Chapter 1726 - 547: Red Tiger Ridge, Zhang Yiqing’s Unease (Part 2)

Chapter 1726: Chapter 547: Red Tiger Ridge, Zhang Yiqing’s Unease (Part 2)

For over ten years, Zhang Kuang had an impressive performance in the military, supported by influential figures around him. His power grew stronger, and his rank continued to rise, progressing from a team leader to a scout, then to deputy captain, and later to colonel, until ten years ago when he was promoted to vice commander, successfully reaching the senior ranks in the military and gaining noble status. From then on, in Qinghua City, he became a significant figure.

Once a person achieves success, those around him naturally benefit.

The Zhang Family has been gradually eroding the village’s power with Zhang Kuang’s rising status. Ten years ago, when Zhang Kuang was promoted to vice commander, the Hu clan leader was so frightened that he directly handed over his leadership position.

At that time, the one who assumed the leadership position was Zhang Yiqing.

Zhang Kuang has over thirty grandchildren, and Zhang Yiqing is one of them, although not particularly valued.

It’s understandable; given Zhang Kuang’s current status in Qinghua City, if he were valued, why would he come to a small place like Tiger Tail Village? Easily arranging a position in the government office of Qinghua City would be much better than living here.

Therefore, when Zhang Yiqing initially came to Tiger Tail Village, he was unhappy.

Yet, no matter how unhappy he was, he could only follow the family’s arrangement.

The Zhang Family originally was an unknown small household in Tiger Tail Village, but ever since Grandpa Zhang Kuang gained noble status and established a foothold in Qinghua City, the Zhang Family began to gain prominence, imitating the actions of the wealthy families in Qinghua City.

When he came to Tiger Tail Village, it was merely to manage the family’s external industries. The annual income of Tiger Tail Village is about two hundred thousand taels, and after the portion submitted to the Subordinated Bureau is deducted, at most, only fifty thousand taels are left.

The Zhang Family’s rise was short and could not compare to other wealthy families. Even the smallest amount is valuable, so it’s natural to manage it well, which is why they sent a family member.

Zhang Yiqing arrived with emotions, always longing to return to Qinghua City. How to return to Qinghua City depended on his performance.

Since he was managing external industries for the family, naturally, to go back, he needed to submit a satisfactory report to the family head, his grandfather Zhang Kuang.

In simple terms, it meant sending more money back to the family.

Previously, there was only fifty thousand taels annually, so he decided to send more back each year, more than the last, to attract his grandfather’s attention.

With this mindset, ten years ago, when Zhang Yiqing arrived at Tiger Tail Village, he naturally racked his brain to make money.

Tiger Tail Village itself had no special products, and its main revenue came from trade with major southern villages.

Tiger Tail Village relied on the official road to commute to Qinghua City, purchasing finished cultivation resources from the city, and exchanged them with southern villages for more precious basic resources such as iron and coal.

The issue was that southern villages were poorer and weaker, with the types and amounts of resources extracted from them each year remaining roughly the same; it’s unrealistic to increase production suddenly.

Zhang Yiqing was a resourceful man and soon devised two methods: population trade and lowly status commission.

The population trade is straightforward, involving obtaining young men and women with some appearance from southern villages or able-bodied individuals, bringing them into slave status, and selling them to brokers in the city, to be resold to the wealthy families in the city.

As for the lowly status commission, it involves using registration status as bait to lure people into lowly status, then introducing them to places in the city or throughout Evergreen Valley where people are needed, and taking a commission from the money these people earned.

These two methods were somewhat illicit. However, Evergreen Valley wasn’t valued by the Feudal Towns, and most people with black status in Evergreen Valley flocked to it, with occasional troublemakers easily handled, there wouldn’t be any issues.

As such, Zhang Yiqing’s revenue-boosting goal was indeed achieved.

The first year, Tiger Tail Village’s revenue increased by twenty percent to sixty thousand taels, and each ensuing year it rose by ten percent. Last year, in the 299th year of Cai Qiu, the annual revenue astonishingly reached one hundred and fifty thousand taels.

Remember, this is after deducting the portion submitted to the Subordinate Bureau, the revenue solely for the Zhang Family.

Tripling the revenue in ten years made Zhang Yiqing’s performance undeniably recognized in the family, making his status rise day by day. Until the year before last, he finally caught his grandfather Zhang Kuang’s attention, who promised that after one more year, the family would send someone to Tiger Tail Village to replace him.

