good season

These are merchants who have come to buy grain!
Yang Fan and Ding Hao, two junior officers of the Imperial Guard, were dumbfounded. They didn't know when their two trusted confidants had contacted the merchants, and they never expected that these people would be so audacious.

But soon they realized that even they were tempted by the price offered by the merchant.

They all had some background to become minor leaders in the Embroidered Uniform Guard. They were worldly-wise and had even taken bribes in shady dealings. But all of that combined couldn't compare to the risk they faced this time. They were afraid.

However, they eventually compromised. How could they not compromise when faced with such huge profits?
Moreover, such opportunities are not easily encountered, and who knows how many years it will be before the next flood.

The merchant readily paid the deposit, and the remaining silver would be paid upon delivery of the grain. As for how to deliver the grain, they also came up with a good solution.

That evening, the four returned to the ship. Yang Fan and Ding Gao summoned their men, eighteen of whom were brothers who had fought alongside them through thick and thin.

To make this work perfectly, everyone must be involved.

Yang Fan and Ding Gao were also very generous. Each of the four of them received 10,000 taels, and the remaining 60,000 taels were divided equally among the eighteen brothers.

Zhang Hui and Liu Wang, two of the Fourth Prince's confidants, disagreed, but with a knife to their throats, they had no choice but to reluctantly agree.

What can they do? If they want to make money, they have to cooperate with these Imperial Guards; otherwise, they can't succeed.

Fortunately, this is only the first batch. There will be another batch, which will be another 100,000 taels, and each of them will receive 10,000 taels.

After agreeing on how to divide the silver, the next step was to ensure the smooth delivery of the grain. With the Imperial Guards around, this was not a difficult task.

That night, Yang Fan ordered the chains connecting the grain ships to be opened, so that losses could be reduced if the ships were to sail.

The next day, before dawn, the fleet continued its journey. After traveling a few miles, the captain suddenly realized that the ships behind them had not followed. He quickly reported this to Yang Fan, who immediately ordered the ships to stop and wait.

The ten boats that hadn't followed had already turned around at Ding Gao's command when the river bend, and headed in another direction.

The boatman had barely opened his mouth to ask a question when his throat was slit and his body was thrown into the river.

The ten boats traveled more than twenty miles before docking at the shore, where the merchant and his men were already waiting.

The merchant had his men unload the sand from the mule carts, emptying them, and then had them unload the sand from the boats, half of each boat. The sand was then mixed into the grain, and the job was done.

The boatmen huddled in a corner, terrified. They knew that not only would they not earn any money on this trip, but they would most likely be killed.

Seeing that half of the grain had been unloaded, Ding Gao said, "That's enough, let's fill it with sand."

Zhang Hui refused: "No, this isn't enough weight, keep unloading!"

Ding Gao wanted to stop him, but he swallowed his words. Yes, the agreed weight was too much, and if he didn't give enough, the money would definitely be reduced.

Forget it, everyone looks out for themselves. Since I've already done it, I shouldn't be timid.

With only 40% of the grain remaining on the ship, Zhang Hui finally ordered sand to be loaded.

Just as several baskets of sand were mixed into the grain, another boat suddenly appeared at the stern. As soon as the boat docked, more than a dozen people jumped off and ran towards them.

Immediately afterwards, several more boats surrounded them from all directions. Ding Gao's expression hardened. He saw that the person standing on the leading boat was none other than the young master Xiao that Li Qing had met a couple of days ago!

The people that Young Master Xiao brought, as well as the people running towards them, were all dressed in black robes. These people were actually yamen runners!

Why are Young Master Xiao and the yamen runners here?

Ding Gao did not know Xiao Zhen, but Zhang Hui did.

He followed the Fourth Prince and saw Xiao Zhen countless times. On that hunting trip to Shiji Mountain, Xiao Zhen died, the Fourth Prince was seriously injured, and none of the Fourth Prince's followers escaped death; they were all beaten to death. Zhang Hui, however, escaped because he went back to his hometown to move his grandfather's grave. Afterwards, he and Liu Wang, who was later promoted, became the Fourth Prince's confidants.

Although Zhang Hui did not witness Xiao Zhen's death firsthand, he had heard about what happened that day countless times.

In his eyes, Xiao Zhen was already dead, beyond any doubt.

But now, Xiao Zhen, who should have been dead, is walking towards him alive!

Zhang Hui was so frightened that his legs trembled, and he took a few steps back before collapsing onto the deck.

Ding Gao's attention was entirely on Xiao Zhen, and he didn't notice Zhang Hui's reaction.

He had only one thought in mind: Li Qing didn't trust him!

