How could a man who has been dead for nearly a thousand years lay such an intricate web that caused a once stable and powerful family to fall apart over the course of nearly a millennium? Zhang Haike said that no one knows for sure; they can only infer the terrifying design of Wang Canghai from some particularly subtle events.
First of all, Wang Canghai must have discovered various traces of interference from the Zhang family. Back in the day, when Wang Canghai traveled to the Changbai Mountain area in Northeast China, it was to seek out clues about the Zhang family, but unexpectedly, he was kidnapped to repair the royal tombs of Dongxia.
There is a particularly strange aspect to this: the Zhang family’s power, wealth, and talent are astonishing. Although I don’t know if historical figures like Zhang Yi, Zhang Liang, Zhang Jiao, and Dongfang Shuo (who originally bore the surname Zhang) are related to the Zhang family, nor do I know if Zhang Daoling’s establishment of Taoism is connected to the family’s plans—though it seems likely given the name—why would such a family choose to live in the dry and cold region of Changbai Mountain?
It’s not that the area is bad, but at least compared to the wealthy Jiangnan region of Yangzhou at that time, there were many issues. With the mixed ethnicities of the Jurchens and Koreans and constant warfare, why did they insist on living in a place fraught with danger and surrounded by towering mountains?
Was it for Dongxia? Did the Zhang family know something, which is why they used all their accumulated resources to guard that massive bronze door?
So, what is behind the bronze door?
Let’s assume there were three forces in the world at that time: one was the users of the bronze door, the Dongxia people; another was the Zhang family, who occupied and closed off the Dongxia people; and the third was Wang Canghai, who discovered the existence of the Zhang family. Wang Canghai must have been very curious about the complex relationship between the bronze door, Dongxia civilization, and the Zhang family.
As Wang Canghai explored the secrets of the Dongxia people, he also discovered that China was placed under a vast network of control. The Zhang family must not want the secret of the bronze door to be spread, while Wang Canghai hoped that this secret would be known by everyone.
The secret of the Zhang family.
I remember that Mian Youping once told me that the Zhang family has a huge secret that has been guarded for countless centuries. After the power of the Zhang family fell apart, Mian Youping hoped to replace the Zhang family’s influence with the power of the Old Nine Gates. However, it was evident that the Old Nine Gates did not really believe him, or rather, they had declined too quickly to fulfill their promises.
This secret must be related to the world behind the bronze door and is buried somewhere in the ancient Zhang family building.
To this end, Wang Canghai did many things, but he soon realized that he could not cross the vast net of the Zhang family. Any information he spread would be quickly suppressed; for instance, in a more recent era, the report on the discovery of the snake-eyed bronze fish directly led to the suspension of that newspaper.
Therefore, the Wang family must destroy the Zhang family to achieve their goals.
“This cannot be achieved through schemes,” Zhang Haike said. “Wang Zanghai was very clear about this, so he nurtured a family. During the investigation, we always thought that this family should have the surname Wang, and we focused our attention on Wang Jingwei. But later we found out that Wang Zanghai’s family had changed their surname a long time ago. We identified one of the representative figures, and you would never guess who it was.”
I asked Zhang Haike what this person’s surname was. At that moment, I was feeling quite relaxed, and Zhang Haike’s assistant came over and handed me a cup of butter tea. As I drank, my body gradually began to recover.
Perhaps having been played by others too often, I felt no indignation or objections, nor did I feel that my rights were being violated; instead, I found it quite good.
I didn’t think this was cheap or cowardly, but rather a kind of openness, because I simply didn’t have the energy to fuss over details and dignity. I have survived to this point thanks to the sacrifices and protection of countless individuals. I must live on, and live openly; that is my way of repaying those people. It’s like a relay race; until I find my successor, I am the last runner, and the last runner must run to the end and win.
“That person’s surname is He,” Zhang Haike said.
I suddenly understood who he was referring to: “The new people of Changsha.”
Zhang Haike nodded. “Actually, during that era, the Zhang family was also closely monitoring the ideological movements, and they participated in the core circles of those movements, providing assistance to the members. You couldn’t see anything at the time, but if you investigate now, you’ll find that when the most central Beijing branch was established in 1920, there were two quite important members with the surname Zhang, one of whom almost had the opportunity to turn the tide and gain control of the entire regime. Unfortunately, the person chosen by He had already completely conveyed He’s intentions.
“There was a particularly special rectification movement within that organization at the time, and He was completely marginalized and soon died. But evidently, the Wang family had always stood behind someone, allowing that person to turn the tide in adversity, while the Zhang family, which held absolute advantages at the time, was gradually eliminated through consumption and political struggle.”
“Are you saying that modern Chinese history might be a history of the struggle between the Zhang and Wang families?”
“Yes. Isn’t it fascinating? At that time, both political parties had people from the Zhang and Wang families in conflict with each other, and many famous generals were actually from their ranks. Of course, we can no longer verify this, as the families are too large, and we cannot know what many individuals did.”
I thought of Zhang Lingfu and He Hanwen and felt that history was too chaotic, and it had turned out this way. However, given Zhang Lingfu’s appearance, name, and martial prowess, I thought he had a great chance.
“To overturn a massive and stable family, there must be a social system that is completely incompatible with the existence of that family. So, when the time was ripe, the Wang family began to envision establishing a completely new social system in China with entirely different values. This shook the foundations of the Zhang family, as if the Zhang family were a piece of iron, and the Wang family discovered that it was fundamentally impossible to cut this piece of iron. The time for a head-on confrontation to dismantle this iron had passed, so the Wang family began to immerse this iron in a pool of sulfuric acid,” Zhang Haike said. “Moreover, many internal conflicts within the Zhang family erupted due to the weakening of control.”
This is inevitable. When everyone is doing great, they naturally unite, but once mistakes start to appear, they all shift the blame. When the Zhang family began to experience failures in various aspects, excuses for internal strife emerged.
“Looking at history, the Wang and Zhang families only paused their internal conflicts during the War of Resistance. At that time, there were countless touching stories, and this opportunity was quite inappropriate for the once-powerful Zhang family, as they had to bear the greatest responsibility and losses. In the Northeast region, how many bandit leaders had the surname Zhang, you might not even imagine. These individuals, along with the Zhang family’s descendants, engaged in special operations against the Japanese invaders in the Three Eastern Provinces, sacrificing countless core members in the process.”
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