Chapter 172
Chapter 172
[After Zhu Yuanzhang Returned to the Great Ming – 23]
Lin Lanyi had arrived in Beijing, and the marriage had long been settled. Several days after the imperial decree was issued, Duke of Wei Yu Qian was appointed chief envoy, with Marquis of Yongjia and Minister of Rites Hu Ying as his deputy. Carrying the imperial tally, they went to the Lin residence to perform the rites of presenting betrothal gifts and asking the bride’s name.
Three days later, Marquis of Pingning and Minister of Personnel Wang Zhi served as chief envoy, with Grand Secretary Chen Xun as his deputy. They returned to the Lin Family with the imperial tally to perform the rites of confirming the auspicious match, presenting the formal gifts, and announcing the wedding date.
The Lin Family had few members, with Lin Lanyi now its only remaining descendant. Fortunately, her maternal family was dependable and accompanied her throughout. Old Madam Xiang and several daughters-in-law managed every detail and dealt with the Ministry of Rites and other offices.
The Xiang Family was also an official household, but this was their first time dealing with grand ministers of state.
Second Madam Xiang clicked her tongue in wonder. “The Six Rites in Luoyang seemed lavish and magnificent enough. Only after coming to the capital did I realize they were nothing much!”
Eldest Madam Xiang laughed. “How could the wedding of a feudal prince’s consort compare to that of the rightful Empress?”
Another half month passed. The envoys who had previously visited the Lin residence returned with ceremonial guards, grand music, and the civil and military officials to perform the formal welcoming rite. The officials and titled ladies of both the inner and outer courts bowed before the Empress. Dressed in her ceremonial pheasant robe and phoenix crown, Lin Lanyi was officially escorted into the palace as mother of the realm.
Zhu Yuanzhang waited inside the palace. From the moment he first heard the ceremonial music, his broad grin never faded.
The emperors in the space sighed with emotion and amusement. “Congratulations, Old Zhu!”
Zhu Yuanzhang chuckled. “Joy to us all!”
By the time every ceremony was complete and they had paid homage at the Imperial Ancestral Temple, dusk had deepened before the newlyweds could finally sit and speak.
Palace servants lit the lamps and brought food and the nuptial wine. The senior maids smilingly offered several auspicious blessings, then quietly withdrew so the Emperor and Empress could speak privately.
Zhu Yuanzhang had drunk a great deal and was rather tipsy. With one arm propped on the table, he stared unblinkingly at the young woman before him.
Red candles flickered in the hazy lamplight. Her cheeks were flushed, and she looked truly beautiful.
Embarrassed by his gaze, Lin Lanyi lowered her eyes slightly, coughed, and called softly, “Your Majesty.”
Zhu Yuanzhang smiled and reached for the gourd split into two cups. But he was so drunk that his hand slipped and he nearly fell from the heated platform.
Lin Lanyi could not help laughing. The familiar ease of their former interactions returned. She caught him quickly and said, amused, “If you are this drunk, do not drink any more. We can complete it tomorrow just as well.”
“No. We must drink!”
Zhu Yuanzhang shook his head, holding one half of the gourd in his left hand and passing her the other. A red cord joined the two halves as each held one side.
Lin Lanyi stared at him.
He was deeply drunk, but his hand remained steady as he poured wine into both halves, stopping when each was half full. He looked up at her, intent and sincere. “May my wife and I grow old together and remain companions through every lifetime!”
Lin Lanyi’s heart trembled violently. For some reason, her eyes grew moist.
After a long moment, she said softly, “May my husband and I grow old together and remain companions through every lifetime!”
Their gazes met, emotions rippling in both pairs of eyes. They raised the wine, drank together, and smiled at one another.
…
After the imperial wedding, custom required the Empress to pay respects to the Empress Dowager and Empress Emerita. Zhu Yuanzhang was not worried about Empress Qian, only that the Empress Dowager might create trouble. Knowing his wife was honest, he did not question her directly. Instead, he quietly asked her female official, “Did everything go smoothly today?”
