Chapter 22: Cooperation (Part Two)

After exchanging glances with Tiger of the Town, it was Tiger of the Town who spoke first. "Such rumors are indeed afloat. However, in our gang's grand election, only the elders hold the right to elect the Dragon Head. Operatives like us can only obey orders."

Kou Li gave a faint smile. This was simply speaking sheer nonsense with eyes wide open. These two individuals—one controlled the nine overseas islands of the Water Dragon Gang with countless followers, while the other managed and liaised with the pirate factions directly subordinate to the gang—if they lacked power, then no one could claim to have it.

"Yet I have heard that your gang's Dragon Head Lü nurtures deep ambitions of passing the mantle from father to son."

Guo Fanzi curled her lip. "That little wolf Lü—"

"Young Master Wolf is naturally among the candidates," Tiger of the Town said cautiously.

Kou Li certainly did not care about the internal power struggles within the Water Dragon Gang. He merely used it as a conversational opening. "Who the future Dragon Head will be, no one can say for sure. But I imagine you two must leave yourselves a backup plan. Regardless of whether the candidate you support wins or not, cooperating with the Princess is an enterprise of guaranteed profit and zero loss."

"Pacification is out of the question," Guo Fanzi stated decisively.

"Of course it is not pacification. Following the opening of the six-province commercial thoroughfare, designated major merchants and trading houses will conduct foreign trade, and commercial taxes will be levied accordingly. This is primarily because the tax revenues of the southeast have been hypothecated a dozen years in advance to suppress maritime disasters, leaving the common people impoverished. To put it simply, this is a method of raising taxes."

Kou Li paused briefly, then continued, "Beyond that, a considerable number of officials in the imperial court have proposed downsizing the military in the southeast. Maintaining hundreds of thousands of government troops on the land of a mere few provinces is like driving a nail into the heart of the old Emperor. It sits comfortably with no one."

"Against this backdrop, a massive gang like the Water Dragon Gang spanning multiple provinces will find it exceedingly difficult to survive. Chambers of commerce, high-ranking regional officials, and local troops all wish to shear off a piece of your fleece. Whether it is Dragon Head Lü or the two of you, you should feel this deeply."

Tiger of the Town nodded in deep agreement. "In the past, doing business relied on our reputation across both underworld and orthodox circles. Goods and people would arrive safely as a matter of course. Nowadays, that no longer works. The pirates daring enough to venture inland have all been slaughtered by the man named Hong. Once goods are transported from elsewhere, officialdom takes a slice, and local authorities demand payoffs at every level, shearing away half our profits right off the top. Add in the powerful chambers of commerce and compradors with government backing snapping at our heels—and since you cannot truly sink their ships—all our maritime trade routes are severely squeezed."

"That is precisely why I have always said that old ghost Lü is harboring delusional fantasies," Guo Fanzi chimed in, unable to suppress her grievances. "So much silver, and the moment you wash yourself clean, you are just waiting to be slaughtered by others. An old convicted criminal still dreaming of returning to court—his brain must be rotted!"

Kou Li nodded. In the real pugilistic world, there were no unworldly orthodox sects, only martial artists who ate by virtue of silver. The essence of the Water Dragon Gang was, in truth, a large-scale maritime trade interest group that had risen through a chaotic market environment. Now that the imperial court was beginning to assert control, all manner of commercial original sins were coming to light.

Thus, heading south or advancing north, pointing straight to the core, was in essence corporate restructuring.

Kou Li stood on the shoulders of giants to view the problem, while Young Master Huang understood the court's firsthand policies. Combining the two, they could deduce many extraordinary insights.

The imperial court wished to shed the financial burden of the southeast; local garrison troops led by the Hong family army did not wish to see their power diminished; the island nation of Wa desired to resume maritime trade; Zhu Baozai wished to protect his homeland and his life; the Water Dragon Gang sought transformation; and powerful factional figures like Tiger of the Town and the Rouge Tiger wished not to be stripped of their authority.

In truth, everything boiled down to a single word: profit.

Since that was the case, room for manipulation naturally existed.

"The two of you likely do not know that Princess Feng, serving as the Third-Rank Envoy to Wa, has already submitted a memorial to the imperial court. Once local garrison troops are downsized, coastal defense will inevitably become inadequate. She has requested that beneath the Thoroughfare Commercial Bureau, an independent Armed Commercial Directorate be established to contract the safety of merchant vessels and pacify the seas. Should they encounter pirates, they are empowered to subjugate them by imperial command, requisition official weaponry for use, request official naval vessels for escort, and obtain coastal resupply. Those who defeat major pirates will receive rewards rather than punishment from the government, and may be memorialized as officially recognized righteous citizens."

"What the hell use is that? Which merchant ship could ever be a match for pirates—" Fish-Head Wolf muttered under his breath. However, Tiger of the Town had caught the underlying meaning; his gaze grew increasingly brilliant, and his hands even began to tremble involuntarily.

"Your Excellency... Your Excellency means that if we join this so-called Armed Commercial Directorate, alongside the nation's designated thoroughfare merchants, we can attack whomever we please? And whoever we attack becomes a pirate, with the government backing us up?"

"Furthermore, the provisions aboard pirate vessels shall be deemed contraband spoils, and the cut will be distributed as rewards for the deeds of righteous citizens," Kou Li paused. " Vast though the Central Plains may be, the boundless ocean is perhaps a hundred or a thousand times larger than the mountains and rivers of the Central Plains. Countless islands exist, and territories comparable to the Central Plains may well be found among them. With such a heaven and earth, are you truly telling me it is not vast enough for the two of you to exercise your ambitions?"

