Chapter 039: Demanding Ransom

Hu Ying'er was truly angry this time. Xue Rui spent half the day studying in the library, yet never saw his teacher's shadow. When he asked a maid, he learned that Hu Ying'er had already returned to her embroidery tower earlier and hadn’t come over since. It wasn’t until mealtime that she finally appeared, her face clouded with displeasure.

Xue Rui attempted a greeting, but she acted as if she hadn’t seen him, leaving him awkward and embarrassed. The atmosphere in the dining hall remained heavy. Old Hu, unaware of what had transpired, assumed the two young people were as troubled as he was by affairs of the state, and grew even more despondent.

After a while, Old Hu rapped the table and instructed the serving maid, “Go fetch my Autumn Dew White. I need a few good cups tonight!”

“Ah?” The maid instinctively looked to Hu Ying'er. These days, the key to the wine cabinet was in her possession; anyone wishing to retrieve wine needed her approval. Old Hu’s command put the maid in an awkward position.

“No!” Hu Ying'er refused outright, replying earnestly, “Grandfather, with the dietary remedies lately, your rheumatism has eased quite a bit. Why are you thinking of drinking again? What if it relapses?”

“It’s all an old ailment. What’s the use worrying?” Old Hu slammed the table in frustration. “The illness hasn’t flared recently only because the time hasn’t come. For all we know, it’ll hit in a few days. If these dietary remedies really work, I might as well shave my head and become a monk, so I won’t have a girl bossing me around all day. It’s suffocating.”

“And what sort of talk is that? Everything I do is for your health!” Hu Ying’er turned away, speechless with anger.

Seeing this, Xue Rui hurried to smooth things over. “Master, at your age, would the temples even accept you if you wanted to become a monk? And if they did, you’d have to address every young novice as uncle or elder brother. Wouldn’t that be awkward?”

“You... You little rascal, this is all your fault!” Old Hu, both annoyed and amused, pointed at Xue Rui. “Just you wait. When your father is released from prison, I’ll have him give you a proper lesson.”

“All right, all right. As long as you’re healthy, what’s a beating to me?” Xue Rui grinned mischievously.

“How did your father end up with such a lazy good-for-nothing?” Old Hu rolled his eyes and glared fiercely. “Eat. And when you’re done, get out of my sight—you make me angry just looking at you.”

After dinner, Xue Rui promptly took his leave. It seemed Hu Ying'er was still fuming; she disappeared right after the meal.

Xue Rui, unconcerned by her moods, strolled home at ease. When he arrived, Lady Liu noticed he’d changed clothes and quickly asked what had happened. Xue Rui fabricated a story about getting dirty while playing with Hu Cheng'an and having to borrow a set of clothes. Satisfied, Lady Liu let the matter rest.

Then, with anticipation, she produced a new pair of cloth shoes and asked him to try them on. After more than ten days of effort, she and the maid Su Su had finally finished a pair, though the uppers were a bit crooked and not too pretty. Fortunately, the shoes were made to fit Xue Rui’s feet exactly, and the thousand-layer soles were quite comfortable.

After thanking his mother and Su Su, Xue Rui mentioned the military report, warning that chaos was about to erupt in the capital and urging them to be extremely cautious. Both trusted Xue Rui implicitly and promised to keep their doors tightly shut and avoid going out.

By then, night had fallen. Xue Rui returned to his room to study until the lamp oil was spent, then went to bed.

While the people of the capital slept soundly, two places in the city remained lit through the night.

The previous afternoon, Yu Qian had received a military dispatch from Yang Hong, the general stationed at Xuanfu. The message reported that the main army had encamped at Tumu Fortress, only to be surrounded by the Oirat forces. The Oirats feigned retreat, and as the Ming army moved camp to access water, they were attacked from all sides by Oirat cavalry. The Ming forces collapsed without a fight. The emperor’s whereabouts were unknown, countless officials and officers had been killed or wounded, and the rest had scattered—no one knew where. The situation at the frontier was dire, and immediate imperial instructions were requested.

The dispatch was urgent and vague, lacking even clear information on the emperor’s fate. Yang Hong, stationed so close to Tumu, had hesitated to send reinforcements, fearing an ambush, believing the Ming army could hold its own. When news of the army’s collapse finally reached him, it was too late to intervene; the Ming forces had been routed, making rescue pointless. Fearful of being accused of neglecting the emperor’s peril, he hurriedly reported to the court to shift some of the responsibility.

Yu Qian, recognizing the gravity of the report, immediately summoned the remaining senior ministers to convene at the Prince of Cheng’s residence. The total defeat of two hundred thousand elite troops and the emperor’s disappearance—this was an unprecedented calamity.

Upon hearing the news, the Prince of Cheng and the ministers were utterly shaken. The Minister of Rites, Hu Ying, broke down in tears, lamenting his failure to the late Emperor Xuanzong. It took a long while for the ministers to accept the reality.

Yu Qian, who had received the news earlier, was now composed. When the others quieted, he asked Prince Zhu Qiyu whether to inform the palace of the defeat. Lacking crucial details, Zhu Qiyu and the ministers decided to wait for further information before reporting to Empress Dowager Sun, lest the inner court be thrown into chaos prematurely.

In truth, everyone clung to a faint hope that, by morning, news would arrive of the emperor’s safe return—an ordeal with no lasting harm.

Thus, the ministers remained at the Prince of Cheng’s residence, waiting deep into the night.

During the Zhengtong era, Beijing’s outer city wall had yet to be constructed; the city had only nine gates, each overseen by eunuchs appointed by the emperor. This night, a lone horseman galloped to Xizhimen, calling out that he bore urgent military intelligence. The gates were closed, and the soldiers dared not open them without orders. They summoned Jia Yi, the eunuch in charge of Xizhimen.

Jia Yi, roused from deep sleep, was furious at first, but knowing the war at the front was critical, he ordered the soldiers to haul the messenger up to the battlements in a basket.

The messenger, seeing Jia Yi was a eunuch, handed the military dispatch directly to him. On reading the contents, Jia Yi was so shocked he nearly tumbled off the wall; only the quick reflexes of the guards saved him.

“Quick, prepare a horse! I must enter the palace at once!” Jia Yi wiped the sweat from his brow and, disregarding the curfew, rode straight for the imperial palace.

The dispatch was, in essence, a letter dictated by Emperor Zhu Qizhen and penned by Jinyi Wei officer Yuan Bin—a plea to his family. It recounted his capture and how Esen, the Oirat leader, was demanding gold, silver, and jewels for his release. Still clinging to hope, Zhu Qizhen urged Empress Dowager Sun to gather the palace jewels and ransom him swiftly, before Esen decided to kill him.

By the time the letter reached the inner palace, it was the third watch of the night. The news exploded like thunder, rousing everyone in the harem. Chaos erupted, with wails echoing throughout the palace.

With the emperor absent, Empress Dowager Sun naturally became the highest authority. After a bout of weeping, Empress Qian, leading the other consorts, hurried anxiously to the Hall of Compassionate Tranquility to consult with the Empress Dowager.

Upon meeting, the Empress Dowager and the consorts again broke down in tears. The chief eunuch of the Hall of Compassionate Tranquility, Li Yongchang, managed to remain calm and, once the Empress Dowager had collected herself, asked whether to inform the outer court so the ministers could help devise a plan.

Unexpectedly, Empress Dowager Sun refused sharply and ordered the news kept secret. She then instructed Empress Qian to gather jewels and treasures from the palace and send them to the frontier as quickly as possible to ransom the emperor.