Transmigrating to the Song Dynasty: Water Margin Business Management

On an ordinary day, in the palace, Emperor Huizong of Song, with a gloomy expression, said to his ministers below, "Zhao Tianming's investigation into the Tong Guan case has made no progress to date, which is truly disappointing to me!"

Below the imperial court, the officials remained silent, trembling with fear.

After the court session, Emperor Huizong immediately issued an edict urging Zhao Tianming to solve the case as soon as possible, or else he would be severely punished.

Upon receiving the imperial edict, Zhao Tianming knew there was no turning back. He decided to personally travel to Jiangnan to thoroughly investigate Tong Guan's crimes.

Before his departure, a tense and worried atmosphere filled Zhao Tianming's home. His wife, He Xiang, with tears in her eyes, was busy preparing his luggage for his trip to Jiangnan.

"My lord, the journey to Jiangnan is long and arduous, so please be careful," He Xiang said as she folded the clothes into her bundle.

Zhao Tianming held He Xiang's hand and comforted her, "Madam, don't worry too much. I will definitely return safely."

He Xiang put some dry food and water pouches into the package and said, "Jiangnan is humid, so I prepared some dry clothes for you, and also brought some commonly used medicines."

Zhao Tianming looked at his wife with gratitude, his heart filled with reluctance.

After packing their luggage, Zhao Tianming, along with Wu Yong, Yan Qing, Shi Xiu, Yang Xiong, and others, embarked on their journey to Suzhou in Jiangnan. After a long and arduous journey, they finally arrived in Suzhou.

Upon arriving in Suzhou, Zhao Tianming and his group found an inn to stay at. In their room, Zhao Tianming frowned and said to Wu Yong, "Mr. Wu, Suzhou may seem prosperous, but it's actually rife with undercurrents. We've encountered obstacles at every turn since we first appeared. What should we do next?"

Wu Yong gently waved his feather fan, pondered for a moment, and then said, "Manager Zhao, in my opinion, we can no longer investigate openly, as that would only alert the enemy. It would be better to remain discreet and subtly gather information from the people."

Zhao Tianming nodded and said, "What you say makes sense, sir. However, the people are probably wary of us outsiders. How can we get them to talk?"

Wu Yong smiled slightly: "We can disguise ourselves as ordinary merchants and chat with the people on the streets and alleys, or listen to their discussions in teahouses and taverns. Furthermore, we can offer some small favors, such as giving some food and clothing to poor families, to win their trust."

Zhao Tianming thought the plan was feasible, so the next day, everyone split up and took action.

Zhao Tianming and Yan Qing arrived at a bustling teahouse and found a corner to sit down. Before long, the customers at the next few tables began to chat about trivial matters in the city.

"I heard that Lord Tong's businesses have expanded quite a bit recently, and life is getting harder and harder for us ordinary folks," an old man sighed.

Zhao Tianming casually asked, "Lord Tong? Is that Lord Tong Guan, who wields immense power in the court?"

The old man glanced at him, then hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but didn't.

Yan Qing quickly handed him a cup of tea and said, "Old man, have some tea to soothe your throat. We're just having a casual chat."

The old man took the tea and lowered his voice, saying, "Sir, in Suzhou, you dare not speak ill of Lord Tong, lest you bring trouble upon yourself."

Zhao Tianming said, "We are new here and do not know the rules. We hope you can give us some pointers."

The old man hesitated for a moment before saying, "You don't seem like bad people, so I'll say a few words to you. This Lord Tong is all-powerful in Suzhou; his businesses have seized a lot of people's land and shops."

Just then, a burly man walked into the teahouse, glared at them fiercely, and the old man immediately fell silent.

Zhao Tianming and Yan Qing exchanged a glance, then got up and left.

Meanwhile, Wu Yong, Shi Xiu, and Yang Xiong helped a street vendor who had fallen. The vendor was very grateful, and Wu Yong took the opportunity to ask, "Brother, has anything unusual happened in Suzhou lately?"

