MLMD -Chapter 450 Acting on One’s Own Will

A furious roar rang out in the main hall, and everyone who heard it turned pale in shock—because the voice belonged to the master of the house, Zheng Zhilong.

Hearing the roar, Zheng Sen, who had been drinking in the side hall along with several Zheng-family leaders and retainers, also changed expression. They hurriedly stood up and strode toward the main hall. Everyone knew that ever since Zheng Zhilong had accepted the court’s amnesty, he had become quite particular about propriety and rarely lost his temper in public. For him to erupt like this today meant that something had happened that truly enraged him.

When Zheng Sen and several important Zheng-family leaders reached the main hall, they saw Zheng Zhilong standing in the center, his chest heaving, while a military officer in a sixth-rank official robe knelt on the floor, his face deathly pale.

Zheng Sen hurried to his father’s side and asked in a low voice, “Father, what exactly happened… to make you so angry?”

Zheng Zhilong’s chest rose and fell violently. His originally fair face had flushed red. Pointing at the kneeling officer, he snapped, “Ask him. Let him tell you!”

Zheng Sen stepped forward, helped the officer up slightly, and asked softly, “Uncle Guan, what exactly happened?”

At Zheng Sen’s questioning, the officer suddenly broke down in tears. “Young Master, it’s my incompetence… These past few days, many of our merchant ships that went out to sea have all been… seized by the Weihaiwei Navy. They escorted all our ships to Shandong, and every bit of cargo on them was taken.”

“What?!” Zheng Sen cried out, his face instantly changing. “All of our merchant ships?”

“No!” The officer wiped away his tears and said bitterly. “The Weihaiwei Navy specifically targets the merchant ships flying our Zheng-family flags. In just these past few days, over a hundred ships have been seized. Right now, a large group of merchants has gathered outside the residence, clamoring to see the Master and asking him to seek justice for them!”

“How could this be?!”

Hearing this, Zheng Sen’s heart sank. What he had feared had finally come to pass. His expression changed, and he immediately went to Zheng Zhilong’s side and said, “Father, this is no small matter. If mishandled, it will severely damage our Zheng family’s reputation. If our reputation is ruined, the very foundation on which our family survives in Fujian will be destroyed. In my humble opinion, for the sake of our reputation, we must immediately pacify those sea merchants.”

“Mmm, Sen’er, you’re right.” Zheng Zhilong had spent more than a decade navigating the South Seas, and he quickly weighed the pros and cons. Forcing down the anger in his heart, he summoned the steward and instructed him to continue entertaining the guests in the hall. After apologizing to several honored guests, he led a group of Zheng-family leaders away…

Night fell. After Zheng Zhilong saw off the last guest, he once again summoned all his key subordinates to the council chamber. Because it was already dark, although more than a dozen candles were lit in the spacious hall, it still felt dim.

“Brothers, what do you all think about today’s matter?” Zheng Zhilong’s cold voice echoed through the dim council chamber.

At this time, dozens of the Zheng family’s most important leaders were seated below him. Zheng Sen, regarded as Zheng Zhilong’s successor, sat at the first seat on his lower left, while Zheng Zhibao sat on his lower right.

Zheng Zhibao snorted coldly. “Big Brother, what’s there to discuss? Obviously, this time Yue Yang is here to get revenge. On one hand, tomorrow we should immediately dispatch all our warships to blockade Shandong’s sea routes; on the other hand, send ships to hunt down the Weihaiwei Navy. Once we find them, sink them at once. I’d like to see whether their few new warships are tougher, or whether the sons of our Zheng family are braver!”

“Absolutely not!”

No sooner had Zheng Zhibao finished speaking than a middle-aged man in his thirties beside him shook his head. “If we do that, we’ll completely tear our faces with the Loyal and Brave Marquis—there will be no turning back!”

“So what?” Zheng Zhibao snarled. “Does our Zheng family really fear some damned marquis?”