If they hadn't been tracking them all along, Young Master Xiao wouldn't have found this place. They had studied it for a long time before setting up the delivery point here. Moreover, these ships were arranged in an encircling formation, clearly heading straight for them.

Unless one of them leaked the information, there is only one reason: Li Qing doesn't trust him and secretly had Young Master Xiao keep an eye on them.

Ding Gao felt a chill run down his spine, as if he could see Li Qing's ruthless eyes.

Although Li Qing came from humble beginnings, he was a confidant of Commander Lu Qian, who was grooming him to be his successor.

Offending Li Qing is the same as offending Lu Qian!
It's all Zhang Hui and Liu Wang's fault, those two sycophants. If it weren't for them, I would still be a real man.

He instinctively glanced at Zhang Hui beside him, not seeing him at first glance, but upon closer inspection, he saw the man curled up on the ground, trembling, muttering, "Ghost, ghost."

The ghost Zhang Hui had mentioned had already jumped onto the boat and was standing in front of them.

Ding Gao gritted his teeth. He was not Zhang Hui. He knew that if he wanted to turn the tide today, he had to kill the person in front of him.

Moved, he swung his embroidered spring knife straight at Xiao Zhen's face. Xiao Zhen was prepared and used his longsword to deflect the knife. The two swords clashed with a loud bang, making their hands go numb.

Ding Gao took two steps back, barely managing to stand firm. Xiao Zhen seized the opportunity to swing his long sword again. Ding Gao tried to raise his sword to counterattack, but it was too late. Half of Ding Gao's arm was severed, and blood gushed out immediately!
Something splattered on Zhang Hui's face. He wiped it off casually and found it was blood!

He was terrified. Xiao Zhen killed someone—no, a ghost killed someone!

A surge of heat welled up from beneath him, and Zhang Hui collapsed to the ground. It wasn't until his men were subdued and two burly men dragged him up like a dead dog that they discovered he had soiled himself with excrement and urine. Estimating the time was about right, Yang Fan ordered his men to continue. However, Ding Gao's escort boats were nowhere to be seen. He was filled with anxiety, but had no choice but to press on. After walking another three or four miles, still without seeing the ten boats, he had two men row a small boat to check.

An hour later, the two men returned. They had not found the ten ships, not even a trace of them. At the agreed delivery point, all they saw were baskets of sand and deep ruts.

Yang Fan's heart sank.

Nowadays, there are vagrants and bandits everywhere. Could it be that they have been targeted and are being double-crossed?
Thinking of the bandits he encountered on the way to Tongzhou, Yang Fan became even more certain that Ding Gao and his men, along with those ten boats, had been double-crossed!
Not only were there ten ships, but also silver. When the merchants came to meet, it was a cash-on-delivery transaction, so the merchants brought 100,000 taels of silver notes. Those silver notes were also stolen along with the grain.

Yang Fan summoned Liu Wang. Upon hearing that the Embroidered Uniform Guard had not found the ten ships, Liu Wang's first reaction was to point at Yang Fan's nose: "Was this your scheme? Ten thousand taels of silver, and you Embroidered Uniform Guard took eighty thousand, and you were still not satisfied, you wanted to swallow it all?"

Yang Fan was furious. This man was talking nonsense and actually slandered them by saying that they had swallowed everything.

Yang Fan raised his hand and slapped her across the face: "My brothers are on the ship too. If anything happens to them, I'll wipe out your whole family!"

Liu Wang was startled and his mind cleared up. He was over twenty years old and still a student. Later, his sister became a concubine of Master You, which allowed him to follow the Fourth Prince. Although he had to be humble and subservient, he and his family had indeed benefited.

The Fourth Prince is gaining increasing favor with the Emperor and Empress; his good days are about to begin. He doesn't want to die. Yang Fan is a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and the Embroidered Uniform Guard is ruthless. If he says he'll wipe out his entire family, he really will. He must be stupid. Why should he confront the Embroidered Uniform Guard head-on? Wouldn't it be better to stab them in the back?

Liu Wang immediately changed his expression, his face beaming with smiles: "Boss Yang, what are you saying? We're like family. I was just flustered and confused. Just pretend I didn't say anything, don't take it to heart."

Yang Fan ignored him. He didn't care whether Liu Wangfang had farted or not; what he cared about was Ding Gao and the other brothers on those ten boats.

Moreover, how would he explain the loss of ten boats when he returned?

Thinking of this, Yang Fan kicked Liu Wang: "It's all your fault, you lackeys!"