The official replied respectfully, “The Empress Emerita was eating vegetarian food and praying to the Buddha. She was very kind. The Empress Dowager lectured Her Majesty briefly, gave her a greeting gift, and allowed her to return.”
Lectured her briefly…
Those words carried layers of meaning.
Zhu Yuanzhang narrowed his eyes. His first impulse was to find an opportunity to deal with the Empress Dowager. Then he reconsidered. No matter how powerless she was, she remained the Empress Dowager. If she died, he would certainly have to observe mourning, delaying the birth of his son. What a loss!
He suppressed his anger for the moment. “Do not visit her without reason. All of you must remain alert. If anything truly happens, inform Us immediately. We will deal with her!”
Empress Lin entered from outside and overheard him. Exasperated yet amused, she said, “What are you doing? Can the Empress Dowager eat me alive? Attend to the affairs of court. I can manage the inner palace!”
Zhu Yuanzhang snorted proudly. “What do you know? Caring makes a man lose perspective!” With that, he strode out with his head held high.
Empress Lin’s face heated. She was embarrassed, but also deeply touched.
After watching their granddaughter marry securely into the palace and become Empress, Old Madam Xiang and several daughters-in-law entered the palace a few days later to bid her farewell before returning home. Asked how the newlyweds were getting along, Empress Lin only smiled, serene happiness impossible to hide. “Two words: very well.”
Old Madam Xiang patted her hand with a smile. “Child, your blessings were waiting for you later in life!”
…
Not long after the imperial wedding, relief armies from across the realm arrived in Beijing. The Oirats also read the situation wisely.
Esen fled in disgrace to Zijing Pass with his followers and Zhu Qizhen. Upon hearing the news, Toghtoa Bukha submitted a memorial seeking peace. He apologized to the Great Ming for the invasion, claiming the entire affair had been Esen’s idea and had nothing to do with him. What a pure, innocent white lotus.
Zhu Yuanzhang thought: Who the hell are you trying to fool, Toghtoa Bukha?
Do you believe that nonsense yourself?!
Zhu Yuanzhang had decided long ago to march north. He had intended to do so when Esen’s army surrounded the capital. Now that relief forces had arrived from across the realm, was he supposed to lose his nerve instead?
What a joke!
In the eleventh month of that year, Zhu Yuanzhang appointed Yu Qian regent, assisted by Hu Ying and Wang Zhi. He then personally selected one hundred thousand elite troops and marched out at the head of Shi Heng, Fan Guang, Wu Jin, and a group of young and middle-aged generals.
When Zhu Qizhen had insisted on leading a campaign, every civil and military official had knelt to stop him. The reason was simple: they knew the emperor was useless, so he should not damn well go out and deliver himself to the enemy.
Now Zhu Yuanzhang was personally leading a campaign, and no one dared object. His ability was there for all to see. Who would dare whine?
Seeing that his mind was made up, Empress Lin did not try to dissuade him. She merely urged him to take care in everything and helped prepare his clothes and other necessities.
Zhu Yuanzhang lounged on the bed, watching her with a smile as he sighed to his old companions, “It feels just like the old days again!”
The emperors said nothing.
The nauseating stench of romance!
…
During the earlier defense of Beijing, the capital’s defenders had joined forces with the Juyong Pass troops rallied by Zhu Yuanzhang and swallowed nearly three hundred thousand Oirat soldiers in one bite. Some were killed, some wounded, and the captives were broken into groups and sent to hard labor or north to repair the Great Wall.
How many able-bodied warriors did the Mongols have in total?
That battle had broken the Oirats’ spine and shattered Esen’s ambitions. Even Toghtoa Bukha was frightened enough to seek peace.
Every forest held strange birds, so naturally some officials opposed further war. But under Zhu Yuanzhang’s pressure, those who still dared advocate peace were vanishingly rare.
