Chapter 726: A Grand Gamble

"This isn't humiliating us — it's humiliating the dignity of the law, humiliating my status as Assistant Commander of the Brocade Guard, humiliating the Vice General of Wolf Mountain. What does it have to do with us? A man of Zhao Jin's grand vision and strategy wouldn't waste his time on such pointless theatrics."

Ma Chonghao's words made sense. Shi Ping'ao stood there stunned for a long moment, then burst into tears again: "My poor family..."

"Cry my ass! If Zhao Jin actually used us, would Lu Quanyou dare touch your family? He'd have to deliver them here obediently!" Ma Chonghao was losing patience.

The household guard watching over them had been extremely impatient at first, thinking these two kneeling men couldn't even behave themselves. But the more Ma Chonghao spoke, the more astonished the guard became — this man actually had a brain.

By now, there was hardly anyone left outside the great tent. Household guards of the Zhao Camp, their expressions stern, stood with weapons in hand, guarding the area in tight, overlapping rings — security was impenetrable.

Boom-boom! The drums sounded, and the noisy, chaotic hall inside and out instantly fell silent. Some guests couldn't help but find it amusing — this lord had actually turned a banquet into something resembling a military inspection. He truly had no idea how to enjoy himself.

This banquet was supposedly held to congratulate Zhao Jin on the birth of his child, yet from start to finish, the baby was never brought out for everyone to see and receive flattering words. Even Zhao Jin's family members did not appear. Only Zhao Jin and a few of his brothers were present.

As the drums sounded, Zhao Jin walked in from the rear of the inn. Chen Sheng, Wang Zhaojing, Shi Manqiang, Dong Bingfeng, Ji Xiang, Liu Yong, Cao Ruhui, and Zhou Xuezhi all walked in together.

Those familiar with the Zhao Camp often knew that the Internal Guard had a captain surnamed Lei, also a childhood companion who had grown up with Zhao Jin. But he rarely appeared before others, always staying in the shadows. Everyone was thoroughly familiar with the origins and backgrounds of the others — it was no exaggeration to say they could recite them like family heirlooms. This time, however, there was an unfamiliar face. Judging by his attire, bearing, and demeanor, he was clearly a young master from a prominent aristocratic family of a great city. He looked slightly older than Zhao Jin and the others, but only by a narrow margin.

This young man held a folding fan, out of season for the time of year, gently waving it with a smile. He had the air of someone quite pleased with himself. Everyone was thoroughly puzzled, wondering what exalted figure this might be.

At the very head of the great hall, only a single table had been placed. Zhao Jin and his group walked over and took their seats in order. The young man who seemed like an aristocratic scion sat at the very lowest seat at that table — which set off another round of whispered speculation among the crowd.

When Zhao Jin and his party entered, everyone from the innermost to the outermost rose to their feet. The wealthy merchants and salt merchants of Qingjiangpu and Yangzhou had long been accustomed to wealth and privilege. Unless it was an official specifically overseeing salt affairs, anyone below the fifth rank might not even earn a smile from them. At banquets, they would remain seated and aloof. Yet before this Zhao Jin, who held no official rank and was still so young, every single person had to stand. No one had the right to remain seated and unmoving in Zhao Jin's presence.

As his companions sat down, Zhao Jin remained standing. Many guests who had been about to sit hurriedly scrambled back to their feet. A chaotic clatter of chairs and tables ensued, but silence quickly fell.

"Those who were supposed to come have come. Those who didn't — needn't bother coming at all," Zhao Jin said coolly.

Just as during the military inspection, household guards stood between the tables, relaying Zhao Jin's words in succession. Quite a few guests, upon hearing this statement, couldn't help but shiver involuntarily.

Zhao Jin swept his gaze around. Every person nodded back with an ingratiating smile. Zhao Jin raised his voice slightly and said: "In Xuzhou and Huai'an Prefecture, my word is the rule. You may choose not to obey the king's law, but if you fail to follow my rules, there is only one path — death. Is that understood by all?"

