Chapter 169: Master, the Patrol Guard Division invites you to have tea!

The wealthy families have plenty of places to hide their grain!

Their private residences and manors are quite large-scale, and they even have specialized estate stewards to manage them.

You have no idea which private residence or which manor they have hidden how much stuff in!

It wasn't convenient to carry everything with them when they fled, so after settling down, the nobles would send people out in the autumn and winter seasons to open a warehouse and bring back supplies to improve their lives.

Or, they would take them out when necessary to trade for benefits with the Zhao Family.

For example, Master He Mie-mie is someone who chooses whether or not to open his granaries based on the situation.

Trying to force them to cough up grain is impossible; they would rather let the grain rot!

Send people to search?

Without knowing the specific location, the cost of traveling a long distance to search is still very high.

Given the current situation in Beidi, if one uses forceful means, it will only drive the wealthy families to flee to other powers. There are five other families in Beidi to choose from. This peculiar chaotic era...

If we consider the period of the Evil Plague ravaging the world, the subsequent flight of southerners to the north, and the fragmentation of Beidi by warlords as the first stage.

One must never underestimate the decisiveness of the survivors in the first stage of this chaotic era!

Especially those wealthy families who are dragging their families along while holding onto wealth and connections. If pushed too hard, there is nothing they won't do! At this stage, it is better to be peaceful and let everyone get what they need.

Patrol Guard Division prison.

Fu Pian saw the letter written by Wen Gu, and the content of the letter made his eyes widen abruptly.

"Black... Hahahaha!"

Fu Pian started laughing to himself as he read it.

He had been in a gloomy state just a moment ago, but now he was bright again.

Other prison guards saw this and thought: What did this guy encounter to make him laugh so pervertedly?

In any case, Fu Pian's temperament was usually volatile and unpredictable, so the others were not surprised by this behavior and had no intention of asking.

If one were to accidentally step on a landmine with a certain word and make him turn gloomy again, it wouldn't be pleasant for anyone present.

Fu Pian didn't care what others thought; he happily folded the letter and put it away, twirling a short stick in his hand as he walked into the cell where the horse bandits were held.

Before long, Fu Pian came out, his mood even more radiant.

The horse bandits were interrogated separately.

Fu Pian had already interrogated them once before, and the horse bandits hadn't revealed the fact that they had hidden sugar, so this time Fu Pian interrogated them again with a specific focus.

And he really dug something up!

The horse bandits hadn't received professional training, so generally speaking, their mouths weren't very tight.

Except for the two or three ringleaders who kept their mouths shut a bit tighter, which took some time to pry open, the others basically answered whatever was asked.

The horse bandits were not of one mind.

In a gang of a dozen or so people, only the two or three important figures at the front made the decisions; the others could only be considered hired muscle.

If Fu Pian hadn't asked about the sugar, the others would have thought the sugar had long since been used to grease palms and had been consumed.

When they first entered Xinzhou City, the first, second, and third leaders of the horse bandits all said that all the sugar had been used to grease palms.

But only the three of them knew that hardly any of that batch of sugar had been used.

They had only used the candied fruits and preserved fruits with shorter shelf lives, as well as some mixed sugar, seasoning spices, and such. Besides that, they had only added a little bit of strong liquor and gold.

The others in the gang had no concept of the prices of luxury goods and were easy to fool.

Fu Pian accurately found the key point: there was also strong liquor and gold!

My love!

I knew you horse bandits couldn't have only this little stock after robbing for so many years!

The bandit leader had been thrown into the prison by the Patrol Guard Division and was originally plotting ways to escape; that batch of sugar was his chance to make a comeback!

Yet he didn't expect that his hidden trump card would actually be discovered!

The horse bandit gang was originally just an alliance of interests; now that the others knew they had been cheated by the big boss, under Fu Pian's interrogation, they told everything they could.

Including some things they had each hidden privately and where they were, they all told him.

After Fu Pian's second round of interrogation, what goods the horse bandits had hidden, how much there was, and where they were hidden had all been recorded.

Fu Pian was very excited; he left the prison and headed straight for the East Office to find Wen Gu.

"You were right! They really did hide a batch of sugar!"

He showed the interrogation record to Wen Gu.

"They also hid strong liquor and gold!"

The quantity of sugar was a bit higher; after all, the horse bandits hadn't been robbing for long before the chaotic era arrived, and they hadn't had time to sell the goods.

