novelAbuy Chapter 057: Subtle and Silent Influence
Chapter 057: Subtle and Silent Influence
Qin Keqing closed the bamboo basket lid and nodded to Manager Wang.
"Tomorrow morning I will go to Beixiang again to see the other two households, and then I will set off for Zhenjiang the day after tomorrow."
"The old servant has already had the deputy commander of the Imperial Guard deliver a letter to Zhenjiang in advance."
Jinbao will also meet you at the ferry, at the usual place." Manager Wang nodded and lit a candle for Qin Keqing.
On August 25, Qin Keqing arrived in Zhenjiang.
Jinbao met her at Jiaoshan Ferry.
The two women embraced briefly by the pier at the ferry crossing, without exchanging any further words.
Then Jinbao took Qin Keqing onto the secret fishing boat leading to Jiaoshan Village. They traveled through the river mist for nearly an hour before finally reaching the reeds where Li Baozang's boat was moored.
Li Bao was squatting at the bow of the boat, smoking a pipe.
In August, the reeds grew taller than a person, and the reed flowers rippled like white waves in the wind.
His left hand was wrapped in a new bandage, with a faint red bloodstain seeping through it.
"It was the new recruits who were practicing with their swords," Li Bao said, tapping his pipe on the gunwale as he saw Qin Keqing looking at him. "It's nothing."
Qin Keqing did not ask him why he hadn't bandaged it properly.
She opened the bamboo basket and pulled out a cloth bag from the bottom. Inside was a clean roll of bandages and a small packet of Panax notoginseng powder.
"Sit down and give me your left hand."
Li Bao opened his mouth as if to say something, but Qin Keqing had already squatted down and spread the bandage on her knees, tearing it to the correct length.
Li Bao hesitated for a moment, but still extended his left hand.
Qin Keqing untied the old bandage, frowned slightly, but did not speak.
She reapplied the medicine and bandaged the wound with steady force, finishing in less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, and tying the knot neatly and cleanly.
"Jinbao told me many times not to let her sister touch the bandages." Li Bao withdrew his hand, lowered his head and avoided looking at her. "If you touch the bandages, it means she's going to run away again. That's how you were in Jiaozhou. Every time you bandaged someone's wounds, you would disappear the next day."
Qin Keqing carefully wrapped the Panax notoginseng powder, put it back in the bamboo basket, and said in a calm voice, "I'm not leaving tomorrow, I'll leave the day after tomorrow."
Li Bao raised his head.
"I have something to tell you before I leave this time."
Qin Keqing briefly explained that the Xiuzhou clan had agreed to help, then took out the booklet filled with tiny characters, turned to the pages related to Zhenjiang, and checked them with Li Bao one by one.
The formation of the surrendered troops at Jiaoshan, the material reserves of various fishing villages, the movements of the remaining forces of the Jiangshui Army, and the three intelligence chiefs newly appointed by the Privy Council in Zhenjiang.
He checked each and every word, and after confirming, he tore up the record right in front of Li Bao.
Next, she pulled out the secret document that Yue Yinping had given to Li Bao before she left.
A list, rewritten on thin sheepskin, lists ten veterans from Xiangyang who were left in Zhenjiang by Yue Yinping to assist in training surrendered soldiers, as well as the coded communication between these veterans and the four hundred former Xiangyang troops.
These ten veterans were stationed in five fishing villages, two in each village. They served as instructors for new recruits and also as long-distance communication points between Li Bao and Xiangyang.
Qin Keqing reorganized the entire communication network, memorizing the location and code words of each contact point, and then destroyed the original sheepskin in front of everyone.
After doing all this, Qin Keqing closed the booklet and said solemnly.
"There will be no major military operations in the next three months."
The surrendered troops at Jiaoshan should not assemble, but continue to use the fishing village as cover and remain dispersed.
But the ten veterans from Xiangyang that Yue Yinping left you should be instructed to intensify their training of new recruits, especially in urban warfare coordination and small boat assaults.
His Highness said the real battle won't begin until next spring; until then, Zhenjiang will remain the scabbard.
"The sword belongs to Yue Yinping's veteran soldiers, and the ammunition comes from Jinbao's pharmacy. All we can do is ensure we have enough ammunition," Li Bao nodded and said.
