Han Qian turned his head, his gaze crossing over an earthen wall to see that on the top floor of Guanyue Tower on the other side of the alley, a window had been opened outward.
They stood in the open, so naturally they couldn’t see what was happening in that dimly lit room on Guanyue Tower’s top floor. However, Han Qian noticed at this moment that if someone stood at that window, they would be able to observe the movements within Furong Garden.
“Should we notify Guanyue Tower’s owner to have all the west-facing windows on the top floor sealed shut?”
Since arriving in Xuzhou, Han Qian hadn’t rested, and only today was he noticing these details for the first time. But Gao Shao and the others had long ago noticed this was a vulnerability—they just hadn’t yet had time to resolve the matter.
The simplest and most direct means of eliminating this hidden danger would be to require Guanyue Tower to directly seal that window shut. Surely Guanyue Tower’s owner, on Xuzhou’s territory, wouldn’t dare defy Furong Garden’s will in any way.
“Such simple brutality isn’t my style,” Han Qian withdrew his gaze, smiling slightly: “Just arrange for one of our people to work there.”
Qianyang City was small, and the layout of residences within the city was relatively compact. Even though Furong Garden occupied a fairly large area, each courtyard layer within Furong Garden was still rather narrow, while the courtyard walls were quite tall.
Even if someone borrowed Guanyue Tower’s advantageous terrain to observe movements within Furong Garden, what they could spy would be extremely limited. But leaving such a vulnerability without remedying it might instead reveal which people were secretly watching Furong Garden.
Although Han Qian wouldn’t stay in Xuzhou City for very long—once he had arranged some urgent matters, he would return to Jinling—he would still secretly leave one or two groups of people in Xuzhou to guard against Fan Xicheng and the others not being thorough enough in their actions.
Tian Cheng mounted his horse and glanced at Madam Xi sitting side-saddle on horseback behind them, thinking that the Four Clans should quiet down for a while. The young master wanting to plant people in Guanyue Tower was probably to guard against Tanzhou’s spies, right?
Tian Cheng seemed to also guess what Han Qian was worried about, and moved closer to say: “Tanzhou’s side showing no movement at all also doesn’t seem normal…”
“Perhaps the young master’s grass-startling strategy was too swift and sudden—the people Tanzhou has hidden in Qianyang City didn’t have time to react?” Gao Shao said.
Han Qian nodded. The Ma clan controlled the most essential area of the eight-hundred-li Dongting Lake region and openly commanded nearly twenty thousand elite water and land troops. If not for Emperor Tianyou’s invincible conquests these past years, the Ma clan would have the strength to establish separatist control over Jinghu.
The Four Clans were ultimately just a group of country bumpkins who didn’t know their own limitations—with three to five hundred stockade soldiers in hand, they became so recklessly bold they didn’t know what hit them. They actually weren’t difficult to deal with. But his schemes and tricks against the Four Clans, if they encountered Tanzhou with its formidable hard power, would have great difficulty playing any role.
This was the so-called “one force breaks ten techniques.”
At this time, it was mainly because Tanzhou Regional Commander Ma Yin feared Emperor Tianyou and was unwilling to attract Emperor Tianyou’s attention that they had opportunities to exploit wherever they could find them.
However, that said, even though Tanzhou was currently trying extremely hard to maintain a low profile, just as Tian Cheng and Gao Shao judged, Han Qian absolutely didn’t believe that Tanzhou had made no arrangements in Chen, Xu, Shao, Heng, and other southern Xiang prefectures.
Thinking of this, Han Qian sighed lightly. For his father to establish a foothold in Xuzhou, Tanzhou was the most difficult to deal with.
If he misjudged the proper approach, or if Tanzhou found his father and son disagreeable, or if their vigilance strengthened even slightly and they directly cut off passage through the Yuan River, who could he cry to then?
Tanzhou didn’t want to provoke Emperor Tianyou’s attention—they only needed to avoid obstructing vessels transporting tax grain for local prefectures and counties. But for Han Qian to truly transport Xuzhou’s products out on a large scale, large numbers of merchant ships would necessarily need to participate.
And once Tanzhou established checkpoints at the Yuan River entrance, Han Qian’s so-called vagrant luring plan would have absolutely no possibility of implementation!
Thinking of this, Han Qian suddenly realized that his father hadn’t particularly strongly opposed his vagrant luring plan—perhaps he had already anticipated that the Tanzhou obstacle wouldn’t be easy to overcome?
