Yingzhou was located to the north of the Great River and coincidentally surrounded by countless mountains and rivers. To the east was the rich and populous land of Jiangnan. Looking to the northwest was the strategic location of Jingdou in the center of the Qing Kingdom. This prefecture was not far from the two most prosperous places in the Qing Kingdom. It also happened to be at the intersection of the Wei River and the Great River. Although the high mountains and precipitous ridges on both sides of the river brought many inconveniences to transportation, with the river on the side and the center of transportation, logically speaking, it should be a place where merchants gathered, busy, and the people lived happily.
However, the present Yingzhou appeared somewhat run-down. It was not that the scenery was dim or the houses were old. It was just that the people walking on the streets had heavy and lifeless expressions. The vendors on the side of the street did not raise their spirits. The pancakes, fruits … all seemed to have gone cold and wilted.
Even the docks outside the city were not very lively. Most of the ships that traveled up and down the Qing Kingdom's river chose to dock at the docks downstream and abandoned this place. There were only a few scattered ships at the docks. This made one of them, which was almost new, particularly eye-catching.
The reason Yingzhou had become like this was because of the heavens. Last year, the Great River had flooded and broken through the dam upstream. Yellow waves flowed straight into the plains, drowning countless people and destroying countless houses. Fortunately, the weather had cooled quickly after the disaster, so there were no major epidemics. However, this kind of bone-breaking torment made all of Yingzhou appear lifeless.
The second strange official, this Yingzhou Zhizhou, was once the Emperor's disciple, but he did not receive any of the Emperor's blessings. All day long, he only knew how to be a tyrant in the city, curry favor with the higher-ups, and bully the merchants and common people. He could not even maintain normal public order, let alone repair the river. He only knew how to collect exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes. Furthermore, it was rumored that this Zhizhou had connections with the mountain bandits in the mountains across the river. With such a governor of a province, the people's lives withered. Merchants moved stealthily, and proper merchants could not wait to hide. Who dared to stay in the city?
The third strange official, the people of Yingzhou were valiant. Since ancient times, they had a glorious tradition of carrying a hoe to fight against the government. With such a ghost official, there were more and more poor commoners going down the river and up the mountain.
However, the situation seemed to have changed a lot this year. First, the Yingzhou Zhizhou had been invited to tea by the Inspection Division of the Fourth Bureau of the Overwatch Council stationed in the city. Just as the people of Yingzhou rejoiced in their hearts and thought the Zhizhou was finally about to fall, he was respectfully sent back by the Overwatch Council. Just as people thought in disappointment that Yingzhou would continue to decline like this, this Zhizhou died.
The people from Jingdou investigated for a long time before confirming that the Zhizhou's death had nothing to do with any conspiracy. He had simply died of illness.
On the day the Zhizhou died, the people of Yingzhou silently lit countless strings of firecrackers. Naturally, no one dared to say it was to celebrate the death of the god of plagues. Those who did not know the inside story thought the people of Yingzhou had chosen this day to collectively get married.
Another change was that the mountain bandits on the other side of the river seemed to have become a lot more well-behaved. The largest mountain stronghold seemed to have been massacred within a day, and the mountain bandits were scattered. It was said that a great figure of Jianghu had come from Jiangnan and was trying to subdue this group of forces.
…
…
The people of Yingzhou were not happy for long. They thought they had celebrated the Little New Year early.
Because the Zhizhou had died, the court would send another Zhizhou next year. Once the mountain bandits collapsed, there would immediately be another large group of mountain bandits. The lives of the common people would still be so difficult. There would not be any fundamental change.
In a storeroom by the dock, a dozen or so laborers were gathered together discussing something. No matter how quiet the dock was, chatting in broad daylight was not the professional attitude that laborers should have. Furthermore, the vicious expressions on their faces seemed to reveal their other identity.
Surrounded in the middle was a woman. She was about 20 years old and had regular features. She could not be considered a beauty, but there was a hint of ruthlessness in her eyes. When she opened her mouth, the men around her obediently closed their mouths. It looked like she was the leader.
"We've found out. It's a tea merchant from Jingdou."
"Sister Guan, they have guards on their boat," one of the laborers reminded.
The person called Sister Guan was a famous bandit leader near Yingzhou. She had not been in Yingzhou for long, but she had already gathered a large group of powerful bandit leaders. It was rumored that she had a powerful background.
