Chapter 427: Implementation

The hall was in a noisy uproar, but Tan Laizi's voice was loud, so everyone still heard him clearly. Some officers in the hall who had come from the Zhuang Squad secretly glanced at Pang Yu — after all, this superior of theirs had been nothing but a bailiff just a few years ago, and his reputation had been rather terrible.

The moment Wu Dacai heard the words "what sort of goods a bailiff is," he immediately shot a sidelong look at Pang Yu's expression, while his mind was already assembling sentences to attack Tan Laizi. Since Tan Laizi was quite accomplished in the area of shortcomings, Wu Dacai hardly seemed to expend any mental effort — Tan Laizi's black dossier was already prepared, thoroughly comprehensive from incompetence to greed to cowardice.

His back arched slightly, like a leopard about to pounce, just waiting for the slightest sign from Pang Yu before he would tear Tan Laizi to shreds.

But Pang Yu showed not the faintest reaction. Wu Dacai immediately deflated and could only swallow his words back down. The killing intent in the hall vanished at once.

A feeling of sudden clarity rose in Pang Yu's heart. This was originally his own area of expertise. Back at Puzikou, he had bought grain right on the city wall. This time in Xuzhou, when the Magistrate forbade grain from leaving the city, he had never thought of spending silver to solve it through grassroots methods, instead laboriously asking Ruan Dacheng to take the upper-level route. And not a single officer present had reminded him — it seemed they had all fallen into a fixed mindset.

He looked at Tan Laizi and said gently, "What is your name? You worked as a broker before?"

"This humble one is Tan Erlin. I worked as a broker before. Later, when the Canal Gang formed, this humble one was among the earliest brokers to join. Last time, when gathering intelligence in Hezhou, this humble one saved over a hundred people crossing the river and met Your Excellency on the opposite bank. Your Excellency even rewarded this humble one with a piece of silver."

Pang Yu suddenly realized — it seemed there was indeed such an incident, though he could not quite recall the details. He pointed at Tan Laizi and said, "Tan Erlin, what post do you hold now?"

"During last year's Susong battle, this humble one followed the Third Division in the bloody battle at Erlang Town. After the battle, I was assigned to Qianshan No. 2 Dun Fort as Fort Chief."

Wu Dacai, seated at the head, stared at the tabletop without a word. These past few months, Pang Yu had been in Anqing, and Wu Dacai had seen him often. He knew this superior was supremely pragmatic, never caring for empty formalities — anyone who could get things done was promoted at any time. Just last month, he had directly promoted a new clerk to Workshop Chief Clerk.

Over at the workshops, it was even faster — someone had been promoted three ranks just by improving an igniter. Wu Dacai himself had risen the same way. Now Pang Yu clearly had a use for Tan Laizi; this was not the time to oppose him.

A Fort Chief promoted one rank up would only be a Six Offices Chief Clerk — still a gap in status and real power compared to Wu Dacai. His mindset balanced slightly, and he cursed under his breath, "Bloody battle my ass — a wretch who got chased into the river by some old hag."

Sure enough, he heard Pang Yu beside him say, "Having been a broker, able to scout Hezhou, and even fought in the bloody battle at Erlang Town — clearly, your capabilities are very well-rounded. What you proposed today is also workable. We'll do it this way. Logistics Division Commander Wang, give Tan Erlin a figure for how much rice and beans we need to purchase. Prepare the silver and carriages. Fort Chief Tan Erlin will take charge of the grain procurement. Jiang Guoyong, you will accompany Fort Chief Tan — deal with anyone who fails to cooperate fully on the spot. If the grain is fully collected within three days, Tan Erlin will be credited with one merit and immediately rewarded with one hundred taels of silver. Upon returning to Anqing, he will be promoted one rank and may choose his own post at that rank."

……

At noon the next day, a group of soldiers appeared on the main road outside Xuzhou's south gate. They pulled two horse carts to a stop twenty paces away and unloaded two chests from them. With a crash, the chests were dumped onto the ground, and heaps of silver ingots spilled onto the road with crisp clinking sounds. As more and more silver poured out, the gleaming white was dazzling to the eye.

The top of Xuzhou's city wall was in a noisy uproar. The Community Soldiers on defense all ran near the City Tower, crowding between the battlements and jostling to see the scene outside, their faces full of excitement. A few gentry who led the Community Soldiers in city defense were also watching.

Then two soldiers raised a horizontal banner with bamboo poles. Written on it was: "Three Taels of Silver for One Dan of Rice." Someone who could read saw it and read it aloud, and a clamor broke out on the city wall. Next, another banner was raised below: "Two Taels of Silver for One Dan of Fodder Beans" — likewise nearly triple the market price. Finally, a third banner was raised: "Cash Settlement — Buying Stops Once Enough Is Purchased."

The news spread across the city wall in moments. Word came from other directions that people had also raised banners at the West Gate and East Gate.

The Community Soldiers all gathered near the City Tower to watch the excitement, to see if anyone would actually come to sell. This government army outside the city had been here for ten days. They had not gone around plundering or killing people — they simply camped outside the city. Occasionally, commoners came to sell them things, and they seemed to have paid. Over these ten days, the Community Soldiers on the wall had grown used to watching and no longer felt much fear in their hearts.

