A Nation in the Storm

"You only brought me forty thousand. If you could bring four hundred thousand, then I would truly thank you." "..." He Lingchuan added, "When the master is strong, the subordinates obey; when the master is weak, the subordinates rebel." Whether superiors and subordinates acted with one heart hinged entirely on the leader. Whether vassals and retainers wanted to rebel, dared to rebel, or were able to rebel all depended on him, He Lingchuan! The human heart was the most elusive thing in the world. Leaders like He Lingchuan understood clearly that loyalty stemmed from confidence. If your subordinates had confidence in you, believing you could win, that you could lead them ever upward, and that even if setbacks struck you would find a way to overcome them, then they would remain loyal. Conversely—well, what else needed to be said? "If my subordinates harbor disloyal thoughts and dare to turn traitor, the fault lies with me. What are you afraid of?" If a ruler was incompetent or unobservant, he had only himself to blame when his subordinates turned wild ambitions into action. The ways of heaven were constant; all things rose and fell in turn. His calm attitude put Moqi Feng's heart at ease as well. Indeed, this was Island Master He. Moqi Feng did not dare harbor even the slightest stray thought. He Lingchuan smiled and clapped him on the shoulder. "Take the long view. Don't just fixate on the tiny plot right in front of you. Our goal—" He pointed toward the distance, leaving the rest unsaid. Just then, the flutter of wings came from outside. A swift swept past the corner of the eaves and landed on the balustrade, shaking its feathers, looking slightly exhausted. It chirped a few times at He Lingchuan, then regurgitated a tiny, extremely slender copper tube from its crop. New word had arrived. Intelligence carried by swifts was usually dispatched over immense distances. Taking it in hand, He Lingchuan fed the bird several small spirit pills and thanked it, "Thank you for your hard work." The swift shook the water from its body and rested on the railing, digesting the spirit pills while puffing itself into a small ball of fluff. He Lingchuan turned back to Moqi Feng. "Since the Bailong people are going to settle on the island, go discuss things thoroughly with Lei Ni and Ding Zuodong to find proper work for your clansmen. The archipelago is so large that there is no end of work to be done." The newly arrived tens of thousands needed jobs to feed themselves. And for the Yangshan Archipelago, they were fresh blood, labor power, and contributors to building the islands and strengthening their power. "Yes!" Seeing He Lingchuan open the letter, Moqi Feng promptly took his leave. The moment he stepped out of Shuyu Pavilion, fine threads of rain beat against his face, feeling as icy as the day he and his uncle had tried to seize the islands. Back then, they had wanted to take the Yangshan Archipelago simply to secure a foothold for their people to develop gradually. And now? Now, that goal had already been achieved. The Bailong tribe was living in the Yangshan Archipelago, no longer sleeping rough in the wind and rain, no longer hiding and running from place to place. Life had hope, and the future held promise. Moreover, the archipelago did not require them to pour out their life's blood managing it; they only had to grow along with it. How easy it was, how free of worry! Had the wish he and his uncle shared truly been fulfilled so naturally? For a moment, Moqi Feng felt dazed. After he departed, the soul-snatching mirror finally asked He Lingchuan, "Are you really not afraid that the Bailong will grow too large and turn into a hidden danger?" "Then we manage them properly." He Lingchuan stroked the swift and turned back into the room. "Everything has pros and cons. If you want development, you have to accept the accompanying consequences. If you fear the side effects, you'll end up stuck in your ways." One could not give up eating for fear of choking; one had to grasp the principal contradiction. "In the future, our territory will expand, our subjects will multiply, and factions of every stripe will flock to join us upon hearing our name," He Lingchuan said with a chuckle. "If I fear the Bailong today, won't I fear them tomorrow?" The soul-snatching mirror grunted. "As long as you know what you're doing. Just don't capsize in the gutter." "Moqi Feng is no fool." Nor was He Lingchuan afraid. Having governed the archipelago for over a year, he had long held it firmly in his grasp. He was the hub of the islands, and even more their soul. Without him, this place was merely forty-two desolate isles. A crash of thunder rumbled across the horizon. Why was the rain falling harder and harder? Out on the covered walkway, the swift fluffed up even more. It simply buried its head into its back feathers, settling in for a sound sleep. He Lingchuan slipped the letter out of the copper tube. The moment he unfolded it, he saw the distinctive mark of Songyang Mansion. A letter from afar, indeed. In his last reply, he had asked Li Qingge to keep an eye on developments inside the Yuan Kingdom. Though Songyang Mansion's headquarters had already moved to the Beijia Kingdom, Li Qingge remained exceedingly well-informed. This delivery brought intelligence on the Yuan Kingdom. He Lingchuan unfolded the letter and scanned it, his brow soon knitting. The Yangshan Archipelago was too far from the Yuan Kingdom, a voyage of more than two months by sea. The last report delivered by the Li Mingyang brothers of Songyang Mansion had stated that the Grand Marshal had breached the Yuan Kingdom's northern defense line, Ke Jihai was killed in action, the Yuan capital was in peril, and He Chunhua was biding his time. More than half a year had passed since then, and He Lingchuan wanted to know what followed. With the Yuan Kingdom plunged into internal strife, Songyang Mansion had long since evacuated the realm, but it still gathered intelligence periodically. After Grand Marshal Dong Haoming smashed the northern defense line, he had not replicated Hong Xiangqian's old tactic of advancing east by boat, choosing instead to march overland. This was not because he harbored any reservations, but because after Woling Pass fell back then and the rebel army's fleet was torched, the local economy and livelihoods had never fully recovered. There simply were not enough boats to carry the Grand Marshal's army down the river. Furthermore, the Grand Marshal perhaps regarded the Yuan capital as already in the bag; unlike the rebel army of the past, he was in no rush to drive eastward, choosing