Chapter 998: The Great Principle of Virtue and Talent

With so many young men suddenly arriving and no immediate way to settle them, those with money went off in search of pleasure, while those without picked fights and stirred up trouble. The newly formed patrols of He Village were instantly run off their feet, having to quell and mediate brawls and disturbances every day, and several times even the mounted squads had to be deployed. To settle these young men, Wang Zhaojing and Ruhui deliberately marked out a village fifteen li beyond He Village. Temporary shacks were thrown up there as living quarters, and all young men wishing to join the Zhao Character Camp were to go there and wait to register. Once registered, they were forbidden to leave, or they would forfeit their eligibility to join. Only then did the situation settle down somewhat.

"Big Brother, there are fewer locals from Xuzhou, since most of them already left with us, and it's much the same over in Pizhou. But Guide Prefecture, Suzhou, Kong Family Village—these places—as well as the various departments and counties around Huai'an Prefecture, have all sent a great many people. Quite a few have also come from Shandong and Northern Zhili, and the numbers are growing by the day. It seems word has spread to those regions." Wang Zhaojing looked rather troubled as he said this.

Ruhui's expression was grave as he chimed in, "In less than half a month, over a thousand have already arrived. At this rate, we'll easily reach two thousand. The Master must quickly produce a plan to handle this, otherwise these people will be bunched together causing trouble every day. This subordinate must also offer a word of caution: these young men also represent the families behind them. If we simply turn them away, it will be detrimental to our future."

Zhao Jin nodded slowly. Many people had been urging him, saying this campaign had been far too exhausting, and that upon his return he should not rush back into work but rest well and spend time with his family. Yet after coming back, he spent long hours every day in the council hall, and when he did go out, he was inspecting every corner, utterly unable to stay idle. Hearing Ruhui speak, Zhao Jin instead glanced over at Liu Yong on the other side. Liu Yong understood and replied, "We've already placed men inside to keep watch. Old Ma also says the court won't react this quickly. It's unlikely there are court spies among these young men, but there may well be informants and hidden agents from the sects and gangs mixed in among them."

By now, Ma Chonghao was practically the third-ranking figure in the Internal Guard, and Zhao Jin consulted him on many matters. His status had long since shed its former awkwardness. Hearing Liu Yong's reply, Zhao Jin smiled and said easily, "These young men are all goods and wealth. What sense is there in refusing goods and wealth delivered right to your door? A few eyes and spies mixed in are unavoidable. That's simple enough—we'll just root them out slowly."

"Seeing you like this, you must have an idea already? Out with it so we can all hear—don't keep us in suspense!" Chen Sheng said from the side.

Zhao Jin gave a helpless, bitter smile and pointed at him. "Dasheng, now you're just being a killjoy."

Everyone in the room burst out laughing. It was rare for Chen Sheng to crack a joke, and at that moment, everyone's mood was thoroughly relaxed.

"You all know about the short-term training classes, right?" Zhao Jin said with a smile. Everyone nodded. There were several short-term training classes in Xuzhou dealing with commerce and agriculture, usually training courses lasting less than half a year, after which the trainees were sent out to work. At first, everyone had been full of misgivings about this, thinking that in every trade, a master teaching an apprentice took several years, and a shop or trading house apprentice also needed several years—what could possibly be accomplished in a few months? To their surprise, the results were excellent; the people sent out picked up the work with ease.

This was because the classes selected students who already had some experience, and taught them the practical experience of handling concrete, specific tasks. Moreover, the instructors communicated with one another beforehand, summarizing and synthesizing, so what they taught was the most representative material, avoiding wasted effort. Naturally, the results were good and the efficiency high.

"The students the short-term training classes take in all have at least some understanding of the trade. But the young men from various families, or the ambitious youths coming to register now, may possess no skill at all beyond martial arts—and many don't even have martial arts. We need to keep these people, yet we also need to train them before they're useful. So we'll follow the model of the short-term training classes and open a school, starting with the simplest, most basic instruction. Those who complete their studies can be used; those who can't, won't be." Zhao Jin spoke with assurance.

At this point, Zhao Jin looked toward Wang Zhaojing and asked, "Is something amiss?"

After asking, he also glanced over at Ruhui, because the moment this school proposal was raised, Wang Zhaojing's expression had turned somewhat odd, which Zhao Jin noticed at once. When he asked the question, he also discovered that Ruhui's expression was slightly different.

Wang Zhaojing first started, then looked rather embarrassed. After hesitating a moment, he said, "This younger brother originally meant to tell Big Brother that this school should teach the classics of the sages, so they would understand the Great Principle. But then I immediately realized that if they truly understood those things, it would actually be bad for us."

These words made Zhao Jin understand at once. For a scholar-gentry, a school was a rather sacred place, a so-called place for transmitting the Way and resolving doubts. If it did not teach the Confucian classics, the Four Books and Five Classics, it always felt wrong and out of place. Ruhui, off to the side, nodded with the same embarrassed smile; it seemed Wang Zhaojing had spoken what was in his own heart as well.

Chen Sheng, however, gave a cold laugh. Ji Xiang also wore an expression of complete disdain. Liu Yong paused, then spoke up in a clear voice: "Third Brother, here in Xuzhou and elsewhere, we've seen plenty of those scholars who've read the books of the sages. Some write us proposals and advice, urging Big Brother to ascend the throne and become emperor—all sorts of people. Those men presumably understand the Great Principle, yet they show no particular loyalty."

