At the same time, within Datong city, at the private residence of Yang Xuan.
The principal figures of the Yan family in this area had all gathered.
From Yang Xuan and Wu Ying downwards, Li Lai's father, Li Chong, the Western Route Deputy General Tian Shiwei, the Eastern Route Deputy General Yin Shangzhi, the Censorate Investigator Zhao Zi, and seven or eight other prominent figures were all present.
Li Chong was a local powerful clan leader. Ever since he rose to prominence by recruiting volunteers with Yang Bo, he had been the backbone of Datong Town's household guards and volunteers. This evening, he had urged Yang Xuan to take action several times, but Yang Xuan remained hesitant.
At this moment,
Seeing that everyone else remained silent, and recalling that his son had been executed in the street by Zhu Mo, Li Chong could no longer restrain himself and said, "Your Excellency the Governor, you must provide an explanation for this matter! What law did my son break? How could he have been killed by that Zhu Mo? We are all colleagues, you must consider my feelings! If it were any of you, how would you feel?"
But upon uttering these words,
There was still not a stir in the entire hall.
Li Chong said angrily, "To tell you the truth! I am prepared. Master Yang, it would be best if you nod your head today. If you don't, I, Li Chong, will also make a move against that Zhu Mo!"
_Clatter!_
The seven or eight people immediately grew restless. Everyone was thinking: your son acted without considering the consequences, you can't blame others! Who told him to personally step forward? He could have sent a subordinate! Now that something has happened, you want to drag us down with you?
This matter, these important figures were all perfectly clear—
How had Yan Shifan and Luo Longwen admonished them?
Before Anda's southward advance, everything had to be conceded to Zhu Mo. Nothing major or troublesome should occur. It was only for a few days. Once Anda arrived, all grudges could be settled.
But seeing Li Chong's immense anger, they dared not provoke him. After all, Li Chong was a powerful clan leader for three generations, with five to six hundred household guards under his command. If things truly turned hostile, it would indeed cause some trouble.
Yang Xuan, who had been pressured by him all night, now found himself in a calm state of mind and advised, "Tianci, what's done is done. There's no need to rush for revenge. As the saying goes, a gentleman's revenge is never too late, even after ten years. If you wait another three to five days for the Young Grand Secretary's instructions, what difficulty is there?"
Li Chong, who had been angry and anxious all evening, suddenly had an inspiration and thought of a reason. He calmly said in a deep voice, "Master Yang, it's not that I'm seeking personal revenge! My men have reported back that this morning, Ma Lu and a few others were all present, which means those old guards have already colluded with Zhu Mo. Can this still be considered a minor matter?
Everyone, you must also consider: the Right Guard has over two thousand troops. If that Zhu Mo were to flee and hide in the Right Guard, where would we find him then? How would we report to the Young Grand Secretary?
Therefore, I say, let's capture Zhu Mo first and detain him in the princely mansion or the Left Guard, or even my home! When the Anda army arrives, we can cut off his head and present it to the Young Grand Secretary, and then everything will be settled..."
Hmm,
This seemed to hold some logic.
A few who were on friendly terms with him began to waver.
Wu Ying was his son-in-law's father. Li Lai was, in essence, his future son-in-law. Unable to refuse now, he said, "Master Yang, Tianci's words have some merit. Zhu Mo avenged the old guards today. Those dead, stinking old soldiers will surely support him wholeheartedly. This is indeed troublesome..."
Mhm, mhm, mhm,
Reasonable, reasonable.
Everyone then looked expectantly at Yang Xuan.
Yang Xuan, a man who always had his wits about him, knew that he could not be rash. If a major incident were to occur, and Anda were to suddenly become suspicious, it would be a catastrophic disaster. Yet, he could not appease everyone at this moment, so he said, "Have you forgotten? The Young Grand Secretary said we must first ruin Zhu Mo's reputation! This person's fame is too great; the common people of the world regard him as a significant figure. If his reputation isn't first tarnished, it will be difficult to handle.
How about this, Tianci, I know you are very heartbroken. Let us wait a few more days. Let the Princess and her entourage take the lead. It's not even twenty days until the Minor New Year.
