This Xu Hai—here I was thinking we’d finally crush this infamous pirate chief from history, and yet he bounces back from the brink, tougher with every setback. With just four hundred beaten stragglers, he’s gone and taken Jiaxing City! What a bloody nuisance!
Zhu Ping’an closed the report, tugging at the corner of his mouth with a wry smile, once again marvelling that no one who left a mark in history was ever simple.
While Zhu Ping’an fretted over Xu Hai, far off in the capital, a thousand miles away, others were fretting over him.
Xiyuan, Wuyi Hall.
Seven or eight ministers sat in a room, poring over a memorial, their faces creased with worry as they debated.
A pale, beardless middle-aged eunuch strode in, his smile skin-deep and his voice high-pitched and grating. “Gentlemen, have you settled on a reward for Lord Zhu Ping’an yet? It’s been ten days since Lord Zhao Wenhua’s victory memorial about the sea sacrifice arrived. Rewards for Lord Zhao, Lord Hu, and the others were sorted days ago—haven’t you finished with Lord Zhu yet? The officials who fought in the sea sacrifice are chomping at the bit for their rewards. His Majesty just asked about it too—we can’t drag this out any longer.”
“Eunuch Wang, please wait outside for a moment. We’ll hash it out one last time and then send it to Elder Yan for final approval. One way or another, we’ll have his reward settled within the hour,” said Wang, the Left Vice Minister of Personnel, rising with a polite bow to usher the eunuch out.
When it came to promotions, the Ministry of Personnel held the most sway. With the Minister of Rites, Li Mo, holed up preparing exam questions for the imperial exams, all recent personnel matters had fallen to the Left and Right Vice Ministers.
Wang, the Left Vice Minister, was one of Yan Song’s plants in the ministry. With Li Mo out of the picture and Yan Song’s backing, he’d temporarily taken the reins.
“Please wait outside, Eunuch Wang. We’ll have an answer within the hour,” the other officials chimed in.
“Very well. With your word, I’m reassured. I’ll wait in the main hall. But a word of warning, gentlemen—I can wait, but His Majesty won’t. You’ve got one hour to sort this out. I need to report back before lunch.”
The eunuch nodded expressionlessly, gave a cursory bow, and stepped out.
Before leaving, he reminded them sharply that the Emperor had taken an interest, and they had an hour to deliver.
“Right, gentlemen, you heard Eunuch Wang. His Majesty’s asking about it—we can’t delay any more. We’ve got to settle on Zhu Ping’an’s reward,” Wang said to the room.
As Left Vice Minister, with heavyweights like Yan Song, Xu Jie, and the ministry heads absent, he naturally took charge of the discussion.
“Just drop the ‘acting’ from his title. He’s climbed several ranks in mere months—making him a full-fledged rank-four Deputy Judicial Commissioner of Zhejiang should be enough,” one official suggested.
“No dice. Zhao Wenhua’s memorial made it crystal clear—Zhu Ping’an was the top contributor in the sea sacrifice. His Majesty read it himself. The report says Zhao used himself as bait to lure the pirates, setting up an ambush with Hu Zongxian, Zhu Ping’an, and Li Tingzhu’s forces. The pirates fell for it hook, line, and sinker. In the fight, over five hundred jumped into the sea to their deaths, Tang Kewan’s unit took twenty-seven heads, Yu Dayou’s got sixty-five, Li Tingzhu’s nabbed ninety-eight, Hu Zongxian’s bagged eighty, and Zhu Ping’an’s racked up two hundred ninety, saving countless civilians. This was the biggest anti-pirate win in Jiangnan, and Zhu Ping’an was its star.”
“A few months back, he took down fifty-seven pirates outside Yingtian and jumped three ranks to Acting Deputy Judicial Commissioner of Zhejiang, tasked with militia training and pirate suppression, with his son granted a hereditary hundred-household rank as a reward. This time, he’s taken out two hundred ninety—five times his last haul. Just dropping the ‘acting’ bit?!”
“Zhu Ping’an’s made an impression on His Majesty. If we settle on that, it won’t pass muster with him.”
Another official shook his head, arguing for a heftier reward.
“Lord Zhang, I know you’re one of Elder Xu’s men, and Zhu Ping’an’s his prized pupil. You’re looking out for him, maybe even angling to bring him to the capital. But he needs more seasoning. Going from sixth to fifth rank isn’t the same as fifth to fourth—it’s not just numbers. The higher you climb, the harder it gets, and the more merit you need. He’s barely out of his teens, already a full fourth-rank official. Pushing him higher isn’t good for him, the court, or the people. He hasn’t the experience or chops to handle more yet.”
Another official shot back in opposition.
“Lord Li, I’m no one’s man. If I belong to anyone, it’s His Majesty. I’m speaking plain facts about the sea sacrifice rewards. Honestly, if we just drop the ‘acting’ title and present that to His Majesty, do you think he’ll sign off? Zhao Wenhua named Zhu Ping’an the top hero here, and the rewards we set five days ago for those below him are juicier than this. Does that seem fair? Would His Majesty approve such an obviously skewed deal?”
Lord Zhang shook his head slowly, adding, “Of course, that’s just my take. If you all agree on dropping the ‘acting’ bit, I won’t object.”
“He’s got a point. How about we scale back everyone else’s rewards so they don’t outshine Zhu Ping’an? Problem solved, right?”
Another voice piped up with a suggestion.
“No way. The sea sacrifice was a big deal to His Majesty. When the victory memorial came in, he was over the moon—ate an extra bowl of rice, even. The imperial kitchen’s Chief Zhao even asked me to thank Lord Zhao for it. If we skimp on rewards for something as grand as this, His Majesty won’t stand for it. And if he doesn’t, it’s on us for botching the merit review. We’ll catch the flak.”
“No chance! We can’t drag down Lord Zhao and the others’ rewards just for Zhu Ping’an! That’s absurd.”
“That idea’s rotten. Forget His Majesty—Elder Yan wouldn’t sign off on it either.”
A chorus of objections rang out.
Reward him big, and Elder Yan wouldn’t budge. Skimp, and His Majesty wouldn’t bite.
Stalemate.
Zhu Ping’an really was a right pain in the neck.
