Chapter 481: Yangzhou City

Shi Ping'ao said with a grin, "There's no news just yet, but I can tell Young Master Zhao one thing — the moment word came back from Huai'an Prefecture, my general turned hostile on the spot. He threw out every man the Feng family had sent. These past few days he's barely eaten or slept. Only when the two men Young Master Zhao released returned did he finally breathe easy. He's already discussed it with me — once everyone is back, he's determined to squeeze another sum of silver out of the Feng family to cover the vacancies and all the dead and wounded!"

"When the silver arrives in a few days, Mister Shi, take six hundred taels for yourself," Zhao Jin said with a smile.

Shi Ping'ao, his face brimming with delight, clasped his fists in thanks once more. This matter put Zhao Jin considerably at ease. After the battle at Huai'an Prefecture, the Feng family's fighting strength had been wiped out, but whether the Wolf Mountain Vice Brigadier might fly into a rage and seek revenge, or even stir up other consequences on the official front — that was what worried Zhao Jin most. That was precisely why he had released two captives to carry word back: to eliminate that possibility.

Now, Shi Ping'ao's report set Zhao Jin's mind at rest. One of the Feng family's major outside allies had been stripped away, and another external force not easily controlled had diminished considerably.

"From what the captives said, the one leading the troops was a Battalion Commander. He wasn't among the prisoners — did he manage to flee back?" With the matter settled, Zhao Jin relaxed a good deal and asked offhandedly.

At the mention of this, Shi Ping'ao's face immediately darkened. "That worthless wretch — who knows where he's fled to," he said bitterly. "Otherwise, military law would never let him off!"

"Could he have gone to the Feng family together with that Li Dajin?"

"Young Master Zhao makes an excellent point. When I return, I will certainly push for a thorough investigation. All the blame for this affair rests on those two!" Shi Ping'ao said through gritted teeth. Since the men had vanished, any charge could be pinned on them at will.

With everything settled, Shi Ping'ao promptly departed with the main body of his men, leaving only three guards behind to serve as liaisons.

Zhao Jin did not linger there any longer. When the silver arrived, the stronghold would naturally arrange the release of the prisoners. The Sun family trading house had already begun stepping up shipments of supplies to that area.

Before returning to Xuzhou, Zhao Jin sent orders to the stronghold: they were to dispatch men to sweep the entire Grass Nest region. Every bandit den and every refugee enclosure was to be cleared out and absorbed without exception. They were also to make contact with the various salt peddlers and salt smugglers operating in the area and have them use the stronghold as their distribution hub.

After crushing the Feng family, in that entire region — even counting Shuyang County Town itself — there was no longer any force capable of standing against the refugee stronghold. Meanwhile, the armed men within the stronghold now held overwhelming superiority and could set their sights on far greater things.

In the days before Zhao Jin's departure, visiting cards were delivered to him every day, and it is no exaggeration to say that callers nearly wore down his doorstep. Although Yutou Town still maintained the appearance of self-rule, everyone had already glimpsed the enormous shadow of the Zhao Battalion looming behind it and could more or less guess what the future held. If they wanted their businesses to remain safe, it was best to make a show of deference early.

In contrast to the bustling, lively Yutou Town, Yangzhou City — which ought to have been a thousand times more prosperous and clamorous — was strangely subdued. Word was spreading in private that the Feng family had suffered a devastating loss in Huai'an Prefecture and had very likely been dealt a crippling blow.

Among the several dozen salt merchants of Yangzhou, the reason the Feng family was acknowledged as the foremost was not only their connections and networks in officialdom, but primarily because their power in Huai'an Prefecture was immense. They had even used armed force to control the private salt routes and illicit salt works there. This effectively meant they held the production sites and supply sources of the Huai salt in their grip. With most men's necks in their chokehold, they naturally became the foremost house.

But now, that armed force had been utterly annihilated. The Wolf Mountain Vice General, once so close to them, had suddenly assumed a posture of complete severance. Without the resources that came from holding the blade, the Feng family's turf in Huai'an Prefecture could no longer be maintained, and they could no longer squeeze anyone by the throat.

As it happened, on the third day of the third month, the Feng family held their customary family banquet. At this banquet, all the Yangzhou salt merchants of standing, as well as the officials of the salt administration, would gather. It was there that the year's quotas were roughly settled before the official paperwork was processed.

This year, however, two-thirds of the guests at the Feng family banquet found excuses not to attend. Of those who did come, quite a few sent only their household stewards or men of that ilk.

Such is the ruthlessness of the world. When the Feng family could keep everyone under their thumb, people were naturally deferential and respectful. Once they could no longer hold them down, they could not even sit securely in that foremost seat — so who would pay them any mind?

Undercurrents surged through Yangzhou City, and the idle watched this drama unfold with keen excitement. At the same time, the name Zhao Jin of Xuzhou began to be spoken of within the city. Yet when discussed, it was mostly treated as a storyteller's tale. That a young man not yet twenty could accomplish something so great — no one would believe it. The few who considered themselves worldly-wise all guessed it was the handiwork of the Xuzhou Assistant Regional Commander.

In the past, when the Feng family's household guards and martial arts masters walked the streets, they carried themselves with even greater swagger than the runners from the prefectural or county yamens — chests puffed out, bellies thrust forward, heads high and arrogant. Now, however, they slunk about with their tails between their legs. A few, too thin-skinned to bear it, even avoided the main thoroughfares to spare themselves the sight of so many people.