As for his new arrangement, it was to enter the Law Enforcement Team of Qinghua City.

Upon learning of his grandfather’s arrangement, Zhang Yiqing was ecstatic.

Being the leader of Tiger Tail Village sounds good, but compared to the Law Enforcement Team of Qinghua City, it’s nothing.

His elder cousin, Zhang Yiping, was a team leader in the Law Enforcement Team, earning a regular monthly salary of five hundred taels, not to mention the extra profits, with an annual income of at least over thirty thousand taels.

A year’s profit of one hundred and fifty thousand taels is true, but that belongs to the family, and only seven to eight thousand taels come to his hand, and with his extra earnings, his annual income barely breaks ten thousand taels.

Income is secondary; the key is status!

Entering the Law Enforcement Team of Qinghua City, even as an ordinary member, makes one a low-level official in a feudal town, standing above others wherever you go, as long as you don’t offend those officials and nobles, you’re set for life.

With his grandfather’s assurance, Zhang Yiqing naturally worked even harder in his final year there, managing to increase the revenue by another twenty percent.

At the end of last year, he waited eagerly for the family’s summons.

But instead of a summons, on the first day of the new year, grandfather Zhang Kuang came in person!

"Cai Qiu is planning to use troops abroad, tactics demand speed, everything must be done quickly, but the official road in Evergreen Valley only reached your place. The City Lord, upon learning this, flew into a rage, immediately dismissing the heads of the Subordinate, Public, and Finance Departments, appointing three new heads. The new heads made plans overnight, mobilizing civilian labor throughout Evergreen Valley to clear the snow path for the army’s southward advance..."

The news brought by Grandpa Zhang Kuang made Zhang Yiqing shiver with fear.

The Six Department Heads of Qinghua City are at a higher rank than Grandpa Zhang Kuang, and for the City Lord Cai Yunzhou to dismiss them on a whim, with Cai Qiu’s plans to use troops abroad, is there such a powerful force to deal with?

Though these messages bewildered him, he grasped the crucial part; because the official road in Evergreen Valley was only built to Tiger Tail Village, Cai Yunzhou was furious.

Zhang Yiqing was indeed aware of the Evergreen Valley official road construction situation. Early on, he heard that City Lord Cai Yunzhou had planned for the entire valley, but later, because the Finance Department claimed lack of funds and the Subordinate and Public Department Heads said Evergreen Valley was barren, making massive spending on the roads unnecessary, Cai Yunzhou couldn’t insist, resulting in only half the road being built, halting at Tiger Tail Village.

Now an incident occurred; Cai Qiu organized military operations abroad. Because the official road construction wasn’t completed, obstructing the army’s southward march, Cai Yunzhou was understandably furious.

However, dismissing the three department heads all at once seemed excessively dramatic.

Zhang Yiqing later learned the reason from Grandpa Zhang Kuang.

Cai Qiu suffered a significant defeat abroad, reportedly battling a feudal town called Great Xia in the south, losing over a hundred Xianyang Level officials, even disgracing a Landgrave.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yiqing was dumbfounded.

The Four Vassals of Moao River weren’t without wars in the past decades, but losing over a hundred Xianyang Level officers at once was unprecedented.

Regardless of his anxiety, he could only proceed according to his grandfather’s instructions.

Strictly speaking, it wasn’t his grandfather’s instructions.

No sooner had Zhang Kuang arrived, the personnel from the three newly appointed department heads of Qinghua City arrived with orders, just as grandfather said, to hastily gather laborers to clear the snow path in preparation for the incoming army.

Zhang Yiqing quickly engaged in this task, urgently recruiting laborers in the village from the first day of the new year, as surrounding villages had already been individually informed.

Red Tiger Ridge provided a staggering eight thousand laborers, and once Zhang Yiqing delved into the effort, he realized the entire Evergreen Valley was mobilized.

On the night of January 2nd, just as they finished clearing the snow path, Cai Qiu’s army had marched southwards!

A massive force of two hundred thousand troops marched quickly forward, and seeing the grand and imposing military, coupled with the news from his grandfather, Zhang Yiqing felt his heart pound wildly.

For Cai Qiu to be so well-prepared, how strong must the feudal town called Great Xia be?

Crucially, over a hundred Xianyang Level officers were easily eliminated; can sending two hundred thousand troops ensure victory?