Chapter 419: The Useless Guide

419. Chapter 419: The Useless Guide

When Zhao Jin and his group left Ding Family Enclosure, Ding Hong made a point of having them take a sack of salt with them. He said that further in, there were a few villages not along the main roads that were perpetually short of salt. If they could make it there, presenting this sack of salt as a gift would certainly make dealings much easier.

Before setting out from Ding Family Enclosure, Zhao Jin did not disclose their next destination, and Ding Hong tactfully refrained from asking. After traveling a few li, Zhao Jin called Ding Jun over to inquire about the situation within this Grass Nest.

Yi Jinbao only knew a few routes, Qi San knew a portion, and the Peng uncle and nephew knew an even smaller part, but this Ding Jun had a very comprehensive understanding of the Grass Nest.

The various villages and settlements within the Grass Nest were divided into several areas. The refugees and disaster victims from Shandong had all come only in the last few years. In truth, those in other areas who were not from Shandong were not necessarily disaster victims; many had all sorts of stories behind them.

In Ding Family Enclosure, Ding was the major surname, but there were also many outsiders. The Ding father and son had come here ten years ago, yet they did not simply hole up and stay put, but continuously took in new disaster victims.

In recent years, Shandong had been plagued by frequent major disasters, sending victims fleeing in all directions. Five years ago, Ding Hong had wanted to return to his hometown, but the result of that trip was him bringing several dozen clansmen and fellow villagers back to the Grass Nest. After that, he would go out several times each year to see if he could lend a hand to his former neighbors.

It was precisely because of these constant trips out that the Ding father and son were very familiar with the Grass Nest. Moreover, when they first arrived, the people Ding Hong led did not live in this location, but in an area further north, near the Jia River and Tancheng County in Shandong.

After the Grand Canal was diverted there, that area flourished. Powerful magnates and various factions began enclosing and clearing land, forcing them to move south. However, the Grass Nest had long been occupied by various factions, and even the earlier refugees were unwilling to let newcomers share the spoils; they would even capture these latecomers to work like beasts of burden. They had no choice but to continue south, eventually arriving at this relatively marginal place.

"... From Shuyang County town to Haizhou, to Qingjiangpu, to Suqian, there are three main roads in total. These three main roads divide the Grass Nest into three sections. The villages and manors on either side of these roads are all local. The stretch to the east near the sea is all salt fields, and the areas along the Grand Canal and Yellow River are also full of villages and manors..."

Listening to Ding Jun's description, Zhao Jin gained a more concrete impression of the so-called "Grass Nest." It turned out this place was not like the grasslands; it was not a vast, boundless sea of grass, but rather divided into several sections.

"... The area east of the main road from Shuyang County town to Qingjiangpu is all grazing land. The salt-making households come out every year to cut grass, so too many people can't live there. Government troops and local militias regularly come through to clear the area. Anyone caught is sent to the salt fields to toil like beasts of burden, never to leave for the rest of their lives. The people staying there aren't decent folk—mostly salt smugglers, and quite a few desperate fugitives hiding out. I heard my father say the salt fields themselves keep quite a number of people..."

Ding Jun could truly be said to be holding nothing back. For one, as a young man he lacked guile. Secondly, Zhao Jin's treatment of those three children that morning had left him with no wariness. Another reason was that Ding Jun very much wanted to show off. Although Zhao Jin and his companions were not much older than him, he still wanted to perform well in front of Zhao Jin, hoping to gain his regard.

"... My father says the land in this Grass Nest is all good, it just lacks people to farm it. If we bring a few more fellow villagers over, we can farm more land. Their lives will improve, and everyone's lives will improve..."

When asked why he risked danger to bring refugees over, Ding Jun gave this explanation.

Zhao Jin smiled and offered a few words of praise, but inwardly he had his own assessment. Ding Hong's plan might not necessarily stem from kindness. The Ding father and son were already the leaders of Ding Family Enclosure; the more people reclaiming wasteland and farming, the greater the benefit to them. It was just that now, needing to overcome hardship together, everything appeared to be about kinship and loyalty.

Compared to yesterday, the road had become narrower, and the grass on both sides had grown taller. According to Ding Jun, if they continued this way for another day, they would see the manors near Liu Family Village. Although there were still patches of wild grass and marsh, the grass there would be very sparse, because the residents also needed to cut grass for cooking and heating.

The road was very desolate, with hardly anyone in sight. The group grew quite bored with walking, and having chatted about everything they could, Ding Jun once again went ahead to lead the way. At this time, Liu Yong, however, moved up to the front as well, accompanied by another man; they were going to pump him for information.

They walked roughly until the sun was slanting west before Zhao Jin and his party stopped to eat. While the others tidied up, Zhao Jin stacked the goods on the cart higher, climbed up to take a look around. All around was a boundless expanse of withered grass and snowy ground, with no sign of any village. Yet this Ding Jun had said that after walking half a day they would see a fork in the road, and after most of a day, a small stockade. Why was nothing visible? Could something be wrong?

Zhao Jin directly called Ding Jun over to ask. Ding Jun showed no panic, simply saying that if they walked forward for another half a shichen, they would reach that fork.