Liu Wang was kicked to the ground and it took him a long time to get up. He had a smile on his face, but in his heart he was cursing Yang Fan's ancestors for eighteen generations. You just wait, I'll stab you to death!
The fourth prince has not come out since he moved into that haunted house.

A young eunuch came in from outside, covering his nose with a handkerchief: "Oh dear, Fourth Master, you have no idea how stinky the water is outside. Oh dear, there are even dead rats floating on it."

Before he could finish speaking, the Fourth Prince gagged. He had vomited countless times since arriving in Tongzhou. It was so disgusting, so utterly disgusting.

"You just went out, quickly soak yourself in mugwort water, and burn all the clothes you were wearing!"

Unbeknownst to the fourth prince, a small boat was passing by at that very moment. Before it could even get close, it was blasted away by the soldiers: "Get away! Move away! Get away!"

The small boat swayed and drifted far away. The old man on the boat looked at the mansion built high up and said with envy, "He really had foresight. He built the mansion so high up that he wouldn't be afraid of floods."

The man rowing the boat said, "Don't flatter me, old man. That's a haunted house. Many people have died there. I heard it's haunted."

The old man became interested. "A ghost story is great! He's a Taoist priest; he can catch ghosts!"

"Let's go back, let's go back! I'm going to catch a ghost!"

The man slapped himself in the mouth. "This stinking mouth of mine! What nonsense is it that I'm spouting?"

"Listen to me, we're not going back. The Fourth Prince is staying there now, and it's not a place where you can just go whenever you want."

The old man frowned: "Here to control the flood? Where are they? I haven't seen them."

"How come we didn't see them? Didn't we see the Ministry of Works people?" the man hurriedly said.

"I was referring to that Fourth Prince. I didn't see him." Don't think he's old and blind; he can see very clearly. Of all the people he just encountered, not one of them had any imperial aura.

The man explained, "The Fourth Prince doesn't know how to manage water. He doesn't go out; he just lives in that house. Besides, it's so dangerous outside now. The Fourth Prince is delicate and precious, so he won't come out."

The old man spat out, "Pah! Just a lazybones. Oh, right, someone on the road mentioned some mountain. Let's go take a look."

The man hurriedly said, "Shouldn't we find a place to rest? It's too dangerous here."

The old man said, "You say you're looking for a place, but what place? That haunted mansion is a good place, but you say that some bastard Fourth Prince lives there. The manor down below is also a good place, but you say that's where officials live. Now I say we should go to the mountains, but you say it's dangerous. So tell me, where else can this old man live? I think you're just trying to force this old man to jump into the river, aren't you?"

The man was startled and quickly said, "Sir, please don't say that. Nobody forced you to jump into the river."

"Since you didn't force me to jump into the river, then send me up the mountain now. I'll pay you!"

The man was filled with regret. In this day and age, you can meet all sorts of people. Who would have thought that someone would actually hire a boat to check on the flood? It was also his fault. He shouldn't have been greedy for those fifty taels of silver and carried this old madman around aimlessly. The sky was getting gloomy again. If a heavy rain came at this moment, not to mention the old madman, even he himself couldn't guarantee that he would survive.

"Let's not go, I think."

"Help! Help! Someone is trying to murder me for my money!"

The man was startled. He saw a small boat approaching from afar, and the people on board were still government officials. The man quickly begged for mercy: "Sir, whatever you say, I'll take you up the mountain right away. But let's make it clear first, I can only take you to the foot of the mountain. You'll have to climb up yourself. If you're lucky, you might find someone to carry you in a sedan chair. If not, you'll have to climb up on your own."

The old man waved his hand and said, "No problem, let's go!"

The man scoffed, "You're still 'setting out the carriage'? Do you think you're the emperor?"

The water level in the city was a few degrees lower than it had been two days ago. The man sighed and muttered to himself, "These houses that have been flooded will probably need to be repaired before they can be lived in again."

It's a good thing he doesn't have the money to buy a house in the city, otherwise he would be heartbroken right now.

Upon reaching the foot of the mountain, they could see several small boats chained together in the distance. After the old man disembarked and stood on the steps leading up the mountain, the man dared to tell the truth: "Sir, I can only take you this far. However, I heard that there are too many people on this mountain, and Miss Zhao is no longer accepting new people. May you have good luck."

Anyway, I've got fifty taels in hand, so I'm not afraid that this old madman will cling to me.

The old man's reaction was unexpected: "Who are you talking about? Miss Zhao the Second? You wouldn't happen to be talking about my goddaughter, would you? Hahaha!"

Zhao Shiqing: Who is your goddaughter? Did I agree to that? (End of Chapter)