Chapter Ten: Where Lies the Sudden Change

The Datong border troops set out from Datong to Yanghe Pass to resist the enemy on the fifteenth of July, were routed on the sixteenth, while the news Eunuch Guo had previously received was that the emperor had decided to personally lead the Three Great Camps into battle on the sixteenth. Judging by the timing, the imperial entourage should only now be emerging from Juyong Pass. Thus, after leaving Tianzhen, both Eunuch Guo and Lu Qing thought that they ought to hasten to Xuanfu; barring any mishap, they would be able to meet the emperor there.

A mule-drawn cart could never match the speed of a horse-drawn carriage, and this was simply a flatbed wagon for transporting grain, lacking any sort of suspension. The journey was therefore a jarring ordeal, and if not for the quilts piled atop the cart, Eunuch Guo would have been tossed about even more wretchedly. Even so, his stomach was in constant turmoil, churning as if storm-tossed, and he felt exceedingly unwell.

The mule cart moved at a snail’s pace compared to a horse-drawn one, covering only seven or eight li in more than an hour. This left the anxious Eunuch Guo nearly beside himself with worry, but there was nothing to be done. He could not conjure horses out of thin air to replace the mules, so he could only glare helplessly at the two beasts, who were blissfully unaware of their unwelcome status. Occasionally, his impatience would boil over and he would vent his frustrations on the hapless Zhao brothers, Zhao Da and Zhao Er, his sharp voice grating even on Lu Qing’s ears—let alone on those of the perpetually downcast brothers.

If anyone’s anxiety surpassed Eunuch Guo’s, it was surely Lu Qing’s. For while Eunuch Guo’s only concern was to hurry to Wang Zhen and the emperor to clear himself of responsibility for the defeat at Yanghe Pass, he did not truly believe in the coming incursion and would not warn the army or try to change the course of events. Lu Qing, on the other hand, was deeply troubled by the disaster looming on the horizon, feeling utterly powerless to prevent it. If any more time were wasted, the tragic calamity he so dreaded would surely come to pass.

He thought of the lives of those tens of thousands of Ming soldiers, of the Han dynasty’s emperor being captured for the first time since the Jingkang Disaster, of the countless innocent Ming subjects who would perish in the coming catastrophe. Lu Qing grew ever more anxious. In his previous life, he had never come so close to changing history, but now, with fate so near at hand, if he did not do everything in his power to avert this tragedy, he would regret it for the rest of his days.

Earlier on, several horse-drawn carriages had passed them, but the occupants paid them no heed. The servants of those carriages were all burly fellows, so any thought of seizing a carriage had to be deeply suppressed in Lu Qing’s heart—he had no wish to be cut down as a common thief.

The badge and title of “Imperial Agent, Grand Guardian General Eunuch” could intimidate a stationmaster like Sun Yousong, who was part of the Ming bureaucracy, but would not impress fleeing merchants and commoners. And who, seeing Guo Jingzhen looking like an old beggar on the cart, would believe him to be the mighty Grand Guardian Eunuch? If he truly were such a high official, would he be riding a mule-drawn flatbed? The badge? What nonsense was that!

A tiger, fallen to the plains, is mocked by dogs; a dragon, stranded in shallow waters, is toyed with by shrimps.

Without the trappings of officialdom, Eunuch Guo could only intimidate minor station hands like Zhao Da and Zhao Er; to others, he inspired no fear at all. For it is not the person themselves that people fear, but the authority of the office they represent. At the moment, Eunuch Guo bore no trace of official dignity or imperial bearing. Lu Qing could even imagine that, were he and Zhao Da to tell people that the cart carried the Grand Guardian Eunuch of Datong, most would merely scoff and take the three for conmen.

As the saying goes, “A Buddha needs gold for his statue; a man needs clothes for his bearing.” Until Eunuch Guo was once more properly attired as the Grand Guardian of Datong, it was unrealistic to expect his title alone to inspire awe or command the reverence of the common people.

The sun edged steadily southwest, the air remained stifling and humid, and all four of them were drenched in sweat, be they sitting atop the cart or walking alongside it.

Lu Qing and Eunuch Guo had it somewhat easier on the cart, but Zhao Da and Zhao Er, laboring below, suffered terribly. They cursed Sun Yousong in their hearts, heaping invectives on Eunuch Guo as well, even extending their curses to Lu Qing’s mother more than once.

After asking Zhao Da, Lu Qing learned that the next relay station, Yongjia, lay just under forty li from Xuanfu, with the nearest town still thirty li away. This realization sank his heart. At the mule cart’s speed, they would not reach Yongjia until tomorrow evening at best, and certainly would not make the town before nightfall. This meant the four of them would have to spend the night in the wild.

If many refugees were traveling toward Xuanfu along the way, it might have been some comfort; there is safety in numbers, and mutual aid is possible. But most refugees were not heading toward Xuanfu, but rather toward Yu Prefecture and Zijin Pass, closer to the capital and much safer than frontier strongholds like Xuanfu and Datong.

The border troops had been routed at Yanghe Pass only yesterday—if Esen were not attacking Datong, then where would he be now?

Thinking of the vanished Oirat army, Lu Qing shivered involuntarily and, with a sudden nervousness, turned to look behind. Seeing all was as usual, he finally calmed himself.

Eunuch Guo was startled by his sudden movement and also glanced back; seeing nothing amiss, he looked at Lu Qing, then lay down again, unwilling to stir.

Below the cart, the Zhao brothers trudged in silence; on the cart, the old eunuch and the youth were also mute. Aside from the sound of the wheels turning, there was nothing to be heard—the silence was suffocating.

Lu Qing repeatedly pondered all he knew from later histories about the Tumu Crisis, cross-checking with the memories of his body’s original owner, yet still found some matters he could not fathom. So, taking care not to arouse suspicion, he tried to draw information from Eunuch Guo.

“Eunuch, do you know why His Majesty decided to lead the army himself?”

At this, Eunuch Guo looked at him strangely. “Why do you ask such a thing?”

Lu Qing hastened to explain, “Your humble servant merely finds it odd. The Oirat incursion this time is not greater than in the past. Ordinarily, the court would send a general to deal with it; why did His Majesty decide to go in person?”

“How should I know what His Majesty is thinking?” Eunuch Guo replied, without suspecting Lu Qing, though he too seemed puzzled. “To tell the truth, it struck me as strange as well. When we first learned the Oirats were about to invade, Deputy General Wu Hao led troops to resist at Mao’er Village, but the entire force was wiped out, and he died gloriously for the country. After receiving news of the defeat, the Marquis of Xining and I jointly sent an urgent memorial to the court, requesting reinforcements. The Ministry of War replied that His Majesty would send Prince Consort Jingyuan to lead troops in Datong’s aid. But then, quite suddenly, news arrived that the emperor himself would lead the army. All this happened in the space of a single day. Who knows what change occurred at court?”