Wang Zeng put away his smile and said seriously, "Where would you like to start from, Second Master?"
Yang Ge thought for a moment and said softly, "Start with how you got involved with Geng Jingzhong."
Wang Zeng: "That’s a long story."
Yang Ge: "Then give me the short version."
Wang Zeng: ...
He took a deep breath and began slowly, "Geng Jingzhong had connections with all kinds of pirates from Wei who roamed the seas. It was after Wang consolidated those small-time, undiscerning pirates that Geng Jingzhong sent people to find me..."
Yang Ge interrupted him, "Didn’t you just say that you once assisted Prince Ning in suppressing the Wokou along the coast? Tell me the whole story, don’t think about withholding half of it. I can judge for myself what really happened!"
Wang Zeng: "This..."
He hesitated, not opening his mouth for a long time.
Yang Ge furrowed his brow: "Hard to say?"
Wang Zeng answered honestly: "I dare not say."
Yang Ge relaxed his brow: "Then do you think, with all I’ve done, is it enough for me to die?"
Wang Zeng looked at him and replied, "For someone else, it would be enough a hundred times over!"
Yang Ge: "But I’m still alive, aren’t I?"
Wang Zeng shook his head: "Wang doesn’t have the abilities Second Master has!"
Yang Ge added, "I might not be able to protect you, but I can make sure no one dares to touch you."
Wang Zeng: "Including Prince Ning?"
Yang Ge: "Including Prince Ning!"
Wang Zeng closed his mouth again and pondered for a long time before saying, "Does Second Master know when Wei’s sea ban began?"
Yang Ge did know. When he had investigated corruption cases in Jiangzhe, he had looked up the relevant information, "If I remember correctly, it seems to have started in the second year of Jianping, right?"
Wang Zeng nodded: "Indeed, it started in the second year of Jianping, but in fact... the smuggling of goods overseas among the common folk has never stopped for a single day."
Yang Ge nodded in agreement: "As expected."
Wang Zeng continued, "At the beginning, the smuggling was mainly organized by royal relatives and nobles in secret, and the threat from Dongying in the southeastern coast also arose at that time. Later, when Prince Ning governed Ninghai and dealt with the Wokou, he cut off these private smuggling operations as well."
"Just when too many people from the civilian population were involved in the smuggling, reducing the profits of the merchants, those royal relatives and nobles stopped organizing smuggling ships themselves. Instead, they took control of the major firms in Jiangzhe, monopolized the supply, and made money without lifting a finger..."
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Yang Ge, sensing what Wang Zeng was about to say, waved him off and then turned to Yang Tiansheng, "Big Brother, could you please check on the kitchen? Arrange a feast for Wang Cheng to welcome him at noon!"
Yang Tiansheng, who was listening with keen interest, was startled...
He felt like blowing his top, yet Yang Ge had called him Big Brother!
But not to retaliate felt just as suffocating.
Yang Ge stood up and patted his shoulder, "Listen, knowing too much about these broken affairs is bad for you!"
Yang Tiansheng reluctantly stood up and walked towards the door. Halfway there, he couldn’t suppress his feelings and turned back, "Yang Ge..."
Yang Ge nodded offhandedly, "I know, I know I should die for it. Go on now!"
Yang Tiansheng: ...
He glared at Yang Ge and left, slamming the door with a bang.
Seeing this, Wang Zeng forced a smile, "The camaraderie between Second Master and Yang is truly enviable!"
Yang Ge tapped the table, "Continue."
Wang Zeng took a deep breath and went on, "Later, the smuggling routes fell into the hands of Prince Ning and the Zhe Faction. At that time, their own people were involved in the smuggling, and the Wokou raiding the coast were also their people."
"Until Old Wang made a name for himself in Dongying, cleaned up those insignificant Wokou and pirates along our southeastern coast, Prince Ning and the Zhe Faction’s people found me, Old Wang, to work for them."
"I refused to engage in such disloyal trade, but who doesn’t love money? So I accepted their business of escorting their merchant ships in and out."
Yang Ge: "So you mean, these years you’ve been making money in partnership with Prince Ning and the Zhe Faction, right?"
Wang Zeng emphasized, "Wang only earned some hard-earned money for running errands, nothing else. I knew nothing and kept my hands clean of everything else!"
Yang Ge: "What about this time? Does this affair involve Prince Ning?"
Wang Zeng: "No, Old Wang has long been at odds with Prince Ning!"
Yang Ge: "How so?"
Wang Zeng: "Back when the Dongying Wokou ravaged the southeastern coast, nobody could conduct business. Prince Ning sent people to ask Old Wang to help him exterminate those Wokou and promised that afterwards, he would recommend Old Wang for the position of Naval Commander. But after Old Wang risked his life, Prince Ning went back on his word and abandoned me once his use for me had ended. Since then, Old Wang has gone his separate way from Prince Ning, and I have neither looked for him nor interfered with his business again."
Yang Ge thought for a moment, then replied noncommittally, "So this time, it’s just Geng Jingzhong acting as the middleman?"
Wang Zeng: "That old man told me that if Old Wang’s men just went ashore for a tour and helped him pressure the court to open up the sea for trade, he would negotiate a chance of amnesty for Old Wang and even promised me a position as Commander, saying he would allocate Zhoushan to Old Wang as a naval fortress..."
Yang Ge suddenly laughed, "You don’t think I would believe you’d trust such empty promises, do you?"
Wang Zeng remained silent for a long time with a flickering gaze, before finally speaking cautiously, "To inform Second Master, Zhoushan... has always been the private market for their overseas trade, as well as the location of Old Wang’s naval base in Wei."
Yang Ge smiled, "That makes more sense."
Wang Zeng bowed, "Second Master is discerning, Wang admires you greatly!"
Yang Ge: "Cut the flattery, and get on with it."
Wang Zeng: "As for what happened next, Second Master should already be aware. Old Wang, in hopes of earning a chance to serve the court, accepted that old man’s offer, thinking that after all, it was just a stroll on land, no looting; and if it could really expedite the lifting of the sea ban, it would be beneficial both publicly and privately."