Zhang Xing ultimately accepted Chen Ling's bribe: two Golden Awls. He passed one to Qin Bao and asked him to give the other to Luo Xin, then called on acquaintances from the Northern Office and found Eunuch Yu, who easily led Chen Ling inside to profess his loyalty.
Naturally, Zhang Xing also went in at his leisure, found the somewhat haggard Duke Niu, and reported the completion of his assignment.
Duke Niu said little, merely telling Zhang Xing to go and rest.
Yet when Zhang Xing left Duke Niu's side room and reached the outermost communal sleeping quarters shared by the Crouching Dragon Guard and Jinwu Guard, he was astonished to discover that the world here had changed.
"What happened?"
Zhang Xing came over to ask in surprise.
"Yesterday, the Youzhou Chief Commander's Office only sent a dozen or so ranked officers. Today, apparently every civil and military official above the fifth rank in the Jin Region has come, along with at least a hundred attendants of the seventh rank or higher." Ding Quan, the Jinwu Guard company commander, was filthy all over and stared vacantly as he gave a rough account. "With so many people, they still show the Crouching Dragon Guard some consideration, but there's bound to be no room for us Jinwu Guards... We're a bunch of common soldiers. How could we possibly fight a crowd of Gentlemen of the Palace Generals, Commandery Assistants, and commandery governors for space? We're lucky to have a corridor to lie in."
Zhang Xing fell silent briefly. "Why have so many come, and in such a hurry? Even Hebei wasn't this extreme, was it?"
"Apparently, His Highness the Prince of Qi was in Taiyuan before, and all these people from the Jin Region gathered and came to the rescue under his