Chapter 803: Like a Thunderclap

Chen Sheng and Ji Xiang both nodded. Zhao Jin looked toward Ji Xiang and said, "Each regiment and company will draw one-tenth of their men; the personal guard detachment will contribute half its household retainers to train with firelocks!"

Ji Xiang stood at attention and accepted the order. His and Chen Sheng's attention had never left the tabletop — those few simply shaped blocks held their gaze like precious treasures, and the future Zhao Jin had just described made them more and more excited the longer they thought about it.

Zhao Jin exchanged a glance with Wang Zhaojing and Ruhui; all of them had smiles on their faces. Zhao Jin was not surprised by his comrades' expressions — whenever he himself thought of that point, he could not suppress his excitement either.

Once you throw yourself into leading and drilling troops, you become interested in any path that can raise combat strength and power.

Using the firelock drill as an opportunity, he delegated the matters that needed delegating. Zhao Camp had not fought any major battles recently, but the selection and training of the firelock household retainers could heighten the tension and restore everyone's aggressive drive to advance.

News of the student detachment's firelock drill, the selection of firearm household retainers, the formation of the company, and so on would very soon be known by every regiment and company in Zhao Camp. Today's plan could be considered perfectly accomplished.

Zhao Jin felt his mind ease. Smiling, he said to that Louis, "You said you have methods for recruiting all kinds of craftsmen and artisans. How do you recruit them? Let's hear it."

The interpreter quickly relayed the answer: "Cannon-founders may only exist in Luzon, and even that is unlikely. But Luzon, the Southern Seas, and Macau have many foreigners who came from the West seeking their fortune. If you go there and post a reward, with good luck you might come across a usable craftsman. Another route is through the merchant ships — many ships come from the West to the Great Ming. If the price is high enough, they will recruit on your behalf from over there and bring the men here."

Zhao Jin nodded with a smile, but then said to Wang Zhaojing and Ruhui, "The method he describes is actually reliable — it just takes far too long. If there really are usable craftsmen in Luzon, Macau, and the Southern Seas, that would be one thing. But if we have to recruit from their homelands, that is thousands of miles away, a voyage of several months or even a year at sea. Never mind the time — whether the craftsman could even survive the journey here would be a question."

"These foreign devils… Westerners really will do anything for money. Still, one thing this Westerner just said got me thinking further. If he knows what it looks like, we could have our own craftsmen learn to make it. The principles of all things under heaven are always the same," Wang Zhaojing said with a smile.

Zhao Jin nodded and said thoughtfully, "At this point it is simply a difference in ideas. The gap in the craftsmen's skills is not yet large. We can give it a try."

His words sounded somewhat disjointed, but everyone was used to it. Ruhui then said with a smile, "I wonder if the products of our Xuzhou could fetch a good price in the outer seas…"

After saying this, Ruhui paused and added, "If we could have our own seagoing ships, that would be even more convenient. Zhao Camp's power has already reached the eastern coast."

Zhao Jin nodded again, but gave no definite reply. He only said with a smile, "We cannot steal the Yu family's business right now. Whatever we do, let's discuss it with them first!"

Ruhui did not press the point and nodded with a smile. He could tell that Zhao Jin had not closed the door on the idea.

Just then, there was a knock at the door outside. Sun Dalin walked quickly over to open it. Anyone who could knock on the door from outside had already been cleared by the household retainers; by custom it should be someone from the Internal Guard. Everyone in the room looked over — if it were not urgent, the Internal Guard would not come at this hour.

When the door opened and they saw who was outside, the smiles on everyone's faces vanished. It was actually Nie Hei. Liu Yong and Lei Cai were both away from Xuzhou at the moment, and Nie Hei was temporarily in charge. What major event could have brought him here in person?

Nie Hei's expression was grave. As soon as the door opened, he nodded to the others and walked quickly toward Zhao Jin. This made everyone in the room even more solemn, and the room soon fell silent.

Everyone watched as Nie Hei whispered a few words into Zhao Jin's ear. Even with Zhao Jin's depth and composure, his face darkened. He shot Nie Hei a deliberate look, as if confirming something. At that moment, the interpreter tactfully led Louis and his servant out.

"According to the report just received, that man has already been locked up. We are now requesting experienced interrogators from the subprefectural and county yamens to come and question him," Nie Hei's reply amounted to an affirmative confirmation.

Zhao Jin nodded and made a hand signal toward the door. The household retainer immediately shut it. A moment later, from a distance, they heard the household retainer report, "Awaiting the master's orders."

With no outsiders left in the room, Zhao Jin took a deep breath and spoke: "Zhaojing, just now your family's messenger raced back to Xuzhou and brought word that your father has been arrested by men of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. The charge is implication in a rebellion plot."

The ever-composed Wang Zhaojing froze, staring at Zhao Jin and Nie Hei in disbelief. His eyes widened more and more, and then he shook his head and said, "Big Brother, can you say that again?"

"Your father has been arrested by the foreign-barbarian agents. They say he is implicated in a rebellion plot!" Zhao Jin said again.

Wang Zhaojing's body shuddered violently. Not a trace of blood could be found in his face. He stood there and staggered a step backward; luckily Ruhui hurriedly supported him, and only then did he steady himself.

Only then did sound return to the quiet room. Wang Zhaojing waved his hand to indicate he was all right and said in a muffled voice, "I lost my focus for a moment just now. What exactly happened?"

