Chapter 694: Hearts Change

After he finished speaking, this Third Brother Chu pulled a silver ingot from inside his robes and tossed it onto the counter. The shopkeeper hurriedly took it, weighed it on the silver scale, then clipped off broken silver for change according to the current rate. The shopkeeper and the assistants all busied themselves, their smiles and attentiveness undiminished, but inwardly they were all muttering. In the past, when this Third Brother Chu came to buy wine, he was never this arrogant. He would always chat and laugh a few times, and when he handed over the silver, he would place it right in your hand. Now his nose was pointed at the sky.

But no matter how you put it, he was paying for goods, and there was no reason he had to throw in a smiling face too. Everyone understood perfectly well: it was all stirred up by those bastard Embroidered Uniform Guard agents. Day in and day out they talked about the great crime of rebellion and treason, and so the household guards and personal troops of this Assistant Regional Commander's crew were no longer as courteous as before.

During this stretch, some assistants had quit in fear. The shopkeeper didn't stop them. Word had long since come down from above: anyone who wants to leave can leave. With so many people outside waiting for a meal, was there any fear of not finding help?

But those who left would have to come back before long. There was no helping it. In Xuzhou now, aside from the Zhao Battalion's enterprises, where else was there work? The local gentry and wealthy households weren't even willing to hire tenant farmers anymore. Refugees fleeing from all over would work hard just for a mouthful of food. Why use the locals, who cost so much? But leaving was easy; coming back wasn't so simple. Your position had been taken by someone else, and no one was going to save a rice bowl just for you. Besides, everyone's wages had gone up...

"Thirsty, thirsty. We bought so much, and the shopkeeper still isn't treating us!" Several of the Assistant Regional Commander's household guards who had followed Third Brother Chu were clamoring noisily.

This was actually one of the winery's rules. When someone came to give you business, you always had to offer a little benefit, like letting them drink a few cups of wine for free. The Assistant Regional Commander's personal troops and household guards were all willing to come buy wine precisely so they could drink a few free cups of the strong liquor.

It was just that Hanjing Famous Liquor was expensive, so they wouldn't let you drink too much for free, and they wouldn't offer it unless you asked. But now that these men had spoken, they naturally wouldn't be slighted. An assistant came over grinning, carrying a wooden tray. On it were five small bowls filled to the brim with wine, and a dish of soybeans boiled in meat broth.

At the sight of the wine, even Third Brother Chu picked up a bowl. Eating the beans boiled in meat broth, they drank it down sip by sip. After they finished, everyone let out a satisfied breath. One man, still longing for more, said, "Fine wine. Every time I drink it, I can never get enough. It's just the price is too steep. We fellows draw full pay, but we still never get to drink our fill."

"Shopkeeper, another cup, another cup!" someone shouted out.

This scene played out every time they came to buy wine, and the shopkeeper, as usual, said with a smile, "Our humble shop sells this wine at a high price. Giving away one cup already breaks the rules. If we give away more, the accounts won't balance, and the owner will come down and lay blame."

This exchange had happened many times. On those many occasions, after the shopkeeper finished speaking, the Assistant Regional Commander's personal guards buying the wine would curse and laugh a few times, and then just leave.

But this time was different. One personal guard persisted relentlessly, saying, "Another cup, another cup."

The shopkeeper was somewhat troubled. The Zhao Battalion valued rules above all, and inventory checks and account audits were strict. If he broke the rules, he could easily be targeted. He smiled apologetically and explained once more, thinking to himself that if the other party insisted again, he would just pay for a cup out of his own wages. After all, they were regular customers.

Unexpectedly, after he explained once more, that personal guard directly turned hostile. He grabbed the wooden tray from the wine table and suddenly hurled it at the shopkeeper, pointing and cursing, "How much silver has your lord spent here, and you won't even give me one more cup of wine? Damn it, you don't know when you're being given face. Don't go thinking you can run wild just because you've got Zhao Jin backing you. That brat's whole family is about to be exterminated and his nine clans executed. What the hell are you still strutting around for!"

As the wooden tray flew at him, the shopkeeper instinctively dodged to the side. The tray smashed into a jar. This man was, after all, a personal guard by background, and his hand strength was considerable. He shattered the jar, and then the wine jars stacked on top of it came tumbling down as well. The shopkeeper and the assistants behind him scrambled frantically to catch them, but in the end, one still wasn't caught and smashed to pieces on the ground. The entire winery was filled with the thick aroma of wine.

The faces of the shopkeeper and assistants in the winery all changed. The shopkeeper who had greeted the customers first looked at Third Brother Chu. He was the petty officer of this group, and it was said his uncle was the Company Commander leading the Assistant Regional Commander's personal troops, a man of no low status. Yet even after this incident, he did nothing to rein them in.

Third Brother Chu looked at that personal guard, frowned slightly, and then scolded him, saying, "What nonsense are you stirring up, you brat? Throwing a fit over a bowl of wine?"

But halfway through, his tone shifted. He turned to the shopkeeper and smiled, saying, "Wouldn't you say this wine was wasted? If you'd just given it to us brothers to drink, none of this trouble would have happened. Sorry about today."

With that half-hearted remark, the several Assistant Regional Commander's personal guards who had come along all relaxed completely and headed for the door, laughing and joking. But at this, the shopkeeper wasn't going to let it go. Two jars of wine, sixty jin, nearly ten taels of silver in value—how much was a year's wages? Seeing them walking out, he hurried around the counter and chased after them. Just as they were about to step out the door, he grabbed Third Brother Chu's clothes and shouted, "You smashed two jars of wine, you have to pay..."

