Chapter 229: with translation of chapter title

Yangzhou, Wang Family Fort.

In the council hall, that huge map still hung on the wall.

But unlike last time, this time the map had an additional clear red circle.

Maliujia.

Wang Che's finger pointed at that red circle.

Before him stood two people.

Wang Heng, dust‑traveled, had just returned from Dongying.

Wang Mai, his skin tanned dark, still carried the salty tang of sea breeze. He had just returned from the South Sea, bringing back news that shocked the entire family.

"Big brother, Little Che, the situation is just like this." Wang Mai's voice was hoarse but full of excitement, "The letter says we repelled Sanfoqi and controlled the strait. Now Wang Kai and Wang Tie are, according to our plan, collecting tolls there."

Wang Heng's brows furrowed slightly. "I've heard of the One Percent Tax. Won't this method be too hasty?"

"Not urgent." Wang Mai immediately retorted, "Big brother, you've never been there, you don't know how savage those Nanyang locals are. If we don't establish authority and set the rules firm, they'll only think we're weak and bullyable."

He paused, then continued: "Now, more than ten merchant ships have paid according to the rules. The small traders pay less than before and are delighted; the big traders, though unhappy, dare not refuse. Our batteries are not for show."

"Little Che, what do you think?" Wang Heng looked toward the seat of honor where Wang Che sat.

Wang Che did not answer immediately.

He stared at the map, his finger sliding from Maliujia slowly across the vast Nanyang, finally stopping at a point farther west.

Tianzhu.

"Mai brother." Wang Che spoke, "What do you think Maliujia means for us?"

"Throat." Wang Mai answered without hesitation, "It's the throat of East‑West trade. Controlling it means we control half the world's wealth."

"Not enough." Wang Che shook his head.

Wang Mai was stunned.

"A toll place earns only passage fees." Wang Che's voice was calm, "Even if we raised the tax to ten percent tax, it would still be just a toll point."

"What I mean is…" Wang Mai grew a bit agitated.

"I understand what you mean." Wang Che cut him off, "but our vision must reach farther."

He rose and walked to the map.

"Maliujia cannot be merely a toll point. It must become our second Zhenbei Port, our second Yangzhou."

Wang Heng and Wang Mai's breaths caught for an instant.

A second Yangzhou?

They knew very well what that meant.

That meant not just a port, but a foothold.

It meant building a city, relocating settlers, establishing a government, and creating a complete system belonging to the Wang Family.

"This… this is madness." Wang Heng muttered, "Sanfoqi won't agree, nor will the surrounding states. We'd be building a city out of thin air right under everyone's noses."

"Whether they agree or not doesn't matter." Wang Che turned, "What matters is whether we can do it."

He looked at Wang Mai: "How many people are there over there?"

"Wang Kai took three hundred, plus the five hundred I left behind, plus the sailors on the ships—altogether less than a thousand." Wang Mai replied.

"Not enough." Wang Che said firmly, "A thousand can hold the batteries, but building a city is far from sufficient."

"What do you mean then?"

"Add people, add supplies." Wang Che's tone left no room for doubt, "We will turn Maliujia into a nail of our own in the Nanyang—a nail no one can pull out."

Wang Heng drew a deep breath. "Little Che, I understand your idea, but our manpower and ships are extremely tight. Over in Dongying, the mines and port need workers. The steamship fleet has nine ships left in Maliujia; the rest are shuttling between Dongying and Yangzhou, hauling supplies—there's nothing we can spare."

That is the most practical problem.

The Wang Family's undertakings are spread too thin.

Dongying, Zhenbei Port, and the Yangzhou headquarters—each is a gold‑swallowing beast, requiring vast talent and material to sustain.

Now opening a fourth front, the pressure can be imagined.

"We must draw them out; if there are no steamships, we'll use wooden vessels." Wang Che said.

"Wooden ships?" Wang Heng balked, "From Yangzhou to Maliujia the route is long, the seas rough. Wooden ships are slow and risky—what if they run into a storm…"

"So we should send more." Wang Che's thinking was clear, "Send ten—no, twenty! Even if half sink, ten will still arrive."

"As for people…" Wang Che's lips curled into a meaningful smile.

"Didn't Zhao Kuangyin help us send the talent back?"

Wang Heng and Wang Mai instantly understood.

Those twenty‑two presented scholars of the Wang Family!

"They've been training in the counties of Yangzhou for nearly a year." Wang Che said slowly, "By now we can basically tell who's mediocre and who's capable."

