Transmigrating to the Song Dynasty: Water Margin Business Management

Wu Yong and Zhao Tianming have been in Jiangnan for some time, but there has been no progress in investigating Tong Guan's crimes.

Behind the bustling streets and alleys of Jiangnan lies the deep-seated evil of Tong Guan. Wu Yong and Zhao Tianming shuttle between the streets every day, trying to piece together evidence of Tong Guan's corruption, abuse of power, and exploitation of the people from the snippets of conversation. However, most people remain silent, avoiding any discussion of Tong Guan's misdeeds for fear of getting into trouble.

Wu Yong and Zhao Tianming were drowning their sorrows in a tavern, agonizing over their next move. Just then, Pang Wanchun and his sister Pang Qiuxia entered the tavern.

Pang Wanchun, carrying a bow and arrows, looked dashing and heroic; Pang Qiuxia was lively and intelligent. They overheard Wu Yong and Zhao Tianming's conversation and were filled with righteous indignation.

Pang Wanchun stepped forward and said, "My brother and I also deeply abhor Tong Guan's evil deeds and are willing to lend you a helping hand."

Upon hearing this, Wu Yong and Zhao Tianming were overjoyed.

With the help of the Pang siblings, they began to re-examine the clues. Pang Qiuxia, using her connections in Jiangnan, found out the locations of some of Tong Guan's secret businesses.

However, when they went to investigate, they found that these places had already been thoroughly cleaned up by Tong Guan, leaving no useful evidence.

Pang Wanchun suggested, "Why don't we start with Tong Guan's confidants?"

So they secretly followed several of Tong Guan's confidants, hoping to find a flaw in his plans. But these confidants were very cautious, causing them to repeatedly miss their targets.

Just when everyone was feeling hopeless, Pang Qiuxia discovered an important clue. It turned out that Tong Guan had a former confidant who had now fallen out of favor and been marginalized.

They found this confidant, who initially dared not reveal the truth for fear of Tong Guan's retaliation. However, after being persuaded and assured by Wu Yong and others, the confidant finally disclosed that Tong Guan had hidden important account books in a manor outside the city.

The group rushed to the manor, only to find it heavily guarded. Pang Wanchun, with his exceptional archery skills, managed to take down some of the guards.

But when they entered the room where the ledgers were hidden, they found that the ledgers had been moved, leaving only some unimportant documents.

Zhao Tianming said angrily, "Tong Guan must have received the news in advance."

At this point, their actions alerted Tong Guan. Tong Guan dispatched more men to pursue and capture them.

Wu Yong and his companions were in a very dangerous situation as they fought off their pursuers in the streets and alleys of Jiangnan.

In a moment of quick thinking, Pang Qiuxia led everyone to hide in an abandoned temple.

Inside the temple, as everyone caught their breath, Pang Wanchun said, "This can't go on. We must find a way to distract our pursuers and then look for evidence."

After some discussion, they decided that Pang Wanchun and Pang Qiuxia would create a false impression to lure away the pursuers, while Wu Yong and Zhao Tianming would take the opportunity to continue searching for evidence.

However, just as Wu Yong and Zhao Tianming resumed their investigation, they discovered that Tong Guan was not only committing evil deeds in Jiangnan, but also secretly colluding with the Liao Kingdom. This discovery strengthened their resolve to bring Tong Guan to justice.

However, what they didn't know was that Tong Guan had already laid a trap, waiting for them to walk right into it...

As soon as Wu Yong and Zhao Tianming left the abandoned temple, they sensed a dangerous aura surrounding them.

The streets were unusually quiet; even the usually bustling vendors were nowhere to be seen. A gust of wind blew, raising a cloud of dust that only heightened the unease in the hearts of those present.

"Brother Zhao, be careful. I sense something's off about this atmosphere." Wu Yong cautiously observed his surroundings.

Zhao Tianming gripped his sword tightly and nodded: "Yes, Mr. Wu, please be careful."

