Chapter 433

Heavy snow seals the gates, covering the green mountains and the land; as far as the eye can see, it is all white. It is once again the deep winter season.

In the increasingly large Wang Family Village, wisps of cooking smoke drift about. Children who cannot sit still, chasing cats and teasing dogs, are wrapped in thick, warm cotton-padded clothes, chasing and playing. Their faces are frozen red, their hands play in the snow and turn even redder, and the snot on their noses lengthens bit by bit. Just when one thinks it is about to fall, a long sniff pulls it back in. Some children do not care and wipe it with their sleeves; they will certainly not escape a scolding when they get home.

Cotton was brought over from the Western Regions. Although there is some cultivation in the coastal areas of the southeast at this time, it does not amount to much; it is not as good as that from the Western Frontier, and certainly not as plentiful.

The merchant caravan has a primary cotton processing plant over there, and after bringing it back, they make clothes and quilts. However, due to the distance and the need to cross other countries, the cost of bringing it back is much higher. Therefore, it is currently only used for the residents of Wang Family Village and to ensure the warmth of the troops in Liaodong. War is still a matter of logistics, a comprehensive indicator of advancement, quantity, and transport capacity. In this regard, in this world, no one has been able to outdo him, Wang Mou.

The weather is truly cold. Except for the children who have no worries about food and warmth and have the heart to run wild outside, most adults go to work, while the elderly comfortably squint their eyes, sitting on warm heated brick beds, looking through the double-layered glass at the vast whiteness outside the window, recalling the bitterness of the past and savoring the sweetness of the present.

In such weather, a group of people, ignoring the bitter cold, wearing bamboo hats and covered in fur robes, arrived outside Wang Family Village and dismounted. Looking at the village, which had no walls and did not stop anyone from entering or leaving, and looking at the rows of red-brick, blue-tiled houses with glass windows, they stood there dumbfounded.

Over the years, they have raided homes and plundered, killing many wealthy households. They are, of course, no strangers to red bricks and glass windows; they have seen them all. Even on their Liang Shan, the original Hall of Gathering Justice, now the Hall of Loyalty and Justice, uses large panes of glass. That was something they snatched from a wealthy family's floor-to-ceiling windows and carefully brought back to the mountain stronghold to install.

They knew that Yanggu County was wealthy and safe, and they had seen many such houses along the way. But they did not expect that arriving at Wang Family Village, the wealthiest village in the world, would truly open their eyes. They also saw those little children chasing and playing; one could tell at a glance that they were kept warm.

Many people on Liang Shan have deep resentment toward Wang Yan. Whenever he is mentioned, it is always with terms like "treacherous court official," "unbenevolent and wealthy," "wantonly killing the innocent," and "bringing disaster to the country and the people"—there is not a single good word. Influenced by this, Li Kui, who has no brains, shouts all day long that as soon as they make a move, they should kill their way to Yanggu County, chop off the bird general's head, get the money, and go back to the mountain to enjoy themselves. This is normal; there are many brainless people on Liang Shan, and the wealth of Wang Family Village in Yanggu County is world-famous. These outlaws, who fear nothing, have power in their hands and brothers by their sides; what does it matter if they plot for that wealth?

But those who understand know that, let alone whether they could lead troops into Yanggu County or kill Wang Yan, even if they could do both, the furious Song monarch and his officials would kill everyone on Liang Shan the very next moment. The supply of over a million strings of cash every year, the fresh goods that still arrive without end, and most crucially, the fact that he single-handedly controls the three forces of Liao, Jin, and Lu Zhishen, maintaining a balance and using foreign wealth for his own purposes.

If such an important figure were to suffer a mishap, even court officials with no connection to him would not stand for it, let alone Zhao Ji, who was happy to build his gardens.

The group looked around and led their horses into the village. The Wang family mansion was, of course, not hard to find, as it was built on a hillside and could be seen at a glance. Not to mention that the expansion of Wang Family Village did not go up the hillside; in such a wealthy and densely populated village, that mansion became even more conspicuous.

Their goal was clear: they headed straight for the Wang family mansion, which had its doors wide open. There were no rules about high gates and large courtyards; the main gate was always open, and anyone could walk in.

The gatekeeper was sitting comfortably in a warm little room, drinking tea by a small stove, with a book in his hand, frowning in deep thought. This was a place specially prepared for them; it provided shelter from the rain in summer and warmth in winter. It was also because they were too busy; so many people came every day that they had to set up this place at the entrance to welcome and see off guests.

Through the glass window, down which beads of water were sliding, he saw the group of people leading their horses toward him. He flipped the book face down on the table beside him, got up, opened the door, and walked out. He stood three paces outside the main gate, waiting for those people to lead their horses closer, and bowed with cupped hands: "I have never seen you gentlemen before; may I ask the purpose of your visit?"

