MLMD -Chapter 125 Wu Keshan

Just as Yue Yang’s Youshan Division was being quietly established, on the distant Horqin Grasslands—over a thousand li away from Yingzhou Prefecture—Yue Yang’s father-in-law, Zhai Sang, was receiving a group of guests from Shenyang inside his tent.

Seated below Zhai Sang was a middle-aged man in his thirties, clad in blue armor studded with thick copper rivets. On his head he wore the distinctive Jurchen helmet shaped like a lightning rod. With a rugged, fierce appearance, this man was Zhai Sang’s eldest son—Wu Keshan, currently the Commander of the Later Jin Han Army Banner. To Wu Keshan’s left sat a youth of about seventeen or eighteen, as well as a delicate-looking Jurchen woman dressed in a banner gown. To Zhai Sang’s right sat two young men, both with square faces and equally fierce looks.

Looking at his son and grandsons seated before him, Zhai Sang stroked his beard with satisfaction and said with a smile, “Wu Keshan, I’m very pleased that you could bring Bilta Har and Princess Gulun Yongmu here to our Horqin tribe for the wedding. Your eji has been so happy these past few days that she can’t even sleep, constantly asking me when her grandson and granddaughter-in-law will arrive. Later, go see your eji, understand?”

“Yes, Abu, I understand,” Wu Keshan replied with a slight bow. Though his face was full of hard lines, his voice was gentle and resonant, with a rich baritone quality.

After finishing with Wu Keshan, Zhai Sang removed from his waist a golden curved saber more than a chi long and handed it to the grandson seated below Wu Keshan. “And Bilta Har—ever since you followed your abu to Shenyang ten years ago, I haven’t seen you again. Now you’re grown and about to be married, which makes your grandfather very happy. This golden saber is an heirloom of our Borjigit clan, said to have once been used by Genghis Khan himself. Today I give it to you. Don’t disgrace the Borjigit name, understand?”

“Yes, thank you, Grandfather!” Amid the envious gazes of his two younger brothers, Bilta Har hurriedly accepted the saber. Seeing the gemstones inlaid in it, he grinned until his eyes narrowed to slits.

Seeing that Zhai Sang was in an excellent mood, Wu Keshan then asked, “Abu, the wedding day is the day after tomorrow. I already wrote to Hailanzhu, inviting her and my brother-in-law to attend Bilta Har’s wedding. Why haven’t they arrived yet?”

Hearing this, Zhai Sang, seated on a tiger-skin bench, looked at him deeply before saying, “Wu Keshan, there’s no need to wait for Hailanzhu. Some days ago she wrote to me, saying they’ve been very busy lately and won’t be able to attend the wedding. However, they’ve sent three cartloads of salt, tea, and cloth as wedding gifts for Bilta Har.”

“What? Hailanzhu isn’t coming?” Wu Keshan’s large frame trembled slightly as he exclaimed, “How can that be? Even Bumbutai and the Fourteenth Beile are coming tomorrow—how can she not come?”

Zhai Sang gave him a meaningful look. “Perhaps Hailanzhu truly is busy. Besides, your brother-in-law Yue Yang is now a garrison officer of the Ming—naturally he has many official duties. It’s normal that he can’t come.”

“But… but…” Wu Keshan sighed and shook his head. “I still haven’t met this brother-in-law. I was hoping to take this opportunity to see him…”

At this moment, Princess Gulun Yongmu—Aisin Gioro Yatu—who had been silent all along, asked curiously, “Chief Zhai Sang, I’ve heard that Bilta Har’s uncle by marriage comes from a merchant family and is extremely wealthy. Is that true?”

At this, Zhai Sang grew visibly pleased. He nodded and said proudly, “Indeed. You must have seen it yourselves along the way—our tribe has changed greatly, hasn’t it? With ample grain, cloth, tea bricks, and salt, our herdsmen look far healthier than before. All of this is thanks to your uncle by marriage.”

Wu Keshan, however, interjected with a displeased expression, “But I’ve also heard that my brother-in-law has traded away a great many fine warhorses from our tribe. Abu, the Khan even questioned me about this, which put me in a very awkward position. Fortunately, the Khan was magnanimous and didn’t pursue the matter. Still, Abu, it would be better if you traded less with the Ming in the future.”

“Hmph…” Zhai Sang’s face darkened at once.

“Wu Keshan, stop beating around the bush. I know exactly what you’re thinking—you’re just afraid that Yue Yang will grow too powerful. But remember this: first and foremost, you are my son, and the future chief of the Horqin tribe. Only after that are you the commander of the Later Jin Han Banner. The foremost goal is how to strengthen our Horqin tribe. Do you understand?”

