Yan Shifan laughed heartily and said, "Old Luo, you're truly something! Excellent... pushing them like this, and having Zhu Mo prod the Franks again, they're bound to explode! Then we can pull in reinforcements and have another go at Zhu Mo!"
Everyone instantly understood—
Zhu Mo's tactic of besieging without attacking was brilliant. It instilled fear in the enemy without annihilating them, and crucially, it maintained the smuggling trade at Lih Port. This made it difficult for the enemy to resort to desperate measures. At such a juncture, if the censors stirred up trouble and forced Zhu Mo and Yu Dazhou to continue fighting until they were at their wits' end, then Suo Zha, Otomo Sorin, Yin Yuanheng, and Zheng Jian would all have to fight for their lives.
Conversely, if Zhu Mo didn't continue the fight, it would solidify his supposed crime. Something that was initially not a problem would immediately become one. Everyone would think: Right, why isn't Zhu Mo fighting? Could he be colluding with the Franks? Was this little advantage reserved for himself?
Even if Zhu Mo couldn't be implicated, Yu Dazhou could be severely tarnished, and the naval victories of the Fujian navy would be erased. The soldiers would resent this, and their position would be difficult to maintain.
After deliberation, the plan was settled.
...
The next morning,
The Grand Secretariat.
Xu Jie and Li Chunfang were engrossed in conversation. Having presided over the Grand Secretariat for the past six months, they had been dealing with nothing but troublesome matters. To finally receive good news, Xu Jie was truly invigorated.
"Brother Shilou, although this victory was fortunate, it is nonetheless a victory, a great one at that! The Battle of Huating wasn't this invigorating. This time, Lih Port can be considered a grand triumph of decades."
Li Chunfang smiled and said, "Indeed, Shaohu. The Ministry of War must quickly award merits, and Zhenhai Wei must also send more supplies to the soldiers... In this battle, Yu Dazhou has truly shown the might of the Great Ming's official army!"
"Mm-hmm,"
"Merits must be awarded. I have already instructed Wang Guoguang to prepare the list. It will be submitted to the Directorate of Ceremonial in the next day or two for prompt approval..."
Just then,
A minor official from the Transmission Office suddenly entered and reported, "Esteemed Elder Xu, Esteemed Elder Li, Censor Wu Shiyou has a memorial to present!"
"Oh?"
Wu Shiyou?
That troublemaker again?
Xu Jie was immediately displeased.
"What did he say?"
The minor official replied, "He requests the Grand Secretariat to urge Grand Secretary Zhu Mo and Fujian Deputy General Admiral of the Fujian Navy Yu Dazhou to swiftly conquer Lih Port and pacify Annam and Myanmar."
"What?"
The two of them almost thought they had misheard.
Xu Jie vaguely sensed a problem. He snatched the memorial and read it word for word, then sighed and passed it to Li Chunfang.
The memorial read:
"Your subject Wu Shiyou memorializes:
The great victory at Lih Port is due to the indomitable spirit of the Jiangnan military and populace. Victory comes to those with spirit, defeat to those without. Spirit can be roused but not dissipated. Now, what has caused the spirit of the military and populace to dissipate thus? It is because those in command of large armies play with the enemy to increase their own prestige, and celebrate great victories without completing their achievements. The Fujian Navy, funded by the imperial treasury, why is it so arrogant and overbearing?
Today, the East Sea is not yet pacified, and Japanese pirates are still sleeping soundly at our doorstep; the vassal states are unsettled, and their forces are invading the southern prefectures. The southeastern armies should consider the expenditure of the treasury and the unsolidified hearts of the people. It is precisely when they should use the strategy of 'driving a tiger to swallow a wolf,' to immediately suppress the remaining rebels, march south against Zheng Jian, and resist the barbarian chiefs in the west. Why, then, celebrate victory and discuss merits? Your subject has perused historical records and has never seen such a royal army. Your subject requests the Grand Secretariat to immediately urge the Fujian Navy and the Capital Artillery to complete their achievements, and not to halt mid-way to celebrate victory and disrupt the people's morale."
