CLASH
OF
ALLIANCES
Trials of the Middle Kingdom 2
By
Pierre Dimaculangan
TOMKBooks
Virginia
TOMKBooks
Manassas Park, Virginia
Copyright © 2019 by Pierre Dimaculangan.
Cover art and design by Pierre Dimaculangan
All rights reserved.
This book is a work of fiction. All characters, names, places, organizations, and events are either fictional or historical, or were used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons (with the exception of historical figures), living or dead, are purely coincidental.
I have been polishing this sword for ten years;
Its frosty edge has never been put to the test,
I hold it and present it to you now, sir:
Is there anyone suffering from injustice?
—Jia Dao (Tang Dynasty)
Contents
Name Pronunciation Guide
1 Ripened For war
2 Know Your Friends
3 Opposition to the New Order
In the Bowels of the Underworld
4 The Pass
5 Tables Turned
6 It Escalates
7 Brocade-Clad Guard
8 Behind Enemy Lines
9 The Gears Turn
10 A Turn of Events
11 War Game
12 Where the Wind Blows
13 The Battle for Beijing
14 A Duel of Opposites
Epilogue
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Name Pronunciation Guide
PROTAGONISTS
Sun Xin – soon shin
Famin Jie – fah meen jyuh
Zuo Shilong – z’woh shee long
Meiling – may ling
MARTIAL SCHOLARS
Lu Guanying – loo gwun ying
Tian Qiu – t’yen cho
Zhang Sunzan – jang soon zan
Shang Jian – shang j’yen
Zhen Shu – jen shoo
IMPERIAL MILITARY/ GOVERNMENT OFFICERS
Zhu Youcheng “Hongzhi”(present emperor) – joo yo chung “hung jee”
Zhu Di “Yongle” (past emperor) – joo dee “yung-luh”
Xuanda emperor – shwun-duh
He Feishen – huh fayshen
He Jin – huh jin
Liu Quan – lyoo chwen
Han Bin – han bean
Zhou Liang – jo lyang
Wei Qiuyuan – way cho ywen
Previously in “The Sage, the Swordsman and the Scholars: Trials of the Middle Kingdom 1”
The winds of change blew strongly across the Middle Kingdom, and there was not a place where it could not be felt. Along with it came the cold, autumn air sweeping in from the North, blowing from the icy tundra and frozen wilderness that lay beyond the vast plains and grasslands. The imminence of a cold, cold winter was of little importance, however. There was yet another danger that stirred in the darkness and it could be felt by all who knew of its near-arrival. Not even the wolves howled, for an impending doom was threatening to engulf the Ming Dynasty and the world beyond its borders.
For four and a half thousand years, the Middle Kingdom stood as a beacon of majesty, a great civilization standing alone yet proud with pride, surrounded by wild jungles, and guarded by impenetrable mountain ranges inhabited by barbarians and tribes unknown. Many kings and emperors have laid claim to the Middle Kingdom’s ever-shifting territories, establishing various dynasties, and launching eras of great wars sometimes lasting hundreds of years. Despite it all, the Middle Kingdom had always managed to find its feet, more proud and prosperous than ever before.
To the North, beyond the Great Wall which divided the “barbarian” horse nomads from the empire, the expanses of the Northern Yuan steppe stretched beyond the horizon. It served as the homeland of the Menggu nation, great archers and horsemen whose tribes had once been united and had nearly conquered the world. Their century-long rule over the Middle Kingdom came to an end when a peasant and warrior monk named Zhu Yuanzhang rose from the ashes to reunite the people in order to oust the horse masters once and for all. He established himself as the emperor of a new dynasty. He called it Ming as it was the beginning of a bright new era which ended a very dark age. Still, long after they had been ousted, rogue clans of Menggu continued to raid and pillage the outskirts of the empire like a knife that continued to prod an open wound. Prolonged conflicts with them were beginning to take its toll.
