Chapter 22

It was a pitch-black night, three days after Xiao Letian had caused a commotion on the Guangde ship. In the Yongning Mountains, about thirty miles west of Yixian County, a dozen men in black were making their way through the forest. The two leading them were dressed as hunters, while the other was Wang Hu, the constable of Yixian County.

"Sir Hu, we're approaching the boundary marker. Are you really going to go in?" the hunter asked cautiously.

"Why so many questions? Shut your mouth. Can't a hundred taels of silver seal it?" Wang Hu glared at him and then turned to ask humbly.

"Sir... we're at the boundary marker. Outsiders who enter without permission will be executed without mercy! You... you really want to go in?" Wang Hu's voice trembled, for behind the boundary marker lay the Qing West Mausoleum, guarded by twenty thousand soldiers. Inside were several Manchu villages, and any disturbance could result in the extermination of nine generations.

Xiao Letian did not answer. He gazed into the distance under the faint starlight. In the dark mountain shadows, there were flickering lights, some from Manchu estates, others from the continuous palace complexes and military camps.

"This is the Qing West Mausoleum, where Emperor Yongzheng is buried. He is the only one in the Qing Dynasty I truly admire, the one who saved the empire from collapse. Your reforms extended the Qing's lifespan by at least a century. How can I not admire you..."

Xiao Letian muttered to himself, "But your actions only prolonged the life of the Manchu empire. The path I will take is different. I will follow the old road of the Eighth Prince, Yinsi, and create a small court within your Qing Dynasty. I will use money and guns to drag the Qing officials into the mud, and I will rot this court from the bottom up..."

"This decaying dynasty should change. If not, China's fate will be destroyed by your hands. You had better pray that my endeavors go smoothly, for only then will your descendants have a good end. You know the tragic history of dynastic changes over thousands of years..."

Xiao Letian looked at Wang Hu. "Scared? I told you, if you want to join me, you need to prove your loyalty. Have you forgotten the old saying that wealth comes with risk?"

Xiao Letian glared at him coldly, and perhaps because of the several lives he had taken after his穿越, his eyes made Wang Hu break out in a cold sweat.

"Let's do it!" Wang Hu stomped his foot and turned to the hunter. "I hired you to bring us in. If you keep us safe, I'll give you another hundred taels..."

The old hunter, hearing about 200 taels, jumped up. "You can count on me. I've hunted in the imperial mausoleum for years. I know the patrol routes and schedules like the back of my hand. I'll guarantee your safety with my head..."

After a brief rest, the group began to move silently. With Wang Huaiyuan and Xiao He's protection, Xiao Letian's journey through the mountains went smoothly. In less than an hour, they had infiltrated the hill behind the Taoling Mausoleum. They encountered three night patrols, but none discovered them.

When Xiao Letian could see the top of the Taoling Mausoleum and the main hall below, he became excited. He knew that beneath his feet lay the famous Emperor Yongzheng.

"Yinzhen, Yinzhen, you never expected that the first to desecrate your tomb would be a Han穿越er. I'm sorry, but your servant has forced me to this. I can't kill Lian Er without using underhanded tactics."

"Damn, I need to establish my authority now. Today, I'll show my men my methods, so they know my dominance. 'Move, and be quick about it...'"

Xiao Letian gave the order, and the dozen black figures began to move through the forest. They carried flammable oil and large bundles of cotton.

At this point, Wang Hu and the hunter understood. The hunter, a man of the green forest, went weak at the knees and sat down. "Ancestor! You want to burn the Taoling Mausoleum? Heaven! This is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations..."

The old hunter, a coward, tried to run away, clearly terrified. But Wang Hu, in a last-ditch effort, pounced and pinned him to the ground, covering his mouth and whispering, "You're already on the bandit ship. Do you think you can run? Be obedient, and you might live. Disobey, and I'll kill you..."

Xiao Letian's lips curled, seemingly satisfied with Wang Hu's performance.

As Xiao Letian secretly entered the West Mausoleum area, he was unaware that on the opposite side of Yongning Mountain, Prince Shi Dakai and General Liu Lang were leading a group of elite soldiers in hiding.

How could Shi Dakai not come? He never expected Xiao Letian to target the Qing West Mausoleum. This did not align with Confucian morals. Those who desecrate tombs are often remembered poorly in history. Why would Mr. Xiao do this?

"Liu Lang, do you think I'm putting pressure on the strategist? Is Mr. Xiao doing this to prove his loyalty to us? He fears we don't trust him..."

Liu Lang frowned and thought for a moment. "It's unlikely. I've read Mr. Xiao's writings. He is well-versed in Western methods. Does he care about his posthumous reputation? I doubt it. But I do believe this is a sign of loyalty, though not to us, but to himself..."

