, don't worry too much." Seeing his proud student's expression, Zhou Daofeng's attitude became even more detached.

Zhang Jifu gave a wry smile.

He could never emulate his mentor's nonchalant attitude.

"The imperial court is in a really tough spot."

"If the court were not in trouble, how could the emperor have abdicated? If the emperor had not abdicated, how could the court be in this situation today? Everything was predetermined. Let us do our best and leave the rest to fate."

Zhou Daofeng had already made preparations for his funeral.

Including my hometown in Shanghai.

Hundreds of thousands of acres of farmland have already been divided.

"My teacher is so open-minded; I can't learn from him," Zhang Jifu said with a helpless smile, though his eyes seemed to hold a deep resolve.

Yingzhou.

The territory under the jurisdiction of the Western Army of Datong.

These are Yingzhou, Shanyin, Mayi, Shuozhou, and Zuoyun counties.

Each prefecture and county has a population ranging from several thousand to over ten thousand, which is the norm for border prefectures and counties. Ordinary northern prefectures and counties have populations ranging from tens of thousands to thousands, unlike some large counties in the south that have tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of people.

The total population of the entire Datong Western Army's traditional territory within the Great Wall was only about 30,000 to 40,000, while the Datong Western Army had as many as 12,000 men.

Therefore, the Western Army of Datong could not do without supplies from the mainland.

Or rather, the entire Jiubian region cannot function without the support of manpower and resources from the mainland.

Now, if we include the area outside the Great Wall and the more than 100,000 herders, then the population is equivalent to more than 150,000. Although theoretically it cannot support an army of 12,000 people, the prosperous Qiantao region and the monopoly on trade between the inside and outside the Great Wall can at least make up a large part of the population, if not support the entire Datong Western Army.

When Lu Zhongheng arrived in Yingzhou, his face turned ashen after he finished taking stock of the grain in the granary.

The entire Yingzhou granary had only 1.7 dou of grain remaining, and the remaining grain in other castles along the way was even more scarce.

"It's not that we're deliberately making things difficult for those who want to participate in politics, but rather that we simply don't have the opportunity."

The prefect of Yingzhou rushed over to complain.

Lu Zhongheng sneered a few times, knowing that the more debts one has, the less one worries, and that the law does not punish the masses. This was indeed the case in Datong. The imperial court was already in arrears, and having seized on the imperial court's weakness, they became even more unruly.

Impeachment would be useless.

The root of the problem lies with the imperial court. Unless the court makes up for the arrears first, they will always have a reason to complain.

Without lingering, Lu Zhongheng left the pass overnight.

Early the next morning.

Upon arriving at Weiyuan Pass, they found a commotion at the gate. A group of soldiers were driving away several merchants, who were cursing loudly from below the city walls.

“You surnamed Zhao, the Datong Western Army is not just a brigade commander like you. You also have a general above you, and soon there will be another brigade commander. If you dare to cover up the truth, we dare to sue you and see who is afraid of whom in the end.”

Hearing the insults clearly, Lu Zhongheng frowned.

I knew that person was referring to Tang Ping.

"what happened?"

Those merchants who dared to provoke Zhao Yong, upon recognizing Lu Zhongheng, dared not make a sound. Knowing who he was, they obediently slipped away.

Only then did the soldiers offer their explanation.

Those merchants were originally managers of Juzhongchang. This year, Juzhongchang wanted to lower the purchase price and went out of the pass to inform the herders. Many herders were dissatisfied, but the cities outside the pass were under the management of the trading company.

In the end, Zhao Yong was dissatisfied with the merchant guild's unauthorized decision, but he didn't want to break off relations, so he expelled these managers into the pass and forbade them from leaving.

"Can't wait?"

Lu Zhongheng understood, his face full of contempt.

"Ugh."

The military officer also knew that much of their army's food and pay came from Juzhongchang. When the general was in charge, things were fine. How come things have turned out like this less than a year after the general left?

Zhao Yong dared not offend them too much, so he allowed the stewards to curse him.

After all, food supplies are the lifeline, and no one can ignore them.

Lu Zhongheng quickly entered the pass and met Zhao Yong.

Zhao Yong looked much more haggard.

"Did you see it?"

Zhao Yong's face turned red as he was blocked at the door by several stewards who were shouting and cursing him. It was something that even Japanese pirates and barbarians couldn't do.

The wages of avarice is death.

Several managers took on the business, and with the business backing them up, they were willing to risk their lives.

But he couldn't actually kill them.

If the merchants are given a reason, they will dare to break the agreement the next day and cut off the Datong Western Army's money and supplies.

"What are you going to do?"

Lu Zhongheng had no better solution.

Why could Wang Xin solve any problem when he was around? Lu Zhongheng originally thought he was no worse than Wang Xin, but after more than half a year, he was exhausted.

Zhao Yong narrowed his eyes.

"Tang Ping is coming back."

"how do you know?"

Lu Zhongheng became curious.

Zhao Yong sneered.

“His house is so big that it's always decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations whenever he goes back.”

Lu Zhongheng fell silent.

Who wouldn't like a big house? Although I didn't buy it directly, the Yangzhou Chamber of Commerce provided me with food and drink, making my house even more luxurious than Tang Ping's.

Moreover, the house belonging to Tang Ping's family was part of the dowry given by the Zhou family.

So what if they don't want their daughter to suffer?

There's nothing wrong with it.

"I am prepared to intercept and kill Tang Ping."

Zhao Yong looked at Lu Zhongheng.

"hiss."

Lu Zhongheng gasped.

Wang Xin's men were all incredibly audacious. They had thought that Tang Ping was already disregarding the court enough, but they never expected that Zhao Yong, who had been acting so quietly, would be even more reckless and actually try to intercept and kill a high-ranking court general.

Realizing what was happening, Lu Zhongheng asked with difficulty, "Does it really have to be this way?"

“Although Zhou Wen is difficult to deal with, I am not afraid. But if Tang Ping joins him, I will surely lose. In that case, I might as well strike first.”

Zhao Yong pointed to the area outside the pass.

“Mr. Lu has seen the true character of the merchant guild.” Zhao Yong’s voice drifted as if it came from the horizon, making Lu Zhongheng shudder. “If the merchant guild is allowed to run rampant, the foundation left by the general will probably be destroyed. Whether for the sake of the general or for the sake of everyone’s foundation, any sign of trouble must be nipped in the bud.”

Based on the merchant's reaction, Zhao Yong was quite certain that Tang Ping had most likely made some promise to his father-in-law.

Without Tang Ping's promise, how could the Zhou family have the confidence to confront the army?

Unless they are confident of gaining military power.

The general is soft-hearted, but I am not.

(End of this chapter)