Many nations greatly admired the Middle Kingdom and for hundreds of years paid handsome tribute to the Ming emperor to symbolize their submission to the power of the Empire above all other kingdoms. However, this was no longer to be. After one hundred twenty four years, the supremacy of the Ming Dynasty had finally been opposed by a challenger.
A great and terrifying new force had emerged from a dark, unknown corner of the world. This time, it arrived not from the steppes of the north or the deserts of the west, but from the sea, and it challenged the very supremacy the Ming Empire had long claimed. All the Middle Kingdom now waits in fear, anticipating the imminent arrival of that foreign power. The great war of the age was nigh, and all within the emperor’s court knew it. The power called itself “Terukk”. Terrifying were they— tall, startlingly pale with skin as white as ivory, ears long and pointed like that of a bat, and eyes as red as molten steel. Beyond their unsettling physical appearance and evil intent, naught but mystery shrouded them.
There had only been but a small number in the beginning, a lightly-armed diplomatic assembly who had made their presence known to the capital and to other provinces along the eastern coast. They sought trade and cultural exchange with the great Ming Empire, or so they said. Only deceit and treachery followed in their wake. Many officers within the Imperial Secret Police, puppets of traitorous eunuchs within the court and the spy bureaus from the Eastern and Western Depots, had completely defected to them, and many civil servants within the imperial and provincial governments had been seduced into the Terukk cause.
It was not long until a political cabal known as the League of Martial Scholars had discovered a conspiracy unfolding within the emperor’s palace that they intervened to save the royal family and their country. They ousted the traitorous officials and declared war on the foreigners. The course of action was an open defiance to the Terukk presence. Fortunately the defectors and their lackeys, nearly one hundred thousand strong, had all been slain in the first great battle of this new war… after they had already been mutated out of their own humanity by foul Terukk alchemy. Enemies from across the empire were still at large, possibly conspiring with the Terukk and amassing forces from within Wulin— the Middle Kingdom’s underworld. The traitors’ knowledge of the government and its workings would be employed to overthrow the very nation they once swore to serve, for they had been seduced by their lies and deceit, buying into false promises of power and life and the establishment of a “new world order”.
Five core members led the order that was the League of Martial Scholars. They commanded a small army of scholar-warriors known as “Martial Academicians”—talented individuals secretly selected from the student body of their Academy and main headquarters in Guangzhou city.
The Martial Scholars had yet another secret weapon: a legendary swordsman of incredible skill and strength named Sun Xin; he shared their creed. For years he had fought under their banner, working furiously in service to their creed by combating the agents of the Underworld and resisting the new foreign invaders with whom they collaborated. With the Underworld undergoing an awakening, and creatures thought only to be of myth making sudden appearances, the fate
of the Middle Kingdom now hung in the balance.
After all that had been done to preserve the Ming Dynasty from subjugation and collapse, there were still others whom the Terukk had not expected to stand in the way of their conquest. A mysterious hermit, a “sage”, had emerged from secrecy to answer a call he believed was divine.
“Heaven,” he said, “has ordained my steps.” He had made many claims, some seemingly outlandish or downright preposterous of things concerning the rise of evil and its connection to the arrival of the Terukk. His name was Famin Jie, and he stood before the Emperor telling him the truth of what was transpiring, that the Middle Kingdom was undergoing a series of great trials which were not just of flesh, blood and bone, but of the spirit. The emperor had decided to heed his counsel after bearing witness to a tremendous and inexplicable vision which he took as a sign that the sage indeed spoke the truth. The rest of the emperor’s court had their doubts concerning the sage and have kept a close watch on his intentions throughout their ordeal.
News about what had occurred with the Terukk had already spread throughout every city, town, and village in the Middle Kingdom. The millions that roamed the streets conducted their everyday business with a growing tension and fear that could be felt in the very earth. Festivities were postponed and many had already taken measures to evacuate their homes should the worst come to pass. The city gates were becoming flooded with refugees from near and far, seeking safety behind the massive, impervious walls. Even traveling merchants and poor peasant farmers knew that the resurgence of the Underworld was no coincidence, for it was as if the ones amassing in the dark were answering a call that not only heralded the arrival of the Terukk, but the dawn of a terrible new era.
