Fourth Master and his party found the Prefect of Jinan and ordered him to immediately send people to search for the person. Only the Prefect of Jinan knew Fourth Master's identity; the others were unaware. They wisely refrained from asking further questions and simply followed Fourth Master's instructions to search for Geng and her servants among the beggars throughout the city.
It was already completely dark when Fourth Master led his men to search the entire city for Geng Shi's whereabouts, looking for places where beggars gathered. Suddenly, government officials burst into many beggar dens throughout Jinan, immediately searching for anyone unusual.
Fourth Master, Thirteenth Master, and Cui Da and Cui Er, led by the head constable, began their search from the largest beggar's den in the city, but they could not find Geng Shi anywhere.
"Officer Zhang, do these people have some kind of gang leader?" Fourth Master asked, seeing that he was still unable to find Geng Shi quickly despite searching one by one.
"Yes, their Beggars' Clan has a very strict organizational structure. There are dozens of elders alone, and they are further classified according to their functions. The few we just visited were their branch halls. The ones who were talking to me are their elders." Zhang, the head constable, only received direct orders from the prefect to help these people find someone, but he was not told the Fourth Master's true identity.
"Go find their gang leader immediately and have him gather all the elders and hall masters for a meeting, then have my men identify them. That will be faster," Fourth Master said.
Constable Zhang glanced at Fourth Master. Although he knew Fourth Master was likely a person of status who had come up, his tone and manner clearly showed a lack of awareness of the immense power of the Beggars' Gang in Jinan. While the Beggars' Gang leader was merely the head of a gang—to the uninformed, he was just a beggar's leader, not a particularly important figure—the locals of Jinan understood that the Beggars' Gang leader's abilities sometimes far surpassed those of a constable like himself. In fact, the Beggars' Gang leader could accomplish things that even the Jinan prefect couldn't. For example, the Beggars' Gang didn't just operate in Jinan; they had branches and disciples throughout the country. In a sense, the Beggars' Gang leader was the "local emperor" of beggars, far exceeding the power of a prefectural magistrate.
"What, the Beggars' Clan leader refuses?" Fourth Master asked, seeing the troubled look on Zhang the constable's face.
"My lord, you are unaware of this. Although this Beggar Clan leader is also a beggar, he has numerous disciples, with branches not only in Jinan but also throughout the country. He commands great respect. Our Prefect has also met this leader. It is said that he is righteous and decisive, with a few minor flaws, but he never does anything illegal or unethical, and has always maintained peaceful relations with the imperial court," said Constable Zhang.
Fourth Master understood the unspoken meaning in Constable Zhang's words: the Beggars' Clan leader wasn't employed by the imperial court, nor did he act on its orders. Although he was a beggar, he held considerable status and power, and wasn't someone easily met. Other sects, like the Canal Gang, which made its living selling salt, were subject to the court's control; similarly, Buddhist and Taoist sects had their own disciples and ways of life. All such sects couldn't afford to offend the government and often had to deal with certain government departments. Only the Beggars' Clan was completely independent of the government. They had no business of their own, relying entirely on begging or performing favors for a living. Therefore, they were neither afraid of nor involved with the government, which was why Constable Zhang was in a dilemma.
"Then, according to your suggestion, how can we meet this gang leader and secure his help?" Fourth Master asked directly after he had figured it out.
"This gang leader's surname is Guo, as I know. This Gang Leader Guo loves wine. Everyone has a weakness, and once you find his Achilles' heel, it's easy to get his help. If you don't mind, sir, I'd be willing to take you to meet this gang leader. Bring his favorite wine, and with my limited influence, I can try to mediate. Perhaps Gang Leader Guo will agree to help," said Constable Zhang. In truth, he greatly admired Gang Leader Guo. As a constable, he inevitably dealt with all sorts of people, and the Beggars' Sect had the most members. He learned many rumors from them. This was one of the reasons the Beggars' Sect had remained the largest and most powerful sect for so long—numerous members, many informants, and no one dared to offend them.
When the Thirteenth Prince heard the constable speak so highly of a beggar, he couldn't help but feel uncomfortable. How could a prince like them bring fine wine to see a beggar leader? If word got out, the Eighth and Ninth Princes would laugh them to death.
"Alright, Thirteen, go buy some wine, preferably five or six jars. Let's go meet this gang leader," Fourth Master said nonchalantly.
Seeing that Fourth Master didn't lose his temper, Thirteen was too embarrassed to say anything, so he could only take Cui Da and Cui Er to buy wine.
Officer Zhang found a gang leader and asked him to lead them to capture the gang leader, who happened to be in Jinan recently.
Fourth Master, Thirteenth Master, and Cui Da and Cui Er, carrying wine, followed Constable Zhang and some yamen runners to a mansion that wasn't very grand, but was quite large inside.
Fourth Master noticed that everyone inside was dressed as beggars, but they all looked quite relaxed and content. The women were all engaged in maids and nannies, while some of the young male believers were doing housekeeping and various rough jobs. It seemed no different from any other wealthy family.
"I didn't expect that a group of beggars would have such a nice place to stay. They have maids and nannies, as well as servants and thugs." Thirteen said as he walked in with Fourth Master.
"The Beggars' Sect has always been known as the number one sect in the world. It's not surprising that the sect leader has his own residence," Fourth Master said.
They followed Constable Zhang and the hall master deeper into the sect. Along the way, people kept greeting the hall master, and he would exchange a few words of sect coded language with them. Fourth Master and the others couldn't understand what he meant.
They passed through three large houses before finally being led to a house that was considered auspicious from a feng shui perspective. The house was surrounded by artificial hills in front and behind, and an artificial river had been dug in front of the door.
"I didn't expect this gang leader's courtyard to be even more impressive than mine. It's just that I don't have these rocks there." Thirteen used the light from the lanterns hanging everywhere to see the layout of the house.
"It seems this gang leader is quite particular about feng shui. Let's go in and pay him a visit." A faint smile appeared on Fourth Master's lips. He had been keeping a tense expression ever since he learned of Geng's disappearance, but now, seeing the Beggar Gang leader's "mansion," he actually smiled.
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