Chapter 62: The Arrival of the Vernal Equinox

Shortly after the awakening of insects, the weather in the northern regions began to grow warmer, and the wild grass in the fields started turning green. Outside Yancheng, the common people were still enthusiastically digging tunnels with great fervor. Inside the city, all the workshops were running at full throttle, intensifying production and manufacturing. Horse-drawn carriages rolled out from various directions toward Yancheng; some carried coal, others transported salt and grain, and still others departed from Yancheng to various destinations.

Zhao Bin inspected the bow and crossbow workshop every few days to check on the manufacturing progress. The time was growing increasingly tight, and with each passing warmer day, the plundering by the Jie tribe drew closer. It was imperative to distribute the crossbows to the common people outside the city before the snow on the grasslands melted, ensuring they had the means for self-defense.

Just as Yancheng was bustling with continuous activity everywhere, two fast horses galloped in from outside the city. From their attire and gear, they were clearly imperial messengers. After identifying themselves at the city gate, they rode straight into the city and headed toward the Prince of Yan’s Mansion.

Zhao Bin placed the letter in his hand on the desk, prompting Cao Li and He Miao, who stood nearby, to ask, "Your Highness, what is the imperial court's decree?"

"Nothing much. The court has newly established a Salt Monopoly Guard, commanded by Prince Heng. They want the coastal residents to produce salt by solar evaporation and require us to send people to teach them the technique."

Upon hearing this, Cao Li's expression turned considerably darker. "If the imperial court manages to master the technique of refining salt, what will happen to our salt business?"

"Rest assured. The court's intention is to have the coastal residents handle the solar evaporation of salt, after which all the crude salt will be transported to Yancheng for us to process uniformly," Zhao Bin replied calmly.

"I see."

"Old Cao, don't you think our current way of doing things is far too inefficient?" Zhao Bin pondered for a moment before turning his gaze to Cao Li.

"Too inefficient? Does Your Highness wish to go straight to the coast to refine salt? But if we do that, the salt-refining technique will easily be leaked," Cao Li pointed out.

"No, no, we have fundamentally headed in the wrong direction from the very beginning," Zhao Bin said, tapping the desk with one hand.

"Think about it, what are we refining salt for?"

"To make money," Cao Li and He Miao answered in unison.

"Making money is correct, but at this rate, even if we put everyone in Yancheng into salt refining, we wouldn't make all that much. Our primary objective is to make ourselves strong. What we are currently opposing are the Xue, Zhang, and Dai families, while guarding against the Fang and Liu families on the coast. If we truly want to contend against the three great families, we must unite with the Fang and Liu families and pull them over to our side. This will serve two purposes: first, it will divert the attention of the three families away from us; second, with the support of the Fang and Liu families, our salt production will increase exponentially, and they will also reap tremendous benefits."

"But once the Fang and Liu families master the technique of refining fine salt, what happens if they go back on their word and kick us out?"

"Naturally, we won't be the ones stepping forward to do this ourselves. Instead, we will let the imperial court unite with the Fang and Liu families. Since the court wants to establish the Salt Monopoly Guard, we might as well set them up across Hebei Circuit, Shandong Circuit, and Jiangnan Circuit. We provide the technology, the court takes charge of administration, and the localities handle production. That way, we will have the opportunity to squeeze the three families out of the salt market," Zhao Bin said.

"This subordinate still believes there are risks. The only capital we currently have to negotiate with the imperial court is the fine-salt refining technique. Once the technique leaks, we will lose our sole leverage. Should the court and the Fang and Liu families renege, we will be left with nothing," He Miao said with a heavy expression.

"Indeed, Your Highness. Right now, the Crown Prince and the First Prince are contending for the throne. No matter who ultimately prevails, they will likely kick us out of the game," Cao Li added.

"Both of you understand what I mean, but consider this: if we do not cooperate with the Fang and Liu families now, the future outcome will likely be even worse."

