Things Might Be a Slight Misunderstanding

Fengtian, Great Green House.

"Crack!"

A delicate famille rose teacup was smashed violently onto the ground, shattering into pieces.

"I'll say it again, this marriage alliance with the Yu Family, you will marry whether you want to or not!" Zhang Yuting's chest heaved violently, pointing at his son's nose, his face red with anger.

Standing before him was his legitimate eldest son, Zhang Xueliang.

Zhang Xueliang was dressed in a sharp Western suit, his hair meticulously combed. Facing his father's thunderous rage, he merely jutted his chin out, his face filled with stubbornness and defiance.

"Father! What era are we in now? Still practicing arranged marriages?"

"I don't want to marry her! I don't like her! My marriage is my own decision!"

"Nonsense!" Zhang Yuting picked up another teacup. After a moment's thought, he couldn't bring himself to throw it and slammed it heavily onto the table. "Your decision? What basis do you have for that? Without me, Zhang Yuting, what are you? The entire Fengtian is watching us, the Zhang Family. This alliance with the Yu Family will strengthen our relationships considerably, have you even considered that?"

"All I know is, I don't want to use my own happiness as a bargaining chip!" Zhang Xueliang did not back down.

The father and son were like two fighting bulls, neither willing to yield.

Beside them, the Fifth Concubine, dressed in a luxurious qipao, quietly refilled Zhang Yuting's tea. She kept her eyes down, her mind elsewhere, muttering to herself.

The Marshal was always so strict with the Eldest Young Master.

On the other hand, the Second Young Master, Zhang Xueming, who was always so unreliable, the Marshal would scold him fiercely, but his bark was worse than his bite. Every time he would raise his hand high, only to bring it down gently.

In the end, he was just biased towards the younger one.

At this tense moment, hurried footsteps suddenly echoed from outside the door.

"Marshal! Marshal! Something's wrong!"

Adjutant Zhao Zhong scrambled in, his face ashen, sweat beading on his forehead.

Zhang Yuting frowned, a sense of foreboding washing over him.

Zhao Zhong was like his confidant, always steady. For him to be in such a panic, something truly catastrophic must have happened.

"What's all the panic? Has the sky fallen?" Zhang Yuting barked sternly.

"Marshal... it's worse than the sky falling!" Zhao Zhong gasped for breath, almost crying out, "The Japanese... the Japanese have made a move!"

"What?" Zhang Yuting shot to his feet, his chair toppling backward.

"Niuzhuang! The Japanese garrison near Niuzhuang has suddenly mobilized. Their forces... their forces have increased by at least a regiment! Their target, judging by the direction, is heading towards our Fengtian provincial capital!"

Boom!

This news caused the air in the room to freeze.

The stubbornness on Zhang Xueliang's face was instantly replaced by shock.

The Fifth Concubine also turned pale with fright, nearly dropping the tea tray in her hands.

"Damn Japanese!" Zhang Yuting's anger ignited to its peak. He slammed his fist onto the table, making the teacups rattle. "What do they think they're doing? Do they really think I'm made of mud?"

"Pass my order! Mobilize the First Division and the Third Division, immediately enter a state of readiness! If they dare to make a move, I'll make sure they never return!"

Zhang Yuting's eyes were bloodshot, exuding an aura of battle-hardened ferocity.

He could tolerate the Japanese gaining economic advantages, but he absolutely would not tolerate them bringing their guns and cannons to his doorstep!

"Marshal! You can't!"

Zhao Zhong, seeing this, quickly grabbed Zhang Yuting's arm, his urgency making him almost kneel.

"Marshal, please calm down! If we go to war now, we are unprepared and will fall right into the Japanese's trap!"

"Unprepared?" Zhang Yuting flung him away. "I've fought battles for half my life, do I still need to prepare? They've already bullied me to my face, can I still be a coward?"

"No, Marshal!" Zhao Zhong was sweating profusely, his words tumbling out like a rapid-fire barrage. "The matter... the matter might be a slight misunderstanding!"

"Misunderstanding?" Zhang Yuting was taken aback.

"There are rumors outside that the Japanese mobilized these troops not to start a war with us, but to... to find something!"

"Find something?" Zhang Yuting was even more confused. "What could they be looking for that requires a whole regiment? Did their Emperor lose something?"

Zhao Zhong swallowed, carefully observing the Marshal's expression, and lowered his voice to a whisper.

"Marshal... the South Manchuria Railway... has been dismantled."

"What did you say?" Zhang Yuting thought he misheard.

"The South Manchuria Railway, the section from Anshan to Liaoyang, has had ten kilometers of tracks removed. They didn't even leave the sleepers, they took it all!"

Zhang Yuting's eyes instantly widened like copper bells.

The South Manchuria Railway?

That was the lifeblood of the Japanese!

Who had the guts to dismantle their railway? This was practically stabbing the Kwantung Army in the lungs!

"Who did it? Are they tired of living?"

Zhao Zhong's expression became incredibly strange. He leaned close to Zhang Yuting's ear and spoke in a voice as faint as a mosquito's hum, "Marshal... according to the information our people gathered from the White Bear Country... it seems to be..."

"Who is it? Speak quickly!"

"It... it was the Second Young Master."

Zhang Yuting's expression froze.

He was stunned for a good ten seconds, his mind a complete blank.

"Who? Zhang Xueming? My scoundrel son?"

"Yes... it was the Second Young Master." Zhao Zhong nodded, steeling himself. "He sold all the removed railway tracks to the White Bear Country and exchanged them for... for cash, Silver Dollars."

"What's more... what's more, he played a trick of getting something for nothing. The labor and transportation for dismantling the railway were all paid for by the White Bear Country, which he tricked them into thinking was an upfront cost... In the end, he didn't spend a single cent and pocketed a large sum."