Love Affairs in Chang'an - Chapter 209

Chapter 209 An Unannounced Visit
Not long after Elder Zhou Jiu left, Zuoying Captain Zhao Chong arrived.

In the local military mansion of the Tang Dynasty, the highest military officer was a commandant, ranging from 800 to 2,000 men depending on the size of the prefecture. Below Commandant Zhechong were two Commandants Guo Yi as his deputy, and Pang Fei was currently in this position. Next was a captain. Normally, each brigade would have four to eight captains, each commanding a regiment.

The Tang dynasty’s guild was different from the current “guild”. In the military system of the Great Tang Dynasty, fire was the smallest, and each fire consisted of ten people, with a chief officer, Huo Chang; Five fire for a team, with the main deputy team; The two teams are a brigade and have brigade commanders. Normally, two brigades would be formed into a regiment and the post of captain would be set up. However, Xiangzhou was the Shangfu Prefecture. Each regiment had four brigades with a total of four hundred people. There were four regiments in the entire manor, and they were stationed at the front, rear, left, and right of the barracks. Hence, Zhao Chong was used to being called a “Left Camp Lieutenant”. As for Qin Mubai, the supreme commander, Zhechong Du Lieutenant, he would lead his own Xu Manor officers and soldiers to camp in the middle camp and order the three armies. Apart from Pang Fei, the 30 Baiji accompanying him were all officers of the Central Military Force. They held the positions of Marquis, Secretary, Si Ge, Halberd, and so on.

Zhao Chong was also a high-ranking officer in Xiang Prefecture. If the entire Xiang Prefecture’s military mansion is equivalent to our current regiment headquarters, then he is equivalent to a battalion commander.

Qin Mubai knitted his eyebrows and watched Zhao Chong walk over with a serious expression, not saying a word.

When Pang Fei called him over, Zhao Chong’s heart was already panicking. He thought that even the errand boy was a commandant. Perhaps he was going to use me to deal with me … Seeing Qin Mubai’s expression, Zhao Chong felt a sense of fear that he had never felt before. He immediately bowed down to Qin Mubai.

“General Mo pays his respects to General Qin … General Mo deserves to die, please forgive me!”

Qin Mubai gently raised the corner of his mouth and said, “What’s your crime?”

‘”Uh, this” Zhao Chong was speechless for a moment, and he couldn’t continue. He choked for a long time before saying, “The general didn’t recognize his face and offended the general’s might!”

“You said that you don’t know how to respect your face. As the saying goes, those who don’t know are innocent. I don’t blame you. Stand up and talk.” Qin Mubai said casually.

“I don’t dare!” Cold sweat was running down Zhao Chong’s forehead as he recalled the kick that Yuwen Hongtai had ruthlessly kicked him in his cell. He thought to himself, these officials from the Shi Clan who came from the capital were all quite arrogant, so it was better to be careful.

“If you insist on kneeling, I’ll let you.” Qin Mubai said, “But then again, if you offend His Highness and me, forget about it. Tell me frankly, did you make any other mistakes?”

“This … I wonder what the general means by this?” Zhao Chong raised his head and looked at Qin Mubai in shock and unease.

“You really don’t know?” Qin Mubai’s tone became heavier.

“General Mo is stupid, please make it clear!”

Qin Mubai thought to himself. Originally, he wanted to knock on the mountain and shake the tiger, but it seemed that Zhao Chong was not as easy to fool as Zhou Laojiu. Forget it, I’m new here and don’t alarm anyone yet. Whether the people in the military mansion had colluded with the water ghost or not was hard to say. If I act recklessly, they will be on guard.

So Qin Mubai cleverly changed the topic, “Then I will warn you, which battalion is Yue Qi a soldier from?”

“Ah … General, forgive me!” Zhao Chong panicked and hurriedly said, “It was the Eight Ghosts Crossing. It was an emergency. At the end of the day, he was ordered by General Du Chengyuan and General Guo Yi to lead the soldiers to rescue them. At the end of the day, considering the vicious and murderous nature of the water ghosts and the urgency of the situation, he had no choice but to temporarily recruit the elite Yue Cavalry of the general’s army to the Eight Ghosts Crossing!”

