Chapter 870: The Dust Has Settled?

Eunuch Wei's status had risen very early on, but it was only this year that he truly took overall charge of affairs. Being able to win over this powerful bandit gang in Xuzhou meant the Great Ming would not need to fight on three fronts—the southwest, Liaodong, and the heartland—and could even secure the capital's winter grain reserves just before the cold season set in. Although the court's face was somewhat hard to bear, this ability to take overall charge would be recognized by all factions both inside the inner court and the outer court, allowing him to firmly sit in the chief seat of the inner court. Eunuch Wei was now secure, and his own family's glory and wealth were thus guaranteed.

The more Cui Wensheng thought about it, the happier he became, and a smile even appeared on his face. But just as the corners of his mouth began to lift, his entire expression froze. His body trembled violently several times. Eunuch Cui stared at Zhao Jin before him and said, "Young Master Zhao, what exactly are your intentions? You were the one who caused the great havoc and fighting by cutting off the river, and you were also the one who came up with the idea to help the court overcome its difficulties. How truly mindful of the greater picture and considerate of the greater good you are!"

"I have said before, we kicked up a fuss only to cry out our grievances. Since the court has released the man and agreed to our requests, then naturally we should end things amicably. As we also just said, if the court cannot get past this hurdle, they would inevitably have to raise troops and fight a major battle with Xuzhou. We simply cannot bear that responsibility." Ignoring the sarcasm in Cui Wensheng's words, Zhao Jin spoke very amiably.

Cui Wensheng narrowed his eyes and stared intently at Zhao Jin, as if trying to find fault in Zhao Jin's expression. Zhao Jin met his gaze with an open and calm look. The others, however, were growing somewhat impatient. A negotiation like this, reduced to something like a childish squabble, was truly boring and tedious.

Staring would yield no results. In the end, Eunuch Cui merely let out a long sigh, rose to his feet, cupped his hands, and said, "With such insight and ability, Young Master Zhao, you truly ought to seek glory and wealth on the path of official honors, bringing renown to your ancestors. To mingle among the outlaws of the rivers and lakes is truly a waste. I must hurry back to report, so I shall take my leave now!"

"Eunuch Cui, Zhao Jin is a man of his word. Whatever I have said and promised, I will certainly do. On this point, Eunuch Cui, please rest assured," Zhao Jin said, rising to his feet.

Cui Wensheng was taken aback. He had thought Zhao Jin was speaking of the amnesty and recruitment, but upon reflection, he realized Zhao Jin was talking about reporting the famine to secure tax exemptions, a matter that would bring over ten thousand taels of silver in benefits each year. At this thought, Eunuch Cui's expression softened somewhat. He nodded and walked out the door. By this point, he no longer cared that no one saw him off. These young people indeed did not know the proper etiquette, but they also had the standing to disregard it. After arriving in Xuzhou, he had faced no threat of blades and seen no utterly vicious villains, yet Eunuch Cui had felt deeply uncomfortable from beginning to end. In his heart, he vaguely sensed danger but could not articulate what it was. The moment he tried to think about it carefully, he felt a terror as if the sky were collapsing, so he simply dared not think further and only wanted to leave quickly.

Once he had left, someone on Zhao Jin's side naturally went to make the arrangements. For a moment, none of the people in the room moved. Ji Xiang let out a long breath. Wang Zhaojing sat there with a complicated expression. Liu Yong rose and took his leave; Eunuch Cui's visit involved far too many matters related to the Internal Guard Corps. After Liu Yong went out, Chen Sheng turned to Zhao Jin and said, "Zhao Jin, you know that as soon as the court frees up its hands, it will still come to blows with us. You do know this, right?"

Zhao Jin nodded and said, "Of course I know."

Chen Sheng also nodded and strode toward the door. Just as he was about to reach it, Chen Sheng turned his head and asked again, "Zhao Jin, Wang Zhaojing, do you both know that we can no longer turn back now?"

