Chapter 209: The Sage

"I'm not too clear on the details myself. From what I vaguely heard, it was a eunuch from Fengyang in the Central Capital. They said he placed his mother's spirit tablet at Cloud Mountain Temple for offerings…" Zhou Xuezhi clearly didn't know much.

Zhao Jin had originally thought taijian was a blanket term for all castrated officials and eunuchs. He hadn't expected that in this era, taijian was a title reserved only for the highest-ranking eunuchs. Across the whole realm, no more than a few dozen men could be addressed as such. Fengyang had two at most—one was the Central Capital Garrison Taijian, the other the Imperial Tomb Garrison Taijian. Whichever one Cloud Mountain Temple had latched onto, it was an extremely formidable connection.

Hearing this, both Zhao Jin and Chen Sheng's expressions turned rather grim. Recalling all those tales Wang Zhaojing often told about the misdeeds of eunuchs and their factions, neither of them could feel at ease.

The room fell silent for a moment. Then Zhao Jin spoke again. "They say He Weiyuan has a few very capable relatives—some noble scion over in Nanjing, some powerful magnate in Shandong. Are you clear on that?"

He Weiyuan was already a figure of some standing in the Xuzhou region. He never bothered to hide such connections from outsiders. When people asked, he'd give vague, ambiguous answers, which always left others somewhat wary.

"That Nanjing noble, I'm not clear on either. I suspect it might be a connection He Weiyuan bought with money in his younger days. All these years, I've never seen any actual dealings between them—perhaps it's long since faded. But that one in Shandong…" At this point, Zhou Xuezhi kowtowed several more times.

Then, with the utmost earnestness, he said, "This humble one dares not speak of Cloud Mountain Temple, yet dares not speak of this person either. With matters having reached this point, I can only beg Lord Jin to shield my family. Otherwise, we truly will die without a burial place."

When speaking of this person, not a trace of color remained on Zhou Xuezhi's face, and his voice dropped involuntarily. Zhao Jin found it strange—Zhou Xuezhi was utterly terrified of him, clearly frightened out of his wits by the earlier threat of silencing, yet even under such circumstances, mentioning this person still provoked such terror.

"Since I've said you'll be unharmed, as long as you do as I say, you will certainly be unharmed." Zhao Jin reinforced his tone and made the promise again.

"Everyone says He Weiyuan's in-laws are a branch of the Duke of Yansheng's family. That may not be true. That man is a manor steward under the Kong family of the Duke of Yansheng, managing the estates in the border region where Shandong, Henan, and the Southern Metropolitan Region meet…"

Zhou Xuezhi was stammering through this when Chen Sheng, off to the side, suddenly caught on. Leaning forward, he asked in a grave voice, "Are you talking about Kong the Tiger—Kong Jiuying?"

"Yes, Kong Jiuying!" Zhou Xuezhi shuddered and answered with certainty.

The moment that name was spoken, Chen Sheng's expression turned very ugly, and he couldn't help but curse under his breath. Zhao Jin, however, was not very familiar with the name. That wasn't strange—Chen Sheng's father had served as Chief Constable, his grandfather as a Patrol Inspector, both dealing with figures from all corners, so his breadth of knowledge was extraordinary. Zhao Jin's scope was still limited to the Xuzhou area, while Chen Sheng's range was far broader.

Yet even without being familiar, Zhao Jin had still heard the name before. That in itself spoke to the weight of a man like Kong Jiuying—not to mention the title Duke of Yansheng. The whole realm took Confucianism as its root and foundation. Confucius, who founded Confucianism, was revered as the Sage, and his descendants were likewise honored. Ever since the Western Han, generation after generation had been passed down to the present day. Every dynasty had bestowed titles and rewards upon the Kong family, and every dynasty, to emphasize its own greater legitimacy over the previous one, had heaped even higher honors on the Kongs.

By now, the Duke of Yansheng held the official rank of Principal Second Grade in the Great Ming, with the treatment of Principal First Grade. And unlike other princes and nobles who were kept under wary watch, the imperial court was exceptionally lenient toward the Kong family of the Duke of Yansheng, granting them every convenience. Under such conditions, the Duke of Yansheng's estate had swollen in power as if inflated by a bellows.

The reason Zhao Jin knew all this was because Wang Zhaojing had once spoken of it with great enthusiasm.

At present, the Kong family's officially registered landholdings amounted to nearly ten thousand qing, and that didn't even include all the hidden fields. Although the Duke of Yansheng's manor was in Qufu, Shandong, the Kong estate's landholdings were scattered across Shandong, Henan, the Northern Metropolitan Region, and the Southern Metropolitan Region. One had to understand that Shandong only had so much good farmland—the Kong estate had taken nearly a quarter of it, the Prince of Lu's estate another quarter, and the rest had to be shared out among other nobles and powerful magnates.

With landholdings on such a massive scale, and not concentrated in one place, people were inevitably needed to manage them. So the Kong estate dispatched sons of branch families to serve as manor stewards.

With the Duke of Yansheng's estate backing them, ordinary officials dared not offend them. Not to mention they controlled such vast manors and so many people—even the underworld had to show them face.

In his memories, Zhao Jin vaguely recalled his father once mentioning that the Kong estate manor steward closest to the Xuzhou region was this very Kong Jiuying. He'd also said that all manner of folk from Shandong, Henan, and the two Metropolitan Regions had to give Kong Jiuying some measure of face.

Because it had been mentioned only in passing, Zhao Jin hadn't paid it much mind, figuring it was just a powerful servant of a great house who had carved out his own sphere of influence—nothing unusual about various parties giving him face. But hearing it brought up today, it didn't seem so simple.