Being a gatekeeper, the most important thing is to have a good memory and be courteous. Given Master Wang's status and position, there are too many people seeking an audience and trying to curry favor every day, especially during the recent holidays. If it weren't for the heavy snow blocking the way today, there would be no shortage of people. Not to mention that there are also business people who come to find some of the managers in the factories, or to find the old steward Wang Fushen; this entrance is never idle for a single day.

The black, thin man in the lead bowed with cupped hands: "I am Song Jiang of Liang Shan. I have an urgent matter and have come specifically to seek an audience with the General. I trouble you, young brother, to pass on the message."

"Liang Shan?" The gatekeeper frowned, then stepped aside and said: "You gentlemen have come from afar through heavy snow and bitter cold. I imagine you are exhausted and your horses are weary. Follow me inside to have some tea to warm yourselves, and feed your horses some cool grass."

"Many thanks."

Song Jiang bowed with cupped hands and led his brothers to follow the gatekeeper through the main gate, walking into a large house behind the guard station to rest. The gatekeeper had someone bring tea and pastries, said a few polite words, and left to notify the Master.

Words spoken in excess lead to mistakes, and walls may have ears. Therefore, Song Jiang and the others sat there silently drinking tea, eating the rather tasty pastries, and patiently waiting for a reply.

After a while, the young gatekeeper opened the door and walked in, followed by an old man with his hands tucked into his sleeves. Seeing this, Song Jiang and the others hurriedly stood up and bowed with cupped hands in greeting.

Wang Fushen returned the greeting with a chuckle: "I am the steward of the mansion. The Master is aware of your intentions, and he has asked me to bring a few words to Chief Song."

This meant he was not going to see them. Although disappointed, Song Jiang remained humble on the surface and smiled: "Song Jiang is all ears."

"The Master says that although he holds a rank, he is but a merchant and is incapable of participating in the great affairs of the state. The matter of Liang Shan's amnesty is for His Majesty and the court officials to decide; he cannot be of much help. To avoid others gossiping, he will not come to meet Chief Song. I hope you will forgive any lack of hospitality."

"Since that is the case, Song Jiang and my brothers will not disturb you further. Farewell." Song Jiang was also straightforward; without staying to rest, he directly led his brothers away.

Wang Fushen, the head steward, personally saw them to the gate and watched them leave the village, which was giving them enough face.

Leaving Wang Family Village, the group rode their horses slowly. Hua Rong said: "Brother, that Wang Yan will not help us, and he won't even see us. What are we to do?"

Seeing that Song Jiang did not speak, Chai Jin, who was on another horse, said: "Brother Hua Rong, we never intended to rely on Wang Yan's help anyway. He looks down on us as outlaws and won't associate with us; there's nothing to be said about that. We know his situation; he is just here to earn money for His Majesty and never associates with court officials. This is a way to protect himself. If he were to speak up for us, wouldn't that give Cai Jing, Tong Guan, Gao Qiu, and the others an excuse to attack him?"

"Master Chai is right. I expected this before we came; I was just harboring a fluke, and it was on our way anyway." Song Jiang sighed: "Let's go, let's meet up with Li Kui and the others. The heavy snow makes travel difficult, and we have to hide our identities along the way, so we had better set off quickly."

Having said that, he flicked his whip to urge his horse, and they galloped away, swirling up snowflakes...

Wang Yan held his child, bouncing him by the window. The little one touched the cold window with one chubby hand and chewed on the other, blinking his big eyes as he looked at the snow outside. In those clear, innocent eyes, there was nothing but curiosity about the world.

He hadn't been idle these past few years, and neither had Jinlian or Hu San Niang, especially since Hu San Niang's first child was a girl, and she couldn't just sit still. So, unsurprisingly, over the past few years, Jinlian had given birth to two more, a boy and a girl. And Hu San Niang had also given birth to two, also a boy and a girl. Jinlian was even happier; she had given birth to four children, three of whom were boys, while Hu San Niang had only one boy out of three, and she was very proud of it. Hu San Niang was not convinced; she was pregnant again and wanted to have another. Jinlian didn't want to have any more, and of course, even if she did, Wang Yan wouldn't allow it; what they had now was enough.

Counting the one in Hu San Niang's belly, he already had eight children; that was about enough...

Seeing the old steward come in, Wang Yan held the child and strolled to the study in the west wing.

"Master, they have already left."

Seeing him hesitate to speak, Wang Yan said: "Uncle Fu, if you have something to say, just say it."

Wang Fushen stepped forward two paces and whispered: "As far as this old servant knows, Liang Shan now has seventy or eighty thousand troops, and having fought with government troops for so long, they can be considered to have some fighting strength and could be put to use. Since Liang Shan is seeking amnesty, why does the Master not help by putting in a good word with His Majesty? If we could obtain Liang Shan's troops in the future, it would be an added source of support."