He had only gotten halfway when Third Brother Chu turned, shook him off, and swung a slap across his face. The shopkeeper was stunned on the spot. Third Brother Chu followed up directly with a kick, sending him sprawling to the ground.

The winery shopkeeper was beaten so badly he couldn't catch his breath. Sitting on the ground, he pointed at the group of Assistant Regional Commander's personal guards and said haltingly, "... You... you... you dare hit people..."

Third Brother Chu spat on the ground, frowned, and said, "So what if I hit you? You dogs, worse than beasts, relying on some thug to run wild without fear of law or heaven. And now you still don't know enough to keep your heads down. In the old days, if your lord cut you down with a blade, who would dare say a word!"

The assistants, who had been stirred to indignation, had all stepped out from behind the counter, but seeing such brutal and unreasonable personal guards, none of them dared to move. The one who had thrown the wooden tray earlier turned and walked back. He walked up to the winery assistants, who only retreated. This personal guard kept pounding his fist against the chest of the assistant at the very front, a savage grin on his face as he said, "What? You want to fight? You want to join Zhao Jin in rebellion too?"

The moment the word "rebellion" was spoken, the assistants all froze in their movements. The grin on that personal guard's face grew even wider. He flipped his hand and delivered a slap. The assistant clutched his face but didn't dare move. The personal guard laughed loudly and said, "Did you really think that Zhao Jin of yours had three heads and six arms? Get out of my way! Your lord hasn't drunk his fill yet!"

Pushing aside the assistants who dared not move, that personal guard walked out again hugging a jar of wine. Seeing there was profit to be made, the other men also came forward, laughing and joking, each one carrying off a jar of wine. One even muttered, "This little cart can't hold that much. Next time we come, we'll haul off a few more jars."

What infuriated everyone in the winery beyond measure was that while carrying the jars, these Assistant Regional Commander's personal guards also pretended to accidentally smash a few more. Wine flowed across the shop floor, leaving the place a complete mess. Several customers who had wanted to come in and buy wine were all frightened away.

Watching that group swagger off, someone came forward to help the shopkeeper to his feet. Though some had been struck and others bullied, for a moment everyone just felt lost, unsure of what to do. The shopkeeper finally recovered enough to say weakly, "Quickly, go to the yamen and tell them."

"Little Wang already ran over!" someone in the crowd answered.

Everyone remained silent and lost. After a while, someone finally muttered quietly, "Who knows if it'll even do any good."

Third Brother Chu and his group were in high spirits on the road. Ever since the Zhao Battalion had risen to power, the Xuzhou Assistant Regional Commander's side had been crushed so hard they could barely breathe. Today, they had finally held their heads high and puffed out their chests.

"When we get back, we can't go blabbing everywhere. Just call together our own people, grab whatever we can get our hands on. We'll gain face and profit!"

"I always said this Zhao Jin was just putting on a tough front. The Embroidered Uniform Guard have sent their men, and he's still pretending nothing's happening. He's nothing but a paper tiger—poke it and it tears. Today, we brothers tore through that paper!"

They talked over one another, flattering each other. They had only walked about three streets when they heard the rapid sound of footsteps chasing after them, and then the pedestrians on the road scattered in a panicked rush. Before they could react, both ends of the main road were blocked with people. The shops and houses along the roadside were all hurriedly closing their doors and shutting up for the day.

At both intersections stood sturdy men in coarse cloth robes, holding long spears, staring fixedly at Third Brother Chu's group. The arrogance and swagger of the group instantly vanished. One man sucked in a breath of cold air and said, "They actually sent the militia!"

"He really has the guts, daring to send the militia here. Isn't he afraid of confirming the charge of rebellion?" someone murmured.

Inside the city of Xuzhou, apart from one company of household guards, there were also four hundred Xuzhou militia. These men were officially registered as guards for the winery and the Yunshan Trading Company.

"In broad daylight, what do you think you're doing? Trying to kill officials and rebel?" Third Brother Chu's face was actually rather expressionless. He took a step forward and shouted, but up close, one could hear the tremor in his voice.

The charge of "rebellion" could frighten the winery assistants and the shopkeeper, but it couldn't frighten these militia. They had come to Xuzhou from all over, taken in after fighting and killing. They were already abandoned subjects of the Great Ming. In the Zhao Battalion's manors and villages, they lived by the Zhao Battalion's rules and laws, were drilled and trained under the Zhao Battalion's supervision, and ate the Zhao Battalion's provisions. In their hearts, there was no such thing as the emperor's law.

The militia simply stared in silence at the five men in the middle of the road, making no further move. This posture made the five Assistant Regional Commander's personal guards tense on one hand, yet on the other hand, they felt they had some backing. Even so, they didn't dare take another step forward, terrified that the slightest misstep would get them poked full of holes by those long spears.

The silence didn't last long before the sound of horse hooves was heard again. A few shouts came from outside, and the militia at the eastern intersection parted to open a path. Six men dressed as constables walked over. The one in the lead was young, tall and thin. Constables usually just carried a saber or an iron ruler for show, but this one was genuinely bearing a heavy, thick-backed executioner's blade on his back, which was completely disproportionate to his build.

Nowadays, anyone of any standing in Xuzhou City recognized this constable. He was a distant nephew of Zhao Zhentang, named Zhao Shiyi, and he managed the affairs of the prefectural yamen by proxy.

Zhao Shiyi walked up to these several Assistant Regional Commander's personal guards with a dark face and asked, "You hit people, smashed wine jars, and stole goods?"

"I..." Third Brother Chu got out one word, then stiffened his neck and said stubbornly, "What can't be done when dealing with rebels..."

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