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

Just after dawn, before daybreak, Chen Feng got up early and picked up a white waxwood pole in the courtyard to practice his bayonet skills.

Thrusting, stabbing, blocking, taking a gun.

He repeated the exercise over and over until he was sweating profusely before stopping and leaning the ash pole back against the wall.

For more than a month, with his diet improved and he underwent systematic training, he could clearly feel that his body had become much stronger.

His arms had gotten thicker, and his chest and back had become more robust. Although he no longer possessed the monstrous strength of Hao Dadao, he was now on par with Zhao Sheng.

He had already met with the saint yesterday, so he should have moved out of Longfu Temple today.

But his assignment hadn't been finalized yet, and he still had to stay in the capital for a few more days. So yesterday, he asked Mei Xian to pay half a month's room fee to the monk in charge of the guest.

Ninety taels in total, which really made him feel heartbroken for half the night.

In the past two days, Zhao Sheng also found out the exchange rate of silver in the underground banks in the Ghost Market.

For bills issued by out-of-town banks like Yong Sheng Qing, underground money changers would take a cut of 50% to 70%, and even with a 50% cut, double-crossing was common.

This exchange rate made it difficult for Chen Feng to decide to exchange silver at the ghost market.

After he finished washing his face, Mei Xian handed him a dry towel from behind. Chen Feng took the towel and nodded his thanks.

Mei Xian was also wearing that pea-green jacket and skirt today, and her hair was styled into a high bun, making her look much simpler and more capable.

Having spent two days together, Chen Feng had developed some resistance to Mei Xian's beauty, but when Mei Xian smiled, he still felt his heart race.

In addition to taking care of Chen Feng's daily life, Mei Xian also served as the literacy teacher for Chen Feng's group of subordinates.

Since the teacher changed, Hao Dadao, that troublemaker, has become much more well-behaved and even learned to read and write his own name within two days.

Sun Ergou and Aji also studied diligently. Meixian even praised Sun Ergou for his talent in reading, saying that he had already learned twenty or thirty characters. Sun Ergou was especially happy these past two days.

Sun Ergou also became very familiar with the maid Chunlan, and would follow Chunlan around whenever he had free time.

Xie Liu was literate, and occasionally he would sit down and listen.

Luo Zheng and Yang Shuo were clearly not there to listen to the lecture; they would just squat in the corner and grin foolishly at Mei Xian and Chun Lan.

Every time Chen Feng saw these two, he had an urge to kick them out.

Moreover, Mei Xian is indeed capable.

She had everything arranged in the courtyard in perfect order.

He is polite to everyone, never talks too much, and never goes to places he shouldn't go.

Every night, Chen Feng would go to the side room to sleep next to Meng Changgeng, while she would stay quietly in the main room and never disturb him.

It's too perfect, so perfect that it makes me uneasy.

By the time Chen Feng finished wiping his face, the morning bell had already rung.

Yang Shuo and Yan Guishan had already packed their things and left. Today, they were going to keep watch at Luomashi.

Yang Shuo set up a melon seed stall, still charging ten taels of silver per catty; Yan Guishan disguised himself as a porter and squatted by the roadside.

Yongshengqing branch is located in that alley in Luomashi. For the past three days, Zhao Sheng and his five-man team have been keeping an eye on it, and at least outside of curfew, no one has entered or left that alley.

Yang Shuo had just settled down when two Imperial Guards in blue robes strolled over.

Yang Shuo quickly stood up, put on a smile, and took out a handful of copper coins from his sleeve and handed them over, saying, "Gentlemen, you've worked hard. This is just a small token of our appreciation."

This is the rule in the capital: no matter what kind of business one does, the daily allowance from Shuntian Prefecture and Jinyiwei is fixed without fail.

The leading imperial guard took the copper coin, weighed it in his hand, and said, "Alright, behave yourself and don't cause trouble."

Yang Shuo nodded and bowed: "Yes, yes, I know the rules."

As the sun rose higher, more and more people appeared on the street.

Yang Shuo stared listlessly at the people coming and going, but his eyes kept glancing towards the alley.

Because his melon seeds were so expensive, nobody stopped at his stall, and the sun was particularly strong today, making him feel a little tired.

Just as he was about to close his eyes and doze off for a while, someone suddenly stood in front of the stall, blocking the sun.

Yang Shuo thought it was Yan Guishan coming to talk to him, and was about to wave him away when he opened his eyes and froze.

Standing before him was a well-to-do middle-aged man, dressed in a dark brown silk robe, with a jade thumb ring on his finger.

Two burly men followed behind him, clearly skilled in martial arts.

"Can I try some of these melon seeds?" the middle-aged man asked in a thick Shanxi accent.

Yang Shuo put on a smiling face, "Sir, I'm sorry, these melon seeds are precious, you can't try them."

The middle-aged man persisted, "I can't taste them. What if the seeds are raw? If I buy raw ones, wouldn't I be losing money?"

Yang Shuo said, "Don't worry, sir, these melon seeds are specially supplied to the palace, and every single one is plump."

The middle-aged man said, "That's hard to say. How about you let me try one, just one?"

Yang Shuo grew impatient, still smiling, but his tone hardened: "Sir, if you can't afford it, move aside and don't block my business."

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man's eyes widened. "Can't afford it? You're saying I can't afford it?"

He pulled a silver ingot from his sleeve and slammed it on the stall. "Ten taels, right? Give me two catties!"

Yang Shuo was stunned.