Sister Guan smiled coldly and said, "They're just some merchants, what's so important? Besides, you've all gone to check it out. I don't need to tell you how heavy the boxes in the back room are, do I? "
Her words were calm, but once the boxes were mentioned, the eyes of the laborers began to burn. Walking on the jianghu, true mountain bandits looked at the dust on the wheels of a carriage to determine the weight of the goods inside, and from there, their value. The mountain bandits near Yingzhou were actually part of the same class as pirates. They were most skilled at determining what exactly was on the boat from the depth of the water it took.
Yesterday, a large ship had suddenly stopped on the dock. The hull was about 80% new. Looking at the thickness of the moss on the horizontal planks of the ship, the people who spent a lot of time on the dock knew that this ship had not been in the water for a long time. Nowadays, it was rare to see this kind of large ship in Yingzhou. For the mountain bandits, this was a rare fat sheep. Taking advantage of the time when the people on the ship disembarked to buy food, vegetables, and water, there were already people who had clearly investigated the situation on the ship.
What confused these bandits was, since it was a tea merchant, why would there be such heavy goods in the back of the ship? As a result, the draft of this ship was clearly different from that of the ships they usually saw. This question was finally answered after a kitchen woman, who was acting as an informant, came on board. In the heavily guarded room at the back of the ship, there was a box. Looking at the strength of the planks of the ship and the faint scratches on the iron key in the compartment, the bandits' sharp eyes discovered that the box was filled to the brim with silver!
"No one would bring so much silver to Jiangnan to buy tea."
Sister Guan actually still had some misgivings in her heart. However, since the young master wanted to subdue the mountain bandits near Yingzhou, he had to do a few large transactions and let these sweaty, smelly bandits smell something. Furthermore, what the young master wanted to do after spring did indeed require silver. Otherwise, she would not be in such a hurry to rob ships everywhere.
One of the mountain bandits also felt that the matter was strange and said, "The ship is deep in the water, and there is no cargo on the ship … perhaps there are river stones on the bottom of the ship and Third Sister-in-law didn't see clearly."
Sister Guan shook her head and said, "It's not a ship, why would it need ballast stones? I just find it strange that the merchant on that big ship … why would he bring so much cash? "
"Cash is good." A mountain bandit laughed strangely and said, "He stole the banknotes but didn't dare to go get them." These words were immediately echoed by his companions. They all laughed in unison, and their laughter was full of greed.
Sister Guan furrowed her brows and said, "The problem is … nowadays, which merchant would bring cash? Are they not worried about the problem of safety? "
The mountain bandits looked at Sister Guan and thought that this leader did things shrewdly and fiercely. She also picked her targets very accurately. Taking advantage of the fact that there was no one in Zhizhou, she had led her brothers to commit a few major crimes. However … sometimes she was a bit too careful. The problem of safety should be asked by that stupid tea merchant, why ask her brothers?
Sister Guan waved her hand to summon the third sister-in-law who was responsible for gathering information. The third sister-in-law's face was dark and thin. She said fawningly, "Don't worry, there are only a dozen or so guards on the ship, along with a servant girl and a child. The master is a young man who is too weak to stand up to a gust of wind. His appearance is beautiful, but he doesn't know how to hide it at all. Presumably, he is some rich but useless second generation in the capital who was sent to Jiangnan by his elders to hone himself. "
Bringing a servant girl, presumably the young merchant couldn't stand the loneliness of the night. Sister Guan laughed coldly and relaxed slightly. If that tea merchant was really someone with a heart, he wouldn't have brought a woman to float on the river. Perhaps he really was a useless second generation who thought that shiny silver was more comfortable than throwing banknotes.
As for the dozen or so guards, they were not in her eyes. The dozen or so brothers under her were all fierce bandits with many lives on their hands. She believed that when they boarded the ship at night, those guards could only choose to die or jump into the river.
The mountain bandits beside her looked at each other and suddenly laughed extremely lewdly. "Sister Guan, when the matter is done tonight … reward us with the servant girl."
Sister Guan blinked and revealed a trace of disdain. "Look at you all! As long as you get the silver, everything else is up to you. "
She paused and laughed. Her laughter was incomparably cold and evil. "Clean your hands and feet, don't leave anyone alive. After this is done, take the ship to Erhu Beach and burn it."
— — —
The night outside of Yingzhou was very quiet. The moon on the mountain across the river shone coldly on the surging river. It seemed to have calmed the roar of the river. There were a few lonely boats moored at the dock. It was past midnight, the time when people were sleeping soundly. The lights on the boats had long been extinguished and the merchants had long since fallen asleep.
