Chapter 312 - Putting Out Feelers and a Kick Up the Backside (1/2)
Ling Zhang’s tone was unhurried and confident, as though he had conceived a counterplan some time ago. On hearing this remark, the Right Prime Minister couldn’t help but give it some thought. Then he ventured, “Is it because the Marshal has made some arrangements before he left the capital city?”
Having no intention of keeping it back from him, Ling Zhang bobbed his head. “Yuwen Tong has long since taken precautions against this. Someone will intercept the garrison of Jiangzhou. Currently, all we need to do is keep the situation in this city under control.”
The Right Prime Minister’s face took on a pleasantly surprised expression as it came to his knowledge that his guess was right. “Who is it?” he asked.
“The garrison of Shengzhou.”
The Right Prime Minister was amazed. “The garrison of Shengzhou? Right now the Wan Kingdom and the Luohai Kingdom are attacking the north-west. The garrison of Shengzhou is supposed to be our second defensive line, the North-western Army being the first. If–”
“There’s no if,” observed Ling Zhang earnestly, looking at him. “If Yuwen Tong fails, even the garrison of Shengzhou wouldn’t be able to change the fact that we’re defeated. Do you think any of this would mean anything if things really come to that?”
The Right Prime Minister gazed thoughtfully at Ling Zhang. After a few moments, he solemnly said, “You’re right. If things do come to that, it wouldn’t make any difference whether or not the garrison of Shengzhou is in position.”
“The North-western Army’s victory is certain, and the army of Jiangzhou must be held back. The garrison of Shengzhou has covertly moved southward, poised to attack at any moment. Presently, what we need to do is keep the situation in this city stable. Cangzhou is too close to the capital city. Although Dai Cheng is wounded for the moment and his troops are occupied with fighting the rebel army, it’s best if we make sure n.o.body in this city reaches Dai Cheng. As a result, apart from defending this city, we also have to stay alert and prevent people in here from getting in touch with Dai Cheng. My suggestion is that we close half of the city gates and have everybody exiting the city undergo strict security check. What do you think, Your Lords.h.i.+p?” said Ling Zhang.
The Right Prime Minister’s countenance was now different from how it’d been a moment ago. If just now he had faintly meant to sound Ling Zhang out, then now he had no intention of putting out feelers whatsoever. “This is also one of the matters I came here to consult with you about, Childe Ling. Seeing as you also think this is a necessary measure, I’ll give the order to close half of the city gates immediately after I leave.”
Ling Zhang inclined his head. “I’ve been keeping watch on Fang Quan all along. Recently he and his allies haven’t found the time to take any action in response to the rebellion in Cangzhou. The rebel forces are a threat no less dire than the coalition of the Wan Kingdom and the Luohai Kingdom. They won’t summon Dai Cheng to this city unless they have to. Right now what concerns me more is that Dai Cheng might ignore the rebels and lead his men straight back to this city if the real situation here comes to his knowledge.”
The Right Prime Minister was astonished, both at the undertone contained in Ling Zhang’s words and by the fact that Ling Zhang had actually thought this far.
“Currently Dai Cheng is held back by the insurrectionary army. He wouldn’t be able to go after us even if he wants to.”
After a few moments’ silence, Ling Zhang commented, “Dai Cheng was one of the former emperor’s henchmen, after all. It’s always wise to play safe. We need to be prepared for the worst.”
Yuwen Tong had made arrangements for the General Zhongwu (AKA the General of Loyalty and Valor) to go to Cangzhou overtly and Yue Qi to go there covertly, both of whom had orders to keep the army in Cangzhou under control and prevent Dai Cheng from leading his troops back to the capital city, but before everything was settled, anything was possible. They must make some preparations so that they wouldn’t be fl.u.s.tered when unforeseen events happened.
The Right Prime Minister thought for a while and then said, “I can see what you mean, Childe Ling. I’ll… How about this? If you’re free tomorrow, I’ll invite Lord Zhao and Commander Xie of the Northern City Garrison Battalion to your house to have a meeting and discuss it.”
