The evening breeze blew gently. Wang Juyun looked up. “So then, what is it Chancellor Lou has in mind…?”
“Someone will certainly need to go,” Lou Shuwan said. “In the early years, several of us had dealings with Ning Yi to varying degrees. I remember that before he killed the emperor, when he was laying his groundwork at Green Wood Fort, he spoke, on the surface, only of doing business — fair and honest business — yet in the process, he took no small advantage of us in the Tiger King camp. Over these past ten-odd years, the Black Banner’s growth has been nothing short of astonishing.”
“…The Black Banner takes ‘Huaxia’ as its name, but the two characters ‘Huaxia’ are merely a lead ingredient in the prescription. His commercial maneuvering needs no further comment; beyond commerce, the study of natural principles is one of his great trump cards. In the past, it was said that iron cannons could shoot a bit further, and men would throw their lives away to close the gap — that could still be managed. But after the Battle of Wangyuan Bridge, no one in this world dares to overlook this factor any longer.”
“…As for his methods of training troops — strict, unwavering obedience to orders — Elder Brother Yu already mentioned this earlier. How can he keep his men going hungry while still enforcing military law? Why? The Black Banner has always used ‘Huaxia’ as its guiding thread, promoting the idea of equality — officers and soldiers share hardships alike, training together; even Ning Yi himself has, at times, taken up a blade and fought the Jurchens on the front lines at Xiaocang River… It’s a wonder he didn’t die, truly a stroke of fortune…”
“…As for why he’s able to instill such self-discipline among the officers in his army, one reason clearly has to do with the training and instruction within the Huaxia Army. Ning Yi doesn’t just lecture his senior officers — he also frequently gives various kinds of lessons to the mid- and lower-ranking soldiers as well, raising his troops almost like scholars. This ties in with the Black Banner’s advanced study of natural principles and its flourishing papermaking industry…”
“…Beyond that, he emphasizes contracts in commerce, and preaches something like the ‘Four Peoples’ doctrine to the common people — all these things, taken together, appear interconnected. Ning Yi has made all these reforms into a self-reinforcing cycle, which is why things stand as they do today. Though that bunch of softies in Jiangnan keep saying he’s too radical, that Confucian teachings would be steadier and safer — but at this point, if we don’t go study and learn from him, taking what’s good and bringing it back, in a few years we may not even have the standing left to survive!”
These were clearly things she had thought through extensively in the past. Having said this with her back turned, she now turned her face to the side.
“…This gathering in the southwest is ambitious in scope — after this one victory, he even seems to harbor thoughts of founding a nation. And this Ning Yi… his vision is not small. He has even said, in his own mind, that everything — including the fundamental principles of natural science itself — will be shown, one by one, to the whole realm. I know what he intends to do. Years ago, when the southwest traded with the outside world, he wasn’t even reluctant to sell copies of Principles of Natural Science. That little crown prince in Jiangnan, too, spent years racking his brains trying to raise the status of craftsmen, but the resistance was simply too great.”
Lou Shuwan paused. “Ning Yi may even feel that promoting natural science and training craftsmen in just his own southwestern territory alone is too slow a pace — he wants to force the whole realm to think as he does, to promote natural science and train craftsmen just as he does… so that when he eventually sweeps across everything, he can take it all in one net, saving himself over a decade of effort. That is simply the kind of overbearing man he is.”
Yu Yulin thought for a moment, then said, “I recall that over a decade ago, when he broke with Li Pin, he said something like: if you want to defeat me, you must, at the very least, become like me. It seems, looking at things now, that statement was not wrong.”
Lou Shuwan turned back around, and after a moment of silence, smiled with graceful composure. “So, while Ning Yi is being so generous, we should learn everything we can while we’re there — not just natural science, but everything, we can go and learn it all. We can even set aside some of our pride — since he needs something from us, I can have him send craftsmen and teachers over, to teach us hands-on until we’ve mastered it… Isn’t he supposed to be so formidable? When he eventually defeats us, everything will be his anyway. The only thing we need to be careful about is the ideology behind that ‘Huaxia’ concept. Those teachers are only human too — treat them well enough, with fine food and comfortable living, and some may well want to stay.”
Hearing this, Wang Juyun nodded as well. “If that can truly be arranged, it would indeed be the best option available to us right now. Given how that Mr. Ning has conducted himself in the past, it does seem plausible he might agree to this.”
“Given how ruthless that inner demon Ning Yi can be, once negotiations begin, he might well turn around and throw that bunch at Shandong our way, telling us that people like Zhu Biao and Liu Chengzong could serve as our teachers, and have us take them in,” Lou Shuwan said with a smile, then continued calmly, “There will likely be no shortage of such tactics, but we can simply meet each move as it comes.”
