Chapter 1655 - Three Banquet Tables

The rice-paddy sparrows had flown all the way from Siberia and gorged themselves on the soon-to-be-harvested rice of the Pearl River Delta. Plump with fat, they were at their most delicious. Kang Mingsi was eating this "Cantonese delicacy" for the first time and savored it with relish, devouring over ten in quick succession, crunching through meat and bone alike.

"This meal of ours must have cost several tens of thousands of... Circulation Vouchers," Suo Pu said. In the other time-space, each rice-paddy sparrow sold for 200 yuan at hotel prices.

"That expensive?" Xie Peng said skeptically. "Centurion Lin told me rice-paddy sparrows are everywhere. In the market, each one costs only a few dozen wen."

Lin Ming merely gave a dry laugh and didn't pursue the topic. He simply busied himself serving dishes: "Come, come, this is stewed egg with paddy worms—absolutely delicious."

But the maggot-like worms solidified within the egg were enough to make Xie Peng and Kang Mingsi balk. Suo Pu had no such reservations. He spooned up several helpings: it was seasoned with a hint of pepper, the flavor fresh, smooth, and rich. It was much better than what he'd tasted in the other time-space—at the very least, the portions were far more generous.

"A pity there are no dragon fleas," Lin Ming said with a touch of regret. "This is also the season for eating dragon fleas."

"If you brought those out, you'd really scare them to death," Suo Pu laughed. "I notice the county magistrate treats you quite graciously."

"When we Jinyiwei go out on business, they have to give this much face at least. After all, it's the county's money—a small gesture to curry favor." Lin Ming sounded rather proud.

Suo Pu nodded. The Jinyiwei credentials had indeed proved quite useful along the way. He had initially had some reservations about conducting such a conspicuous staff reconnaissance, but the External Intelligence people had assured him that for long-distance travel in this time-space, nothing provided better or safer cover than official credentials.

Just as they were talking, an escort suddenly came in to report that another banquet table had been delivered.

"Which lord sent it?" Lin Ming asked.

"The messenger wouldn't say. They just set down the food containers and left," the escort said. "Should I bring them in?"

"By all means," Suo Pu said. "Let's see what good things we have."

The escort promptly brought in the food containers. Opening them, they found an "eight great bowls" format banquet. Lin Ming's eyelid twitched—official yamen cuisine typically didn't follow this style.

"What the hell—there's a bowl of cockroaches!" Kang Mingsi exclaimed.

"Those are dragon fleas," Suo Pu said. "Dip them in soy sauce, twist off the head, and they're ready to eat—another Cantonese specialty."

"This came from an unknown source. I don't think we should eat it," Xie Peng said cautiously.

But Lin Ming had already picked up a reed stalk from the food container. After examining it carefully, he laughed: "It's not so mysterious after all. That meal we just had came from 'the officials.' This one comes from 'the bandits.'"

"Bandits?"

"Exactly. This reed stalk is the mark of a river pirate named Tian Biao, based in Gaoyao County upstream." Lin Ming said. "His hideout is about thirty li upriver."

"Why would he send us a banquet?" Suo Pu asked.

"It's just a gesture to curry favor—hoping for future consideration." Lin Ming set down the reed. "The loot he takes on the West River can't be fenced locally. He has to ship it to the Foshan area to turn it into silver. If he doesn't 'burn incense at the temple,' sooner or later he'll get caught and lose his head."

What Lin Ming didn't mention was that he and Chief Tian also shared a certain "friendship."

"Truly, officials and bandits are one family," Kang Mingsi said with contempt.

Though the words were accurate, Lin Ming felt somewhat uncomfortable hearing them. He simply smiled: "It's always been this way. People like us, accepting a bit of this 'incense money' and turning a blind eye, at least retain our conscience. There are plenty in the yamens who collude with river pirates, splitting the proceeds fifty-fifty..."

Suo Pu thought to himself that the social environment here was truly complex. It seemed the Guangdong Campaign would require far more than simple military measures to resolve...

"Can we eat this banquet? Could it be poisoned?" Kang Mingsi recalled the lesson of the work team that had been wiped out years ago.

"No chance of that." Lin Ming said. "Go ahead and eat with confidence. He'd have to be out of his mind to poison us."

Since everyone had already eaten, Suo Pu kept only the dragon fleas as a snack. The rest of the banquet was ordered taken out for the escorts and boatmen to enjoy. But no sooner had the food containers been carried out than an escort came back to report: a Sanshui County boatman named Chen Hongyi had sent another banquet.

"Who's this now?" Looking at the steaming rice-paddy sparrows, stewed egg with paddy worms, and dragon fleas in the containers, Kang Mingsi's stomach was already beginning to feel uncomfortable.

"Manager Chen has also sent a gift," the escort said, presenting a large red calling card and a gift list.

Lin Ming picked up the calling card. "This is Manager Chen, who operates a boat business. His vessels ply the West River year-round, so he too must 'burn incense at the temple.'"

Kang Mingsi leaned over to look. The gift list was quite simple: ten shi of white rice, two jars of fine Lanling wine, various roast duck and cured meats, and one load of snow pears and melons.

"Rice as a gift?" Kang Mingsi was curious. "You can get that anywhere! Isn't it troublesome to haul around?"

"It's a code for gift-giving," Suo Pu said. "'Ten shi of white rice' means ten taels of silver. Right, Centurion Lin?"

"Yes, the Chief is correct." Lin Ming gave a dry laugh—now those ten taels of silver would have to be turned over to the public.

