At the isolated island harbor, fires blazed across the connected camps.
It was high tide at night, with shocking waves crashing against the shore. Jumping into the sea meant certain death with no chance of survival. All escape routes had been cut off—they could only fight to the death.
The pirates watched as all the small boats were burned, fury boiling within them. They turned to look at the roomful of hostages, their eyes flashing with murderous intent.
Even the nearsighted A’Lei could sense the pirates’ killing desire. She couldn’t help but secretly grip the short dagger hidden in her sleeve. She knew some self-defense techniques and was decent at archery and horsemanship, but these past few years she’d been obsessed with machinery and had gradually neglected her martial arts training. Facing these vicious pirates, she had no confidence at all.
Seeing they were about to be silenced, the ginseng merchant who had always been of the surrender faction trembled with fear. “This hero, you just called us your benefactors, so how has your tune changed now? Don’t worry, we’ll obediently be hostages. If you hold us captive, the government troops won’t kill civilians—they’ll let you go.”
The pirate sneered coldly: “Do you think the court officials care about you rich people? How naive and foolish! The lives of dozens of common civilians versus the military achievement of completely annihilating pirates—which is more important? Aside from your relatives, the court doesn’t care whether you people live or die.”
The ginseng merchant hurriedly persuaded: “But you care, right? You still want to exchange us for ten thousand taels in ransom. We dads are worth a lot of money.”
A’Lei thought to herself: Didn’t you say on the ship that this ginseng trading venture had exhausted all your family wealth in exchange for Liaodong ginseng goods? How do you still have ten thousand taels of capital? You must be deliberately deceiving the pirates to spare your life, hoping to find a way out.
The pirate scanned the room like looking at fat meat on a chopping block. “Everyone, in this life we have no fate to be father and son—perhaps in the next life. If you want to hate someone, hate the Ming court officials. They’re the ones forcing me to kill you.”
After speaking, the pirates threw a jar of strong liquor into the room and pulled out flint from their clothes, actually planning to burn them alive!
The female bodyguard and others quickly exchanged glances, pushing A’Lei toward the window.
The ginseng merchant panicked. Forgetting about seniority, he fell to his knees with a thud and crawled like a dog on his knees. His knees were cut by shards from the wine jar, leaving bloody gashes, but perhaps facing death, he couldn’t care about the severe pain. He crawled to the pirate and hugged the man’s thigh, crying: “Please! I have an eighty-year-old mother above and a just-weaned child below. Without me, they can’t survive!”
The pirate looked at the ginseng merchant who was as weak as a puddle of snot with disgust. “Let go!”
The ginseng merchant hugged even tighter and refused to let go.
The pirate had to put away the flint first and reach for the long sword at his waist, planning to chop off this coward’s hands.
A’Lei quickly threw the short dagger in her hand, aiming for the pirate’s right arm that gripped the sword. But she hadn’t practiced in a long time, and being too nervous, she lost her aim. The dagger precisely embedded itself in the door frame.
A’Lei desperately closed her eyes, not daring to see the bloody scene. It was over—the ginseng merchant was doomed.
A cry of surprise reached her ears. A’Lei opened her eyes to see the pirate still standing at the door, but without his head. The ginseng merchant held a sword in both hands, skillfully shaking the blade lightly to scatter the blood drops. The sharp blade was cold as frost.
The ginseng merchant had just seized the sword and beheaded the pirate in one stroke.
“What a fine blade.” The ginseng merchant sheathed the sword and roared: “Quickly grab your weapons! A few of you stay here to protect the hostages and crew. The rest of you brothers follow me and fight our way out! Coordinate with the young general from inside and outside! Flatten the pirate nest!”
The ginseng merchant’s seemingly soft dozen or so assistants and porters immediately changed their demeanor, opening boxes and trunks. These containers supposedly full of Liaodong ginseng all had hidden compartments filled with various firearms and weapons.
It turned out the ginseng merchant’s group were actually undercover court officials in disguise!
The merchant ship’s sailors all requested to join battle: “We don’t need your protection. Give us some weapons—we want to avenge our captain. We’ve fought pirates for a long time and won’t drag you down.”
The ginseng merchant nodded in approval. As he led the team to fight their way out, he casually pulled out the short dagger embedded in the door frame and smiled at A’Lei: “This dagger is sharp. Lend it to me—I’ll kill a few more pirates with it. I originally thought you were just a pampered young master, seeming effeminate and useless, but you have a passionate heart and dare to act righteously.”
The ginseng merchant led his team down the mountain to fight.
What was happening?
A’Lei’s brain was like a broken clock, completely stuck.
This was all an elaborate chain strategy personally designed by Zhu Zhanji.
Zhu Zhanji was a genius at palace intrigue and political maneuvering. Surviving between the Emperor and the Crown Prince, he had accompanied Emperor Yongle on northern campaigns at age nine and managed Beijing at such a young age, stabilizing the rear.
