Chapter SixteenIn the weeks that followed, Xiong Tao became my quartermaster and recruiting officer. Her brother’s rented bullocks wore away a track between Terang and the valley, and every time he brought me more stone he brought more men and women too. Soon I entrusted the pair with all my gold, being only vaguely aware of the cashflow as more transport became available, the road was graded, and the train track from Melbourne to Ballarat grew an extra branch for Terang. Xiong conceived and organised an international ice-shipping business that provided useful cover for the sudden influx of business in the tiny town. When troopers came to investigate, the road to the valley disappeared in dust and brush overnight, the fashion standards of the town suddenly dropped, and no one had heard of