Xuzhou was a hub for the Grand Canal and the post roads. Although it had suffered disasters many times and its status was not what it had been in the mid-Ming, there were still many granaries inside and outside the city. Grain was not scarce. If they could sell at more than triple the market price, it was a perfect chance to make a fortune. Everyone was somewhat eager to try, but after all, those outside were grunts — they were still afraid of being cheated.

After waiting an hour without seeing anyone come, people grew a little bored and began drifting away. Suddenly, a clamor erupted from the western section of the wall. Everyone turned their heads to look — someone was being lowered over the wall by rope. It was a Community Soldier from some neighborhood. Then two more sacks of grain were lowered. The two men hoisted them and ran swiftly to where the banners were raised.

The Community Soldiers grew a bit excited, watching to see if they would really get the money. The two men set down the grain under the banners. The soldiers inspected the grain and indeed gave them silver. The two took it, examined the quality for a moment, then ran swiftly back to where they had descended, shouting loudly for those above to send more grain down.

Seeing that someone had succeeded, chaos instantly erupted on the city wall. Community Soldiers immediately climbed down the wall and ran into the city. The gentry could not stop them even by shouting, and then they too sent their own household servants back to report the news.

Before nightfall, over a hundred dan of rice and beans had already been collected on South Gate Street. The city wall was bustling with extraordinary activity — grain sacks were being hauled up from every direction. Outside the city, many commoners carrying rice sacks had also suddenly appeared. But the Anqing Army's settlement was rather slow, and much remained uncollected when it grew dark. The Anqing soldiers then put away their banners and returned.

The news spread throughout the city of Xuzhou overnight. Early the next morning, before the Anqing soldiers had even come to raise their banners, people and grain sacks were being lowered by rope everywhere along Xuzhou's city wall. Teams of mule carts and horse carts also appeared — clearly not lowered from the wall. They surrounded the spot where grain had been bought the day before, three layers deep inside and three outside, livelier than a market fair.

Only after daybreak did the Anqing soldiers arrive pulling their horse carts. The villagers who had come for the market automatically parted to open a path. The Anqing soldiers reached the same spot as the day before, and the banners were raised once more. Written on them was: "Two Taels Cash Silver, One Tael Banknote — for One Dan of Rice."

The crowd exploded with a roar, surrounding Tan Laizi beneath the banners and clamoring, insisting that he buy at yesterday's price of three taels cash. Tan Laizi was short in stature. Surrounded by the crowd, he dared not even speak, shrinking into a ball and retreating repeatedly — until a row of sturdy men moved up beside him.

A line of Iron Armor Soldiers, towering like iron pagodas and wearing masks, stood there in silence. The market-going commoners immediately fell back more than ten paces with a great whoosh, leaving a large open space. Tan Laizi froze for a moment, then promptly puffed out his chest and swaggered up to those people, tilting his head back as if looking down upon all living beings.

"Two taels cash silver plus one tael banknote — aye, banknote it is — our Great River Silver Bank's banknote. This is a fine item. You can exchange it for cash silver in Huai'an. After the new year, the banknote can be exchanged for silver right here in Xuzhou — it carries interest. You want it or not? If not, don't block the way in front — let others through." Tan Laizi shoved the person in front of him aside and waved the banknote in his hand, shouting, "If you want to sell rice and beans, come sell early! Tomorrow it'll be all banknotes — the ones with interest!"

……

Today, the places where the Anqing soldiers weighed goods were still few. The crowd jammed the streets, and the entire market was extraordinarily lively. Although today the price had changed to two taels cash silver plus one tael banknote, the two taels cash alone was profit enough. The banknote could simply be considered a bonus — even if it came to nothing, they would not be at a loss. So after a brief uproar, the market continued trading.

Tan Laizi, accompanied by two Iron Armor Soldiers and three Garrison Inspector soldiers, walked along the street. Whenever he saw an open sack of rice or beans, he would grab a handful and inspect it, every inch the expert.

"These beans aren't very fresh. Turn over the bottom and let me see — is this water-soaked goods? … Look, what line of work do you think Tan Ye is in? Think you can fool Tan Ye? Go ask around all of Anqing…"

Before he could finish speaking, a person emerged beside him and said directly to Tan Laizi, "This military gentleman, no matter how many dan of rice and beans your esteemed battalion wishes to buy, this humble one's family alone can supply it, sparing you military gentlemen such toil."

Tan Laizi looked up and sized him up — clothes fine and warm, a somewhat stout middle-aged man, the very image of a typical Boat Dock Master. The Boat Dock Master kept signaling with his eyes, and his sleeve twitched a few times. Tan Laizi, having seen much at the docks, naturally knew what he meant. But with several Garrison Inspector soldiers standing right behind him, how could he dare accept such a favor? He had no choice but to step back.

After stealing a glance around, he spotted Jiang Guoyong not far away and had no idea whether he had noticed this side. He could accept nothing the man offered. For the moment, he could only say, "Buying large quantities of rice and beans won't be at this current price."

