Chapter 288: A Batch of Warhorses
Meanwhile, on Huanglong Mountain.
Huanglong Mountain stood at the intersection of Luochuan, Yichuan, and Chengcheng Counties.
The northern slopes of Huanglong Mountain bordered Yichuan County.
As dusk approached, a Ming imperial army unit had just arrived at the foot of the mountain.
This imperial force was a bandit-suppression unit led by Wu Zhimian, the Commander-in-Chief of Yansui. They had been dispatched by the newly appointed Yansui Governor, Zhang Mengjing, to eliminate Wang Zuogua, the notorious rebel leader from Yichuan, who had entrenched himself in Huanglong Mountain.
A Commander-in-Chief held no official rank, but when war erupted, they would bear the general's seal into battle, returning it upon conclusion.
Though unranked, their authority was immense, roughly equivalent to a regional military commander.
Wu Zhimian was a middle-aged man in his forties, with a round, fleshy face that seemed to ooze oil. Clad in full armor, his uniform seemed on the verge of splitting from his corpulence.
His armor seemed on the verge of splitting from his corpulence, and as he rode, his warhorse audibly struggled for breath, as if it had just climbed five flights of stairs.
His trusted attendant leaned in close, chuckling softly, “This assignment might be tough, but Zhang Mengjing provided plenty of military provisions. We can just put on a show of suppressing bandits, divert those supplies, and make a tidy profit.”
Wu Zhimian laughed. “You know me best, lad. No need to fight to the death, wasting our energy and effort for no profit.”
Just as they finished speaking, a Centurion slipped in from outside. Upon seeing Wu Zhimian, he immediately bowed his head. “General, I am Centurion Li from the Yansui Garrison, a nobody of no consequence. You likely don’t remember me.”
Wu Zhimian replied, “Oh? What matter do you have to report to this general?”
Centurion Li whispered, “I heard that here, with you, General, one can pay to save their life. I have already prepared the silver...”
He handed over a large pouch of silver, murmuring, “I don’t wish to enter the mountains to suppress bandits. I fear dying in these desolate, treacherous lands. I only ask to use this silver to buy my meager life.”
Wu Zhimian reached out, weighed the money pouch in his hand, and nodded with satisfaction. “Alright. Take my order, open the North Camp Gate, and leave. Tell anyone who asks that you are on a secret military assignment by my command. After leaving camp, avoid detection, and slip quietly back home. Do not spread this around, or else, should military law pursue this matter later, you will have no other path but death.”
Centurion Li was overjoyed. He quickly kowtowed in gratitude, took the order, and slipped away.
No sooner had Centurion Li left than Centurion Zheng, Thousand-Household Commander Zhang, and others began to slip in...
Before long, a large group of men had absconded from the army, taking many subordinates with them. This severely depleted Wu Zhimian’s forces, but combat strength held no importance to him. Officials travel a thousand miles for no reason but profit; as long as the silver flowed, that was all that mattered. Let whoever cared about fighting have it.
But he hadn’t profited enough yet; he still needed to find a way to make even more.
Wu Zhimian tilted his head. “What other ways are there to line our pockets? You lot, quickly, come up with some ideas for this general.”
His trusted attendant sidled up and suggested, “General, the Governor also prepared many warhorses for us. We could sell these horses for money too, couldn’t we? If the Governor asks later, we can just say the warhorses were all shot dead by rebels and have already been buried.”
Wu Zhimian was overjoyed. “Excellent plan! Quickly, help me contact buyers. We must sell off these warhorses as soon as possible, before that foolish civil official Zhang Mengjing starts asking questions.”
Gao Family Village, too, was immersed in joy and harmony today.
Before Li Daoxuan, a large pot sat, brimming with Tieshan Ping’s special Sichuan pepper chicken. Each bite left him tingling and numb, and he drew sharp breaths through his teeth.
Inside the box, another ‘martial arts tournament for a bride’ was underway.
It was impossible to count how many times Gao Chuwu had clashed with Xing Honglang. Once again, it was Jin Hong Fist against Guanzhong Hong Fist, a flurry of thunderous blows, before Gao Chuwu was once again sent sprawling to the ground with a resounding crash, kicking up a cloud of dust.
The onlookers exclaimed, “Oh dear, it’s getting less exciting.”
“Gao Chuwu, can’t you win just once?”
“The men of Gao Family Village are ashamed of you.”
Xing Honglang burst into laughter, rubbing her slightly sore fists as she stepped out of the circle. Suddenly, her subordinate, Old Zhu, ran up, whispering, “Boss, there’s a really good deal going around, it’s buzzing through the back channels.”
Xing Honglang asked, “Oh? What kind of deal?”
Old Zhu lowered his voice. “Warhorses! A batch of top-tier warhorses, a full five hundred of them, and they’re looking for a buyer.”
Xing Honglang drew a sharp breath. “Are you serious? Five hundred warhorses? That’s no small business. Who has the audacity to dump such high-quality goods into the black market?”
Old Zhu whispered, “The supplier isn’t willing to reveal their identity, but they said this is legitimate imperial army stock, available for inspection, guaranteed to be first-rate horses.”
Xing Honglang hesitated. *Damn*, this sounded like an incredible deal. If they truly were first-rate warhorses, reselling them could net a profit of at least several thousand taels of silver. However, finding a buyer for such a large consignment would also be tricky.
She was still hesitating!
Li Daoxuan, however, had no intention of hesitating. *Damn it*, he wanted that shipment!
The Gao Family Militia lacked nothing, except, *damn it*, horses.
Li Daoxuan could provide all sorts of supplies as if by magic, but “living creatures” were the one thing he couldn’t conjure. He had long wanted to procure warhorses for the militia, but he simply couldn’t find a source.
Now that he heard the black market had stock, why wouldn’t he seize the opportunity?
Gao Yiye wasn’t in Gao Family Village at the moment, so naturally, paper would have to do. Li Daoxuan unfolded a large sheet of paper, held it up, and shone it down: “Xing Honglang, we’ll take this shipment.”
Xing Honglang was still hesitating when she looked up and saw the characters appear in the sky. Her hesitation vanished. She quickly said, “Old Zhu, where’s the handover for this merchandise?”
Old Zhu replied, “The supplier is quite powerful. They said they can deliver anywhere in Shaanxi or Yansui; they have the capability to transport the warhorses to any location within those two provinces.”
Xing Honglang cursed, “The authorities?!”
Li Daoxuan pondered, *The authorities? But how could the authorities be selling horses on the black market? Something’s fishy here.*
As he was thinking, Xing Honglang let out a cold laugh. “It seems some corrupt official is secretly selling off imperial warhorses. This official must be a high-ranking general, at least a Commander-in-Chief... Thinking about it, it could only be Wu Zhimian, the Commander-in-Chief of Yansui.”
Li Daoxuan was speechless. *Well, I’ve learned yet another lesson. So, generals in the late Ming Dynasty resorted to such schemes. Oh, Great Ming, how could you possibly survive?*
Xing Honglang said gravely, “Even though the supplier claims they can deliver anywhere, we can’t let them bring the goods directly to Gao Family Village. That would be inviting trouble. We need to find a secluded spot, collect the horses, and then secretly bring them back to Gao Family Village. I need to think this through carefully.”
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