Entrepreneurship in the Late Tang Dynasty

Chapter 159 Repaying the Favor
What does it mean to be cunning and treacherous like a devil? Yuan Xi was just that kind of person.

According to the original plan, the elimination of the Li family was not to be done so quickly. However, when he visited Shuanghe Town, he discovered that members of the Li family were actually managing customs duties within the camp.

He made two judgments at that time.

One problem is that the original plan to obtain the account books can't be fulfilled. If you try to find evidence of the Li family's crimes in the hands of someone from the Li family, what can you find? The accounts are all fake.

His second judgment was that he needed to act immediately.

The Li family's relationship with the military governor was deeper than they had imagined; they even entrusted the tax work in Shuanghe Town to their family.

But he soon realized something was wrong. When he suggested that Zhang Xuan lead his troops to Ding County to assemble, he only mentioned it briefly, but he didn't expect Zhang Xuan to agree so readily. What signal did this send?
The military governor did not intend to protect the Li family to the death; in fact, he might have used the governor's hand to silence them, otherwise he would not have withdrawn the garrison troops protecting this line.

So here's the question: if you can guess what's going on from this signal, can the Li family, or more precisely, Li Chengxian, also guess it?
Yuan Xi had a personality trait that was hard to tell whether it was a strength or a weakness: he was overly cautious in assessing his enemies and often overestimated their strength.

Therefore, Yuan Xi deduced that Li Chengxian must have also read this signal, and wondered what he would do if he were Li Chengxian.
When his superiors were about to abandon him, he had no choice but to take a desperate gamble and kill Yuan Xi.

In the eyes of the Li family, if the state wanted to convict them, it would have to find the account books and key witnesses. But if they killed Yuan Xi, who came to investigate the accounts, then who could convict them?

If they were innocent, would the military governor still abandon the Li family? Of course not.

Therefore, in the eyes of the Li family, Yuan Xi had to be killed.

When will they make their move?

This is where Yuan Xi's cunning lies. By having the Shuanghe troops moved away, he gave Li Chengxian the illusion that they would make their move after the garrison troops had set off.

But what actually happened? After Yuan Xi returned to the county with Magistrate Xie Yuanshang's carriage, he immediately found Zhou Dexing and Wei Jingang's troops, who had been stationed outside the city, and ordered them to enter the city immediately to attack the Li family's residence.

And as they had guessed, after they finally captured the Li clan, the Li family did indeed intend to take action against Yuan Xi, but they dared not do so during the day and decided to burn down the inn where Yuan Xi was staying at midnight.

They thought they had plenty of time, but they were still a step too late.

This step cost the entire clan their lives.

The worst off was Li Chengxian. If he had remained in the army, Yuan Xi would have had a lot of trouble dealing with him. But he rode back on his own, which made it easy to wipe them all out.

Thus, the Li family, who had been the true lords of Gushi County, vanished without a trace, becoming victims of power struggles.

But they didn't lose because of Yuan Xi's cunning methods; rather, they simply didn't understand what kind of person their governor really was!

Do I need ledgers and witnesses to kill your whole family? You need those? I'll just write one up for you on the spot!
……

On the way to Ding County, Zhou Dexing and Wei Jingang escorted a hundred prison carts, transporting the entire Li family, from top to bottom, to Ding County.

Zhao Huai'an needs to follow the clues from Li's mouth to dismantle the entire network entrenched in Guangzhou, dealing in tea and smuggled salt, and then he can take over the business.

In addition, he is about to launch a crackdown on the mountains, which requires him to find out the situation in the mountains from these wealthy people who sell their goods, so that he can know himself and his enemy.

Therefore, after Zhou Dexing and Wei Jingang broke into the Li family's residence, they did not linger for a moment and rushed back to Ding County with their men.

At that moment, outside a prison cart carrying female relatives, several officers of the Baoyidu were whispering among themselves. Fu Tong, who was patrolling nearby, saw them and cursed:
"What are you doing? Don't you know we're on a march? You dare to slack off like this? I'll skin you alive!"

As she spoke, Fu Tong kicked them, and the officers laughed and took the blow without moving.

Seeing their men arrive, the officers raised their voices, and one of them squinted and smiled:
"Fu, we heard that they're going to assign us wives, is that true?"

As he said this, the officer couldn't help but laugh, and then the others followed suit, but no matter how you listened to it, the laughter sounded rather lewd.

Upon hearing this, Fu Tong frowned and asked:

"How did you know? I only overheard it vaguely."

