Chapter 58: Fairness

In the dead of night, two black shadows flickered unsteadily against the wall of the Lay Practitioners' House. Pang Yu and the other man were still working, sweat pouring like rain. He Xianya had taken a turn in the middle, but they still could barely keep up.

The transport process was extremely tedious. First they had to scoop from the cesspit with a long-handled manure ladle, rinse the items briefly, then place them into prepared hemp sacks. After carrying them down the mountain, they hauled them to a hidden household outside the Guache River market town.

There was a main road at the foot of the mountain. They had one horse cart and two single horses. One cart could pull over three hundred jin at a time, and a single horse could carry over a hundred jin, so one trip could move over five hundred jin. Forty thousand taels of silver was roughly over two thousand jin, so they would need to make at least four round trips.

The hardest part was the section on the mountain, which could only be done by manpower. Not only did clearing the silver ingots from the cesspit take a great deal of time, but carrying the hemp sacks down the mountain path was also extremely taxing. The mountain path was littered with felled branches, greatly increasing the difficulty of carrying loads downhill. The three men had worked half the night and only managed to send out one shipment to the secret location.

"Using the manure ladle is too slow." Pang Yu sat on the ground and said quietly, "Every time you have to scoop up the filth and the silver ingot together, then rinse it with water. Keep at it much longer and the water in the cesspool will just increase, making it even slower."

Pang Ding was already exhausted, lying flat on his back. "Well, there's no other method. If we can't finish today, we'll just come back tomorrow night."

"No, we must finish moving it all tonight, to avoid trouble brewing while we wait." Pang Yu stood up and looked around. Because of rinsing the silver ingots, the ground around the cesspit was left with a lot of filth that had not been washed back in — very obvious traces.

Yunji Temple at night was exceptionally quiet. Apart from the insects chirping in the wilderness, there was only the rustle of wind stirring branches and leaves. From the main hall, the occasional creak of the door being blown by the wind drifted over, making Pang Ding inexplicably tense every time.

Pang Yu tried his best not to look at the main hall. Inside lay over a dozen headless corpses — utterly sinister in the middle of the night. But every time they moved the silver, they had to pass by there, and the two of them always had to go together.

So he absolutely did not want to spend another night at Yunji Temple tomorrow. Besides, the yamen people would come again tomorrow to move the bodies and would certainly walk around everywhere. They might discover some clues, so Pang Yu was determined to finish moving everything tonight.

"I think we could avoid bringing them up onto the bank. That would be much faster." Pang Yu stared at Pang Ding and said.

"Then how would you ever get the silver ingots clean? You wouldn't..." Pang Ding spoke with some confusion, then suddenly stopped mid-sentence and turned his head to look at Pang Yu.

Pang Yu nodded silently. Pang Ding gulped, slowly propped up his upper body, and said cautiously, "Young Master, you can't do this."

"Why can't I? It's for everyone's sake. The sooner we finish moving, the sooner we split the money." Pang Yu said as he stretched his limbs.

Pang Ding stared nervously at Pang Yu, then suddenly pushed himself up, turned, and fled.

Pang Yu was prepared. With one big stride he pounced behind Pang Ding and shoved hard against his back. Pang Ding fell face-first onto the ground.

"Young Master, spare me! I won't go down into the cesspit. If I go down, I'll be disgusted for the rest of my life, won't be able to eat a single meal ever again!"

Pang Yu straddled Pang Ding's back and pinned him down. "Is that a cesspit? That is clearly a silver nest, you dog. Do you want your share of the money or not?"

"I don't want your stinking money, spare me!" Pang Ding wailed miserably.

"You find money stinking? It's not up to you whether you want it or not." Pang Yu waited until Pang Ding's strength was spent, then hauled him up and dragged him to the edge of the cesspit.

"Get down yourself, or I push you down. You choose."

Pang Ding's face was crumpled in misery as he looked at that pitch-black cesspit, wave after wave of foul stench assaulting his face.

Unable to suppress the terror in his heart, he turned to flee again. Pang Yu gave him a hard shove. Losing his balance, Pang Ding flailed his arms wildly and suddenly grabbed hold of Pang Yu's clothes.

"Hey, let go!"

Startled, Pang Yu hurriedly tried to strike Pang Ding's hands away, but Pang Ding had already stepped into empty air. In his panic, how could he possibly let go? Pang Yu held on for only an instant before being pulled off balance. With a miserable cry, the two of them plunged into the pit together.

"This time, it was all thanks to us brothers working together with one heart that we were finally able to pocket the silver."

Because standing inside the cesspool raised efficiency, before daybreak Pang Yu and the others finally delivered all the silver to that hidden household. The hiding place for the silver was in the cellar. Afraid of being discovered by other households, they only ever lit lamps inside the cellar. Now the cellar was piled full of silver sacks, and the four-man gang was holding an impromptu meeting.

