Chapter Thirty-Three

Chapter 33

The Northern Zhen army stationed in the Jingbei region was the renowned Heavy Armored Iron Cavalry. This force was famous for its siege capabilities. In battle, both men and horses were clad in heavy armor, advancing in perfect formation with an unstoppable, ferocious momentum. It was said that in previous campaigns, whenever a city proved impossible to conquer, this army was summoned. Consequently, they were deeply favored by the Northern Zhen Emperor, receiving military funding far greater than any other division, and the soldiers enjoyed superior benefits. However, in recent years, the Northern Zhen treasury had run dry, and with no major wars to fight, their funding had been slashed repeatedly. It was barely enough to provide the soldiers with food and clothing. Most of the Iron Cavalry soldiers were accustomed to high living and extravagance; now that the silver was gone, they could not endure the hardship. Thus, they pooled their wits and devised a preposterous scheme to raise funds: leveraging their military strength, they resorted to "tyrannical fundraising" in the Southern Han region. In reality, this meant looting, burning, and killing along the Southern Han border. The defenseless populace of the Jingnan region could only submit to the slaughter, their lives plunged into darkness.

The commander of this Iron Cavalry was the infamous Northern Zhen "Three-Good" General, Meng'an Dan Xinglian. His "three goods" were: good at hoarding wealth, good at lust, and good at flattery. Since implementing his tyrannical fundraising, he would send an "elite" unit every two weeks to pillage the villages and market towns of Jingnan. A portion of the stolen wealth and women was kept for himself and his subordinates, while the rest was sent to a powerful minister in the Northern Zhen court—his greatest patron, Grand Secretary Xiang Renwan. This Grand Secretary was himself a greedy and lecherous man, and a former classmate of the Southern Han court’s Prime Minister Qin. The two now colluded in secret.

Early one morning, General Meng'an Dan Xinglian rose to issue orders. He dispatched a "crack" unit of over fifty men, led by a trusted lieutenant, to slip across the border under the cover of dawn to raid Jingnan. Usually, after the raiding party departed, Meng'an Dan Xinglian would return to his bedroom to catch up on sleep, resting and conserving his strength for his "bedchamber battles." Today, however, he broke his routine. He sat motionless in his commander's chair. Morning passed, and he remained there; the sun set, and he was still sitting there, yet his party had not returned. By the next morning, there was still no sign of the "raiders." He knew they were likely doomed. Combined with the dozens who had "gone missing" previously, nearly a hundred of his men had vanished. Realizing the gravity of the situation, he told his guard, "Prepare the horses immediately. I have urgent business in the capital with Grand Secretary Xiang Renwan."

The guard bowed and replied, "As you command."

In the study of Grand Secretary Xiang Renwan’s mansion in the Northern Zhen capital, General Meng'an Dan Xinglian paced back and forth, his face flushed with anxiety. The Grand Secretary had yet to return from a meeting at the palace.

Xiang Renwan was a man of scholarly pretense who had studied in Southern Han, where he was a classmate of Prime Minister Qin. After completing his studies, he returned to Northern Zhen to pass the imperial examinations, placing first as the Zhuangyuan, while Prime Minister Qin passed the top tier in Southern Han the same year. When Northern Zhen captured the Southern Han capital, Xiang Renwan was serving the Crown Prince. After the death of the previous Northern Zhen emperor, the Crown Prince ascended the throne, and Xiang Renwan helped the new emperor secure his position. Though he knew that "serving the emperor is like sleeping with a tiger," he had remained in the position of Chief Councilor for over twenty years.

General Meng'an Dan Xinglian was a frequent guest, familiar to everyone from the steward down to the servants. Knowing that the Grand Secretary usually received him in the study, the steward led him directly there to wait. Yet, he waited until his scalp tingled, and still, the Grand Secretary did not appear.

The truth was, the preposterous Northern Zhen Emperor, not satisfied with his three thousand concubines, had impregnated a minor palace maid who had recently given birth to a little prince. The Emperor was overjoyed and wanted to elevate her to the rank of consort, but her lowly status had sparked fierce opposition from the Empress Dowager and several high-ranking ministers. Depressed, the Emperor had summoned Grand Secretary Xiang for counsel. The Grand Secretary, a man who could devise a scheme with a mere blink, whispered a few words in the Emperor’s ear. The Emperor was delighted and invited the minister to drink and keep him company, keeping him at the palace until evening.

As soon as General Meng'an Dan Xinglian saw the Grand Secretary, he asked anxiously, "Lord Minister,