He looked at the silver ingot, then at the middle-aged man's face, and opened his mouth, "Sir, are you... sure?"

The middle-aged man looked impatient. "Yes, yes, I haven't tried these expensive sunflower seeds before. I'll buy two pounds to try."

Yang Shuo had no choice but to weigh out two jin of melon seeds, wrap them in oil paper, and hand them over.

The middle-aged man took it, opened the paper package, pinched off a few pieces and popped them into his mouth. "Hmm, really not bad. Something worth ten taels of silver is definitely different."

He turned around with a smile and left with two attendants.

Yang Shuo weighed the silver in his hand, thinking to himself that the people in the capital were indeed different; there were really suckers coming to buy it...

He looked up and paused for a moment.

The middle-aged man, accompanied by two of his men, walked straight into the alley where Yong Shengqing lived.

Yang Shuo turned his head to look at Yan Guishan, who was squatting across the road.

Yan Guishan was also looking at him, and their eyes met.

Yan Guishan nodded slightly.

Without saying a word, Yang Shuo immediately started packing up.

An old man selling candied hawthorns nearby exclaimed, "Young man, are you closing up shop so early?"

Yang Shuo didn't even turn his head. "Something came up at home!"

He circled around several streets to make sure no one was following him before turning into the alley near Longfusi.

In the courtyard, Zhao Sheng was sitting on a stone stool, scratching at the ground with a twig.

Mei Xian pointed to the words on the ground and said softly, "Brother Zhao, this word is pronounced 'zhong,' the 'zhong' in 'loyalty.' Could you write it again?"

Zhao Sheng blushed slightly as he held the twig and carefully drew stroke by stroke.

Hao Dadao squatted down beside him, watching with a disdainful look: "That's it? I've known that for a long time."

Mei Xian smiled and said, "Then Brother Hao, could you write the character 'Loyalty' for me to see?"

Hao Dadao's face stiffened, and he scratched his head without saying a word.

Chen Feng sat on the veranda, holding a copy of "The Essentials of Military Strategy" and reading it. The book was sent by Sun Chengzong this morning, who said he wanted him to read more about military strategy.

Chen Feng flipped through a few pages. Some of the content seemed outdated to him, but the sections on military marches, encampments, and ancient and modern battle formations did fill the gaps in his knowledge of ancient military affairs.

Yang Shuo rushed in and gave Zhao Sheng a wink.

When Zhao Sheng and Chen Feng saw that Yang Shuo had returned early, they knew that something must have happened, so they pulled Yang Shuo into a side room.

Yang Shuo recounted what had happened in Luomashi.

Chen Feng's brow twitched. "Are you sure it's a Shanxi accent?"

Yang Shuo nodded. "I didn't mishear."

Chen Feng and Zhao Sheng exchanged a glance and nodded to each other.

Chen Feng pondered for a moment, then looked at Zhao Sheng, "Take Xie Liu there. Under the pretense of buying horses, go around the mule and horse market and try to find out where that person is."

Zhao Sheng nodded: "Understood."

He called Xie Liu, and the two changed their clothes and went out through the side door.

Chen Feng sat on the porch, his fingers gently tapping his knees.

Yang Shuo happily took over Zhao Sheng's position and began learning to read from Mei Xian.

Zhao Sheng and Xie Liu arrived at Luomashi, found a tea stall on the street, sat down, ordered two bowls of tea, and slowly drank them.

Yan Guishan was still squatting in the same spot. When he saw the two of them arrive, he shook his head slightly.

Zhao Sheng nodded and continued drinking his tea.

After waiting for more than half an hour, there was finally some movement in the alley.

A middle-aged man came out, and his attendant carried a wooden box wrapped in cloth.

The middle-aged man looked around and then boarded the carriage at the entrance of the alley.

Zhao Sheng stood up and said to Xie Liu, "You and Yan Guishan follow at a distance. I'll go ahead first."

Xie Liu and Yan Guishan followed the carriage at a distance, while Zhao Sheng took a detour from another street and rode behind them at a distance.

The carriage left Mule and Horse Market, headed north, circled around Liulichang, then turned east and arrived at Lingyou Palace.

After pausing for a while at the entrance of Lingyou Palace, they started moving again and headed north.

Chongwen Gate, Wensi Academy, Taicang, Imperial College, Drum Tower...

The carriage circled Shichahai, then turned west and disappeared at Mingyufang.

Mingyufang was inhabited by palace eunuchs and nobles, and was heavily guarded.

The three dared not follow any further, so they found a secluded spot to hide and kept a close watch on the gate.

After waiting for a long time, the carriage still did not come out.

Even after the lanterns were lit at the gate and the first watch gong sounded, there was still no movement.

Zhao Sheng sighed, "Curfew is approaching, let's go."

The three returned to Longfu Temple before curfew and reported the situation to Chen Feng.

Chen Feng remained silent for a long time, still without any clue.

Just then, Mei Xian brought in dinner, and Chen Feng asked, "Mei Xian, do you know what kind of people live in Mingyu Lane?"

Mei Xian thought for a moment and said softly, "I've heard that quite a few eunuchs and nobles live there. For example, the Duke of Cheng and the Duke of Ding both have residences nearby."

Chen Feng nodded and said nothing more. Mei Xian didn't ask any more questions and silently left.

Chen Feng tapped his fingers lightly on the table, his mind racing.

Yong Shengqing, ticket, a middle-aged man with a Shanxi accent, Mingyufang, eunuch, Xun Gui...

Who exactly is the powerful backer of these Shanxi merchants in the capital?