Going with the Flow

From Jincheng Prefecture eastward, the Yellow River wound through mostly barren land, with even vast deserts along its banks. But wherever it flowed, people could draw water for irrigation, and the land took on a more civilized appearance.

Chen Wu was no seasoned raftman. Knowing nothing about the Yellow River's currents, he could only let the water carry him downstream, using Concentrated Spirit Realm perception to keep watch beneath the surface and avoid hidden reefs.

Each day, he steered the raft until nightfall, then found somewhere to pull ashore. Fortunately, the raft was light enough for Chen Wu to carry by himself, which made things much easier.

After several days, he'd had a few scares but no real danger, and had entered Yinchuan Prefecture.

Floating down the river, Chen Wu spotted a county town in the distance and couldn't help but consider stopping.

For the past few days, he'd been eating dry rations and drinking cold wine on the raft. The rations were manageable, but his wine was running low.

He drank wine in place of water not because he loved it as much as Wu Chengyi did, but because wine kept better than clean water and was less likely to make him sick.

Now was the perfect time to replenish his supply and enjoy a proper meal as a reward to himself.

With that in mind, he steered the raft ashore, changed his appearance, slung it onto his back, and headed toward the county town.

The passersby didn't find it strange. Rafts like his were used to carry goods downstream, then carried back upstream empty—a common sight along the upper reaches of the Yellow River.

With the raft on his back, Chen Wu paid a copper coin to enter the town and found a tavern. He set down the raft, took out his wineskin, and handed it to the owner.

"Fill this up! Nothing too strong. And slice me half a jin of pig's head meat, and bring me a bowl of soup."

The owner took the silver and realized he had a big spender on his hands, so he hurried to serve him.

He swiftly brought out the pig's head meat and hot soup. When he saw Chen Wu take out his own rations, he piped up with a recommendation.

"Our house specialty is stir-fried Hubo. If you're tired of dry rations, you might like to try it."

"What's stir-fried Hubo?" The name piqued Chen Wu's curiosity.

"It's flatbread sliced into thin strips, braised and stir-fried with vermicelli and mutton."

So it was stir-fried flatbread!

"Our special touch is a secret chili powder and house-made aged vinegar. It's tangy, spicy, and delicious."

"Then bring me a bowl."

The owner was working so hard to sell it that Chen Wu decided to give it a try.

The owner hurried off, and before long returned with a bowl of stir-fried Hubo.

Chen Wu took a close look. It wasn't quite like the stir-fried flatbread strips he remembered. It wasn't dry at all; red oil coated every strand, and the sauce was rich and plentiful.

After years of watching all kinds of food and cooking videos, Chen Wu had long since become a master chef in the comment sections. He immediately understood that the dish was mainly braised in its sauce, rather than quickly stir-fried over high heat.

The tangy aroma wafted into his nose, whetting his appetite. He hurriedly picked up his chopsticks and dug in.

It tasted excellent. Chen Wu finished the whole bowl in one go, only then remembering the untouched pig's head meat beside him.

Just as Chen Wu was about to finish off the meat, a man in a sheepskin coat and fur hat walked over from a nearby table and spoke to him.

"Brother, is that raft outside yours?"

Chen Wu looked up. The man was short, but his clothes were decent. His accent, however, sounded a little like Qiao Weisheng's.

"Are you from Jin Province?"

"I am! I run Guangfalong in the prefectural city. My shop is right beside the Drum Tower."

"Do you want to use my raft?"

"I'd like to hire you to transport a shipment for me."

"What kind of goods?"

"A shipment of medicinal herbs, to be delivered to Jiuyuan Prefecture."

What a coincidence. Jiuyuan Prefecture was Chen Wu's destination, too.

He planned to follow the Yellow River's great bend to Jiuyuan Prefecture, then abandon the raft and travel south overland to Yan'an Prefecture.

That was the headquarters of the Golden Wind and Drizzle Tower!

It was the hometown of Li Zicheng, Great Shun's founding emperor. After the founding of Great Shun, the place had been elevated to prefectural status, much like Fengyang had been made the Ming dynasty's secondary capital.