Under the gentle brush of the moonlight, a dozen or so black shadows silently touched the shore and dove into the river. After swimming to the largest boat, they took out hooks and ropes from their bodies. Some of them were empty-handed and climbed up the ropes. They were like countless monkeys that had been drenched in water. Their movements were incomparably agile.
In just a moment, these mountain bandits had already touched the large boat and disappeared into the darkness.
Sister Guan held a cold knife in her mouth and silently climbed to the second floor. Using the cover of the shadow of the cabin, she moved directly to the back. In the warehouse, everyone had discussed clearly and knew the layout of the boat like the back of their hands. She knew that the chest full of silver was at the back of the cabin.
In the darkness behind her, there was a faint puchi sound. Immediately after, someone fell on the deck with a soft thud. She frowned, thinking that these little bastards didn't know how to be more careful. If all the guards were alerted at the same time, although she wasn't afraid, it would still be troublesome.
Outside the side room, unexpectedly, there were no guards. At this time, in the darkness of the night, there were a few more muffled groans. Sister Guan knew that her subordinates were gradually invading the middle cabin. Her heart slightly calmed, she hooked her finger on the door and used the tip of the knife to gently open the cabin door. In the next moment, she had already felt a chest in the darkness.
Using the faint afterglow from the window in front of her, Sister Guan could clearly see the size of the chest. She couldn't help but suck in a breath of cold air. Third Sister-in-law didn't say clearly. She only said that based on the size and weight of the chest, it was estimated to be over a thousand taels … but Sister Guan didn't dare to believe it. She touched the chest and estimated the size … Heavens, how much silver would it take to fill such a large chest!
She suddenly felt some lingering fear. To be able to carry so much silver with him, even if he was a spoiled brat, he was probably the wealthiest spoiled brat in the capital. Once this matter was exposed, she was afraid that the young master behind her would not be able to bear the wrath of the capital.
Don't kill that second generation! This was the first thought that welled up in Sister Guan's heart. But she immediately realized that what was done could not be undone. She couldn't help but hesitate. Moreover, this much silver was enough to do many things.
She carefully felt around for a tool. After a long time, she finally opened the chest.
A silver light suddenly spilled over the entire cabin!
… …
… …
Sister Guan stared dumbfounded at the chest in front of her. Her face was full of shock and disbelief!
Even though she was a person who lived on the edge of a knife and was used to seeing silver stained with blood, tonight she was still dazzled by the neat and tidy silver ingots in the chest. Her normally callous eyes began to reveal a greedy look.
But she immediately became alert. No matter how bright the moonlight was, no matter how beautiful the silver was, it couldn't possibly emit such an alluring light!
She suddenly turned her head and saw a middle-aged man with a serious face. He held a white light in one hand and a strangely long podao in the other. He was looking at her coldly.
Tiger Guard Gao Da had already followed Fan Xian's orders and given Sister Guan enough time to admire the silver. He very slowly chopped down with his podao.
Sister Guan raised her podao.
But that slow, long podao was like an unstoppable flood. In a flash, it broke through the defense and heart of this female bandit. While she was frightened out of her wits, she watched in agony as her left hand was chopped off. Fresh blood gushed out with pain!
— — —
The lights in the middle cabin of the ship were lit. Sister Guan, who had been dragged into the room, had her hair in a mess and her mood in a mess.
All the bandits who had followed her aboard had been easily disarmed and knocked unconscious. They were tied up and thrown neatly on the deck. A few black-clothed swordsmen of the Sixth Bureau who were on night duty acted as if nothing had happened. They stood guard in all four directions.
She raised her head. Through her hair, she looked at the tired and annoyed handsome young man sitting on the chair. For some reason, her heart shivered. Who exactly lived on this ship? To be able to use so many aces as guards, and the person who had used the podao earlier was actually a master of the knife — at this moment, she naturally understood that the young prodigal son Third Sister-in-law spoke of was certainly not an ordinary tea merchant.
"Guan Wumei?" The young man on the chair glanced at the female bandit who had lost an arm but still had a fierce expression on her face. He yawned and asked with a face full of interest.
The young man was Fan Xian. He had stopped the ship in Yingzhou to deal with the aftermath of Hong Zhu's matter. He hadn't expected that he would provoke some blind little bandits. However, he could tell at a glance that the woman in front of him was the female bandit in the Overwatch Council's files. He couldn't help but feel happy. He hadn't thought about how to start the Jiangnan matter, and now one had delivered itself to his door.
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