Ever since the change of commander, the Yuheng City Army had ceased charging into Longchuan to suppress bandits. Instead, they launched relentless sweeps along the Xiji trade route, operating in a spare-no-cost mode. Under these circumstances, when the bandit gangs went out to raid, the costs climbed ever higher. With more gang members wounded or killed, the death benefits paid out by the gangs grew terrifyingly steep.
Just as He Lingchuan said, sometimes the coin and goods the gang plundered were not even enough to cover the survivor compensation handed down. Yet if they withheld the money, who would ever pick up a blade and follow them again? The gang would fall apart on the spot.
This was no longer a business with zero overhead; it now came at an exorbitant price.
Worse still, their fencing channels near Yuheng City were also kept in a vice grip by He Lingchuan.
On one hand, fencing the plundered goods for cash grew harder by the day; on the other, the cost of raiding soared higher and higher, to the point where Xu Zeshou sometimes had to dig into his own pockets to subsidize the losses.
Operating as a bandit to the point of running at a loss, he had no idea how much longer he could hold on.
And to top it off, there were the Xiji puppet troops causing trouble for them day in and day out.
Thinking of all this wretched business made his chest tighten with frustration.
Tao Lin remarked in an oily, sarcastic tone, "Isn't all of this courtesy of Commander He?"
Had this man named He not burst onto the scene out of nowhere, they would still be living comfortably.
He Lingchuan chuckled. "Where you sit determines how you think. In this position of mine, I have no choice but to butt heads with bandits. But if you mend your ways—ahem, I mean, come ashore—from then on you won't need to fight to the death or pay out survivor benefits. Hanging official waist tags, you can collect silver right where you sit.
"Stable happiness—what's so bad about that?"
Listening to this, it really did not sound half bad. The tolls might not seem like much per passerby, but their strength lay in an endless stream; over time, the sum would be both stable and substantial.
Yet could the authorities truly be so generous? Eight out of ten chances, some sinister ploy was hidden inside.
Xu Zeshou lifted his chin. "My gang has over five hundred men. How will you accommodate them?"
The Globe Amaranth Gang had only three hundred or so members last year, but now that smaller gangs had been wiped out or scattered, their remnants had been absorbed by the larger outfits.
He Lingchuan smiled knowingly. "Chief Xu, you have exactly three hundred and seventy men under you, and that's counting the boatmen who lash your rafts together. There are definitely no five hundred-plus."
Exposed, Xu Zeshou felt a secret chill.
He had indeed had that many once, but the new commander of the Xiji puppet troops had picked a fight with him, leading an ambush against the Globe Amaranth Gang. In the subsequent clash, both sides suffered casualties, but the Globe Amaranth Gang got the worse end of the deal: around sixty dead and forty who ran off.
Most infuriating of all, about twenty men, seeing the other side was stronger, had defected to the Xiji puppet troops!
And why had the Xiji puppet troops singled him out for trouble?
All because this man named He had killed Fu Shanlie's confidant, Chen Hao, and then framed the Globe Amaranth Gang for tipping him off!
Fu Shanlie wouldn't listen to a word of Xu Zeshou's explanations. Once a blood feud formed between the two sides, Xu Zeshou didn't bother explaining anymore either. In any case, he had seen through it: after swallowing so many minor gangs, Fu Shanlie had set his sights on the Globe Amaranth Gang. The death of Chen Hao, the tip-off—all of it was merely Fu Shanlie's pretext to start a war.
Thinking of this matter, Xu Zeshou was consumed by resentment, yet the thoughts that had circled in his head on the way here—such as "take the chance to hack this He fellow down"—had completely vanished into thin air.
He Lingchuan stating the exact number of the Globe Amaranth Gang's members in one breath was a direct warning to him on the spot:
The authorities knew the gang's bottom line inside and out.
Even if a tiger doesn't bare its fangs, you must not mistake it for a sick cat.
