When Shopkeeper Lu shouted out this sentence, the torches by Berth Seven at the East Bay all flickered in unison.
The boatmen had already gained some confidence, but when the words "forged document" fell, the crowd swallowed their words back.
In these times, seals and documents were tied to the face of the government. If they were really bitten as forged documents, it was not something the Water Route Hall could explain clearly.
Tao Boyong did not respond to Shopkeeper Lu's words, but he didn't stop him either.
He took the copy of the document in his hand, his fingertips pressing over the annotations of the Imperial Envoy's Office, and then flipped to the Ministry of Revenue's escort number.
"Hall Master Xu, Shopkeeper Lu's words are not entirely without reason."
Tao Boyong raised his head.
"Imperial Envoy Xu is in the Northern Territory, and the document copy is in the capital. The origin must always be explained clearly. If this copy is fake, the words 'military supply' become a cover-up, and the Water Route Hall cannot escape involvement."
Shopkeeper Lu seized the opportunity and immediately followed up.
"Inspector Tao is wise!"
"Xu Wuyou just penalized my Guangyi Firm during the day, and at night he brings out some military supply copy. Isn't this too much of a coincidence?"
"Everyone, think about it. What kind of momentum does the Chengyi Earl's Mansion have in the capital nowadays? Is it hard to make a document and stamp a private seal?"
Pang Yu was so angry he lunged forward.
"You're talking bullshit!"
Xu Wuyou raised his hand to stop him.
He didn't curse back, but just took the document back from Tao Boyong and patted the edge of the paper.
"Shopkeeper Lu, you are in a hurry to call it a fake, and you are quite methodical in your haste."
Shopkeeper Lu snorted coldly.
"I am speaking reason."
"Alright, then let's speak reason."
Xu Wuyou turned to Lao Zhou.
"Turn to the back page."
Lao Zhou was slightly startled, but quickly took the copy from the oil paper package and carefully turned it to the back.
The torchlight shone over, and on the blank space of the back page were two rows of small characters, written very finely. If one didn't look closely on a normal day, it was easy to mistake them for the paper's texture.
Lao Zhou squinted and read.
"Northbound military supply convoy, thirty carts, first cart number, Qian Bei Jia One; last cart number, Qian Bei Jia Thirty."
"Escort main register, signed by Li Sheng of the Chengyi Earl's Mansion."
"Accompanying cargo, fifteen carts of meat bricks, ten carts of glazed ware, the remaining five carts are clothing, medicine, and artisan materials."
When Lao Zhou read this, someone by the dock took a low breath.
Xu Wuyou took out another booklet from his sleeve.
The booklet's corners were frayed, and the cover bore the mark of the Chengyi Earl's Mansion. It was a backup copy of the register left by Xu Qinghuan for the Xu Mansion and the Water Route Hall before leaving the capital.
Xu Wuyou handed the booklet to Lao Zhou.
"Turn to the escort page for the thirty carts."
Lao Zhou moistened his finger with saliva, turned to the page with a red thread, his voice even louder than before.
"Chengyi Earl's Mansion northbound military supply, thirty large carts, first cart Qian Bei Jia One, last cart Qian Bei Jia Thirty."
"Escorted by Li Sheng."
"First fifteen carts of meat brick military rations, next ten carts of glazed ware, remaining five carts of clothing, medicine, and artisan materials."
After he finished reading, he raised his hand and held the two pages side by side under the torchlight.
The numbers, cargo types, and escort personnel on both sides all matched perfectly.
The dock went quiet for half a beat.
Pang Yu was the first to slap his thigh and shout.
"Did you hear that? The secret code on the back page! Who could make this up on the spot?"
Old Oarsman also spoke up.
"The day the Xu family's thirty carts went north, how many people saw them at the north gate of the capital? Li Sheng escorted the carts, and the cart numbers were recorded with the help of the Water Route Hall. There's a record on the canal."
An old boatman leaned halfway out from behind the boat planks.
"I remember, a few days ago a convoy passed outside the north gate, thirty carts, fully loaded. At the time, they even borrowed ropes from our riverside material yard."
Another porter shouted along.
"I saw it too, the shafts were carved with the characters Qian Bei Jia!"
Shopkeeper Lu's mouth moved, but he couldn't find the words.
Tao Boyong stared at the two pages of paper, his face tense.
He could pick faults with the seal and the copy, but he couldn't pick faults with this secret code.
On the day the thirty northbound military supply carts left the Chengyi Earl's Mansion, more than one family in the capital was watching, and the escort numbers had already been entered into several backup registers.
If one were to say Xu Wuyou forged it on the spot, he would have had to arrange the convoy from half a month ago, the north gate duty register, and the material yard records all in advance.
He couldn't even bring himself to say this out loud.
Xu Wuyou put away the two pages and placed them in a wooden box.
"Inspector Tao, do the origins of the document still need to be investigated?"
Tao Boyong was silent for a moment.
"The military supply copy is temporarily credible."
Pang Yu sneered.
"Temporarily? Inspector Tao, your mouth is really tough, tougher than the stones in the river."
Tao Boyong cast a cold glance over.
