The Legend of the Condor Heroes: From Being Expelled from Peach Blossom Island

Chapter 111 Fighting in the Arena

Is it possible that Hong Qigong, one of the Five Greats and the leader of the world's number one gang, was deceived?
It's quite possible. Hong Qigong is skilled in martial arts, but he certainly can't outsmart these political types.

So Shi Tong was just a smokescreen. The secret matter of sending him to Suzhou to welcome the Jin envoy should not have caused any commotion. However, the Shi family tolerated Shi Tong's meddling, which caused chaos in the entire city of Suzhou and made enemies everywhere.

This conveniently drew those who wanted to sabotage the peace treaty between the Song and Jin dynasties to Suzhou, and the real Jin envoy might have already arrived in Hangzhou to meet with Shi Miyuan.

The simplest strategy is to openly repair one road while secretly advancing another.

Perhaps Shi Tong's death was also expected by the historians; he was essentially a pawn, placed here to be killed.

In a few days, one or more so-called Jin envoys will appear in Suzhou. At that time, either someone like Hong Qigong will take action to obtain evidence that Shi Miyuan betrayed the interests of the Song Dynasty, or some martial arts figures will simply kill them all, thus breaking the peace agreement.

This is destined to be a trap, and those who oppose Shi Miyuan, including martial arts masters, will inevitably suffer a great loss.

Therefore, the Shi family was actually waiting for Shi Tong to die, and no matter how Shi Tong died, they would not suspect the local families in Suzhou.

The only problem was that Shi Tong died too quickly and too early because of Wu Chengyu, a variable.

Hong Qigong had just arrived, and the rest of the people who had received the news were probably still on their way. The fake Jin envoy was supposed to arrive in a few days, and the trap hadn't been set up yet. As a result, Shi Tong suddenly died, and both sides were dumbfounded.

The reason they sent Shi Chang here now is probably to smooth things over.

All of this was merely Wu Chengyu's conjecture, and no one could verify it. Because it involved Hong Qigong's fight, Wu Chengyu did not tell Wu Zhengliang either. None of the families from various families in Suzhou present knew anything about the Jin envoy.

While Wu Chengyu was lost in thought, Shi Chang continued, "My elder brother came to Suzhou to run businesses and received a lot of help from friends there. Of course, he was a bit impatient, which made many families unhappy."

My family, the Shi family, has never abused its power to bully others. It was my elder brother who made the mistake, and Shi Chang apologizes to everyone on behalf of my elder brother.

Now my elder brother has died from a serious illness, but the debts remain even after death. The collaborations my elder brother proposed to everyone can continue, and I, Shi Chang, will take on the responsibility.

The matters that I have disagreed with you all must also be resolved.

As soon as he finished speaking, Shi Chang took out an account book, which actually contained the properties that Shi Tong had seized by trickery and force not long after he came to Suzhou, as well as those so-called plans that were actually just attempts to take advantage of others under the guise of cooperation.

For example, when he wanted to invest in the money exchange business with the Ling family of Suzhou, the Ling family, who were looking to expand their business in Hangzhou, agreed immediately, taking advantage of the Shi family's influence. However, Shi Tong demanded 10% of the silver for 60% of the shares, and the Ling family and he had a falling out on the spot.

For example, Shi Tong wanted the iron mine operating rights currently owned by the Wu family, but he only wanted to get something for nothing and wanted to be satisfied with a few hundred taels of silver.

In fact, the Gusu family wanted to cooperate with the Shi family. Shi Miyuan was clearly going to rise to power, and the combination of official and businessmen was the best way to make money. Moreover, it would allow them to expand their business to Hangzhou. However, Shi Tong's approach would only make them enemies.

Next, Shi Chang proposed different feasible solutions to each family, which were no longer pure robbery, but he was meticulous about the interests of the Shi family and refused to back down.

Shi Chang's plan was simple: pay whatever amount is due, but the Shi family must take the lead.

It's fine to cooperate with the Ling family on the money shop, with a 60% stake and no reduction in investment, but the Ling family doesn't want their money shop to end up in the Shi family's name.

He proposed to the Wu family to buy the operating rights of the iron mine. No problem. But this resource has many hidden benefits. However, Shi Chang only gave the real market price on the surface. Why should the Wu family sell it?
For a moment, the second floor of Deyuelou resembled a bustling market, with everyone vying for their own interests, while Wu Chengyu watched coldly from the sidelines. Shi Chang came to handle Shi Tong's matter, but it turned into a business negotiation? This was clearly another smokescreen, and it was unclear who it was intended to impress.

Just as Wu Chengyu had expected, Shi Chang quickly called a halt and proposed his new plan.

"I know that everyone wants to cooperate. The Shi family can give you things that you can't get normally, and Dabang doesn't want to suffer losses."

Since that's the case, let's come up with a compromise. I will negotiate two different contracts with each of them.

One option is that my family, the historians, will benefit, and you will all make money with my family in the future. The other option is that you will all benefit greatly, and my family, the historians, will suffer some losses, but we are willing to make more friends and cooperate more in the future.

As for which contract to choose, how about we have a martial arts tournament to make friends? I have three experts here, and two more will arrive tonight.

I've heard that the sons of the powerful families in Suzhou have all practiced martial arts since childhood and are all skilled fighters. Some of them even have masters in their families who serve as their retainers. Alternatively, I'll give you ten days to recruit masters from outside to fight in your place.

"If your men defeat my men, the contract will prioritize your gains. If they lose in the arena, it will be handled according to the rules of my Shi family. How about that?"

Shi Chang's method is no different from some gangs seizing territory, but simpler and more brutal, except that they all seek out experts for one-on-one duels.

Suddenly, everyone fell silent, each pondering how to benefit themselves, or whether they had anyone in their family who could fight and win.

Wu Chengyu's three uncles all looked at him simultaneously. Wu Chengyu smiled wryly, knowing that if the Wu family were to send someone to fight, who else but him would be the best choice?

Moreover, Shi Chang's methods or schemes were not aimed at any particular family. As long as Wu Chengyu won, the family could gain considerable benefits. The peace treaty between the Song and Jin dynasties, the traps and ambushes, were actually irrelevant to the Wu family.

In Wu Chengyu's view, Shi Chang was trying to muddy the waters and cause trouble in Suzhou to attract everyone's attention.

The key point is that each family is given time to find a skilled fighter to replace them in the battle.

Where did so many experts come from all of a sudden? It just so happens that quite a few people have recently come to Suzhou, and their arrival will certainly not escape the notice of the local bigwigs in Suzhou.

No Shi family needs to use any bait; these people can't hide on their own.

Then we can pull some tricks and schemes, such as having a fake Jin envoy appear and setting a trap. Even if we can't wipe them all out, we can at least keep them in Suzhou.

Then Shi Miyuan's secret meeting with the Jin envoy would proceed smoothly, and no one could interfere.

Wu Chengyu didn't know if his guess was right, but the historians' actions clearly had ulterior motives.

However, Wu Chengyu did not want to expose the truth, because in history Shi Miyuan did indeed successfully negotiate peace with the Jin Dynasty. This was not a decision made by Shi Miyuan alone. The pro-war faction had already declined, and the court, from the emperor to the ministers, all wanted to negotiate peace.

The difference is that Shi Miyuan wanted to use this incident to expand his status and power in the court.

With the entire court in such a state, how could Wu Chengyu stop it? He couldn't think of a solution, so he could only try to protect himself.

(End of this chapter)