Chapter 4: I, Sai Xuande, Regard Wealth as Worthless
Little Whirlwind Chai Jin?
Yan Qing was taken aback upon hearing this:
Isn't that one of the heroes from Liangshan?
He knew the relationship between Lu Junyi and the Liangshan heroes, and also that the Liangshan men might come to rescue Lu Junyi...
But they arrived far too quickly!
After all, Lu Junyi had just been captured by the authorities today, and traveling from Daming Prefecture to Liangshan would take at least four or five days...
Could the Liangshan heroes have some supernatural foresight? Otherwise, how could they have arrived at Daming Prefecture on the very same day to rescue Lu Junyi?
Chai Jin then pressed Cai Fu with a mixture of coercion and persuasion:
"...By order of Brother Song Jiang, I have been sent ahead to inquire about Lu Yuanwai’s situation.
"Who would have thought that Lu Yuanwai was framed by corrupt officials and lecherous villains, imprisoned in the death row cell, his life hanging by a thread, all resting in your hands.
"Chai Jin, fearing neither life nor death, has come to inform you.
"If Lu Yuanwai’s life is spared, Buddha himself would look upon you kindly and never forget your great virtue;
"But if there is even the slightest mistake, when the army arrives at the city gates, at the edge of the moat, regardless of wisdom or foolishness, young or old, the walls will be breached, and all heads shall fall!
"I have long heard that you are a loyal and righteous hero. I bring no gifts, but now offer one thousand taels of gold as a humble token.
"If you wish to arrest Chai Jin, please bring the ropes now—I swear I will not flinch."
If this were the original Cai Fu, he would have been drenched in cold sweat, rendered speechless for a long while.
But Cai Fu responded without hesitation:
"Fear not, hero. Lu Yuanwai's life is under my protection, this ‘Sai Xuande’ Cai Fu!"
Sai what?
Chai Jin turned confusedly to look at his crab-faced attendant: wasn’t this fellow called ‘Iron Arm’?
I don’t understand!
The crab-faced attendant was equally baffled:
Perhaps this man, like Brother Song Jiang, has several nicknames—both ‘Iron Arm’ and ‘Sai Xuande’?
That makes sense!
Chai Jin readily accepted this explanation, after all, Song Jiang was known as both ‘Timely Rain’ and ‘Protector of Righteousness.’
Chai Jin gave the crab-faced attendant a nod, who then placed a packet of gold on the table.
Cai Fu asked, "What is this?"
Chai Jin replied, "One thousand taels of gold!"
“Ugh!”
Cai Fu’s face immediately darkened; his brows knitted fiercely, hair bristled with anger, and he slammed the table, declaring righteously:
"I, ‘Sai Xuande,’ promise to protect Lu Yuanwai's life out of loyalty! What kind of man do you take me for?
"I, ‘Sai Xuande,’ treat money as dung—do not insult me with your filth!
"Disgusting!"
"Hiss—"
Chai Jin and the crab-faced attendant involuntarily gasped:
What a man who treats wealth as dung!
Truly worthy of the name ‘Sai Xuande!’
***
Standing behind Cai Fu, Yan Qing’s eyes shone with excitement, feeling Cai Fu’s figure grow ever taller...
“Chai Jin was too hasty!”
Chai Jin quickly kowtowed to Cai Fu:
"I was merely anxious about Lu Yuanwai's life, my concern clouded my judgment..."
“Lu Yuanwai’s life is guaranteed!” Cai Fu patted his broad chest with a resounding slap:
"Not even the grim reapers can take him away, mark my words!
"Now, take away this dung; I, ‘Sai Xuande,’ cannot stand this!
"Take it away, take it away! Ugh, how disgusting!"
"Yes, yes, yes..."
Chai Jin and the crab-faced attendant, ashamed, were driven out by Cai Fu, and before they realized it, they were already on the street...
Standing outside, Chai Jin fumed:
"That stinking flea! What rubbish information did he gather!
"He made Chai Jin waste gold trying to bribe a hero who treats money as dung—truly disgraceful!
