Chapter 1065: To Yanzhou

The northwest is desolate; the land is hard to farm, and life is difficult for its people. Moreover, being on the front lines of war, though not as barren as the northwest near Gansu, it is equally cold.

Yanzhou belongs to the Fuyan Circuit; its population clusters mostly around the Jingzhao Prefecture area. In the frontline war zones, the population is sparse; what abounds most are soldiers. The common folk here have it hard, worrying both about Western Xia raids and oppression by a horde of criminal exiled soldiers.

"I hear that in Bianjing, people call those criminal exiled soldiers 'Chi Lao' to their faces, but here, they are all 'Lord Soldier'..." The old man sighed, took boiling water from the fire, and poured it into the exquisite little silver pot before the young noble.

Wang Yan finished frying the dried meat in the pan, picked up two pieces with chopsticks, and shared them with the two tiny children, a boy and a girl, squatting beside him and watching eagerly. They were filthy, yet at least they had clothes on. Unafraid of the heat, they took the dried meat with their blackened little hands and ate it slowly, hissing as they blew on it.

"Wang Dongliang, bring two pieces of sugar; let's brew some tea to drink."

"Yes."

Little Wang Dongliang nearby answered, took a large box from his satchel, retrieved three yellow sugar cubes, found three broken bowls in the room on his own, placed one cube in each, brewed them with hot water, and served a bowl to each of the grandfather and his two grandchildren.

"This won't do, this won't do..." The old man, seeing Little Wang Dongliang's actions, moved to stop him, yet could articulate no reason why it would not do.

The two little ones heard nothing of the old man's words, their eyes wide open, fixed on the bowls in Little Wang Dongliang's hands...

"It's no trouble; my family is wealthy. How could we lack a few pieces of sugar or a few bites of meat?" Wang Yan said with a smile, waving his hand.

The old man smiled awkwardly and said no more. When Little Wang Dongliang handed over the bowls, the old man quickly fished the sugar out of the hot water with his hands, stood up, found a small wooden box, and stored them inside.

"Just a hint of sweetness is enough; I'll save them to brew several more times. Many thanks, young sir, for your pity." The old man grinned, revealing a mouthful of large yellow teeth, his smile honest and simple.

"It's nothing; they were meant for you all along."

"Has the young sir come here to do business? Yet this old man observes you do not look like a merchant, but rather like an official."

"Oh? How did you tell?"

"In the past, officials also lodged in this old man's home; they all looked much the same. But the young sir is kinder than them; those officials never paid heed to mud-legged peasants."

Working people naturally possess wisdom, and the old man had his share of slickness. Seeing Wang Yan smiling constantly, giving dry rations, dried meat, and sugar cubes, he naturally relaxed considerably.

"Old sir, you too have a knack for judging people. I have been transferred here to Yanzhou to serve as a minor official, stationed in Fushi. If anything arises in the future, come find me in Fushi, and I will certainly do my utmost."

The old man smiled but did not take up that thread, instead asking curiously, "I hear there is a Lord Wang in the city of Bianjing who arrested many people and accomplished great deeds; does the young sir know this Lord Wang?"

'Xianggong' was once a title for a Grand Councilor; over the past century, this address gradually expanded downward, applicable to any somewhat high-ranking official. Undoubtedly, Wang Yan did not yet qualify. However, for the common people, it mattered little. It was much like calling a deputy director 'Director' or a deputy mayor 'Mayor'; the idea was similar. Any official, when addressed as 'Xianggong,' could not help but feel secretly pleased.

Before Wang Yan could speak, Little Wang Dongliang smiled and interjected, "The Lord Wang the old sir mentions, is it Wang Yan? The Patrol Envoy of the Capital Patrol Office?"

"How would this old man know such details? I only know it is Lord Wang, who arrested many officials and raided many powerful clans. Last year, every few days at my doorstep, I could see over a hundred people tied together and sent north. The escorting officials stopped here to ask for water, and I heard them say those bound were nobles. Later, a merchant caravan lodged here, and from what they said, I learned the truth."

Little Wang Dongliang nodded: "My young master indeed serves as an official in the capital, but his rank is too low. Lord Wang's prestige is too immense; my young master dare not approach him closely."

"That makes sense." The old man nodded in full agreement. "This old man knows little else, only that good officials have bad fates."

The old man spoke casually, yet he had uttered a truth.

Wang Yan asked with a smile, "Old sir, is your family's livelihood manageable?"