After speaking, Pang Yu wiped the water droplets from his head. Fortunately, there was a small stream originating from the mountain right in front of this household's door, which could be used not only to wash the silver-stained hemp sacks but also to bathe.

After the last trip was moved, although the stream water was ice-cold, Pang Yu couldn't care less. He washed in it for a full quarter of an hour, feeling as if he were about to scrub his skin right off.

Even so, Pang Yu could still feel Jiao Guozha's disdainful gaze.

Pang Yu gave a dry cough and continued, "Magistrate Yang has appointed me head of the Fast Squad. Naturally, I cannot forget you two brothers. The Fast Squad has over twenty men. I plan to divide it into five Squads. Eldest Brother will lead one Squad, holding the post of Team Leader. Third Brother has just entered the yamen, so he will first take the post of Squad Deputy. That Team Leader position is being kept for you; after some days you will be promoted to Team Leader. Pang Ding will also join the Fast Squad, first serving as my Personal Soldier."

Pang Ding pursed his lips and turned his head aside. Becoming a runner was something he was willing to do, but compared to Pang Yu pushing him into the cesspit, that could only be considered a small favor and could not dispel the resentment in his heart.

Jiao Guozha and He Xianya were both beaming with delight. Jiao Guozha had once been quite valued by Li Squad Leader in the Fast Squad, but he had never been assigned as a minor Headman. This was a desire he had always harbored in his heart.

He Xianya had always been an off-the-books auxiliary, with no salary silver whatsoever. He had to earn everything himself and was constantly at the mercy of others' moods. In the food chain of the yamen, an Auxiliary was the very lowest foundation. Now Team Leader Pang had converted him to a formal position, and he was immediately a Deputy Squad Leader with subordinates under him. The excitement in his heart went without saying.

"Many thanks for Second Brother's patronage. Second Brother is truly loyal — soaring to success and still not forgetting his brothers."

Pang Yu waved his hand magnanimously. "As they say, brothers in the fray. In the days to come, I will still need to rely heavily on you two brothers for support. Help me think of more ideas and strategies. We absolutely must make the Tongcheng Fast Squad the wealthiest and most powerful Fast Squad in the entire Ming Dynasty."

Jiao Guozha laughed heartily. "Hahaha, let's see those gambling dens dare to look down on me now."

"Second Brother speaks truly. I've already thought of some things for Second Brother today." He Xianya, unable to suppress the excitement in his heart, licked his lips and said eagerly, "After this Civil Unrest, the two factions of Old Zheng and Huang Wending have both been crippled. The pawnshops, gambling dens, grain shops, brokerages, and other enterprises they originally occupied have all suffered heavy damage. These are all closely tied to the Fast Squad. Rather than wait for new powers to seize them, why don't we brothers take them?"

Pang Yu clapped his hands. "As expected, Third Brother has put his mind to it. I was thinking the same. We must take advantage of this purge of remnant factions to root out both sides completely. But that is for later. Let us first discuss how to divide this silver."

Everyone focused their attention. Without waiting for the other two to speak, Pang Yu continued on his own, "Let me first share my thoughts. The proportion of the silver distribution must match the contribution each person made. Otherwise, there will be discontent in everyone's hearts, and disputes will inevitably arise later. Take Pang Ding, for example. Although he participated from start to finish and put in tremendous effort, even not shunning the filth of the cesspit — he did not take part when we were planning. As far as this matter is concerned, the planning was of utmost importance. Without the planning, everything would be water without a source. Lacking this one point, he cannot share the same amount of silver as us. I think giving Pang Ding one thousand taels is sufficient."

Jiao Guozha's eyes darted around. He had long been prepared that Pang Yu would not split the silver equally with them. Now that Pang Yu was proposing distribution by contribution, naturally Pang Yu's contribution was the greatest. From the initial planning to the later command and execution, almost everything had depended on Pang Yu, which was why these tens of thousands of taels of silver were now before them.

But Pang Yu was now using Pang Ding as an example. Pang Ding naturally would not object, and the price was immediately driven down to one thousand taels. After that, it would be hard for Jiao Guozha and the other man to negotiate. Jiao Guozha felt Pang Yu was driving too hard a bargain.

He was just about to speak when he suddenly stopped. He looked at He Xianya with his eyes, wanting He Xianya to speak.

Seeing this, Pang Yu could guess without even thinking. Because over the past few days, the two of them had been here guarding Wang Guohua. Two people couldn't just sit there in silence; they must have discussed these matters. Moreover, with Pang Yu leading this operation, Jiao Guozha and He Xianya held roughly equal standing. Out of their own interests, they would certainly have conferred in private beforehand to form a united front and maximize their own benefit.