"If word gets out, how will the heroes of the world view me?"
The crab-faced attendant said, "Thieves and scoundrels are the most unreliable!
"Fortunately, Sai Xuande’s loyalty is heavenly; in the end, this matter is settled!"
“Hmph!”
Chai Jin was displeased, flicking his sleeve:
"Once this is over, I'll settle the score with that flea!
"Dean Dai, you must report this truthfully to Brother Song Jiang!"
The crab-faced attendant clasped his hands:
"Rest assured, sir, I will report everything truthfully to Brother Song Jiang!
"Sir, I must take my leave now!"
With that, he strode briskly toward the city gates...
...
After driving Chai Jin and the crab-faced attendant out, Cai Fu closed the door, and Yan Qing immediately bowed deeply:
"Brother, your sense of justice is admirable!"
"Brother, please rise!" Cai Fu helped Yan Qing to his feet. "Brother, you understand what’s going on now, don’t you?"
"I understand a little..." Yan Qing’s cheeks flushed. "Please, teach me more!"
"This is a long story, but saving lives comes first."
Cai Fu clapped Yan Qing on the shoulder as they walked inside:
"First, gather the gold and valuables—we’ll return to the prison to rescue your master.
"Once it’s safe, we’ll sit down and talk at length."
Speaking of gold and silver, Cai Fu recalled the one thousand taels of gold just offered...
***
One thousand taels of gold!
Having come from the twenty-first century, Cai Fu deeply understood this truth:
With money, one can travel anywhere; without it, one cannot even take a step.
He also understood another truth: money can make the devil grind the mill; especially a lot of money can make the devil push the oil!
In the original story, Wu Song gave Brother Yun five taels of silver, and Yun thought that five taels would cover expenses for three to five months.
Three to five months of expenses, in the twenty-first century, would equate to at least ten thousand yuan in purchasing power.
Later, Ximen Qing bribed He Jiushu with ten taels of silver to cover up a murder, which converts to roughly twenty thousand yuan.
One tael of gold can exchange for ten taels of silver, so one thousand taels of gold equals twenty million yuan!
But Cai Fu was clear-headed—accepting this one thousand taels of gold would be pointless; when he eventually joined Liangshan, he’d have to return it.
Surely no one would think that the original Cai Fu truly kept this gold?
Rather than wait until he was forced to give it back on Liangshan, better to earn a good reputation now.
At least now, his loyalty and righteousness as ‘Sai Xuande’ had left a deep impression on Chai Jin and Yan Qing.
In the world of Water Margin, reputation is far more useful than gold.
Without reputation, even Song Jiang wouldn’t have survived to join Liangshan.
In front of Yan Qing, Cai Fu opened his “safe,” and his eyes nearly blinded by the dazzling sight!
The “safe” was filled to the brim with shining gold, gleaming silver, and sparkling jewels...
Oh no!
Cai Fu’s heart skipped a beat:
If I said this filth wasn’t picked up by me, would you believe it?
“Hiss—”
Yan Qing couldn’t help but suck in a breath, overwhelmed by the stench of money:
Good heavens, you said you treat money like dung!
Why then have you built a cesspit right here in your bedroom?
“Brother, all these are ill-gotten gains!”
Cai Fu, expression unchanged, slung an arm around Yan Qing’s shoulders and said:
"A gentleman loves wealth but obtains it righteously!
"Like Li Gu’s five hundred taels of gold—if I didn’t take them, he would have given them to someone else to harm Lu Yuanwai!
"So I must take it!
"But that one thousand taels of gold from Chai Jin, I will never take!
"Saving Lu Yuanwai is out of loyalty; if I took that gold, what kind of man would I be?
"Little Yi, don’t you agree with this reasoning?"
Yan Qing thought carefully: "Brother, you’re right!"
Especially since Cai Fu had just refused the one thousand taels of gold right before his eyes, making his words all the more convincing.
Cai Fu packed the original Cai Fu’s ill-gotten gains into two large bundles and set off with Yan Qing to rescue their master from the prison.
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