Chapter 831
Chapter 831
Masuda Shinta finally met Pan Yun this time, and on behalf of the Yamana clan, he invited her to Konosumi Castle.
Pan Jun declined, saying that she had limited vacation time and many things to do, so she didn't have time.
Masuda Shinta didn't necessarily want her to go to Konosumi Castle. He preferred that the Masuda family representative, the Yamana clan, communicate with Pan Yun. However, since it was his master's request, he had to invite her. As soon as Pan Yun refused, he immediately had a solution.
Once Masuda Shinta met Pan Yun, the local tycoons were certain that Pan Yun was indeed in Omori Township, and they all came to Omori Township to offer incense.
As the Taoist temple became lively, Pan Yun spent a day there, making sure people could see her, and then waved her hand to take Zhang Weiliang and the others, who had been staying there for a long time, back to the academy.
On the sixth day of the sixth lunar month, the Sutra Turning Festival, the academy did not have a holiday, but there were no classes either. The students were only required to take out all the sutras to air them out, and to thoroughly clean the library, classrooms, and other places. The doors and windows were opened to let the scorching sun shine in and dry out all the musty and damp air.
Every year from the end of March to the beginning of May, Jiangxi experiences the plum rain season, which is also humid and hot. The ground and walls are soaked with water. If you wash clothes at this time, they won't dry for three days, and even if they do, they will have a musty smell.
Therefore, the Scripture-Turning Festival on the sixth day of the sixth lunar month is a very grand event in Jiangxi.
In academies and schools, books were aired out, while in ordinary people's homes, quilts, clothes, and even furniture were aired out.
Pan Yun handed over her share of the work to Miao Zhen and the others, and then hurriedly went to Japan again.
As it happened, Xue Shao was still staying at the academy. Since he was a guest, he was not assigned any tasks, so he naturally took Pan Yun's place to complete the task.
During this trip to Japan, Pan Yun finally met Wang Cong.
He's gotten darker and thinner, but he's in great spirits.
When Pan Yun appeared, he was arm in arm with Jia Cong.
Kuang Ping drifted out from behind Pan Yun and said, "In just three days, they became very close. It is said that they hit it off immediately."
Pan Yun: "It's so sour! Did Lord Kuang drink vinegar when he came?"
Kuang Ping snorted, his expression calm: "I just don't understand. He is not only proficient in the 'Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art,' but also very skilled in mechanical arts. If he were willing to serve the court, he might become a powerful general in the Ministry of Works or the Ministry of War in the future. Why is he so obsessed with such a lowly business as commerce?"
Pan Yun: "The country favors certain industries for the sake of stability, but as you and I know, there should be no distinction between noble and lowly industries. He makes a lot of contributions to the country and the people by doing business. Besides, everyone should live a life that is comfortable and carefree. He likes the feeling of making money, so he goes into business."
Kuang Ping didn't understand: "Serving the country and bringing honor to one's ancestors is the right path..."
"In the end, how many of those who serve in the court truly keep in mind serving the country and the people? They may bring glory to their ancestors, but how many of those who reach high positions can ultimately protect their descendants and bring honor to their families without falling into ruin?" Pan Yun interrupted him: "I'm afraid that the ancestors who are disgraced are more numerous than those who are glorified."
Kuang Ping opened his mouth but couldn't speak; at this point, problems with the administration had already begun to emerge.
Even though he was just a minor official in the Ministry of Works, he still noticed something.
Pan Yun said, "I am very proud of my nephew, so how can he not bring honor to his ancestors?"
Before Kuang Ping could discuss the matter further, Pan Yun threw Pan Xiaohei out and told him to go and call Wang Cong out.
She didn't want to exchange pleasantries with Jia Cong for the time being.
When Wang Cong saw Pan Xiaohei walking with elegant cat-like steps, his eyes flickered slightly, knowing that his junior uncle had arrived.
He patted Jia Cong on the shoulder, subtly ending the conversation, and hurriedly returned to the Taoist temple.
To his surprise, Kuang Ping was also there.
Pan Yun picked up her teacup and explained, "I came here on a whim to deliver a letter to Cao Jixiang."
Seeing that he was serving tea to see the guest off, Kuang Ping tactfully got up to take his leave, holding a letter in his hand.
Wang Cong was very considerate, personally escorting him to the door before turning back: "Junior Uncle, are you planning to come every month?"
"They've come three times already, which is quite impressive. We'll see how things go next month; maybe they'll come again, maybe they won't."
Wang Cong: "There is a Ghost Festival in July."
"There's an event at Longhu Mountain where all the ghosts are out, and we'd like to go and perform a Nuo opera." Work is important, but life is more important. She's already sacrificed three vacations in a row, so what's wrong with having some fun in July?
Wang Cong nodded and said, "We've done some divination, and the period from June 13th to July 8th is auspicious. There won't be any storms at sea. We plan to set off on June 13th and return to Quanzhou around the third day of next month."