Wu Keshan grew anxious. “But Abu, don’t you know that trading so frequently with Yue Yang will anger the Khan? Our relations with Later Jin have been harmonious for years, yet because of this Yue Yang, all that hard-won balance could be destroyed overnight. That would be a huge loss for our Horqin tribe!”

“Destroyed overnight?” Zhai Sang sneered. His previously cloudy eyes suddenly flashed with a cold light. “Wu Keshan, let me ask you this. For all these years that our Horqin tribe lacked food and clothing, did anyone ever take the initiative to give us a cart of grain, tea bricks, or clothing? Did Later Jin ever give us any?”

“Abu, that’s not fair!” Wu Keshan retorted unhappily. “Later Jin may not have given us grain, but after forming an alliance with them, didn’t we occupy the richest grasslands and the sweetest lakes?”

Zhai Sang shook his head. “That’s true—but haven’t we given Later Jin plenty in return? All those fine horses and cattle every year—were they gifts for nothing?”

Wu Keshan tried to argue further. “But—”

“No ‘but’.” Zhai Sang stood up, walked over to Wu Keshan, and stared straight into his eyes. “Wu Keshan, tell me honestly—why were you so eager this time to invite Hailanzhu and her husband to Bilta Har’s wedding?”

“Abu, what do you mean by that?” Wu Keshan’s face darkened. “Is it wrong for me to invite my sister and brother-in-law to my son’s wedding?”

“Of course you’re not wrong,” Zhai Sang replied calmly. “But Hailanzhu and Yue Yang don’t see it the same way. Yue Yang has old grievances with Daišan and Dorgon. You ask them to come here for the wedding—do you think they could come with peace of mind?”

Wu Keshan snorted. “That’s just because they have a guilty conscience.”

“A guilty conscience? Hardly.” Zhai Sang sighed, suddenly looking weary. “Enough. I won’t interfere in your affairs anymore. Just remember this, Wu Keshan—Hailanzhu is your own sister, and Yue Yang is no ordinary man. If you turn them into enemies, it will be very hard to mend the relationship later. I’ve said all I need to say. You’ve all traveled a long way—go rest.”

“Yes…” The group stood up to leave the tent when a guard suddenly entered and reported loudly, “Reporting to the Chief! News from the front—Beile Mergen Daiqing and the Second Young Lady have reached the outskirts of the tribe and will arrive shortly.”

“Oh? So fast?” Zhai Sang exclaimed in surprise, then turned to Wu Keshan. “Wu Keshan, didn’t you say Bumbutai and the Fourteenth Beile would arrive tomorrow or the day after? Why are they here already?”

Wu Keshan hesitated. “This… I’m not quite sure either. Perhaps they had urgent matters and traveled through the night.”

“I see. Then go and receive them. I’m old—I won’t go out,” Zhai Sang said lightly, turning to walk away and leaving behind an embarrassed Wu Keshan.

As Zhai Sang exited the tent, Udamu, who had been waiting outside, stepped closer and whispered, “Chief Zhai Sang, I’ve looked into it. The thousand men Wu Keshan brought with him are all elite troops of the Han Banner. According to our scouts, the Second Young Lady and Dorgon themselves brought three thousand elite soldiers of the Plain White Banner. It looks like something is about to happen.”

“Of course something’s going to happen,” Zhai Sang sighed softly, shaking his head.
“These people were originally meant to deal with Hailanzhu and my fine son-in-law. I can understand why Dorgon is eager to move against him—but what I don’t understand is why Wu Keshan has involved himself as well. Does he not know the Han saying: ‘Always leave a way out, so you can meet again in the future’? Hong Taiji merely married off a daughter to his son—is that really worth such blind loyalty?”

Seeing Zhai Sang’s weary expression, Udamu blurted out, “Chief, could it be that the eldest young master invited Hailanzhu and her husband here in order to deal with them?”

Zhai Sang smiled bitterly. “What other reason could there be? For a wedding, he even had the nerve to ask my son-in-law for a hundred cartloads of salt, a hundred of tea bricks, and a hundred of valuables. What a fine算盘 he has—trying to get both people and wealth at once. The war between Ming and Later Jin hasn’t even been decided yet, and my ‘good son’ is already rushing to prove his loyalty to Later Jin?”

While Zhai Sang was lost in his gloomy thoughts, Wu Keshan had already led his sons to the outskirts of the tribe to welcome Dorgon and Da Yu’er’s party.

“Wu Keshan, Fourteenth Beile—paying respects to Your Highness!”

“No need for formalities!” Still mounted on his horse, Dorgon asked immediately, “Wu Keshan, is everything taken care of?”

“Reporting to the Fourteenth Beile, everything has been handled. The two craftsmen have returned, and they brought back six of the newest-style fire muskets!”

“Excellent!” Dorgon exclaimed in delight. “Now we finally have a weapon that can stand against them!”