The Most Powerful Young Master of the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 17: The Unbeatable Talker

“How did he break his word?” Wang Bang asked in astonishment. Bai Yutang replied, “On the surface, he reached an agreement with you, but with the mindset of a crooked merchant, he secretly planned to send someone to spy on the Wang family’s secret chicken-raising recipe.” Wang Bang couldn’t help but freeze in surprise. As for Old Chen, he stared at Wang Bang with a deathly pale face, too afraid to speak, yet looking as if he were begging for mercy. This time, Wang Bang spoke in a slightly softer tone: “I’m not so easily manipulated. I’m better at handling this sort of thing than you are. You’re meddling way too much—the Wang family’s affairs don’t need you to stick your nose in.” Bai Yutang eyed Wang Bang with malice and said, “You’re the one overthinking this. Whether your Wang family lives or dies has nothing to do with me. I’m not doing this to stand up for you—I just hate people like that, and I enjoy tormenting them.” So Wang Bang quickly shut up again. Seeing him resort to “silence is golden” once again, Bai Yutang had nowhere to vent his frustration, so he shot Old Chen a malicious look and said, “Do you think it’s unfair that you lost an ear?” Old Chen thought she was nothing short of a bandit—that was the greatest injustice of all. “It was just a thought, something I said offhand, and yet you overheard it, had me tied up and brought here to have my ear cut off. I wonder if this really counts as ‘trouble arising from one’s own words’?” “There are rumors on the street that someone in Niujia Village also had their ear cut off. Was that your doing too?” Wang Bang chimed in again. “It was me,” Bai Yutang said matter-of-factly. “He was peeping on a widow while she was bathing—he deserved it.” “You’ve set up a makeshift court…” Before he could finish, Wang Bang noticed a flush spreading across her face and fell silent, taking a few steps back. Seeing that the young man actually knew fear, Bai Yutang’s expression softened slightly as she said, “Bao Zheng wiped out my Xankong Island on a whim—what does that make him?” “Well… it seems what he said really is the law,” Wang Bang replied, looking somewhat awkward. Bai Yutang was reasonably satisfied with his attitude and asked curiously, “That look on your face—are you feeling sympathy for my Xankong Island?” “No way. Just like how your wounding of Old Chen has nothing to do with my Wang family, I just don’t like that old Bao—I’m not speaking up for you guys,” Wang Bang said. “You…” Bai Yutang was annoyed again. “Come on. You Five Rats have taken over Xankong Island like a bunch of bullies, forcing the islanders to grow crops as tribute to feed you, with estates and courtyards all over the place. Yet you haven’t paid a single penny to the imperial court—it would be strange if Old Bao let you off the hook,” Wang Bang said. Bai Yutang replied coldly, “That’s the empire we’ve built—every blade of grass and every stone.” “Where’s the official permit? Which government office authorized it? When bandits in a mountain stronghold rob people, they say, ‘I planted this tree.’ Did you plant the trees on Xankong Island? Did you create the mountains and the land yourselves?” Wang Bang spoke in a pedantic tone: “If the ancestors of you Five Rats had lived there for generations upon generations, planting trees and building towers—and if that history predates the Zhao Song dynasty—then you may seek redress from my father. I guarantee that Wang Anshi will take you to the capital to file a petition with the emperor, bring down Bao Zheng, and definitely help you reclaim Xankong Island. But the fact is, you are not the original inhabitants. After my Taizu Emperor founded the dynasty, he proclaimed that ‘all land under heaven belongs to the Crown’; those who objected were to be judged in a martial trial. Once those who objected had all perished, the rest, having no further objections, accepted the agreement that ‘all land under heaven belongs to the Crown.’ Given that this agreement is already in place, you Five Rats are merely transients on Xankong Island—you’ve forcibly occupied the Zhao family’s land without official permission and built your own houses there. If you, Bai Yutang, were the imperial court, what would you think?” Bai Yutang paused, taken aback. Wang Bang continued, “Bao Zheng didn’t actually kill anyone—he’s quite meticulous when it comes to doing the dirty work. He merely sent Zhan Zhao to goad you into a fit of rage, causing you to chase after that cat for three thousand li. Once he’d gotten rid of you—the one with the worst temper—Old Bao sent men to build the houses while simultaneously manipulating and persuading your older brothers. Isn’t that a perfect outcome?” “Despicable!” Bai Yutang exclaimed. “Taking advantage of someone’s vulnerability. My brothers are straightforward—they don’t have the devious schemes of you corrupt officials. For the safety of the islanders, they ultimately compromised. Afterward, five hundred Imperial Guards were stationed on Xankong Island and began building government compounds on a massive scale. That old man Gongsun is a master at sowing discord; the islanders no longer trust us founders. This victory is ill-gotten, all because that imperial lackey, Zhan Zhao, tricked me away. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have been this easy.” “Sister Bai, your imagination really runs wild. The islanders aren’t idiots. A crow’s head is as black as a pig’s—we’re all just exploiting each other. Of course the islanders will go to the bigger shops and side with the government. Are you really trying to force them? As for the Imperial Guards building houses and the county office—so what? Let’s set aside for now whether that land belongs to the Zhao family—but I’m certain it doesn’t belong to you either. Let’s just consider it ownerless for the time being. If you Five Rats can go build houses there, why do you think the authorities can’t?” Wang Bang said. Bai Yutang’s face turned ashen as he said, “Now that the county office has been built over there, the islanders all follow the authorities’ orders—even my brothers have been forced to comply.” Wang Bang replied, “Didn’t the islanders obey you when you were here? The government and you are no different from a crow and a pig’s head—scratch them or wash them, and they’re both just as white. You Five Rats may have a reputation for chivalry, but Bao Zheng’s reputation as the ‘Impartial Judge’ is known throughout the land. So let’s not blame each other. Whoever best represents the interests of the vast majority of the common people is the one who calls the shots. Now that the islanders of Xankong Island follow the authorities, it seems you haven’t won the hearts of the people. I wouldn’t dare speak ill of you; it’s just that Bao Zheng has done a better job than you and enjoys a greater reputation. A loss is a loss—there’s no point in arguing over the principle that ‘the victor is the king, the vanquished the bandit.’ ” Wang Bang concluded, “Since none of us are entirely blameless, let’s not quibble over right and wrong. I’ll ask just one thing: Now that the Song Dynasty has existed for nearly a century, and the notion that ‘all under heaven belongs to the sovereign’ is deeply ingrained in people’s minds—your failure to raise any objections means you’ve accepted the authority of the Zhao dynasty. Under these circumstances, without official permission, you Five Rats have seized Xankong Island…” At this point, Wang Bang pointed to Old Chen’s ear lying on the ground and said, “Sister Bai, in this web of grudges and entanglements, who is the one who has ‘broken their word and betrayed their principles’?” Bai Yutang grew flustered. Being a woman, her thoughts were in disarray at that moment, and she felt a sense of grievance at being misunderstood. Her eyes reddened, and a glimmer of tears shone in her beautiful eyes. Wang Bang assessed the situation with a sly glance; it looked like he was going to win this one too. So he said timidly, “So, Jin Mao, I’m just a lowly kid whose words carry little weight. If I said something wrong and upset you, please don’t chop me up.” Bai Yutang felt her vision go dark; the world began to spin, and she was so frantic she felt like she was about to spit blood. He’d finally gotten himself into a real pickle—could it be that I, Bai Yutang, was actually the very type of person I hated most? Suddenly, a cold gleam flashed, and with a whoosh, Bai Yutang drew his sword once more. “You’re being a fool again!” This time, Wang Bang was so scared his legs went a little weak. After all, Xiu Cai are always afraid of running into people like this, aren’t they? But after analyzing the situation, she concluded that this kind of person was quite aloof and likely preferred those with backbone rather than those who were cowardly. So, as Old Chen cried out, “Spare my life!” Wang Bang’s resolve shifted in an instant; she figured that by putting on an act of having backbone, she’d have a better chance of surviving. She had to project a different demeanor from Old Chen, that spineless coward. That way, if Jin Mao went on a rampage and had to kill one of them, it would most likely be Old Chen she’d slaughter—not little Old Wang.