Transmigrating to the Song Dynasty: Water Margin Business Management

When Gao Qiu learned that his collusion with the enemy had been exposed, he was extremely anxious. He knew that if he did not come up with a countermeasure soon, he would be ruined. Thus, a dark conspiracy quietly formed in his mind.

Gao Qiu secretly summoned his trusted advisor Lin Fang, and the two discussed the matter in hushed tones in the dimly lit study.

"My lord, the situation is critical, and we must come up with a foolproof plan," Lin Fang said nervously.

Gao Qiu's face was gloomy, and his eyes gleamed with cunning. "I have come up with a plan. We need to find a scapegoat to take the blame for all of this."

Lin Fang quickly asked, "Does Your Excellency have a suitable candidate in mind?"

Gao Qiu sneered: "I have a captain under me named Wang Meng. He is simple-minded and extremely loyal to me. He is an excellent candidate."

Lin Fang nodded and asked, "So, what are your plans, sir?"

Gao Qiu leaned closer to Lin Fang and said in a low voice, "You should do this..."

Upon hearing this, Lin Fang hesitated, "Sir, isn't this plan too risky?"

Gao Qiu glared at him fiercely: "Now that things have come to this, there is no other way but to take a gamble."

Afterwards, Gao Qiu summoned Wang Meng to a secret room. Upon seeing Gao Qiu, Wang Meng immediately knelt and bowed, saying, "My lord, what are your orders?"

Gao Qiu feigned concern as he helped Wang Meng up, saying, "Wang Meng, I'm in big trouble now, and only you can save me."

Wang Meng replied resolutely, "You have been kind to me, sir. I would go through fire and water for you!"

Gao Qiu looked sad: "Someone has falsely accused me of colluding with the Liao army, which is a crime punishable by the extermination of my entire clan. But if you are willing to take the blame for me, I will take good care of your family and ensure that they live a life of wealth and honor."

Wang Meng hesitated at first, but thinking of Gao Qiu's usual favor, he finally gritted his teeth and agreed.

Gao Qiu quickly fabricated a series of evidence, pinning all the blame for colluding with the Liao army on Wang Meng. He also bribed some officials to speak on his behalf in court.

When Emperor Huizong heard about this in the imperial court, he was furious.

"Gao Qiu, how dare you commit such a treasonous act!" Emperor Huizong roared.

Gao Qiu immediately knelt down, feigning a heartbroken expression: "Your Majesty, I am innocent! All of this was done behind my back by that scoundrel Wang Meng; I knew nothing about it!"

The officials bribed by Gao Qiu echoed, "Your Majesty, Lord Gao is loyal and honest; he must have been deceived by Wang Meng."

Emperor Huizong of Song was skeptical, but ordered a thorough investigation into the matter.

Under Gao Qiu's manipulation, the investigating officials quickly concluded that Wang Meng was the culprit.

While in prison, Wang Meng realized he had been used by Gao Qiu, but it was too late. Ultimately, Wang Meng was sentenced to death, and the matter seemed to have come to an end.

However, the Liao Kingdom did not cease its border operations despite Gao Qiu's successful plot.

On the border, war raged. The Liao army amassed a large force and aggressively approached the Song Dynasty's border.

General Zhao Tianming stood on the city wall, gazing at the enemy army in the distance, his expression solemn.

"The Liao army is coming with great force this time; it will likely be a fierce battle," Zhao Tianming said.

Song Jiang said from the side, "Although Gao Qiu's conspiracy has not affected us yet, the support from the imperial court may be affected."

Lu Junyi clenched his fist: "No matter what, we must guard the border and protect the people."

Wu Yong analyzed, "The Liao army seems to have come prepared for this operation; we need to be careful."

The Liao army launched an attack, deploying siege ladders and catapults, while the Song army fought back desperately.

The battlefield was filled with the sounds of battle, and blood stained the earth red.

Lu Zhishen brandished his monk's staff, fiercely fighting his enemies, shouting, "Come on, I'm here!"

Wu Song, wielding two swords, weaved through the enemy ranks as if they were nothing.

Li Kui, his eyes bloodshot with rage, shouted, "Kill them all!"

Despite the Song army's valiant resistance, the Liao army had superior numbers, and the Song army gradually found itself in a predicament.

Just then, a scout reported: "General, there is a problem with the supply of provisions to the rear, and they may not be able to be delivered in time."

Zhao Tianming's heart tightened: "What should we do?"

Wu Yong said, "It must be that scoundrel Gao Qiu who is pulling strings behind the scenes, deliberately delaying the supply of grain."

In the capital, Gao Qiu learned that the border war was escalating, and he was secretly pleased with himself.

"Hmph, let's see how long you can endure suffering on the border," Gao Qiu sneered.

Emperor Huizong of Song was completely unaware of the situation on the border and was still deceived by Gao Qiu's lies.

The Song army on the border was struggling to survive, hoping the imperial court would soon uncover the truth and provide support. However, they were unaware that Gao Qiu's conspiracy was ongoing, and an even greater crisis was imminent.

Zhao Tianming watched the Song army struggling in battle, his heart filled with anxiety. He knew that without supplies and reinforcements from the imperial court, the city would likely fall.

"Brothers, we must not let the Liao army succeed! Even if we fight to the last man, we will defend our homeland!" Zhao Tianming shouted.

The soldiers responded in unison, greatly boosting their morale.

At this moment, Wu Yong had an idea. "General, we can send a detachment of elite troops to launch a night raid on the Liao army's supply camp. This might alleviate our current predicament."

