Chapter 18: A Windfall

"Chief! Chief!"

As the family of the Xixi Village head was being brought to justice, a man who appeared to be a lieutenant led four underlings, carrying a massive iron chest, and came rushing over excitedly, calling out to Ren Yuan as he ran.

"Old Jin, what is it?"

Ren Yuan remembered this lieutenant; he was one recommended by Du Qian to assist in managing the gold and silver of the stronghold.

"Chief, we’ve struck it rich!"

Old Jin signaled the underlings to set the chest on the ground and then flung it open. At that instant, the chest seemed to shimmer with a golden light!

"Look, Chief, there are fifty gold ingots here. I weighed them; they are all ten-tael ingots of pure gold. That’s five hundred taels of gold!"

Five hundred taels of gold! That was truly a significant sum. (Although there was inflation toward the end of the Northern Song Dynasty, the purchasing power of gold and silver remained intact. One tael of gold was roughly equivalent to ten taels of silver. For the sake of calculation, the exchange rate in this story is set at 1:10—one tael of gold equals ten taels of silver.)

Five hundred taels of gold meant five thousand taels of silver, which was equivalent to ten thousand guan of cash! (As mentioned earlier, one tael of silver equaled two guan, and one guan remained equal to one thousand copper coins.)

"Ten thousand guan!"

Yuan Lang and Song Wan realized the magnitude of the discovery. Was this village head really that wealthy?

"It’s more than that! This is just the gold in this chest. He has over two thousand taels of silver in ready cash at his estate, over forty thousand guan in copper coins, not to mention the antiques, calligraphy, paintings, and jewelry! I estimate that altogether, it must be sixty or seventy thousand guan. We’ve made a fortune!"

One could hardly blame Old Jin for his excitement; when they were under the command of the former chief, Wang Lun, they had never seen so much wealth. Wang Lun’s miserly, penny-pinching nature was deeply ingrained in everyone's memory, and with his limited abilities, he could never have acquired such riches in one go.

"What about grain?"

Money was one thing, but provisions were crucial, especially since Song Wan was in charge of Liangshan's food supplies. He cared more about this.

"There is so much grain that we haven't finished counting it yet. Several granaries are filled to the brim, but I estimate at least ten thousand shi. I heard people say this village head also has an underground granary with at least another ten thousand shi, so we are looking at roughly twenty thousand shi of grain in total."

"Furthermore, this village head owns two thousand three hundred mu of high-grade land, one thousand two hundred mu of medium-grade land, and one thousand mu of low-grade land, totaling four thousand five hundred mu. Here are the deeds, the high-interest loan contracts, and so on."

Ren Yuan took the documents and flipped through them. This village head was truly heartless. With nearly four thousand five hundred mu of land, who knew how much of the local people's blood and flesh had been buried in that soil!

And his grain stores—at least twenty thousand shi! That was twenty times the amount Liangshan currently had in stock! With these provisions and wealth, Liangshan could finally recruit men in earnest!

"Twenty thousand shi! How much of the people's sweat and blood is this? This scoundrel has wreaked havoc on Xixi Village for so many years; how much of their blood has he consumed!"

"At the current market price of two guan per shi, this bastard was surely planning to sell it all for a massive profit!"

Yuan Lang cursed, wishing he could bring the wretch back to life just to kill him again.

Ren Yuan looked at the group of tattered, sallow-faced villagers before him, and suddenly, an idea struck him.

"Brothers, I have an idea. I wonder if you agree?"

"Brother, speak your mind," Yuan Lang and Song Wan said in unison, cupping their hands. Whatever Ren Yuan said, they would do.

"The people of Xixi have suffered under this village head for too long. Today, we have raided his entire estate. The people deserve a share of this wealth and grain. I propose distributing it among them. What do you think?"

Ren Yuan’s approach was essentially to "overthrow the local tyrants and redistribute the land." However, since he had not come down from the mountain alone, he needed to consult the others.

"Brother, your benevolence is unparalleled! I have no objections!"

Yuan Lang admired Ren Yuan more and more. Not only was he highly skilled in martial arts, but he also cared deeply for the common folk. Yuan Lang felt that his brother was aiming for more than just being a mere mountain bandit. Following him might lead to a different path entirely.

"I have no objections either. Whatever you decide, Brother, is fine by me," added Song Wan.

"Good, thank you, brothers!"

Having secured their support, Ren Yuan turned to the villagers and shouted:

"Fellow countrymen! I am Ren Yuan of Liangshan! The village head who has brought you such misery has been dealt with by us!"