"He seems to be using this shocking and ruthless plan to force himself onto the path he speaks of..."

Shi Dakai looked at Liu Lang for a long time, then smiled. "You, a rough man, have such a keen insight. You and I are thinking the same thing. Mr. Xiao is forcing himself. I can feel his inner struggle..."

"With the strategist's great talent, he would be a leader anywhere. It's truly difficult for him to follow our path. Instead of being a wealthy man, he chose this road of no return... After this fire, the strategist will be the backbone of our cause. No one, including me, will defy him in the slightest..."

Shi Dakai and Liu Lang were not wrong. Xiao Letian's plan to burn the Taoling Mausoleum had multiple layers of meaning. In his grand plan, bribing the magistrate of Liu County was a soft approach. Dealing with Lian Er, however, required more drastic measures.

Xiao Letian did not want to assassinate Lian Er, as that would draw attention from Beijing. He also did not want to bribe Lian Er to leave Yixian, as that would be too lenient. After much thought, using the Qing's own hands to execute Lian Er seemed like a good choice.

Most importantly, Xiao Letian wanted to use this fire to force himself onto the path of reform. He knew that his past life as a white-collar worker had ingrained a desire for comfort and ease. He feared that after amassing great wealth, he would retreat to beautiful countries like Switzerland, Germany, or Austria to live a life of luxury.

Xiao Letian knew his weakness, and he was capable of such actions.

Tapping a small stick against the mountain rock, Xiao Letian squatted down, seemingly in conversation with Emperor Yongzheng.

"Don't be upset. I'm a reasonable person. Digging up your grave is too low, but burning your hair is fine... Who's to blame for this? Isn't it your descendant, Lian Er, that old scoundrel? Why did he provoke me? Now you're suffering too..."

"Also, tell me, what was the small court your eighth brother, Yinsi, like? Did he really have a secret civil and military staff? It's said that many counties paid two sets of taxes, one to the court and one to the Eighth Prince?"

As Xiao Letian rambled, it seemed as if the tomb heard him. A cold wind blew through the forest, and the trees rustled. Even with two sets of wolf fur coats, Xiao Letian felt the chill.

"Oh! You don't like it, do you? Fine, fine, I'll back off. I promise not to exterminate your people. I'll let them live equally with others..."

At this moment, Wang Huaiyuan ran over and whispered, "Sir, the twenty fire points are set. You should leave now..."

Xiao Letian glared at him. "Nonsense. We came together, so we'll leave together. I want to see the fire with my own eyes."

Xiao Letian kicked the mountain rock with his right foot, gazing at the dark landscape as if gathering strength. "Move..."

In the cold north wind, twenty fires ignited simultaneously.

As Xiao Letian set the fires, in a small village at the foot of the West Mausoleum, Lian Er was lying in bed, plotting with his confidants.

"Are you sure? Americans really came to meet Mr. Xiao?"

Lian Er, wearing a white headband, stared at Laipihou, one of his subordinates, with disbelief. The other four were leaders of the West Mausoleum guards, all loyal to Lian Er.

"My dear second master, would I lie? A group of fast horses arrived yesterday. Four bodyguards from the Beijing Huwei Escort Agency escorted a Kunlun slave directly into Yixian County from the north gate... It was the little Kunlun slave brought by Reverend Liu, as black as coal. He went straight to Mr. Xiao... He really has connections with the foreigners..."

Lian Er, hearing this, almost fainted. He coughed for a while before calming down. "Oh! What bad luck! Why did I encounter such a troublemaker? If what you say is true, I can't take revenge? I have to watch this half-foreigner run free in Yixian County?"

Laipihou quickly responded, "My dear second master, don't worry. If we can't kill him openly, we can do it secretly. I have friends in the green forest, who know people from all over. If you pay the price, I can bring in Shadow Xiang, the master assassin. With Shadow Xiang, no one is safe..."

"Moreover, Shadow Xiang's methods are divine. He hates foreigners the most. We can make it look like an accident for Mr. Xiao. We can take revenge, and the foreigners won't say a word... People get sick, don't they?"

As they plotted, a commotion suddenly filled the night sky, like the sound of gongs and the urgent blowing of horns, followed by a roar from the distance.

As Lian Er sat up, confused, the door was suddenly kicked open, and a steward rushed in, kneeling and crying.

"Wah... My dear second master, the sky is falling! Look, the hill behind Taoling is on fire, almost burning the sky down..."

"Ah... Heaven is against me..." Lian Er spat out a mouthful of blood on the spot.