It had already been several years since she had dealt with Ning Yi as an adversary. Ever since he had overthrown the Tiger King’s regime and installed Lou Shuwan and Yu Yulin in power, relations between the southwest and Shanxi had, on the whole, remained something of a honeymoon period of mutual support. Lou Shuwan’s mention now of how formidable an opponent he could be left Yu Yulin and Wang Juyun feeling somewhat wary, their scalps prickling slightly.
Lou Shuwan paused, then continued: “Broadly speaking, this is simple enough, but the finer details must be considered carefully. For this reason, if we are to go to the southwest, we need someone level-headed and trustworthy to hold things together there. In truth, the equality the Huaxia Army speaks of today shares the same lineage as the ‘equality under the Dharma’ the Sage Lord once preached. Back in Hangzhou, Lord Wang and Ning Yi once crossed paths on several occasions — if he’s willing to go this time, he might well be the best candidate to negotiate with Ning Yi.”
The setting sun over the mountains beyond was at its most brilliant, dyeing the white in Wang Juyun’s hair a golden hue as he recalled events from the past. “I did indeed meet that Ning Liheng several times in Hangzhou over a decade ago — I misjudged him at the time. The next time I saw him was when the Sage Lord had died and Fang Qifo was being escorted to the capital under guard. I thought then that this man was no ordinary figure, but we had no further dealings after that. Not until the Battle of Linzhou two years ago — the valiant fighting of Generals Zhu and Guan is something I still cannot forget to this day. If the situation eases up a bit, I would genuinely like to go take a look at the southwest myself… And that girl Qianqian, and Chen Fan — there are some matters from back then that it’s probably time to speak with them about as well…”
Back when the Sage Lord Fang La’s uprising had shaken the southern heavens, and after the uprising’s failure, countless great clans throughout the Central Plains and Jiangnan had involved themselves, using the aftermath of the rebellion to seize benefits for themselves. Fang La himself had already withdrawn from the stage by then, but what played out on the surface was an endless series of actions — from the Central Plains to the northern lands — hunting down the remnants of the Yongle court, such as certain figures being propped up to reorganize the Maitreya sect, or various great clans across different regions using account ledgers and other clues to entangle and undermine one another.
Among the Yongle court’s ranks had been many hot-blooded, righteous men of the martial underworld; after the uprising’s failure, many had thrown themselves like moths to the flame, sacrificing themselves again and again in attempts to rescue their comrades. But among them, too, were figures like Wang Yin, who, once the uprising had utterly failed, saved a number of lesser targets amid the crushing pressure from various factions. Seeing that Fang Qifo had already become crippled and was being used as bait to lure the remnants of the Yongle court to their deaths one after another, Wang Yin had steeled his heart and resolved to kill Fang Qifo himself.
His purpose and methods could naturally never have convinced the vast majority of the Yongle court’s people at the time, and even today, speaking of it, many would still find it difficult to forgive him. But Wang Yin had never sought forgiveness in this regard. He later changed his name to Wang Juyun and lived in obscurity, retaining only his advocacy of “equality under the Dharma, with no distinction of high or low” — though he had become far more cautious about it. In truth, the decade of wandering that followed that failure may well have been, for him, a period of far deeper maturation.
The Battle of Linzhou in February of the year before last had left a tremendous impact on him. Amid the collapse of Tian Shi and the near-immediate disintegration of the newly formed anti-Jin alliance in Shanxi, the Huaxia Army led by Zhu Biao and Guan Sheng had held the city against Shulisu’s nearly seventy-thousand-strong force, and had then launched a direct, desperate counterattack outside the city walls, crushing Shulisu’s army outright. What he witnessed that day was already an army unlike any other in the entire realm.
Before this, due to the presence of figures like Xigua and Chen Fan, he had, in truth, harbored something of an avoidant attitude toward this power called the Huaxia Army. Even when Ning Yi killed the emperor and rebelled, Wang Yin had mostly regarded it as a force similar to the Sage Lord’s own uprising. It was only after witnessing the Battle of Linzhou that he genuinely wished to go to the southwest and see for himself these equality ideals he had never truly understood.
If Ning Yi’s notion of equality truly carried forward the ideals of the Sage Lord from years past, then what had it become today, there in the southwest?
The old man’s gaze turned toward the southwest, and he sighed softly.
