Chapter 58 Taking Precautions

That is all for the pinned comments; I will replenish them for you next month. I am just used to batch-pinning them now...

After Su Shuang and Zhang Shiping departed, Chen Xi resumed sipping his tea. Things simply operated this way during this era: even after completing all your administrative duties, you were still required to wait until the designated closing time before you could leave. What you chose to do during the interval after finishing your tasks was completely inconsequential, provided you did not violate ritual propriety.

Chen Xi maintained his pleasant habit of taking an afternoon nap, dozing off right at the official desk with his head propped in his hand, until he was finally shaken awake by Jian Yong, who had just wrapped up his own administrative workload for the day.

"Oh, oh, is the time up already?" Chen Xi muttered, letting out a yawn as he prepared to walk out, only to be grabbed firmly by the shoulder by Jian Yong.

"The time is not up yet!" Jian Yong dragged Chen Xi back, pressing him firmly into the master seat. "The third quarter of the Wei hour has not arrived."

"Ha, then why did you wake me? Is there anything that cannot be handled? That shouldn't be the case; by now, only trivial matters are left," Chen Xi said with half-closed eyes, mirroring the expression of Lord Guan. He looked thoroughly arrogant, though in reality, he was merely half-asleep and entirely devoid of energy.

"There is nothing pressing, I merely wanted to look over the contract you drew up with Zhang and Su," Jian Yong said, shaking his head. "You laid out the broad framework and the objectives, and we merely filled in the details. Once you explained it clearly, there was nothing truly unmanageable."

"Mm, it is just resting right on top of that stack of bamboo slips. You can reach it with a stretch of your arm, so why wake me?" Chen Xi opened his hazy eyes, looking blankly at Jian Yong. He was still too drowsy to even muster the energy to lose his temper.

Having obtained Chen Xi's tacit permission, Jian Yong reached over, picked up the piece of white cloth, and began to read. As he read, he nodded slightly, his brows finally knitting together only when he reached the final three clauses.

Having sipped some tea to clear his head, Chen Xi looked at Jian Yong and said, "If there is any issue, just speak your mind." He let out a yawn, thinking how wonderful it was to sit with an unpretentious literati like Jian Yong. Had he been sitting with an aristocrat among scholars like Chen Qun, acting in such a manner would likely have prompted the man to leap forward and accuse him of looking down upon him.

"Let us set aside the preceding clauses for now; they merely concern operational methods and the allocation of funds. However, I can understand these final three clauses, yet I fail to grasp what you are attempting to achieve," Jian Yong said, raising his head.

"Ah, those preceding parts can be filled in casually; these final three clauses are what truly matter. Zilong, you should listen in as well; you may find it useful in the future," Chen Xi said, turning his head toward Zhao Yun, who was still quietly attending to his official duties.

Zhao Yun looked up, took the piece of white cloth handed over by Jian Yong, swept his gaze across it to grasp the gist, and then looked back up, intending to hear Chen Xi's explanation.

"It is nothing much. The third clause from the bottom is meant to prevent the two of them from monopolizing the entire market, while simultaneously serving as preparation for the second clause from the bottom. That second clause is designed to plant our own people at various levels. Once we extend our reach into more industries down the road, we can interlace these placements and combine them with single-line contacts. That way, we will possess a secure and usable intelligence network. For now, we will simply make do with it; it is still vastly superior to being completely blind as we were before," Chen Xi said with a faint smile.

When Sun Jian had fallen in battle previously, intelligence regarding the event had reached Liu Bei's camp far too late—and that was only because someone had deliberately passed the word along to him. Otherwise, there was no telling how long it would have taken for them to find out. What a prime opportunity that had been for planting scouts and the like!

"Mm, it is indeed a clever idea. Being embedded with credentials from the higher authorities of various commanderies and counties makes it exceedingly difficult for anyone to take notice. As for single-line contacts..." Jian Yong trailed off, gesturing toward Chen Xi with his eyes.

