Late Ming Dynasty: From the Defeated Soldiers at Daling River to Ascending the Throne

Since settling down in Shanhaiguan, Chen Feng has never stopped pushing his body to its limits.

He was very dissatisfied with the physical condition of this body, so he devised a strict training plan for himself.

Jogging, push-ups, tuck jumps, planks...

Aji and Sun Ergou watched his training and, out of curiosity, started practicing as well.

After a training session, it was nearly noon. He and his two sons were sunbathing in the courtyard after taking a bath.

Hao Dadao and Meng Changgeng were summoned by Zhang Lan's men to collect their rations early in the morning; Old Pu was brewing medicine in the kitchen, as he had been coughing badly for the past few days and kept saying that his chest felt tight.

The days were too quiet, so quiet that it made Chen Feng uneasy.

It's already October 18th, and things should be almost over in Dalinghe, but Song Wei still hasn't returned, and the military merit verification that Zhang Lan mentioned hasn't come either.

As he was thinking, the gate was kicked open, and the guards at the gate were sent flying and crashed into the courtyard.

Chen Feng's heart skipped a beat; they had finally arrived.

The gate was pushed open, and dozens of Imperial Guards filed in. Li Ruolian also stepped into the courtyard.

He was followed by a member of the Imperial Guard, who was carrying a bundle.

Chen Feng remained calm despite the commotion, and cupped his hands in greeting, saying, "Commander Li, what brings you here?"

Li Ruolian stepped through the door, glanced at the people in the courtyard, and said, "Commander Chen, may I have a word with you in private?"

Chen Feng stepped aside to let Li Ruolian into the main room, and gave Aji a wink.

Aji nodded, stepped back to the door and closed it, standing guard at the door with the Imperial Guard who was closely following Li Ruolian.

The room was dimly lit. Li Ruolian sat down at the table and placed the bundle on it.

The bundle was opened, revealing a stack of military records and confessions copied from Xifengkou.

Li Ruolian raised her head, stared into Chen Feng's eyes, and asked bluntly, "Commander Chen, who exactly are you?"

Chen Feng remained silent.

Li Ruolian pushed the papers forward: "This is a confession sent from Xifengkou. You said in it that you are from Liaoyang, not from Beizhili."

He then pointed to another stack, "These are military records transferred from Xuanda, the roster of Datong Left Guard from the third year of Tianqi to the fourth year of Chongzhen. I flipped through them from beginning to end, and there was no name Chen Feng."

Chen Feng's expression remained unchanged.

But Chen Feng already knew in his heart that Li Ruolian was able to produce so much evidence, and that the information Zhang Lan gave was all false.

Therefore, Song Wei did not actually have a person named Chen Feng under his command. Zhang Lan simply gave himself this identity so that he could cooperate in receiving military merits.

Zhang Lan's goal was likely to protect Song Wei's official position.

Seeing that Chen Feng did not react, Li Ruolian continued, "Liaoyang was occupied by the Tartars in the first year of the Tianqi reign. If you are from Liaoyang, you are either a refugee who escaped from Liaoyang, or you came from the Later Jin."

Chen Feng finally spoke: "Does Commander Li believe that I am a spy for the Later Jin?"

Li Ruolian didn't reply, she just looked at him.

Chen Feng smiled, naturally refusing to admit his identity as a spy or the crime of impersonating a commander. "Commander Li, I am absolutely not a spy for the Later Jin, and my identity as a commander is genuine."

Li Ruolian raised an eyebrow.

"As for my resume..." Chen Feng paused, "General Song wants to promote me to the position of trial commander, so it's not surprising that he would make my resume look better."

Li Ruolian stared at him, trying to discern something from his face.

But there was nothing on that face; you couldn't read any information from it.

After a moment of silence, Li Ruolian suddenly changed her tone: "Chen Feng, I am not here today to punish you."

Chen Feng looked at him, waiting for him to continue.

"I have reached an agreement with Eunuch Gao. If you are willing to admit that you went to Yizhou on the orders of Eunuch Wang Yingchao, I can arrange a Jinyiwei (Imperial Guard) identity for you."

Li Ruolian tapped her fingers on the table. "Your military merits will still count as a trial centurion of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. You can be promoted to commander of a thousand later, a substantive post."

Chen Feng's heart skipped a beat.

A commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, a fifth-rank official, and a substantive post, is considered a prominent figure within the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

This Wang Yingchao should be a supervising eunuch like Gao Qiqian, so he is simultaneously labeled as a member of the Imperial Horse Administration and the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

As long as the two families don't fall out, basically no one will be able to touch me.

But what will be the cost?

The price was that he would be tied to the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Imperial Horse Administration from then on. Although it seemed like he had a bright future, it would be difficult for him to do anything on his own in the future.

He paused for a moment, then asked, "What if I am unwilling?"

