Chapter 825: False Sentiment

825. Chapter 825: False Sentiment

According to Zhou Xuezhi's thinking, they should immediately send men to seal off those great merchant houses, seize and execute the ringleaders, quell the situation, and nip the danger in the bud.

But Li Dajin raised a different opinion. He said the crux of the matter was not those great merchants, but the common people of Qingjiangpu. The blockade of the canal had harmed everyone in Qingjiangpu, high and low alike. Resentment festered not only at the top but just as fiercely at the bottom. In the current situation, appeasement would likely fail, and their grievances would only grow. Who knew when someone might stir them into action? Since they wanted to make trouble this time, let them make trouble — then strike them ruthlessly, teach them a harsh lesson so they would not dare make trouble again. If they rose up in the rear while a battle was being fought at the front, that would be the real catastrophe.

Zhou Xuezhi thought Li Dajin's proposal far too reckless. He believed they should win the people's hearts and not shed blood to create enmity. Dong Bingfeng and Zhang Hubin, however, supported Li Dajin's suggestion.

Over this, Zhou Xuezhi even wrote an urgent letter to Zhao Jin. Zhao Jin's reply was very simple: We are not about to rebel right now, so what use are the people's hearts to us? We have already given them a way to live, yet they are still dissatisfied. If we appease them this time they make trouble, they will only push further and keep making trouble.

Once permission was granted, arrangements began at once. To make it easier for the great merchants to collude, Li Dajin even took the initiative to pull back the household troops of the Internal Guard and the relevant informants.

"... Of the merchant households that participated in the plotting, half of the adult males of the main line of the senior branch are to be taken away and placed in the refugee camp as hostages..."

"The troublemakers end up in such misery, while the masterminds remain at ease." Zhou Xuezhi made a few sarcastic remarks about this handling of the matter. Yet Zhou Xuezhi himself understood that these great merchants of Qingjiangpu were not merely wealthy — they had backers of various kinds behind them, connections of various kinds. They were also relied upon to relay much information back to the capital, which was greatly beneficial to Zhao Jin's schemes.

Everyone in the private rooms of the Windward Tower would certainly be detained. The great merchant houses involved had already been sealed off, and the arrests were about to begin.

Apart from his dissatisfaction with the excessive bloodshed, Zhou Xuezhi also felt that this operation was of great significance. Afterwards, he wrote a long letter to Zhao Jin specifically about it.

The letter was very earnest. Had it not been for this operation to lure the snake from its hole, they would never have imagined how deeply the great merchants controlled Qingjiangpu, nor what kind of forces these merchants could mobilize. From the city foxes and shrine rats — the jianghu and marketplace riffraff — to the cultivated scholars, the xiucai and juren degree-holders, all could be commanded. With such incitement and scheming, even the government offices would have to bow their heads.

Had it not been for the Zhao Camp's response this time, the merchants would truly have dismantled the river-blocking structures and done as they pleased. What the Zhao Camp did was very simple and effective: I do not care what your reasons are; I am stronger than you, so I will smash you with force.

There was also an interesting matter. The local officials who actually held substantive rank — that Vice Director of the Ministry of Revenue, the Granary Commissioner, the Prefect of Huai'an, and the Magistrate of Shanyang — all stood by with folded arms during this unrest and took no part whatsoever.

The Zhao Camp had been deeply wary of the Qingjiangpu government offices. When they learned that someone was inciting and colluding, they immediately kept a close watch on these officials, yet to their surprise, they discovered nothing. At first, Li Dajin thought the other side was simply too well hidden; only in the end did he realize they truly had not participated.

Though the officials no longer possessed their former prestige, their authority remained and their connections had not been severed. Their information was far more well-informed than that of ordinary factions. They might not have known when this matter first began, but later on, there was no reason they would not have heard even a whisper.

It was only when the Internal Guard discovered that the local officials were deliberately keeping to themselves and, with remarkable tacit understanding, had reported illness and shut their doors, that they realized the Qingjiangpu officials simply wanted no part in it.

"... To the officials, this is merely a matter of state and governance, unrelated to themselves. But to the local great merchants and common people, blocking the river touches upon their very livelihoods..."

"The work of seizing men and collecting corpses will have to trouble your side. I must go to Sixth Master." Zhang Hubin did not stay long. Seeing that the situation below had stabilized and the crowd had been thoroughly scattered, he took his leave. Li Dajin smiled and replied with a courteous "Of course," letting Zhang Hubin go.

In several large compounds right by the docks, several companies of the Xuzhou trained militia lay concealed. If the wagon charge failed to do the job, then it would come to real blades and real guns.

Zhang Hubin's business, on the other hand, was military. The troops of the Southern Metropolitan Region had finally made a move, and the household troops and trained militia had to be in strict readiness.

As for this move by the Southern Metropolitan Region's troops, it was the Shanyang Assistant Commander Qin leading his forces in formation, and Wolf Mountain sending nine armored cavalrymen...

Though this number left one speechless, military affairs allowed not the slightest carelessness. If the enemy played some trick and their own side was negligent, it would be a calamity of heaven and earth.

After the news came through, however, what followed was even stranger. That Shanyang Assistant Commander Qin sent a personal soldier to request a meeting with Dong Bingfeng, saying that a few people wished to see him, but it absolutely had to be kept secret.

Before meeting Dong Bingfeng, these people were all carefully searched. One of them was a familiar face — the personal guard chiliarch of the Xuzhou Assistant Regional Commander, a man many had seen. Another was no stranger to the local informants of Qingjiangpu — the personal guard chiliarch of Wolf Mountain's Vice Regional Commander Lu Quanyou, often dispatched to Qingjiangpu on official business. As for the third, who claimed to be an aide to the Grand Coordinator of Fengyang, he was also easy to identify; many in Huai'an Prefecture and Shanyang County had seen him.