Xu Wuyou didn't let Pang Yu continue to argue. He turned and picked up the rubbing paper from beside Lao Zhou, spreading it on an overturned wooden barrel on the dock.
"Then let's talk about the second matter."
He pointed to the character "Guang" on the rubbing.
"The charcoal in the bottom hold has the warehouse seal of the Guangyi Firm."
He then picked up the confession of Qing Sanshan at the bow.
"South dock cabin change, at the second quarter of the Shen hour, Ah Gui, a lad from Guangyi, brought two others and stuffed twelve bags of charcoal into the bottom hold of Qinghe Twenty-Seven, collecting a pilotage fee of two taels."
Finally, he pressed a mud-stained stub on top.
"The cabin change stub from Berth Seven at the south dock, it has the cargo mark of the Guangyi Firm on it. The stub was signed by the dock's accountant, and the time is also there."
The three items were laid out in a row.
The rubbing.
The confession.
The stub.
The firelight by the dock shone on the paper, making the writing crystal clear.
Shopkeeper Lu's forehead broke out in sweat. He raised his sleeve to wipe it, and then forced himself to speak.
"There's a lot of cargo, and a mix of people. The lads below mess around, and I, as the shopkeeper, can't keep an eye on them all the time."
"If Ah Gui really did this, Guangyi Firm is willing to hand him over, but to say my Guangyi Firm framed the Xu family based on the actions of one lad is a bit too harsh."
Xu Wuyou nodded.
"Pushing it onto the lad, that's a convenient move."
He turned and ordered.
"Pang Yu, go back to the hall and bring all the cargo manifests of Guangyi passing through the south dock over the past three months."
Pang Yu had been holding his energy for a long time and ran off immediately. Not long after, he returned carrying a stack of account books, his clothes askew from running.
"Hall Master, the south dock sub-register, express cargo lane registration, and river protection fee supplementary accounts are all here!"
Xu Wuyou handed the books to Lao Zhou.
"Read the entries for the fake medicine."
Lao Zhou opened the book, clicking his abacus beads loudly.
"On the ninth of the third month, Guangyi Firm twenty boxes of tea bricks, reported as medicine, took the express cargo lane, underpaid the river protection fee by seven taels and four mace."
"On the twenty-sixth of the third month, sixteen bundles of pine wood, reported as fragrant wood, seized the night navigation light, suppressing two civilian boats."
"On the eleventh of the fourth month, thirty-two boxes of tea bricks, reported as northern medicine, underreported the cargo weight by sixty percent."
"On the twenty-ninth of the fourth month, eighty pots of raw lacquer, smuggled tea bricks, changed to express cargo."
"On the seventh of the fifth month..."
Lao Zhou read over a dozen items in one breath. The more he read, the more uncontrollable the curses on the dock became.
"Good heavens, how is Guangyi doing business? They're treating the dock like their own backyard."
"No wonder their boats always cut to the front, it's all thanks to changing the cargo names!"
"We wait three days and can't get through the lock, and they just hang an express cargo sign and go. So that's how it is!"
Shopkeeper Lu couldn't stand being cursed at and roared at the crowd.
"Shut up! Whoever runs their mouth again, Guangyi won't use their boat in the future!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, he realized it was inappropriate.
The boatmen exploded.
"You still dare to threaten people?"
"Inspector Tao is right here, and you still want to suppress us?"
"Extorting Old Man Qian by day, framing a military supply boat by night, Guangyi is really something!"
Tao Boyong raised his hand to control the scene.
"Everyone, hold your tongues!"
The patrolmen pushed forward a couple of steps. The boatmen dared not shout anymore, but that lingering resentment still swirled along the riverbank.
Tao Boyong looked at Xu Wuyou.
"Hall Master Xu, the issue with the Guangyi Firm's cargo manifest can be investigated as a separate case."
"The ship before us involves military supplies. The Water Transport Bureau must seal the ship first, and all goods will be confiscated pending trial."
Xu Wuyou stared at him.
"Seal the ship?"
"Yes."
Tao Boyong tucked his patrol badge back into his waist.
"The military supplies, the charcoal, and the documents will all be escorted back to the Bureau. Once the government office verifies them, we will decide how to handle it."
Shopkeeper Lu breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly chimed in.
"Patrol Officer Tao is handling this fairly. Sealing the ship first is the safest approach."
Pang Yu grew anxious and started cursing.
"Safest my ass! Once it's sealed in the Bureau, if a bag of goods goes missing in a couple of days or a wax seal is broken, who's going to explain it?"
Tao Boyong spoke sternly.
"If the Waterway Hall has a clear conscience, why fear sealing the ship?"
Xu Wuyou raised his hand, signaling Pang Yu to step back.
He pulled a blank signature paper from Lao Zhou's hand, pressed it onto a wooden barrel, picked up a brush, dipped it in ink, and offered it to Tao Boyong.
"You can seal it."
Tao Boyong's hand paused as he reached for the brush.
Xu Wuyou pushed the paper forward.
