Chapter 559

That Zhang Yunxian, Dragon Head of the Shandong Cart Gang, looked every bit the wealthy merchant, always smiling and genial to everyone, but his ruthlessness and cruelty were no less than any desperado's.

The moment Wang Dagang showed his face, he sent men after him, with orders to kill on sight. When the cart business opened, Zhang Yunxian first let local thugs and riffraff go cause trouble, then had familiar bailiffs waiting outside the city — if the arson succeeded at night, they'd clean up the aftermath; if it failed, they'd invoke the law.

As for that thug whose hands and feet were broken, the Cart Gang couldn't be bothered to keep him alive, so they killed him outright and framed Cloud Mountain Cart Company for it, sending the bailiffs in to hit them hard. Once tangled in a murder case, even if you didn't die in the yamen you'd be flayed alive — and with connections everywhere high and low, how could you possibly not die?

Zhang Yunxian hadn't expected this outcome. Thugs getting their hands and feet broken was nothing unusual — that sort bullies the weak and fears the strong, bound to meet misfortune against a tough opponent. But the bailiffs coming back with broken arms and faces covered in blood — that was truly alarming.

The Cart Gang had already assembled over three hundred men, ready to strike at any moment, but now they dared not act rashly. Zhang Yunxian told everyone to wait while he hurriedly took a carriage to see Granary Commissioner Lian Ping'an.

It was still before the end of the first month, and the northern canal route wasn't open yet. Commissioner Lian didn't go to the Ever-Full Granary to work; he spent his days at home singing opera and enjoying himself. His household opera troupe was famous throughout Qingjiangpu — thirty young performers, all beautiful women, bought and gifted by grain merchants at great expense from Suzhou and Hangzhou.

Though Zhang Yunxian commanded absolute obedience in the Cart Gang, at the gates of Lian Ping'an's mansion his posture was exceedingly low. He gave a very generous gate fee and asked the doorman to announce him.

Before long, Zhang Yunxian was ushered in. Lian Ping'an was also a huge fat man, dressed in a plain-colored Daoist robe, wearing no rings or jade pendants. At Lian Ping'an's level of wealth, there was no need to show off through clothing and accessories — everyone knew he was rich. Only the fatness was beyond help; the grand tutor chair he sat in was specially widened and enlarged. He listened to Zhang Yunxian recount what had happened, brow furrowed.

"That Dagang, or whatever his name is — why hasn't this bedbug been swatted dead yet?" Lian Ping'an asked coldly.

Zhang Yunxian's heart lurched. He called himself Dragon Head, but this Lian Ping'an was the man who truly held sway in Qingjiangpu. Zhang Yunxian hurriedly explained, "This time there's something strange about it. That Wang Dagang has hired many tough men — they even dared to strike the bailiffs, and wounded them badly. Your son dared not act rashly, fearing he might stir up some trouble, so he came to ask his godfather for guidance."

Lian Ping'an casually smashed a fine porcelain teacup to the floor and cursed, his face dark: "Is this rebellion?"

Fat as he was, Commissioner Lian acted with sharp decisiveness. After smashing the teacup, he immediately ordered a sedan chair prepared and went straight to the Revenue Bureau sub-office yamen.

No one believed there could be real rebels in these peaceful times. If the Cloud Mountain Cart Company people were acting so brazenly, they must have some official backing. There were only three officials in the Qingjiangpu area — the Revenue Bureau Vice Director, the Shanyang Garrison Commander, and himself, the Granary Commissioner. He had to get to the bottom of this.

Zhang Yunxian, who had come by carriage, quickly switched to a horse and followed along like an attendant. What were so-called jianghu heroes? Before officialdom, they were less than ants. In his heart, he too was steeling himself — if the Cloud Mountain Cart Company had hired some famous fighters from the martial world, this time he would exterminate them completely!

Though their official ranks differed considerably, the Vice Director knew full well the weight this Commissioner Lian carried. The moment he heard Lian sought an audience, he hurriedly had him shown in.

After a few pleasantries, the topic of Cloud Mountain Cart Company came up. Commissioner Lian asked very directly: if this was connected to the Vice Director, then they should talk it over; if not, then there was no issue.

"Oh? You bring this up today as well. The day before yesterday, Censor Wang of Xuzhou sent his young master to deliver a visiting card, saying he wished to start a cart business in our Qingjiangpu and asking me to look after it a bit?"

"Censor Wang? Which one?" To hold his position securely, Lian Ping'an only needed to curry favor with his own patron; paying attention to others was of little use, so he was not very familiar with the roster of court remonstrators and upright officials.

"That would be Censor Wang Youshan, who returned to the capital and was reinstated the year before last. He's a favorite in the Censorate, backed by major figures of the Qi faction, and I hear he's sworn brothers with someone in the palace." The Vice Director dealt with Lian Ping'an often and explained in considerable detail.

Lian Ping'an wasn't familiar with the names of upright officials, but he understood the significance of the connections the Vice Director described. His expression immediately soured. The Vice Director, however, paid little mind and simply continued on his own: "That Wang Zhaojing is truly an elegant young gentleman. If he were in the capital or Jiangnan, he'd be widely renowned. Yet here he is, going into business. They say he's also delivering a card over in the county seat — have you received one?"

"What connection does Master Li have with Censor Wang?"

"What connection? But when the card arrives, one must still extend some courtesy."

After learning this news, Lian Ping'an forced a smile and hastily took his leave.

The moment he stepped out the main gate, before Zhang Yunxian could approach to ask questions, Lian Ping'an waved over another attendant, gave a few instructions, and the attendant galloped off toward Shanyang County at full speed.

"Godfather..."

"We'll talk back at home."

