Chapter 1026: Persuasion and Deception

If it had been Li Wu, Li He, or even the veteran company commanders from the personal guard and the three regiments, they might not have willingly followed Zhang Hubin's command. But Lu Da was an honest and simple man. Once he realized that he truly fell short of Zhang Hubin in training and command, and that the other man was genuinely outstanding, he cooperated wholeheartedly with sincere admiration and suppressed any pushback from the company commanders below.

Now, on the north bank of the Yellow River, in the areas around Pei County, Feng County, and Jingshan, people were already secretly calling Zhang Hubin "Eleventh Master"—the foremost figure below the Zhaos, Chens, Wangs, Shis, Jis, Dongs, Lius, Leis, Caos, and Zhous. Yet Zhang Hubin detested this title. If anyone dared say it to his face, he would turn hostile on the spot without regard for courtesy. But no matter how he tried to rein it in, the Fourth Battalion's encampment on the border between Shandong and Xuzhou had already vaguely become a small center of activity. It wasn't just the daily allocation of household troops and militia; many local matters were also brought to his door.

Some local figures from the Shandong side, still unfamiliar with the Zhao Camp's structure, even assumed Zhang Hubin had full authority and came to plead, curry favor, and offer gifts—and there were quite a few of these people. To all of them, Zhang Hubin tirelessly explained that he could not make decisions, that relevant matters should be taken to the relevant people, and that major issues required Master Jin's judgment. Still, a daily stream of guests filling his doorway was unavoidable.

The place where the Fourth Battalion was stationed was a converted manor estate, and the main residence of the manor's wealthy family naturally became Zhang Hubin's permanent duty office. At this moment, another visitor had come to pay his respects, claiming to be a relative of a Presented Scholar from Juye County in Shandong. In the prefectures and counties of southern Shandong, every official and gentry household had suffered devastating losses in the recent Wenxiang Sect rebellion. Many families had been completely wiped out; those that survived were a rarity.

Household troops stood guard all around the duty office, but their expressions were subtle. Some were expressionless, others kept exchanging glances, and a few wanted to know what was being said inside but didn't want their comrades to notice. On the whole, however, they maintained a disciplined posture.

Inside the room were only Zhang Hubin and the visitor. The visitor was in his forties, with the appearance of a scholarly gentleman, and his complexion was rather pale. At a glance, one could tell he was not a country squire who worked the land, but someone who made his living in a city or somewhere similar. The visitor claimed he had a matter of the utmost urgency to report and insisted on a private conversation. After a body search confirmed he carried nothing dangerous, everyone else withdrew. Zhang Hubin's face betrayed no expression, but anyone who knew him well could see that he was deeply agitated.

"Young Master Zhang, a young hero such as yourself—how can you stoop to serve bandits and acknowledge a criminal as your father? The imperial court has long wished to recruit a heroic figure like you. Here in Xuzhou, this 'Battalion Commander' and other such irregular titles are a joke to a man of your caliber. What future can they possibly offer? When the court frees its hands and the capital battalions and border armies converge, that bandit chieftain Zhao Jin will have no path but destruction. Following a man like that—isn't that walking straight toward death?" The visitor's face was filled with earnest sincerity.

With every word the man spoke, Zhang Hubin's expression darkened further. He simply replied coldly, "In my family, there were two brothers and four sisters. My father hired himself out as a farmhand. My elder brother worked alongside him. The rest of my sisters helped my mother with odd sewing jobs to earn a little money. The whole family rarely ate their fill. Being able to eat a few meals of coarse-grain noodles at year's end was already a festival. My elder brother broke his leg. One of my elder sisters starved to death. One of my younger sisters was abducted. My father ruined his health doing heavy labor to support the family. My mother wanted to sell my sisters. Where were the court and the officials then? If Master Jin hadn't taken me in, how would I be where I am today? How would my family be eating their fill, dressing warmly, and living a decent life?"

"Those are all petty favors to buy hearts and minds—nothing compared to great loyalty and righteousness. Young Master Zhang, the Grand Coordinator is willing to promote you to Mobile Corps Commander of his personal brigade. Then you and all your men will be elite troops under the Grand Coordinator's command. The future prospects of Regional Commander and Chief Regional Commander will be within reach. This is a golden road, the proper path to a glorious future!" The visitor spoke with extreme fervor, though his face was full of disdain when he said the words "petty favors."

Zhang Hubin shook his head and called out loudly, "Guards!"

As his voice rang out, several household troops entered from outside. Pointing at the persuader with utter disgust, Zhang Hubin said, "This is an agent sent by the officials to sow discord. Seize him and send him to Xuzhou."

The household troops surged forward like wolves and tigers and pinned the man down directly. The visitor's face was filled with shock and disbelief. He shouted, "I came with good intentions! Young Master Zhang, with all your skills, will you not serve the nation? Will you follow bandits? Will you persist on this path to ruin?"

He tried to say more, but a household trooper had already stuffed a rag into his mouth. Zhang Hubin sat there and ordered, "Send men to escort him to Xuzhou. Remember, he must be delivered alive."

The household troops acknowledged the order. The persuader struggled wildly until he was dealt several hard punches, which finally made him docile, and he was dragged out directly. One household trooper lingered behind. After the others had left, he turned to Zhang Hubin and said, "Battalion Commander, you shouldn't have spoken with him."

