novelSusiti Chapter 37 The Return Journey and the Strategic Planning
Chapter 37 The Return Journey and the Strategic Planning
The Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, Cangzhou section.
The canal water was somewhat murky, and the boatmen on both banks chanted heavy work songs as they struggled to pull the cargo boats, laden with goods from the south, northward. Meanwhile, on the official road upstream, Lu Yan's convoy sped southward.
Compared to their low-key arrival, the convoy now appeared much more somber.
The twenty large carts had been replaced with lighter horse-drawn carriages, each bearing two flags. One flag read "Imperial Timber Procurement Bureau of the Imperial Household Department," and the other read "Jinan Prefecture Water Transport Militia."
The yellow triangular dragon flag fluttered in the wind. When the customs officers and inspectors along the way saw this flag, they would remove the roadblocks from a distance. Some even bowed and scraped and offered the officers chilled plum juice.
This is the taste of power.
"This brand is really good."
As Zhao Changying rode on his horse, he toyed with the ivory waist token given to him by Wang Tiqian and sighed, "In the past, when we passed through Cangzhou, those salt smugglers would always scatter caltrops in the middle of the road to force us to pay tolls. Today, they're all hiding in the reeds, not daring to show their heads."
"They were scared, not beaten into submission."
Lu Yan sat in the carriage, holding a map in his hand, marking it. "The fox borrows the tiger's might for a while. Once we really swallow up this fat piece of Huangmu, those vested interests—the canal gangs, salt smugglers, and local tyrants—will sooner or later pounce on us and take a bite."
He heavily circled the three points "Dezhou", "Linqing" and "Jining" on the map.
"These three places are the throats of the canal. They will also be the transit points for the future transfer of imperial timber."
Lu Yan's gaze sharpened, his expression turning cold. "For logistics to run smoothly, a brand alone isn't enough; you need 'bases.' When you get back, you have two things to do."
"Brother, you say it." Zhao Changying immediately put away his waist token and straightened his expression.
"First, expand the military."
Lu Yan held up one finger. "The current fifty-man guard is too small. Wang Tiqian gave me the name of 'military training,' which is a legal order to expand the army. After we go back, select another three hundred people from the refugee camp and expand our 'Lu's Security' to a battalion."
"Three hundred men?" Zhao Changying's eyes lit up. "And their equipment..."
"Fully armed."
Lu Yan made a startling statement: "Although Zhao Tie's flintlock musket technology is not yet fully mature, the 'line-up shooting' tactic has already been proven. I want you to use these three hundred men to train a 'musketeer phalanx' that can dominate this era."
Second, website building.
Lu Yan pointed to the three circles on the map, "Fan Fu is in charge of business, and you are in charge of security. In these three places, buy land, build warehouses, and set up checkpoints. Each transit station must be built to the standard of a 'military fortress.' It must have walls, watchtowers, independent granaries, and wells."
"This is not just a warehouse; it's our nails laid on the canal. If anything changes, these three points, when connected, form an unbreakable supply line."
This "fortress-like logistics" mindset is a summary of Lu Yan's experience in engineering projects in war-torn regions during his previous life. In chaotic times, a supply chain without defensive capabilities is simply delivering food to others.
"There's one more thing," Lu Yan paused, "Shen Qing."
"Here." A figure silently emerged from the corner.
Zhao Changying was startled—he hadn't even noticed when the person had come in.
"You've been in refugee camps, you know those displaced people best," Lu Yan said, looking at Shen Qing. "Of the three hundred new recruits, I need you to keep an eye on them. Who's genuinely loyal, who has ulterior motives, who has other forces backing them... I need to know."
"Understood." Shen Qing nodded, without saying anything more.
"Also," Lu Yan lowered his voice, "how's the investigation into that group of bandits from last time going?"
"We're still investigating." Shen Qing's eyes flickered. "But one thing is certain—it wasn't aimed at Su Mu, it was aimed at you, Boss."
Lu Yan narrowed his eyes and remained silent.
Shen Qing continued, "I will continue the investigation. Once I have some leads, I will report back to the master."
"Okay. Go ahead."
Shen Qing turned and left, her footsteps as light as a cat's, without even the curtain swaying.
Watching his retreating figure, Zhao Changying couldn't help but whisper, "Brother, who exactly is this person?"
"I don't know." Lu Yan shook his head. "But he's a useful person. Being useful is enough."
The fifth day of the fifth lunar month is the Dragon Boat Festival.
The convoy finally arrived in Jinan.
The atmosphere in Jinan was far more tense than when Lu Yan left. Reports of defeats from the Liaodong front continued to pour in, and the number of refugees had doubled compared to a month ago. The shantytowns outside Jinan had spread to Shilipu.
But amidst this chaos, the "Lu Ji Camp" located on Luan Shi Gang was like an isolated island, maintaining perfect order.