Hearing this, Cao Li and He Miao were momentarily struck speechless. They had never considered this perspective before. If they hadn't followed the Prince of Yan in refining fine salt from the start, perhaps they could have escaped unscathed. But now, they had already infringed upon the interests of the Zhang and Xue families, so the outcome was naturally different. No matter which prince ascended the throne, the factions behind them would likely show no mercy. At this thought, a cold sweat broke out across their backs.

Cao Li hesitated for a moment before saying, "This subordinate understands. May I ask if Your Highness has any other plans?"

Zhao Bin did not answer; instead, he gave Cao Li a meaningful look. Cao Li immediately realized he shouldn't have asked and quickly said, "Please forgive me, Your Highness, it was a slip of the tongue."

"Since we have already clashed with the three families, we must move quickly. Neither of your concerns is wrong; both the court and the Fang and Liu families might push us out, but for now, we have no choice but to take a gamble."

"This subordinate will obey Your Highness's every instruction," Cao Li bowed and stated.

"This subordinate as well."

Subsequently, the men discussed the details. Zhao Bin then penned a family letter to Imperial Noble Consort Ding. The contents of the letter largely concerned the method of salt reform, detailing his thoughts on uniting with the Fang and Liu families and how to implement the system clearly and thoroughly. He also meticulously analyzed the pros and cons of the matter, though this time, the analysis was approached from the perspective of the imperial court.

Simultaneously, Zhao Bin wrote two additional letters: one to the Minister of War, Fang Shutong, and the other to the Minister of Works, Liu Wenda. The contents of both letters were largely similar. They detailed the massive annual revenues the Zhang, Xue, and Dai families reaped from selling salt, compared to which the Fang and Liu families paled in significance. Although the Fang and Liu families possessed their own industries, they were far inferior to the other three in terms of salt revenue. The Prince of Yan had mastered the fine-salt refining method and wished to cooperate with the two families to increase fine-salt production, jointly resisting the monopoly of the other three families in the salt market. With the superior quality of the fine salt, they could easily capture the market share of the three families, thereby strengthening the power of the Fang and Liu families. This move held only benefits and no drawbacks for them. If the Fang and Liu families agreed, the Prince of Yan guaranteed he would find a way to persuade the Emperor to allocate thirty to forty percent of the profits to the two houses. In return, the two families would need to defend the Prince of Yan's safety in the imperial court as much as possible.

Two days later, Yancheng Prefect Cao Li, under the protection of Lu Biao, quietly left Yancheng accompanying the convoy transporting fine salt. Such a task could not be entrusted to ordinary messengers; it required someone of status who could genuinely represent the Prince of Yan.

After a month of excavation, the tunnels in the villages and towns around Yancheng had begun to take shape. Although they fell far short of connecting every village and household, they were basically sufficient as defensive, evasive, and escape facilities. Qin Fang's scout camp conducted field reconnaissance and drills on the western and northern fronts every day, and Zhao Bin generously handed over twenty telescopes to Qin Fang. Upon receiving the telescopes, Qin Fang could hardly believe his eyes, almost tumbling off the city wall. With this device, across the open plains, they could observe movements two kilometers away, allowing them to detect the Jie tribe's motions in a timely manner and make defensive or even offensive preparations in advance.

On the eleventh day of the second month, accompanied by a distant bell chime echoing through Yancheng, the vernal equinox officially arrived. The villagers in various towns stepped out of their homes and headed toward the fields. The equinox marked the beginning of spring and the commencement of farming. Aside from those still mining in the mountains, the remaining able-bodied peasants led oxen and shouldered iron plows out to the fields. Yancheng's goal this year was to expand production, and the prefectural office had long posted notices encouraging people to reclaim wasteland. Every household was required to expand their cultivated land area by two to threefold compared to the previous year, and those lacking tools or seeds could apply at the prefectural office.