A few men were assigned to go ahead with Ding Jun to scout, while the rest stayed behind to wait. The cart convoy moved very slowly, but the speed on horseback was much faster. The meal had just been prepared when the scouts returned.

"... The fork is completely hidden by grass. You have to push the grass aside and walk in to see the path. The path is very small, only wide enough for two people to walk side by side. It's impossible to find from the main road..." The reporting rider described it in great detail.

"One village has a few dozen households, less than two hundred people. Two others have less than a hundred. They don't even have the ability to defend themselves. If the Grass Nest bandits come, they're easily wiped out. They can only hide themselves away as deeply as possible." Ding Jun explained with a smile.

Ding Family Enclosure could field over a hundred able-bodied young men to defend against bandits, so ordinary mounted brigands dared not touch them. These very small villages, however, had no real resistance capability and could only hide themselves to avoid discovery.

Ding Jun did not think much of these few villages, simply saying: "Master Jin, if you want to buy salt, you should go further ahead to Lu Family Stockade. Business is better there too. As for these three places that don't even have names, they have no salt and no money, just a bunch of poor wretches huddled together. Lu Family Stockade is where the salt-making households gather; they have plenty of salt and money too."

Ding Family Enclosure itself consisted of refugees and disaster victims, and their lives were also very hard, but that did not stop Ding Jun from looking down on places even poorer and more miserable than his own.

Moreover, even without Ding Jun explaining, Zhao Jin could guess that Ding Family Enclosure's location was much better compared to these three nameless settlements. It was beside a main road, close to the outside world, making trade and travel much more convenient. These three places were merely struggling to survive.

"... Do those three paths only lead to these three villages? They don't lead anywhere else?" Zhao Jin inquired. He already had a rough plan forming in his mind.

"The locations of those three villages are too deep in. They're surrounded by mudflats and marshes. Further north should be the Shu River—all dead ends." Ding Jun was very familiar with this area.

After lunch, the main group continued onward. Ding Jun seemed very interested in Lu Family Stockade. When he mentioned that it had a full complement of wineshops and brothels, just like a market town, everyone understood why he was so interested.

When they reached the fork, Ding Jun got down and parted the grass. Only then did Zhao Jin understand what was going on. A section of earth and grass had been dug up and placed right at the intersection. The small path inside also curved in a little loop, making it completely unnoticeable from outside. Even standing on high ground, one might not see it clearly; the withered grass grew too thickly, almost entirely concealing it.

Qi San rode his horse in to take a look and came back to report: "Horses can pass, but carts will likely have trouble. Getting stuck in a mud pit would be a big problem."

Unexpectedly, upon hearing this, Ding Jun laughed and said, "Master Jin, if you want to visit these few places, it's not difficult. Taking carts on these small paths would be troublesome at most, but they can get through."

Having his word questioned to his face, Qi San immediately flew into a rage. Unable to vent in front of Zhao Jin, he still retorted: "Even though it's cold, this Grass Nest is full of mudflats and marshes everywhere. The carts are so heavy, what if they get stuck? Then we'd be stuck fast, unable to move forward or back. Are we supposed to just abandon them there?"

"Elder Brother, don't you know the Grass Nest has been getting drier and drier these past few years?" Ding Jun countered with a smile.

"... I heard my father say that when they first came, there were many snakes and insects, and the dampness was heavy. But it's gotten much better in recent years. Many marshes have turned into mudflats, and mudflats into dry land. If it weren't for this, these three villages wouldn't have been able to survive here at all... Because it's become drier, wherever a path has been trodden out, there won't be any mud pits or mires on either side. Plus, with the cold, everything is frozen hard and dry. The carts can make it through..." Ding Jun laid out the reasoning very clearly.

Qi San's face flushed red with embarrassment. Yi Jinbao and the Peng uncle and nephew also looked uncomfortable. They had claimed to be familiar with this area, but either they hadn't been back for years, or they only had a superficial understanding. In front of someone who truly knew the place, they were indeed a laughingstock.

Zhao Jin said nothing, merely chose one of the paths, and ordered them to head that way. This left Ding Jun quite puzzled, because this path led to the village with the fewest people—only a few dozen in total. To put it bluntly, they were the survivors of refugees who had come from Fengyang to Pizhou this year. They had burrowed in here just to survive, utterly destitute. Trade was meaningless, and even in terms of women, there were only a dozen or so coarse, big-footed matrons. Yet judging by this Master Jin's style and attitude, he didn't seem interested in that either.

Since the order was given, the main group began to turn. The horses were manageable, but the carts kept as much distance from each other as possible, lest one become immobilized and trap those before and behind it.

Just as Ding Jun had said, the remote path itself was very narrow, but the snowy ground beside it was also very hard and solid, with no mud pits or mires to obstruct them. Although people had to push aside the wild grass, the going was quite smooth.

They had already been moving slowly on the "main road" within the Grass Nest, so naturally they could not go fast on such a narrow, small path. By the time the sun was about to set, there was still no sign of human habitation ahead or behind.

For most of this journey, Zhao Jin had been on the cart, specifically standing atop the goods on the cart to gain a vantage point. From this height, he observed the surrounding environment. Ding Jun and the three guides kept looking up at him, wondering what there was to see in the boundless, desolate expanse of wild grass marsh all around.