This was no way to treat guests — it was clearly how one treated subordinates and servants. Yet after the household guards relayed his words, everyone below responded with fawning smiles, each fearing their own voice wasn't loud enough, lest the nearby guards mistake them for being insincere.

"Old Jiang, Old Cheng — come over here to me!"

Cheng Daqi and Jiang Mutou, seated at the second table, immediately rose, their faces glowing with pride. Under the envious and jealous gazes of the entire assembly, they strode forward.

Three empty bowls sat before Zhao Jin. He lifted a wine jar and filled them to the brim, then handed two bowls to Cheng Daqi and Jiang Mutou. Raising his own, he said: "This time, you two performed the best. I could see you were true family. I toast you!"

His words were crisp, his actions swift. The bowls clinked together, and Zhao Jin drained his in one go. The other two dared not be slow and hastily drank theirs down as well. Zhao Jin rarely drank strong liquor like this. He exhaled sharply to steady himself, then smiled and said: "This grand opera we've just staged — from Xuzhou to Huai'an Prefecture, and counting the surrounding areas of Xuzhou, many people have moved away. Those who left, we won't bother with. But the things they left behind still need someone to watch over them. Old Jiang, your family has many sons and younger kin — assign a few to Qulipu. That Scholar Cai left behind quite a number of shops, farmlands, and estates. Don't let them go to waste. Old Cheng, you go to Yutou Town. From now on, you'll manage the situation there on my behalf!"

No matter how quiet the hall had been, at this, some couldn't help but gasp in astonishment. Qulipu was the second most prosperous place in Xuzhou, surpassed only by Hejiazhuang. That scholar, Cai Zhengde, had grown immensely wealthy precisely through his alliance with Zhao Jin. When the Brocade Guard had converged with various forces to arrest Zhao Jin, Scholar Cai had simply turned and walked away — a move the people of Xuzhou and beyond considered brilliant. They thought that, being a scholar by background after all, he had taken all the advantages and benefits while avoiding even a speck of disaster. But now, it seemed, being clever wasn't necessarily a good thing.

As for Yutou Town — it was practically a smaller version of Qingjiangpu. With Cheng Daqi leading the Cheng family there, though nominally working for Zhao Jin, the benefits their own family would reap were bound to come by the cartload. A local strongman who had originally been second- or third-rate at best — or not even that — had instantly risen to the very top tier.

The moment Zhao Jin made this promise, both men were so moved they knelt to express their gratitude. Zhao Jin did not bend down to help them up. He merely nodded and said: "Do your work well. I do not mistreat those who are loyal and capable."

After the two had stepped down, Zhao Jin raised his voice a little higher and said: "In this recent affair, several elders also rendered considerable assistance. It is inconvenient for them to come here, so I will pay them personal visits in due time."

At these words, on a few tables not too far forward, several young men's faces showed expressions of excitement. In those days, when Ma Chonghao had led his large force here, nearly everyone inside and outside Xuzhou City had held no hope for Zhao Jin. Quite a few clerks and runners had families urging them to switch allegiances, to go to Ma Chonghao and denounce Zhao Jin, lest they be implicated afterward.

But these clerks and runners were all shrewd operators — those who had survived being purged by Zhao Jin time and again. Every one of them knew exactly what to do. And now, they were reaping their reward.

Zhao Jin still did not sit. Instead, he called out to the young man seated at the lowest position at his table: "Brother Yu, stand up."

The young man who looked like a wealthy noble scion rose with a grin. Zhao Jin pointed at him and announced loudly: "This is Yu Zhiyuan, from Songjiang. From now on, he is a brother of mine, Zhao. I ask everyone to look after him well."

The room was silent — then a wave of murmuring broke out. To be treated like this by Zhao Jin... what on earth had this man done? To actually be called "brother" by the man everyone now addressed as Lord Jin?

Everyone at Zhao Jin's table looked at Yu Zhiyuan with warm smiles. There was no resentment or dissatisfaction. Yu Zhiyuan remained as poised and graceful as ever. He cupped his hands in a respectful salute to the assembly, smiled, and sat back down.

