Chapter Fourteen: Countermeasures

After the incident at the city gate, the Mo Family Village realized that their secret technique for keeping fish alive had caught the attention of certain people in Chang’an. Upon their return, the villagers gathered at the Mo Estate to discuss countermeasures.

“That dog of an official, Chi Zhiyong, actually wants our Mo Family’s secret technique for live fish. He must be tired of living!” Li Xin roared in outrage.

Li Yi shook his head and said, “Chi Zhiyong is nothing. On any other day, he wouldn’t dare provoke our Mo Family Village even if you gave him ten guts. There’s someone pulling strings behind him this time.”

“If I find out who it is, whoever dares to target our village will have a miserable end,” Yu Er spat angrily.

“Who are you calling old man?” Master Yu smacked Li Xin on the head. “If it comes to risking lives, it’ll be us old bones doing the fighting, not you youngsters.”

It wasn’t just the hot-blooded youths who were indignant; even the elders were fired up, as if transported back to their days on the battlefield. They knew better than anyone how precious the live fish technique was—it concerned the fate of five thousand villagers. Now that someone was threatening their lifeblood, how could they not fight back?

“If you ask me, we should deal with Chi Zhiyong first. Taking him out won’t cost us anything,” rumbled Tie An, a towering youth and the village’s ultimate force. Last winter, he single-handedly killed a bear and sold its flawless pelt for a high price, helping the village through a crisis. His strength was unmatched, though his mind was a bit slow.

“Don’t rush to deal with Chi Zhiyong yet!” Mo Dun waved his hand. “Sooner or later, he’ll slip up and expose the mastermind behind him. There’s no hurry. As long as we hold our live fish technique, these people will make another move—when the time comes, none of them will escape.”

Everyone nodded. Chi Zhiyong was nothing; the real concern was the person behind him.

“Starting tomorrow, increase the supply of live fish to Chang’an. The fish pond at the Fresh Fish Shop is ready. Use all twenty spare water carts, divided into two teams, transporting fish to Chang’an nonstop.”

“I want live fish sold in Chang’an around the clock!” Mo Dun declared firmly.

“But our ponds won’t last more than a few days at this rate—they’ll be fished out,” Master Yu frowned.

“If there are no fish, we’ll buy them. There are plenty of villages en route to Chang’an; their fish arrive dead, so we’ll pay thirty percent more than the price of dead fish.”

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“That’ll work!” Li Yi nodded. Even at thirty percent higher, Mo Family Village would still profit handsomely, since live fish sold for three times the price of dead fish.

“If there are no fish, we buy them. If we need more hands, we hire more. In short, I want uninterrupted live fish supply until the New Year. Those who perform well this time—I plan to leave fifty men in Chang’an,” Mo Dun said.

“Stay in Chang’an!” Li Xin and the others exclaimed in delight.

For them, staying in Chang’an was a dream come true. Ever since they witnessed the city’s splendor, their longing for it grew, but they’d always had to rush back after selling fish, never getting a chance to explore.

“And I’ll stay in Chang’an too. This time, I want to see who’s targeting our Mo Family Village!” Mo Dun’s gaze was resolute.

“You mustn’t, young master. It’s too dangerous. You can’t risk yourself,” everyone pleaded.

“It’s fine. This time, Tie An will come with me. Nothing will happen,” Mo Dun replied.

“Don’t worry, young master. As long as I, Tie An, still draw breath, you won’t suffer so much as a scratch,” Tie An declared joyfully. He hadn’t expected to be the first chosen for this coveted task, and he hastened to guarantee it.

The others wanted to object, but recalling Tie An’s terrifying prowess, they were reassured.

Once their plans were made, everyone sprang into action. This time, the Mo Family Village convoy expanded massively—just recruiting new hands required two hundred people, not to mention buying fish from neighboring villages and safeguarding the secret technique. Li Yi and the others had their work cut out for them.

When morning came, Mo Dun saw the red veins in Li Yi’s eyes and knew he hadn’t slept all night, feeling deeply guilty.

“Second Uncle, you should rest. If you wear yourself out, it won’t be worth it,” Mo Dun said with concern.

“Don’t worry, young master. I’m in good health. Besides, someone has to reach out to the surrounding villages—it should be me,” Li Yi replied.

At Mo Dun’s insistence, Li Yi finally boarded the ox cart usually reserved for Mo Dun, while Mo Dun strode ahead with the convoy.

“Perhaps it’s time to buy some cattle and horses,” Mo Dun mused.

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Previously, Mo Dun had considered buying livestock, but Uncle Fu and the others vetoed it. The village’s greatest need was grain, and with a constant sense of crisis, they wouldn’t consider extra expenses until the granaries were full.

“The first batch departs; the second batch will leave in an hour,” Li Yi shouted, and the Mo Family Village convoy set off again—this time, even larger.

“They’re here again!” As the convoy arrived at Chang’an’s south gate, a commotion erupted. After yesterday’s confrontation with Chi Zhiyong and the sensational tale of the catfish effect, the crowd was abuzz.

“Look, that’s the Mo Family’s descendants.”

“If Mozi could keep his word for a thousand years, the Mo Family Village can’t be bad either.”

“Not bad at all! I’ve bought their fish myself—not once did they short me on weight, always gave extra.”

...

The crowd’s discussions made the villagers beam with pride.

Everyone was curious how Mo Family Village would get through the south gate today, as Chi Zhiyong was still on duty.

Chi Zhiyong seethed inwardly. Yesterday’s counterattack by Mo Family Village had destroyed the evidence, leaving him with nothing to seize upon. He’d lost face before powerful figures; if he weren’t still useful, he would have been discarded already.

Today, Chi Zhiyong was determined: as soon as the convoy entered the south gate, he would give them no time to react—immediately seize a water cart. He was prepared to do whatever it took, even if lives were lost, since he had powerful backing.

But to everyone’s astonishment, the convoy didn’t enter the south gate at all. Instead, it halted a hundred meters away, and dumped all the fish from the water carts into a large pond—about the size of two rooms—that had been dug overnight. Then, without looking back, they returned home.

Afterwards, Uncle Fu led twenty water carts calmly out of Chang’an, scooped up the fish from the pond, and loaded them up.

“So that works too!” Chi Zhiyong was stunned, and so were the citizens who had come to watch the spectacle.