Green Mountain-Chapter 658 - 515: Seeking Si Caogui

On the upper floor of Meirui Building, Brother Pao dismissed the ruffians, leaving only himself and Zhang Xia to lean on the railing.

He gazed mockingly at the distant city walls of the inner city, saying, "So this is what it feels like to have backing. Second Miss Zhang, when I first arrived here, I thought I could accomplish great things with my own skills. But then I discovered that just a household registry and a travel pass made it impossible for Er Dao and me to move an inch. I had no choice but to fight underground to find a living for Er Dao and me, and yet I was still outsmarted by that old fox, Zhu Guan. Looking back, recognizing Chen Ji was indeed the wisest decision I made."

Zhang Xia was silent for a moment: "Brother Pao, I remember clearly, when you were in the escort team in Mengjin County's city, Chen Ji came up to talk, and you got so frightened you fled in the middle of the night. He even rode a fast horse to find you, and at that time, you hadn't recognized each other."

Brother Pao smiled: "I didn't know then that he was the Chen Ji I knew; if I had known, I would have recognized him earlier."

Zhang Xia probed calmly: "Brother Pao, were you well acquainted with Chen Ji long ago?"

Brother Pao glanced at Zhang Xia: "Not well acquainted; instead, I was the knife that Chen Ji borrowed to kill someone."

Zhang Xia was a bit puzzled: "Since you weren't well acquainted, why did you dare to recognize each other?"

Brother Pao explained with a smile: "Second Miss Zhang, most people make friends to see if the other party is useful or powerful, but I'm different; I only look at character. A useful friend gives you a good start, but a friend with good character gives you a good end. A person like Chen Ji, once you become friends with him, you definitely won't suffer... Although he's quite different from before."

Zhang Xia suddenly asked, "What kind of person was Chen Ji before?"

Brother Pao laughed heartily: "I thought Second Miss Zhang was very composed, but it turns out you have moments when you can't hold back. You, having spent time with Chen Ji, have learned to be prematurely old like him. You are not living as freely as I am."

Zhang Xia said nothing.

Brother Pao sighed: "Chen Ji is more silent than before and more enduring. Perhaps because the things he aims to do are more dangerous than before, or maybe he's truly matured; life's best teachers are two: the death of parents and the betrayal from friends or relatives. I suppose he's experienced both."

Zhang Xia curiously asked: "How did his parents pass away? How did he die once?"

Brother Pao patted the railing: "Chen Ji's parents died in an accident, and the culprit didn't pay for it. To avenge his parents, he perished with his enemies. Second Miss Zhang, a person like Chen Ji shouldn't always live such a bitter life. If you truly care about him, don't allow him to keep gambling with his life; find a way to bring him back."

Zhang Xia fell silent again.

Brother Pao examined her for a moment, then laughed heartily once more: "I understand now."

Zhang Xia was puzzled: "What does Brother Pao understand?"

Brother Pao looked toward the distant Zhengyang Gate teasingly: "You're not the one who will persuade him to turn back; you're the one planning to accompany him to the end."

Zhang Xia nonchalantly replied: "Brother Pao, let's talk business."

Brother Pao pointed to Zhengyang Gate and said: "Since we have backing, we should dare to do things more boldly."

...

...

The July heat was intense.

In the morning, before the sky was even light, it was already hot enough to make people sweat profusely.

Chen Ji carried a shoulder pole back to Silver Apricot Garden, pouring all the water from the buckets into the water tank, calling out to the wing room: "I'm going out."

But there was no response from the wing room.

He was puzzled and pushed open the door to the west wing room, only to find it empty, with no sign of the little monk. He then went to knock on the door of the east wing room, and Xiao Man hadn't responded for a long time either.

Ever since they started the newspaper, those two were sneakily busy all day long, not even sleeping in anymore.

Chen Ji left the Chen family house and walked onto Fuyou Street, where carriages and sedan chairs passed by him, all heading toward the Six Ministries on Chessboard Street.

He saw a ruffian on the roadside, carrying a cloth bag stuffed with a thick stack of the Capital Morning News.

From a distance, Chen Ji saw a carriage stop by the roadside, and someone inside lifted the curtain and said, "Give me a copy of the morning paper."

The driver handed five copper coins to the ruffian, who pulled out a copy of the morning paper and handed it through the window, saying a blessing with a smile: "Thanks for five cents, may your affairs be smooth today, Guest."

The carriage moved slowly again, soon followed by a sedan chair stopping in front of the ruffian. One after another, carriages and sedan chairs bought copies of the morning paper to read for amusement along Yingmao Road.

Chen Ji came up to the ruffian, took out five cents from his sleeve, and handed it over: "Give me a newspaper."

The ruffian handed him a paper, and Chen Ji read it while heading toward the Outer City.

Today's front-page headline was no longer about him, but rather "His Majesty is diligently governing day and night; investigating land holdings to strengthen the nation's foundation."

The article read: "Reportedly, His Majesty summoned senior ministers from the cabinet days ago, boldly stating that the old fish scale books have caused lingering troubles, with hidden land holdings increasing day by day. The wealthy own vast lands with light taxes, while the poor have no place to stand with heavy labor duties…"

"The imperial edict clearly states that this land survey will re-examine all the lands across the country, whether they are official lands, civilian lands, imperial estates, or lands owned by nobles, all are included in the investigation..."