"This happened ten days ago. The messenger said he happened to be out on an errand that day. When he returned, he saw the Old Master Wang being taken away by the foreign-barbarian agents. He asked the neighbors and learned this much, then did not dare linger. He rode back here at full speed. The brothers of the Internal Guard did not think he was lying, but to be safe, they still went into the city to request veteran criminal-law clerks from the subprefectural and county yamens to come and question him further. Right now the messenger is utterly exhausted and is being held under guard to recover," Nie Hei said, very thoroughly.

They could not simply believe him just because he came in haste; they had to have someone verify. The veteran criminal-law clerks of the yamens were naturally rich in experience at reading expressions and conducting interrogations. Only after passing their scrutiny could the account be confirmed as true.

Of course, it was also because the news this messenger brought was simply too shocking.

"Big Brother, 'implicated in a rebellion plot' — could this be referring to our Zhao Camp? Could someone have reported our affairs to the authorities?" Wang Zhaojing asked urgently.

"Could it be connected to those two princely estates in Henan and Shandong?" Ruhui asked in a low voice.

Chen Sheng said nothing. He merely drew his saber halfway out, then thrust it back into its scabbard. Ji Xiang, meanwhile, stared at Zhao Jin, his expression somewhat tense but even more so excited.

"Is there no word from either Nanjing or Taizhou?" Zhao Jin asked with focused attention. Nie Hei shook his head.

Nanjing was the administrative center of South Zhili, and Taizhou was the seat of the Grand Coordinator of Fengyang's office. If a major rebellion case in Xuzhou had truly broken, word would certainly have come out of those two places.

Although Zhao Camp and Cloud Mountain Trading did not have many eyes and ears in those two locations, there were so many wealthy merchants currying favor with Zhao Camp, and those merchants had close ties with the authorities. Relying on them, they could already obtain more than enough information. Besides, the Great Ming bureaucracy had no secrecy whatsoever — it was a sieve that let everything through. A major event like a rebellion case would surely have leaked long ago.

Zhao Jin's question was directed at Nie Hei, but also at Wang Zhaojing and Ruhui, because the Internal Guard and Cloud Mountain Trading both collected official information.

"The Xuzhou subprefectural yamen certainly has no word of it, or we would have known long ago," Zhao Jin said in a deep voice.

Wang Zhaojing took several deep breaths there. Some color finally returned to his face. He shook his head and began to speak. The first words came out in an altered tone; only after pausing for a sentence did he recover some normalcy.

"If my father were implicated in a major rebellion case, it could only be connected to Xuzhou. Yet there are several suspicious points here. Rebellion is a major case. If the capital's Depot and Guard made a move, there is absolutely no logic in first arresting my father while Xuzhou remains completely in the dark. After all, this place here is where the main plotters are, and I myself am one of the main plotters." Under ordinary circumstances, Wang Zhaojing would never have spoken such blatant words.

No one took issue with the impropriety of his words; this was not the time to care about such things.

"Big Brother, if the court were targeting Xuzhou, they would certainly first make their arrangements against our Xuzhou, and only then arrest my father. The moment they arrested my father would be the day they launched a coordinated campaign against Xuzhou. Otherwise, if anything went wrong and the news leaked in advance, would that not cause a huge upheaval? Big Brother, this doesn't add up, this doesn't add up." Wang Zhaojing was somewhat incoherent, but he had expressed everything he needed to express.

With Xuzhou at the center, who knew how many people in every direction passed intelligence to Zhao Camp. And dealing with a rebellion was not like capturing a petty thief — they would certainly have to deploy government troops. Once a large army moved, even if Zhao Camp could not learn of it immediately, they would not still be completely in the dark by now.

Seeing that Wang Zhaojing was about to speak again, Zhao Jin directly cut him off: "Zhaojing, your mind is already in turmoil. Settle yourself first. I will make the arrangements. Mister Cao, you take up the brush and record."

Wang Zhaojing opened his mouth, and in the end shook his head with a bitter smile and sat back down in his chair. Ruhui nodded his assent, spread out paper and brush, and began to prepare.

"Bingfeng's Third Regiment is to move to the west side of Yutou Town and encamp there. Military provisions will be temporarily raised on the spot by the Sun Family Trading House. Li He's Third Great Battalion is to concentrate toward the Third Regiment. Cheng Daqi is to mobilize all forces from Pizhou and stand by — only riders are needed; we will cover the expenses for men and horses."

As Zhao Jin spoke, Ruhui's brush flew like a dragon, and three letters were quickly written. Zhao Jin brought out his personal cipher seals and stamped them one by one. Meng Zhiqi came over and, with nimble hands, helped seal the three letters. After applying wax seals, Zhao Jin brought out his bronze seals and stamped each one.

"Send men to deliver these now. Quickly!" Zhao Jin ordered. Meng Zhiqi had also heard the conversation in the room and knew the matter was urgent. Taking the letters, he strode quickly out of the room.

"My father and Bingfeng's father, bringing their own loyal and reliable men and taking their families with them, are to be escorted by the two companies under Zhao Wan and Zhao Song. They are to set out today for the estate on the eastern shore of Luoma Lake. Organize the militia on duty there and have them stand by, ready for word at any moment." Ruhui nodded, his brush never stopping.

Zhao Jin turned to Chen Sheng and said, "Uncle Chen probably won't want to move. You go persuade him in person. Have your father bring Dahong and Erhong along as well."

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