"Hoo..."
Li Chunfang shook his head and sighed, "Shaohu, this Wu Shiyou is also a well-read scholar, yet why does he always speak in a way that distorts black into white?"
Xu Jie was extremely annoyed with this person and snorted, "Reporting hearsay and fabricating nonsense. With such censors, the court need do nothing else!"
But talk is talk,
Both of them were first-class veteran strategists. How could they not know the potency of this memorial? This was almost putting Zhu Mo and Yu Dazhou on trial, their merits wiped out, and instead accusing them of harboring the enemy for personal gain. Those who didn't know the truth would truly believe these two were intentionally keeping the enemy alive.
Xu Jie, having experienced the previous pressure, was already highly sensitive to the Yan family's tactics. He naturally guessed that the Yan father and son were behind this, their aim seemingly to reject the current stalemate...
Li Chunfang, his long-time friend, smiled and said, "Shaohu, you say, why exactly is Zhu Mo besieging without attacking? And Yan Song wishes to break the deadlock. This is truly bizarre..."
Xu Jie, of course, could not reveal the truth. He chuckled and said,
"Leave it to Prince Yu... If we delay any longer, they'll come and force us to hang ourselves..."
The two exchanged bitter smiles, immediately took their memorial, got into their sedan chairs, and went together to Prince Yu's residence.
...
Yuxi Palace,
Night fell.
Lu Fang finished reading the secret reports from Wu Ming and Wu Liang, rubbed his eyes, put down his reading glasses, and carefully walked to the Bagua Terrace.
At this moment,
The Jiajing Emperor also opened his eyes and grunted, "What do they say? Why aren't they fighting anymore?"
Lu Fang coughed softly and said, "Replying to Your Majesty, Zhu Mo told several generals that leaving them alive is the superior strategy, and instructed them not to fight at the critical moment... Uh, it was the same in the Battle of Huating. That large village, which was about to escape, was deliberately released by Zhu Mo..."
"Hmph!"
The Jiajing Emperor said displeasedly, "Isn't he afraid of others saying he harbors the enemy for personal gain?"
Lu Fang said with a wry smile, "Those scoundrels have also been inquiring everywhere. Zhu Mo's idea is probably to besiege them for half a year or so, and fight them slowly, calling it 'humiliating the enemy'..."
"Humiliating the enemy?"
The Jiajing Emperor muttered the words a few times, then sneered, "Humiliating the enemy? I think it's 'humiliating Yan'..."
Lu Fang was stunned for a moment, then immediately reacted and said cautiously,
"Then it must be so... No wonder Yan Song has already had someone submit a memorial to the Grand Secretariat Xu Jie and others, requesting the Fujian Navy and the Artillery to immediately march south and attack west..."
"Heh heh,"
The Jiajing Emperor said with a half-smile, "Xu Jie, has he kicked it to Prince Yu again?"
"Nothing can be hidden from Your Majesty... Xu Jie sent it over this afternoon..."
The Jiajing Emperor suddenly became displeased again and sneered, "This Xu Jie is too cunning, too cunning by half... Lu Fang, the Grand Secretariat cannot continue like this. Let Yan Song return."
"This?"
Lu Fang was instantly choked, thinking: Why is Yan Song being allowed to return again?
Before he could figure it out, the Jiajing Emperor continued,
"Didn't Zhu Mo want to humiliate Yan? How can he humiliate him by hiding at home all the time? Look at you, you get muddled when it matters..."
Only then did Lu Fang realize with surprise, "Your servant understands..."
In his heart, he thought: Zhu Mo probably has a backup plan? Now he wants to make the Yan family jump out, and then humiliate them together? How can the thoughts of this father and son be so identical...
As he mused to himself, he suddenly remembered something and said,
"Your Majesty, Zhang Juzheng and the others are again urging us to inquire about the strategy for reforming the Imperial Farms from last time... Your servant knows the matter is too significant, and has been unable to figure it out, and doesn't know how to reply yet."
The Jiajing Emperor closed his eyes and said calmly,
"Then don't reply..."