RPAGF Chapter 99 Shen Qing's Secret Report
Chapter 99 Shen Qing's Secret Report
The last snowfall of the twelfth lunar month in the second year of the Tianqi reign was heavier than in previous years.
When Lu Yan returned from the government office, it was already dusk. He stood under the eaves, shaking the snow off his cloak. His boots left two wet marks on the bluestone slabs. The lanterns under the eaves swayed in the wind, their light and shadows scattering wildly on the snow.
"Master, Manager Hu has been waiting all afternoon." Fan Fu greeted him, taking the umbrella from his hand. "The account books are all here; they're waiting in the west wing."
Lu Yan nodded and walked towards the west wing. As he passed through the moon gate, he looked up at the sky—the leaden clouds hung extremely low, and the snowflakes stung his face. In this kind of weather, the streets were long deserted, and even the night watchmen were huddled in their shacks, too lazy to come out.
The charcoal fire was burning brightly in the west wing. Hu Jingshui sat at the eight-immortal table, with five or six account books stacked beside him. The covers were made of dark paper and the corners were tied with thin rope. When he saw Lu Yan enter, he stood up and cupped his hands in greeting.
"Master, the accounts for the twelfth lunar month have all been settled."
"Sit down." Lu Yan took off his cloak, hung it on the wooden hook behind the door, walked to the table and sat down. He casually picked up the top book and said, "Pick the important ones."
Hu Jingshui spread out the account books one by one, pointing to the numbers in the header pages and reciting them in detail. He spoke slowly, but he pronounced every number clearly, going through the accounts of income, expenditure, and balance from beginning to end.
Lu Yan listened, nodding occasionally and asking a question now and then. At the end, Hu Jingshui closed the ledger and said, "After deducting all expenses, the net surplus at the end of the year is approximately 24,000 taels."
"Twenty-four thousand." Lu Yan chewed on the number for a moment, then said nothing.
Seeing that he didn't speak, Hu Jingshui continued, "As for the guard team, Captain Zhao recruited twenty more veterans from Liaodong this month, expanding the musket team to one hundred men and the sword and shield team to fifty. As for Master Zhao, he produced twelve flintlock muskets this month, raising the good quality rate to seventy percent."
"Seventy percent." Lu Yan nodded. "Tell him there's no rush, take it slow."
Hu Jingshui responded and said a few more words about the shop before getting up to take his leave. Lu Yan escorted him to the courtyard gate, watching his figure disappear into the snow before turning back.
Back in the west wing, he didn't leave immediately. He stood by the table and looked through the account books again, then stacked them up and set them aside. After the lamp oil had burned for a while, the wick had spun into frost. He used a hairpin to adjust it, and the flame became brighter.
Fan Fu came in again, this time carrying a bowl of hot ginger soup. He placed it on the table and said in a low voice, "Master, it's late. Drink this to warm yourself up."
Lu Yan picked up the glass, took a sip, and asked, "Where's Shen Qing?"
"I came by this afternoon, but you hadn't returned from the government office, so I left something and left." Fan Fu took out a few folded sheets of paper from his sleeve and handed them over with both hands, saying, "I told you to take a look when you have time."
Lu Yan took the stack of papers, and Fan Fu left, closing the door behind him.
The paper was mulberry bark paper, yellowish in color, and had a faint smell of ink. Lu Yan unfolded the top sheet; it was in Shen Qing's handwriting, the characters small, but each stroke clear. It began with: "The movements of the remnants of the White Lotus Sect."
He looked down: In Juye County, Wang Haoxian's remaining forces numbered about two hundred and were hiding in the deep mountains; in Yuncheng County, Yu Hongzhi's remaining forces numbered about one hundred and had dispersed; in Cao County, a group of about fifty bandits was still active, but the specific leader was unknown.
He finished reading that sheet and put it aside. The second sheet detailed the relationships between various factions in Jinan: the prefect, the assistant prefect, the sub-prefect, and the judge—each with their background, faction, and who they were close to, all listed clearly. He knew most of this, but Shen Qing had written it in even more detail than he had imagined, noting who had argued with whom in the restaurant and who had given whom holiday gifts.
He put this one down and picked up the third one.
The third sheet was only half a page long, with a few lines of text written on it:
"Liaodong War Situation: After Nurhaci occupied Liaoyang and Shenyang, he reorganized his army and prepared for war, and the Eight Banners army had expanded to 60,000. The Ming army retreated to western Liaodong, where food and supplies were insufficient and morale was low."
"Dongjiang Town: Mao Wenlong led two hundred men across the sea and established Dongjiang Town on Pi Island to harass the rear of the Later Jin. The troops were isolated overseas and faced difficulties in resupply, urgently needing food, cloth, and gunpowder. Mao Wenlong sent people to Dengzhou and Laizhou to purchase these items at prices 30% higher than the market price."