“Young master, what are you troubled about?” Zhao Ting’er mounted a small horse and moved closer to ask.
“I’m thinking about how to match wits with my father! You little girl actually dared not speak up for me.” Han Qian reached out to tap Zhao Ting’er’s head.
“The young master is worried that Tanzhou will become a roadblock tiger, right?” Gao Shao said with a smile.
Han Qian laughed heartily, saying: “As long as we can see the problem, there will always be ways to solve it!”
Speaking of the greatest gains from Han Qian’s journey, one could say it was discovering Gao Shao and Tian Cheng.
Whether Lin Zongjing, Guo Nu’er, or even Zhao Wuji with his exceptional archery and natural assassin material—perhaps their future achievements would be greater and abilities stronger. But currently compared to Gao Shao and Tian Cheng, what they lacked most was ten to twenty years of tumultuous life experience and knowledge.
It wasn’t merely discovering Gao Shao and Tian Cheng’s capabilities. Moreover, through two months of interaction, Han Qian had made Gao Shao and Tian Cheng recognize that he was worth following. Therefore, before Han Qian they no longer held back or restrained themselves, instead displaying a kind of ease that came from lord and retainer knowing each other well.
…
…
The section of the Yuan River entering Qianyang City was particularly treacherous with rapids and steep cliffs on both banks. But upon reaching Qianyang City and entering the large zigzag-shaped section, the terrain became gentler.
High summer was precisely the season when floods overflowed in southern Xiang. But because from Qianyang City outward, the Yuan River’s banks were mostly shallow silted lands, the river water spread seven or eight li wide on both banks. Plus the large zigzag shape extended this section of waterway five or six times longer, so the water’s momentum was also quite gentle.
Quite a few fishing boats leisurely stopped on the river surface to catch fish.
Inside and outside Qianyang City, however, there were many native tribal people who recognized Madam Xi.
Honestly speaking, Han Qian bringing Madam Xi out of the city was precisely to let people recognize her.
Even though the Four Clans’ chieftains and key figures all knew why Madam Xi was at his side, the vast majority of native tribal people wouldn’t know the reason. This would confuse ordinary native tribal people’s understanding—they would mistakenly think that Feng Changyu had respectfully presented a concubine from his household, willing to humble himself to curry favor with the new Governor.
However, having people recognize Madam Xi was quite normal. After all, Madam Xi hadn’t been completely secluded at Jingyun Stockade. But having so many native tribal people along the way recognize Madam Xi still surprised Han Qian somewhat.
One must know that in this era, the separation between men and women wasn’t as severe as in later generations. Xuzhou’s native tribal people were even less so. But ordinary household women’s range of activity was always very limited. Particularly in Xuzhou’s terrain where “you see mountains but break your legs running to them,” the possibility that Madam Xi—whether before marriage or after becoming Feng Changyu’s concubine—could be recognized by so many native tribal people was truly quite low.
Seeing Madam Xi looking like she wished she could cover her head and face with cloth, Han Qian wondered inwardly—had he previously guessed wrong about this tribal woman’s and Xi Cheng’s origins?
Han Qian temporarily set aside this thought, thinking he could wait for an opportunity to ask Feng Xuan and Gao Bao—it wasn’t urgent. They continued galloping out of the city.
For safety considerations, the bay area Ji Xiyao pulled Yang Qin to select for building ship docks wouldn’t be too far from Qianyang City.
After Han Qian and his group rode out of the western city gate, they walked north along the river beach, seeing Ji Xiyao and Yang Qin with several people standing at the edge of a river beach at Qianyang City’s northwest corner.
They spurred their horses over.
When Han Qian arrived in Xuzhou, he had first stopped and disembarked at the river embankment wharf at Qianyang City’s southwest corner. Afterward, he had left the city heading east, following Jingyun Creek deep into the southern mountain forests to meet the Feng father and son.
He had stayed at Jingyun Stockade for four days, only returning to Qianyang City yesterday.
Until today, Han Qian hadn’t properly toured outside the city, particularly Qianyang City’s northwest and northeast directions—he hadn’t had opportunity to survey them.
At this time the river water was swollen. The water surface in Qianyang City’s northwest direction spread about ten li wide, with several low mountains thirty to forty zhang tall standing in the river’s heart, their slopes densely shaded with trees.
