Chapter 47

"Half of them are the house servants under the command of the seal-bearer, and the majority are the ruffians from the garrison city. If we really take action now, it will only take a moment to scatter them like falling flowers and flowing water."

On the side, Wen Zhongfa also said, "Look at them, standing without posture, holding weapons mostly for show. A day of no practice is a day of emptiness, ten days of no practice is a hundred days of emptiness. If it comes to fighting, these fellows are not even worth our attention."

The others nodded with smiles, but Liu Dequan remained silent with a sullen face.

Most of the escort guards were already training on their own. They received higher monthly pay, and their main tasks were to fight in groups, protect convoys, and train regularly at Xinning Fort. Even if they didn't go to Xinning Fort, when they were out on business, these guards, whether they were ruffians or porters by origin, would find time to train and practice with each other. Only a few truly despised martial arts and were unwilling to put in any extra effort outside of Xinning Fort.

At this moment, a vendor selling wontons passed by the crowd and made a very secret gesture to Yang Qiu.

Yang Qiu did not speak, quietly put on a large hat, and slipped out of the crowd. The others were still talking, and no one noticed him.

After leaving the crowd, Yang Qiu walked towards the east gate of the garrison city. At each corner, he would slow down slightly to check for any signs. At the low corner of a wall, there were some faint scratch marks. Following these marks, he arrived outside a teahouse.

The weather was good, and the teahouse was doing decent business. A storyteller was narrating "Journey to the West," foaming at the mouth as he described the battles. Each listener had a bowl of tea in front of them, and they all stretched their necks to listen, emitting exclamations of amazement at the exciting parts.

Yang Qiu followed the last indication to a table, where he saw Zhang Han smiling at him.

"Have you seen the young master?"

"There's no need to be so formal, sit down and talk."

Zhang Han was not deliberately dressed up, but he looked like a young merchant's son. Liang Xing and the Jiang brothers were disguised as laborers. When they saw Yang Qiu enter, all three smiled.

"When did the young master arrive?"

"Only just entered the city, preparing to meet the seal-bearer. Before that, I need to clear up some matters..."

"I understand." Yang Qiu's eyes sparkled as he whispered, "The most troublesome are still those few families. The people surrounding the shops are mostly hired by those families I mentioned last time. They are also the ones spreading rumors about us and Yusheng."

"What about their backgrounds?"

"I've investigated that too. Most of them have one or two scholars in their families, but none have any juren (imperial scholars). They just use money to bribe the seal-bearer. They are just a few local rich men."

"Is there any connection with the Fan family?"

"Our people have been watching day and night. We haven't seen anyone from the Fan family go to these families, nor have we seen these families go to the Fan family's branch. Moreover, we've heard in the city that the Fan family has always been powerful, and these families are not very submissive. There have been several disputes between the two sides in recent years. These families also want to compete with the Fan family, but unfortunately, the Fan family has strong capital and solid connections everywhere. Whether they hire ruffians to fight or file complaints with the authorities, they always lose. Out of frustration, they can only endure. This time, we came to snatch their business, and they are really desperate. The seal-bearer also wants to deal with us, so both sides have come to an agreement. No other forces are involved."

Yang Qiu's words matched the information Zhang Han had gathered in Datong. He nodded with a smile and praised, "Yang Qiu, you've really improved. The people you lead are doing a great job in hiding and gathering information. I will remember this."

Yang Qiu was excited and glanced at Liang Xing with pride, but Liang Xing was unmoved, just smiling slightly. Yang Qiu's pride diminished, and he felt a bit immature. He scratched his head and said to Zhang Han, "Young master, when are we going to take action? The brothers are all ready. If we directly kill them, we have already planned the route. We can ensure that these families are wiped out in one night. Or we can pick a few beggars from the south of the city, kill them, and throw their bodies into these families' houses, causing chaos in one night. Or we can kidnap the children from these families, making them unable to move freely..."

Yang Qiu spoke enthusiastically, and even Liang Xing was moved, looking at Zhang Han with eager eyes.

No matter how the young master decides, they are willing to follow.

Killing and robbing, kidnapping children, or framing others with murder—these are all within the scope of the ruffians' business. Liang Xing and Yang Qiu have done these things before, and they would do them again if they were on their own. But they were recruited by Zhang Han before they could start their own business.

Zhang Han laughed and patted Yang Qiu on the shoulder, saying, "Your ideas are all good. If there's a need in the future, I will definitely have you do these things."

Yang Qiu was puzzled, "Then this time?"

"This time, we still need to talk."