The fate of the entire Middle Kingdom rested on the shoulders of the few who stood within the walls and halls of the Forbidden City… and upon a small band of misfits brought together by divine providence: a failed bandit leader, a banished Shaolin monk, a poor Menggu merchant, and a crazed pyrotechnician.
The massive imperial palace which the emperor called home was now the most heavily-guarded place in the known world, protected by hundreds of armored Martial Academicians and thousands more by the elites of the Ming Imperial Army. Despite this, the young emperor felt completely vulnerable and helpless and he found little peace from the assurances of his court…
1 Ripened For war
“Itrust everything is on schedule with the Empire’s preparation? Is the construction of an expanded navy proceeding according to plan?” said Emperor Zhu Youcheng looking to his ministers and officials for assurances. He paced worriedly before his throne, and his golden robes swayed to follow his movements. The golden headdress crown resting over his brow stayed crooked but he gave it no attention. “I need to hear it again, that every measure we are taking to ensure our defense is at its fullest potential. I want to be able to list them over and over in my mind.” The emotional stress was becoming evident in his body. The young ruler, the wealthiest and most powerful monarch in the known world, was tensed and his shoulders hunched over as he stood with a slouch and a clenched jaw.
No one in the League of Martial Scholars or the ministers present in the hall could do anything to bring him some peace of mind. Everything that had taken place in the palace and the empire was unprecedented. Emperor Zhu Youcheng studied the faces of the new figures standing before him one by one, imprinting their faces into his mind. This secret and influential order that now spearheaded the nation’s defenses had operated in shadow for many years under the nose of the empire long before he became ruler. It made him tick to know that they now helped him run his administration… but even the steely gaze he directed toward them softened upon remembering how they had saved his palace from destruction. They still had much to prove to him however, and despite this, he chose to trust the new members of his administration. He could not fight alone.
Nevertheless, the reports testified to the rapidity and efficacy of the administration. No ruler could have asked for more. “We have strategically stationed two garrisons around each of the city’s walls, Imperial Majesty, with the southern side guarded by twenty thousand troops fully armed and backed by a dozen batteries of the newly-forged cannons. All refugees entering the city are being screened to ensure that each has the proper paperwork required to gain entry. Furthermore, the warships that had survived the recent battle are currently undergoing repairs and rearmament. The garrisons along the southern borders are currently being reinforced by the generals while the troops are being retrained and resupplied. Transitioning soldiers from years of farming in the garrisons to immediate battle effectiveness is no easy task… but they are making excellent progress nonetheless. The Ministry of War has worked tirelessly to ensure the efficacy of our preparations,” reported Lu Guanying, leader of the League of Martial Scholars. “The Martial Scholars have very useful connections in the provinces that have optimized the logistical problems of preparing for war,” he added.
Though the initial threat of the Terukk’s mutant army had been dealt with swiftly, the Emperor, the officials of his court and the League of Martial Scholars knew that the real threat was well on its way. Their recent victory had surely only hastened the enemy’s machinations against them.
“Through the coordinated efforts with the Ministries, the largest cities in the empire are being fortified as effectively as the capital, even as more refugees from exposed provinces are seeking entry. The same could be said of the Nine Border Garrisons in the north,” said Lu Guanying with a hint of satisfaction. “Every piece is moving as fast as it can, I assure you, Emperor. There was never a time in history where developments occurred so efficiently. Even as we speak, many of your highest ranking officers and their troops congregate in several key strategic locations around the empire and are securing the old defenses.”
“What about the traitors your Academicians have recently captured? Have any of them spoken yet?” the emperor asked.
