In the back hall of the Chicheng General Office, after Zhang Cheng heard what Diao Dacheng said about the obstruction of the overseas smuggling business, his brows furrowed into the word "Chuan" and asked angrily: "Did you know that Zhangjiakou Fort took the lead in promoting this?" Who are the people involved?"
Diao Dacheng sat on the chair at the bottom. What he just said was a little too much. He drank two cups of tea before replying: "The profiteers in Zhangjiakou are all extremely rich, but they are also very low-key. He is the master who plays dirty tricks behind the scenes.
According to the news from the restaurants, gambling houses and Goulan Courtyard where we are, Fan Yongdou, Wang Dengku and Jin Liangyu seem to be quite active recently, which is different from usual. "
After Diao Dacheng finished speaking, he didn't seem confident yet. He turned to look at Su Yiyang in the shadow by the carved window, and said softly to Zhang Cheng: "Commander, Su Tou has a lot of hidden stakes in Zhangjiakou. The news should be more accurate. "
He seemed to be afraid that Su Yiyang would hear it. After saying this, he immediately looked away and started drinking tea again, much like a child who did something wrong and was afraid of being discovered by his parents.
Zhang Cheng looked at Diao Dacheng and almost laughed out loud. He had drank a lot last night and was thirsty, so he picked up the teacup and drank tea leisurely.
When Su Yiyang heard the silence, he knew that it was time for him to appear. He didn't know how to move, but he ducked into the shadow by the window.
Zhang Cheng held the tea cup and asked: "Don't you want to see the light?"
Su Yiyang moved to Zhang Cheng's side, with a rare smile on his face. It looked like a smile but not a smile. He was extremely embarrassed. He stood up, cupped his fists and saluted, and said in a slightly sinister voice: "I like to stay in the shadows. "
Just as he spoke, Diao Dacheng, who was sitting in the chair next to him, shuddered and trembled all over. He didn't even notice that the tea spilled from the cup and onto his body. He just picked up the teacup and brought it to his mouth with trembling hands. side.
Zhang Cheng saw everything in his eyes, but did not point it out. He told Diao Dacheng: "Diao Dacheng, you go back and rest first. Just ignore him for the time being."
Diao Dacheng put down his teacup with a bang as if relieved, stood up, kowtowed to Zhang Cheng, and hurriedly left.
…………
Su Yiyang saw Diao Dacheng exiting the side hall. The moment the hall door closed, he threw himself on the ground and kowtowed: "Su Yiyang, the head of the secret hall, pays homage to the commander-in-chief. I wish the commander-in-chief great blessings and eternal achievements!"
Zhang Cheng leaned back on the back of the Grand Master's chair, tapped the armrest with his right hand leisurely, crossed his long-lost legs, and said to Su Yiyang: "I haven't seen you for more than half a year, why are you so complimentary?"
The smile on Su Yiyang's face disappeared in an instant, and he knelt on the ground with a serious expression and replied with fists in his hands: "Heaven and earth can teach you a lesson. Your humble position is a true feeling. I wish the commander-in-chief great prosperity and prosperity, and the commander-in-chief will definitely achieve eternal success."
Zhang Cheng saw that he was speaking sincerely, so he stopped teasing him and said, "Okay. Get up. Sit down and talk."
Su Yiyang stood up as instructed, but did not go to sit on the chair. Instead, he took two steps forward and stood next to Zhang Cheng. He said: "In front of the commander-in-chief, I don't dare to sit down because of my humble position."
Zhang Cheng knew that he had always been like this and did not force him, but he asked him: "Let me tell you first, what is going on over there in Zhangjiakou."
Guti and Su Yiyang stood and replied: "The humble post used coercion, inducement and other means in Zhangjiakou, and although some secret stakes were laid, the houses of the major businessmen were full of old people who had been with them for a long time, and it was difficult to place new people in.
Moreover, the people who manage the shop are close friends or old people who have been with them for a long time. The people assigned to the shop are young men who only run errands and do odd jobs on the table, and have no contact with things under the table. "
He hung his hands neatly on both sides, lowered his head and looked a foot in front of his toes, and continued: "The humble job can only draw some conclusions through some clues and detailed analysis, and then try to confirm them. , in order to find the rules..."
It turned out that traders like Fan Yongdou and others were engaged in the business of smuggling Mongolians and Jian slaves. Although each family had its own background, the core of its smuggling did not dare to be seen by outsiders.
Therefore, the core of their employment are members of their own families. At a later stage, they also select child laborers from the children in their own village or surrounding villages, and work in the shops on the counter for several years until they feel that they can really be trusted. , have the opportunity to come into contact with the secret smuggling business.
Even so, the new entrants are only helping on the periphery, and still cannot enter the core layer. They can't even work as some counters. They just do some escort work. In addition to working hard, they can get more wages. In fact, it's not like being a dog. There is no difference, don't think about anything else at all.
But no matter how united a group is, as long as there are people gathering, there will definitely be friction. Once there is friction, conflicts will arise. Just like an egg with cracks, as long as enough interests are invested and some operations are added, a breakthrough will be found. .
Su Yiyang first placed some apprentices in several merchants, and then bribed a few old associates to serve as hidden stakes. At the same time, he also asked Diao Dacheng to transport more goods every time, and then tried to rent the cargo yards of those merchants. .
In this way, opportunities for contact with the shopkeepers of those merchants were artificially created, and the two parties gradually became familiar with each other, although they could not find out the inside story of their smuggling.
But Su Yiyang was born to be a spy. He could roughly guess the date of their secret smuggling based on the storage and vacancy conditions of several merchants' warehouses, combined with the calculation of the distance.
This time, based on the amount of daily staple and non-staple food purchased by various merchants that he could collect, and combined with the order and length of their visits to each other and eating together, he had already guessed that Fan Yongdou must be the one who took the lead in blocking the North Road caravan. , Wang Baoku these two people.
The Jin Liangyu whom Diao Dacheng mentioned just now was actually just running errands for the two of them, and he did not play a major role in this matter.
Su Yiyang also used the stupid method of tracking to roughly figure out the relationship between their various merchants and the guards of Zhangjiakou and surrounding fortresses and passes. Through their goods exchanges, he roughly figured out their relationship with the local merchants in Shanxi.
According to Su Yiyang's observation, half of the generals and officials in the town are now connected with these smuggling traders, and have even been bribed and controlled by these traders.
There was no change in the expression on Zhang Cheng's face. He listened calmly to Su Yiyang's story, as if he was listening to other people's stories and had nothing to do with him.
Just listen to Su Yiyang's last words: "... I found this in Zhangjiakou."
After he finished speaking, he reached into his arms, took out a velvet bag and gently handed it to Zhang Cheng, saying: "Fake military tickets from the North Road appeared in Zhangjiakou."
"Sure enough, it's here!"