"Why?" Liang Xing interjected, "These guys are all stubborn, only recognizing fists and money. Either we beat them into submission, or we let them make money. Right now, they are trying to squeeze us for money, and they will raise prices after the summer tax is collected. During the spring famine, they will raise prices by at least two to three times the cost of grain. They don't care if people sell their children or starve to death. They are all heartless bastards. Why talk to them? It's best to kill them."

Yang Qiu glanced at Liang Xing, feeling very strange. What's up with this old partner, talking about conscience now? They, as ruffians, have to break children's legs to make them beggars, and they have to kidnap rich families' children, cut off their ears and noses to extort ransom. When did conscience ever matter to them?

Zhang Han praised, "Liang Xing, it seems you've been reading the books I gave you. I've been teaching you and Zhang Chun to read every night, and it seems the effort hasn't been in vain."

Yang Qiu was moved and quickly said, "Master, I also want to learn to read and write, and I want to read more books."

Zhang Han nodded, "Reading useful books will benefit you. We'll talk about it when we return to Xinning Fort."

"What about the current situation?"

"Take me to Ma Chao's house. I heard he is a juren and the most arrogant. To talk, we need to talk to the leader."

"Go like this?"

Liang Xing chuckled and said, "Of course not. If the master wants to talk to them, the premise is to make them know our strength. You may not know, but the seal-bearer's house servants have already withdrawn from the front of our shop. From now on, whatever we do, the seal-bearer won't interfere. Even if we report it, the military commissioner and the inspector won't care. We need to make them understand this. Otherwise, they might think we are being pushed around and really come to 'talk' with them."

Zhang Han laughed and scolded, "Liang Xing, you can't be so blunt. You're ruining my image."

"Hehe, Master, you are the most benevolent. These evil ideas are all mine..."

Liang Xing and Zhang Han talked with a sense of unrestrained joy.

Before this, the ruffians were not very familiar with Zhang Han. They just followed him around, getting to know him superficially. Recently, Yang Qiu has been doing more covert operations with Zhang Han, including how to disguise himself, arrange informants, set up hidden posts, and follow people. He didn't know that Zhang Han mostly learned these things from movies and novels, thinking the young master was truly capable. Learning these skills and combining them with the ruffians' original skills, Yang Qiu felt his ability to do evil was improving rapidly, and his respect for Zhang Han grew. Liang Xing, who spent more time with Zhang Han, reading and writing, and practicing with firelocks, seemed to be much closer to him.

Looking at the Jiang brothers, who were also laughing, it seemed they had also grown closer to the master.

Yang Qiu knew that Wang Changfu and a few others, who were porters by origin, were also learning to read every day. For some reason, he felt a sense of tension and urgency.

Yang Qiu was anxious, but his face was smiling. After laughing with everyone, he said to Zhang Han, "Master, let us handle these matters. We have been here for a long time and know the situation well."

"Alright, Liang Xing will tell Yang Qiu what to do, and Yang Qiu will lead the team to execute it."

"Yes, Master."

When given a task, Liang Xing's smile disappeared, and he responded seriously.

Zhang Han had strict rules. Joking was one thing, but the hierarchy was always clear. Tasks must be completed without any discount. Before doing the task, you can question and discuss, but once assigned, it must be done perfectly. Otherwise, Zhang Han had many ways to discipline them. Over time, everyone had a sense of fear, and once assigned a task, they would do their best to complete it.

Yang Qiu and Liang Xing got up without a word. Before leaving, Yang Qiu lowered his voice and said, "Master, among us, there might be a few with ulterior motives. When you have time, I will report to you in detail."

Zhang Han chuckled, tapped his finger on the table, and said, "I will be staying in Tiancheng Garrison City for a few days. You can come and talk to me when you have time. I will be going to Zhangjiakou soon, so it's best to do it before then."

"Yes, Master."

Yang Qiu agreed and left with Liang Xing.

Outside the teahouse, they pretended to be casually strolling. On the way, they passed a few vendors, and Yang Qiu made gestures to them, instructing them to be on guard outside the teahouse, serving as outer sentries and guards.

"Yang Qiu, you've really grown." Liang Xing sighed, "You handle these matters with great skill, much better than me."

"You are always by the master's side." Yang Qiu smiled, "There are only a few firelocks, and only Zhang Chun and you have them. In the future, at most, Wang Changfu and a few other porter leaders will have them. The master really relies on you."

---

I've added another chapter. Can I get more votes, everyone?

Page flip AD starts

Page flip AD ends