Chapter 79: Silk Food

The old lord didn't say it outright, but his meaning was clear: the "Platoon Leader" of the Demon Extermination Army is not ranked.

The Demon Extermination Army falls under the Jin Yi Wei; if it were a Platoon Leader of the Jin Yi Wei, it would be a proper seventh-rank post! But in the Demon Extermination Army, only the Bai Hu reaches the junior ninth rank.

Xu Yuan was quite tempted, but after thinking it over, he said: "Old sir, let me consider it further."

"Very well," Ma Tianshou said, feeling a hint of disappointment. "Your merit this time is immense. Rest assured, our Quhui Office—at least our Southern Jiaozhi Branch—has no habit of usurping others' achievements. I will personally submit an honest report to the court, regardless of whether you choose to join the Quhui Office; proper rewards will certainly be granted. I will draft a memorial to beg Your Majesty to pardon your family's status as criminals from He Gong Xiang."

"Thank you, old lord." Xu Yuan was unmoved by this; the old lord probably knew little of the events from back then, as his stepmother had said.

He had oversimplified things.

In the afternoon, Fu Jingyu and Xu Yuan continued waiting outside the South Gate.

Ma Tianshou specifically added: "Bring the person here immediately upon arrival."

Xu Yuan worried the reinforcements wouldn't arrive in time, but fortunately, no mishaps occurred this time. The two waited only half an hour before the main force of the Southern Office arrived.

Exactly one hundred and twenty men rode in, galloping in a thunderous wave.

On every horse's leg were talismans inscribed with phrases like "Soaring Clouds" and "Riding the Wind" to increase speed! Xu Yuan inwardly whistled—Quhui Office truly had wealth.

Fu Jingyu carried out his teacher's orders with rigid precision, even without greeting the patrol inspector, and led them straight to the inn.

With manpower secured, Ma Tianshou immediately made various arrangements.

One group covertly surveilled the Chen residence; another, with Fu Jingyu, headed to Tiemenbao.

He then summoned the County Lieutenant: "Organize a team—locals, inconspicuous, preferably idle street types—and have them secretly watch all four city gates. I'll assign a Captain to each gate to accompany you."

Don't ask about the rest. If you spot any suspicious individuals entering or leaving, identify them and report to the Captain."

The County Lieutenant immediately accepted the order without hesitation.

After dismissing the County Lieutenant, the room held only Ma Tianshou, Yan Lao, Fu Jingyu, Xu Yuan, and the patrol inspector.

The inspector's name was Xiang Qinghuai; he had served the old lord for twelve years. Seeing the old lord make all these arrangements without excluding the local boy, he knew this was the young man the old lord had set his sights on.

Ma Tianshou gestured to Xiang Qinghuai: "Before you came here, did anything stir in the Northern Capital?"

Xiang Qinghuai shook his head: "No news has reached us. These past few years, Chen Liangxian's faction has been extremely low-key."

"Low-key?" Ma Tianshou sneered: "If I'm right, their people will arrive soon."

Xu Yuan's heart stirred—watching all four gates was to catch people from the Northern Capital?

Chen Liangxian's accomplices?

Xiang Qinghuai said: "If they depart from the Northern Capital and travel by water on steamships, it will take at least half a month to reach here."

Ma Tianshou shook his head: "They must have more than just Chen Liangxian here in Southern Jiaozhi. No need to summon men from the Northern Capital—they'll arrive faster than you expect."

Ma Tianshou had already decided: "Jingyu, tomorrow you and Xiao Xu will go to Qi He Tai. Tiemenbao is assigned to Qinghuai."

"Yes, sir!"

Ma Tianshou asked Xu Yuan: "Xiao Xu, would you be willing to help?"

Xu Yuan asked: "Old sir, what exactly are Chen Liangxian and Qiao Ziaong doing in Ghost Wushan?"

Yan Lao had mentioned some things before, but his knowledge was limited.

Ma Tianshou: "We still don't know what Chen Liangxian intends, but we have a theory…"

Ma Tianshou paused. Xiang Qinghuai immediately rose, formed a hand seal with both hands, and pushed outward—a silent ripple spread, slowly filling the entire room.

Xu Yuan saw the magical ripple like a transparent membrane enveloping them all.

Only then did Ma Tianshou continue: "Fourteen years ago, the court reopened the Malacca Official Factory and appointed Su Bingyue as its Director-General."

Su Bingyue and Chen Liangxian were of the same imperial examination cohort.

Investigations show Su Bingyue smuggled all manner of goods through the Malacca Official Factory to Red-Haired Barbarians and Blue-Eyed Foreigners, earning over four million taels annually.

The most profitable item was called 'Silk Food'—one tael of Silk Food could be exchanged for one tael of gold in Red-Haired Barbarian lands, and it was perpetually in short supply.

Silk Food was produced only in the 'Outer Lands.' After Chen Liangxian retired and returned home, he suddenly began exchanging letters with Su Bingyue.

Xu Yuan frowned: "They suspect Ghost Wushan also produces Silk Food?"

Ma Tianshou nodded: "This is our theory after piecing together the clues. Whether it's correct, you must investigate."

Xu Yuan still had doubts: "For this alone, Chen Liangxian would dare murder a high-ranking official like you?"

Ma Tianshou laughed loudly: "You're truly unaware of what hundreds of thousands of taels mean! Not just me—even the Quhui Office's Palm Seal would be killed!"

Xu Yuan nodded and asked: "If we uncover the truth, can we root them out completely?"

Ma Tianshou snorted, as if reluctant to say more.

Yan Lao stepped in: "Once we establish their crimes, we have justification. The powerful factions within the court who can oppose them will pounce at the sight of such wealth—confirm their guilt, then seize the profitable operation for themselves!"

Xu Yuan understood. He nodded: "Fine. I'll go with Fu Captain."

"There's no time today. Go home and rest. Depart with Jingyu tomorrow morning."

"Your servant obeys."

After Xu Yuan left, Xiang Qinghuai produced a document: "Old lord, this is the dossier on Xu Yuan, as you specifically requested."

Ma Tianshou took it—a few thin sheets. The front part covered He Gong Xiang, which he already knew; he skipped ahead and indeed found supplementary details about Xu Chuanyang.

After reading it, Ma Tianshou, his face troubled, passed it to Yan Lao.

Yan Lao glanced at it and exclaimed: "Xu Chuanyang's patron is Lin Qifeng?! No wonder… no wonder he wanted Xu Yuan in the Demon Extermination Army!"

Ma Tianshou sighed: "Lin Qifeng loves using bold, aggressive men—but he fears them too, so he always keeps their families under his thumb."

Fu Jingyu sat quietly like a meditating monk, as if he hadn't heard a word.

…

Xu Yuan met Song Lu outside the inn.

Song Lu handed him several silver notes with one hand: "The teacher gave you this as an extra reward. Court rewards take a long time to arrive. The teacher says you can use this for expenses while helping us."

Xu Yuan accepted without protest, and after leaving the inn, counted them—two hundred taels in total!

The old lord was generous.

Moreover, he had thought it through thoroughly, with banknotes available in both large and small denominations.

This thing should actually be called "Treasury Notes" in the Great Ming; they began issuing them during the reign of the Taizu Emperor.

But within a few years, they became hardly distinguishable from toilet paper, so issuance had to be halted.

Two hundred years ago, the court reissued the Treasury Notes, and this time they held firm, continuing in use right up to the present.

Xu Yuan strolled around Wangjing Ward, bought two pieces of jewelry for his stepmother, then purchased some meat, vegetables, rice, and flour, and carried it all back home.

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(End of this chapter)