Then one of the officers next to him shouted:

“Fu Tou, you don’t know Zhao Chang’er. He’s the most well-informed person. He knows a lot of things.”

Fu Tong frowned:

"Alright, stop asking around in the army and focus on your work. When have we ever wronged our brothers?"

When Fu Tong said this, several people nodded in agreement. They all agreed, no, the magistrate really had nothing to say to them, always putting them first in everything.

Then there's no doubt about getting a wife! Haha.

It was still Zhao Chang'er, pointing at the draped carriage, laughing smugly:
"Can we have some of this? It's so white, I love it."

Fu Tong's face darkened, and she cursed:

"You're dreaming. I haven't even settled down yet, and you're already thinking about sharing a wife and choosing one yourself? Work hard and get to our position before you make any demands."

Then he looked around at everyone and said:

"Let me repeat myself: when has the magistrate ever mistreated us? In short, just do your job well, and everything will fall into place."

At this moment, Zhao Chang'er and the others nodded in agreement, and Zhao Chang'er even patted his chest and said:

"Don't worry, Chief Fu. The magistrate treats us well, so how could we possibly be lazy? Just now, when we attacked their mansion, I took down five of them all by myself. I hit each of them six times more than I could. We eat the magistrate's food, so we have plenty of strength. Let's beat these guys to a pulp!"

Fu Tong then burst into laughter, patted Zhao Chang'er on the shoulder, and told the others to go ahead.

Only after Zhao Chang heard this did Fu Tong whisper a question:

"Your surname is Zhao. Is it related to the Zhao of our magistrate?"

Zhao Chang'er was taken aback, and hesitated before saying:
"It's okay, but it can also be related."

Fu Tong frowned and snorted:
"So, is there any connection at all?"

Zhao Chang'er quickly replied in a low voice:

“Fu, don’t be in such a hurry. We’re from Xichuan, and the magistrate is from Shouzhou. We’re practically strangers. But we’ll get to know a water carrier from Zhao Family Lane. If we have the money, we can try to build connections with people from Zhao Family Lane. After all, we’re all from the same family.” Fu Tong hesitated for a moment, then asked:
"How much does that cost?"

Zhao Chang'er stretched out a hand and laughed:
"Fifty strings of cash, fifty strings of cash, and we can establish a relationship with the Zhao family. Then, if you need anything from Master Fu, it will be a piece of cake."

But when Fu Tong heard the number, he immediately told Zhao Chang'er to get lost. After fighting for so long, he only had sixty strings of cash left in his pocket. This man was asking for an exorbitant amount, directly taking away his savings. Get lost!

But Zhao Chang'er grabbed Fu Tong, smiling obsequiously:
“Fu Tou, you’re just too impatient. Fifty strings of cash can be used to build relationships, and five strings can be used to make connections. Here’s what we’ll do: give me five strings, and I’ll help you out.”

Fu Tong hesitated. He couldn't afford fifty strings of cash, but five strings, though still a large sum, was something he could afford. After thinking for a moment, he gritted his teeth:

"Alright, five strings of cash it is. When we get back to Ding County, you can come with us to the treasury to collect it. But let me make this clear, if you can't do it, I'll skin you alive."

But after Fu Tong finished speaking, Zhao Chang'er shook his head vigorously, turned to leave, and was then stopped by Fu Tong, who said:

"Fu Tou, you're too good at business. You think you can do something worth fifty strings of cash for only five? Go find someone else. I'm not willing to rip you off."

Fu Tong knew she had made a difficult point, so she whispered:
"Alright, how are you going to use these five strings of cash?"

Zhao Chang'er patted his chest and said to Fu Tong:
"Fu, give me the money, and don't worry about how I use it. Whatever you want, I'll pass on a message to the Zhao family for you. But whether it works or not won't stop at just five strings of cash."

Fu Tong thought for a moment, then asked with suspicion:
"The people in Zhao Family Lane are all relatives of the magistrate. You think you can get through with just five strings of cash?"

Zhao Chang'er became anxious:

“Fu Tou, others may not be able to do it, but we are surnamed Zhao, so of course we can. And don’t look down on the fact that the people in Zhao Family Lane are relatives of the magistrate. They are poor but have enough to eat and wear and have tutors, but they don’t have much money in their pockets. We have plenty of ways to make connections.”

Upon hearing this, Fu Tong sighed and exclaimed in admiration:
“Ah, the magistrate is truly amazing to his brothers. His own people are still poor, yet he gives us money. We must repay the magistrate properly.”

