Chapter 454: Scouts

Powerful eunuchs all maintained mansions and servants outside the palace — this was, in fact, standard practice.

"Back to the palace. Those officials are fighting fiercely and dumping everything on us; it's terribly busy inside," Eunuch Wu answered from within the sedan chair.

His personal attendant called out an order, the bearers acknowledged, and the attendant leaned close to the sedan again and asked, "Gonggong, what exactly is that Censor Wang planning? He doesn't seem to be on the same path as these capital officials!"

A brief silence came from inside the sedan, followed by a soft chuckle. Eunuch Wu said teasingly, "What for? For his son, of course. His Wang family has built quite a power base in Xuzhou — even Old Yu of Fengyang got thwarted. And now that Old Yu is busy raising a ruckus at the Eastern Depot!"

"Isn't Eunuch Yu one of that Grand Supervisor's men? Gonggong, should we get involved in this? Censor Wang didn't even bring it up!"

"Involved? Of course we get involved. I still remember the desolation around my godfather when he was dying. Only that letter brought a smile to the old man's face. And just now, he dared to say we came from the same master — for those words alone, I will help him with this." Eunuch Wu spoke slowly.

"A word from the Document Office, and the other bureaus will still show us face." Eunuch Wu ended the conversation with a laugh.

The Directorate of Ceremonial was the foremost of the twenty-four inner-court offices, and the Document Office was the most confidential department within the Directorate. A eunuch who entered the Document Office was equivalent to a presented scholar entering the Hanlin Academy — supremely honored, with great prospects of becoming a Grand Supervisor. When such a person stepped forward to put in a word, the various inner-court eunuch departments naturally had to show face.

The attendant made no sound, merely jogging alongside with small steps. In his heart, however, he understood: although his master had entered the Document Office to serve, he had no reliable friends in the outer court. In a pivotal, critical place like the Document Office of the Directorate of Ceremonial, lacking acquaintances in the outer court was bound to cause trouble. Wang Youshan's initiative in drawing close was exactly what he urgently needed, and the two sides quickly grew close.

That was the truth of it, but it could not be spoken aloud. On the surface, it looked as though Wang Youshan owed a huge favor. This Eunuch Wu of theirs was fine in every way — it was just that his path in the palace had always been too smooth, and he cared too much about face.

Xuzhou martial men had already begun pouring into Huai'an Prefecture in groups. In Huai'an, some swallowed their anger, but others refused to yield their turf — inevitably, bloody gang clashes followed.

In the eyes of the local strongmen around Pizhou and Suining, this was their own home territory. They could collude with the officials and mobilize large numbers of able-bodied men. How could they possibly fail to deal with this gang of crazed Xuzhou barbarians?

But things did not go as they imagined. First, the officials only cared about silver. Before these Xuzhou men charged in, they would always send someone to smooth things over with the officials above and below, promising that the customary tribute payments would increase by ten to twenty percent. With that, the officials would stand aside and watch. Furthermore, even if a single household managed to fend off the dozens or hundreds who came, several hundred riders would charge in next. These ferocious, battle-hardened horse teams, who had no need to farm for a living, were more than any household could handle — they were quickly crushed and swept away.

Compared to the chaos-ridden Pizhou, Xuzhou was eerily quiet. Only the areas bordering Pizhou saw occasional fighting. Because the salt-smuggling convoys that went out never returned, the Huai'an side had no idea of the situation here. Though the Xuzhou men were turning Pizhou and Suining upside down, the convoys tied to the salt trade still believed themselves safe and untroubled.

As for the Xuzhou forces already inside Huai'an Prefecture, they were still busy seizing territory and clearing out enemies, too occupied to pay attention to the convoys on the official roads. But inside Xuzhou, a very close watch was kept on this — every cart that came through was a cartload of silver.

Xuzhou's quiet was also tied to the chaos in Huai'an. All the aggressive, battle-hungry martial men of Xuzhou had gone to Huai'an, so naturally there were far fewer disturbances at home.

Even the He Family Estate, the source of all these schemes, remained as normal as ever. The Zhao Battalion soldiers continued their rotation training as usual. Only the horse teams and some allied jianghu men came and went.

It looked peaceful from the outside, but only those involved knew the tension within. These days, the stables were probably working the hardest. Dong Bingfeng had not led the Zhao Battalion horse teams out; instead, all the mounts of the horse teams staying at the He Family Estate were being fed according to pre-battle standards — grain was added to the fodder, and night feedings were given to ensure the horses had ample fat reserves.

If it were only the two-hundred-odd horses of the Zhao Battalion horse teams, that would be one thing. But on top of that, rideable horses from all around had been requisitioned in considerable numbers, totaling nearly five hundred. The Zhao Battalion not only paid the horse owners silver but also covered the fodder costs. During this period, the grain spent on brewing wine was less than what was consumed feeding the horses.

Every soldier in the Zhao Battalion who could ride a horse, whether in the horse teams or not, had to be registered. Most of those from the old veteran company backgrounds could ride, and quite a few in the current four companies of the personal guard could as well — all told, the numbers were substantial.

"For officialdom, they don't look at who is paying them silver and benefits — they only look at the silver and benefits themselves. The Feng family indeed has many backers in official circles, but we've crushed them. As long as the benefits due to those above are not reduced by a single bit, and are even increased, then no one will come looking for trouble with us. Even if someone does, they'll be isolated and weak — we'll just deal with them too." Zhao Jin spoke eloquently in the room. After the daily training and deployments, the post-lunch period was a brief rest.