His archery, horsemanship, and military tactics were all taught by the experienced Mu Chun. This was no mere theoretical knowledge—Mu Chun had begun his maiden campaign at seventeen, traveling far to Jiangxi to suppress bandits. Now at sixteen, Zhu Zhanji had come to Jiangsu and Zhejiang to suppress pirates. He truly surpassed his master.
He was like a perfect young man walking out of a book. Mu Chun had shamelessly asked A’Lei what she liked about “Little Chicken Brother,” having no self-awareness. At the same age, Zhu Zhanji’s achievements far exceeded Mu Chun’s. He was so brilliant and dazzling that even A’Lei’s nearsighted eyes couldn’t ignore him.
The cunning Zhu Zhanji’s principle was to use his brain first whenever possible, never resorting to force first. The fifty thousand Youth Army in Nanjing had only trained for land warfare, with no experience in naval combat. Moreover, the Youth Army recruited from all over the country—most were landlubbers who couldn’t swim, and many even got seasick and vomited violently on ships, losing all combat effectiveness.
Playing to strengths and avoiding weaknesses, Zhu Zhanji absolutely would not engage pirates in naval warfare. He dispatched numerous scouts to investigate the pirates’ criminal patterns and tracks, following the trail to find their stronghold and set an elaborate trap, waiting for the pirates to fall into the net.
Zhu Zhanji engaged in entrapment law enforcement. First, he spread rumors that the court was eager for victory and wanted to clear out pirates for merit and rewards, arousing the pirates’ sense of crisis. According to the pirates’ past behavior patterns, they would typically choose to pull off one big job, divide the spoils, then scatter and disappear to avoid the spotlight, not engaging government forces in direct combat.
These pirates were extremely cunning!
Only by luring the pirates to come out in full force would the Youth Army have a chance to infiltrate their stronghold and set ambushes.
Zhu Zhanji discovered that pirates would plant spies at ports where merchants gathered to assess the value of shipped goods and act accordingly.
He sent scouts disguised as ginseng merchants to parade through the markets, flaunting their wealth. Liaodong ginseng was precious, equivalent to gold.
Pirates: Rich guy, you’ve successfully caught our attention.
The large merchant ship carried six major merchants including the ginseng trader—what a big piece of fat meat. One bite would fill them for half a year.
The pirates took the bait and decided to come out in full force for a coordinated hunt.
The ginseng merchant was an undercover agent. He kept pretending to be afraid, demanding to resolve things through negotiation rather than fighting the pirates directly. First, he wanted to minimize casualties among innocent civilians as much as possible. Second, he used repeated negotiations and bargaining to buy time, giving the Youth Army as much time as possible to set ambushes in the pirates’ stronghold.
Sounds of battle continued down the mountain as the fifty thousand Youth Army displayed their initial power.
Protected by the bodyguards, A’Lei waited with the other four merchants for the battle to end.
Zhu Zhanji and Zhu Zhanhe had set out two months ago, and unexpectedly saved A’Lei through this coincidence.
A’Lei’s young maiden heart was beating wildly. She wanted to see him but didn’t dare, worried that seeing him in person would make it even harder to let go.
Her mind was in turmoil as she ran about, chasing that restless rabbit in her head. Finally, reason conquered emotion, firmly catching the rabbit and locking it in a cage.
A’Lei decided to continue hiding her identity, mixing in with the merchants to leave the island together without revealing herself to Zhu Zhanji. Even if they met by chance, they would still pass by each other—they each had their own paths.
He would marry his wife.
I would sail west to the oceans.
When dawn broke, the sounds of battle changed from violent storms to gentle rain, gradually becoming inaudible.
A team of government soldiers came to report the battle situation: “We’ve won. The merchant ship you were on was already sailed out of port by scouts before we set the fires—it’s safe and sound. The young general says to let the original crew take the merchant civilians away first to report safety to their families. Follow me.”
A’Lei went down the mountain with the others. Using the excuse that the island was windy and cold, she wore a cloak with a hood, covering herself completely and hiding in the middle of the crowd.
Corpses were strewn across the island. The pirates were fierce—few surrendered, most choosing to fight the Youth Army to the death.
The Youth Army’s first battle relied on superior numbers and excellent weapons and equipment. Like newborn calves unafraid of tigers, they too became bloodthirsty in battle, fighting with abandon. Facing such fierce opponents, the Youth Army also suffered considerable casualties.
After the battle ended, the Youth Army who had fought all night showed no fatigue. They carried away their fallen comrades’ bodies, laying them side by side. Since it was still summer and bodies would rot and stink quickly, unable to be transported home, they had to be cremated on the spot.
Additionally, another group of soldiers counted piles of noses, recording each person’s battle achievements for future merit rewards—noses were the best evidence because everyone had only one, and they were cartilage, relatively easy to cut.