Qin Mubai gently curled the corners of his mouth, “According to the military law of the Great Tang Dynasty, if the military government transfers a group of less than 50 people out of the camp, they must obtain the warrant of an officer above the commandant of Guo Yi;” Fifty or more people, you have to give your approval directly to the commandant. Moreover, no one in the Central Army had the right to move other than Commandant Zhechong. “This time, not only did you use fifty cavalry, you also directly transferred the Yue cavalry from our Central Army … Zhao Chong, you are also a general. You have been in the barracks for quite a few years, right? You don’t understand this rule?”

“The general is indeed guilty. General, please punish him!”

Qin Mubai smiled and said, “Forget it! I think you broke the military rules for the sake of emergency. I’ll let you off this time. You must remember the military law better in the future.”

“Thank you, General, for your generosity and forgiveness!” Zhao Chong replied in a deep voice. He heaved a sigh of relief and thought to himself, “What’s the matter with my Dao? So it turns out that I’m still a little bit concerned about capturing you!” … You haven’t even assumed your post yet, what’s the harm of your Zhongjun mobilizing for an emergency? He was clearly looking for trouble to teach me a lesson! –Why, what did this fellow call me here for? Why am I getting more and more confused?

Qin Mubai looked at the doubtful look on his face and wanted to laugh in his heart. After calming down, he said, “Zhao Chong, in the military manor, you have direct jurisdiction over more than 400 brothers. Their positions are not low and their power is not small. In the territory of Xiangzhou, you can be considered a figure. I think you should be very familiar with the situation in Xiangzhou. I have something to ask you.”

“General, please show me!” Zhao Chong’s heart tightened as he replied seriously.

“How did I get here? I heard that the water ghosts in the West River Cavern are making an extremely fierce commotion. They are killing more and more people, despising the imperial law. They are sinful in their profession of clearing out the heavens and executing them.” Qin Mubai said, “As an officer of the military, it is your duty to protect the safety of the place. Have you led troops to hunt down the water ghost?”

“Yes.” Zhao Chong replied, “There are several pursuits every year, and there are quite a few battles with water ghosts.” However … we have never dealt them any substantial blow. At most, we can catch a few people or kill a few people. In order to compete with the water ghost, the military had even specially built the ‘Divine Fish Ship’ and trained the ‘White Wave Water Army’. Although it was able to completely suppress the water ghost in terms of martial power, it was still unable to exterminate it completely. “The last general is also very ashamed and distressed!”

“Divine Fish Ship, White Wave Navy … Oh, that sounds pretty good.” Qin Mubai said, “Then what is the reason why the dignified soldiers of the Heavenly Dynasty can’t deal with a few water ghost bandits?”

“The general don’t know. The water ghosts were all very cunning, they usually hid themselves well and didn’t reveal themselves at all. Occasionally, they would gather on the surface of the river to make a case, and they would quickly disappear without a trace. Because they were all on the water, even if they were surrounded, they would usually at most be able to recover the goods. Zhao Chong shouted angrily, “Those people are all like loaches. They disappear without a trace after they enter the water! There’s no way to catch them!”

“Is that so?” Qin Mubai smiled coldly. “Isn’t your scratching claw hook spear quite powerful? Haven’t you caught a single one? If you can catch one or two of them alive and pry open their mouths, you’re afraid that you won’t be able to pull out the head of the culprit. Are you worried that you won’t be able to annihilate them in one move?”

“This” Zhao Chong inadvertently raised the corner of his mouth and said, “General Mo is incompetent. Indeed, he didn’t manage to catch anyone alive.”

“You haven’t caught a single living person in a few years?” Qin Mubai questioned.

“Exactly.” Zhao Chong raised the corner of his mouth and replied, “Even if we catch them, they will still be released by the government. As for the reason, I don’t know. In short, the conclusion is that the people we catch are not real water ghosts.”

