Target and Progress

Guan Xiaoliu was not on a mission to sell goods, but rather to unearth evidence of illegal activities committed by these officials.

Had he agreed to the minor official's terms, any gains made would have contradicted his primary directive. After all, while the Great Tang did not actively encourage officials to engage in commerce, it had not explicitly forbidden it either.

Consequently, Guan Xiaoliu once again rejected the petty official's offer, curious to see how the man would target him next.

Seeing Guan Xiaoliu's utter lack of tact, the petty official finally dropped all pretexts.

With a cold snort, he spoke: "Since the young master is so steadfast regarding the value of these goods, this official can no longer intercede on your behalf."

He jumped down from the carriage and continued, "This official wishes the young master an early completion of his transactions."

With that, he flicked his sleeves and stormed off in a rage along the path he had come.

Guan Xiaoliu feigned pursuit, pleading for a long while, but resolutely refused to yield on the price.

Thus, their initial encounter ended in discord.

Guan Xiaoliu and his men found an ordinary inn outside the city to settle in for the time being.

They left three men behind to guard the cargo, while the rest ventured into the bustling marketplace to gather intelligence.

Since selling goods was not their main objective, apart from occasionally discussing porcelain market trends with other merchants, they spent most of their time carefully observing the operations of the marketplace.

After leaving the sight of Guan Xiaoliu and his companions, the petty official did not return to the city immediately.

He headed straight to the marketplace, briefing the Market Supervision Office and the Bureau of Weights and Measures regarding the background and goods of Guan Xiaoliu's party.

The petty official held quiet, private consultations with both departments, plotting how to target Guan Xiaoliu so that his goods would find no buyers.

One must never underestimate the capabilities of these people.

Accustomed to dealing with foreign merchants from various countries year-round, they had long since perfected a repertoire of methods to manipulate traders.

Therefore, once they resolved to target a specific merchant, it was utterly impossible for that merchant to successfully conclude any business in Guangzhou.

Guan Xiaoliu and his companions were still unaware of this.

Even as they were collecting intelligence on the corrupt officials, the entire marketplace had already begun keeping a covert watch on their caravan.

They were merely waiting for the moment the merchants brought their goods into the market to make them feel the full malice of the entire trading district.

After spending the better part of a day conducting investigations, Guan Xiaoliu and his men personally witnessed numerous instances of officials, both high and low, extorting goods and cash within the marketplace.

And these were merely the tactics employed against itinerant peddlers.

Guan Xiaoliu was certain that merchants residing permanently in the area must have entirely different ways of bribing these officials.

As the marketplace closed for the day, Guan Xiaoliu and his men returned to their inn in separate groups.

Next, they needed to consolidate the intelligence gathered throughout the day.

They prepared to transmit this intelligence to another team led by Xue Li.

Armed with Li Zhi's personal letter and their official fish tallies, this group would proactively seek out the merchants identified in the reports who had been subjected to forced extortion, and demand that these merchants step forward to testify when necessary.

Xue Li and his men had no fear that these merchants would refuse to cooperate.

First, because they possessed sufficient evidence; second, because the status of merchants in this era was extremely low.

When facing government runners, they dared not offer the slightest resistance.

Most importantly, Xue Li and his men were effectively resolving troubles for them.

Furthermore, the mastermind behind Xue Li and his associates was Li Zhi, and such backing was more than powerful enough.

The following day, Guan Xiaoliu and his men drove their carts back into the marketplace.

However, it was not long before Guan Xiaoliu noticed several anomalies.

First, ever since they entered the market, apart from the gate wardens reciting the rules of the marketplace, no other officials approached them.

Moreover, all the foreign merchants seemed to be deliberately giving them a wide berth.

Even the local shopkeepers on both sides intentionally kept a greater distance from them.

Not a single soul came over to speak with them the entire day.

No matter how loudly Guan Xiaoliu solicited customers, he received no response whatsoever.

Guan Xiaoliu realized they were being targeted.

Yet, this precisely provided them with the opportunity to prolong their stay.

Consequently, for the next several days, Guan Xiaoliu continued to appear in the marketplace daily.

However, the number of companions accompanying him steadily dwindled.

Everyone assumed that Guan Xiaoliu's funds were nearly exhausted.

Spectators eagerly awaited the unfolding of the good show to come.

Yet, what completely eluded their expectations was this:

Those individuals who had left Guan Xiaoliu's side were currently continuing to relentlessly gather various pieces of criminal evidence right here.

Meanwhile, the land reclamation efforts spearheaded by Li Zhi had achieved remarkable results.

After vast stretches of primeval forest were felled, all the humus within was cleared out and burned, then covered with a thick layer of quicklime for pest control and disinfection.

Within a mere two or three days of applying quicklime, mulberry branches could be cut and plugged into the soil.

Officials from the Directorate of Agriculture led prisoners daily to inspect the growth status of the mulberry trees.

The newly reclaimed farmland was treated similarly.

Even the surrounding earth and river channels were thoroughly disinfected.

Dandelions became one of the most popular plants here.

Li Zhi used dandelions and a combination of other medicinal herbs to concoct numerous herbal teas, medicinal potions, and dietary dishes.

These remedies substantially alleviated the discomfort northern people experienced in the southern climate.

In addition, Li Zhi produced copious amounts of iced beverages, supplying them in unlimited quantities to the workers daily.

Due to the scorching summer heat in Guangzhou, Li Zhi divided the prisoners into four shifts.

Each shift only needed to work for two to three hours before stopping to rest.

This did not significantly hinder the overall progress.

With their physical stamina constantly maintained at peak levels, the war prisoners were actually able to complete their tasks much faster.

In the span of just a few days, Li Zhi and his men had developed hundreds of acres of farmland and over two hundred acres of mulberry forests.

Furthermore, they had laid several miles of concrete roads.

Most gratifying of all was that ever since these prisoners of war arrived in Guangzhou, for a full half-month, not a single person had fallen ill due to the miasma.

At this moment, Li Zhi was listening to Su Lie report on the progress of the corruption investigation.

When Su Lie stated that numerous merchants had been subjected to forced extortion, Li Zhi nodded without a hint of surprise.

He addressed Su Lie, saying, "Guangzhou is a major commercial hub; officials here who deal with various merchants over a long period are bound to breed all sorts of corruption."

Su Lie said, "Your Highness, there is currently no evidence implicating any high-ranking officials. How should we proceed next?"

Li Zhi replied, "There is no need to rush. Since those petty officials dared to act so audaciously and recklessly, it is naturally linked to the conduct of their superiors."

Saying this, Li Zhi smiled faintly.

Then, with an utterly confident tone, he declared, "Once we get a grip on the misdeeds of more petty officials and bring them to justice, then..."

Su Lie's eyes lit up as he immediately chimed in, "Does Your Highness mean to have these individuals report layer by layer, and then uproot the entire network?"

Having said this, he could not help harboring a trace of hesitation.

In the end, he could not refrain from offering a reminder, "Should we do this, the number of people implicated will certainly be vast. Might the fallout be a bit too extensive?"