"This time, we'll pick the ten most outstanding from among them."

"Tell them that being a county magistrate or chief clerk in Yangzhou is just a try‑out. The true vast stage has arrived."

"Whoever volunteers, the family will record great merit. Upon arriving in Maliujia, they will become a local official. The credit for building the city, for opening the port, and thereafter will be theirs."

Wang Heng's eyes lit up.

That plan is brilliant!

These Wang Family scions are all proud and ambitious. Serving as a seventh‑rank county magistrate in Yangzhou, they might not say it aloud, but deep down they may not be convinced.

Now giving them a chance to go overseas as a "regional grand official", wouldn't they scramble for it?

"Besides them, we must also send artisans." Wang Che continued deployment, "The Science Academy's craftsmen, the shipyard's shipwrights, masons, ironsmiths, carpenters… every trade must send people over."

"Also doctors, accountants, and even farmers who know how to till the land."

"We're not going to plunder; we're going to build. We will turn Maliujia into a prosperous city."

Wang Mai felt his blood boil.

"I understand!" Wang Mai nodded heavily, "I'll lead the team back myself!"

"No, you stay," Wang Che shook his head.

"Why?" Wang Mai asked, puzzled.

"You're in charge of another matter," Wang Che said, pointing to Dongying on the map. "Uncle Heng will garrison Yangzhou and coordinate the whole situation. Over in Dongying we need a trustworthy, decisive person to take over."

"You go to Dongying, continue mining for the family, building ships, training troops. The supplies and troops needed in Maliujia will later be dispatched directly from Dongying, which is faster."

Wang Che's scheme linked together like a chain.

Yangzhou serves as the main base, responsible for producing talent and strategies.

Dongying is the logistics hub, responsible for dispatching troops and supplies.

Maliujia is the frontier fortress, tasked with expansion and profit.

The three form mutually supporting corners, creating a solid iron triangle.

"Then... who will be in charge over at Maliujia?" Wang Mai asked.

"Let Wang Kai take the lead first," Wang Che said. "He may lack boldness, but he's steady. Once the first batch of people and supplies arrive and the situation stabilizes, I'll send a true backbone over there."

"As for who leads the team this time..." Wang Che mused for a moment.

"Let Wang Zhao go."

Wang Zhao.

He was the young man who first stepped forward to question the Imperial Edict.

He was sharp and ambitious, and as county magistrate performed brilliantly, doubling the tax revenue of a poor county.

Most importantly, he was bold enough.

"Good!" Wang Heng and Wang Mai replied in unison.

The plan was set that way.

The entire Wang Family stronghold sprang back into high‑speed operation.

Orders were passed down layer by layer.

The Science Academy began selecting the finest craftsmen and worked through the night to produce more detailed city plans and defensive works diagrams.

At the shipyard, twenty large Fortune ships were urgently requisitioned. These vessels, originally meant for near‑sea trade, were now all retrofitted, reinforced, and given extra storage space.

The Personnel Hall began the final assessment of the twenty‑two Wang Family youths.

When the news spread, all those youths became excited.

"To Maliujia!"

"Build a city of our own for the Wang Family!"

"What a great achievement!"

In an instant, countless people volunteered.

Wang Zhao went straight to Wang Che, drafted a military order, and pledged to complete the mission.

Ten days later.

Yangzhou Dock.

Twenty massive Fortune ships were neatly moored at the shore.

Onboard, they were already loaded with various supplies.

Bags of cement, bundles of rebar, categorized toolboxes, and crates of sealed grain seeds and medicinal herbs.

On the dock stood a sea of people.

Three hundred hand‑picked guards, the second wave of reinforcements.

Five hundred craftsmen from all trades, the main force of construction.

And ten Wang Family youths dressed in brand‑new official robes.

Wang Zhao stood at the front, tall and upright.

Wang Che personally came to see them off.

He said nothing inspiring, merely patting Wang Zhao's shoulder.

Wang Zhao moved his lips, said nothing, and turned to board the flagship.

"Set sail!"

At the command, the twenty Fortune ships sequentially released their moorings, raised their sails, and slowly left the harbor, merging into the vast river and heading toward the unknown south.

Wang Heng stood beside Wang Che, watching the departing fleet, and suddenly spoke.

"Che'er, if Zhao Kuangyin finds out that the Wang Family youths he painstakingly sent back are being dispatched overseas to expand our territory, I wonder what he'll think."

A faint smile appeared on Wang Che's face.

"He won't know."

"All his life he'll only stare at his dragon throne and the land beneath his feet."