The strong liquor and gold, however, were accumulated over many years and had also been consumed over many years, so there wasn't much left.

They were all hidden in concealed places.

Caishan County Town is located northwest of Xinzhou City; the soil layer is thin, and there are no dense forests.

Cai Mountain is just as its name suggests; the rocks have their own colors. These natural colors are related to iron elements, but the content is too low and scattered, making iron smelting too difficult and of little smelting value.

There are few places to farm, it cannot serve as a mine, and there is the threat of horse bandits; it is indeed a barren land.

Caravans that run this way are generally driven by huge profits and are only willing to take the risk.

Caishan County Town once had a military garrison hundreds of years ago, but it became desolate after being abandoned. It can still be called a "Town" now because of the popularity brought by the caravans. It's not much, but it can still be maintained.

After the Zhao Family took Xinzhou, they re-established a garrison point there. It is convenient for patrolling and clearing out Plague Ghosts.

"The threat of Plague Ghosts in the direction of Caishan County Town is not great; I will set off now!"

Fu Pian excitedly twirled the short stick in his hand. He was going to lead the team out personally this time!

There are many natural stone caves in Cai Mountain; if one didn't know the precise information in advance, it would be very difficult to search them one by one. Whether or not they could be found in a short time would depend entirely on luck.

Now that the information has been clarified, that is no longer a problem.

Fu Pian transferred the matters in his hands to Wen Gu, filed an application with his superiors, immediately returned to assemble his men, and also brought along a horse bandit to lead the way.

The Bailuo Deputy Envoy personally led the team to raid the bandit den!

The members of the Patrol Guard Division participated enthusiastically!

None of them were willing to wait.

Caishan County Town now has troops stationed there; if that bunch of people were to get there first, they would be so angry they'd vomit blood.

Those are all the merits of our Patrol Guard Division!

When calculating rewards, they are based on merit; who would be willing to share these with others?

At the same time, Master Qiao Yuan was deep in thought in his own residence. He was asking and answering his own questions alone in the room.

"I wonder if the Patrol Guard Division has found out?"

"I must find a way to keep one horse bandit alive and pry information out of his mouth..."

"That batch of goods might still be recoverable!"

"Everything is precious now; things are valued for their scarcity! And they are very well-suited for the nobles!"

The Quechang on the Beidi border has strict controls on salt, iron, and horses, and the Tea-Horse Market is not something ordinary people can interfere with.

Qiao Yuan had no interest in any of that; at the time, he only wanted to exchange them for gold and jewelry from the nobles of the northern tribes.

That bunch of wealthy upstarts was too willing to throw money around; they gave so much that Qiao Yuan was willing to take the risk once.

Even with border controls, even with the Quechang closed, he had plenty of ways to bypass official supervision to trade for profit.

Who would have known that the Caishan Horse Bandits would cause all his hard work to go down the drain!

They robbed him of a large batch of refined sugar he had gone to great lengths to prepare!

I hate this!

Qiao Yuan was so hateful he nearly bit his teeth to pieces, but he had to ponder how to save a horse bandit.

Just as he was thinking, a follower walked in quickly.

Previously, Qiao Yuan had asked the follower to keep an eye on the movements of the Patrol Guard Division, and to report immediately if there was any unusual activity.

Now, the follower came to inform him: "Master, the Patrol Guard Division has moved again!"

Qiao Yuan still held onto a glimmer of hope: "What kind of action?"

The follower thought for a moment: "It looks a bit like the kind where they raid a house."

When the members of the Patrol Guard Division set out, their positive and excited emotions could not be concealed even by their armor!

They only ever reveal that when they are raiding a house!

Qiao Yuan sat down miserably.

The Patrol Guard Division had just captured the horse bandits and was moving immediately now, which meant they were very likely going straight to raid the horse bandits' lair!

He had no chance at all to find that batch of goods again.

Qiao Yuan could only hold onto one last, last, last bit of expectation: that the Patrol Guard Division had not found it, or that they were looking for something else!

If that were the case, he would not be implicated, and he would still have a chance to make his fortune again!

Qiao Yuan was restless and anxious at home when several of his fellow townsmen sent an invitation.

Qiao Yuan originally did not want to go, but after thinking about it, he accepted the invitation and arrived.

