"And Beijia, of course, I know," He Lingchuan said with a smile. "Beijia's name is terrifying, but this isn't Beijia's territory—it's Panlong City's. Its reach simply cannot stretch this far. Otherwise, why would it send only Fu Shanlie to muddy the waters instead of marching an army to our borders?"
Between Longchuan and Beijia lay several small states like Jintao, as well as the Xiluo Kingdom; it was indeed vast distances away.
"As long as the gangs isolate the Xiji puppet troops and refuse to get entangled with them, I naturally have ways to deal with them."
Sure enough, in order to tackle the Xiji puppet troops, Yuheng City wanted to buy them off first.
Xu Zeshou pointed at the token on the table. "If we accept your offer—and I do mean *if*—what else does Yuheng City expect of us?"
"You will collect tolls according to your designated sections and may not hike prices at will. I will send men on regular inspection patrols." He Lingchuan tapped the map of Longchuan again. "You must maintain order within your respective sections. If any traveling merchant is attacked or suffers losses, deductions will be made from your retainers! Furthermore, since all the road tolls go to you, the maintenance of the roads and paths also falls to you. Whether it's a mudslide, rockfall, or a damaged trestle bridge, you must handle it promptly."
There was nothing to dispute there. If you took public coin, you had to perform public duties; neither chief could find fault with that.
"When we move to wipe out the Xiji puppet troops, each gang must also contribute men and resources," He Lingchuan added. "We can negotiate the specifics of that later."
The two bandit chiefs exchanged glances, and both said, "We need to return, gather our men, and discuss it."
"As you should." He Lingchuan nodded in understanding. "If you're hesitant, why not test the waters for half a month first? You won't lose out, and you won't be swindled."
Indeed, every proposal Yuheng City laid on the table seemed to favor the bandit gangs. Trying it out first wouldn't cost them anything.
The tea before them had long gone cold, but Xu and Tao still dared not drink it. Yet the knife-edge tension from earlier had dissolved somewhere along the way.
The two chiefs rose, exchanged polite farewells with He Lingchuan, and led their subordinates back into the marshland.
The moment they boarded the boat, Xu Zeshou turned to Tao Lin. "Old Tao, what do you think?"
Their relationship had not originally been this cordial; in fact, one of Xu Zeshou's nephews had been killed by Qianjin Stronghold. Yet the pressure from the Xiji puppet troops and Fu Shanlie had pushed these two rival chiefs closer and closer together.
"This man He shouldn't be a fool. Offering so many perks is just a bid to buy our allegiance!" Tao Lin pondered. "He's afraid we'll side with Fu Shanlie. Looking at it the other way, if we accept Commander He's terms, we'll be openly opposing Fu Shanlie."
Xu Zeshou nodded as well. "Fu Shanlie is a Beijia general; he won't buy into any of this. When he raids into our territory, we'll actually have to protect those fat sheep... err, merchant caravans."
Fu Shanlie and the Xiji puppet troops would never accept Yuheng City's offer of amnesty. Just by virtue of their background, they were entirely different from the other water bandits of Longchuan.
Hence, the Xiji puppet troops would continue to cause trouble along the Longchuan trade route.
Yet once Qianjin Stronghold and the Globe Amaranth Gang took the official tokens, they would not only collect coin on the spot, but also have to maintain public security.
Not only could they no longer plunder caravans themselves, they would even have to stop other water bandits from swooping in to pillage.
Water bandits transformed into official troops, turning around to fight water bandits. No matter how one looked at it, the notion was utterly absurd. Especially when everyone lived within Longchuan—how could neighborly relations ever remain harmonious?
Then Xu Zeshou gritted his teeth. "Fu Shanlie is dead set on swallowing everyone to expand his power, and he's growing less and less polite with us. I hear he was a butcher of a general in Beijia, too. If we let him keep running rampant, Chief Tao, all those small gangs that disappeared will be our future."