After Qin Mubai heard this, he thought to himself, Looking at Zhao Chong’s disdainful and somewhat resentful expression, it was as if he was somewhat dissatisfied with the Xiangzhou Prefecture Governor’s Mansion and Xiangyang County Government? From the looks of it, Zhao Chong seemed to know something, but he didn’t want to tell me directly … He should have some misgivings. Forget it, I’m not in a hurry. I just need to probe first. On this piece of land in Xiangzhou, it’s a bit more complicated than I imagined. It won’t be too late for me to investigate the situation after I figure out the situation.

“Who commands the Divine Fish Ship and the White Wave Navy in the military mansion?” Qin Mubai changed the topic and asked.

“It’s the last general.” Zhao Chong replied, “The general is in charge of eliminating the water ghost all year round. The left camp of the military manor is the water army camp, and the ships are also under the general’s control. That day, the case happened on the shore, and the general’s cavalry-free aircraft lacked enough power, so he had no choice but to call the general’s Zhongjun Yue cavalry …”

“Oh … at the end of tomorrow, gather your Zuoying navy and warships around the Eight Ghosts Crossing. I was going to inspect them.” Qin Mubai said.

“I accept your orders!” Zhao Chong solemnly cupped his fists and promised.

“It’s okay, go!” Qin Mubai said.

“Uh … at the end of the day, I dare to ask when the general will take up his post in the military manor?” Zhao Chong asked, “Our colleagues didn’t even meet the general at the Secretariat Manor today, so they all went back to the barracks to rectify the soldiers of the three services. We waited for the general to welcome him.”

“We will meet on the Japanese ship tomorrow. The bandits are making such a fuss. I have no intentions of having a banquet. Go back and tell them that you don’t need to receive them. All the officers above the brigade commander will be waiting for me on your Divine Fish ship tomorrow.” Qin Mubai said.

“General Mo will obey!” Zhao Chong bowed and left.

Pang Fei walked in and said, “Master, this disciple just listened to your conversation. Master didn’t ask too many questions, but he answered carefully and his mouth was very strict. I believe this Zhao Chong knows a lot about the water ghost, but he doesn’t want to say it out loud.”

“Smart, long-term.” Qin Mubai stood up and smiled. “He seemed to have said a lot to me, but in fact, he didn’t say anything meaningful.” However, I could vaguely sense that he was somewhat dissatisfied with the officials of the prefecture and county government. In the current peaceful and prosperous Tang Dynasty, there was actually a water ghost in this small place like Xiangzhou. Wasn’t it unusually difficult to form a sect in the green forest? If there wasn’t a government office or a military manor to open up a convenient door for them, how could such a phenomenon be prohibited repeatedly? I definitely don’t believe that they have nothing to do with the water ghost. ”

“This disciple also thinks so.” Pang Fei said, “These water ghosts actually dare to openly kill people and steal goods under the clear sky, and then escape without a trace. This is too unusual and unreasonable. After all, they are a large group of people, big brown goods. Even if they are easy to hide and conceal, how can this goods disappear in the air?”

“Well said, that’s right!” Qin Mubai clapped his hands and smiled, “Looks like you’ve seen some clues.” If he wanted to eliminate the water ghost, just relying on force to directly surround and capture it would definitely be using the soup to stop the boiling. The enemy is hidden and we are clear. If we suppress them ferociously, they will hide and not come out to commit a crime. Once we relax, they gather again to commit a crime. In this way, we are always passive. If you want to turn passivity into initiative, you have to grab their seven-inch vital points-that is, how did they get rid of the large amount of stolen goods? ”

Pang Fei blinked his eyes a few times, “Looking at the situation where Master is holding the Pearl of Wisdom, it seems like he has a good idea?”

“Haha!” Qin Mubai smiled and said, “Looks like you’ve trained quite well in the Hundred Cavalry. I only let Zhao Chong go back to pass on the message that the military parade is to confuse them and confuse the public. Tomorrow morning, you and I will disguise ourselves and walk around the continent. After noon, we will return here and prepare to head to the Eight Ghosts Army Parade!”

