Jiang Zhen has done business with Toyo before, but recently he stopped.

Not only that, he also sent some of his men to patrol the waters near Fucheng so if they came across pirates, they would capture them.

The weather was getting colder and colder, but the pirates became more and more rampant, because they discovered that the people of Daqi were really easy to rob. Most of them only begged for mercy, unable to fight back.

Up to now, whether they were from Toyo or Daqi, all pirates were called eastern pirates by the people and the government.

The Toyo invasion was getting more and more serious, and many people along the coast were suffering. Yet along the coast of Wexing Province, the people’s lives were no different than before.

Those pirates did not dare to come to this area of Wexing Province to cause trouble.

It was a good thing for the people of Wexing Province, but others had a hard time sleeping and eating.

When winter turned to spring and the peach trees bloomed with flowers, a ship went south along the coastline of Daqi and finally stopped at the dock of Yabian Village. Shortly afterwards, a middle-aged man with a cold face came down from the ship.

 The person guarding Yabian village was none other than Jiang Ming, so upon seeing that person, Jiang Ming was a little surprised. “Marquis?”

The person who came was the same person who had been asking Jiang Zhen to help buy food and grass all these years, Marquis Qi – Qing Qi.

 At first, it was Luo Tianzhi who brought this man to the south of the Yangze river and let him meet Jiang Zhen. He did not tell Jiang Zhen his identity at first, but later due to their cooperation, Jiang Zhen learned that this person turned out to be a marquis. 

The Daqi dynasty has lasted for more than 300 years. Originally, there were only a few members of the imperial family, but now there were tens of thousands of people. The relationship with the Imperial Family and Qi Qing was a little distant, but hadn’t declined. Qi Qing also had some skill, and now not only has inherited a title and become a marquis, but he was also the general of the Liaodong Iron Riders. 

“I want to see Jiang Zhen.” Qi Qing said.

Jiang Ming quickly brought the man to Jiang Zhen.

“What does Lord Qi want with me?” Jiang Zhen looked at Qi Qing with some confusion. 

“Jiang Zhen, in the previous winter, pirates caused a lot of trouble and burned down one of our granaries. The Liaodong Iron Riders were also affected and we are now short on food and grain. I hope you can purchase another batch of food and grains and send them to the Liaodong Iron Riders.” Qi Qing told Jiang Zion immediately.

“Just this? If it’s just this there would be no need for Lord Qi to come all the way here, right?” Jiang Zhen looked at Qi Qing in some confusion. 

 “Jiang Zhen, I came here personally because the Liaodong Iron Riders can’t pay any money right now. If possible, I hope you can ship it in advance.” Qi Qing said.

That the Liaodong Iron Riders couldn’t pay, this was something that Jiang Zhen believed.

South of the Yangtze River it was very prosperous, except for the coast where there were many ronins invaders. The lives of the people here were relatively difficult. Still some lived well and from the point of view of the Daqi as a whole, it was very peaceful. 

For example, the year he went to the capital with Zheng Yi, there were many places suffering from drought. A few years back there were also floods, not to mention all Toyo people who were moving into the country now.

In addition, there were many officials, clans and armies, so expenses were very high, making the imperial court often unable to make ends meet. 

Although the court has always attached great importance to the Liaodong Iron Riders and did not treat them badly, it was impossible to give them enough food and pay in the end.

 “We can delay payment for now, but we must settle the money before next time.” Jiang Zhen said.

 “That’s okay.” Qi Qing let out a sigh of relief.

The people around the south of the Yangtze River were more willing to plant mulberry trees or cotton than grow grain. Therefore, they mostly made clothes to sell for money, so the price of grain south of the river was not cheap and not very easy to buy. 

Of course, no matter how expensive it was, it was still  cheaper than the prices on the north side. 

It took Jiang Zhen some effort to buy the grain and grass they were requesting, but at Qi Qing’s urging, he sent a fleet of ships to deliver the grain and grass to the northwest.

The fleet left, but Qi Qing did not. He intended to stay and acquire even more grain.

Jiang Zhen was not surprised by his actions. In ancient times when there was a natural disaster the people would lose their harvest, so almost everyone liked to store their grains. It was also very normal for the Liaodong Iron Riders to want to store grain. 

That day, after having dinner with Qi Qing, Jiang Zhen went back to his residence in Yabian Village and slept. 

In the second half of the night, he was suddenly awakened by the sound of trumpets and screams of killing.

Someone was attacking Yabian Village, and if that was not enough, those who came to attack were government soldiers.

If he was an ordinary merchant, the local officials would just put a charge on him and he would probably be put in jail, having his family’s assets confiscated.

However, the power in his hands was too large and with the previous experience of Cheng Yongzhen, Jiang Zhen was very clear that he certainly scared some people. 

Even so, Jiang Zhen did not expect that the court would act so soon. 

The Zheng family had a connection in the imperial court so he always asked Zheng Yi to keep an eye for him. This time, Zheng Yi didn’t send a message to him at all! 