Han Qian didn’t know whether after the water level dropped, those several low mountains connected into one piece. To the northeast of those several small mountains, across roughly four li of water surface, the terrain suddenly rose higher above the water—that side was directly north of Qianyang City—where thirty to fifty dwellings were built along the shore, forming a medium-sized village stockade.
East of the village stockade, the terrain gradually rose higher—this was the western slope land of Qianyang’s Dragon Ridge Mountain, with lush and verdant trees.
Perhaps because the river water had receded slightly at this time, Han Qian saw from afar that between those several small mountains in the river’s heart and the village stockade to the north, a discontinuous dark shadow floated on the turbid river surface. Pointing at it, he asked Yang Qin and Ji Xiyao: “What is that?”
“The previous Governor Wang Yu wanted to build a river embankment there to connect the northern slope land with Five Peaks Mountain in the river’s heart, blocking the Yuan River outside. Construction began in early the year before last, but the earthen embankment wasn’t solid. In the summers and autumns of both the year before last and last year, it was washed away by river water each time. Governor Wang Yu still wouldn’t give up. After winter began last year, he wanted to repair this embankment again. Unexpectedly, before he could complete the work, he suddenly died of illness.” These past few days staying in Qianyang City, Yang Qin had not only familiarized himself with the water conditions on both sides but also knew that in the river’s heart was an unfinished abandoned embankment, and he had thoroughly investigated this abandoned embankment’s origins.
“He truly deserved death!” Han Qian cursed in a low, hateful voice.
Yang Qin was also someone who understood water conditions.
Although he didn’t know to what degree the Yuan River’s momentum could reach when turbulent, just looking at the current water conditions, even if what was built between Five Peaks Mountain in the river’s heart and the northern village stockade was an earthen embankment, it wouldn’t be easy for the Yuan River to wash away the great embankment.
It was very obvious that someone didn’t want former Governor Wang Yu to complete this great embankment north of Qianyang City and had sabotaged it secretly—that’s why the embankment was built twice and washed away by river water twice.
And when Wang Yu was unwilling to be controlled by local forces and attempted a third time, he was impatiently “died of illness” by certain people.
Han Qian didn’t agree with his father’s lofty ambitions of self-sacrifice for the public good, but regarding an official willing to accomplish some things locally who met such an end, his heart truly felt uncomfortable.
And for someone to risk such great danger and expend such great effort to have Wang Yu die of illness, the reasoning was actually quite simple.
Using those several small mountains in the river’s heart (Five Peaks Mountain) as the core, building embankments on both sides connecting respectively to the land, blocking the river water outside, would at minimum enclose twelve to thirteen thousand mu of good farmland in the shallow silted land north of Qianyang City.
This kind of newly reclaimed silted field was, according to Great Chu law, entirely state-owned. On one hand it could accommodate five to six hundred outside tenant farmers, on the other hand it could increase the prefecture government’s official farmland rental income by two to three thousand shi annually—if this official farmland truly materialized, the prefecture government’s initiative would greatly increase.
This was not only difficult for native prominent clans intent on controlling the locality to tolerate, but Tanzhou’s side would also find it difficult to tolerate, right?
Because Wang Yu doing this directly strengthened the central government’s control over Xuzhou.
Or put another way, Wang Yu’s death wasn’t necessarily at the hands of the Four Clans, or rather, not only at the poisonous hands of the Four Clans?
Han Qian looked back at Madam Xi, not knowing whether she knew some secrets.
However, regarding the embankment construction matter, Han Qian believed his father should have seen it long ago. This was also why he urgently wanted to take a sum of money and grain from him—probably also wanting to immediately undertake this matter after the river water receded, right?
But even if the Four Clans were deterred by him, how would Tanzhou tolerate his father doing this?
This matter might even be harder for Tanzhou to endure than directly courting native tribal people or controlling non-native residents, right?
From Tanzhou’s standpoint, they would only hope that in Chen, Xu, Shao, Heng, and other prefectures, the prefecture governments’ control over localities would be as weak as possible. That way, once anything happened in Jinling, they could immediately establish separatist control without worrying about being constrained or attacked from behind.
If he wanted to transport Xuzhou’s products out, Tanzhou might block the road. If he wanted to lure outside people into Xuzhou, Tanzhou might block the road. And if his father wanted to develop water conservancy and reclaim silted fields, Tanzhou would even more surely block the road. How should he move aside this roadblock tiger that was Tanzhou?