If it’s banknotes, just track the bank’s serial numbers to find the whereabouts of the people from Piaoping Pavilion.
If it’s cash, that’s even more convenient; moving or hiding such an amount will inevitably leave traces.
The first thing Meng Qi asks is this, as it’s the easiest way to track down Piaoping Pavilion.
“What did you pay with?”
Meng Qi asks the accountant of the Dragon Head Association, who appears dazed, with algae hanging from his forehead, swept back into the water by an invisible current every time he tries to climb ashore.
Beside the accountant, Du Biaotou is even worse off, having tried to escape and ending up with a bruised nose and swollen face, now dizzily floating on the water surface. Only the time-serving leader of Changxin Gang squatting in the water avoided the disaster.
“Gold, a lot of gold,” the accountant stammers.
“How much is a lot?”
“Six… six hundred taels.”
Meng Qi raises an eyebrow in surprise, that’s no small sum.
Although in stories, rewards often reach thousands of taels of gold, that’s just the storytellers’ habit. The gold they talked about was actually brass, just a habit of teahouse storytellers, and mentioning anything less than gold would be embarrassing, failing to attract patrons.
The Four Gangs and Twelve Assemblies are actually minor figures in the martial world; they do have money, as local gangs have many ways to make money. However, producing a large sum at once is a stretch since gang money comes and goes quickly; they spend lavishly on feasts and grudges, spending money like water.
“Where did you get so much gold from?”
Silver is scarce among the people; many households only have copper coins and small silver pieces, unable to produce whole silver ingots. Even families with considerable wealth open their chests to find only copper coins; a large part of their property is tied up in shops and estates, only converted into cash when the family fortune declines. Silver is already scarce, let alone gold, which if produced in such quantities would tell everyone that it comes from dubious sources.
The leader of Changxin Gang’s eyes bulge, no longer caring to hide, he grabs the accountant’s neck and shouts, “Where did Dragon Head Association get the money? Changxin Gang only paid fifty taels of silver, I saw with my own eyes how much the others gave; altogether, it wouldn’t add up to a hundred taels of gold, did the rest come from selling your wives?”
Meng Qi finds this even more interesting.
Usually, leaders make more money than they contribute, but for Dragon Head Association to contribute over five hundred taels of gold is legendary.
“Doctor, we seem to have encountered something unusual,” Meng Qi jokes.
Mo Li: “…”
Six hundred taels of gold, from unknown origins, along with a mysterious organization of assassins and the evil cult of Holy Lotus Sect, follows the bizarre plotlines beloved by storytellers of the Tang dynasty.
“So, we should soon expect a beautiful woman with a slender figure and stunning looks to appear,” Mo Li ponders and picks up on Meng Qi’s lead, “She possesses miraculous skills, either swordsmanship to kill, the ability to shrink people to the size of soybeans, or the ability to pass through a mirror and appear a thousand miles away.”
“Uh.”
Meng Qi pauses, then lowers his voice to ask, “Doctor, how many legendary stories did you read while in the capital?”
“Not many, just the famous ones,” Mo Li responds quietly, “Hidden in a secret compartment on the second floor south wall of WenYuan Pavilion, in the same direction as the county maps shelf. Those legendary stories meticulously describe local customs, quite interesting.”
“I hid them there years ago.”
Meng Qi unintentionally blurts out, then coughs and solemnly says, “No, Doctor, it’s not like that. Since Deng Shusheng is stubborn, and everyone needed entertainment, I found some storybooks to pass the time.”
Mo Li seems thoughtful, no wonder they mostly feature supernatural tales.
“Actually…” Meng Qi starts to speak but stops, then switches to a whispering spell, “Doctor, don’t you think our situation also fits quite well with a supernatural tale?”
Mo Li shakes his head decisively: “No, in that case, we should be mountain gods or some deities bestowed by the Heavenly Emperor, usually fooling around with woodcutters and hunters, until, during an imperial sacrifice, finding the emperor’s disrespect to the divine, we transform and make a scene, and then depart honored and content.”
“In Tang dynasty legends, even dragons can be slain,” Meng Qi said with a sense of foreboding.
“…”
Wake up, there are no dragons to slay, only a sand mouse!
Mo Li simply walks aside, rescuing the accountant who was nearly strangled to death by the leader of Changxin Gang.
The leader of Changxin Gang gasps heavily, taking a while to calm down. He’s been mixed up in the affairs of Yuzhou for half his life, experiencing all sorts of events, yet none had ever left him this panicked. There might be silent fools who hand out money without a word, but Dragon Head Association is definitely not one of them.
For gangs like theirs, relying on local advantages to make a living and running legitimate businesses like martial arts schools and escort agencies, everyone knows everyone else. Where did Dragon Head Association get so much gold?
“This money was personally handled by me, I saw it clearly, it’s six hundred taels of gold,” the accountant knows the seriousness of the matter and is even less willing to get involved. Although he makes his living with Dragon Head Association, he’s not the only one who knows about this; gold is heavy, filling five whole chests. Originally thought to be silver, when moved accidentally, the chests burst open… revealing gleaming gold, seen by everyone who came to the storeroom that night.
“Is there any mark on the gold?”
Silver and gold ingots usually have a stamp on the bottom, both official and privately minted.
“There was, but it’s been ground off,” the accountant answers.
Meng Qi isn’t surprised; erasing marks is essential to hide the origins of a significant amount of gold or silver.
“What’s the quality like?”
“…Excellent.”
The quality of gold and silver varies by the period it was minted. Subpar silver paid to the government would result in punishment, whereas high-quality silver could be used to purchase goods at a value exceeding its weight. A tael of silver could go as far as one and three-tenths taels because remelted and recast silver ingots weigh about that much.