In fact, Qiao Yuan's fellow townsmen had seen the movements of the Patrol Guard Division and immediately organized a small tea party, inviting Qiao Yuan over to chat.

As soon as Qiao Yuan appeared, someone probed:

"The Patrol Guard Division has already moved; are you still going to keep hiding it?"

Qiao Yuan was already restless, and upon hearing this question, he assumed these people had already heard the news, thinking that there was indeed little point in continuing to hide it.

The Patrol Guard Division's actions were too swift, and Qiao Yuan's own capabilities were too small, so he also wanted to find some allies.

Thus, he hesitated and briefly explained what had happened: "I shipped a batch of refined sugar to the north..."

After hearing this, the others sighed repeatedly; such a large fortune had slipped through his fingers!

"You, Old Qiao..."

"You really are something!"

"Look, by hiding it and hiding it, now you have nothing left!"

"The Patrol Guard Division must be going to find that batch of goods you lost!! They just finished interrogating the horse bandits!"

The few of them cursed and swore in the room.

In their eyes, the Patrol Guard Division truly did not have a good image.

At this moment, they were indignant because they felt that the profit that could have been theirs had been snatched away!

"Old Qiao, it is the wise choice for us to band together for warmth!"

"It is a chaotic world now; we are fellow townsmen, heading north together, and we know each other well—is there anything that cannot be said and solved together? You need to give us more trust!"

Just as they were speaking, someone suddenly burst in.

"Master! Master!!"

The person who arrived was the long-term attendant by Master Qiao's side; he scrambled in, his face full of terror.

Seeing this situation, Qiao Yuan immediately felt that something was wrong, his voice trembling: "What... what is it?"

The attendant was shaking all over: "The Patrol Guard Division... it is the Patrol Guard Division that has come! They are... looking for you!"

They were very happy to watch others' misfortune, but when it came to their own, it was a terrifying matter!!

Qiao Yuan suddenly felt his whole body go limp, nearly sliding off his chair.

He looked at the others in the room for help.

I give you my trust!

Let us band together for warmth!

We must face this together!

However, the fellow townsmen present either averted their gazes or stood up, looking for excuses to leave.

The older ones were still able to sit still for the moment and asked, "Did the Patrol Guard Division say what they wanted?"

The long-term attendant looked at Qiao Yuan: "The Deputy Envoy of the Patrol Guard Division invites you over... to... to have tea!"

Once they heard the person sent was from the Patrol Guard Division's Deputy Envoy, everyone present immediately understood what it meant.

Of the three powerful figures in the Patrol Guard Division, the only one currently remaining at the government office to oversee affairs is that one.

The few people in the room didn't even bother with excuses anymore; they stood up and left, fearing that being a step too slow would implicate them.

How could they dare to go head-to-head with the Patrol Guard Division?

Especially that one surnamed Wen; he has the connections, he has the battle record, and now he holds absolute power in the Patrol Guard Division.

To tell the truth, even if Wen Gu dragged Qiao Yuan over today to kill him, ransack his home, and exterminate his clan, no one would dare to utter a word of criticism!

However, there were those with good relations with Qiao Yuan, and since that person could not do anything else, he whispered a word of comfort:

"Don't be afraid, Princess Guangning has also been to the Patrol Guard Division to have tea, and she was fine."

Qiao Yuan was even more terrified.

What am I? How am I worthy of being compared to a Princess?!

If these words were to spread, the Princess would deal with me first!

No matter how terrified or panicked, he still had to go.

With a pale face, Qiao Yuan quickly gave a few instructions to his trusted aides, which were actually arrangements for his family affairs and his own funeral arrangements.

In his panic and fear, his whole body was weak and his legs were soft; Qiao Yuan was supported by his attendants as he went over.

The Patrol Guard Division government office.

Gray-black roof tiles and ghastly white walls, like a giant beast lying here, baring its fangs.

Qiao Yuan felt as if he were stepping, step by step, into the giant beast's blood-red maw.

Coming to the Patrol Guard Division for the first time, his mind was in complete chaos, and he had no heart to pay attention to anything else; he just blindly followed the Clerk leading the way, stepping into yet another courtyard.

"Please!"

The Clerk leading the way gestured toward a small tea room.

The attendants supported Master Qiao as he entered inside.

Inside the small tea room.

The charm of calligraphy drifted, and the scent of ink was elegant.

The fragrance of tea overflowed.