"As the young sir can see, it is just the three of us, grandfather and grandchildren, relying on each other. This old man tends a few strips of poor land for the Liu household; relying on our proximity to the official road, I deliver some water to travelers and beg a few tips. Skipping meals one day and eating full the next, we somehow survive."

Earlier, the old man had mentioned that his wife died early; he had two sons, one who did not survive childhood and another who died while conscripted for labor. His daughter-in-law remarried, leaving him to raise these two small children alone.

"Old sir, you farm the Liu household's land; how much rent do you pay?"

"Forty percent as rent; by year's end, we can still save a little grain."

Wang Yan nodded and asked cheerfully, "Old sir, what is your opinion of this Liu household?"

"If the young sir asks about the Liu household, this old man truly does not know. That Liu household's business reaches Bianjing and extends to Jiang Nan; how would they care about us mud-legged peasants? Even if someone owes money or grain, they are not in a hurry to collect. Only when debts are overdue for too long will the Liu household send people to seize the land or reduce that family to slave status. Repaying debts is heaven's justice; there is no help for it."

"My family once owned several dozen mu of land. During a severe drought one year, we harvested nothing. My father borrowed grain from the Liu household; unable to repay the next year, we mortgaged a few mu of land. Year after year, all the land became the Liu household's. The land I now farm belonged to my family fifty years ago. In these past two years, seeing that I am becoming too old to work hard, before this old man dies, I must surely arrange a path for these two children."

Wang Yan understood; the old man was being cautious, speaking no ill, only stating ordinary facts. After all, Wang Yan was an official, and the common people naturally believed officials and powerful clans stood together. This perception was not entirely wrong, so his reluctance to speak was understandable.

Since the old man was unwilling to speak, Wang Yan naturally would not force him, and instead asked about the Song-Xia wars the old man knew, for back then Western Xia had broken into Yanzhou, and the old man, being of considerable age, retained some vague memories...

The Song-Xia wars spanned roughly a century, with constant provocations along the borderlands. The current time marks the end of the first Song-Xia war, namely Li Yuanhao's war of state-founding, in which Fan Zhongyan and others participated.

Great Song lost, leading to the Qingli Peace Agreement.

Its main terms were: Western Xia would acknowledge Song suzerainty and abolish its imperial title; Li Yuanhao would accept Song's enfeoffment, styling himself Lord of the Xia State. Generals, soldiers, and civilian households captured by both sides during the Song-Xia wars would not be returned; henceforth, if people from either border fled to the other's territory, neither side could dispatch troops to pursue them, and both sides would mutually return fugitives.

Territories occupied by Western Xia during the war, along with other border regions inhabited by Fan and Han peoples, were demarcated as boundaries; both sides could build fortresses within their own lands. Great Song would annually grant Western Xia 255,000 units of silver, silk damask, silk gauze, and tea, and establish trade markets at Bao'an Army and Gaoping Stockade.

Bao'an Army adjoins Yanzhou; that area serves as a buffer zone where both sides conduct trade. Wang Yan naturally had business there; most famous was his perfume shop, highly favored by Western Xia officials and magnates. It was not only Western Xia; Liao was the same. High officials and nobles all favored such goods, and women especially adored them.

Besides the perfume shop, there were other businesses in livestock, furs, medicinal herbs, pearls and jade, salt, and similar goods abundant in the Xia and Liao regions, which his family purchased. What he sold, apart from various perfumes and soaps, consisted of tea, sugar frost, and refined salt—three high-value-added products. Western Xia suffered a severe trade deficit with him, yet clearly, they did not understand this principle.

To speak of Wang Yan's future rise, both Liao and Xia would have contributed merit. Wang Yan leading troops to fight them and thereby gaining promotion was merit; earning even more resources from them with mere broken perfume was also merit.

In truth, Wang Yan preferred to serve as the Prefect of Bao'an Army; there he could control the trade market and wage an economic war against Western Xia. Of course, an economic war appears bloodless, but in reality, it is not so. Once Western Xia's economy collapsed, exacerbating their internal contradictions, needless to say, Western Xia would surely launch a massive southern invasion to divert those contradictions.

However, correspondingly, Wang Yan had managed operations for many years; even if the army proved utterly incompetent and could not defeat Western Xia, holding the line should be possible. As long as the first wave of fierce attacks could be held, Western Xia would be finished.

Moreover, he could amass a windfall profit from it, accumulating greater strength.

Yet these were merely pleasant fantasies; after all, he was the Prefect of Yanzhou, his reach could not extend that far, so he could only exert influence gradually...