Chen Ji muttered softly, "According to reports... clearly stated..."

This damn familiar feeling.

Ever since Qi Zhaoning failed to shut down the morning paper, Brother Pao had become much bolder, with the front page no longer covering sensational news, but rather fixed sections flattering those in power.

The second page no longer focused on the Imperial Examinations, but on daily information regarding the appointment and dismissal of officials and capital inspections: which official was transferred, which relocated to the capital, and who was dismissed due to the inspections...

This was also why every morning the nobles in the inner city had to buy a morning paper, countless government offices filled with the sound of pages flipping.

In merely twenty days, the paper grew from one to four pages, and the locations selling the morning paper expanded from the Glass Factory to the entire Imperial Capital.

Previously, ruffians couldn't enter the inner city without a pass or inner city registration. Yet now, as long as they carried a cloth bag, they could swagger in through Xuanwu Gate, Zhengyang Gate, or Chongwen Gate, the infantry of the Five Cities Military Department turning a blind eye, pretending not to see.

As Chen Ji was walking, a woman brushed past him, leaving a message: "Yesterday, a Jing Dynasty Military Intelligence Department spy attempted to steal a firearms formula, killed a craftsman from the Craftsmanship Supervisor, and upon capture, committed suicide by poison. It should be the work of Si Caoding's men. Lord Bai Long sent me to remind Mr. Chen that the task you promised the Prime Minister needs to be completed quickly, the time left for you is running out."

Chen Ji suddenly turned his head, contemplating Jiao Tu's retreating figure.

Earlier, he had sworn in Jiefan Building that he would capture Si Caoding within three months, yet after a month and a half, he hadn't even caught a glimpse of Si Caoding's shadow, with no leads at all.

Chen Ji maintained an unchanged expression, continuing to look down at the newspaper in his hand. But this time he did not look at the other sections but focused on the advertisement page at the end.

"Wenbao Tower Brush and Ink Shop, top-class pine soot ink from Huizhou, black as lacquer, enduring through ages. Purple bamboo brushes from Huzhou, smooth yet strong, exceptionally free flowing."

"Jinling roast duck, the best taste in the capital. Bianyifang, a century-old stove-baked, crispy outside tender inside, rich yet not greasy."

"Deji Hall seeks a person, looking for Zhang Mingyuan, the hall's pharmacist, aged around forty, with a Suzhou accent, went out for medicine gathering on the fifteenth of last month and has not returned. If anyone knows of his whereabouts, a reward of ten taels of silver will be given upon notification to the hall."

The advertisements were varied. Initially, merchants were not accustomed to advertising in the newspaper, but after Bianyifang led the way with an advertisement and their business flourished with queues stretching for dozens of steps, other merchants followed suit.

Yet Chen Ji looked for a long time but failed to find the clue he wanted: the secret code of the Military Intelligence Department.

He ran this morning paper to use it to great effect in the future, but the current urgency was tailored for the Military Intelligence Department.

What better place is there to convey messages than a newspaper? There isn't.

Si Caoding had served the Military Intelligence Department for over ten years, and even those who had seen him were few and far between, indicating that Si Caoding always maintained a single line of contact with his agents, never meeting them.

Only in this way could he protect his identity from being exposed.

One-way contact has many methods, such as environmental signals, like using a flag of wine as a signal, hanging the flag means everything is safe, if one day there's no flag, it means danger. But this method only conveys simple information.

There's also the dead drop. They might agree to exchange detailed information under the second bridge arch of Jade River Bridge, one places it and leaves, the other comes later to collect it. Yet this method has a flaw, no matter how secretive the exchange, the latter will always have to show up to collect, posing the risk of being ambushed.

None of these methods compare to publishing it in the newspaper.

In Chen Ji's previous life, ever since newspapers existed, they had been the greatest intelligence clearinghouse for spies, a coded message in a newspaper wouldn't draw attention, and regardless of the spy's identity, accessing a newspaper wouldn't arouse suspicion.

Nobles looked at capital inspections, scholars read poetry, peddlers listened to sensational gossip, everyone catered to their preferences.

Chen Ji believed that with the resourcefulness of the Military Intelligence Department's Si Cao, they wouldn't miss such a good opportunity. The moment they saw the newspaper, they should have realized it could be used for message transmission.

However, he still couldn't find any useful information.

Was it that the Military Intelligence Department was too cautious to use this new tool, or had there simply been no information to convey recently?

After pondering for a moment, Chen Ji turned and headed straight for Meihua Ferry Crossing, going up to the top floor of Meirui Building and getting straight to the point: "Brother Pao, bring all the submissions and advertisements from this period, don't leave anything out, I want to look at each piece..."

Without waiting for him to finish, Zhang Xia handed him a bamboo paper: "No need to look anymore, what you're looking for should be this, just received by the ruffian."

Chen Ji took it, and it was an obituary: "My father, overcome with grief, passed away on the twenty-ninth of June in the 32nd year of Jianing, at the age of sixty-eight. Reflecting on my father's life, he cherished ambition from a young age, delving into ancient histories and relics. Long involved in public service, he admired virtuous conduct. He held himself with integrity, toiled over official correspondences. In later years, he returned to ancient woods, submitting to nature..."

Reach, Reflect, Uphold, Return.

Seek Si Caogui.