Chapter 103: Songjiang

It was rumored that Liu Yi had given Shao Rong further instructions, causing everyone in the Left Camp to grow tense. They all believed that the remaining matter—"there was still one more thing"—was the most important and crucial task, and that Liu Yi and Shao Rong were saving it for last so as to prepare to deal with Zhu Yuanzhang’s army.
Zhu Yuanzhang, though his fury had yet to subside, remained the calmest person present. “What else did Marshal Liu wish to say? Please, go ahead.”
This was not out of any grander perspective, but rather out of a habit formed in the wake of Liu Yi’s repeated sudden assaults, which had left psychological shadows in his wake.
Shao Rong answered at once. “My lord instructed me to tell you, Marshal Zhu, that you once gave your word: when will the beauties of the Left Camp be fulfilled? He has been weighing this matter for a long time.”
The moment the words left his mouth, laughter rang out from every corner of the Left Camp. No one had imagined that the Liu Yi who had twice robbed Zhu Yuanzhang of his beauties would turn out to be such a romantic soul—uninterested in territory or real power, yet forever scheming over the “Left Camp beauties.”
Yet such a Liu Yi was far easier to accept. The Liu Yi who plotted behind the scenes and wielded sinister tricks could never be cooperated with; only the Liu Yi who truly wanted the beauties could sit down and drink and feast together. And Zhu Yuanzhang felt he had at last found the weakness in him. “Very well, very well. We will fulfill everything your lord has promised. But this matter must wait until after we have taken Jiqing City. How about we celebrate grandly? … As for what you promised the Zhenjiang of the water camp, that will also be fulfilled. However, the Right Vice Admiral and all land matters will be handled by this marshal one by one; your water camp need not intervene too deeply.”
Previously Zhu Yuanzhang had promised to hand over the entire city of Zhenjiang to the Chaohu Water Army as its independent domain. Now, though Liu Yi spoke only of “Left Camp beauties,” the true intent was to remind him not to forget the promise concerning Zhenjiang.
After a series of setbacks, Zhu Yuanzhang temporarily gave up the dream of competing for supremacy on the water with the Chaohu Water Army and instead turned his full attention to land.
Although Liu Yi had seized the initiative from the water camp in the Chen Zhaoxian affair, Zhu Yuanzhang was confident that once Chen Zhaoxian came under his control, no great waves would be stirred. Moreover, the immediate crisis demanded that Jiqing Road, Jiangdong Circuit, and even the entire Jiangzhe Provincial Administration be taken swiftly. Therefore he spoke with fierce resolve: “Tell your lord that I do not wish to see such arbitrary actions repeated. Should a second occurrence occur, we might as well part ways.”
Although Shao Rong had always been shameless, he now spoke with exceptional gravity. “Before I left, our lord warned that there would never be a second time, yet the matter of the beauties must still be remembered in your heart.”
The atmosphere throughout the room remained heavy. Only after seeing Shao Rong off did Zhu Yuanzhang stamp his feet in fury. “They are too excessive, truly too excessive!”
Zhu Yuanzhang was already so enraged; what of the civil and military officials beneath him, all seething with resentment? “The water camp has never treated us as one family!”
“Liu Yi and the Jin Hua Lady are openly plotting rebellion. Without their meddling, we would have already seized Jiqing City!”
“Yes, Marshal Liu has gone too far—this is a knife in the back!”
Previously the Left Camp had unanimously agreed that Kang Maocai and the barbarian admiral Haiha’s Yuan forces at sea must not fall into Liu Yi’s hands. Yet now no one brought up the matter; everyone had tacitly accepted the fact that Liu Yi had taken the Zhongcheng Water Camp. But the news of Liu Yi’s cooperation with Chen Zhaoxian struck every heart like a bolt of lightning, leaving all of them seething.
Zhu Yuanzhang, by contrast, was the most restrained of them all. “Enough, enough. Pass the word down: from this moment on, none of the daughters of our camp’s families are to speak of marriage. After we take Jiqing City, the prettiest beauties will be reserved for the one surnamed Liu. Though this matter is far from over, we must now put the greater scheme first.”
As he uttered the four words “put the greater scheme first,” Zhu Yuanzhang’s expression twisted completely. He controlled himself, yet every person present understood the true meaning hidden behind those words.
Though the greater scheme must come first now, the water camp would one day have its own turn.
Within the Chaohu Water Army, excitement ran high. Sun Yue Rong’s greatest worry had always been that she was merely a concubine, forever fearing that Liu Yi might forget her the moment he took a new woman. Yet after hearing Shao Rong’s account of the conversation with Zhu Yuanzhang, she smiled brightly. “It seems Zhu Yuanzhang has truly been driven to the point of losing his wits. Otherwise, with his temperament, not even a few beauties—let alone dozens—would have been fulfilled so quickly.”
Though Sun Yue Rong and Zhu Yuanzhang had never met, as Liu Yi’s female secretary and military advisor she had long since mastered his every habit. She knew he was generous to a fault yet petty beyond measure; the fact that he now refused even a few beauties showed how deeply he hated Liu Yi.
Liu Yi laughed when he heard it. “I don’t care about a few beauties. The real issue is Zhenjiang. We must have our own piece of territory.”
For the Chaohu Water Army, this was a vital question that had to be resolved. Only by securing their own domain could they stand firm.
Kang Maocai, upon hearing this, could barely contain his eagerness. Though he had earned a great merit this time and his strength had only grown stronger after defecting, continuing to command independently, he remained an outsider in the Chaohu Water Army’s mountain stronghold. “My lord, why not entrust Zhenjiang to me? I have some connections with the defender there. Now that Jiqing has changed hands, the situation over there is bound to be unstable. I am willing to help you take it.”
Liu Yi nodded. “General Kang speaks wisely. Yet no matter what the Zhenjiang defender may think, we must take the city at once. We cannot wait until after Jiqing falls to deal with it.”
The mention of Zhenjiang stirred excitement throughout the camp. Though they had torn faces with Zhu Yuanzhang in truth, the recruitment of more than ten thousand Yuan forces from Kang Maocai and the barbarian admiral Haiha had already rendered the Chaohu Water Army nearly invincible upon the Yangtze. Once Zhenjiang was taken, the Chaohu waters would be free to develop independently, and they would never again fear splitting apart.
Zhao Pu Sheng was even more eager. “Should we ask the barbarian admiral to handle the Zhenjiang side?”
Liu Yi shook his head. “The barbarian admiral is a noble figure. Since we promised him recruitment and pacification, we cannot go back on our word. Moreover, a mere city of Zhenjiang is not enough for him to act; we would need a place like Songjiang Prefecture to request his presence.”