Aside from Dong Bingfeng, who was leading the horse teams to intercept salt carts, and Ji Xiang, who was on duty rotation, everyone else was resting in the room. Zhao Jin smiled and continued, "When it reaches that stage, we'll have to trouble Uncle Wang to step forward. With a man of Uncle Wang's virtue and prestige intervening, everyone will have a graceful way out. But the current situation is also fine. Since Uncle Wang has already given the word, it means the Feng family and we can only settle this with blades. Real swords, real spears — what do we brothers have to fear from anyone?"

Everyone's spirits were roused by Zhao Jin's words, and Wang Zhaojing nodded repeatedly. Ru Hui glanced over and said with a smile, "Lord Wang's letter, delivered by fast courier, was truly timely. Our major offensive in Huai'an Prefecture was bound to draw in all sorts of forces — a tangled mess of countless threads, impossibly complicated. But the moment Lord Wang's letter arrived, everything became simple. Everyone is now just waiting to see who wins between us and the Feng family."

Zhao Jin and Wang Zhaojing exchanged a smile. They understood perfectly well what Ru Hui was explaining. Just now, Zhao Jin's words had seemed to downplay the importance of Wang Youshan's letter; Ru Hui was clarifying this on Zhao Jin's behalf. In truth, when they had mapped out the Huai'an Prefecture campaign back in the twelfth month, the factor of their official-background connections had already been part of the calculation.

As they were chatting, footsteps sounded outside, and someone announced from beyond the door, "Master, we've caught four scouts."

Zhao Jin paused his speech and said teasingly, "Finally. If not for these scouts, I'd have thought the Feng family only knew how to take a beating like fools!"

Everyone burst into laughter, but they all stood up as well. Such matters allowed not the slightest slackness.

The market at the He Family Estate had not changed much. In fact, with the construction of shopfronts and stalls, it had become even more prosperous and bustling than in the forty-fourth year of the Wanli reign. The Xuzhou Guard had rented several storefronts here. Merchants who regularly came to buy Hanjing Famous Wine had also spotted the commercial opportunities here — opening a shop to sell goods, bringing cargo in and hauling wine out each trip, meant earning double the silver.

Besides these major merchants who had set down roots to do business, peddlers from all the surrounding villages were also flocking here. The place was full of people and business was good. With a bit of luck on any given day, one might catch the Zhao Battalion's purchasing agents, who paid fair and ample prices and could buy out your entire stock in one go.

With people and goods flowing in and out every day, the place presented a picture of thriving prosperity. Surely some would think they could blend into the crowd and slip in and out unnoticed. They never imagined that this place was outwardly relaxed but inwardly tight. Many seasoned jianghu veterans from inside and outside the city had been brought over. To work for Master Jin not only brought face but also substantial benefits, so everyone put their heart and strength into the task.

"Master Jin, this fellow here came carrying a shoulder pole, disguised as a peddler. His brain must be broken — what peddler comes to a big market town like this? They only find business in small villages."

"This one dressed up like an ordinary traveling merchant, but instead of heading to the market with his pack, he just loitered toward the camp."

"These two disguised themselves as beggars. They're muddled too — they didn't know beggars don't dare come around here."

The patrolling men outside explained each case one by one. The four tightly bound captives all hung their heads in dejection. They had assumed Zhao Jin was just a country strongman, and that the He Family Estate, no matter how tightly guarded, was still just a populated village town. They never expected there to be only the militia camp and the market here, leaving no opening to exploit. And they had thought they could blend into the crowd for close observation — never imagining they would be rooted out immediately.

Liu Yong glanced back at Zhao Jin, then stepped forward and said, "If you have accomplices, speak up now. It might buy you a way to live."

Facing a bunch of teenagers speaking so casually — and not being men whose fearsome reputations were long known in Xuzhou — it was hard for the captives to feel any real awe or dread.

One of the men kneeling on the ground, the one dressed as a peddler, spat directly toward Zhao Jin and said viciously, "If you know what's good for you, let us go. Otherwise—"

Before he could finish, Liu Yong drew his dagger and plunged it into the man's chest. He pulled it out, kicked the body over, and turned to ask the other three, "Nothing to say?"

"Sir, this lowly one just came to your esteemed land to earn a mouthful of food. I don't know anything about any accomplices," stammered the other man dressed as a beggar.

Liu Yong shook his head and made a direct gesture. The man behind that beggar reached out and twisted his neck with a crack. In the blink of an eye, two bodies lay on the ground.

The Feng family and Zhao Jin were in conflict, but both sides were of the local strongman class, and the Feng family's strength far exceeded Zhao Jin's. Surely this group of young men led by Zhao Jin would have some reservations. Besides, these scouts could be considered envoys of a sort — even warring states did not execute envoys. Surely they wouldn't be so utterly ruthless.

Who could have imagined that after just two questions, two men would be killed? This murderous intent was far too heavy.

"This... this lowly one truly knows nothing!" the man dressed as a traveling merchant stammered.

"Stuff these men into one crate, take it to the Yellow River and dump it in. Don't forget to put a few stones inside," Liu Yong said, wiping his dagger on one man's clothing and waving his hand.

The men shouted their acknowledgment and directly dragged the captives away. At this moment, the two remaining scouts finally broke down completely. Twisting their bodies and struggling desperately, they wailed and confessed: there were three more outside, and one of them was even a woman.