"Why ask me?"

Chen Wu found it strange. For a long-distance shipment, people usually hired larger rafts. His raft wasn't very big, with only nine hun-tuo. By all rights, few people would want to hire it.

At that, the man smiled bitterly. "I won't lie to you. I truly can't find anyone else. None of the local raftmen are willing to take this job."

"You look like you're from out of town, Brother. Maybe you'd dare to take it."

"Dare?"

The man was about to explain when the owner, busy nearby, spoke up. "Sir, don't get involved in this. Shopkeeper Qin's situation is a huge headache. Everyone in Yinchuan Prefecture is steering clear of it."

Shopkeeper Qin's smile turned even more bitter. "Brother, I won't hide anything from you. Everyone already knows."

"Have you heard of Qiao Weisheng?"

Oh, he knew. He knew all too well.

"I've heard of him. I think he's from Jin Province, too, and very wealthy."

"Word came a few days ago that Qiao Weisheng died in Jincheng Prefecture. Did you know?"

"I didn't." Chen Wu shook his head with absolute conviction.

"Alas—his death has brought me nothing but trouble!" Shopkeeper Qin said. "Qiao Weisheng's Zhong'an Bank is one of the biggest banks in the world. It was listed on the Songjiang Exchange long ago."

"Qiao Weisheng was good at business, too, so Zhong'an Bank's shares were in high demand. I had to pull strings just to buy some."

"Isn't that a good thing?" Chen Wu asked, puzzled.

"The problem is, Qiao Weisheng died a violent death. The share price is bound to plummet."

The more Shopkeeper Qin spoke, the more heartbroken he became. Chen Wu, on the other hand, was more and more confused. "Share prices rise and fall all the time. It's not as if Zhong'an Bank will shut down just because Qiao Weisheng died. If the price falls, so be it. It'll have a chance to rise again. If you haven't sold, you haven't lost anything!"

"Ah, this is my fault, too." Shopkeeper Qin suddenly thumped his chest and stamped his feet. "When Zhong'an Bank's shares were riding high, I used mine as collateral to borrow a large sum of money. I wanted to use it as capital and make a big play."

"Now the shares are about to plunge, and all my creditors have come knocking, demanding that I buy them back."

Oh, Chen Wu understood. The shares had fallen below the margin threshold, and the creditors were demanding their collateral back.

"But all my money went into this shipment of medicinal herbs. I have no way to repay the debt. After begging and pleading, I got the creditors to give me a little more time to sell the herbs in Yunzhong Prefecture and pay them back."

"That's not a problem!" Chen Wu even thought the creditors were being rather reasonable. "You can just sell the herbs, take a small loss, and buy back the shares. That's business. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. It's normal."

"If only it were that simple!" The owner chimed in.

"Boss, you sound like you know the situation well."

"Ha, everyone in Yinchuan Prefecture knows about the man who's bullying Shopkeeper Qin," the owner said. "He's the prefect's third son, nicknamed Little Sha Star. He's a fine martial artist, but can't stand being restrained. He passed the military exam, yet never joined the army."

"He spends all day trading on his prefect father's influence. He claims to do business for the family, but really, all his dealings involve seizing other people's property by force. The prefect dotes on his youngest son and doesn't bother to rein him in."

"That's him! He has his eye on my Guangfalong, and he's waiting for me to run out of cash so he can make his move." Shopkeeper Qin spoke with fury and hatred. "He ordered every raftman in the area not to transport my goods. He's just waiting for me to go bankrupt so he can take Guangfalong."

"The creditors agreed to give me a few more days, but they've taken my family as collateral. If I really can't come up with the money, my wife and children..." As he spoke, Shopkeeper Qin's eyes filled with tears.

"I'm throwing a drowning man's last rope. Brother, now you know the whole story. If you dare take the job, money won't be a problem. I'll even make you a bigger raft to carry the goods. Once we reach Jiuyuan Prefecture, I'll sell the herbs, and the raft will be yours."

"Will you take the job?"