Chapter 107: Uncle Fu of the Teahouse

"Uncle Xiang, please forgive me! I truly do not know." Ding Li had no intention of hiding anything regarding this matter; he was genuinely ignorant of it. However, he caught a subtle shift in the expression on Uncle Xiang's seemingly calm face. After a brief hesitation, Ding Li pondered for a moment and continued, "Uncle Xiang, since you have already investigated my family background, you must understand that my mother, Madame Ding, passed away several years ago. She had mentioned this courtesy name to me before she died, but as for who actually chose it, I have no way of knowing."

Ding Li spoke with a solemnity that did not seem at all fabricated, and his words aligned perfectly with the information Uncle Xiang had gathered. Yet, sometimes information that is too perfect inevitably hides secrets. For instance, Uncle Xiang could never have discovered that Ding Li still possessed a family genealogy record, which clearly stated that Ding Li’s biological father bore the surname Li.

Uncle Xiang thought for a moment, perhaps deciding it was not worth pressing the issue, and with a slight nod and a soft sigh, he brought the topic to a close. Suddenly, he gestured toward the teahouse owner sitting nearby, his face brightening with a genial smile as he introduced him: "Ah Li, this is Zhang Fu. You may call him Uncle Fu from now on! Running a teahouse is merely his public cover. In reality, Uncle Fu is the eyes and ears of our entire Zhang Clan Merchant Guild. The countless pieces of intelligence that enter this teahouse every day are all sorted and vetted by him before being passed on to the Elder of the Zhang family! Whenever you need information in the future, you can come to this Mingxiang Teahouse and seek out Uncle Fu."

"Uncle Fu, this is the rising star of our Zhang Clan Merchant Guild, the leader of the Nanhai Gang! Ding Li, Ding Ziyi!" As he spoke, Uncle Xiang introduced Ding Li, though his smile and the sharp glint that flashed in his eyes as he looked at Uncle Fu seemed to carry a deeper meaning.

"Uncle Fu! I look forward to your guidance in the future!" Ding Li quickly turned and offered a respectful bow. He did not dare to be the least bit negligent toward this man. Regardless of whether it was a gang, a merchant guild, or even the army or the state, the status and capability of those who handled intelligence could never be underestimated. Seeing the seemingly kind-hearted teahouse owner—especially when observing that face which seemed perpetually fixed in a cheerful smile—Ding Li felt a strange sensation in his heart. It took a certain kind of person to possess such profound depth and cunning.

"Don't be so formal! Since we are all family now, there is no need for such courtesies!" Uncle Fu maintained his jovial expression, yet his words were not mere pleasantries. He reached out to physically support Ding Li’s arms as he bowed, then continued with a laugh: "Ah Li, if we were to talk about seniority in the Zhang Clan Merchant Guild today, you might still be lacking. But in terms of status, you are the leader of the Nanhai Gang! How could this old bag of bones accept such a grand gesture?"

"Uncle Fu is too kind! It is only what a junior should do!" Seeing that Uncle Fu did not care for formalities, Ding Li set the social ritual aside. After sitting back down and glancing at the calm, smiling Uncle Xiang opposite him, Ding Li turned to the newly acquainted Uncle Fu and asked, "Uncle Fu, if I may be so bold, what is your take on what happened at the docks?"

"Haha! You are referring to the Cao and Tian families joining forces against your Nanhai Gang!" Uncle Fu smiled slightly and gave Ding Li a meaningful look, a gaze so piercing it nearly made Ding Li want to bury his head under the table. None of the three men present were fools; they all understood that Ding Li was testing the extent of Uncle Fu’s intelligence network.

Uncle Fu shook his head with a smile, though there was not a trace of reproach in his expression. He set the spoon he had been using for the boiling water back into the kettle, shifted his position, and straightened his back. His smile remained, but it was now laced with evident seriousness, and his tone remained as gentle as before: "Ah Li, since you are no longer an outsider, I will be straight with you. As long as something happens here in Guangzhou Prefecture, if I want to know about it, nothing can escape me! You were the one who entered the city with the boy Jingyi when the gates were opened this morning, weren't you?"

"This..." Ding Li was instantly startled. He had not expected the Zhang Clan Merchant Guild’s intelligence operations to be this rigorous. Even if it was limited to Guangzhou Prefecture, the result was enough to astound him.

"Do not be surprised; that is merely a trifle! Since you asked, I, this old man, will tell you—consider it a welcoming gift." Under Ding Li’s stunned gaze, Uncle Fu finally dropped a spoonful of fragrant tea leaves into the boiling water. He stirred it slightly, covered the pot, and then slowly looked up at Ding Li, a subtle, knowing laugh in his voice: "Using the current influence of the Chaozhou Gang’s militia to seize our goods at the docks—only those two little brats from the Cao and Tian families could come up with such a low-level tactic. They think that seizing our goods for a few days will hurt the Zhang Clan Merchant Guild’s foundation? Do they not know that even the goods of the Zhang Clan must pay taxes to the Tang Dynasty’s Commissioner of Shipping?"