Wang Cong paused, then asked in a low voice, "Junior Uncle, was that letter sent for the silver shipment?"
Pan Yun glanced at him: "You already know, why are you asking?"
"I'm just wondering, why did Cao Jixiang contact Kuang Ping? Jia Cong is the eunuch, shouldn't they be in cahoots?"
"Who told you that the eunuchs are all in cahoots? You and Zhang Weichang are both men, are you in cahoots with him?"
Wang Cong touched his nose and remained silent.
Pan Yun put down his teacup and casually said, "Cao Jixiang is now forced to rely on Wang Zhen, but he has long wanted to break away from him. Even though Cao Jixiang is in charge of the Maritime Trade Office and Kuang Ping was personally selected by Cao Jixiang, Wang Zhen insisted on inserting a eunuch as the supervisor."
"If Cao Jixiang had been allowed to choose, that would have been one thing. But Wang Zhen bypassed Cao Jixiang, whispered in the emperor's ear, and directly selected someone from the capital and sent them over. Tell me, if you were Cao Jixiang, would you accept that?"
"Of course I'm not satisfied!" Wang Cong said, "Back then, Wang Zhen used the excuse of lifting the sea ban and mining silver mines to drive Cao Jixiang out of the capital. Now that the sea ban has been lifted and the mining of silver mines is going smoothly, Wang Zhen is now eyeing the benefits that these two things bring, so he is unwilling to hand over these two rights to Cao Jixiang."
“But Cao Jixiang isn’t stupid either,” Pan Jun chuckled. “As long as he makes meritorious contributions, big enough and numerous enough, even if he’s far from the capital, the emperor will still remember him.”
"So let them fight it out, just don't get involved."
"Oh." Wang Cong asked, "Junior Uncle, you... you peeked at their letters?"
"Why would I need to peek? When I flew from the academy to Quanzhou, Cao Jixiang wrote the letter in front of me, and even let me read it after he finished writing it."
Wang Cong: "...He wants to win you over."
Pan Yun said earnestly, "I'm willing to let him win me over."
When nothing major happens, she would naturally choose Cao Jixiang over Wang Zhen, since Cao Jixiang is much more human than Wang Zhen.
She also liked to give Wang Zhen a slap from time to time to remind him not to get too cocky.
The two, master and nephew, exchanged a glance and chuckled.
Wang Cong said in a low voice, "I've looked at it carefully these past two days. Kuang Ping is still in charge of this silver mountain. Don't be fooled by Jia Cong's loud shouts. He can't really command anyone. At most, he'll occasionally take a piece or two from the refined silver as pocket money. Even then, he doesn't dare to take more."
"Oh, what did he want to see you about?"
"He wanted to steal the silver from my silver refinery."
Pan Yun raised an eyebrow: "How will he take advantage of me?" Wang Cong: "Of course he won't say he's going to take advantage of me in front of me, so he wants to team up with me to take advantage of the portion of other mines that are being refined here."
Pan Yun clicked her tongue twice and asked, "How does he want to divide it?"
"Three-seven."
Pan Yun asked suspiciously, "You want seven?" She thought he would greedily split it 50/50.
Wang Cong grinned and said, "He's seven."
Pan Yun sat up straight and waved her hand, saying, "He certainly dares to dream. Did you agree to his proposal?"
"Of course I can't agree to that. It concerns the reputation of Sanqing Mountain. Other mines trust me, which is why they put their ore here for refining. How could I do something so stingy and embezzling?"
Pan Yun nodded and chuckled, "Kuang Ping acted quickly; it shows that people still need to think things through."
After finishing their miscellaneous business, Pan Yun asked him about his situation in Japan over the past few months: "You haven't been bullied, have you?"
Wang Cong grinned and said, "Every time I'm about to be bullied, there are rumors about Junior Uncle outside, and they don't dare to do it anymore. Instead, they accidentally make a lot of friends. Now that I'm in Heian-kyo, I wouldn't say I can walk around with my head held high, but at least I'm a person. In terms of power and prestige, I'm even stronger than in the Ming Dynasty."
"Alright, as long as I'm not bullied, it's worth the trip I make every month." Pan Jun said, "But we can't forget our roots and we can't bully others. You must know that everything has its cause and effect. Don't bring me any bad consequences. If I start to have bad luck, I'll definitely beat you up first!"
Wang Cong: "...Junior Uncle, after you started having bad luck, could you first try to find out the specific reason?"
"I can tell whether I caused the trouble myself or someone else did. Miaozhen and the others are all well-behaved and obedient, and they've always been by my side. Only you are uncontrollable."
Wang Cong hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.
Seeing that he opened his mouth for a long time but didn't say anything, Pan Yun frowned: "Why are you stuttering? Just say what you have to say."
Wang Cong whispered, "Junior Uncle, have you forgotten Third Uncle and Fourth Uncle?"
