1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 3831

Qin Jian's current success is inseparable from the support and help of his brother-in-law. Knowing that this should be another opportunity to make a contribution, he eagerly inquired about the details from Qu Deren.

Qu Deren said, "General Shi ordered that information on upstream cargo ships coming and going to Yanziji Wharf be collected and compiled, including their place of origin, ship owner, number of trips, usual cargo, transaction amount, whether they have opened an account and deposited money in Haihan Bank, etc., and many other items were listed."

Qin Jian asked, somewhat puzzled, "Shouldn't these matters be handled by the Trade and Shipping Bureau? According to the division of functions, it should be Lord Tao's responsibility. How did General Shi interfere?"

Qu Deren said, "When I heard that, I had similar doubts as you. But General Shi also showed me Lord Tao's order, instructing the relevant departments to fully cooperate with the Haihan Army. Old Qin, tell me, what does this mean?"

Qin Jian pondered for a moment and said, "Could it be that General Shi is planning to launch an offensive against a certain region upstream and needs to gather intelligence through such means first?"

Qu Deren clapped his hands and said, "I think the same way as you! In the entire Yingtian Prefecture, is there anyone more suitable to take on this task than you?"

Qin Jian said, "Since it's an official matter, why didn't General Shi issue a document to inform me, instead of making you make a special trip to Yanziji?"

Qu Deren said, "This is a secret mission. If we follow the normal procedure, the garrison command will issue a document to the shipping department, and then the department will notify you. With so many people who can access the information, there will be no secrets left."

Qin Jian nodded slightly and said, "That makes sense... but does General Shi have a specific focus in the information he wants to obtain?"

Qu Deren said, "The key point is that you need to find out who the real financial backers of these ships and cargo are."

Upon hearing this, Qin Jian finally showed a look of realization: "So General Shi wanted to find something to hold against those officials on the other side!"

Given the current hostile relationship between the two countries, the merchants who can still freely travel on the Yangtze River and conduct cross-border shipping transactions with Haihan mostly have some official background, and many of them are actually officials in government departments.

Such intelligence can certainly be collected through the Ministry of State Security or the Military Intelligence Bureau, but in terms of familiarity with the Yanziji area, these specialized intelligence agencies may not be able to match Qin Jian, who has lived here for half his life.

To conduct business through Yanziji Wharf, from arranging berths and loading/unloading cargo, from coordinating transport capacity and sourcing goods, to even contacting local officials, one had to rely entirely on Qin Jian's influence. It could be said that virtually every ship docking at Yanziji Wharf had to deal with Qin Jian.

Given the influence of Qin bamboo slips at Yanziji Wharf, it wouldn't take much effort to find out the backers of each ship merchant, and it would be relatively discreet and less likely to arouse suspicion.

Even though Qin Jian hadn't deliberately inquired beforehand, he still knew quite a bit about this. Which shipping company was backed by a local prefect, and which merchant guild was a front man for a certain commander—this kind of information wasn't exactly a secret; it was just that no one had specifically collected and organized it before.

These Ming Dynasty officials could easily make a fortune by controlling the limited shipping resources on the Yangtze River. Even if the imperial court in the north discovered these shady dealings by local officials in the south, it was difficult to exert influence to stop such behavior, and could only turn a blind eye and pretend not to know.

Of course, according to Qin Jian, Hai Han was not idle either. There were quite a few merchants going to the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River to do business, and many of them should be going there with various missions.

Whether it's scouting the hydrological environment upstream, setting up trading posts in Ming-controlled areas to gather intelligence, or secretly contacting Ming officials, they all have some kind of mission involved. If they simply wanted to do some trade, they probably wouldn't even be able to obtain an official cross-border trade license.

Qin Jian pondered for a moment and said, "Accepting this mission is no problem, but Lao Qu, have you thought about whether the timing of this mission is related to the recruitment notices posted outside?"

Qu Deren said somewhat dismissively, "If the plan is really to send troops to attack the upstream prefecture, wouldn't they have to gather a large number of warships and supplies in Nanjing in advance? You've been keeping an eye on Yanziji every day, have you seen any signs of this?"

Qin Jian said, "The signs you mentioned haven't appeared yet. But if we really want to estimate the time, we should start from the beginning of the conscription. Think about it, these new recruits will be recruited, undergo 100 days of training, and only after that will they be officially employed. Calculating the time, it will be at least three or four months from now. Ships and supplies shouldn't start gathering that far in advance, that would be too easy to expose."

Qu Deren pondered for a while and had to admit that Qin Jian's words made some sense. However, he was clearly not as concerned about the subsequent development of the situation as Qin Jian: "Whether to fight or not, where to fight, and when to start the fight are things that General Shi needs to consider. You and I are just errand runners. Even if war breaks out again in the future, it will not be your turn to fight on the battlefield. There is no need to be nervous about it."

Qin Jian shook his head and retorted, "Old Qu, you're mistaken. Don't forget how we've prospered these past few years. If it weren't for the war, I would still be a lowly foreman in Yanziji, and you would just be a minor constable in Yingtian Prefecture. We wouldn't have achieved our current status!"

Qu Deren said, "So you mean that if we have to fight again, we might be able to gain some more benefits from it?"

Qin Jian said, "It's more than just a few benefits! Think about it, how many docks and cities are there on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River? After we take them, won't we need dedicated personnel to manage them? Are there enough reserve officials available for appointment right now?"

Qu Deren hesitated and said, "What you say makes sense, but there is definitely a difference between being an official in Nanjing and being an official in another place. Our roots are in Nanjing, so we may not be able to handle things as well in another place."

Qin Jian said, "Even if we don't go to other places to serve as officials, we can still make plans! Can't we recommend our trusted subordinates, disciples, and followers to our superiors? Can't we set up trading companies and shipping companies, and follow the army to these newly occupied areas? Can't we share the spoils while others reap the rewards? The key is to seize the right moment to strike!"

"If we wait until the preparations for war reach the stage of troop and supply assembly, then the whole world will know that war is about to break out, and there will be plenty of people who want to profit from the war. You and I may not even be able to squeeze into the front line. If we want to get involved, we have to start now!"

Qu Deren sighed, "Old Qin, I originally thought that after you became successful, you lost your edge and would settle down to be a rich man in Nanjing for the rest of your life. I didn't expect you to have such a vision!"