Lu Yan paused for a moment when he saw this.
Dongjiang Town. Mao Wenlong.
He certainly knew the name. In later historical records, Mao Wenlong was a lone pawn in Liaodong, tying down a large number of Later Jin troops behind enemy lines. But he also knew that this man was later killed by Yuan Chonghuan, leaving Dongjiang Town leaderless, which ultimately led to the Dengzhou Mutiny.
"It's 30% higher than the market price." He read the sentence again and did the math in his head.
Lu's Carriage and Horse Trading Company currently operates on land transport, from Jinan to Linqing, and from Linqing to Dezhou. Profits are thin, and risks are high. But the sea route is different. A ship carrying goods can sail from Dengzhou to Pi Island, arriving in three to five days with favorable winds and currents. If they could establish a connection with Mao Wenlong, it wouldn't just be about making money; they could also plant a spy in Liaodong.
He folded the paper and placed it under the inkstone.
The fourth sheet of paper was even thinner, as if it were a corner torn from somewhere. It contained only two short lines:
"The Li family of Dengzhou are wealthy maritime merchants who have been established for three generations. The head of the family, Li Shouzheng, is the deputy commander of the Dengzhou Garrison; his younger brother, Li Shouyi, is the richest man in Dengzhou and monopolizes half of the maritime trade. There are rumors that they are suspected of colluding with Japanese pirates, but there is no concrete evidence yet."
Lu Yan looked at the paper twice, but didn't fold it; he just held it in his hand.
Dengzhou.
Colluding with Japanese pirates.
He recalled hearing about Dengzhou's maritime trade two months ago when he visited the Linqing wharf. They said the ships there sailed to Japan and Korea, and the profit from one trip was equivalent to ten land trips. He was intrigued at the time, but hadn't had time to think it through. Now, Shen Qing had brought the Li family to him; it wasn't a coincidence.
He placed this piece of paper under the inkstone, side by side with the previous one.
He had already read four of the five sheets of paper. The bottom sheet was the thickest, folded twice. He pulled it out and unfolded it; it was Shen Qing's "Proposal for the Construction of an Intelligence Network."
It is divided into three layers. The first layer is the overt commercial intelligence, which is based on Hu Jingshui's business and operates in Dengzhou, Laizhou, and Qingzhou. The second layer is the covert official intelligence, which involves bribing clerks in government offices, centurions in garrisons, and naval captains. The third layer is the most secretive military intelligence, which involves planting spies among the defeated soldiers in Liaodong and around Kong Youde.
Shen Qing concluded by writing: "The three layers are unaware of each other's activities and communicate through a single line. If activation is required, please obtain the boss's approval."
Lu Yan read the entire proposal from beginning to end, but neither approved it nor burned it. He simply folded it up and put it in his sleeve.
The snow was still falling outside the window, rustling against the paper windowpane. He gathered up a few sheets of paper on the table, but didn't put them anywhere; he just held them in his hand and stood there for a while.
Fan Fu coughed lightly outside and asked if he needed more charcoal. Lu Yan said no, and told him to go and rest.
The footsteps faded into the distance.
He stood alone at the table, turning the papers in his hand over and over, then walked to the wooden shelf in the corner, opened an empty box on the top shelf, put the papers inside, and pushed the box back into place.
It wasn't in any confidential place; it was just something he casually tossed aside. But the contents of those few pages were already in his mind, so it didn't matter where he put them.
He turned back to the table, picked up the bowl of now-cold ginger soup, and drank it down in a few gulps. The ginger was pungent and spicy, making his throat tighten. He frowned and put the bowl down.
The two pieces of paper were still pressed under the inkstone—one was written on Mao Wenlong's name, and the other on the Li family of Dengzhou. He didn't touch them again, but just glanced at them, then blew out the lamp and walked out of the west wing.
The snow was still falling, and a thick layer had accumulated in the courtyard. He walked back through the snow, his boots sinking into it with a crunching sound. When he reached the moon gate, he glanced back towards the west wing, but it was pitch black, and he couldn't see anything.
Dengzhou.
Mao Wenlong.
He repeated the two words to himself again, and then continued walking forward.
The snow was heavy outside, but it was warm inside. He sat down at the table, picked up his teacup, and drank it sip by sip. The tea was this year's new tea, a little astringent, but the heat was very comforting.
After finishing his tea, he didn't get up immediately. He sat in his chair, listening to the sound of snow falling outside the window. It was a soft, gentle patter, like something slowly accumulating.
He thought that the things that had happened this year should be piling up.
From the White Lotus Sect at the beginning of the year, to transporting grain in the middle of the year, to this little bit of leisure at the end of the year, he has traveled a long way, but he has not yet reached the place he wants to go.
Dengzhou.
Mao Wenlong.
These two words may be the starting point for the next step.
The lights went out.
Outside the window, the snow is still falling.