"Of course we know," Zhao Jin replied with a smile. Chen Sheng was a man of few words; it was best to simply answer whatever he asked, without overcomplicating things.

Only, when Wang Zhaojing was asked, his body shuddered. He nodded and said, "I know." His voice was very hoarse.

Chen Sheng said nothing further and strode out, his saber at his side. Once he was gone, Ji Xiang could no longer hold back and said, "Big Brother, those Jurchens are stirring up trouble in Liaodong, and there's that She family in the west. With the court unable to free its hands, this is a perfect opportunity for us. Let's keep cutting off the canal transport…"

"We could cause a huge uproar, but the outcome would be uncertain. Everyone under heaven would see us as bandits and rebels, and we would be enemies with everyone everywhere," Zhao Jin stated succinctly. Ji Xiang knew he could say no more.

"Big Brother, this time I have brought trouble upon everyone," Wang Zhaojing suddenly spoke up.

"It's no trouble at all. I've said before, with a force as large as ours, we were bound to have a showdown with the surrounding powers sooner or later. It would have come early or late regardless. It's just that this time it started because of your family. We won, and we achieved all our objectives. What trouble is there?" Zhao Jin said lightly.

Ji Xiang, however, shot Wang Zhaojing a somewhat impatient glance and lowered his head without speaking. Zhao Jin rose to leave as well, and Ji Xiang hurriedly followed. Wang Zhaojing was clearly in poor spirits; he merely cupped his hands from where he sat but did not get up to follow.

Zhao Jin walked to the door, then also stopped and turned back. Staring at Wang Zhaojing, he asked, "Zhaojing, you know we can't turn back now, right?"

The same question Chen Sheng had asked, and now Zhao Jin was asking it too. Wang Zhaojing slowly raised his head and said in a hoarse voice, "I know."

"Study is meant to be applied, not to let the things in books muddle your mind. We must keep moving forward," Zhao Jin continued.

"I understand," Wang Zhaojing replied, his state improving somewhat.

After Zhao Jin and Ji Xiang left the room, Ji Xiang glanced back and lowered his voice, saying, "Big Brother, Third Brother isn't still harboring other intentions, is he?"

"Don't talk nonsense. At this point, what other intentions could he possibly have!" Zhao Jin's tone was somewhat stern. Ji Xiang awkwardly acknowledged the order.

After walking a few more steps, Zhao Jin spoke, "Zhaojing has been studying since childhood and watched his father serve as an official in the court. He has, more or less, experienced glory and wealth. What he hears, sees, and thinks about is not the same as what he is doing now. Naturally, it is very difficult for him to make this mental shift. But he must make it, and he has more or less come around already."

Eunuch Cui from Fengyang came and went, and no one in Xuzhou knew of it. But while the Zhao Camp kept its intelligence confidential and prevented leaks, the official circles of South Zhili were no different from anywhere else—a sieve leaking from all sides. The news of Cui Wensheng's secret talks with Zhao Jin and the urgent report to the capital quickly spread.

Anyone with a slight understanding of official circles knew that Eunuch Cui was Wei Zhongxian's trusted confidant and currently ranked as the foremost figure in the Jiangbei region of South Zhili. Since he had come for secret talks, and the security measures in Xuzhou and its surroundings had not been further escalated after the talks concluded, then the matter of amnesty and recruitment must have already been settled.

Once the news of the She family's rebellion in Sichuan arrived, everyone became even more certain that there would be no more fighting in the short term, perhaps not even for two or three years.

The She family had killed the Grand Coordinator, the Regional Commander, and the Vice General, declared themselves kings, and established a reign title of Great Liang. The court would certainly have to deploy a major army to suppress such rebels, not to mention the Jianzhou Jurchens in Liaodong. With major wars to fight against rebels and Tatar slaves in both the northeast and the southwest, Xuzhou, which had always shown restraint and never raised its own banner, would definitely have to be pacified.