He seemed quite familiar with this Manager Chen. He asked, "Did Manager Chen leave any message?"

"The messenger said Manager Chen feared he might disturb official business, so he didn't dare come in person to pay his respects. He said Centurion Lin only needs to give instructions to the messenger if there's anything he requires."

Lin Ming was about to say something when Suo Pu spoke: "This Manager Chen is quite generous. He must be a major boat operator."

"Yes, he's a major boat operator on this West River. From Sanshui here all the way to Nanning in Guangxi, his vessels travel everywhere."

"Does he have many boats?"

"Roughly over a hundred vessels of various sizes," Lin Ming said. "I don't know the exact number. The province has the most boat operators in Guangzhou and Zhaoqing Prefectures. Manager Chen does quite a large business, so he naturally has to look after both the official and private sides."

Suo Pu thought to himself that this Jinyiwei Centurion Lin was certainly a figure: officials, bandits, and merchants all gave him face and sought his favor. Was the Jinyiwei credential really worth that much?

"Since he's sent such a sincere gift, there's no harm in inviting him over for a meeting," Suo Pu thought. Since the man was a boat operator, he must be intimately familiar with West River shipping conditions. A direct conversation with him could yield more detailed information than traveling and observing along the way.

"Yes, yes. Since the Chief says so, I'll send for him right away to have a chat." Lin Ming said eagerly.

When the servant returned to report that Centurion Lin had invited him "to come aboard for a meeting," Chen Hongyi had already gone to bed with his sixth concubine. That evening, when his men at the dock reported that an official boat had arrived—belonging to Lin Centurion from Foshan—he had immediately ordered a banquet and gifts prepared and sent over. This was his standard practice whenever officials large or small passed through the province. Operating a boat business on the West River, with a hundred or so vessels under him and over a thousand boatmen and helmsmen, the authorities regarded him as a "destabilizing element." Good relations with officialdom were therefore crucial. Moreover, he and Centurion Lin had some prior dealings—once, when one of his rice boats had been impounded, it was Centurion Lin who had helped get it released. That was how their connection had formed.

However, their relationship had not yet reached the point where Centurion Lin would invite him over simply upon receiving his calling card. So he hadn't expected to be summoned. When his servant came knocking frantically at his door to say Centurion Lin was requesting his presence, he hurriedly got up, his heart filled with apprehension.

Chen Hongyi was over fifty, bronze-skinned, his entire body corded with muscle. Even dressed in silk and satin, he couldn't hide his origins as a boatman. But his hair had gone completely white and his back was somewhat stooped—both marks left by years of making a living on the water. He had first gone aboard at fourteen to work the oars, braving wind and waves on the West River, surviving countless dangers. It had taken him this long to build up his family business.

Maintaining that business was no easier. Over the years, Manager Chen had profited handsomely by shipping grain from Guangxi and salt to Guangdong. But wealth inevitably made one a target. On the vast expanses of the West River, merely knowing how to make money wasn't enough—that path led only to becoming a floating corpse in Sixian Channel's backwaters. One also had to know how to negotiate and maneuver among the various powers.

Lin Ming wasn't exactly his patron—he didn't carry that much weight—but as a "friend," when something needed doing, Lin Ming was quite useful. He had wide connections, knew everyone, and had his official credentials—he could get things done anywhere. So Chen Hongyi had always cultivated the relationship carefully.

"Quick, get my formal clothes!" he ordered. "And light more lanterns!"

His home was just outside Sanshui County seat, barely an arrow's shot from the dock. Before long, more than a dozen servants lit lanterns and torches and escorted Chen Hongyi to the boat.

Centurion Lin was waiting to greet him at the bow, which immediately gave Chen Hongyi another start. He knew Lin Ming's deeply ingrained official habits well—he was accustomed to fawning on superiors and being haughty to inferiors. Toward a mere commoner-merchant like himself, though the profit motive kept things outwardly cordial, Lin Ming fundamentally looked down on him. In their handful of meetings, Lin Ming had never come out to greet him.

The unusual must be ominous. Chen Hongyi grew even more uneasy. The two exchanged greetings, and Centurion Lin said in a low voice: "There's a lord inside who wishes to see you. Mind your words carefully."

Chen Hongyi hastily replied, "This humble one understands!" But inwardly he was drumming with anxiety. Who was this "lord"? For Centurion Lin to personally come out and warn him, could it be his superior?

Chen Hongyi groaned inwardly: whenever officials wanted to see merchants, it was invariably about "wanting money."

But there was no declining now that things had come to this. He steeled himself and entered the cabin.

The cabin was lit by an Australian kerosene lamp, bright as daylight. Chen Hongyi saw a young man in his early thirties seated in the place of honor—fair-skinned, beardless, wearing a ramie-silk scholar's gown and a black crepe gauze rugin. His manner was composed, his bearing refined and at ease. Puzzled, Chen Hongyi quickly stepped forward and bowed deeply: "This humble citizen, Chen Hongyi, boat operator of Sanshui County, pays his respects."

"No need for such formality. Please be seated." The young man spoke in authentic Guangzhou Cantonese. "You are Manager Chen Hongyi?"

"Yes, this humble citizen is he." Though Chen Hongyi still didn't know the other's identity, he could see from Suo Pu's manner and bearing that this was no ordinary person. And he commanded Lin Ming as easily as one might command a servant—most likely some noble young master from the provincial capital or even the imperial capital.

(End of Chapter)