Just as he was speaking, hurried footsteps echoed from the stairs, and Uncle Fu paused. He turned his head toward the stairwell to see a neatly dressed teahouse waiter peering over. Uncle Fu nodded slightly, and the man quickly trotted over, whispering a few words into Uncle Fu’s ear. Uncle Fu nodded repeatedly, a smile spreading across his face, before waving the man away. Only then did he turn back to Ding Li, but the look in his eyes now held a hint of approval.

"Ah Li, you handled the situation at the docks very well!" This cheerful praise left Ding Li somewhat confused. Uncle Fu turned his gaze to Uncle Xiang, nodding as he continued his commendation: "Ah Li did a fine job this time. Instead of clashing with them at the docks, he sent people to stabilize the laborers and bought their hearts for a few dozen strings of cash!"

Ding Li had once been a dock laborer himself and knew how hard it was to make a living; his decision had been made purely out of concern for the workers. He had not expected to receive such high praise from Uncle Fu. Hearing this, Uncle Xiang nodded repeatedly, casting a similarly appreciative gaze toward Ding Li.

The fragrance of tea wafted from the kettle on the stove. Uncle Fu turned his attention back to the tea he was brewing, leaving Ding Li and Uncle Xiang to ponder the dock situation. He leisurely poured the hot tea into the pot, refilled it with boiling water, and filled each of their cups with the aromatic brew before finally pausing. With a gesture, he did not continue the previous topic, but instead picked up his cup and took a slow, gentle sip.

Seeing this, Ding Li held his composure and did not press for more, patiently picking up his own cup to savor the tea. Uncle Xiang did the same. Uncle Fu, in particular, seemed to take immense pleasure in the tea he had brewed himself. For a while, the three men remained silent, the only sounds being the crackle of the stove and the bubbling of the water in the kettle.

Only after finishing his fourth cup did Uncle Fu let out a long breath, a look of satisfaction on his face. He pushed the cup aside, cast a lingering glance at the dregs remaining at the bottom, and sighed softly before resuming the previous conversation: "Ah Li, the goods at the docks are currently seized by the militia. The ones suffering the greatest loss are actually neither our Zhang Clan Merchant Guild nor the Nanhai Gang. Do you know who it is?"

"This, well..." Ding Li was about to speak, but he suddenly realized the question was not as simple as it sounded. He paused, his thoughts racing, his thick eyebrows knitting together. After a moment of contemplation, he tentatively analyzed: "If we consider the long term, we can certainly weather this current situation for three, five, or even ten days. But the owners of those merchant ships and the dock laborers cannot hold out; after all, this is their primary source of income. Furthermore, I believe the Shipping Commissioner's Office will not let this state of affairs continue, as tax revenue is crucial. Moreover, as far as I know, a portion of that revenue goes toward supporting the officials of the Shipping Commissioner's Office and various other factions closely linked to them. The greatest loss, all things considered, should be theirs."

"Well said!" No sooner had he finished than Uncle Fu and Uncle Xiang spoke in unison, praising him. The two exchanged a smile, and as Uncle Xiang nodded repeatedly, Uncle Fu took up the thread: "You are absolutely right! That sum of money is not small, and it accumulates through sheer volume. If the docks stop for a day, it is not just us who suffer; their losses are even greater! Furthermore, while the Zhang Clan is a single entity, the Shipping Commissioner's Office is a hotbed of competing factions. Given their tempers, they surely won't tolerate the antics of the Chaozhou Gang’s 'Third Master Liu' for long. Of course, that is unless Third Master Liu can compensate for all the losses incurred."

"What about the Cao Clan Merchant Guild? Uncle Fu, Uncle Xiang, can the Cao Clan’s financial strength not sustain this?" Ding Li blurted this out almost instinctively, though he immediately regretted it.

"Ah Li, the Cao Clan is only loud in name. They only stand in Guangzhou Prefecture because of the close relationship between the Observation Commissioner and the Shipping Commissioner! If we speak purely of maritime trade and true financial power, we could trample three Cao Clans under our feet!" A different expression finally emerged on Uncle Fu’s smiling face—contempt, arrogance, and pride. As he spoke, he seemed even happier than if he were the head of the Zhang Clan Merchant Guild himself.

"Don't forget, Ah Li, the incident at Little Nanhai in Fuxu Town dealt a heavy blow to the Cao Clan Merchant Guild!" Uncle Xiang chimed in with a smile. As he mentioned the events at Fuxu Town, his smile grew even broader: "That is why we have allowed the Cao Clan to expand their influence for so long. The path they take relies on crooked methods and forming cliques. Having suffered such a setback, they have to swallow their grievances. If they conducted legitimate business like our Zhang Clan and maintained a good reputation among the people, the garrison at Fuxu Town would have surely intervened during the incident at Little Nanhai!"

Ding Li finally understood. The Cao Clan Merchant Guild had been supporting various gang factions to engage in infighting. Even when conflicts arose, they were treated as underground gang struggles, and neither the local government nor the military wanted to get involved. Even the Cao Clan itself did not want to drag the authorities into the fray. That was why Zhang Mingzhi had decided to strike hard at Fuxu Town. Just as Uncle Xiang said, they had smashed the Cao Clan’s teeth in, and the only thing the opponent could do was swallow them in silence.