“Master is wise. As expected, everything has been arranged!” Pang Fei happily cupped his hands and said, “Follow your master and you will learn something good!”

“Don’t keep calling me master.” Qin Mubai patted him on the shoulder and smiled, “You are now a dignified Commandant Guo Yi. You should have your own opinions and ideas and learn to stand on your own side. You have just seen a mere Commandant Zhao Chong. He is so difficult to deal with. In the future, you need to strengthen your training in the military manor!”

“Yes!”

That night, the tired Qin Mubai fell asleep in the inn. He had no dreams all night until dawn when Pang Fei knocked on the door and woke him up. After a quick breakfast, Qin Mubai and Pang Fei changed their clothes and disguised themselves as merchant masters and servants. Qin Mubai, Pang Fei, and the others left for Zhou City.

Xiangzhou is a port city, business travel is very active. Although it was not as grand and luxurious as the West City of Chang’an, its liveliness was not inferior to that of the West City of Chang’an. Especially in the harbor city of North City, where many goods shipped from the harbor were traded directly, it was exceptionally prosperous. The shops were lined with carriages and horses like dragons, and the flow of people was endless, and the sound of shouting was noisy.

“Boss, the port city of Xiangzhou is really bustling!” Pang Fei smiled and said, “What are you really pretending to be? Did you dare to think that this merchant’s behavior was all learned from Wu Dong Clan?”

“Too much nonsense.” Qin Mubai scolded with a smile, “I’m taking advantage of the fact that not many people in Xiangzhou know me, so that I can make an open and secret visit. Everyone, pay attention and let me know if you see a shop selling salt rice or an official name.”

Pang Fei’s eyes lit up and he leaned over and whispered, “Master, do you mean to say that the stolen goods were most likely resold through the government-run grain store or salt label?”

“Is there no such possibility?” Qin Mubai smiled and said, “With so much grain and salt, can the water ghosts eat it or sink into the river by themselves? What they want is not grain and salt, but money. But with so much grain and salt, it is impossible for them to transfer it, let alone resell it. As a result, selling the stolen goods directly to the grain bank and salt number is the best way!”

“But … my Great Tang’s Grain, Iron and Salt Cloth is exclusively sold by the government!” Pang Fei was shocked. “All grain stores and salt brands must be franchises hired by the government. Each state and county can only have one business. Furthermore, whether it is the source of goods, the sales route, the upward price or the purchase price, they are all determined by the government. Grain stores and salt brands only earn a very small difference in price as a profit.”

Qin Mubai smiled and said, “Weibo?” I don’t think so. Originally, the most profitable goods in this world were food, clothing, shelter, and transportation, especially grain and salt. Think about it, who doesn’t eat food and salt in the world? In this city of Xiangzhou, if anyone could obtain the right to manage the grain and salt of the government, it meant that the entire city was making money for him. Even if everyone only earned a penny a day, it was still a shocking sum. Hence, most of the businesses dealing in grain and salt were the richest people in Hong Kong. For example, Zheng Fengchi of Chang’an! ”

“Oh … this disciple understands!” Pang Fei suddenly nodded his head. “Official grain stores and salt brands are supplied by the government, so the profits are low. But if it’s stolen from them by the water ghost … then the profits are huge! Moreover, these stolen goods are the same as the official grain brands, so there’s no way to distinguish them. Master, such an analysis is extremely possible!”

Qin Mubai smiled and said, “I thought you already figured it out!”

“Uh” Pang Fei scratched his head awkwardly and smiled embarrassedly. “If my brain had such a good teacher, I would have already left school. Hehe!”

“Cut the crap. Take your brothers around the port city and find the grain store and bank. In a few moments, we still have to go to the Eight Ghosts Crossing for a military parade. Time is of the essence!” Qin Mubai said.

“Alright! Disciple, bring your brothers and go find them immediately!”