Wang Zhaojing's face instantly flushed bright red. Then he shook his head, unable to suppress a bitter laugh, and sighed. "Xiaoyong isn't wrong. These sage's books truly have very little to do with loyalty and the Great Principle. It's my own thinking that was misguided."

Zhao Jin glanced at Ruhui, who wore a thoughtful expression. Zhao Jin smiled and said, "Why are the men below loyal to us? Because we can give them benefits—let them be fed and clothed, let them grow rich, let them see a future ahead. They fear us, knowing that to betray us, to become our enemy, means being crushed to pieces. We treat them well, not as oxen, horses, or livestock, but with fairness and justice, showing concern for their well-being. Other places cannot give them so many benefits, cannot let them see a future, and at the same time do not make them particularly afraid, while also holding themselves aloof and keeping others at arm's length. There is also comparison. It is the sum of all these things, bit by bit, that produces the loyalty we have now."

Seeing that Wang Zhaojing and Ruhui were solemnly preparing to say something, Zhao Jin waved his hand and said, "You both understand this reasoning. It's just that you haven't quite turned a certain corner in your minds yet."

At that moment, someone announced a visitor from outside. Liu Yong strode out quickly, and returned before long, saying, "Old Ma has already dispatched riders at full speed to the capital to gather news from all quarters there. Now we also have men keeping watch in various places throughout Shandong."

After the Zhao Character Camp had withdrawn to Xuzhou, on one hand they sent out various contingents to establish farming estates, and on the other they went on full alert, awaiting the court's further reaction. With tens of thousands of government troops entrenched over there, they had to prepare for the worst. But how those government troops would move actually depended on what decisions were made in the capital. For intelligence on these official fronts, Ma Chonghao, who had been an Assistant Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, understood perfectly and knew exactly where to begin gathering it. Now that he was confirmed as trustworthy, he was naturally the one to take charge.

Hearing Liu Yong's report, Zhao Jin nodded, then looked at Liu Yong and said, "Xiaoyong, you and Leizi are the ones truly in charge of things."

"This younger brother understands. However, that Ma Chonghao is indeed loyal. In gathering intelligence, placing agents, and all aspects related to the Internal Guard, he understands far more than this younger brother and Leizi do. This younger brother and Leizi have also discussed it—if we let Old Ma handle things freely, he won't develop any ulterior motives." Liu Yong replied in a deep voice.

Zhao Jin shook his head, and instead said to everyone in the room, "Xiaoyong and Leizi are truly selfless and impartial toward us, never thinking of their own interests."

After saying this, Zhao Jin continued in a tone of earnest gravity, "I'm not blaming you. Your thinking and arrangements aren't wrong. If you now made Ma Chonghao the captain of this Internal Guard, I'd have nothing to say against it. But there is one thing I must remind you of: Ma Chonghao is forty-three this year; you are nineteen. Even if he manages things, how much longer can he manage them? In the end, it will still be you and Lei Cai who must lead this Internal Guard. Could it be that when the time comes, you'll take over again, learn everything from scratch, and reorganize all those connections all over again? That would delay matters. Don't go practicing any 'yielding to the worthy.' If it's given to you to manage, you must manage it. He is highly capable, so learn well from him. Ma Chonghao is a man of penetrating insight; he understands this principle even better than you do, and he will teach you without holding anything back."

Liu Yong stood there pondering for a moment, then bowed and said apologetically, "This younger brother was thinking too short-sightedly. This younger brother understands what to do now."

By mid-June, the wealthy merchants of Qingjiangpu all came to Xuzhou to "escape the summer heat." However, everyone knew the true purpose of their visit—it was to come and offer congratulations on the Zhao Character Camp's great victory.

Back when the roving bandit chaos was at its height, the wealthy merchants of Yangzhou and Qingjiangpu, along with the officials of Northern Zhili north of the Yangtze, had all hoped the Zhao Character Camp would not move rashly, but would guard the northern gateway of Southern Zhili well and prevent the roving bandits from entering this region. The Zhao Character Camp had done even better than they had hoped, directly pacifying the roving bandits. Not a single word of this matter appeared in official documents, but as for the facts, everyone knew in their hearts. So many had sent their own trusted men to keep watch in Xuzhou and over in Yutai County, Shandong, relaying battle reports at any moment. When news of victory arrived, and they saw the boatload after boatload of grain heading north, and the column after column of captives marching south, everyone knew the great victory was certain.

However, the fear they had felt back then—now that the victory was won, everyone simply relaxed. No one thought to offer any thanks. Unconsciously, everyone had come to feel that it was only natural for the Zhao Character Camp to protect Southern Zhili, that this was simply their duty.

That was how they thought, but Zhou Xuezhi, Li Dajin, and several other managers below them did not think so. Dong Bingfeng did not think so either. The campaign to pacify the roving bandits had been conducted in the Zhao Character Camp's consistent style: a swift battle and a swift resolution. The Third Regiment had only advanced from Qingjiangpu as far as Suqian when it received orders to turn back to Qingjiangpu. The result was that, aside from the initial desperate pleading for Zhao Jin to serve as their protector, Qingjiangpu had made no further showing at all. This left everyone feeling deeply dissatisfied.

Since there was no chance to earn merit, at least adding flowers to brocade could be done. Zhou Xuezhi, openly and covertly, let word slip out that he hoped everyone would congratulate the Zhao Character Camp on this great victory. If no one said anything, people might not think of it or might pretend ignorance, but once it was said, everyone grasped it at once. The wealthy merchants of Qingjiangpu immediately sprang into action. They all brought out the military pay and provisions they had each privately prepared to contribute, and sent them to Xuzhou in the name of congratulatory gifts.

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