As for such matters, the Imperial Court had always kept one eye open and the other shut, generally leaving them alone.
Zhao Zhilong's Garrison Commander Camp had several thousand troops stationed beside a great river.
The camp stretched a full three li from east to west, enclosed entirely by wooden palisades topped with watchtowers, where archers and sentries stood guard.
The river surged away. In this remote, impoverished backwater, the surroundings went without saying-a place for immortals to cultivate.
At three in the afternoon, Tang Wen's party arrived.
Chu Zhao had long been waiting outside. The moment he saw Tang Wen, he said, "A mobile warfare officer named Ding Zhendong has come from the Commander-in-Chief's Office. Lord Zhao is keeping him company."
"A mobile warfare officer is a high official of Subordinate Third Rank. What brings him down here this time?" Tang Wen asked.
"I'm not sure. The timing is just right, though. Let's hurry inside, before he leaves again," Chu Zhao said, shaking his head.
Thus, accompanied by Chu Zhao, Tang Wen entered the command tent.
Tang Wen had donated this oversized military tent himself. It was the commander's quarters, spacious enough to gather several dozen people for a meeting.
Two smaller rooms had also been partitioned off inside: a study and a place for the commander to rest.
When Tang Wen entered, he found Zhao Zhilong drinking tea with a middle-aged man.
The man had a large, round face and thick outer ears, and wore a sumptuous pale silver robe.
He wore a jade-inlaid gold crown and a jade belt around his waist, and his silver robe had lavish gold edging.
The stitching was meticulous, and the flying beasts embroidered on the brocade robe looked lifelike. The workmanship was fine.
"Reporting to Lord Zhao: First-Rank Earl Tang Wen,