That night, Brian Clark slept soundly and sweetly. He dreamed of flying fish uniforms and embroidered spring knives!

Chapter 4: Dismissed

Early in the morning, Brian Clark woke from his sleep. Breakfast was still wild boar meat. He gnawed at it with effort, all the while pondering... The twentieth year of Hongwu—something seemed about to happen, but he just couldn’t remember what.

Could it be that eating too much pork makes you as dumb as a pig?

Brian Clark chomped angrily on the pork leg, venting his inner frustration!

By now, Edward Green had already eaten his fill. He cut off twenty jin of pork, slung it over his back—enough to last until they left the mountains. The rest he tossed by the pool, leaving it for the wild beasts of the mountains to enjoy.

“Let’s go!”

The father and son set out. They wandered through the mountains for a while, confirmed the direction south, and then plunged straight ahead. By the end of the day, Brian Clark’s wild boar skin shoes were worn through, and his hands and legs were covered in cuts from wild grass—painful and itchy.

Edward Green gave his own outer garment to Brian Clark to wrap himself in. After struggling over another mountain ridge, Brian Clark suddenly heard the sound of bells—crisp and clear, echoing through the mountains and into his ears!

“Go that way!”

He dashed down the mountain without a second thought. The moment he set foot on the main road, Brian Clark nearly burst into tears. Edward Green too had narrowly escaped death and shouted with relief. They asked some traveling merchants and learned that this road led to Gubeikou!

Beyond Gubeikou was Ming territory!

“Boy, let’s hurry up and spend the night at Gubeikou!”

The two of them, ignoring their exhaustion, quickened their pace!

According to historical records, the Ming Great Wall began construction during the Yongle era. But when Brian Clark arrived at Gubeikou, he found many laborers already busy with construction, building walls along the mountain terrain, constructing fortresses and beacon towers at the passes. These could defend against small groups of cavalry, and when a large enemy force attacked, they could send out alarms. Standing here, one could truly feel what it meant to have beacons blazing across the land!

“It’s all those Northern Yuan Tatars—their treacherous hearts never die. They keep invading and plundering. It’s all their fault that the common people can’t live in peace!”

Edward Green was seething with anger. He remembered that it was the Yuan Tatars who had killed his whole family—not just his own kin, but many villagers as well. In Edward Green’s few childhood memories, the most prominent word was: hunger!

Hunger to the point of panic!

No grain, eating wild vegetables, digging for loaches—when even those were gone, eating grass roots, tree bark, gnawing on Guanyin clay... Edward Green had seen with his own eyes people who, after eating Guanyin clay, had bellies swollen like huge balls—worse than being pregnant with triplets—while their limbs shriveled like withered sticks. Their bizarre forms looked like the legendary little demons, and even in death from starvation, their faces were twisted in pain!

Such a blood feud could not go unavenged!

“The Yuan Tatars deserve to die! Fortunately, they won’t be rampant for much longer!”

Edward Green was full of confidence. This time, he had obtained crucial intelligence. As long as he handed it over to the court and they made the right plans, they would surely deal a heavy blow to the Tatars. Maybe they could even push deep into the desert, strike the Northern Yuan hard, and eliminate this great threat once and for all!

Compared to Edward Green’s lofty ambitions, Brian Clark was more concerned about his surroundings. He could clearly sense the seriousness and discipline of the city’s soldiers. Even when Edward Green produced his Jinyiwei waist token, they only let them pass after verifying it.

After resting for a night at Gubeikou to recover their strength, Edward Green, afraid of delaying military matters, set out early the next morning. Considering that Brian Clark was still young, he even hired a carriage to head for Beiping.

Before getting on, Edward Green tossed a bundle to Brian Clark.

“Just something I bought casually—go ahead and change into it!”

Though he said it so offhandedly, the fabric was excellent and the size just right—clearly, he’d put thought into it! Our Edward Green would never shortchange his precious son!

And truly, Brian Clark was a handsome boy. Once he changed into proper clothes, he looked even more upright and striking, with delicate skin, rosy lips, and white teeth.

The only problem was his lack of hair. Fortunately, Third Master had prepared a headscarf, perfectly covering his bald head.

“Hey, with looks like that, you could pass for a top scholar!”

Third Master clapped his hands and laughed heartily. All his worries vanished. This time, he’d really struck it rich—not only had he made a great contribution, but he’d also gained a son. Heaven truly had eyes!

Third Master crossed his legs, leaned back in the carriage, and couldn’t help but hum a little tune, overjoyed... Brian Clark was in a good mood too. He kept asking questions, and Edward Green answered patiently, helping Brian Clark learn much more about this era.

From Gubeikou to Beiping took more than two days... At last, the towering city of Beiping appeared before them.

As the former Yuan capital, Beiping was grand in scale, with high walls and deep moats—truly extraordinary.

But the merchants coming and going had no time to admire Beiping’s magnificence. They were all gathered at the city gate, staring at a posted notice.

A literate scholar read it aloud, shaking his head and intoning: “...Jinyiwei Commander Henry Carter colluded with traitors, corrupted court protocol, conspired with Japanese pirates abroad, and allied with powerful ministers at home. His crimes are countless, too many to record... According to the law, he is to be executed, and his entire clan exterminated!”

What?

Jinyiwei Commander Henry Carter was executed?

Even that notorious executioner met his end?

Heaven truly has eyes—this is the cycle of fate, retribution that never fails!

“Kill him, kill him—well done!” That scholar raised his arms and shouted excitedly, almost mad with joy!