As a modern-day time-traveler, Zhao Bin was acutely aware of the paramount importance of food security. Thus, from the moment he arrived in Yancheng—or rather, from the moment he entered the territory of Hebei Circuit—he realized the hidden dangers surrounding the grain issue. Consequently, on one hand, he bartered for oxen and horses; on the other, he cast iron plows while continuously dispatching men to purchase grain. His sole purpose was to safeguard Yancheng's food security. Whether in times of war or when confronting natural disasters, having ample provisions guaranteed survival to a certain extent.

"This humble maiden, Lin Yao, pays her respects to Your Highness." A delicate voice drifted into Zhao Bin's ears. Crouched on the ground and tinkering with something, Zhao Bin turned his head at the sound and saw a pretty figure standing behind him.

Lin Yao had changed her attire; she no longer wore her hair in two buns as she used to, but instead coiled it upward into a floating-cloud chignon.

"Oh, little girl, it's you," Zhao Bin smiled and teased.

"Your Highness, Yao'er is no longer a little girl. I have reached womanhood, and you cannot call me that anymore," Lin Yao shook her head and said.

Zhao Bin curled his lips. "You only reach up to my chin, if not a little girl, what else should I call you?"

"A woman who has reached fifteen is an adult, not a little girl. Your Highness, you can call me Yao'er; it sounds much warmer, hee-hee," Lin Yao said with a playful expression.

"Tell me, why are you here? Where are your grandfather and your father?" Zhao Bin asked as he stood up and walked toward the front hall.

"My grandfather is reading at home, and my father has gone to the prefectural office," Lin Yao replied, following behind Zhao Bin.

Zhao Bin glanced back at her and asked, "You haven't answered the first half of my question yet."

Lin Yao blinked, purposely averting her gaze, and stammered, "I... I..."

Seeing her like this, Zhao Bin stopped teasing her. "Forget it, Ling'er and Cui'er are in the backyard. You can go find them there."

"I... I am not here to find Sister Ling'er and Sister Cui'er, I am here to find Your Highness," Lin Yao stammered before speaking up boldly.

Zhao Bin looked surprised. "Find me? What are you looking for me for?"

Twiddling her fingers, Lin Yao fidgeted and said, "Well..."

"Well, what?"

"Well, I mean today is the vernal equinox, and with the equinox, spring has arrived. Your Highness, why don't we go out to enjoy the spring scenery?"

"Humph, you certainly have a lot of nerve. Do you know how dangerous it is to go out of the city to play right now? The Jie tribe could attack at any moment."

"Then we won't go far, just stay near Yancheng, won't that do? If the Jie tribe comes, we can just hurry back into the city," Lin Yao seemed reluctant to give up.

Ignoring the young girl, Zhao Bin walked straight into the front hall. Inside, He Miao and several officials were busy working. Seeing the officials at work, Lin Yao did not dare speak further and simply followed Zhao Bin in silence. As Zhao Bin entered, He Miao stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, the vernal equinox is here, and the people are busy reclaiming and turning over the soil, but most of them are old folk, women, and children. Should we recall a portion of the men from the mines?"

Seated in his chair, Zhao Bin replied, "I had the very same thought. The iron ore we have stockpiled should be enough for the next half year. Send word to have the common people return to till the fields first."

"Understood, this subordinate will dispatch messengers immediately," He Miao answered.

"By the way, why hasn't Wei Xiang shown up these past few days?"

"Reporting to Your Highness, Commander Wei has been inspecting the countryside over the past few days and has not returned to the city. Shall this subordinate send someone to call him back?"

"Yes, call him back. A new batch of crossbows has been manufactured in the workshop; have Wei Xiang distribute them and intensify training, ensuring everyone masters the use of the crossbows before the Jie tribe arrives."

A few days later, hundreds of common people gathered once again beneath the walls of Yancheng. This time, however, there was no grand banquet. After the mansion distributed wages for the past month or so, the people dispersed to their respective homes.