On the towering walls, guards armed with spears patrol day and night. Inside the camp, the clanging of blacksmiths echoes from the orderly workshops. Hundreds of refugees are engaged in labor and training according to a strict schedule.
"The boss is back!"
Hu Jingshui, who was in charge of staying behind, limped out to greet them, his face beaming with joy, but then showing some worry. "Master, you've been gone for almost half a month, and the camp's silver is almost gone. That old bastard Zhao Tie is a money-devouring beast; he's almost burned through all our stockpiled saltpeter just to test that 'granular gunpowder' stuff!"
"The money has arrived, but not much."
Lu Yan jumped off the carriage, patted the black box that Zhao Changying was protecting tightly, and said with a serious expression, "Old Hu, this time we brought back ten thousand taels of silver from the capital."
"Ten thousand taels?" Hu Jingshui was stunned for a moment, then took the box and weighed it in his hand. "Master, this imperial timber procurement is a huge business worth millions of taels. How come Eunuch Wang only allocated this small amount of start-up capital? This amount is only enough for us to expand the wall and pay the newly recruited brothers two months' wages!"
"That old fox Wang Tiqian won't act until he sees the rabbit."
Lu Yan sneered, "Of these ten thousand taels, only five thousand taels were 'start-up capital' that he had taken from the inner treasury. The remaining five thousand taels were deposits I collected from those powerful and influential people when I pre-sold that batch of 'golden nanmu waste' in Liulichang."
"Oh? Then this..." Hu Jingshui looked distressed, "This financial chain is stretched too tight. What if something goes wrong at any point..."
"So we need to be quick."
Lu Yan interrupted him, pointing to the "Royal Timber Procurement" banner fluttering in the wind behind him.
"If we don't have enough money, we'll use this flag to exchange for it. Hang this flag on the highest flagpole in the camp! Let the prefect of Jinan, the provincial inspector, and those hungry wolves eyeing our prize all see it!"
"From today onwards, Lu Ji will no longer be a private carriage and horse shop that can be manipulated by anyone."
Lu Yan's voice echoed through the camp, exuding an undeniable air of dominance:
"We are the 'imperial merchants' of the Inner Palace Administration Bureau, and the 'official soldiers' carrying out imperial orders. Anyone who dares to lay a finger on us is going against the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs, and against the Emperor!"
That night, the central command tent of Lu Ji's camp was brightly lit.
Lu Yan sat in the main seat, with a huge map of the canal hanging behind him. Zhao Changying, Hu Jingshui, Zhao Tie, Fan Fu, and other core members stood on either side.
This was a true "strategic expansion meeting".
"Gentlemen."
Lu Yan surveyed the crowd with a calm gaze. "I've paved the way to the capital. But our resources are meager, so this ten thousand taels of silver must be spent wisely."
"Zhao Tie, your task is the most important." Lu Yan looked at the old blacksmith covered in soot. "I'll squeeze out three thousand taels for you. I need you to increase the monthly production of muskets to fifty within three months. Also, I brought back some Western firearms manuals from the capital. You can study them. I need the kind of 'small Franconian cannon' that can be mounted on a vehicle."
"Hu Jingshui, you're in charge of 'money laundering.'" Lu Yan turned to the old accountant. "The accounts for the royal timber business need to be made look good. We need to hide our private profits in the transportation costs of the royal timber. Let Wang Tiqian see the ledgers he wants to see, so that we can get real money ourselves."
"Fan Fu, go and make contact with Jinan Prefecture," Lu Yan instructed. "Tell them that Lu's company wants to expand the 'Imperial Timber Transit Warehouse' outside the city for the sake of the Imperial Timber's security. Enclose all five hundred acres of wasteland around it. Pay upfront, or use the title of 'Assistant to the Imperial Timber Bureau' to settle the debt. This banner is more valuable than silver right now."
"yes!"
Everyone responded in unison. Despite the tight budget, everyone's face was filled with excitement and enthusiasm. They knew that by following this young boss, they were undertaking something unprecedented and unlikely to be repeated.
Lu Yan narrowed his eyes slightly, looking at the Grand Canal that ran through the north and south on the map.
In his view, this was not just a river, but a major artery that he was implanting into his veins and was about to completely control.
"From the wilderness, dragons and snakes rise from the land."
Lu Yan silently recited in his heart.
The first stage of "primitive accumulation" and "political affiliation" has been completed. Although money is tight, this is just like a merchant starting out; lacking sufficient capital, they can only rely on quick in-and-out turnover.
Next comes the second phase – “Dig deep tunnels, store plenty of grain, and build iron armor.”
Before the impending chaos of the first year of the Tianqi reign, he wanted to forge an iron torrent here, powerful enough to influence the situation in Shandong.