"The higher-level contact does not show their face, but instead communicates with the lower level each time using a specific, clandestine method. As for what that specific method might be, you may ponder it yourselves. Reports are transmitted through similarly unique channels. It essentially amounts to ensuring that neither level is aware of the other's identity," Chen Xi said with a shrug.

"Then how can one be certain that the information is actually being transmitted from the lower tier to the upper tier?" Although Jian Yong might lag somewhat behind the renowned ministers of the Three Kingdoms, he was no fool, and he instantly pinpointed the vulnerability of such a system.

"There is an outsider who knows. The primary existence of this outsider is to verify whether the two parties passing the intelligence are legitimate, and to transmit information under exceptionally critical circumstances," Chen Xi said with a smile. "However, this chance is granted only once. Regardless of whether their cover is blown thereafter, they will be reassigned to work in a completely different location, or recalled entirely." When he uttered these words, Chen Xi's expression turned grave and solemn.

"This method is sheer brilliance!" A sharp gleam flashed through Zhao Yun's eyes, and before he could speak, Jian Yong had already voiced the thought for him.

"Oh, sinceXianhe finds it so brilliant, let this matter be handled by Xianhe himself," Chen Xi said casually, tossing a small bundle toward Jian Yong.

Zhao Yun chuckled softly while Jian Yong wore a look of utter dejection. He truly ought not to have chimed in; following Chen Xi's logic, since he already grasped the importance of the matter and the ingenuity of the method, it naturally fell upon him to execute it. Zhao Yun had taken an undeserved bullet previously, and now it was Jian Yong's turn to take the hit.

"Of course, the final clause is the most crucial of all," Chen Xi said solemnly after taking a sip of tea. "The final clause forms the foundation for all the preceding ones. Whether it is planting our personnel, dealing with a future falling-out between the two parties, or needing to replace them, that final clause ensures we always stand upon the moral high ground of righteousness."

"Oh?" Zhao Yun and Jian Yong both furrowed their brows as they stared at Chen Xi, until Zhao Yun finally asked, "But what about the right of interpretation?"

"Ah, the so-called ultimate right of interpretation simply means that I get to interpret it however I please. If I declare it black, then it is black; even if it is white, it remains black. As for these merchants, if any of them dare to play tricks on us, I certainly do not mind making them cough up both their principal and their profits combined," Chen Xi said casually, uttering words devoid of any conscience.

"Doing so will create massive complications. Finding businessmen willing to deal with us in the future will become exceedingly troublesome," Jian Yong said with a wry smile. He harbored no ill feelings toward Chen Xi's methods, merely sensing that this particular stratagem would somewhat impair their reputation.

"Rest assured, the great Confucian scholars will be able to comprehend it," Chen Xi said, curling his lip.

"..." Jian Yong stared at Chen Xi in speechless silence.

"I am merely joking. At the very least, this approach demonstrates that our moral integrity is sound, and that any issues arise solely from the merchants having read too few books. That is all," Chen Xi nonchalantly shifted the blame onto the merchants.

"Zichuan, cease the joking. Speak the truth; you know precisely what I wish to convey," Jian Yong said, frowning.

"Very well, I understand. Let me state this first: provided the merchants do not betray us, I will never invoke that ultimate right of interpretation. The moment I am forced to invoke it, I will enshrine this provision directly into the penal code." Chen Xi yawned as he searched through the pile of white cloth for the items he needed.

Jian Yong contemplated the matter for a long time before letting out a sigh. "Zichuan has seized all the benefits and then, fearing others might profit as well, cleanly blocked every alternative path." With a hearty laugh, he handed the white cloth to Zhao Yun, who was seated nearby.

"You ought to call it taking precautions against a rainy day. How can you say otherwise when I am doing this for the sake of the common people under our governance, sparing them from being taken advantage of later?" Chen Xi said with a shrug. "This feels truly tedious. I wonder if General Guan and General Zhang have managed to clarify the general whereabouts of the Mount Tai bandits yet."