A cold smile tugged at the corner of Cai Sitong's lips as he witnessed the scene.
The Huang family's defection was something he had anticipated, a pre-arranged move between their two sides that simply hadn't been publicized yet. Now, it was the perfect opportunity to deal with Qian Lang!
A jolt of shock went through Qian Lang at the sight. The Huang, Yu, and Zhou families, being the only remaining families with actual cargo ships setting sail, had always moved in unison. He had initially thought the Cai family's collusive partner would be the Wang or Zhang families, but he never expected this fellow to quietly ally with the Huangs…
"Young Master Huang speaks wisely. In business, harmony brings wealth…"
Indeed, just as Huang Linghe took a few steps away, Yu Zhenhai, the chief manager of the Yu family, cupped his hands towards Qian Lang and walked towards the door.
"My apologies, gentlemen, we shall take our leave first!"
After seeing the two of them depart, Cai Sitong finally nodded with satisfaction. He then cast a meaningful glance at Qian Lang before turning and striding away.
"Student Huang Linghe pays his respects, sir!"
"Commoner Cai Sitong pays his respects, sir!"
"Elderly Yu Zhenhai pays his respects, sir!"
At the entrance of the Zhuangyuan Tower, as the three of them emerged together, even passing pedestrians stopped to watch the spectacle.
"Only three have arrived?"
After the three had spoken, Han Mo's voice came again from the carriage.
"They… they might have other concerns," Huang Linghe interjected before Cai Sitong could speak.
"Concerns? That's fine. This official can wait until they've had a change of heart! This official is not in a hurry, and I presume you are not either?"
Upon hearing Han Mo's words, Cai Sitong's mouth twitched. It seemed Lord Han was determined to force Qian Lang and the others to descend and greet him today!
"Your Lordship jest. You manage affairs of state, while we are merely merchants engaged in petty dealings. If Your Lordship is not in a hurry, how could we possibly be?"
From the moment they descended the stairs, the three families had resolved to pledge allegiance to Han Mo. How could they possibly disagree with Han Mo over such a trivial matter now?
"Since that is the case, we shall wait a little longer!"
After Han Mo spoke, silence once again descended from the carriage. The pressure now returned to Qian Lang and the others.
"Brother Qian, that fellow surnamed Han still hasn't alighted. This is clearly forcing us to declare our stance!"
"It doesn't seem right to just leave him waiting like this…"
Although the Wang and Zhang families were also listed among the original eight great families, their foundations and strength were far from comparable to the Qian family. Their continued existence was partly due to opportunity and partly due to the support of the Qian family. Their businesses overlapped too much with the Qian family's. If the Qian family hadn't disdained such ventures, this market segment wouldn't have been available to them. It could be said that if the Qian family wanted to destroy them, it would take no more than a few months to turn years of their hard work into ashes. For whatever reason, they naturally had no choice but to follow the Qian family's lead.
"What are you panicking about? Does he dare to extort and seize by force? If he really does that, are we, the several great families, afraid of him?"
Although Qian Lang also reluctantly wanted to deal with Han Mo from the bottom of his heart, the family's interests came first. He had no choice but to come forward!
"Kill—"
"Kill—"
"Kill—"
However, as soon as Qian Lang's words fell, a wave of battle cries, reaching the heavens, erupted from somewhere.
"This is…"
Upon hearing these piercing battle cries, the complexions of the remaining four men turned grim. This was a blatant show of force!
"Nephew Qian, perhaps we should then…"
After a moment of silence, Zhou Gan couldn't help but let out a wry laugh and said. Although they knew this was Han Mo's maneuver, they had to admit that Han Mo truly had the capital for it now.
According to the original Song Dynasty's official system, they could completely disregard Han Mo, the Coastal Pacification Commissioner. After all, the Song Dynasty's official system emphasized mutual checks and balances, and the entire system was almost pushed to the extreme of balance. Those who led troops had no authority to deploy them, and those who could deploy troops had no authority to lead them. Without a court order, let alone thousands of troops, anything exceeding fifty men would result in beheading! However, the Fang La rebellion directly shattered all balance. To quickly quell the rebellion, the court was forced to delegate the power to deploy troops to the Pacification Commissioner's Yamen. And Zhao Zhen, the Pacification Commissioner of the Six Southeast Circuits, for various reasons, directly transferred the deployment authority of the Mingzhou Navy and Quanzhou Navy to Han Mo. Coupled with Han Mo's position as the Coastal Pacification Commissioner of the Liangzhe and Fujian Circuits, it could be said that he had them completely under his thumb. Unless they abandoned overseas trade, they would have to obediently be controlled by Han Mo.
"You all need to think clearly. If you yield today, from now on, this sea will truly have a different name!"
Seeing their panicked expressions, Qian Lang felt a sense of despair, wishing they could achieve more. This was almost their last chance to struggle. At least, as of now, nearly sixty percent of the silk, brocade, and mid-to-high-end porcelain production in the southeast was in their hands. If they could withstand the pressure, they might even force Han Mo to abandon his unrealistic idea. But the problem was, even though he was unwilling in his heart of hearts, he had to admit that the people around him seemed to be on the verge of surrender.
"Dong—dong—dong—"
"Dong—dong—dong—"
"Dong—dong—dong—"
A muffled sound of war drums once again shattered the silence in the room.
"Brother Qian, I apologize. Our Zhou family relies on the sea, and we cannot afford to offend the Mingzhou Navy and the Quanzhou Navy…"
Listening to the sound of war drums in the distance, Zhou Gan finally gave a wry smile, turned, and headed downstairs.
At this point, Qian Lang was utterly despairing. The three remaining major merchant families had all now pledged allegiance to Han Mo. Even if he wanted to persist, the Wang and Zhang families would not accompany him to the bitter end…
"Nephew, let it go. We've earned enough money over the years. If we continue to resist, I fear they might actually resort to force…"