Besides these three who held official posts, there was another who said he was a personal attendant of Fengyang Grand Coordinator Guo Shangyou. He looked to be an ordinary man in his thirties. It was reckoned that this man was here to guard against any private deals among the group and to ensure a report was brought back.

Dong Bingfeng and Zhang Hubin were both prepared for war. An affair as great as intercepting the tribute grain transport was certain to draw a reaction from the court. Over a month had passed, and troops should have been mustered by now. The time for a head-on clash was approaching. Yet the scouts sent out by Li Dajin and Cheng Dahu had brought back no sign of enemy activity. That Shanyang Assistant Commander had assembled his troops and put them on standby, but issued no weapons and strictly forbade anyone from leaving camp. He had even let slip such words as: "Whoever gives those Xuzhou barbarians the wrong idea, I'll cut him down first!"

There was no sign of enemy activity in any direction. South and west were utterly quiet. The scouts pre-positioned in the military camps at Fengyang and Wolf Mountain had sent back no reports either, so much so that Dong Bingfeng and the others thought the scouts had been eliminated — only when they sent more men did they find nothing had happened at all.

Near the canal docks of Qingjiangpu, the sound of weeping shook the heavens. Every household came to collect their dead and wounded. Seeing that the menfolk who had gone out in the daytime would never return, their entire families collapsed. No one could bear it, and there were not a few who threw themselves into the river at once — they had to be fished out and dealt with. Yet all this work was done by local able-bodied men. The costs of collecting the dead, cremating and burying them were covered by the "enthusiastic donations" of the Qingjiangpu great merchants, while the yamen runners of Shanyang County supervised the labor. Li Dajin's trained militia were only responsible for keeping watch.

It was in this atmosphere that Dong Bingfeng held a secret meeting with the men sent by the Grand Coordinator.

Aside from that Chiliarch Chu from Xuzhou, the others were all taken aback when they saw Dong Bingfeng and Zhang Hubin. Though they had heard something beforehand, seeing them in person still drew involuntary astonishment — these brazen rebels were actually so young.

"No one wishes for blades and bloodshed with heavy casualties. We have come merely to agree on one matter with you gentlemen. There will certainly be no fighting. But without some account to give, there is simply no way to answer to our superiors. The Grand Coordinator's own standard garrison, the Wolf Mountain troops, and the local militia will assemble and stand ready. However, after advancing north to Gaoyou Department, they will proceed no further. The matter we wish to agree upon is this: outwardly, we must speak with one voice. Your Xuzhou troops and the great army of the Southern Metropolitan Region fought a battle around Baoying County seat. The Southern Metropolitan Region's troops were defeated and retreated, with over a hundred dead and wounded."

When the Grand Coordinator Guo Shangyou's aide said this, Dong Bingfeng and Zhang Hubin looked at each other in bewilderment. The household troops standing guard behind them were also full of astonishment. The two chiliarchs and that trusted attendant, on the other hand, wore perfectly normal expressions.

To so brazenly speak of a sham battle — and to say it to the leaders of a faction that was intercepting the canal, tantamount to rebellion — and to speak of it with such solemn gravity!

The aide, seeing the expressions on the Xuzhou side's faces, understood what they were thinking. With great earnestness, he said: "When my master assembles his forces and advances north, once they reach Qingjiangpu, the two sides will inevitably have to fight — wouldn't you agree? Fighting means death and injury, it means expense. No matter who wins or loses, it will not end there. The court will mobilize a great army, and Xuzhou will also have to mobilize. Since there will be more to follow, why torment ourselves in the early stages? Better that we agree on a story and give our superiors an account, and that will be that."

Dong Bingfeng and Zhang Hubin exchanged a glance. Dong Bingfeng pondered for a moment, then nodded and agreed, saying: "In that case, let this matter be settled."

As for the response here in Qingjiangpu, Zhao Jin's arrangement was also very simple: merely cut off the canal, but do not initiate battle with the government troops, nor go out to seize cities and territory. Maintain a low profile. If the troops of the Southern Metropolitan Region came to suppress them, then shatter them in one blow, but do not seek total annihilation.

Under such requirements, the Grand Coordinator's aide's proposal was well worth accepting. Dong Bingfeng agreed. Zhang Hubin glanced over and asked in a muffled voice: "Then how do you guarantee this matter?"

"Young masters, how can this be guaranteed? This is by nature something that can be done but not spoken of. If there truly were some guarantee, and word of it reached the higher-ups or elsewhere one day, my master would have no way to account for it. And would the trouble for Xuzhou be any less? Then a great army would come again, and a bitter fight would be unavoidable. Even if the Xuzhou troops are strong and sturdy, winning every battle, is it not a good thing to have less killing and less expense? Besides, as to whether the government troops are playing tricks or not, just watch whether they stop at the agreed position. If they do not, then fight." The aide at the Grand Coordinator's side spoke with great sincerity.

Dong Bingfeng's face showed a contemplative look. Zhang Hubin nodded slowly. The aide maintained his earnest expression, but a trace of disdain flickered through his eyes.

"You gentlemen are young heroes, and your futures are surely boundless. My master has also planned it out: using the excuse of a defeat to give an account, he will then arrange for the matter of offering you gentlemen amnesty and recruitment. Please rest assured as well — my master the Grand Coordinator has long admired Master Wang's character and bearing. Those feudal princes, lawless and unrestrained, harming the worthy for their own selfish gain — my master the Grand Coordinator and the upright officials at court have long been unable to stomach it. This time, Master Wang will certainly be allowed to come out safely." The Grand Coordinator's aide struck while the iron was hot.

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