Suddenly, a series of hurried footsteps came from behind them. The two turned around and saw a group of men in black, wielding sharp blades, rapidly approaching them.

“It’s Tong Guan’s assassin!” Wu Yong said in a low voice.

Without a word, Zhao Tianming drew his sword to meet the enemy. The sword flashed and clashed with the assassins' weapons, producing a clanging sound.

One of the assassins was tall and incredibly strong. He swung his broadsword at Zhao Tianming. Zhao Tianming dodged to the side and retaliated, but the powerful force of the blow left his arm numb.

On the other side, Wu Yong was also caught in a fierce battle. Several assassins worked together seamlessly, surrounding him. Wu Yong used his agility to dodge left and right, but he still couldn't avoid being slashed on the arm.

"Damn it!" Wu Yong cursed inwardly, beads of sweat forming on his forehead.

Just then, Zhao Tianming seized the opportunity and stabbed the tall assassin in the shoulder with his sword. The assassin was in pain and his movements slowed slightly, allowing Zhao Tianming to launch an even more ferocious attack.

However, the assassins kept coming, seemingly endless. Wu Yong and Zhao Tianming gradually became exhausted, and their wounds multiplied.

"This can't go on, we need to find a way to break out!" Zhao Tianming shouted.

Wu Yong scanned his surroundings and spotted a narrow alley. "Go that way!"

The two fought their way through the alley and ran towards it.

But as soon as they entered the alley, they heard a whooshing sound overhead. It turned out that Tong Guan had already set up an ambush there, and a group of archers were aiming at them.

"Lie down!" Wu Yong shouted.

Arrows rained down, some grazing their scalps, others embedding themselves deep in the ground.

Zhao Tianming rolled over and hid around a corner. He was panting heavily, his eyes filled with anger and resentment.

Wu Yong leaned against the wall, pondering a solution. "We can't just sit here and wait to die; we must find a way to break out."

At this moment, the assassins outside were also gradually approaching the alley.

“Listen, Brother Zhao, I’ll rush out to distract them. You take the opportunity to escape from the other side and go find Pang Wanchun and Pang Qiuxia for help,” Wu Yong said.

“No, Mr. Wu, we’ll go together!” Zhao Tianming said firmly.

"There's no time to argue, this is the only way!" Wu Yong's gaze was firm.

After saying that, Wu Yong suddenly stood up and rushed towards the assassins.

“Mr. Wu!” Zhao Tianming called out.

Wu Yong moved with lightning speed, his fan transforming into a weapon as he engaged in a fierce battle with the assassins.

Zhao Tianming gritted his teeth and took advantage of the opportunity to quietly leave the alley from the other side.

Wu Yong faced numerous assassins alone, sustaining many more wounds, but he still fought tenaciously, buying time for Zhao Tianming.

Finally, Zhao Tianming escaped successfully. He ran desperately through the streets of Jiangnan, with only one thought in his mind: he must find Pang Wanchun and Pang Qiuxia and rescue Wu Yong.

At this point, Wu Yong was exhausted and had been cornered by the assassins.

"Hmph, let's see where you can run to!" one of the assassins sneered.

Wu Yong, panting heavily, showed no fear on his face: "Tong Guan's evil deeds will be exposed sooner or later, and you lackeys will not have a good end either!"

Just as the assassins were about to make their move, a shout of battle suddenly rang out. It turned out that Pang Wanchun and Pang Qiuxia, brother and sister, had arrived with a group of righteous men.

Pang Wanchun drew his bow and shot down an assassin. Pang Qiuxia, wielding a short sword, charged valiantly into the fray.

"Brother Wu, we're here to save you!" Pang Qiuxia shouted.

With everyone working together to fight back, the assassins gradually lost ground and eventually fled in disarray.

Wu Yong collapsed weakly to the ground, and Pang Qiuxia quickly stepped forward to help him up.

"Brother Wu, are you alright?" Pang Qiuxia asked with concern in her eyes.