Pang Yu naturally would not let the situation develop unchecked. As Pang Ding had expected, when Pang Yu spoke again, he had already changed his form of address.

"Team Leader Jiao, if you have something to say, just say it directly. From now on, we'll all be scraping for food from the same pot in the Fast Squad. What we fear most is keeping words hidden in our hearts. As time passes, we'll grow distant. Otherwise, Deputy Team Leader He, you speak first."

Jiao Guozha and He Xianya exchanged a glance. It was at this moment, from this form of address, that they sensed something was off. No wonder Pang Yu had first brought them into the Fast Squad and then immediately given them Team Leader positions.

Just moments ago they had been overjoyed, but now that Pang Yu was discussing how to divide the loot, they felt it was awkward to speak up. Pang Yu had now become their superior officer; their status was no longer that of equal brothers. How could a subordinate easily open his mouth to haggle with his superior? It seemed they had already been played by Squad Leader Pang.

Seeing that He Xianya was not speaking, Jiao Guozha kept signaling He Xianya with his eyes, his eyebrows twitching unnaturally. But He Xianya still gave no response. Jiao Guozha could not help feeling somewhat anxious. He glanced at Pang Ding beside him, but he dared not ask Pang Ding to speak. This man was Pang Yu's household servant; if he opened his mouth, it would certainly favor Pang Yu.

He truly had no other choice. With such enormous interests at stake, he had to fight for it no matter what. He coughed and said, "For these tens of thousands of taels of silver, the main credit goes to Second Brother. On this point, none of us have any Objection. But after all, it was moved back by everyone working together. If the difference is too great, it doesn't seem quite appropriate either. What I, your Eldest Brother, think is..."

At that moment, He Xianya suddenly spoke up, cutting off Jiao Guozha. He looked at Pang Yu and said, "This matter relied almost entirely on Second Brother's efforts alone. I merely assisted from the side. If Second Brother had found other people, they could have done these things too. But if I had followed someone else, I absolutely would not have gotten this silver. A person must know contentment. I would like to take two thousand taels. This is already a huge sum of money. I never imagined I could earn this much at one time in my life. It is all thanks to Second Brother's good fortune. These two thousand taels — I'll see if Second Brother thinks it's appropriate."

Jiao Guozha was left gaping, speechless. This was clearly not the outcome he and He Xianya had agreed upon. At the time, He Xianya's opinion had been five thousand taels as a baseline, striving for seven or eight thousand.

Pang Yu turned to Pang Ding. "Third Brother has stated his opinion. Pang Ding, you also have a share. You should say something too."

"Then I'll take five hundred taels." Pang Ding said sincerely — though of course he was not actually sincere. Pang Yu had forced him on the mountain to say exactly this.

"Young Master took great risks and nearly lost his life. We only contributed some physical effort. How could we have the nerve to make exorbitant demands? Besides, Young Master is a heaven-sent genius. As long as I follow Young Master, there will be greater Wealth to earn and higher offices to hold in the future. There's no need to care about this measly little profit right now. With the silver kept in Young Master's hands, who knows, it might earn even more."

"Pang Ding, you're too polite. Five hundred taels is still too little. Young Master cannot shortchange you — at least one thousand taels." After speaking, Pang Yu turned to Jiao Guozha.

"I..." Jiao Guozha had originally thought it through perfectly. He was determined to fight it out with that Er Shazi Pang Yu. But Pang Yu had not let him speak at the start. He Xianya had defected from the Revolution midway and been won over by Pang Yu. Then Pang Ding was arranged to provide a check. The entire atmosphere of the negotiation was completely favorable to Pang Yu. It was as if now, if Jiao Guozha were to contest it, he would be ungrateful, not knowing contentment, and even less fit to be a subordinate.

A surge of frustration was bottled up in Jiao Guozha's chest. In the past, he wouldn't have cared about these people's feelings and would have raised a huge ruckus no matter what.

Pang Yu across from him was all smiles. The impression of Pang Yu, filled with murderous intent in the main hall that night, was already deeply rooted in Jiao Guozha's mind. And then he recalled that from now on, he would still have to serve under this Second Brother.

At this thought, Jiao Guozha suddenly deflated like a punctured leather ball, his body slumping downward as he said, "I think what they say is reasonable. I also want two thousand taels."

Pang Yu clapped his hands. "Thanks to all you brothers for your forbearance. We'll give as each of you has said — these are the fair amounts you yourselves have stated. I, your brother, will absolutely not haggle. From now on, no one shall speak ill behind another's back. Team Leader Jiao, Squad Deputy He, the three of us must be of one heart as brothers, and together make this Fast Squad thrive like wind and rising water."

Jiao Guozha looked at Pang Yu's earnest face, several times wanting to speak but stopping himself, until finally he let out a long sigh.