"They will not have a good end; they have offended too many people. You know how many wealthy households with connections to court officials we have eliminated over the years using Liang Shan's hands. In the past, we were using troops against Western Xia, so outlaws like Tian Hu, Wang Qing, Fang La, and this Liang Shan were allowed to toss about. Now it is different; the calls at court to wipe out Liang Shan are very high. In my view, even if they don't wipe out Liang Shan and really grant them amnesty, it will only be to send them to fight the other three factions. When they have destroyed those three, that will be the time for Liang Shan's destruction."

Compared to before, Liang Shan has offended quite a few people now. And to be honest, granting amnesty to outlaws is not a good precedent. If everyone could gather a group of people, launch a grand rebellion, and then be granted amnesty and become officials, what would become of the world? So, no matter what, in terms of reason and logic, there is no reason for them to survive; they will die sooner or later.

And many of those people are just asking for death. According to his standards, they should all be worked to death in labor camps. Forming good ties with them is of no use at all. Liang Shan's mission in Shandong has been completed; why keep them if they are not going to die?

Wang Fushen nodded, said it was a pity, and then changed the subject: "Master, today is the second day of the new year, and we have encountered such heavy snow. If we wait a few more days, the snow will turn to water and freeze, and the roads along the way will likely be even harder to travel. This old servant thinks it would be better to set off for the capital earlier this year, so as not to miss the date and displease His Majesty."

"You are right; I was thinking the same. Have the people accompanying us prepare; we will set off for the capital early tomorrow morning."

"Yes, this old servant will give the order."

There is nothing much to say about the scenery along the way; there are mostly gaunt and sallow-faced poor people. Although he has been here for eight years, he has not held direct power, and no matter how many resources he mobilizes, it is but a drop in the bucket compared to the countless common people. His industries are scattered across the Great Song, and their influence is limited; it will take some time to save the people of the Great Song.

The prosperity of Bianjing is still the same, showing no change. In fact, given the conduct of the Song monarch and his officials, it is not bad that Bianjing can maintain its current situation. It is the capital and the most favored place, receiving the most resources; as for other places, Bianjing is still not too affected.

After resting for a night at the mansion outside the Xihua Gate, the next day, Wang Yan familiarly entered the imperial palace through the Xihua Gate and was led by a young eunuch to see Zhao Ji.

"I was thinking of you yesterday, and I didn't expect you to come today." Zhao Ji laughed heartily and warmly greeted his moneybag.

Wang Yan bowed with cupped hands: "There was heavy snow in Shandong, and I was afraid that the melting snow would freeze and make the roads difficult to travel, so I left two days early. I didn't expect that the snow was only in that area; once I left, the weather was pleasant, without the biting cold of winter, which is why I arrived early."

"Arriving early is good; you can stay with me for a few more days."

"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty."

"You..." Zhao Ji smiled and pointed at Wang Yan. After chatting for a while, they inevitably talked about the great affairs of the state: "Although we obtained horse pastures in this battle with Western Xia, and forced Western Xia to retreat along the entire line and pay tribute, it is still a pity that we failed to destroy Western Xia and wipe out the Li clan's imperial house. The plan you mentioned before—now that we haven't destroyed Western Xia, but have lost two years of time, will that have any impact?"

To be honest, the results of this battle were not bad. In addition to the horse pastures, the Great Song pushed forward along the entire border with Western Xia, driving them beyond the Great Wall. If they had continued to fight, the Great Song's military edge would have pointed directly at Western Xia's capital, Xingqing Prefecture; it could be considered a brilliant victory.

But the established strategic goal was to destroy Western Xia. He had previously said it would take six years to destroy Western Xia, and they had only fought for four. If they had continued to fight hard for another two years, given Western Xia's current situation, they really could have destroyed the country.

But the result could not be as desired. He had already tried his best to overestimate the Song monarch and his officials, but who would have thought he would still underestimate them? Although Tong Guan was under great pressure, he was incompetent, and his command ability was lacking; as for those who were capable, their words didn't carry much weight. Therefore, throughout the entire war, Tong Guan's strategy was to fight steadily and advance gradually, pulling out the mountain passes one by one and occupying strategic locations.

If the Great Song really had such a strong foundation, this strategy would, of course, be no problem. Relying on strong logistics to overwhelm people with momentum is truly the best policy.

But the Great Song did not. The Western Army was indeed elite, but the logistics did not keep up. The actual situation was that while people were dying at the front, the country's potential was being destroyed at the back, while people were making a fortune. After one battle, the common people in the country were harmed enough, and the soldiers at the front did not enjoy the resources that had been exploited from the common people. It only fattened the pockets of some people, added more land, and allowed them to take a few more concubines.

They cannot fight anymore; if they fight any longer, the Great Song itself will collapse...