Volume Two: Adults and Lesser Men Chapter Eighty: Congratulations, Centurion Huang

After pondering and pacing back and forth for quite a while, Huang Ming suddenly halted his steps. "Tell me, why would Zhu Chen do such a thing?"

"Ah?" Huang Bingkun found it somewhat difficult to keep up with Huang Ming's train of thought. After a moment of silent deliberation, he said, "Naturally, for the sake of self-preservation. After all, with the lessons of the past before him, he certainly doesn't want to follow in the footsteps of Qian Ning and Jiang Bin."

"Right. As their successor, Zhu Chen is extremely fearful of the civil officials who hounded two successive Commanders to their deaths, especially veteran ministers of several reigns like Grand Secretary Yang. Because of this, the plight of the Brocade Guard is becoming more and more unbearable!"

"What Young Master Huang says is reasonable, but it is not the whole story. The loss of influence by the Brocade Guard is even more due to the palace's unwillingness to employ us; both the Emperor and the Directorate of Ceremonies pay us no heed..."

These words carried a hint of resentment, much like a pitiful woman abandoned by her man.

Huang Ming did not laugh, but instead nodded. "That is why the Brocade Guard has had such a difficult time these days, acting with utmost caution. Even when a major case falls right into their lap, Zhu Chen has no choice but to step aside, doing a favor for Grand Secretary Yang along the way..."

Huang Bingkun nodded, yet failed to understand why the other suddenly brought up the plight of the Brocade Guard.

Huang Ming continued, "Zhu Chen is cowardly yet astute, and skilled at making compromises. Therefore, even though this will cause the prestige of the Brocade Guard to plummet even further, and even create internal divisions and rifts, he must send the people away for the sake of his own safety."

"True..."

"What about Vice Commander Wan? What benefits could he possibly gain from doing this? Surely he doesn't genuinely want to be an upright official seeking justice for the dead, does he? The cost of that would simply be too high."

"This..." Huang Bingkun was genuinely stumped by the question.

"Let me ask you another thing, and you must think carefully before you answer. What is Vice Commander Wan Jingdao's usual conduct? Is he a man of backbone who dares to shoulder responsibilities? What is his prestige and standing within the Northern Guard Bureau?"

This really put Huang Bingkun on the spot. He frowned in deep thought for a while before hesitatingly replying, "I don't know much about Vice Commander Wan. He rarely interferes in matters. At most, when some of our brothers made mistakes and faced punishment, he was the one who stepped forward to protect them. Because of this, many of the lower-ranking brothers still hold deep respect and gratitude toward him.

"As for his methods in handling cases, I seem to have rarely seen them. However, he is exceptionally skilled at employing people. Commander Liu and the other two Commanders were all promoted single-handedly by him."

"And what is his background?"

"He is a hereditary Brocade Guard Commander who was gradually promoted to Vice Commander step by step based on his merits."

Huang Ming smiled with sudden understanding. "Do you think a person like this would truly stand up against Zhu Chen, or even Grand Secretary Yang, for the sake of so-called justice?"

Huang Bingkun was stuck once more, but deep in his heart, he already had the answer—of course not.

If he were in that position, it would be impossible to stake everything on becoming an enemy of such powerful figures.

Yet it had happened nonetheless, which made it all the more astonishing.

No, not astonishing!

His thoughts suddenly shifted, and he began to grasp the true meaning behind Huang Ming's words. "Vice Commander Wan has nothing to fear because he has backing! He has the conviction to act this way because he knows someone will definitely uphold justice for him. But who could that person be?"

Huang Ming merely smiled, leaving him to figure it out for himself.

And Huang Bingkun did not disappoint him. In the blink of an eye, the answer slipped from his lips: "It's the palace..."

The Imperial Secret Service of the Great Ming was said to be an official government office, yet in truth, it operated entirely independently of the court system, answering solely to the Emperor—or rather, the palace.

If anyone could give a usually low-key Brocade Guard Vice Commander the confidence to defy his superior, the Commander, and even clash with those truly holding the reins of court politics, the only possible answer was the palace.

As he figured all this out, tumultuous waves stirred within Huang Bingkun's heart, and his expression shifted repeatedly.

He truly had not expected these cases to be tied up so deeply that even the palace had intervened.

Yet... he still had one lingering question, which he could not help but voice at this moment: "If that is truly the case, why hasn't Vice Commander Wan openly resisted Commander Zhu? Why hasn't he even made it clear to us?"

"I cannot say for certain what is truly on his mind, but I can offer two guesses."

Huang Ming raised a finger first. "First, he has actually already done so, only you lot are unaware of it yet. After all, without his backing from the shadows, how could Commander Liu and you people possibly have managed to protect Meng Churou, the crucial witness?"

With that, he raised a second finger. "Second, I believe this possibility is even higher. That is, this is all part of the plan, and the people above deliberately instructed him to feign weakness."

"What good would that do him? Once the person cannot be protected, all previous efforts will have been wasted!"

"The person will definitely be protected! As for their intentions, I can guess a thing or two: nothing more than wanting to weed out a group of people within the Brocade Guard who truly dare to shoulder responsibilities while remaining loyal to those above."

"Ah?"

"Just think about it. After the turmoil of the Wuzong reign, the secret service was loathed by everyone, and even two Commanders were killed. Can you truly place your trust in such an institution?"

Huang Bingkun subconsciously shook his head, for that was precisely how he felt.

"That's it. But how shrewd are the people at the top? Naturally, they know the Brocade Guard is of great utility, so they must screen its members, picking out those who are truly devoted to the court, capable, and responsible, so that important tasks can be entrusted to them when the time comes.

"I can even boldly conjecture that Zhu Chen's days as Commander of the Brocade Guard have come to an end. When a new Commander takes office, he will inevitably need to employ a group of people he can trust, won't he?"

Seeing that the other person was still somewhat bewildered, Huang Ming simply spelled it out entirely. "To use an analogy, just like this desk here: if I want to use it now, but it is cluttered and messy, I naturally need to tidy it up first—organizing what needs to be organized and throwing away what needs to be thrown away—before I can use it properly, right?"

"I... I understand..." Huang Bingkun wore a half-smile, his entire demeanor somewhat strange.

Huang Ming smiled again. "So I congratulate you, Centurion Huang. Having weathered this storm, your promotion is an absolute certainty."

"This is all thanks to the opportunity and guidance provided to you, Young Master Huang. Even if this subordinate were to be promoted to the position of Commander, I would never dare to forget it."

"Haha, you flatter me. As long as you persevere, you will see the results very soon." Huang Ming's gaze flashed as he said, "Perhaps within these two days, the outcome will be revealed."

Huang Ming's deduction was largely correct; the only error lay in the timing.

In fact, there was no need to wait two days. That very night, outside the Northern Guard Bureau, a troop of cavalrymen clad in black cloaks suddenly appeared. Though small in number, their oppressive presence caused the guards stationed at the gate, as well as the subordinates sent by the Ministry of Punishments and Shuntian Prefecture to keep watch and demand the suspects, to experience accelerated heartbeats.

As the group approached the closed gates, before the guards could step forward to challenge them, the leader flashed an imperial tally—

This tally was almost identical to the ones the Brocade Guard were most familiar with, except for a single character on the front.

Their tallies read Northern Guard Bureau, whereas this group's read Southern Guard Bureau!