Tao Lin grunted in agreement.
As the leader of Longchuan's largest gang, he harbored a deep dread of the Xiji puppet troops.
After all, the other side had the backing of Jintao and Beijia. His own side was merely a band of outlaws; what backing did they have to contend with that?
Unless they found a backer of their own—such as Yuheng City.
"Just as that He fellow said, there's no harm in trying," Tao Lin said, his interest piqued. "In any case, our men and forces remain intact. If Yuheng City tries any tricks, we can rebel immediately!"
Xu Zeshou chuckled. "True enough. When the time comes, we toss aside the tokens and head right back into Longchuan."
With Qianjin Stronghold taking the lead, the pressure on the Globe Amaranth Gang to accept the official badges was considerably lessened.
Only after they departed did He Lingchuan stand up and stretch his arms. "Wrap it up, we're heading back to Yuheng City!"
Door Plank turned and blew a sharp whistle. Behind the post station, a substantial number of shadowy figures stood up from the low hill.
***
By the time He Lingchuan returned to Yuheng City, night had already fallen.
He went to the city garrison office to review the intelligence delivered from Longchuan. He had only been sitting and reading for a quarter of an hour when a flutter of wings came from outside, and a bird flew through the window and landed on the desk.
The kestrel had arrived.
"The teacher asked me to check if you're busy tonight."
It roosted on the mountain behind their residences.
He Lingchuan glanced at the mountain of documents piled upon his desk.
"Not busy."
"She wants you to come home for dinner."
He Lingchuan perked up instantly, grabbed a few dossiers, and shoved them into his storage ring. "Heading back right now!"
Half an hour later, he was walking along the winding mountain path on his way home.
Beneath his feet stretched the myriad glowing lanterns of Yuheng City, but looking upward, everything was pitch black—except for the lantern hanging outside his door, flickering in the evening breeze.
The autumn chill was crisp like cold water, and the mountain path frosted over after dark, making it easy to slip if one wasn't careful.
Yet gazing at that lone point of light above, He Lingchuan walked with pure ease, his boots crunching rhythmically against the gravel.
That was home.
Walking along this path, his whole body relaxed; the tension and toil of the day vanished into thin air. He knew that home was only these few steps away. Whether he went quickly or slowly, he would reach it sooner or later.
And inside that home was the person he wished to see.
The kestrel hadn't bothered to wait for him; it had long since flown back to its nest to sleep.
Passing his own gate without entering, he pushed straight through the courtyard gate of Master Sun's residence.
The courtyard was spacious. The lantern under the eaves illuminated the nearby hibiscus flowers, and the plump carp in the pond looked drowsy, giving only a lazy flick of their tails at the sound of He Lingchuan's footsteps.
Light spilled from the window. Just as He Lingchuan reached the eaves, Sun Fuling pushed open the door to greet him.
"You're back?"
Inside, several fluorescent spores provided soft illumination; Master Sun's home was as neat and orderly as ever.
A beauty viewed beneath the lamp seemed graced with a warmer glow. Her face carried a tender, rosy flush.
"How are you feeling?" He Lingchuan took her hand; it was still cool.
"I'm perfectly fine. Wash your hands and let's eat."
He Lingchuan went to the water vat beneath the eaves to rinse his hands, then joined her in the kitchen.
Compared to the wood-grade houses in Panlong City, this dwelling was virtually a mansion. Sun Fuling had converted the wing room outside the kitchen into a dining room.
It was simple and bright, with a vase of freshly clipped dahlias resting on the side table.
On the round dining table, a coarse earthenware hotpot had already been arranged. Charcoal burned beneath it, the lid was on, and the broth inside was already bubbling away merrily.
He Lingchuan caught an extraordinary aroma. He reached out to lift the lid, revealing a golden-red broth simmered with over half a pot of lamb spine.
"Oh, hotpot tonight?" And a lamb spine pot at that.
Made by Master Sun? It smelled too good to be her doing.