Piecing together news from all sides, everyone grew increasingly certain. And just three days after the news of Eunuch Cui's visit to Xuzhou spread, Qingjiangpu began dismantling the pontoon bridge that had cut off the river. This was the clearest signal of all.

The various merchant groups had expected the waterway to be exceptionally congested, but it was not as crowded as they had thought. By this time, only the tribute grain barges transporting the grain tax remained. Most commercial goods heading to Northern Zhili had already taken the sea route, so there was no need to compete for space with the grain on the tribute barges.

As for the tribute grain itself, there was no rushing the matter. Everyone simply had to proceed step by step, either moving it into granaries or sending it north. Given the speed at which tribute grain moved, it would be considered good if the grain from Qingjiangpu could reach Linqing before the freeze.

A joke was circulating locally in Qingjiangpu. It was said that the Yu family of Songjiang was going to make a huge fortune this time. Several shipyards in Songjiang were now building new sand ships, and the price of purchased timber had risen sharply. Yet according to the Yu family, they would be lucky just to break even this time, and might even lose money. This was because the Yu family fleet made its huge profits from trading its own goods; taking on other merchants' cargo only earned them shipping fees, which did not yield much profit.

Originally, the Yu family managers and shopkeepers had arranged for their own goods to account for seventy percent of the cargo. But no one knew what madness had seized the family head, Second Young Master Yu, who insisted that eighty percent be used to ship other merchants' goods. At a time when canal transport was cut off, if one could control the northbound shipping, all southern goods would skyrocket in price. The Yu family's sea transport was far faster than cart and horse transport, so they would certainly have sold their goods before anyone else's arrived, making a colossal fortune. Yet Second Young Master Yu's decision ended up causing the Yu family to lose a bit of money in the end.

Although they gained some goodwill, what they mostly received was ridicule. For a businessman to fail to make a fortune and instead lose money at such a golden opportunity—if people didn't laugh at that, what would they laugh at?

As soon as Qingjiangpu reopened, everyone immediately swarmed toward Xuzhou. The Xuzhou salt market and general market held great promise, and the Qingjiang Grand Market held great promise. From now on, across the entire northern region of South Zhili, Zhao Jin's word would carry no less weight than the Grand Coordinator's or the eunuch's. Things might change in a few years, but for now, they had to seize the moment!

The Yangzhou salt merchants, having experienced such dealings several times, had learned to be shrewd. Seeing that the dust had settled, the first thing they did was to pool twenty thousand taels of silver to reward the Zhao Camp. After all, this time everyone had remained neutral and helped neither side. But since they had already made contributions to the government troops, there was no reason not to give to the Zhao Camp—what if they were resented for it? The second thing was to discuss with Zhao Jin the details of shipping salt to Fujian and southern Zhejiang. The entire province of Fujian needed salt imported from outside; this was a colossal business. In the past, the Yu family's sand ships hadn't transported much, but now they were building new ships in great numbers. Perhaps the details needed to be discussed again.

It was fortunate that the Yu family's roots were not in salt but in the overseas trade. The sea lords and dragon heads of Fujian and Guangdong all had to show them some face, which allowed the sand ship salt transport business to grow larger and larger. If the salt merchants had tried to do this, nine times out of ten they wouldn't have been able to break in; they would have been robbed on the open seas long ago.

As for the various powerful merchants of Qingjiangpu, although only those connected to the tribute grain had suffered losses, every single one of them was filled with awe and fear toward Zhao Jin. Their livelihoods and fortunes all depended on this canal, on Qingjiangpu's position as a hub. Yet Zhao Jin had cut it off with a mere gesture. He had given them a lifeline via the sea, but that lifeline was also within Zhao Jin's sphere of influence. Without Zhao Jin's backing, how would the Yu family dare to operate on such a grand scale?

Thanks to old friends "Yuan Henry Zhen" and "User Cold Night" for the tips, thank you all for your subscriptions and monthly tickets, thank you all.