"Please sign, Patrol Officer Tao. State clearly that the Water Transport Bureau is intercepting the imperial envoy's military supplies for the Northern Border, twenty-four bags of saltpeter and sixteen bags of sulfur, and temporarily detaining East Bay Ship Number Seven because Guangyi Firm planted charcoal on it."
"If the military supplies for the Northern Border are delayed, and if the imperial envoy's office seeks accountability, the Water Transport Bureau will bear the responsibility."
Tao Boyong's face darkened.
Xu Wuyou pulled out a second sheet of paper and handed it toward Shopkeeper Lu.
"Shopkeeper Lu, sign a copy too. State clearly that the Guangyi Firm is willing to take responsibility for the charcoal in the lower cabin implicating the military supplies, and is willing to compensate for any losses caused by the delay of the Northern Border's military provisions."
Shopkeeper Lu immediately stepped back.
"Why should I sign?"
"Didn't you just say sealing the ship was the safest approach?"
Xu Wuyou turned to the crowd on the pier.
"And the Waterway Hall can sign as well."
He slapped a third sheet of paper down in front of himself.
"If I, Xu Wuyou, handle this improperly, I will sign, and the Waterway Hall will bear the responsibility."
With that, he took the brush and wrote the three characters of Xu Wuyou on the third sheet, pressing down heavily on the strokes.
"I have signed."
"Patrol Officer Tao, please."
Tao Boyong stared at the paper, not reaching out for a long time.
The words Northern Border were too heavy.
The imperial envoy's office was also too heavy.
If he really signed it, a single day's delay of the ship at the Bureau would result in all subsequent blame falling on his head.
Shopkeeper Lu dared even less to sign.
Guangyi Firm might dare to make moves in secret, but he wasn't crazy enough to admit in black and white that they had implicated military supplies.
Xu Wuyou rested the brush on the wooden barrel.
"If you two won't sign, then don't shout about sealing the ship."
Someone by the pier cheered in a low voice, and soon it spread into a chorus of approval.
"Sign it!"
"Weren't you acting tough just now?"
"You can seal the ship, but take the responsibility!"
Tao Boyong gritted his teeth.
"Hall Master Xu, you are coercing an official."
"You are wrong, Patrol Officer Tao."
Xu Wuyou took back the signed paper.
"I am asking the government to act according to the rules."
He turned to face the East Bay berth and issued an order.
"Waterway Hall, hear my command."
Pang Yu, Old Oarsman, Lao Zhou, and the others responded in unison.
"Here!"
"The military supplies of saltpeter and sulfur are to be transferred to the East Bay official warehouse with their original seals and tags intact. The warehouse door will be secured with three locks: one from the Waterway Hall, one from the Water Transport Bureau, and one from the boatmen's representative. Tomorrow morning, we will invite a petty official from the Ministry of Revenue to inspect the seals. Once verified, they will immediately depart on the northbound water route."
"The twelve bags of charcoal from the lower cabin will be listed as planted evidence and sealed separately. Three copies of the rubbings, ticket stubs, and testimonies will be placed in a box and sent to the main hall for the record."
"The Guangyi Firm's cargo stalls at the South Pier will be temporarily sealed for three days. Three months of cargo manifests will be re-audited. They must pay the overdue river protection fees, with a penalty of three times the evaded amount."
"Shopkeeper Lu is not permitted to leave the capital's waterways. Ah Gui and the involved workers must be handed over to the Waterway Hall before dawn. If they cannot be handed over, all of Guangyi's shipping schedules will be delayed."
Shopkeeper Lu roared out.
"Xu Wuyou, on what grounds are you sealing my Guangyi?"
Xu Wuyou turned his head to look at him.
"On the grounds that the Waterway Hall controls the shipping schedules, that your charcoal was in the lower cabin of a military supply ship, and that you extort boatmen by day and hand out knives by night."
He then looked back at Tao Boyong.
"If Patrol Officer Tao has any other arrangements, please write them down now."
Lao Zhou immediately laid out paper, and Pang Yu handed over the brush.
Xu Wuyou spoke, pausing after every word.
"As long as you state clearly that Patrol Officer Tao Boyong of the Water Transport Bureau intercepted the imperial envoy's military supplies tonight."
Tao Boyong did not take the brush.
Everyone at the East Bay berth stared at that brush.
After a long time, Tao Boyong squeezed a few words through his teeth.
"As Hall Master Xu proposed, we will seal the official warehouse first and inspect the seals tomorrow morning."
Pang Yu pulled the brush back and laughed loudly.
"If you had said that earlier, wouldn't it have saved us the trouble?"
Shopkeeper Lu abruptly turned to leave but was blocked by two gang members of the Waterway Hall.
Xu Wuyou looked at him.
"Shopkeeper Lu, don't be in a rush."
"Ah Gui hasn't arrived yet. As the shopkeeper, you need to stay and have some tea."
Shopkeeper Lu's chest heaved. Just as he was about to curse, hurried footsteps suddenly came from behind the old salt warehouse.
A gang member stumbled and crawled to the berth, his face covered in sweat.
"Hall Master!"
"Ah Gui from the South Pier is dead! He was hanged from the rafters of the Guangyi warehouse, with a confession letter stuffed in his chest!"
