Chapter 27: Zhang Xianzhong’s Outlook

While Li Zicheng sat dazed on his dilapidated threshold, another wanderer, roughly twenty years of age, sat in the middle of Mizhi County. Leaning against a large tree, he stared at the cracked earth ahead with a gloomy, intimidating expression that kept others at a distance.

This wanderer was named Zhang Xianzhong. Unlike Li Zicheng, who had been ground down by the trials of a wretched life, Zhang Xianzhong had only grown more resilient after enduring endless hardships. By now, he had become a seasoned outlaw of the Ming Dynasty.

He was born in a small village in Dingbian County, Yan'an Prefecture. His youth was, in its own way, an inspiring story. Born into poverty, he had relied on diligent study and self-taught martial arts to earn a position as a constable at the local county office, successfully crossing class lines to secure a government livelihood. However, once he became a constable, Zhang found his life even more miserable than when he had been a poor farmer. His superiors in the office looked down on him and frequently used various means to suppress him, and he refused to engage in the sycophantic, dirty business of currying favor. To him, a petty official with no real talent or integrity was not worth lowering his head to.

Eventually, he was marginalized within the office to the point where he could not even collect his basic salary. Following a conflict with a superior, he was dismissed from Dingbian County on a flimsy pretext, stripped of his household registration, and cast out as a wanderer.

Yet, even after being effectively stripped of his status as a citizen, Zhang did not lose hope. He still harbored a desire to achieve great things. After drifting for some time, he arrived at the Yansui military garrison and enlisted as a low-ranking soldier. Zhang had hoped that in this vital border town, facing foreign enemies on the front lines, he could fight his way to a future through courage and intellect. But he soon realized his own naivety. The merits he earned on the battlefield were stolen by his superiors, and to the officers, his life was worth no more than that of an ant. Because he refused to be "disciplined," he offended a superior and was nearly executed under military law on a trumped-up charge. Had a general not spoken a word on his behalf, he would have been a dead man.

Thanks to that general's intervention, his sentence was commuted to one hundred strokes of the military cane, and he was expelled from the ranks. Due to his good relations with the other soldiers and his own robust physical constitution, Zhang survived the punishment and eventually wandered to Mizhi County.

Those hundred strokes did not break his spirit; instead, they ignited a raging fire within his heart. "I wanted to be a law-abiding subject, but the Ming Dynasty gave me no way to live!" he thought. "I wanted to contribute to the Ming, but the Ming trampled my efforts and dignity underfoot, grinding them into the dirt. Since the Ming treats me this way, do not blame me for returning the suffering I have endured a thousandfold."

With this thought, Zhang Xianzhong took a deep breath, pushed himself up from beneath the tree, and looked into the distance. He saw withered crops and corpses strewn across the land. He saw farmers whose backs were broken by harsh taxes and levies, and he saw fat, greedy officials in the county office colluding with merchants to profit from the national disaster.

Witnessing these scenes, Zhang knew his opportunity was coming. Furthermore, some time ago, while passing through a county in Xi'an Prefecture, he had met a wanderer named Wang Er. Facing the current state of misery, he and the like-minded Wang Er had talked for a long time, ultimately reaching a conclusion: "Let us rebel; there is simply no way to survive."

However, Zhang did not accept Wang Er's invitation to join his band of rebels. For him, it was not merely about filling his belly; he wanted the Ming Dynasty to feel pain. Even if he could not topple this two-hundred-year-old dragon in one strike, he would carve a massive piece of flesh from its body. Wang Er’s insight and capability were clearly insufficient for such a task. Moreover, having studied in his youth, Zhang knew that the first to rebel would attract the brunt of the government's firepower. He did not intend to be the first bird to be shot. Only when the fire of resentment in the hearts of the people was fully stoked would it be time for him to act.

It was now September, and the bitter winter would soon descend, making the hope of survival for the common people even slimmer. In as little as a month, or at most three, the entirety of Shaanxi would fall into chaos. When that time came, he would only need to raise his arm and call out, and a massive number of starving people would surely respond.

Thinking of this, Zhang Xianzhong clenched his fists so tightly that his rough nails dug into his palms, yet he felt no pain.

***

Inside the Imperial City, at the Wansui Mountain training grounds, the six hundred young eunuchs recently recruited by Wei, Cao, and Wang were engaged in live combat practice against prisoners from the jail. Having heard how formidable the "Inner Drill" forces established by the Emperor were, and with the Emperor himself present, each of the young eunuchs was desperate to prove himself.

Zhu Youjian watched these youths, his future personal guards, and nodded slightly to himself. However, for him, there was still a major deficiency. It was not a matter of courage or discipline, but the fact that their clothing was far too plain. Zhu Youjian understood clearly the impact of a heroic military uniform. When not in battle, military appearance and discipline are another manifestation of an army's combat strength. A dignified, heroic uniform could not only significantly enhance the soldiers' collective sense of honor but also boost national self-confidence and attract more young people to voluntarily join the military, laying a foundation for the Empire's progress.

With this in mind, Zhu Youjian summoned Xu Yingyuan and gave a direct order: "You have performed well in the Directorate of Imperial Dietary. From today, you will also supervise the Directorate of Imperial Apparel. I intend to personally design a uniform for the Inner Drill forces, and you must see to it closely."

Xu Yingyuan knelt in a panic: "This servant accepts the decree! I will watch over the task you have entrusted to me day and night. If there is the slightest error, I shall cut off my own head!"

Having witnessed the various events in the palace these days, Xu Yingyuan dared not be negligent regarding any task entrusted by the Emperor. He was also quite excited about the appointment to the Directorate of Imperial Apparel. Although it ranked low among the twelve directorates of the palace, as a veteran of the Prince of Xin’s estate, his status in the palace was now second only to Wei, Cao, and Wang. Unknowingly, Xu Yingyuan had undergone a profound shift in his own mindset. Once worried about whether the Emperor could bear the burden of the Ming, he now only wanted to do everything in his power for the Emperor. Though he lacked the talent of Cao Huachun or the experience of Wei Zhongxian, he could certainly ensure that the Emperor’s needs in food and clothing were perfectly managed.