As a prefectural seat near the national border, though not as commercially prosperous as the Bao'an trade market, Fushi's commerce was relatively good. For travelers coming from the east, whether passing Tong Pass and heading north along the Yellow River, traveling north via the Luo River, or crossing Mount Taixing via Taiyuan, most would stop over in Fushi.

This place served as a station in trade with Western Xia; naturally, its commercial development was fairly decent. However, the population here was not large, and even those present lacked high spending power, so it could only be termed 'decent.'

Wang Yan had traveled here with a merchant caravan, conducting investigations into public sentiment along the way. The ambush Shulan feared did not occur, though they did encounter several bands of road bandits; after all, common people in ancient times always had a hard life.

Thus, after a journey wearying to both boat and cart, Wang Yan, accompanied by Little Wang Dongliang and others, arrived at Fushi county town.

Seeing the gate guards loose-limbed and idle, shouting at those entering the city, Little Wang Dongliang curled his lip: "Young Master, these soldiers are no good; no wonder they cannot defeat those barbarians of Western Xia. That gate clerk is also useless; look at that look of disdain—what a thing, pah!"

"Angry?"

"Angry! Too worthless!"

Wang Yan smiled and said lightly, "Go, beat them; beat them to death."

"Right away, Young Master." Little Wang Dongliang turned, drew several whistling staffs from the carriage, handed them to the other four sturdy attendants, and the five of them walked over, clubs in hand.

The dozen or so little soldiers guarding the city naturally saw them; each straightened their spears, yet showed little seriousness. The leading officer and the petty clerk shouted loudly, ordering Little Wang Dongliang and the others to halt.

Not only did they not halt, but they even broke into a run; within a few steps, a crash-bang-clatter of fighting erupted.

Wang Yan, hands behind his back, strolled leisurely, neither fast nor slow, approaching to watch the spectacle.

Although he had ordered them to beat to death, Little Wang Dongliang and the others still exercised restraint; at least they did not gouge eyes or kick groins with such ferocity, merely swinging the whistling staffs hard against bodies. Since all wore armor, the injuries were blunt trauma, nothing serious.

Against this squad of gate guards, Little Wang Dongliang and the others handled matters with ease. Little Wang Dongliang even drew the fight toward the petty clerk who was cursing loudly from the side, seizing a moment to slap him hard across the face, then adding a kick for good measure.

Whether in individual martial prowess or in coordinated group attacks, they far surpassed the rest. They were all elite soldiers trained by Wang Yan, literate and numerate, any one of whom could serve as an officer if deployed.

The fighting continued, with Xiao Wang Dongliang and the others wielding their whistling staffs to deliver a one-sided beating from start to finish.

After about ten minutes, finally more than fifty soldiers with disheveled military bearing ran out; holding long spears, they formed an encirclement, and only then did Xiao Wang Dongliang and the others stop their hands.

Wang Yan approached with his hands clasped behind his back and shouted, "Who is in charge here?"

"Who are you?" A man in his thirties with a full beard halted his subordinates' further actions, frowned, placed a hand on the saber at his waist, and walked up to Wang Yan.

Xiao Wang Dongliang came up behind Wang Yan, took Wang Yan's commission certificate and transfer orders from the satchel he never left behind, and said, "Take a good look, and make sure you don't misread them."

That man took the documents and indeed read them very carefully. Wang Yan clearly saw the man's eyes suddenly contract and his hand tremble slightly. But immediately after, he raised his head to look at Wang Yan, moved to tear up the documents, and simultaneously shouted, "This person dares to impersonate a court official! Seize him for me!"

Wang Yan smiled, reached out to grip the man's wrist, and without appearing to exert much force, merely twisted it slightly to snap it. Then, with a light palm strike to the man's chest, he forcibly suppressed the cry of pain before it could escape. At the same time, he executed a rapid side kick, breaking the shinbone of the man's lower leg.

Taking the documents from the man's hand and passing them to Xiao Wang Dongliang behind him, Wang Yan drew the ring-pommel saber from the man's waist and announced loudly, "This official is Wang Yan, the newly appointed Prefect of Yanzhou. This person attempted to kill an official and incite rebellion but has been restrained by me. You all must think clearly about the consequences of killing an official."

"Do not listen to hi—urgh..." Despite the pain making his veins bulge, that person still wanted to urge his subordinates to hack Wang Yan to death, but he could not get the words out, as Wang Yan had already dislocated his jaw.