Li Ruolian's expression turned cold.

"Unwilling?" He stood up, meeting Chen Feng's gaze. "Then the centurion and eunuch Gao will do everything in their power to investigate your impersonation of a Jinyiwei. Even if Zhang Lan can save your life temporarily, you will spend the rest of your life under investigation."

He narrowed his eyes to slits. "Then you might accidentally fall into the water or die in a fall from your horse. Which do you prefer?"

Chen Feng met Li Ruolian's eyes, which were icy cold.

Chen Feng remained silent for a long time before finally speaking: "Commander Li, I need some time to consider this."

Li Ruolian stared at him for a few moments, then nodded: "I'll give you three days to consider. By then, I'd like to hear a satisfactory answer."

He turned and pushed open the door to leave, but suddenly stopped and looked back at Chen Feng: "Chen Feng, you're a smart man, don't choose the wrong path."

As Li Ruolian led her men out of the courtyard, they bumped into Zhang Lan.

Zhang Lan had clearly rushed over with his men after hearing that Li Ruolian had brought the Imperial Guards to find Chen Feng.

Upon seeing Li Ruolian emerge, Zhang Lan's face instantly lit up with a smile. "Commander Li, what brings you here? If you need anything, just let me know, and I'll pay you a visit in person. There's no need for you to trouble yourself..."

Li Ruolian walked past him without stopping, leading her people past him without even glancing at him.

Zhang Lan's hand froze in mid-air, but the smile on her face remained unchanged, as if nothing had happened.

He watched Li Ruolian walk away, the smile on his face gradually fading.

He turned and stepped into the courtyard.

Chen Feng was standing at the doorway of the main house, looking this way. Zhang Lan put on a concerned expression and quickly walked over. "Chen Feng! What did Li Ruolian want with you? Did he give you any trouble?"

Chen Feng looked at him without saying a word.

Zhang Lan took two steps closer and reached out to pat his shoulder.

Chen Feng stepped aside and made way.

Zhang Lan's hand froze in mid-air.

He looked at Chen Feng, his brows furrowing slightly, and the concern on his face slowly turned into scrutiny.

"What's wrong?" His voice lowered. "Weren't you cooperating perfectly fine just a few days ago? Are you dissatisfied with your current status?"

Chen Feng did not intend to clear up Zhang Lan's misunderstanding. "Commander Li and Eunuch Gao have used their deadly moves. General Song can't protect me."

He paused for a moment, then said, "I'm prepared to cooperate with him."

Zhang Lan squinted.

After a moment of silence, he suddenly smiled.

That smile was different from the previous warm one; it carried a hint of playfulness.

"Cooperate with them?" Zhang Lan stood with his hands behind his back. "Do you know what kind of people are currying favor with the Imperial Guard and the Secret Service these days? Don't you care about your reputation?"

Chen Feng's expression remained unchanged. "Only the living deserve to consider their reputation."

Zhang Lan shook his head, took a step closer, and stared into Chen Feng's eyes: "Chen Feng, do you really think Li Ruolian can protect you? So what if he used to be the Commander of the Northern Garrison? He has already fallen out of favor with the Emperor. If you follow him, you'll be impeached every few days, investigated eight times a month. How many times can your meager military merits withstand such scrutiny?"

Chen Feng did not respond.

Zhang Lan knew that Chen Feng didn't believe in his abilities. He looked out the window, raised his chin, and solemnly said, "Although I am just a Juren (a successful candidate in the imperial examinations), I come from the Zhang family of Loudong."

Chen Feng frowned slightly.

The Zhang family of Loudong? Chen Feng had never heard of them.

When Zhang Lan saw that he didn't react, she was taken aback and realized that she was just putting on an act for a blind man.

His face made no attempt to hide his mockery of the crude brute. "It doesn't matter if you don't know. As long as you know that the prestige of the Zhang family of Loudong is growing daily in the court, I can protect you if I want to."

He paused, staring into Chen Feng's eyes, "Even if the emperor wanted to kill you, he would have to think twice."

Zhang Lan circled Chen Feng once, then put his hand on Chen Feng's shoulder. "As long as you cooperate obediently, the master can recommend you for the position of garrison commander of Shanhaiwei. In addition, I can decide to give you an extra thousand taels of silver."

Chen Feng fell silent.

He didn't know the exact weight of the Zhang family of Loudong during the Chongzhen reign, but he remembered the fear that Li Ruolian and Gao Qiqian had shown towards Zhang Lan that day, and knew that this person was definitely not a simple character.

Seeing that he remained silent, Zhang Lan's expression gradually darkened. "I'll give you three days to consider. If you still want to go with Li Ruolian after three days... I'll make sure you die a horrible death."

After saying that, he turned and left.

Chen Feng stood there, watching his figure disappear outside the courtyard gate.

"Three days..." Chen Feng murmured silently.