Chapter 489: Two Strange Men

The people were taken away, the corpses were carried off, and even the bloodstains were buried. Chen Sheng arrived in hurried steps. Zhao Jin just wanted to rest a moment and sat on the steps without moving. The manager of the exchange house was tactful enough to bring over some tea.

"How did it come to this! I told you we should have seized them earlier!" Chen Sheng said, very displeased.

Zhao Jin smiled and waved his hand dismissively. Wang Zhaojing said with some embarrassment, "What Big Brother said at the time made sense too. If we had seized them earlier, it would have startled the snake. If we couldn't get anything out of them through interrogation, there would still be hidden risks, and those villains would have gone into deeper hiding. Better to use this to draw them all out and catch them in one net. Who could have guessed the villains had so many arrangements..."

"Isn't there that saying about the son of a noble not sitting under the eaves? You need to be more careful too!" Chen Sheng said crossly.

"The son of a man worth a thousand gold does not sit beneath the eaves." Zhao Jin quoted with a smile, then his expression darkened. He said in a muffled voice, "We were careless. I didn't expect the Feng family to have such methods. Since they want to play this game, we'll play along!"

"In truth, when great houses struggle against each other, they mostly use only such methods. Something like what happened in Huai'an Prefecture, which was nearly a battle between two armies, is actually quite rare." Wang Zhaojing added, then continued, "Big Brother, you and Second Brother, and the families of all the brothers, must all be well protected. If things truly tear open and faces are lost, there could be collateral damage."

Zhao Jin and Chen Sheng exchanged a glance, both nodding solemnly. Zhao Jin then spoke, "Arrange for Lei Cai to return to Xuzhou. All matters within the city will be under his direction. With so many people in the city's rivers and lakes and marketplaces, it will actually be possible to be more thorough."

The people who had come from Yangzhou were all scared out of their wits, terrified of being taken as accomplices and slaughtered along with the rest. Today they had truly witnessed a bloody scene. Zhao Jin had been majestic when reviewing troops on the wooden platform, shrewd and amiable when discussing business, but during the assassination he had shown himself to be ferocious beyond measure, stunning every single one of them.

However, the Zhao Camp did not make things overly difficult for them, only saying that they could begin their return journey as early as tomorrow afternoon.

The identity of the last assassin was easily uncovered. He was a steward of a certain household in Yangzhou. Some salt merchants even knew that this steward had only recently been hired by that household. Who knew he would be sent here this time? And the relationship between that household and the Feng family was not close either.

But this proved nothing. It only showed how meticulously the assassin had been planted. Given the Feng family's influence in Yangzhou, planting someone as a steward and getting him to come here was simply too easy.

As for Steward Wang, he confessed very quickly as well. The household he belonged to had long been controlled by the Feng family, only outsiders didn't know it. Steward Wang really was the steward of that household; he simply used that identity to do shady deeds for the Feng family.

Although the Feng family had spent a large sum of silver this time, few dared to come. Compared to the Yangzhou officials and gentry who did not know how formidable Zhao Jin was, the rumors heard in the rivers and lakes were far too numerous.

Moreover, after the assassins arrived in Xuzhou, several of them, upon hearing the outcome of the battle at Grass Den, fled midway. It was fortunate that the remaining few were all desperate outlaws who had taken heavy rewards. Steward Wang alone had five hundred taels. That steward who acted last was to receive two thousand taels whether he succeeded or not. The Feng family had spent roughly six thousand taels on this assassination attempt.

Returning to his own home that evening, Zhao Jin still had to explain things to Xu Zhenzhen. The eldest daughter of the Xu family was on one hand worried for Zhao Jin's safety, and on the other hand somewhat angry. Zhao Jin had clearly known about the assassins long before, yet she had only learned of it today after the incident occurred. This was truly treating her like an outsider.

The reason was simple. Once those Yangzhou people had moved in, they were immediately placed under surveillance inside and out. Many old hands of the rivers and lakes were watching. It was truly a case of loose on the outside, tight on the inside. That archer going out to choose the terrain for his attack was the first flaw discovered. Then one by one, all the suspicious individuals were identified. As for Steward Wang, he had hidden himself quite well all along, but he still had to communicate with the archer and the others. Even though he did so secretly, he was still discovered immediately.

The only thing missed was that assassin hidden among the merchants and stewards. When that man suddenly struck, even Zhao Jin broke out in a cold sweat.

As for the mastermind behind it being the Feng family, that was nothing surprising. It was entirely within expectation.

Tomorrow, experienced clerks from the Penal Office and runners from the Arrest Office in the city would arrive. They had specialized methods for torture and interrogation and would go through this batch of prisoners one by one again to make sure no fish had slipped the net.

Xu Zhenzhen listened very carefully. In the end, she said quietly, "If my husband intends to move against the Feng family, the Xu family also has usable assassins."

This reply was rather startling, but on second thought, a great house like the Xu family would of course keep similar personnel. It was just that back then, they had no use for them against Kong Jiuying.

"Assassins seem hard to guard against, but as long as your defenses are thorough, there's no need to fear. Things are like that on our side, and even more so on the Feng family's side. Their family has been wealthy and noble for too long. They hole up inside their great mansion all day. Making a move won't be that easy. We need to think of other methods." Zhao Jin answered very clearly.

At noon the next day, several experienced old clerks and runners from Xiao County arrived first, as they were closer. In the afternoon, the men from the Penal Office and Arrest Office in Xuzhou City also arrived.