Thoughts aside, Zhao Jin's expression remained utterly indifferent. He simply said, "I've promised you, so set your heart at ease. If I don't kill you, no one can kill you!"

The words were ruthless, but hearing them actually put Zhou Xuezhi at ease. After kowtowing a few more times, he was led away.

In truth, Zhou Xuezhi's confession hadn't yielded much of real value. The collusion with Cloud Mountain Temple could have been guessed. As for Kong Jiuying, a man that famous could be found out with just a little effort.

The reason they hadn't known until now was something like a "dark spot under the lamp." A man so famous, everyone assumed was common knowledge, so no one brought him up, and thus he was overlooked. Besides, the killing of He Weiyuan had been so rushed—who had the time to dig into his background and connections? And after the killing was done, no one bothered to look into it.

Once Zhou Xuezhi had left and the household guards outside were about to bring in the next person, Zhao Jin first waved his hand and asked, "What kind of man is Kong Jiuying? Do you know, Dasheng?"

"My father's mentioned his name. He said Xuzhou here only has an empty reputation—always talking about what heroes and gallants it produces, but no one can hold their head high before Kong the Tiger. Over in Feng County, it's practically his own backyard. Xuzhou can't control it at all," Chen Sheng explained.

The information wasn't much, but Zhao Jin could sense the weight of this Kong Jiuying, Kong the Tiger. So-called heroes and gallants were nothing more than local strongmen, outlaws of the rivers and lakes, and desperate mounted bandits. If this were some peaceful place elsewhere, that'd be one thing, but Xuzhou sat at the junction of three provinces. Fugitives from all over, local hegemons, and forces of every stripe had always been plentiful. That such figures couldn't hold their heads high before Kong Jiuying spoke volumes about his capabilities.

As for Feng County, there was more to it. Xuzhou comprised one prefectural seat and four counties. Feng County bordered both Shandong and Henan, with plenty of no-man's-land where none of the three jurisdictions held sway. Figures from both the light and dark sides of society passed through in great numbers, and the area was far from peaceful. Over time, the people of Feng County had developed a culture of banding together for self-defense—fierce and skilled in combat. Centered on villages and towns, organized by clans, they formed forces great and small.

In a place like that, officials had trouble governing, and bandits had trouble operating. The slightest carelessness, and the local militias and village braves would wipe them out.

And such a fiercely unruly place was treated by Kong Jiuying as his own backyard. His strength and fearsomeness could well be imagined.

"He's a formidable figure, but your father and mine surely know more. We'll just go back and ask," Chen Sheng said gravely.

The next few who claimed they wanted to confess had nothing of importance to offer. One confessed to two shopfronts He Weiyuan owned inside the city, but Zhao Jin had already obtained the title deeds. Another confessed that inside He Family Manor, He Weiyuan had a warehouse registered under someone else's name, filled with cloth and porcelain—that counted as a gain. Aside from these two, everything else the others said was about how He Weiyuan had committed every conceivable evil, fabricated nonsense about drinking human blood, eating human flesh, and abducting women.

Whether the confessions were useful or not, Zhao Jin had Warden Chi arrange decent cells for them, replace their bedding with something less rotten, and give them better food. To keep Warden Chi from being put in a difficult position, Zhao Jin specifically stated that all these expenses would be covered by his side. This was to set an example for those still locked up, letting them know that confessing and cooperating could at least make their days a bit easier.

Once everything in the jail was settled and everyone was heading out, Chen Sheng, walking behind, suddenly asked Zhao Jin, "That Kong the Tiger—are you afraid of him?"

Zhao Jin laughed. "Afraid my ass. Here in Xuzhou city, who do we brothers need to fear?"

Not being afraid was one thing, but they still needed to ask around in detail. When he got home and raised the question with Zhao Zhentang, Zhao Zhentang paused for a moment before asking back, "You actually don't know? The way you go about everything with such method, I thought you'd long since found out!"

His own son having made an enemy of such a figure—yet Zhao Zhentang's face showed no trace of worry. He waved his hand and said, "When you've got enough lice, you stop feeling the itch. No need for you to worry. With the skills you've got now, as long as you don't stray too far from Xuzhou, no one can do anything to you."

"…Kong Jiuying might not even be surnamed Kong…" After that wry, bitter joke, Zhao Zhentang began to explain in detail. As a constable in the yamen, he was especially well-informed about such figures.

The Kong estate's landholdings were numerous. Those in Shandong were manageable enough, but for those outside, it was hard to avoid stewards lining their own pockets or locals taking advantage. Even if you were a hereditary duke, there was still the saying that a mighty dragon cannot crush a local snake. And the hardest place of all to manage was that Pao River Bend at the junction of Shandong, Henan, and the Southern Metropolitan Region.

Pao River Bend got its name from the Pao River. Heaven only knew why this tributary of the Yellow River had such an odd name. The land there was flat as far as the eye could see, and with the river nearby, the fields got ample irrigation and yielded quite good harvests. Otherwise, the Kong estate wouldn't have set up a manor there.

A no-man's-land like that was utterly chaotic. Plenty of river pirates, desperate fugitives, and murderers roamed through it. Add to that the fierce local temperament, the river-based powers who lived off the Yellow River, and the salt smugglers coming and going, and the manor became extremely difficult to manage. If the manor steward or overseer cracked down too hard, there was no guarantee his house wouldn't be set ablaze at night. Quite a few had even lost their lives without knowing how or why.