Zhu Yuanzhang ordered the Nine Border Garrisons onto alert. He divided his forces into several columns to isolate and destroy the Mongol armies still within the Great Ming, both minimizing casualties and extending the front so he could identify usable talent.
Esen’s prestige had collapsed after the battle of Beijing. Once he reached Zijing Pass, he hastily withdrew north. After joining the remaining Mongol forces, he was attacked by an assassin and severely wounded.
The tribes of nomadic peoples were like wolf packs. When the wolf king was gravely injured and growing old, every wolf in its prime wanted to challenge him and seize command. After Esen’s disastrous defeat, neither his prestige nor his strength was sufficient to keep the tribes obedient.
The attempt on his life was suspicious. The obvious beneficiaries were Toghtoa Bukha and several other tribal leaders. Hearing Toghtoa Bukha’s latest order, Esen was furious. He ignored it and commanded his forces to continue withdrawing.
Zhu Qizhen had remained with Esen since his capture and had been treated courteously. He felt grateful, but he also knew the Mongols were divided. Some wanted to kill him, scalp him, fashion his skull into a wine cup, and use it to honor the dead ancestors of the Golden Lineage.
Esen had recently lost power, and his attitude toward Zhu Qizhen was far colder than before. Hearing Toghtoa Bukha’s order, Zhu Qizhen imagined the agony of being scalped alive. His skin crawled. “Will the Grand Preceptor hand Us over?” he asked uneasily.
Esen lay on his side atop a wolfskin mat, his face waxen and his lips pale and cracked. He forced out a reassuring smile. “How could I? The emperor of the Great Ming will always be my friend!”
The Oirat forces continued to retreat. Scouts constantly brought news that another garrison had fallen to the Great Ming and that the new emperor had taken more prisoners. Zhu Qizhen’s face grew uglier with every report, while Esen’s expression darkened.
When the upheaval began, Zhu Qizhen thought he was having a nightmare. In his sleep, he heard shouts of slaughter outside the yurt and drums thundering like a storm. He sat up in a daze and remained confused until a group of Ming soldiers, guided by two Mongol warriors, fought their way into the tent. Only then did he awaken fully.
Yuan Bin slept nearby. He had leaped up with his saber the moment the disturbance began. Seeing the Ming soldiers, he cried in delight, “Your Majesty, reinforcements have arrived! We are free!”
Zhu Qizhen stared in astonishment, then finally sat upright. He looked down imperiously at the soldiers. “Whose command are you under?”
After a pause, he added, “We heard Zhu Qikun personally led this campaign. Has he come?!”
The Ming commander ignored him. Striding forward, he pulled out a coil of rope and moved to bind Zhu Qizhen.
Yuan Bin’s expression changed instantly. “Insolence!”
Zhu Qizhen sucked in a breath and shouted, “How dare you?! We are the Son of Heaven of the Great Ming! Who dares offend Us?! Bring Zhu Qikun here to speak with Us!”
The commander sneered and continued forward. Yuan Bin raised his saber in furious defense, but the other Ming soldiers stopped him. He could only watch as Zhu Qizhen was kicked to the ground and tightly bound. A moment later, they tied Yuan Bin as well.
The commander looked at Zhu Qizhen with contempt, then turned to the two Mongol soldiers and spoke warmly. “Without you leading us, how could we have found the Emperor Emeritus so easily?”
The two Mongol soldiers replied respectfully.
Zhu Qizhen stared in disbelief. His face twisted. “Toghtoa Bukha betrayed the Grand Preceptor for his own gain? That shameless barbarian! No wonder he can only be a puppet and never a true ruler! Brazen, contemptible filth!”
One Mongol soldier scowled and wanted to slap him, but knew that even if the new Ming emperor dragged the old one home to be cut into a thousand pieces, he would not permit a foreign soldier to strike him. Suppressing his anger, the man said contemptuously, “What right does the Ming emperor have to mock our Great Khan? Did you not call your own gates open for that traitor Esen? Brazen, contemptible filth!”
He snorted. “If you could do it, why can our Great Khan not do the same?”