instead a steady, methodical advance. Marching overland was naturally slower, and there were occasional disruptions along the way. Thus, by the time the Grand Marshal led his army to Shihuan City, more than a month had passed since the collapse of the northern front. Reading to this point, He Lingchuan shook his head. "The Grand Marshal made a mistake." When heaven offers and you refuse, disaster follows. The Grand Marshal had squandered crucial military momentum. Reading further down, sure enough, the Yuan Kingdom had seized that precious month to urgently transfer supplies and summon an army to defend the crown. Part of the credit belonged to He Lingchuan. The money and grain he had secured by persuading Mount Rong to mortgage and loan still had not been exhausted even now. Silver was silver; throw it at a problem, and results would follow. Provisions around the Yuan capital were far more abundant than before. Once the Yuan court recovered from the terror of the northern line's defeat, it was bound to make a desperate last stand. Consequently, when the Grand Marshal's army arrived near Shihuan City, it met with fierce resistance. The ones leading the troops against the Grand Marshal were two young generals newly recommended by the National Preceptor. The nobles and dignitaries of Shihuan and the Yuan capital also understood that this was a fight with their backs to the wall—victory or death. Thus, those with money gave money, those with grain gave grain, and those with men gave men, miraculously scraping together an army of fifty thousand! He Lingchuan did not know how the King of Yuan had reacted upon hearing that number. Should he have rejoiced that the Yuan Kingdom could still assemble such a force, or raged that the northern front had previously been starved of supplies and pay? Over the next five months, this army held Shihuan City steadfastly, actually trading blows back and forth with the Grand Marshal! The mirror was reading along and marveled, "Oho, even a battered ship still has three jin of nails. Could it be that the Yuan court isn't as rotten as I thought?" "No, it is just that rotten. It's just that the Grand Marshal isn't as formidable as outsiders imagined," He Lingchuan countered, dispelling its misconception. "The Grand Marshal attacking Shihuan and the capital puts him too far from his own base in Wuzhou, stretching his supply lines thin. I'd wager he is running into logistical trouble." Back when he was in Blackwater City and Shihuan, he had only felt the Grand Marshal's troops were formidable, capable of battering Ke Jihai to the point where he had to return to the capital begging for grain and military funds. Yet from his current perspective, the Yuan court's army was mediocre at best, so a Grand Marshal who could get bogged down fighting them for a year and a half could not be all that impressive either. It was nothing more than amateurs pecking at each other. If He Lingchuan were in his shoes, even leading the Grand Marshal's troops, he likely could have taken the capital within a month or two, ushering in a whole new era for the Yuan Kingdom. Reading further down the letter: ah, during the five months the Yuan army held out against the Grand Marshal, commanders from the east had also led forces to defend the crown. "It seems the Grand Marshal hasn't won the support of the people in the Yuan Kingdom either. Perhaps he even pillaged the common folk around the Yuan capital." This was no wild guess on He Lingchuan's part. An army at war could least afford shortages of food and clothing; otherwise, morale and fighting strength would plummet. With the Grand Marshal's army deep in the Yuan Kingdom's heartland, once supplies ran low, they would inevitably turn their sights on the surrounding populace. He Lingchuan had heard plenty of accounts of armies looting indiscriminately before and after taking cities. At this juncture, He Chunhua made his move— He finally led troops north to defend the crown. Counting from when he was appointed Chief Administrator of Yazhou and suppressed the Longchuan rebels, He Chunhua had stayed in Yazhou for over a year. It was said the administration was harmonious and the people prospered, earning him deep affection from the populace. He Lingchuan had never doubted He Chunhua's governing ability. Yazhou was also the great granary of the Yuan Kingdom; while poor harvests plagued other regions throughout the past year, Yazhou alone was uniquely blessed, having experienced at least two bumper harvests. His luck was truly exceptional. Where there was grain, there was never a shortage of soldiers. He Chunhua had surely seized the time to deeply cultivate Yazhou while drilling his army. Thus, throughout the five months the Grand Marshal assaulted Shihuan, he had lain low, quietly building his strength. "Your dad stayed hidden for months. Why march north now?" the mirror asked. "Why not wait until the battle for the capital was decided before swooping in to pick up the spoils?" "That would be too late," He Lingchuan pondered. "While ensconced in Yazhou, he must have been watching the fighting in the north constantly. Choosing this moment to march north means he either saw a fresh opportunity or discovered a weakness in the Grand Marshal." For He Chunhua, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity; his moves were bound to be prudent. If he could not see any hope of success, why would he march north? "A pity I'm so far from the Yuan Kingdom. Otherwise, watching this unfold from up close would have been terribly entertaining." He Chunhua marched north to have an audience with the sovereign. The moment he entered the royal court, he dropped to his knees before the King of Yuan, kowtowing repeatedly until blood trickled from his forehead. With tears and snot streaming down his face, he blamed himself for arriving late to protect the throne, claiming it had all been due to training troops and raising grain. For Songyang Mansion's report to include even such details, it was likely not mere speculation, but because Li Qingge still had eyes and ears in the palace. In truth, the King of Yuan had been beside himself with anxiety in those days. Hearts both inside and outside the capital were unsettled, bad news arrived in unending waves, and the King had even bitten into stray eggshell left in his meal. In such precarious times, the deference and loyalty displayed by He Chunhua as a high-ranking minister warmed the King of Yuan's heart. Though He Chunhua had arrived a bit late, he had come after all. At this very moment, he was the ballast stone, bringing a profound sense of security to the entire Yuan court.