His face twisted with ferocity. Ever since he had been heavily defeated by the Weihaiwei Navy last time, both the Weihaiwei Navy and Yue Yang had become a demon haunting his heart, gnawing at him day after day. Now, he had only one thought: no matter what, he must destroy Yue Yang and his Weihaiwei Navy. To that end, he not only advocated sending the Zheng fleet to blockade Shandong’s trade routes, but also often personally led raids. When other leaders conducted such raids, they usually just looted the ships and let the crews live. But Zheng Zhibao would not only strip them of their goods—he slaughtered everyone and dumped the bodies into the sea, his methods crazed and brutal.

Seeing the lonely, frenzied look on Zheng Zhibao’s face, Zheng Sen secretly shook his head. Ever since Zheng Zhilong accepted the court’s amnesty, the Zheng family had enjoyed smooth sailing for years. In Fujian and along the coastal South Seas, the name of the Zheng family was known by all; whether officials or pirates, everyone gave them some face. This bred increasing arrogance within the family, especially in Zheng Zhibao. In his eyes, the Zheng family was invincible at sea, an existence no one dared provoke. But ever since he had been beaten into a humiliating retreat by the Weihaiwei fleet a few months ago, both Zheng Zhilong and Zheng Zhibao seemed to have suffered a tremendous humiliation, and revenge had become an obsession they could not shake.

Zheng Sen raised his head and said to Zheng Zhilong, “Father, please allow me to say a word. Although our Zheng family wields considerable power in Fujian and the South Seas, compared with the Loyal and Brave Marquis, we are still lacking. Though we seem to have hundreds of warships and tens of thousands of men, that is only maritime strength. In terms of influence at court and power on land, we are far inferior. If we truly fight him to the bitter end, and he reports to the court that we are harming the Great Ming and harassing the coast, the Emperor would surely punish us at once. Please don’t forget—he is not only the Loyal and Brave Marquis, but also His Majesty’s son-in-law!”

Zheng Sen’s words were like a bucket of cold water poured over everyone’s heads, chilling them from head to toe. Indeed—the Emperor was Yue Yang’s father-in-law. If a conflict truly erupted, which side would the Emperor favor? Did that even need to be asked?

Some people began to reflect: was it really worth fighting Yue Yang to the end over this? Wasn’t it all because Zheng Zhibao had transported supplies to the Qing, been discovered by the Weihaiwei Navy, and then beaten badly? Was that really worth an all-out war?

But Zheng Zhibao retorted unhappily, “A-Sen, what kind of talk is that? Have you forgotten who crippled our fleet and seized the goods we were selling to the Manchus? And now you’re speaking for him—are you even a member of the Zheng family?”

Zheng Sen took a deep breath and replied earnestly, “Third Uncle, I haven’t forgotten. But please consider this: if we send ships to blockade Shandong’s ports and prevent their merchant ships from sailing, their navy can do the same to us. The sea is vast—if they lurk offshore and sink any Fujian merchant ship they see, who in Fujian will dare go to sea in the future? Will the merchants who bought our Zheng-family flags just let it go?”

“So what if they don’t?” Zheng Zhibao said disdainfully. “Do they dare touch a single hair on our heads?”

Even Zheng Zhilong, who had been silent in the main seat, shook his head slightly. His third brother truly was a brute who only knew how to fight.

Zheng Sen patiently explained, “Fine—even if they don’t dare do anything to us, you must understand this: we took their silver, so we must guarantee their safety. Otherwise, who would buy our Zheng-family flags again? One or two merchants may not dare provoke us, but what if dozens, even hundreds, unite? Can we really ignore them?

“When you proposed harassing Shandong’s shipping before, I already said this tactic was a double-edged sword. It can hurt Shandong’s merchants, yes—but if the other side uses the same method against us, we’ll be helpless. Look now—haven’t they returned the favor in kind? Shandong’s ships may no longer dare to sail, but neither do the ships from Fujian. Tell me, which side suffers more?”

At this, Zheng Zhibao fell silent. Shandong’s lifting of the sea ban was only a recent development; in scale, manpower, and prosperity, it was worlds apart from Fujian and Jiang-Zhe, which had developed for over a century. If both sides’ merchant ships hid in port, the greater losses would naturally fall on Fujian’s sea merchants. One side was rubble, the other jade—only a fool would smash jade against rubble. Though Zheng Zhibao was brave and reckless, he still possessed basic judgment.