“Many more have been arrested by another one of our bureaus in the south. Unfortunately, no torture or interrogation techniques have managed to compel them to reveal our enemies’ plans. The survivors are locked in the underground dungeons and put in cangues. Despite this, Imperial Highness, I assure you that the council of my Order and our Academicians will deal with them swiftly, and employ every possible means to achieve our ends.”
“I believe you, Scholar,” the emperor said. “I admire the effectivity and efficiency of the Martial Scholars, even though they are technically working outside of the law. However, given with what I am hearing, I have no choice but to be satisfied and mandate that your work is of my government.” He leaned back against his golden dragon throne and rubbed his chin. “I am pleased that you have captured the traitorous officials, but they’re not even worthy of cangues. If they will not provide useful information, kill them. Execute them in the square. Have your Academicians arrest their immediate family members as well. If you suspect that they are withholding information, remove their heads. We cannot afford any sort of leniency. Now, tell me of our maritime defenses.”
In response, Shang Jian, the strategist of the Martial Scholars, stepped forward to make a report and bowed. “Admiral Han Bin is leading a large squadron of heavy warships toward the southeastern coast as the first line of naval defense in the sea. The pirates and their lord, Mizushima, are still at large and continue to pose and imminent threat upon our seas. We can safely assume that they are waiting upon their Terukk lords. Our navy can equalize their threat in the meantime. Dozens of other ships are also patrolling the Grand Canal, armed with the improved weapons and armaments designed by General Jin’s engineer Big Bang, I mean… Fung,” he reported.
“With the prevailing winds and favorable currents that travel generally southward, the squadrons travel with the speed of horseback and will have arrived to their destinations by the end of the week. I would also like to add that the shipyards along the Grand Canal and in the old capital of
Nanjing continue to work day and night. Soon their dry docks will be flooded and our navy will be stronger than it has ever been in decades. Our maintenance of a mere fifty ships will soon be three hundred.” The Scholars spoke with great confidence, taking much pride and placing great hope in the strength of the Ming military.
“They were right,” the young emperor thought as he sighed. The whole nation was already scrambling to muster every ounce of strength for the war. Every industry, every soldier, and every loyal civil servant across the empire was already commissioned to do everything needed to defend against the imminent invasion. “Yes, yes of course,” the emperor muttered. He leaned on his knees and rubbed his eyes, then massaged his head, and took a deep long breath. “Let them come. Their hubris and insolence will be their undoing. If they think toppling the Ming would be so easy, they will be decimated by my fury,” the emperor boldly proclaimed, his clenched fists shivered under his long flared sleeves. Despite his numerous anxieties, he sat with an imposing confidence befitting of his role as emperor. “I need to speak with the sage. Perhaps he could provide the spiritual insight that I require.”
Faith, something the Martial Scholars and the ministers of the inner court thought little about, was what he needed most. It grew thinner the more he thought about their dire state of affairs. There was no use in staying distressed about the situation when everything that could be done was already being done. Having Famin Jie close to his counsel provided him some peace of mind and he was going to need him for spiritual guidance—something the Martial Scholars could not provide. That meek and humble sage held so much power, controlled and hidden. To have such a gift resulted in the attainment of higher wisdom that none else, not even those in the Ministry of Rites nor the leaders of the temple sects, held.
There was also great urgency in addressing the alarming threat of Wulin—the Underworld amassing deep within the wilderness expanses and cities across the Ming. It was an existential threat that the army should have subdued at the beginning of the Ming. That said, imperial commander He Feishen, the highest ranking officer in the entire Ming army, made a hasty entrance into the emperor’s court. He had just returned from overseeing the army’s preparations outside Beijing and from the relocation of his family within the capital’s Imperial District. He arrived directly from the field after requesting an audience directly with the emperor; he had not even bothered to change into his official bright red robes. He had not even taken the time to groom himself and he seemed rather frustrated. The breeches of protocols were somewhat forgivable given the circumstances, and the emperor was too pragmatic to care. The warrior’s tall, broad-shouldered frame and powerful presence commanded the attention of even the Martial Scholars.
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