Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 509 When shall we depart? The young lady was getting impatient.
"Get out of the way, you gangsters!"

A dozen or so men in short clothes began clearing the area.

The young man in brocade robes chuckled nonchalantly, "How interesting, I've actually run into someone who stands up for justice."

"Boy, do you know we're from the secret branch of the Canal Gang?"

The Grand Canal Gang was an organization centered around the 2,000-mile-long Grand Canal.

On the surface, they were engaged in the work of transporting grain along the canal, and on the side, they were smuggling along the way.

Grain, salt, and minerals are among the bulk commodities they transport or smuggle, either through legitimate means.

The trade in smuggled salt was entirely controlled by the canal gangs, who operated the water transport system.

Even the renowned Salt Gang could only travel by land.

The secret guilds of the Grand Canal Gang were involved in gray or illegal areas, such as casinos, brothels, and even illicit activities like banditry, robbery, and kidnapping.

With the rise of maritime trade and the arrival of Westerners, these people gradually poured into Shanghai, forming the infamous Green Gang.

That's right, the notorious Green Gang was originally the Canal Gang.

The young man smiled arrogantly, "It wasn't a big deal, just pay some money and it'll be over."

"But you insist on playing the hero!"

"The worst thing about me is pretending to be a chivalrous hero."

"I want it today!"

'boom! '

A gunshot rang out, and the young man in brocade robes, who had just looked up, fell back down with wide eyes, his mind racing.

‘Bang bang! ’

After double-tapping to finish off the enemy and confirming that he was no longer making any moves, Lin Daofang finally spoke, "The villain dies from talking too much."

The people around were immediately terrified and panicked, shouting and running away.

Jia Lian, standing to the side, had pale lips and was trembling.

"A pistol?"

"Oh?" Lin Dao lowered his pistol. "The Great Zhou also has firearms?"

"Of course there is."

Jia Lian nodded vigorously, "There is a firearms battalion in the Beijing garrison."

"Brother, your pistol is so exquisite, could it be an import from the West?"

It even had Western imported goods; the time period of this Great Zhou Dynasty was almost the same as that of the Qing Dynasty.

It could prevent the Manchus from slaughtering the Chinese people, causing a regression in civilization and reducing the people to the status of pigs and dogs.

Lin Dao's goodwill towards Da Zhou has increased by ten points.

"Little Lord!"

A dozen or so men in short clothes were filled with shock and anger.

The men were terrified when they saw the young man in brocade robes with his eyes wide open.

This is the head of the hall!
Although not the only one, he is the most valued and is very likely to become the new leader in the future.

The young master died here. As his guards, not only will they all die, but their families will also be implicated.

There is only one way to avoid a cruel ending.

The men in short clothes, their eyes bloodshot, all looked at Lin Dao.

"Don't be afraid!"

The leader shouted, "We only have one shot of ammunition for our pistols! Everyone, stand shoulder to shoulder!"

'boom! '

The person who shouted suddenly had a wild idea and collapsed to the ground.

The people on the long street had already scattered and run away.

The nearby houses and shops were also closed, with only pairs of eyes peeking out from the cracks in the doors and windows.

"No, don't be afraid!"

Another person spoke up, their voice trembling, "We...we outnumber him, he only has one pistol!"

'boom! '

The person collapsed and bled profusely.

Some people couldn't withstand the immense pressure and turned to run away.

To put it bluntly, they were just thugs, not a well-trained army.

Faced with the threat of deadly force, even the Double Flower Red Stick could not withstand such life-or-death pressure.

'boom! '

‘Bang bang! ’

The few who escaped all fell to the ground with their backs ripped open.

It did not die immediately, but struggled and howled, its voice shrill and piercing.

The surviving strong men of the canal gang all had extremely grim expressions.

Going up is not an option, running away is not an option either.

How to do this?
Lin Dao quickly helped them make a decision.

'boom! boom! boom! ’

The pistols were called out one by one.

Lin Dao was very knowledgeable about the canal gangs.

He had encountered it during the late Ming Dynasty.

The claim that the livelihoods of millions of canal workers depended on them was simply a matter of local groups coercing the imperial court.

As for why they were able to coerce the workers, it was because their backers, out of compassion, claimed they would take care of the workers' livelihoods.

The concept of public opinion and people's livelihood has long been thoroughly explored by Confucianism.

The biggest source of income for the Grand Canal Gang was smuggling.

From salt to grain, from minerals to all kinds of goods.

Smuggling operations, operating under the guise of canal transport, traded between the north and south of the two-thousand-mile canal, making huge profits.

Of course, the vast majority of this income is used to bribe superiors and subordinates.

The customs offices and local government offices along the way all used slush funds.

The real money was sent to the capital to the powerful figures who controlled the city.

Their backers ranged from imperial relatives and high-ranking officials to noble families.

To put it bluntly, they're gloves for making money.

As for the main sources of income for the Grand Canal Gang, they operated casinos, forced women into prostitution, extorted money, and kidnapped people.

Just look at the evil deeds committed by the Green Gang bandits in later generations, and it's perfectly reasonable to directly attribute them to the Grand Canal Gang.

Lin Dao had witnessed their evil deeds.

Gambling losses and debts can drive families to ruin and death.

The woman was forced into working in a brothel, earning money day and night. Once her health failed, she was buried in a mat even before she was completely dead.

Established shops dared not provoke them, but ordinary vendors were charged protection money.

If any local gentry took a fancy to someone, the canal gang would kidnap them and send them to the gentry's bed.

People in the modern world, without seeing or experiencing it firsthand, can never imagine the cruel hell that people in ancient times lived in. Therefore, Lin Dao did not regard these senior members of the canal gang as human beings.