The vendor looked around and whispered, "My benefactors, you don't know, Lord Tong has a mysterious manor outside the city, and I've heard that it hides many unspeakable things."

In this way, Zhao Tianming and his team gradually gathered some valuable clues through indirect inquiries.

However, their actions also attracted the attention of Tong Guan's men. One night, while Zhao Tianming and his companions were resting at the inn, they suddenly heard a series of noisy footsteps outside.

"This is bad, it might be Tong Guan's men!" Wu Yong said alertly.

Zhao Tianming made a decisive decision: "Everyone get ready and act according to the situation!"

The door was kicked open, and a group of men in black rushed in...

The leader was a burly man with a face full of scars. A deep scar ran from the corner of his left eye to his cheek, making his face look even more ferocious and terrifying. His mouth was wide and his lips were thick, which were now tightly pursed, revealing a fierce aura. His eyes were as big as copper bells, filled with suspicion and vigilance.

He pointed his thick fingers at Zhao Tianming and the others, and shouted, "What exactly are you guys doing?"

Before Zhao Tianming could speak, Wu Yong interjected, "Sir, we are itinerant doctors passing through this area and would like to ask for lodging for the night."

The burly man circled Wu Yong, sizing him up, and sneered, "You say you're a doctor? You look more like spies to me! What doctor brings so many strong and burly followers?"

Wu Yong remained calm and replied, "Sir, you may not know this, but when we travel the world, we inevitably encounter dangers. These followers are there to protect us. Furthermore, in order to treat more people, we naturally need helpers to carry medicines and equipment."

The burly man frowned, clearly not believing Wu Yong's words. He grabbed Wu Yong's collar and said fiercely, "Don't try to play tricks on me! You two seem suspicious; you must have some ulterior motive."

Wu Yong remained calm and composed. He gently pushed the burly man's hand away and said, "Sir, you've misunderstood. We've just arrived in Suzhou and are unfamiliar with the place. What secrets could we possibly have? If you don't believe me, you can check our luggage. It's full of medical tools and medicines."

The burly man snorted and waved for his men to search the luggage. After a thorough search, they found some herbs, silver needles, and medical books.

Upon seeing this, the burly man's expression softened slightly, but he was still not completely dispelled. He stared at Wu Yong and said, "Even if you really are doctors, you still have to come with me to the yamen to explain things clearly."

Zhao Tianming's heart tightened, and he was about to speak when Wu Yong gave him a look, signaling him not to act rashly.

Wu Yong smiled and said to the big man, "Sir, since that's the case, we'll go with you. We just hope it won't delay our medical practice and saving lives."

The big man ignored them and led Zhao Tianming and the others to the yamen.

Along the way, Wu Yong quietly said to Zhao Tianming, "Manager Zhao, don't panic, act according to the situation."

Upon arriving at the yamen, the burly man reported the situation to the magistrate. The magistrate, a middle-aged man with a pointed face and monkey-like features, sat in the hall, glancing sideways at Zhao Tianming and his group.

"You claim to be doctors? Do you have any medical licenses?" the magistrate asked.

Wu Yong calmly took out a document from his pocket, handed it to the magistrate, and said, "Sir, this is our medical practice document. Please take a look."

The magistrate took the document, looked at it, and then threw it aside, saying, "This document may not be genuine either. I think you still have problems."

Wu Yong said, "My lord, we are really just ordinary doctors. We came to Suzhou because we heard that there was an epidemic here and wanted to do our part."

The magistrate rolled his eyes and said, "In that case, you can stay in the yamen for now, and I will send someone to verify."

Thus, Zhao Tianming and the others were temporarily detained in a room in the yamen.

That night, Wu Yong whispered to the others, "This magistrate and that big man must be Tong Guan's lackeys. We must find a way to leave here as soon as possible, otherwise our investigation may be in vain."

Everyone nodded and began to discuss countermeasures...

