My eunuch godfather

Chapter 23 Smuggling Business

The prefect of Linqing could not accept the banquet for free; the next day, the river works camp began recruiting workers in Linqing.

Having already gained experience in Hejian, Zhang Kun naturally took the lead:

First, buy old grain to set up a porridge shop, and hire storytellers and opera singers to promote the river engineering camp next to the porridge shop.

The capital city is great, the river works camp is very profitable, and there's even the possibility of upward social mobility.

At the same time, they hired craftsmen and disaster victims to find suitable open spaces and build temporary camps.

Once the temporary camp was built, the hired HR personnel began recruiting and conducting basic military training.

Unlike last time, Zhang Kun involved more than twenty river workers recruited from Xinzhuang.

It will not only hone their abilities but also examine their character.

The assessment of character cannot be done by simply having a physiognomist look at a river worker; it mainly relies on the help of Wei Sengteng.

Wei Sengteng had traveled extensively, gaining a wide range of knowledge and experience. He often led teams on missions and had honed his ability to judge people.

Even without Wei Sengteng's help, Zhang Kun had taken care of four or five cats and dogs before he transmigrated.

After transmigrating, he had been an official for several months, managing dozens or even hundreds of people under his command, and his ability to judge people had greatly improved.

Unlike Hejian, Linqing, as an important town along the Grand Canal, has a local population that is less opposed to leaving their hometown and venturing out to other places.

After the temporary camp was built, as many as 20,000 to 30,000 people came to sign up on the very first day!

Zhang Kun's propaganda strategy backfired, attracting too many disaster victims, and the two hundred soldiers were simply unable to control the situation.

Fortunately, the Linqing prefectural government promptly dispatched over a thousand militiamen to help maintain order.

"Damn, there are so many people..."

Chen Jizong and Zhou Zhong had never seen such a large scene with 20,000 to 30,000 people before, and they stood on the city wall in a daze.

The capital's garrison was said to have 100,000 men, but each inspection only involved 4,000 to 5,000 men going through the motions, and it only happened once every few years.

There are fewer people than at a university sports meet, Zhang Kun said calmly.

"Stop hiring, cook for them first, and make sure they're well-fed."

The river engineering battalion only recruited 1,500 people in Linqing. If those who were eliminated caused a disturbance, it would be the end of them.

To reduce the fighting capacity of the disaster victims, Zhang Kun also ordered Xu Xin to bring back several hundred kilograms of coarse sugar to be mixed into the porridge.

While the porridge was cooking, Zhang Kun had Xu Xin bring people to buy several hundred dried bamboo stalks.

Soldiers and craftsmen were instructed to split the dry bamboo into strips and carve one, two, three, four, and five lines on them.

When distributing porridge, have the fortune teller stand beside them and give bamboo sticks to the suitable young and strong men.

Tell them to come back and try again in a few days, for example, "three" means the day after tomorrow.

Seeing that the situation had stabilized, the prefect of Linqing breathed a sigh of relief and complained to Zhang Kun, who was in charge of the affairs:

"You've caused such a commotion, the prefectural government is in a very difficult position!"

Zhang Kun knew that the responsibility for this matter largely lay with the propaganda strategy that had been copied from the Hejian experience, and he bowed his head in apology:

"It was my oversight that caused trouble for the prefectural government."

"Could we recruit another thousand people in Linqing?"

The prefect first made demands of Zhang Kun, and then gave him the following conditions:

"If possible, the state government can sell you another thousand shi of old grain, still at below market price."

"Linqing suffered severe damage, and the river works team should receive even more care."

Seeing that the other party was still willing to offer terms, Zhang Kun quickly and respectfully agreed:

"The river work camp will not only recruit an additional thousand people, but those with families will also be taken along."

"Excellent!"

The prefect nodded, then suddenly remembered something and asked Zhang Kun:

"The river works camp only has twenty cargo boats. Is that enough? The prefectural government can help the river works camp find boatmen."

"Thank you, Governor."

Zhang Kun expressed his gratitude to the prefect:

"After the river workers are recruited, they will undergo a few days of simple training. Their families will travel by boat while the river workers walk north."

"Walking north!?"

The prefect was very surprised when he heard this, because it was 800 li from Linqing to the capital!

Even with the support of fleets of ships and horses, many of these river workers would not be able to hold on.

Then it dawned on them that the number of personnel in the river engineering battalion was limited, and doing this would allow them to weed out the weak and retain the strong.