Ling Zhang said, “Of course I’m available tomorrow, but I’m your junior by many years, and I don’t want to breach the etiquette. Would it be convenient for you if I pay a visit to your abode tomorrow morning?”
The Right Prime Minister smiled, “Sure. I’ll be waiting at home for you to come tomorrow morning.”
Ling Zhang said, “I don’t dare keep you waiting, Your Lords.h.i.+p. I’ll go there at an early hour. Have there been any changes of situation in the imperial palace?”
The Right Prime Minister replied, “The Eighth Prince and the Concubine Jin have been keeping vigil beside the former emperor’s coffin. The Ninth Prince and the Concubine Liu are also present. Of the two princes, the Ninth Prince is only two years old. He and his mother are largely invisible. The Eighth Prince and the Concubine Jin, however, are getting almost all the attention in the imperial court. This morning, I received a message saying that Fang Quan had had letters delivered to several courtiers’ dwellings. The couple of them who visited Fang Quan earlier this day were the ones who had made definite replies. The others haven’t taken a clear-cut stand yet.”
Ling Zhang said, “Those staying low are probably sitting on the fence. All of them are uncertain factors and could be swayed at any moment, which is bad news for us. We need to keep close watch on them. I’ve been informed of the ident.i.ties of those who visited the Fang Mansion today. Since our goal is to use Fang Quan to bring down all those against us once and for all, it’s inadvisable for us to take any immediate action. The way I see it, right now we could just put them under surveillance. What do you think, Your Lords.h.i.+p?”
The Right Prime Minister replied, “I can’t agree more. I’ve already sent some men to stake out the Fang Mansion. I’m expecting them to make their move. It’s just… Although some of them didn’t show up, they are hiding in the shadows. These people might also be a big trouble, probably bigger than the trouble Fang Quan could bring us, actually.”
“You mean people like the Jiang family?” asked Ling Zhang.
The Right Prime Minister was astonished once again. It could be said that so far Ling Zhang had thought of everything he had thought of, which showed that Ling Zhang had some time ago got enough acquaintance with these matters and people in this city. He said with a nod, “Exactly. After all, the empress dowager was a member of the Jiang family. The two underage princes have cousins.h.i.+p with people of the Jiang family, so they are probably more inclined to support the two princes than they are to support the Marshal. Given that the Ninth Prince is still young, and the Concubine Liu and her family are relatively weak compared with the Fang family, I guess they wouldn’t take any action. After all, the Eighth Prince has a greater chance. So the likelihood is that the Jiang family would contact the Fang family.”
Ling Zhang said, “I understand what you mean, Your Lords.h.i.+p. The Jiang family hasn’t made their move so far, but they will in a day or two.”
Currently, of these people in the capital city, all those with enough sense would have known by now that their every move was being watched. He had his eye on those people, and maybe those people had their eye on him as well.
“Your Lords.h.i.+p, please make sure you’re accompanied by enough guards when you’re outdoors, in case anything unexpected happens,” said Ling Zhang.
The Right Prime Minister gave a nod. “The Marshal had made some arrangements in this regard before he left. I and a couple of other courtiers are all under the protection of secret guards. Also, I always take my own guards with me. I’ll be as careful as I could. It’s your safety that concerns me. Although the security of this residence is no doubt very tight, you still need to be extra cautious.”
“I understand,” said Ling Zhang.
…
The purposes of this visit of the Right Prime Minister’s were to sound Ling Zhang out and to keep each other informed. Now that both these ends had been achieved, he soon took his leave after the two of them agreed to meet in his abode the next morning.
It was when the Right Prime Minister had left that Ji Yin and Ling Zhaowu walked over from the rear yard. Ji Yin, whose sense of hearing was amazingly sharp, had heard every word of their conversation and given Ling Zhaowu a general account of it.
“Is the Right Prime Minister the one who has the other half of the commander’s seal of the Northern City Garrison Battalion?” asked Ling Zhaowu.