Wu Yong forced a smile: "It's a good thing you came, otherwise I would have lost my life here."

Looking at the mess on the ground, Pang Wanchun said, "That scoundrel Tong Guan is getting more and more arrogant. We must speed up our actions, find evidence of his crimes, and bring him to justice!"

Having narrowly escaped death, Wu Yong knew he could no longer act blindly and had to plan carefully to find evidence of Tong Guan's crimes.

He first considered starting with the business aspect. Wu Yong used his wisdom and connections to secretly investigate Tong Guan's business dealings in Jiangnan. He discovered that Tong Guan was amassing wealth by monopolizing certain industries and colluding with some unscrupulous merchants to manipulate market prices, causing great suffering to the people.

To obtain more concrete evidence, Wu Yong sent some clever subordinates to infiltrate the merchants. They disguised themselves as ordinary shop assistants and secretly collected correspondence and account records between Tong Guan and the merchants.

At the same time, Wu Yong did not overlook Tong Guan's network of connections in officialdom. He knew that the collusion of interests in officialdom was intricate and complex, so through the family members of some officials who had been persecuted by Tong Guan, he learned about the various means by which Tong Guan used his power to seek personal gain.

In the martial arts world, Wu Yong contacted some chivalrous individuals, asking them to help keep an eye on Tong Guan's whereabouts and secret activities. These martial arts figures were well-informed and quickly provided Wu Yong with some important clues.

On one occasion, Wu Yong received intelligence that Tong Guan would be secretly transporting a shipment of important goods at night. He decided to personally lead a team to intercept it.

That night, under a dark and windy sky, Wu Yong and his men lay in ambush on the only route for transporting goods. When Tong Guan's convoy appeared, Wu Yong gave the order, and the men rushed out.

The caravan's guards panicked, but still fought desperately. Wu Yong calmly directed his men, gradually breaking through the enemy's defenses.

Ultimately, they successfully intercepted the shipment and discovered that it contained gold, silver, and valuable items obtained through embezzlement and bribery by Tong Guan.

In addition, Wu Yong devised a plan to induce some of Tong Guan's confidants to betray him. He deliberately spread false information, making these confidants believe that Tong Guan was about to fall from power, and then sent people to secretly contact him, promising them benefits, which caused some of the confidants to waver and hand over some key evidence of Tong Guan's crimes.

During the investigation, Wu Yong also encountered several dangers. Tong Guan became aware of his actions, strengthened his defenses, and even sent assassins to try to kill Wu Yong again.

But Wu Yong, with his intelligence and caution, managed to escape danger time and time again.

After much effort, Wu Yong finally collected enough evidence to record in detail Tong Guan's various crimes, from embezzlement and bribery to colluding with foreign enemies.

Wu Yong knew that to completely bring down Tong Guan, he also needed to eliminate those Jianghu figures who aided and abetted the evildoer and corrupt officials.

He dispatched men to closely monitor the movements of those Jianghu figures who colluded with Tong Guan. They discovered a gang of thieves who made a living by stealing, frequently stealing important intelligence and valuables for Tong Guan. Wu Yong cleverly set a trap, first spreading false information about treasure to lure them in, and then leading his troops to capture them all while they were committing their crimes.

For those corrupt officials, Wu Yong employed a strategy of sowing discord. He deliberately leaked false information to several of them that Tong Guan intended to shift the blame onto them to protect himself, causing them to become suspicious of each other and fight amongst themselves. Wu Yong then used this opportunity to gather evidence of their mutual accusations and revelations of each other's crimes.

At the same time, Wu Yong also utilized the power of public opinion. He had his subordinates spread rumors among the people about the evil deeds of Tong Guan and his cronies, inciting public outrage. The people petitioned the imperial court one after another, demanding that Tong Guan and his gang be severely punished.

During this process, some corrupt officials attempted to bribe Wu Yong to plead for leniency. Wu Yong turned the tables, feigning acceptance of the bribes while secretly leaving evidence to further entrap them.