This matter, I have already reported it. After all, he killed a Datong volunteer reserve officer. The court will not ignore it. Let's wait a few days for the Young Grand Secretary's instructions. What do you say?"
Alas,
Li Chong pondered it, but he could no longer find any reason to object.
...
At the same time,
Zhu Mo remained in Huayan Temple, not daring to step outside even an inch.
From the temple monks, he learned that the private soldiers were still rampant, patrolling the city all day. The Governor's Yamen had publicly posted a notice stating that Anda might invade and that a curfew had been implemented.
Rumors, however, were flying everywhere, saying that Li Lai's case would soon be re-examined, and so on. The situation was extremely precarious; any spark could lead to another uncontrollable confrontation.
As night fell one day,
He strolled in the relic garden behind the temple, contemplating where Li Wenjin and Ma Fang might be, and when Anda would make his move. And whether Li Lai's father, Li Chong, would truly take the risk.
The more he thought,
The more his heart sank with fear—
Killing Li Lai was truly a desperate measure! If he hadn't killed him, they would have killed him. But this killing, after all, had a significant procedural flaw. Would Yan Song and his son make a big fuss about it? Portraying the case as him abusing his power to bully volunteers? And implicating the Imperial Guards?
One must know,
This time it was different from Jiangnan. He Maocai was caught red-handed for treasonous dealings with the enemy, and killing him had no repercussions. But this Li Lai case involved too many parties. Just as the system assessed, it could start from the Beijing Camp's firearms unit, implicating the Ministry of War; it could also start from the volunteers, implicating Yang Bo and Zhang Juzheng; it could also start from the Imperial Guards, implicating Zhang Er, and even the Directorate of Ceremonial...
What was even more critical was that the long-term suppression of the old guards in the Right Guard was largely due to the Gengxu Incident in the twenty-ninth year of Jiajing, when Jiajing was deceived by Chou Luan and the capital was almost captured by Anda. This Datong Right Guard was a persistent worry for him. Once this matter was brought up, that Jiajing would become enraged.
Therefore,
If Yan Song were to stir up trouble based on this, it would clearly be very advantageous.
He could say that Zhu Mo, upon arriving in Datong, provoked the volunteers, leading to a conflict between the guards and volunteers; he could also say that Zhu Mo colluded with the treasonous guards, intending to cause chaos in Datong. And with Anda already mobilized, how dare Xu Jie and Gao Gong say no? If Zhang Juzheng were in the capital, he might still be able to block it, but he was currently in Jiangnan.
Even more ruthlessly, Yan Song could retaliate and say that the people of the Directorate of Ceremonial colluded with Zhu Mo, causing chaos in Xuanda, and then inquire about the purpose, whether it was to collude with Anda.
This was not impossible,
Because,
The last time, with Chaotian Temple acting as a smokescreen, Yan Song and his son could not directly attack the Directorate of Ceremonial. But this time, the Imperial Guards who acted were Zhang Er's men. Once they questioned Zhang Er, everything would be clear. They could completely say that Yu Zhen acted on his own initiative to support Zhu Mo, and the reason behind it could be attributed to the people of the Directorate of Ceremonial causing trouble, or even directly instigated by Lu Fang.
At that time, the Directorate of Ceremonial would be unable to defend itself and would have to concede. Then Yan Song would propose replacing Yu Zhen, and the Grand Secretariat would issue a clear order to thoroughly investigate Li Lai's case.
In that case, he would immediately lose all his advantages in Datong.
At that time, Yang Xuan and the others could overturn the case, claiming Li Lai was innocent, and then find various clues to claim that Zhuang Yidong and Ma Lu colluded with the enemy, thus legally detaining him.
Upon thinking of this,
Zhu Mo felt like he had fallen into an ice cellar several times, and his only hope was:
Did that fellow Jiajing truly support what he said in the "Yun Chao Shu" (Memorial of the Imperial Dynasty)?
If he truly supported the reform, should he not provide some support? Otherwise, this gamble would be lost. He should start thinking about a fallback plan. If all else failed, he could take advantage of the impending war and escape to the Western Regions from Qinghai.