Seeing Liu Dadao return to report, Zhu Pingan was astonished and curiously asked how Liu Dadao had travelled so quickly.
“Young Master, it’s like this…”
Liu Dadao recounted in detail how he had hurried on his journey and how he had met Xu Wei.
“That was a tough journey, Dadao.”
After listening, Zhu Pingan noticed the bloodshot eyes and the dust-covered appearance of Liu Dadao, couldn’t help but pat him on the shoulder, and said with emotion.
“Young Master, I ate well, slept well, and either rode a horse or took a boat. My legs barely did any work. It wasn’t hard.”
Liu Dadao scratched his head, chuckling, and as he did, dust fell from his head in puffs.
The hardship of the journey was evident.
“Oh, right, Young Master, this is the congratulatory memorial written by that fatso Xu Wei. When he opened your letter and saw the banknote, his eyes lit up, and he kissed it. After reading your letter, he squinted, thought for a few breaths, and wrote it in one go. I told him to check it, but that fatso patted his chest, full of confidence, saying this memorial was heaven-sent, and even if he revised it, he couldn’t write a better one.”
As he spoke, Liu Dadao took out a sheepskin cloth package from his chest, pulled out a carefully preserved, spotless, and waterproof congratulatory memorial, and handed it to Zhu Pingan with both hands.
Zhu Pingan took the memorial, eagerly opened it, and began to read carefully:
“…It is humbly submitted that the dragon’s saliva leaves a lasting fragrance, the jade turtle responds to the prophecy, and the precious book records auspicious signs, surely a time of a sage’s reign… As for the dragon’s chant leaving fragrance and the appearance of the jade turtle, these are not recorded in historical annals, unheard of in ancient or modern times, truly extraordinary and most auspicious.
This is an auspicious omen, foretelling the defeat of the Japanese pirates, the securing of the borders, and peace across the four seas.
We respectfully submit that His Majesty’s virtue surpasses Emperor Yao, and his achievements exceed those of the divine Yu…”
After reading, Zhu Pingan couldn’t help but marvel at its brilliance. Xu Wei was truly Xu Wei.
Flattery was indeed a talent, and in this regard, Xu Wei was exceptionally gifted.
It spoke of a sage’s reign.
It mentioned auspicious omens, foretelling the defeat of the Japanese pirates, the securing of the borders, and peace across the four seas, striking right at Emperor Jiajing’s heart.
It even said Emperor Jiajing’s virtue surpassed Emperor Yao, and his achievements exceeded those of Yu.
This flattery was direct, like the shortest line between two points, straight to the emperor’s heart!
Not a single word needed changing. He would copy it later, add the battle report from the Merlin conflict today, and send them to the capital together.
“Good, very good, excellent.”
Zhu Pingan nodded repeatedly with satisfaction.
“That fatso really wrote it that well? For real? I thought he was just being perfunctory, scribbling it out without even checking.”
Liu Dadao looked incredulous that the fatso’s scribbled work earned the Young Master’s praise.
“It’s true. I spent hours last night writing a congratulatory memorial, and it’s nowhere near as good as his. In writing such official memorials, I can’t hold a candle to him.”
Zhu Pingan said earnestly.
“I didn’t expect that fatso to have such skill!”
Liu Dadao was still in disbelief.
“He’s more than skilled. He’s remarkable. Why else would I have visited him repeatedly, trying to persuade him to join me? It’s just a pity he’s still obsessed with scholarly fame and won’t come to assist me. If I had his help, I’d be even more confident in wiping out the Japanese pirates in Jiangnan.”
Zhu Pingan said regretfully.
According to history, Xu Wei would need to fail the imperial exams a couple more times and suffer heavy setbacks before giving up on them. Only then might Zhu Pingan have a chance to recruit him to his staff.
“Young Master, what’s there to regret? I’ll go back, tie him up, and bring him here. That fatso’s all show. I could take on ten of him easily.”
Liu Dadao patted his chest confidently.
Pfft.
Zhu Pingan nearly spat out his tea, waving his hands. “No, no, we’re inviting him to join us, not kidnapping him. A forced melon isn’t sweet. He’s still focused on scholarly fame and won’t willingly help me now.”
Zhu Pingan hurriedly waved his hands.
Liu Dadao truly had a bit of Zhang Fei’s flair.
“Ah, he’s still taking the exams? He’s so good at writing memorials, and you praise him, saying you’re not as good. Won’t he pass the exams easily? If he passes, will he still give up fame to help you?”
Liu Dadao asked with some concern.
“Writing memorials and essays is different from the imperial exams. Xu Wei is great at writing, but he’s not suited for the exams. I’ve told him his flaws, but he can’t change them. He’s destined to fail.”
Zhu Pingan said with a sigh.
“You pointed out his flaws, and he still won’t change?”
Liu Dadao was puzzled. The Young Master was a top scholar, yet Xu Wei ignored his advice?
“He’s Xu Wei, Xu Wenchang. If he could change, he wouldn’t be Xu Wei.”
Zhu Pingan said lightly.
Huh?!
Liu Dadao looked confused.
“The time isn’t right yet. After the exams, inviting him to join should be no problem.”
Zhu Pingan gazed toward Yingtian, speaking slowly.
“Then I wish him failure.”
Liu Dadao muttered under his breath.
“Dadao, what did you say?”
Zhu Pingan vaguely heard, looking at him.
“Ahem, I said the sun’s setting.”
Liu Dadao coughed, rubbing his chin.
Zhu Pingan looked outside the tent, indeed seeing a red sun sinking behind the western hills, the sky aglow with crimson clouds.
“The sun’s indeed setting. Dadao, you’ve done an excellent job. It was a tough journey. Go eat something warm and get some rest.”
Zhu Pingan patted Liu Dadao’s shoulder again, telling him to eat and rest.
“Alright, Young Master, I’ll go.”
Liu Dadao clasped his fists and left.
Once Dadao was gone, Zhu Pingan spread out paper, ink, and brush, copied Xu Wei’s memorial, and read it again, growing more satisfied.
He truly couldn’t have written this memorial. Thankfully, Xu Wei’s pen made the most of the two white turtles and the dragon’s incense.
With these and the memorial, Emperor Jiajing likely wouldn’t pursue Zhu Pingan’s unauthorised recruitment of Wang Zhi. If the emperor didn’t pursue it, others’ objections would be futile.
Then, Zhu Pingan penned a detailed summary of the day’s Merlin battle, accurately reporting the annihilation of Mao Haifeng’s Japanese pirates west of Merlin.
At the end of the report, Zhu Pingan stated that tomorrow he would eliminate the pirates at Jiwu Village, predicting that within a month, all pirate strongholds along Zhejiang’s coast, except those of Wang Zhi and Xu Hai, would be eradicated.
He also painted a rosy picture for Emperor Jiajing, suggesting that clearing all pirates from Zhejiang was imminent.
