White-robed Minister

0008 [Maritime Trade Registry]

The middle-aged man who came into contact with Inspector Huang was named Lu Daliang, a native of Lianzhou, whose family had been salt merchants for generations.

Smuggled salt was mostly smuggled into Yingzhou and Shaozhou by Guangdong salt merchants who bribed officials. It was then transported to southern Jiangxi through major salt smugglers, often changing hands several times along the way.

Unable to compete, Lu Daliang and his group decided to take a different approach, crossing the mountains directly from Lianzhou. Once they reached the Binjiang River basin, they would take a boat, which they usually hid in the mountains upstream of the Binjiang River.

To be honest, I don't earn much on each trip.

The salt merchants who supplied them needed to make a profit, the military inspector of Qingyuan County also needed to be bribed, and his men had to be fed. After a long and arduous journey through high mountains, Lu Daliang had very little money left.

Therefore, smuggling salt was often accompanied by robbery.

After leaving the brothel, Lu Daliang made his way through a maze of turns to an inn outside the city.

After changing his clothes at the inn, he walked around the city, making a big circle, and then headed east along the river, finally boarding a small boat.

His boarding point was four or five miles west of Yinshabu.

The situation in this area is extremely complicated. Many boat people live along the river, making it difficult for outsiders to distinguish whether there are any suspicious boats.

"Ah Lang is back!" the salt smugglers on the ship exclaimed excitedly.

Lu Daliang asked, "Have you found out anything?"

A leader summarized the news, saying, "A new patrol post has been established on the sandbar southwest of the county town. I heard that the post is mostly staffed with newly recruited local soldiers. A camp is also being built over Yinshabu, with about two hundred soldiers including local troops. Local soldiers are patrolling along the north bank of the Shixing River and the east bank of the Bin River."

Lu Daliang said, "The government is cracking down hard this year, so it's probably impossible to buy smuggled salt. Even if there is, it will be transported to Yingzhou and Shaozhou. We don't have enough influence to get the goods."

Upon hearing this, the leaders began to complain.

"We traveled all the way from Lianzhou, over mountains and valleys, it was exhausting. Are we just going back like this?"

"I can't have made a wasted trip; I should at least grab something while I'm at it."

"If Qingyuan County is cracking down hard, we'll go to other counties to rob."

"Which county should we rob? If we rob too far away, it will be difficult to escape with the loot. We can only rob along the way home, and the whole way back is through poor places."

"But there are soldiers everywhere, there's no chance to make a move."

"What's there to be afraid of! Didn't we rob Yangshan County last time?"

"It's different; there aren't many soldiers in Yangshan County."

"..."

The leaders argued back and forth, their voices carrying far.

The Tanka people on nearby boats seemed to be completely deaf and made no response.

"Alright, stop arguing!"

Lu Daliang had made his decision and explained to the leaders, "Qingyuan County and its suburbs are the defense zone of the county magistrate and archers, and there are patrol posts and warships on the island in the river. So it's not easy to plunder the county town, and even if you do, it's hard to escape. Since we're not going to plunder the county town, then Yinsha Wharf is the richest place, with its customs offices, shops, and merchant ships."

One of the leaders said, "A military camp is also being built at Yinshabu. Moreover, if we take it by water, we'll have to pass through the county town to escape, and then we'll have to fight those patrol boats."

Lu Daliang said, "This time when we go back, we won't go via Binjiang."

"Where to go then?" the leaders asked.

Lu Daliang began to explain his plan: "Send a boat to the Binjiang River and dock. Half the men will wait on the boat, while the other half will go outside the county town at night and set fire to it. After setting the fire, run away and don't steal any valuables. Once the men who set the fire return to the boat, immediately take the boat back to the mountains from the Binjiang River. This is called a feint, creating chaos to attract the attention of the government troops."

The leaders listened attentively, marveling at their leader's unparalleled wisdom and strategy.

Lu Daliang continued, "The rest of the boats, come with me to launch a night raid on Yinshabu. We're not afraid of any number of soldiers there. Just hold up torches, shout loudly, and charge into the stronghold; they'll all run away in fear."

"How do we get back? There are patrol boats blocking the west side, and we need to rely on boatmen to pull the boats to the east side," a leader asked hurriedly.

Lu Daliang said, "I had been to Yinshabu before. About three or four miles west of Yinshabu, there is a small river flowing down from the north. After we robbed the goods, we went north along that river. We abandoned the boat halfway and continued north, hiding in the mountains for a few days before coming out and heading west along the foot of the mountain."

The plan was simple, yet it seemed complicated, leaving some leaders confused.

Lu Daliang could only dip his finger in wine and draw a simple map on the small table: "This is the Shixing River, this is the Bin River, this is that little river... This is the county town, this is Yinshabu... Setting fire to the county town will definitely attract the patrol soldiers on the island in the river... We'll have plenty of time to rob Yinshabu..."

Look at the picture and you'll understand immediately.

"Ah Lang's brain is really sharp!"

"Once the fire is set in the county town, the government troops will definitely be too busy to care about anything else."

"It has to be Ah Lang, otherwise our trip would have been for nothing."

"..."

The leaders exclaimed in praise.

It wasn't flattery; they genuinely thought Lu Daliang was awesome.

The salt bandit on guard outside suddenly whispered, "Sir, there are strait ships outside."

Lu Daliang got up and walked to the bow of the boat, looking towards the west side of the river. He saw two fishing boats getting closer and closer.

He opened his mouth wider and licked his lips, saying, "Men, a big deal is coming!"

The leaders followed, but none of them could read: "Why are the flags on these two fishing boats yellow? Are they imperial ships?"

Lu Daliang grinned maliciously: "Maritime Trade Container!"