Pan Yun blinked; she really had forgotten.
Pan Jun slapped his forehead: "Oh no, we haven't heard from them at all in the past three months. Could something have happened to them?"
"Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey! Junior Uncle, spit it out quickly!"
Pan Yun obediently spat on the ground and muttered a couple of sentences: "Bad things don't work, good things do."
Although she had spat, Pan Yun was still somewhat uneasy and decided to go back and inquire about Xuanmiao and Tao Ji's whereabouts.
She flew back, in nine hours. Oh no, because she had become more familiar with the flight path and her skills had improved a bit, she could now reduce the trip time to eight hours. She believed that one day, she would be able to fly from the Ming Dynasty to Japan, no matter how far the distance, within three hours.
Wang Cong and his men then sailed back.
This time, the Maritime Trade Office had its own official ships, a total of eight, of which three were escort ships and five were ships transporting silver and goods.
Although Wang Cong couldn't see the manifest or board the ship, he could roughly guess how much cargo there was by standing on the dock for a while and counting the boxes they had brought.
It's unclear whether these goods were procured by the Maritime Trade Office for the imperial court, or whether someone was abusing their power for personal gain...
This is also the first time in recent years that the Maritime Trade Office has taken the initiative to send ships to vassal states to purchase goods.
They used to just sit at the port and register whatever goods the Japanese brought to them.
At most, they would only express a slight inclination when asked about their intentions in Japan.
Active and passive gains are different. He believed that the Maritime Trade Office could make a lot of money this time and hoped to open up the maritime trade market.
When he left port, the sea ban had just been lifted, and everyone was still very cautious; there weren't many people actually engaged in maritime trade.
It would be such a waste if such a large port as Quanzhou Port couldn't accommodate a full sea of ships.
Oh, because of Pan Yun's relationship with the Maritime Trade Office, and because Wang Cong had already traveled the route several times and was more familiar with it than the officers and soldiers of the Maritime Trade Office, they decided to travel together as a team.
The imperial court had escort ships, but Wang Cong did not. However, each of his ships was equipped with two cannons, making them appear to be heavily armed. Therefore, everyone was on equal footing and no one had to pay protection money to anyone else.
Silver and goods were loaded onto ships, blocking the small port of Onsenzu. The port only became empty again after the ships sailed out of the bay.
Shinta Masuda watched the ship disappear with a smile, but as soon as he turned around, the smile vanished from his face.
His trusted confidants followed him closely.
Shinta Masuda quickened his pace, only asking when he got home, "How did it go? Did you find anything?"
"The laborer quietly opened three boxes. One box was full of fine iron, another was full of lacquerware, and the third was full of rice. The cargo on the three ships was different."
"What about the other two boats?"
"There was another one containing sulfur. We could smell it as we passed by without even opening it. There was also another one. We never had the chance to open the box, but some laborers saw them filling it with mirrors, jewels, and pearls."
"These are all normal goods, nothing wrong with them, so what are they doing hiding in Omori Township?"
The confidant remained silent.
"Has the people we sent into the mountains returned yet?"
“Yes, the mountains in Dasen Township are too big and rarely visited. They have blocked the main roads and set up checkpoints. If our people want to get in, they can only go around from other places, but those mountains and forests are places that no one has ever been to before.” The confidant said, “Five of the people we sent went in and disappeared. They haven’t been found yet. Twelve people came out, but they said they didn’t see anything. They only occasionally heard clanging sounds. They couldn’t find their way in and didn’t even know how they got out.”
Shinta Masuda remained silent with a sullen face.
The confidant carefully observed his expression and whispered, "Sir, this is clearly our territory, yet we have no idea what these foreign guests are doing inside. This is simply outrageous. When Lord Wang Cong or Lord Pan Jun come next time, let's just ask them directly."
"Fool! Is this a question you can ask directly?" Shinta Masuda said angrily, "The mountains around Omori Village have all been bought by the Ming Dynasty's delegation. They are now Ming Dynasty's private property. Not only can I not ask, I can't even let them know. We've sent people in to investigate before!"
The confidant said in a deep voice, "But we don't know what they're doing inside; it's far too dangerous."
Masuda Shinta spun around twice, then closed his eyes tightly and said in a deep voice, "The Taoists of the Ming Dynasty are very powerful. They can set up a kind of formation that makes people lose their way and wander in circles. They used this formation when they attacked the Ouchi clan. Those people... they probably guessed that I sent them. Besides, five of them have gone missing. We can't send any more people. We must maintain good relations between the two sides."
"grown ups!"
Shinta Masuda raised his hand to interrupt him, and said in a deep voice, "Look how much Onsenzu Town has changed compared to before. This is all thanks to the Han Chinese. I have already discussed with Kuangping and Wang Cong that we will expand the port this year. Soon, this port will surpass Nanao Port, and our Masuda family will already be among the top three in the Yamana clan." (End of this chapter)