As if reading his thoughts, Sun Fuling pursed her lips. "The Quanfu Restaurant you took me to the other day also offers delivery. So I ordered a pot."
From the foot of the mountain all the way to the top was no short distance. Master Sun truly was quite the wealthy young lady.
He Lingchuan had the good sense to hurry into the kitchen to help, only to find beef and mutton sliced so paper-thin they were translucent, arranged neatly across ten plates.
Master Sun's knife work remained as sharp as ever.
The two carried the meat and vegetables into the dining room, and He Lingchuan scooped out some lamb spine to eat.
Only after finishing the meat would it be time to dip the vegetables into the broth.
Sun Fuling picked up the jar of bayberry wine beside her and poured him a full cup.
"Did things go smoothly today?"
"Very smoothly, exactly as expected." He Lingchuan proceeded to give his leader a brief debriefing on his afternoon meeting with the two bandit chiefs.
Sun Fuling listened attentively before smiling. "No wonder Mr. Wen was so angry. You truly are quite lenient with those water bandits."
In front of her, He Lingchuan could grumble freely. "Mr. Wen simply can't think it through himself; he always assumes I'm doing useless work."
"You probably didn't explain it clearly to him either, did you?"
He Lingchuan was just about to gnaw on a piece of lamb spine when he paused to look at her, understanding dawning. "He came to see you?"
How else would she know?
Sun Fuling took a sip of bayberry wine and said slowly, "A few days ago, your conversation with Mr. Wen ended on a sour note. Mr. Wen stormed off in a huff, but afterward felt he had been too rash, so he came to ask me to play peacemaker."
Wen Daolun was well aware of the 'friendship' between Sun Fuling and He Lingchuan, and hoped to use her as an intermediary to ease the tension.
"Commander Zhong and General Red sent you to Yuheng City to gain experience, and they likely instructed Mr. Wen beforehand to support and guide you properly. Over the past six months, he must have treated you fairly well, hasn't he? Yet you angered him with just a couple of words."
"I did it on purpose." He Lingchuan shrugged. "When minds don't meet, even half a sentence is too much."
"...Is the divide between you and Mr. Wen really that wide?" Wen Daolun's assessment of He Lingchuan was that he was resourceful and astute, yet young and brash.
Young people—who among them didn't have a bit of temper, a bit of impetuosity, and the conviction that they were always right?
"It isn't that Mr. Wen can't understand my methods, but that's not the point." He Lingchuan chewed on the meat, not bothering to lift his head. "He just wanted an opportunity to put me in my place."
"Hm?" Sun Fuling was somewhat surprised. "Why put it like that? Mr. Wen is a good man."
"This has nothing to do with whether someone is good or bad; it has everything to do with the seat he occupies. A snake cannot move without a head, but a snake cannot have two heads either—whose orders is the body supposed to follow? A hierarchy must be established," He Lingchuan chuckled. "Mr. Wen manages civil administration while I oversee military affairs; on paper, we are equals. But I'm young and newly promoted by Commander Zhong, making me a mere junior newcomer in Mr. Wen's eyes. He feels he has seniority over me, so naturally he expects me to be deferential and meekly accept his advice."
Be it in the workplace or the halls of government, it was always the same game. Elders and veterans expected newcomers to treat them with utmost deference. If not, they would find ways to make life difficult.
Human groups naturally demanded a pecking order.
"Mr. Wen is a senior worthy of respect, and he always wants to impart earnest guidance." He Lingchuan picked up his wine cup and drained it in a single gulp. "Yet holding command over the military in Yuheng City, I am responsible for the safety of its people and the peace of the Longchuan trade route. I cannot keep yielding to him time and again."
To put it bluntly, he and Wen Daolun stood on equal footing now—one managing internal affairs, the other handling external defense.
If Wen Daolun wanted to look down on him from on high and play the bureaucratic game of pulling seniority? It wouldn't work!
Chapter 863