Chapter Thirty-One: Strike Out

This powerful and open series of blows left Zhu Yuanzhang deeply distressed, to the point where his very foundations were shaken. Zhu Yuanzhang, once beloved by all, now found himself avoided; though people dared not quarrel with him, they went to great lengths to stay out of his way. Some veteran generals even began to consider striking out on their own, and even his most trusted strategist, Li Shanchang, came into conflict with him.

While some secretly mocked Zhu Yuanzhang and anticipated his fierce retaliation, before he could strike back, earth-shattering news broke out: Du Zundao was dead.

Liu Futong, Chancellor of the Song, had joined forces with the Left Prime Minister, Sheng Wenyu, to eliminate the top-ranking Right Prime Minister, Du Zundao.

Infighting among the various anti-Yuan armies was commonplace. Since the Guo family’s army had risen in Haozhou, it had seen countless internal purges; both Guo Zixing and Zhu Yuanzhang had narrowly escaped death on several occasions. Even now, the Guo army and other marshals of Haozhou who had risen at the same time were bitter rivals.

Yet in the past, these purges had never escalated beyond the provincial or military council level. Now, however, a Chancellor had slain a Prime Minister—barely after the Dragon-Phoenix Court’s founding, it was already riven by the most violent internal strife. Doubts spread as to how long the Dragon-Phoenix banner could endure. Zhao Pusheng and Li Pusheng suddenly understood what it truly meant to “raise our own banner.”

Previously, even if there had been bloodshed, some face was spared. But news from Haozhou said that Du Zundao had not only been killed, but his entire clan wiped out in a thorough reckoning. As it happened, both Liu Yi and Lady Golden Flower had under their command Du Yishan, Du Zundao’s nephew, with three hundred men who had all served under Du Zundao.

When Du Yishan received the news, his face went deathly pale and he was struck speechless. Though he had foreseen a major purge in Haozhou and had fled south to avoid disaster, he had not expected it to be so brutal. Most of his family and friends were likely doomed.

Now, he was likely the sole survivor of the Du clan. Thinking of this, he forced himself to speak: “What should I do next? I won’t make things difficult for everyone, nor will I surrender to the Mongol Yuan. I can go to Lu Zhou and seek out Zuo Junbi. I leave my brothers here in your care.”

Zuo Junbi, positioned between the two Red Turban armies of Xu Shouhui and Han Lin’er, was, in Du Yishan’s eyes, the only safe haven. But Liu Yi and Lady Golden Flower would surely not let him take his entire force; at best, he could depart with a handful.

At that moment, Liu Zhongkun spoke up loyally: “Marshal Liu, Marshal Golden Flower, Du Yishan must not leave!”

Though Liu Yi had taken command of the naval forces at Chao Lake, his core troops remained the three myriarchs brought from Haozhou. Though these units were mere shadows of their former strength, they were his and Lady Golden Flower’s most reliable soldiers. If Du Yishan left, morale would collapse, and the three myriarchs would become just two.

Liu Yi understood this well. “You’re overthinking, Yishan. Now you’re under the Chao Lake Deputy Marshal’s Office. If anything happens, let the office handle it. Let Guo Tianshu deal with Haozhou for now. Once he’s done, Zhao Pusheng and Li Pusheng can handle Guo Tianshu. As long as we drag this out for a few months, the whole affair will blow over.”

The Deputy Marshal’s Office at Chao Lake had been established to counter Guo Tianshu, Zhang Tianyou, and Zhu Yuanzhang. If Haozhou wanted to deal with Du Yishan, it would first have to settle matters with the Chuzhou Chief Marshal’s Office, then the offices would slowly wrangle with each other.

As Guo’s son-in-law, Liu Yi was confident he could let the matter pass. Lady Golden Flower, however, gave Du Yishan a pointed reminder: “From now on, you are a centurion under the Chao Lake Deputy Marshal’s Office. Don’t use the name Du Yishan anymore. Think of a new name, or even a nickname.”

These were nothing but stopgaps, but since Haozhou’s reach could not extend to Chuzhou or Hezhou, Liu Yi believed delay was the best strategy. After all, no matter how ruthlessly Liu Futong purged his ranks, his main concern would soon become the armies of Chahan and Li Siqi. Du Yishan was an insignificant pawn.

Meanwhile, Zhao Pusheng had another thought. “Still, this turn of events benefits Zhu Yuanzhang. I was hoping to see more of his misfortune, but with all this, the spectacle is over!”

The carnage in Haozhou had frightened too many. Not only did Guo Tianshu come to Liu Yi to mediate, even Zhang Tianyou spoke up for Zhu Yuanzhang. “Let this end here. We can’t let outsiders laugh at us, and we certainly can’t end up like Haozhou. Too much blood—too many dead. Haozhou is in real trouble.”

He paused, taking a deep breath. Liu Yi was also willing to let the matter rest. “This was all stirred up by the Left Deputy Marshal. I was only settling a score for Yunyu.”

With Liu Yi invoking Guo Yunyu, Guo Tianshu had nothing more to say. “Then let this be the end of it. No more grudges. Brother-in-law, once your marriage to Yunyu is settled, we’ll cross the river!”

The Guo army’s crossing of the river had been Du Zundao’s strategy. To this end, he had forced the fractious marshals of Haozhou to form a southern expedition group. Though Guo Zixing, Sun Deya, and the other marshals had soon fallen out again, and Du Zundao himself had perished in the Haozhou bloodbath, his plan was nevertheless inherited by Guo Tianshu and Zhang Tianyou.

Liu Yi well understood why the timid Guo Tianshu was eager to cross the river. “Though we cannot wrong Yunyu, if we don’t head south soon, another Haozhou-style disaster will break out. Chao Lake cannot support fifty thousand troops. If we don’t strike out, we’ll end up fighting among ourselves.”