Chapter 651: Justified and Rightful

At this point, Wang Zhaojing could only shake his head. The reasoning that followed had been discussed many times — all the burdens fell upon the farming households. Supporting the officials, supporting the army, the entire operation of the state was funded by this levy. The perks for officials from the imperial court down to the local level also had to come out of it. Layer upon layer pressing down, the common people could not bear the crushing weight, their families bankrupted and ruined. Their land was swallowed up by the gentry and local magnates. The number of people who could pay taxes dwindled, and those farming households not yet bankrupted had to shoulder an ever-heavier burden of taxes and corvée labor. On and on the vicious cycle spun — until not a single person could pay taxes, or until they could no longer endure such exploitation.

And on top of this utterly depraved situation, there was still a great foe like the Jianzhou Jurchens at the border. No one now thought of them as some trifling petty tribe. A tribe that had annihilated an army of over a hundred thousand could hardly be dismissed as a mere skin rash.

Even so, the court officials overseeing the Liao Levy — the levy established to raise military funds against the Jianzhou Jurchens — their first consideration was still to lighten the burden on the wealthy merchants and gentry of Jiangnan. Though those people never carried much of a burden to begin with, the common people who truly suffered were never considered.

As they spoke, both fell silent. Only after Wang Zhaojing changed to a fresh sheet of letter paper did he say in a muffled voice, "Brother, we cannot repeat their mistakes."

"Of course we won't. Watching one mistake after another pass before our eyes — if we still follow and make the same ones, then our brains are broken," Zhao Jin said flatly.

When he looked at the next sheet, Wang Zhaojing froze for a moment, then a bitter smile crept onto his face. Before Zhao Jin could ask, he said to himself, "This time I brought the letter straight over and read it aloud. If I had read through it once beforehand, I wouldn't have made such a fool of myself."

The content on the next part of the letter was very simple: "... The Son of Heaven has released tax silver and palace funds totaling three hundred sixty thousand taels to supply Liaodong..."

Earlier they had said the Son of Heaven cared only for his own household's spending and paid no heed to the greater situation under Heaven, yet this tax silver and palace funds were precisely the silver of the Inner Treasury.

"... Yang Gao imprisoned, sentenced to death. Li Rubai committed suicide..."

This news held no surprise. After such a colossal defeat, the supervising officials, the military commissioner, and the commanding officers had to bear responsibility. Even if Li Rubai had not taken his own life, his fate would still have been imprisonment and a death sentence.

After finishing the letter, both Zhao Jin and Wang Zhaojing felt their spirits sink considerably. Compared to the various measures the court was taking, that great defeat in Liaodong hardly seemed to matter.

By all reason, after such a catastrophic defeat, the court ought to recognize its errors and reform, to rouse itself and strive for strength. Yet every single action they took either left things unchanged or slid toward an even worse and more erroneous direction.

Wang Youshan, being in the capital, surely saw through it all even more clearly. He no longer spoke of being beaten so painfully that one would wake and rally. The words on the letter pages were either indifferent or laced with sarcasm, and this mood was felt very distinctly by Zhao Jin and Wang Zhaojing.

"Brother, what will happen next?"

"Don't concern yourself with what will happen next. It's useless for us to speculate. Just think about what we ourselves should do."

With that brief exchange, neither was willing to continue reading the letter. It was simply too suffocating.

As this matter came to a close, Zhou Xuezhi walked in carrying an account book. The economic foundation of the Zhao Character Camp now rested on the two hubs of Xuzhou and Qingjiangpu, so Ruhui and Zhou Xuezhi took turns being stationed at each location. At present, it was Zhou Xuezhi's turn here in Qingjiangpu.

"Master, the number of guards for the shops and trading firms in Qingjiangpu has been finalized — one thousand five hundred and sixty men in total," Zhou Xuezhi reported.

Qingjiangpu had many wealthy and great merchants, but there were also plenty of small traders. For those storefronts and shops where the managers and clerks together numbered no more than five people, asking them to hire five or ten guards was a joke. Not every business was qualified to hire guards from the Zhao Character Camp.

This screening of qualifications had even stirred a wave of anxiety throughout Qingjiangpu. Everyone feared that those who did not hire guards would later be mistreated or even be unable to keep their shops open. There were even requests from small merchants to jointly hire guards — ten shops hiring ten men was something they could afford — but all such proposals were flatly rejected by the Zhao Character Camp.

"I'll speak, you write. Send someone with a letter to Dasheng. Tell him to put in a few hard days' work. Of these one thousand five hundred and sixty men, one third are to come from the best performers in the Xuzhou Militia, one third from the able-bodied young men of Suzhou and Kong Family Village, and one third from the able-bodied young men over at Wild Grass Beach. Once the men are selected, bring them to Qingjiangpu," Zhao Jin said. Wang Zhaojing spread out a sheet of letter paper and began to record.

Without pausing, Zhao Jin continued speaking to Zhou Xuezhi: "These men coming over must be divided into several locations, no more than three hundred men per location. There must be one detachment at the carting firm, one at the great market, one at the canal docks. There must also be one at the area where the warehouses are concentrated, and one at the place where the men of the rivers and lakes gather. Find these locations as quickly as possible. Build them according to the specifications of the freight yard barracks inside Xuzhou city. Pay at market rates. For now, don't give anyone grounds to accuse us of throwing our weight around."

Zhou Xuezhi hastily acknowledged the order. Wang Zhaojing, however, lifted his head from his notes and said, "Brother, why not have these thousand-plus men supplied and maintained locally by Qingjiangpu? Since they are nominally their guards, it's only right and proper for them to provide the funds and provisions. The Zhao Character Camp has already done everything it should. Why be so courteous with them on a matter like this?"

