Chapter 728: A Perfect Match

Pan Yun said: "Cai Cheng definitely won't be able to serve as county magistrate, but what the next county magistrate will be like, no one knows. Still, settling scores after the fact shouldn't happen. I'm just guarding against the government office finding trouble for you all for no reason.

Among your people, at least four hundred are on their list, but for the remaining thousand-plus, they definitely don't know who they are. Still, just in case, you should also have a word with Song Dalin, remind everyone to behave themselves when they get back, rein in their tempers, and not act violent or pick fights—lest they end up harming their brothers in the end."

Wang Xiaojing agreed and asked: "Then what about the brothers on the list?"

Pan Yun: "Either lie low and pray to the heavens to send you two good magistrates in a row—time will fade everything, and in five or six years it'll all be in the past; or you move away, to somewhere else."

Wang Xiaojing: "Neither is realistic."

"The last option is for you rebels to leave—don't go home, act as if you're dead. After enough time passes, they'll naturally see you as separate, no longer one family."

Wang Xiaojing said immediately: "We want to leave too!"

Pan Yun raised an eyebrow.

Wang Xiaojing leaned close and whispered: "Little Xiao Shishu, the brothers only went to work at the mine to earn money. The family land isn't enough to farm, and even if we go back we'd have to find other work."

Wang Xiaojing's family used to count as well-off farmers, but they didn't have much land either. They kept one ox, and with grandparents and parents all able to work the fields, they could squeeze out two extra laborers.

That's why he went out to learn a trade with Pan Ershu.

The others' situations were far worse than his—most of their families were tenant farmers renting land.

Wang Xiaojing said: "... working ourselves to the bone all year, we earn less than we eat, going hungry every other day. Forget marrying a wife—even our parents and sisters-in-law at home look at us with nothing but scorn. That's why everyone came out to seek a living."

Pan Yun, thoughtful: "They're all second and youngest sons?"

Wang Xiaojing nodded: "The family only needs to keep one son to care for them in old age, and they only marry the eldest son and raise his children. Daughters can be married off for bride price. As for the other sons, they're left to fend for themselves. Not just Jiangxi—the whole Jiangnan region is like this. I hear Fujian is even worse. So we have to find our own way to survive."

Pan Yun: "What kind of way are you looking for?"

Wang Xiaojing's eyes lit up slightly, and he whispered: "Little Xiao Shishu, what kind of way do you have? Just say it straight. Whatever you need us for, just say the word. Our brothers' lives were saved by you—we're willing to go through fire and water for you!"

Pan Yun raised an eyebrow, looking him up and down: "The others I could let pass, but you're the only son in your family now."

Wang Xiaojing: "I still have a younger sister."

Pan Yun said nothing.

Wang Xiaojing gritted his teeth and said: "My parents are still young. As soon as I get back I'll have them go pray to the Mountain God Temple for a son—have another one."

Pan Yun: "... You certainly know how to make work for me."

Wang Xiaojing: "I'm the second-in-command. I can't stay home anyway—otherwise the county government office would be at our door every other day causing trouble. How could my family stand up to that? Better to go with the brothers. Maybe we can carve out a living out there."

Pan Yun lowered her eyes, thought for a moment, then said: "I do have one path."

Wang Xiaojing asked eagerly: "Is it maritime trade?"

Pan Yun couldn't help laughing: "Song Dalin sent you to sound me out, didn't he?"

Wang Xiaojing lowered his head and smiled sheepishly.

Pan Yun nodded and said: "Yes, maritime trade. I have three sea ships."

Wang Xiaojing scratched his head and said: "But isn't it said the imperial court has banned the sea? Even fishermen can't go out to sea—how can merchant ships go out?"

"Others might not be able to, but I can," Pan Yun said: "I have one and a half ports in the Japanese country. I can cooperate with the navy and travel openly between the two places."

Wang Xiaojing was stunned: "You—you have ports in the Japanese country?"