Then he coughed, and continuing from where he left off, he said in a pretentious manner:

"So, to repay the magistrate, our position is still too low. I heard from above that we are going to reorganize recently, and many positions will be expanded. Old Zhao, can you help me put in a good word and see if we can get a squad leader position this time? I also want to work harder and repay the magistrate's kindness more."

After hearing this, Zhao Chang'er gave a thumbs-up and exclaimed in praise:

“We people of Xichuan are indeed known for our sense of gratitude and loyalty. Fu Tou, no doubt about it, I, Zhao Chang'er, will definitely help you with this.”

But at this moment, Zhao Chang'er's inner thoughts were:

"Hmm? The team is expanding, so could I possibly become a junior officer? I'd like to serve my lord as much as possible!"

……

Guangling, more than 800 li away, was the residence of Liu Jishu, the military supervisor of Huainan.

As the military supervisor, Liu Jishu was unwilling to be in the same place as Liu Ye. He was unhappy, and Liu Ye was also unhappy. It would be better to be in two different places and each do their own thing.

As the customs post of Huainan, Guangling was a place where rare and exotic goods from all over the world were sent. Naturally, it was a good place for Liu Jishu to be stationed.

At this moment, Liu Jishu was chatting with a junior military supervisor:
"Little Xue, have those maids sent by Silla been sold yet?"

The young envoy bent over exaggeratedly and laughed:

“Brother, you’ve handled everything so efficiently. If you ask me, those Silla people should be beaten to death. Sending us Silla maids is just an insult to us.”

Liu Jishu lay on the soft couch, and said comfortably:

"What the hell? We came to Guangling to make money, not to seek revenge. It's only because of these yellow and white people that we can have security in the future."

The envoy flattered:
“That’s something only eunuchs do. Brother, you’re a member of the Liu family. You’ll be a Lieutenant and a Privy Councilor for generations to come, enjoying endless wealth and honor. Why would you care about this little bit of money? We know it’s because you’re kind-hearted that you don’t stoop to the level of those Silla people.”

Liu Jishu laughed, meaning, "You understand me, kid."

In the warm atmosphere, the young envoy asked in a low voice:
"Brother, I heard that Father is going to pass the position of Left Lieutenant to you."

Liu Jishu swayed slightly and squinted as he said:

"That's how it is. So, don't cause us any trouble lately. Once Father retires, we'll take over his position peacefully, and then we'll enjoy endless wealth and honor. For people like us, it's meaningless if we don't become lieutenants. If we lose our roots, we'll have to wield a knife, otherwise those people in the Southern Court will treat us like a pile of shit."

The young man was overjoyed after receiving confirmation of the news.

After all, if the leader goes up, won't this lucrative post in Guangling fall into his lap?

So the man became even more attentive, and suddenly thought of something:
"Someone wrote to us saying that the military governor Liu Ye embezzled salt profits. Should we investigate this matter?"

Liu Jishu opened his eyes and immediately began to curse:
"You fool, what did I just say? Stop causing trouble and stay peaceful. I don't care if Liu Ye embezzled or not. The salt profits are the money of the husbands above, the Emperor's money, and the Ministry of Finance's money, but they are not our money. I don't care about it."

"Besides, do you think Liu Ye is just someone you can keep to yourself? He's the money bag for those people in the Southern Court. Why are you messing with them? Don't you want to be a lieutenant anymore?"

After being reprimanded, the young envoy looked extremely apprehensive.

Liu Jishu shook his head and instructed:

"Kid, don't be too ambitious. Just eat what you're supposed to eat. Only by knowing the rules can you survive for long. And don't overthink it. Everyone in this court, once they put on this robe, isn't every one of them a hypocrite? Who doesn't love money? We should keep to ourselves and not interfere with each other. You'll be taking my position someday. The sooner you understand this, the less trouble you'll cause."

"If we can do this, we have already served the court and the emperor!"

The young envoy was overjoyed upon hearing this and was extremely grateful to Liu Jishu.

Only Liu Jishu lay on the soft couch, a smile playing on his lips.

In Huainan, corruption was rampant, and the higher-ups set an example for the lower levels. Meanwhile, in Dingxian, Guang Prefecture, after receiving the governor's order to gather troops, local militias and villagers from various counties all flocked to Dingxian.

At this time, Ding County had become a military camp. Zhao Huai'an would thoroughly count his troops and reorganize his forces here before suppressing and pacifying the bandits and outlaws in the Dabie Mountains.

He held back long enough!

(End of this chapter)