“…It’s just that, as Chancellor Lou said, the Jurchens’ retreat is imminent, and under these circumstances, though we may not necessarily be defeated, it would still be best to preserve our fighting strength as much as possible. This old man can still contribute some strength on the battlefield — if I went to the southwest, I would truly only be able to observe. But since Chancellor Lou has brought this up, you naturally know I have a few suitable men who could make the trip south… For instance, An Xifu — he had some ties with Chen Fan, Ning Yi, and Qianqian back in the day, having served early on as a military law officer in the Yongle court. He’s always served as my deputy, understands how to make decisions, is quick-witted, and can grasp new things. I propose he lead the delegation south to take a look. Of course, Chancellor Lou, you’ll need to send some suitable people from your side as well.”
Lou Shuwan smiled. “I had thought of him too, actually… I hear that this time in the southwest, to make things lively, they’re even planning to hold some kind of athletic games and martial arts tournament. I had originally thought to send Hero Shi south, to show off some of Shanxi’s prestige, but unfortunately Hero Shi cares nothing for such empty glory, so I suppose we’ll just have to let those southwestern folk have the advantage.”
“The southwest has no shortage of skilled fighters,” Wang Juyun said, nodding with a smile. “Back in the day, Qianqian’s martial skill was already considerable, and Chen Fan possesses divine strength by nature, and received Fang Qifo’s true teachings besides — his potential is even more formidable. And I hear that one of the People’s Butcher Ning’s wives once stood on equal footing with Lin Ezan back in the day, and then there’s Du Sha and the others, who’ve spent over a decade fighting in battle formations — winning a martial contest against the southwest wouldn’t be easy at all. Of course, given Brother Shi Jin’s current level of mastery, going up against anyone in a fair match, he’d stand a fifty-fifty chance of winning at the very least — even facing Lin Ezan again, the outcome might well differ from what happened back at Zezhou.”
Wang Yin had, in his day, been a formidable master equally skilled in both scholarship and combat — his Peacock Bright King Sword technique had, in truth, been no less impressive than Fang Qifo’s “Nine Manifestations of the Cloud Dragon.” Back when Fang Qifo was being escorted under guard to the capital, the “Treasure Light Tathagata” Deng Yuanjue had attempted to rescue him and fought him with everything he had, yet still could not defeat him outright. It was only that, in recent years, Wang Yin had rarely made a move — and even when he had killed, it had mostly been on the battlefield — making it difficult for others to gauge his true martial skill.
Given this, his assessment of the various figures in the southwest naturally carried considerable weight. Lou Shuwan, however, pursed her lips and shook her head. “As for his wife being on par with Lin Zongwu, that’s rather debatable. Back then, Ning Liheng was overbearing and ruthless — seeing that the Lüliang faction’s leader Master Lu was about to lose, he had someone open fire on Lin Zongwu. Had Lin Zongwu not backed down, given the man’s temperament, he might well have set off gunpowder charges all around and killed everyone present at the gathering. Sect Master Lin’s martial skill is indeed formidable, but in terms of ruthlessness, he’s simply no match for that People’s Butcher Ning. I was there at that contest myself — I don’t believe a word of that southwestern propaganda.”
Wang Juyun raised an eyebrow, asking with a smile, “Oh? Was there truly such an incident?”
The three walked slowly forward, Lou Shuwan turning her head slightly as she spoke. “That Sect Master Lin, back then, had quite a bit of pride and ambition — he made several attempts to cause trouble for Ning Yi. When Qin Siyuan fell from power, he even thought of leading men into the capital to make trouble for Ning Yi’s faction. He killed Qin Siyuan, but then ran into Ning Yi’s cavalry, who slaughtered the vast majority of his followers, and Lin Zongwu turned and fled. He originally still meant to persist and seek revenge, but who would have thought — Ning Yi turned around and, right there in the Golden Throne Hall, hacked Zhou Zhe to pieces with a single blow… This Ning Yi is simply mad — why would anyone provoke him.”
Lou Shuwan smiled. “So you see, from that point on, when did Lin Zongwu ever again go looking for trouble with Ning Yi? Originally, when Ning Yi killed the emperor and rebelled, men of the martial underworld across the realm rushed to join the cause one after another, even going so far as Xiaocang River to attempt an assassination — with Sect Master Lin’s reputation as the number one fighter in the realm at the time, he would have been the ideal person to go kill Ning Yi. Yet notice — when did he ever come near the Huaxia Army? Whether Ning Yi was in the northwest or the southwest, he always gave the man a wide berth. That single stroke of the blade in the Golden Throne Hall frightened him to the core — he probably never dreamed in his wildest nightmares that Ning Yi would do such a thing.”