Zhao Tianming's eyes lit up. "This plan is brilliant. We will follow your suggestion, sir."

So, Wu Song led a group of agile soldiers and, under the cover of night, quietly sneaked towards the Liao army's supply camp.

The Liao army camp was heavily guarded, but Wu Song and his companions, relying on their excellent martial arts skills and wit, successfully infiltrated it. In an instant, a fire broke out, plunging the Liao army's supply camp into chaos.

When Liao general Yelü Qi learned that the supplies had been burned, he flew into a rage and shouted, "Give me all-out attack! We must take the Song city!"

On the Song army's side, the morale was boosted by the successful surprise attack, but they still faced immense pressure from the Liao army's even fiercer attacks.

Seeing the border war at a stalemate, Gao Qiu devised another plan. He decided to use his connections in the business world to obtain more intelligence that would be beneficial to him.

Gao Qiu secretly contacted a wealthy merchant named Jia Fu. Jia Fu, relying on Gao Qiu's protection, usually acted arrogantly in the business world and made a fortune.

In Gao Qiu's secret chamber, Gao Qiu and Jia Fu sat facing each other.

"Jia Fu, I have summoned you here today because I have an important matter to entrust to you," Gao Qiu said bluntly.

Jia Fu quickly flattered, "Sir, whatever your orders are, I will do my utmost."

Gao Qiu lowered his voice and said, "The situation at the border is currently unfavorable to me. I need you to infiltrate the border as a merchant and gather intelligence for me."

Jia Fu looked troubled: "Sir, this is somewhat dangerous."

Gao Qiu's face darkened: "After this is done, you'll be well rewarded. If you dare to refuse, hmph, remember how I've taken care of you in the past; I can take it all back at any time."

Jia Fu gritted his teeth and said, "Rest assured, sir, I will certainly not fail in my mission."

After making careful preparations, Jia Fu led a group of men disguised as merchants toward the border.

They proceeded cautiously, avoiding Song army patrols. After reaching a small town near the border, Jia Fu began to make moves.

He posed as a merchant, striking up conversations with local residents and small vendors in an attempt to glean information about the Song army's deployment and the battle situation. At the same time, he secretly bribed some greedy lower-ranking Song soldiers.

These soldiers, for money, leaked some less important information to Jia Fu.

After receiving this intelligence, Jia Fu quickly sent someone to deliver it back to Gao Qiu.

Based on this intelligence, Gao Qiu began to spread rumors in the court, saying that the Song army on the border was suffering repeated defeats and its morale was low, and that it urgently needed more troops and supplies.

Upon hearing this news, Emperor Huizong of Song became even more worried.

Meanwhile, Zhao Tianming and his men at the border were unaware of Jia Fu's plot.

At this time, the Liao army's offensive, though fierce, slowed down due to the burning of their supplies.

Zhao Tianming, Wu Yong, and others discussed countermeasures.

"Although we raided the Liao army's supplies, they still have superior numbers, so we cannot let our guard down," Wu Yong said.

Zhao Tianming nodded: "We must find a way to solve the problem of food and fodder supply as soon as possible, otherwise we will not be able to hold out for long."

Just then, a soldier reported that a suspicious caravan had been spotted in the vicinity.

Zhao Tianming: "Send someone to investigate the origins of this caravan."

Zhao Tianming became alert and immediately dispatched a shrewd and capable team of soldiers to secretly follow the caravan, attempting to find clues. However, Jia Fu's caravan was extremely cunning; they seemed to have sensed that they were being followed and became even more cautious.

The caravan members constantly changed routes, deliberately choosing remote and difficult paths to keep up with the pursuing soldiers. Moreover, whenever they entered a village or town, the caravan would disperse and mingle with the local people, making it difficult for the soldiers to distinguish them.

Wang Wu, the soldier in charge of tracking, was anxious: "These people are so cunning. If we lose them, how will we explain to the general?"

He ordered his soldiers to be more careful and not to reveal their whereabouts.

But Jia Fu's men were no pushovers either; they deliberately set up false tracks at some intersections to mislead the tracking soldiers. Several times, the soldiers were almost led astray.

Wang Wu tried his best to remain calm and analyzed the caravan's possible true destination.

"Everyone be careful, don't be fooled by their tricks. We'll split into several groups and flank them from different directions," Wang Wu said.

The soldiers acted according to his orders, but still made little progress.

Just when they were at their wits' end, a soldier discovered an item that a member of the caravan had accidentally dropped: a unique jade pendant engraved with the Jia family's mark.

“It seems this caravan is indeed connected to Jia Fu,” Wang Wu said, holding the jade pendant.

They continued their pursuit and finally discovered the main force of the caravan in a valley.

However, the caravan seemed to have been prepared; they had set up obstacles at the mouth of the valley and had some armed men guarding it.

Seeing this, Wang Wu knew he couldn't fight head-on, so he decided to go back and report to Zhao Tianming first.

"Brothers, let's retreat first and report the situation to the general before making further plans."

Wang Wu led his soldiers away quickly and returned to the camp.

Zhao Tianming frowned deeply after hearing Wang Wu's report.

"It seems there's some unspeakable secret behind this caravan. We must find a way to uncover their true colors," Zhao Tianming said.

Wu Yong pondered for a moment and said, "Manager Zhao, this matter needs careful consideration. We cannot alert them and lest they develop more thorough defenses."

Zhao Tianming nodded: "What you say is absolutely right, sir. So, what should we do next?"

Wu Yong smiled slightly: "Don't worry, I already have a plan..."