"Better days are coming! Listen to me: First, I hold the land deeds and loan contracts here. Anyone whose land was forcibly seized by the village head may come to me to reclaim their deeds! The high-interest loans are hereby torn up and declared void!"

As he spoke, Ren Yuan held the documents high. Upon hearing that they could retrieve their land and destroy their debts, many villagers’ eyes began to shine with hope.

"Second, there are over five hundred households in Xixi Village, and almost everyone has been victimized by this man. So, in a moment, I want every household to come to me and receive thirty guan of cash and ten shi of grain! It is not much, but consider it compensation for our intrusion tonight!"

Thirty guan! That was fifteen taels of silver, essentially the living expenses for an average family of three for four months! Ten shi of grain was also enough to feed an average family for four months!

"The Great King is benevolent! The Great King is truly righteous!"

Hearing that their land would be returned, their debts erased, and they would receive cash and grain, the villagers felt as if a miracle had fallen from the sky. Without a second thought, they knelt and kowtowed to Ren Yuan. With this money, everyone could repair their homes, buy furniture, and make new clothes. And with this grain, they would not have to worry about food for the year; their families would not go hungry! This leader from Liangshan was truly a savior. The villagers were already thinking of setting up a shrine to honor Ren Yuan.

"Oh my, Brother, you’re giving away so much." Song Wan felt a pang of heartache. Out of twenty thousand shi of grain, giving away five thousand all at once—how could the man in charge of supplies not feel the pinch?

"Hahaha, Song Wan, didn't you say you’d listen to me? Why the heartache?" Ren Yuan patted Song Wan on the shoulder, smiling to comfort him.

"Brother, it’s not that I disagree with giving out grain, but you’re giving away too much. Three or five shi would have been enough; our stronghold is short on grain, too. And you’ve also given away over fifteen thousand guan!"

Song Wan felt the loss. Giving away fifteen thousand guan and five thousand shi of grain significantly reduced the spoils of their raid. Now, they would only be taking back fifty thousand guan and fifteen thousand shi of grain to the mountain.

"That is still a significant amount, Brother Song Wan." Although Yuan Lang was also shocked by Ren Yuan's generosity, he quickly grasped the underlying reasoning.

"Brother is doing this to build our reputation. Besides, giving someone one shi of grain only makes them praise you with their lips; giving them five shi makes them appreciate you in their hearts; but giving them ten shi makes them willing to risk their lives to follow you! This is what they call 'buying the bones of a thousand-gold horse'—investing heavily to attract talent!"

"I believe that after tonight, more people will want to join our Liangshan!"

"So that’s it! Brother is truly far-sighted!" Song Wan finally understood. When he had roamed the world, he had heard the story of buying the horse's bones, and his complaints vanished.

"Haha, Yuan Lang, I don't have the status of King Zhao of Yan yet," Ren Yuan laughed. For now, Liangshan needed to develop quietly; he would leave the grand gestures for later.

However, the money and grain had to be distributed tonight. It would set a precedent for future "borrowing" operations.

"Most of our brothers come from impoverished backgrounds. We all understand what this money and grain mean to the common people. Furthermore, there is a code in our trade; we rob the rich to help the poor. That is the responsibility of righteous men of the greenwood! When our actions tonight are spread across the martial world, everyone will say: 'The heroes of Liangshan not only stand up for their brothers but also never forget to help the poor and distressed.' That is what it means to be a true, honorable, and loyal hero of the world!"

"Besides, we operate under the banner of 'Acting on Behalf of Heaven.' Is that banner just for show? You are all my right-hand men; I cannot have us being called hypocrites who sell dog meat under a sheep's head!"

Ren Yuan’s words left Yuan Lang and Song Wan deep in thought. Yuan Lang, in particular, realized he still hadn't fully grasped his brother's depth. His ambition was far beyond that of an ordinary mountain bandit.

"Hearing your words, Brother, is worth ten years of study. For such major matters, you shall be the one to decide from now on," Song Wan said, fully convinced.

"Brother is right. Our trade involves too much killing; it is good to perform more acts of merit by distributing wealth and grain." Yuan Lang had no objections; he was now learning to look at the bigger picture.

"Good. Then I establish this rule today: From now on, whenever our Liangshan forces go down the mountain to borrow grain, one-third of the spoils shall be distributed to the local commoners. This will add more luster to our banner of 'Acting on Behalf of Heaven'!"

With a wave of his hand, Ren Yuan set down the iron law of Liangshan, laying the most solid foundation for the future of his mountain fortress.