Chapter 23: Unifying the Army (Part 1)

  This was the winter of the third year of the Zhenghe era in the Great Song Dynasty, and the third year of the Tianqing era in Liao. The Jurchen Wanyan tribe fell into a brief sorrow, for they had just lost a benevolent Dujielie. However, they all secretly became excited again, because they had obtained a brave and martial Dujielie.

  The Jurchen people already had the heart to betray Liao and stand alone, but at this time the high-ranking officials of Liao were still in a state of confusion and unaware of the awakening. The minister in charge of Jurchen affairs in the northern border of Liao, Ashibo, heard the news of Wuyashu's death and came to ask why the funeral message was not reported, but was bluntly rejected by Aguda.

  Before Ah Si left, he heard a tall and majestic horse whinnying in front of Wu Ya Shuo's gate. It was Wu Ya Shuo's beloved steed, which looked extremely spirited! He gazed at it for a while before leaving.

  Yang Yingqi watched with a cold eye, thinking to himself: "Wuya Shu is dead and Abaoji hasn't reported it yet, this isn't like the 'Liao State Governor' at all. The Jurchen people's rebellious intentions are already very clear! This Khitan envoy has a pig brain! He actually still can't sense the danger! He's still thinking about getting his hands on the dead man's horse!"

  After a few days, Axi Ba came again, this time directly to Uya's steed, and seeing that he liked it, he wanted to take it away. Ah Gu Da saw that the Liao envoy, who was used to being arrogant and domineering, was so rude, his elder brother was still in mourning and he wanted to seize the deceased's belongings, a nameless fire burned three thousand feet high, and he got up to kill him. Zong Xiong and Zhe Yan rushed to hold him back, whispering words of persuasion.

  Zong Han stepped forward and coaxed the horse to calm down, when suddenly the horse let out a mournful whinny. Its two ears had already been cut off by Zong Xiong. Ah Si Bao was shocked, and saw Zong Xiong holding the two bloody ears saying: "This horse is ill, so its ears must be cut off. A sick horse is an inauspicious gift to others, it's better to keep it for Father's burial instead."

  Ah Si Bao listened and went back with a gloomy face.

  In the past, the Jurchen Wanyan tribe would select its own leader and then accept investiture from the Liao state to become a military governor. However, after Wuyashu's death, the appointment of Aguda was delayed, causing the Jurchens to become even more disaffected with the Liao state.

  Zhe Yan Chong and others held a meeting. Yang Yingqi said: "Dou Bobi has already had the heart of betraying Liao and standing alone, what do you all think?"

  Zhe Yan Chong said: "We have a feud with Liao and kinship with Jurchen. If war breaks out, I will certainly ride my horse at the forefront."

  "Right!"

  Xiao Tienu and Ouyang Shi were both fond of war and echoed each other's voices.

  Ts'ao Kuan-te said: "If we are going to attack the Liao people, I have no opinion."

  "But we must make good preparations."

  Yang Yingqi said: "The preparations have three aspects. Firstly, the training of personnel, which we have never slackened. Secondly, the gathering of grain, grass, materials and weapons, as the Jurchen people are required to bring their own supplies when they go out to battle, these things will take some time for us to prepare. Thirdly, intelligence, over the past few months, I, my second brother and Mr. Di have trained ten people who can draw maps. I will find a way to place them in various merchant teams to gather intelligence on all parts of Liao State."

  Yang Yingqi knew some standardized knowledge of map drawing, Cao Guangbi was good at reconnaissance, and Di Yu knew the key points and terrain overview of the Northeast. Of the ten people they trained, five had already gone out with Zhao Guan's business, while the other five were still waiting for orders.

  Zhao Guan actually saw through Yang Yingqi's moves, but he also turned a blind eye. These excellent businessmen had a sense of smell that was a hundred times more sensitive than the officials of Liao State regarding the future direction of Northeast China. In their view, it was possible that Jurchen would become their new backing in the near future.

  In the fourth year of the Song Dynasty's Zhenghe era, and the fourth year of the Liao Dynasty's Tianqing era - this was destined to be a tumultuous autumn, yet the first half of the year was surprisingly quiet. The ruler of Liao continued to travel about, indulging in pleasure trips. Upon learning of the ruler's itinerary, Yang Yingji couldn't help but feel that he and Emperor Huizong of Song were a match made in heaven: "Both men possess artistic talent, yet are so ill-suited to be emperors - especially during times of impending turmoil!"

  In March, the Luli workshop produced high-purity glass, and the styles of glass products became increasingly rich. After watching, Zhao also acknowledged that the Han Department's glass products could compete with those brought by Persian ships. Yang Yingqi asked Zhao to keep the source of the Han Department's glass secret, as he did not want the officials of the Liao State to hear about it and come to extort them. Zhao naturally agreed - he would have liked to monopolize the entire Han Department's glass products!

  Just less than half a year after doing business with the Han Department, Zhao Guan's position in the Zhao family has risen sharply - from originally ranking fourth as a manager to becoming one of Zhao Lümin's most valued departments. As a reward, Zhao Guan brought Yang Yingqi a large quantity of tea and books through various means. Yang Yingqi was overjoyed; outside the Great Wall, tea is expensive and horses are cheap, but with tea, he had an endless supply of cows and horses!

  In May of that year, Hanbu Village welcomed an "uninvited guest". The man claimed to be Liu Cong, his brother Liu Jie was a well-known wealthy merchant in the Yan Yun area, and also Zhao Lümin's greatest competitor. Originally, Zhao Guan had done things very secretly, but ultimately couldn't escape the keen eyes of his competitors. As soon as Yang Yingqi heard about Liu Cong's background, he immediately knew what he came for, and was secretly delighted.

  As expected, Liu Cong had practiced martial arts before coming. He not only brought tea and books but also invited five famous doctors from the Central Plains at a high price. Yang Yingqi couldn't help but admit that Liu Cong's move made him very moved - he even couldn't refuse! The Han Department really needed good doctors.

  However, he still said to Liu Congdao: "Although Zhao Lümin and I didn't even have a verbal agreement, we tacitly agreed that he would be the sole distributor of our glass products. If you want to get a share, no matter what, you must inform him first. Isn't doing business all about keeping one's word?"

  As a result, Yang Yingqi had not yet sent someone to inform the Zhao family when Zhao Guan arrived the next day - it turned out that Liu Cong had already heard the news on his way. The two met, and Liu Cong smiled, but Zhao Guan glared at him unfriendly!

  Yang Yingqi mediated: "Don't be like this, you two. There's no end to the money in the world. Only when everyone is on good terms can they make a fortune."

  Zhao Guan had never been able to get Yang Yingqi's promise to let him exclusively operate the glass business - not even a verbal agreement. So he had long thought that Yang Yingqi might be waiting for this day. Fortunately, Yang Yingqi did not go too far, and only suggested dividing the types of glass products, with each family operating several varieties, so as to avoid vicious competition. Yang Yingqi handed over a list: "This is the type of glass products we are currently producing, you two discuss which ones to operate. In terms of shares, the Zhao family came first and had an old relationship with my department, occupying 65%. The Liu family came later, but their intention was sincere, occupying 35%. From now on, I will hand over the glass business in Daliao to your two families, as long as you two do not do anything that betrays the Han Department, I will definitely not let a third family intervene."

  After seeing the list, Liu Cong felt that it was already a great harvest to be able to get three and a half percent this time; while Zhao Guan, knowing that monopoly was no longer possible, saw that his family's share was nearly twice that of the Liu family, also accepted Yang Yingqi's proposal. The two then quarreled over the types of things until Yang Yingqi intervened to mediate before it was settled.