‘Click! ’

With a crisp sound, the bullets were all used up.

At this point, only three of the canal gang's thugs remained.

They had long been terrified and numb, waiting to die in fear.

Seeing Lin Dao fiddling with the pistol, he suddenly understood something.

"His spermatorrhea medication is all gone!"

The three thugs, fully recovered, gritted their teeth, their faces contorted with rage, and charged forward with a roar.

Jia Lian collapsed to the ground, kicking backward in terror.

He harbored resentment towards Lin Dao for meddling, and now they were all doomed.
Lin Dao calmly tossed down his pistol, and then...
He pulled out another pistol!
His close-combat skills are outstanding; when he sparred with Xiang Yu before, he steadily suppressed him.

But Lin Dao still chose to use a gun.

He wouldn't resort to using cold weapons unless absolutely necessary.

When Lin Dao raised his pistol again, the three gang thugs were dumbfounded.

Nobody expected things to turn out this way!
Their expressions changed from ferocity to terror and despair.

‘Bang bang! ’

‘Bang bang! ’

‘Bang bang! ’

Lin Dao struck three times, first on the head and then on the heart.

Ensure complete elimination.

It's not that he's cruel; it's just that the shooting method he learned is like that.

"Young Master Jia."

After packing his things, Lin Dao asked frankly, "Now that everything's settled, aren't you going to buy me a drink?"

Half-lying on the ground, Jia Lian, both surprised and frightened, looked at Lin Dao with a confused expression.

He was a noble young man, accustomed to a life of luxury, and had never seen such a terrifying scene before.

He killed more than a dozen in one go!
I was just passing through and wanted to find some wild game to try. I never expected to encounter something like this!
This man had killed countless people, yet he remained completely unfazed.

Could he be a notorious bandit?!
Lin Dao frowned slightly and gestured to the servants who were lying on the ground in fright, "Hurry up and help your young master up."

The servants were terrified and hurriedly helped Jia Lian up.

At this moment, Jia Lian looked at the Canal Gang members lying on the ground not far away and cried out in despair.

"Someone has died, what are we going to do?"

Seeing his appearance, Lin Dao's gaze softened further.

He waved for his attendants to make way, stepped forward, put his arm around Jia Lian's shoulder, and walked towards the dock.

“You said before that you are a young master of the Rongguo Mansion.”

"Can't you even handle such a small matter?"

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian was so shocked that he almost fell to his knees.

"A small matter?!"

He opened his mouth, his expression one of astonishment. "That's over a dozen lives!"

"And you even used a handgun! This is no small matter; it's clearly a major case that has reached the highest levels of justice!"

"It was originally just a verbal dispute, but you—"

If it weren't for fear of Lin Dao's power, Jia Lian might have taken him to the yamen.

"Young Master Jia, this is no fun."

Lin Dao's gaze softened, but his words were warm: "I stood up for you, so why are you blaming me after it's all over?"

"This...this..." Jia Lian stammered, unsure what to say. "I..."

"Young Master Jia."

Lin Dao tightened his grip on Jia Lian's shoulder slightly. "Things aren't as bad as you think."

"It wasn't ordinary people who died, but bandits from the Grand Canal gang."

Do you think they'll report it to the authorities?

"If we really report this to the authorities, how will we ever have the face to live in the martial arts world again?"

"Since they're not reporting it to the authorities, it must be a feud between江湖 (jianghu, the martial arts world) members

Even if the government finds out, they will pretend not to see it.

"After all, it's better to avoid trouble."

"If such a horrific fighting incident were to occur under our jurisdiction and get out, the yamen would certainly suffer a setback in its performance evaluation, if nothing else. So we will try to cover it up if possible."

Jia Lian wanted to laugh. So you know it's a horrifying battle.

But then I thought, who exactly are you? How do you know so much about the affairs of the government?

The intricacies of government offices are beyond the comprehension of ordinary people.

"May I ask your esteemed name, sir?"

"My name is Lin Dao, courtesy name Zihou," Lin Dao continued, patting his shoulder. "I originally practiced cultivation in the mountains."

"Now that my cultivation has reached a bottleneck, I need to experience the world before I can leave the mountain."

"Oh?" Jia Lian became even more curious, and after a pause, he asked again, "May I ask, Brother Lin, which school of Taoism do you practice?"

He has a relative who is also a Taoist practitioner.

He knew a little about this.

"Me?" Lin Dao replied seriously, "I practice alchemy."

"Oh." Jia Lian looked enlightened. "So it's about refining essence into qi. Monks don't get close to women, that's good."

Who says monks don't get close to women? Some have dozens of illegitimate children!
He's a complete lustful devil!
"Brother Jia, you've misunderstood." Lin Dao reached into his robes and took out a silver ingot. "It's not refining essence into qi, it's refining gold and silver."

‘Hiss~’

Jia Lian looked stunned and incredulous.

You're really good at bragging.

"Second Master Lian~"

A clear, melodious voice, like the call of a cuckoo, rang out: "When shall we depart?" The young lady seemed a little impatient.

Before I knew it, I had arrived at the canal dock.

Before us stood a huge official ship.

A bright-eyed, white-toothed young girl stood by the ship's railing, calling out to Jia Lian.

"Brother Lin, you flatter me."

"This trip to Yangzhou is to see relatives off to visit home."

"Look~"

"Brother Jia!" Lin Dao narrowed his eyes and laughed, "We just fought side by side, so we should have a good drink together."

"Besides, I have to show you my alchemy skills!"

(End of this chapter)