"Yes. Go ask Song Dalin if they're willing to follow me... follow Cong." Wang Xiaojing's eyes lit up: "Following Wang Cong?"

Pan Yun nodded: "You know that the worldly affairs of our Mount Sanqing are generally managed by Cong."

Wang Xiaojing didn't even think: "We'll follow!"

"You haven't even gone to ask Song Dalin yet."

Wang Xiaojing jumped up: "I'll go ask right now."

Song Dalin agreed, but was puzzled: "That's not right. Just because she has ports in the Japanese country, the navy cooperates with Daoist Master Pan and lets her travel freely between the two countries?"

Wang Xiaojing nodded dumbly: "Yes."

Song Dalin frowned: "Something feels off. What does our Great Ming care if she has ports in the Japanese country? The court banned the sea—isn't it because they don't want others doing maritime trade? How could they agree to her just because Daoist Master Pan has ports in the Japanese country?"

Wang Xiaojing was stunned: "Isn't the sea ban because of the Japanese pirates?"

Song Dalin glared at him and said: "Now that the sea is banned, I don't feel like there are any fewer Japanese pirates."

Wang Xiaojing scratched his head in confusion.

Song Dalin waved his hand and said: "Forget it, never mind all that. I trust Daoist Master Pan. You tell Daoist Master Pan—through fire and water, as long as she can give the brothers a meal to eat, we'll all follow her!"

Wang Xiaojing asked quietly: "Over four hundred people—we take them all?"

"This isn't something to force. When Daoist Master Pan leaves later, gather the brothers, and we'll talk it over. Those willing to leave can leave; those willing to follow us, follow us," Song Dalin said: "After all, the sea is very risky—especially since none of us have been out to sea, and most of us can't even swim. I've heard that living at sea for a long time makes you sick."

Wang Xiaojing nodded.

"Go ask Daoist Master Pan again—can she take however many people we have? Three ships—one ship doesn't need that many people, does it?"

Pan Yun, however, wanted to build up a force of her own in the Japanese country. The matter of the silver mine—the imperial court still hasn't made a decision to this day. Sigh, the government's efficiency is as slow as ever.

But they could afford to delay; she was unwilling to.

No matter what they did afterward, she was determined to keep Zhang Weigang and that half of Onsen Jintinggang firmly in her grasp. As for the silver mine, she could just start mining it herself first!

So no matter how many people came, she could take them all!

Recruiting from among the common folk, she feared they wouldn't settle down there. But picking people from among rebels forced to leave their homeland—however many came, she could take that many.

This was also one of the reasons she didn't want Yu Qian to register and compile a roster.

If they were really recorded in the register, how could she take them all away in a sweep?

Sure enough, once Song Dalin took a count, all three hundred-plus people in the mine chose to go with him. Besides these, among those who had been visited by government office Runners and knew they were on the list, two-thirds also chose to follow Song Dalin.

And among the thousand-plus not on the list, over a hundred also chose to follow Song Dalin.

They were people who, even after going home, couldn't stay—forced to seek a living elsewhere.

By noon the next day, the final roster Song Dalin submitted had six hundred and forty-eight people.

Pan Yun accepted the list and said to Seeing Miao Zhen: "You go over with the money and provisions. Tell them to go directly to the eastern side of Mount Sanqing tomorrow. There are large cave dwellings there, and a water source. Have them stay there for two days first. Once Yu Qian leaves, I'll go send them off."

Seeing Miao Zhen agreed.

Pan Yun wrote another letter and handed it to Tao Yan Bai, saying, "Send someone to deliver it to Guangxin Prefecture, hand it to Cong'er's Zhang Guanshi, and have him immediately bring his people over."

Tao Yan Bai acknowledged the order.

Miao He crowded forward, asking eagerly, "What about me, what about me, Little Xiao Shishu, what do I do?"

Pan Yun tapped her nose and said with a smile, "You come with me to the county office to take stock of the relief grain sent down by the imperial court." (End of chapter)