Naturally, He Lingchuan's goal today was not to burn bridges with the bandits, so he shifted the topic: "As for those three hundred and seventy men, you can keep leading them yourself. The same goes for Chief Tao—lead your own men."
Even Tao Lin was taken aback. "You aren't reorganizing and incorporating us?"
Wasn't the first step of an imperial amnesty always to dismantle the bandit gang, scattering and reassigning these cutthroats?
That maneuver was called clipping their wings to reduce the threat.
Yuheng City actually had no intention of breaking up the gangs? Weren't they afraid that later on, the bandits would band together, grow powerful, and turn against their masters?
"Incorporate what?" He Lingchuan spread his hands. "The Yuheng City Army is already at full complement.
"However, twenty percent of the tolls you collect along the trade route in the future must be remitted to Yuheng City. Once you pay this sum, you will be law-abiding citizens of merit, with no further need to worry about official suppression. Furthermore, so long as the sections under your jurisdiction remain peaceful and incident-free, I can apply to Yuheng City for a bonus, which will not only return that twenty percent, but add another ten percent as a subsidy. This extra thirty percent will be distributed as dividends to members who make outstanding contributions. After all, if everyone is working for the authorities, it is only natural to receive performance bonuses from the government, right?"
Pocketing the road tolls with one hand while drawing a salary with the other? Could such a wonderful thing truly exist under heaven?
Xu Zeshou didn't quite grasp what "dividends" were; it sounded like some sort of subsidy, but he felt embarrassed to ask right then.
Tao Lin couldn't resist asking, "What benefit does Yuheng City get out of this?"
With the Longchuan trade route so bustling, Yuheng City was actually yielding the road tolls to the bandits on a silver platter!
Managing the trade route cost Yuheng City money; this wasn't just working for free, it was paying out of pocket.
What kind of utterly selfless, sucker mentality was this?
It was too good to be true.
In the adult world, pies did not fall from the sky—only bait did. Faced with terms so generous, the two bandit chiefs grew wary instead.
"There are three benefits." He Lingchuan raised a finger. "First, the trade route will be peaceful, traveler safety will be guaranteed, and neither the Yuheng City Army nor the Longchuan gang members will have to die. A win for all three sides, so to speak."
On this point, he was indeed right.
Spending a little money to buy peace and save lives seemed well worth it, didn't it?
"Second, what Panlong City values has never been this meager toll revenue, but the lasting peace and stability of the Longchuan trade route. So long as commerce flourishes and both the government and the people benefit, it matters not if Yuheng City foregoes making a profit off these tolls."
Zhong Shengguang placed such importance on the Longchuan trade route not to collect a bit of tax revenue, but to preserve the connection between the Panlong Wasteland and the outside world!
Beijia and Jintao covertly backed the river bandits' turmoil for no other reason than to sever Panlong City's attempts to expand outward.
Only if the Longchuan trade route remained open would the Panlong Wasteland avoid falling once again into complete isolation, as it did in the later course of history.
It was enough to grasp the principal contradiction. As for those few coins of toll revenue, He Lingchuan did not care, and he believed Panlong City did not care either.
So long as the Longchuan trade route bustled with traffic, trade for Panlong City would naturally thrive.
Money was endless; there was always more to be made.
On this point, Yuheng City inevitably had to make some sacrifices.
"Third!" He Lingchuan's face darkened. "My target is the Xiji puppet troops, not you!"
Tao Lin and Xu Zeshou exchanged a glance, both thinking: *Here it comes. This is the real point.*
"The Xiji puppet troops wreak havoc on the trade route on one hand, and blight Longchuan on the other. Ever since they encroached upon the Longchuan waters, how many gangs have disbanded because of them? How much balance has been shattered because of them?" He Lingchuan's eyes gleamed sharply. "Who stands behind these puppet troops—I believe the two of you know better than I do. Unless we eliminate the puppet troops and sever that hidden hand, Longchuan will never know peace!"
Xu Zeshou hesitated for a moment before saying, "The one backing the Xiji puppet troops isn't just Jintao."
Chapter 862