The side lanes had fewer people, and anything that happened there was less likely to be noticed. In a corner of a narrow alley, one of the Feng family's guards was already on his knees, his face bruised and swollen in several places, his expression one of utter panic. Two large men dressed like boatmen stood before him.

"Master Li, Master Bao — no, Young Master Bao, no — the moment that wretch Feng Bao came back, he claimed you, Master Li, had treacherous intentions and fought poorly. He even said it was likely you, Master Li, who sold everyone out. None of us believed it, but the Old Master and the Master did. Now all the household's guards and able-bodied men are under the command of Feng Da and Feng Bao. We small fry have no choice but to obey!"

Li Dajin had a strip of blue cloth bound around his head, making him look no different from any boatman. He had shorn off much of his beard, and at first glance he was truly hard to recognize. His face grim, he asked, "Has Feng Bao made a move against my family?"

The kneeling Feng guard's eyes darted shiftily. Before he could speak, the big man beside him brought a scabbard cracking across his face, smashing half of it into an immediate blue-black swelling.

"Behave yourself. Your grandpa's eyes don't tolerate sand!" The voice of the big man beside Li Dajin was icy cold. It was none other than the missing Battalion Commander, Li He.

The guard opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of blood, along with several teeth. Eyeing the steel blade already half-drawn from its scabbard, he said through a mouth that leaked air, "Feng Bao said he wanted to confiscate Master Li's household, but he'd wait until Master Li came back to do it together. Over there... over there, there should be men lying in ambush."

Li Dajin's expression did not change. He was silent for a moment, then waved his hand and said, "Go now. Don't tell anyone you saw me today."

The guard, who had already been trembling all over from that silence, nodded repeatedly at these words. "Master Li, rest assured. Master Li has always treated us small fry with kindness. I know what to do."

He lowered his head to hide the excitement and venom in his eyes. Going back to report would surely earn him a reward, and he could also avenge the beating he'd taken today.

Li He looked at Li Dajin. Li Dajin merely gestured with his hand. Helplessly, Li He stepped aside. The guard hastily scrambled to his feet and headed out. He had taken only two steps when he heard the sound of something being unwrapped behind him. Before he could react, a hand clamped over his mouth, and a spearhead burst through his chest.

The corpse crumpled softly to the ground. Li Dajin pulled out the short spear, wiped it clean, then wrapped it in a piece of cloth bundle so that it looked much like a wooden club.

"If I'd killed him face-to-face, he would have screamed," Li Dajin offered by way of explanation.

Li Dajin's residence was not within the Feng family compound. By rights, a headman of his importance should have lived inside the estate, but some said that a martial man like him carried too heavy a killing aura and that keeping him there might invite trouble. Thus, Li Dajin had purchased a decent residence near the East Gate, a place convenient for both entering and leaving the city.

Li Dajin's residence originally had its own servants and underlings, but now every one of them was in a state of trembling fear, because ten vicious, ill-favored men had appeared in the courtyard — men who, at a single glance, were clearly not of the law-abiding sort.

"That old Li's wife is a real piece of work. The moment she saw us coming, she changed into a set of coarse work clothes and even dressed the kids up to look like paupers. With those thick hands and big feet of hers, I wouldn't even bother to look — does she really think she's some great beauty?"

"Cut the crap! Have you forgotten what we were told? We're not to touch anything. Touch it, and there'll be no good fruit to eat!"

"I know, I know. Once we nab that Li Dajin, with the reward silver and the perks from the stronghold, what women won't we have? I know what's important."

Two large men with short blades tucked at their waists, podao and goose-quill sabers resting close at hand, were chatting merrily. Just then, someone came running in quickly from outside and said in a low voice, "A man with a basket of dried vegetables on his back has entered the lane. He's heading toward this gate, but it's not Li Dajin."

"Open the gate and let him in. Take the dried vegetables, pay him, and send him on his way!" one of them said gruffly.

Dried vegetables have a rich, mellow flavor and take three or four months to prepare. At this time of year, with no fresh greens available, it was just the season for eating them. The people of Yangzhou liked to place their orders before the new year and have them delivered to their homes at the start of spring.

The man carrying the basket of dried vegetables spoke in a thick Taizhou country dialect. Once inside the courtyard, he showed everyone the dried vegetables in his basket, and someone on this side counted out several hundred copper cash and handed it over.

The man sorted briefly through the several hundred cash and spotted one coin with a blurred inscription. He immediately kicked up a fuss — a coin like that, taken outside, would at best be accepted as half a wen.

"What kind of rule is that? The dried vegetables I sold your household were already twenty percent cheaper than anyone else's, and now you're trying to cheat me on the copper cash too? You think you can bully us country folk?" The man roared furiously. He seemed to have an explosively hot temper, though the roar was rather too loud — so loud that the men who had paid and taken the goods couldn't help stepping back. The entire courtyard probably heard it.

The two men sitting inside chatting idly shot to their feet the moment they heard the roar. Once they made out what the matter was, one of them hollered impatiently, "Change it for him and get him out of here, quick!"

Before he even finished speaking, the man in the front courtyard was already sorting through the copper cash again. The big man kept muttering under his breath, but made as if to dump the dried vegetables out of his basket. The three men in the front courtyard all exchanged looks of helpless amusement — country folk really were so petty.

The dried vegetables poured out of the large basket. Along with the dried vegetables, there was also a four-chi-long thick-backed straight blade. The big man seized the blade and drove it straight into the belly of the man before him. The other two immediately leapt up, but the big man was not slow — his other hand flung out, and several dozen copper cash sprayed toward them. The man directly in front of him flinched instinctively, and in that instant the big man was upon him, bringing his blade down in a cleaving strike.