Chapter 705: Carriages Blocking the Road

Ma Chonghao nodded repeatedly as he listened. Shi Ping'ao continued, "Once we've subdued the people here in Qingjiangpu, word will naturally spread in all directions. When that happens, even that traitor Zhao will be terrified and lose his nerve."

"Master Shi, your Wolf Mountain has dealt with the rebel Zhao Jin quite a bit. How confident are you in this operation, and what do you think needs to be done?" Ma Chonghao asked, just as directly.

Shi Ping'ao's face showed some embarrassment. He immediately grasped the crux of the matter — this Nanjing Embroidered Uniform Guard Assistant Commander opposite him had likely already learned about the battle at the Weedy Flats and the matter of the captives being ransomed.

But since the other party wasn't bringing it up, Shi Ping'ao naturally wouldn't lay it bare either. He merely paused in thought for a moment, then spoke: "This student believes our chances are a full ten out of ten!"

"That much confidence?" Ma Chonghao was taken aback. When he'd first met Shi Ping'ao, he'd seen disappointment and dejection — the taste of being humiliated in Qingjiangpu was hardly pleasant. He'd never expected such confidence.

Shi Ping'ao nodded heavily and said in a solemn voice, "Don't be fooled by how brazenly that arch-criminal Zhao Jin acts. He still fears the imperial court, still dreads the law. Otherwise, he wouldn't be so cautious in everything, always needing some pretext he can bluff his way through, constantly borrowing leverage from official circles and finding some specious excuse. No matter how big a scoundrel like this grows, in his heart he still knows the dignity and authority of the court. He may be arrogant and reckless in ordinary times, but if we openly declare him a rebel and Your Excellency's Embroidered Guard cavalry rides out in force to arrest him, he'll surely lose his nerve, and all his fair-weather friends and cronies will scatter like smoke!"

"Exactly so!" Ma Chonghao felt he had found a kindred spirit.

Ma Chonghao had originally been somewhat inclined to watch and laugh at their predicament, but he hadn't expected the other man's analysis to be so penetrating. His impression improved greatly in an instant, and he said with a smile, "Ever since I arrived in the Southern Metropolitan Region, I've seen everyone north of the river, inside and out, living in fear of Zhao Jin. I found it nothing but laughable and pathetic. How could a mere local tyrant and bully grow so rampant? It's nothing more than having a bit of martial courage and knowing how to collude with officials, constantly exploiting every loophole!"

"Your Excellency speaks truly."

"Men like Zhao Jin are countless across the realm. He has a few thousand able-bodied men, but the Southern Metropolitan Region alone has tens of thousands of government troops, and the whole realm has over a million soldiers. He occupies only a patch of rural land within a single subprefecture, yet there are countless places in the Great Ming richer than Xuzhou. What does he even amount to? The only reason he's gotten this far is that no one has paid him any mind, no one has taken him seriously. This time, when we march out and array our forces in imposing formation, letting him witness the majesty of the imperial court, he'll surrender and submit without a fight." Ma Chonghao spoke with some agitation.

Shi Ping'ao cupped his hands in a solemn, formal salute and said with gravity, "Your Excellency, what we are doing is an upright and honorable undertaking. Therefore, we cannot show any timidity here in Qingjiangpu. One step back is ten thousand steps back."

Ma Chonghao had said these same things to Xu Tiebiao. Although the matter of Wolf Mountain's Vice General Lu Quanyou sending men to sneak ahead and try to grab an advantage first was laughable, Xu Tiebiao agreed with what Shi Ping'ao had said.

"All those so-called Heavenly Kings and Buddha Mothers — when the uproar starts, they claim tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands. But the moment the imperial army arrives, they're slaughtered to the last man. Everything under heaven depends on whether the court takes it seriously or not. A mere local tyrant — what does he count for in the face of the imperial army!"

"Though our force numbers less than two thousand, they are all cavalry. These men and horses can't maneuver freely in Jiangnan, but once we head north, we can rampage at will. The land around Xuzhou is flat and open. If we truly charge, never mind a few thousand militia — even tens of thousands of government infantry, our cavalry could slaughter them to the last man!"

After the two forces rendezvoused, they did not move out immediately. Each rested, and the leading commanders met one another. Meanwhile, the informants Ma Chonghao had planted in Qingjiangpu kept sending messages back.

"Utterly lawless! What difference is there between these powerful merchants and Zhao Jin!" Ma Chonghao was furious.

Qingjiangpu had no directly governing yamen, so the top-tier great merchants formed their own establishment. In practice, they jointly managed this flourishing city together with the Revenue Ministry branch office, the Ever-Full Granary, and the Canal Transport Administration. What they did here was essentially the same as what Zhao Jin did in Xuzhou, only they relied less on armed force.

Zhao Jin had subdued them by force and won them over with wealth and influence. They submitted to Zhao Jin, but once the Zhao camp withdrew back to Xuzhou, they acted exactly as Zhao Jin had.

In the vast Qingjiangpu, the imperial court and local authorities could not reach in. The only ones who called the shots were these powerful merchants.

Their backing was unfathomably deep, with great figures in both the northern and southern capitals as their patrons. They never cared about local officials in the first place, much less a warrantless arrest like this. Wolf Mountain's Vice General Lu Quanyou had thought he could bluff them and extort some silver — naturally, he did not get his wish.

Your words carry no proof — why should I pay you any mind? Your Wolf Mountain is stuck in some remote corner, while we are connected in all directions. Any stir in the court reaches us here even faster than it reaches Shanxi or Henan. You say we are colluding with rebels? Produce the official writ. Otherwise, can you bear the charge of falsely accusing law-abiding citizens?