"I know I shouldn't have spoken with him. I was just curious about what he wanted to say," Zhang Hubin replied with some irritation. The household trooper said nothing more, merely saluted and turned to leave. Zhang Hubin took a deep breath and felt a twinge of regret. That household trooper was right. He should not have spoken with the man, especially not after dismissing everyone else. Regardless of whether it was out of curiosity, once word reached Xuzhou, there would inevitably be an unfavorable reaction.

Thinking of the persuader's proposal, a cold sneer appeared on Zhang Hubin's face. Who had ever paid him any attention when he was toiling in poverty and hardship? Now that he had everything and a boundless future ahead, they came making empty promises. He could not possibly take these several companies of household troops with him. For Zhao Jin and for Xuzhou, he could bend the rules in an emergency. But if he tried to rebel against the Zhao Camp, his subordinates would simply refuse to obey and would seize him and send him to Xuzhou. Even if he could take the Fourth Battalion's eight companies away, the First Battalion could mobilize the militia at any time to annihilate him. Zhang Hubin had always firmly believed one thing: Zhao Jin was thorough in all his preparations. Since he dared to place him here, he was certainly not afraid of betrayal or disloyalty.

"I need to put more effort into the Prosperity Dragon Society," Zhang Hubin muttered to himself. He could vaguely guess that within his own First Company, there were informants from the Internal Guard and members of the Prosperity Dragon Society. These people were all watching him. Thinking of this, Zhang Hubin couldn't help but think of Zhuang Liu. He was out here holding a post and earning merit, yet he always felt he had less of a future than those close to Zhao Jin.

Yutou Town by Luoma Lake was growing more prosperous by the day. Vast quantities of supplies were gathered here and then shipped to various locations in Yanzhou Prefecture, Shandong. The purchases for the Zhao Camp's own manors alone had already brought considerable prosperity to the area. Merchants traveling from north to south gathered in droves, and few knew that not long ago, a fleet of boats had been intercepted here and many of the people on board had been killed.

Nowadays, girls from Shandong, Henan, and even Shanxi who came to South Zhili to sell their charms and make a living favored Yutou Town above all. It wasn't as strictly controlled as Xuzhou, nor as fiercely competitive as Qingjiangpu. Everything here followed set rules, there were plenty of wealthy patrons, and making money was simply easy.

Word of mouth spread, and as its reputation grew, more and more women came here, and more and more patrons came specifically to seek pleasure. When grain-transport boats passed through, people would specifically introduce the place to wealthy merchants and see if they were interested. In the world of pleasure, this area had earned the name "Third Qinhuai." The reason for this was that Qingjiangpu had already claimed the title of "Little Qinhuai."

The "Third Qinhuai" was located in the lakeside area south of Yutou Town. Cloud Mountain Trading had paved the ground with stone slabs according to the standards for building a market town, dug trenches for drainage, and then planned and constructed the area. There were pavilions with lake views and courtyards hidden among bamboo groves. Luxurious pleasure boats drifted on the lake's surface. At night, the area was brilliantly lit, with the sound of string and bamboo music drifting everywhere. At first glance, one might truly think it was the banks of the Qinhuai River.

"Swallow's Song of Spring" was an establishment in the Third Qinhuai district of Luoma Lake. It wasn't the most luxurious or top-tier, but its girls were generally outstanding and beautiful, the enjoyment was not much inferior to the best establishments, and the prices were reasonable. As a result, its business was the best of all. It was always packed with customers and bustling with activity. Some out-of-town merchants even rented a courtyard here long-term, treating it as a secondary residence away from home. These courtyards where the girls were kept were located behind the main facade of "Swallow's Song of Spring," looking very much like a residential quarter of Yutou Town.

The madams, pimps, and teahouse attendants of the establishment rarely came to this area; there were dedicated managers to handle affairs, a method that made the patrons feel more at ease. This day, however, was somewhat unusual. First, teahouse attendants from the establishment visited every single courtyard under the pretext of delivering seasonal fresh fruit. Then, quite a few working managers and servants from the establishment came and visited every courtyard again to deliver pastries, saying it was the owner's birthday and thanking everyone for their usual patronage.

"Master Jiang inside, I've come to deliver pastries!" a servant called out from outside, pounding hard on the door. Some of these courtyards were staffed with maids and pageboys from the establishment, while in others the patrons preferred to fend for themselves. When they wanted some fun, they would go to the front and call a girl over; normally, they used the place like an inn, which was convenient.

He called out and pounded on the door several times. This whole area was filled with the same commotion at the moment, so nothing seemed out of place. Before long, someone could be heard inside the courtyard, cursing and grumbling as he approached: "What a damned nuisance! It's not like we don't pay silver for sleeping with your women. What's the point of this constant delivery of things just to fish for tips? A place like this... Stop pounding, I'm coming!"

The man opened the door from inside. The moment the door opened, he saw that it was not a servant from the establishment standing outside, but a burly man holding a long-handled saber at an angle. The moment the door opened, the burly man stepped forward and brought the saber slashing down. Caught completely off guard, the man had no time to dodge or resist. The saber tore a great gash from his neck down to his ribs. Blood sprayed wildly, drenching the saber-wielding man's body and face. But the burly man paid it no mind, striding in aggressively. Four men in close-fitting attire, armed with long-handled sabers and short spears, charged in after him.

The beginning and end of a holiday are always especially quiet; only the updates continue!

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