Fish-Head Wolf seemed to have grasped the idea as well, his mind full of questions. "Why does this sound so damn bizarre? We go from being hunted down by government troops to—turning into government troops ourselves?"

The corners of Kou Li's mouth lifted slightly. Such a method had never appeared in the Central Plains, but in the West of the previous world, it had influenced nearly an entire century. This practice had a resounding name: Letters of Marque, and these commercial righteous citizens had another designation: 'legalized pirates' or 'royal privateers.'

Imperial dynasties of the Central Plains—no, all continental regimes—held a simple and brutal policy toward overseas territories, boiling down to two words: 'suppression' or 'pacification.' Yet whether suppressing or pacifying, both imposed heavy burdens of manpower and financial resources on the court.

This was, in truth, a common ailment of great dynasties, which never thought to leverage external forces. Only in the intensely competitive environment of island nations would those in power choose such 'compromise' measures.

Driven by profit, pirates transformed into navigators, who then evolved into colonists, and following that came the curtain-raising of an era.

Of course, this was far too distant for the wolf and tiger before him, and it carried too many uncertainties. Yet even now, a sufficiently large pie had been drawn, enough to make these two fellows salivate with greed.

For no other reason than that this fit their plans of rooting themselves overseas far too well. It was akin to a greenhorn visiting a pleasure house for the first time; before even figuring out the ropes, he is suddenly told that the chief courtesan has taken a fancy to him and invited him to her chambers to admire the flowers.

Such a prospect was enough to make them howl with excitement and surge with hot blood.

After a long while, Tiger of the Town reined in his fantasies, drew several deep, ragged breaths, and said with a solemn voice, "Such a monumental undertaking cannot possibly be as simple as you make it sound."

"Of course not. There are indeed numerous troubles. First, as you transition from sea bandits to law-abiding citizens, local officials will naturally be unwilling to let go of the duck at their lips. Second, major chambers of commerce and wealthy tycoons will likewise be displeased, for your actions may sever their financial lifelines, and working against you in the shadows is a certainty. Third, throughout successive dynasties, there has never been such a historical precedent or ancient method to follow. Without precedent, it amounts to an unforgivable crime in the eyes of some; orthodox censors in the imperial court will certainly submit memorials of censure, for dynastic governance has always prized moral transformation above all, and this is not virtuous governance, but an evil deed."

"Fourth, and most importantly, the Central Plains has always fancied itself the Celestial Empire, taking the four seas as its domain, with myriad nations paying homage as the ultimate manifestation of great governance. The moment you attack the vessels of other nations and foreign envoys lodge protests, the court's institutional habit of prioritizing surface appearances over actual substance will likely prompt officials to submit memorials demanding the reinstitution of maritime bans."

"Those damned old scoundrels in official robes, ruining our grand prospects for no reason!" Fish-Head Wolf gnashed his teeth and slammed his thigh, seemingly having entirely immersed himself in the scenario.

"Grand Superintendent, you've said so much, surely you aren't just here to tell us an impossible outcome?" Tiger of the Town demanded immediately, a trace of anxiety bleeding into his tone.

"When fortune arrives, heaven and earth lend their strength; when fortune departs, even heroes lack freedom." Kou Li drew a deep breath and said, "Normally speaking, the imperial court would never take such a course of action. But you happen to have caught the timing; right now is the finest of seasons."

"First, the imperial court urgently needs to resolve the southeast tax revenues, and national policy must inevitably possess elements of expediency. What was impossible before may well be feasible now."

"Second, if the military is downsized, local military strength will inevitably suffer. But if this policy succeeds, the Commercial Directorate will fund a portion of the official troops, and local commanders may well be pleased to see this happen."

"Third, to push this policy forward, figures of sufficient weight in the imperial court must champion it. Do not forget what stands behind Princess Feng: imperial relatives, maternal kin, and the one upon the dragon throne. As long as you can plunder sufficient wealth and have the Princess smooth the way, they will become your greatest backing within the court. The true masters of this world are, after all, not the civil and military officials seen on the surface."

"The old Emperor is short on silver too?" Guo Fanzi asked incredulously. Perhaps in the minds of all ancients, the Emperor sat high above, possessing all within the four seas.

"That person sits enthroned over the realm and possesses all things, but how could you know how many coins are in his state treasury versus his private coffers?" Kou Li mocked. Reading history books extensively made one understand that quite a few emperors in history had died in poverty.

Moreover, since ancient times, many emperors had instituted maritime bans, while those who opened maritime trade seemed exceedingly few. His greatest confidence in this policy lay in that supreme ruler on the imperial throne; perhaps that person's breadth of mind could accommodate such flexibility.

At the very least, he felt that based on the other party's past actions, substance mattered far more to him than superficial appearances.

"You also mentioned that once our actions grow too grand and we plunder minor foreign states, the court might reinstitute the maritime ban?"

"Having spent so many years in Guangdong, are you still unclear whether the primary culprits behind the maritime disasters in the southeast are Wa swordsmen, domestic pirates, or—the major maritime merchants of the southeast coast standing behind the pirates?" Kou Li said with profound meaning. "People of the Central Plains naturally cannot launch unprovoked attacks against minor foreign states, but the actions of the Wa nation are quite unrelated to us."

"Not only do we have Princess Feng, but we also have Princess Sakura, do we not?"

...

Half an hour later, Kou Li returned to his own vessel, the two ships gradually drifting apart.

"Settled?" Young Master Huang had already begun to doze off.

Kou Li curled his lip. "Two illiterate roughnecks—weren't they easy enough to hoodwink?"

Sometimes, a sharp tongue truly could triumph over a myriad troops. Such a grand foundation was not built on trickery alone.