Chapter Fifty-Eight: Zhang Wanhou

Lady Golden Flower immediately caught the underlying meaning in Liu Yi’s words: “Zhu Yuanzhang must not have anything happen to him at this moment!”

Although Liu Yi stood in opposition to Zhu Yuanzhang, with little hope for reconciliation in the near future, should anything untoward happen to Zhu Yuanzhang now, the entire Red Turban Army in Chuzhou would almost certainly collapse instantly. Among all the forces in the Chuzhou Red Turban Army, Zhu Yuanzhang commanded the greatest strength and the most formidable troops. One could even say that, while the Red Turban Army of Chuzhou might survive the loss of anyone else, it could not survive without Zhu Yuanzhang. If he were to fall, there would be no one capable of taking his place.

Neither Xu Da, Tang He, Hua Yun, nor Chang Yuchun could fill his shoes, nor could Guo Tianshu or Zhang Tianyou—and Liu Yi himself was no exception.

Liu Yi’s history of working with the Chuzhou Red Turban Army was extremely brief, and the Chaohu navy operated as its own separate entity within the army. Even with Guo Yunyu’s support, Liu Yi could not possibly take over Zhu Yuanzhang’s foundation.

If Zhu Yuanzhang’s forces were to disintegrate, the Red Turban Army in Chuzhou would likely lose its foothold in Jiangnan and be forced to retreat north of the river. All the painstaking efforts of both Lady Golden Flower and Liu Yi would be rendered meaningless.

Yet, precisely because she understood this, only one thought filled her heart now: “I must seize this opportunity to eliminate Zhu Yuanzhang—he must die, no matter what!”

She tightened her grip on her spear.

At that very moment, Zhu Yuanzhang remained oblivious to the looming danger. He addressed his group of generals, saying, “If Xie Guoxi wants to play tricks with me, he must be tired of living. I know the Spear Army is famed for its ferocity, but no matter how fierce they are, can they compare to my own invincible troops? No matter what Xie Guoxi tries today, I will devour his Spear Army without fail!”

Tang He, ever adept at pleasing Zhu Yuanzhang, responded, “Marshal, you are completely right. How could Xie Guoxi’s little schemes possibly fool us? He has no idea that this time we’ve brought out all our elite troops, ready to swallow the Spear Army whole!”

Though the Spear Army was in a difficult position after crossing the river, they were far from desperate. Their sudden surrender to Zhu Yuanzhang was certainly a ruse. Zhu Yuanzhang’s response was straightforward: he would gather all his forces and press down on them with overwhelming might.

Whether Xie Guoxi’s surrender was sincere or not, faced with the absolute superiority of Zhu Yuanzhang’s army, surrender was their only fate. Zhu Yuanzhang placed high hopes on Tang He: “Commandant Tang, do well this time, and I’ll see you promoted!”

Within Zhu Yuanzhang’s inner circle, Tang He was a veteran with considerable achievements. The problem was, while he excelled as a company or battalion commander, he always fell short in larger commands, and his recent record had failed to win the respect of his peers.

But his unwavering loyalty and his knack for pleasing Zhu Yuanzhang ensured that Zhu Yuanzhang continued to create opportunities for him: “Commandant Tang, I’ll personally support you in battle this time!”

With all his main forces pressed against Xie Guoxi’s Spear Army, Zhu Yuanzhang believed that, even if the outcome was not certain, success was at least highly probable. Tang He was sure to make a name for himself this time.

Guo Tianshu and Zhang Tianyou, however, were far less cautious than Zhu Yuanzhang. On this eastward campaign, each brought not only their own thousand-man personal troops but also a full-strength ten-thousand-man unit.

Unaware of the looming disaster, they chatted merrily. Shao Rong’s elder brother, Shao Siwanhu, who had followed Zhang Tianyou for many years, had never seen him so delighted: “Since Chen Zhaoxian has handed over the army rolls, the golden tally, the tiger tally, and the official seals, it shows he is truly sincere. The deal is more than half done!”

Although Chen Zhaoxian had brought his own thousand-man personal guard to welcome Guo Tianshu and Zhang Tianyou, internecine strife among the various anti-Yuan rebel armies was as common as eating or sleeping. Not until Chen Zhaoxian sent people to deliver the army rolls, the tallies for troop movements, the tiger tally and the seals did Guo Tianshu and Zhang Tianyou feel they could finally relax.

The army register seemed simple, just a hundred pages or so, but it contained detailed information on every ten-thousand-man commander, deputy, thousand-man commander, and deputy under Chen Yexian and Chen Zhaoxian. With such a register in hand, they would have complete command over Chen Yexian’s and Chen Zhaoxian’s subordinates.

As for the golden tally, tiger tally, and the seals used by Chen Zhaoxian, those were a stroke of unexpected good fortune. While Chen Yexian and Chen Zhaoxian were volunteer soldiers and not part of the formal Yuan or Han armies, those tokens remained symbols of absolute authority within the ranks.

Guo Tianshu knew better than anyone the weight those objects carried. Though he was the supreme commander in the Chuzhou headquarters, without the army register, tallies, and seals, he would have less authority than a mere thousand-man commander: “Since Chen Zhaoxian is willing to come over, we must reward those two generously, but we absolutely must absorb their troops!”

Zhang Tianyou wholeheartedly agreed: “The Marshal is right. No matter the cost, we must bring their forces under our command!”

Shao Si, however, felt uneasy: “Marshals, I think this is not so simple. What if Chen Zhaoxian turns on us in desperation?”

Guo Tianshu laughed: “I’m not afraid of Chen Zhaoxian lashing out—I’d only be worried if he refused to attend the banquet. As long as he comes to this welcoming feast tonight, he’ll have to do as we say!”

He was now supremely confident.

A few miles away, Chen Zhaoxian was equally elated: “Guo Tianshu and Zhang Tianyou have made all their calculations, but overlooked the imperial troops. Today, not only will they die—they have no chance of survival!”

Opposite him, the Yuan general remained calm: “Marshal Zhaoxian, don’t forget, your father is still in the hands of those Red Turban bandits. Any mishap could have unimaginable consequences.”

Yet for Chen Zhaoxian, the past month had been the happiest time of his life. Before Chen Yexian’s capture, though he held the rank of ten-thousand-man commander, his father always treated him as a mere bodyguard, sending him on all the hardest and most exhausting assignments, all under the pretense of “father and son fighting side by side.” Yet when it came time to divide the honors, he was never regarded as a true son.

After Chen Yexian’s capture, everything changed. Chen Zhaoxian became the ultimate authority; despite some veteran officers’ misgivings, the Jiangnan Administration Board was willing to support him fully, and dissenting voices soon faded into insignificance.

Now, he spoke without reservation: “The Jiangnan Administration sent Commander Zhang here; surely it’s not just to handle my family affairs?”