When Jiang Zhen evacuated people from his residence, he saw Qi Qing protected by some soldiers. When Qi Qing saw him he said in loud voice, “Jiang Zhen, if you surrender early, I will report it to His Majesty and give you a way out.”

Because of the chaos around, Jiang Zhen did not hear Qi Qing’s words very clearly but he still had a general idea when he heard the words “His Majesty”. 

It was His Majesty, not the Empress Dowager.

He finally understood why all this came so suddenly and without any warning.

When he followed Zheng Yi to the capital seven or eight years ago, the Empress Dowager was in charge of the court. Now seven or eight years have passed. The little emperor from that time had already grown up.

Since he has grown up, he will naturally want to seize power. Although the Zheng Family had been courting the young emperor in recent years, they could not win his trust. 

Under such circumstances, it was normal for Zheng Yi to not get any news. 

“Qi Qing, I have been doing my best for the Liaodong Iron Riders for several years, and this is how you treat me?” Jiang Zhen sneered.

Qi Qing was a decent man so he really didn’t expect him to suddenly strike at him.

Qi Qing frowned slightly, his expression not very good.

When he first came south of the Yangtze River three years ago, he saw the Jinzhen Escort Agency and he knew that this agency was not simple. But then everything was still controllable, so he did not do anything.

Three years have passed and the Jinzhen Escort Agency was only getting stronger and stronger. 

If they were careless, they might give rise to another Cheng Yongzhen!

Of course, this was not the only reason for his sudden attack on Jiang Zhen. 

He owes allegiance to his Majesty, but most of the imperial court power was still in the hands of the Empress Dowager. If the truth must be said, Jiang Zhen was on the side of the Empress Dowager’s people!

The Jinzhen Escort Agency couldn’t be allowed to continue, and this was also the first time his Majesty has shown himself to the Empress Dowager as a test of his power. 

“Jiang Zhen, tell your men to put down their weapons and surrender, we will not kill innocent people indiscriminately,” Qi Qing added.

Jiang Zhen snorted coldly.

He was not Cheng Yongzhen and would never easily put his life in the hands of others. 

“After surrendering, these people will only cut off our heads to receive military merits! Everyone fight with me, maybe there is still a way to live!” Jiang Zhen said in a loud voice.

If Jiang Zhen and Cheng Yongzhen were the same and he never had any other thoughts, he would definitely be forced to a dead end. 

But he was always different from the vast majority of people in this world.

He had long prepared a retreat and never intended to be so loyal and patriotic as to willingly offer his own life.

He would not kill indiscriminately, and had no intention of plotting rebellion, so he chose to leave. 

Jiang Zhen’s subordinates were also different from the ordinary people in Daqi. 

Nowadays, the people around Jiang Zhen were mostly from the Hongjiang Salt Farm and these people ware not particularly trusting of the court. Not to mention that Jiang Zhen has trained them in recent years and consciously done some brainwashing when training them over the years.

That night, the government soldiers raided Yabian Village while Jiang Zhen, like Cheng Yongzhen before him, chose to leave. 

He really managed to leave with his men, even when surrounded by countless government soldiers!

When he got on his ship and left, Jiang Zhen was very silent.

He did not want to start a war, much less go up against the government soldiers but in this era there was just no way. 

Qi Qing had made a lot of preparations to capture Jiang Zhen. He first lured away many of Jiang Zhen’s men by asking him to collect grains and grass for the Liaodong Iron Riders. Then he asked Sun Qiyun to lead troops to secretly surround Jiang Zhen. Not only that, he also sent people to Fucheng to have Zhao Jinge arrested. 

Before Cheng Yongzhen fled to Ryukyu and claimed the title of king, his family was caught and imprisoned, so they didn’t think they would be unable to catch the Zhao family.

Still, they haven’t been able to catch Zhao Jinge yet. 

Jiang Zhen has never kept anything from Zhao Jinge and for many years he has been training him so Jinge was no longer just a simple village man like he used to be.

What’s more, the intelligence work of the Jinzhen Escort Agency was very good. 

Zhao Jinge didn’t know about the Imperial Navy’s attempt to sneak attack Yabian Village, but he spotted people sneaking around his house and quickly realized that someone may be trying to harm him.

This group of people was large!  There were even people from the Imperial Court among them!

After Zhao Jinge found this out, he chose the same path as Jiang Zhen – to leave.

This was something that Jiang Zhen had explained a long time ago. At the time he did not know why Jiang Zhen said this, but now he understood.

 He did not want to die, not to mention implicate Jiang Zhen. Since this was the case, he had to escape as soon as possible in the face of danger. 

The people who tried to ambush Zhao Jinge near his house and wanted to arrest him were finally thwarted by the people of the Jinzhen Escort Agency. Not only that, Zhao Jinge with his parents and children, as well as many people from the agency left Fucheng on ships.

The big ship left the river of Wexing Province and entered the ocean.

Many people from the agency, especially the families of He Chunsheng and others, were actually very bewildered and did not understand why they were suddenly taken on a ship to leave. But Zhao Jinge immediately issued orders one by one while gazing at the endless sea. 

 

Edited by: Antiope1

 

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