After leaving the prison, Wu Ming rushed to the study of Prefect Huang Qi.

When Huang Qi saw him come in, he asked anxiously, "Wu Ming, how did things go?"

Wu Ming cupped his hands and said, "My lord, I was just about to take action and finish them off."

Huang Qi nodded slightly and then asked, "Did you get any useful information from the interrogation?"

Wu Ming replied, "Those people were very stubborn, insisting that they were doctors and not revealing anything else."

Huang Qi frowned, pondered for a moment, and said, "Whether what they say is true or false, we can't keep them around, lest things get complicated. You must do it cleanly and neatly, without leaving any evidence."

Wu Ming replied, "Don't worry, sir, I understand."

After saying that, Wu Ming turned and left the study, preparing to return to his cell to take action.

At this moment, Zhao Tianming and the others in the prison cell were anxiously discussing countermeasures.

Wu Yong said in a low voice, "Everyone be prepared, they may come to strike soon."

Yan Qing clenched his fist: "Hmph, if they dare to come, I'll make sure they don't leave alive."

Shi Xiu and Yang Xiong also looked determined, ready to fight to the death.

A short while later, Wu Ming returned to the prison cell with several of his men.

He sneered, "Your time to die has come."

Wu Yong spoke first, his gaze resolute as he asked, "Why do you want to kill us? What have we done wrong?"

Wu Ming snorted coldly: "You are spies, don't think I don't know."

Zhao Tianming stepped forward and shouted, "Where's the evidence? You keep saying we're spies, but do you have any proof?"

Wu Ming roared, "Enough with the nonsense!" With that, he waved his hand, signaling his men to take action.

Just then, Wu Yong quickly gave everyone a wink. Yan Qing, Shi Xiu, and Yang Xiong immediately understood and prepared to counterattack at any moment.

Wu Yong calmly said, "Wait! Sir, aren't you afraid of wrongly accusing innocent people by executing us so hastily? If we were truly spies, how could we have been caught so easily? Isn't there something fishy going on here?"

Wu Ming remained unmoved and roared, "I don't care if you are right or wrong, the Prefect has ordered that it is better to kill the innocent than to let the guilty go free."

Zhao Tianming glared angrily: "You are treating human life like dirt! This is outrageous!"

Wu Ming sneered: "Heavenly justice? In this city of Suzhou, the prefect's words are heavenly justice."

With that, he gave the order again: "Move!"

The men drew their weapons and advanced towards Zhao Tianming and his group. Yan Qing dodged an oncoming sword with a swift movement, snatched the weapon, and engaged in combat. Shi Xiu and Yang Xiong, equally fearless, used all their skills to entangle themselves with the enemy.

Chaos erupted inside the cell, with shouts of killing and the clash of weapons filling the air.

Wu Yong took the opportunity to observe the situation and look for a chance to break through. He noticed that there were relatively few guards at the prison door, and their attention was drawn to the fighting.

He whispered to Zhao Tianming, "Shopkeeper, the defenses at the entrance are weak. Let's charge over there."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Tianming fought back the enemies in front of him and charged toward the door with the others.

Seeing this, Wu Ming was extremely anxious and personally led his men to intercept them.

"Don't even think about escaping!" Wu Ming shouted.

However, Zhao Tianming and his men were now determined to die, and their fighting strength increased significantly. Yan Qing's swordsmanship was fierce, and Shi Xiu and Yang Xiong's fists and feet were powerful. They managed to fight their way out of the enemy's encirclement.

Just as they were about to rush out of the cell, Wu Ming suddenly attacked from behind, stabbing Zhao Tianming with his sword.

At the critical moment, Wu Yong suddenly pushed Zhao Tianming away, but he himself was almost stabbed by the sword.

"Sir!" Zhao Tianming exclaimed.

"Don't worry about me, let's go!" Wu Yong shouted.

With renewed vigor, the group finally broke out of the prison and ran wildly towards the outside of the mansion.