On the very day the garrison commanders of Jizhou, Xuanfu, and Datong arrived in Liangzhou, they immediately called a military council.
The meeting was to be held at the Beiliang Governor-General's residence.
Wei Yuan left the barracks with eight trusted aides.
His adviser, cautious as ever, said solemnly:
"My lord, to be safe, let twenty thousand of our brothers practice battle formations on the training ground outside the Governor's Residence."
"The Tatars have withdrawn from the passes, and the fighting has subsided for now. Those three garrison commanders are trusted generals promoted by the emperor himself. I fear trouble may arise."
"Especially Qi Shanguo. He's stationed troops at the passes and blocked news everywhere. Who knows what scheme he's brewing?"
Wei Yuan nodded.
"As you suggest."
That man Qi was a thorn in his eye, a splinter in his flesh. Sooner or later, he would have to pull him out, or he would never sleep soundly!
Unease gripped the adviser, and he whispered:
"My lord, perhaps we should stay away from the governor-general's office after all? I've racked my brains, and something seems wrong at every turn."
Wei Yuan's expression remained unchanged.
"Those three garrison commanders must be carrying His Majesty's secret orders. If I refuse to attend the meeting, I'll be openly defying them. No verdict has been reached on the loss of the border passes. We cannot give the Court an excuse to make an issue of it."
After a brief pause, he continued calmly:
"On my own turf, how big a wave can those three frontier commanders stir up?"
"They merely want to seize the chance to question me about the fall of the passes. We'll just lay all the blame on the dead!"
After arranging their troops, the party headed for the Governor's Residence.
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