Originally, those people from Yangzhou were very worried they wouldn't be allowed to leave, or that they would be extorted for a large sum of silver. They hadn't expected Zhao Jin to truly keep his word. After questioning and confirming they were uninvolved, he let them go directly. Everyone sighed that Master Jin was a man of his word. Ruhui was responsible for seeing each person off. His face was full of smiles, exceedingly polite, and he gave each guest a parting message: "... If you go and do not return, or if there is no news for several months, Master Jin might very well start to wonder whether you had any connection to yesterday's assassination..."

It was a tangible threat. Those who heard it naturally understood what they had to do. In fear and trepidation, they expressed that they would certainly return quickly. Besides, if the salt market didn't open soon, there was simply no way to move salt on this side. Everyone knew to hurry.

After confirming there were no fish that had slipped the net, the men from the various government offices received generous gifts and heavy thanks and returned to the city in high spirits. A few of the particularly experienced ones left only to come back. The Zhao Camp offered them high pay to stay at He Family Village as investigators and resident agents.

These runners were all in their forties or fifties. They couldn't fight in battle, nor were they a match for young men in a brawl. Their excellence lay in their powers of observation. Having handled cases and served as runners for so many years, they had seen all sorts of freaks and demons, people from all walks of life, and had naturally developed a pair of sharp, venomous eyes. Many men of the rivers and lakes who disguised themselves and deceived others everywhere else could be seen through by them at a single glance.

After nosing around He Family Village a few times, they shut down a stall that was fencing stolen goods for the outlaws of Henan. Then they also captured several kidnappers who were targeting children. This made the entire Zhao Camp trust them even more. Liu Yong even assigned quite a few men to follow and learn from them.

On the morning of the thirty-first day of the third month, Old Xu, who came from the city's Arrest Office, was sitting in a tea shed watching the official road. This tea shed was less than two li from He Family Village. The Zhao Camp's checkpoint was also set up here. If anything happened, travel for merchants would be immediately prohibited here, and all passing goods and luggage would be inspected. But for now, everything was peaceful.

Although a major assassination case had erupted over at He Family Village, the tense atmosphere had not spread. Everywhere else was normal.

Old Xu was very willing to come help. The Zhao Camp gave thirty taels of silver a year, which was much more than he could earn in the city. Moreover, his position as a runner could be inherited by his son. He benefited in every way. Nowadays, Zhao Jin's word was law in the Xuzhou region. Being able to come help was also a way to build connections in advance; sooner or later, he'd need them.

A horse-drawn carriage appeared in Old Xu's field of vision. The carriage had a compartment, and the door was covered with a curtain. It looked like the kind used by wealthy families when traveling.

But Old Xu narrowed his eyes and immediately spotted something wrong. When wealthy families drove a carriage, how could they use such a burly, fierce man as a driver? And this big fellow kept reaching for his side, where a weapon was surely placed. Men of the rivers and lakes who came to He Family Village were all respectful and meek, hanging their weapons in plain sight for fear of being misunderstood. Yet this big fellow was disguised as a driver, had a weapon at hand, and his bearing and manner were extremely vigilant.

This man was certainly no ordinary commoner, not even an ordinary figure of the rivers and lakes. Despite his disguise, the swagger in his every gesture was not something a man of the rivers and lakes would possess.

Old Xu pondered for a moment, then walked to the entrance of the tea shed and whispered a few words to a man dressed as a worker there.

Just as they were speaking, the carriage curtain lifted, and another big fellow appeared. The carriage stopped several dozen paces from the tea shed checkpoint and did not move any further.

Seeing these two big fellows, even without Old Xu saying anything, the household troops on guard here grew tense, ready to act at the slightest sign of trouble.

The two big fellows began to pull weapons from their bodies. Short knives from their waists, daggers from their boots, and the like were all drawn out and tossed on the ground. Once this was done, one big fellow took out a rope and tied the other up tightly. Then a woman and a half-grown boy got down from the carriage and tied up the one who had done the tying.

The big fellow gave a few instructions to the woman and the boy, and then the two bound men walked this way.

The whole affair was bizarre from start to finish. Old Xu stood there, not knowing what to say. The household troops leveled their weapons and advanced to meet them. With spears pointed at them, even if there was something strange, they could just skewer them and be done with it. Some men also headed toward the carriage. The woman returned to the compartment, and the half-grown boy stood timidly beside it.

When the two big fellows saw the Zhao Camp household troops approaching, they stopped immediately. They didn't shout anything loudly; instead, they lowered their voices and said a couple of sentences. The household troops blocking the way were stunned and looked at each other. Someone ran off toward He Family Village.

"What's going on here?" Even Old Xu was immensely curious.

The man he asked hesitated for a moment, then said in a low voice, "These two say they're from the Feng family, and they also say they want to see Master Jin."

When the news reached He Family Village, Zhao Jin was in the middle of discussions with Liu Yong. Several men from the Internal Guard stood to one side; Nie Hei was among them.

"Master Jin, there is one matter in which we differ from the Feng family. When the Feng family sent assassins, even if we captured them alive and delivered them to the authorities, their Feng family could simply deny everything. The yamen there would certainly side with them. But if we sent men and they were captured alive, that would be huge trouble. Once the Feng family had a reason, they would surely raise a ruckus, from the Prefectural Court and the Circuit Intendant all the way up to the Provincial Governor, possibly even to the imperial court." One man said calmly.