usatvline Chapter 75 New Year
Chapter 75 New Year
Chapter 75 New Year
Shao Shuyi and the others must have spent the New Year on the ship.
The ship's hold is full of cargo; how can it be left unattended?
It's the Lunar New Year, and no one from the government has come to take inventory. I don't know what they're doing. If they're not even eager to take the money, what else can they do?
As darkness fell, Yu Yuan went to the stern of the boat to fetch a bundle of firewood and began his old profession: cooking.
Shao Shuyi, unusually, moved slightly to prepare the dishes.
"Swan meat—" Shao Shuyi casually opened a wicker basket, took out a large piece of dried meat, and laughed, "I've never eaten this before, this is my first taste of meat. Here, take this."
As he spoke, he tossed it directly to Liang Tai.
"Korean pine nuts, hmm, I'll have some tonight if I'm bored." Shao Shuyi took out another large bag and tossed it to Liang Tai, saying, "I heard that the Mongolian nobles in Dadu love to eat these, and now even people in Jiangnan are starting to like them. I'll try some too."
"Hazelnuts, poria cocos, safflower, all put in, stewed together with hawk meat."
"Hmm, add two more—is this radish or ginseng? Never mind, just put them in."
"Huh? This fish looks like cod (Alaska pollock, pollack). Let's stew it in a separate pot."
"This has words on it. Pine flower wine? What's pine flower wine? Never mind, I'll try it later."
Liang Tai has come over for the second time, his hands full of all kinds of food.
Shao Shuyi clapped his hands and laughed, "That's enough. This corrupt official is treating, so everyone, don't be shy!"
Liang Tai grinned.
"Buddha's Tooth, a true man must learn to be serious and not smile." Shao Shuyi nodded to him and went to the bow of the boat for some fresh air.
Zheng Fan, Cao Tong, and Liu Jiu had already escorted Sun Chong away.
This was a serious matter and could not be delayed for even a moment. The three of them couldn't even spend New Year's Eve and rushed back to Yantietang overnight.
Li Fu took some rice and noodles from the antique shop and, as he passed by Shao Shuyi, whispered, "Brother Shao, Yu She asked me to take two ingots of paper money, but he only took one. I—I feel bad about it."
Shao Shuyi was slightly surprised. Yu Yuan was truly a kind young man, always thinking of others.
"It's alright, take it," Shao Shuyi said. "Our good days are coming, we won't miss a penny or two."
Li Fu nodded and went into the cabin.
Shao Shuyi continued to look at the shore.
On New Year's Eve, people who have worked hard all year can finally rest and gather together with their families in a lively and joyous atmosphere.
Regardless of what next year brings, at least for this moment, they just want to catch their breath and soothe their weary bodies and souls.
Dishes that people usually wouldn't eat were served on the table.
Light up the oil lamps and candles that you wouldn't normally use.
Those families with a little more money even made one or two new sets of clothes.
The children were making a lot of noise and laughing, and even Shao Shuyi, who was far away on the boat, could hear them.
What a warm and luxurious New Year's Eve!
When the children grow up and face the ruins and skeletons everywhere, will they miss this night?
This world will eventually reach that point, irreversibly.
The sound of steady footsteps rang out, and Liang Tai appeared at the bow of the ship.
"Something on your mind?" he asked softly.
Shao Shuyi looked at him in surprise and said, "Buddha's Tooth, is this the first time you've taken the initiative to talk to me?"
Liang Tai fell silent again.
Shao Shuyi patted him on the shoulder and said, "I was just thinking about what I should do if the world descends into chaos."
Liang Tai said "Oh," and then added, "It'll definitely be chaotic."
Shao Shuyi did not find anything unusual. As that year drew closer, more and more people would hold this view. This was what was called "people's hearts were in turmoil," or "officials forcing the people to rebel." It was not surprising.
"I'm thinking, the past year has felt like a dream," Shao Shuyi said. "I went from being a penniless commoner, someone who could be easily manipulated by the authorities, to a somewhat dangerous fugitive. It seems like my situation has improved dramatically, but it's still very dangerous. One wrong move and I'll have no chance left."
"There are too few people," Liang Tai commented after listening quietly.
Shao Shuyi nodded and said, "That's indeed too few, and these aren't the people I want."
"Actually—" Liang Tai thought for a moment and said, "You were right when we passed through Shanghai County that day. We could buy some land in Pudong and build a house for ourselves."
When Shao Shuyi heard the words "Pudong", he was somewhat dazed and almost thought that Liang Tai was also a time traveler.
Of course, he knew it wasn't true.
He had heard the name "Pudong" two or three times before. It was said to have existed since the Song Dynasty, but its geographical location was different from that of today, and probably also different from that of later generations.
Pudong in the Yuan Dynasty was located on the opposite bank of Wunijing River. It was home to many wealthy and powerful families, but not so many ordinary households. There were large areas of barren land that had not yet been developed.
"Reclaiming wasteland is not that simple," Shao Shuyi said.
"If you're willing to spend money, it's not that difficult." After saying this, Liang Tai shut his mouth.
That's enough advice. Saying any more would only make it seem like he has some ulterior motive.
Shao Shuyi understood the implied meaning in Liang Tai's words.
To put it bluntly, they spend money to hire local people to clean up the filth, dig ditches, and level the fields before planting.
Don't worry too much about the harvest in the first two years; focus on getting the land in good condition first.
The question now is, where do these people come from?
Perhaps the only solution is to seek help from the people of Henan and Jiangbei provinces who are fleeing famine and heading south.
This is leading him down the path of becoming a local tyrant.
"Go back and see if dinner is ready." Shao Shuyi put his arm around Liang Tai's shoulder and laughed, "The goods haven't even been sold yet, why are you thinking about things that haven't even happened yet?"