Therefore, most of the pirates scattered across the mountains had no noses, their death expressions horrifying.
The merchant caravan dared not look closely, all bowing their heads to watch the road, not daring even to glance with peripheral vision.
The salty sea wind was fierce and strong, making the Ming battle flags snap loudly.
Covered in blood, Zhu Zhanhe removed his helmet and armor, bending over to vomit. Having eaten nothing, he only brought up clear water. This was his first real battle, the first time seeing so many terrifying corpses, the first time truly experiencing war’s cruelty.
Even though his hair was soaked in sweat, wet and itchy, Zhu Zhanji still wore his complete armor, maintaining a leader’s standard military posture. The seemingly frail and scholarly young man remained calm and composed, treating the corpses scattered everywhere as commonplace.
Having accompanied Emperor Yongle on northern campaigns at age nine, he had witnessed more brutal wars and more corpses. Moreover, the northern battlefields had countless ravens and eagles circling, fighting over rotting flesh—scenes comparable to hell.
The pirates’ stronghold was located on southeastern coastal islands, with flocks of white seagulls in the sky. Compared to the cruelty of northern battlefields, the pirate battle was just a small scene—practically peaceful times.
Zhu Zhanji gently patted his cousin’s broad back, comforting him: “It’s like this for everyone’s first battle. I vomited much worse than you back then.”
Zhu Zhanhe gasped heavily: “His Majesty was too eager for quick success, taking you to battlefields when you were so young. I was foolishly envious of you then. Thinking about it now, you were so pitiful, bearing what even adults could hardly endure at such a young age. Big brother, how did you endure all these years?”
For the imperial family, Zhu Zhanhe had actually always been well-protected, not bearing pressure too early.
Zhu Zhanji didn’t answer immediately, first handing over a water flask: “You sweated a lot and vomited. You need to rehydrate promptly. I put a little honey and salt in the water—it tastes strange but is good for your health.”
Watching Zhu Zhanhe drink half the flask in one go, Zhu Zhanji then said: “You get used to it. Now you know your father Prince Han isn’t easy, right? He’s fought countless battles, escaped death so many times. He’s given so much but received far less than Crown Prince big brother who never set foot on a battlefield. That’s why Prince Han feels indignant—I’ve always understood him.”
Honestly, this was also the first time Zhu Zhanhe truly admired his father Prince Han, beginning to understand his father’s unwillingness.
Zhu Zhanhe nodded heavily: “Big cousin is right. I’ll never argue with father or deliberately anger him again.”
Zhu Zhanji wiped the blood from his cousin’s face: “My father has no choice but to be Crown Prince. Your father can still become a feudal prince. After I leave, you’ll have to slowly mediate between Prince Han’s mansion and the Eastern Palace.”
Zhu Zhanhe was reluctant: “Have you really thought this through? Once you fake your death, there’s no turning back.”
“I’m tired.” Zhu Zhanji pointed at the corpses scattered everywhere: “I’m only sixteen but have endured too much too early. It’s like I’ve lived several lifetimes—a sixteen-year-old body with a sixty-year-old mentality. I’m already old. Besides, watching coldly all these years, the position of heir apparent, even imperial power itself, are just that much. Neither my father nor His Majesty are happy. I’ve decided to let go of all this and follow my heart for the first time, living for myself for once. You have to help me.”
Zhu Zhanhe reluctantly nodded: “Fine, then we’ll proceed according to the original plan.”
As the two brothers talked, the scout disguised as a ginseng merchant came to report: “Imperial Grand Prince, Your Lordship, the merchant ship has already sailed out of port with the merchants aboard. No need to worry about these civilians. We can blockade the entire island and clear out pirate remnants hiding in island caves.”
Zhu Zhanji nodded: “Don’t be careless when cleaning the battlefield either, in case of pirate ambushes. For any caves, don’t enter rashly—first use smoke and fire to probe.”
The scout acknowledged and turned to leave.
Suddenly, Zhu Zhanji seemed to remember something, his mind flashing like lightning as he called out: “Stop!”
The scout halted: “What other orders does the Imperial Grand Prince have?”
Zhu Zhanji pointed at the ringed short dagger at the scout’s waist: “Let me see that item.”
The scout removed the short dagger and presented it to Zhu Zhanji with both hands: “This belongs to a young master from the merchant ship. He looked like a pampered pretty boy with a wet nurse following him around, but he’s actually a good man with backbone. When he saw the pirate about to chop my hands, he threw this knife to help me. His heart was in the right place, just his martial arts were too poor—he missed completely and didn’t even scratch the pirate.”
Looking at the faint “Chun” character pattern on the handle, Zhu Zhanji was shocked: This… isn’t this godfather Mu Chun’s treasured possession? How did it appear here?
Zhu Zhanji’s expression changed drastically as he pointed at the merchant ship on the sea: “Quickly, intercept that large ship!”