Chapter Seventy-One: Reunion with an Old Friend (Bonus chapter for the First Hall Master, “I Personally Attend to the Affairs of State and War”)

Xu Xianchun came out with Man Gui and a hundred soldiers bound for Laiyuan Fort. Along the way he repeated the same warning again and again: take them alive, not dead.

Once inside the fort, they went straight for the Fan family’s shop. As soon as the shopkeeper saw the soldiers, he turned to flee toward the back, but Man Gui sprang forward, flattened him to the ground, and clamped a hand over his mouth. Xu Xianchun took out a token and held it before his eyes. “I was sent by your master. Look closely.”

Then he signaled Man Gui to release him.

The shopkeeper got to his feet, trembling. “What does Your Lordship want of this insignificant man?”

Xu Xianchun said, “Take us to the Jurchens.”

The shopkeeper did not understand what was happening, but the other side was carrying the master’s token, and with so many men here they could kill him a hundred times over in the blink of an eye. Naturally, he dared not disobey. He led them toward the rear courtyard, pointed out a door, and Xu Xianchun waved a hand. Man Gui brought his men to crouch beside the doorway, then pushed the shopkeeper gently and whispered, “Knock.”

Though deeply unwilling, the shopkeeper had no choice but to step forward and tap lightly at the door.

A wary voice came from within. “What is it?”

The shopkeeper said, “Our master has sent men to discuss something with you gentlemen.”

A man dressed as a Han Chinese opened the door. When he saw so many people, he was startled and tried to flee inside. Man Gui kicked him back out, then charged in after him. At once there came the crack and clash of a desperate fight. Xu Xianchun rushed in as well. The others first seized the spy Man Gui had kicked out, pinned him down, and bound him fast, then took up weapons and guarded the doorway and the walls.

After a while, the sounds inside finally died away. Man Gui and Xu Xianchun emerged one after the other, each escorting a spy.

Outside, the others flattered them incessantly while tying the three captives securely.

Xu Xianchun was elated and laughed. “A few Jurchens, and I still didn’t catch them with ease? Of course I did. Still, Hundred-Household Man made a great contribution too.”

When Man Gui heard that he had made a great contribution, he could not help smiling. “Can this merit earn me a promotion to garrison commander?”

Xu Xianchun stared at him in astonishment. “I’ve heard a saying: a man without some peculiar obsession is not worth making friends with. Hundred-Household Man, I am set on making you my friend.”

Man Gui, however, seemed not to catch his meaning at all. “Your rank is too high. I could never afford to be your friend.”

Xu Xianchun had only been joking, saying that Man Gui had first been obsessed with money and had now become obsessed with rank. He already greatly admired Man Gui’s martial prowess, and hearing this, he immediately said, “A hundred-household saying that is too formal. What I admire is your skill in arms; it has nothing to do with whether your rank is high or low. When Brother Man becomes a general in the future, do not look down on us, that is all.”

Man Gui at once cupped his hands. “To be thought highly of by Your Lordship is an honor. I, Man Gui, thank you.”

Xu Xianchun laughed. “Enough. We can speak of this later. For now we still have people to arrest.”

The prisoners were taken back to the Fan residence. Then, following Fan Yongdou’s confession, the heads of the remaining seven households were arrested one by one, while men were sent to keep watch over their families. After that, a letter was written and sent back to the capital.

When the letter was finished, he called Wu Mengming forward and said, “Well done, Lao Wu. Your knowledge is so broad that you even handled Fan Yongdou with ease.”

Wu Mengming smiled. “My lord, I was only bluffing him. I had soaked the new chair in water first, which is why the color was different. He already had a guilty conscience, so of course a little bluff worked at once.”

Xu Xianchun understood what had happened and burst out laughing. “As long as the bluff worked, that is enough. Your head is quick. From now on, follow me and serve me well, and together we will restore the prestige of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.”