******
Shao Shuyi and his group spent the Lunar New Year on a boat, while Sun Chuan's family celebrated the New Year in their magnificent mansion.
Perhaps due to his state of mind, Sun Chuan had a very unsatisfactory New Year.
Before the New Year, I was extorted by Prefect Liu Yexian. Not only did he give me sixteen ivory tusks, but he also had to pay me two thousand pieces of gold and silverware and five hundred ingots of Zhongtong paper money. It was very painful for me.
On New Year's Eve, when Zhou's family was raided, Sun Chuan felt uneasy and went to the Maritime Trade Office again to give the supervisor Nasuldin more than ten silver plates, silver bowls, silver bottles, and five hundred ingots of Zhongtong paper money.
Whether it was a misperception or not, although Nasu Ciding was very polite, Sun Chuan felt that he was being too polite, which made him feel uneasy and uncontrollably a little apprehensive.
The attitudes of the Maritime Trade Office's "old friends," such as Supervisor Chen Rui and Judge Zhu Jin, also underwent a subtle change. They still accepted the money, but their conversations became rambling and incoherent, leaving people confused.
Upon returning to Liujiagang, the registrar Darughachi and the chief Huihui Yaoshumu demanded money from Ma'er Yeliya under the pretext of celebrating his wife's birthday.
To be honest, Yao Shumu had been serving as the Registrar Darughachi for three or four years and had never asked Sun Chuan for anything before. This was the first time he had openly solicited a bribe.
Sun Chuan was furious, but that was all he did.
Adhering to the principle of "better to avoid trouble than to cause trouble," he reluctantly gave away a hundred ingots of Zhongtong banknotes as a birthday gift.
In just a few days, he was forced to spend more than a thousand ingots of paper money, dozens of pieces of gold and silver artifacts, more than ten pieces of ivory, and dozens of rare overseas treasures such as tortoiseshell, pearls, and sharkskin, which was a huge financial loss.
But Sun Chuan was still uneasy because he couldn't be sure if spending so much money would be effective.
People in the government office used to be like brothers, but now they don't always tell the truth, which is very worrying.
What chilled him to the bone was the group from the Maritime Trade Office. They were his biggest backers; he had collected countless taxes and made a fortune for them in the past, yet now they wanted to sever ties with him.
No official is any good! They're all smiles and laughter when they need you, but they discard you like trash when they don't. They're utterly despicable!
This continued until the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, when Liu Ne, the commander of the Liujiagang naval forces, came to demand payment again, claiming it was for ship repairs, and asked for three hundred ingots.
After Sun Chuan gave it to him, he finally couldn't hold back anymore, smashed a cup at home, and was furious.
With a calm expression, Madam Liu instructed the servants to clean up the mess, then asked, "Has something happened to the fleet?"
Sun Chuan nodded, then shook his head.
Liu didn't say anything, her eyes were fixed on Sun Chuan, as if confirming something.
After a moment, Sun Chuan sighed and said, "I sent people to Songjiang Prefecture to inquire, but I haven't received any definite information yet. Some say they saw a floating corpse in the sea, some say they saw clothes on the shore, and others say they saw a boat stranded on a sandbar around the fifteenth of the twelfth lunar month, which seemed to be a canal boat. There are many conflicting accounts, and it's really hard to tell the truth."
"The boat is gone." Liu concluded without hesitation.
Sun Chuan's heart sank; this was the last thing he wanted to face.
"The story of the ships running aground might be true," said Madam Liu. "When the fleet encountered pirates, some ships fled for their lives, and in their panic, they ran aground on underwater sandbars. According to old legends, much of the coastline of Songjiang Prefecture was still a vast expanse of water during the Tang Dynasty. Therefore, the grounding points must have been not far from the shore. In situations where escape was impossible, the boatmen would either abandon ship and swim back to shore. Even in the dead of winter, most would not survive, but perhaps some were lucky enough to live on?"
Sun Chuan hesitated and asked, "If they survived, where are they?"
"Perhaps he was killed by the villagers as a thief, or perhaps he was captured by a wealthy family and used as a slave. Have you sent anyone to look for him?" Liu asked.
"I've been arrested—" Sun Chuan muttered.
"I grew up in Wenzhou when I was young. I knew someone who swam back to shore after a shipwreck, but was captured and used as a hostage. He only managed to escape many years later," Liu said. "It's not impossible."
Sun Chuan suddenly stood up, immediately called over his old servant, whispered something to him, and then breathed a sigh of relief.
Actually, he didn't know why he was doing this, or what the point would it be; he just subconsciously wanted to confirm it.
Madam Liu silently withdrew her gaze and said casually, "After the New Year, Lihe will be fifteen years old and an adult. He should take on some responsibilities. I plan to send him to Longwan soon to familiarize himself with the affairs of the inn."
Sun Chuan nodded, not really caring.
He's completely preoccupied with the matter of the stolen goods fleet and has no interest in anything else.
This uncertainty weighs on my mind, making it hard to sleep.
Just then, a servant hurriedly entered, and hesitated upon seeing Lady Liu.
Sun Chuan glared at him and said, "Just say what you have to say."
"Someone saw Shao Shuyi near Zheng's ceramics shop," the servant reported. "Also, the salt merchants from Jiangbei have arrived. The leader said that last time they came up empty-handed and he had to pay for everything himself, so this time he insists on settling the accounts first."
"That scoundrel Zhang Jiusi, all he thinks about is money," Sun Chuan sighed.
At this point, hiring a hitman is no longer of any use.
His enemy is no longer a specific individual, but a large group of corrupt officials.
"Go to the money room and get ten ingots of paper money for him. Tell him that we're even now and that he shouldn't make a fuss," Sun Chuan instructed, rubbing his forehead.
The servant accepted the order and left.