bullyxtreme Chapter 49 The Shanxi Merchants' Dark Web
Chapter 49 The Shanxi Merchants' Dark Web
April 25th, the sixteenth year of the Chongzhen reign, Nanjing.
In the back courtyard of the Anti-Corruption and Anti-Corruption Bureau, candlelight shone brightly. Before Li Ruolian lay three account books retrieved from Wang Youcai's cellar in Yangzhou. Their covers were yellowed, the edges worn, and the ink stains uneven, clearly indicating years of accumulation.
The first record documented the northward transport of silk and tea: starting in the thirteenth year of the Chongzhen reign (1644), the goods were transported via the Grand Canal to Linqing, then overland to Xuanfu, totaling 80,000 catties of raw silk and 50,000 catties of tea. The receiving party was designated "Northern Goose".
The second record documents goods arriving from Liaodong: ginseng, sable fur, and pearls, entering through Shanhaiguan, passing through Jizhou to Tongzhou, and then loaded onto cargo ships to sail south. The shipper's code was "Donglin".
The third book is the thinnest and also the most shocking—it records special goods: pig iron, saltpeter, and sulfur.
The amount of goods also increased year by year, starting from the thirteenth year of the Chongzhen reign (1643). By the spring of the sixteenth year of the Chongzhen reign (1644), the total amount of pig iron was 800,000 catties, saltpeter 300,000 catties, and sulfur 100,000 catties. In addition to "Beiyan," the receiving parties also used codes such as "Heishan" and "Baishui."
Each transaction was accompanied by a detailed statement of the money involved. Selling northern goods to the south yielded a profit of three times; transporting southern goods to the north yielded a profit of five times; and military supplies such as iron, saltpeter, and sulfur yielded profits of more than ten times.
Li Ruolian's finger stopped on the last entry: In the winter of the fifteenth year of Chongzhen's reign, 50,000 catties of pig iron and 20,000 catties of saltpeter were transported out of the pass through Xuanfu and "received by the northern geese." This occurred before Li Ce's southern tour.
As dusk settled outside the window, the spring rain began to fall softly again.
A guard pushed open the door and came in, whispering, "Sir, there's news from the Beijing prison—Wang Pu has spoken."
Wang Pu, formerly the deputy general of Xuanfu, was placed under house arrest by Li Ce at the court meeting on the seventh day of the tenth month last year, and has been there for more than half a year.
"What did he say?"
"He said that Wang Chengyin, the general of Xuanfu, Jiang Xiang, the general of Datong, and Tang Tong, the general of Jizhou (who was then the garrison commander but was later transferred in history), all three of them had taken bribes from Shanxi merchants. Among them, Jiang Xiang took the most bribes, receiving no less than 200,000 taels of silver from the fourteenth year of Chongzhen's reign to the present."
Li Ruolian's eyes turned cold: "Do you have any evidence?"
"Wang Pu said that Jiang Xiang had a habit of burying a pottery jar under the third locust tree in the backyard of his private residence every time he received a sum of money. He would put a note in the jar recording the amount, the date, and the person who delivered the money. He said... at least thirty jars were buried."
"The third locust tree." Li Ruolian repeated, then stood up. "Prepare the horses; I'm going to the palace."
At the same time, in the Wenhua Hall of the Forbidden City.
Li Ce was reviewing the grain supply reports from Tongguan. The 700 shi of grain transported by Zheng Sen, mixed with wild vegetables, allowed the Tongguan garrison to hold out for another 15 days. The second batch of 3,000 shi of grain that Sun Chuanting had collected from Henan had already been dispatched and would arrive within five days.
But Li Ce's brow remained furrowed. He looked at the locations of Xuanfu, Datong, and Jizhen on the map—those were the nine important border towns, the front line for the Ming Dynasty to resist the Later Jin.
If, as the ledgers show, the generals in these areas colluded with Shanxi merchants to smuggle military supplies such as iron, saltpeter, and sulfur...
The border defenses of the Ming Dynasty were already riddled with holes.
"Your Majesty," the eunuch announced, "Lord Li Ruolian requests an audience."
"Announce."
Li Ruolian strode into the hall, bowed, and went straight to the point: "Your Majesty, the account books of Shanxi merchants seized in Yangzhou match Wang Pu's confession. At least three generals of the rank of commander-in-chief from Xuanfu, Datong, and Jizhou have been involved in smuggling, which has been escalating since the thirteenth year of the Chongzhen Emperor's reign."
The outflow of military supplies such as iron, saltpeter, and sulfur... is alarming.
He presented a copy of the account book.
Li Ce flipped through the pages, his expression growing increasingly grim. Finally, he slammed the book shut: "Eight hundred thousand catties of pig iron…enough to forge one hundred thousand suits of armor and two hundred thousand swords! Three hundred thousand catties of saltpeter…enough for the Later Jin to use for three years!"
He rose, walked to the center of the hall, and said in a voice laced with anger, "I was in Jiangnan reforming the grain transport system, the Empress was in Beijing stabilizing the people's hearts, Sun Chuanting was fighting a bloody battle at Tongguan, and Zheng Sen was transporting grain by sea through the Ice Sea—and what were they doing? They were dismantling the bones of the Ming Dynasty and selling them to the enemy!"
The hall was silent except for the crackling sound of the candle flames popping.
After a long silence, Li Ce turned around and said, "Ruo Lian, I grant you full authority. Officials below the fifth rank involved can be executed on the spot. Officials above the fifth rank... arrest them first and report later."
"I need troops," Li Ruolian said. "Xuanfu and Datong are both border towns, with tens of thousands of troops stationed there. If the generals involved in the case are cornered and act rashly, there is a risk of a mutiny."
Li Ce pondered for a moment: "I hereby transfer Ma Ke, a former subordinate of Zhou Yuji, with three thousand troops to Xuanfu, to be under your command. Furthermore…" He walked to his desk and wrote a handwritten edict, "This is a secret decree for the Governor-General of Xuanfu and Datong, instructing him to cooperate with you. But if he also has problems—"
"Your subject understands."
Li Ruolian received the imperial edict, but hesitated to speak.
"Is there anything else?"
"Your Majesty," Li Ruolian lowered her voice, "the account books mention that there is a 'Mr. Mei' in the court who is looking after you. Upon investigation, this 'Mr. Mei' may be related to a protégé of a Grand Secretary in the Cabinet."
Li Ce's eyes sharpened: "Who?"
"I am still investigating. But the clues point to... a favorite student of Grand Secretary Qian Qianyi, surnamed Mei, named Zhihuan, who is currently the Right Councilor of the Court of Judicial Review."
Li Ruolian paused for a moment, then continued, "According to investigations, the Mei family has long been involved in the salt and iron trade in Shanxi and has a long-standing relationship with Shanxi merchants. His uncle, Mei Zhixuan, is currently the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, in charge of allocating grain and provisions for border garrisons."
Qian Qianyi. The leader of the Donglin Party who was recruited into the cabinet by Li Ce when the imperial court was rebuilt in Nanjing.
Li Ce remained silent for a long time, then suddenly laughed, a cold laugh: "Good, the salt merchants of Jiangnan, the canal transport gangs, the generals of the nine border regions, the civil officials in the court... This is a net, a net that stretches from south to north, from bottom to top."
He looked at Li Ruolian: "Are you scared?"
"I am not afraid." Li Ruolian straightened her back. "No matter how big the net is, someone has to tear it apart."
"Go," Li Ce patted his shoulder, "tear this net apart and show it to me."