Lian Ping'an, his expression rather grim, said only that one line. After speaking, he boarded his sedan chair, and the entire way back to the Lian residence passed in silence. Sitting in the main hall, Lian Ping'an closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them and gave an order: "Call Gao Mabian here."

The household servant received the order and hurried out to summon him. Zhang Yunxian, standing to the side, saw his expression darken considerably. This Gao Mabian was the leader of the Henan Cart Gang, and he too had been currying favor with Lian Ping'an very aggressively — it was said that before the new year, he had also kowtowed and acknowledged Lian as his godfather, and had even sent several women to the household. In the future, he would likely try to steal the Shandong Cart Gang's business.

The gang leader and Dragon Head who strutted so imposingly across Qingjiangpu was, before a mere rank-nine Granary Commissioner, no different from a servant — summoned at will and dismissed at will — yet he still had to respond with a smiling face.

Before long, Gao Mabian, in his early fifties, entered the room. He was a tall, thin, bald man. The moment he came in, he dropped to his knees and kowtowed, asking respectfully, "What does the Great Master require of this humble one?"

"Just wait." Lian Ping'an didn't even lift his eyelids, merely sitting there resting with his eyes closed.

Gao Mabian cheerfully agreed and rose to stand to one side. He had seen Zhang Yunxian standing there the moment he entered, but only now remembered to greet him — and even nodded with a smile.

Zhang Yunxian kept a sullen face and said nothing. The two men stood there in silence. Before Lian Ping'an, they didn't even have the right to sit.

As Granary Commissioner, he was essentially the hub for the "deductions" and "losses at sea" of tribute grain on the canal. Those benefits converged at the Ever-Full Granary and the surrounding warehouses, then were shipped out for trade, and the gold, silver, and profits were distributed to all parties. Beyond what he earned himself, he also had to pay tribute to the major patrons behind him. Though these were routine dealings, they carried enormous risk.

Therefore, every aspect related to the inflow and outflow of tribute grain had to be grasped firmly in this Granary Commissioner's hands. Just as with the Cart Gang in the beginning — once you had enough men, you naturally had to seize control of the jianghu business. This Granary Commissioner had to control water and land transport, distribution and storage, as well as guards and watchmen. Over time, he had grasped the entire jianghu of Qingjiangpu in his hands.

Trafficking salt and contraband by water and land, running brothels and gambling dens, trafficking people, even murder and robbery, fencing stolen goods and silencing witnesses — these jianghu dealings, legal and illegal alike, were all violent, lucrative enterprises. By controlling the jianghu, he controlled all of this as well. No one ever complained about having too much silver.

Zhang Yunxian understood perfectly well who the true master of the Cart Gang was, and the man across from him, Gao Mabian, surely knew who really owned the operation under his command too. On the east bank of the canal in Qingjiangpu, there had been a band of over a hundred salt smugglers — fierce, belligerent, and refusing to submit. With just a casual order from Commissioner Lian, that band of salt outlaws was utterly annihilated by the various factions of Qingjiangpu swarming them together. Not even their families were spared — a miserable end.

After witnessing that, Zhang Yunxian abandoned certain petty notions of his own. This Wang Dagang, leading independent carters out to make a living, was naturally something Commissioner Lian could not permit. Without waiting for orders, Zhang Yunxian took his men and acted on his own, with Gao Mabian secretly assisting as well. Afterward, Lian Ping'an praised him. On one hand, Zhang Yunxian was pleased to have earned favor; on the other, he felt even more awe and fear — if Lian Ping'an hadn't planted his own people by Zhang Yunxian's side, how could he have known so clearly?

So the moment he suffered a setback, he immediately came to seek help, terrified that if he came late, Lian Ping'an might form other ideas — and then not only would Wang Dagang be impossible to suppress, but he himself would suffer along with it.

Zhang Yunxian was long accustomed to a life of ease. Standing for so long without sitting was truly unbearable; sweat gradually beaded on his face. Gao Mabian, however, endured it well. Zhang Yunxian had always been wary of this rival leader. This Gao Mabian was a founding elder and meritorious veteran of the Henan Cart Gang — the youngest at the time. He had outlasted the old gang leader's death; the old leader's son took over but, within days, got drunk and drowned in the canal. Then this Gao Mabian rose to power. Now the Henan Cart Gang was said to be deeply entangled in the private salt trade and was also trying to seize the tribute grain transport business.

As rivals, Zhang Yunxian naturally wanted to use Lian Ping'an's power to crush the Henan Cart Gang. But Zhang Yunxian also knew that Lian Ping'an wanted to maintain balance and would not allow one faction to dominate alone.

Thoughts churned chaotically in his mind while his legs grew increasingly numb and sore, sweat pouring more and more. Just as he was about to collapse, hurried footsteps sounded outside — the household servant who had gone to Shanyang County had returned.

"Master, both the Prefect and the Magistrate received Wang Youshan's card. This humble one also made inquiries and confirmed — neither household has any particular connection to Wang Youshan."

The servant was drenched in sweat and panting heavily, clearly exhausted from the galloping journey. After hearing this report, Lian Ping'an, who had been sitting with narrowed eyes, opened them and spoke coldly: "How many men can each of your two families muster? Don't hold back — tell me exactly how many!"

Who would dare hold back? Zhang Yunxian immediately spoke first: "This humble one has five to six hundred who can fight. If you need numbers to swell the ranks, we can pull out two thousand."

"This humble one has seven hundred stout fellows who can fight and kill. If you need numbers to swell the ranks, fully three thousand!" Gao Mabian followed closely.

It's the end of the month — if you have monthly tickets, please cast them for Great Ming Wufu!