"Jinbao," Qin Keqing turned to the pharmacy woman leaning against the cabin door, "have your informants at the dock spotted any new faces lately?"
"There were three. One was a clerk from the Zhenjiang Prefectural Government Office. He circled the dock four or five times, always staring at Li Bao's boat, but never getting close."
Two other men, dressed as grain merchants, would come to the dock each time to buy only a very small amount of rice, using the excuse of looking for scales to thoroughly search the ship's hold.
"They should be Qin Hui's men. Don't touch them for now. Let them continue to observe, but bury the truly important things in your pharmacy even deeper."
"Transfer half of your hidden medicinal herbs to Jiaoshan Fishing Village, hiding one box in each village. Don't go through the docks; take the small river channel of Guazhou Ferry." Qin Keqing thought for a moment and then gave her these instructions.
"I'm already doing it." Jinbao knew what Qin Keqing meant. "On the surface, the pharmacy will only keep fritillaria cirrhosa and licorice."
I took out that batch of fake Sichuan fritillary bulbs and placed them on the outermost layer. If they come to inspect, they'll check the fake medicine first.
Qin Keqing's lips curved slightly.
That was a smile she hadn't shown in a long time. Back in Jiaozhou, they had used fake medicinal herbs to fool the dock tax collectors during a surprise inspection.
Now they are using the same methods to deal with Qin Hui's Imperial City Guard.
That night, Qin Keqing did not sleep in the cabin; she and Jinbao went to the largest thatched hut in Jiaoshan fishing village.
Inside were six squad leaders under Li Bao and two veteran instructors left behind by Yue Yinping.
The candlelight flickered in the river breeze, casting its glow on everyone's faces.
Qin Keqing sat among the group of rough-looking warriors, dressed in coarse cloth, her hair wrapped in an indigo cloth. No one dared to move her when she was silent.
But as soon as she opened her mouth, everyone fell silent to listen.
She wasn't giving orders, but the people still treated her with utmost respect. Qin Keqing explained the Privy Council's control over Zhenjiang, the newly appointed head constable Qin Hui had brought in, and the next steps in the intelligence war in Lin'an.
Each piece of intelligence information comes with its source and analysis, down to the date and location.
She checked the clan's liaison network in Xiuzhou, the reorganized death message delivery routes in Lin'an, and the document archives that will be expanded in the old camp in the southern suburbs.
She strung all this information together into a complete map.
Li Bao sat in the corner smoking, the red glow of his cigarette flickering.
He suddenly remembered the little girl who taught him to identify medicinal herbs at the Jiaozhou Wharf years ago.
Back then, she could still smile, her lips curving into a smile like the thin ice melting on the Jiaozhou River in early spring.
She no longer smiles. Time seems to have changed something, but it also seems that nothing has changed.
......
When Qin Keqing returned to Lin'an, it was already the third day of the ninth month.
She brought back the list of seven clan members that Manager Wang had contacted in Xiuzhou, the encryption and update plan for the communication channels between the three places compiled by Jinbao, and the training progress of the surrendered soldiers in Jiaoshan handwritten by Li Bao.
Each document was rewritten with a different code, so even if they were intercepted simultaneously, the complete information could not be pieced together.
When she pushed open the side gate, Shen Qingci was squatting in the yard feeding the cat.
The calico cat lay lazily on the stone steps, its tail drooping down, occasionally brushing against Shen Qingci's skirt.
Shen Qingci looked up when she heard footsteps, and her eyes lit up when she saw Qin Keqing. When she stood up, a small piece of cat food spilled from her knees.
"Miss Qin is back! Are you tired from the journey? The kitchen is keeping some porridge warm for you—" This was the only time he could relax in the Prince's mansion.
Qin Keqing did not stop, but smiled and nodded at her, and then gently pressed her shoulder with her right hand as she passed by.
Then she withdrew her hand, lowered her head, and quickly walked into the cabin.
Shen Qingci stood in the courtyard, looking down at the calico cat that was still licking the cat food on the ground. She suddenly smiled, feeling very relaxed.
That day, after Qin Keqing left, she left her that bundle of silk thread. Now that she's back, it's exactly the same as before she left.
They won't greet you or stop walking, but they might tap your shoulder as they pass by.
Shen Qingci had learned to read something that warmed her heart in this silence.