The three continued walking as they turned to this bit of gossip, the conversation growing rather lively. In truth, Ning Yi had, in earlier years, discussed the martial underworld in the form of bamboo-strip storytelling, and it was only through this that concepts of the martial underworld had truly taken root in people’s minds over the years. Many knew that Lin Zongwu’s martial skill was unmatched in the realm, but in earlier years he had gone to Shanxi to preach, allied himself with Lou Shuwan, and was later kicked out by her. Speaking now of this “number one under heaven,” the woman’s tone naturally carried a note of disdain, an air of “though he may be number one in the realm, before me he counts for nothing.”
As for the matter of Chieftain Lu’s contest with Lin Zongwu back in the day, Yu Yulin, standing nearby, had also been one of the witnesses at the time; his understanding of martial arts was, of course, far superior to Lou Shuwan’s, who knew nothing of such things. But hearing Lou Shuwan’s assessment now, he merely nodded along repeatedly, offering no objection.
As the three walked on, chatting, the setting sun over the mountains gradually shifted from golden to crimson, and they finally went to have their evening meal nearby. Matters concerning reform, war preparations, and the choice of who would go to Chengdu would still need further discussion over the next day or two. After the meal, Wang Juyun took his leave first, while Lou Shuwan and Yu Yulin walked along the palace walls for a while. Yu Yulin said, “Though this Ning Yi seems magnanimous, his reputation as an inner demon should not be underestimated. Once we’ve chosen our people, we’ll need to instruct them carefully — once in the southwest, they should pay close attention to the actual situation on the ground, and not be deceived by Ning Yi’s words or any false impressions he might present…”
Lou Shuwan nodded with a smile. “As for what Ning Yi says, and what things look like in Chengdu, I don’t think we should take any of it entirely on faith — once word comes back, you and I will need to examine it carefully. And besides, as the saying goes, listening to many sides brings clarity, while listening to only one brings confusion — when it comes to the state of the Huaxia Army, hearing from many sources matters a great deal too. I’ll be asking around more widely…”
There was something left unsaid in her smile. Having known her for many years, Yu Yulin looked at her now with a puzzled expression, lowering his voice. “You mean…?”
Lou Shuwan drew out a letter and handed it to him. “Keep this quiet for now — this news came from the Funiu Mountains side. As mentioned privately before, that disciple of Ning Yi’s surnamed Zou, having absorbed the Xuzhou army into his ranks, is now looking to further his own interests. At present, he’s in cahoots with Yin Zong of Luoyang — the two rely on each other while also guarding against each other, each hoping to swallow the other whole. He’s been looking around everywhere for a new patron.”
“If he’s sending you letters, he’s probably sending them to others too…” Yu Yulin had only just taken out the letter when, hearing this, he began to grasp roughly what was going on. “We’ll need to be careful with this — I hear this fellow surnamed Zou received Ning Yi’s true teachings. Don’t get hurt dealing with him.”
“Shanxi today is large enough that he couldn’t swallow it whole even if we handed it to him, but the idea of playing both sides to grab a bite for himself is certainly there. As for how this plays out, it depends on each person’s own skill — it’s not as though, just because we consider him formidable, we should hold back entirely out of fear. Honestly, I’d also like to use him as a way to gauge Ning Yi’s true measure, to see what tricks he really has up his sleeve.”
Night had already fallen, and the two were walking along a lantern-lit path toward the palace gate. As Lou Shuwan said this, her face, which usually seemed to warn strangers away, now blinked playfully — though behind that smile there was also the cold, blade-sharp edge of someone accustomed to holding power.
Having finished reading the letter, Yu Yulin felt, for a moment, some concern that the person behind it might truly be a Ning Liheng grown even more formidable than his master, and that Shanxi might suffer a great loss. But then he thought that this young man, having now approached Lou Shuwan, might instead end up being thoroughly used up and left with nothing but regret, much like Lin Zongwu before him. Having considered this for a moment, he tucked the letter away and shook his head with a smile.
“The Central Plains, ah… things are about to get lively…”
“Now you’re talking, Elder Brother Yu.”
Lou Shuwan smiled.
Not long after, the two passed through the palace gate and took their leave of one another. In the fifth month, Weisheng’s night sky glimmered with scattered points of lantern light — the city was gradually awakening from the scars of past wars, though it might well plunge into another conflict before long. Still, the people here had already grown gradually accustomed to the ways of struggling through a chaotic age.
Lou Shuwan pressed her fingers to her forehead, her mind turning over many things.
Beneath the dark heavens, amid the mountains of Shanxi, a carriage passed through the city streets, lit by lantern-light, moving steadily onward.