Wu Mengming knew that Xu Xianchun’s patron was the Eastern Depot, and that he did not hold much respect for Luo Sigong. To be trusted by him meant that his own rise to greatness was only a matter of time.

When Wei Zhongxian received the letter, he immediately brought it to Zhu Youxiao. After reading that eight merchants had colluded with Later Jin, and that there might even be someone in court shielding them, Zhu Youxiao ordered Wei Zhongxian to send all eight merchants to the capital for a thorough interrogation and to confiscate all their property. Only after the results were known was he to report back.

In the letter, Xu Xianchun had especially praised Man Gui’s merit. When Zhu Youxiao saw the name, he thought for a moment, then realized he did not know him. When he read that Xu Xianchun had said this man had always only wanted silver and therefore had not held a high rank, he found it rather amusing. Later Xu Xianchun wrote that the man now wished to earn merit and no longer wanted silver, which puzzled him greatly. He said to Wei Zhongxian, “This man has good martial skill and great courage. Have the Imperial Chief Eunuch look into why he wanted silver and not merit.”

Wei Zhongxian sent men directly to the Right Guard of Wanquan to inquire, and they soon learned the reason.

It turned out that Man Gui had once been very fond of a girl who lived next door. They had grown up together and had mutual feelings for one another. But the girl’s father was implicated in a case through someone else’s involvement; he was executed, and the girl herself was sent to the Bureau of Music and Dance. Her younger brother, still a minor, was also sent there to serve as a musician.

Unable to bear the humiliation, the girl took her own life in a fit of despair.

After that, Man Gui joined the army and fought the Mongols at Xuanfu. His martial skill was formidable, and his tally of kills was substantial. According to military regulations, one confirmed decapitation could be exchanged for a formal appointment; if one refused the post, one would receive fifty taels of silver instead. Man Gui took only silver for all of his kills, which was why, even now, he had risen only to the rank of hundred-household officer.

He had been saving the silver in hopes of buying the girl’s younger brother out. By now he should have had enough money, but he had no way to find the right channel, and no amount of silver could fulfill his wish.

After hearing the whole story, Zhu Youxiao thought long and hard, and his determination to abolish collective punishment only became firmer. He instructed Wei Zhongxian to bring the girl’s younger brother out of the Bureau of Music and Dance and have Wang Chengen deliver him to Man Gui.

That day, Man Gui was out drilling his men when the thousand-household officer summoned him back. Just as he entered the gate of the guard station, a boy of fifteen or sixteen called timidly, “Brother Gui.”

Man Gui looked closely. The boy seemed vaguely familiar, but he could not make him out. After a pause, he said, “I am Man Gui. And you are...?”

The boy suddenly burst into loud sobs, dropped to his knees, and cried, “Brother Gui, I’m Xiaohuan.”

Man Gui stood rooted to the spot. A sudden pain stabbed through his heart. Xiaohuan—Xiaowei’s younger brother Xiaohuan was here. But where was my Xiaowei? Xiaowei, where are you now? Are you all right? Do you still remember Man Gui, the one who once picked plums for you?

Tears streaming down his face, Man Gui lifted Xiaohuan up and examined him carefully. “Our Xiaohuan has grown up. Eight years have passed, and our Xiaohuan has become a man. Tell me, how did you come here?”

Xiaohuan pointed to the young eunuch beside him. “This gentleman brought me here.”

Wang Chengen cupped his hands and said, “The Son of Heaven knows that Hundred-Household Man rendered great service in the Zhangjiakou Fort case, so the merit due to the hundred-household was transferred to Chen Conghuan, and he was taken out of the Bureau of Music and Dance. Since this was done without first asking your opinion, I wonder whether you are satisfied?”

Man Gui dropped to his knees and said, “Please convey to His Majesty that from this day forth, Man Gui is willing to be the Emperor’s household slave. For generation after generation, I shall remain utterly loyal to His Majesty.”