Immediately after, Wang Yan snapped the man's other arm, kicked him to the ground, and then drove the blade directly into his one good leg, pinning him to the earth.

Standing with his hands behind his back, Wang Yan spoke loudly, "You are all clear on the consequences of impersonating a court official; there is no need for this official to do such a thing. I give you one chance: stand in formation now, lower your spears, and everything can be settled amicably. Stand in formation!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly widened his eyes and roared with even greater volume. In an instant, everyone facing him gave a start and stood straight as arrows. He turned around, scanning the surroundings, and everyone caught by his gaze raised their spears and stood at attention.

Wang Yan nodded in satisfaction, ordered Xiao Wang Dongliang to retrieve his official robes from the carriage, and right there at the city gate, under the gaze of the crowd, removed his outer robe and changed into his specially bestowed purple robe.

Just moments before, frightened by Wang Yan but looking at their former commander lying on the ground, some had wavered, constantly struggling with whether to stab Wang Yan to death. But as Wang Yan took out the purple official robe and put it on, no one harbored such thoughts anymore.

Wang Yan placed the winged official cap on his head with both hands, adjusted it back and forth twice to straighten it, and only then lowered his hands.

He asked the bewildered soldiers before him, "Where is the Assistant Regional Commander?"

There was silence for a long time, with no one answering.

"Have you gone mute? Speak!"

Urged by Wang Yan's expression of displeasure, someone from the rear hesitantly spoke up, "Replying to the Lord Prime, the Assistant Regional Commander is on leave at home."

Wang Yan turned to look, seeing that the man's armor was neat and his demeanor spirited, and asked with a smile, "Who are you?"

"This humble one is Zhang Da, a Squad Leader of this battalion."

"Have you ever engaged in battle with the Western Xia forces?"

"Three years ago, I was transferred to defend Dantou Stockade; when the barbarians provoked trouble, this humble one beheaded two of them in formation."

"Very good; from now on, you are a Company Commander." Wang Yan nodded. "Arrange for someone to go into the city and summon all the officials."

"Uh..." Zhang Da looked around and stammered, "Lord Prime, it would be better if this humble one went personally."

"You are a Company Commander now; how can you run errands? You select the men, and let this official see who dares not go."

"Chen Liu, you go."

"Yes, Company Commander!" The lad named Chen Liu shouted at the top of his lungs, grinned broadly, and ran off.

It was obvious he was one of his own soldiers; Wang Yan shook his head without saying anything, while Xiao Wang Dongliang glared at the lad, saying, "So lacking in ambition."

The latter responded with a simple, honest smile and said nothing more.

While waiting for the others, naturally, they could not remain idle. Wang Yan reset the Company Commander's dislocated jaw and asked, "Explain why you intended to kill this official."

"You are an impo—ahhh!"

It was Xiao Wang Dongliang who had gripped the hilt of the blade embedded in the man's thigh and twisted it gently, causing the Company Commander to scream heart-rendingly, his eyes wide with rage.

"You must surely know this official's reputation. Very few officials in the world speak well of me; they call me a cruel official, say my sons will be born without anuses, and claim I will inevitably die by sword or arrow, using prophecies to harm me. According to them, I am extremely vicious and pioneered the punishment of death by a thousand cuts. Yet who knows that this punishment was actually created by a jailer in Yangzhou? I merely mentioned it to an old man named He San'er in the capital's patrol courtyard prison, and he perfected it. The world has greatly misunderstood me."

Feigning an expression of deep grief and indignation, Wang Yan then asked with a smile, "Yanzhou should not have anyone who has tried it yet; why not start with you, so this official can see just how hard your bones are. Wang Dongliang."

"Coming, Young Master." Xiao Wang Dongliang chuckled, pulled the blade from the Company Commander's leg, letting him roll around in pain, and drew the dagger shaped like a knife from his own waist. "Let's start with the hands. I trouble a few elder brothers to hold him down so as not to affect my knife work."

Several other servants approached with sinister grins, and without a second word, pinned the Company Commander firmly to the ground.

"I'm going to use the knife now..."

Xiao Wang Dongliang politely informed the Company Commander, then carefully held the knife and began tracing cuts on the back of the man's hand, seemingly hesitating over where to make the first incision.

"I'll talk! I'll talk!"

Xiao Wang Dongliang curled his lip, his movements not stopping in the least. His master had said that since they had started, at least one cut must be made, otherwise it would not look proper...