After a long silence, Li Laosan, sitting beside Zheng Sen, spoke gruffly. “Then what should we do? Today, Big Brother promised those merchants that the issue would be resolved within half a month. If their ships are still being robbed by then, our Zheng family’s face will be completely gone.”

Indeed, everyone was troubled. These men had long lived by the sword’s edge; killing and arson were trivial to them, but reputation mattered greatly. Humans are social creatures—no matter how vicious, one must eat, clothe oneself, and rely on others. Lose your credibility, and who would trade with you? If the Zheng family lost its reputation, who would buy their flags for protection?

Everyone understood this, and as the leader, Zheng Zhilong naturally did as well. Yet he remained unwilling to yield. The sea was only so big; if Yue Yang’s Weihaiwei Navy rose, it would inevitably compete with him for territory. The route from Fujian to Japan was a crucial Zheng-family line, and it ran close to Shandong. If Shandong merchants also joined the competition, the Zheng family’s interests would suffer greatly.

After pondering for a long time, Zheng Zhilong turned to the others and said, “Gentlemen, do you think that if we concentrate our forces and wipe out the Weihaiwei Navy, it would make Yue Yang abandon his ambitions of opening the seas?”

“Father, no!”

As soon as Zheng Zhilong finished speaking, Zheng Sen’s face went pale with fright. He jumped to his feet and cried out, “Father, leaving aside whether we could annihilate the Weihaiwei Navy, even if we did—how would we explain it to the court afterward? I fear that the very next day, the court would declare us rebels. If the court then sent troops to suppress us, what would we do?”

“Rebels?” Zheng Zhilong sneered proudly. “Didn’t we live just fine before accepting the court’s amnesty? Back then, the court couldn’t do anything to us. We’ve only eaten official rations for a few years—have we already forgotten the hard days?”

“Exactly!” Zheng Zhibao chimed in excitedly, seeing Zheng Zhilong leaning toward war. “Big Brother is right. That Yue Yang has humiliated us like this—how can we endure it? We must teach them a hard lesson and show him who the true overlord of the seas is! When has our Zheng family ever suffered such indignity? This time, we absolutely cannot let it go!”

“Yes… the Chief and Second Chief speak reasonably!” Some others voiced their support, echoing Zheng Zhibao.

Zheng Sen exchanged a glance with a man named Zheng Yang; worry flickered in both their eyes. It seemed the two leaders of the Zheng family had no intention of reconciling.

Seeing support swell, Zheng Zhilong stood up and declared loudly, “Very well—then it’s settled. Third Brother, immediately take your own men and go to sea with Li Laosan. Your task this time is not to harass Shandong merchant ships, but to find the Weihaiwei Navy. Once you see them, hit them hard! I want to see how they’ll fight against our hundred-plus ships!”

Zheng Zhibao sprang to his feet, murderous light flashing in his eyes. “Big Brother, rest assured! If I don’t beat those bastards until their guts spill out, I’ll take his surname!” With that, Zheng Zhibao and Li Laosan bowed to Zheng Zhilong and strode out of the council chamber, followed by more than a dozen other leaders.

Watching their departing figures, Zheng Sen opened his mouth several times to speak, but Zheng Yang stopped him with a look.

The meeting soon ended. Zheng Sen and Zheng Yang followed the others out at a slow pace. Watching the crowd ahead discussing animatedly, Zheng Sen said anxiously to Zheng Yang, “Fifth Uncle, Father is determined to go to war with the Loyal and Brave Marquis. If we lose, our Zheng family is finished. If we win, how would that marquis ever let it go? He will surely throw all his strength against us again, plunging our family into even greater danger! Why won’t Father listen to me?”

Zheng Yang gently shook his head. “Sen’er, you are still young. You cannot decide the affairs of the Zheng family yet. All you can do now is wait patiently. In a few more years, when you are older, things will be different.”

Zheng Sen said bitterly, “But if Father continues acting so willfully, how many peaceful years does our Zheng family have left?”

At that, Zheng Yang fell silent…