……

On the ship, Yang Shu stood on the deck.

He wore a homemade leather armor, sewn from pigskin, which only covered his chest and abdomen.

He had an iron sword hanging at his waist, and a hard bow and two short spears on his back. The technical name for this type of short spear is "鋋", which first became popular in the Western Han Dynasty and was one of the five types of weapons that were allowed to be privately owned in the Tang Dynasty.

Yang Shu was not a military officer.

He had just passed the imperial examination and become a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial-level imperial examination) a little over a month ago.

Unfortunately, he didn't get the quota and couldn't go to the capital to take the imperial examination.

A classmate with whom he had a past grudge not only successfully obtained a transfer quota but also boasted about it to everyone he met. Moreover, he openly stated that his transfer quota came from the prefectural judge, practically admitting that he had bribed the judge.

At a banquet, that scoundrel came to show off again and even mocked Yang Shu for not being able to expound the law.

Yang Shu, enraged by the alcohol, swung his fist and punched the other man, nearly killing him on the spot.

Afterwards, Yang Shu was expelled from the state school, and his family spent a lot of money to save his eligibility for the imperial examination.

But the other side's retaliation came quickly.

A scholar about to pass the provincial examination, with a chance of becoming a Jinshi next year, was beaten so badly by Yang Shu that he was mentally unstable and bedridden for more than half a month. How could he not seek revenge?

Unfortunately, Yang Shu's family was in the process of being transferred to a government office this year.

There were many types of yamen runners. Yang Shu's family, through bribery, originally only had to guard the maritime warehouse. However, the scholar he beat up, whose father somehow managed to get Yang Shu's family's yamen runner position changed to escorting a convoy.

They're still betting on the maritime trade vessels!

Once overseas merchant ships arrive in Guangzhou, they are not allowed to trade freely according to the law and must obediently submit to the Maritime Trade Office for disposal.

Extremely rare and exquisite items were sent directly to the palace to be presented to the emperor.

More valuable and delicate goods were transported to Kaifeng and sold by the authorities.

Only the remaining coarse goods could be auctioned in Guangzhou. Moreover, the proceeds from the sale of the extracted portion would be converted into silver ingots, which would then be transported to the capital along with the fine and premium goods.

The convoy that transported goods and silver from the Maritime Trade Office was called the "Maritime Trade convoy".

The two commercial vessels in front of us are managed by a military officer and two yamen runners.

All three were unlucky; the maritime trade agreement had run into problems, and they needed to pay compensation.

If you get robbed, you'll be left penniless!

To ensure everything went smoothly, Yang Shu and his brother personally took charge, hired twenty brave men, and equipped them with weapons. They even trained for a full half month before setting off.

The government was reasonable enough to know that transporting the goods from Guangzhou to the capital was outrageous.

Therefore, they only needed to depart from Guangzhou, transport the goods by boat to Nanxiong, and then abandon ship to cross the Dayu Mountains. Once the goods were handed over to the Jiangxi government officials, the yamen runners responsible for escorting the goods would have completed their mission.

But the military officer still had to keep making trouble, finding two unlucky men in Jiangxi to serve as his yamen runners, and reorganizing the convoy ships to head to the Yangtze River basin...

"Thirteen Lang, the river wind is strong outside, be careful not to catch a cold." His older brother, Yang Xun, came over.

Yang Shu frowned deeply: "I have a feeling this trip will not be peaceful."

Yang Xun sighed, "When has this road ever been peaceful? After Qingyuan County, it's teeming with salt bandits. But the maritime trade is relatively stable; so far, no salt bandits have dared to make a move. We can get through this by spending a little more money. Sigh, don't be impulsive in the future, and don't rely on your martial arts skills to fight with people."

The Maritime Trade Route could be considered a royal roster, because it included a batch of goods that were to be sent to the palace as a tribute to the emperor.

Even the salt bandits who dared to plunder the county town had to think twice before confronting the imperial court.

Yang Shu was filled with remorse for bringing trouble to his family this time. He said firmly, "Brother, rest assured, I will quit drinking from now on and will never drink a drop again in my life."

"It's good that you know how to correct your mistakes," Yang Xun said. "My Yang family of Jihua Township is a branch of the Hongnong Yang family. We have thrived in Nanhai County for two hundred years, yet we don't have a single official among us. You have the best chance of passing the imperial examination. Even if you don't pass, you can still pass the provincial examination multiple times and become an acting official. After you finish escorting the shipment and return home, you must guard against arrogance and impetuosity, and study diligently behind closed doors!"

Yang Shu bowed respectfully: "I will heed your teachings, elder brother!"

After a while, the boat arrived at Yinsha Wharf.

Yang Xun explained, "You haven't traveled far and don't know much about the outside world. This place is called Yinshabu, and there's a gorge in front of it called Feilai Gorge. The gorge has a rapid current and is full of reefs, making it difficult to navigate in the summer. Therefore, ships heading north have to wait until the autumn when the water recedes and be pulled through the gorge by boatmen."

Yang Shu looked out over the canyon and nodded, saying, "It is indeed dangerous."

Yang Xun said, "It used to be even more difficult to travel, with boatmen having to walk along steep cliffs. I heard that the Feilai Plank Road was built last year, and now the boatmen can finally pull the boats on the plank road."

Two fishing boats docked at Yinsha Wharf.

It was already close to evening, and arranging for the boatmen would take time, so they could only wait until dawn the next day to leave.

The unfortunate military officer in charge of the trip disembarked to negotiate with the tax officials, asking the head tax collector to help arrange boatmen. He didn't even dare to linger ashore for long, rushing back to the ship for fear that even a moment's delay would cause problems.

It could lead to the destruction of your family and even death!

Those who fear trouble often find themselves in trouble.