"It's not courtesy. It's simply not worth it. Sooner or later we will be collecting a tax levy in Qingjiangpu. When that time comes, we'll set the terms openly and righteously, and then we'll see who dares refuse to pay. As for the current arrangement, if we get entangled with them now, there will inevitably be trouble later, and it won't be convenient to use the men," Zhao Jin replied.

Taking a percentage and collecting taxes in Qingjiangpu — the silver and coin gathered would still be spent on the retainers and militia of the Zhao Character Camp. Gathering the silver first into the hands of the Zhao Character Camp and then disbursing it, versus having the merchants spend the money directly on the same purpose — in theory it was the same, but whether or not this process existed made an enormous difference.

A name may be intangible, yet at certain times, only when the name holds up will people be sincerely convinced and willingly submit.

All around Qingjiangpu, people were still wondering why there had been no follow-up on the matter of applying for guards. They had no idea that, with the delivery of letters, every estate within the Zhao Character Camp system and the Xuzhou Militia units stationed in various places were already boiling with excitement. Though there had been no explicit announcement, concentrating and garrisoning at Qingjiangpu was the prelude to becoming a retainer regiment. Whoever was chosen would be among this batch of retainers.

Niu Jinbao, inside the Cloud Mountain Martial Hall, knew nothing of what was happening outside. Shi Manqiang kept the Second Regiment under strict discipline. Apart from normal duty rotations, the retainers were not permitted to go out. Only with such strict control could the influence of Qingjiangpu's dazzling world of pleasures on the retainers be minimized as much as possible.

Niu Jinbao was here, and in every respect his life was no different from that of an ordinary retainer. Every day he ate and slept on a set schedule. Every day he followed the drill and foot training. Niu Jinbao showed no sign of objection. He did everything willingly, not finding it the least bit tedious.

Living in the camp, Niu Jinbao was well aware that he was being placed under a form of house arrest. He had no thought of escaping, because he knew he could not get away. Those retainers, more than ten years younger than him, all looked ordinary. Few of them had outstanding martial skills. In single combat, or even if several came at him at once, none were a match for Niu Jinbao. Even those "Company Commanders" and "Squad Commanders" whom everyone respected, even that "Regiment Commander" — Niu Jinbao did not hold any of them in high regard.

Yet Niu Jinbao also knew that if it truly came to a fight, once this Zhao Character Camp formed up in battle array the way they did in daily training, row after row of long spears thrusting forward — no matter how high his martial skill, he could not withstand it. If archers were added to the mix, then death was certain.

Back when he was learning martial arts, he had heard people say that fighting in the world of the rivers and lakes and fighting on the battlefield were not the same thing. No matter how great your ability, it was useless amid thousands of troops and horses. Not only did the men of the garrison battalions say this, even the masters at Shaolin Temple taught the same. Deep in his heart, Niu Jinbao had never been convinced of this. Especially after he had gone out to travel and seen with his own eyes the training and formations of local troops, he felt even more so. Those ragtag, worthless sorts — he could charge in with his axe and short blade and cut them down like melons and vegetables.

But after spending a few days inside the Zhao Character Camp's encampment, Niu Jinbao understood the truth of those words from years past. Before a battle formation like this, a man was truly like a small boat upon raging waves and towering swells — liable to be smashed to pieces at any moment.

When he had accepted the recruitment, Niu Jinbao had appeared calm on the surface, but in his heart he had harbored some pride in his martial skill, hoping to secure better treatment for himself. But now, seeing the true strength of the Zhao Character Camp, all such thoughts had vanished. He thought of how his elderly mother was living well in Xuzhou, and how he himself had escaped a death sentence. With things as they were, he ought to be content.

Just as Niu Jinbao was preparing to settle down peaceably in the Zhao Character Camp's retainer regiment, a dark, lean man arrived with four retainers and led him out of the monotonous encampment.

That dark, lean man had a very strange way of walking. His arms barely swung, his palms never straying far from his waist, and his legs moved somewhat stiffly, as if shackles were bound around his ankles. Niu Jinbao, hemmed in by the four retainers, noticed these details. He knew that the man in front of him was no slouch in a fight. If he himself made any sudden move, the first to react would not be the few nervous young retainers at his side, but this gaunt man ahead of him. That man likely had throwing knives at his waist...

The walk from the encampment to the destination was not far. When they reached the door, the four retainers flanking him stopped. The dark, lean man made a gesture of invitation and said, "Master Jin is waiting for you inside."

Once Niu Jinbao stepped forward, the dark, lean man fell in behind him. Niu Jinbao's shoulders twitched — an unconscious reaction. Whenever a threat was at his back, Niu Jinbao always felt uneasy. He walked a few steps before he managed to steady his nerves with some effort.

Before returning to Xuzhou, Niu Jinbao had not known there was anything called the Zhao Character Camp. But by now he had learned quite a lot. He had never imagined that a few young men not yet twenty years old could build such a vast enterprise. Beyond that, there were many other things that surprised him. From what he had observed over these years, anyone with a substantial estate and enterprise never treated themselves shabbily. They might not live in brocade and jade, but they would always have the dignity their station deserved. Yet Zhao Jin and these other young men — at an age when they should be restless and vain — sought no luxuries. Everything about them was utterly simple.

In this age, when the prevailing custom favored ostentation and extravagance — even temples and Daoist abbeys were no exception — Niu Jinbao could no longer remember when he had last seen people who lived so frugally, especially young men of such immense wealth.

Qingjiangpu was one of the most flourishing and prosperous places under Heaven, yet they lived in such a plain, simple compound. Apart from keeping out the wind and rain and being tightly guarded, there was nothing remarkable about it. What exactly were Zhao Jin and his few brothers after?

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