When Ma Chonghao, Assistant Commander of the Nanjing Brocade Guard, had led his combined forces across the river and northward, drawing step by step closer to Xuzhou, the various powers that had usually been close to the Zhao Camp — even those who had formed alliances and willingly become subordinates — had all scattered one after another. Those gentry who held examination degrees simply left Xuzhou outright. But this Yu Zhiyuan had come to Xuzhou bringing two thousand taels of gold — and had stayed, not leaving.

The Yu family was indeed a prominent merchant house of Songjiang, with maritime trade as well. Gold and silver were naturally not in short supply for them. But at that critical juncture, the Yu family's liquid silver was mostly tied up at sea, invested in various goods being traded to the Wa country. They had very little on hand. Yet this Second Young Master Yu had raised the silver by mortgaging part of the family estate, then, at a discount and loss, converted it into easily portable gold ingots. Under the protection of a few trusted household guards, he had traveled north to Xuzhou.

"Lord Jin, this gold is the military fund I, Yu, offer. Once the sand ships return from their various routes, they will come laden with grain and the trade goods you need."

"This place is perilous. Were you not afraid?"

"I truly saw little risk. I felt the odds were quite good. Climbing the dragon and clinging to the phoenix must always be done early. To come only after the dust has settled — the benefits would be rather meager then."

"Were you not afraid of implicating your elder brother?"

"As I said before, in the current situation, it could never implicate him."

Though two thousand taels of gold could hardly affect the overall situation, and Yu Zhiyuan's presence offered little help to either the military or civil side, this gesture alone made Zhao Jin and his companions regard him as one of their own.

Just as Yu Zhiyuan had judged, in the face of the Zhao Camp's overwhelming strength, Ma Chonghao, Assistant Commander of the Nanjing Brocade Guard, had begun his campaign with great fanfare only to end it feebly, returning empty-handed. And Yu Zhiyuan himself had gained the trust of everyone in the Zhao Camp, high and low. To outsiders, he had taken an enormous risk coming to Xuzhou. But for Yu Zhiyuan himself, it had merely been a period of rest in Xuzhou.

Being introduced by Zhao Jin at this banquet, Yu Zhiyuan appeared as calm and unruffled as a drifting cloud, but inwardly he was deeply stirred. The Yu family was indeed wealthy, with a fleet of seagoing vessels, and naturally their income was substantial. But everyone wants to expand their business, and the Yu family naturally wanted to extend their trade to the prosperous market towns of Yangzhou, Qingjiangpu, and Yutou Town, and along both banks of the Grand Canal.

But the Yangzhou salt merchants and the Qingjiangpu merchant guilds were each closed, self-contained systems. The Yu family could currently only rely on the Zhao Camp's protection to maintain one or two shops in Qingjiangpu. But after today, the Yu family's prospects north of the river would be thrown wide open. Who, at this moment, would dare block the path of wealth of Zhao Jin's brother? They'd simply be tired of living. For the Yu family's business to rise to the next level — or even expand far beyond — was now only a matter of time.

Yu Zhiyuan was ordinarily a voluble, talkative sort by nature, but at Zhao Jin's table he remained conspicuously silent. Though they now addressed each other as brothers, this was not yet a place where he had the standing to speak. Silent and quiet, he couldn't help but drift into a daze.

"Brother Zhao, what comes next — will it be sweeping south to sever the canal transport?" Yu Zhiyuan recalled his conversation with Zhao Jin. Severing the canal transport, shifting grain transport to the sea — that was his heart's desire.

"Severing the canal transport would mean making enemies of the entire realm. Not only would the court dispatch a great army to encircle and suppress us, but every gentry, strongman, and even the common folk along the canal would rise up together to attack. Why would the Zhao Camp invite such trouble?" The answer was so direct — it meant Zhao Jin truly regarded Yu Zhiyuan as one of his own.

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