The leader of Changxin Gang listens, dumbfounded, wondering if the leaders of Dragon Head Association have some unknown identities.
At this point, the leader of Changxin Gang completely disbelieves that the money was for eradicating the Holy Lotus Sect’s Yuzhou branch.
—It’s enough to hire an assassin for the Tianshou King.
Wait!
The face of the leader of Changxin Gang turns colors like a dyer’s shop, now and then blue, then red, finally turning pitch black.
If this old hand of the Jianghu can understand this, wouldn’t Meng Qi, who has seen many intrigues of power and benefit, also know?
“What’s going on?” Mo Li asks a beat slower.
“High-quality gold worth far more than six hundred taels, given by a Yuzhou gang under the guise of expelling the Holy Lotus Sect’s Yuzhou branch, what do you think?” Meng Qi is the type who can deduce the entire cause and effect of an event from a few words.
Even in bizarre situations, a few more questions can clarify the context.
Only verification remains.
“High-quality gold and silver mostly come from official sources; it’s not economical for civilians to privately mint such,”
This is obvious. You can know it without guessing. Mo Li frowns and says, “This six hundred taels of gold is another deal that Piaoping Pavilion is taking on, just under a guise. Dragon Head Association isn’t the real employer; they’re acting on someone else’s behalf.”
Meng Qi laughs upon hearing this, looking at the increasingly panicked trio in the pond, unhesitatingly saying in their presence, “Six hundred taels of gold, too little to kill an emperor, too much for anything else. If it’s to kill an enemy, this enemy might be a top martial artist of the Jianghu, oh, I think I fit the bill.”
Mo Li: “…”
Du Biaotou, who was also brought along, asks dryly, “May I ask the senior’s name?”
The leader of Changxin Gang perks up his ears, cycling through the notable martial artists of the Jianghu in his mind, but can’t match any to Meng Qi. With such high martial skills and such an appearance, how could he be unknown?
“It seems that the rumors from the capital and Yongzhou haven’t reached here yet,” Meng Qi says with a half-smile.
Mo Li silently shakes his head, thinking even if they had heard of the former imperial advisor, they couldn’t possibly connect him with the man before them.
The person in the rumors is likely an old immortal, with youthful looks despite white hair, which doesn’t match at all.
“Brother Meng, don’t joke, who among your enemies could afford six hundred taels of gold?”
“…Actually, quite a few.” Meng Qi seriously stated, “But they are all dead now.”
Du Biaotou’s mouth twitched, while the other two looked on in horror. In the martial world, saying that all your enemies are dead is almost like admitting you’re a ruthless demon who kills without blinking.
Mo Li rubbed his forehead and casually moved on from this topic, continuing, “Elder Qingwu is dead, and besides him, no one else has conflicts with the government. To spend six hundred taels of gold on a hit, only the Tianshou King and the three princes of Chu qualify. However, with the instability in Jiangnan, even if the three princes die and their line is wiped out, the next day a Chu official would likely emerge holding an infant claiming it to be a royal heir, which solves nothing. Similarly, if a Chu official wanted to install a puppet to seize power themselves, they wouldn’t need to hire assassins from the martial world; six hundred taels of gold would suffice to bribe palace staff to poison someone. The target can only be the Tianshou King.”
“Doctor really sees through it all,” Meng Qi laughed.
“How can I compare to Brother Meng?”
Du Biaotou, impatient with their mutual admiration, urgently asked, “Why couldn’t the assassination target be the Emperor of Qi?”
“That’s something you’d have to ask the Dragon Head Association,” Meng Qi turned to look at the Dragon Head Association’s accountant.
The accountant hurriedly claimed ignorance.
The leader of Changxin Gang clenched his fist, ready to press for answers, but Meng Qi casually inquired, “How many in the Dragon Head Association are aware of the six hundred taels of gold?”
“This… at least a dozen,” the accountant replied, sweating. He intended to be evasive, but considering the formidable martial prowess of his captors, getting rid of him and capturing another accountant from the Dragon Head Association to press for answers was entirely possible. Their gang wasn’t small, having four or five accountants! He was just unlucky, caught red-handed in front of the gang’s storeroom.
“Haven’t you secretly speculated about the origin of this money and why so much gold was given to Piaoping Pavilion?”
The accountant gave a bitter smile; of course, he had. How much each of the Four Gangs and Twelve Assemblies contributed wasn’t a secret. Suddenly it turned into gold, and so much of it, naturally made everyone suspicious.
“Dragon Head Association has strict rules, we… just think about it, dare not ask, nor do we know the details.”
As soon as the accountant finished speaking, Meng Qi bluntly exposed him, “You dare not bring trouble upon yourself.”
Everyone thought, isn’t that obvious?
“You see, you also know this is trouble, yet all of you who know the details are still alive and well, no one has come to silence you. Dragon Head Association managed to arrange this assassination, but from what you’ve said, I feel they are casual about it, not cautious enough. Such a big transaction, both the employer and the target are significant figures, and they’re not afraid of leaks?”
Meng Qi watched as figures slowly appeared outside the dilapidated temple’s walls, chuckling aloud, “There could be many reasons, like Dragon Head Association’s unreliable handling of matters, or perhaps they deliberately leaked the information. Most likely, both the employer and the target, can’t reach Yuzhou, and it’s hard for the secrets of the local gangs to spread there.”
Mo Li turned to look at the old man slowly stepping into the temple.
The elder was dressed in a brocade robe adorned with auspicious patterns, holding two iron balls in his hand, his beard bristling like iron bristles.
Du Biaotou’s expression shifted slightly, and the leader of Changxin Gang whispered, “That is Elder Cai, the head of Dragon Head Association.”