In the past, when these saber-wielding, horse-riding soldiers came, the jianghu fighters of Qingjiangpu couldn't hold them off. To guard against these rough men going berserk and committing violence, everyone would more or less have to produce some silver to placate them. But now they had a guard force of nearly two thousand men in their hands. You dare make a move? If you dare, and we hold you off, your next step is rebellion. That Wolf Mountain Vice General's rank won't save you — your entire clan will be implicated and executed!

What's more, the Shanyang Garrison Commander had long since been fattened up and bought off by the Qingjiangpu establishment. At a critical moment, those troops would genuinely defend their home territory. Squeezed from inside and out like this, how could Lu Quanyou's four hundred personal guards dare to act? Being sent away in utter disgrace was inevitable.

"Sir Ma, Sir Xu, this is actually a good thing. It shows that Zhao Jin fled in such haste that he didn't even have time to withdraw his own followers, who were naturally taken in by those merchants with ulterior motives. Though this place is troublesome, Xuzhou will be that much simpler." Shi Ping'ao's analysis was very reasonable.

The next day, Ma Chonghao, accompanied by his trusted aides and the constables from the Embroidered Uniform Guard, all in full regalia and led by a guide, rode on horseback toward the Qingjiang Great Market.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard's full regalia did not mean wearing armor, but rather donning the complete Flying Fish uniform and the like. These garments were brilliantly colored and gorgeously patterned — they were truly eye-catching on the streets, let alone in a procession of over a hundred men.

When these men appeared on the road, they drew considerable attention. Even in a bustling, well-connected place like Qingjiangpu, not everyone recognized the Embroidered Uniform Guard, but far more people could identify them here than elsewhere.

Once they realized these were the famously dreaded Embroidered Uniform Guard — the constables and cavalry — the passersby clearly kept their distance, and their eyes held much more fear. Even the Nanjing Embroidered Uniform Guard was quite accustomed to this kind of fear. Ma Chonghao merely kept a stern face and rode at the very front.

At first it was fine, but the further they went, the more people followed. No one dared get close, but they trailed at a distance to watch the excitement.

As they gradually neared the Qingjiang Great Market, the crowd following to watch the spectacle grew larger and larger. Some people, upon seeing the Embroidered Uniform Guard, turned and ran at once.

Ma Chonghao could guess where such people came from — they were nothing more than informants for the powerful merchants or even remnants of the Zhao camp, rushing back to report the news at the sight of this.

"Is this still the Great Ming's sovereign soil!" Ma Chonghao cursed through gritted teeth, but he did not urge his horse forward. He continued on at the same unhurried pace.

"Commandant, the Qingjiang Great Market lies just ahead!" the guide reported.

By the time these words were spoken, the mounted column of over a hundred riders could advance no further. The originally bustling streets of Qingjiangpu seemed to have grown much quieter, and the broad, orderly thoroughfare had become congested.

Quite a few large carts were parked every which way. It was obvious at a glance they had just arrived, because the unyoked oxen and horses stood to one side, each with a feed bag before its muzzle, heads lowered to eat the fodder.

The carters were all beside their vehicles. Some sat on the carts, some stood there, and others were busy tending to the animals. The street was straight, so they naturally saw the splendidly dressed Embroidered Guard cavalry. Each man's reaction was different — some had frightened looks on their faces, some were utterly indifferent, and still others wore expressions of provocation, watching this side coldly.

"Utterly lawless!" Ma Chonghao could hear someone behind him cursing. Under the Great Ming's heaven, the Embroidered Uniform Guard was an identity that inspired fear everywhere. Whenever they appeared, officials and commoners alike had to bow their heads in dread. Yet now, these people had blocked the road — clearly a deliberate act of defiance.

Nanjing Embroidered Uniform Guard Assistant Commander Ma Chonghao did not roar in fury. He merely tilted his head in a signal, and immediately someone spurred his horse forward a few steps, cupped his hands around his mouth, and bellowed, "The Embroidered Uniform Guard is handling a case and arresting rebels! What are you doing blocking the road? Clear off at once!"

Some carters' faces now showed alarm and fear, but they made no move. Instead, they turned to look at one man. This man was in his twenties or thirties, a burly fellow, holding a wooden pole as he turned over fodder, completely ignoring the shouting outside.

"Are you trying to rebel?!" the mounted Embroidered Guard roared again. This kind of shouting followed a set pattern.

At these words, some carters were already about to yoke their animals to the carts, but the moment they moved, they were stopped by stern looks from their companions. The burly man the carters had been looking to also turned his head. His face showed some impatience as he raised his voice and said, "Great lords, our oxen, horses, and carts have just finished hauling. Men and beasts alike are dead tired and can't move for a while. We'll have to trouble Your Lordships to come through on your own. It's not as if the road is impassable!"

Having said this, the burly man lowered his head and went back to work, utterly indifferent to the Embroidered Guard cavalry in their bright uniforms and armor outside.

If they dispersed and wove through, they could of course pass the obstruction of these carts. But doing so would shatter the imposing formation of the Embroidered Guard cavalry column, and without mutual support front and rear, the danger would be too great. And that reply was simply too outrageous. Men who wore this uniform — when had they ever suffered such insolence? The constables behind Ma Chonghao were all accustomed to throwing their weight around; how could they endure this treatment? Some immediately reached for their blades.

Just at that moment, several squads of men were seen hurrying over from the other end of the street, each squad several dozen strong. Every man carried a long pole on his back, the butt end wrapped in cloth. Though these squads had to weave around the carts, they all moved in good order, maintaining formation even when spread apart.

Tomorrow's update should be around 7:30 or 8:00 in the evening. Check back then, everyone.