The Boat Dock Master was not surprised — wholesale and retail were certainly different. It was just that this bunch of Anqing soldiers was strangely peculiar, actually paying cash silver for their purchases. No grunts passing through in recent years had ever done such a thing, and the price was so high — it was practically giving money away. They were a super-premium major client.

He said ingratiatingly, "Your Excellency, name your price."

Tan Laizi replied unhurriedly, "Naturally, you state yours first. If I find it suitable, I'll buy — by the hundreds, by the thousands of dan. We're buying in Xuzhou, we're buying in Shandong too, all along the Grand Canal. If you can only sell in Xuzhou, then quote the price for Xuzhou."

"This humble one has grain everywhere along the canal. The Anqing military gentlemen's marching rations can all be contracted to this humble one. Within Xuzhou territory, two taels per dan; up to Shandong, two taels five Mace — delivered to your camp. Does Your Excellency find this suitable?"

"If you want to do business with my master, give a real price. Tan Ye here tells you, there are already several houses over in Shandong, all lower than your price."

"My family's rice and beans are good quality — this price is the most suitable. Your Excellency will know once you see them." The Boat Dock Master's sleeve extended over, fluttering right in front of Tan Laizi. A silver note inside was nearly flying out. The several Garrison Inspector soldiers beside them had their eyes wide open. The Boat Dock Master simply assumed these soldiers were all household retainers of Master Tan — what did he know of Garrison Inspector?

The Boat Dock Master kept blinking rapidly. Tan Laizi cursed the fool inwardly and had no choice but to step back again, saying, "Tan Ye here is filled with boundless righteous integrity. What I detest most in life are corrupt officials. Do not toy with such notions."

The Boat Dock Master leaned closer. "Do you want gunpowder?"

Tan Laizi froze for a moment, turned his head to look at the Garrison Inspector soldier behind him, saw the man shaking his head, and turned back to the Boat Dock Master. "No."

The Boat Dock Master leaned in and said mysteriously, "How about women? This humble one can deliver them to the camp."

Tan Laizi gulped audibly, then immediately waved his hands repeatedly. "This — our Anqing Battalion is a mighty army, a civilizing army. Every man is as upright as Tan Ye here. Women or whatnot — we won't even glance at them."

The Boat Dock Master naturally did not believe him. "Military gentleman, one look tells me you're not that kind of person. Just say the word, and this humble one can even bring carriages along, a different one each night, delivered to your camp for you, military gentleman."

A surge of excitement ran through Tan Laizi, but out of the corner of his eye he noticed a group of people beside him. A slight glance — it was actually Pang Yu and Jiang Guoyong who had arrived. He gave a dry cough and immediately said to the Boat Dock Master with righteous solemnity, "Military law is strict. Sir, you had best not jest. This is a place for procuring military supplies — no one is here to watch song and dance. Now, go to the banner-raising spot and state a real price. Tan Ye here will naturally pass it on to my master for a decision."

Having sent the Boat Dock Master away, Tan Laizi turned around. When he saw Pang Yu, he gave a start, as if he had only just noticed him.

He hurried to Pang Yu's side and said, "Reporting for Your Excellency's knowledge: yesterday we collected three hundred and thirty-five dan of rice, using one thousand and five taels of silver; collected one hundred and forty-three dan of beans, using two hundred and eighty-six taels of silver. Today's set price remains three taels of silver for rice, paid as two taels cash silver and one tael banknote; rice and beans priced at two taels of silver, paid as one tael cash silver and one tael banknote. Everyone is still scrambling to sell. Today we will certainly collect a full thousand dan of rice. The fodder beans are far behind — I estimate we'll need another half day of buying tomorrow."

"The grain has been bought in just a day and a half, and we've put quite a few banknotes into circulation. When these people eventually exchange them for cash silver, the reputation of the banknotes will spread all around Xuzhou." Pang Yu said happily, "Fort Chief Tan has both ideas and the ability to carry them out. The job was done beautifully. The reward silver will be given immediately. I wonder whether you want cash silver or banknotes."

Tan Laizi hesitated for a moment, then said, "Cash silver."

He immediately felt this was inappropriate and quickly added, "Receiving banknotes would be even better."

"It doesn't matter. Fort Chief Tan may decide for himself — you can exchange between the two at any time." Pang Yu said magnanimously, "And regarding the promotion — you are permitted to choose a post at the Chief Clerk rank."

This time Tan Laizi did not hesitate at all; the words nearly burst from his mouth. "Pozidun Fort."

Pang Yu stared blankly for a moment, then burst into loud laughter and clapped Tan Laizi hard on the shoulder. "Then that can only be arranged after we return. This official has noted it down. Fort Chief Tan, go attend to your duties."

Tan Laizi bowed repeatedly and took his leave. Pang Yu still found it amusing in his heart. He strolled around the street — loads of rice and beans were piled high along the roadside, being loaded onto carriages.

Pang Yu walked up to a rice sack, patted it with his hand, and said with heartfelt satisfaction, "This marching ration business isn't so hard after all."