"Yes, if too many people fall behind, there won't be enough members."

A resolute look appeared in Zhang Kun's eyes as he respectfully addressed the prefect:

"The river engineering battalion will recruit more people in the prefectures and counties along the route."

Many people will inevitably fall behind along the way, end up in miserable situations such as becoming slaves, or even lose their lives.

But there's nothing Zhang Kun can do; he can't save many people right now, and his choice comes at a price.

The prefect fell silent, then waved his hand, signaling Zhang Kun to leave quickly.

......

Upon returning to the post station, Zhang Kun discovered an extra sedan chair in the courtyard, accompanied by two sedan chair bearers and two servants.

"Brother, this is Master Qi."

Chen Jizong pointed to the richly dressed, handsome young man and greeted Zhang Kun with a smile as he entered the room:

"You've brought us a big business deal!"

"A big deal?"

Zhang Kun immediately thought of what the big business might be: "Smuggling?"

Unaware that Zhang Kun was actually in charge of affairs, Master Qi urged Chen Jizong:

"Commander Chen, give me a definite answer quickly, is this feasible?"

"Is this guy so arrogant?" Zhang Kun frowned and looked at Zhou Zhong not far away.

Zhou Zhong was somewhat reluctant, but he knew that since he had acknowledged Zhang Kun and Chen Jizong as his brothers, he had to do something to prove himself.

Zhou Zhong, gripping the hilt of his sword, walked up to Qi Yuanwai and sneered:

"May I ask, Master Qi, are you a student of the Imperial Academy in either of the two capitals who has donated money to become an official?"

"I have never donated to become a prison student."

Master Qi turned to look at Zhou Zhong, and asked in an annoyed tone, "What's wrong?"

"No official rank or title!?"

Zhou Zhong flew into a rage, drew his sword from his waist, and shouted at Master Qi:

"To meet an official appointed by the imperial court, not only do you not kneel or kowtow, but you also dare to speak disrespectfully!?"

"Has no one taught you any manners, you beast? You filthy, bastard!"

The domineering Master Qi was stunned by the scolding. After a long while, he reacted and said to Zhou Zhong in a shrill voice:

"You...you dare to insult me?! Do you know who I am? I'm from the Prince of Lu's mansion..."

boom!

Zhang Kun stepped forward and kicked Master Qi in the back of the knee, simultaneously drawing his goose-feather knife and holding it directly to his neck.

Master Qi turned pale with fright and said in a trembling voice to Zhang Kun behind him:

"You...you dare kill me, Prince Lu's Mansion..."

"I didn't kill you."

Zhang Kun interrupted Master Qi with a cold laugh, tapping the man's shoulder with the blade of his knife, and said:

"The one who killed you was a thief, who also killed all your followers."

"I, along with two other soldiers, were passing by when we encountered bandits and recovered your bodies."

Zhou Zhong then drew his sword and sternly said to Master Qi, "Why aren't you kowtowing and admitting your mistake?"

Master Qi still tried to be stubborn, his teeth chattering and his lips trembling, but he couldn't utter a single word.

Zhang Kun turned to Wei Sengteng and instructed him:

"Bring the four outside in."

At the same time, he raised his hand and made a hand gesture that Wei Sengteng had taught him as a border soldier.

"yes!"

Wei Sengteng immediately turned around and walked out of the room, calling over a few skilled men, and together they went to the courtyard of the post station.

Two skilled men in the courtyard, upon seeing Wei Sengteng emerge, exchanged glances and then surrounded the sedan bearers and servants.

"Master Qi wants you to come in."

The four sensed something was wrong, but they were already surrounded by Wei Sengteng and his skilled men, so they had no choice but to obey.

Soon after entering the post station, Wei Sengteng and his skilled fighters immediately launched an attack, using grappling techniques to dislocate the joints of the four men...

A moment later, Wei Sengteng dragged a corpse into the room and threw it in front of Master Qi.

Upon seeing the corpse, Master Qi was so terrified that he lost control of his bladder, his face streaked with tears, and he pleaded with Zhang Kun in a shrill voice:

"Sir, sir, spare my life! Please spare me! I'll do anything you ask..."

Chen Jizong and Zhou Zhong stood there stunned. They hadn't expected Zhang Kun to act so drastically and were at a loss for what to do.

"I wish to see your master."

Zhang Kun sheathed his sword and said coldly to Master Qi.